Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

An awkward silence hung in the air.

Cedric Acadia looked at the raven-haired youth with the same smile on his face, but his blue eyes betrayed his inner emotions.

His aide, the hunchedback old man, however, wasn’t as courteous as him. He glared at Adam, furiously shouting, ”Boy, you dare make fun of His Highness?! You ungrateful rat, have you forgotten your place—”

”Yaka.”

The Prince calmly raised his hand, interrupting him.

Yaka, the hunchedback old man, gnashed his teeth as he stared daggers at Adam. He lingered for a moment, then turned away.

”Please, forgive me for my behavior, Your Highness.” He bowed respectfully.

Cedric Acadia shook his head, smiling. ”No, you don’t have to apologize to me.”

He paused, then added evenly, ”You also don’t have to reprimand Count Constantine. After all, I was the one who gave him permission to speak frankly.”

Adam appeared calm throughout the entire interaction. He had a faint smile on his face, but his eyes… his eyes had turned cold.

If he was being honest with himself, Yaka’s words stung him a little. In his eyes, he was a rat unworthy of breathing the same air as him or his master, the Acadian Prince.

The disparity between commoners and nobility always remains the same, no matter where you go, he thought to himself.

I felt it as a child in Behal. I felt it as a teenager in Clover Academy. And I feel it even now as a grown man in Ravenfell.

It clings to every street, every hall, every conversation… like a shadow that never quite disappears...

He couldn’t help but sigh to himself.

Heh, what did I even expect?

The next moment, he conjured a wine gourd from his earrings and slammed it on the table. Then, he conjured a flat cup and poured himself some wine.

He leisurely took a sip, then said to the Prince in a sly tone, ”I would have offered you some, but something tells me you wouldn’t want to taste wine brewed by…”

He turned to Yaka and asked in a pensive tone, ”What was it that you said?”

His eyes lit up, then he continued, ”Ah, that’s right. A rat.”

The atmosphere turned from awkward to tense within a few moments.

Seeing the raven-haired youth sitting with his legs crossed and drinking wine in front of him, Cedric felt disrespected.

But he also knew that Adam was retaliating for what Yaka had told him just now. He had to salvage this situation because he knew… he was the one who needed Adam, and not the other way around.

”Yaka, please apologise to my guest,” he said with the same smile.

Yaka, the hunchedback, gazed at his master with slight reluctance. However, in the end, he did as told.

”Count Constantine, please forgive me for my behavior.” He pressed his hand against his chest and bowed lightly.

”Ah, no worries, no worries.” Adam waved his hand dismissively. ”Seeing that you are so sincere, how can I hold a grudge against you? So, yes, you are forgiven, my friend.”

He chuckled to himself as he sipped on wine. Yaka, meanwhile, clenched his fists in fury. However, he didn’t show it on his face. He lowered his head and respectfully stood behind the Prince.

”And please forgive me, Count Constantine.” Cedric gave him a curt nod. ”People usually don’t jest with me in my presence. And Yaka simply did what he believed was necessary to protect me. It’s instinct for him.”

He paused, a faint smirk forming on his lips. ”Though I must admit… your humor was refreshingly unexpected.”

Adam simply smiled in response. He thought to himself in amusement, But the dragon part is true though…

Cedric Acadia lingered for a few moments, thinking of the right words to say. It was strange to him that he, a Prince of Acadia, had to carefully weigh his words before a commoner-turned-noble.

”May I ask why you refuse to support me?” His voice was calm and steady, and not a ripple of disappointment could be found in it.

”You haven’t even heard about what I can offer you,” he added, his lips curling into a confident smirk.

Adam leaned over, placing the empty cup on the table. He rested his elbows on his knees, then interlocked his fingers.

He looked at Cedric and spoke solemnly, ”Your Highness, I’m sure you’ve done your due diligence on me, so you must know my background.”

Cedric Acadia silently nodded.

”You must already know,” Adam began, his voice steady, ”that my father lost his life in a battle sparked by two nobles, over nothing more than land.”

He paused for a moment, a bitter scoff finding its way to his lips. ”And they were merely barons. Petty lords of the mundane world.”

Then, he looked the Prince straight in the eye and said with conviction, ”The struggle for Acadia’s throne is on a far greater scale, one that promises far more bloodshed. I have no desire to be a piece on that board.”

Thinking of his parents’ death caused Adam’s face to instantly darken. He poured himself another drink and silently sipped the wine.

Cedric deeply looked at Adam and sighed. ”Count Constantine, I… apologise for what happened to your parents. It wasn’t my intention to reopen those wounds.”

Adam simply shrugged in response.

The Prince of Acadia lingered for a moment, then said, ”It also isn’t my intention to involve you deeply in the politics of our Empire.”

”Your Highness, the moment I stand with you is the moment I become entangled in Acadian politics,” Adam spoke matter-of-factly.

”And frankly, I’d rather spend my time practicing mindfulness and studying the arcane than getting pulled into the mess of courtly intrigue.”

Hearing his words, Cedric’s lips curled into a smile. ”I am aware of your deep love for the arcane arts. And I’ve also heard of your passion for exploration. They say you possess the heart of a wanderer.”

He paused, letting the silence create an air of anticipation.

”And that,” he continued, ”is precisely why I am gifting you this priceless item. I have no doubt you will find it to your liking.”

With that said, he conjured a weathered, rolled parchment paper from his space-type storage artifact.

Adam shook his head with a light chuckle.

”If you think a mana extraction technique that will help me reach the Mana Core Rank is enough to tempt me,” he said, raising an eyebrow, ”then I’m afraid you’re mistaken, Your Highness .”

However, the Prince still responded with the same confident smirk, unfazed.

”There’s no harm in taking a look,” he said, gently sliding the parchment toward Adam.

The raven-haired youth shook his head slightly as he placed the cup on the table. Without expecting much, he reached for the parchment and unrolled it with casual ease.

But when he read its contents…

His dark eyes trembled.