Badge in Azure

Chapter 196: Alchemy Tower (Part 1)

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The materials used to produce the fully constructed puppet were definitely not worth five million gold coins. The most valuable parts would be the magic arrays carved into the interior of the puppet. Such magic arrays which could move metallic parts just like the human body, but they had been lost in time. Now that the people from Alchemy City were going to purchase this fully constructed puppet, they would still need to think of a way to disassemble it.

Since only one puppet was going to be sold, the chances of a breakthrough were dismal, so the puppet had lost some of its value already.

Once Saleen exited the lift, he saw a hall which was neither big nor small.

Each side of the hall contained a corridor, and in the center of the hall was a counter. A man who looked to be about forty years old popped his head up from behind the counter and laughed, “Sumano, you got a good deal this time!”

Sumano walked forward awkwardly, then he took out a voucher from his pocket and stuffed it into the hands of the man behind the counter. The voucher represented one thousand gold coins, and would be worth nine hundred gold coins after a slight discount. However, he had owed this sum of money for two weeks now and was embarrassed to make others give him change. It was good that other people had not charged him any interest.

“Lobolly, I will treat you to drinks next time.”

“Mm, go and settle your business. Don’t delay any further.” The middle aged man called Lobolly put away the voucher and lowered himself back down behind the counter. He had known Sumano for a very long time. They had come to Alchemy City at almost the same time. Now that Lobolly was working for the city, he was at least able to survive, so he would still help Sumano from time to time.

Sumano led Saleen and the others to the corridor on the left side of the hall. The corridor was spacious, and it seemed as though people would be able to race horses inside of it.

As Saleen was appreciating the area, a few people walked out from the second room on the left. The first person was a youth who was clad in a grey magic robe. As the man approached Saleen and his team, Sumano quickly avoided that man.

In reality, Saleen never paid any attention to the arrogant youth. However, this mage clad in a grey magic robe walked straight up to Lex the moment he saw her. The other three people who followed that mage cautiously tried to stop him, but failed to do so.

“Beautiful lady, allow me to introduce myself. I…”

“I am very busy,” Lex simply interrupted. At this point, Saleen then took a closer look at this youth. The youth was dressed immaculately, in a way that made him look younger than his actual age. If Saleen was not so observant, he would have thought that the man was only around twenty-three or twenty-four years old. After secretly activating his icy sight, Saleen merely scanned the mage’s skin and deduced that he was already almost thirty-four or thirty-five years old.

When the mage spoke, he did not sound like a mage at all. He sounded more like the young master from that explosive household. Perhaps he was a member of some small noble family who had never seen the world before. Otherwise, if he had been from some large aristocracy, he would have never behaved so rudely.

“Busy? I can wait for you.” When this mage was interrupted by Lex, he was slightly angered. However, when he saw that Saleen was wearing a grey robe that belonged to grade-5 mages, he did not dare to reveal his fury. If this mage had been back in his hometown, he would have asked his people to maim Saleen a long time ago.

Sumano did not dare to make any noise. He simply rushed towards the end of the corridor. On the other hand, the three people behind the mage pulled on the mage’s shirt as they were afraid he might exhibit some coarse behavior.

When Lex walked past him, the mage clad in a grey robe took a deep breath a mesmerized expression. When Saleen saw that frivolous look on the mage, he grew furious. However, he was in the Alchemy City now, so it would be troublesome if he got into a fight with that mage. If this had happened in the wilderness, Saleen would have surely beaten that guy into pulp.

How did a person like that become a mage? What was more, he was a grade-4 mage!

Lex, however, did not display any change in her expression. When she walked past that group of people, she noticed that there were markings on the three people behind that mage. Their collars were embroidered with the picture of a badge.

The study of badges was a greatly complicated form of knowledge as many badges contained magic imprints and there were many complex variations. Lex was greatly familiar with the noblemen of the Qin Empire, so she simply took a glance and could tell right away that those people were not from the Qin Empire.

Lex was fuming in her heart. The multicolored magic robe was good, but it caused other people to be unable to recognize her identity. Even mages with the same grade as Lex could not identify her true capabilities.

As the mage in a grey robe continued to sniff the air forcefully, Nailisi suddenly released a long draw of air as she walked past him. Nailisi had been able to sense Saleen’s mood at that time, hence why she had done that.

Pu!

A pungent and sour smell filled the corridor. The mage nearly choked to death as he had still been frivolously sniffing the fragrance from Lex’s body.

Nailisi giggled and walked right in front of him. She even turned even to glance at him.

Of course, Nailisi had not farted. Such matters could not be controlled at will, despite Nailisi’s ability to imitate sounds more skillfully than high-level assassins. As for the smell, it had come from a toxic capsule which Nailisi had found while collecting the materials from the magic beasts in the hell of the god’s punishment.

This toxic gas was not fatal, but it had an extremely pungent odor. Saleen was already prepared for this gas. Thus, when the gas was released, he immediately acted to disperse the air around Sika.

However, the mage in the grey robe had still been smelling so forcefully and had not been prepared at all, so he was directly hit by Nailisi’s covert assault.

The mage grew dizzy and his legs softened, then he fell to the floor and began vomiting. The other three muscular men behind him also found the smell extremely abominable and started retching as well.

