Beauty Clam

Fine cups were filled with fragrant wine.

On the dining table, there were seventy or eighty condiments before Grimm alone, including things like foie gras and Yeli Juice, not to mention all kinds of exquisitely prepared roasted meats he had never even seen before.

It was truly unbelievable that Grimm's first visit to the City Lord's Manor had earned him the honor of dining with the City Lord.

Though that was only because of the great wizard beside him.

"Grimm."

The wizard suddenly called out.

Setting down his knife and fork, Grimm quickly bowed. "My lord."

"Mm. What I mean is, children whose mental strength naturally grows to 10 will generally sense their talent during the crystal ball test. This will be very important to your future development after becoming wizards, so do not forget everything that happened during the test. If you can advance to become a wizard in the future, you must develop your talent."

The wizard's voice was somewhat androgynous and hoarse, as if something were wrong with his throat. It also sounded as though a parrot hidden inside his robes were speaking on his behalf.

"Yes, my lord."

Grimm replied respectfully.

His talent?

Those chaotic, bizarre phenomena?

Grimm did not think those strange things would become his helpers or lackeys. Judging from how bizarre they were, they seemed even more likely to be enemies.

Afterward, the wizard turned to the City Lord's daughter, Lafi, and Wade, the son of the Moon Bay Hotel owner.

"Neither of your mental strengths has reached 10, so originally, you had no right to become Wizard Apprentices. But for wizards, external conditions are merely secondary aids. Wisdom is the true source of a wizard's power. For wizards, knowledge is the most important thing, not so-called talent."

"Yes, my lord."

The two answered in unison.

"Haha, Master, you have come from afar and must be tired. Let me properly entertain you today. Come, come, Master, try these rare delicacies found in the South Endless Sea."

The City Lord had changed into formal aristocratic attire. With a smiling wave of his hand, eight beautiful maids in the distance brought over eight plates and placed one before the City Lord, the mysterious wizard, and the six Wizard Apprentices.

Grimm looked at the plate before him. On it sat an utterly ordinary-looking shell, and he frowned.

This was a rare delicacy?

How was he supposed to eat it?

"Beauty Clam? Ever since I tasted this shellfish by chance while carrying out a mission in the South Endless Sea one hundred and twenty years ago—shellfish that evolved such pitiful forms specifically to avoid being hunted by humans—I have never seen it again. I did not expect to taste it once more in the East Coral Archipelago. City Lord, you have gone to great trouble."

The wizard seemed particularly fond of this strange food called Beauty Clam. His words clearly revealed how pleased he was.

"Haha, please."

Aside from the City Lord, Lafi, and the mysterious wizard, the remaining five Wizard Apprentices could only stare blankly. None of them knew how to eat this so-called Beauty Clam.

Grimm carefully watched the City Lord's every move. He saw that the man's chubby hands wore no fewer than seven dazzling rings. He gently lifted the Beauty Clam from the plate with both hands and casually snapped it apart.

What happened next made Grimm's eyes widen in horror.

There was actually a lifelike miniature beauty inside the shell. However, she wore no clothes, and her entire body seemed boneless. She was a soft-bodied creature, curled up asleep within the shell.

But since the shell had been opened, the sleeping soft-bodied creature resembling a "beauty" naturally began to wake slowly, looking around in confusion.

"Hehe."

The City Lord grinned with his fat face and raised the shell to his mouth. At the same time, his thick lips puckered, as though he were about to suck the still-dazed "beauty" straight into his mouth.

Yet at that moment, the "beauty" inside the shell seemed to realize her situation. Her soft body desperately crawled away, and she let out a shrill scream like a newborn mouse.

With a fierce inhale from the City Lord, the scream immediately vanished into his mouth, then faintly echoed from his belly.

"Ah... truly wonderful."

The City Lord casually tossed away the shell in his hand, closed his eyes, and savored the experience.

The wizard and Lafi also sucked down their Beauty Clams, both acting as though nothing had happened.

The wizard looked at the five hesitant Wizard Apprentices and shook his head. "For wizards, taste is secondary. The most important thing is that Beauty Clams can purify fire elements. If any of you become interested in studying fire-element knowledge in the future, these Beauty Clams can help you greatly. Wizards must see through to the essence and not be deceived by appearances. They are merely soft-bodied creatures that evolved into this form to escape humans."

Halfway through, the wizard paused before continuing, "Of course, this will also earn you the Sea's Curse. It is said that after consuming Beauty Clams, your flesh will give off a scent especially attractive to sea demons."

The first to act was unexpectedly Grimm!

In order to show something of himself before the wizard, Grimm shut his eyes and raised his head. After making up his mind, he let the beauty inside the shell slide into his mouth, then down his throat and into his stomach.

Grimm could even hear the desperate screams coming from inside his belly.

Suppressing his strange feelings and waves of nausea, Grimm calmly began eating fresh beef dipped in foie gras. Yet the corner of his eye kept twitching, and his expression was extremely unnatural.

