Volume 2 - CH 3

“That’s quite impressive.”

“Well, this is truly remarkable.”

“Even though I can’t use magic, I can sense the powerful magic emanating from within them.”

…

The three magic cores were passed around among the group, and everyone gazed at the essence of these cores of the legendary supreme-grade magic beasts with exaggerated expressions.

“Oh? So, what exactly is their value?” Saul asked cheerfully, noticing that everyone seemed to be knowledgeable about the topic. Although he knew that these magic cores were extremely precious, he had no idea about their specific value.

“I have no idea.” Kress shrugged bluntly.

“I only understand the quality of ores,” Manson rubbed his beard.

“I’m not quite sure either,” Chipp said with a blank expression while shaking his head.

Damn it… Saul felt a deep sense of helplessness. What kind of people are inhabiting my territory?

“Hiches, can you shed some light on this?” Saul looked hopefully at Hiches.

After examining the three magic cores for a while, the latter shook his head without any shame in front of everyone’s hopeful gaze, “I don’t know.”

“But you’re a mage,” Jessica exclaimed in surprise.

Hiches finally became a little embarrassed, “You know, I’m a free mage, and… well, free mage are usually poor, so I’ve never had the opportunity to come into contact with such sophisticated goods as magic cores.”

Bang! Everyone fell to the ground from disbelief.

“Reed,” Saul ignited a glimmer of hope.

The latter instinctively avoided his ambiguous gaze, “My Lord, I’m not quite sure either.”

Before Saul could show any disappointment, Reed added, “But I do know that at last year’s mage guild’s trade fair in the royal capital, seven high-grade magic beast cores were sold for a total value of over one million gold coins.”

Saul’s eyes rolled with two “$” signs, “So you’re saying these three magic cores are even more valuable?”

Reed nodded, then shook his head, “This thing is priceless. If you insist on measuring it with money, I can only say that if we were to sell a single core for half a million gold coins, we would have countless people fighting over it. Even if it were sold for one or two million gold coins, it won’t be difficult to find buyers in the underground black market in Freetown.”

“Two, two million?!?” Saul’s voice trembled, “So you’re saying these three cores are worth… let me see, five, no, six million gold coins?”

Seeing Saul looking dazed and confused, Jessica couldn’t help but raise her hand and wave it in front of his eyes, “You’re not really planning on selling them, are you?”

Snapping out of his trance, Saul patted his chest, “Wow, I was almost scared by that number.”

After realizing their value, Saul immediately snatched the magic cores back from Hiches, carefully placing them on the table, and gently dusting them off with the demeanor of a miser.

“If I were to present these magic cores, I could attract a large number of adventurers, right?” Saul turned to the others.

Vince shook his head, “Not a large number, but an extremely, extremely, extremely large number. Young master, what exactly are you planning to do?”

“When we stole these magic cores, you said we could use them to drive away the dragon. Now, can you tell us what you’re planning?” Jessica chimed in.

Saul smirked, “What if I use them as bait to gather the best adventurers in order to take down that dragon?”

“What!? You’re going to slay the dragon!?” Everyone looked at him as if he was an alien.

Saul was surprised, “Can’t I?”

Jessica waved her hands vigorously, as if trying to ward off something, “It’s not that you can’t, but as you saw yesterday, that dragon can’t be dealt with by merely having more people.”

Manson’s voice was deep and resonant as he said, “There have only been four successful dragon-slaying instances by humans on the Modena continent, and each time, there were heavy casualties. Only renowned heroes participated.”

Kress interjected, “Don’t count me in.”

Only Chipp asked, “Are you confident?”

Saul felt frustrated that no one seemed to have faith in his plan. He explained, “That dragon is already heavily injured. Judging by its condition yesterday, a few watermelon knives could kill it. So I want to use these magic cores to gather a group of adventurers. As the saying goes, ‘money talks,’ and with the lure of the treasure in the dragon’s lair and the excitement of the magic cores, even a group of inexperienced fighters should be able to chop it up into minced meat, right?”

“Money talks?” Vince repeated the phrase thoughtfully. “Your words make sense, young master. With enough incentive, people can unleash astonishing potential. It’s possible they could kill that dragon.”

Bocci also timely added, “That dragon is indeed severely injured, and with such wounds, it won’t be able to fully recover for at least a year or two.”

