Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 17 The Crazy Ticket

Chen Mo tried to raise the price.

The centaur guide once said that a boat ticket to White Rock cost two silver coins, or an equivalent amount of fur, ore, or anything else that dwarfs might find appealing.

Adding money was the most direct way he could think of, and it seemed to be his only way.

Lifting out the heavy money bag, Chen Mo neatly arranged the silver coins one by one, making a crisp sound, on the greasy wooden table in front of the dwarf.

Three, four, five... With each additional one, the dwarf's fingers would twitch almost imperceptibly.

Not far from the camp, there were wanderers and adventurers coming and going. As the glittering silver chips on the table piled higher and higher, vulture-like covetous eyes began to follow Chen Mo's back like a shadow. But he didn't care anymore and continued to pile up the chips with all his might.

Clang, clang! Finally, the seventeen silver coins were stacked into a small pile. Chen Mo simply poured out the remaining copper coins from the bag all at once. The brass coins bounced and spun on the table, making a pleasant yet jarring noise.

The sound seemed to tickle the dwarf's itch; a greedy glint rolled in his eyes, but just a few seconds later, the dwarf closed his eyes with difficulty, even in pain, and shook his head firmly.

Chen Mo turned to look at the centaur guards standing not far away. Those giants, at least two and a half meters tall, were looking down at him, which made him resist the urge to pull out his gun and point it at the dwarf's small head.

"It's no use, little guy!" a slightly mocking voice rang out.

"Even if you give him a gold coin, the spaceship that our Cloud Mist Territory has reserved won't dare to take you on board!"

Chen Mo looked over at the sound and saw a group of people walking through the somewhat chaotic dock area toward the boarding gangway. They were dressed smartly and walked in an orderly manner, standing out from the dusty and disorganized adventurers around them.

It was the same aristocratic team that treated me last night; no wonder they were so wealthy as to charter the entire journey of the airship.

For other adventurers, provoking such a seemingly "luxurious" team is definitely not a wise move. They can simply wait a while and find some extra income around the Dark Forest.

But for Chen Mo, this was a matter of life and death.

Chen Mo quickly scanned the opposing team and locked onto the person who had liaised with Xiao Kaga the night before. It was clearly Captain Peiwen, the person in charge of the team's external affairs.

“That…swordsman! We met yesterday!” Chen Mo raised his voice. “Thank you for the treatment last night! Thank you so much!”

"I have an extremely urgent matter and must immediately take a ship to White Rock! Could... could I have a corner on the spaceship? I promise I won't cause you any trouble!"

His shout successfully attracted the attention of the entire Cloud Mist team.

"Huh? It's that little skeleton from yesterday again!"

Today, Princess Liushuang is dressed in a light blue, well-tailored hunting-style swordsman's outfit. Her hair is neatly tied into a ponytail, wrapped around her slender neck, and pinned to her chest with a small, exquisite silver clasp with cloud patterns.

The silver-embroidered cloud pattern meandered from the shoulder to the wrist of the sleeve, the belt cinched the waist to create an elegant silhouette, and the tight riding breeches were tucked into knee-high leather boots. The whole person exuded a heroic spirit, completely different from the confused girl last night.

She blinked her big eyes and looked excitedly at Chen Mo and Xiao Bai, who was standing quietly beside him. "Why don't we bring him along? He looks so pitiful, and his skeleton is so funny!"

“Your Highness,” Lady Linda immediately stepped forward and stopped the excited little princess.

"Please put away your curiosity and kindness. A necromancer of unknown origin is definitely not an ideal companion."

"Captain Peiwen, please politely decline his request."

"Sigh... alright..." Liu Shuang shook her hair helplessly and muttered softly, "Then... when we get to Qinglan City, could you find me a summoner who can summon skeletons to play with?"

“Your Highness,” Lady Linda’s voice carried a hint of helpless indulgence, “if the Earl knew of your obsession with skeletons, he would surely be very, very unhappy.”

The young princess chattered on and on with the female official, while Captain Peiwen smiled and refused Chen Mo's request for more money. Even though Chen Mo tried to reason with her, the high-level swordsman simply shook his head and turned to board the ship.

"Captain, would it be alright to add these as well?"

Chen Mo took out two pure gold tablets from his pocket.

Captain Peiwen paused, his gaze falling on the gold pieces, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. With his high-level swordsman's eyesight, he could naturally tell that the gold in the other party's hand was of extremely high purity. Coupled with the silver and copper coins he had previously given away, the fact that a lone undead summoner carried so much wealth was itself unusual.

Peiwen instantly conjured up a long string of melodramatic stories in her mind.

Unfortunately, no matter how much money the other party offered, it was impossible for him to allow his princess to take even the slightest risk.

Out of respect for the status that wealth symbolized, Captain Pevin prepared to refuse even more politely.

Then, his eyes were drawn to something on the gold sheet.

A dozen seconds later, old Locke, the healer and alchemist, arrived at the scene. The old man squinted and carefully admired the pattern on the pure gold sheet from various angles in the sunlight.

It was a dragon with bared fangs and claws—a five-clawed golden dragon.

On such a small piece of gold, every scale, every hair, and every fingernail of the dragon is clearly visible.

There were even clusters of frosted cloud patterns behind it.

This gold piece itself is quite valuable, but it's not enough to impress a master like Old Locke. However, a craftsman who can carve such a pattern is even more precious than a master.

Moreover, the patterns on the two gold pieces were exactly the same, and even though old Locke stared so hard his eyes almost watered, he couldn't find a single difference.

Laser nano-micro-engraving allows for absolute precision.

Are you sure you want to use this to exchange for a ship ticket?

"Yes, yes! I'm sure!" Chen Mo saw a glimmer of hope.

"wait a moment."

Master Locke clutched the two gold tablets tightly, then approached Princess Liushuang and the chief female official, whispering to themselves for a while, his expression excited, gesturing wildly.

A moment later, Chen Mo received a reply: he and his skeleton, Little White, could board the ship.

"This is your cabin. You are free to move around in this area at the stern. Unless there is something special, please do not approach the forward cabin."

"Including your summoned creatures!"

"If you need anything, you can call the ship's waiters."

The opposing team thoughtfully created a prominent dividing line on the ship. The invaluable items Chen Mo provided convinced them to accept sharing the spaceship, but also made the opposing team deeply wary.

Chen Mo didn't care at all. He was already satisfied to be on the ship, so he simply stayed in his cabin, gazing at Xiao Bai.

Inside the VIP cabin of the spaceship, old Locke was carefully holding the two gold pieces, excitedly explaining their extraordinary nature to Princess Liushuang and Lady Linda.

“I have never seen such skill before. These two identical patterns give me the illusion that they were replicated by some kind of magic.”

"But magic replication is so crude that it's impossible to achieve this level of precision."

"The details are too perfect. This is a top-notch gift. If it were offered to any lord, the reward would not be limited to wealth."

"Also, this pattern is very special."

"It looks a bit like those big creatures in Red Tide Bay, but it has no wings, only five claws, and it can fly in the air. This is completely unlike the image of any creature we are familiar with, and it does not even conform to the natural laws of biological growth."

"Therefore, I tend to think of it as a totem."

"Only a totem from an ancient family or tribe would go to such great lengths to carve onto expensive metal as a symbol of heritage."

(End of this chapter)