Chapter 200: A Brief Separation

The mages couldn't persuade one another, and things returned to how they were before. After all, once someone decides something and believes it's right, no one can change their mind. Shaoke was like this, and Mage Roman was the same.

Mage Roman summoned a few soldiers. These precious books were carefully placed in boxes padded with soft cloth, then carried away by the soldiers and transported to the Legion Commander for other high-ranking mages to interpret and copy. Of course, to show sincerity, the Legion Commander also brought Shaoke a large quantity of top-grade medicines suitable for Fourth Tier Mages, a substantial amount of gold coins, along with a batch of scrolls and crystals sealed with spells, all contained within a magic bag.

Mages of the Sixth-tier and above in the camp suddenly disappeared. While the other mages didn't know where they had gone, Shaoke understood they had been summoned by the Legion Commander for copying duties. With nothing urgent to do for the time being, Shaoke devoted a large portion of his time each day to practicing spells. After all, he hadn't been a Fourth Tier Mage for very long; many fourth-tier spells he could only cast successfully, nowhere near as proficient as he had been with third-tier spells back in the Death Mage Corps.

On this day, just as Shaoke had finished practicing spells with other mages in the simple training ground, the sleazy officer found him again. Clearly, after a long period of peaceful life, Shaoke's mood was somewhat better than during his time in the Death Mage Corps, at least he thought so himself. That this interruption didn't anger him much was proof enough.

"Mage Xueye, I'm afraid you're in trouble this time," said the sleazy officer with a strange grin, eagerly imparting the news he brought after Shaoke left the spell practice ground. "The Legion Commander has appointed you to temporarily go out with me on a mission. Heh! You can refuse, but then I can't guarantee the beautiful Alchemist Roman won't be buried in work."

After saying this, he saw Shaoke glaring fiercely at him. Several Blizzard Warriors protecting him seemed to sense something and immediately drew their giant sabers, surrounding Shaoke. It looked as though if this mage made a hostile move toward their leader, those sharp sabers would not hesitate to cut him in half.

"Well... actually, this was Alchemist Roman's request," the sleazy officer said, perhaps feeling Shaoke's emotional fluctuations were too strong, still wearing his strange grin as he looked at Shaoke. "She said you're cooped up in your room all day, either studying or practicing spells, which is seriously detrimental to your well-being, so she asked me to help take you out for a walk."

Hearing the sleazy officer's explanation, Shaoke suddenly understood. It turned out Mage Roman had mentioned this matter to him some time ago. She hoped Shaoke could go outside for a change, instead of being stuck in the camp all day studying spell knowledge. Of course, he had agreed to the mage's suggestion at the time. He just hadn't expected her to arrange it so quickly.

After getting Shaoke's confirmation, the sleazy officer tried to take Shaoke to an inn in the city to rest. Seeing the officer's leering grin, Shaoke refused without hesitation. "I'll leave when it's time for the mission. I need to practice spells now," he said, intending to leave, but the sleazy officer stopped him.

"Alright! Mage Xueye, the location for our mission this time is actually an inn. We need to thoroughly check out its staff and quality of service," the officer said, once again chuckling, a stream of saliva dripping from his crooked mouth, which he casually wiped off and flicked to the ground. "And we also need to inspect the bodies of the maids there, to see if they are suitable for practicing spells."

The sleazy officer's words made Shaoke somewhat embarrassed. Fortunately, after going on by himself for a while, the officer finally got to the main point. "Mage Xueye, this time we are to lead troops to patrol the surrounding areas of this city. And it will be for a relatively long time, so be prepared," he said, then left the mage camp with his Blizzard Warriors. However, before leaving, he added the specific timeframe: "For at least half a year."

After leaving the spellcasting training ground, Shaoke went alone to Mage Roman's room. He knocked on the door and called out to the mage inside. A familiar mental probe swept over Shaoke, then the occupant inside became busy, loudly reminding Shaoke to wait a moment. Although somewhat unused to it, he quietly leaned against the wall to wait. This amused several other female mages who were observing the situation, though Shaoke was unaware of it.

The door opened. Mage Roman, with a calm expression, welcomed Shaoke inside and prepared wine for him. The room was quite messy. Many items were scattered on the floor, and the wide writing desks were covered with numerous strange objects: delicate copper jars, small glass bottles, many jade vials, small boxes containing various magic materials. Several female nightgowns were thrown haphazardly on the bed, and many books were left open and placed randomly. It all looked like it couldn't be tidied up quickly.

