"Precession..." Ronald left the tavern where the cultist magicians gathered.
Then he returned to the inn where he stayed.
Sitting on the balcony, he watched the sun rise along its strange trajectory, ending the darkness. Even after a full night's time, Ronald's expression remained somewhat complex.
Precession, a very rare and extremely special spell.
Because it truly represented what its name suggested.
Following the immunity to space-time interference granted by "Bradshaw's Railway Guide", "Astronomy Master" finally provided Ronald with another time-related spell.
The effect of Precession was to designate any object or life form and then choose to transport the target to a state either 20 minutes and 24 seconds in the past, or 20 minutes and 24 seconds into the future.
Perhaps due to the unique nature of time spells,
Precession could only take effect once on the same target.
If Ronald now specified a teacup on the table to leap 20 minutes and 24 seconds into the future,
then assuming the teacup was fortunate enough to be preserved for thousands of years, until some day in the future, neither Ronald nor anyone else who mastered the spell of Precession would ever be able to exert its influence on it again.
"Time..." Even with such exaggerated restrictions.
The shock in Ronald's eyes could not be concealed.
Truth be told... this spell's effect was utterly absurd.
Even when comparing Precession to some of the Complete Techniques he knew, their strategic significance was not on the same level.
Take the simplest situation, for instance.
If a comrade were to lose their life in battle due to an enemy's spell, Ronald could easily use Precession to reverse their state back to 20 minutes and 24 seconds earlier, thereby bringing them back to life.
Or if Ronald himself was in the heat of battle.
Without considering other various possibilities, just using it on the enemy's consumables alone could cause a sudden change in the amount of resources, potentially altering the course of the battle significantly.
At that moment, the door was opened from the outside.
Welcomed by the morning sunlight.
Costate walked in from outside the room with a natural demeanor.
After the maid brought Ronald his breakfast on the balcony and neatly arranged the food in front of him, Costate stood up and formally bent over to report on her work from the previous day:
"Sir, after you left yesterday, I conducted a fairly thorough inspection and handling of the ruins. The final result—the specific number of enemies eradicated: twenty-seven, and the number of altar-like objects with magical properties destroyed: fourteen."
"And considering the follow-up work is basically safe, I handed it over to the original developers of the ruins."
"Well done." Ronald opened with praise for Costate's work, then picked up the breakfast the maid had brought and began to eat. After that, he continued, "Besides these, is there any other news?"
"Such as findings relating to the ruins or information about the actions of other summoned creatures. I left in a hurry last night, and quite a few things still need more detailed follow-up investigation."
This time, Costate did not immediately reply.
Faced with Ronald's question, the maid sat still and thought seriously for a moment. After confirming that her memory was completely accurate, she continued to speak:
"Sir, there isn't much more about the mystical creatures summoned. But as for the history of the Nicgar people, Professor Dorn and his team did find some information."
"If you wish, I can recount it in full detail now."
Ronald glanced at the time.
Because he had made a deal with Sestasta so late yesterday, he had not planned the assassination for that day, instead setting it for tonight.
There was still a whole day left before the action.
He had nothing else to do...
Learning a bit about the history of the Nicgar people seemed to be no problem.
"Costate, why don't you give me a brief rundown."
As soon as Ronald spoke, Costate naturally began to recount yesterday's discoveries in the ruins:
"Due to the enclosed environment, the Nicgar people left part of the documentation about the Dark Age on their murals. It detailed the evolution of mystical factions on the northern continent, as well as the history of ethnic migration."
"For instance, the current Entrod. Its initial establishment and rulers actually came from a group of refugees migrating from the east. There are even records in the royal family of those who led the way through the Yizi Forest..."
One recounted, the other listened.
While enjoying the breakfast provided by his lodging, time slowly passed in this comfortable setting.
After Ronald explained his deal with Sestasta to Costate, and both had enjoyed their dinner.
A strange knocking at the door.
Just perfectly timed at the entrance to their room.
"Is Mr. Ronald there?"
After a greeting, the person outside pushed the door open.
The visitor was a middle-aged man with a crisp attire and the demeanor of a businessman. Only the mad glint in his eyes confirmed his true identity—a cultist magician.
"Did Sestasta send you?" Ronald asked straightforwardly. Fresh chapters posted on 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⟡𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕥⟡𝕟𝕖𝕥
"That's correct, sir." The cultist magician bowed with a businessman-like grace before continuing, "The lady has some urgent missionary work to attend to tonight, so the handover and guiding are my responsibility."
After briefly stating his purpose, the cultist magician boldly walked into Ronald's room.
He first set up a barrier with one hand to prevent external detection, then proceeded to explain the details of tonight's task:
"According to information from our insiders, the target will be tonight at a trade guild on the shore of Lake West Wind. We plan to arrive nearby before nine o'clock tonight, lie in ambush beforehand, and take them down in one fell swoop... then consider this mission perfectly concluded."
The cultist magician articulated the evening's strategy in detail, the plan being meticulous and not at all like something hastily devised.
In fact, it was even more daring—
Considering the current cooperative relationship between Relais and Sestasta.
Might very well be provided by the spy head of Entrod as a favor!
The mission briefing continued for six or seven minutes. After the cultist magician finished, he immediately asked:
"Mr. Ronald, do you have any questions?"
"No problems here." Ronald replied quite crisply, then immediately rose from his chair, "Let's go, we can head out now."
"Returning early, I just might get a good night's sleep tonight."