Mage Legend
Chapter 38: Season 1 Episode 3 "Awakening

Chapter 38: Season 1 Episode 3 "Awakening

"Mage sir, is this the ring you were looking for?" The tall dwarf picked up a silver ring from the cabinet beside him and placed it in Lynch’s right hand. "We found this on your left hand."

Lynch didn’t dwell on the strangeness of the dwarf’s words but instead focused on the familiar magical oscillation. "This is the ring, thank you." The mage activated the ring with his will, and the divine power stored inside immediately began to heal his body. In a blink of an eye, the mage’s right hand was rejuvenated.

This healing power started to spread throughout his entire body. Lynch felt his whole body slowly regaining sensation. Although accompanied by a stinging pain all over, the mage knew that it was merely a memory of the wounds lingering in his body. In reality, the wounds had healed; it was just a matter of time before the stinging would also vanish.

However, what he didn’t know was that his left arm was gone forever. This was beyond the healing ring’s capability. The arm couldn’t be healed, but the sensation at the severed stump was restored. Days of accumulated pain surged into Lynch’s mind all at once, and without a word, the mage fainted.

This alarmed Red Nose greatly. His task was to care for the unconscious mage, and now, just as the mage was finally waking up, he fainted again after retrieving his ring. The Dwarf Elder Council had sternly warned Red Nose that if this mage did not recover, the mithril would have to be returned to the Mage Guild. After all, the Mage Association held a prestigious status on the continent, and the dwarfs dared not keep a mage’s belongings unauthorized. Furthermore, without the mage’s recovery, it would be impossible to obtain even a sliver of the mines from the stingy Mage Association. But if the mage recovered, as the imagined owner of the mithril, there might be room for negotiation to purchase some for future research purposes.

As for stealing or robbing the mithril, the dwarfs would never entertain such thoughts.

Red Nose burst into tears, his voice powerful and resounding throughout the room, unlike his small stature. His nephew, the tall dwarf, covered his ears helplessly, knowing that only by waking the mage could he stop Red Nose’s wailing. The tall dwarf noticed a water basin in the corner, filled with clear water. As he approached it, he realized that if he let go of his ears, he could hear the piercing cries, but if he covered his ears with both hands, he couldn’t lift the basin. He tilted his head, thought for a moment, then walked over to his uncle, covered Red Nose’s mouth with one hand, grabbed the water basin with the other, and drenched the mage with its contents.

Lynch shuddered and immediately sat up in bed. He was drenched, with water dripping from his hair. Using his right hand, he wiped his face and looked at the two dwarfs. Red Nose, the dwarf, was struggling vigorously, with a big hand covering his mouth. The tall dwarf smiled, seemingly oblivious to his uncle’s impending suffocation.

"You better let go, or you’ll cause a dwarf catastrophe," Lynch said. He looked at his left arm, which only had an empty sleeve hanging there. He also noticed that his voice hadn’t fully recovered and was still hoarse, with a rasping sound. "How many days have I been injured? I mean, how long have I been here?"

The tall dwarf let go of his uncle and slowly replied, "Mage sir, you’ve been here for seven days. Seven days ago, you and your belongings suddenly appeared in our research institute. You were injured. Oh, by the way, my name is Nimo, and this is my uncle, Red Nose Moni."

"Mage sir, thank goodness you’re awake, woo-woo-woo, I really didn’t mean it, really," Red Nose Moni rushed forward, grabbing the mage’s sleeve and wailing, "I didn’t mean to knock off your hand. I didn’t expect myself to be strong enough to kick your arm off, woo-woo-woo, please don’t get angry, don’t turn me into a rat or something. I still want to finish my All Things Machine. Woo-woo-woo, if you must transform me, could you make me something with hands, feet, and brains, like a goblin? Woo-woo-woo, you’re not saying anything, does silence mean you won’t agree? So, how about a kobold? Ah, you’re still not saying anything, woo-woo-woo-woo, what now? If not a kobold, will I really become a rat? Woo-woo-woo, Nimo, remember, if a rat comes to you and doesn’t leave, please don’t kill it. Give it something good to eat, like my favorite roasted potatoes or fried pumpkin. Remember, please remember. Your uncle, woo-woo-woo-woo, will become a rat."

Lynch looked helplessly at the dwarf wiping his tears on his sleeve. The little fellow’s nose had turned even redder from crying.

"I won’t turn you into anything else, don’t worry," Lynch said, pulling his sleeve away from Moni’s grasp. "Can you tell me where this place is? What exactly happened?"