Ethan merely offered a choice. Whether they accepted or rejected it in the future was entirely up to them.
After visiting their acquaintances, Ethan and Isendra looked at the empty plains, a little unsure of what to do next.
"Besides visiting old friends, do you have any other plans?"
Isendra wanted to discuss magic with Ethan, but she needed to first confirm if he had any additional arrangements, as she did not want to delay him.
If Ethan had nothing planned and happened to have enough free time, she would not stand on ceremony.
The magical knowledge from other worlds that Ethan possessed might give her some new ideas and perhaps allow her to go further on the path of magic.
"Yes."
"Oh? What kind of plan?" Isendra had not expected Ethan to actually have plans this time. At the same time, she was curious about what could bring this mage from another world back to this one.
"Ensuring you do not get killed."
"Huh?"
Isendra was stunned. She had been slowly walking forward with Ethan on the empty grassland, but when she heard that sentence, she stopped dead in her tracks.
"I will die?"
"If you keep going like this, what do you think the Vizjerei and their Sanctuary will do?"
"..."
Isendra remained silent. For years, she had been using her magic to help those in need, which was something strictly forbidden by the Vizjerei Sanctuary. Abusing the power of magic was considered the first step toward corruption.
As for fallen mages, the Viz-Jaq'taar would be dispatched to cleanse them. The assassins trained in that group were all elite killers specifically targeting mages, and they had countless ways to kill a mage.
Although Isendra did not feel there was anything wrong with her actions, should she completely ignore those in need when she had the ability to help?
"How did you know about this?"
"Because I know some things that might happen in this world's future."
Isendra looked Ethan over in surprise. She thought Ethan might have grasped some power over time.
This power was mysterious and formidable. Countless mages could not even find the threshold. However, given Ethan's current strength, touching upon this domain did not seem too strange.
"It seems my future is not very good."
Isendra's future was more than just not very good. She was assassinated by assassins, her soul was later captured and imprisoned, and she was finally rescued by her disciple Li-Ming.
However, he did not need to tell Isendra these details. They were things that would definitely be avoided. So, at this moment, Ethan simply smiled without answering.
"Your silence is actually more frustrating than saying something."
"Alright, your future is indeed not very good, so I hope to change it."
"Can fate be changed?"
"You already know what the future holds, so why do you think it cannot be changed?" Ethan sometimes did not quite understand this line of thought. "For example, if you know you will overeat tomorrow, and then you start not eating today, have you not changed the future?"
Although the example was not perfectly fitting, it was straightforward, and the principle was simple. Isendra's mood also improved a little.
"So what should I do? Ignore everyone who needs help from now on?"
"No, do whatever you want. You just need to be wary of some people targeting you behind your back, and you need to prepare in advance."
For Ethan, the crisis Isendra faced was easy to solve. Just kill anyone who dared to make a move.
He did not even need to help. A mage capable of facing Diablo head-on, when fully prepared, would not be easy prey even for assassins trained to fight mages. Otherwise, Volsek would not have specifically reminded the assassins to strike when Isendra was at her weakest.
"Or you could take the initiative and just destroy the Vizjerei."
Isendra rolled her eyes. She did not think she should destroy the Vizjerei. While many of the Vizjerei's actions annoyed her, such an organization was indeed necessary because some fallen mages truly caused disasters everywhere, and they were needed to target and eliminate these corrupted ones.
"Is there no other way?"
"There is."
"What way?"
"Just go somewhere they cannot reach."
This was the simplest solution. If Isendra left, he did not believe those Vizjerei assassins could break through the plane barrier and interfere with Isendra after she went to another world.
Isendra stood there quietly, holding her staff, contemplating Ethan's suggestion.
Ethan did not rush her. Instead, he pulled up a weed nearby, held it in his hand, and casually practiced applying natural energy.
Since his psychic universe had stabilized, Ethan was gradually gaining substantial mastery and improvement over energy properties he had only slightly understood but not mastered before.
