Black Hearted Mage

Chapter 107 Northerners in the Black Market

A sturdy spy chief, wearing a pitch-black mask, quietly appeared next to Caesar's booth. His distinctive attire instantly caught the attention of everyone around him, including Rodman, who stared at this mysterious figure with curiosity and vigilance.

"Who is he? Why is he acting so sneaky in broad daylight?" Liv frowned and asked Caesars.

Rodman, who was standing by, saw this and quickly reached for the dagger at his waist, staring at the spy chief with a wary look on his face. He thought to himself: This guy looks like he's up to no good, I must be careful.

"This is the Roland Empire's spy chief, Lord Carlos, and also the commander-in-chief of the Empire's Hawkeye Organization. However, he always dresses like this on weekdays." Caesars introduced them to the two.

"Oh, so he is the spy chief! I have heard of him. It is said that when he went to the Thorn Flower Trading Company for the first time, he was so arrogant that he wanted to test the strength of Ocus. As a result, he was beaten badly on the spot and knocked to the ground!" Liv said with a smile, a trace of disdain and ridicule in her eyes.

This incident had long been a hot topic in the crater, known to almost everyone, though unknown to those outside. The elves felt that this fellow was truly arrogant, daring to challenge the peak-level elven shadow dancer Orcus.

After hearing this, Rodman loosened his grip on the dagger.

Hearing this, Caesars couldn't help but be shocked. He looked at Carlos in disbelief and muttered to himself: Is this guy really a reckless person?

"He was really knocked down?"

"Of course it's true! With his ability, let alone Ocus, even if I take action, I can easily knock him to the ground!" Liv raised her chin and said confidently.

The spy chief, who had originally wanted to come and investigate, now shrank like a frost-bitten eggplant, feeling as if his pride had instantly fallen to the ground and been ruthlessly trampled upon. Even more aggrieved, he couldn't even utter a single word in rebuttal to Liv's words.

Carlos crossed his arms and said with disdain, "How dare you sell yesterday's loot? Don't you know how many people are ready to come after you?"

Although the spy chief was extremely angry, in order to save some face, he turned his head and pointed his spearhead at Caesars who was standing beside him.

However, Caesars remained calm and composed, his lips even curling up slightly in a mocking smile as he responded, "Lord Carlos, to be honest, I sincerely hope those with ill intentions will come to me with all their might to seek revenge. Only then will I have a legitimate reason to go on a killing spree! If no one provokes me, won't I even have a chance to strike? And then, how can I obtain more spoils? And without spoils, I can't obtain sufficient cultivation resources. So, for these fools who offer themselves to me, I'm more than happy to take them! What's disappointing is that I thought they would attract magic guilds eyeing my wealth, but who would have thought they were just small-time scum."

Hearing these words, Carlos's face, hidden beneath his mask, twitched, and his eyelids twitched. He had never imagined that this seemingly arrogant man's true purpose was to obtain trophies through killing, and he wanted to make this behavior legitimate and undisputed. For a moment, Carlos was speechless.

After a moment, he gathered himself, his gaze slowly sweeping across the items on display. Then, in a very calm tone, he said, "Hmph, in my opinion, the problem is that the items you've put out aren't attractive enough to lure in a truly powerful opponent."

"That's right. Next time I'll bring some rare herbs from the Endless Forest and make sure to prepare enough attraction!"

Kaisas knew very well that relying solely on the temptation of wealth was far from enough. After all, for those old guys who had experienced many vicissitudes of life and were full of desire for life, only rare treasures like golden ginseng that could prolong life had a truly irresistible attraction.

As the spy chief, he suddenly realized that his words had undoubtedly given the other party a warning. If they found those rare herbs, Fire Maple City would probably be plunged into chaos.

Thinking of this, he quickly spoke up to dissuade them, "Don't do that! The Saint Laurent Empire is eyeing us covetously. We are in a critical moment. We urgently need the power of the Magic Guild to help resist the enemy!"

Then, changing the subject, Caesars asked, "Any new news about those rural nobles in the south?"

When mentioning the mission he was responsible for, the two earls in the south of the Roland Empire instantly emerged in Caesar's mind.

"The area these two are guarding is extremely well-defended, practically impregnable, like a fortress of steel. The spies sent there struggle to gather any useful intelligence, and even a tiny insect would have a difficult time sneaking in!"

The spy chief took out a photo stone and threw it to the questioning Kaisas, then continued, "The two earls are hiding very deeply. Their families are nowhere to be found. The mine is now an impenetrable fortress. If you go there, you must be careful. There is a team of 30 to 50 stalkers there, all of them high-level assassins!"

The spy chief approached with a gloomy face, warned them a few times in his low and hoarse voice, then turned and left without hesitation, leaving behind only a receding back.

"Kaesas, hurry up and close the stall. Look, everything on the stall is almost sold out!" The magic archer Liv urged anxiously while sorting the bow and arrow in her hand.

Kaisas looked up, then lowered his head to make a rough estimate, and then responded: "Don't worry, Liv, although most of the things have been sold, there are still a lot of things left. According to the current situation, we have to wait until at least the day after tomorrow to leave here. And tomorrow I plan to go to the black market and exchange all the gold coins I received for magic crystals." As he said, he pointed to his space ring.

