Opportunity Arrives

Roy had been thinking about Trides for a while, but he was too weak to do anything about it and could only endure for the time being.

Now that Adrenaline had been refined and he heard about such a good opportunity, he acted decisively.

He went to the mission center to check the available quests.

"The Apple Orchard? That's a difficult quest," the attendant apprentice kindly warned Roy when he heard what he was asking about.

"You weren't punished, so you can choose a safer place."

"Thanks, but I still want to choose this one," Roy insisted.

"Alright then, let me see... Tsk, you're really lucky. Yesterday, the Tower increased the reward for picking Nightmare Serpent Fruit to 6 Magic Stones per fruit. No wonder you chose that place."

"6 Magic Stones each?" Roy was slightly surprised. He hadn't actually intended to take a quest, but he needed permission to leave the Tower as an apprentice. Seeing the situation, he actually started considering it, thinking he might as well earn some money.

Not many Advanced Apprentices were willing to go there now, and Intermediate Apprentices would likely face certain death. It was perfect for him, who held the Calming Pu Shui Xiang!

"Okay, here's the token to hand over to the guard. Keep it safe; it proves your identity." The attendant apprentice finished processing the paperwork and said to him again.

Roy took the token and found a faint aura of Magic Power coiled within it. When this Magic Power was activated, a clear arcane mark was transmitted from it.

"This token authorizes the picking of... 20 pieces..."

Soon after, Roy arrived at the first-floor office and paid to rent a Necromancer Warhorse for riding. These Arcane Beasts, similar to puppet wolves, exuded a chilling aura that warned people away. They were a special promotional offer recently introduced by the Wizard Tower to encourage apprentices to take on quests.

"It seems I have the Forbidden Experiment to thank for this again..." Roy suddenly had this thought for no reason, his expression a little strange.

The Necromancer Warhorse ran tirelessly for over two hours, bringing him to the orchard. Roy dismounted in a suitable spot and immediately heard a flippant voice: "Yo, an apprentice has arrived."

The speaker was a half-body Gargoyle. It had been squatting by the entrance, dormant, but it immediately got up when it detected someone approaching.

"Are you the new guard? I'm here to pick fruit. This is my token." Roy was surprised to see that it had long, elegant legs, but it looked as if it had been cut in half a few inches above the navel, with no upper body. It was an artificial life form crafted by Wizards, likely a failed product from some laboratory, casually assigned to this post. However, the creature showed no awareness of being a failed product, running around naked.

It sidled up to Roy and said in a fawning, almost ingratiating tone, "Little brother, do you want me to help?"

Roy frowned. "You don't have hands, how can you help?"

"But I have feet!" The Gargoyle lifted its right leg, performing an impressive split that showcased the flexibility of a ballet dancer. "It only costs 100 Magic Stones. If you're willing, please insert coins to top up..."

Roy was stunned for a moment and turned to leave.

The Gargoyle cried out, "Hey, don't go..."

"I was wrong. This isn't necessarily a failed product. It might be the cruel whim of some bored Wizard who specifically crafted it this way!" Roy grumbled as he entered the depths of the orchard. Alchemy-created life forms were originally made for various purposes. Guards, mounts, scouts, war machines... and of course, companions. Due to prolonged solitude or constant warfare, many Wizards found it difficult to trust and accept others. Thus, they pursued trustworthy artificial life forms or contract partners. Using some half-bodied animated gargoyles to practice before using expensive biomimetic materials was also logical. But implanting this money-grubbing intelligence could certainly be called a cruel whim.

Half an hour later, Roy emerged with a bag of Nightmare Serpent Fruit and displayed them before the alluring human legs. "20 pieces, not too many, not too few. I'm leaving!" With that, he mounted his steed and rode away.

"Little brother, don't leave so soon. Stay and chat for a while..." The alluring human legs turned around, seemingly gazing into the distance, standing still for a long time.

Roy moved like the wind, but he didn't immediately rush back to the Tower. Instead, he went to a necessary waypoint along the route, tied his Necromancer Warhorse in a secluded spot, and patiently set up an ambush.

Although this action was hasty, it wasn't necessarily careless, as he had already considered various scenarios of confronting Trides or even Potterning head-on.

His conclusion was that they were all just pecking at each other like chicks, and he wasn't necessarily afraid of anyone.

Even if he gave the most generous assessment of his opponents, he couldn't see any signs of strength from Trides and Potterning.

Especially Trides, who was on par with Renion and Andov.

As long as he struck first, he had a high chance of winning.

He lay in ambush for over an hour. During that time, two groups of people passed by, both consisting of other Intermediate Apprentices, not Trides and his companions.

But Roy wasn't anxious. According to his understanding, the apple orchard was one of the closer mission locations.

He was confident that he could return earlier than Trides and the others, so as long as he was patient, he could wait for them.

Sure enough, as dusk approached, the other party appeared in his telescope's view.

Roy quietly descended via a side path, put on a pre-prepared cloak, covered his face with a mask, and began his move.

"We really lost out this time!

They actually sent us to deal with a pack of wolves agitated by the earth's veins..."

"I used up all the Healing Potions I painstakingly saved!"

"Me too! I also used up several bottles of Elemental Potions!"

"Sigh..."

Several people returned dejectedly, heading back.

If a mission was easy and the reward was high, it wouldn't be called a punishment; it would be considered a benefit.

They didn't have a choice in the first place, and now they were returning battered and bruised, only wanting to get back to the Tower quickly to rest and recuperate.

Trides was among them, secretly contemplating how to reveal more Runes to avoid punishment.

For a mediocre Apprentice like him, he didn't have any connections to obtain Magic Stones. He could only continue the practice from his time as a Low-level Apprentice: sticking close to Old Apprentices, helping them out, and so on.

Occasionally, he would extort some younger or lower-level Apprentices.

"I need to find a way to get more Magic Stones."

Trides couldn't help but think of the few Apprentices he had recently set his sights on.

"Those guys are skilled and know how to make money. They're like fat sheep."

Suddenly, he sensed something and looked up ahead.

A gentle breeze carried the coolness of early spring.

Ahead, a wooden bridge spanned a small river, with water flowing murmuringly beneath.

A figure was walking slowly across it, their cloak billowing in the wind.

The person's face was covered by a black mask, revealing only their eyes.

They were a pair of bright, piercing eyes that glowed with a dangerous red light.