Chapter 556: Preservation


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    A flock of ravens gracefully soared above the verdant grasnds, flying toward the city of Ravenfell in the distance.


    Seeing the sea of golden rice fields flourishing on the ground, Headmaster ckwood thought to himself in gratification, Hmm, very good...


    The mana underground is sufficiently enriching the crops. This is a great boon for the mortals.


    While other Magi thought of mortals as nothing but pests who couldn''t wield mana, Saratoga''s old headmaster considered them as necessaryponents to the ecosystem.


    They were like the smaller cogs in a wheel; without them, the machinery would never work efficiently.


    After all, there were numerous works that only mortals could carry out that Magi thought were beneath their statuses.


    While the headmaster wasn''t overly amodating to the mortals of thesends, he wasn''t overly strict with them either.


    He continued to fly over the rich farnds, not drawing any attention from the farmers on the ground. The sight of ravens was quite ubiquitous not just in Ravenfell, but also in the surroundingnds.


    The closer he got to the city, the more he saw an increase in the people on the ground-arge majority of them being Magi, of course.


    Hmm, the business in the city is flourishing as well, he thought.


    Although the city council dealt with the day-to-day administrative and legitive activities of the city, they were not the ones who actually ruled over it.


    The ruler of Ravenfell had traditionally always been the Headmaster of Saratoga Castle!


    However, this was a fact only known to the city council which was made of a group of powerful and affluent leaders of Ravenfell''s aristocratic households.


    Of course, other individual powerful Magi were also privy to this information, but they were few and far between.


    As the flock of ravens flew toward the city, all of them suddenly turned toward the direction of the towering western gate.


    More specifically, the ravens'' gazended on a tall young man wearing a loose, white silk robe. He had long hair that was tied into a ponytail.


    Moreover, the man also had trimmed facial hair that further enhanced his masculine physique.


    Arge, y gourd hung over his shoulder that instantly drew the old headmaster''s attention. Hmm? Are those... runes carved on the gourd?! Headmaster ckwood thought incredulously. He paid closer attention to the young man, wondering who it was.


    The raven-haired man was walking in an extremelyidback manner, sipping from the y gourd from time to time.


    When the flock of ravens flew past above him, the young man suddenly raised his head and calmly nced at them.


    The headmaster was taken aback!


    Did he notice my gaze? He thought to himself as the ravens entered the city and scattered away, blending in with the countless other ravens in there.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    However, a particr raven perched upon a building near the western gate, continuing to gaze at the young man. However, this time, the raven made sure to conceal itself.


    Huhu, Adam Constantine, you''re quite the perceptive fellow, thought the old headmaster.


    Seeing the man walking through the western gate and then looking around in a confused manner, Headmaster ckwood thought to himself, He''s quite alert... certainly a good trait to have.


    The old man decided to follow him for a little while, curious about what he would do. Usually, he would refrain from doing such activities, but Adam had piqued great interest within him ever since the young man had found the Raven Inheritance.


    Hmm, but why did he carve runes on his gourd though? How peculiar!


    The raven quinted his eyes, trying to make out the purpose of the runes. Then, he was taken aback.


    Is it a preservation runic formation? The headmaster thought to himself.


    Sigh, this young man''s love for wine knows no bounds. This is precisely the reason why I can''t have him seed in my position...


    Having a drunkard as the Headmaster of Saratoga? Never!


    He continued to follow after Adam, havingpletely concealed himself. After the initial bout of alertness, it seemed that the young man had now rxed a little.


    Headmaster ckwood followed Adam to the Market Quarter where thetter boughtrge quantities of herbs and ingredients. Furthermore, he also sold several barrels of wine at various liquor stores.


    Seeing how the owners of these liquor stores had personallye to greet and tend to Adam, the Headmaster went into deep thought once again, Are the wines he makes that good?


    Hmm, perhaps I should buy some...


    After buying and selling items in the Market Quarter, Adam headed to an art gallery in the Uptown Quarter.


    Is he interested in art? Thought the raven with a tilt of its head.


