Black Hearted Mage

To make the stall more attractive, Caesars carefully selected several fist-sized magical gems and placed them on the animal skin. These gems were uncut and had a slightly rough surface, making them inconspicuous compared to the polished small gems around them.

However, what really caught people's attention was the price that Caesars had marked - 13,000 gold coins per piece! Such a high price made these originally ordinary rough stones instantly become the focus of everyone's attention.

As time went on, more and more people began to stop by the shade of the tree, and Caesars' stall gradually became bustling. He sat leisurely by the side, watching the bustling crowd. Meanwhile, the plump puppy lay on the stall, curiously staring at the passersby, as if expecting something too.

Emily was busy chatting with customers at the stall, while expertly counting the gold coins she had received. Her movements were swift and precise.

Kaisas was very pleased with Emily's performance and generously gave her 10% of the gold coins as a reward. This decision made Emily more enthusiastic about her stall work, and she served every customer more attentively, hoping to earn more gold coins.

In the brief moment after a customer left, Emily quickly counted the gold coins in her hand. When she separated 10% of the gold coins, her face immediately broke into an excited smile, her mouth wide open, almost unable to close.

"Emily, how many gold coins did you get?" Caesars asked curiously.

Emily couldn't contain her joy and replied excitedly, "I got 1,200 gold coins!"

"Wow, so many! But don't be too happy too soon. If we can successfully sell these magic gems, you will definitely get more gold coins!" Caesars encouraged.

Caesars collected the remaining gold coins, and Emily also collected hers.

At this time, several young men in aristocratic robes were wandering aimlessly in the Imperial City's Grand Plaza. They looked listless, as if they had just woken up. When they arrived at the Grand Plaza, many of the vendors hurriedly packed up their stalls.

In the bustling market, several young men with haggard faces and dark circles under their eyes were strolling leisurely. Their steps seemed a little tired, and they swayed from side to side as they walked.

As they walked, they came to a stall displaying various gemstones. These gemstones were gleaming with a faint light, attracting the attention of several young people.

One of the young men, dressed in brown robes, curiously picked up a processed magic gem and examined it carefully. He became interested in the price of these gems and asked, "How much do these gems cost?"

Emily smiled and replied, "A polished magic gem is 5,000 gold coins each, and an unprocessed raw gem is 13,000 gold coins!"

The young man frowned at the price, thinking it was a bit expensive. However, what surprised him even more was that when he heard Emily say that those stones were also magic gems, his eyes widened like copper bells.

"Are these magic gems too?" He pointed at the fist-sized stones in disbelief. "You said they were magic gems, but I can't see any signs of that."

Just as the young nobleman expressed doubts about the authenticity of the rough stones, a sudden "bang" sound was heard. Everyone turned around in astonishment, only to see one of them pick up a rough stone and smash it hard on the tiles of the square.

With a crisp sound, the original stone cracked into several pieces, revealing the crystal clear blue inside. That blue was like the deep ocean, emitting a charming light that brightened people's eyes.

The inexperienced Emily was startled. A magical gem had been smashed. Her eyes widened, her face filled with astonishment, completely bewildered. She stood there frozen, as if frozen by an invisible force.

"Thank you for your patronage. Thirteen thousand gold coins!"

Seeing this, Caesars, who was sitting next to him, raised the corners of his mouth slightly and revealed a faint smile.

"This isn't a magic gem at all. It's just an ordinary blue crystal. It's only worth three gold coins at most."

Said the young man who had smashed the magic gem. He was dressed in a dark blue aristocratic robe, looking quite imposing, but his expression was full of disdain.

"Don't worry about whether this is a magic gem or not. My items are clearly priced, and you have the right to choose not to buy them. But now that the original stone has been smashed by you, you must pay the thirteen thousand gold coins!"

Kaisas was not intimidated by the young man's aura. He simply patted Emily's shoulder and said to her in a low voice, "Don't worry, these people are the fat sheep of Fire Maple City, and they are here to be slaughtered."

Hearing this, Emily felt a little relieved, but she still looked at the situation in front of her with some nervousness.

"How dare a commoner blackmail a noble!"

The young man was obviously enraged by Caesar's words. His voice became sharp and he shouted angrily. Regardless of whether this was a real magic gem or not, he was not willing to pay the 13,000 gold coins.

"You call it extortion, and what you smashed wasn't a blue crystal, but a magical gem. Imperial law clearly states that damage to property requires compensation!"

"You said the magic gem is the magic gem?"

The man said this with some annoyance, he felt that his identity was being ignored.

"You can find someone to identify it and see if it is a magic gem!"

"Wait, we'll go get someone!"

"Wait, others can leave, but you can't. What if you run away?"

Caesars saw the group about to leave and immediately stopped them. Since the city guards were patrolling the square, the nobles didn't want to make a big fuss.

"Damn commoner, you are so unreasonable. We are the nobles of Fire Maple City!"

A young man took out a communication stone and seemed to be looking for help.

A few minutes later, a richly decorated carriage slowly approached from the north of the square. The sound of its wheels echoed across the empty square, like the prelude to a grand performance. The carriage finally stopped beside the flaming maple tree, its branches swaying gently in the breeze, as if awaiting the arrival of this uninvited guest.

The carriage door was gently pushed open, and a middle-aged magician in a magic robe stepped out. His steps were steady, and each step exuded confidence and majesty. Caesars took a closer look at the man's magic badge and found that he was actually a mid-level magician. However, he had no impression of this person.

At that moment, several noble children, as if sensing something, quickly approached the magician. They whispered among themselves, occasionally casting fawning glances at the magician. The noble children's intentions were too obvious. Caesars sneered inwardly, wishing someone would stir up trouble.

