The bright sunshine broke through the thick white clouds, and its warmth fell on the earth along with the light.
Outside the mansion, birds sang happily in the treetops, and bees followed the fragrance and landed on the flower petals to collect nectar.
Victor sat on a stone bench in the garden, breathing the clear air.
Holding a thick magic book in his hand, he read it carefully in the sunlight.
Yesterday, the royal city of the Kingdom of Kanter suffered an unprecedented blow.
The demi-humans broke into the city walls and destroyed the majestic royal city, leaving only ruins and ashes.
This brought extremely heavy losses to the entire Kanter Kingdom.
Every household in the royal city was plundered, although the main losses were the imprisoned demihuman slaves.
Other than that, most of the homes were demolished.
But the Cassidla Chamber of Commerce is obviously in bad luck.
The commercial city of the kingdom suffered an extremely heavy blow due to the battle between Victor and the demihumans.
The once prosperous commercial city has now been razed to the ground.
Countless buildings and shops were reduced to dust, and the economic losses caused cannot be described in words.
As for the huge commercial city in the royal city, nearly half of it is owned by the Cassidra Chamber of Commerce.
Although this chamber of commerce is so powerful that it rivals other countries in wealth, it cannot withstand such losses!
Therefore, the Kingdom and the Cassidla Chamber of Commerce will discuss the issue of compensation for the destruction of the Commercial City today.
As a Duke, Archduke Barlow got on the carriage and headed to the royal city early in the morning.
After all, he is the strongest in the entire kingdom.
Maybe in the past few days, he had to travel frequently between the royal city and the territory.
The Archduke's departure gave Aurelion some free time.
Otherwise, Aurelion would learn magic from the Grand Duke as long as he had time.
Just at this moment, Aurelion walked slowly along the garden path.
She also held two items in her hands.
One of the pieces of steel shone silvery white, and it looked like something extraordinary at first glance.
The other item looked like the tail that had fallen off from some kind of monster, but it had spikes, which made it look particularly dangerous.
"Teacher, the items you auctioned at the auction venue yesterday have arrived."
Hearing Aurelion's voice, Victor put down his book and looked at the two things she was holding.
The name of the item quietly appeared in front of Victor.
【Gaia's Thin Steel】
[Mahazak's Tail Thorn]
Then, a white magic flashed in Victor's eyes.
Two gusts of wind slowly rolled up from Aurelion's hand, blowing the two items into the air and falling onto his palm.
When he put it in his hand, Victor's eyes flashed with introductions about the two pieces of material:
[Gaia's Thin Steel: It comes from the deepest part of the earth. It is said to be fragments of ore that fell from the mountains on the back of the ancient giant Gaia. Its strength can even surpass that of diamond giants, and it can withstand extremely powerful forces. magic attack]
[Mahazak's Tail Thorn: Taken from the evil beast 'Mahazak' that is active in the world. The deadly spikes on its rear tail can even penetrate mountains and penetrate giant snakes]
Obviously, it's genuine.
Victor weighed the flowing and lustrous piece of steel in his hand and thought for a moment.
The proportion of Gaia's fine outlines is not large, and it is definitely not possible to make it into armor that covers the whole body.
Moreover, Gwen already has a powerful armor that has been strengthened several times, and there is no need for another one.
Perhaps, it can be made into a weapon.
Focusing on the 'Mahazak's Tail Thorn', Victor couldn't help but think of Erica.
Because Aurelion has a perverted bUff like [Eternal Furnace].
So when teaching, Victor did not completely treat her as a mage guide.
She can cultivate both near and far, just in time to maximize her [Eternal Furnace].
But Erica is a pure mage.
After reaching the third level, she should have a staff of her own.
Considering that she heroically stopped two disasters during the battle in the Padalombu Sea.
Victor felt that he should make an elaborate staff for her as a thank you.
However, Victor looked at Aurelion again.
The little princess was lowering her head and looking at the materials in Victor's hand with some doubts.
So Victor sighed.
In two days, it will be Aurelion's birthday.
Forget it, let’s talk about it then.
