Chapter 32 Tom's Learning

Two cups of coffee, one with sugar and the other without. The one with sugar was for Billy, who sat with Tom at a rather cramped coffee table with only two books on it.

Billis put on a humble and eager-to-learn attitude, which Tom found very pleasing. So Tom decided to tell this kind guest, who had only made him coffee and swept the floor, everything he knew.

"Wizards were a synonym for calamity in ancient times. Where there were wizards, there would be disaster. Their in-depth study of black magic caused them to mutate in groups. They had octopus heads, no eyes, six arms, and their scattered organs were pieced together with bandages to form complete bodies. Although they looked pitiful, the people of Fa'an at the time never dared to pity these heretics."

"The wizards live in a floating fortress called Ansira, because there is no place for them on earth. Legend has it that this fortress can only be seen in the frigid north and the barren desert."

"Some say that if they lose Ansila, the wizards will lose their magic, so they must obey and serve Ansila forever."

"In addition, wizards are also keen to obey the forces of darkness. Whether it is the demon race of the last century or the false gods of earlier times, wizards must become accomplices of evil forces and take pride in it. They are the only race that does not have good interpersonal relationships."

"Some say that the Creator created wizards specifically to balance the power of the other world, so that an entire race could play the role of villains from beginning to end."

"In the most recent sighting of wizards, they destroyed an entire village and turned all the villagers into elemental beings. It is unknown whether it was an experiment. In most people's opinion, only terrorists on Earth can be reincarnated as wizards."

"It's no exaggeration to say that even their farts can make the sky tremble. The provisional government has long prepared a whole set of measures to deal with wizards, but given that this has only happened twice in nine years, wizards are probably on the verge of extinction."

"Over the years, I have studied many ancient races. If we were to rank them by population size, the Dragonborn should be first, followed by the Prophets, Wizards, Titans, and the Creators. This ranking can also be interpreted as a reversal of magical power. I do not mean to satirize my own race, but the Dragonborn's magical power is indeed at the bottom among the ancient races."

"Although almost all the ancient races in the world have disappeared, the Dragonborn can still occupy a place among the modern races. Strictly speaking, we can no longer be considered an ancient race compared to the other four, because in other worlds, rarity also matters."

“When I first came here, there were fewer than a hundred historians in the whole world. People had almost no knowledge of the history of eight years ago. I started from among those hundred people and learned little by little. In the first two years, I couldn’t even grasp my own ethnic group well.”

"So when you ask me what a wizard is, I have no choice but to recite the entire book, but I can assure you that there is no one in the other world who understands people better than me."

Tom got more and more excited as he talked, and Billis seemed to see a hypnotic cane waving in front of him, enduring a full hour of suffering.

This historian, who hadn't spoken to anyone in a long time, talked on and on, but didn't mention how to defeat the wizard.

Billy was dozing off as he listened, thinking how much better it would have been if he hadn't come here with Richie.

So, while Tom was drinking coffee, he asked, "Is it absolutely impossible for an ordinary person to defeat a wizard?"

Tom perked up immediately upon hearing the question. He coughed lightly and replied, "Nothing is impossible, but certain conditions must be met."

"What are the conditions?"

"For an ordinary person to defeat a wizard, they need a set of equipment or a puppet doll specifically designed to counter wizards, such as armor with high magic resistance or a golem that is immune to magic."

"Golem?"

"Golems are lifeless giants made of clay, stone, or bronze. They can move when infused with magic, but they have no ability to think. They are formed by fusing the magical crystals of mages and sorcerers. They can be used as servants or defensive devices. Because they are not naturally generated creatures, some people also call them golems."

"What special abilities does the golem possess?"

"Specific types of golems can be completely immune to magic of a certain attribute. It depends on what kind of spell the opponent uses. Some high-level golems can even be completely immune to any spell and will only be affected by blunt force."

"But I've heard that magical constructs that replace golems are more popular with the public."

"The masses are foolish and ignorant. Golems are magical constructs, but they are not popular in the mass market because they cannot be customized like other magical constructs of the same type and they are ugly in appearance."

