Chapter 120: Who's Pressuring Whom (Rolling Around Begging for Votes!)
Back then, William Merlin thought this task was ridiculously simple...
Matthew Merlin was living such a hard life, he couldn't even pay off an eight-thousand gold coin debt. He was just a mage apprentice, after all. Now, with a chance to be associated with the Merlin family—maybe even be recognized as a direct descendant—this was like ascending to heaven in a single leap, a dream come true.
William Merlin figured his job was almost laughably easy: just make a trip to Seaview City, state his purpose, and surely Matthew Merlin wouldn’t dare refuse the Merlin family. Once the Nether Iron Vein was in hand, he’d give Matthew a few pointers to help him become a mage. As for that eight-thousand gold coin debt... Come on, is that even a real debt?
Besides, William Merlin considered himself quite thoughtful. Worried about Matthew Merlin’s future livelihood, he’d even brought Angmar all the way from Auckland. A Grand Alchemist like Angmar—just put him in the Gilded Rose and business would come flooding in, right?
Such a beautiful blueprint, such a flawless plan...
In the end, it all got slapped down—hard.
William Merlin felt utterly wronged. Cousin, oh cousin, I came here to help you! Why can't you see that? Why do you keep slapping me down?
Damn, now things are really messed up...
If Matthew Merlin doesn’t want help, fine—but he still needs to hand over the Nether Iron Vein!
If I can't get my hands on the Nether Iron Vein, how am I supposed to answer to the Merlin family?
If it were anyone else, William Merlin might consider taking it by force. But facing someone as freakish as Matthew Merlin—forget it. This is the guy who, under the combined assault of Serpent of the Gale and Death's Chill, managed to cast Elemental Avatar. A true Grand Mage.
William Merlin always thought of himself as a magical prodigy, but in front of this cousin, he didn't have an ounce of confidence...
At his age, was he a seventh-level mage or eighth-level mage?
Maybe I should just find someone to help?
William Merlin remembered that when he set off for Seaview City, his father specifically told him he had some connections there. If he ran into trouble, he could ask this person for help. Right—his name was Soth, apparently the head of the city's biggest underground organization.
Thinking of this, William Merlin's eyes lit up. The head of Seaview City's largest underground group should have some influence, right? Maybe not as much as President Lance or Archmage Salomon, but putting a little pressure on his cousin shouldn't be a problem.
Really, he didn't need Soth to do much—just apply some pressure, get Matthew Merlin to sit down and talk about that Nether Iron Vein. Then he could offer all kinds of terms. Surely Matthew would give in.
But... how was he supposed to contact this Soth?
When his father mentioned Soth, he’d thought, "What trouble could I possibly run into in Seaview City?" He basically let the advice go in one ear and out the other, didn’t even bother to note down Soth’s contact info...
Forget it, better ask someone.
William Merlin stepped out of his guest room, about to look for a servant to ask, when he suddenly saw Farrow coming in from outside.
"So, did you thank President Lance yet?" Farrow grinned as soon as he saw William Merlin.
Farrow was never one to let things go. After being humiliated by William Merlin that morning, he finally found a chance to get back at him—no way he'd pass up the opportunity to rub it in.
"Cut the crap!" William Merlin felt his forehead veins throbbing. Damn, this bastard was really something—he knew William just got chewed out by President Lance, but still had to ask if he'd thanked him. What a jerk!
Wait, wasn’t I just about to ask someone about Soth?
Thinking of this, William Merlin forced his gloomy expression to soften, swallowing his pride for a whole minute before finally managing a stiff smile.
"Uh, Farrow, right?"
"Mm..." Farrow lounged in a chair, eyes half-closed, nodding ever so slightly. His voice was so soft it was almost like a mosquito—if you weren't paying attention, you'd think he was already asleep.
Damn, this bastard was definitely doing it on purpose!
William Merlin took a deep breath, barely keeping his temper in check and forcing a stiff smile: "Farrow, is there someone named Soth in Seaview City?"
"Soth? You mean Soth from the Viper's Nest?"
"Viper's Nest—is that Soth's organization?" William Merlin's eyes lit up. With the name of the group, the problem was suddenly much simpler. Just go out and ask anyone, no need to keep up this awkward chat with Farrow. He couldn't even bother to keep his fake smile: "Has anyone ever told you you're even more annoying than the vegetable sellers?"
With that, William Merlin strutted off...
Farrow was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh. So you want Soth to help you out? Just wait till you actually meet him...
