Fairy Tale Survival with Ability Copying

The completion of City of Hope attracted a huge number of people from the upper class.

They flocked to settle there, spending lavishly to purchase property throughout the city.

This brought a massive influx of capital back into Levi's territory.

Following Levi's plans, that money was immediately reinvested into every aspect of the city's and territory's development, becoming the driving force behind its economic growth.

With money in their pockets, the people naturally wanted to spend it. Coupled with the fact that City of Hope had gathered a large number of wealthy elites, merchants descended upon it like sharks smelling blood, bringing every kind of merchandise imaginable.

At the same time, high-value products produced in City of Hope, such as cement, were purchased by merchants at premium prices, transported across the continent, and sold to great nobles looking to renovate their castles and city walls.

In an incredibly short time, the city became extraordinarily prosperous. Traveling bards even hailed it as a Lighthouse by the Sea, illuminating the entire continent.

Even the Church took notice.

However, because its attention was currently focused on investigating the Old God's ruins, it had no spare strength to interfere and could only watch from the sidelines.

That bought Levi precious time to continue developing.

...

Above the Cloud Territory...

Levi finished his meditation and slowly opened his eyes. A brilliant light flashed across his pupils.

Rapunzel's godmother stepped into the cabin and, upon seeing him, a complicated look flickered across her face.

When they had first met, although Levi was already a Third-Ring Wizard, his Spiritual Power had clearly been inferior to hers—though actual combat strength was another matter entirely.

Yet over this period of time, Levi's Spiritual Power had caught up at an astonishing pace.

Now...

He had actually reached the very limit of a Third-Ring Wizard!

How long had it even been?

She had taken no fewer Dragonblood Elixirs than Levi had, yet the growth of her Spiritual Power was nowhere near as outrageous.

She was still stuck at the bottleneck between a mid-tier Third-Ring Wizard and a high-tier Third-Ring Wizard.

Meanwhile, Levi had already reached the very end of the Third-Ring path.

If not for the barrier separating the Third and Fourth Rings, he might very well have become a Fourth-Ring Wizard already.

The thing holding him back wasn't merely the level of his spells.

There was another obstacle—a tangible barrier he could clearly sense.

Levi realized that, unlike before, he could no longer break through naturally into the realm of a Fourth-Ring Wizard.

"You need a higher-level meditation method. Hasn't your mentor provided you with one?" Rapunzel's godmother asked after a long silence, probing cautiously.

"Ma'am, I've never had a mentor behind me," Levi replied with complete sincerity.

She didn't believe him.

Letting out a cold laugh, she instead asked, "Is this another one of his tests?"

The more she thought about it, the more reasonable that explanation seemed.

Those beings who stood at the highest levels always loved testing the people they favored.

The myths were full of such stories.

Back in the age when the gods still shone upon the world and magic was first born, even the King of the Gods had tested His demigod son, requiring him to complete numerous trials before elevating him to true godhood.

That was the legendary God of Strength.

It was perfectly normal for the mysterious and immensely powerful figure backing Levi to test him as well.

After all, things obtained too easily were often the most fragile.

That great figure was probably trying to cultivate Levi's ability to solve problems on his own.

Rapunzel's godmother's eyes flickered as she silently reached that conclusion.

If she happened to lend him a hand during the process...

Perhaps she might earn a bit of that great figure's attention.

After a moment's thought, she looked at Levi and slowly said, "Your meditation method has already become your limitation."

"I don't know what plans that great figure has for you."

"But if you need help... you might consider seeking someone out."

Levi's curiosity was piqued.

After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Who?"

"A White Wizard named Barbara. She's quite famous throughout the witching world," Rapunzel's godmother replied. "She's warmhearted... a genuinely good witch."

Hearing that, surprise flashed across Levi's face.

He fell silent for a moment before looking at her.

"Ma'am... you said she's a good witch?"

"I mean no offense, but according to your standards..."

"Would you consider yourself a good witch?"

That question was admittedly rather impolite.

Rapunzel's godmother shot him a chilly glance, the corners of her lips curling into an ambiguous smile.

"Of course not."

"I most certainly am not a good witch."

"If someone spoke to me the way you just did..."

"I'd gouge out his eyes and make him spend the rest of his life regretting those words."

Levi responded with nothing more than an awkward yet polite smile.

"Hmph."

Seeing that only irritated Rapunzel's godmother even more.

Still, considering the dragon blood Levi had supplied...

And considering the mysterious figure behind him—someone who was probably not merely a Fifth-Ring Wizard...

No.

A Fifth Ring wouldn't even qualify.

At the very least, that person had to be a Sixth-Ring Wizard, perhaps even a Seventh-Ring Wizard or higher.

With that in mind, Rapunzel's godmother decided to let it slide.

Levi also knew better than to push the joke too far.

If he truly angered the Potion Witch, who else was going to work for him?

He still needed her to brew his magical potions.

Materials of this caliber were beyond what Detection could handle.

Only a true professional like Rapunzel's godmother could refine them properly.

Levi certainly couldn't afford to genuinely anger her.

