Sorcerer’s Handbook

“If hurt enough, use both hands, joyfully sever, yesterday’s curse…”

As the lively chime of the prison bell sounded, Ashe got out of bed to wash up, pondering the Death Maniac Swordswoman’s strange behavior over the last couple of days while brushing his teeth.

Far from the usual idle chatter, the Swordswoman had suddenly asked Ashe a number of pointed questions in the Virtual Realm. She inquired about his favorite color schemes, how he made friends, whether he preferred mystery and detective stories to horror and thriller genres, and she even asked if Ashe liked women with bigger or smaller chests, which caught him completely off guard—wasn’t it obvious that everyone preferred the former?

Moreover, the Swordswoman’s attitude towards Ashe could shift through four different styles in a single night: sometimes tender and considerate, sometimes cold and haughty, sometimes seductive and flirty, and sometimes innocently charming.

Ashe’s thought on this was: it would be even better if she could change her clothes along with her personality.

Ashe had asked the Swordswoman if something was up, but she insisted nothing was wrong, which only made Ashe more anxious.

He racked his brain and could only come up with one possibility—that perhaps the Swordswoman was on her monthly cycle. Considering the mood swings, the chatty curiosity, it seemed quite in line with the characteristics of a woman during that time. Aside from marveling at the thought that even a ‘Paper person’ could have a cycle, he didn’t dwell on it.

Upon activating the Holographic Screen, a message from “Aurora’s Sorcerer Handbook” immediately popped up:

“The cultivation of Death Maniac Swordswoman has concluded. Please review the Growth Report and set this week’s Cultivation Strategy promptly.”

“Swordsmanship Faction: Silver → Silver”

“Radiance Magic Faction: Silver → Silver”

“Water Art Faction: Silver → Silver”

“Mind Faction: 0 → Silver”

“Arcane Energy: Silver Half-Wing → Silver Full-Wing”

“Cultivation Evaluation: A!”

Due to achieving a Grade A evaluation, the Death Maniac Swordswoman received an Occupational Enhancement from the Sorcerer Handbook: from Silver Slayer Sorcerer to Soulbreak Silver Sorcerer.

“Soulbreak Silver Sorcerer’s Occupational Traits: Each effective attack deals an additional 1% Soul Damage.”

This new occupational trait caught Ashe’s attention. Enemies in the Virtual Realm were undoubtedly Soul Entities, meaning the Swordswoman could inflict extra true damage on them. Coupled with her not-so-slow attack speed, the cumulative extra damage could be significant.

Magical Factions growth wasn’t much; in the past few days, only a single Water Art Orb was obtained. After feeding it to the Swordswoman, the Water Faction naturally remained at the silver level.

If it weren’t for the Mind Faction upgrading from zero to silver and the arcane energy from Half-Wing to Full-Wing, the Cultivation Evaluation would certainly not have reached Grade A. However, Ashe still harbored some complaints—why wasn’t there a Growth Report for his ‘apocalypse observer’? He too wanted to receive an occupational enhancement from the handbook and switch to a new occupation!

To this day, his occupation was still the rather useless Cult Leader! The blessings of the Four Pillars had never taken effect!

Ashe checked his Points. Although they had hunted quite a few Knowledge Creatures in recent days, obtaining many spirits, because the Swordswoman said she needed money to purchase spirits, the spoils were divided sixty-forty, Ashe sixty, Swordswoman forty.

After converting all the currently unnecessary spirits into Points, Ashe now had 124 Points, not yet enough to purchase the ‘Bag of Source Crystals’ valued at 198 Points.

Without a card draw Ritual, Ashe directly arranged the Swordswoman’s Cultivation Strategy for the next week. Originally, he wanted to max out the Swordsmanship Training as usual, but considering the Swordswoman’s need for rest during these special days, he pondered for a moment and decided… to let the Swordswoman rest for an hour, today only.

Ah, the pain in his heart, this must be what it feels like to be a boss, watching an employee rest as if he had lost a great deal of money.

Ashe quickly set the Cultivation Strategy in motion to avoid any regrets. Then, as usual, he went to the restaurant for breakfast, only to find that the Central Hall was packed with people. Were they recruiting volunteers—cannon fodder—again?

But that wasn’t the case. The prisoners were just gathered to watch the news on the Holographic Screen, with even Igor intently focused on the screen.

Ashe approached and asked Igor, “What does the news say? Have the citizens had a change of heart and decided to boycott the Blood Moon Tribunal as an inhumane practice?”

“It’s more thrilling than a change of heart among the citizens,” Igor murmured, eyes glued to the screen. “Fernand Snow is going down.”

“Who?”

“The mayor of Kaimon City. He’s about to fall!”

Ashe was slightly taken aback, and he began to watch the news too.

“…The current estimated number of casualties exceeds ten thousand. There are countless dead and wounded in the new developments on Sky Street, with fires breaking out in multiple locations in the Upper District. The streets are littered with corpses. They might have been office workers on their way to work, couples out shopping, future legendary Sorcerers, or just ordinary people diligently living their lives. But now, due to an invasion that should never have happened, they’ve become nothing but pale corpses.”

