Wizard: Starts with Advanced Meditation

As night fell, a tower floated in the night sky, its eerie blue flames projecting a flowing halo onto the clouds, mingling with the starry sky.

Below the floating tower are rows of exquisitely decorated Gothic buildings. On the ground floor of one of the estates, two figures are locked in combat under the moonlight.

The two figures probed each other, constantly changing their pace, and the wooden swords made of ironwood were constantly transformed under the skillful manipulation of their hands.

"Bang—!"

After the loud crash, a wooden sword fell from the great knight's large, thick hand.

"The formal knights are no match for the young master."

Olo Creon shook his slightly stiff hand and offered his praise.

"Young Master has changed a lot since that incident."

The great knight was dressed in heavily decorated armor, the surface of which was engraved with many runes.

The silvery-white runes shimmered on the armor, adding a slight amount of magic resistance and allowing it to protect against some level zero magic.

He was like a moving castle, his broad chest as solid as a city wall, and even his breath seemed to resonate with thunder.

However, the signs of aging on his face lingered, and his hair was gradually turning white.

The lifespan of a Grand Knight is generally around 200 years. Of course, the hidden injuries accumulated from years of fighting cause some Grand Knights to live much shorter lives.

Who would have thought that this royal guard captain, once known as the "Sword of Dawn," was already over two hundred years old.

This supreme knight, who had guarded the royal family of Kavia for over 100 years, resolutely signed a lifelong contract with a wizard apprentice who came to the royal family on a mission in his twilight years, and with the help of this wizard apprentice, he received a transplant of the heart of a mountain troll.

This creature's skin resembles mountain rocks, and its heart contains formidable vitality, greatly extending the lifespan of this great knight.

However, because its heart is too hard, even after the wizard apprentice's rough modifications, its blood-pumping ability is still slightly insufficient.

Its blood requires a large amount of minerals, but it cannot eat minerals and rocks like a mountain troll; it can only be injected with mineral concentrates periodically.

As for that wizard apprentice who wasn't very skilled in transplantation techniques, he was none other than Murray Craig, the current patriarch of the Craig family and a third-level wizard apprentice.

However, strictly speaking, the Craig family is no longer considered a wizarding family, since the Craig family now only has three third-class wizarding apprentices.

They are the head of the family, Murray Craig, and his two younger brothers, Mordy Craig and Moss Craig.

As for the Craig family's official wizards, the line ended with Murray's generation. The three Craig brothers were not very talented, with the highest being only a mid-level third-class talent.

Although a first-level official wizard can live up to seven hundred years, their elders died in the struggles of the academy in their early years.

They didn't leave behind much valuable formal wizarding resources and knowledge, and it seemed that the three brothers' wizarding journey could only end there.

The Craig family can currently only be considered high-class residents who have purchased property in "Corella," a wizard city-state established by wizards in the western part of the continent.

The Family Alliance is an alliance called "Golden Crown" composed of five major wizard clans in the center of the continent, with branches established in the major wizard city-states surrounding the center of the continent.

Valuable resources and information from various families are traded preferentially among the family alliances.

Wizarding families that join the council, if their offspring possess fifth-class aptitude, can directly study at the wizarding academy in the center of the continent and enjoy better resources after passing an examination.

In fact, the major advanced wizarding academies outside the continental center are branches of the continental center wizarding academies.

Of course, if a generation after them produces a formal wizard and their direct descendants also become formal wizards, they can apply to become a wizarding family and join the family alliance.

Now, the Craig family has only two offspring in the next generation: the eldest daughter, Nora Craig, who was assessed as having a fourth-class aptitude a few years ago and was admitted to the Frost Spire, the higher academy.

As for Hughes Craig, the eldest son who had just finished sparring with the Great Knight, he prepared to go to his father to ask him a few questions about bio-modification after taking a bath and changing clothes.

He had a head of neatly trimmed light gray short hair. The gray was not a monotonous dark gray, but had a delicate sense of layering, and emitted a dim luster under the crystal chandelier.

His gaze was deep, and his crimson pupils revealed a cold indifference.

His face was as exquisite as a marble sculpture under the moonlight, with sharp angles yet a gentle touch.

His high, straight nose bridge, like a steep mountain peak, separates his deep red eyes. His jawline is clean and crisp, and his slightly tucked chin adds a touch of elegance and nobility to his cool demeanor.

Hughes walked to the door of his father's alchemy room and knocked gently. The runes on the door flickered for a moment, then dimmed again, and the two doors slowly opened with a slight creak.

Upon entering the room, the corpse of a Bone-Eating Beast came into view. Its fangs secreted a toxin that softened bones, and its esophagus was connected to a siphon-like mouthpart used to suck out the softened bones and marrow.

Beside the platform where the Bone-Eating Beast was placed, a thin, middle-aged man was dissecting the beast with a scalpel.

He first separated its fangs, then used his wrist to push the scalpel into its neck. He then gently moved his arm to cut open the skin from the neck down to the stomach, and then used tweezers to gently separate the skin from the flesh and fascia.

"Where are you in the notes I gave you?" Murray asked slowly after completing the separation process.

"There's research on the ghoul's lungs, Father."

Murray believed that Hughes wouldn't lie to him.

"That's good. It seems that the accident had a lot of positive effects on you."

Murray realized he had said something wrong and slowly began to speak:

"I'm sorry, Hughes, the servant who poisoned you is dead. He was cursed a year ago, and the curse has completely merged with his body. I can't break it."

"It's alright, Father."

"Have you decided which house you want to go to? I recommend Everfrost Spire, since Nora is there, and I used to be in that house too."

Mentioning his eldest daughter, the patriarch smiled slightly, as the probability of someone with fourth-grade aptitude becoming a formal wizard was very high. (Wizard aptitude is ranked from lowest to highest as first, second, third, fourth, and fifth grade.)

He was deeply disappointed that the family's golden ring title had ended in this generation, and could only place his hopes on his descendants.

Hughes, at the age of 16 (when he could withstand the mental and magical power of a wizard), had already been tested with a crystal ball to determine his third-class aptitude and fourth-class affinity for ice and space attributes.

"The Everfrost Spire suits me well, Father," Hughes replied calmly.

Higher wizarding academies like the Everfrost Spire only accept wizarding apprentices with a third-class aptitude or above, and Hughes just happens to be qualified, making him the best choice for him.

"Well, you'll be embarking on your wizarding journey in a few days. I hope you won't be affected by any unexpected events, Hughes. This is quite common when you enter the wizarding world."

Murray offered a weak attempt at comfort.

Hughes didn't say much about being poisoned. After asking his father a few questions about the notes, he went back to his room to rest.

Little did they know, Hughes was already somewhat different at this moment. His purpose in coming was not to ask his father questions, but to observe whether the rest of the family noticed anything unusual about him.