Translator: SumTLMan
Angel glanced at Daus briefly and spoke lightly: “So, you just want to watch the show?”
Daus chuckled without replying directly, instead communicating to Angel through the mental connection: “You won’t kill him anyway. A little punishment to let him see the harshness of the world wouldn’t hurt. If you can’t think of a way to punish him, I can help.”
However, Angel did not respond through the mental connection but said aloud: “This matter doesn’t really concern him; I was just played by Aesop.”
This issue is related to Aesop’s deliberate concealment, so if we need to find the main culprit, we should look for Aesop. Besides, even if we made Kael compensate, he wouldn’t have much of value to offer, but Aesop is a different story; he is a fat sheep, and even a little fleece would be beneficial.
However, this isn’t something Kael should handle himself; we need to find a mediator.
Iron Armor Granny… or perhaps, Lord Rhine?
As Angel was contemplating how to recover some benefits from Aesop, Kael, who was sitting paralyzed on the ground, after hearing Angel’s words, his eyes lit up, feeling hopeful. He quickly nodded and said: “Yes, yes, yes, I didn’t realize the decryption would be so difficult. It’s Mentor, yes, Mentor is the one tricking the Lord! You can go to Mentor to seek justice, and I will definitely stand by your side!”
To show his sincerity, Kael even deliberately made a gesture of righteous indignation towards Aesop.
Angel and Daus looked at Kael with peculiar eyes; they hadn’t expected this seemingly easy-to-manipulate boy to be quite slippery.
After Kael expressed his heartfelt opinion, he looked at Angel with a face full of expectation.
Angel coughed twice and said: “What you’re saying isn’t wrong. You won’t need to compensate for the potions or anything. However, even though this matter doesn’t largely concern you, the fact remains that in order to decrypt this blueprint, I have expended a lot of mental power, and since this blueprint is yours, you bear some responsibility…”
Before Angel could finish, Kael seemed to understand something and quickly interjected: “The profits from the exploration can be yours, ninety percent!”
Angel was stunned for a moment, not expecting Kael to be so cooperative.
However, profits and such weren’t really what Angel was concerned about. He only wanted to know if the wall in reality existed, if it could be opened with a dagger… and also, whether the dagger would have any effect on the wall in the Nightmare Plane.
“Thinking about benefits now, you are too naive,” Angel said lightly: “Whether it’s beneficial or harmful inside, it’s debatable. I don’t ask for any profits; I only ask for one thing, if we really do find the door corresponding to the dagger, everything must be under my command. Even if I eventually tell you not to open that door, you must not object.”
Why not open the door if it’s found? Kael was puzzled by this.
But seeing Angel’s serious expression, Kael could only nod, not daring to argue. After all, he was just a mere apprentice, and moreover, a research fanatic. If he were to really go on an exploration, he would still need to rely on Angel’s support.
Angel saw that Kael was obedient and put aside his previous dissatisfaction, sitting back at the table.
“This is the blueprint, you can take a look first.”
Kael stood up, his legs feeling less wobbly, and stepped forward to examine the decryption stack for the alchemy blueprint spread out before him.
After carefully examining them for a long while, Kael couldn’t help but nod.
“What, did you see something?” Daus asked beside him. He hadn’t noticed anything special himself; could it be that Kael understood something? It’s no wonder, being a disciple of Lord Aesop, he claimed to not have learned runes, but he probably had some understanding of the path of runes after all.
Kael pondered for a moment before finally blurting out: “It’s too beautiful!”
Angel and Daus: “…”
Daus: “What’s too beautiful?”
Kael said with admiration: “This dagger is the most ornate I’ve ever seen, its elemental gemstones are like dazzling suns, casting golden light streams, and the Red Shatter Diamonds embellished on the blade only elevate its beauty!”
After hearing Kael’s praise, Angel silently said: “Although your review is layered, I must say, these are not elemental gemstones but rather a polished and waxed Dreamlight Crystal, and the embellishments on the blade are not Red Shatter Diamonds but Illusory Spirit Diamond magic rune nodes.”
After Angel spoke, he quietly looked at Kael.
Kael awkwardly tugged at the corner of his mouth, unsure of what to say.
Misidentifying items was not the most embarrassing thing for Kael. The most embarrassing part was that whether it was Dreamlight Crystal or Illusory Spirit Diamonds, they were both space type materials, and Kael himself was a space wizard apprentice, yet he hadn’t recognized them and had spouted nonsense, which was truly the most embarrassing.
Daus was already bending over, clutching his stomach in laughter, although he hadn’t recognized the polished Dreamlight Crystal either…
Looking at Kael’s utterly embarrassed demeanor, Angel quietly said: “Whatever you are feeling right now doesn’t matter. What you need to do now is to go and find the materials for crafting the dagger.”
“I have brought some materials with me, including some rare ones that can be used. However, there are still many materials that are missing, which you will need to find.”
After Angel finished speaking, he waved his hand lightly, and a stack of papers floated in front of him.
Without any movement or writing, text began to appear on the pages.
One page wasn’t enough, after writing filled three pages, they gently fell, landing in Kael’s hands.
“The materials for crafting the dagger are listed here, those in black font I already have, so you don’t need to buy them; those in red font, you will need to purchase outside.”
