Marketplace Sightings

In the middle of the forest was a large clearing, where many houses and tents had been set up to accommodate the market's needs. Li Wen had seen many people along the way, both ordinary individuals and extraordinary ones. Besides elves and humans, other intelligent races were also not uncommon, such as White Elves and Gnomes, two races as common as humans on the inner continent. Li Wen even saw people who appeared to be players, and she had no idea how they managed to infiltrate the area.

They mostly acted as buyers, though there were also quite a few who actively set up stalls to sell all sorts of strange and exotic items.

The dazzling array of goods made Li Wen's eyes water.

Li Wen approached a stall. The owner of the stall was a thin, withered Gnome.

Gnomes are called Gnomes, but that doesn't mean they are short. In reality, Gnomes are generally much taller than humans, but they are accustomed to living in dark corners like caves or underground, away from sunlight. Their bodies are always hunched over, and coupled with their ugly appearance, they are contemptuously called Gnomes.

"Need anything?"

The Gnome stall owner gestured with his fingers. Although his Terran Language was exceptionally fluent, his gaze towards Li Wen was always cautious.

"I'm just looking around," Li Wen said. The Gnome's stall was a square of gray, tattered cloth about a meter on each side, even stained with unknown grime.

What caught Li Wen's eye and made her stop was half a bottle of a ghostly blue Magic Potion, contained in a narrow-mouthed square bottle. The bottle itself was also dirty, like everything else on the stall, and didn't attract attention.

"Lower Ghost Solution? Did you concoct this Magic Potion?"

"I don't know... I can make weapons or enchant armor, but I know nothing about Magic Potions," the Gnome stall owner said honestly. "These are spoils I found in some dungeon."

Li Wen looked disappointed. An Alchemist who can create Lower Ghost Solution is very likely to be able to create Fallen Shadow Potion, as the steps are largely the same, with only the materials differing.

Fallen Shadow Potion was the last piece of the puzzle Li Wen needed to obtain the Primordial Codex of the End. It could strengthen Li Wen's Retrograde in Shadow trait, allowing her to truly stealth in the shadows, which was the only way to bypass the Amber Maidens without alerting them.

"Do you know anyone who can brew this kind of Magic Potion then?"

The Gnome stall owner shook his head repeatedly. He didn't seem resentful of Li Wen's many questions when she wasn't buying anything. "Granny Marsha might, but I'm not sure."

"Granny Marsha?" The dwarf elf from earlier seemed to have mentioned that name too.

"She's the owner of all the elves here, a Ghost Fairy..." the Gnome muttered softly, as if afraid of being overheard.

It seemed this so-called Granny Marsha was not a benevolent figure, Li Wen mused.

"Then how do I find her?"

"She usually lives in a treehouse and doesn't leave easily."

After getting her answer, Li Wen left directly. The items the Gnome was selling were not what she needed. The Gnome stall owner watched Li Wen's retreating back but ultimately didn't advise her against seeking death.

Not everyone's stall was selling goods. Li Wen saw a Wild Mage's stall, where the Wild Mage was performing tricks for free for those who didn't understand magic, such as making water gush from an empty vessel, or planting a seed in the ground, only for a frog to pop out of the soil shortly after.

Li Wen was not interested in such simple tricks that couldn't even be called magic. However, she noticed that while the Wild Mage was performing, another person was using some unknown spell to steal from the onlookers.

No wonder they were using the pretense of free entertainment; they were working together to lure people in.

Li Wen didn't have the sense of justice to expose others. After all, she hadn't done any less stealing herself...

But just because Li Wen didn't care didn't mean no one else would.

"Wait a moment!"

Li Wen had just turned her head when a voice called out from the crowd. The speaker wasn't addressing Li Wen, but she hesitated for a moment and stopped, as she found the voice somewhat familiar.

The Wild Mage had just performed a trick of moving objects without any physical contact. Hearing someone shout, he almost had a heart attack. He calmly looked up and saw the face of a young man with a stern expression.

This almost made him think his dirty dealings had been exposed. The reason he didn't immediately run was that the other person was almost a head taller than him, a frail Mage, and was clad in magnificent armor that made him look like a Church knight.

Damn it! he thought. Doesn't he know this is elven territory? Isn't he afraid of being skinned and boiled by a Ghost Fairy if he causes trouble?

The Wild Mage forced himself to calm down. Not to mention that his coordination with his accomplice was almost seamless, but even if they were exposed, what of it? At worst, they'd split today's earnings three ways and use money to silence the other party.

So, the Wild Mage gave his accomplice a meaningful look. But whether the other person didn't see it or didn't understand, they spoke with utmost seriousness.

"I think your spell is... not quite right."

The Wild Mage broke out in a cold sweat.

"Don't spout nonsense. What's wrong with my magic?"

The other person seemed not to notice the Wild Mage, who was sweating profusely as if about to die of fright, and continued, "Telekinetic Touch consists of three sets of incantations and two sets of gestures. Clever apprentices can shorten the incantations to two lines and simplify the gestures to one set, but you have an extra set of both incantations and gestures compared to the original. This indicates..."

The Wild Mage's expression grew increasingly grim as the words fell. He was certain that the trick he had just performed was flawless, but... the situation the other person described, with an extra set of incantations and gestures, was not impossible. That was precisely what his accomplice had done while casting their spell.

By merely adding a set of incantations and gestures to the original composition, the nature of the spell had greatly changed. From Telekinetic Touch, which moved and manipulated matter in a positive way, it had become the stealthy and silent Invisible Touch. Such a change was enough for the Wild Mage to consider himself a genius, even though he and his accomplice had applied this brilliant idea to nefarious purposes.

However, having their spell's details completely seen through at a glance was something they had never considered.

It's a joke. Mages of this caliber would be studying high-level spells in Magic Societies, not wandering around outside!

Even though he had been seen through, the Wild Mage still retorted stubbornly, "What nonsense are you talking about? Everyone saw how I cast my spell. What do you mean by an extra set or fewer?"

The onlookers exchanged glances and nodded in agreement. Although they didn't understand magic, they could still hear the Wild Mage chanting a few words when he cast his spell.

Seeing this, the person dressed like a Church knight sighed.

"In that case, I'll perform a magic trick for you for free as well."