Black Hearted Mage

"Maid, Old Joey's condition looks quite dire. He looks extremely pale, and his life force is extremely weak. I'm afraid he won't be able to hold on for much longer. Speaking of which, how long has it been since Ms. Joanna came back?"

As night fell and after dinner, Caesars sat leisurely in the extremely elegant little living room on the third floor, chatting casually with Cecilia, who was wearing a long dress.

Looking back on his childhood, Caesars clearly remembered that the largest sum of gold coins he had ever received was a generous gift from Joanna. He still remembered the amount to this day—a full 13,000 gold coins! For a magic apprentice at the time, this was undoubtedly a huge fortune.

"The young lady hasn't been home for two years. Alas, poor old Joey has been taking excessive amounts of alchemical potions for a long time, which has caused his body to have a serious rejection reaction to the drugs. Now, except for the vitality potion that can stimulate the human body, other types of potions have lost their effect on him." Cecilia frowned slightly and explained to Caesars with a worried look on her face.

"Oh? A powerful vitality potion? Could it be that this potion can't save old Joey's life?" Caesars couldn't help but ask.

"No, not a strong vitality potion, a high-level vitality potion will do. However, the young lady mentioned before that the quality of potion materials available on the market today is too poor and cannot meet the standards required to refine high-quality potions!" Cecilia shook her head helplessly and sighed softly.

Upon hearing this, Kaisas' eyes suddenly lit up, and he said excitedly, "What a coincidence! I happen to have a few bottles of high-level vitality potion here, and I even have the main ingredients to make this potion. Fortunately, I didn't take them out to sell at a stall today, otherwise I would have missed out on important things!"

Because Locke's stall mainly sold herbs, Caesars did not take out any herbs.

"Then we need to send a message to the young lady!"

"Then inform Ms. Joanna that there will be a magic battle between me and the Magic Guild in a few days!"

"Let Avril summon me tomorrow. Go and tell her now!"

Cecilia hurried away. Long-distance communication requires specialized magical devices, and the communication stone can only be used over short distances. Fire Maple City has several such devices, belonging to the Royal Mage Corps, the Magic Guild, and the Imperial Capital Magic Academy. Any other faction is prohibited from possessing a long-distance communication device, and any discovery will result in investigation and punishment for treason.

On a moonlit night with sparse stars, the four magicians who had been questioned returned to the Magic Guild, and also brought back the Roland Empire's suggestions for handling the matter.

"Boman, tell me, how did you deal with it?"

In the meeting hall of the Magic Guild, the guild leaders gathered once again, waiting for the outcome of the Roland Empire's response.

"The secret of the golden ginseng is strictly forbidden to be disclosed. Each person must pay a compensation of 10,000 gold coins. It has been sent to the Cavill family this afternoon!"

"Is that all the punishment?"

After Portman finished speaking, Keynes' face was full of confusion. It seemed that the handling of the matter by the imperial high-level officials was too lenient.

"There's one more condition. Caesars proposes a magic battle with the four of us. The magic battle will be divided into two rounds. I will fight him alone once, and the three of them will count as one. The time is set for seven days from now, and the location is the Grand Arena in the Imperial Capital!"

There was a smile on Boman's old face, and he didn't seem worried at all about the magic battle.

"Boman, don't be careless. Caesars is very powerful, and his spells are very strange. Sandro was knocked down by just a few of his spells!"

When Keynes mentioned this matter, the higher-ups of the Magic Guild became very interested. As magicians, they all had a curious mind.

"Sandro, tell us in detail what happened at that time and how Caesar's spell made you feel!" said an old wizard from the Magic Guild.

"There's nothing much to say, I was just careless at the time!"

Sandro was very dissatisfied when the scandal was brought up again.

"Sandro, you'd better tell the truth and don't hide anything, otherwise we will use the Power Word on you!"

The magician said sternly that he would not take a senior magician seriously, and several old magicians beside him nodded in agreement.

After hesitating for a long time, Sandro chose to answer honestly because the Word of Truth had already fallen on him.

"Kasas's spells are indeed very strange. I remember those two spells, and they didn't cause me any magical damage. But they made me feel extremely tired and weak. It was difficult for me to lift my arms. I couldn't speak or make any sound at the time. There was also a most strange spell. I suddenly couldn't sense the magical elements. Not only the magical elements floating around in the outside world, but even the magical elements in my own body could not be sensed."

"hiss!"

As soon as Sandro finished speaking, there was a sound of gasps in the conference room. This strange spell made them all feel terrified.

Sandro's words made Tru, Sig, and the great alchemist Bowman feel a little uneasy.

"Perhaps we can make a request that such spells are not allowed to be used during magic battles. Otherwise, it will not be a magic battle, but may be a one-sided humiliation!" Keynes said.

"Then send a message to Carlos immediately and let him negotiate this matter!" said an old magician.

As the meeting concluded, the once bustling conference room gradually quieted down, and everyone rose and left. Keynes stood up slowly, his deep gaze sweeping over everyone present. He gently brushed off the nonexistent dust from his hands. Then, with a slight movement of his right hand, a storage ring gleaming with a mysterious light appeared.

Keynes skillfully used his mental power to communicate with the storage ring. In the blink of an eye, a communication stone appeared in his hand. He stared at the stone, as if he could see the person on the other end waiting for news.

The next morning, just as the sun rose, its gentle rays bathed the earth, draping the entire city in a golden sheen. Caesars rose early as usual, washed, and walked into the small courtyard. Just then, a richly decorated carriage slowly approached. When it stopped, he swiftly stepped aboard and settled comfortably into his seat.

