Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Lin Li looked at the two people in the distance quietly. He could not help but feel suspicious at how familiar they looked.
“So, Brook. Do you not welcome us?” Lasorick asked menacingly after he brought his men into the showroom. He stared at Lin Li challengingly before looking at Brook.
“Hehe, Sir Lasorick, y-you… you really like to tell jokes…” Brook’s smile froze. A blind man would have been able to sense that there had to be a deep grudge between Lasorick and that young mage. Now that the former brought a group of men into the showroom without warning, he had to be seeking trouble.
In fact, Brook was not really welcoming of Lasorick now. He was in the middle of a highly promising transaction! Now that Lasorick barged in so recklessly, he knew that the deal had to be put off. Unfortunately, he did not have the guts to show any hostility. Lasorick was the son of the castellan of Doland. If he were to offend him, he might be unable to stay in the Breezy Plains anymore.
At this moment, Brook could only squeeze all the smiles on his face.
“You are a really rare guest. How would I not welcome you…?”
“That’s more like it…” Lasorick said as he nodded in satisfaction. He and the young man walked to one of the shelves and started discussing the different weapons. Then, their gazes landed on the pair of daggers in Lin Li’s hands…
This time, Brook really misunderstood him…
Lasorick had no intentions to create any trouble. He knew that Lin Li was not an easy opponent. That young mage might still be alright to deal with, but the attendant beside him might not. Garza told him clearly in the carriage the other day that the fella donned in black robe was at least level-17. Lasorick knew he wouldn’t be a match for him…
Since he was not in Doland, and he only had the usual attendants who could only bully normal people, it meant death if their opponents were above level-15. Although Lasorick was not a bright man, he was not that dumb. He knew he could not seek death like this.
Actually, if he did not chance upon a friend on his way back, he would have left the Time Consignment Store. While they chatted, Lasorick talked about what had happened previously, and couldn’t help but feel angrier. Then, he reasoned out that he should not leave the matter as it was…
Honestly, the way Lasorick liked to vent his anger was excusably cute.
Didn’t you want to buy weapons and armor? Weren’t you uninterested in those manufactured by the Marathon Smithy? Good, I’m going to beat you with my wealth!
“Brook, how much does this pair of daggers cost?”
“Huh?” Brook was pleasantly surprised. The pair of daggers had been placed in the showroom for at least a century. Nobody had inquired about them at all. What made the two men interested in this weapon? Could it be that all the assessors of the weaponry in the shop failed to see its value before this?
“I’m asking you a question. What, do you not think I can pay for it?”
“N-no, no… Sir Lasorick, please don’t misunderstand me. I didn’t mean it. I wanted to tell you that this mage beside me had already showed interest in this pair of daggers. You might want to look at other weapons instead…”
“I say, Brook. Did you turn stupid? Why can’t two customers be interested in the same thing in your shop?”
“Erm…”
“Why are you hesitating?”
“15 thousand gold coins…”
“15 thousand gold coins? Damn, that’s cheap…” Lasorick commented as he reached for his pocket. He took out a crystal card and placed it on the table. “There’s 50 thousand gold coins inside, and I’m buying both daggers.”
After Lasorick entered the showroom, Lin Li had been standing there quietly. He only smiled when Lasorick took out his crystal card.
“I say, Lasorick, you are not playing by the rules, are you?”
“Phew, what broken rules? Since the Time Consignment Store is open for business, my money is the rules. If you are unhappy, use your own money to set the rules yourself…”
“You’re right…” Lin Li nodded. He did not say anything more. Lin Li fished out his crystal card and said, “Mr. Brook, I’m not sure how much money I have in there, you can check it out yourself. I’m buying that pair of daggers.”
“Oh, alright…” Brook replied nervously. But, the moment he received the crystal card, he drew a cold breath. “Oh my God…”
Then, Brook’s eyes were wide opened.
“G-G-Glittergold Trade Union!”
