Black Hearted Mage

In the morning light, a beautifully decorated carriage slowly drove out of the Baron's mansion. In the carriage sat Caesar, carrying a variety of exquisite snacks and delicacies, all of which were carefully prepared according to the nobles' requirements.

The nobles were very discerning, preferring fresh, delicious food. Therefore, the various custom-made snacks in the storage ring were freshly baked, still warm from the oven. These snacks were not only delicious but also beautifully presented, making one's mouth water at first sight.

Most of the shops along the wide streets of the commercial district were still closed, and there were few pedestrians. However, the carriage had already begun to accelerate, as it had to make deliveries within the inner city. The inner city was quite large, and with thirty-five nobles ordering snacks, it would take half the morning to deliver them all.

Half an hour later, the carriage successfully entered the inner city. This was the core area of ​​Fire Maple City and where the nobles lived. The inner city's architecture was unique and full of artistic atmosphere. Each mansion represented the glory and status of a family.

The Cavill family sends snacks to the inner city every day, which has become a tradition. The city guards guarding the inner city are already familiar with this carriage. They know that this carriage comes from the Cavill family and enters the inner city on time every day.

The carriage sped down a street and arrived at the residence of its first customer. It was a small house with a garden on the edge of the inner city. The box was numbered and had the viscount's last name, Ryan, written on it.

The carriage stopped at the gate of the small house. Caesars quickly stepped out, walked to the door, and rang the bronze bell. The bell rang, its crisp sound echoing in the morning air. A moment later, the door opened, and a man who looked like a butler appeared. He greeted Caesars with a smile and took the snack box from him.

After saying goodbye to the butler, Caesars quickly got on the carriage and continued his journey today.

The first five were all viscounts, and their butlers were quite polite and did not waste any time.

The sixth customer was a count, whose residence was a garden castle. Caesars rang the bell at the door for the ninth time, and a man who looked like a butler finally came out slowly. Since the snacks couldn't be given to anyone else, they had to be given to the butler of the noble mansion.

"Boy, you can only ring the bell three times. Do you understand the rules?" The thin middle-aged butler with a curly goatee looked at Caesars angrily.

"If you had come out after the first bell rang, I wouldn't have had to ring the second time. You've wasted my precious time!" Caesars looked at the butler. He was very dissatisfied in his heart that he had made him wait at the door for so long.

"Damn you commoner! You rang the bell nine times in a row and woke the Earl from his sleep!"

"You're awake just in time, and the snacks are still piping hot. And watch your words, I'm not a commoner!"

"So you're a pariah. You're not worthy of wearing such fine fabrics. Have little Cavill bring snacks tomorrow. I don't want to see you again!"

Caesar put on the magic badge and took out the cracked black thorn staff.

"You damned bastard, you dare to insult the magician of the North Tower? You even insulted the offspring of the great magician. I will fight you to the death!"

The skinny butler ran into the castle garden, shouting, carrying a box of snacks. The guards at the gate were a little confused. The Cavill family had actually sent a magician to deliver the snacks. The key point was that this magician was the descendant of a great magician. This matter had to be reported to the Earl.

Caesars got into the carriage and signaled the driver to continue. They had just been delayed for a quarter of an hour at the Earl's Palace, and time was running out as they had to deliver the snacks before nine o'clock.

In the living room of the Earl's Mansion, the resentful Earl was already sitting here. His sweet dream was disturbed and he was full of anger.

The butler, filled with fear, turned his head to look at the gate of the castle wall and breathed a sigh of relief. The magician did not chase in.

"Cisse, has the Cavill family changed the person who delivers the snacks?"

Seeing the butler coming in in a panic with a box of snacks in his hand, the Earl guessed that it was someone who was delivering the snacks, so he kept ringing the bell.

"My Lord Earl, you are so wise. Today, a young man who doesn't know the rules came to deliver snacks!"

"Xise, we've changed the person delivering the snacks. Why are you so flustered?"

"My Lord Earl, I almost fell down just now. The snack box almost slipped out of my hand. I was so scared that I broke out in a sweat!" Hearing the Earl's question, the butler hurriedly explained.

