Chapter 31 – Common Language of the Continent and the Book of Contracts

“Knock, knock.”

The knuckle rapped against the black wooden door, which, like the owner of the house, was old and worn, as if a single tap would cause dust to fall.

The wind on the Floating Sky Capital was fierce, and in the early morning, it carried a refreshing chill.

This old man is too strange—he won’t even bother to write a proper shop name,” a slightly complaining voice broke the quiet of the early morning street.

Standing outside the door were none other than Lin Wei and Duan Yu. Yesterday, they had left the Trade House in the evening, so they naturally didn’t have time to visit the Mage’s Dueling Grounds—the main purpose of their trip to the Floating Sky Capital and a suggestion from their respective teachers. Thus, they spent the evening wandering through the orderly alleys and streets.

One notable event during this time was when they arrived at the statue of the goddess and the headquarters of the Magic Association. Lin Wei hadn’t forgotten the cunning request from the Empire and approached the two Mage guards at the entrance of the grand building, asking to see the Association President or any member of the High Council. However, he was met with the haughty refusal of the two Mages!

“Sir Mage—no, given your age, you must be a Magic Apprentice who has just entered the academy. We can’t confirm whether you’re playing a prank—even if you claim to be an envoy from the Empire on the mainland, I don’t believe anything of concern to us would happen there.”

—In both lifetimes of Young Duke Lin Wei, while there had been moments of frustration, he had never experienced the humiliation of being turned away at the door!

Moreover, since this matter wasn’t suitable for too many people to know, Lin Wei didn’t inform his companions of his whereabouts, merely finding an excuse to leave the group. So, at dusk, he stood alone at the entrance of the Association, looking particularly isolated in the evening breeze.

Lin Wei gritted his teeth and left.

If he couldn’t find another way into the Magic Association within the next few days, he could still seek help from his friends.

As for those two damned Mages… this score would be remembered. He was a petty man.

After returning to the inn, it was a very peaceful night. The next morning, he and Duan Yu, following the old man’s instructions, returned to the shop’s door.

Hearing Lin Wei’s muttering, Duan Yu’s right hand, which had been knocking on the door, turned, and his fingertips traced the slightly indented patterns on the door—strange symbols that looked like some sort of design. His hand was undoubtedly beautiful, and in Lin Wei’s eyes, even the peculiar pattern seemed more pleasing.

Duan Yu said, “Eisenstein’s Tomb.”

“What’s that?” Lin Wei’s eyes widened in surprise. Is that what the pattern means?”

“Perhaps it’s also the name of the shop.Wait… so this pattern, like the text in the book obtained from the shop, was a language he knew nothing about, and Duan Yu could understand it?

As if sensing Lin Wei’s confusion, Duan Yu explained, “This is the Common Language of the Continent.”

The Common Language of the Continent? What was that…?

Wasn’t the language he had been using all along, whether in the Empire or the Magic World, the common language of the continent?

However, before Lin Wei could ponder further, the old man’s voice, far less robust than Old Anuo’s, came through the door: “It is indeed the name of the shop… You may come in.”

—It seemed that while the old man was aged, his hearing was still quite sharp.

Inside the shop, the old man wasn’t lying on the soft chair as he had been the day before. Instead, he stood by the counter, cleaning the mysterious magical items.

The old man slowly put down a uniquely shaped white cup he had been holding—its handle resembled a human bone joint—and turned to look at them.

Then, the old man’s murky eyes met Duan Yu’s, and he uttered some strange syllables.

Lin Wei: “…”

It seemed this was indeed the “Common Language of the Continent”—he suddenly had a premonition that the first thing he would learn from the old man might not be some profound spell or fascinating history, but how to speak!

Duan Yu naturally replied in the same language, and Lin Wei could only listen, bored, his gaze shifting between the old man and Duan Yu.

The old man was quite calm now, and with the deep wrinkles on his face that represented his age, he looked every bit the wise and respectable elder.

From the tone, the old man seemed to be asking Duan Yu something, and Duan Yu answered calmly—this Q&A went on for a while before the old man took a few steps toward Duan Yu, coming extremely close. Duan Yu leaned down slightly so that the short old man could reach his forehead with an outstretched arm.

The old man placed his palm over Duan Yu’s eyes, and his expression seemed quite satisfied.

Lin Wei frowned as he observed the old man, certain that this guess was correct.

If one ignored the two individuals’ stature and appearance, this scene truly resembled the ritual in which young men and women on the mainland, upon coming of age, were guided and blessed by a respected elder of their family.

Unfortunately, the old man’s frail and aged appearance was hardly commendable.

After nodding with satisfaction, the old man lowered his hand and began speaking again—this time, his tone was much more serious, leaving Lin Wei somewhat puzzled.

The language the two were using was distinctly different from the mainland language Lin Wei was familiar with. Compared to the smooth, almost flat mainland language, its syllables were disjointed and had a strong rhythmic quality, almost like the difficult incantations that Elemental Mages endlessly chanted when gathering magic.

When their conversation came to an end, the old man finally turned his gaze to Lin Wei, who had been standing to the side, and this time, he spoke in a language Lin Wei could understand.

“Summoner boy, do you know what you’re supposed to do now?”

Well, the kindly old man from earlier had turned back into the grumpy old man when facing him!

“I think so,” Lin Wei rubbed his nose. “First, I need to learn the language you use.”

“Correct—otherwise, you won’t learn anything here!”But, dear teacher, we can communicate without any obstacles using the current language…”

The old man glared at Lin Wei. Ignorant brat—if you insist on using this foolish language, which is only good for discussing food and weather, you’ll never learn true magic!”

Well, the teachers on the distant Siren Island, who had meticulously studied magic, were now being mercilessly scorned by a gray-robed old man on the Floating Sky Capital.

“So, dear teacher, how should I learn it?”

The old man pondered for a moment. “This naturally won’t take up the precious time of an old man… You can ask your companion for any questions—you two seem to be good friends.” As he spoke, he glanced at Duan Yu. “Old man asks you to teach this ignorant boy the Common Language of the Continent. You won’t refuse, will you?”

“I won’t,” Duan Yu replied calmly. “I’m willing.”

“Then the problem is solved—boy, let me see the book you got yesterday.”

Lin Wei took out the not-so-thick, even slightly thin, black book from his Space Ring. Its cover seemed to be made of some sort of magical beast hide, which had become very hard due to its age.

The old man squinted and examined the cover. “This is a Book of Contracts… You’re quite lucky.In Lin Wei’s heart, the necromancy the old man had mentioned was his favorite, but since he was being praised for his “good luck,” this book must have something unique—Lin Wei decided to probe the old man for more information.

“Does it record different methods of contracting?”

“Heh heh…” The old man let out a low laugh from his chest. “Contracts aren’t just for commanding brainless beasts, boy. I’ll only tell you one thing.”

Lin Wei listened quietly.

The old man said, “Boy, you must have memorized that damned Mage’s Iron Law… It’s always saying how profound and unreliable space transfer is. Of course, there are also those stories of Archmages who studied space magic and ended up losing themselves, never to be found again—but think about it…”

At this point, the old man bent over, coughing painfully, and continued, “When you Summoners open that Gate of Contracts, the things that come out… aren’t they alive and well?””