Black Hearted Mage

Kaisas believed the monsters in the mines might be from the underground world and belong to the dark category. He asked curiously, "Excuse me, what do the monsters in the mines look like?"

As the old mercenary selected his weapons, he described them incessantly, "Similar to armored lizards, but their scales are larger and thicker. They have no eyes, but their sense of smell is extremely keen, and they are extremely greedy for flesh and blood. It was a poor mine of magic crystals, and it was almost completely depleted. The end of the mine suddenly collapsed, and these ferocious monsters escaped!"

The mine is located in the southeast of the Violet Alliance, three or four hundred miles away from Violet City.

Kaisas couldn't help but feel puzzled and offered his own opinion: "Why go in and clear out the monsters when the mines can't be sealed?"

The old mercenary smiled and explained, "We're not going to clear out the monsters, but to explore the collapsed area of ​​the mine. Earl Leonard and the people from the Mage Alliance speculate that there may be a metal vein beneath the collapsed area!"

Hearing the name "Lonard" filled Kaisas with mixed emotions, his thoughts drifting back to the past. The Ludwig family was originally a minor noble family of the Violet Alliance. His grandfather, Old Ludwig, and his great-grandfather had both lived in Violet City, their baronial fiefdoms located southeast of the Violet Alliance.

However, fate took a turn around that time. The former Count Leonard, through extremely despicable means, forcibly seized the Ludwig family's wealth and fiefdoms. Caesars had heard these stories countless times since he was a child, each time leaving him with deep pain and indignation. Those painful memories were etched deep in his heart like a brand, never to be erased.

"Can I go to the mine with you? I don't need any commission, I just want to broaden my horizons!"

The old mercenary looked at Caesar with a puzzled expression. After all, this was a magician who had no shortage of money, so why would he suddenly ask to go on an adventure with them?

"I can't make the decision on this matter. I have to ask our captain."

The old mercenary winked at Caesars and motioned him to ask the female mercenary.

"Geralt, is there something wrong with your eyes?"

The middle-aged female mercenary glared at the old mercenary, a hint of dissatisfaction in her eyes. She turned her gaze to Kaisas. She had carefully examined the weapons and equipment on the stalls. Although the markings on these weapons had been polished away, her experience could still tell that they had originally belonged to the same faction or mercenary group.

"Where did you get all these weapons and equipment? Only after you answer this question can I decide whether to let you join us!" The female mercenary asked seriously. She needed to ensure the safety and stability of the team.

Caesars didn't hide anything and answered frankly, "Of course, someone gave it to me. I helped them sell these items, and in return I get a 10% commission."

This was a fact, and Caesars saw no need to hide it.

"So, did these weapons come from a killed mercenary group?" the female mercenary asked. She was very concerned about this matter.

Caesars nodded in confirmation: "Yes, that mercenary group is not popular among everyone, and many people are disgusted by them."

Hearing this, the female mercenary stopped asking questions. The other mercenaries looked at Caesar in surprise. With such a powerful force behind him, he could easily wipe out an entire mercenary group.

"Tomorrow morning, when the sun rises, we will gather at the East City Gate and set off!"

The middle-aged female mercenary said a few words and lowered her head to continue selecting magic steel arrows. The old mercenary had already selected his weapon. At this time, more mercenaries came out of the mercenary guild. After seeing the prices marked on the animal skins, they also joined the rush to buy.

After more than an hour, except for the magician's things, the magic steel weapons and equipment were basically sold out, leaving only a few bundles of magic steel arrows.

The mercenaries left, and Caesars immediately changed his magician badge. He was going to the Mage Alliance to buy some magic crystals. The relationship between the Magic Guild and the Mage Alliance was not good, so Caesars wanted to wear the magician badge of the North Tower.

Caesars had been to the Mage Alliance once, seven or eight years ago. At that time, several major magical forces wanted to open the ruins under Ludwig Castle.

The hall of the Mage Alliance is paved with snow-white floor tiles, which appear very bright. These are all high-quality marbles with almost no visible colors.

