Wizard: I can refine all things.

Chapter 2 The Forge of Miracles

The Miracle Forge, something that sounds impressive.

Standing behind the wizard, Richard cautiously used his mind to contact the furnace that had remained unresponsive until now.

He needs to figure out what this thing does as soon as possible.

Fortunately, the process was not complicated.

The moment Richard's mind came into contact with the furnace, information about the Miracle Furnace's functions was automatically transmitted into his brain.

In short, the Miracle Furnace can extract everything that the host can use from the 'raw materials'. This part can be a substance of the raw materials themselves, or some kind of information contained in the raw materials.

When refining in the Miracle Furnace, the host needs to provide a continuous supply of 'fuel'. The amount of fuel consumed varies depending on the different substances being extracted.

Extracting information requires mental energy, while extracting matter requires physical energy.

……

The test was conducted quickly; more than a hundred children were tested in less than an hour, and only seven of them passed the mental strength test.

"Alright. Send these children back." After testing the last child, the black-robed wizard ordered the administrator.

"Yes, Your Excellency Wizard," the official bowed.

As the other children left one after another, the remaining seven children looked at each other in bewilderment.

Among their seven children were a farmer's son, a baker's daughter, a blacksmith's adopted son, and a merchant's youngest son...

They comprised almost the entire social class of the territory, yet now they stood together, awaiting the pronouncement of the black-robed wizard.

"Alright, children. As qualified individuals, you are far superior to the others. You will now become the 432nd class of wizarding apprentices at the Black Tower Wizarding Academy, embarking on the path of seeking truth within the academy."

The wizard sounded pleased; he seemed quite satisfied that Blackwood had acquired seven qualified children.

He beckoned to Baron Blacksin to come over.

"Delis, give these children a bath and change their clothes while you're at it."

"And this child," the wizard said, pointing to Richard. "Treate his wounds. If he gets into trouble because of them on the journey ahead... hmph."

The wizard didn't finish his sentence, but everyone knew the hidden meaning behind it.

"I understand, sir," the baron replied decisively.

After saying this, Baron Delis arranged for the castle servants to take the other children to the lower level of the castle.

There is a large bathroom on the lower level of the castle, where the underground hot spring was cleverly converted into a bath by the Baron of Hessian.

In the bath, Richard's wounds went from numb to painful.

Hot baths were a luxury that was practically a crime for ordinary people; the firewood used to boil water could have cooked countless meals.

Not to mention natural hot springs, something only nobles could afford.

Richard stayed in the water for a while, and after rubbing off the mud and dust, he immediately went ashore.

He was in a bit of a rush compared to the others; he also had to treat his wounds.

……

After leaving the bathroom, Richard put on the new clothes prepared by the maid.

The new clothes are made of cotton and are a bit loose, but they are warm.

Richard, dressed in new clothes, stood in front of the mirror and carefully examined his appearance.

With long, flowing black hair, deep-set eyes, a high nose bridge, and thin, pale lips, he looked more like a fallen nobleman than a commoner.

"My lord, you must have noble blood in you," a maid standing to the side exclaimed.

"Is that so?" Richard raised an eyebrow, and then, led by a maid, went to the second floor of the castle.

The second-floor corridor of the castle is filled with portraits, which appear to be portraits of the successive Barons of Hesse.

At the very end, did Richard see the portrait of the first Baron of Blackwood? The portrait depicted a man in armor, holding a two-handed greatsword.

Beside the portrait, a broken greatsword hangs on the wall.

"Um."

Just as Richard saw the broken sword, the Miracle Furnace within his body throbbed.

"Is this the sword of the first Baron of Hessin?" Richard wondered, a flicker of interest crossing his mind.

This broken sword is the raw material that the furnace has identified.

"Yes, sir," the maid replied.

Richard stepped forward and gently touched the broken sword with his hand.

[Ingredient: Count Hessien's Broken Sword]

[Refineable Skill: Wind Raven Sword Technique]

[Refinement Cost: 5 Spirit Points]

[Whether to extract]

Wind Raven Sword Technique!

