Unexpected News

When the three men were intimidated by the Ray of Frost, Gao De once again activated the Spell Model and cast a spell.

The next moment, he flung a jade-green orb of liquid from his left hand. Like a malicious comet tearing through the air, it shot straight at the leader, whose movements had been slowed by the Ray of Frost.

After spinning briefly through the air, the orb burst into a large cloud of misty spray and landed unerringly on the leader.

The instant the acid touched him, his clothes and skin gave off a sizzling corrosion sound, billowing thick smoke and releasing a pungent sulfurous stench.

The fabric of his clothes began to melt, and so did his skin, leaving behind gleaming green corrosive scars.

The acid vanished after only about three seconds, but those three seconds were enough to leave the man wishing he were dead. He collapsed to the ground, rolling and struggling as he let out endless agonized howls.

In the dark alley, the acid quickly disappeared, leaving only wisps of corrosive smoke drifting through the air.

The man lay on the ground, still convulsing violently. His entire body was a ghastly sight, covered in scorch marks. There was no trace left of his earlier ferocity.

The other two had been scared out of their wits.

They knew a little about mages, but not much. At the end of the day, they were merely small-time thugs with a few connections.

Thus, neither of them realized that a Mage Apprentice without backing like Gao De, at his age, was most likely only a First-Order Apprentice. His mana was limited, and he could cast no more than five spells at most.

"Mage Lord, Mage Lord, spare us. Spare us! We didn't know you were a mage. We offended you, and we'll never dare do it again."

The second man among the three kept begging for mercy. In his eyes, this youngster, whose face still held traces of childishness, was far more terrifying than the top enforcer of the city gangs.

"You are a noble mage. Please don't lower yourself to the level of trash like us. Please don't attack us again," he said in a trembling voice when he saw spiritual light gathering at Gao De's fingertips once more.

His boss's miserable state was right before his eyes. He did not have the slightest courage to resist.

He feared meeting the same end as his boss.

Gao De silently lowered his right hand, forcibly suppressing the anger in his heart before coldly asking, "Who are you? Why did you attack me?"

It was the same question as before, but this time, they answered honestly.

"We're miners from Nottingham Coal Mine."

Seeing that Gao De's anger seemed to have eased a little, he was like a drowning man drawing breath. He hurriedly spilled everything. "Ever since the Nottingham vein ran dry, the three of us lost our jobs. We could only scrape by doing odd jobs in the city, working one day and going without the next."

"We knew we couldn't go on like this. A few days ago, while drinking, we heard news that a new mine had opened in Bremen City and was desperately hiring miners. We planned to go there and return to our old trade, but..."

"But whenever you had money, you spent it all in taverns, so when you needed it now, you couldn't even scrape together the travel expenses, right?" Gao De said coldly, seeing through them.

Miners in this era generally had no concept of saving. Every one of them lived from paycheck to paycheck.

As soon as they received their wages, they enjoyed themselves first, spending all their money on drink and pleasure.

Thus, the start of every month, when wages were paid out, was when the city's taverns were liveliest and did their best business.

The second man looked somewhat embarrassed, but he continued begging. "We were lazy and unwilling to improve ourselves. We let crooked thoughts take root. Mage Lord, please don't hold it against trash like us..."

"Why did you choose me as your target? Do I look like a rich man?" Gao De had no intention of letting the three off so easily and pressed for the root of the matter.

The second man grew extremely nervous. He cautiously glanced at Gao De and explained, "It was our boss. Some time ago, Phil's Herb Shop was hiring temporary herb gatherers. The three of us went there, following the shop assistants into the mountains to gather Thornweed. We worked as herb gatherers for several days..."

Gao De actually remembered this.

When he and Emil had first gone to Phil's Herb Shop, he had indeed seen a signboard outside recruiting temporary herb gatherers. It all matched.

