Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 24 Treasure Hunt
It didn't take Zhang Yuan long to decide on the scroll he needed. Having already learned seven level-one spells, he only needed to choose from the few remaining options.

"Shadowspell", "Sleep spell", "Level 1 Summon Monster", "Charm spell" - taking advantage of the half-price discount offered by Old Bentley, I picked up four Level 1 scrolls in one go. As for why I didn't buy Level 2 or even higher level spells?

Don't ask, the answer is I can't afford it.

Zhang Yuan had his own considerations in choosing these spells. Sleep and Charm spells largely compensated for his lack of control spells, Shadow spells could have a surprise confusion effect, and summoning spells were for occasional use when he was alone.

Even though he got a 50% discount because of Ska, the ten gold coins still made the already strapped-for cash person's heart ache. Don't be fooled by the fact that he only received four light parchments; the price was two-thirds of his entire fortune.

Knowledge is more than just power; it's practically a glittering coin!
As Zhang Yuan pondered the weight of knowledge, he inexplicably thought of Candle Fortress. Such a sacred place of knowledge must contain immeasurable value, which explains why the price of entering Candle Fortress is so high: a valuable book not yet collected by Candle Fortress, or 500 gold coins.

What does 500 gold coins mean? A Flame Fist soldier, after deducting bonuses, only earns 20 gold coins a month from wages and allowances alone, while a newbie without a fixed salary only earns 11 gold coins a month from mission bonuses and mage subsidies.

This nearly middle-income class's salary of several years can only buy a ticket, and its validity is only ten days!
After a moment of envy and jealousy, Zhang Yuan, who was inwardly amazed, slowly came up with a strange idea: since the Candle Fortress wanted books he had never seen before, then... could I become a copyist, no, a knowledge transporter?

"Perfect idea!" Someone practically cheered for their own idea. Even if books with obvious exotic or historical characteristics couldn't be moved, and popular novels like those about a mage from Faerûn—books with no real value—were not worth moving, but those about humanity, philosophy, and objective scientific laws...
Surely we can selectively move books now?

While happily thinking about these wicked ideas, Zhang Yuan tripped over the chair leg and was about to fall to the ground when a large, transparent hand emitting a faint white light caught him.

Old Banter, who had just used the Mage's Hand, winked teasingly: "Gaining new knowledge is a joyful thing for any mage; it means that our understanding of that unknown mystery has deepened."

Then the old master smiled and said, "But when you look up at the starry sky, don't forget the path beneath your feet."

Somewhat embarrassed, Zhang Yuan thanked the other party for their help and then followed Ska to enjoy the dinner prepared by the hotel with his teammates.

After a dinner filled with feasting, chatting, boasting, and throwing bones at each other finally ended, he went straight to Ska.

"I don't know how to thank you enough for this, but thank you anyway."

Being bad at expressing emotions doesn't mean being ungrateful. While he was focused on training his melee skills and selectively neglecting his mage class progress, Captain Scar was able to remember and consider this. Putting himself in Scar's shoes, Zhang Yuan, who knew he couldn't do that and couldn't become like him, sincerely admired and recognized such a good captain.

“I was just mentioning it casually. Old Bentley is happy to have business coming to him. Besides, you’re a member of our team, so it’s a good thing for all of us.” Ska simply brushed it off.

Zhang Yuan didn't say anything more, only nodding, but his mind was filled with thoughts of the tragic fate of the captain before him, and the sense of urgency in his heart grew heavier. After parting ways with his teammates, Zhang Yuan didn't return to his room. Instead, he slipped out of the hotel alone when no one was watching.

After descending the steps at the entrance and turning right, passing the stables that reeked of horse manure, I showed the Seven Suns Alliance logo to the guards at the gate and then stepped out of the Arm of Friendship's range.

This solo outing was not without reason; Master Zhang was about to do something that everyone would love to see: treasure hunting.

Every adventurer is familiar with the word "treasure hunting," whether it's the secret letter or treasure map that reveals clues to the treasure; the various dangers and obstacles in the process of finding the treasure; the greedy hyenas and cunning enemies that come after hearing the news; and of course, the huge surprise of discovering the treasure and the overnight riches that follow. All of these have become the main material for the wonderful stories that wandering poets have passed down by word of mouth and are popular among the people.

However, the treasure hunt in the real world of Forgotten Realms is not so romantic. When a group of novice adventurers or thrill-seeking nobles accidentally find a treasure map, they often discover an embarrassing fact after the initial excitement: they simply cannot understand it.

Perhaps the handwriting is illegible, perhaps it's written in cipher, perhaps the locations marked on the map are places I've never seen before, or perhaps this map is simply made up by someone else.

Even if the treasure map is deciphered and the location it points to is confirmed to be real, its burial location can still be terrifying.

This damned treasure might be in the frigid highlands, on some remote island, or even in the mysterious, dangerous ruins of ancient sorcerers.

If this adventure team were to stumble upon a lucky find and discover that the treasure location wasn't so absurd as to be worth a try, they would brave the elements, overcome obstacles, and even conquer numerous difficulties to reach their destination.

At this point, they are often pleasantly surprised to find that this place is already occupied. The hospitable monsters, mages, elemental creatures, and even creatures from lower planes immediately come up to greet them and use their claws, swords, and spells to keep the distinguished guests from afar as guests.

No, no, no, don't be so pessimistic. Perhaps we can make a positive assumption: that these seemingly reckless explorers are actually a group of hidden master warriors, high-level spellcasters, and divinely favored priests.

They slaughtered all the hospitable hosts as easily as cutting melons and vegetables, seized their homes like cuckoos, and turned them upside down.

Then, to everyone's surprise, they discovered that the treasure was a trap deliberately leading to the monster's lair, or that all the treasure had already been dug up and nothing was left, or that although the treasure existed and had not been taken, it had long been damaged and deteriorated due to the passage of time and human factors.

Of the millions of explorers, only a small number of lucky ones, kissed by Tamora, will be able to successfully discover the treasure and obtain a fortune large enough not to be a loss.

And they are the protagonists sung by wandering poets; as for the vast majority of others? Who knows?
(End of this chapter)