Sorcerer's Handbook

Chapter 513: Annan Extra (①)

After the patriarch of the Roland clan from the Sanctuary bid farewell and left, Annan finally relaxed her tense nerves and leaned softly against the cushioned chair.

On the desk in front of her was a cubic crystal, inside which slept an ivory platinum Pegasus with twin wings. This was the secret spirit-beast of the Roland clan-Pegasus Spirit. Once activated, the spirit-beast would transform into a two-wings Pegasus, capable of riding, assisting in combat, and fighting independently.@@@@

This was an extremely rare beast taming spirit, as summoning a spirit-beast relied on knowledge and inspiration to build the spirit-beast from scratch. Therefore, spell branches frequently encountered in daily life, such as Fist-Claw, Earth spell, Water spell, and Gunmanship, were mainstream. In other words, the vast majority of mainstream spells derived from common skills that ordinary people could master.

High-level spell branches like prophecy, fate, and Truth, which ordinary people couldn’t learn, understand, or comprehend, were impossible for average sorcerers to master.

The Beast Taming Sect also possessed characteristics of these high-level spell branches-how could ordinary people really understand other creatures? If you were skilled at horse-riding, you were just proficient in riding; if you were good at dog training, you were just proficient in domination; if you adopted many stray cats, you were just proficient in kidnapping... Humans could only master human skills, and no skill allowed a human to become another creature!

Some might think they could mimic other animals, like learning from dogs, cats, or horses... But a dog’s digestive system can process waste; can a human’s? A cat can groom itself; where can a human lick? A horse can sleep standing up; can a human?

Even if you successfully imitated, at best you could summon a beast transformation spirit-beast, still a far cry from true beast taming. The difference between the two is as vast as learning crossdressing and actually finding a girlfriend.

Currently, the main ways to acquire beast taming spirits are to either obtain them from sorcerer projection drops or to tame virtual realm creatures and have them willingly become beast taming spirits. However, virtual realm creatures that don’t even fear death are unlikely to submit to a sorcerer’s domination. The best a sorcerer can do is forcibly enslave a virtual realm creature, making it nearly impossible to win its voluntary allegiance.

The only exception is the Goblin sorcerers, as virtual realm creatures often don’t view Goblins with hostility. Although still a rare occurrence, a Goblin sorcerer can usually tame two or three virtual realm creatures in their lifetime, making them the primary source of Beast Taming Spirits.

However, the Roland Family is not a Goblin Family. Their Pegasus Spirits come from a stable source, and are not dependent on taming virtual realm creatures. The prevailing theory is that at some point in history, a virtual realm creature accidentally escaped into reality and mated with several mares, producing offspring recognized by the virtual realm. This is believed to be the origin of the ‘Roland Pegasus’ and the family’s branding.

Given the difficulty in summoning Beast Taming Spirits, enhancing them is also challenging, almost solely relying on feeding them virtual realm materials. A common One-Winged Pegasus already suffices for a sorcerer’s virtual realm travel needs. A Two-Wings Pegasus, with its short flight capability, makes Roland Family’s gift particularly generous, as the number of such spirits in their family does not exceed ten.

However, Annan showed little interest. She had her own Movement Miracle and didn’t need a Pegasus. Plus, she loved motorcycles and found mounts without steel frames and black-blooded veins to be less impressive.

I’ll keep it as a toy for Little Banjeet, Annan thought, putting the spirit crystal away.

What excited her more was the respectful attitude of Roland from the Sanctuary.

The recently departed Roland from the Sanctuary was the undisputed top ranker on the Sanctuary Battle Power Ranking! In an era devoid of legends from Nabistin, he was the foremost Gospel warrior in action!

To put it bluntly, the combined strength of the Mercury Sanctuary, Kaesrei Sanctuary, Qenna, and her close friend Cleos would still fall short against Roland from the Sanctuary! Just sitting across from him made Annan’s spirits tremble-none of her friends had ever caused such pressure.

To draw an analogy, Annan’s spirits were like well-trained veterans, Qenna’s spirits were experienced officers, but Roland’s spirits were warriors emerging from mountains of corpses and seas of blood! Annan even suspected that Roland’s spirits were covered in scars!

Such a powerful figure from the Sanctuary and a leader of his family-Annan previously wouldn’t have even had the chance to meet him. Yet now, he visited her personally, gifting their family’s secret spirit with reverence and politeness-almost to the point of flattery!

And Roland from the Sanctuary wasn’t the only one. Mercury, Kaesrei, Vastino... all these consortium families controlling the major cities of the Gospel showed immense kindness to Annan, merely a Two-Wings sorcerer. Her drawers were filled with gifts, and she had acquired quite a few properties in First-tier Cities under her name.

