Alliance, Wizard World

At the center of the ball, nobles and dignitaries from countries across the world, along with top merchants, gathered in groups according to the relationships between their nations. Smiles sometimes appeared on their faces, only to be replaced by solemn expressions. No one knew what they were discussing.

The young people participating in the wizard selection also gathered in small groups. However, their faces held more youthful innocence and curiosity about the unknown world.

Green followed Eric over to a group of young people.

"George, what are you talking about? Let me introduce a companion to you!" Eric walked up to one of the young men, patted him on the shoulder, and said with a smile.

"Governor Eric, of course I'd be happy to meet someone you introduce. Is it the gentleman behind you?" The young man called George was not angered by Eric interrupting him. Instead, he answered respectfully.

"Come, Green. Let me introduce you. This is Amyraine George, eldest son of the Amyraine Family, one of Ellendal Harbor's foremost senatorial families."

Green looked at George. His features were well-proportioned, his skin fair, and he wore a tailcoat. A steady aura radiated from him, while flashes of brilliance occasionally flickered in his eyes.

"Hello, Mr. Green. Your title as the Perfume King is renowned throughout the Maslow Alliance. I would be more than happy to have you as a companion." George smiled as he extended his hand toward Green.

"Hello." Green smiled as well and shook George's hand.

Seeing that their first meeting had gone well, Eric smiled and said to George,

"George, introduce the others to Green. All of you will be taking part in the selection, so you can look out for one another then. You're all the same age and will have more to talk about. I won't disturb you any longer."

After saying that, Eric looked at Green again, nodded in acknowledgment, then turned and left.

"These are the Fila and Fia sisters. They're from the Filks Family. The famous Filks Trading House belongs to their family. Speaking of which, their family also has a cooperative relationship with your Perfume House. They greatly admire a Grand Knight like you." George pointed at the two women in the group and introduced them to Green.

"Hello, Mr. Green! It's an honor to meet you!" The Fila and Fia sisters looked remarkably alike. Both had long golden hair and sky-blue eyes. However, Fila, the elder sister, was taller, while Fia looked like a smaller version of Fila. The two were highly in sync, greeting Green at the same time with faint blushes on their faces.

"It's an honor to meet you both for the first time, Miss Fila, Miss Fia." Green smiled and placed a hand over his chest, giving them a noble's salute. He did have some impression of the Filks Family. They were involved in perfumes, and the Filks Family was also one of the distributors of Green's perfumes.

George continued pointing at the others in the small group and introduced them to Green one by one.

"This is Roland, the second son of the Bint Family, a renowned military family of the Maslow Alliance." Roland was extremely burly, with skin tanned dark by the sun. At a glance, it was obvious that he had undergone harsh training.

"This is Aeso, the second son of the Nanot Family, also a military family." Aeso's build was similar to Roland's. Coming from a military family as well, he had probably begun training from a very young age.

"This is David, the second son of the Acefield Family. Like mine, his family is also one of the Maslow Alliance's member families." David looked every bit the nobleman. His skin was fair, his black hair meticulously groomed, and his golden eyes and tailcoat made him fit the image of an old aristocratic family perfectly.

Under George's introductions, Green shook hands with them all.

[Chip, scan everyone's data.]

[George: Strength: 2.5 Speed: 2.2, Constitution: 2.7 Spirit: 1~2]

[Fila: Strength: 2.1 Speed: 2.0, Constitution: 2.1 Spirit: 1~2]

[Fia: Strength: 2.0 Speed: 2.0, Constitution: 2.0 Spirit: 1~2]

[Roland: Strength: 2.7 Speed: 2.1, Constitution: 2.8 Spirit: 1~2]

[Aeso: Strength: 2.6 Speed: 2.3, Constitution: 2.7 Spirit: 1~2]

[David: Strength: 2.5 Speed: 2.3, Constitution: 2.4 Spirit: 1~2]

They were all Knight Apprentices. Even the girls, Fila and Fia, had reached the level of Knight Apprentice.

"Let's give Green a round of applause to welcome him into our group." After introducing everyone, George addressed the others again.

Applause rang out as everyone once more expressed their congratulations on Green joining the group.

"Everyone, you more or less know about my situation. I don't know much about the wizard world. Could you tell me about it?" Green got straight to the point. Now that they had formed a group, there was naturally no need to hide his intentions.

At Green's question, confusion appeared on the others' faces as well. It seemed they did not know much about the wizard world either. Only George's expression kept changing. In the end, as if he had made up his mind, he pointed to a room and motioned for everyone to go inside.

Seeing George's gesture, everyone could not help but grow excited. They quickly entered the room he had indicated. Once everyone was inside, George cautiously checked outside the door. Only after closing it did he turn around to face the group.

"George, isn't this being too cautious? There's no harm in sharing some general information about the wizard world, right? Everyone knows these things. It shouldn't matter if you tell Green." Roland, who came from a military family, looked at the overly cautious George and spoke in confusion.

