156 Master’s Horror Part 1 (1/2)
It was summer, and rainfall was plentiful during this season. The rain drizzled for less than three hours after Saleen and his group had left a small town before slowly becoming a downpour. Lex and Saleen were fine, but Sika and Nailisi became completely drenched. They had no choice but to seek shelter.
Both Sika and Nailisi were tough and could withstand the torrential rain. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the horses they were riding. Thus, they sought shelter because there was no point in getting wet if they could not cover any ground. After travelling for a while, they found a wilderness shop.
These roadside wilderness shops operated on a huge scale, and depended entirely on peddling goods or services in order to survive. Lex and Saleen created an invisible shield that sheltered them from the rain before rushing into the huge courtyard found within the shop. Instantly, a waiter wearing a raincoat appeared and led their horses to the back.
Along the way, they saw many businessmen and mercenaries. Purely adventurous risk-takers and mages were a rare sight. The waiter spoke carefully, trying not to anger the four of them, ”My apologies, but it appears that we do not have any individual rooms available…”
”It’s fine. We’ll just sit here,” Lex interrupted, pointing to the seats next to the window. This wilderness shop operated on a huge scale, but it had no decorations, and the furniture had all been made from unsightly logs.
Outside the window were large eaves, pillars, and walls that did a fine job of preventing the wind and rain from entering the building.
The fact that two mages had arrived at this wilderness shop naturally caught the attention of the manager. Another waiter brought towels for the four of them to dry off. Saleen rejected his offer while Lex ignored him and immediately cast a Cleaning spell followed by a Fire Washing spell. Immediately, Sika and Nailisi’s clothes became dry as all of the water droplets on them evaporated.
Not daring to disturb these seemingly difficult customers, the manager quietly ordered the waiters to bring a new tea set and reheat water for them.
Saleen and his companions did not feel that they were difficult customers. In the past, whenever Lex had ventured out, she had turned it into some extravagant event where the many people accompanying her would cater to her every whim. She was better now. At the very least, she did not have any grand swordmasters beside her to serve her. Out of her four black metal grand swordmasters, two of them had been killed while the rest were nursing their internal injuries back at the magic tower. Moreover, because they were going to Alchemy City, she had not even brought any assassins with her.
Other than Lex, the only people who knew about the trip to Alchemy City were Nailisi, Sika, Saleen, and her mentor. If it had not been for the fact that this trip was to be kept a secret, Lex would have had at least a few low-level mages accompanying her for protection.
Saleen retrieved a tea set from the demonic bracelet and began creating restorative water, ignoring the hot water that the waiters had put on their table earlier. The way that he cast the spell was similar to the way Lex cast her Fire Washing spell. When he was finished, he used that water to brew tea for Lex.
Saleen’s move did not cause any dissatisfaction amongst the many people who were in the wilderness shop waiting for the rain to pass. Even if it had, they did not show it. Everyone lowered their heads, afraid to make eye contact or do anything that might provoke the mages. These outbound traders were very good at reading people. Saleen and Lex exuded an aura vastly different from that of a normal low-level mage. Hence, no one dared to entertain the idea of striking up a conversation with them.
Usually, low-level mages would be willing to serve these businessmen in exchange for gold coins. However, it was not the same for higher-level mages. Even if they did not have money, they had Grade 4 mercenaries who would support them in battle. In other words, they were way out of the leagues of these businessmen.
At that moment, the entire shop was silent as everyone watched Saleen cast his spell. Lex looked out the window and felt herself becoming very calm as she watched the pitter-patter of the raindrops.
Going to Alchemy City had not been a last-minute idea. Lex had already thought of it when she had discovered the ten story magic tower in the hell of god’s punishment. However, after she had arrived back at Myers Mainland and found out about her father’s passing, she had decided to bring forth her plan.
Bitter Water Prefecture had resources, but lacked people. A Grade 8 mage was more than enough to ensure the peace and prosperity of the county. However, to become a real county without relying on manpower or the help of other counties, Bitter Water Prefecture needed to have at least some Grade 9 mages.
Lex knew that if she could find a way to create a portal connecting Bitter Water Prefecture to the hell of god’s punishment, her mentor would be able to become a Grade 9 mage with the help of the six element space. Once that was accomplished, Bitter Water Prefecture would become a legitimate county.
Furthermore, she needed more manpower in order to successfully avenge her father. Lex knew that she would not be able to do it by herself. The number of formidable opponents in the Holy See rivalled those of Alchemy City, which meant that even if she was extremely gifted, relying on her own capabilities to defeat the Holy See would be a very stupid decision.
Lex finally understood how Saleen felt. It was the feeling of knowing where your enemies were, but being unable to do anything about them. She eyed the tea that Saleen had brewed for her and laughed. ”You still have this tea set?”
She had left the teaset at the Clyde residence when she had gone to visit Holy Rock City. She did not know that Saleen had taken it with him.
”Well, it’s expensive. You know how poor my family was when I was young. It’d be a waste to leave it at Holy Rock City,” Saleen replied, not feeling even the slightest bit embarrassed. The truth was that he disliked it when people used any items that had previously been touched by Lex. In the past, he had given it little thought. Now, he was certain about these feelings.
Lex pursed her lips tightly to stop herself from calling out Saleen. Unlike other swordsmen, Saleen did not openly express his attraction for her. Lex also did not want to embarrass Saleen, lest the latter was a thin-skinned individual.
Just then, a waiter arrived and placed some snacks on their table. Lex eyed the food but refused to eat it. Since she had been young, she had trained herself not to eat outside food, lest it was contaminated or poisoned. Nailisi, on the other hand, could not have cared less. Even if the snacks were poisoned, it would probably not be enough to kill her.
As an adult, Nailisi had a much better appetite and preferred normal food over blood as a means of sustenance. As soon as Nailisi saw Saleen giving Sika the all-clear, meaning that the food was safe to eat, she did not hesitate to reach her greedy hands out and grab some food from the table.
The four of them had come into the shop with the sole intention of seeking shelter from the rain. However, once the food was served, Sika and Nailisi began gobbling down the food in front of them. Saleen, who was not hungry, chose to watch from the side. They had insane strength, but even crazier appetites. They were like hibernating creatures. Once they ate a lot of food in one sitting, they would be able to withstand long periods of starvation. Like Sika and Naisili, the people from the region of Caucasus were indeed very poor, and their lifestyles closely mirrored that of the demons.
The sounds of hooves hitting the ground suddenly filled the air. Sika shoved the snack she had in her hand into her mouth and wiped her face with her sleeve. After discreetly wiping her hands, she pulled out her boomerang and rested it on her thighs.
Just from the frequency of the hooves hitting the ground, it was obvious that the horse was travelling at a very fast pace. This could not have been due to the fact that the knights who were riding them wanted to seek shelter. Everyone knew that even strong horses would not be able to take it when their bodies were pushed to their limits, and travelling this fast would cause them to die or become disabled in a matter of minutes. All battalion horses had to control their speeds during battle. Failure to do so could lead to their deaths.