Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1447: Section 1448 New City

Wilderness of Dreams, Originheart City.

Angel stood atop the Sky Tower, overlooking the gradually thriving city.

Though it hadn’t reached the prosperity of bustling streets, it was filled with the breath of life.

Behind him came the sound of hurried footsteps.

“My lord,” Frode approached Angel’s side, greeted him respectfully, and then fell silent, standing quietly beside him.

Frode sneakily sized up Angel, not knowing what he was thinking, but for some reason, when he looked at Angel, he felt a strange feeling in his heart.

It had only been a few days since they had last met, but Angel felt like a completely different person to him.

The aura that radiated from Angel’s being involuntarily reminded Frode of… Angel’s mentor, the Illusion Master Sanders.

As Frode was staring blankly, Angel suddenly spoke, “The City Lord Monroe has been planning and repairing the city’s construction for some time now, hasn’t he?”

Frode was taken aback for a moment, then nodded: “Yes.”

“No wonder, the buildings that felt discordant before now seem much more aesthetically pleasing,” Angel muttered, thinking to himself that if Sanders saw such a city layout now, he surely wouldn’t doubt his own sense of aesthetics anymore, right?

However, Monroe’s performance had indeed surprised Angel. Seeing the obvious changes in the city, even Angel couldn’t help but admire it inwardly.

“Actually, the previous layout was not bad either; otherwise, no matter how Monroe had it revised, it wouldn’t have looked good,” Frode spoke, adding, “Just like how an unattractive person, no matter how much makeup they wear, won’t look good. Any external change still depends on the foundation.”

Angel turned his head and gave Frode a look, thinking that this fellow was getting better at spouting nonsense.

Frode, rarely flattering, saw that Angel remained silent for a long time and feared he might have overstepped. While he was inwardly doubtful, Angel spoke again, “Speaking of which, the city has started to gradually get on the right track.”

“It does indeed seem so,” Frode replied.

Angel curiously looked over, “Why does it only seem so?”

Frode pondered for a moment before answering, “Because many things are still only superficial, with too many problems left unresolved. Like the issue with food, we still can’t achieve self-sufficiency at the moment, relying on consuming previous stores… Of course, residents of the Dream Realm won’t truly starve to death; at worst, they’ll simply forego eating. But the joy that food brings can’t easily be replaced by other desires for mortals.”

“Besides food, there are many other aspects that are not truly perfected. For instance, the constantly gloomy sky also affects the residents’ mood.”

What Frode mentioned was no longer just a matter of basic infrastructure but that of the spiritual aspect.

Angel was aware that these issues could not yet be perfectly resolved, but it wasn’t that they couldn’t be solved—it was that Angel previously had no means to solve them.

Like the weather issue, wanting the rise and set of the sun, or to have the beauty of flowers in the breeze, snow under the moonlight, or thunderstorms with lightning, it wasn’t something that could be done just by saying it; at the very least, Angel needed to possess the corresponding authority to do so.

“My lord, why such sudden reflections?” Frode asked curiously. Angel said the city was getting on track; he must have had his reasons.

Angel was silent for a while before answering, “I’m preparing to establish a second city in the Wilderness of Dreams.”

“A second city?” Frode looked at Angel in surprise, “Isn’t it too soon?”

Frode knew that Angel intended to establish new cities, and he had let Monroe take over Originheart City, knowing well that there would definitely be more than one city in the Wilderness of Dreams eventually.

But Originheart City had only begun to show its scale, and there were still some unresolved issues; moving on to the construction of a second city, wouldn’t that be too hasty?

“This is not just my opinion, but also my mentor’s idea,” Angel replied. Just before he left the Gravity Garden, Sanders had called for him, wanting to discuss something—it was precisely about this issue.

Angel had become an Official Wizard, and it was time to start discussing the construction of the Wilderness of Dreams.

Sanders’ meaning was that if possible, they should prepare for the future opening of the Wilderness of Dreams. Of course, before opening, Angel still needed to obtain the Core Authority, but that was not urgent, and it was best not to fall behind on preparations.

“But there are still many unresolved issues in Originheart City,” Frode said almost reflexively.

“Opening, in fact, is to solve these problems,” Angel let out a sigh.

It wasn’t easy to solve these problems by Angel alone, but perhaps other wizards might have solutions.

Like the issue of food, maybe mages proficient in plant or life magic could offer constructive suggestions for the development of plants in the Wilderness of Dreams.

Many minds make light work, and many problems might even be resolved before needing to manifest powers.

Seeing Frode still looking puzzled, Angel slowly shared his thoughts:

“Because the second city I want to build is a—”

“City of Wizards!”

