Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2550: Chapter 2551: Death Sense

Dox approached the black-robed man and first gave a slight bow to the empty seat next to him: ”Good evening, Your Excellency, Black Earl.”

No one responded, but a nose embedded in the slab jumped onto the table and sniffed at Dox.

Then the black-robed man said, ”You needn’t do that. I didn’t bring the Earl’s ear this time, so he can’t hear you.”

Dox saw that it was a nose on the slab rather than an ear and breathed a small sigh of relief, complaining a bit, ”You should have said so earlier. If I had known he couldn’t hear, I would have come straight to you.”

”Are you really so afraid of my lord?” the black-robed man teased.

”Aren’t you?” Dox retorted.

The black-robed man chuckled softly but did not reply.

Dox continued, ”Dividing the body into countless parts, each with its own consciousness—such a monster! Just the thought sends shivers down my spine. You actually dare to bring it with you every time you go out. Just tell me honestly, aren’t you terrified?”

The black-robed man took a sip of wine and said casually, ”Though my lord came with a nose this time and can’t hear you speak, he can smell your malice.”

Dox was startled and took several steps back.

”The nose can smell malice? Is that true, or are you just fooling me?” Dox asked cautiously.

The black-robed man replied, ”You can think of it as me fooling you. But, do you believe it?”

Whether it was true or not, Dox dared not say more. He deliberately took a roundabout route and sat at the farthest place from the black-robed man and the nose.

Once Dox sat down, the black-robed man said quietly, ”You just asked if I’m terrified. As an apprentice, having the esteemed Red Sword sit across from me, do you think I’m terrified or not?”

Whether the black-robed man was terrified or not, Dox no longer cared, but the other was right. Dox spoke to this apprentice as an equal and even sat on equal terms because he carried a part of Lord Black Earl’s body.

As long as the ”nose” was there, no one dared disrespect the black-robed man.

This was also why the Noah Family was so renowned. There were few members of the Noah Clan, but when they walked outside, they always carried a part of the Black Earl’s body. It’s as if every member of the Noah Clan was under the protection of the Black Earl.

Of course, ”protection” was merely an outsider’s interpretation, but based on previous conversations with this old friend, Dox vaguely sensed that the Black Earl had other undisclosed reasons for doing so. Dox did not know what this purpose was but felt a faint foreboding with his strong spiritual perception.

That’s why Dox asked earlier, ”Aren’t you afraid, aren’t you terrified?”

Even though the black-robed man seemed to express he’s not terrified with a rhetorical question, was he really not terrified? He never actually answered directly.

”Let’s stop playing guessing games and get down to business.” Dox glanced at the nose that was still sniffing around before focusing on the black-robed man: ”Vay, can we find a place more convenient for talking?”

Vay Noah was the name of the black-robed man, an old friend of Dox’s for many years.

The black-robed man Vay didn’t move but closed his eyes for a few seconds. Shortly thereafter, the nose embedded in the slab took a deep breath and then exhaled sharply, creating an absolute barrier around Dox and Vay.

This was a second-level magic, and soundproofing was only its most trivial function. Its terrifying defensive power in battle was its primary use.

”Now we can talk,” Vay said calmly.

Using second-level magic as a soundproof barrier, probably only the Noah Clan would do such a thing among apprentices.

Dox was silent for a moment, ”Were you just communicating with the Black Earl’s nose? You weren’t badmouthing me, right?”

Vay rolled his eyes, too lazy to answer such stupid questions, ”I was happily staying in Mesomyia, so why did you summon me? What do you really want?”

From Vay’s reaction, Dox could be sure he hadn’t spoken ill of him to the Black Earl. Feeling relieved, Dox replied, ”I’m planning on going to explore some relics soon.”

Vay looked resistant, ”Don’t try to drag me along. I told you before, I hate desolate places. I only like bustling big cities. Even the Sandworm Market makes me feel suffocated.”

Vay was a peculiar person. In fact, he wasn’t very sociable, typically a solitary type. Dox hadn’t heard of Vay having any other friends besides himself. But although Vay was reclusive, he particularly enjoyed crowded and lively places. Yet, once someone started talking to him, he’d act resistant; he was quite contradictory.