"Is it a bit messy?" Mage Roman asked, her expression somewhat unnatural after seeing Shaoke survey the situation. Ever since she officially became a full-fledged alchemist, she had turned everything in the entire room into a mess. Moreover, another alchemist who hadn't yet completed her transition had joined in. Under the guidance of the two alchemists, Mage Yisier and the White-robed Cleric, who often helped with experiments, further increased the likelihood of the room being in such a state.

"It's a lot like your uncle's laboratory back then," Shaoke couldn't help but pinch the mage's cheek. "I feel you need a proper laboratory," he said, involuntarily thinking of the mage towers mentioned in novels from his previous life. Although he had been here for a long time, he had never seen a real mage tower, nor had he heard anyone mention them or read about them in books. The sudden idea of building a mage tower for Mage Roman was quickly confirmed by Shaoke, though he currently lacked the ability to realize it.

"There are already several laboratories here, but I don't like staying in them," Mage Roman said, grabbing Shaoke's hand and carefully examining it to see if it was better than before. Of course, this examination satisfied her; at least the emaciated hand had improved a lot, though it still needed much more time to recover to a normal mage's level. "It feels very uncomfortable there, and I don't get enough help when conducting experiments."

Mage Roman then showed Shaoke the empty stone bead still soaking in the medicinal solution. She pointed to the medicinal liquids and said, "If it were just me alone, I wouldn't have been able to prepare these properly. Fortunately, the others helped." She added, "These liquids need to be changed daily, and preparing a batch consumes a large amount of our magic power and takes four or five magic hours." Mage Roman mentioned several other matters related to being an alchemist, using them to complain about the lack of manpower.

However, she soon stopped, feeling that constantly complaining wouldn't yield any results. After asking Shaoke about his reason for coming, the mage nodded in agreement with his explanation. "After talking with you last time, I requested the Legion Commander. Fortunately, he agreed to my request," she said, a trace of pride involuntarily appearing on her face, though she quickly regained her composure.

After discussing the matter, Shaoke embraced the mage and softly voiced his request. However, she refused without hesitation. "I don't know when Yisier and the others will be back," the mage said, gently grasping Shaoke's hands, which were misbehaving on her back. "They went to the medicinal pool a long time ago. I don't want them to find me being intimate with you here."

After hearing the mage's explanation, Shaoke suggested going to his room. But seeing Mage Roman point to several medicinal liquids bubbling on the writing desk, he wisely abandoned that idea. It seemed the presence of an alchemist was indispensable here under these circumstances. However, he still didn't let go of the mage, instead holding her as they sat on a high-backed chair in front of the fireplace.

Their conversation was intermittent. The male mage's hands soon broke through the barrier of Roman's robe and began caressing her smooth body. He occasionally kissed her temples and earlobes, causing Roman to emit soft moans. Fortunately, the male mage didn't proceed further, otherwise she wasn't sure if she could hold out.

It wasn't until the candles were replaced that the three female mages who had been taking medicinal baths returned. However, they keenly noticed Mage Roman's flushed face and chuckled softly. Of course, Shaoke wasn't kicked out by Roman, but she promised to come find him after preparing the medicines in the evening.

After a simple dinner of a few pieces of monster meat and medicinal porridge, Shaoke began preparing for the next day's departure. After carefully checking the contents of his three magic bags, he took out some scrolls and medicines and placed them in a convenient pouch for easy access during use. Magic powder for setting up an Alert Ward, some necessary paper and ink. By the time all the preparations were finished, it was already late at night, and it was then that Mage Roman indicated her arrival through a mental probe.

Perhaps due to the impending brief separation, the two were a bit more passionate than usual. Fortunately, the mage knew Shaoke had a mission the next day, so she didn't demand too many times; otherwise, he might not have been able to handle it. After all, women tend to be stronger in this aspect than men.

At the break of dawn, the mage hurriedly left, but she still encountered the sleazy officer who had arrived early. Of course, she couldn't avoid being teased by him without restraint. Fortunately, the mages were aware of this officer's ways, so she wasn't angered by him. Naturally, Shaoke, who came out afterward, was also teased. However, perhaps because the officer understood Shaoke's temperament, he only teased him briefly before getting to the main point: they had to set off now. Even though it had started snowing again, the scheduled mission would not change due to weather conditions.