[...]
The moment Isaac's hand touched the Magic Book, a stream of information flowed through his mind. He now understood the meaning of the words "Mad Witch Association" on the cover...
The Mad Witch Association was a loose Wizard Organization—or, to be more precise, an organization for Wizard gatherings.
Only Wizards who had successfully traded with an otherworldly Existence could join!
Whether it was by seizing a Demon God's Dimension shard like Isaac, trading for Magic Knowledge, or even acquiring certain Authorities, anyone who succeeded in such a transaction—and managed to stay alive and maintain their independence—was eligible to join the Mad Witch Association.
In other words, it was a Wizard gathering composed entirely of madmen!
And geniuses, of course.
The most important reason it was called a Wizard gathering and not a Wizard Organization was that it had no compulsory rules. It simply provided a platform for mad Wizards like Isaac to communicate.
The Mad Witch Association held a small gathering monthly and a large one annually. The small gatherings were for Wizards of the same rank to exchange Magic, brainstorm, and trade items, whether it be Magic Knowledge or Magic Materials.
The large gatherings, on the other hand, involved all Mad Witches, regardless of their power, and were massive in scale!
Besides the large and small gatherings, the Mad Witches could also communicate in real-time through their Magic Books, just like the chat groups from his previous life. The only difference was that this "chat group" had Level restrictions; you could only join the group chat for your own Level.
Other than that, the Mad Witch Association provided its members with nothing else—no Magic Knowledge, no Magic Materials.
In other words...
"Purely a benefit?"
Isaac blinked. 'This seems... like a good thing?'
After a moment of thought, Isaac picked up the Magic Book. He hesitated briefly before slowly opening it. 'No matter what, even if it's a trap, I don't have the power to resist right now. I might as well accept it and quietly build up my strength.'
'That way, even if it is some kind of trap, I'll be able to shatter all schemes with overwhelming power!'
The Magic Book looked thick, but it only had three pages. One page was a chat window, which was completely blank. The most recent message was a notification of him joining. He didn't know if the chat history was hidden or if it was always this quiet.
The other two pages consisted of a list of names and a Magic Array.
The list was filled with names at the Official Wizard level. He gave it a quick glance and saw thirty or forty people. It seemed there were more madmen in this world than he had thought.
The Magic Array was for a Teleportation Magic. On the first of every month, he could use this Magic Array to teleport to a Dimension and participate in the gathering. At other times, it could be used to create a projection within the Dimension for casual communication.
'A name?' Sensing the information coming from the name list page, Isaac glanced at the other names. After a moment's thought, he gave up on the idea of being clever and chose a more formal name—Solomon!
This name also represented a small ambition of his. Sooner or later, just like the Solomon from the myths and legends of his past life, he would become a Mage who could Command Demon Gods!
After Isaac inscribed his name, a purple halo on the Magic Book flashed briefly before fading away.
There was still a week until the first of the month, so Isaac just gave the Magic Book a quick look before putting it away. He had nothing he wanted to discuss with the others for now. He would just lurk for a bit and see what the situation was like.
"Uraaaagh~"
Putting away the Magic Book, Isaac gave a long stretch, stood up, and walked out of the laboratory. 'First, breakfast.'
"Young Master Isaac, we've finished locating all the Goblin Nests in the vicinity. This is the intelligence we've gathered over the past few days." Outside the door, Smith was already waiting. The moment Isaac emerged, he reported the news and handed him several sheets of paper.
Isaac nodded, his brow furrowing slightly as he read the documents while walking toward the dining hall.
These were the reports on the Goblin Nests he'd had Smith gather. Isaac doubted he was the only one who had thought of using Goblin Nests as a sustainable source of Demonized Flesh.
However, he had never heard of anyone actually doing it, which led him to suspect there must be some hidden danger. He had only "farmed" the Goblin Nest because he was in desperate need of a large quantity of Demonized Flesh.
And according to Smith's investigation, things were just as he had expected. Goblin Nests could indeed continuously spawn goblins, much like how monsters respawned in a game.
But even Magic must obey the law of conservation of energy!
The Magic Power a Goblin Nest used to spawn goblins came from three sources. Two were local: the air and the earth. The last one was rather Mysterious, widely believed to be the Dimension World belonging to the Legendary Mage who created goblins.
And the problem lay with these three sources.
Setting aside the first two, an overpopulation of goblins would inevitably lead to a decrease in the concentration of Magic Power in the air and a rapid depletion of nutrients in the earth. Over time, the area would surely turn into a desert!
The third source of Magic Power wasn't simple, either. Although no one knew where it was linked, drawing Magic Power from it for an extended period would cause strange and malevolent Demons to appear!
Beings far more powerful than any goblin!
"Tsk. Of course, it wasn't that simple. Put a stop to the goblin harvesting. Don't leave a single Goblin Nest standing. However, continue to bring back their corpses."
"Understood, Young Master Isaac." Smith nodded slightly, then took a letter from his coat and handed it to Isaac. "Young Master, this letter is from the Eldest Young Master. It arrived with one thousand Gold Coins, a Witchcraft Manuscript, and a Magic Book from the Young Miss."
"They know I've become a Wizard?" Isaac raised an eyebrow, taking the letter and asking casually.
"Yes. The Shadow Guards likely saw us when we were clearing out the goblins," Smith nodded.
This was the heart of Solomon's Domain, after all. If not one hundred percent, they still had eighty percent control over the area. Their actions couldn't possibly be hidden from them, and besides, Isaac's group had never intended to hide them in the first place.
Isaac smiled, opened the letter, and began to read. His brow furrowed slightly, and he stopped. "Uncle Smith, are you familiar with the Black Orcs?"
"Black Orcs? Ah, yes. Calculating the time, they should be arriving soon." Hearing the name, Smith's brow tightened. He explained to Isaac, "I know of them. The Black Orcs are a race from the Dark Land. They don't farm and live by hunting. Because of this, during the autumn and winter, they gather in large numbers to invade our territory and plunder our food. Is the Eldest Young Master asking you to retreat for safety?"
"Yes. My elder brother wants me to stay at the fortress for a while. Starting next month, even the heartland won't be completely safe. But if I'm going, I can't just do nothing."
"Understood. I will compile all intelligence on the Black Orcs for you as quickly as possible." Smith bowed slightly, a hint of gratification in his eyes as he looked at Isaac.