Wizard: I Have a Cultivation System-Chapter 111 - 105: Magic Counter

The night was still and silent. Outside, heavy snow was falling. Dense snowflakes swirled in the howling, frigid wind, blanketing Duval Castle in a sea of white.

Murphy was looking over his ledgers by the fireplace when a knock came at the door.

He rose to open it and found Princess Margaret standing outside. Her wine-red velvet gown shimmered with a lavish luster under the light of the corridor’s torches.

A crescent moon pattern, embroidered with silver thread at the hem of her skirt, appeared and disappeared with her movements. What was most eye-catching, however, were the exquisite black silk stockings on her legs. The fine material perfectly outlined the slender curves of her calves.

"Your Highness..." Murphy hurriedly stepped aside, his gaze lingering on her involuntarily.

The Princess glided into the room, bringing a delicate, elegant fragrance with her.

She surveyed the bedroom’s decor, her eyes finally landing on a set of crystal glassware on a small table by the fireplace.

"It seems the Baron is indeed well-prepared," she said softly.

Murphy strode to the table and carefully picked up a carved crystal glass. "This is a glass vessel my father once purchased from a caravan from the East. It’s said to be the best for preserving a wine’s aroma."

He found it difficult to tear his gaze away from the Princess, especially from her legs, which appeared even more slender and long in the black silk stockings.

He poured her a glass of deep red wine, his movements exceptionally gentle. "This is a specialty wine I bought from Olivia Port on a trip to the South. It was aged in oak barrels for twenty years and is said to have notes of cedar and cherry."

The Princess accepted the glass, her slender fingers cradling its base with elegance. Her neatly trimmed fingernails gleamed like pearl in the candlelight, as if polished with a layer of wax.

She swirled the glass gently, watching the light play on the liquid within the crystal. "The Baron is quite the connoisseur."

"In Your Highness’s presence, these things all lose their luster." Murphy’s voice was laced with obsession. "Your beauty tonight makes even the most precious jewels pale in comparison."

The Princess took a sip of wine, her red lips leaving a faint mark on the rim of the glass. "Then, is the Baron willing to share something a bit more private with me? For example... what exactly are you researching in that workshop of yours?"

Murphy’s eyes flickered for a moment before he adopted an intoxicated expression. "How could such crude research be worthy of dirtying Your Highness’s ears? Why don’t you let me pour you another glass..."

"But I’m very curious," the Princess said, leaning forward. Her wine-red skirt spread out like petals. "For example... how did you break my cousin’s curse?"

Murphy’s breath caught for a moment, and his voice was tinged with a complex mix of emotions. "It was Viscount Hans’s potion... That damn Hans. He knew the potion would make me lose my fertility, but he never warned me..." His tone suddenly turned gentle. "But I don’t hate him anymore. If it weren’t for that, how would Your Highness have ever come to be by my side..."

"Is that so?" A strange light flashed in the Princess’s eyes. "Then can you tell me what your true strength is?"

Murphy’s voice grew low. "Back then, I did have the strength of a Knight’s Attendant, but after being cursed, my power plummeted. The illness tormented me until I was weaker than an ordinary person. I’ve only managed to recover a little after slowly recuperating all these years."

He suddenly stood up. "Would Your Highness care for another glass? I also have a treasured bottle of Amber Liquor from the Sunset Mountain Range..." 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

A knowing smile touched Princess Margaret’s red lips.

She set down her glass and rose slowly, the black silk stockings catching the firelight with a delicate sheen.

"Why must the Baron always be so evasive?" She drew closer to Murphy, step by step. "The moonlight is so lovely tonight. Why don’t we... be honest with each other?"

Murphy involuntarily took a step forward. The faint fragrance from the Princess’s body wafted to his nose.

At such a close distance, he could clearly see her deep, dark pupils, like the purest night sky. The candlelight danced in her eyes, reflecting tiny flecks of gold that made one want to lose themselves within them.

"I..." His voice was a little hoarse, as if his very soul had been stolen by those enchanting eyes.

Just then, a bizarre green light suddenly bloomed in Princess Margaret’s eyes. The light spun like a galaxy, with specks of starlight flickering in and out of existence within the emerald vortex.

"Now," her voice carried a strange rhythm, "you will obey my every command..."

Murphy’s pupils began to dilate, as if he were falling into a bottomless abyss.

The sound of the wind and snow outside faded away, and the entire world started to blur.

...

In a dark, damp dungeon, Saren was bound tightly to a cross-shaped torture rack with coarse hemp ropes.

His face was as pale as paper, his lips were cracked from thirst, and every breath was a pained shudder.

"Every Magic Model... requires a long time to learn..." Saren’s voice was weak and hoarse. "A Wizard Apprentice... can’t master more than a few Magic Models in their entire lifetime..."

Murphy stood before him, toying with a gleaming Finger Clamp. "So, what’s the solution when facing Magic?"

