“Are you sure you want to learn it now, Young Master Watson?” Arthur asked with uncertainty.
“Yes, I want to learn it now.”
Arthur decided not to disturb his interest, even though he was sure Watson would not be able to learn it that quickly. “Alright, then I’ll teach you the secret to becoming a druid right now, Young Master Watson. The spell to sign a contract with a magical beast is like this…”
Arthur continued to babble. After he was done, Watson asked, “What level is that incantation?”
“It’s a silver-tier spell to sign a contract. I spent a lot of money to get it.”
“Are there any more incantations?”
“There are a few more, but they’re all bronze-tier.”
“No matter the levels, teach them to me at the same time.”
Arthur’s spells were not difficult, but Watson needed some time to master them quickly. After all, he had never been an archer, so it would be different if Arthur taught him a few more spells. He could use system fusion to master them all in one go.
“Okay, Young Master Watson.”
Inwardly, he secretly complained that Watson had not even mastered a single spell, yet he had to learn multiple spells simultaneously. Since he was not afraid of biting off more than he could chew, Arthur continued to teach Watson all the spells he had in his possession.
When he had close to ten bronze and silver-tier spells, Watson did not hesitate to fuse them.
“System fusion activated.”
[Congratulations, Master, for successfully fusing different types of druid spells.]
[Gold-tier Druid Spell: able to sign a contract with a magical beast and obtain a characteristic equivalent to that of a gold-tier elite from the magical beast that signed the contract.]
Arthur had mentioned that he did not need to have the magical beast with him during the contract signing. However, the magical beast had to acknowledge him as its master. That was not a challenge for Watson; he had already fused the Golden Flash and Emperor Cluck. They had tacitly acknowledged him as their master.
Even if Golden Flash and Emperor Cluck could not do that, he still had the Heaven-devouring Rat King, disguised as a horse pulling a carriage in the Golden Quill Pavilion. He would be able to complete the contract no matter what.
“Natural elements that fill the heavens and earth, please listen to my call and gather the tiny elves that are filled with spirituality. Grant me the ability to listen to life and control it!”
As Watson chanted the spell after the fusion, his body was suddenly engulfed with a rich green light. That light progressively condensed into a ball of light as it filled with the scent of nature. Then, it transformed into a ball of light with two little wings attached to its back. Those tiny spheres of light were dubbed micro-elves. They were different from the elven race. Micro-elves were born between the grass and the trees and with only a rudimentary sense of self.
Micro-elves were the medium for transferring abilities between the contract signer and the magical beast.
At that moment, Watson’s entire body was covered with green light balls, making him look like a human-shaped light bulb.
“Your talent is indeed amazing, Young Master Watson. Even the spell I taught you was mispronounced, you could still conjure an infinite number of micro-elves. These micro-elves are sufficient to acquire the strength of a gold-tier magical beast. If the intimacy level is sufficiently high, you can even get the power of a higher-tier magical beast! I have been cultivating for over a decade, yet the number of micro-elves I can summon is less than one-tenth of that.”
Arthur lauded Arthur wholeheartedly, his comments brimming with envy, jealously, and h. He had clearly stated that the spells he had given Watson were flawed; he thought Watson was greedy and could not possibly manage all of them. However, it seemed like Watson could use the mispronounced spells successfully. Perhaps the spell’s powers were enhanced by his incorrect recitation?
Watson closed his eyes slowly, ignoring Arthur’s comments, and felt the micro-elves hovering around him. Since the world had dense forests with flowers, plants, and trees, micro-elves could be found everywhere. He was able to communicate with the magical beasts who had acknowledged him as their master via those micro-elves, despite their great distance.
At that point, in his mind, an endless blue sky and white clouds emerged. A world tree had grown on the sacred mountain beneath the white clouds. That was the situation on Mount Creation; Golden Flash and Emperor Cluck, both crouching under the World Tree, appeared to have detected something. They threw their heads backward and howled in unison. A roar blasted beside Watson as it sped across space.
Roar!
Screech!