“Yup, I think it is…” Lin Li replied as he rubbed his nose awkwardly. He felt a little ashamed. If he had not extravagantly spent the money he earned from the auction of the Arcane Magic Potion at Jarrosus, he could have formed a hill of gold coins. Now that much of the hill had been used up on random purchases he had made during his journey from Jarrosus to Alanna, he realized that he did not have much left in the crystal card Gerian had given him. Hence, he had no choice but to use Hoffman’s crystal card just to buy a pair of daggers…
While Lin Li was still feeling the great sense of embarrassment, Brook had almost peed his pants in fear. Crystal cards distributed by the Glittergold Trade Union were always guaranteed by the currency in Felan Kingdom. Anyone with a good background would prepare a card for himself. If the Glittergold Trade Union were to crash overnight, two-thirds of Felan would have to declare bankrupt too. It was a fact that the crystal card from the Glittergold Trade Union was used almost universally, and had integrated into the lives of everyone.
But, Brook knew that the card in his hand was absolutely different…
Brook would bet his life that the VIP card he was holding had to be given out personally by that decision-maker of the Glittergold Trade Union. It was not something he would see frequently. In fact, he had only seen the card twice throughout the 20 years he had been working for the Time Consignment Store. The first time was 10 years ago, when Brook had just been raised to assist his boss in the transactions. There was a big shot from the capital of Alanna who showed his boss a similar card. Brook could still remember very clearly the expression of his boss. It was definitely more exaggerated than his now…
After that, his boss told him that anyone who owned that card had the ability to withdraw any amount of money from any Glittergold Bank. It meant that he had the wealth equivalent of the entire nation. If he wanted, he could purchase the entire Time Consignment Store too…
The second time he saw the card was now.
Brook would never have dreamt that he would see that type of card again. His teeth chattered in fright as he stood in a daze…
“Brook, why are you standing there for? Do I have to get Uncle William here?” Lasorick asked impatiently.
Brook’s voice trembled as he replied, “S-Sir Lasorick, t-this is the VIP card of the Glittergold Trade Union…”
“Darn it, what VIP card are you talking about?”
When Lasorick was prepared to scold him, he was stopped by someone. Then, he realized that it was that young man beside him. The man whispered something into his ear, and when Lasorick raised his head again, his face was full of shock.
“The VIP card is so powerful?” Lasorick asked the young man again after he looked at Lin Li from the distance.
“Yeah.” The young man nodded firmly, and did not say more.
“What the f*ck…” Lasorick cursed as he put away his crystal card.
Then, there was nothing more to be said…
Brook did the transaction for Lin Li without any further obstructions. The pair of daggers cost 15 thousand gold coins, and he did not dare to charge him even a bit more. He would not dare to do anything funny to a customer who had the VIP card of the Glittergold Trade Union.
After getting the daggers, Lin Li looked around the showroom again. Unfortunately, nothing worthy caught his eye. Seeing that it was dinnertime soon, he bid Brook goodbye, and decided to return to the mercenary station. But, before leaving, he glanced at Lasorick again.
“Oh, yes. Sir Lasorick, you are definitely right. Only people with money can set the rules…”
“You watch out, bastard!” Lasorick said through gritted teeth, and glared at Lin Li’s back…
After returning to the base of the mercenary corps, Lin Li saw Sienna engaged in a discussion with a group of people, and did not want to disturb him. Hence, he went back to his room and called Norfeller and Ujfalusi over.
“Ujfalusi, what do you think if this pair of daggers?” Upon entering the room, Lin Li placed the daggers on top of the table.
Ujfalusi picked one of them up. After sizing it for a while, he placed it back carefully. “Master, if I’m not wrong, this pair of daggers should have belonged to a powerful Undead creature…”
“Tell me more about it,” Lin Li responded earnestly. It was a wise decision to ask Ujfalusi to assess the daggers. Being a Lich previously, that guy had lived a few hundred of years. Having a wisdom that was beyond any other human being, he could certainly give a satisfactory explanation for an object filled with death aura.
“I’m not sure if you had heard of an assassin by the name of Holler active in the Breezy Plains 200 years ago?”
