In the five months since his arrival at Marquis Alaric's castle, Edric had devoted himself to two tasks. Every morning, he fulfilled his duty by attempting to sire an heir nearly every day. Afterward, he would retreat to the library, where he immersed himself in mastering two spells: Absolute Regeneration and Eagle Wings.
Months of grueling practice had borne fruit. He could now cast Absolute Regeneration in roughly 50 seconds and Eagle Wings in around two minutes. While his casting speed was far from battle-ready, the progress he’d made was nothing short of remarkable given the difficulty of these spells and his relatively limited experience and talent.
Yet, neither the spells nor his progress was the true source of his excitement. What thrilled him most was the imminent birth of his first descendant. Nearly nine months had passed, and Mirelle was about to give birth.
As he prepared to return, Edric’s emotions were a mix of anticipation and determination. While the thought of becoming a father filled him with pride, he was just as eager to complete the system’s task tied to this milestone.
"It’s time to go back," Edric muttered to himself, his decision firm. His child would be born soon, and he wouldn’t miss it.
Of course, leaving Marquis Marius’s castle was risky. Assassins could strike the moment he stepped outside its heavily guarded walls. However, Edric wasn’t particularly worried. With Eagle Wings, he could simply fly above any threat. No silver knight could harm him while he soared a mile high in the sky.
He had prepared carefully. A few air elemental crystals, acquired after painstaking effort, would reduce his mana consumption significantly. With them, he could make the journey to Mirelle and back without depleting his mana reserves.
This was the advantage of being a mage. Although silver knights were considered equals to silver mages in battle, they lacked a mage’s versatility. Knights couldn’t heal themselves or take to the skies. Mages, on the other hand, could adapt to countless situations with the spells they mastered.
...
Escaping the Marquis’s castle was no easy feat for ordinary people. But Edric was far from ordinary. As both a mage and a silver knight, he had the power and cunning needed to escape unnoticed.
He told the Marquis’s chief of staff that he was nearing a breakthrough in his magical studies and wouldn’t be able to fulfill his duties for a few days. The excuse was plausible enough, and Edric promised to make up for the time he’d miss.
With that settled, Edric made his move. Using his enhanced physical abilities and keen sight, he scouted a lightly guarded section of the castle wall. Timing his escape with precision, he leapt over it in a single bound.
The wall’s defensive enchantments were designed to keep intruders out—not to stop insiders from leaving. With no alarms raised, Edric disappeared into the night, his heart set on reaching Mirelle before the arrival of his firstborn.
Edric knew there would be consequences for leaving without permission, but he wasn’t overly concerned. With the war ongoing, the Marquis was unlikely to scrutinize his absence too deeply—so long as he returned safely. A convincing excuse would suffice to smooth things over.
Once he had put a safe distance between himself and the city, Edric retrieved the air elemental crystals from his pouch. Removing his shirt, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. In less than two minutes, two enormous wings unfurled from his back. Each wing spanned an impressive 20 feet, their broad, feathered expanse glowing faintly.
The air elemental crystals in his possession would ease the strain of flying. By drawing power from the crystals, Edric could reduce his mana expenditure, gain a slight boost in speed, and ascend to greater heights. This was a tactic all mages used, regardless of talent.
Of course, the effects of elemental crystals could always be replicated by expending more mana. Some prodigiously talented mages, boasting vast reserves of magical energy, might feel they had no need for such aids. Even so, conserving mana was always advantageous, no matter how deep one’s reserves ran.
With a powerful leap, Edric launched himself into the air. His massive wings flapped steadily, lifting him higher and higher into the cloudless sky. Fortunately, the weather was clear. Flying in stormy conditions would have been risky—lightning strikes were a real threat at higher altitudes. While Edric’s silver knight physique might allow him to survive a bolt of lightning, it wasn’t an experience he cared to test.
At around 8,000 feet, he stopped flapping and transitioned into a smooth glide. He rode the currents of air with ease, occasionally flapping his wings to regain lost altitude. His sharp eyesight, a gift of his silver knight body, allowed him to keep track of his position and navigate toward his destination.
At his current speed, he estimated it would take no more than five hours to reach Eagle’s Perch—a city whose name felt particularly fitting given his current state.
Up here, the air was frigid, and the wind howled like a living thing. An ordinary person would have frozen to death in minutes at this altitude and speed. But Edric’s silver knight physique was extraordinary. Even if he flew ten times faster or higher, his body would endure the strain without issue.
...
After two hours of flight, Edric smiled as he caught sight of the city below. There was no mistaking it—this was Eagle’s Perch.
He began his descent, reducing his altitude with precision. In less than two minutes, he landed gracefully just outside the city walls.
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Dispelling the Eagle’s Wings spell, Edric slipped his shirt back on and couldn’t help but marvel. “Eagle’s Wings is incredible,” he thought. “With this spell, I can travel between cities without leaving a single trace on the ground. No one will ever notice me—it’s truly amazing!”
Though Edric had tested the Absolute Regeneration spell many times before, this marked his first real experience flying with Eagle’s Wings. The movements of the wings came instinctively, as though his body had always known how to use them. It was nothing short of exhilarating.
In his previous life, Edric had flown in airplanes countless times. But this was entirely different—there was no barrier shielding him from the icy winds or the rush of the air. This time, he was truly one with the sky. Yet, thanks to his powerful silver knight physique, he felt no discomfort.
Even if he were to fall from the highest point of his flight, he would survive—perhaps with injuries, but certainly not death. His body had become so resilient that even a fall from the heavens wouldn’t pose a fatal threat.