The Earl frowned and said with some dissatisfaction: "Cisse, why are you so careless? If you break the snacks, don't blame me for being rude!"

The butler nodded repeatedly, indicating that he would be careful. Then, he carefully placed the box of snacks on the table, opened the lid, and let the count check whether the snacks inside were intact.

The Earl looked at the exquisite snacks in the box, nodded with satisfaction, and said, "Well, the snacks this time look pretty good."

The butler took the opportunity to praise: "Yes, Lord Earl, these are all carefully made by the Cavill family. Every bite is full of sweet flavor."

The count picked up a piece of dessert, put it in his mouth and tasted it, with a satisfied expression on his face.

Seeing this, the butler smiled and asked, "My Lord Earl, how does it taste?"

The Earl nodded and praised, "Well, it's really delicious. However, you still have to be careful in the future so that this kind of thing doesn't happen again."

The housekeeper quickly agreed and said he would pay attention to it.

The Earl continued to enjoy the delicious snacks, and his anger gradually subsided.

"My Lord Earl, something terrible has happened. The butler has just offended a magician, who must be the son of the great magician Joanna. The butler keeps calling him a pariah, and he's threatening to challenge the butler to a duel to the death!"

The guards guarding the castle rushed into the living room with anxious looks on their faces, and breathlessly reported to Earl Lawrence briefly what had just happened at the castle gate.

Earl Lawrence, who was leisurely eating a snack, suddenly choked on it, and the snack in his hand fell to the ground. His face instantly turned red, and his throat seemed to be stuck with the snack, making it difficult to breathe. He took a big gulp of tea to dissolve the snack in his throat.

"Cisse, did you really say he was a pariah? Also, why were you so slow to leave today? You didn't leave until the bell rang a quarter of an hour later."

Earl Lawrence's voice was filled with anger and questioning. He stared at the butler, his eyes gleaming with fury. He maintained a good relationship with Kandel, the Great Alchemist of the Northern Tower, but he was also well aware of Joanna's identity and status and absolutely did not want to offend her easily.

Kandel is the master of the Alchemy Tower, and Joanna is the master of the Magic Tower. They are both among the three giants of the Northland Tower and have prominent status.

"My Lord Earl, I... I don't know!" Butler Xisai explained in panic.

"My Lord Earl, the butler only came back from outside late last night!"

Upon hearing the guard's report, Earl Lawrence turned and looked at the butler coldly, his eyes filled with suspicion. He felt as if he had seen a traitor, and a chill ran through his heart.

"Guards, arrest Xi Sai, throw him into the dungeon, and assign someone to guard him strictly!"

"Yes, Lord Earl!"

The butler, who was as thin as a chicken, was grabbed by the neck from behind by the guards and lifted up. He was allowed to struggle as he walked towards the dungeon behind the castle.

After a busy morning, Caesars finally stood before the castle of his last noble client. It was a magnificent and imposing building, known as Solomon's Castle, and it belonged to Duke Solomon, one of the three great dukes of the empire.

When Caesar arrived at the castle gate, it was already past nine o'clock. The old steward of the Duke's Mansion stood by the castle wall, looking at him seriously.

"The dessert is a quarter of an hour late. It's already past nine!" the old butler said flatly, a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone. Caesars didn't even ring the bell this time, because the old butler had been waiting for a long time.

Caesars quickly explained: "Old butler, we are old acquaintances. I was delayed for a quarter of an hour at Earl Lawrence's mansion, otherwise I would definitely arrive on time!" As he spoke, he showed a flattering smile.

Hearing Caesar's words, the Duke's housekeeper showed a hint of doubt on his face. He looked Caesar up and down, and his eyes finally fell on his long black hair. Suddenly, he remembered the black-haired baby a few years ago.

"You've grown up so much!" the old butler said with emotion.

Caesars responded with a smile: "Yes, old butler, I have grown up!"

Then, as if he remembered something, he said expectantly: "Old butler, there must be a lot of fine wine in the Duke's castle. Can I get thirty barrels of wine? You see, I'm grown up now and can drink!" After saying that, he blinked, his eyes full of cunning and desire.

