A Sorcerer's Journey 274 Tumors

Fifteen days later.
After continuously searching around the cities that could potentially house the Black Sorcerers, they still had no clue about Lefay's whereabouts. Grimm's patience was wearing thin.
From what Nina had described, there was something peculiar about these black apprentices. They seem to have appeared out of the blue in great numbers.
They shared nothing in common and there wasn't any pattern that could lead to a clue. They have never even interacted with each other before.
Although the black apprentices were a menace, they were no match for a proper sorcerer. They could simply hide like parasites within the blindspots of the sorcerer academies.
The terrifying Black Sorcerer, Hattori the Hidden was another matter, however.
Not only was he the source of the increase in the black apprentices, but the Holy Tower of the Seven Rings even recorded six cases of real sorcerers who were murdered in his name. One of the victims was a demon-hunter who was on duty.
But Grimm knew that for the past few days, the Bone Tower Academy had downplayed the number of incidents to protect their name.
The situation was much grimmer than what was reported in the statistics.
Therefore, Grimm was also being more cautious.
Since Grimm used to harvest the Amonro's Tears of Sorrow in large quantities during his time in the Shadow World, his spells alone could deal hundreds of points of damage. At the peak of the war, he even faced off with Level 2 Amonros on numerous occasions, causing him to know the terror that came along with it.
As a Dark Sorcerer who specialized in the study of the occult codes of life and death and one who had been harvesting "Human Despair" in the sorcerer world for a long time, the upper limit of his damage would be much higher than Grimm's two to three hundred points.
Furthermore, during the new recruit tryouts, Hattori the Hidden had shown himself to be gifted in his moves. Hence, Grimm was on high alert.
At this moment, Grimm and Nina York patrolled around a huge marshland known as the Withering Swamps.
A constant fog covered the Withering Swamps all year round. Visibility around the area was less than twenty meters. There was some ecstasy-inducing matter ingrained within the mists that could cause hallucinations. The creatures in the swamps were very ferocious and often hunted each other for food.
Within the unique biosphere, a creature known as the flower-scaled lizard stood at the top of the food chain.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Grimm and Nina hugged the ground as they flew, trying to look for any clues regarding the Black Sorcerers.
A kaleidoscope of dry-leaf butterflies flew past Grimm and Nina, vanishing in the thick mist. Grimm stopped and let out a sigh.
"What?"
Nina looked back at Grimm with a puzzled face.
Grimm shook his head. "A place like this, and we're both not very good at sensing. This is like finding a needle in a haystack!"
Nina York was troubled. "But this is the most likely place where the Black Sorcerers would fester. Apparently, the Bone Bell Tower Academy has listed this place as a hotspot. Combing this area is our best chance of finding the Black Sorcerers' trace."

