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Forbidden Sphere Chapter 115
"They only had twelve Essence Crystals between the five of them?" Arran looked in disappointment at the void bags in front of him. He had hoped there would be dozens if not hundreds of Essence Crystals among the mages' belongings, but after half an hour of careful searching, he had found no more than twelve. Snowcloud had taken all the herbs and potions the bags contained, but other than that, she seemed to have no real interest in the mages' belongings — not even the Essence Crystals, whose quality she had deemed insufficient. That left Arran with a princely sum of gold, as well as a small pile of valuables. And, most importantly, twelve Essence Crystals that looked to be of decent quality, no matter what Snowcloud said. "You're lucky you found even that much," Snowcloud said. "Most novices use Essence Crystals as soon as they create them." "You don't," Arran pointed out, well aware that she carried around a stash of high-quality Essence Crystals. "I'm not most novices," she rep
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 116
"Just how much farther is this city of yours?" Arran asked, suppressing a yawn. It was halfway through the morning, and they had broken camp at dawn — just a few hours before Arran went to sleep after practicing his magic well into the night. Well over two weeks had passed since Snowcloud had announced they would visit the city — Goldhaven, she said it was called — but although she claimed the journey would only take them a week or two, they still had yet to see any sign of the city. "I don't know," Snowcloud replied. "I've only seen it on maps, and good maps are hard to find. But we should be going in the right direction, so we'll get there sooner or later." In truth, Arran wasn't too concerned with the length of the journey. Between training and absorbing his newly acquired Essence Crystals, he was busy whenever they camped, and the days of travel were a welcome break from practice. When they reached Goldhaven, there would be no more days of strolling through the countryside. An
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 117
The man led Arran and Snowcloud through the city at a quick pace, but although he seemed both friendly and polite, Arran could not help but notice that a few paces behind them followed half a dozen guards. If they weren't exactly prisoners, it was clear that they weren't free to go, either. But there was no point in worrying about that. For the time being, all they could do was follow behind the well-dressed man, and hope that he wasn't leading them to imprisonment — or worse. Within the city, Arran knew, any attempt to escape would likely end in disaster. As they moved through the streets, Arran looked around and found himself impressed by what he saw. Goldhaven was clearly a wealthy city, with wide streets, large stone buildings, and numerous shops and stores. The crowds were thick, and although most of the people Arran saw looked to be merchants and traders, he could also see many wearing the armor of mercenaries or bandits, and more than a few who were dressed like mages. Thei
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 118
Lord Sevaril gave Arran a bemused glance, then turned his attention back to Snowcloud. "You haven't told your companion about your mission?""He's my recruit," she answered. Then, some color appearing on her cheeks, she added, "And no, I haven't yet told him everything.""Told me what?" Arran asked. He could tell that the issue was an important one, but he still had no idea what Snowcloud and Lord Sevaril were talking about. Nor, for that matter, how they even knew each other."You should tell him," Lord Sevaril said, his expression serious. "Ill-mannered though he may be, if he is to accompany you, he should know the dangers.""What dangers?" Arran obviously knew that even traveling in the region was dangerous, but it was clear that what Lord Sevaril was talking about was something far beyond the normal risks travelers faced. And anything that someone with the power to hold a city in the borderlands feared was something that Arran knew would be cause for concern.Snowcloud hesitated
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 119
Lord Sevaril and Snowcloud descended the stairs, with Arran warily following a few paces behind them. Lord Sevaril's casual death threat had not come as a complete surprise to Arran — knowing Snowcloud's secrets obviously carried risks — but it had served as yet another reminder of his precarious situation.The fact of the matter was that he had no powerful backers or allies. If any one of the powerful mages he encountered decided to kill him, there would be nobody to avenge his death. If he was to rely on anyone to protect him, it would have to be himself, and for that, he needed to become more powerful. But gaining power required time and resources, and right now, he was short on both.A few floors below the chamber where they had first met Lord Sevaril, the man left the staircase and stepped into the hallway, coming to a stop before a heavy wooden door at its far end."This is the ingredient storage room," Lord Sevaril said to Snowcloud. "You'll find that I have made a fair effort
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 120
Arran got up at first light, already feeling excitement at his plans for the day. If all went well, in just a few hours he would have enough Essence Crystals to last him months, perhaps even years.Even so, he did not follow his urge to rush into the city straight away. Instead, he spent several hours going through his belongings once more, depositing everything he was willing to sell in Panurge's void bag — the only one he had that was large enough to accommodate it all.He went over the mass of items several times, making sure that it contained nothing he might need or want in the future. He also set aside a portion of the gold and jewelry, knowing that it would be foolish to part with all of it.Still, when he finished, the bag with goods he hoped to trade held a staggering amount of treasure. With this, he thought, he should be able to get all the Essence Crystals he would need for the foreseeable future.When he was finally satisfied that he had sorted out everything as well as h
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 121
Arran sat in silence as Master Xu kept a suspicious eye on both him and the bag. From his expression, it almost seemed as if he feared that Arran could snatch the bag and run off at any moment.If that was indeed what the fat man feared, he was entirely right to worry. The thought of fleeing had crossed Arran's mind more than once since the man had arrived, and the only thing that kept him from actually doing it was the certainty that he would be caught.Perhaps, he thought, things would not be as bad as he feared. Although the bag held what would be a staggering sum of treasure to most people, to someone as wealthy as Lord Sevaril the amount should still not be outrageous.But then, Arran also understood that Lord Sevaril's affection for Snowcloud did not extend to him. And if the man wanted to take Arran's treasures, it would be a simple matter to have Arran disappear.Time passed slowly for Arran as he found himself torn between hope and worry, but the truth was that he simply did
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 122
Both Arran and Lord Sevaril were quiet during the carriage ride back to the castle, Arran still thinking over the events of the day, and Lord Sevaril engrossed in his own thoughts.Now that he thought he understood the true purpose of Panurge's food, Arran was convinced he had been on the losing end of the deal. He had sold Lord Sevaril what amounted to an army of Body Refiners at a price of less than a quarter Essence Crystal per soldier, and although Arran had little idea of the value of soldiers, he suspected it lay far above what he had received.But then, Arran had no use for an army — he had neither soldiers to train nor lands to conquer, and the thought of leading a band of brigands or mercenaries did not appeal to him in the slightest. His only goal was to increase his own strength, and for that, the Essence Crystals were infinitely more valuable than the food had been.And when he considered the matter, he was certain that even if his treasures were worth a higher price, ther