"Boy, this needs the Duke's approval. I can't give you wine on my own. This place is not like the manor outside the city. The Duke is in the living room. Come with me in and try your luck. How many barrels of wine you can get depends on your ability!"

Amid the surprised looks of the Duke's guards, Caesar greeted the coachman and then followed the old butler into the castle garden.

The Duke's Castle was built in the style of a fortress, constructed of solid stone, with thick walls and tall buildings. The lower floors had only narrow, long windows that were impossible to squeeze through even with a flattened head, and were therefore used for observation and ventilation.

A rustless bronze door, snow-white marble floor tiles, and a few magic lamps in the living room. On a soft sofa at one end of the hall, an elderly nobleman was flipping through some papers.

"Your Excellency the Duke, there are guests visiting!" The old butler stood in front of the sofa and said softly.

"Who's here?" The old duke didn't look up. He frowned slightly and continued to flip through the papers.

"The Great Magician—Joanna's son!"

"Let him in!"

"Your Excellency the Duke, he has arrived!"

Duke Solomon put down the paper, looked up at Caesar, and pointed to the sofa beside him, asking him to sit down. The old butler put down the snack box and gestured to the maid not far away.

"Boy, are you here to deliver snacks? What's going on with me?"

The old duke looked older than he had in a few years. He opened the box of snacks on the coffee table, picked up a piece of exquisite snack, put it in his mouth and savored it slowly.

"It's nothing serious, I just want to come to the Duke's Mansion to get a few barrels of fine wine!"

"Come to my Duke's Mansion to get a few barrels of fine wine?" Duke Solomon smiled slightly and looked at the young Caesar.

"Boy, there's no such thing as a free lunch on Roland Continent, nor is there anything that comes without hard work. Even robbery comes at a price. If you want my treasured wine, you must exchange it with something of sufficient value. I don't need gold coins!"

In the aristocratic code, the exchange of interests is the most important one. Caesar also knows the weakness of Duke Solomon and what he desperately wants. Of course, Joanna told him this.

"My Lord Duke, I have a herb in my hand and I want to exchange it for fifty barrels of fine wine!"

"Boy, you're so arrogant! Luckily I have some strength, otherwise I'd be scared to death by you. What kind of herb can be exchanged for fifty barrels of fine wine? Tell me and let me broaden my horizons!"

Duke Solomon laughed, he was waiting for Caesar to make a fool of himself.

"Old Duke, don't underestimate me. You've heard of golden ginseng, haven't you? I have one in my hand right now, and it's about the thickness of a walnut!"

"Boy, I've not only heard of Golden Ginseng, I've also seen it with my own eyes. Don't try to fool me with a carrot!

The aged Duke Solomon laughed heartily, completely skeptical of Caesar's claims. Golden ginseng only grew in the Endless Forest, and its growth rate was extremely slow. He had never seen or even heard of golden ginseng as thick as a walnut.

"Old Prince, you don't seem to believe what I say!"

"Hey, kid, I don't believe a word you say!"

"Your Excellency, if I really have such golden ginseng, what price would you be willing to pay?"

Caesar frowned and muttered to himself, "Fifty barrels of fine wine, my price seems too low, isn't it?" He decided to push the problem to Duke Solomon and see how much the old man was willing to pay for the golden ginseng.

The old duke was naturally aware of the value of golden ginseng, but because the Thorn Flower Trading Company only sold it to the two major magical forces, and only one plant was available every fifty years, he was unable to purchase this precious herb. At this moment, although he had some small expectations in his heart, he still did not believe that Caesars could produce golden ginseng.

Duke Solomon smiled and said, "If you can produce this golden ginseng, half of the fine wine in the Duke's cellar will be yours. Alternatively, you can choose to take home 100,000 gold coins."

"Old Duke, that's what I've been waiting for!"

Caesars took out a fresh herb from his space ring and handed it to the old duke. The herb had emerald green leaves and a slightly stubby root like a golden carrot.

The old duke's dim eyes widened with excitement, his hands trembling slightly as he carefully took the golden ginseng. Just by smelling the scent of the golden ginseng, he immediately determined that this golden ginseng was genuine.