They knew that they had been attacked by that green-eyed lady. They simply did not have any evidence. Even if they complained to the people of Alchemy City, those people could not possibly intervene with people’s farting.

Saleen was overjoyed when he looked back and saw that the mage was nearly puking his guts out. Since you wanted to disgust other people, I will make you vomit like mad. However, Nailisi’s method was…

When Saleen thought of that sound made by Nailisi, he could feel his stomach churning.

Lex chuckled in her heart. Nailisi seemed so elegant and beautiful, yet her methods were so unpredictable. This was a good technique. Unfortunately, Lex could not learn it. As the head of a county, it would be an utter joke if Lex learned to make such noises.

The last person to walk past the mage was Sika, and she did not hold back at all, simply laughing out loud. The three retching men knew that these people they had just met could not be trifled with when they saw Sika’s weapon. The actions of their young master had been atrocious. If he decided to put on an attitude now, a conflict might immediately ensue. When the three men thought of that, their faces were filled embarrassment. Then, they helped the mage stand up and fled in disgrace.

As a swordsman, the most important core value was loyalty. However, if a swordsman followed the wrong master, that loyalty would become sorrow.

Sumano was dumbfounded. That was the first time he had seen such methods being applied by a person on their enemies. In Alchemy City, when two different groups of people entered a conflict, most people chose to tolerate it. If they could not suppress their anger, they would risk being stripped of all their equipment and being kicked out of the city.

Even though the mages and swordsmen in Alchemy City rarely killed, it did not mean that they were not violent. Even a duke who came would have to abide by the laws set by the people of Alchemy City.

Lex felt much better after getting back at the mage. It’s a pity Bain is recuperating in Bitter Water Prefecture. If he were here, he would never have let that atrocious guy leave the Qin Empire, Lex thought to herself.

As a mage master, his actions had been unbecoming and obscene. It was a true insult to each and every mage.

As a woman, Lex was not cold and unfeeling like a mountain of ice. She had an outstanding appearance and was of noble status, so tons of people had been confessing their love for her since several years ago. Most of the men were the swordsmen who worked alongside her, and the way they displayed their affection was very traditional as well. Those men abided by proper etiquette despite knowing that they did not stand much of a chance. What Lex had found unacceptable were the actions of that mage. If it had not been for Nailisi, Lex would most likely have hit that fellow the next time she saw him.

Sumano stopped walking when he reached the end of the corridor. A sweet voice came from within the room and said, “Come in.”

Then, Sumano signaled to Saleen before opening the door and entering the room.

“Lord Hogina.” Sumano entered the room and bowed at a girl who seemed to be only fifteen or sixteen years old. The girl was dressed in a white robe, and the excess cloth from the robe laid on the floor.

The girl had a childlike cuteness on her face. Her lips were scarlet, and her hair was rolled up behind her head. This was the dressing of a person from Cloudflow. She had the face of a Qin person as her hair was black and her nose was not that high.

“Sumano, are you here to borrow money again? Teacher might just chase you out of Alchemy City!” Hogina admonished Sumano. Even so, she still maintained a sweet smile.

Sumano’s face flushed, and he could not rebut her. He had borrowed money from Hogina in the past, but that had been such a long time ago. Hogina had only been about six or seven years old at that time?

“Madam, this mage here is looking for you.” Sumano turned his body sideways and introduced Saleen to Hogina.

Saleen was full of admiration because Hogina was already a grade-2 mage at such a tender age. Saleen gave a mage’s bow and simply said, “Saleen Metatrin.”

“Hogina Alexaka,” the little mage answered seriously. However, her robe dragged by her feet, so the image was a little amusing.

As Hogina turned around and began walking towards the rear of the table, she stepped on her own robe and staggered. She quickly grabbed the lower part of her robe, like a girl who wore a skirt, and returned to her chair in a fluster.

“Saleen, don’t you dare laugh at me!” Hogina said to Saleen vehemently. She had noticed that the laughter in Saleen’s eyes was building.

“Hogina, I am not mocking you. You made me remember that when I was young, I also wore my teacher’s clothes, just like you,” Saleen replied gently, not laughing at all.

“Your teacher? Is it this sister? grade-6, so powerful!” Hogina’s words were stunning. She was only a grade-2 mage, yet she could decipher Lex’s capabilities despite that multicolored robe.

“No, my teacher is called Jason, Jason Statham.”

“Never heard of that person before, but to be able to groom a mage master, he must be immensely powerful. Ah!” Hogina slapped her clean forehead and continued, “What were you saying just now?”

“This mage is looking for you,” Sumano quickly reminded her.

“Oh, yes. Master Saleen, what can I do for you?” Hogina resumed her solemn appearance.

“I would like to buy a space in the alchemy tower.”

“Oh! I will be rich!” Hogina jumped off of her chair and onto the table immediately. She grabbed Saleen’s hand enthusiastically and said, “Which story are you planning to buy?”

“The higher, the better.”

“Mm, but the price increases the higher you go.”

“I will have an item that will definitely satisfy Alchemy City.”

“Satisfy? What items has my teacher not seen, hmph…” Hogina let go of Saleen and looked a bit disappointed. Many people had enquired about the price of the houses, and all of them had wished to use their equipment as collateral. However, there were too few things which would satisfy her teacher. Moreover, Saleen was merely a grade-4 mage. He would not possess any good equipment either.