Just like the natural power mastered by Druids, Ethan could now freely use small amounts of it. It did not conflict with his original magic at all. In fact, it was increasingly perfectly integrated into his magic.
Watching the weed in Ethan's hand grow rapidly, even transforming into various shapes, this method frequently used by Druids was now mastered by a mage, which made Isendra full of interest in Ethan's suggestion.
"If I do not leave here and also do not want to conflict with the Vizjerei, do you have any ideas?"
"Conflict is unavoidable. I can only try my best to ensure you do not die suddenly, or rather, leave you with other means of survival."
"Like the amulet you gave Charsi earlier?"
"Something like that."
That amulet could protect Isendra's soul upon her death and even break through the plane barrier to bring her soul before Ethan.
As for what happened next, whether it was resurrection or something else, that would depend on her own choice.
"Give it to me."
Isendra reached out her hand. This action indicated her choice.
She was not going to choose to escape but wanted to keep trying. Isendra wanted to see if she could make any changes. After all, she had a guaranteed fallback. If she truly could not change the outcome of being assassinated, it would not be too late to leave then. She had already dedicated everything to this world, including her life. At that point, even leaving would not hold any regrets.
"Truly... an unsurprising choice."
They were all like this. Was this the pride of heroes? Ethan casually pulled out the amulet he had prepared for Isendra and handed it over.
"You do not look surprised at all. Did you expect me to refuse?"
"More or less. I have pretty much figured out the personalities of you heroes now."
The two started walking again, continuing to slowly advance across the grassland. Since they had no particular destination, there was no need to rush.
"You do not have any plans now, do you?"
"Indeed."
So Isendra did not hesitate to start asking Ethan various questions about magic. Ethan was not stingy either, answering all the questions he could. The few he could not answer were not because he did not have the answers, but because his answers might not be suitable for Isendra. Those questions were better for her to explore herself and find the choice that best suited her.
Ethan was very straightforward about this and helped Isendra explore in multiple directions, only occasionally offering suggestions when she reached an impasse, giving her a path to try.
This caused Isendra's magical level to improve rapidly in a short time. Apart from the total amount of magic power not increasing significantly, Isendra's overall strength increased by another level.
For a mage of her strength, this rate of improvement was astonishing. Because of this, she was certain that Ethan's current strength could absolutely confront Diablo head-on, although she was not sure if he could contend with Diablo in his peak state in Hell, as Isendra did not know what Diablo's peak strength was like.
The increase in strength was secondary. The key was that Ethan's knowledge opened up new doors for Isendra. She often exclaimed in surprise. Magic could be used like this?
Especially many casting details and the uses of certain spells were explicitly forbidden by the Vizjerei Sanctuary. From this perspective, it was not unfair for Isendra to be later judged as a fallen mage. She and those mages were clearly not on the same path.
Isendra diligently absorbed new knowledge from Ethan. While learning, she also felt an urge. To simply follow Ethan to other worlds to explore, where she could learn more new knowledge, see more interesting and novel sights, and at the same time, climb to higher realms.
However, she ultimately held back. She was a little reluctant to leave this world directly, especially when thinking of the girl who bore some resemblance to herself.
Thinking of Li-Ming, Isendra suddenly asked Ethan, "If I want to pass this knowledge on to others..."
"This knowledge is yours now. You can teach it to anyone you want."
Ethan knew she definitely wanted to teach Li-Ming. And thinking of Li-Ming, Ethan suddenly thought of another girl.
"By the way, do you know where Deckard Cain is?"
"I do not remember you having any connection with that person. Why do you suddenly want to find him?"
When Ethan left, Deckard Cain, who was in trouble, had not been rescued back to the Rogue Encampment yet, so these two had no interaction.
"I just suddenly realized I could also be a hero who saves this world."
Originally, Ethan just wanted to ensure Isendra did not face the tragic end of being assassinated and having her soul imprisoned. Now that this goal was achieved, he could just wander around as if on vacation.
But he had the can't-be-happy-unless-the-plot-is-completely-messed-up sickness.
(To be continued.)