He seemed to just enjoy seeing others bustling around.

”I’m not asking you to join the adventure. It’s just that this time, my premonition seems to have failed. I can’t sense anything good or bad, so I wanted to ask you for insight.” Dox’s face uncharacteristically showed a bit more seriousness.

Vay frowned slightly, ”A failed premonition indicates a big problem. You shouldn’t go.”

Dox replied, ”But... I am unwilling.”

Unwillingness was only an excuse. The real reason was the failure of his spiritual perception. He had a constant feeling that perhaps this exploration could truly transform his spiritual perception into a talent skill.

Vay gave Dox a long look, sighed, and said, ”You’re hopeless. You just love courting death. I truly don’t see the point of these adventures.”

”This is the essence of a wandering wizard. Gaining freedom means losing access to knowledge, and adventures are a way to make up for that.”

Vay was silent for a moment and then took a transparent colored glaze cup from his robe.

”Remember, you owe me another favor.” Vay said as he placed the cup on the table.

Dox nodded repeatedly, ”I remember, which makes it five favors I owe you now.”

Vay raised an eyebrow, ”Six.”

Dox generously waved a hand, ”I’ll cover all your drinks today as a favor repayment. How about that?”

Vay was silent for a moment before replying, ”Alright. Five favors.”

Dox immediately leaned in happily, ”Let’s get started then.”

It was apparent that Dox and Vay had done this many times and were familiar with the process. Upon seeing the transparent colored glaze cup, Dox extended his hand.

In his heart, he silently chanted: I am about to explore the relics.

Then, as the Wind Blade lightly cut, a drop of fingertip blood fell into the glazed cup, a black-red color with a slight glow emanating from it.

Vay glanced at it, ”Your bloodline purity has increased quite a bit since last time.”

Dox replied, ”I’m not as lazy as you, stuck at the peak of apprenticeship without advancing.”

Vay snorted, not bothering to counter, and instead extended his own hand to let a drop of fingertip blood fall into the glazed cup as well.

Vay’s blood was very unusual, with a faint golden glow amidst the bright red.

Under normal circumstances, Dox, being an official wizard, should have his blood suppress Vay’s. But in practice, when Vay’s blood entered the cup, it was Dox’s blood that got suppressed.

To be precise, Vay’s blood acted like a film, tightly enveloping Dox’s blood.

”Every time I see this, I find it amazing. Are the Noah Clan truly humans?” Dox marveled.

Vay chose not to respond to meaningless questions and instead picked up the colored glaze cup, ready for the final step: smelling.

Vay had a very peculiar talent, which he named himself: Death Sense.

He could smell the scent of death in the blood.

Classified, this talent should perhaps belong to the prophecy system, as the prophecy system also has the ability to predict death. However, the prediction of death by a Prophet Wizard involves finding a fixed quantity among variables, and this result can be altered.

In contrast, Vay’s Death Sense is a prediction of death over an existing fixed quantity, and of course, the result can still be changed.

When Dox was dripping blood, he silently chanted to go to the relic, which is a fixed quantity.

What Vay needed to sniff was whether Dox going to this relic would emit the scent of death.

However, just as Vay was about to smell the fresh blood in the colored glaze cup, his hand suddenly paused, and then he gently placed the cup back on the table.

Fully aware of every step, Dox asked, puzzled, ”What’s wrong? Why did you put it down without even smelling it?”

Vay remained silent for a few seconds before saying, ”This talent of mine is inherited from my lord. Since my lord’s nose is here, it might be more accurate for my lord to make the judgment.”

It was the first time for Dox to hear that Vay’s Death Sense talent was inherited from the Black Earl.

Though unsure why Vay wanted the Black Earl’s nose to sniff, Dox contemplated it for a moment and nodded. Having come this far, they couldn’t just give up halfway.

Soon, Vay picked up the slate that embedded the nose and placed it in front of the cup.

The Black Earl’s nose began to sniff.

The two drops of blood in the cup kept rolling, yet miraculously, no matter how they moved, Vay’s blood closely wrapped around Dox’s blood.

After a while, Vay put down the slate.

