Chapter 1476: Problem solving

Eventually, Seberus gave Michael a tour of the Guild of Arcana. He showed him everything that they controlled, everything that they were studying.

There were different departments, each one controlling the studies of magic.

And when the magicians and wizards saw Michael, they immediately sensed that he had become a Mystic Master. There was something about him. An invisible characteristic that made his gravity that much more heavier compared to others.

He wasn’t just like the other Mystic Masters. People like Seberus, Lazarus, Rivet, and Aetrox each had their own gravitas about them that made them truly feel like they controlled an aspect of reality around them.

But Michael was different, they thought. They felt that there was something much more impressive about him, something that felt primal.

Of course, what they were sensing was the True Unity that was ever present in his body.

Thanks to it being imbued with Sword Intent as well, that effect was more than tripled. Now, Michael’s True Unity was being broadcasted into everyone he met subconsciously, making them much more receptive to his requests and his orders.

It took Michael quite a few tries before he was able to tone it down. He didn’t like how other people looked at him differently. He wanted to see their unadulterated reactions about him when he arrived, not something that was influenced by True Unity.

"Since we’re all gathered here, why don’t we talk about our current problem?" Seberus asked.

Right now, all five Mystic Masters were gathered at their headquarters in the Guild of Arcana. It felt kind of empty, as there were three empty seats right in front of them.

"Yes... the loss of magic," Aetrox said. "I have been doing my part in researching ways to solve that. But I haven’t found anything substantial as of yet."

"Are you sure it isn’t because you’re too busy building your following in the Reborn Social Media app?" Rivet teased.

"I’ll have you know! That’s just my cover! I need an excuse to soar through the different territories and make my investigations!" Aetrox answered, his eagle feathers seemingly blushing after being ruffled.

"I... haven’t been focusing on that," Lazarus admitted. "But if I learn more about Chimera, it may give me a clue as to why the Ersatz Organization was using them as their weapons."

Seberus nodded. "Yes. Any kind of solution will just be a band-aid solution to our problem. In order to truly solve this problem, we need to solve it at the root.

The only way to return magic to the world is to defeat the Nascent Spirit cultivator who had created the Nascent Influence in the first place."

Michael knew who that person was. The one called the ’Grandmaster’.

"Our... fallen peers may have been greedy pieces of filth that wanted nothing more than to gain power in the Guild of Arcana, but they were sincere in their wishes to return magic," said Seberus.

"True," said Rivet. "I have scoured their vaults and I saw that they have sent a lot of spies and informants around the suspected Strongolds of the Ersatz Organization.

We could use them in the future, if we want, but I think it’s best if we let them be for now.

We still need to consolidate our power. Right now, the Guild of Arcana is vulnerable. We are undergoing a massive change, and making big moves might end up harming us in the end."

The other Mystic Masters nodded, understanding Rivet’s words. They were already quite weak when they had eight Mystic Masters. Now, they only had five.

Michael took a few seconds, before he spoke up.

"I may have a way to learn more about the Ersatz organization."

They all looked at him, surprised.

"Really?" Rivet asked.

"Yes. I know someone who has infiltrated their organization very deeply. So deep, in fact, that even I did not know about till recently."

Of course, he was talking about none other than the mischievous slime himself. Fudge was very vital in the protection of the Rebornian territories from the Worcester invasion.

In fact, Michael was very surprised that he was able to defend Batchrock town all by himself!

It wasn’t till ChatJK6 gave him the records of the fight till he learned the truth.

And imagine his surprise when he saw Fudge fighting the Worcester generals with other Nascent Spirit cultivators from the Ersatz Organization!

He knew that Fudge had the tendency of taking prisoners from the Ersatz organization. But he didn’t think that he actually had Nascent Spirit cultivators under his control! He had ten of them!

Of course, these were still ’zombies’. Their strengths weren’t as powerful as a true Nascent Spirit cultivator. But they were still formidable.

Even Fudge himself was a Nascent Spirit cultivator, even before the fight.

Michael had been far too busy, and that allowed Fudge to do whatever he wanted. In fact, he wouldn’t be surprised if he had infiltrated the Ersatz Organization up to the high ranks at this point.

Now, wanted to reprimand Fudge for keeping this as a secret.

But the more he thought about it, the more he realized that it was actually better to let Fudge do whatever he wanted.

In the end, Fudge was getting stronger. And his strength was very useful for the Nation of Reborn.

And now, his connection to the Ersatz Organization could end up becoming very pivotal for their mission in returning magic to the world.

"If you have a spy within the Ersatz Organization, then that is good," Rivet said. "Shall we organize a mission party?’

It was at this point that Lazarus immediately shook his head. "No. Not now. Not until I’ve finished my studies with the Chimera.

The Ersatz Organization will definitely have those creatures under their control. And from what we know, those creatures feast on dead human bodies. The more we fight them, the more we end up feeding them.

It’s best that we hold off until I find a way to counter those beasts."

Rivet looked at Lazarus. "...you just want to return to your lab, don’t you?"