crown of stars

A raven moves through a misty snowstorm.

The old man with an oak cane led the horse and followed closely behind. His long cloak was dragged to the ground, and it shone with silver light as he moved.The old man staggered across the snow and came to the bottom of a valley.

There is almost nothing here, only a gray remnant monument standing in the center, almost completely buried by the wind and snow.

The old man cast a spell to push aside the buried snow layer, revealing the empty stele.

"Hey, old friend, I'm here to see you again." The old man murmured, with a look of reminiscence in his eyes, "It's been so long since that great war, and you've been sleeping here for so long. I don't know if you Are you really riding your war horse Sur and holding the sharp Esther back to the Star Goddess?"

The raven landed on the tombstone and croaked a few times.The old man looked around, the wilderness was boundless, the north wind blew up snowflakes, and sprinkled them on the plain.

"For so many years, you still protect this plane so well. The aftermath of the mother of monsters has never raged in the north. Compared with you, Aignor in the sky barely managed to pass."

"Yarman is now practicing the way of knights in the church of Agnor. Everything is fine. Last year, he also received the title of 'Saint Mikhail'. This year he received orders from the church to hunt down the Church of Shadows and Silver Guys in the hand, I can't come to worship my father in person, so I will hand it over to you."

He took out Arman's letter from his bosom, and a thick roll of parchment ignited automatically, paper ash and red charcoal spun around the stone tablet, as if entering another world.

"Farewell, my captain, the brave and skillful Elway." The old mage got on his horse, and the piebald horse, which had been mastered by elf skills, began to trot in the snow.

Valley of Ashes, Kolari Mage Tower.

"It's so late for you to go to the Forgotten Plains again?" The red fox fur was wrapped around her body obediently, and her gray hair was combed back meticulously. Ansair put down his teacup, even though he was over fifty years old, he still had a calm and graceful expression tolerance.

"It's been so long, and my dear little milk is also like me, and her legs and feet are not so agile." The old mage lay down on the armchair in a stretched posture, and enjoyed holding up the cup with a lot of sugar. Black tea with milk.

"There is no remnant of the mother of monster's corrupting power there. Don't make this excuse every time. The Agnor Church also has a lot of opinions on your frequent contact with Arman." The red-robed noble mage said seriously, although he Knowing that doesn't help at all.

"What's your opinion? I'm just a bad old man half buried in the ground. My only hobby is writing novels and poems."

"The church doesn't think so. As the favored one, the legendary archmage, the caretaker of the great knight Arman, and one of the heroes who directly ended the year of calamity, Kerwin, your energy is incredible. Every look and every word spoken deeply affects Arman's thoughts, and even makes him apostate. You must know that he is a popular candidate for the next Holy Son of the Agnor Church."

Kerwin leaned forward, fingers folded in front of his face, purple pupils gleaming under drooping eyelids.

"That child of Arman respects me very much, but I know very well that I can't change his mind. He is very devout to Agnor, fulfilling the strictest precepts exactly, and practicing Agnor's respect for the world. Proverbs. How do they want me to influence him? These old-fashioned people always think of mages with prejudice."

"Besides," the old mage paused, leaning closer to the ear of the red-robed mage, "others don't know, don't you and I know what the Holy Son is? drop him."

"More than that." Ansair shook his gray head, "The holy son and bishop of Aignor hope that you will stop spreading those false rumors, including novels and all poems."

Kerwin spread his hands helplessly, with a narrow expression on his face.

"I didn't expect it to sell so well at the beginning. There are bards singing everywhere. But the mouth grows on others. I can't shut everyone up. And in the novel, the great hero of justice God is already dazzling, and his majesty will not be compromised. If it is not possible, it is most practical for the priests of Agno to seal up the publishing house."

"Okay, okay, let's put this topic aside for now and go to dinner."

Kerwin quickly moved the stool.

"Kaldia, the dragon of the glacier on Kobold Cape, died and was killed. A dwarf and a halfling brought the dragon corpse back to Cold Winter Castle across hundreds of miles, causing quite a commotion."

"It's a good thing to lose a five-color dragon that you bother to monitor, why are you unhappy?"

"I sent my men to investigate. The dwarf is a traditional heavy armored warrior, and the halfling is a thief. How would they deal with a young white dragon that can fly?" Ansair said worriedly.

"I suspect that someone else actually killed the white dragon. When I wanted to know more, the prophesied water curtain in the tower only showed a mist. And there was a big hole on the top of the glacier dragon's lair. The one who escaped through the ice, there are traces of overly rich elements in the sky. The blood stained a large area of ​​water. I tried to restore the battle from Kaldya. It encountered an invincible enemy, and the scorched marks on the scales Neither the wound nor the wound was fatal, it was only one blow that killed him."