Suddenly, the cries of a dragon and a phoenix erupted from Watson’s side. The boom resonated around the room, shaking it as well. Following that, the number of green micro-elves rapidly rose on his body until it encompassed the entire room.
His body likewise changed in response to the micro-elves’ transformations.
A thick layer of dragon scales appeared on his body. Each layer of dragon scales was as stunning as a diamond, rendering the viewer powerless to look away. Two dragon horns sprouted from his head, and his back had two milky white phoenix wings. While burning with the Holy Flames, the temperature in the air dropped dramatically, and the milky white flames condensed into crystal-clear ice and snow flowers.
Watson’s eyes also changed—one of it had turned silver, and the other had turned golden. The scene looked very strange, and a terrifying diamond-tier aura had spread out. The hardwood floor in the room creaked as cracks appeared. It was not only the room, but the entire Golden Quill Pavilion shook as well.
“What happened?”
“Is it an earthquake?”
The Golden Quill Pavilion’s courtyard erupted with panicked adventurers.
“The power that appeared in young Master Watson’s body is so strange. Could it be a dragon or the Phoenix? I can feel the aura of a divine beast. Is it possible that he keeps a dragon and a phoenix as pets? Is that true?”
Arthur’s eyes grew wider.
It was one thing for Watson to accidentally grasp the druid’s ability to borrow the attributes of a magical beast, but what made that skill so extraordinary? He had assumed that even if Watson had mastered it, he would remain on an equal footing with him. He realized that he was gravely mistaken. Watson possessed an uncanny ability to elevate the knowledge he had to a higher degree.
‘How unfortunate. If Arthur’s druidic spells were of higher quality and permitted me to fuse them with a diamond or platinum level spell, I would transform into the Golden Flash or Emperor Cluck. I wouldn’t be able to transform locally as I did.’
Watson raised his hand and sighed as he looked around his body. He promptly extinguished the odd thing that had manifested in his body.
‘However, this is also beneficial. If I truly became a dragon or a phoenix, the entire Golden Quill Pavilion would have come crashing down! I had better put off searching for such powerful druid spells until I have some free time in the future.’
Druid spells were capable of utilizing the magical beasts’ limbs. Watson might use the fusion system to create all kinds of powerful magical beasts. He could significantly enhance his talents if he were to nurture an army of magical beasts in a short period.
‘I have made a decision. When I return to the maze later, I intend to concentrate on fusing with some extremely powerful magical monsters.’
Watson made up his mind and conveniently gave Arthur the ability he had obtained through the soul projection in the source of the chaos-elemental magic.
Arthur had mastered the abilities of partial dragonification and phoenix transformation.
He ran to the side and absorbed them as if he had obtained a treasure. At times, dragon scales would appear on his body, and phoenix wings would develop on his body at other times.
Clyde, Leon, and Annie, who were envious of that, approached Watson. Their faces filled with eagerness. “Young Master Watson, you’ve only casually learned Arthur’s druid spell, and he has become so powerful. Why don’t we also impart our abilities to you, so you can help us to improve ourselves?”
They had pitied Arthur, who had been given less knowledge, but it seemed that Arthur had benefited the most.
“There’s no need. I have given you advanced knowledge from the warriors and mages. Even if you show me your abilities now, you won’t be able to improve much.”
“I see.”
Annie and the other two were dissatisfied upon hearing Watson’s response.
“Alright, let’s not talk about that for now. Since everyone’s strength has been raised, let’s go to the underground maze to test it out.” Watson looked outside and walked toward the door.
The courtyard was still in an uproar due to the shock generated by the druid’s secret magic he had just cast. He chose to flee the area before they discovered him.
The people behind him exchanged glances and nodded. They followed him out; their cheeks flushed with unrestrained excitement. However, just as they approached the door, it was abruptly shoved open. A white-robed woman hurried into the room. After a quick scan of the area, her attention fell on Watson.
“It looks like I came at the right time, Watson. I’m sorry, but you can’t go to the underground maze yet! After what happened in St. Antilles Cathedral, I didn’t have time to look for you. You destroyed my platinum-tier Sky Severing Blade. Shouldn’t you compensate me for that?”
It was the swordmistress, Christina.
