Chapter 1001: Hand Over the Mana Crystal
Because the Ice Ape was of a higher rank and had stronger defenses—aside from Zero Degree Dragon Breath and some advanced draconic spells—Reina's regular frost magic barely affected it. She hadn't complained, but after chasing it all this way, Reina's temper was already at its breaking point. Now that someone had snatched their prize, she was about to explode...
"Bastards! How dare you steal Lord Anderson's prey? Kill them, kill them all! Merlin, wipe them out—take all their True Spirit Relics too..."
All three of Anderson's faces twisted in fury. After chasing for hours, to have their prize snatched away at the last moment—Anderson felt like he was about to explode, desperate to wipe out everyone on the other side...
Everyone's tempers were flaring. At that moment, a man in his thirties stepped forward from the opposing side, dressed in a purple robe woven from the finest materials. Runes and magical patterns were stitched into the fabric, and after a bit of enchanting and rune work, the robe became a powerful defensive magical artifact.
The robe had five solidified shield spells and several escape spells—all sixth-tier magic. There were even two solidified Flight spells.
The robe was nothing short of extravagant, and the three rings on his hand radiated strong magical energy—they were all at least True Spirit Relics.
Leon recognized the man—he was one of the leaders of the Henry Family this time.
The Henry Family built their fortune through commerce. To avoid the pitfalls of strong personal will leading to poor decisions, they never have a single patriarch. Instead, at least three top decision-makers lead the family, and every shop has at least two managers. Entering the Blazeforge Battlefield was a big deal, so naturally, two leaders came.
Standing before them was one of those leaders—Morgan Henry.
Morgan wore the radiant smile unique to merchants, his voice loud and exaggerated yet carrying a noble elegance—nothing like a nouveau riche who'd only risen in the past millennium.
"Ah, isn't this Archmage Leon Merlin? What a coincidence! You're here too? Were you hunting this Ice Ape? Oh, damn, I was just wondering why the beast looked so battered—it was so easy for us to finish it off. My apologies."
Morgan Henry's face showed a hint of regret and apology, his attitude seeming genuinely sincere.
Even Hubert, the most hot-tempered among them, was left speechless. He sullenly lowered his warhammer, shooting Morgan Henry a hostile glare.
"Morgan Henry, it is quite the coincidence. Yes, we were hunting this Ice Ape—we've been fighting it for ages and chased it at least dozens of kilometers to get here."
Leon replied to Morgan in a cool, detached tone.
Morgan pressed his hand to his forehead, face full of genuine-seeming regret.
"I'm truly sorry, Archmage Leon. We honestly didn't see you. We only spotted the Ice Ape from a distance, and it looked badly wounded. Of course we wouldn't let such an opportunity slip by, so we acted without thinking.
Please believe me, the Henry Family absolutely didn't intend to steal your prey. This is all a misunderstanding. Since you hunted it for so long, it should be yours. We don't want the Ice Ape's corpse—you can have it.
Lastly, on behalf of myself, I apologize for our rashness. I hope next time we meet, we'll have a chance to cooperate."
Morgan kept his warm smile throughout, flawless in its courtesy—this was the Henry Family's rule: always be polite to every potential client. Even if they're enemies, as long as they might become customers, you have to flash a brilliant smile.
Morgan's attitude was sincere; Leon responded with a faint, ambiguous smile, simply nodding in acknowledgment.
Leon's followers also dropped their battle-ready stances. Hubert hefted his warhammer, Slaughter, and boasted with a smug grin.
"Good thing you know your place. No one dares steal Lord Hubert's prey..."
Morgan chatted casually with Leon for a bit, always steering the conversation toward buying Leon's spoils or pitching Henry Family magical goods.
Seeing Leon's men start processing the Ice Ape's body, Morgan finally spoke with a look of regret.
"Archmage Leon, I hope you'll seriously consider my offer. Anything available in the Northend World, the Henry Family can get for you. As long as the price is right, you can always come to us.
We still have more exploring to do, so we won't disturb you further. Goodbye."
With that, Morgan flew up toward the skyship. As he turned away, a flash of smugness flickered in his eyes.
Idiots. By the time they realize the Ice Ape's Mana Crystal is gone, we'll be long gone—what, do they expect to chase us down for it?
Would they really dare accuse us without evidence?
Lucky break—snagging a Mana Crystal like this was way too easy...
Morgan hadn't even reached the skyship when a shout erupted from the ground.
"Where's the Mana Crystal? It's gone!"
