NOVEL NEXT Chapter 19: Balance
The top third of Deepblue is Isabella's exclusive area, and no one is allowed in. If you want to go in, you can. The magic puppets wandering between the floors have the strength equivalent to that of a level 15 warrior. They will attack any intruder that is not recorded in the magic core. As long as you can defeat these puppets, challenge a dozen magicians , and finally knock down Isabella, you can plunder the Legendary Archmage 's lair at will. At least in theory.
Legendary Archmage is a person who likes the sense of space, so she alone occupies a huge space. At this time, in a corner of the exclusive area, intermittent screams echoed. In the dark and long corridor, the screams echoed endlessly, making those who didn't know the truth shudder. However, the few people who knew the truth had a completely different reaction.
Minnie appeared from the end of the corridor, walking quickly. After all, she was still a young girl, with hurried steps, tightly pursed lips, slightly frowned eyebrows, and a slightly tense body, as if ready to dodge something at any time. She seemed to dislike the dark and gloomy corridor. However, this area is dark, gloomy, and damp. It was decided by the always correct Princess Isabella, so no one dared to raise any objections. At this time, a faint scream sounded again in the corridor. Minnie recognized the source of the sound, a sneer appeared on her lips, and she spat fiercely.
At the end of the dark area, there was a prison area covering more than a thousand square meters, with more than a dozen large and small prison cells with different functions . In the center of a prison cell, Randolph was hung high on the rack with his limbs stretched out , and his clothes were stripped off. A jailer was wielding a five-meter-long whip, hitting Randolph again and again . The jailer was a black man, with grease all over his knotted muscles, reflecting the greasy light. The edges of his leather shorts were worn out, and there were large dark brown stains on them . It was unknown who or what creature's blood it was.
If you can ignore the violence and blood in front of you and observe carefully, you will find that the jailer has extraordinary skills. The long whip shakes out complex trajectories in the air, crackling, and then falls on Randolph with a whistling sound of terrifying wind, leaving bright red bruises on both sides. The bruises are swollen, but not broken, so that the injury will not be too serious, and the pain can be multiplied. The jailer stood four meters away, waving a five-meter-long whip, and the whip marks left on Randolph by the tip of the whip were evenly distributed, almost filling every empty space that could be filled, with only occasional staggered marks, but no skin was broken. From a distance, it looks like a Fauvist abstract painting, with countless messy blocks of color and lines in a small space, but showing an indescribable beauty. Such skills are already perfect. If this jailer were put outside, he would also be considered a strong man.
Randolph's buttocks were swollen, tears, snot and saliva were intertwined on his face, and his handsome face was twisted into a mess. As an outstanding child of an ancient noble family, Randolph was not lacking in courage and patience. However, many punishments in the dark area were prepared for powerful races such as Purgatory Demons, Abyss Devils, various Dragonborn subspecies, mixed-blood orcs, and polar Gray Dwarf. Humans, especially magicians who are not good at physical strength, are simply a bowl of plain water to these masters of punishment. For example, the jailer who whipped Randolph only used the simplest whipping, which had already made his will collapse. You should know that the cell where Randolph was hung was very large, with a total of 16 sets of torture instruments placed in it, and the jailer could skillfully use nine of them.
After the beating, Randolph's convulsions did not stop, and he could not even faint. The intense pain came in waves, without peaks and valleys, without the slightest pause, constantly attacking the edge of his rationality, as if he would fall into the abyss of despair in the next moment.
All the injuries were concentrated on the buttocks that Minnie had reminded him to take special care of, so the huge humiliation almost drove Randolph crazy. Fortunately, he was a strong-willed person and did not completely collapse until the end. But when the whipping was over, he no longer had the strength to feel ashamed. During the torture, even more embarrassing things happened to him. He just hoped that this matter would not be spread out. If it got to Isabella's ears, then his position as an apprentice would definitely be lost. When he thought of life after being kicked out of Deepblue , Randolph suddenly felt a deep chill. He didn't even dare to imagine what he would do in the future. From being high up to falling to the mud, this kind of gap is not something that everyone can bear. Now, Randolph finally realized that what made him different was not his appearance or talent, but the title of Isabella's disciple and his family background.
For a moment, fear and regret consumed Randolph's heart, making him even forget to curse Minnie.
In one of Isabella's favorite lounges, a black-skinned slave over 2 meters tall was hunched over, carrying a huge golden round basin on his back. It was filled with all kinds of fresh and rare fruits. Some were plump and full, exuding an alluring luster, while others were strange in shape and color . There were all kinds of fruits, many of which were not produced in this season, and many were produced in other planes. In the crystal cup at the top, there were several treasures that were usually guarded by super-class monsters . This large basin of fruit probably weighed dozens of kilograms, and it was Isabella's snack today.
The black-skinned slave walked with heavy steps along the gravel path, then passed through a forest with colorful branches and leaves, and then passed through a large lawn, and finally saw a few tables and chairs placed by the lake. Compared with the eye-catching fruits and containers , the furniture had simple lines and even the decorations were pure colors. They were plain and simple, but at first glance, they immediately gave people a feeling of comfort and relaxation.
Isabella was lazily leaning on the couch, throwing fruits into her mouth one by one. Next to her was a similar golden fruit bowl, which was now empty. The slave put down the fruit bowl, took the old one, and returned along the same path. It was called a leisure hall, but the area of this area was more than 1,000 square meters, and it was equipped with a complete ecological and heating system, just like being in the most comfortable mountains.