On the screen, a poised and attractive female presenter stood atop a high-rise building. She bore a slight resemblance to Igor, with bewitching features that hinted at a Bewitcher Bloodline heritage. Her arms were adorned with cute pink and purple fluffy sleeve cuffs.

Her expression, however, was one of extreme anger, her voice suppressed with rage: “Look behind me—this is the most prosperous part of Kaimon City’s Upper District. But what can we see now? Ruins, flames, corpses, bloodstains, exposed steel foundations, broken dolls—”

“Kaimon News is the mouthpiece of the Church and the Research Institute,” Igor said softly. “When the presenter shows a clear political bias, it means that the Blood Moon factions are about to offer up a scapegoat to calm the public’s anger.”

“Forty hours have passed since the first attack, and we can’t help but ask, why hasn’t the Sin Hunter’s Hall captured the attackers? Why are attacks still occurring? Why is the Upper District still a high-risk area, to the point where even medical teams dare not enter to treat the injured?”

“Where exactly is our taxpayers’ money going, and who is squandering it? Why would an area rated as the safest in the nation suffer such a catastrophe? Why must we, ordinary residents living and working happily in Kaimon City, face such misfortune?”

“Why are there organized, large-scale attackers from other kingdoms infiltrating Kaimon City? What exactly is the Government Affairs Hall hiding from us?”

“We need answers, and so do the deceased! Someone must be held accountable for this disaster—”

Pfft!

As the screen smeared with the color of fresh blood, the death row inmates in the Central Hall let out a gasp. They were used to seeing death in the Blood Moon Tribunal, but it was the first time they witnessed a host being decapitated live on air.

The live broadcast channel plunged into darkness but quickly switched to a new scene.

This time the backdrop was a clean, spacious, and grand office, and sitting behind the desk was an ogre in a deep black suit—yes, an ogre. Though he lacked tusks, his nails were neatly trimmed, and his face bore no trace of malevolence, even exuding a sense of amiability; but he was indeed a blue-skinned ogre, as evidenced by the chair big enough to fit two Ashes.

When he spoke, Ashe was stunned.

“I am Arandor Fernand Snow, the mayor of Kaimon City,” the ogre said with a heavy tone. “It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that the number of innocent victims who have died in the terrorist attacks has reached 13,000. The Sin Hunter’s Hall is operating at full capacity, and the Government Affairs Hall has mobilized Sorcerers from the nearby Lakeview Warzone to assist in the manhunt, with hopes of capturing the roaming attackers as soon as possible.”

“These attackers are butchers from the Blood Moon who came through the Virtual Realm Passage from other kingdoms. I must admit, I bear some responsibility for this. The joint decision to research and investigate the Virtual Realm Passage was made by the Government Affairs Hall, the council, the Sin Hunter’s Hall, and the Lakeview Warzone. Had the Government Affairs Hall been able to make a more comprehensive plan and a more cautious judgment initially, perhaps…”

“He’s not given up yet,” Igor sneered. “He’s threatening the other conspirators. If he goes down, he’s implying they’ll all go down with him. He can accept defeat, but he doesn’t want to be the only one to suffer.”

“…For this reason, I am willing to undergo investigation by the Sin Hunter’s Hall and will temporarily step down as mayor, with Deputy Mayor Guro assuming mayoral duties.”

Finally, Fernand Snow stood up and bowed deeply: “I am deeply sorry for my mistakes in office.”

“Oh!”

“Ha ha, even Fernand Snow has his day!”

Celebratory noises erupted sporadically in the Central Hall, and although the laughter couldn’t be too loud due to the “Noise Ordinance,” the collective cheerfulness of so many made the hall brim with joy. Indeed, it seems that only when witnessing the misfortune of others can this group of scum from the manure pit feel genuine happiness.

Yet Ashe noticed even the usually calm Igor was excited, his earlobes flushed with enthusiasm and a smile almost bursting at the seams, prompting him to ask curiously, “Igor, do you have a grudge against Fernand Snow? Even for taking pleasure in someone else’s misfortune, you seem a bit too happy, no?”

Igor grabbed Ashe’s shoulders: “Don’t you get it? The mayor has fallen! He’s being charged by the Sin Hunter’s Hall!”

Ashe felt confused: “I heard, so what?”

It was clear that Igor wanted to attack Ashe’s intelligence, but the chip prevented him from acting on his impolite impulses.

After struggling to contain his excitement, Igor finally spoke in a hushed tone filled with barely suppressed elation: “While in office, if the mayor faces serious charges requiring immediate suspension, to ensure personal safety and prevent potential suicide, the mayor will be detained in the nearest Blood Moon prison for isolated investigation.”

Ashe remembered this rule from a discussion with the Medic about the right way to escape from prison.

Ashe began to grasp the implication: “You mean…”

Igor stared intently at Ashe, his eyes so bright it was as if he could draw Ashe in.

“No need to wait for the Transport Ship on the first of next month. When Fernand Snow is escorted to Shattered Lake Prison, that’s our chance to escape!”

“When will Fernand Snow be detained at Shattered Lake?”

“Typically, the sooner the better. But before arriving, he’ll surely spend a night at the Sin Hunter’s Hall to modify the restrictions on his Chip. Which means—”

Ashe and Igor locked eyes: “Tomorrow, the Blood Moon Tribunal on the 27th!”

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