The group’s excitement grew with their discussion. Suddenly, Jessica asked, “But what if killing the dragon attracts retaliation from other dragons?”

Manson shook his head, “Don’t worry about that. Dragons are solitary creatures. Once they leave the Dragon Island, they live independently. So, no matter what happens, other dragons won’t care. After those four dragon slaying missions, there was no reaction from Dragon Island.”

This statement finally eliminated any lingering concerns that Saul had. He smirked, Hmph, Hmph, Little dragon, since you have no backing, then don’t blame me for being ruthless.

“Hehe, my lord’s methods are truly remarkable. This action may seem audacious, but it also has a high chance of success. This old man is truly impressed,” the village chief Albert finally spoke after remaining silent for a while. “However, I would like to ask you to consider one thing. Lowell has always been known as a poor territory, and if the lord suddenly displays such a valuable treasure, it may attract unnecessary trouble. Moreover, if this item can lead people to slay dragons, it may also tempt some to take risks and come after you.”

His words made the excited crowd gradually calm down. Indeed, a small town like Lowell suddenly possessing such a valuable item might attract many covetous eyes. It was possible that instead of finding dragon slayers, they might first attract bandits.

“Hmph.” Unexpectedly, Saul had a smug expression. “I’ve already considered this. In fact, I’ve made through preparations.”

“Oh, what preparations?” Jessica was very curious.

“Come closer, and I’ll tell you.”

Jessica leaned over with a look of confusion, only to see Saul lean in and mutter something quietly into her ear.

After a brief moment, she looked back at him with a puzzled expression and asked, “What does ‘so and so, and this and that’ mean? I don’t understand.”

Saul blushed, thinking to himself that people in this world really didn’t know how to cooperate. In the script, the supporting actors should obediently follow the protagonist’s lead at this point.

He cleared his throat and began to explain to everyone. When he finished, Manson gave him a thumbs up and exclaimed, “Well done, young man!”

“Hahaha…” Saul laughed heartily, waving an imaginary feather fan in his hand and reciting, “Thinking back to the old days, when I was a lord, with a heroic bearing and a feather fan, talking and laughing, the great dragon was destroyed…”

All of you, get your swords and bows ready, mount your horses, and follow this marshal to slay the dragon!

※※※

On the same day, the Barin territory welcomed some unexpected guests inside the adventurers’ guild located in Ferry City.

The first was a young man with an imposing presence, sporting a hint of stubble on his lips. He was dressed in luxurious clothing and wore several expensive, authentic Dwarven gold accessories, giving him the appearance of a wealthy young master.

Next to him was a beautiful, golden-haired woman who looked like a secretary. She wore gold-rimmed glasses and carried a small, elegant leather bag. She stood quietly by the young man’s side, exuding an air of intellectual beauty.

Behind the two of them were two bodyguards. One was a burly man with a full beard, while the other had a reserved demeanor and a black eye patch over his left eye.

The experienced staff immediately recognized them as important guests, and one of the female receptionists quickly approached them, asking, “Hello, can I assist you with anything?”

The young man at the front of the group casually glanced at her before subtly nodding his head. The golden-haired woman next to him immediately interjected, “Our young master has a request that he wishes to entrust to your guild.”

“Sure, what is the request?” the receptionist asked.

“Well, our young master is looking to gather the best adventurers to do something for him. We would like to commission your guild to issue a notice, and of course, the reward will be a satisfactory sum.”

The receptionist was not surprised in the slightest, as the adventurers’ guild was a place where mercenaries and adventurers could be recruited to handle commissioned tasks. She asked with a professional smile, “How many people do you need, and what level should they be?”

However, the response from the woman shocked her, “There is no limit on the number of people, and the higher the level, the better.”

“This….” The receptionist’s face showed a hint of reluctance as she responded, “Well… we understand your request, but we might encounter some difficulties in gathering the personnel.”

Adventurers were classified into different levels based on their abilities and the number of quests they had completed, as determined by the guild. The higher the adventurer’s level, the stronger their abilities and the more demanding the conditions for accepting quests became. Many high-level adventurers no longer cared about money, and only rare items could entice them. This was why the receptionist was hesitant about the proposal, as she knew that money alone wouldn’t solve the problem.

