Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2717: Chapter 2718: Mirror Prison

Everyone naturally understood the meaning of the Wise Sovereign. Moreover, when the topic of finding loopholes was brought up, led by Dox with Vay as his aide, their enthusiasm was extremely high. They all started to express what they believed to be loopholes and how to exploit these loopholes for maximum benefit.

But as everyone was enthusiastically searching for loopholes in the rules, a question inevitably crossed their minds:

—Did she not know there were loopholes when she set the rules?

Angel pondered for a moment and then brought up this doubt.

Wise Sovereign: "Does she not know there are loopholes? Of course, she knows."

Angel frowned: "Then why would she establish such rules?"

Wise Sovereign: "Because the Gray Merchants and others are just pawns she uses to test you. Whether this test results in victory or defeat, she loses nothing. If the Gray Merchants win, her objective is achieved; if they fail, she uses these people to probe your trump cards. To her, either outcome is profitable."

Simply put, the Merchant Organization is neither her personal guard nor her followers. Her manipulation of the Gray Merchants and others to battle Angel is just a casual move, and this pawn can be abandoned at any time.

This is what they call the Death Warrior strategy, with the Queen observing from afar. Probing the depth, then devising targeted strategies.

The Black Earl said gravely: "So, you’re saying that even if there are loopholes to exploit when battling the Gray Merchants, we shouldn’t reveal all our trump cards?"

Wise Sovereign nodded: "That’s right, whatever trump cards you reveal in battle, soon you will face challenges specifically targeted at those cards. Thus, this test is not just a battle, but also a test of your strategy and decisions."

"By the way, the Gray Merchants certainly know this rule too. And she will definitely push them from the shadows to spare no effort in forcing you to reveal your trump cards. They risk it all, you hide your secrets, who wins or loses is uncertain."

"Also, don’t underestimate the combat prowess of the Gray Merchant squad. As a demon-exterminating team within the Merchant Organization, each of them has a very rich battle experience, and their trump cards might not be fewer than yours. Among you, there are many from the Academy Faction. You may not necessarily withstand their offense; appropriate retreat to exchange for the greatest benefit at the smallest cost is also an option."

After listening to the Wise Sovereign’s words, everyone’s mood began to grow heavy.

Choosing the right trump cards to defeat the Gray Merchants without exposing their own depths became the biggest dilemma before them.

Previously, everyone in the Mind Ribbon was enthusiastically discussing tactics and finding loopholes, but now, there was a heavy silence.

"Silence is not an option either, think about what to keep and what to discard?" Dox broke the silence, and a certain level of communication resumed within the Mind Ribbon, though the buzz was gone.

Meanwhile, Angel did not participate in the Mind Ribbon discussion but continued to ask the Wise Sovereign: "I don’t understand, why would the Gray Merchants listen to her?"

From the Wise Sovereign’s implication, the Gray Merchants might even fight them to the death... This was clearly suspicious.

Wise Sovereign: "I don’t know the exact means. However, it’s nothing more than a mix of reward and threat. Why, are you considering something out of discussion?"

The Wise Sovereign saw through Angel’s thoughts at a glance.

It’s unlikely the Gray Merchants would follow her without reason, so it’s probably achieved through inducements or threats. If that’s the case, it might be possible to turn them, which is also a solution.

Angel: "Isn’t this within the rules?"

Wise Sovereign: "It is within the rules. But do you think simple inducements or threats are enough to make two Official Wizards bow willingly? You can consider trying to turn them, but I don’t think this path will be successful for you."

Angel pondered for a moment and did not continue the topic. Because discussing out-of-context matters was premature. Without knowing why the Gray Merchants were compelled by her, these were just empty words.

Angel: "Is the Wise Sovereign familiar with the Gray Merchants that came this time?"

The Wise Sovereign smiled: "You’re trying to cheat off the referee."

"The Gray Merchants have been navigating the Underground Aqueduct for years; I do have some understanding." Pausing, the Wise Sovereign looked at Angel: "I can share some information about them, but I need you to exchange it with a piece of information."

As soon as the Wise Sovereign finished speaking, Angel sighed: "I don’t know."

The Wise Sovereign raised an eyebrow.

Angel continued on his own: "I’ve never met or had any interaction or communication with her behind the scenes. She specifically named me to fight, and I was just confused."

Without the Wise Sovereign’s prompt, Angel had guessed the question the Wise Sovereign wanted to ask.

