Contemplation

Matthew didn't immediately go too far.

It wasn't that he didn't want to leave, but rather that his body had reached its limit.

After forcibly squeezing through the fissure in the tomb and stumbling through the mountain forest to escape, his stamina and Spirit were nearly drained. Especially during that final moment when his shadow was snared by the empty coffin—to stay conscious, he had forcefully sliced open his own palm. The wound was still throbbing with pain.

The blood was no longer flowing heavily, but his palm was sticky, and the edges of the wound were blackened from rubbing against dirt and gravel.

Matthew looked down at it but didn't treat it immediately.

First, he listened.

The surroundings were very quiet.

There was only the sound of the night wind passing through the branches and the distant chirping of insects.

No footsteps.

No human shouts.

And no more of that calling coming from the depths of the tomb.

Matthew waited a while longer. Once he was certain there were no anomalies nearby for the time being, he took a small roll of coarse cloth from his tunic and simply wrapped the wound on his palm.

As the cloth tightened, the pain made his brow furrow slightly.

But this pain actually put him at ease.

Pain meant he was still conscious.

It meant he was still here, and hadn't returned to that main burial chamber to lie inside that empty coffin.

At the thought of this, Matthew’s expression darkened further.

That coffin was clearly empty.

But it was precisely because it was empty that it was even more terrifying.

If some monster had been lying inside, or even the corpse of an Official Wizard, Matthew wouldn't feel this chill in his heart.

A corpse was at least a corpse.

A monster was at least a monster.

But that empty coffin was not.

It was like a spot.

A spot waiting to be filled.

It didn't need to crawl out, nor did it need to wave claws or fangs. It only needed to be seen, to be heard, and to make people believe they should return. In the end, a person would walk toward it of their own accord.

Noel was the first.

That young crossbowman had also nearly become the second.

If Matthew hadn't been cautious and avoided looking directly into the depths of the coffin, he might have already been targeted by that empty coffin back in the main burial chamber.

However, in the end, it had still set its sights on him.

Matthew looked up at the dark mountain ridges in the distance.

The tomb entrance was no longer visible from there.

But he could feel that the Official Wizard's tomb was still underground.

Like an eye buried deep in the soil.

Silent.

Cold.

Perhaps it had closed again.

Or perhaps it was still open.

Matthew didn't want to keep guessing.

At a time like this, overthinking was meaningless.

He had to first ensure he was truly safe.

Matthew forced himself to stand up. Propping himself against a nearby tree trunk, he stumbled further into the forest.

He didn't move fast.

Every step was cautious.

The night was deep, and the forest was filled with waist-high weeds and tangled roots; one slip could lead to a fall. Moreover, he was still carrying the newly acquired staff on his back and the leather pouch full of magic stones and materials at his waist, making his movements far less light than usual.

But even so, Matthew had no intention of leaving anything behind.

He had nearly traded his life for these things.

Unless he was truly at a dead end, he would never give them up.

After walking for about an hour, Matthew finally found a place where he could temporarily hide.

It was a shallow cave formed beneath a slanting rock wall.

The entrance was obscured by several clumps of bushes, making it inconspicuous from the outside. The space inside wasn't large, barely enough to accommodate a single person curled up, but the advantage was that it was sufficiently hidden. With the rock wall at his back, he didn't have to worry about anyone approaching from behind.

Matthew didn't dive in immediately.

He first circled the area to confirm there were no animal tracks or signs of human activity. Only then did he use his short staff to push aside the bushes and slowly back into the cave.

Backing in.

Not walking in.

This was a subconscious habit of his.

When entering a strange hiding spot, he didn't like giving his back to the darkness first.

Even if it was just a shallow cave, he had to confirm there was nothing else inside.

Fortunately, the cave was indeed empty.

There were only a few pieces of rubble and some withered leaves.

Matthew swept the leaves aside and sat down.

The moment he sat, fatigue surged over him like a tide.

His shoulders ached.

His back ached.

His palm ached.

His knees ached too.

Especially when he had squeezed through the fissure; the stone walls had practically ground against his entire body. There were surely many abrasions beneath his clothes right now.

But he couldn't sleep.

At least not yet.

Leaning against the cold rock wall, Matthew forced himself to stay awake.

He first placed his short staff within reach, then laid the newly acquired deep brown staff across his knees.