Hearing the unfamiliar word "black market," Liv immediately became interested. Blinking her eyes, she curiously asked, "Kaisas, what exactly is the black market? Is it fun?"

The corners of Caesar's mouth twitched slightly, and he smiled bitterly and said, "Alas, Liv, the black market is not a fun place. It's an underground trading place filled with all kinds of strange smells, and the things sold there are also varied and messy, with all kinds of strange and bizarre things. Some people even openly sell corpses of unknown origin! It's creepy just thinking about it..."

After listening to Caesar's description, Liv couldn't help but frown, with a look of obvious disgust on her face. She muttered, "Oh, that sounds so scary! I don't want to go to that kind of place."

At dusk, the setting sun shone like blood, tinting the sky a hue of orange and red. Caesars quietly followed Rodman's footsteps, slowly leaving the bustling square. Surprisingly, the spies who had followed him like ghosts had vanished without a trace. Caesars couldn't help but wonder: Had those greedy individuals retreated in fear, or had they temporarily suppressed the burning desire within them?

The next morning, the sun had just risen, and soft sunlight streamed into the hotel room through the window. Rodman and Liv had already woken up and were packing their belongings. While Caesar was at the black market, they planned to buy some necessary food for their upcoming journey. Meanwhile, Caesar was heading alone to the Fire Maple City black market.

After navigating the bustling streets, Caesars finally arrived at the seemingly unassuming Maple Leaf Grocery Store. Pushing open the old wooden door, a strange, tangled smell hit him. The room was filled with a dazzling array of merchandise. Caesars carefully avoided the piles of goods on the floor, approached the counter, and showed the owner the mysterious piece of metal.

After receiving permission, he walked along a dark underground passage. The stone pavement beneath his feet was a little slippery, and the magic crystal lamps on the wall emitted a faint light, barely illuminating the path ahead. Before long, Caesar's vision suddenly opened up, and a bustling underground black market appeared before him.

The place was bustling with people, a bustling clamor rising and falling. Stalls and shops filled with all sorts of goods were everywhere, many of which offered exchange rates for magic crystals. However, after some observation, Caesars found that the exchange rates offered by these shops were similar. Still, to get as many magic crystals as possible, he tirelessly went from shop to shop, asking for information.

Hard work pays off. After a long search, Caesars finally found a shop with relatively favorable prices. Here, the exchange price of high-level magic crystals was five gold coins lower than other shops, and even the price of dark magic crystals was the same.

Just as Kaisas was about to complete the transaction with the shopkeeper, a deep voice suddenly came from behind him: "Master Mage, do you have any more Black Steel Flowers?"

Caesar's heart tightened, and he turned around abruptly. He saw a tall man wearing a black mask standing not far away, staring at him coldly.

"Yes, one flower costs one thousand gold coins. If you don't have gold coins, you can also choose to trade with magic crystals!"

Kaisas looked at the monstrous man before him and quoted the price of the black steel flower without hesitation. The man standing before him was exceptionally tall, like an unshakable mountain. Judging by his rugged and unrestrained features, he must be a northerner. Furthermore, his voice was exceptionally deep, like the rumble of thunder from deep underground, which made him wary.

The tall, burly figure leaned forward slightly and asked firmly, "Well, I happen to have the magic crystal with me. Can we complete this transaction now?"

Hearing this, Caesars hesitated for a moment, then responded, "Please wait a moment, I need to exchange some magic crystals first!"

"I have a lot of magic crystals here, I can exchange them directly with you! And my price is guaranteed to be more favorable and more cost-effective than here!" The burly man said anxiously.

There was no doubt that someone was openly trying to steal this business. However, in this chaotic black market, the rules were completely different from those in the outside world. Here, there was no such thing as a fight for sale; instead, everything depended solely on whether a fair and reasonable transaction could be reached. As long as both parties were willing, any form of transaction was permitted.

"Okay, let's go outside the store to trade!" Caesars said, raising his hand and pointing outside the door.

At this moment, although the people in this shop didn't say much, they must have felt very upset. After all, this business was intercepted midway, and anyone would be a little depressed and unhappy.

The masked figure appeared unusually large. He had to lower his head slightly and half-crouch to barely make it through the narrow shop entrance. A rough estimate suggested the man was around two and a half meters tall! Such a staggering height is extremely rare even among the generally taller Northerners. However, among Northern ogres, such a height is quite common.

However, after a closer look, it was clear that this person was a Northerner, not a Northern Ogre. Northern Ogres weren't just tall and burly; they were often much thicker and heavier, often weighing twice or even three times as much as an average Northerner.

At this moment, the northerner suddenly said, "I want to buy ten black steel flowers!"

There were ten flowers at the beginning, which is really a large number.

"Add some living root grass when you take it, otherwise you may not be able to withstand the medicinal effects of Black Steel Flower!"

Caesars reminded him that while the northern tribes didn't have alchemists, they did have potion makers, a profession inherited from the northern ogres. They would mix herbs according to their properties and slowly boil them in a large pot.

"You also know that livingroot and black steel flower can be eaten together?"

"Of course, your potion formula comes from the Ogre Tribe near the Icecrown Mountains, and the Ogre Tribe's formula comes from Frosthold. You may not have heard of this name, but you should know the Black Holy Tower - Frostcrown!"

"You also know the Black Tower!"

The masked mainlander's tone revealed surprise.