After listening to Angel’s heartfelt words, the Wise Sovereign nodded, with a meaningful tone: "It seems there’s some mystery here..."

Angel frowned, preparing to respond. The Wise Sovereign waved a hand at him: "I believe you. My sigh was directed at her."

Despite saying this, Angel could still sense that the Wise Sovereign’s gaze contained more scrutiny than before.

The Wise Sovereign still suspected that Angel harbored secrets. Perhaps this secret was unknown even to him.

Angel could only feign ignorance about this.

Wise Sovereign: "Since you’ve guessed what I wanted to ask and have already answered, according to our agreement, it’s my turn to speak next."

"Regarding the Gray Merchants..."

...

Hanging Jail Stairway, second floor.

A group of people dressed in gray uniforms and wearing various masks were rapidly descending the hanging stairs.

These people moved quickly, crossing several stairway turns in a flash. Ordinarily, such high speed would make a loud noise, especially since their leader was a big man like a tower, who could shake the earth with each step in the outside world, yet at this moment, even at the pace of a flying goose, no sound was made.

Not only were there no footsteps, but nobody spoke.

This atmosphere of oppression and silence persisted until they reached a broken platform within the stairway.

"Master Gray Merchant, there’s a pheromone reaction here." The silence was broken by a man wearing a half-mask of a brown mammoth; the two upward-curved tusks on the mask were polished to perfection.

Below the tusks was the true face of the man, though only the portion below the nose was visible. From the lip color and the faint skin wrinkles around it, it was reasonable to judge that the man’s appearance wouldn’t be very young.

Referred to as "Master," the big man leading the group with the gray mask was the main force tracking Angel’s party, among the black, white, and gray merchants within the Merchant Organization, known as the Gray Merchant.

The Gray Merchant walked to the spot indicated by the man, closed his eyes, and softly sensed for a moment.

"Apprentice’s aura, remaining time is less than half an hour, should be one of the two apprentices mentioned by her." Seconds later, the Gray Merchant made a judgment.

With that, the Gray Merchant took out a small bundle wrapped in parchment.

Carefully unwrapping the parchment, a faintly reflective item inside is revealed. Taking a closer look, it turns out to be a piece of broken mirror. Covered in a thin fog that cannot be wiped away, through the mist, a shadowy figure can be vaguely seen in the mirror.

And the silhouette of this figure... is identical to the Traveling Merchant.

Seeing the figure inside the mirror, the atmosphere around the Traveling Merchant becomes increasingly cold. After a long while, he then injects the collected pheromones into the broken mirror.

The mirror has no reaction whatsoever.

"The mirror hasn’t turned red, it’s not the person we’re looking for," the Traveling Merchant said, after speaking, he put the broken mirror back into the parchment bundle and then seriously placed it into the storage space within his earring.

"Continue forward." The Traveling Merchant paused, turned and looked at the man wearing a Magic Elephant mask: "Magic Elephant, well done this time. If you discover any pheromone remnants again, remind me immediately."

Magic Elephant solemnly nodded.

"Let’s go." The Traveling Merchant did not say more and continued to fly downward.

Perhaps because Magic Elephant had broken the silence earlier, this time the atmosphere was finally not as tense.

A short girl with a mask used as a decorative item in her pink hair, who at first glance seemed barely of age, pouted and complained: "Actually, we’ve discovered quite a few pheromones along the way and should have collected them back then."

"What’s the point of saying this now?" A green-haired man wearing a Sheep Demon mask said while playing with a long flute in his hand, "Who could have thought, we would encounter that... crazy woman."

Magic Elephant frowned: "Shepherd, you should speak less."

The green-haired man—Shepherd, said resentfully: "What’s wrong with calling her a crazy woman, am I wrong?"

Magic Elephant wanted to intervene, when the Traveling Merchant spoke: "Shepherd is not wrong either. White Merchant told us from the start, those people left hints all along the way, and they didn’t destroy the entrance, so it’s very likely to be a sign of goodwill. Befriending them is of more value than engaging in combat."

Shepherd’s expression darkened as he responded: "Yes, we originally thought we could avoid fighting. But who would have thought we’d encounter that crazy woman hiding in the mirror..."

The pink-haired girl meanwhile had forgotten her earlier complaint, and joined Shepherd in indignant agreement: "Exactly, she actually trapped Lord Traveling Merchant in the mirror, and used it as a threat, it’s utterly vile!"