The two materials in his hands gradually emitted a faint brilliance, like stardust in the night sky, gradually dissipating.
Then, he raised his head again and looked at Aurelion:
"How's your study going?"
Aurelion was not surprised when she heard Victor's words.
She knew that the teacher was asking her about the progress of undead magic.
Normally, every time she finished learning a new magic, Victor would patiently ask her what she had learned.
The teacher was very interested in her learning new magic.
And every time she learned it, the teacher would use the magic she had learned exactly.
It was like correcting her mistake.
This time is no exception.
Normally, Aurelion would always confidently tell Victor that she had learned it.
But what was different from usual was that this time, Aurelion's face looked a little gloomy.
It seems that a child who has done something wrong has even lost his previous self-confidence.
"Sorry, teacher, I'm a little confused."
Undead magic is weird and profound, very different from ordinary magic.
It does not require mobilizing too much magic power, but it requires establishing a link with the realm of the dead to truly understand the meaning of "death".
What's more, she is still a little afraid of the souls living in the realm of the dead.
This made it impossible for her to understand those dead souls.
Victor remained calm, as if he had expected this situation.
"I see."
He slowly closed his eyes and placed the book on the seat.
Aurelion looked at Victor's movements and felt a little curious.
At this time, a cold breath rose from the ground, suddenly rising slowly along her legs.
Feeling this familiar feeling, Aurelion couldn't help but look down.
The bright land that was originally illuminated by the sun was gradually covered by a thick green fog.
She couldn't help but look around, feeling slightly startled.
Could this power be said to be...
She already had the answer in her mind.
Because this is what grandpa has shown her many times.
A harbinger of entering the realm of the dead.
Gradually, even the light that was originally as bright as stars was swallowed up by the thick fog, leaving only a faint fluorescent embellishment.
The surrounding space gradually distorted, and the ground beneath his feet began to slowly crumble.
A disgusting rotten stench rose from the soft soil and rushed straight into Aurelion's nose.
The sky obscured by green mist gradually became chaotic and extremely dark.
Above our heads, the gloomy sky seemed to never get brighter, always shrouded in a thick cloud of smoke.
But the land now was completely different from what Aurelion had seen before.
Originally, the land in the Realm of the Dead should have been deathly silent, with the dark scorched earth constantly filled with the smell of moisture and putrefaction.
But the realm of the dead here is actually covered by a golden wheat field.
Although the smell of decay still filled the air, the endless vitality brought her a different kind of comfort.
It's like the warm spring breeze blowing through the winter land.
It is obviously the domain of the dead, but this vitality makes this place seem particularly abrupt.
She seemed to realize something and exclaimed.
"This...isn't this the ear of wheat from the goddess of fertility?"
"That's right."
Suddenly, Victor's voice rang in her ears.
"The power of the goddess of fertility can bring life to any earth."
"Even this is the realm of the dead."
At some point, Victor was standing next to Aurelion:
"Undead magic is the magic that controls death."
"But life and death are always dependent on each other."
Along with Victor's words, the breeze blew across the land.
The boundless golden wheat fields caused a wave of fluctuation.
The sparkling golden light floated slowly, and an overflowing breath of life spurted out.
"Just like this land, even this most dead space still has life."
Aurelion felt this lush vitality, and her body seemed to be attracted by some kind of power.
A warm feeling flowed through her body, as if she was in her mother's arms.
She just stared at the golden waves of wheat, seemingly in a trance.
His body trembled slightly, wanting to become one with the earth.
But the gloomy green sky above seemed to conflict with the golden color.
It's like day and night intertwined, it's extremely ridiculous.
"What matters is what you see."
Victor looked forward, and the golden color of the entire wheat field slowly rose, illuminating the green sky.
In the blink of an eye, the entire realm of the dead seemed to be purified.
The originally thick green fog was slowly dispersed by the golden light, revealing a clear and dim sky.
"Is it a ghost, an evil spirit that will never rest in peace even after death?"
As Victor's words echoed in his ears, the blazing orange sky seemed to burst into flames.
That was the most perfect cloud flame just before the sky fell into silence.
