Chapter 192 The Demon King and the Hero of Thunder County have never been so close

At the port of Thunder City, on an ocean-going freighter flying the Purple Moon Flag, Luo Yan, standing on the deck, inspected his zombie sailors.

These people were all militiamen who had died in the previous battle with the Earth Dragon Tribe under the leadership of Sheriff Adlai. Luo Yan gave them a second life after collecting their souls.

From the appearance, they are no different from ordinary humans. Even their only flaw, "smell", is masked by the strong fishy smell in the port.

A young man wearing a captain's hat walked up to Luo Yan and respectfully performed the noble salute of the imperial court.

"Dear Mr. Colin, what can I do for you?"

Luo Yan glanced at him and said casually.

"No, I'm just looking around."

The young man standing in front of him was named Lumire. He was Jack's right-hand man and a core member of the Brotherhood.

A long time ago, this man was stabbed in the chest by a cursed harpoon. He was on the verge of death because he could not find a priest to treat him. In the end, he survived thanks to Luo Yan's help.

From then on, Lumire became a loyal believer of the Demon King, and was also one of the few people in the Brotherhood who swore an oath to the Demon King's statue from the bottom of his heart.

Luo Yan was quite satisfied with the captain recommended to him by Jack. The only drawback was that his ocean sailing experience was a little lacking. But he didn't need this ship to go out to sea. It would be enough for him to just hang around the port.

Just as Luo Yan was inspecting his captain and sailors, another of his servants climbed onto the deck from the ladder at the dock.

Looking at the sailors standing solemnly like soldiers, Punk was secretly shocked, thinking that Mr. Colin's identity was indeed not simple! At least he had never seen so many disciplined sailors, these guys might have retired from the Imperial Palace's guards!

Although he had never seen what the captain of the imperial palace's personal guard looked like...

Just as he was daydreaming, a voice more beautiful and elegant than the gospel of the gods suddenly floated from the front and interrupted his thoughts.

"What did Mr. Andes say."

Mr. Colin, who was standing on the deck, did not look back, but it was as if he had eyes on his back and had noticed his presence.

"He basically agreed to your request. Of course, not all of it..." Punk did not dare to be negligent and repeated the contents of his talks with Andes word for word.

Especially the last 500,000 gold coins.

After listening to Punk's retelling, Luo Yan couldn't help but raise his brows slightly in surprise.

From a modern perspective, he of course understood immediately what Jan Andes wanted to do. In one sentence, he simply wanted to control the market and drive up the price.

However, that guy is not a modern person after all, but he can see so far. It can only be said that he is worthy of being the "uncrowned king" who controls the economic lifeline of Thunder City.

It is true that the diamond he gave to Andes is valuable. It is reasonable to auction it for 10,000 gold coins, and 100,000 is barely reasonable. But 500,000 is pure inflated price, at least 90% of it is a premium.

However, the overflowing beer foam will not disappear, but can flow into other cups next to it.

This was Andes' real purpose! As long as the diamonds of Thunder City and even the Kingdom of Ryan were under his control, he could drive the price up as high as he wanted. And given the nobles' nature of only buying expensive things instead of the right ones, the higher the price, the more impatient they would be to open their wallets.

Of course, not everyone can tell this story. At least someone has to make the first investment of 500,000 gold coins.

The monthly income of most citizens in Thunder City is only about 2,000 copper coins. Five hundred thousand gold coins are equivalent to 5 billion copper coins. This shows how amazing this wealth is.

Even Luo Yan had to sigh that the Andes family was indeed very rich, as they could take out such money without blinking an eye.

However, everyone has their limitations, even the richest man in Thunder City.

All he saw was the profits from selling diamonds, but he had not yet seen the higher level of the situation.

That is selling the company.

In Mr. Andor's hands, the Morning Embrace Hotel is worth at most 50,000 gold coins, but in Mr. Colin's hands, it is worth 100,000 gold coins with no upper limit.

It is true that he could make a profit of millions of gold coins a year by selling diamonds, but he only needed to easily package them to create a shell worth hundreds of millions of gold coins.

Hundreds of millions of gold coins.

Even the treasury of the Duchy of Campbell didn’t know whether it had so much gold.

After finishing the report, Punk waited quietly for Mr. Colin's answer and kept his mouth shut without saying a word.

Luo Yan said after thinking for a moment.

"Reply to Andes for me and tell him that I plan to set up a Colin Mining Company in Thunder City to operate the Colin family's diamond mine in the New World. The current annual output of this diamond mine is about 100,000 diamonds, most of which are small diamonds weighing 0.2 grams. Diamonds weighing more than 1 gram only account for 1%."

"Of course, we don't plan to sell the treasures bestowed upon us by the earth at a low price based on weight and size. Instead, we plan to set a grading standard. For example, the most expensive diamonds are 5A grade and will only be sold at a fixed auction every quarter, while the lowest grade F diamonds will be sold according to another standard... The specific details can be discussed later."