Leaving the Merlin residence, William Merlin started asking around. He quickly learned that the Viper's Nest was based in Venomfog Gorge, north of Seaview City. Without hesitation, he hired a carriage and headed straight for Venomfog Gorge...
Outside Venomfog Gorge, William Merlin barely glanced around before tossing a hundred gold coins to the driver. Then he found a watchtower manned by sentries.
"My name is William Merlin. I want to meet with Leader Soth!"
The moment the sentry heard the name "Merlin," his hand trembled and he fired a signal arrow into the sky. Venomfog Gorge instantly went on high alert—dozens of watchtowers and hundreds of crossbows all aimed at William Merlin. Down in the gorge, a whole phalanx of warriors had swords and shields at the ready, prepared to charge at any moment. And behind them, a group of mages looked like they were about to start casting spells!
This chapter isn’t over yet~.~ Click next page to keep reading the good stuff!
Damn it, this can't be serious!
William Merlin broke out in a cold sweat. What was going on here? Had his father lied to him? Didn’t his father say Soth was on friendly terms with him? Why did these guys act like they were facing an enemy as soon as they heard his name?
"Don’t do anything rash, don’t do anything rash!" William Merlin frantically waved his hands and backed away: "I mean no harm, I just want to meet with Leader Soth!"
Thankfully, Soth finally showed up...
"William, what are you doing here?" Soth, seeing it was William Merlin, quickly called off his jumpy subordinates and invited William into his cabin, greeting him warmly.
A few years back in Auckland, Soth had received a lot of help from William Merlin’s father. Plus, Soth wanted to get close to the powerful Merlin family. So he was especially enthusiastic in welcoming William.
Especially when William Merlin mentioned he had a small favor to ask of Uncle Soth, Soth agreed without hesitation.
"No problem, listen, William—your Uncle Soth still has a little influence in Seaview City. If you run into any trouble, just say the word. The way your father helped me back then, I’ll help you the same way now."
"Thank you, Uncle Soth."
"No need to be so polite..." Soth replied with a big smile.
"Here's the thing, Uncle Soth. I've run into a bit of trouble in Seaview City—a guy named Matthew Merlin..."
"Wait, which Merlin?"
"Matthew Merlin." William Merlin gave Soth a strange look, then patiently repeated himself.
"Matthew Merlin!" As soon as William said the name, Soth jumped up. "Hell, Matthew Merlin—you mean Matthew Merlin!"
"Yeah, Matthew Merlin. Uncle Soth, what's wrong?"
"Well, William..." After sitting back down, Soth's face wasn’t nearly as relaxed as before. "You just said—what about Matthew Merlin?"
"Here’s the deal, Uncle Soth. I have some business to discuss with Matthew Merlin, but he seems to really dislike me. He won’t even sit down and talk. So I was wondering, with your influence in Seaview City, could you maybe put a little pressure on him...?"
"Put pressure on him!" Soth blurted out, nearly sweating.
Looking at William Merlin, Soth was so frustrated he almost started cursing...
Damn it, stop calling me uncle—how about I call you uncle instead? Spare me, please! You want me to put pressure on Matthew Merlin? Are you trying to make things even worse for me here in Venomfog Gorge? Last time, I tried putting pressure on him over some Hope Potion business, and what happened? He came here alone, blew up two of my watchtowers, and even forced me to give up a trade route.
And now you want me to pressure him again...
Would you only be happy if I handed over all of Venomfog Gorge?
Honestly, Soth really did want to help—partly to repay William Merlin’s father, and partly to get in good with the powerful Merlin family.
But when William Merlin said the pressure was to be put on Matthew Merlin, Soth just wanted to send him away as quickly as possible...
"William, I really can't help you with this." It wasn’t that he couldn’t help—it was that he didn’t dare. Soth remembered clearly: Matthew Merlin had two alchemical potions in his possession.
One was called the Arcane Spring—Soth had tried it himself, and it worked wonders. Just leaving a bottle of Arcane Spring in a ventilated spot could ensure that every member of the Viper's Nest wouldn’t be affected by the poisonous mist of Venomfog Gorge for three days.
But as for the other alchemical potion, Soth would rather go his whole life without knowing its name—because he knew, the moment that potion came out, it would be the end of the Viper's Nest.
Pressure...
Who’s pressuring who here, anyway?
Last night’s chapter was updated at 12:08, and today I posted another 6,000 words. That’s 9,500 words in 24 hours—even with a nap in between!
So, as a diligent and prolific author, I think I deserve to ask everyone for monthly votes, right?