Caesar.
From the information related to Caesar's Gate, Xu Nan had some understanding of this rather farsighted mage from another world.
He just hadn't expected the other party to be able to toss him a message in a bottle through the portal. Was it precisely targeted, or had he cast a wide net and Xu Nan had simply happened to fish one out?
He didn't think too much about it. After opening it, he found that this Caesar truly had some skill.
A letter was written on the parchment in extremely standard Pro World Common Language, expressing Caesar's gratitude toward Xu Nan.
Caesar informed Xu Nan that the other end of the portal was still within his territory. Not even the space-time storm had changed that.
And the four people Xu Nan had sent over had all arrived safely in Caesar's territory.
According to Caesar, he would give them sufficient respect and freedom. Naturally, he wished to learn everything about Earth, but he would not force them to do anything against their will.
As for the only ordinary person among the four—the man Caesar claimed to admire most—he had expressed his wishes and ambitions to Caesar. Caesar had readily agreed and sent him to the nearest place where martial monks trained: Ten Commandments Monastery.
The other three, meanwhile, had decided under Caesar's persuasion to remain in his territory for the time being and develop there.
Caesar tactfully proposed that he hoped Xu Nan could send more talented people from Earth to his territory, within the portal's maximum capacity.
He would provide appropriate compensation. Of course, Xu Nan could also make requests of his own, and Caesar would do his best to meet them.
The entire letter was spotless, the handwriting neat and the prose smooth. Xu Nan guessed that even the harshest critic in another world would be unable to find fault with it.
"So, by a strange twist of fate, Senior A-Kun and the others really were sent to Caesar's territory."
After pondering briefly, Xu Nan grabbed a sheet of paper, wrote a few words on it, stuffed it into the message bottle, then pushed it back through the portal.
The sphere formed by the portal flashed blue, and the message bottle vanished without a trace.
After finishing all that, Xu Nan resumed his work. He could work while waiting for the message bottle, after all.
Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, Caesar's second message bottle never appeared, leaving him rather disappointed.
As for alchemy, while the basic materials for making rings were gone, a batch of supplies he had ordered yesterday had arrived.
Most of those supplies were things for woodworking, hardware, and the like. Xu Nan did not currently have enough books or materials on hand, but processing these things could still raise his Alchemist level.
It was just much slower.
But Xu Nan had always been rather patient. His bloodline depended entirely on eating, so sometimes, it was better to be steady and practical.
Build up strength and strike when the time was right.
Over the course of one night, Xu Nan's Alchemist experience increased by one-sixth. Making rings leveled up much more slowly, but even so, he still found it endlessly enjoyable.
Pro World, Icewind Territory, inside a castle atop a snow mountain.
On the outer city wall, a resolute-looking girl held a letter, her gaze fixed on the restless monsters within the Black Forest in the distance.
Before long, a tall, thin young man appeared.
"Respected Lord City Lord, I heard you were looking for me?"
Although he had only been in another world for a single day, Changfeng Tuo had integrated into this world quite well. The inheritance of the class system had given him the ability to use Common Language.
The girl helplessly handed him the letter in her hand. "It seems the spellcaster who sent you here still cares greatly about your safety."
Changfeng Tuo accepted the letter with some surprise and immediately understood what Lord City Lord meant.
Xu Nan's reply in the message bottle had been written in Chinese Language!
That meant Caesar of this other world definitely could not read it. At minimum, one of the four had to translate and respond. In doing so, Xu Nan was also trying his utmost to test whether Caesar truly treated Earthlings well.
Changfeng Tuo smiled with some amusement. He really had misjudged Xu Nan. They had clearly been complete strangers, yet Xu Nan was quite kindhearted.
He had misunderstood Xu Nan before.
Xu Nan's reply was very simple: How many gold coins per person? (Mithril or refined gold will do too.)
After Changfeng Tuo translated it, the girl fell into confusion.
She had not expected the other party to so directly use Pro World's gold coins, or even precious metals, to measure the value of Earth's talented people.
After talking with Changfeng Tuo and the others, she had indeed benefited greatly. If she could obtain more farsighted, open-minded class users from Earth, she believed she had the ability to lead her people through Icewind Territory's harsh winter.
Then she could prove to those people cowering in the warm Royal Capital that she, too, was qualified to inherit this kingdom fraught with peril.
However, as the least favored Fourth Princess among the kingdom's Four Successors, her funds were pitifully scarce. If not for her teacher's support, she would not even have been able to gain a foothold in Icewind Territory.
"Lord City Lord." Changfeng Tuo seemed to see her predicament. "The other party may not truly be that short on money. Perhaps he merely wants to see an attitude."