After a brief silence, he said to Rapunzel's godmother, "Then... ma'am, where exactly can I find Lady Barbara?"

"In the Thorn Wasteland, in the central region of the continent. That's where Lady Barbara lives."

She paused before adding, "When you meet her, mind your manners. She may be a good witch, but she certainly doesn't have the best temper."

Levi's eyes flickered slightly.

"Thank you."

A faint blue light flashed deep within Levi's eyes. Detection confirmed that Rapunzel's godmother was telling the truth—she wasn't deceiving him—so he thanked her sincerely.

"Let me remind you of one more thing." Rapunzel's godmother looked at Levi. "Lady Barbara likes honest people who know how to show respect. If you're rude, be careful—you might find yourself punished by her. She won't care who you've got backing you."

"I understand."

Levi nodded.

"And... thank you."

The corners of Rapunzel's godmother's lips twitched slightly. Without another word, she turned and left the cabin.

However, as she reached the doorway, she seemed to remember something.

She turned back, took out a wooden box engraved with intricate magical runes, and handed it to Levi.

"This contains the dragon blood I refined."

"I imagine she might be interested in it."

"If you're planning to visit her, you can't exactly show up empty-handed."

Levi paused for a moment before quietly saying, "Thank you."

This time, his gratitude was completely genuine.

Rapunzel's godmother's smile grew a little wider.

"They're your things to begin with."

"I merely processed them."

After thinking for a moment, she took out another potion.

It glowed like molten lava.

The instant Levi sensed it, every instinct screamed a warning.

A blue glow immediately surfaced in his eyes.

Rapunzel's godmother casually said, "You can take this as well."

"It's another little creation I made from dragon blood."

"It's unstable. The moment you activate it with Magic Power, it'll explode almost instantly."

"The explosion is stronger than any Third-Ring Spell."

Levi raised an eyebrow.

"You mean... it's reached the level of a Fourth-Ring Spell?"

Rapunzel's godmother didn't answer.

She simply walked away.

Levi looked silently at the two items in his hands for a long while.

Then he transformed into his Human-Faced Demon Owl form.

With a single use of Shadow Traverse, he left the Cloud Territory.

Guided by Detection, Levi never needed to stop and orient himself.

He flew straight through the blue skies and drifting clouds toward the center of the continent.

By dusk, he had reached his destination.

The Thorn Wasteland.

That was its official name on the maps.

The people who lived nearby, however, preferred to call it the Throat of the Forsaken God.

Its overall area wasn't especially large.

Surrounded by mountain ranges, it formed a basin-like landscape.

The air carried a strange mixture of rust, rotting flower nectar, and ozone.

Every breath felt like swallowing some bitter medicinal brew.

The ground wasn't covered by bare rock or sand.

Instead, it was completely overgrown by a plant known as Bloodthorn.

These thorny plants were anything but ordinary.

Their roots reached hundreds of meters underground.

Their branches shimmered with a dark purple metallic sheen, as hard as iron. Every branch was covered in hooked thorns, each one glowing with an eerie blue poisonous light.

They slowly writhed as though alive, rustling in the wind with sounds eerily similar to human whispers.

Yet...

That wasn't what made the Thorn Wasteland so terrifying.

Its true horror was that anyone who entered it immediately lost all sense of direction.

It felt as though the world itself were spinning.

North, south, east, and west became impossible to distinguish.

If you were lucky...

You might eventually find your way back out.

If you weren't...

You became fertilizer for the Bloodthorn.

It had been that way for countless centuries.

Humans and even animals living nearby instinctively avoided the place whenever possible.

Even so, every year there were always unfortunate souls who wandered in for one reason or another.

Levi activated Detection and quickly discovered that the magnetic field throughout the region was in complete chaos.

Even in his Human-Faced Demon Owl form—a high-tier Third-Order magical beast—he could feel his own sense of direction beginning to slip after entering the area.

This wasn't the effect of a spell.

It was something much deeper.

In other words...

It wasn't caused by Witch Barbara.

If she had truly cast a spell that caused so many people to die here, there was no way Rapunzel's godmother would have called her a White Wizard—a good witch.

After all...

Rapunzel's godmother openly admitted that she herself wasn't a good witch.

But that was beside the point.

Levi hadn't forgotten why he'd come.

He was here to find Lady Barbara and ask her how to break through to the realm of a Fourth-Ring Wizard.

However—

After using Detection to search every corner of the Thorn Wasteland, Levi found no trace whatsoever of Lady Barbara.

His brows immediately furrowed.

Rapunzel's godmother hadn't lied to him.

Yet he still couldn't find the White Wizard Barbara.

Had she temporarily left the area?

But if that were the case...

Why wasn't there even the slightest trace that anyone had ever lived in the Thorn Wasteland?

Levi, still in his Human-Faced Demon Owl form, circled high above the sky, unable to come up with an answer.

He surveyed the surrounding landscape as blue light shimmered within his eyes.

Several small kingdoms bordered the Thorn Wasteland.

Could Lady Barbara actually be living in one of those neighboring kingdoms instead?

Detection hadn't revealed anything.

But a Third-Ring Detection spell wasn't capable of uncovering every piece of information.