5A is naturally pulled by Immovable, and F is naturally pulled by an ordinary stone man.

Of course, producing these diamonds is not without cost. Only when the stone men eat coal and drink magma will there be a chance of producing them... although the probability is not low.

As for the color of diamonds, there are slight differences depending on the trace elements and sulfur content of coal. However, natural diamonds themselves have flaws, so this doesn't matter.

"...I believe that Mr. Andes will be able to understand the ins and outs of this. If Mr. Andes is interested, we can run this company together. As for how to calculate the profit, we can discuss it in detail at the banquet tomorrow."

The following content is not suitable for people to pass on.

Luo Yan believed that if Andes was interested, he would definitely take the initiative to find him and come up with a proposal that would satisfy both parties.

After pausing to think for a moment, Luo Yan confirmed that there was nothing he had missed, then turned and looked at Punk, who was carefully memorizing every word.

"Just reply to him like this."

Punk nodded quickly and said respectfully.

"Yes, sir."

…

On a midwinter night, the snow-covered Thunder City was shrouded in the bright moonlight, like a baby sleeping in its cradle.

In contrast to the tranquility and peace, at this moment in the center of the wealthy area, a vast manor is brightly lit, shining like a bright pearl in the dark night.

Starting from the evening, there was a constant stream of carriages on the road in front of the manor, and a constant stream of guests passed by the magnificent marble gate.

The table covered with white linen was filled with exquisite dishes, from pan-fried foie gras, creamy lobster to roasted venison that was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Each dish was carefully prepared by the top chefs, and the desserts were works of art made of fresh fruits and chocolate, served in gold-rimmed porcelain.

Accompanied by elegant symphonies, waiters in tuxedos walked lightly among the guests, pouring fragrant champagne and red wine, or hot tea and sweet wine to ward off the cold, into the guests' glasses.

The guests here are either rich or noble. There are wealthy businessmen engaged in ocean trade, industrialists who are in charge of thousands of workers, the president of the port bank and the real boss behind the scenes, as well as nobles of all sizes from Leiming County and even the surrounding baronies or earls, or the latter's guests.

Even a wealthy man like Andor, the former owner of the Morning Embrace, had to rack his brains for an invitation.

Compared with Mr. Colin's hotel, this is the real fame and fortune of the Principality of Campbell. The only drawback is that the latter is not always open to the public.

A long red carpet was laid from the main entrance of the manor building to the exquisitely decorated marble door, as if connecting two completely different worlds.

On one side, there was heavy snow, making people so cold that they couldn't help but shrink their necks; on the other side, there was a boiling fire, making people sweat on their foreheads uncontrollably.

In that magnificent hall, gentlemen were dressed in perfectly tailored suits with family emblems on their collars or shoulders, while ladies were dressed in silk evening gowns with dazzling jewels on their necks, and they laughed from time to time during their conversations.

The last time this place was so lively was when Prince Edward first arrived in Thunder City.

As for now, the respected Prince Edward has become the new Grand Duke, and Thunder City has also welcomed a new prominent person.

The moment he stepped into the hall, Luo Yan unsurprisingly attracted the attention of all the guests.

The dark purple hair was like the night sky lit up by the silver moon, with slightly curled ends falling naturally, swaying gently above the high nose bridge with every step.

The well-defined facial features seemed to have been favored by Saint Sith, especially the deep and bright pupils, which seemed to be able to see through everything. The arrogance and unruliness that were revealed inadvertently made countless noble ladies blush and suppress their breathing rhythm.

The Colin family's genes are indeed strong. Luo Yan feels that this may be partly the reason why he cannot hate his father.

On this planet where appearance is also everything, the greatest "injustice" he has suffered since his student days is probably the harmless harassment from Miss Mia.

As for those little actions of "wanting to attract the other person's attention but being afraid of going too far and being disliked by the other person", he would never take them to heart because of his broad mind.

"Dear Mr. Colin, I have long heard of your great name!"

A pompous and flattering voice, along with a burst of hurried footsteps, came towards the main entrance of the hall.

Luo Yan looked at the three people coming towards him, and only remembered that one of them seemed to be William Creech, the president of the Port Bank, but he did not recognize the other two.

As if noticing the indifference in his eyes, the bank president immediately put on an attentive smile and introduced him.

"This is Mir Lucius, the mayor of Thunder City! This is Lennon Bainbridge, the president of the Thunder City Adventurer's Guild!"

"Dear Mr. Colin, it's a pleasure to meet you at such a grand event!" Mayor Lucius, who had spoken in a pompous voice earlier, said with a flushed face.

"Nice to meet you, gentlemen." Luo Yan shook hands with the two of them gently, with a gentle yet aloof calmness on his face.