Just as he prepared to walk toward the city gates, the familiar chime of the system rang out in his mind.
Ding!
Task "Have a biological child" has been completed!
Congratulations! You have received a Golden-Level Gift Box for completing your first-ever task, and a White-Level Skill!
Edric froze, stunned. He had traveled all this way, yet it seemed his child had already been born. The system had claimed there was still a day left—clearly, Mirelle had given birth early.
This revelation brought another, more intriguing thought to mind: the system wasn’t omniscient. The dates it provided appeared to be estimates rather than prophecies.
Curiosity overtook him. His child might have been born, but for now, the allure of the system rewards demanded his attention. He quickly opened the interface to inspect the newly acquired skill.
Flesh Control (White): You can control your flesh and muscles to a limited degree.
Edric’s interest piqued. Taking out a small mirror from his pocket—a tool he always carried to ensure his appearance was in order—he decided to test the skill.
“Let’s see how this works,” he muttered.
To his surprise, using the skill felt as natural as moving his arms or legs. He flexed and manipulated his muscles with ease, marveling at the level of control he now possessed.
“This... this could be useful,” Edric mused, watching his reflection with a grin.
Edric’s face began to shift as he activated the Flesh Control skill. His cheeks became more pronounced, his nose grew slightly broader, and his lips thinned. Within seconds, his entire appearance had transformed. Even his own mother would struggle to recognize him without a closer look.
“This skill is incredibly handy, even if it’s not high-ranking,” Edric thought, a satisfied smirk crossing his altered face. He released the skill, and his features instantly reverted to their natural state.
Still, the skill had its limitations. For one, the changes it made were temporary. His muscles would eventually tire and need to rest in their natural state. Fortunately, as a silver knight, his body was strong enough to maintain a disguised appearance for several days before needing a break.
Second, the skill couldn’t alter certain key features: his eye color, hair color, bone structure, or skin texture. Because of this, Flesh Control alone wasn’t enough for a complete disguise. However, when combined with makeup or other methods, it could become an invaluable tool for concealing his identity.
“The White-Level skill turned out to be better than I expected!” Edric mused. Initially, when he saw the skill was the lowest rank, he’d assumed it would be mediocre at best. To his surprise, it had already proven itself remarkably useful.
Without wasting any more time, he gave his next command. “System, open the gift box!”
Ding!
Congratulations! You have received the following rewards:
* 150,000 XP
* Silver-Grade Skill: Steel Hair Manipulation
* Silver-Grade Skill: Extreme Yang
* Silver-Grade Skill: See-Through
* Golden-Grade Weapon: Golden Knight’s Sword
The sheer volume of rewards left Edric momentarily stunned. His eyes widened as he processed the most significant part of the announcement.
“150,000 XP? I can break through! I can become a golden knight!”
Excitement surged through him. As a golden knight, he’d finally have the strength to protect himself against most threats on this island. But before diving into his breakthrough, he decided to check out his new skills.
Silver-Grade Skill: Steel Hair Manipulation
"Your hair becomes as strong as strands of steel and can be manipulated freely."
Silver-Grade Skill: Extreme Yang
"Your masculine power becomes inexhaustible, and your fertility is greatly increased."
Silver-Grade Skill: See-Through
"You can see through objects less than half an inch thick. Limitation: you cannot see through metals."
Golden-Grade Weapon: Golden Knight’s Sword
"An ordinary sword suitable for a golden knight."
Edric’s lips curled into a grin. The Steel Hair Manipulation skill was both strange and weird—it could be a versatile tool in combat. The Extreme Yang skill made him chuckle; it seemed the system had a sense of humor. As for See-Through, its limitations meant it wouldn’t work against everything, but it still had its uses.
Finally, there was the Golden Knight’s Sword. While the description made it sound ordinary, its very existence marked a major milestone for him; until now, his lack of a suitable weapon has long been his major weakness.
“Oh my, every one of these skills is incredibly useful for me right now! Well, except for Steel Hair Manipulation...” Edric muttered, shaking his head. “I would’ve much-preferred something like Insight rather than steel hair.”
For a golden knight, having strands of hair as strong as steel wasn’t particularly groundbreaking. Sure, it could be used to deal with mortals, knights, and perhaps even great knights in a pinch. But for someone like Edric, whose strength already eclipsed that of weaker foes, the skill felt somewhat redundant.
“All these rewards... and now, a breakthrough,” Edric thought, his grin widening.
Without further hesitation, he began to focus. The time had come to ascend to the rank of a golden knight.
He pulled up his interface to reassess his progress:
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Name: Edric Windwalker
Age: 15 years, 12 months, and 1 day
Task: None (30-day cooldown)
Techniques:
* Golden Knight Training: 760 / 275,000
* Golden Mage Training: 58 / 275,000
Talents:
* Knight Talent: Legendary (0 / 2,400,000)
* Mage Talent: Average (0 / 100,000)
Skills:
* Flesh Control (White)
* Steel Hair Manipulation (Silver)
* Extreme Yang (Silver)
* See-Through (Silver)
Cheat: Low Level – Gains 1,000 XP per day
Available XP: 318,154
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Edric’s eyes scanned his progress carefully. After a moment’s calculation, he reached a decision.
He whispered to himself, his voice tinged with excitement, “Add 274,240 XP to my Golden Knight Training!”
The system responded instantly:
Ding! Success!
Status changed – Golden Knight Training (275,000 / 275,000).