Five or six Archmages were gathered around Isabella's couch, reporting the important events of the past period of time. In order of importance, the recent events were mainly about financial balance, Randolph, and Eldrin.
An Archmage described Deepblue 's income and expenditure during the winter in a concise and fast manner. Before he finished, a huge cherry that was about to be thrown towards Isabella's mouth suddenly stopped in the air. Then Isabella's extremely bright eyes stared at the Archmage , and a dragon-like pressure was instantly released, making all the Archmages present a little unstable.
"What did you say? We lost money last season?!"
Archmage in charge of finances was a very different race, and was actually the mortal enemy of mankind: the polar Gray Dwarf. Few Gray Dwarf had magical talents, and even fewer could cultivate to the Archmage level. However, Gray Dwarf's nature of making money and being meticulous made them perfect for accounting. He immediately bowed his head slightly, avoiding the Legendary Archmage 's gaze, and answered carefully: "Yes! But the loss is not large, less than 600,000 Imperial gold coins..."
Isabella interrupted him immediately: "That's also a loss! I remember that I just robbed a few dragons in the middle of last year , and I invested some of the gains into the operation of Deepblue . How can it be a loss? Have you found out the reason?"
"The reason has been found, but..." Mage Gray Dwarf hesitated, as if he was hesitant to speak.
"Speak!" Isabella raised her voice again.
Gray Dwarf gritted his teeth and said, "The reason is that you have been in a good mood recently..."
The cherry continued its flight and disappeared into the depths of Isabella's mouth. Legendary Archmage frowned his pretty eyebrows, thinking seriously, and after a moment he slowly said, "But I may feel better in the next period of time. Let's put this aside for now and talk about the rest!"
Another human mage immediately stepped forward and said, "Randolph has been punished as you ordered. Now what do you think should be done with him?"
"What's your suggestion?" Isabella lazily played with a flower fruit in her hand, looking a little uninterested.
human mage said, "His talent is quite good. His overall rating is excellent. He is also the son of Duke Solam of the Holy Tree Dynasty . Master Cruz has also affirmed his talent as an Artificer. So my suggestion is to keep him as an apprentice."
Legendary Archmage snorted and said, "That Cruz has the nerve to call himself a master? And he even added the prefix 'Saint' to his name! Putting all that aside, when has this old guy ever been right in judging people? We already have a future Great Artificer, so there's no need to train this kind of mediocre guy. It's a waste of resources! We lost a lot of money last season! How about this, according to the original decision, send Randolph back."
"But he is the son of Duke Solam after all ..." the human mage reminded carefully. Even in the Holy Tree Dynasty where powerful people gather, Duke Solam is still an important figure. The Duke himself also has three prominent titles: Dragon Slayer, Troll Terminator and Purgatory Hunter. He is only one step away from becoming a legend and may enter the legendary realm at any time. If the two sides really turn hostile, Duke Solam may not necessarily lose to Isabella.
Isabella waved her hand impatiently to interrupt him and said, "Randolph is Solam 's son, but Solam has more than one son! Besides Randolph's mother, Solam 's other eleven wives will stand on our side! How about this, I remember that two of Solam 's sons are talented and won't embarrass me too much. I'll give them priority for the self-funded apprenticeship. As long as Solam pays half of the original sponsorship fee, he can get this spot."
"With this sponsorship fee, Deepblue won't suffer a loss, right?" Isabella turned to Gray Dwarf, her face full of anticipation.
Gray Dwarf did a quick calculation and frowned, saying, "It can only guarantee spring. Because your mood will definitely get better and better in the future."
Isabella got serious this time. She grabbed the fruit in the bowl with her little hands, but forgot to put it in her mouth. She pondered, struggled , and finally said in pain: "My mood... this... I can't control it. What should I do now? Those dragons are already very poor. I just visited them one by one last year. I will definitely not get anything if I go again now. Moreover, they are moving farther and farther away. It is very hard to find them once..."
"How about... adding another quota for self-funded apprentices?" Gray Dwarf suggested tentatively.
Before Isabella could express her opinion, another elderly mage immediately objected: "That won't do! Your Highness Isabella's apprenticeship is so noble and important, how can you sell it casually? Having one apprentice can be considered a stopgap measure, but how can we add another one? If there are too many apprentices who are not worthy of their name, it will seriously damage the reputation of Your Highness and Deepblue !"
"Reputation is a matter of the future, but losses are right in front of us! Moreover, anyone who can become His Highness' apprentice, even if it is only a self-funded apprentice, will definitely be fought over by countless geniuses. Can you bear to see our youngest and most beautiful Highness unable to enjoy the joy she wants? Besides, among His Highness' students there is a future Great Artificer! Next to this dazzling sun, other stars will be dim." Gray Dwarf was almost jumping and shouting.
Isabella raised her hand again, and all the magicians stopped talking and waited for her decision with bated breath.
After wavering between deficit and reputation for many times, Isabella finally made a painful decision: "Just add another self-funded apprenticeship quota!"
In order to balance the psychological burden, Isabella immediately turned her attention to Eldrin and said, "Now, let's see what the future Saint Forgemaster has done."
The financial pressure immediately upgraded the young Eldrin's prospects from Grand Artificer to Saint Forgemaster.