Why do you think this is the secret weapon to defeat the wizard?

"Weren't you listening carefully? Golems are different from ordinary constructs. They are not afraid of magic, and they never sleep. The only way to deal with golems is with the most primitive blunt force. They are completely ineffective against magic, and blunt weapons are the least effective weapon for wizards."

Are there any other ways to deal with wizards?

"Yes, there is, but you're a half-reincarnated being. If you were a dragonborn or from another high-magic race, you wouldn't need to use a substitute."

Although Tom unintentionally hurt Billis, he was right. A half-reincarnated person must rely on the power of a Stand to defeat a fully reincarnated person, especially since the opponent is an ancient race.

Now that he was there, Billis wanted to ask as many questions as he could, but he wouldn't deliberately ask tricky questions to embarrass the scholar. Instead, he would ask questions that were of interest to both sides.

For example, the construction of the Demon Path, whether intermarriage between goblins and other races will affect the future development of society, whether satellite technology has explored more unknown territories in outer space, and whether the influence of several universities has popularized the culture of another world.

Tom the scholar provided a brief overview of each topic, adding his own opinions and satirizing pseudo-scientists who belittled magic. He argued that magic and science should be on equal footing in the other world, and that there might even be gods in Faan.

Upon hearing the word "God," Billis was reminded of another question.

"My goodness, great scholar, there is nothing that can stump you, but you may not be able to answer the question I am about to ask."

"Oh? I'm not kidding you. There isn't a single book in this library that I haven't read."

"Then I'll ask a question that I can't find the answer to in the library."

"Ask away."

Have you ever heard of divine intervention?

"I thought it was an insurmountable problem, but it turned out to be a problem that didn't require any thought at all."

"I thought you didn't know!"

"The two most powerful races in modern times, the demon race and the angel race, both believe themselves to be descendants of the creator god. The dark side and the light side waged a century-long war for supremacy in the other world, which ultimately ended with the sealing of the Demon King."

Where did you learn all this?

"Don't you read books? All kinds of parchment have records, including the newly published 'Demons and Angels,' and 'Chronicles of Another World,' which was co-authored by a hundred scholars. 'God's Descent' is a code name for war. To launch a war in the name of God, isn't that a bit like our ancient times?"

Do you believe in the existence of God?

"It's not that we don't believe it, but it's impossible to verify with the existing materials."

"And what about the Demon King?"

"My good agent, your questions are quite unique. If I told you that 'Demon King' could very well be a code name, a group that instigates war, would you believe me?"

"What's the meaning?"

"According to the parchment, the Demon King is not a single person, but a group of five of the most powerful forces in the dark, who are usually known as the Five Demon Pillars."

"You mean, the five Demon Pillars have all been sealed by the Light faction?"

"Isn't this always how it is? Otherwise, how will we end the war?"

"Is the information reliable?"

"Are you asking me or the ancient books on the shelves?"

"Have you seen the recent news? Someone is trying to resurrect the Demon King."

"I've read some reports, but the task of saving the world still depends on you! All I can do is provide knowledge."

After saying goodbye to Tom, Billis found Richie in a vase next to the bookshelf. The flexible slime had been hiding in the vase, eavesdropping the whole time.

"You brought me here just so I could find out about these things?" Billis asked.

Richie wrote on the ground: "You did a great job. From now on, you should keep in touch with Tom often."

“I suspect that this was something you should have done.”

"Ah, because I don't want to pour him coffee, arrange his books, or sweep the floor."

"So you deliberately brought me here to see him?"

Surprisingly, you two get along quite well.

"Mr. Richie, am I already a member of the alliance?"

"Yes, but they still need to prove themselves through a series of tasks."

"What should we do now?"

"Stay home. I'll come to your door personally if there are any missions. Remember, I'm your informant now, and only I can assign you missions."

“Mr. Richie, if I’m not mistaken, the mud on you is decreasing.”

"Oh! Oh! Did I write too much?"