Kael looked down at the pages in his hands, each densely written with the precise measurements of each material and the uses of each material marked… yet it still made Kael’s scalp tingle.
“Lord, these materials…”
Before Kael could finish, Angel already understood his meaning, nodding and saying: “Yes, they are all for you to claim. The reason they are precise to the gram is to make it easy for you to calculate, you don’t need to refer to the auction price, just the market average will do.”
Kael felt a lump in his throat, and darkness seemed to loom before his eyes.
Under normal circumstances, Angel only needed to list the unavailable materials, but the fact that he listed all materials, available or not, implied a clear message. Kael had hoped for some luck, but it now seemed he was simply too naive.
“What now, you’re not planning to craft it? Or do you want to find someone else to do it? Either way, it’s up to you. However, you can cancel the task, but you’ll need to explain it to Lord Aesop, and you’ll also have to forgo the reward for the mission,” Angel said, after noticing that Kael had been still for quite some time.
Kael quickly shook his head: “No, no, I was just looking at the list.”
After a long pause, Kael put down the list, took a deep breath, and said to Angel: “Please wait a moment, Lord. I will find the materials right now.”
With that, Kael walked out of the cave like a warrior stepping onto the battlefield, his steps heavy.
It wasn’t until Kael’s figure had disappeared that Angel whispered softly: “I didn’t expect that. He has more savings than I thought… Quite a substantial amount.”
“Being a space wizard, the expenses are high, but so is the speed of earning money. I heard that Kael also participated in repairing some deep layers of alternate dimensions at the Sandworm Market; otherwise, the Lawrence family would not have let him monopolize such a large ruin site. There are deep exchanges of interests involved here,” Daus commented from the side.
Speaking of earning speed, alchemists are actually the fastest, as seen from Angel’s appearance of never lacking money, even his flying vessel is luxuriously enviable.
Although space wizards don’t earn as quickly as alchemists, they have their tricks, like arranging spatial extensions or spatial blockades for shops, and creating one-time spatial capsules. Both are major money-makers, so if you really dig into Kael’s resources, you could still pull out treasure.
On the other hand, Daus himself was truly as poor as dirt. As a bloodline branch wizard, his expenses were high, and without a steady way of earning crystals, an occasional trip to the Abyss might earn him some hard-earned money, but it’s not a place one can stay in indefinitely. Not everyone has the comfort of earning money even while lying down, like Angel and Kael.
Thinking this, Daus felt pity for himself. Already destitute, he could only rely on selling some wine for a living. He had just encountered an opportunity to get involved in the chaos in the Guman Kingdom and make some money, but Angel was not cooperating with him.
How helpless.
As Daus was wallowing in self-pity, Angel looked at him with a strange expression: “Why are you still here?”
This was a question Angel had wanted to ask before. Logically, once Angel began decrypting, Daus should have left, but instead, he and Kael had been waiting outside for over ten hours, which puzzled Angel.
Was Daus really that idle? Is this what the so-called “freedom” of a wandering wizard looks like?
Daus responded: “Why can’t I be here?”
Angel was silent for a few seconds, then nodded: “You’re right, you can be anywhere. My apologies for being abrupt.”
With that, Angel no longer paid attention to Daus and buried himself in studying the alchemy blueprint.
He had already taken a cursory look at this dagger before. He understood the runes and magic formations, but he still hadn’t figured out why it could serve as a key.
When Angel suddenly became engrossed in the alchemy blueprint, Daus couldn’t help but tap on the table somewhat helplessly.
Angel lifted his head: “Is there anything else?”
Daus: “Don’t you want to know why I chose to stay here?”
Angel: “I don’t want to know. Whatever decision you make is possible. I’m used to it.”
Initially, when Angel went to rescue Aubrey, Daus, who had nothing to do with it, insisted on coming along under the pretext of leading the way, but in reality, he was just addicted to watching the drama unfold. Such a person, whatever decision he makes, is considered normal.
Seeing that Angel was about to bury his head in his work again, Daus sighed: “Really boring. You used to be quite lively when watching the drama, how come you seem like a different person now?”
“I wasn’t just watching the drama, I always have a purpose in everything I do.”
“The Zodiac Palace?”
“That’s purely for cultivating those with talent.”
“I’d believe a ghost over you.” Daus: “Alright, I’ll just tell you directly. I discussed with Kael outside earlier, and if you guys are going to explore the ruins, count me in. I can be a fighter for free, just give me some odds and ends, Kael agreed too.”
Angel: “Oh.”
“Just an ‘oh’? Aren’t you surprised?”
Angel couldn’t be bothered to reply, there was nothing to be surprised about, he could guess that Daus couldn’t stand the loneliness and would definitely find a way to get involved. Besides, he was sure that Daus would persuade Kael by saying, ‘You’re going to explore with a wizard and an apprentice, do you really trust him? Even if there’s a problem, you wouldn’t have anywhere to seek help, so having one more person like me could balance Angel out, look how good that is.’
Given Kael’s character, he would probably think Daus was right. Letting him join was just logical, so Angel wasn’t surprised.
As for whether Daus joining was a benefit or a detriment, Angel couldn’t really say, but anyway, he’d just take it one step at a time.
“I’m not really surprised, I just hope that Walking Together Again on this trip with you, you can be less noisy, and also, it would be best if you didn’t act on your own.”