Walk to one side of the hall, where there is a special reception desk where you can buy magic crystals.

"I want to buy some magic crystals!"

The reception area of ​​the Mage Alliance had three seats, but only one magic apprentice was there. Caesars was a little worried now, as he probably wouldn't be able to buy any magic crystals today.

"Show me your magician badge, please!"

The receptionist looked very young, no more than thirty years old, and she wore the badge of a senior magic apprentice.

Caesars took off the magic badge and handed it to the receptionist in apprentice robes. The receptionist took the badge, glanced at it, and then took out a book wrapped in animal skin and began to read.

"This badge belongs to Kaisas of the Northern Tower, and his age is appropriate. Master Mage, would you like to exchange it for a mid-level magic crystal or a lower-level one?"

"Intermediate, how much can I get in exchange?"

Kaisas didn't expect that the Mage Alliance would also have a list of the magician badges in the North Tower.

"Low-level magicians can exchange for a maximum of 500 intermediate magic crystals per year. Intermediate magicians can exchange for a maximum of 1,000, and high-level magicians can exchange for 2,000!"

"High-level magicians can only exchange for intermediate-level magic crystals?"

"Yes, only great magicians can exchange for high-level magic crystals!

Kaisas looked helpless. The Violet Alliance lacked large, rich mines of magic crystals, making high-grade magic crystals a scarce resource. Although he had been promoted to an intermediate magician, the magic badge in his hand still symbolized the status of a low-level magician.

"How many gold coins do I need to buy these magic crystals?" asked Caesars.

"Since you are a magician from the North Tower, we will give you a 30% discount, and the total cost will be 8,000 gold coins." The female receptionist replied calmly.

Caesars began to carefully count the gold coins he had brought with him. Currently, he needed three low-level magic crystals to assist him in his daily meditation. According to the market price, this cost him more than twenty gold coins a day.

After leaving the Mage Alliance, Caesars headed for a nearby tavern. As night fell, he had nowhere else to go, so he chose to spend the night in the tavern. He also wanted to take this opportunity to inquire about Count Leonard's situation.

There was a foul smell in the pub. Someone was smoking a spicy tobacco, filling the entire space with choking smoke.

Caesar walked to the farthest corner of the tavern and sat down. Opposite him sat an old mercenary, who turned out to be his acquaintance Geralt.

"Master Mage, what may I ask for?"

"One barbecue, one water, and one rum!"

The plump waitress in the bar was wearing revealing clothes, with her chest exposed and her two breasts almost popping out. When she walked over, she also brought the smell of cheap and inferior perfume.

"Twenty silver coins in total!"

Caesars took out twenty silver coins and placed them on the thick and sturdy wooden table. After the waitress took the silver coins, she walked away twisting her plump buttocks.

"Master Mage, the rum here is not mixed with water, they only mix wine with water!"

Geralt was a little tipsy, his nose and face were red.

"Geralt, I never drink outside. This glass of rum is for you!"

The old mercenary looked at the rye in his glass and thought he had misheard.

"Order for me?"

"Well, by the way, I want to ask you something!"

"Thank you so much, Master Mage. Feel free to ask me if you have any questions!"

The old mercenary patted his chest loudly, looking like he was ready to tell everything he knew.

"What is Count Leonard like? I mean his character!"

"That old fellow, like his father, is a notorious penny-pincher within the Violet Alliance. He agrees on a price, but often finds ways to deduct a few gold coins when payment is made. If it weren't for the mercenary mission, no one would be willing to explore the mine. However, this mercenary mission has already been issued for the fifth time, and the prices offered previously were too low!"

When Geralt spoke of Leonard, he sensed a resentment in his words. Caesars suspected the old mercenary had suffered a great loss at Leonard's hands.

"He will send someone to follow this investigation, right?"

"That's for sure. They'll send at least four or five people to keep an eye on us. They won't give us much time to rest. They'll urge the mercenary team to hurry up and investigate."