"Besides blocking it head-on... there are counter-spells..." Saren struggled to lift his head, sweat trickling down his temples. "Magic Models aren’t exactly safe... Drawing on the power of other dimensions is often accompanied by great risk... A true caster can identify another’s Magic and then deploy a corresponding counter... The more skilled a Wizard is, the better they can use low-level Magic to leverage the dimensional channels to achieve a counter..."

Murphy’s gaze sharpened. "What methods do ordinary people have to counter it?"

"None..." Saren had just spoken when he saw the torture instrument in Murphy’s hand begin to CLICK-CLACK. He hastily corrected himself, "It’s not that there’s nothing... As I said, Magic Models aren’t safe... and a Wizard Apprentice can’t master many of them... so you can use a few little tricks to make the spell backfire on them..."

Murphy slowly fitted the Finger Clamp onto Saren’s finger. "Continue."

"The most common is against [Control Human]..." Saren’s voice trembled with fear. "This Magic poses a great threat to Wizards, so it has been researched the most thoroughly..."

...

Princess Margaret watched Murphy’s eyes gradually lose focus, and a triumphant arc unconsciously lifted her rosy lips.

As far as she was concerned, this Border Baron had fallen completely under her control.

Princess Margaret knew very well that Casting Magic was never a simple matter.

The orbits of the planets, the changing of the seasons, the specific time of day, the caster’s own mental state, and even the conditions of the planar environment—all of these factors would influence the final effect of a spell.

’Take Control Human, for example. If you cast it directly on a conscious and alert target, its effectiveness is often greatly diminished.’

’But combined with the special environment tonight—the sense of enclosure created by the swirling snow outside, the dim glow of the dancing flames in the fireplace, and the ambiguous atmosphere I so carefully cultivated beforehand—all these factors added up to create the perfect conditions for Casting.’

And Princess Margaret, who had been able to precisely engineer this perfect moment, couldn’t help but feel even more pleased with herself.

’Although I once heard that twenty years ago in the Rosenia Kingdom, a genius with an extraordinary talent for [Control Human] appeared.’

’With only the power of a Second-Class Wizard Apprentice, that person could turn others into completely obedient puppets without them even realizing it.’

’But I believe that person was an exception among exceptions, a once-in-a-generation genius.’

’It’s said that person has since vanished without a trace. A genius like that has likely broken through to become a Third-Class Wizard Apprentice and gone to the New Realm.’

’In my opinion, someone like me who needs to create an atmosphere and lay out a careful plan is the normal way of Casting. It’s definitely not a case of my Cultivation being subpar, as Archbishop John claimed.’

She gathered her thoughts and refocused her attention on Murphy.

The Baron’s eyes were vacant and his breathing was steady. He was clearly under the complete control of her Magic.

It was time to ask what she truly wanted to know.

"Te—"

Just as she uttered a single word, something unexpected happened.

Murphy’s previously unfocused pupils suddenly snapped into focus, a sharp glint flashing within them.

Princess Margaret suddenly felt an invisible Spiritual Power spread out from Murphy’s eyes. The green light in her own eyes flared violently, the radiance spinning like a reversed galaxy, and she staggered backward as if struck by a heavy blow.

Soon, her eyes lost their focus. The flowing green light became chaotic, and she seemed to have fallen into a deep state of confusion, so unsteady she could barely stand.

Murphy rubbed his temples, which were throbbing faintly, and cursed inwardly. ’That damn Saren, what kind of damn counter-method was he talking about? Do normal people have Spiritual Power? How the hell is a normal person supposed to counter anything?’

Yes, Murphy had deliberately created today’s atmosphere precisely to counter Margaret’s [Control Human].

And the effect of the counter was simple: to make Margaret fall victim to her own spell’s backlash.

This was, of course, not simple. Every detail tonight had been meticulously arranged by Murphy, from the deliberately chosen aged wine to the disdain, confidence, and composure Margaret displayed—and besides, without Murphy’s own strength to back it up, it would have been impossible to pull off.

Of course, Murphy had also considered the consequences.

If he failed, his only real option would be to flee with Aurora and the others.

Otherwise, Margaret would remain a hidden danger. Setting aside the issue of the territory’s taxes, her very presence would be like slowly boiling a frog, gradually pushing Murphy into a desperate situation.

Most importantly, Murphy couldn’t just kill her.

He had weighed the consequences of a failed counter-attack against the outcomes of either letting her live or killing her outright.

He came to a conclusion. It was better to risk it all than to just sit and wait for death.

At that moment, Princess Margaret finally came to her senses.

She blinked, tilted her head slightly, and her legs, wrapped in black silk stockings, unconsciously pressed together. Her gaze toward Murphy held an inscrutable, complex emotion.

There was confusion, but also a hint of inexplicable dependence, as if she were trying hard to recognize something. Then, her red lips parted softly.

"Master."