In a city like Thunder City, the mayor generally has no real power, and the real power is mainly in the hands of the governor sent by the higher authorities.

As for the Adventurer's Guild, there is no need to say anything. They are just the employees of the official agency of Thunder City. Although they are also well-known figures, they are still lacking in quality.

With his status, there is actually no need for him to get too close to such a small person, and the other party is obviously aware of this.

Even when the two saw Luo Yan extend his right hand, they were amazed at the gentleman's friendliness and shook his hand out of flattery.

After a polite greeting, Luo Yan loosened his hand and handed the cashmere robe draped over his shoulders to Punk, the servant who was following him stiffly.

Since Sarah's identity was not accepted by the mainstream society on the surface, and it was not convenient for her to move around wearing a cloak, he told her to stay in the hotel.

Mayor Lucius secretly glanced at Mr. Colin in front of him, only to see that the latter was wearing a well-cut black long coat, with a purple moon badge hanging on the black and gold-edged belt. The outer layer of the coat was made of velvet, with a low-key and luxurious gold thread pattern embroidered on the edge, and a purple crystal button dotted on the cuffs.

This was indeed a common dress for the imperial nobility, especially the detailed amethyst button, which made him, who had once traveled to the imperial court, confirm the identity of the gentleman in front of him.

Perhaps the legend about that prince is true!

Thinking of this, his eyes became much more passionate when he looked at Mr. Colin, no less than those of the unmarried or married noble ladies and ladies around him.

Unlike Mayor Lucius, President Crich's eyes were fixed on the brooch on Mr. Colin's chest.

It was a deep purple diamond about five centimeters in size, just like a blooming violet, and at the same time very much like those captivating eyes.

He couldn't help but think mercenaryly -

I'm afraid this thing isn't cheap!

In fact, his vision was still too narrow. The truly priceless treasures have always been things that cannot be bought with money, and everything on Mr. Colin is one of them.

It won't be long before this outfit becomes popular in Campbell's upper class society, just as white silk swept the thighs of the barons of Campbell before.

At the same time when Mr. Colin attracted everyone's attention, the truly distinguished guests of the banquet finally noticed this place.

Dressed in a noble and elegant evening gown, Princess Eileen Campbell walked towards him gracefully, accompanied by a female guard.

Luo Yan, who was dealing with the greetings of the guests, quickly noticed her approach, so he calmly turned sideways, nodded slightly as if in a textbook, and cast an admiring look at her.

The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!

The aqua blue dress was like a tranquil and peaceful ocean, complementing the thousands of golden threads hanging on the shoulders.

As he expected, her pupils were the same deep emerald green as Grand Duke Campbell's, but her soft facial lines were not similar to those of the Amethyst-level warrior.

The word "natural beauty" seems to be designed for her, and any extra words are just insignificant embellishments to her.

However, Luo Yan was not entirely attracted by her appearance, but more because the aqua blue dress suddenly reminded him of his sister.

When Vivian saw me off when I left the Magic City, she seemed to be wearing a similar skirt.

That’s not all.

The temperaments of the two also made him feel indescribably similar...even though Princess Irene was much more polite than his sister.

"Good evening, Mr. Roxel Colin, it is an honor to see you here tonight."

Princess Irene gently lifted the hem of her skirt and nodded slightly in greeting. Her voice was clear and gentle, with a bit of the playfulness of a little girl yet still retaining the elegance of a royal family.

"Thank you for coming to my party. I believe that if it weren't for you, this party would definitely not be so lively."

"Your Highness, you are too kind. You are undoubtedly the star of this banquet. On the contrary, I have benefited a lot from your fame."

Luo Yan nodded slightly, responding to a standard imperial court etiquette, and expressed greetings in a calm yet humorous voice.

"You are too modest."

Erin said in a pleasant voice with a smile on her face and genuine appreciation in her eyes.

"Although you have only been here for a short time, I can clearly feel that the citizens of Thunder City welcome the mysterious Mr. Colin more than I do."

This is undoubtedly a sincere compliment without any scheming, but people always find it difficult to control and reveal their truest feelings when they are most relaxed.

Simply put, the little girl was a little jealous.

Sensitively reading this, Luo Yan smiled and said politely.

"Have you ever seen a shooting star, Princess?"

“Shooting star?” Not understanding why he suddenly brought this up, Irene blinked curiously. “I did see one when I was six years old. My brother even tricked me into making a wish to it, but it didn’t come true.”

Luo Yan said with a smile.

"I can see it made a lasting impression on you."

Irene: “After all, it’s not often seen.”

"Yes, it is precisely because it is not often seen that people pay special attention to its fleeting light. However, no one can deny that its light is like a firefly in the woods compared to the bright moon that always accompanies the night sky."

Luo Yan looked at Princess Irene with a smile and continued.

