Ian once again began his teaching.
Time passed by, second by second.
Merlin's return was incredibly fast.
About half an hour later.
"Ready?"
Merlin had changed into a new outfit.
"Let's go."
Ian had already organized all his cards, so he nodded, ready to depart—Merlin took out a box, and upon opening it, revealed a magical cube inside.
"Door Key?"
Ian sensed a familiar aura.
"It's a transportation device."
Merlin used an ancient term to refer to the cube, but it essentially meant the same. He looked at Ian, and the two of them placed their hands on the cube simultaneously.
Soon after.
A distortion.
The cube took the two of them and vanished from the spot. Morgan watched where they left, filled with complex emotions, and after some thought, went to find Riddle.
"Let me use that thing!"
Little Morgan directly snatched away the Shadow Creature.
Riddle didn't dare to retort.
She brought the Shadow Creature to where Ian and Merlin had departed.
"Find out where they went for me."
Ultimately.
Little Witch couldn't completely let go of her curiosity. Excellent wizards are always this way; their curiosity drives their progress, so Morgan's curiosity hadn't really diminished.
It was merely suppressed.
Perhaps one day.
This curiosity would become the seed for Morgan to explore the mystery of Medivh.
...
Regarding Little Morgan's actions, Ian, of course, was unaware. He and Merlin were taken by the Door Key cube to a vast canyon, with lush trees, babbling streams, and the air filled with the fresh scent of greenery. Ian looked around, feeling increasingly familiar with the sight, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.
Sure enough.
The next moment, Merlin led him to a mountain wall.
"Isn't this the ancient relic the teacher previously mentioned?" Ian's heart trembled, and his eyes twitched uncontrollably. He remembered Morgan had once taken him over this cliff with his memories.
But at that time, Morgan didn't mention it being a tomb.
Was it intentional?
Or an oversight?
Ian felt complicated. Merlin didn't notice Ian's abnormality. He stood in front of the mountain wall, scrutinizing the scene with a slight frown: "There's a strong magical influence here, seemingly protected by some ancient seal. I'll need some time to break it."
With that, Merlin pulled out a bunch of odd tools and scrolls from his arms, and began bustling in front of the mountain wall.
While chanting spells under his breath, he engraved complex runes onto the mountain wall with his tools. Ian, standing by the side, couldn't help but ask.
"How long do you need?"
Ian found it hard to remain calm inside.
"A few hours, I guess."
Merlin was full of confidence.
Upon hearing this.
The Little Wizard couldn't help but sigh.
"A few hours? Are you trying to worry me to death?" Ian took a deep breath, walked toward the mountain wall, and in Old English, addressed the wall lowly.
"Question me, King of Bronze and Fire."
Just as Ian imagined, his voice echoed throughout the canyon, as if activating some hidden mechanism.
"Hmm?"
Merlin raised his head sharply upon hearing Ian's words, a flash of surprise and astonishment in his eyes. Before he could utter a word, the mountain wall emitted a low rumbling sound.
As though something was awakening.
Only to see.
Following his words, the Magic Rune drawn by Merlin was directly erased, and countless lines began to emerge on the stone wall of the cliff, interlinking into complex and mysterious patterns.
In the end.
A pair of sharp eyes appeared, making Merlin raise his vigilance, as if facing a formidable enemy.
"Alchemy Life?"
He recognized the signature on the stone wall.
Meanwhile.
"In quantum mechanics, the wave function describes a particle's state, and when a particle is observed, the wave function instantly "collapses" to a definite state."
"Please answer me how this process occurs, and why it happens." The same wall posed the same question, an absolute impossibility for this era to answer.
Familiar Nana Mizuki.
Ian sighed.
He glanced at Merlin, who was frowning and pondering the question.
"I don't know."
He gave an unexpectedly lazy answer that even Merlin didn't anticipate.
Just as Merlin was about to complain.
Ian blushed red.
"But I know, my favorite is you."
He really didn't want to say this, but the sense of crisis had already risen, and if he didn't provide a satisfactory answer, the defensive barriers here would all activate in an instant.
No choice.
The Little Wizard had no options.
Could only say something insincere.
"Oh, how should I answer you, of course, it's absolutely correct!" Just heard Nana Mizuki exclaim excitedly, and then the cliff revealed a dark cave amid trembling.
"..."
Ian didn't turn around to glance at Merlin's uncertain expression, just kept his head down and walked in. Merlin stood at the doorway, pondering for a moment as he watched Ian's back, then followed closely behind.
"You surprised me once again."
Merlin spoke with deep meaning.
The Little Wizard did not respond.
Just persistently kept his head down and walked downward.
The cave was pitch-black, winding downward along a rugged stone stairway, with ancient runes engraved on the stone walls on both sides, flickering in the darkness like fireflies.
Quickly.
A giant Bronze Gate appeared before them.
Intricate and exquisite patterns were engraved on the stone door.
Very clear.
It's some sort of Magic Rune.
[World Savior and Disaster Destroyer]
[Independent for Ten Thousand Generations]
The familiar eight characters were still there.
Shining brightly in simplified Chinese.
Making the Little Wizard unable to help but sigh.
"I know this puzzle." Merlin quickly stepped forward, swiftly extracting letters from the complex patterns on the Bronze Gate.
Uncertain of where he got the information.
Just in a blink.
Medivh
The word was pieced together by him before Ian could even stop him.
"Rumble!"
The Bronze Gate was opening.
"Damn! There are traps behind the door!" Ian panicked instantly, remembering Morgan's cause of death, hurriedly took out his Magic Wand, layering dozens of Protective Spells on himself.
"Don't panic."
Merlin wasn't flustered.
He turned to look at Ian, his eyes glowing white. The familiar feeling made Ian instantly think of Aurora and Grindelwald.
Indeed.
"The greatest Prophet of the century is your teammate, so you don't need to worry about traps." Merlin's gaze at Ian flashed a few traces of confusion.
However.
It quickly vanished.
He truly believed in his Prophetic Ability, turning his back to the opening Bronze Gate— and as the gate opened, Ian instinctively mobilized his Magic Power.
"Hmm?"
The imagined green torrent of Evil Energy Burst didn't appear.
Ian was quite surprised.
Merlin clearly didn't lose the gamble. Not only was there no Evil Energy Burst behind the door, but there was no attack either, just a vast white mist presented in the Bronze Gate.
"What's going on?"
Such a scene left Ian bewildered.
"Let's go."
Merlin then stepped into the gate, his figure swallowed by the mist the next moment.
He was too confident.
"..."
Ian waited for a moment, not sensing Merlin's demise on the other end of the contract, cautiously stepping in— Merlin might not know Medivh, but he surely did.
But the scene now was very unexpected for Ian.
"Where is this?"
Ian felt himself traversing layer upon layer of space, countless scenes flashing by, everything around seemed to slowly lose color like scenes in an old movie.
When the crossing ended.
The Little Wizard stood on solid ground, surrounded by black and white hues, with an icy wind blowing through, while Merlin stood in the wind, his Wizard's Robe flapping.
"If I'm not mistaken, this should be Helheim, the Realm of Death, independent of the Netherworld, or perhaps a world plundered by the God Eater."
"He used it as his tomb."
Merlin turned to Ian with a calm expression.
His eyes were still glowing.
"The rules here cannot be surpassed even by gods; in my understanding, only souls can tread this place, so, I'm very curious..." The black and white Merlin stared intently at his 'companion' in front.
"Why haven't your physical body and Magic Power been stripped away?" The Wizard King spoke low, his pupils reflecting the still inquisitive Ian.
The colorful Little Wizard seemed particularly conspicuous in this black and white space.