This staff was significantly longer than his short staff, and the feeling in his hand was distinctly different. The short staff was more like a simple medium, only helping him stabilize the release of low-level spells. This deep brown staff, even though it looked somewhat old, still contained a complete and steady current of mana within.

Matthew lightly rubbed the staff with his fingertip.

The wood was very hard.

It wasn't an ordinary tree.

Although the surface didn't have much decoration, there were some fine natural veins. Those veins weren't chaotic; instead, they looked like energy pathways that had been deliberately preserved, extending from the base of the staff all the way to the dark green crystal at the top.

The crystal had cracks.

This left Matthew feeling a bit regretful.

Cracks meant the staff might have been damaged or might not be able to exert its full original effect.

However, even if it was damaged, it was still far more precious than an ordinary short staff.

For the current Matthew, this was already an astonishing harvest.

He didn't rashly attempt to inject mana.

Firstly, his current condition was too poor.

Secondly, the staff's origin was unknown; no one knew if there were any lingering issues inside. Anything coming out of an Official Wizard's tomb, no matter how tempting, couldn't be used carelessly.

Matthew simply gave it a brief inspection. After confirming there were no obvious active runes or grayish-white marks like those on the empty coffin, he simply wrapped the crystal part with cloth to hide its glow.

Next, he took out the ring.

The silver-black ring lay quietly in his palm.

In the night, it had almost no reflection and looked dull, like an old ornament that no one would necessarily pick up even if it were tossed by the roadside.

But Matthew knew it was by no means ordinary.

He could feel an extremely faint mana fluctuation inside it.

That fluctuation was very strange.

It wasn't sharp like offensive magic items.

Nor was it heavy like defensive charms.

It was more like a quiet void.

Deep.

Distant.

Inconspicuous.

But it definitely existed.

Matthew stared at the ring for a long time.

He didn't recognize this object.

He wasn't sure what its purpose was either.

Perhaps it was some kind of identity token.

Perhaps it was a medium to assist in spellcasting.

It might even be an experimental object an Official Wizard had left behind at will.

But regardless of which it was, it meant the item had value.

Matthew hesitated for a moment and ultimately did not put the ring on his hand.

Unknown magic items could not be worn carelessly.

Especially something brought out of a bizarre tomb.

He simply found a small piece of cloth, wrapped the ring separately, and then placed it deep inside his inner pocket against his body.

After putting it away, he took out the small metal box.

Previously in the hidden compartment of the maintenance stone room, he hadn't had time to open it. Now he finally had a chance to take a look.

The surface of the metal box was engraved with fine patterns. Because too much time had passed, the patterns were filled with dust. Matthew wiped it with a cloth, only then seeing that the patterns weren't decorations, but looked like a simple sealing symbol.

The symbol had faded.

There wasn't much residual power inside.

Matthew didn't use brute force to pry it open. Instead, he used the end of his short staff to test the edges of the lid bit by bit.

After confirming there was no reaction, he slowly opened it.

Inside the box were three items.

The first was a few sheets of thin parchment.

The parchment was well-preserved and covered in fine script. Unfortunately, Matthew couldn't understand most of the text. It wasn't the common script used in the academy, but looked more like some kind of Ancient Wizard Tongue—the strokes were twisted and carried a strange sense of order.

Matthew only barely recognized a few words among them.

“Container.”

“Traction.”

“Return.”

Just these three words made Matthew’s face sink.

Container. Traction. Return.

These three words too easily brought that empty coffin to mind.

Matthew didn't continue trying to force an interpretation.

He worried the parchment itself might have issues.

Thus, he refolded the parchment and put it back in the box.

The second item was a small black stone fragment.

The stone fragment's surface was smooth but the edges were jagged, as if it had been chipped off a larger stone slab. It had no obvious mana fluctuations, but it gave Matthew a very heavy feeling.

Not a physical weight.

But a weight when touched by his consciousness.

Matthew only stared at it for a moment before his eyes began to feel sore, and he immediately looked away.

This thing couldn't be touched recklessly either.

The third item was a section of dried thin rope.

The rope was dark red, looking like it was made from the tendons of some creature, and its surface still carried an extremely faint medicinal scent.

Matthew couldn't tell what its use was, so he could only temporarily pack everything away.