Richard was startled.

This was the famous sword technique that Count Hessen used to wreak havoc on the battlefield back then.

This sword technique was so famous that even Richard, a poor peasant, had heard the bards talk about it.

However, it is said that this sword technique was lost three hundred years ago.

This is also the reason for the decline of the Hessian lineage.

Faced with such a valuable treasure, Richard naturally chose to extract it without hesitation.

This is an opportunity you can't miss!

As Richard made the selection, he instantly felt drowsy, as if he had been listening to a calculus class all morning, his head feeling dizzy and lightheaded.

But before Richard could even doze off, the scene before him instantly snapped him awake.

The broken sword has vanished!

The maid standing to the side was suddenly stunned. Where was such a big sword?

But in the blink of an eye, the maid saw the broken sword return.

Dazzled?

The maid rubbed her eyes to make sure the broken sword was still in place, while the young wizard beside her looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, sir. Let's hurry to the doctor," the maid said hastily.

……

Richard breathed a sigh of relief when he realized he had gotten away with it.

He hadn't expected that the Miracle Furnace would need to devour the physical form as well as the information.

Richard's heart skipped a beat the moment he saw the broken sword disappear.

Fortunately, the Miracle Forge completed the refining process in an instant, and the broken sword returned to its original position after only disappearing for a moment.

Let's return our attention to the furnace.

Above the Miracle Forge, a white light rose and fell.

Richard made mental contact with the white light, and in an instant, fleeting memories flashed through his mind.

He traveled to one dangerous battlefield after another, wielding his sword to kill one enemy after another.

"My lord? My lord? We've arrived at the doctor's place."

The maid's voice snapped Richard out of his daze. His mind was still too weak; even receiving battle memories left by powerful figures from the past would cause him to drift into a daze.

"Okay."

Richard snapped out of his daze and hurried into the doctor's room.

Half an hour later, Richard, leaning against the wall, weakly walked out of the room.

When performing surgery on an external injury, the doctor didn't have any anesthetic and could only use strong liquor to relieve the pain.

Fortunately, the doctor was quick enough to remove the necrotic tissue from the wound, suture the wound, and apply ointment in less than half an hour.

At that moment, Baron Delis also arrived on the second floor.

"Young wizard, the wizard is about to depart."

……

Upon arriving outside the castle, Richard was wearing a brand-new cotton coat. Although his face looked somewhat malnourished, his demeanor was completely different from before.

"Hmm, looks good." The black-robed wizard looked at Richard and nodded in satisfaction.

Then, with a wave of his sleeve, a mysterious force enveloped the seven people, making them float like bubbles beside the wizard.

"This is the levitation technique; you'll be able to learn it at the academy later."

The black-robed wizard gave an explanation, then shot a fireball into the sky.

boom!

The fireball exploded.

A beam of light pierced through the leaden clouds, passed through the exploding fireball, and shot straight to the earth.

"This is?"

Looking up at the sky, behind the thick clouds, a huge gray outline was gradually becoming clear.

"Holy crap... what is this thing?"

Richard's voice trembled as he looked at the sky in disbelief.

A floating airship, hundreds of meters long, emerged from the clouds like a blue whale, and the beam of light piercing through the clouds was the eye of this behemoth.

In a daze, Richard suddenly remembered a legend he had heard while inquiring about the extraordinary.

Legend has it that every ten years, a giant beast from the clouds will travel from the Northern Barbarian Mountains.

Its body is as large as a mountain, and its eyes are as bright as lightning.

Now, the legend has been stripped of its veneer!

The black-robed wizard spread his arms and led everyone into the sky in the direction of the pillar of light, like saints ascending to heaven.

Richard saw the black-robed wizard's mouth open and close, and a grand voice filled with joy reached the ears of all the qualified candidates.

"Welcome aboard the Zeppelin-type Magic Airship, junior students."

(End of this chapter)