City of Wizards? Frode was stunned for a long time, and he had previously thought that Angel’s plan to establish a second city might be too hasty, believing it would still be a city for ordinary people. Yet Angel was taking a leap directly to build a City of Wizards?!

Actually, deep down Frode was somewhat excited. Establishing a City of Wizards—even if he wasn’t the one doing it—the prospect of witnessing the birth of such a city still thrilled him.

However, practical issues still needed consideration, such as the implications of establishing a City of Wizards. Was it about to be opened up?

Could the Wilderness of Dreams withstand the entry of more Transcendents?

The so-called ‘withstand’ referred not just to people entering, but also to bearing all the potential negative outcomes, plots, and schemes that might arise from their arrival.

Frode thought of many things in an instant. His affection for the Wilderness of Dreams was no less than Angel’s; a look of worry unconsciously appeared on his face.

Seeing this, Angel smiled and said, “It’s just a concept for now. Truly allowing wizards to enter would definitely require me to gain more core authority first before proceeding.”

“Moreover, the so-called openness wouldn’t be unconditional, but a conditional, partial openness. Bringing in a select trustworthy few, or the core circle from Barbarian Cave into the Wilderness of Dreams. This would make exchanges more convenient and greatly reduce the risks.”

Sanders had suggested this, naturally having given it some thought.

Seeing Frode still preoccupied with anxious thoughts, Angel patted his shoulder and said, “This matter isn’t urgent. You can go back and think about it, and we can discuss it later. Also, establishing a City of Wizards isn’t a simple task.”

Having learned from the painful experiences during the initial founding of Originheart City, Angel this time did not intend to perform a simple “copy and paste” again.

City planning and layout were highly specialized undertakings and would undoubtedly require oversight.

Even if he truly decided to use the Dream Conch, it would only be to bring materials in.

He wanted to establish a city completely different from the Wizards’ Realm. He had even considered the idea of having Jon preside over it, shaping the City of Wizards in the likeness of Earth’s cities. However, that was merely a thought, and whether he would follow through with it was hard to say at the moment.

After disclosing this to Frode, and once he had calmed down a bit, Angel then disclosed the true purpose of venturing into the Wilderness of Dreams this time.

He briefly shared the story of Mandhela.

Having heard the story, Frode shook his head and sighed, “I had heard of King Gumman’s tyranny, but I never imagined he would be so cruel to his own children.”

Angel also reflected inwardly, it wasn’t just harshness towards Mandhela but also towards Rolando. Perhaps in King Gumman’s eyes, all of his children were merely tools for his own use.

“I understand. Subtly changing Mandhela is not too difficult a task. Given her temperament, it would be relatively straightforward to place her among the most harmonious and friendly people,” Frode immediately began contemplating a strategy.

“I’ll bring her in later. When the time comes, you can make the arrangements. Try to have her integrate voluntarily.” Even though Mandhela was no longer undead, the paranoia within her heart had not vanished. To disintegrate that old but sturdy wall in her heart, the more outsiders did, the more they would reinforce it. Only if Mandhela herself were willing to tear it down would the process be simpler.

After discussing Mandhela’s situation, Angel inquired about his brother, Lyon.

Considering the timeline, he should have already gone to Sky Tower for the competition, right?

Frode replied, “Indeed, he said he’s been learning combat skills from a very impressive female Apprentice.”

The impressive female Apprentice was undoubtedly Nausicaa.

“I heard from him earlier that his first match at Sky Tower was a bit embarrassing, but he managed to get through it with his equipment. It was more challenging than he had expected, so he hasn’t competed in the past few days and has been practicing in reality, only occasionally coming here to spar with Sir Sabel.”

Unfortunately, Angel’s timing wasn’t good, as Lyon had just finished sparring with Sir Sabel half a day ago, and then he had left.

Based on the frequency of Lyon’s visits to the Wilderness of Dreams in recent days, it was estimated that it would be another day or two before he would enter again.

Angel sighed inwardly with slight regret, deciding it would have to wait until next time.

If Greya left her seclusion early enough, perhaps he could return to Sky Mechanical City to watch a few of Lyon’s matches.

Since Lyon was not present, Angel prepared to leave the Wilderness of Dreams. Currently, Mandhela was temporarily under his control through Illusion Technique, and he planned to return to reality first to bring Mandhela into the Wilderness of Dreams.

Angel bade farewell to Frode and was ready to leave.

Before departing, Angel’s gaze turned towards a distant location.

There lay the Principal Body of the Nightmare Domain, and the core of all authority. With his current strength and the resilience of his physical body, he should be able to take on new authority.

However, Angel had no immediate plans to assume any new authority.

Until he secured the scroll that increased the luck attribute, Angel would not rashly inherit any new authority, or else the timeline for opening up the Wilderness of Dreams would have to be pushed back even further.