In the highest-level laboratory of the Curse Formula Research Institute, the eye on Rasheed Tarir's forehead had countless pupils crammed together, all vying for a single observation window.
Some pupils were cruel, some were excited, and others were filled with joy.
Inside the isolation chamber before him, a White Wizard apprentice captured by the Black Wizards was screaming in agony. The apprentice's skin was peeling off naturally, turning them into a bloodied figure.
Witnessing this, Rasheed Tarir felt no disgust—only continuous nods of approval. "Excellent, excellent. The foundational work for this special project is complete. My earlier hypothesis was entirely correct."
"Now, all that remains is translating the results into practical applications. There's still a considerable gap between a successful experiment and producing usable outcomes."
Suddenly, Rasheed Tarir sensed an anomaly in the Magical Tide within the Curse Formula Research Institute. He frowned, scanning his surroundings but found nothing amiss.
"Something feels off," he muttered. A pair of suspicious pupils emerged from the eye on his forehead as he coldly addressed the central control room via magic. "What just happened?"
"Has my Pandora's Box leaked?"
The First Class Wizard Apprentices in the central control room responded immediately, their voices tinged with panic. "N-no, Mentor Rasheed Tarir, nothing's wrong!"
"We were just repairing the institute's defense system. A minor error triggered the automatic defenses, but we've already fixed it."
A displeased pupil squeezed out from the eye on Rasheed Tarir's forehead. "The Mirror Blood Curse is an extremely delicate spell. Don't make unnecessary updates unless absolutely necessary."
"If something goes wrong, none of you have the skills to fix it. I'll be the one cleaning up your mess. Damn it, that Seflin is completely useless now—all my previous investments in her wasted. And now I'm stuck with you lot of incompetents. Damn it, this is infuriating!"
"Why can't I have someone like Hussein among my subordinates? Then I wouldn't have to endure constant mockery from my peers!"
Shaking his head, Rasheed Tarir refocused on the isolation chamber, severing the connection. He muttered to himself, "No matter. Once I complete this Blood Curse targeting wizard apprentices, my reputation among my peers will be restored."
"This Blood Curse System is truly magnificent. I must thank the Blood Lord for providing the inspiration and preliminary data. I suppose he truly despises those White Wizards from Lilith's Cottage as well. Heh heh..."
"So do I."
...
In an unnamed corridor of the research institute, Locke had long known that the space within the mirror was vast—and the institute itself was enormous.
Though called a research institute, it resembled an underground ecological habitat.
The population density here was incredibly low, even lower than that of Corinth City-State's castle. As a result, Locke hadn't encountered a single Black Wizard on his way.
He was likely teleported to an area not frequently traversed by people.
Many rooms were sealed with magic alloy and magic locks, preventing Locke from entering.
Locke drank a bottle of Spirit Spring Soul Surge Potion to replenish the Mana he had lost while resisting the Blood River upon entry.
He retrieved a Magic Painting Map from his Astral Ring. The image on the map automatically zoomed out, displaying a green dot representing himself.
There was also a red dot indicating the approximate location of Rasheed Tarir.
"Hmm, the distance between me and Rasheed Tarir is still quite far."
"I should've asked Eragabalus to add a feature that marks the positions of companions. Miscalculation, miscalculation." Locke examined the map, confirming his general location, his eyes gleaming with realization.
According to the map, he had been randomly teleported right next to a small resource storage belonging to a Black Wizard.
"About a hundred meters away—just around the corner—is one of their small storage facilities." Following the map, Locke discovered that the magic alloy door of the storage was still open.
Inside, two Second-Class Wizard Apprentices and one First-Class Wizard Apprentice were busy moving something, which explained why the door remained unsealed.
Upon spotting Locke, they were startled. In the next instant, two Omen Mandrake Vines pierced through the hearts of the two Second-Class Wizard Apprentices.
The plant magic killed them instantly.
The First-Class Wizard Apprentice cast a Paralysis Curse at Locke, but Locke shrugged it off with his Magic Pressure and the effects of the Bear Spirit Emerald Bile Potion, charging straight at him. An Omen Mandrake Vine restrained the apprentice while Locke activated All Plants as Soldiers, slashing at him ten times in an instant.
The limbs of the First-Class Wizard Apprentice—a Black Wizard with around 200 Mana—were severed. Locke then used Wild Grass Entanglement and Wire Tendon Grass Seeds to seal his mouth, ears, eyes, and nose, incapacitating him without killing him.
"Now I understand how Hussein felt when he fought seven First-Class Wizard Apprentices alone," Locke muttered as he stepped into the Black Wizards' storage. "The gap between First-Class Wizard Apprentices is even wider than that between a man and a dog."
Like a wolf among sheep, Locke entered the storage, his eyes gleaming. "What incredible luck—I actually stumbled upon an unlocked storage."
"This is..."
"Curse Tumor Wine." Locke spotted five large transparent glass jars on the shelves, each containing floating black tumor-like substances.
Without hesitation, he opened one and drank it.
Immediately, he felt a surge of curse energy rapidly converting into pure mental energy, boosting his Mana.
"This is a huge win. Curse Tumor Wine is a distilled substance from special cursed creatures. When consumed by wizard apprentices, it permanently increases their mental energy," Locke mused. "Though its effects are far inferior to Tartarus Cave Worm Spinal Fluid, and tolerance builds quickly after a few uses."
"But stumbling upon this is already an unexpected windfall."
He had only learned about this kind of thing from the two Black Wizard slaves under his control. It was an item awarded by the Blood Curse Court to students who made special contributions, holding a status similar to the Tears of Stars Potion and Bleeding Dragon Potion in Lilith's Cottage.
But since Locke had never drunk this wine before, it could indeed enhance his Mana somewhat. This was the Blood Curse Court's secret recipe, their unique specialty.
Locke glanced at the shelves and found that aside from this Curse Tumor Wine, there were many other cursed objects or curse materials, such as the Curse Swallowing Stomach Pouch, Fresh Blood Navel, Resentful Bone Stitching Needle, and more...
Though they were of little use to him, that didn't stop Locke from using three Omen Mandrake Vines—like writhing tentacles—to sweep the entire small resource stash clean in one go.
At any rate, he could just bundle them up and sell them to the Chimera Market later for a hefty profit!
"So satisfying." Locke steadied his emotions. "Is this how Black Wizards feel every day?"
"Calm down, calm down. I'm a White Wizard, after all."
(End of chapter)