The mage collecting materials from the corpse shouted. Instantly, Morgan's face changed—he hadn't expected Leon's men to go for the Mana Crystal first.
Normally, you'd start with the hide, then drain the beast's blood—especially the blood of a Sky Rank Beast, which is packed with power. The Ice Ape's blue blood was loaded with terrifying frost magic, perfect for alchemical ink or frost-attribute spell scrolls—the best stuff you could get.
After that, you'd process the flesh and bones, and only dig out the Mana Crystal last.
That's how you maximize the value of the Ice Ape's corpse—not grabbing the Mana Crystal first. Doing it out of order loses at least a quarter of the value, and for a Sky Rank Beast, that's a massive loss.
Damn amateurs—what a waste. This method totally ruins the corpse's value. In the Henry Family, even a rookie collector would be fired for this. Bumpkins, the lot of them. People from the Andalusia Kingdom really are just a bunch of hicks...
Morgan cursed inwardly, but couldn't just slip away. If he'd stolen the Mana Crystal and left now, it would be obvious. With everyone still here, leaving would be a dead giveaway.
This was bad news for the Henry Family's reputation. As a merchant-mage faction, reputation was everything—directly tied to their wealth.
After a moment's hesitation, Morgan didn't leave right away. The Mana Crystal was important, but not worth sacrificing the Henry Family's reputation entirely.
On the ground, the mages split into teams and searched the Ice Ape's corpse several times, but found no Mana Crystal. Everyone turned to look at Morgan.
"No wonder you were so generous about giving us the Ice Ape. Turns out you stole the Mana Crystal! Hand it over!"
Hubert glared fiercely at Morgan, who floated in midair, and roared.
Morgan looked bewildered, then shrugged.
"Mana Crystal? What Mana Crystal? Oh, heavens, you don't think I took the Ice Ape's Mana Crystal, do you? This is a huge misunderstanding—how could I possibly do that? You should keep searching.
I was just discussing with your leader whether we could buy the Ice Ape's Mana Crystal and heartblood. The Mana Crystal's missing? That's impossible, absolutely impossible.
If you're willing to sell it to us, we'd be happy to buy. But accusing us of taking it—that's a real blow to our friendship."
Morgan wore an expression of helplessness and confusion, even deep puzzlement—he played the part perfectly...
Leon stood at the back, smiling faintly, saying nothing. Last time, with the Red Flame Fire Fox, everyone learned its Mana Crystal was the real prize. Now, with a similar beast, of course they'd go for the Mana Crystal first.
Hubert swung Slaughter a couple times, baring his teeth at Morgan.
"Damn bastard, you look shady as hell. That fake smile—you're a thief, aren't you? Hand over the Mana Crystal, or I'll show you what Lord Hubert's Slaughter feels like. I wouldn't mind smashing every bone in your body..."
Hubert howled threats while Kurum, the collector, stood below with a grim face.
"Morgan, this joke isn't funny. Besides us, only your people were here, and we only just started processing the Ice Ape's corpse. If the Mana Crystal's missing, there's only one explanation—someone took it early, and there are fresh signs of harvesting.
During that window, only your people had access to the corpse. If you wanted the Mana Crystal, you could've negotiated with Lord Merlin. But this kind of petty thievery is beneath you—especially as one of the six forces Odin Kingdom sent to the Blazeforge Battlefield.
Is your dignity really worth just a level forty Mana Crystal?
Morgan, hand over the Mana Crystal and we'll pretend nothing happened."
Kurum spoke calmly and steadily, but Morgan's face changed drastically—this was far more damaging than Hubert's threats.
If word got out that the Henry Family's dignity was worth a level forty Mana Crystal, they'd be a laughingstock. Rival families would make sure the joke spread far and wide...
Hubert kept swinging Slaughter, roaring nonstop.
"Hand over the Mana Crystal. You have ten seconds, or Lord Hubert's going to lose his temper. When I get mad, even I get scared—one, two, three, five, seven..."
Anderson, controlling the Arcane Wheel, shouted with all three faces at once.
"Hand over the Mana Crystal, or don't blame us for what happens next! Damn bastard, no wonder you were so generous and eager to leave—you snuck off with the Mana Crystal!"
Everyone's expression soured. They all knew that Mana Crystal hid some deep secret—so many people were fighting over it, and its value probably exceeded the Ice Ape's entire corpse.
Normally, the most valuable part of an Ice Ape corpse would be its heartblood. Ape-type magical beasts are rare, and their blood can be refined by alchemists for warriors to fuse, granting powerful bloodline abilities.