Along the way, Caesars admired the scenery along the street through the carriage window. When the carriage reached the Grand Plaza, he got out in advance and turned to Avril in the carriage, saying, "Remember to go to the remote communication first and complete the task I instructed you to complete."

Avril, wearing a magic robe, nodded obediently to show that she understood.

In the center of the square stood an artificial fountain. At that moment, a series of snoring sounds could be heard from the edge of the fountain. A large, ferocious, and hideous ogre lay soundly asleep on an animal hide.

The ogre didn't set up a tent, but slept directly on a piece of animal skin. Its bloody mouth was wide open, and saliva was flowing from the corners of its mouth, which looked very scary. However, for Kaisas, who was already accustomed to such scenes, it didn't seem to be anything special.

Kaisas walked to where he had been yesterday, expertly spread out a worn animal hide, and began to take items from his interspatial ring to sell. He was running low on merchandise, only two or three pieces of leather armor and a few weapons remaining. Today, he was selling some magician's items.

Several large magical gems lay quietly on the hide, emitting a captivating brilliance. However, since the gems had never been cleaned, they were covered in dust, making their brilliance slightly dim. Seeing this, Caesars pulled out a piece of soft hide and gently wiped each magical gem. After careful cleaning, the gems finally regained their original brilliance.

At that moment, a tiny, inky black snake crawled over. It nimbly weaved between various objects, finally landing squarely between the magic gems. The snake quickly coiled itself up, placing its tiny head firmly on one of the gems. Then, it closed its eyes contentedly, seemingly enjoying the magical power emanating from the gems.

There were only three or four staffs, no wands at all, and the few magical accessories were of poor quality.

Before the ogre woke up, a man wearing black leather armor and a pitch-black mask came to Kaisas's stall.

"Hey, Master Carlos, you're here early! Feel free to look at anything here, except the Golden-Eyed Black Demon Snake."

The spy chief arrived too early, and there were only a dozen or so people setting up stalls in the square.

"I didn't sleep all night, so I came to see you early!" the spy chief replied.

"A big shot like you always encounters earth-shattering events, so it's easy to suffer from insomnia!"

"Kaisas, I can't sleep this time because of you!"

"Me? That's unlikely. I haven't done anything earth-shattering!"

The spy chief looked around and asked in a low voice, "Do you have spells that can weaken, tire, or render a person speechless or unable to sense magical elements?"

"Yes, it won't cause any spell damage!"

Kaisas understood that these spells, which he had used in the Northern Plateau, must have been leaked by someone from the Magic Guild. He now needed to establish his authority; no one could easily provoke him. From now on, no matter who it was, they would pay the price.

"What kind of magic is this?" the spy chief asked.

"Lord Carlos, this is a curse spell. An extremely magical spell. I have only learned some low-level spells." Caesars said.

The spy chief was a bit surprised. He hadn't expected Caesars to not only admit it openly but also tell him the name of the spell. The dark mask obscured the spy chief's expression, and at this moment, he also experienced the strangeness of the curse spell.

"The Magic Guild has made a request that you cannot use these three spells in magic combat. They think this is unfair!"

"That's absolutely no problem. I didn't plan on using these spells!"

Hearing Caesar's extremely straightforward answer, the spy chief was also confused and didn't know what to say.

"The event is scheduled for six days from now, at the Imperial Capital's Grand Arena. Ticket prices will be doubled this time, and 70% of the proceeds will go to you. Lots of people will come to watch the magic battle!"

"Master Carlos is really thoughtful. I'm just short of magic crystals now!"

"You can set up the stall. I still need to go to the Duke's Mansion!"

The spy chief walked briskly to the edge of the square. There, a luxurious carriage, pitch black as ink, sat quietly parked, its body exuding a mysterious and majestic aura. A scarlet eagle's eye emblem was prominently inlaid on the outside of the carriage's door. Its blood-red eyes seemed to pierce through all the fog, sending a chill down your spine.

Caesars stood there, silently gazing at the spy chief's receding figure, a complex wave of emotions welling up within him. His gaze shifted slightly, landing on the ogre sleeping soundly beside him. The enormous creature's massive frame contrasted sharply with Caesars's diminutive stature, a stark contrast of opposites. This stark visual contrast made one marvel at the strange hand of fate.

News of Caesars' impending two thrilling magical battles with the Magic Guild spread like wildfire throughout Fire Maple City that morning. Streets, alleys, taverns, and teahouses were abuzz with discussion, filled with anticipation and curiosity about this unprecedented event. As time passed, by afternoon, the news had spread like wildfire throughout the major magical factions, sparking a furor.

However, this was only the beginning. By the time the third day's dawn had broken, news of this magical duel had spread throughout the Roland Empire! From bustling cities to remote villages, every corner resounded with heated discussions. Even more remarkable was the unprecedented choice of the Imperial Capital's magnificent Grand Colosseum for this intense magic showdown! This decision undoubtedly excited countless people, as it meant that anyone who could afford a ticket would have the opportunity to witness the spectacular battle between these powerful wizards firsthand.

Many carriages were already on their way to Fire Maple City, but Caesars continued to set up shop in the main square. He had heard that the gambling at the Grand Arena had been canceled. The arena, with its complex background, was actually afraid. They feared the magician would place high stakes in the gambling, or that the magician would stage a fake battle, forcing them to lose all their gold coins.

But there is also good news. After the bet was cancelled, the ticket prices for the Colosseum rose again.

Joanna, exhausted from the journey, returned to Fire Maple City, along with Kandel and Old Roman. Joanna went straight back to the Cavill family, while the other two great magicians went to the Roman family.

The Roman family is a great noble family in Huofeng City. There is a powerful earl with a fiefdom, and this earl is a descendant of old Roman.