"I am the fleeting shooting star, and you are the everlasting moon on this land."

Irene looked at him in surprise, the corners of her mouth couldn't help but rise.

Sure enough, his intuition was correct. She and Vivian were indeed similar in some ways. They both subconsciously longed to prove themselves, or to be recognized.

And it just so happened that he, who was currently at the peak of his career, was indeed qualified to award this medal... As long as he made the medal a little more exquisite, a little more roundabout, and not too cheap.

Sure enough, from the look of delight on his face, Luo Yan could clearly tell that his "flattery" had hit the mark.

Princess Irene looked at him with a smile and spoke in a light voice.

"There must be a lot of girls who like you."

"Maybe." Feeling that she had obviously relaxed, Luo Yan smiled and nodded, "Unfortunately, I'm either busy with school or traveling, so I don't really know many girls."

I'm too busy with work and don't know many girls. This would be standard Aquaman talk in the 21st century, but it's still a reasonable excuse here.

Irene didn't ask too much about the details, but just asked about another thing out of curiosity.

"Study? Have you studied abroad before?"

Luo Yan nodded slightly and spoke casually.

"The Imperial Academy, where I was taught by Professor Lilith. I was very interested in magic, so I asked my father to send me there."

There were countless professors at the academy in the North, and most of them lived in the wizard tower all their lives. This was what Miranda had told him herself, so it was impossible to be exposed if he just made up a name.

Irene showed an envious expression on her face and sighed softly.

"That's great... If the Campbell family weren't unsuited for studying magic, I would also like to study abroad in Xuebang. I heard that I can meet a lot of interesting people there."

Mastering one supernatural power will suppress another supernatural power. This is related to subconscious cognition and is difficult to overcome through practice.

The descendants of the Campbell family must always be prepared to inherit the legendary light. In addition, the Kingdom of Ryan is known as the hometown of knights, so there are far more people learning swordsmanship than those practicing magic.

"In fact, life there is not as interesting as you imagine. It is common to be teased and ordered around by the professor..." When saying this, Luo Yan subconsciously put himself in the life at the Demon King Academy. For a moment, he opened up and spoke as if it were really the case.

After all, Irene had never been to Xuebang, so she had no idea what it was like and she was immersed in his story without noticing.

Feeling a little dry-mouthed, Luo Yan cleared his throat, stopped talking, and looked towards the front of the banquet hall.

The host in a tuxedo was walking from behind the scenes to the front of the stage, and the highlight of the banquet was finally about to begin.

"...It's a pleasure talking to you, but the most important part of tonight's banquet is about to begin. Can we move to a place near the venue to continue?"

Erin Campbell smiled and nodded.

"Of course, my seat is in the box on the second floor. I wonder if Mr. Colin would like to go with me?"

"It's my pleasure."

While leaving these words, Luo Yan looked at his follower Punk who was following closely behind him and gave him instructions.

"I'll leave the placard-holding to you later."

Punk, holding the robe, nodded quickly and said respectfully.

"Yes, sir."

After saying this, Luo Yan followed Princess Irene Campbell and walked towards the box on the second floor amid the envious gazes of the guests.

The two sat down in front of the tea table covered with a white cloth.

At this moment, Luo Yan, the Demon King, was only separated from his "archenemy", the quasi-hero, by a table.

If he wanted to take the opponent's life or capture him, he only needed to recite a spell to achieve his goal... None of the demon kings in the maze below Thunder County had ever been as close to victory as he was.

Especially on Irene Campbell's face, there was no sign of defense at all, but the female guard behind her had a hint of fear in her eyes... perhaps she sensed the aura of a strong man in him.

But this is nothing, he has long established himself as a diligent and studious person, and it is well known that nobles learn magic very quickly as long as they are willing to work hard.

The light cast by the magic crystal reflected the scene of the auction on the wall, so clear that it seemed as if you were there in person.

The technology tree in this world is very weird.

Although there are no TV stations, there are things similar to "TVs", and the clarity is far beyond that of electronic products.

Looking at the host announcing the start of the auction on the screen, Princess Irene took a sip of black tea, put the cup back on the tray, and said with a smile.

"I heard from a certain gentleman that you were going to give me a mysterious gift. I've been looking forward to it for a long time... Can you give me some clues?"

It seems that Mr. Andes has done a lot of extra preparation in places that he didn't know about in order to arouse Princess Irene's curiosity about him.

Luo Yan even couldn't help thinking in his heart that if that guy knew his identity as the Demon King, he would have to kneel in front of the statue and repent.

No matter how cowardly the citizens of Thunder City are, no matter how much they hate the endless fighting, they will not voluntarily hand over the nuclear bombs in their hands to the Demon King.

Looking at Princess Irene with a curious look on her face, Luo Yan smiled slightly and spoke in a tone with a hint of malice.

"You'll soon find out."

(End of this chapter)