As she spoke, the pink-haired girl stamped her foot, her fluffy hair bouncing.

The Traveling Merchant sighed lightly: "Pinkful, I’m still here, don’t speak of me as though I’ve already died."

The girl called Pinkful muttered softly: "But, but..."

The Traveling Merchant understood what Pinkful was thinking and said softly: "Actually, I feel better now than before, after those memories disappeared, I only feel relieved."

Faced with the Traveling Merchant’s statement, the crowd fell silent.

The woman hiding in the mirror used some unknown method to seal the Traveling Merchant’s most important memories inside the mirror.

That figure in the broken mirror was actually the Traveling Merchant’s memory.

Indeed, after that segment of memories vanished, he appeared much calmer, no longer bearing the cold-faced demon aura. But as his longtime followers, they knew too well that this new Traveling Merchant was merely suppressing his emotions.

After suppressing emotions, the Traveling Merchant was much closer to his fully emotive, demon-like self than before.

Those crucial memories, though painful, were key to his transformation into "Traveling Merchant."

The current "Traveling Merchant," despite saying he feels relieved, his cautious handling of the broken mirror reveals he is just being stubborn.

Suppressing emotions and not letting them out, how could he truly feel relieved? The peace and tranquility are mere illusions.

"I’ve already seen the first layer, we need to prepare for response," as the crowd remained silent, the Traveling Merchant shifted the topic.

"Magic Elephant, keep an eye on the pheromone exploration." After reaching the first layer, the Traveling Merchant immediately issued instructions.

They were eager to collect pheromones not only because pheromones could help identify the person they were searching for.

There was another key reason, "the Crazy Woman" could use her abilities to curse directly through the pheromone owners.

However, "the Crazy Woman’s" abilities came from organ transplant, different from the Western Lands Efa lineage sorcery, unable to directly kill, but weakening, intense pain, and maladies... these negative attributes are effective. Sometimes, even a minor flaw could lead to defeat, let alone so many curses.

"It’s still just the Apprentice’s pheromone." Shortly thereafter, Magic Elephant came to a rather poor conclusion.

The Traveling Merchant was silent for a moment: "If none, so be it, we can collect pheromones during the battle later. Let’s proceed."

The group nodded and continued forward.

Seeing the winding staircase, Pinkful rubbed her slightly swollen temples: "Surely there are only three layers, this is the first layer, so logically we should be leaving, but we still have to go downstairs?"

Although she was grumbling, Pinkful’s actions did not pause, she sped swiftly downwards.

...

Meanwhile, outside the Hanging Jail Stairway.

The Wise Sovereign had completed his report about the group of Traveling Merchant.

To be precise, he only spoke about the Traveling Merchant and the Crazy Woman, as these two were Official Wizards. The other four, including "Pinkful, Magic Elephant, Shepherd, and Ghost Shadow" were still Wizard Apprentices, the Wise Sovereign only mentioned their branches, with no additional content. Mainly, there was nothing noteworthy about Apprentices.

Moreover, Angel wasn’t planning to fight this group of Apprentices.

"Traveling Merchant and Crazy Woman, turned out to be bloodline faction." After hearing the Wise Sovereign, the main characters hadn’t spoken yet, but instead, two Apprentices displayed concern.

It’s a universally acknowledged fact that among similar ranks, bloodline faction Wizards are the strongest.

Now that two bloodline faction Wizards have simultaneously appeared, it has deeply unsettled them, even though they don’t have to fight Official Wizards, but... Angel must!

Originally, without the third rule, it was perfectly acceptable to have Dox and Black Earl separately face off against two bloodline Wizards. Dox is also a bloodline faction, no one loses out; and Black Earl, with insight, vision, experience far surpassing the opponent, hardly loses in a one-on-one.

But now, regardless of whether it’s Crazy Woman or Traveling Merchant, Angel has to face one, this makes Vay and Kaier start worrying.

However, compared to the Apprentices’ anxiety, the three Official Wizards had practically no reaction.

Angel was contemplating, Black Earl was spacing out, and only Dox stroked his chin thoughtfully and remarked: "Traveling Merchant and Crazy Woman, with their combined combat capabilities, Traveling Merchant should be the strongest. But if Angel fights, I think you should face Traveling Merchant. Crazy Woman belongs to the alteration branch, making her methods more unpredictable..."