"During a break from gathering herbs, our boss was chatting with their assistants, and one of them shared an amusing story:

'Out of the four herb gardens our shop works with, the Elixirist at your herb garden is the one who loves making a fuss the most. He sells us low-grade potions on one hand, then keeps buying high-grade herbs from us on the other, giving most of the money he earns right back to us.'

"Then the head elixirist spoke up and scolded him, telling him not to disrespect Elixirist Seda.

"He said Elixirist Seda was in seclusion developing advanced elixirs and never left his home. Even his deliveries and purchases were handled by the apprentices under him. It showed just how focused he was. Once he succeeded in refining advanced elixirs, it would be no small matter."

"Our boss only got crooked ideas after hearing that."

"Afterward, our boss learned that the apprentice responsible for purchasing herbs and delivering goods for your herb garden had recently been replaced by someone much younger—you. We figured the younger you were, the easier you would be to deal with."

After hearing the whole sequence of events, Gao De fell silent for a moment before suddenly asking, "Did you find out when our herb garden's next herb purchase would be?"

"If you can answer that, I'll let you go this time," he added.

"I know, I know!" The third man, who had been shivering at the side all this time, hurriedly spoke up. "That assistant said your herb garden had only placed an order last month, yet this month you urgently placed another identical order.

"They had the other herbs in stock, but the herbs you were buying were rare items. They had to wait for the shop's next shipment before they could provide them.

"He even boasted that your Mage Lord was in a great hurry, but there was nothing he could do, because the herbs he needed could only be sourced through Phil's Herb Shop in all of Hogan City."

"The three of us had been staking out the herb garden for several days. Today, we saw you leave for the city empty-handed. We figured the shop's shipment must have arrived, and you had brought money to collect the herbs, so..."

Gao De had obtained several crucial pieces of information. His attention shifted, and the anger in his heart gradually faded. He waved a hand impatiently. "Get lost."

They had only intended to rob him, not kill him, and they had already received sufficient punishment. Under such circumstances, he truly could not bring himself to kill the three of them.

Though Gao De had dared to draw his blade without hesitation and spill blood three feet high when facing Ilan's threat, he was not, in the end, a violent man who thirsted for slaughter.

"Thank you, Mage Lord! Thank you, Mage Lord! We'll leave right away!"

Seeing Gao De relent, the two nodded like pecking chickens. They did not dare think further or linger any longer. They hurriedly helped up their boss, who was still writhing in agony on the ground, and fled in haste.

Watching the three leave, Gao De could still feel a burning pain across his back.

That blow from the club had been powerful.

Even if it had only been a blunt weapon like a wooden stick, taking a hit like that truly did not feel good.

But the anxiety and fervor in his heart made him temporarily ignore the pain.

He was anxious because the three men had confirmed that he truly did not have much time left.

He was fervent because this was the first time Gao De had fully unleashed a spell.

Although he had tried casting spells after successfully constructing a Spell Model, he had never expected their power in actual combat to be so great.

And this was only a cantrip. What about a first-circle spell?

Perhaps a single spell would send all three of them to meet their great-grandmothers.

Horn City, commercial district.

Phil's Herb Shop.

Gao De looked around at the entrance before strolling into the shop.

"What do you need?"

A shop assistant from the herb shop came up to him, quickly recognizing Gao De. "The interval between your herb garden's two deliveries is shorter than before this time."

"I'm not here to deliver goods today."

As he spoke, Gao De browsed the magic potions on the counter. They were dazzling in variety, though most were ordinary low-grade auxiliary potions.

"Our Mage Lord specifically sent me to ask whether the herbs he needs have arrived."

"You know our deliveries always arrive on the last day of every month."

"We know Mage Seda is in a great hurry, but the goods really won't arrive until the end of the month. Please ask Mage Seda to wait patiently," the assistant said with a cheerful smile, showing not the slightest impatience.

"I understand. I'll pass it on to Mage Lord," Gao De said with an unchanged expression. He nodded, then turned and left the herb shop.