"What do you think I formed this alliance for? It's so we can safely reach an academy and become real wizards. You don't think the entire journey will be safe, do you?"

George's face was gloomy, and his tone was low. Seeing his expression, the atmosphere in the room gradually fell silent.

"Let's start with the basics. The place we're heading to is called the East Coast. The East Coast is controlled by two major alliances: the White Wizard Association and the Black Wizard Council. These two organizations have different philosophies."

"The White Wizards use a gentler method of cultivation, not much different from our Knight Academy. Even if you fail to achieve anything, you won't die easily. However, White Wizards have higher requirements for aptitude, making it harder to enter their academies. Black Wizards are different. They worship power more and believe only harsh environments can produce the strong. Aptitude is merely one standard; it does not determine everything. So even those with poorer aptitude may be accepted by Black Wizard organizations." As he spoke, George's face turned pale.

"If you aren't accepted by a White Wizard organization, never take the risk of joining a Black Wizard organization. Competition among Black Wizards is extremely brutal. It's easy to die on the way to the academy. Rumor has it that Black Wizard organizations deliberately create trouble aboard the ships heading to their academies to weed out the weak. Even if you reach the academy, you may not survive the cruel competition. Almost every wizard who comes out of a Black Wizard organization is insane. Body modifications, three arms, three legs, three heads—those are the most common sights among Black Wizards. Playing with souls and torturing someone for all eternity are practically required lessons every Black Wizard learns."

George's pale face lent the strongest proof to his words. The others in the small group looked increasingly grim after hearing him.

Giving up on becoming wizards was nearly impossible for them. They all bore the missions of their families. If one organization rejected them, their families would certainly demand that they continue trying at another. By the standards of Black Wizard organizations, probably none of them would be rejected. The color had completely drained from Fila and Fia's faces, leaving only fear behind.

Standing to one side, Green listened to George's explanation and could not help feeling fortunate. Although he had great confidence in himself, he absolutely did not want to go to a Black Wizard organization. If someone carelessly killed him with a curse or something similar, dying before he could accomplish anything would be miserable. He had suffered plenty of assassination attempts in his previous life and had spent every day on edge. Green did not want to go through that again.

"There are six major organizations on the entire East Coast: three White Wizard organizations and three Black Wizard organizations. There are also many other organizations of varying sizes that come here to recruit. On recruitment day, the simplest way to tell them apart is by their clothing. White Wizards wear white robes, while Black Wizards wear black robes."

"The three major White Wizard organizations are the Six-Ring Tower, the Nature School, and the White House Academy."

"The three major Black Wizard organizations are the Dollhouse, the Silent Academy, and the Soul School."

"However, you must also be careful. Some Black Wizard organizations deliberately wear white robes, but White Wizards will never wear black robes."

George's words made everyone except Green turn even paler. The two girls nearly collapsed to the floor. There were even organizations like that, ones that would trick them as well. As for Green, he remained expressionless. In everyone else's eyes, Green, who possessed the strength of a Grand Knight, naturally had the confidence to do so. Even if he were assigned to a Black Wizard organization, with the strength of a Grand Knight, he would definitely not be at the bottom.

Everyone came to their senses and focused their gazes on Green. Why had George wanted to recruit Green? Wasn't it because Green was a Grand Knight? Although they did not know what level a Grand Knight stood at among wizards, among wizard seeds who had only just been selected, Green was undoubtedly at the very top.

"Big Brother Green, you'll definitely protect us, right?" Fila and Fia had recovered somewhat. Timidly walking over to Green, each took one of his hands and leaned close to him, looking at him with pitiful expressions.

"Don't worry. As long as we're in the same academy then, I will definitely provide protection for everyone." George had given Green quite a lot of information, so if they were in the same place, helping them out would be no trouble. Of course, if the situation truly became impossible, Green could only do what he could.

At this point, everyone in the group was weighed down with worry. Naturally, they no longer had the mood to continue the ball. Green quickly excused himself as well and returned to his estate.

After returning to his estate, Green threw himself into experiments. He listed more than a hundred perfume formulas, cultivated over a thousand Stinky Flower seeds—each Stinky Flower bloomed for one year—and used up all the materials in the laboratory to make more than fifty bottles of life potion. Green did not dare gamble. The wizard world was not as peaceful as he had imagined. If he died on the East Coast, he at least had to ensure the continuation of his family at Ellendal Harbor.

Green also gathered the important people together and had them announce the news.

Old Green sat at the table, watching Green tap the tabletop repeatedly. In the end, he merely looked at Green silently without saying a word.

The three pregnant Aishweils did not cry out and beg Green not to leave. Instead, they sat there quietly and expressed their support.

Seeing this, Green even hesitated over whether he should leave. However, he quickly firmed his resolve. If he did not leave now, then once the children were born, it would likely become even more impossible for him to leave.