“What difficulties?” The young man spoke up, “This master has plenty of money.”

The receptionist couldn’t stand the attitude of this nouveau riche, but patiently explained, “That’s not the issue here. But rest assured, we will do our best to serve you and ensure that the adventurers we gather are the best available.”

“I see.” The young man scratched his head, looking embarrassed. He turned to the golden haired beauty and said, “Sorry, Seika, we have no choice. Please bring out my family heirloom.”

The young woman named Seika nodded and took out a red magic core, the size of a walnut, which shimmered with a faint light, from her bag. She handed it to the receptionist, saying, “Our young master is determined to see this through. This is a precious family heirloom passed down through four generations. It’s extremely valuable and should meet your requirements.”

At this point, the receptionist was already a bit disdainful of these people. In her years as a staff member working for the guild, she had seen countless so-called family heirlooms, but few of them were truly valuable. Now, when she saw that they had brought out a magic core that was completely unremarkable, she felt disappointed.

However, her professionalism kicked in, and she kept a sweet smile on her face as she said, “Alright then, please wait a moment. I will ask our appraiser to determine its value.”

The receptionist whispered a few words to a staff member she called over, who quickly left. She then led the group to a nearby guest room and served them tea, and before long, a middle-aged man in appraiser attire walked in.

The appraiser took the magic core handed to him carelessly and cast appraisal magic on it, but in an instant, his face changed. He looked at the magic core in disbelief, took out a special tool, and carefully examined it, his expression growing increasingly serious.

“Sorry, please wait a moment,” he said, placing the magic core down and hastily leaving.

Even a fool could tell that this magic core was not ordinary, and the receptionist immediately became attentive. After waiting for a while, the middle-aged man returned to the reception room, followed by a small, white-haired old man.

Seeing the old man, the receptionist stood up in surprise. “Master Henry, what brings you here?”

The old man waved his hand listlessly as a response and followed the middle-aged man respectfully to the table. Just as his eyes fell on the magic core, the old man, who had looked half-dead just moments ago, suddenly came to life, with a bright light shining in his eyes.

Picking up the magic core, the old man cast his magic to appraise it. The middle-aged man stood respectfully by his side, not daring to breathe too hard, but his eyes were full of excitement.

After a while, when the old man showed no sign of finishing his appraisal, the young master couldn’t help but ask the receptionist, “Who is this old man?”

With a pleasing smile, the receptionist replied, “Sir, your family heirloom is truly remarkable. Master. Henry is one of the three master appraisers in the Adventurers’ Guild. Something that can make him value it so highly must be of extraordinary value.”

“The Master” title was the highest title in certain professions. Anyone who held this title was a master-level figure with extraordinary accomplishments in a certain field.

“By the way, excuse my rudeness; may I ask for your names?” the receptionist asked.

Seika nodded and said, “Allow me to introduce ourselves. I am Seika, the young master’s personal secretary.”

She then pointed to the burly bearded man and the one-eyed man and said, “These two are Ares and Ledin, the young master’s bodyguards.”

Finally, Seika turned to the young man and said with utmost seriousness, “And this is the 7th generation head of the Debrogate family, Young Master Zhang Anbu Debrogate.”

“Pfft….” Ares, one of the bodyguards, couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

The identities of the four people were on the verge of being revealed. They were none other than Saul and his group, who came all the way from Lowell. Seika, who wore a golden wig, was Jessica. Ares, who wore a fake beard, was Chris, and Ledin, who dressed as a one-eyed man, was actually Chipp.

And our young master Zhang Anbu was naturally Saul. Jessica once asked him why he gave himself such a peculiar alias, to which Saul only smiled mysteriously and said, “It’s the name of three characters that I really like from a certain novel.”

Their visit to Barin territory was also Saul’s idea. Barin was one of the most important territories in the Dinar Kingdom, known for its richness due to the Sylvara Plains as well as its two important military fortresses on the border with the Rulin Empire. This unique position made Barin a melting pot of people, and many adventurers chose it as a starting point for their adventures.

So, they came here under different aliases, making it less likely for them to arouse suspicion. With only four of them, their target was smaller, and their actions were more flexible. Even if someone suspected them, it would be difficult to trace them back to their origins in Lowell. Furthermore, if things went awry, they could simply leave without worrying about repercussions.