Kerwin's face suddenly became solemn, and he subconsciously stroked the long gray beard on his jaw.

"That is to say, you don't know his characteristics, temperament, and strength. Everything about him is a mystery, unpredictable, and unlocatable? Judging from the way he cooks the white dragon, it is quite clean and neat. What is the guy that Bailong is afraid of?"

"The Mage Association sent me here to stabilize the situation in the north. Not only guarding the battlefield, the frost giants, white dragons, and guys of unknown origin are all under my jurisdiction. I need to ensure that he will not cause damage to the north."

The raven standing on the shoulder suddenly uttered an extremely loud cry, jumped onto the table and pinched the mage's finger hard, as if dissatisfied with Kerwin's neglect.The old mage immediately stood up, nodded apologetically to Ansair, and walked to the snow-covered terrace.

"My god." Kerwin held the raven in his palm and said respectfully.

"Kerwin." The raven opened its mouth, and instead of a rough rattling sound, it was an ethereal and cold female voice, "Look at what's under the tower, you'll find surprises."

The old mage immediately lay down on the railing, stretched his neck and looked down.

A string of horseshoe prints sunk into the snow in different shades, and a young man wrapped in a thick leather jacket was approaching the mage tower.

Kerwin smiled softly.

"It's almost here, so I won't see you off." Messiah gently stroked the horse's mane. The blue-gray Northland horse stood stiffly out of fear, not even daring to breathe hard.

"Goodbye." The half-elf tightened the reins, made a circle on the spot, and rushed out of the coniferous forest while stepping on the knee-deep snow.

Kerwin closed the door to the terrace nonchalantly, and the raven stood on his shoulders, as quiet as a statue.The will of the gods has left it, and it is an ordinary familiar again.

"What's wrong, your goddess is giving you orders again?"

"No, there is no order. My goddess just reminded me to look up and see the gift that fate has given you and me."

"Gift?" The red-robed mage frowned deeply, "I don't have any gifts that I want, and I don't have any unattainable hopes, even if it is my sister, I only hope that she will rest in peace in the palace of the Twilight Father. Generally speaking, anything related to gods, especially your goddess of fate, is a big trouble."

Kerwin sank into the armchair with a relaxed expression and waved his hands, "Don't think so, my god will occasionally give me some extra discounts, such as predicting in advance which publishing house will sell well. Ansair, hurry up The magic of the mage tower is unlocked, and your new apprentice is here, and he can't see it!"

Nigel was holding a bag full of gems, standing on a rock out of the snow, reaching out and groping in the transparent air.

The Tower of Kolari is located in the Valley of Ashes, which is far away from the eyes of mortals. In the long years, the capital of the country of ice and snow was established here, and it was attacked three times and rebuilt three times.The last hero of the Year of Calamity built a line of defense in the ruins and died here. Finally, the red-robed mage accepted the ownerless mage tower.

The majestic tower stands quietly in the valley, and the torrent of spells pours down and penetrates into every corner, making it a mysterious tower invisible to mortals.

"If he can't perceive my tower, then he is not qualified to be my apprentice. Teaching a smart person is much less labor-intensive than teaching a fool with no talent. A Ruiwen has a good talent, but his character is too weak. Ai Devin...if he wasn't my sister's kid, acting like a fool with no self-knowledge, I'd want to throw him off the top of the tower."

"Edwin, Edwin..." Kerwin muttered regretfully, "Earl Gavin resumed after his mother's death, and Edwin was taught badly by his friends, otherwise you wouldn't have taken pains to make the He took it. I believe, old friend, that you can guide him back to the right path."

Nigel fumbled and turned the non-existent door lock, and the transparent camouflage fell apart, revealing the smooth dark blue body of the Mage Tower under the snow, reflecting a halo like a peacock feather in the sun.

A series of dizzying formulas popped out from the closed door. Nigel hesitated for a moment, picked up a branch and began to calculate on the ground.

Thanks Nafin.

Walking up the dark spiral staircase, Nigel still had lingering fears, and at the same time felt more and more uneasy about the way ahead.Countless metal lines of unknown meaning are outlined on the walls and floors, and statues of various shapes are placed on both sides, with gem-studded eyes stabbing eeriely on the body.

Nigel stepped down more and more cautiously, stepped over the stairs accurately and lightly, and greeted the unknown world behind the door with apprehension.