Caesars nodded slightly, and the waitress brought barbecue and rum.

"Master Mage, if you want to have some fun, it'll only cost fifty silver coins!"

After the plump waitress put down her things, she said something in a coquettish manner at the edge of the table.

"Geralt, do you need some fun? I can help you pay with the silver!"

"Master Mage, please spare me. I'm afraid my old waist will be broken by her!

The old mercenary grinned, but his old eyes kept staring at the waitress's chest.

"Geralt, damn it, where are you looking?"

"Della, your breasts are a size bigger than last year. They're so tempting!"

"Bah, damn old mercenary, how dare you tease me!"

Seeing that he couldn't earn enough silver coins for two people, the waitress turned around and left, and the old mercenary set his eyes on the twisting fat buttocks again.

"Geralt, you have the will but not the courage!"

"Master Mage, Della is no ordinary person, and this Redstone Tavern is not that simple. She was just looking for a fat sheep. Anyone who follows Della will be left with nothing but their underwear the next day!"

Caesars understood that he had just been treated as a fat sheep.

"I'm a magician, how dare they do this to me?"

"Master Mage, you are not from the Mage Alliance. They will do anything for gold. By then, you will be dead, and your body may be thrown into the forest to feed the ogres!"

Geralt looked around and whispered a few words. Caesar also understood that this Red Stone Tavern must have some background and had committed murder and robbery.

After two glasses of rum, the old mercenary's face grew even more rosy, and his tongue grew larger. Caesars answered everything he knew without reservation, and he learned more and more about the people and events in Earl Ronald's mansion.

As the night progressed, the tavern lost its earlier bustle, but some people in the tavern kept watching Caesars. He had sold so many weapons and equipment in Violet City today that most people in the tavern already knew about it.

Wealth is an extremely tempting thing, and many people in the tavern remembered Caesar and the huge wealth he carried.

Early in the morning, Caesars woke up the old mercenaries who were sleeping on the table and some of them were still drunk.

"Geralt, the sun is about to rise, we should go to the city gate!"

"Then let's go quickly. Clarisse is a very powerful person, and I don't want to be scolded by her!"

The old mercenary shuddered and pulled Caesars out of the tavern. The Redstone Tavern was not far from the city gate and it would only take a few minutes to walk there.

"Caesars, the rum you gave me yesterday was really strong and mellow. When I compare it to the watered-down wine at the Red Stone Tavern, I realize that the wine I've been drinking all these years isn't even as good as horse urine!"

The two chatted for most of the night, and Geralt became familiar with Caesar and no longer called him "Master Mage" all the time.

"That's the dark rum treasured by a great noble. I had a hard time getting a few bottles of it. It's been in the cellar for fifty or sixty years, even longer than you are!"

"How noble is that?"

"Duke!"

"I knew it wasn't the Violet Alliance's wine. The wine merchants here are profiteers. I don't know what the hell they added to the dark rum. It's so awful!"

The Violet Alliance lacked dukedoms; the highest nobility was the earl. The Violet Alliance possessed relatively little land, but its nobles were no less numerous, resulting in relatively small fiefs. The nobles there differed significantly from those of the Roland Empire. They possessed an unconcealed desire, perhaps even greed, for land and wealth.

At the east gate of Violet City, more than a dozen mercenaries were already waiting. Clarisse, the mercenary team's leader, wearing leather armor and carrying a powerful bow, was already counting the number of people.

"Damn it, Geralt! You're drunk again! And you haven't even washed up yet. You have eye boogers and saliva stains around your mouth!"

Clarisse smelled a strong smell of alcohol, frowned immediately, and began to teach the old mercenary a lesson.

"Captain, it was Kaisas, the Master Mage who invited me to drink!"

Geralt glanced at Caesar and was ready to drag the other party into this so that Clarisse wouldn't just scold him alone.

"Geralt, you damned bastard! Don't try to fool me! This wizard doesn't smell of alcohol!"