Chapter 121: Disappointment and Return

Lando suppressed his laughter. Before that, however, there was one thing he still needed to verify.

He headed to the magic tower and asked Johnny for permission to use an ordinary Foresen Flower. After promising that he would not damage it and would return it on time, he once again went to the point where the World Force was leaking out. He opened the flower’s specially sealed container and began another round of experiments.

Several hours later, Lando silently placed the Foresen Flower back into its specially sealed container. His expression, however, was extremely grim.

The roots of an ordinary Foresen Flower did not possess that peculiar power. They could absorb only a small amount of the free World Force through their flowers and leaves. They could not connect to the system, nor could they assist the system in absorbing World Force. On the contrary, Lando had to supply them with World Force to support their growth.

If ordinary Foresen Flowers had also been capable of releasing that special power through their roots, Lando would have considered finding a way to acquire all the Foresen Flowers belonging to the Tree Sea Elves and then attempting to cultivate them on a large scale. But this result had immediately made him abandon the idea.

After all, cultivating Foresen Flowers outside the world of the Tree Sea Elves was extremely difficult, and they would clearly never agree to large-scale cultivation in their native world.

These were not the only things giving Lando a headache. As a sacred relic unique to the World of Liv Fredericson, the Core Flower had no known precedent at the Silver Tower of an ordinary Foresen Flower being cultivated in another world. Though such cases were rare, there had still been no instance of a new Core Flower being cultivated. According to Johnny, the Tree Sea Elves currently possessed only two or three Core Flowers—and that was without counting the one in Lando’s possession, of which Johnny knew nothing.

Lando now understood why the Silver Tower valued a Core Flower at more than a hundred times the value of an ordinary Foresen Flower. He also understood just how enormous a favor he owed the Tree Sea Elves.

The rarity alone left him speechless.

At present, the best course of action was to use the Mindscape to analyze the special power contained in the roots of the Core Flower. If he succeeded, Lando would be able to soar straight into the heavens.

The other option was to find a way to evolve an ordinary Foresen Flower into a Core Flower. After all, the two were members of the same species and shared the same lineage. Surely that would be somewhat easier.

Of course, he could pursue both paths at the same time.

In any case, he still needed to maintain his relationship with Seth and his family. From the High Priest’s words, it seemed that he, too, had a deep connection with Seth’s family. Perhaps he was an elder from Seth’s mother Nadila’s clan?

After three months of research, Lando considered the results quite satisfactory. The environment here was excellent, but it was no longer worth remaining. He still needed to devote himself fully to strengthening his Elemental Body, and for the time being, he could not afford to become lost in this research.

He found Johnny, returned the specially sealed container holding the Foresen Flower, and took the opportunity to request permission to leave.

After Johnny asked him in surprise why he was leaving, Lando explained that he had already achieved the results he wanted and was unlikely to make any further progress in the short term, so he intended to depart.

Johnny was delighted for him. After Lando returned the formation key, Johnny warmly told him that if he ever had similar experiments or research to conduct, he was welcome to come to him at any time. This magic tower was one of his permanent research sites.

Lando readily agreed.

After two transfers, he finally returned to the Silver Tower Academy. The air was fresh and the climate pleasant. Compared with the sulfurous atmosphere of the apocalyptic world, this was what ordinary people ought to call life!

Lando had only stayed there for three months, yet he had already found it difficult to endure. It was hard to imagine how someone like Johnny, who had spent years conducting research there, had managed to adapt.

He first went to the laboratory to report his safe return to Mentor Odo, only to find the place empty. Mentor Odo was nowhere to be seen.

He tried contacting Alice and Leia, but neither of the girls could be reached. Who knew which world they had gone off to amuse themselves in this time?

Lando helplessly shrugged and headed straight for the cafeteria. It had been a long while since he had last tasted Old Moore’s cooking.

It was afternoon, and there were hardly any people in the cafeteria. Old Moore seemed to be napping leisurely in a rocking chair. Lando almost felt reluctant to wake him, but then he thought of his stomach…

“Hey, Old Moore! I’m back! Surprised? Delighted?”

Startled awake, Old Moore glared at Lando with an expression of deep displeasure. In his dream, he had just encountered an extraordinary ingredient and was about to begin cooking it when Lando had woken him up!

“Hmph! You brat. Remember this—you owe me one extraordinary ingredient!” Old Moore grumbled as he headed toward the kitchen.

Lando: “?!”

Although he had no idea what had suddenly come over Old Moore, it did not affect the feast that followed.

While Lando devoured his food, Old Moore also told him that Toru had been looking for him recently regarding matters concerning the merchant guild.

After hearing this, Lando indicated that he understood. After thinking it over, he decided that he would not be leaving the academy for the next few days, so he had Little Gray send a message to Toru’s merchant guild, asking them to contact Toru, who was currently in another world.

Toru did not keep Lando waiting. He returned from the other world the very next day.

The top floor of the Entertainment World.

Toru reported to Lando on the progress of the Four Kings World’s development during this period. The production of Void-Grasping Grass had already entered a stable phase. In addition, their merchant guild had taken on several other projects. The few merchant guilds sent by the Silver Tower were progressing in much the same way.

He also made a point of mentioning Hannah’s current situation. The Four Kings World was now completely different from the one Lando remembered. The kingdoms had vanished, and the entire world was governed by a council supported by the magic academy established by the Silver Tower.

The council’s members were appointed by the magic academy, the six major merchant guilds, and representatives of the local noble forces.

Hannah was now one of the councilors, wielding tremendous authority—though to an arcanist, such authority was ultimately little more than an accessory.

During the conversation, Toru also asked Lando whether he knew anything about the specific circumstances surrounding the establishment of the World Laboratory in the Four Kings World.

Lando replied that he had not been following news on that subject. Toru was somewhat disappointed. He had originally assumed that Lando might have obtained some relevant information from Odo, but it turned out that Lando had not paid the slightest attention to the matter.

Seeing Toru’s disappointed expression, Lando felt a little embarrassed. Although the two of them were partners, Lando had done nothing from the very beginning except enjoy the benefits. He could hardly claim to have contributed at all; Toru and his merchant guild had handled everything in perfect order.

“In that case, Mentor Odo isn’t at the academy right now. Once he returns, I’ll ask him whether the Silver Tower has made any plans. I’ll let you know when I find out.”

Toru was overjoyed. His earlier disappointment vanished as he said, “Then I’ll have to trouble you, Lord Lando. If we can learn the direction in which the World Laboratory will develop ahead of time, we can gain an enormous advantage! Once you receive any news, please do not send it directly to the merchant guild. You can tell Uncle Moore or notify me, and I will return immediately!”

Lando nodded casually in agreement.