As expected, the mid-level magician walked straight to Caesar's stall. He bent down, picked up the scattered magic gem fragments on the ground, and examined them carefully. His pretentious appearance made Caesar feel a little ridiculous.

About half a minute later, the magician casually tossed the blue fragment onto the thick hide on the stall. "These are indeed magical gems," he said in a flat voice, seemingly showing little interest in them. "However, they are of inferior quality, worth only fifty gold coins at most."

After saying this, the magician's eyes fell on several rough stones on the stall. Each one was slightly larger than a fist, and its surface was covered by a thick layer of stone skin, making it difficult to glimpse the secrets within. However, for an experienced magician, he could naturally see the value of these rough stones. If a skilled gemsmith could polish their surfaces to a smooth finish, these rough stones could be sold for at least 15,000 gold coins.

"Selling a low-quality magic gem for 13,000 gold coins is outrageous!"

The nobleman who broke the gem shouted, and when he tried to pick up another piece of raw stone, he was stopped by the middle-aged magician.

"I've clearly marked the price. You can choose not to buy it, but if you smash my things, you must leave the gold coins. Even if it's a low-quality gem, it's worth 13,000 gold coins now!"

Caesars stared at the magician before him. He had already secretly recorded the video as the carriage approached. Since someone was trying to mess with this, he might as well make it bigger, and preferably drag the magic guild into the mess as well.

Thinking of this, the corners of Caesar's mouth rose slightly, revealing a barely perceptible smile.

"Ignorance!" the middle-aged magician suddenly shouted, his voice deafening. "How dare you sell these inferior products of yours for exorbitant prices in Fire Maple City? This is a blasphemy against magic! On behalf of the Magic Guild, I now officially confiscate these inferior magic materials of yours!"

After saying that, the middle-aged magician suddenly squatted down, stretched out his hand like a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey, and tightly grabbed the animal skin on which the items were placed. It seemed that he was ready to take away Caesar's entire stall in one go.

However, at this critical moment, there was a crisp "snap" sound, like a sudden thunderclap. Everyone looked in astonishment and saw a boot sole hit the middle-aged magician's face like lightning.

This sudden attack caught the middle-aged magician completely off guard. He fell heavily to the ground face up like a kite with a broken string.

"You are trying to rob me!"

Seeing this, Caesars immediately opened his mouth and shouted loudly. His voice echoed in the air, attracting the attention of people around him.

Then, Caesars rushed to the middle-aged magician, grabbed the other's collar without saying a word, and then used all his strength to slap him hard in the face.

"Crack, crack," the crisp sound of slaps echoed all around, and each one hit the middle-aged magician's face, making him feel a burning pain on his face.

"Don't think you're great just because you're a magician!" Caesars cursed as he whipped her. "If you mess with me, I'll still beat you, even if you're a mid-level magician!"

Caesars was in a state of extreme depression, his anger surging as if it was about to burst forth. That abominable mid-level magician had actually ruined his carefully planned scheme, leaving him filled with immense anger and regret.

The unfortunate magician tried to resist, but each attempt failed. Every time he tried to gather his magic, the powerful force would mercilessly shatter it. This not only caused a burning pain on his face, but also seemed to stir up a storm within his sea of ​​magic, making it impossible to stabilize his magic.

At this moment, in the imperial capital's grand square, this fierce conflict attracted the attention of the surrounding people, especially the patrolling city guards, who immediately rushed over like arrows.

"Stop! No private fighting is allowed in Huofeng City!" A small leader of the city guards shouted loudly, his voice revealing majesty and decisiveness.

However, the nobleman quickly retorted: "We are not fighting each other, it is this man who is beating the magician!" His voice was sharp and harsh, as if he wanted to put the blame on Caesars.

The other nobles present were stunned. They had clearly not expected the young stall owner to be so assertive. Facing their provocation, he not only stood firm, but even attacked the magician directly. Such behavior seemed unbelievable to them, as magicians were generally respected and feared in the Roland Empire and even on the Roland Continent.

Caesars stopped, loosened the magician's collar, and clapped his hands, which were not stained with dust, twice.

"This magician intended to rob me, and I beat him only to protect my property. The laws of the Roland Empire clearly state that private property is sacred and inviolable!"

Caesar said with a chuckle. He looked at the dozen or so city guards and walked over to the fire maple chair and sat down. Emily looked at Caesar in surprise. Her brother didn't use any spells, but instead taught the magician a lesson with his palm.

The city guards were also in a dilemma. On one side was a magician, and on the other side, they looked like ordinary people. They looked at a few noble children they were very familiar with and guessed some of the reasons.

At this critical moment, the magician who had been lying on the ground suddenly jumped up as if he had been electrocuted. He hurriedly took out a communication stone from his arms and screamed at it.

The corners of Caesar's mouth curled up slightly, revealing a barely perceptible smile. He thought to himself, "This guy is finally going to call for help. I just wonder who the Magic Guild will send?"

At the same time, because Caesars was not wearing the elf mask, his every move in the square was exposed to everyone without reservation. All of this was seen by the eagle-eyed spies hiding in the dark, and they quickly reported the situation to their spy chief.

The headquarters of the Empire's Eagle Eyes, the Black Prison, was an ancient castle tightly wrapped in dense vines, appearing somewhat eerie. In a dimly lit room within the castle, Old Quinn and Carlos frowned over a report on Caesars.

"What the hell is this Caesars up to?" Old Quinn muttered to himself. "He clearly has the magician's badge, as well as the badge of our Hawkeye Deputy Commander. If he encounters a small matter like this, wouldn't it be easily resolved if he just shows his badge?"

Carlos also echoed: "Yeah, I really can't understand why he did this?"