Chapter 24
Arnold and his party had a smooth journey to Mercury. Once they reached the outskirts of the city, Father Webster, as was customary, went to the church to report on the progress of the refugee relief work. After inquiring, the two groups parted ways.
As the main city of Mercury, Mercury City is very large. The boy from the countryside had never seen such a grand scene before. He and his friends mingled in the crowd, surrounded by bustling traffic, the shouts of various vendors, and the unheard-of items on the stalls, all of which dazzled him.
The city is divided into eight districts, each of which is larger than Albion.
Even just looking up at the city gate we just entered through, Arnold had to crane his neck to see the bricks and stones on top of the gate.
When they arrived in Mercury, it was nearly noon. The damp morning mist had gradually thinned under the sun. Fish caught early in the morning from the port were displayed on stalls along the cobblestone streets. Judging from the remaining space on the stalls, business was quite good today.
The fishermen weren't in a hurry to process the remaining fish; instead, they chatted with people at the stalls next to them.
Father Webster said they came in through the west gate, and ahead was a market with all sorts of things, the most common being food and daily necessities.
There was another important reason why Allen dragged Arnold into this market.
“Keep an eye on those slovenly people in the corner, especially those with herbs and random stones scattered around. They might have something good,” Allen whispered to Arnold.
Arnold's eyes widened: "Is that so?"
The boy immediately became interested, and Allen continued to explain to him, "Caravans or adventurer teams that come from the Amberley Mountains will definitely come here if they want to sell the good stuff they find in the mountains for a good price."
In those small towns, there are too few people with discerning eyes. If cooperation doesn't work out, it can cause unnecessary disputes. So these people would rather travel a little further and come to this great capital city.
This wasn't Allen's first time here; he had found many good things in various markets before, such as the large scythe he carried, whose inlaid crystals came from Mercury City.
The two of them soon stopped in front of a small stall filled with oddly shaped stones. The stall owner was an old man with gray hair, holding a pipe in his hand, squinting at the two young men. The younger one looked quite bewildered, while the one carrying a large scythe seemed quite composed.
Both men were carrying weapons, which immediately led people to believe that they were either mercenaries or adventurers.
Arnold squatted down in front of the stall and asked the old man if he could touch the stones.
The old man nodded, which was taken as agreement.
The boy casually picked up a stone that resembled a sheep's head. The stone was completely black with gravel embedded in its surface, making it so inconspicuous that it would go unnoticed if thrown on the roadside.
The old man watched Arnold's movements, twirling his pipe in his hand. His eyes were hidden beneath layers of wrinkles and white eyebrows, making it almost impossible to discern the expression in them.
"You've got your eye on this?" Allen asked, seeing Arnold holding the stone.
Arnold pursed his lips. Actually, he didn't quite understand these things. These stones were raw crystals, and there might be high-quality crystals hidden inside. Crystals were essential for making staves or warrior weapons. If he found a high-quality crystal, he could definitely sell it for a good price.
The voice in his head told him to choose the ram's head stone.
He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "How much is this stone?"
The old man gestured: "Two thousand silver coins."
The blond boy's eyes widened instantly. This small stone cost two thousand silver coins?! He only had a little over two thousand silver coins on him, which was his reward for a month of hard work in Albion!
He was conflicted, but the voice in his head urged him to buy the stone: "If you miss this, you'll regret it for the rest of your life." The voice was as cold as ever.
Arnold gritted his teeth and was about to take out his money when Allen, who was standing next to him, counted out twenty gold coins and handed them to the old man.
One gold coin is roughly equal to one hundred silver coins. Before setting off, they exchanged a large number of silver coins for gold coins, which were easier to carry, and kept only some loose silver coins for daily use.
"Huh?" Arnold asked as he saw Allen take out his money, "Do you like this stone too?"
Allen pulled him to his feet and said, "Here, take it. You don't have much money on you right now, so it's better to save it."
Arnold's face tightened, and he was about to refuse when Allen forcefully pulled him away. In the time it took to hesitate, a few people had somehow gathered around the stall.
A faint, almost imperceptible gaze fell upon them, as if harboring ill intentions.
Seeing the coldness on Allen's face, Arnold glanced around, realized something, and shut his mouth.
The two walked out of the market and turned into a small alley, where it became much quieter.
However, Arnold still felt some gaze upon him, which made him somewhat uneasy. He tugged at Allen's sleeve and whispered, "Let's keep going."
Allen stopped in his tracks, frowning. "It's too late."
As soon as they finished speaking, seven or eight figures suddenly appeared in the alley, blocking their way.
“This is…” Arnold had never seen such a scene before. His eyes widened, and he reached behind him, already gripping the hilt of the sword.
Allen looked ahead at the tall figures of those men, who exuded an aura that was not to be trifled with. They seemed more like a proper guard than an adventurer or mercenary.
This is bad; he lowered his eyes.
However, as the group surrounded them, a refined-looking man in a dark blue robe stepped out and smiled at them, saying, "Gentlemen, my master invites you to his residence for a chat."
It was just a simple invitation; there was no need for such a grand gesture, as if they were afraid the invitation would run away.
Allen glanced at the people blocking the alleyway behind him and confirmed that he had seen them among the guards at the city gate.
These people's superior is probably that old duke.
