Chapter 50: Opening the Box

On the way back to the herb garden, Gao De initially maintained a normal pace.

He occasionally reached up to touch his chest, confirming the spell scroll safely tucked there.

As the herb garden drew nearer, Gao De could no longer suppress his eagerness; his steps quickened steadily.

The moment he stepped through the garden’s gate, he broke into a light run and dashed into his workshop.

Gao De bent down, dragged out the large wooden chest beneath his worktable, then removed the carefully stored spell box from within.

Next, he pulled from his pocket the priceless spell scroll—the one bearing the spell “Knock.”

After a moment’s thought, the impatient Gao De forced himself to calm down; he did not use the scroll immediately, but stepped out to wash his hands in the lavatory.

Better to believe than to doubt.

What he was about to do was equivalent to opening a blind box.

And not just any blind box—a paid blind box.

This scroll had cost a fortune; if it yielded nothing valuable, he’d lose everything.

So, before opening it, the proper ritual had to be observed.

In a world steeped in mysticism, believing in mysticism wasn’t shameful! After washing his hands and returning to the workshop, Gao De finally picked up the spell scroll.

He merely tugged the ribbon tie, and the scroll unfurled smoothly, lying flat in his hands.

Gao De took a deep breath and focused his spirit entirely on the scroll.

Instantly, the arcane script on the scroll glowed faintly, resonating with his spirit.

Sensing the immense power, Gao De directed his will toward the spell box resting on the table.

Under his will, the scroll’s light erupted violently, radiating a magical fluctuation invisible to the eye but unmistakable to his spiritual sense.

This fluctuation seemed to gain life, instantly transforming into a bolt of lightning that shot forth along the path of his will, striking the spell box directly.

The ripple pierced the air and struck the invisible arcane lock on the box.

At the moment of impact, ripples like water spread across the box’s surface.

Like a stone breaking the surface of a pond, a cascade of fine, dense cracks erupted.

The cracks appeared, then vanished.

Each appearance and disappearance was accompanied by a soft click.

With the final crack, the ripples vanished entirely, signaling that the box’s magical seal had been temporarily suppressed.

Meanwhile, the spell scroll in Gao De’s hand, its magical energy spent, dissolved into glowing specks that faded into the air.

—A scroll vanishes after use; that was common knowledge.

“Should be openable now?” Gao De thought, staring at the box, which looked no different from before.

He knew he had to open it quickly and retrieve its contents.

Because Pierre had told him: Knock didn’t break arcane locks—it only temporarily suppressed their effect.

Once time passed, the lock would reactivate.

Though aware of the urgency, Gao De did not act rashly.

Instead, he stepped back several paces, retreating to the doorway, then opened the door, ready to flee at the first sign of trouble.

Then, a faint, barely noticeable glow gathered at his fingertip.

A translucent, floating spectral hand appeared.

Under his control, the spectral hand extended forward, gently and precisely touching the box from a distance.

[Mage Hand].

“May the Golden-Black King of Fortune protect me.”

Gao De silently prayed, then directed the Mage Hand to give a gentle push.

Creak. With a soft scraping sound, the wooden box—previously unopenable even with all his strength—opened effortlessly.

Gao De glanced inside from afar; though not large, the box held a considerable amount of items.

It wasn’t empty!

A flash of delight lit Gao De’s eyes.

He dared not delay, fearing the arcane lock might reactivate; he swiftly commanded the Mage Hand to extract everything inside.

As the box’s contents were removed, Gao De’s eyes grew brighter.

First, three thick books.

Then five slender pamphlets.

Beneath them, three aged parchment sheets.

Then a small stack of paper—about twenty sheets, increasingly older toward the bottom, the lowest pages yellowed with age.

After that, a scroll tied with a cord, its appearance resembling a spell scroll.

The final item pulled out made Gao De’s breath quicken.

Glinting gold, radiating irresistible allure, round and smooth, engraved with a proud rooster motif.

Sein coins!

Master Seda had placed the coins at the very bottom of the box.

Fifty Sein coins in total.

Gao De, who had never seen, let alone owned, so much money, could not contain his excitement.

“Praise the Golden-Black King!” Gao De felt his heart pounding.

This one move—suddenly rich.

This was the proper reward for risking everything to eliminate a seasoned Third-Rank Apprentice Mage!

All items from the box had now been retrieved.

After confirming no hidden dangers remained, Gao De slammed the door shut and hurried to the table, snatching up the fifty coins to play with.

The coins clinked together in his hands, producing an exquisitely pleasing sound.

The cold metallic texture made him reluctant to let go.

Not long ago, he had agonized over the cost of a Gaton meal.

He’d nearly split a copper coin in half—only the thought of its diminished value had stopped him.

Now, faced with so much gold, he felt a sense of unreality.

“How do I even spend this much money?”

After playing with the fifty Sein coins left by Seda, Gao De turned his gaze to the still-open spell box.

He knew that soon, the arcane lock would reactivate.

Then the box would seal shut again, forever inaccessible.

After a brief thought, Gao De reached out, gathered a small stack of scrap paper from the table, stuffed it into the box to fill it, then closed the lid.

At that moment, a faint ripple of light shimmered across the surface.

The arcane lock reactivated perfectly.

Gao De looked at the sealed box and smiled knowingly.

Outdoing the master.

Seda didn’t play counter-strategies—didn’t mean he wouldn’t.

Having finished this, Gao De finally calmed himself and began inspecting the other spoils.

(End of Chapter)