    About half an hourter, he saw Adam walk out of the art gallery. However, behind him, the owner of this gallery as well as a few other Magi had alsoe out.


    The gallery owner fawningly bowed toward Adam, speaking in a very polite and respectful manner, "Lord Constantine, you''re paintings are very sought-after among the nobles. Many of them have requested you toe to their manors and paint a-"


    Adam interrupted him as he walked away, "I don''t have time for that. I''ll give my work to you, and you sell it to them. Don''t ask for more. Or do you want me to conduct business at another


    gallery?"


    The portly gallery owner hurriedly waved his hand in panic, "My Lord, forgive me for


    bringing up this topic! We will do as you say!"


    Seeing this interaction, the headmaster was quite surprised.


    So not only is he a Herbalist, but he is also a painter? Very interesting...


    The raven followed Adam who leisurely strolled the cobblestone streets and made his way toward Flynn Manor.


    Upon reaching this ce, the guards of the house respectfully weed him. Meanwhile, Headmaster ckwood saw the young man disappearing through the door of the manor. Hmm, I''d heard about Adam curing the patriarch of the Flynn Family. Looks like they have quite a good rtionship, he thought.


    The next moment, the raven''s eyes narrowed and he wondered, This could also be about them working together against the Umbra Thieves...


    Sigh, those parasites are still causing trouble in my city. Forget it, I''ll leave it to Adam and Brigham. A Mana Vortex Magus should be enough to deal with them.


    The raven pped its wings and then flew away towards the other side of the city. Headmaster ckwood had now satisfied his curiosity.


    He felt that doing it any further would be very unbing of him.


    ...


    Flynn Manor.


    After the servants in the building shut the main door, Adam who was halfway through the


    hallway suddenly looked back.


    His piercing gaze seemingly pierced the obstructions andnded on the building rooftop across the street where the raven was earlier perching on.


    "The young man''s back was drenched in a cold sweat.


    Contrary to Headmaster ckwood''s belief, Adam was fully aware that he was being spied


    upon the whole time!


    What the hell was that?! He thought in rm.


    Thanks to the Sphere of Resonance, I was aware that someone was watching me from the moment I


    entered the city... But even after going around the ce for several hours, I couldn''t identify who or


    what it was!


    That could only mean that the other party was using a very high-level concealment spell... Could it be those thugs from the Umbra Thieves?!


    Adam went into deep thought as he stood rooted in the hallway. The maids and servants panicked, not knowing what to do. Thus, they left him alone.


    "What''s gotten into you?" Suddenly, a feminine voice drifted into his ears, snapping him out


    of his thoughts.


    Adam turned his head, his gazending on a middle-aged woman with piercing brown eyes and dark brown hair that cascaded down her shoulders.


    She was wearing tight-fitted formal clothes and naturally exuded an aura of dominance.


    "Elysande, someone was following me," said Adam as he walked toward the woman who was none other than the eldest daughter of Brigham Flynn.


    The pair walked together toward the other side of the hallway, making their way underground to a restricted area of the manor.


    "Do you think it was someone from the Umbra Thieves?" Elysande asked with narrowed eyes.


    For the past couple of years, Adam had teamed up with the Magi of the Flynn Family to take down this heinous criminal organization.


    After what they had done to the patriarch, how could the Flynn Family just let them be?


    Hence, in the past several years they had dered full-scale war against this ndestine organization. Moreover, they had been sessful for the most part.


    But no matter how many of these thugs they killed, more took their ce.


    "It could very well be one of the higher-ups from this organization," Adam muttered in a


    grim tone. "I could tell that this person was very powerful..."


    Elysande couldn''t help but turn serious.


    If even Adam is saying that the other person was very powerful, could it perhaps be a Rank 3 Magus?


    She thought in rm.


    After fighting side by side with him against the criminal organization, she naturally knew of the young man''s unbelievable fighting prowess.


    Soon, they arrived in an underground basement where a few Magi were guarding a room. Upon seeing the pair, they respectuflly bowed before opening the door to the room.


    As soon as the pair stepped inside the room, their nostrils were assualted by an extremely


    pungent odor.


    It was the stench of blood!