The Adventurer’s Guild branch in Barin happened to be the largest one in the country. As such, they were quite qualified to be responsible for this matter and could guarantee a quick accomplishment of the task at hand. Moreover, Saul and the others were not afraid of any mishaps happening to their magic cores. It was important to note that once the Adventurer’s Guild accepts a commission, it becomes their duty to protect the commissioning party and the item’s safety. Failure to do so would result in a loss of their reputation, which the Adventurer’s Guild could not allow under any circumstances.

The receptionist gave Chris a strange look, but before she could even utter a word, suddenly, Henry let out a strange cry. “This, this is a supreme-grade magic beast’s core!”

“Really? Master appraiser, are you certain?” The middle-aged man asked with excitement.

Henry quickly slapped him across the face and scolded, “You little brat, how dare you doubt my eyes?”

Despite being slapped, the middle-aged man didn’t seem to mind it in the slightest. Instead, he excitedly rubbed his hands together and exclaimed, “A supreme-grade magic beast! it actually turned out to be the core of such creature!”

As a staff member of the Adventurer’s Guild, the receptionist naturally understood the significance of a supreme-grade magic beast’s core, causing her breathing to become heavy involuntarily.

“Is this magic core yours? How did you obtain it?” Henry rushed up to Saul and interrogated him.

Jessica stood up and said, “This is our young master’s heirloom.”

Henry refused to give up and continued to ask, “How did your ancestors obtain it?”

Saul made a pensive expression before finally shrugging his shoulders and saying, “I don’t remember.”

Frustrated with the lack of information, Henry shook his head and turned to the receptionist, “What task did they commission?”

In a low voice, the receptionist answered, and Henry immediately pulled her to the side, “Tell the Lurette team to abandon their current task. We must obtain this magic core.”

The receptionist was somewhat hesitant and said, “But the Lurette team was assigned by their superiors to explore the ‘Black Demon King’s ruins’ and they’re supposed to leave today.”

Henry was furious and said, “Tell them to find someone else. The Black Demon King’s ruins are only a second-class magic relic. How could it compare to a supreme-grade magic core!”

Seeing Henry getting so worked up and lost, Saul decided to add more fuel to the fire. He made a gesture, and Jessica took out another earth-yellow magic core from her bag.

She said, “In fact, our young master has one more heirloom. To show our sincerity, we decided to bring them both. In short, we want to gather the most capable and ideal adventurers.”

“……!!” Henry looked incredulously at the yellow magic core and trembled as he held it in his hands.

His breathing became more and more rapid, and his pupils gradually dilated. Just as the others were worried that the old man couldn’t handle the excitement, Henry suddenly let out a strange, prolonged cry: “To personally appraise the magic cores of two supreme-grade magic beasts in my lifetime, I can now die with no regrets!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he sprayed out white foam and fell to the ground. His limbs twitched a few times, and he never moved again.

“Master!” The middle-aged man was shocked and cried out, rushing towards him. After probing the old man’s nostrils, he cried out: “Master, master, he’s left us.”

The female receptionist immediately burst into tears too. The sudden change left Saul and the others speechless.

“What the hell?” Saul was shocked. “He died just like that?”

“Before we even started, we kiiled an important master appraiser, Jessica. Things are not looking good,”

Jessica glared fiercely at Saul, as if to say, “It’s all because of you.” She got up and approached the middle-aged man in pain. “I’m very sorry; we didn’t expect things to turn out like this.”

The middle-aged man cried and shook his head, “No, it’s not your fault. Our master was just too excited. As a master appraiser, he was glad to be able to personally appraise the magic cores of two supreme-grade magic beasts before he died.”

The receptionist sobbed, “I will report this as soon as possible. Please rest assured that the Adventurer’s Guild will fulfill Master Henry’s last wish.”

“When did my request become this old man’s last wish?” Saul grumbled, pulling Jessica aside. “Let’s get out of here. These people are all abnormal.”

They told the receptionist where they were staying and fled the Adventurer’s Guild as if running for their lives.

As they were about to leave, Jessica leaned in close to Saul and gritted her teeth, “Idiot, this is all your brilliant idea.”

Feeling the warm and comfortable sensation of Jessica’s breath on his ear, Saul chuckled nervously. God forbid, I hope nothing really bad happens.