Grimm looked down without a word. He seemed to be contemplating.
Quite a moment later, Grimm suddenly called out, "Little Myna."
There was a distortion in the space above his shoulder. A beautiful fluffy red and green Myna appeared. Like a panting puppy, it dutifully asked, "Caw! Caw! What's the matter, Master?"
As it spoke, it made a funny, playful rolling-eye.
Grimm glared at the Myna beneath his Mask of Truth. He asked in a cold manner, "How far can you sense in such an environment?"
Grimm let out another sigh. He had planned to finish up the second phase of the Infinity Eye and the Eagle Eye on his Mask of Truth.
"The great race of the Steel-Emblem Mynas detects lifeforms through their breath. This type of environment is nothing at all for the great Steel-Emblem Mynas."
The Myna proudly flicked his tail. It slowly turned around and noticed the sorceress beside him. It called out in surprise. "Caw? Master, this, this female human… Lefay?"
The Myna asked falteringly.
Nina was astonished to see the myna on Grimm's shoulders. Both of her murky eyes were in shock. A soul partner from the principal source?!
As she saw that Myna was flabbergasted and had mistaken her for Lefay, she couldn't help but shake her head slowly and let out a gentle smile. "How do you do? I am Nina York, a friend of Grimm's."
As she spoke, she placed a magical stone on her palm.
After knowing the old sorceress in front of it wasn't Lefay, the Myna just coldly nodded. It was a bit disappointed, but was puzzled by Nina's act of placing the magical stone on her palm. It called out in confusion. "What are you doing?"
The air stifled with a little awkwardness at that moment.
Nina looked at Grimm, then back at the Myna. She was puzzled as well. "Don't you eat this?"
"Bah! You eat the stone yourself! A great Myna like me… oh!"
Grimm hit the Myna at the back of its brains and angrily chided. "If you do not want to eat it, then don't! Stop with all that nonsense and help me look for any humans around."
After the incident, Grimm said to Nina apologetically, "Don't mind this guy, he's just like Master Peranos's Garnigel. They're both greedy bastards."
Nina smiled awkwardly and stored her magic stone away.
The more she looked at the Myna, the more mysterious it became. It was such an enigma, a curiosity.
The Myna, however, strut its wings and tilted its head. It pointed to the left and sheepishly muttered, "There's a presence of a few humans over that side."
"Let's go."
After the Myna's words, Grimm and Nina flew toward the direction.
After almost half an hourglass.
Nina York and Grimm bowed in accordance to a sorcerer's etiquette.
A Level 2 sorcerer who donned a straw hat stood on top of a huge beetle. Grimm and Nina had to bow before him.
Behind the Level 2 sorcerer were seven to eight apprentices. They were astonished by the sudden appearance of Grimm and Nina.
Buzz…
The massive beetle's wings flapped at a very high frequency. The mist around them blew wildly in the howling winds. The sorcerer in straw hat took a glance at Grimm and Nina before asking intriguingly, "Demon-hunting Sorcerers? Are you here for the Black Sorcerers?"
Other than the sorcerer's cloak, the best way to identify a Demon-hunting Sorcerer was to gather the despair of unknown creatures from foreign worlds. The Amonros' despair that surrounded Grimm's body was the best proof of a demon-hunting sorcerer.
Of course, it was a high-level sorcerer scouting out a low-level sorcerer.
"Great lord, we've come from Black Isotta Sorcerer Academy. We were looking for an old partner who has been corrupted. If possible, we would like to meet her for one last time," Grimm said respectfully.
The straw-hat sorcerer replied, "For three years, the sorcerers of Bone Bell Tower Sorcerer's Academy have searched this area multiple times. We've hunted down four black apprentices. See if you can find your friend here."
After that, the giant beetle spat out four black-colored crystals consecutively.
Both Grimm and Nina's hearts almost jumped out.
Clank! The four dark crystals shattered, revealing concealed heads. Grimm naturally ignored the three severed male heads. The last head belonged to a female black apprentice that looked like she was in her forties. It wasn't Lefay and there was nothing remarkable about it.
Grimm quietly breathed out a sigh of relief. He calmly said, "Thank you great lord, the friend I was looking for isn't there."
"Oh, good then."
The straw-hat sorcerer ordered the giant beetle to gather back the severed heads of the black apprentices. At the same time, his face was stern. "Actually… if it was your old friend, there might be a small chance that you could still save him."
Grimm and Nina, who were about to take their leave were startled.
Grimm's eyes were filled with disbelief. He cried out, "Great lord, what do you mean? Did you mean that there's some way to repent?"
"No, no, no!"
The straw-hat sorcerer shook his head and said three no's in a row. He then continued in a serious manner," Now normally, once an elemental sorcerer becomes corrupted, he would surely be hunted down with bounty offered by the sorcerer academies and the Holy Tower Institutes. But there's one exception and that is if the sorcerer has been corrupted not by his own will."
"You mean to say…" Grimm asked anxiously.
The straw-hat sorcerer grabbed hold of one of the severed heads that wasn't swallowed by the beetle. He pointed at the back of the head. There was a beating tumor.
"They were actually… enslaved by Hattori the Hidden. Their path of corruption toward the dark side wasn't part of their will."
The straw-hat sorcerer shook his head and said pitifully, "I'd never thought that he could combine his talents with Symbiotic Insects and create a powerful spell which could enslave sorcerer-apprentices who were highly intelligent and had high mental strength. He's a genius sorcerer that only appears once every ten thousand years! Too bad... he chose the path of corruption on his own accord."
"This is a secret that I've found out three months ago, I'm ready to report this finding to the Holy Tower of Seven Rings to begin the real demon hunt!"
Grimm's eyes twitched in disbelief.
A Black Sorcerer who enslaved the sorcerer-apprentices?
One must know that the sorcerer-apprentices, being the bridge between normal humans and real sorcerers, were very difficult to be enslaved. This was due to their high intelligence, high mental capability, and the protection offered by the principal will of the Sorcerer World as well as various other reasons. It would be as hard as a Level 1 sorcerer to tame a Level 3 Soul Slave!
But this new Black Sorcerer from the Bone Bell Tower Sorcerer Academy in Section 12 of the Holy Tower of Seven Rings...
According to history books, the sorcerer's mainland had produced a few terrifying Black Sorcerers that had similar abilities. Each of these Black Sorcerers became infamous legends of their times. Their destructive level was second to that of a few evil Black Sorcerers who had gone against the interests of the world.
Clink…
The straw-hat sorcerer cast a spell that covered the severed head with dark crystals again and threw them into the giant beetle's mouth.
"I call these tumors the Hattori Bugs. Their function is to enslave the sorcerer-apprentices and pass down the power of despair to their queen. That is to say, these black apprentices were just tools of Hattori the Hidden to gather the despair of humans while he went into hiding."
After letting out a sigh, the straw-hat sorcerer continued. "If you want to save your friend, there is only one way. You'll have to make Hattori the Hidden order the queen to recall the bug on your friend. Remember, don't take it out by force, or else you might not be able to collect your rewards…"
After finishing his words, the straw-hat sorcerer smiled and no longer bothered Grimm and Nina. He led his group of apprentices and carried on on his way.
"Master Grimm…"
"Grimm, we still have hope. If we could make a deal with Phantom Thief, perhaps we could…"
Grimm stopped Myna and Nina's consolation mid-sentence. He was terrifyingly cold in demeanor. He said calmly, "Let's just continue, we must find Lefay!"
Of course, Grimm knew what the straw-hat sorcerer meant when he said he wouldn't be able to collect his reward. It meant that the black apprentice's head would explode if he were to forcefully extract the bug.

Chapter end