Mage And Wolf
Chapter 228

Chapter 228: Chapter 228

Those of us going to Arcana have all absorbed out transfer Tokens and gathered around Elder Song’s tent. Which, I must say, looks suspiciously like my tent, the one made from the Giant’s storage pouch. I’m not entirely certain that it is mine, until I look inside and see the clutter. That’s definitely my mess.

I’ll have to get reimbursed for all the alchemy materials that were in it at some point, but Princess Amanda loaded me up pretty well when we went shopping.

I notice Elder Song doesn’t need to carry it either, he uses some sort of spell to create a pocket dimension to put it in, which is incredibly convenient.

Beside me, Amanda is still gloating about being allowed to come along, a result of her father being unable to deny her anything she wants, right up until Karl opens the portal home.

That’s a new trick for Karl, he forgot to mention that last night. Or maybe we forgot to actually speak to each other. I suppose I’ll have to get the full story of his travels later.

The portal opens directly into his rooms in the basement levels of Arcana, looking immaculate due to the cleaning spell, but lifeless after so long away.

[Hui’Jin I’m home] I send through the clergy link to my beloved Dragonewt acolyte and I can hear running through the halls. Five figures burst through the door, four small ones and one much larger, engulfing me, Karl and Lelou. Hui’Jin and Lala are the ones holding me, while Ellie and Allie the Squirrel twins are holding Lelou, but who does that leave to be hugging my mate?

Wait, is that his assistant? It is. The one hugging Karl and sobbing is the old Dragonkin Priest assigned to be Karl’s assistant. He’s in his work Robes, ink stains his fingers and they’re a stack of forgotten papers scattered at his feet.

"High Priest, please rescue me. Nobody listens, they just do what they want and leave me the paperwork." The man sobs, making Hui’Jin grin up at me.

"We got more clergy here, but they sent all women again. They outrank him with his master gone, and they’ve banded together to make him the entire cathedral’s de facto secretary." She whispers. Poor guy, he has enough paperwork to do just in his role as Karl’s assistant.

"Don’t worry, I’ll set them straight. I’m certain that there’s more than a few acolytes around who should be taking care of things." I reassure him while Karl looks confused.

"Thank you High Priestess. It’s good to have someone on my side again." He says, letting go of Karl and bowing before noticing the rest of the Guests.

They’re all intrigued by this room, their Divine Realm senses are able to clearly see much more than the surface of things, and the underground base is chock full of unique spells and high tech construction.

"What is that thing on the wall? I don’t sense any inscriptions or spells affecting it, but it must serve some purpose other than a substandard mirror." Steve says pointing at the television.

"It’s technology based, an entertainment device that shows a viewer recorded plays and educational lectures." Lala says, turning it on with the remote. Clearly, she was the last person in here, it’s playing an animal documentary and there are papers related to her work sitting on the coffee table. She was hired to be Lelou’s assistant, which makes her involved in the cathedral, the Orphanage and the school at various levels. Going by the top page, the school is doing well.

Despite asking about the television, Steve is staring intently at Lala, his intense gaze frightening the bunny enough that she moves to hide behind Hui’Jin, using the Dragonewt and her wings as a hiding spot.

"Don’t frighten the bunny. They’re instinctively afraid of Lycans, and you look like you’re planning to eat her." I tell the distracted Lycan.

"In the not good way." Lala adds.

"Sorry about that, what was your name you adorable little bunny?" Steve asks.

"I’m Lala, the High Priestess Lelou’s assistant. If you need anything during your stay here, please feel free to ask." She blurts out her prepared response for visiting dignitaries.

"Lala, I’m Amanda, it is so good to meet you." The Nephilim Princess picks Lala up into a big hug before Steve can respond. Bunnies really are popular, even the Nephilim King is giving her a soft look. I’ll see if we can get a few more assigned to them while they’re here.

"The clock on the wall says it’s nearly midnight here. Would you prefer to wait to tour the city until it’s light out, and get started on the experiments first? What is the timeline difference between here and your world?" I ask, trying to get everyone focused.

"They’re roughly equal, so we shouldn’t have a problem staying here a few weeks if need be." John assures me, before looking at the volunteers, who are both standing right next to where they exited the portal, looking around in shock and awe. That means that my timeline was closest to home, most of the year that Karl and Elder Song spent hunting the Cultists through the Mortal and Immortal Planes passed by in a single month at home.

"That’s excellent news. How about we start with opening the Mana Veins, then I’ll do a memory transfer to give the volunteers essential knowledge, then we can boost them from the Foundation Realm with a pill concoction? I heard it worked very well for the Young Miss when she tried on the boy back at the Nephilim palace." Elder Song suggests.

"Right up until his Foundation got unstable. but if we go slower and focus more on the Merger with the Elemental instead of rapid cultivation they should be much more stable." I add and the volunteers begin to look worried.

"Oh, he wasn’t harmed, he’ll just need to work hard on his cultivation for a year or two until he’s ready to start advancing again." I tell the volunteers.

"This sounds interesting, what are you trying to achieve?" Hui’Jin asks.

"Replicating Karl’s cultivation advancements. For you we’d likely need a Fire Elemental Spark to begin merging with, since you prefer fire magic, but I don’t know if it would work at all on a Dragonewt."

Elder Song looks really, really excited when I finish speaking and I realize what I’ve done. Volunteered the young Priestess to try merging with a Fire Elemental, if we can find one.