Allen didn't really know much about Duke Mercury, since he rarely came to Mercury City and usually just browsed the market before leaving before dark.
However, he also knew that this duke was ambitious and had always liked to challenge the royal family.
As for the specifics, he heard it from Veris while they were in the tavern.
The standard for paying taxes has always been to pay two copies, and the annual tax tribute is always shortchanged. Royal regulations stipulate that the number of troops stationed on a duke's fiefdom should not exceed 20,000, but this old duke has nearly 60,000 troops under his command.
The royal family had previously inquired about the matter, but the Duke said that piracy was rampant at sea and that it was necessary to increase the number of guards to defend against pirates.
With the royal family making a fuss, the matter eventually fizzled out.
Even the annual audience with the king, which the duke had missed for three years, was now impossible for him.
Allen's eyes flickered, and the refined man waited patiently for their answer. However, before Allen could finish thinking, a firm voice rang out from the side.
"Okay, let's go!"
Arnold raised his voice, then lowered it and said to Allen, "I want to see what tricks they're going to pull!"
Allen was taken aback. He wanted to analyze the pros and cons with Arnold, but he didn't say it. He looked at Arnold, who had been behind him, with a complicated expression, as Arnold strode forward and walked firmly toward the alley entrance. Allen opened his mouth, then followed.
At that moment, Veris's casual words suddenly echoed in his mind, and he took a deep breath.
He can withstand the attack of a ninth-tier mage, so what do they care about their schemes and tricks? At worst, he and Arnold will fight their way out!
As they walked out of the alley, they saw a carriage parked outside. Allen was wary, while Arnold looked fearless. The refined man invited them into the carriage.
Allen let Arnold go first. When Arnold stepped onto the carriage and turned around, he found that the guards surrounding the other end of the alley had vanished without a trace.
The man said his master had invited him, and with the appearance of the guards, Allen guessed that the person behind him, even if not Duke Mercury, was someone with close ties to the Duke's mansion.
The carriage moved forward, with Arnold and Allen sitting inside. To be honest, neither of the two young men had ever ridden in such an exquisite carriage before, but neither of them was in the mood to marvel at it. Arnold pursed his lips slightly, remaining silent, focused on dealing with the voice in his head.
The ram's head stone was in Arnold's pocket, but he hadn't had time to peel off the outer skin yet.
Arnold didn't know why the voice in his head always spoke with a barbed tone, but he always responded to it in a good-natured manner. After all, the spirit had probably been dead for many years, so it was normal for it to have some issues.
As for the other party's claim of being a remnant of a celestial being, Arnold said, "Whatever makes you happy."
It would be better to say that you are the remnant soul of a demon, since there are legends of demonic ruins in the Amberley Mountains.
However, when he revealed his thoughts last time, the voice sharply told him not to mention evil things like demons, saying that they were not worthy of being compared with the noble title of gods.
The two, each with their own thoughts, remained silent throughout the journey. The refined man following beside the carriage looked puzzled. He had "invited" these two to his residence with such forceful means, yet they didn't even intend to discuss things with him?
Upon arriving at the sizable mansion, the refined-looking man knocked on the carriage wall: "Gentlemen, we've arrived."
"I understand." Arnold's tone became irritated because of the voice in his head.
The man choked, a dark glint flashing in his eyes.
He endured it all for Lord Keith's plan!
Arnold and Allen got out of the car one after the other and looked up at the luxurious mansion. They weren't the only ones there; there were quite a few people gathered at the entrance, including all sorts of people, young and old.
The refined-looking man led them toward the mansion, a gentle smile on his face, his words carrying a barely perceptible probing tone: "My master is none other than the great magician, Lord Keith. He has heard that a future great magician is coming to Mercury City, so he has specially invited you two to be guests at his mansion."
Keith?
Arnold and Allen exchanged a glance; they were quite familiar with the name.
The refined-looking man walked ahead, unaware for a moment of the unusual interaction between the two.
Arnold spoke first: "You say he's a great magician, so what's his rank?"
"Our master is a sixth-tier mage." The man's tone was filled with pride. A sixth-tier mage was enough to be considered a high-level mage, something that one could hold their head high anywhere.
"Oh," Arnold simply replied, and that was the end of it.
The man waited for a while, but when he didn't hear the two continue talking, his expression turned grim again.
Those ungrateful brats! They'll regret it when they see Lord Keith!
Allen openly observed the mansion, his brow never furrowing. His peripheral vision subtly fell on the ground; the dragon's powerful hearing told him that beneath this place was a huge basement, and there seemed to be faint human voices emanating from it.
Since they came in, they hadn't seen many servants along the way, but they did see some unfamiliar faces who looked to be from the same background as the people gathered at the entrance.
Those people were standing far away, whispering among themselves, holding something in their hands.
Allen focused his attention, and after a moment, his pupils contracted.
He heard the words "Cult of the Celestials," a term that wasn't entirely unfamiliar to him—he had once heard Veris sing about the history of the Celestials in a tavern.
The story of a supreme god who arbitrarily manipulated fate and whose mindless worship by mankind vanished before the establishment of the new era, which is several hundred years ago.
In short, it is absolutely impossible for it to happen today.
Allen's mind worked quickly, and he immediately connected it to something terrible: heretics.
A note from the author:
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It's expected to be available for purchase on Friday [Let me see!], with a 10,000-word update at that time!
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