"It is also the last song before the death of the living."
The broad clouds were completely ignited by the heat and spread thousands of miles.
The golden wheat waves and the red sky seemed to slowly merge together in the distance, making Aurelion somewhat unable to distinguish between the earth and the sky.
Her eyes widened, and her silver hair swept past her shoulders in the breeze and rose behind her.
Under the golden light, the long silver hair looked so noble and flawless.
At this moment, Aurelion's eyes reflected the sight of red gold.
There seemed to be a ray of enlightenment and hope in my heart, which was quietly lit up.
…
In the towering steel castle, huge black steel towers rise from the ground, supporting the tall palace.
The beautiful auctioneer sat in the palace, calm and composed.
Behind her, there were four or five burly bodyguards standing.
With just one glance, you can feel the dull and terrifying oppression coming from these bodyguards, like giant beasts standing guard in place.
Surrounded by a row of noble lords who had participated in the auction last night, they all wore various long swords on their waists.
Sitting directly in front of the nobles was King August.
Justice Barlow sat on a seat slightly lower than the king.
August nodded to the auctioneer from the Cassidla Chamber of Commerce with a smile on his face:
"The specific compensation still needs to be approved by our kingdom."
"Please rest assured that we will definitely give the Casidra Chamber of Commerce a reasonable compensation price that is acceptable to us."
The female auctioneer also responded with a smile and nodded gently:
"Our Chamber of Commerce has always believed in the credibility of the Kingdom. Since you have said so, we are willing to wait for a while."
"After all, no one wants to encounter this 'natural disaster', and we can understand it."
After the two parties exchanged a few words, the female auctioneer stood up and bowed slowly to August:
"Then, Your Majesty, we will take our leave now."
"There is also the compensation for Mr. Victor Klevenner, which we still need to calculate carefully."
August nodded in agreement.
The auctioneer slowly left with a group of guards.
After she left, the king also spoke:
"All the lords can go back and wait for the next news."
When the lords heard what August said, they stood up one after another without saying a word to each other, and some even snorted.
When the nobles stepped out of the gate, several lords glanced back at August, with some dissatisfaction with August in their eyes.
After all the nobles left, August sighed and relaxed his shoulders.
He rubbed his brow, feeling very distressed.
"well."
After what happened yesterday, the nobles and wealthy people suffered heavy losses.
As long as there were demihuman slaves in the house, they were basically torn apart.
Even the people in the royal city were frightened and panicked.
Not only that, the compensation demanded by the Cassidla Chamber of Commerce also followed.
Naturally, these compensations cannot be completely filled by the kingdom, and the lords present cannot escape their share of the compensation.
The occurrence of this incident had a huge impact on August's dominance.
If the two tiger men could be left behind and paraded in the streets, some negative effects could be eliminated.
But now, the two tiger-men were Victor's trophies, and he didn't dare to go to Victor to get them in person.
He now urgently needs a way to consolidate his dominance.
At this time, Grand Duke Barlow, who was sitting next to him with his eyes closed and concentrating, suddenly opened his eyes.
Those turbid eyes looked at August.
A dull voice suddenly sounded in the king's ears:
"Your Majesty, I think I need to give you a piece of advice."
August was suddenly startled, looked at the Grand Duke, and asked quickly:
"Your Majesty, please speak."
“Also think twice before trying to take shortcuts.”
"No one knows whether what is behind the mountain is a wild beast or a paradise."
After saying that, he closed his eyes again, and then tapped his cane on the floor.
"Princess Aurelion is still waiting for me at home. Please forgive me for not staying any longer."
A cloud of green smoke overflowed from nowhere and instantly entangled Archduke Barlow.
The next second, the slightly stooped figure in lead-colored robes left the place along with the dissipating green smoke.
August was still sitting in his original position, listening to the words of Archduke Barlow, dumbfounded.
He was a little unable to understand, thinking about the Grand Duke's words in his mind.
But he couldn't understand it after much thought. In the end, he could only sigh helplessly:
"In the end, we still have to rely on marriage."
"Sorry, Hilda."
"I agree to your promise, but I think I can't do it."