“Holler? Do you mean the person who killed the Sword Sage, Ulysses?” Lin Li asked as he frowned. He had heard that during the final stage of the Dark Ages around 1200 years ago, when the High Elves Dynasty fell, mankind was trying to rebuild their homes in this piece of land. After the war, Anril was not as harmonious as today. The rest of the High Elves was desperate in trying out various methods to use their remaining strength to create upheavals.
It was Ulysses who camped at the borders of Felan Kingdom. Being one of the three Sword Sages of Felan Kingdom, he and his warriors were regarded as the most powerful force in the kingdom. No one had expected him to die three days after he arrived in the Breezy Plains. It was Holler who killed him in his own military camp…
Ulysses’ death led to chaos in the whole Felan Kingdom. The royals of the kingdom were enraged, and three groups of imperial guards were sent after Holler. In the next decade, almost all the people—even ants—were interrogated. Yet, it was as though Holler had evaporated into thin air. Although 1200 years passed, the whereabouts of Holler after that incident remained a mystery…
“Yeah, it was that Holler…” Ujfalusi nodded, and pulled a chair to sit before Lin Li. “But, I presume not many people know that Holler was an Undead creature…”
“Undead creature?”
“Yup. To be exact, Holler was a true high-ranking Vampire who surpassed level-20 at that time. Hence, he did not need to play dirty tricks to defeat Ulysses. The weapon Holler used back then was this pair of daggers…” The Lich paused.
“Actually, the reason why I became a Lich was related to Holler too…” Ujfalusi muttered.
Since Ujfalusi did not talk about how he became a Lich due to Holler, Lin Li did not insist on knowing the reason. Also, it did not matter to him if Ujfalusi was an evil Lich or not. Knowing that everybody had their own secrets, he understood the need to respect Ujfalusi’s privacy as well. He knew very well that Ujfalusi would naturally tell him his story in the future if he wanted to.
So, Lin Li only smiled. “It seems like this pair of daggers indeed suits Norfeller…”
“Yes, Master. There was this rumor that the pair of daggers was given Holler by the Immortal King. The massive death energy in it allowed Holler’s ability to reach the peak of the Legendary Realm!” Ujfalusi said.
Then, he suddenly shook his head. “Unfortunately, the daggers you have in your hands are incomplete. They lack the most important energy source—there were supposed to be two Cursed Gems etched into their handles. Only Cursed Gems have unlimited death energy necessary to bring the best out of the daggers…”
“Cursed Gems?” Lin Li exclaimed smilingly. He opened the Ring of Endless Storm and fished out something shiny…
“My God…” Ujfalusi was stupefied by that shiny object. Although he had lived as a Lich for 600 years, he did not expect there to be such a large Gem of Curse in this world. With it being as big as a fist, Ujfalusi could not imagine how much death energy could be stored within the gem. But, he was confident that if he owned such a big Gem of Curse, he would have the ability to turn everybody in the Breezy Plains into Undead creatures after their death…
“But, I think it is very troublesome to cut the Gem of Curse into smaller pieces. I have to do some research…” Lin Li said as he scratched his head. Then, he pushed the daggers before Norfeller. “Norfeller, you can take these daggers first. I will help you put the gems in them when I find the method to cut them.”
“Yes, Master. ”
After putting the Gem of Curse into the Ring of Endless Storm, Lin Li was still thinking if he should ask about the Immortal King. Then, he heard someone knocking on his door.
“Mage Felic, are you inside?”
“Sienna, what brings you here?” Lin Li asked as he got up to open the door.
“It’s like this, Mage Felic. Castellan Arathor wants to hold a feast to thank the mercenary corps. He is inviting every member in the team, so I’m wondering if you are free too…”
“Dinner?” Lin Li paused, and took some time to think over it. It is too boring to stay here. Since I’m free tonight, why don’t I go and take a look at the Castellan Mansion?
“I should be free at night. You can let me know the time we set off.”
“That’s great, I will let my men prepare the carriage!”