The other three boys—Yorkris, Wade, and Kiram—looked awful, but they too tilted their heads back and swallowed their Beauty Clams. For a while, faint screams rose and fell from within their stomachs throughout the hall.

Only Yorkris's younger sister, Yorklianna, hesitated with uncertainty on her face. In the end, she did not eat the Beauty Clam, instead shaking her head and pushing it aside.

What a kind little girl!

Overall, the dinner went rather smoothly, and Grimm had witnessed the true extravagance of the aristocracy.

By Grimm's estimate, the ingredients for the main dishes alone had cost no fewer than two hundred gold coins. As for Beauty Clams, such a "rare delicacy" was undoubtedly priceless and impossible to buy.

The next day, Grimm hurried to the Viscount's Manor to retrieve his old carriage. In the distance, Lafi and Wade behind the wizard rolled their eyes. This fellow was actually delaying them all over a broken carriage?

How many gold coins could that wreck possibly be worth?

"Bastard! Didn't you hear yesterday? If you come again, I'll break your legs!"

The old steward happened to see Grimm rushing over and roared at him.

But deep down, the old steward still hoped Grimm would give in today and hand over some benefits, because after being busy all day yesterday, he had realized that he had forgotten to find a suitable replacement worker.

If the Viscount's Manor's banquet was not ready by tonight, that would be no small matter.

"Uh..."

Grimm glanced into the courtyard of the Viscount's Manor and spotted his carriage. It had clearly been parked outside yesterday, so the people of the manor must have pulled it inside.

"Lord Steward, I'll take my carriage and leave immediately."

Becoming a Wizard Apprentice was a tremendous opportunity. Grimm could even abandon the little more than one gold coin he had left at home, but he could not bear to leave this old horse behind.

After all, Old Ham had left it to him, and Grimm had grown attached to it. He did not want it to be left helpless and alone.

"Uh..."

The old steward froze, seemingly not expecting Grimm to say that. Then rage surged up within him.

"Bastard! Lowborn! You mud-legged peasant! If you want to leave, then get lost! There is no carriage here. Skada, throw him out!"

The old steward truly intended to seize the carriage.

Seeing the burly giant walking toward him, Grimm swallowed hard. Just then, a cold snort came from the distance. "A wizard's dignity cannot be violated!"

A streak of black light shot toward the giant approaching Grimm.

As a knight, the giant reacted quickly. He dodged the black light in a panic, and when it struck the gateframe of the Viscount's Manor, it transformed into a huge swarm of terrifying black insects.

Each insect was only the size of a fingernail, with a pair of transparent wings and vicious, powerful mandibles. There were roughly seven or eight thousand of them.

The knight saw the scene and immediately thought of something. His face changed drastically as he shouted, "Wizard, spare my life!"

"Hmph!"

The wizard did not even acknowledge him. To a wizard, a knight was merely a larger insect that knew how to flee.

After silently chanting a spell, the wizard pointed with one hand. The panic-stricken knight begging for mercy began to transform slowly, turning into a small pig!

Grimm's jaw nearly dropped in shock. He had really turned into a pig?

The seven or eight thousand black insects swarmed forward. Amid anguished squeals, the knight who had become a pig was devoured completely.

On the other side, how had the old steward ever seen anything like this?

Usually, he only bullied the tenant workers, farmers, and servants beneath him. By now, he had been scared out of his wits and could only stare blankly at the squealing pig.

At that moment, a long tongue shot toward the old steward with incredible speed. With a vicious tug, the old steward vanished from sight in an instant, so fast it was almost beyond perception.

"Croak, croak, croak..."

A huge green frog with blood-red eyes gradually shrank from seven or eight meters tall to the size of a palm, then hopped into the wizard's hand.

The people in the distance who had witnessed this unimaginable power were already stunned. They stared at the mysterious wizard in terror, while Grimm was so shocked that he could not speak for a long time.

This was the first time Grimm had seen someone killed, and in such a bizarre manner at that!

The surroundings were utterly silent, as though even the fall of a needle could be heard clearly.

Was this a wizard?

A wizard's dignity could not be violated!?

Indeed, to ordinary people, wizards who wielded magic and witchcraft were simply too terrifying.

Grimm clenched his fists tightly. One day, he too would become a wizard. Then, if anyone dared offend him again, he would erase every trace of that person's existence!

Grimm yearned for it with all his heart.

Coming back to his senses, Grimm swallowed hard and tried to calm himself. He quickly led his old carriage to the blacksmith's shop and bid a final farewell to his dumbfounded Sixth Brother.

"Hey, hey, Eighth Brother, can this be real? Are you really going to become a wizard?"

Sixth Brother asked for the seventh time in disbelief.

Grimm gave a bitter smile. "Only a Wizard Apprentice..."

"Fine, fine, a Wizard Apprentice... Are you really, truly going to become a wizard?"

Sixth Brother asked for the eighth time, and Grimm could only smile bitterly.