I Could See Right Through You

Arcane Missiles.

It was a channeled spell that shaped Arcane Energy into a series of concentrated missiles, which continuously attacked the enemy. As long as you had enough intelligence and spirit, you could keep it going indefinitely.

Compared to Fireball, Arcane Missiles had slightly weaker attack power, but it didn't take nearly as long to cast, which made it quite useful.

Of course, Arcane Missiles was much harder to learn than Fireball. But perhaps thanks to his decent intelligence and powerful spirit, Shawn was clearly making much faster progress studying it.

He had the Elf Sorceress Celina Morningdew to thank for that.

At the very beginning, the mage had taught Shawn and Merry three spells: Fireball, Frostbolt, and Arcane Missiles. But she hadn't taught them any of the more advanced spells, such as Arcane Explosion, Flamestrike, or Blizzard.

So if Shawn wanted to learn more spells, he would have to find another way.

On the way from Saldean Farm to Goldshire, they first had to pass Jason Farm, the northernmost farm in Westfall. Even by carriage, the trip from Saldean Farm to Jason Farm took at least a day. That meant Shawn and Old Saldean's group would have to spend the night outdoors.

Luckily, they could take turns keeping watch, and the night passed peacefully. Early the next morning, Shawn and the others arrived at Jason Farm.

Old Saldean knew all the farm owners in Westfall. After a brief exchange of greetings, Shawn asked if they had any scrapped Harvest Golems.

As luck would have it, Jason Farm had exactly three scrapped Harvest Golems.

With the three Golem Hearts in hand, the quest was complete. Shawn had finally obtained the small Building Blueprint, "Golem Factory."

"Golem Factory: Small building. Contains a complete golem production line and can produce a variety of small and medium golems, including Harvest Golems. Other golems require a certain amount of Garrison Resources for research. Research time and resource costs depend on the golem's complexity."

"Construction costs: 100 units of lumber, 100 units of stone, and 100 units of iron."

"Construction time: one day."

Just as he'd expected, it could produce Harvest Golems!

But he couldn't build it yet. If he could produce a few Harvest Golems and keep them by his side, he'd be much safer.

Since Gryan Stoutmantle and the others hadn't arrived yet, Old Saldean and his group waited at Jason Farm. Gryan Stoutmantle didn't show up until well into the afternoon.

"Haha, this is great! Just great!"

Gryan exclaimed twice before greeting Old Saldean.

"What's so great?" Old Saldean asked with a smile, handing Gryan a bowl of water.

Gryan drained the bowl in one go, then said with delight, "The Kobolds and Murlocs have suffered heavy losses. The Gold Coast is littered with corpses! Heh, this is a great opportunity—a chance to wipe out the Kobolds and Murlocs for good! But Old Saldean, I need help from you farm owners. You know I'm a little short on funds. Heh."

Gryan rubbed his hands together.

Old Saldean and Jason exchanged a glance. They both understood what the other was thinking, and then nodded. "Don't worry, Marshal Gryan. If it means wiping out the Kobolds and Murlocs for good, we'll cover whatever it costs!"

The Kobolds often harassed the farms, while the Murlocs liked to rob passersby. They had caused the farmers of Westfall no end of trouble. If they could get rid of these two scourges, Old Saldean was willing to pay, as long as it wasn't too much.

Seeing that Old Saldean had agreed, Gryan held up five fingers and grinned. "Five hundred gold! Just five hundred gold from each of you! With so many farms pitching in, we'll have five thousand gold. I'll head to Goldshire to buy armor and weapons, then come back and lead the troops against the Kobolds and Murlocs!"

Five thousand gold was no small sum. Even divided among the owners of all the farms, it would still make them wince.

Old Saldean and Jason hesitated.

Gryan lowered his voice conspiratorially. "Old Saldean, Jason, listen. Stormwind City can't control Westfall right now. Once we get rid of the Kobolds and Murlocs, all of northern Westfall will be ours. Then the gold in Jangolode Mine will be ours, too! And the treasures the Gold Coast Murlocs salvaged from shipwrecks will be ours as well! How about a thirty-seventy split—you get thirty, I get seventy..."

Old Saldean froze for a full five seconds before coming to his senses. "No! At the very least... we get seventy, and you get thirty!"

Gryan: "..."

Jason: "..."

Shawn: "..."

Everyone else: "..."

After two full hours of marathon negotiations, Old Saldean and Jason finally lost out to the wily Gryan, and they settled on a division of the spoils: sixty percent for Gryan and forty percent for Old Saldean and the other farm owners.

Shawn once quietly asked Old Saldean why he'd agreed to such an unfair deal, paying the money while taking such a small share.

Old Saldean told him that without Gryan and the Westfall People's Militia he had built from the ground up, all the farms would have been done for long ago. Besides, Gryan wasn't keeping all that money for himself. His soldiers had always lived hard lives, often going hungry, with tattered armor and battered swords. Some didn't even have weapons...

Because they needed to raise the money, everyone stayed at Jason Farm for another two days. Two days later, several farm owners arrived and handed all their gold to Old Saldean, who would act as their representative. Only then did the group set off.

Besides Shawn and Old Saldean's group of five, Gryan had brought a small squad of soldiers, making a dozen or so people in all. The journey was peaceful, and they soon arrived in Goldshire.

As soon as Gryan Stoutmantle arrived in Goldshire, he took his squad to see Marshal Dughan. He clearly had something important to discuss.

Old Saldean also started rushing around, seeking out merchants he knew to negotiate prices.

Shawn's eyes shifted as he stopped Rick, the level-four Rogue.

"Hey, Shawn! What can I do for you?"

With his tousled golden hair, shabby, grimy linen clothes, a sly grin, and sharp little eyes full of mercenary cunning, this man in his early thirties was Rick, who claimed to be "on good terms with a certain mage in Elwynn Forest."

This drifter from Stormwind City had seen all kinds of people and knew far more than the average person. He'd been at Saldean Farm for only a few days, yet he already knew everyone there and seemed to get along with them. He was especially taken with Shawn, a boy who seemed quite different from the rest.

"Big Brother Rick, remember how you said you knew a great mage and had even become good friends with him?" Shawn leaned against the wall, arms folded, and asked with a smile.

Rick's eyes lit up. He gave Shawn a few knowing looks, then replied as if it were nothing, "Yeah. I followed that mage for a whole six months! If I hadn't found the profound magic too hard to understand, I might've become a mage myself! What's up, Shawn? Need something?"

"So you're saying you were a mage's follower?"

Shawn sneered inwardly. With Eye of Insight, I can see right through you at a glance. And you still dare put on an act in front of me?

Thinking that, Shawn chuckled. "Well, Big Brother Rick, you know how kids my age all have unrealistic dreams. I've always wanted to meet a noble and great mage. Do you think you could introduce me to one?"