To say Annan didn’t secretly enjoy it would be a lie. She had always had a rebellious streak that loved defying authority. Running her firm had often led to clashes with these consortium families, and now seeing them humble one by one, Annan felt a rush of exhilaration, as if she was enveloped in the white mist of Vamora, feeling refreshed from head to toe.

But she didn’t let this vanity cloud her judgment. She knew these people didn’t truly fear her, Annan, but rather the Empress behind her.

The sole ruler of the Gospel for the next fifty years, the one with the power to interfere with the Gospel system-the Empress Gosdeya!

Those close to power often mistakenly believe they possess it. Annan would never make such a rookie mistake. She patted her face gently, returning to compiling the “Gospel Cities’ System Assessment Report,” aiming to deliver it to Her Majesty Gosdeya within three days.

After Ashe and the others were teleported away, Annan thought Lise would need several days to recover from her sorrow. However, that very afternoon, Lise started fulfilling her duties as Gosdeya-quickly taking over the Royal Palace’s secret guard, summoning family representatives, and announcing a seamless succession to the throne as if nothing had happened.

If only Ashe were here...it might even have been possible for Little Banjeet to have a brother or sister...

Only now did Annan suddenly remember those she once took in but had since lost again.

It was as if they had never appeared, no one remembered them, no one noticed them, no one mentioned them, except for the residual ranking on the Weave’s ranking list. They seemed to leave no trace in this Kingdom...yet the Gospel Kingdom appeared to have undergone drastic changes because of their passage.

Perhaps it was the joy of approaching her ideal that went to her head, or maybe she didn’t care that much in the first place, but only now did Annan truly feel Ashe’s absence.

Actually, this was perfectly normal. They had only spent less than a hundred days together, and Annan had lived just fine for over twenty years before meeting him. Love, in Annan’s mind, held far less importance than her dreams-otherwise, she wouldn’t have taken Ashe to Assassinate the Princess.

Though Annan abhorred Qenna and everything she stood for, Qenna’s attitude of ‘Family above all’ had left a profound impression on her. Determining exactly what she wanted and sacrificing everything else for it-that was the law of the Six Heraldry.

Ultimately, how much did Annan’s affection for Ashe really weigh?

Before the release of the Happiness Ranking, Annan merely had a fondness for Ashe, influenced by Senhaeser’s Dream and Ashe’s resemblance to Banjeet-undoubtedly, Annan, who had been cared for and raised by Banjeet, had her views on choosing a partner deeply shaped by him. She would subconsciously compare every man she met to the butler, and naturally, found none of them satisfactory.

At first glance, Ashe and Banjeet didn’t seem to have much in common. Banjeet was recognized and blessed by the Gospel for his beauty, while Ashe, after losing his First Gospel ranking, didn’t even make it onto any ranking list and was merely a 0-star nobody.

Yet, spending time with Ashe brought Annan a sense of peace. Maybe it was Ashe’s unique character, or perhaps it was seeing his willingness to care for Lise, who had no ties to him. Annan, who could no longer act like a child in front of Banjeet, loved to be playful and spoiled around Ashe.

There was another aspect of Ashe that attracted Annan-his laziness.

Annan was the type of person who couldn’t sit still and was always seeking the meaning of life. If she were to truly settle down and have children, she would undoubtedly push them to study and improve themselves every day. Ideally, they would achieve silver by the age of ten, gold by fifteen, and the Sanctuary by twenty. Life couldn’t be wasted, just like a moth must fly into the flame to find fulfillment.

Yet, she envied those who could appreciate a peaceful life-not the kind brainwashed by the consumerist culture of Mephila, nor the completely indifferent lifestyle of Vamora, but those who could find beauty in everyday life and feel joy and contentment in their daily routines. Yes, Annan envied Ashe.

However, this longing, this sense of peace, was at most an undeveloped fondness, a seed waiting to sprout.

The true turning point in her feelings came when the Happiness Ranking was published, and the Funeral decided to proceed with the Assassinate the Princess plan.

Suddenly, death, which seemed distant, was now imminent. Overwhelmed by fear and pressure, Annan desperately needed someone to share her burden. Ashe became her lifeline, and this fondness, encapsulated in dependency, evolved into a love that felt eternal.

Did she love Ashe the person, or the sense of peace, dependence, and life’s joys she found through him?

Did she want to live her life with Ashe, or hope that Ashe could experience life’s other beauties for her, allowing her to chase her dreams without reservation?

Annan looked at Little Banjeet in the cradle and softly murmured, “In fairy tales, the protagonists being together is the happy ending; no fairy tale ever recounts the mundane details of living together... perhaps this is for the best.”

She returned to her room to find the floor filled with suitcases-the Court attendants had gone to the underground city and retrieved the belongings the Funeral had left at the inn.

There were her clothes and shoes, Banjeet’s daily items and notebook, Harvey’s surgical tools and harmonica, Igor’s... wait, whose harmonica?

But soon, Annan’s attention was caught by something else.

“Gifts?”