"I come from Earth, so I know what Earthlings want. Just as people from Pro World eagerly desire Earth's knowledge and information, Earthlings also crave Pro World's knowledge. Especially since he is a spellcaster, and you are a powerful mage."
The Fourth Princess said quietly, "You mean I should use magical knowledge in place of gold?"
Changfeng Tuo replied smoothly, "I am merely offering a flexible way of thinking."
The Fourth Princess nodded, and Changfeng Tuo tactfully left.
Someone emerged from the shadows, and a dry female voice rang out:
"Can we really trust them?"
The Fourth Princess shook her head. "I have no other choice. Even my teacher does not truly have faith in me. This is my only opportunity."
"I will write back to that spellcaster. If he wants gold, I will gather as much as I can. If he wants magical knowledge—though doing so violates the Lanta Covenant, I must make a decision."
"Not everyone is as fortunate as I was, to pick up a Demigod Artifact portal when they were young."
The female voice fell silent for a moment before whispering, "The surname Caesar carries far too much weight on the Northern Continent. In truth, you needn't..."
The Fourth Princess waved a hand. "I simply do not want that spellcaster from another world to think I am merely a woman. No matter the world, they are always full of prejudice against women."
"Each wish bottle can only be used once. Reply to that spellcaster tomorrow. I hope he has enough patience."
"This is my last chance."
The next morning, after a brief sleep, Xu Nan bought breakfast and delivered it to the cabinet on the second floor, then knocked lightly.
A somewhat sleepy, muffled grunt came from inside, indicating that she had heard him.
Xu Nan turned and left, casually sending a WeChat message. "You have classes this morning and afternoon. Order takeout yourself at noon, or have that panda order it for you."
"But don't let her be seen by the delivery guy. Be careful at home, and tell me immediately if anything unusual happens."
Xin'er did not respond on WeChat. Perhaps she was still groggy and had not noticed it at all.
Xu Nan sighed, then went to the garage to check on Xiao Xiao. Her sleeping posture was extremely indecent. Though she looked adorable on the surface, that wild sleeping position exposed her as a disgrace to the national treasure species.
But on second thought, with her around, he would not have to worry too much about Xin'er's safety while he was out.
Xiao Xiao might be unreliable, but her combat strength seemed unfathomable, far greater than that of ordinary familiars. And judging from her attitude toward Xin'er, she should not harm her.
Through the Familiar Contract, Xu Nan gave her the order to protect Xin'er and satisfy all her needs, then headed out.
It was Monday, and Xu Nan had a full schedule.
In the morning, he had College English and Introduction to Mao Zedong Thought. In the afternoon, he had Basic Accounting, which was a major course.
Just in case, when Xu Nan went to class, he not only wore a mask but also concealed both Radiant Presence and Universal Gravitation.
Even so, when a Teddy he passed barked at him, he still felt a burst of panic.
He knew there were people around the school who kept Tibetan mastiffs and the like. If something happened, the scene would be too horrifying to watch.
The morning English class and Introduction to Mao Zedong Thought were fine, since they were both classes with his own classmates. Xu Nan had always been a peripheral figure in the class. Although he was handsome, he had remained outside the college dorm social circle. The first-year girls still had some restraint, while the boys naturally were not very close to him.
But by the afternoon, the situation changed immediately.
Even though Xu Nan wore a mask, people still recognized him at a glance.
Several girls who were clearly not first-years crowded over. "Junior Xu Nan, sit with us!"
Xu Nan was immediately surrounded.
He was a little dazed. "Seniors, you aren't here for class, are you?"
The senior girls beamed. "Of course we're here for class. Our Basic Accounting scores were too low, so we just applied to retake it and improve our grades."
"And it isn't just a few of us from the department. Old Hai's class is already full."
"Oh my, I've forgotten almost all my Basic Accounting. What is Old Hai teaching now? Could junior explain it to me?"
Xu Nan took a closer look. Sure enough, the classroom meant for more than a hundred people was packed full. People occasionally passed by outside the door, peeking in.
"Xu Nan, you're famous now!"
One of his roommates messaged him. "That confession post on Moments over the weekend made you completely famous. The girls in our department have started an event—good fertilizer must not flow into outsiders' fields. We absolutely cannot let that bitch Zhang Yingluo snatch our own junior away."
"See those senior girls? They're all here for you!"
"You're Tang Monk meat now, drawing in demons!"
His words were full of envy, jealousy, and resentment.
Xu Nan's head felt like it was about to explode.
At that moment, a familiar voice came from outside the window:
"Xu Nan!"
"What underwear are you wearing today? Strong enough this time, right?"
...!