Magic Scroll?

As the magistrate of Mirabar, Sunderland Starglim could be considered quite competent, primarily because the magistrate of Mirabar holds little real power and, consequently, cannot harbor grand ambitions. Decisions for the city of Mirabar are made by Lord Erastu Larim, while administration is handled by the members of the Glimmerstone Council. Although the magistrate is ostensibly the leader of Mirabar, in reality, she merely serves as a liaison between the Lord and the council members, planning and inquiring about certain decisions, and issuing decrees on behalf of the Glimmerstone Council—or, more accurately, Lord Erastu.

To put it bluntly, Sunderland is like a liaison and mouthpiece between the Lord and the council, acting as a secretary and advisor to the lord. Although she possesses enough erudition and shrewdness to support her work, Sunderland does not enjoy this position because her temperament is incompatible with the mercenary nature of the place. However, due to family tradition, she has had to accept this job, even going so far as to abandon her own magical research for it.

Although she has been toyed with by William several times, Sunderland has always regarded him as a silly boy from the countryside, which is the reason she has repeatedly suffered setbacks. This woman, who possesses a kind but slightly wicked personality, even went so far as to cooperatively put on the act of a resentful, bitter woman; the reason is simple: she wants to find some amusement for herself.

Sunderland hates her current lifestyle, but Ms. Starglim loves this city.

Old Singers looked in astonishment at Sunderland, who was dressed as a female adventurer, and said, "Little Sunderland! Why are you dressed like this? Could it be..." The one-eyed dwarf shifted his gaze to glare at his friend, who was hanging his head, and demanded, "Torg! Is this your so-called adventure assistant? Damn it! Is your brain filled with nothing but rocks? The underground tunnels are not some easy bowling alley! Don't even think about getting me to agree to you taking her along!"

Torg hung his head in silence; this strong dwarf with a long black beard reaching past his knees had the urge to commit suicide. As the commander of the Axe of Mirabar and a senior official in charge of Mirabar's urban security, taking the magistrate alone to explore dangerous regions was an extremely egregious dereliction of duty. Just thinking about it made this upright dwarf warrior want to weep.

At this moment, Sunderland regained her usual composure and elegance. She narrowed her beautiful, bright blue eyes and pointed at Aelf and Mishaer, who were frolicking nearby, asking, "They can both go, so why can't I follow along on the expedition?"

Singers shouted, "Because you are..." The one-eyed dwarf stopped mid-sentence. In truth, in the eyes of dwarves, it is no big deal for a superior to visit the battlefield in person; almost every dwarf leader is a powerful fighter and a veteran of many battles. Among the group, only Torg had the authority to refuse the female magistrate's adventurous actions based on his position, but unfortunately, this poor dwarf had already been persuaded.

At this point, William spoke up: "What we need are companions with strength! Not... weaklings who can't even truss a chicken! A burden!" His voice grew quieter as he saw Sunderland looking at the two little ones with a meaningful smile; the Horn of Kor on Mishaer's fiery red curls made her feel a surge of envy.

Aelf was very satisfied with William's statement. She beamed and proclaimed loudly, "I am a ranger of the great goddess Mielikki! The most outstanding Moon Elf of the Starry Night Tribe!" Of course, she omitted the prefix "among all underage elves," but being "recognized" by the powerful William was a very happy thing.

Mishaer also excitedly waved her little fists and said, "I am the great Mishaer! The most, most!" The little girl got stuck. She scratched the ears under her helmet in embarrassment, rolled her big eyes, and said, "The Mishaer that the powerful William loves the most!"

The two little ones' shameless boasting made Sunderland laugh until she was doubled over. She said to William, "Is this your so-called companion with strength? Hahaha!"

William, blushing slightly, thought indignantly: Damn it! Do you think I want to take these two to explore that pitch-black place down there? It's all to avoid you unreasonable woman!

Of course, he couldn't burn bridges and state this clearly. William said, "How about this! You can go as long as you can prove you can protect yourself! The premise is that you cannot rely on Torg!"

"Really? I only need to prove I have the ability to protect myself?" Sunderland looked triumphantly at Singers, who was nodding repeatedly, and flipped open her cloak to reveal her full gear. Her delicate, silver-white mithril chain shirt and crisp, polished soft leather trousers accentuated her magnificent bosom and slender legs, making them incredibly alluring, which made William's lower abdomen swell with heat. Sunderland had a beautifully decorated dagger tucked into her calf, and a delicate hand crossbow hung from a specially made leather belt; it was engraved with complex runes, making it a rare magical weapon. There was also an exquisite small pouch on the belt, and a larger, beautiful backpack on her back. Sunderland pulled a rapier and a small buckler from her two small bags, which were similar to the equipment the little elf had last time. Next came an exquisite two-foot scepter, and a large number of bottles, jars, and beautiful leather scrolls, leaving everyone dazzled.

Aelf looked at these items and said in surprise, "Potions of healing, potions of vitality, explosive potions, holy water, acid, alchemist's fire, antidotes, and wands, magic scrolls... Ms. Sunderland! Did you rob a magic item shop?"