This metal box might not be a treasure itself.

It was more like a record related to the tomb's rituals.

If he could find someone who understood Ancient Wizard Tongue in the future, perhaps he could figure out exactly what that empty coffin was from this.

However, that was for later.

For now, Matthew wouldn't show these things to anyone else.

Any secret related to an Official Wizard's tomb would bring trouble.

Especially since Sutton and Herbert were also in the tomb this time.

If they also escaped, things would become even more complicated.

Thinking of those two, Matthew’s gaze shifted slightly.

Herbert should have a chance to survive.

He was calm, understood runes, and wouldn't be easily led away by illusions. As long as he wasn't directly dragged back by the empty coffin in the subsequent passages, his chances of escape weren't low.

Sutton was the same.

That man was quite strong and had a ruthless disposition. More importantly, he had clearly been plotting regarding this tomb for a long time; he might not be without other trump cards.

But as for Noel and those other Class holders, it was hard to say.

Especially Noel.

He had been marked by the empty coffin and was the first to hear the calling.

If the group truly fell into chaos at the end, Noel would likely be the hardest one to keep alive.

Matthew recalled Noel’s words: “Don’t let me go over there.”

There was fear in that voice, but also a plea.

But in the end, whether he returned or not wasn't up to him.

Matthew was silent for a while before finally letting out a slow breath.

He couldn't save Noel.

In that situation, he had barely managed to save himself.

The wizarding world was just like that.

Some people didn't die because they did something wrong.

It was just because they weren't strong enough.

Not cautious enough.

And not lucky enough.

Matthew suppressed these thoughts and began to reorganize his haul.

He didn't count the ordinary magic stones individually, only roughly dividing them into several bags.

The medium-quality magic stones were put aside separately.

The materials were also separated by those he recognized and those he didn't.

The staff was wrapped in cloth.

The ring was hidden against his body.

The metal box was placed at the very bottom of his leather pouch.

By the time everything was reorganized, Matthew realized that the wealth on him had already become dangerously high.

This danger didn't come from the tomb.

It came from people.

If others knew that a low-level wizard apprentice like him was carrying so many magic stones, materials, a suspected magic staff, and an unknown ring, his situation would immediately become very dire.

In the academy, perhaps no one would dare to act openly.

But what about after leaving the academy?

In the wilderness?

In the trading districts?

In some corners where no one was paying attention?

Matthew was very aware that resources didn't just bring cultivation speed; they also brought prying eyes.

He had to quickly convert these things into his own strength or hide them in a safer place.

Especially that ring.

Although its mana fluctuations were hidden, if he encountered someone truly experienced, they might not necessarily fail to see it.

Matthew stared at his leather pouch, and for the first time, a feeling that having too many things was also inconvenient arose in his heart.

Just as this thought appeared, he suddenly thought of that ring.

If this ring could store items...

The thought flashed by.

Matthew himself was stunned for a moment.

Immediately after, he shook his head.

How precious were spatial-type magic items?

Even the most ordinary spatial bag wasn't something an ordinary wizard apprentice could easily possess. As for a spatial ring, that was something he had only seen described in some rumors and books.

He didn't believe an old ring he had casually picked up from a tomb would necessarily be such a rare thing.

Furthermore, even if it truly was a spatial-type item, he wouldn't know how to use it right now.

Matthew pressed the ring back into his inner pocket.

He couldn't experiment recklessly now.

Once he returned to a safe place, he would study it slowly.

The night grew deeper.

The wind in the mountain forest was colder than before.

Leaning against the rock wall, Matthew’s eyelids began to grow heavy.

He was too tired.

Whether it was his body or his Spirit, both were close to their limits.

Yet he still didn't allow himself to completely fall asleep.

He took an ordinary magic stone from his pouch and held it in his palm, using the steady energy fluctuations within to maintain a minimum level of consciousness.

Time passed bit by bit.

Partway through, he seemed to hear a low boom coming from the distance.

The sound was muffled.

Like it was coming from deep underground.

Matthew immediately opened his eyes.

He listened intently for a long time but didn't hear a second sound.

That might have been some structure inside the tomb collapsing.

Or perhaps the stone door had resealed itself.

Or perhaps something else had changed in the empty coffin’s ritual.

Matthew didn't go out to check.

Curiosity at a time like this was something that could kill.

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