Instead of speaking immediately, Vay closed his eyes, as if he had fallen asleep.

Dox speculated that Vay was probably communicating with the Black Earl’s nose... which actually meant communicating with the Black Earl himself, since all parts of the Black Earl’s body had ”his consciousness,” but ultimately it was still the Black Earl’s consciousness.

The time of this communication was longer than expected, with Vay’s brow occasionally furrowing tightly, as if arguing rationally with the Black Earl.

It wasn’t until Dox finished two full glasses of wine and watched the blue sky outside being covered by dark clouds, with raindrops trickling down, that Vay opened his eyes.

”So, what’s the result? Did the Black Earl say anything?”

Vay still didn’t speak but picked up the colored glaze cup again and personally took another sniff.

After smelling it, Vay looked lost.

Watching Vay’s series of actions, Dox was still somewhat bewildered, ”What on earth is going on?”

After a long while, Vay sighed, ”I can’t smell anything myself.”

No smell doesn’t mean death isn’t imminent; it means Vay’s talent has failed.

”However, my lord detected the scent of misfortune,” Vay said with eyes downcast.

Dox: ”The scent of misfortune? Does this mean I will die this time?”

Vay shook his head, ”I don’t know, but...”

After hesitating repeatedly, Vay sighed and said, ”My lord instructed me to accompany you to that relic. In this way, you can be sure you won’t die.”

Dox: ”So, you mean if I go, there’s a high probability I will die; but if you accompany me, I won’t be in danger?”

”Not dying and not being in danger are two different things,” Vay couldn’t help correcting.

Dox: ”These details don’t matter. Can I confirm one thing? Are you really planning to explore the relic?”

Vay nodded.

A homebody who never liked exploring relics is actually going out. Even without Dox’s spiritual perception, it’s obvious something’s not right.

”Do you really want to go?”

Vay remained silent.

As a long-time friend, Dox immediately understood that this was the intent of the Black Earl.

”Can I refuse? After all, this isn’t my decision; someone else is leading the relic exploration,” Dox tried to help Vay return to his reclusive life.

Vay understood Dox’s intention and helplessly said, ”I’ve remembered the scent of your blood.”

This abrupt statement, though unclear to others, was clear to Dox.

Even if Dox refused Vay, Vay would still follow him through the scent of his blood.

Unless Dox didn’t go to explore the relic.

”And don’t forget, you owe me five favors,” Vay added, ”If I use one of those favors to make you tell me who the leader is, you won’t refuse, right?”

Clearly, Vay had considered the possibility of Dox opting out of the relic exploration.

The Black Earl’s insistence on having Vay go to the relic must stem from some premonition.

Dox fell silent for a moment, ”I can’t give you an answer immediately on this matter. Give me a day, and I’ll get back to you in a day.”

Vay lowered his head, softly murmured a ”hmm,” and mouthed an apology: Sorry.

Dox understood that Vay was apologizing for his inability to resist the Black Earl, thereby implicating his friend.

Dox, too, couldn’t say much, so he could only sigh and pat Vay on the shoulder, ”Don’t act like a girl; this isn’t a big deal.”

After a pause, Dox continued, ”By the way, after I leave, you might as well ask the Black Earl again if with you along, our entire adventure group would be safe.”

Vay nodded, ”Okay.”

Afterward, Dox patted his old friend on the shoulder again, sighed helplessly in his heart, went to the bar, and instructed the bartender to take care of Vay. Then, he quietly left the Cross Tavern.

After leaving the bar, Dox wandered the streets for a long time, pondering what exactly the Black Earl intended to do.

And how he could possibly help Vay.

But the Black Earl was a figure standing at the pinnacle of the Southern Domain’s pyramid, and Dox found it difficult to fathom his intentions.

Sighing, Dox eventually walked towards the direction of the black market outside the Sandworm Market. This time, his negligence had led to Vay’s involvement. He had to explain and apologize to Angel and Kaier no matter what.

Moreover, Angel, who is backed by the Barbarian Cave, also has some understanding of that relic, and maybe he knows what the Black Earl’s intentions are?

After all, the gap in core intelligence between an organized and unorganized wizard is quite significant.