A guilty Sunderland argued with a forced smile, "How could that be? I am the most virtuous female magistrate of Mirabar! How could I do something so lacking in grace? These were all things I bought yesterday! A 'friendship price'! Hehe! It's a friendship price! You all should see if there's anything you can use and take some more!" At this moment, the poor manager of the magic shop, Mr. Magriel, was leaning against the shop door, weeping as he sang a song of great injustice.

"Then I won't be polite!" Aelf, grinning from ear to ear, picked out more than a dozen potions and stuffed them into her little bag. The two thick-skinned dwarves secretly swiped several potions and stuffed them into their bosoms, and even Phinia took a few healing potions. The little girl also giggled and took two bright green potions of vitality in her hands. She tilted her head and offered them to her brother, who was the only one not moving. The old man (in soul) was deeply moved and dotingly pinched her tender cheeks: She really is my good girl! I certainly didn't spoil her for nothing! Haha!

Sunderland swayed gracefully over to William and asked with a smile, "Mr. William! Can I join now?" Seeing everyone else nodding frantically, what else could William say?

As they prepared to depart, Sunderland, whose influence had greatly increased, kindly said to William, "Mr. William! Since it's so dangerous down there, I think it might be better to leave the two little ones behind!" After only half a day of close contact, her favor for the two simple little ones had greatly increased, although she had not yet given up her covetousness for the Horn of Kor.

William laughed it off and replied, "Actually, it's nothing special down there! With me around, nothing can hurt them! It's mainly to let the two little ones go down and broaden their horizons." William thought to himself: Damn it! This trick of "openly repairing the plank road while secretly crossing the Chencang" combined with "luring the tiger away from the mountain" is something I played with in my past life! Do you really take me for a country bumpkin?

This underground journey could be described as familiar territory, and with the addition of a powerful dwarf warrior, the group moved very quickly. This time, Singers did not push the cart; William and he scouted the path in front, the female magistrate, Phinia, Aelf, and Mishaer were in the middle, and Torg Danzo Hammer-Striker brought up the rear. Sunderland took out her exquisite wand, and the gem at the top emitted a bright and soft light that illuminated the surroundings; the range covered by the light was larger than the combined flash tools of the two little ones.

As they approached the site of the previous battle, the air was filled with the stench of rotting corpses, turning everyone's faces pale. Mishaer had already put on the mask William had specially made for her, but she was still gasping for air, and Sunderland was vomiting until her face turned yellow.

Except for some small carrion monsters, William and the others did not encounter any particularly powerful creatures, which left several of them quite puzzled. In fact, this was a normal phenomenon; apart from some unlucky wanderers, powerful monsters in the underground world all possess their own spheres of influence. The vast area in this region had been divided and occupied by the Acid Mutant and the Carrion Beast, and the Carrion Worms had only relied on their group strength to dominate a corner. This time, all three had perished, and the remaining monsters were unable to form a significant threat.

When the group arrived at the place where Singers and William had first mined, they saw a six-foot-square tunnel appearing on the rock wall. No wonder so many kobolds had appeared here; the knocking sounds heard during the first visit were the sounds of kobolds digging tunnels. The six-foot height was exactly the height of that mysterious Acid Mutant; it seemed that guy did not like to lower his body to crawl through tunnels. Fortunately, the tall Phinia was able to lower her body and barely squeeze through; otherwise, William and the others would have been in a difficult spot.

Passing through a long, downward-sloping tunnel, they found themselves in a deep, natural cavern with layered stalactites and stalagmites, and corners filled with shadowy mushroom forests. Several people carefully crossed a group of loose rocks, walked down a slope several dozen meters high, and arrived at a cold underground stream. In such an unfamiliar Underdark, no one dared to act recklessly.

William gestured to Phinia. The female half-giant understood and put down her great axe, picked up a large rock from the side, and threw it into the stream. With a loud "Bang-splash!", countless water splashes erupted. Near the area where the large rock fell, several ripples immediately appeared; some unknown underwater creature had been startled away.

"Where should we go?" William asked old Singers; when it came to underground exploration, the one-eyed dwarf was more experienced.

"We're going to find the kobold lair! That should be a mining area!" The old dwarf could never forget his mining work.

"But how are we supposed to track and find it in a place like this?" Torg asked, troubled. At this moment, Sunderland, who had recovered her energy by drinking potions, elegantly pulled an exquisite parchment scroll from her waist pouch. She chanted an unknown incantation and spread the scroll with both hands. A ghostly blue flame ignited on the parchment, gradually turning it to ash, while the ghostly blue flame transformed into a semicircular archway. A strange canine beast passed through the archway and appeared before everyone—it was the [Summon Extraplanar Monster].

Several people looked at Sunderland in astonishment as she cast the spell. The female magistrate elegantly smoothed her hair, smiled triumphantly, and said, "Don't look at me like that! It's just a magic scroll!"

The little elf Aelf thought to herself: Hmph! Go lie to a ghost! You're just fooling these guys who don't understand magic! But since I've taken your benefits, I won't expose you! Haha! Aelf is very kind!