310 Williams Part 1 (1/2)

Nearly a hundred miles of the coast overlooking the ocean had been frozen over, and there were already many completed buildings along the white shore. Saleen could see that the foundation and overall structure of the pier had already been built. The buildings that lined up behind the incomplete pier were constructed in a similar fashion to the temple, and from afar, the style, look, and design of this harbor looked to be very different from those of other countries.

Along the coastal areas, Saleen saw that there were puppets still hard at work doing what they needed to do. These puppets were controlled by low-grade mages and even mage apprentices. The mage apprentices from Sregl Island progressed much faster than their peers. In fact, in a span of only a few months, two of them had done well enough to be promoted to grade-1 mages.

This was not pure luck. Rather, it was because of the traditions that they had upheld. Sregl Island had a very stringent process when it came to selecting mage apprentices. They had to be highly qualified in order to even be considered for the position. This, in addition to the fact that Sregl Island had been accumulating magical knowledge for thousands of years, made the chosen apprentices motivated to attain the rank of an archmage.

Although it was true that being promoted to the rank of a sorcerer required opportunity, these mage apprentices did not really need this rank to secure bright futures for themselves.

The puppets stopped working when Saleen made his way to the seaside. There were over a hundred swordsmen gathered at the area where Saleen was now. From afar, Saleen could see a group of people standing on the frozen ocean waters. Their clothes were torn and tattered, and they were shivering wildly in the bitterly cold blizzard.

Saleen eyed them for a second before asking the mage beside him, ”When did these people show up?”

”Just now, Master Saleen,” the mage replied.

”Have you talked to them yet?” Saleen asked. The mage shook his head before answering, ”They did send someone, but we chased him away. We can't allow strangers to infiltrate the area unless you say otherwise. They claimed to have encountered pirates. However, pirates would not strike in the northern ocean territories during this time of the year.”

Saleen processed the mage's words before saying, ”Call Nailisi over and tell her to pitch a tent for them. Get them to send a representative over to talk to me.”

”Master Saleen, these people are very suspicious,” the mage protested. Saleen raised his eyebrows and asked, ”How so?” The mage replied immediately, ”There is a nobleman present in that group of people. But that person disguised himself as one of the commonfolk. Plus, they also have advanced swordsmasters amongst them.”

”A nobleman? That's not too bad.” Saleen chuckled before slapping the mage's shoulders in a friendly gesture. He said, ”Tell that nobleman to come over. He is to not bring anyone with him. Send a swordsman over to bring him to me. You and the other mages prepare to unleash your scrolls. If they attack us, we will fight back until every last one of them is dead.”

The advantage that Sregl Island mages had was the fact that they had excessive numbers of scrolls. Each of the mages that Jason had commanded to follow Saleen had just as many scrolls as Saleen himself. The only difference here was that Saleen owned more intermediate and advanced scrolls, while the other mages only possessed low-level scrolls as they were not powerful enough to activate the ones that Saleen had.

Writing scrolls was an effective way for a mage to practice their magic. There were many mages that resided on Sregl Island. Thus, a person could imagine just how many low-level and intermediate scrolls would be written in a single day. Since Sregl Island did not experience any kind of material shortages, a person could also imagine just how many magic artifacts had accumulated over all these years. Saleen had been able to exchange all of his blanks scrolls for completed ones in just one warehouse alone. He was very certain that this was not the only warehouse that existed on the island. This piece of information alone would give an outsider a good idea of just how wealthy the people of Sregl Island were.

Under normal circumstances, these low-grade mages possessed decent combat abilities. Saleen was simply unlucky to have crossed paths with more formidable enemies. That was what had motivated him to hone his magic so obsessively in the first place. The world worked in funny ways. The more risk and danger once faced, the more successful they would become.

Two advanced swordsmen were deployed to bring the nobleman back to Saleen. They trudged through the frozen waters as they made their way towards the group of survivors. These people were about five hundred miles away from land, which meant that even if they possessed alchemy crossbows, they would not be able to threaten the people on the shoreline. Since Saleen's icy sight allowed him to see everything for miles, he was able to monitor the two swordsmen's movements from where he was standing.

There were exactly one hundred and eighty of them. Most of their armor had been shattered beyond repair. They were shivering uncontrollably as they desperately sought warmth from the blanket that barely covered all of them. Saleen did not seem to spot many people who could become potential threats, although he did see some advanced swordsmen and a few other people who had attained the rank of swordmasters.

How dare these people show arrogance at a time like this? Saleen remembered just how much effort he had put in to maintain a low-profile when he had been down and out, just like these people were now. Technically, the swordsmasters under these noblemen did not have much power over what they said or did. However, they were not going to appear like cowards in front of their masters. They did not want to risk being deserted or treated coldly. Seeing this scene unfold before him made Saleen hold a slight grudge towards the two swordmasters.

Even if Saleen did reach out to them, he was certain that these people would not appreciate the help. Since they did not know how to behave properly around the people who could actually save them, Saleen did not see anything wrong with leaving them in the deep freeze for another day.

Of course, Saleen was not about to deploy swordsmen to finish off that group of people either. Although these people seemed sketchy, they would likely be unable to leave a single scratch on his body, let alone kill him or the other mages. From their body language and equipment, it was obvious to Saleen that even if they were assassins, they could not have been deployed to this place. Out of one hundred and eighty people, only ten of them were swordmasters. Saleen estimated that there were approximately two mages. Their grades were not fantastic either, as they were definitely below grade-3.

Saleen did not even need to lift a finger to deal with them. He could simply have the low-level mages do the job for him. That was how weak these people were.

Nailisi had been underwater the entire time. She had transformed the lightning dragon's lair into a cozy sleeping area where she would not be interrupted by anyone. It was also more convenient for Saleen to look for her here compared to the pan's turtle alchemical boat. She had just been in the middle of a snooze when she found herself being summoned by the magic array.

”Yes Master?” Nailisi asked, rubbing her eyes as she attempted to wake herself up. She was confused as to why Saleen needed her help.

”Nailisi, do these people look dangerous to you?” Saleen replied lazily as he pointed towards the one hundred and eighty people standing on the frozen ocean.

Nailisi threw a glance their way before answering, ”They're like the opposite of dangerous. I can deal with them by myself.”