Chapter 228: The Awkward Munch
That was a Primordial Deity Soul Fragment...
What were Primordial Deities? In Northend, they were the most powerful beings ever to exist—their power surviving only in myth. This was Leon's one and only chance to glimpse such power, and there was no way he could bear to let it go.
Lord Shaun was right about everything...
Everything about the Primordial Deities was taboo. Any attempt to probe or even discuss them would bring boundless disaster. Even a true name could easily destroy a plane. Leon keeping a Primordial Deity Soul Fragment was already an extremely dangerous act—even if the fragment was stored in a sub-plane.
But Leon did it anyway...
Leon had witnessed the destruction of Northend firsthand, felt the agony of possessing knowledge without power. To squeeze out even a sliver of mana, he could sleep in the scorching desert for a week straight. Just to cast a single low-level spell, he would spend days and nights constructing spell models, all for the sake of reducing the cost by even a fraction...
Leon’s hunger for power was something Lord Shaun could never understand.
For a chance like this, Leon was willing to risk everything.
"You’ve lost your mind!" In the end, Lord Shaun severed the mental link in anger, leaving Leon with a cryptic parting shot: "Just like that lunatic Barov, always shouting that disaster will repeat itself. You’re all mad!"
...Leon was left utterly confused by the scolding. He tried to call Lord Shaun out for an explanation, but this time, Shaun was dead set on not speaking. No matter how Leon threatened or coaxed, Shaun simply refused to say a word.
In the end, Leon had no choice but to pack up and leave the forest clearing with the Dragonblood Orc...
By the time Leon and Hubert returned to camp, it was already dusk.
Just as Leon had predicted, the Beast Tide had already receded. Order was restored to the camp, with a dozen bonfires blazing at its center. After a day of fierce battle, everyone was gathered around the fires, eating roasted meat, drinking strong liquor, and swapping stories of the day’s fighting. Laughter echoed far into the night...
For them, it was a battle worth boasting about. With only makeshift defenses, they had held off more than twenty Thunder Elephants, thousands of Fire Ravens, and the ensuing wave of thousands of magical beasts. In the end, they had successfully forced the terrifying Beast Tide to retreat.
None of them knew the real reason why the Beast Tide retreated...
In the entire camp, the number of people who knew the truth didn’t even reach thirty.
At that moment, they were all gathered around one bonfire, scrambling to express their gratitude to Leon.
When Salomon returned, he’d already told everyone what had happened. So now, whether it was Seth from the Silvermoon Mercenary Company, Soth from Viper’s Nest, or even Monty from the Monty Family, all knew that the Beast Tide had retreated entirely because the young Archmage had found its source.
"Haha, you’re all too kind..." Leon replied modestly, taking a seat by the fire and casually asking about the situation in camp.
"Merlin, it’s really thanks to your warning this time—we barely suffered any losses." Seth, as the battle’s commander, was the most qualified to answer. He credited nearly everything to Leon’s timely advice.
"I just happened to guess right," Leon replied with a smile and shook his head, not pressing the matter further.
After this battle, Leon could clearly feel that the leaders of Seaview City’s major factions were much warmer toward him...
Of course, it wasn’t that they hadn’t been friendly before...
In fact, on the journey over the past few days, the heads of several major factions had taken turns climbing into the Gilded Rose’s carriage. Their attitude was enthusiastic—almost excessively so—but it was a kind of enthusiasm laced with calculation and fear, making it feel awkward and insincere.
Now, though, their warmth felt much more genuine...
This time, it was heartfelt gratitude.
Everyone understood that if not for this young Archmage, they’d have had only two choices: evacuate Four Seasons Gorge immediately, or fight the Beast Tide to the bitter end. Either way, the losses would have been unbearable.
Fortunately, the young Archmage stepped up just in time, saw through the source of the Beast Tide, and resolved the crisis. Now, even those who weren’t close to Leon began to understand why the Blackhorn Auction House, Silvermoon Mercenary Company, and Sage’s Spire valued him so highly...
Those three were the factions most closely tied to the Gilded Rose in all of Seaview City.
Especially Sage’s Spire...
Salomon would call on the young Archmage for almost everything.
No one had understood why before...
But now, everyone was starting to get it. If I had an all-powerful ally like that, I’d call on him for everything too!
Of all the major factions, Monty was the only one feeling truly awkward...
To be honest, Monty was starting to regret things...
If he’d known from the start that Roger Merlin’s son would make it this far, he never would’ve gotten involved in Roger Merlin’s shipwreck, let alone listened to Solan and tried to seize Roger’s house—or end up with such a bitter feud with Matthew Merlin.
He wouldn’t even have gotten into the alchemy business, opening so many Twinmoon Radiance shops.
But, ‘if only’ was just ‘if only’...
He’d already been involved in Roger Merlin’s shipwreck, already seized Roger’s house, and now Twinmoon Radiance had spread across Seaview City. Though always struggling under the Gilded Rose’s pressure, everyone knew Twinmoon Radiance was Gilded Rose’s rival...
That stain could never be washed away...
All of this put Monty in a very awkward position.
Opposing Matthew Merlin, opposing the Gilded Rose—these were things Monty didn’t even dare to think about now. The Gilded Rose was at its peak, and even Sage’s Spire, once the top faction in Seaview City, seemed ready to step aside.
As for Matthew Merlin himself, he was even more unfathomable. Soth, usually so defiant, didn’t even dare breathe loudly in his presence. Salomon, the top mage in Seaview City, only treated him as an equal. President Lance of the Alchemist Guild, and the newly appointed Grandmaster, both admitted that their alchemical skills couldn’t compare to Matthew Merlin’s.
These days, Matthew Merlin seemed to have a halo over his head.
Unless Solan managed to reach Title Archmage in the Azure Plane this time, Monty would never even have a chance to stand tall before Matthew Merlin...
But reaching Title Archmage was no easy feat.
If it were that simple, Solan wouldn’t have entered the Azure Plane three times, wouldn’t have gotten Monty involved in Roger Merlin’s shipwreck, wouldn’t have plotted for Roger’s house...
Right now, Monty actually wanted to do what the other faction leaders were doing—take this chance to show some goodwill to Matthew Merlin.
But Monty just couldn’t bring himself to do it...