What's wrong with me, a mage, loving to farm?

Chapter 174. Just a Level 174 Mage

As a fourth-level mage, Zell had never been to the kingdom's barren northern border, let alone trekked such a long distance in such cold weather.

Of course, it wasn't directly hit by a pea falling from the sky...

After finally getting out of the carriage, his expression was extremely unpleasant, and he gave Estner a cold glance beside him.

Estner naturally noticed the cold gaze, but he didn't react at all; instead, he smiled.

He actually hoped this guy would make a move against him.

Zell was stung by Estner's laughter and looked away.

He felt even more resentful.

If it weren't for this guy's meddling, how could he have been forced to come to the North? And how could he have suffered such hardship?

At this point, his hatred for Estner even surpassed that for Kroya.

However, he himself was a huge beneficiary of the identity of a mage, and he knew very well that it was an easy thing for a high-level mage to suppress a low-level mage.

He didn't even dare to disobey Celeste's orders.

So the only hope left is... to kill Kroa.

As long as he can kill Kroya, he doesn't care if he apologizes after the person dies, or even if he uses up all his life savings.

People in the association will probably try to persuade Celeste as well.

After all, the person is already dead, so it would be bad to deal with another level four mage. Celeste probably won't go so far as to kill them all.

"As long as we can kill that little mage..."

Zell quickly regained his composure, straightened his slightly wrinkled mage robe, the magic runes on it still radiating a pale golden glow in the icy snow.

Seven golden rings of different sizes were embroidered on the star-moon whale skin using gold thread, resembling a bright and shining sun above the starry sky.

There is no hatred without a cause in the world.

Sometimes it's necessary for someone to die, of course, to prevent certain things from being exposed.

……

"Lord Estner."

The knight Samir came out to greet them.

After bowing respectfully to Estner, he invited, "My master is already waiting for you on the island. Please come with me."

The knight completely ignored the two mages beside him—the confidence that Chloe gave him made him fearless even when facing powerful mages.

"Oh?"

Estner took a deep look at the tall knight. As a battle mage, he actually felt a sense of threat from this guy.

This was his intuition, which had saved him from danger countless times.

Even though he believed his skill and strength were superior to Samir's, he did not underestimate the knight and simply nodded slightly.

"Then lead the way."

As he spoke, he called out to the two people behind him.

"Stein, Master Zell, come together."

Estner's tone was very casual, lacking the respect he would show when facing a mage more powerful than himself; he only maintained a slight degree of deference.

Zell had regained his composure by now. After giving his apprentice a wink, he followed.

Somewhat unexpectedly, there were no boats when he arrived at the seaside, and the young knight walked straight towards the shore.

Just as he was about to step into the sea.

A faint, dreamlike sound echoed in the sea.

The already calm seawater was instantly split in two by this force, forming an underwater passage wide enough for two carriages to pass side by side.

"Well."

Not only was Estner surprised, but even Zell, a fourth-level mage, and Stein, who was quite worldly, were astonished.

They could see that the sea dolphin was maintaining the seawater, but the problem was that the force maintaining the seawater... was too strange, wasn't it?

That power that is one with the ocean, yet capable of suppressing it...

A shadow fell over Zell and Stein's hearts.

The three of them remained silent and walked down the steps built along the seashore. When they reached the seabed, the surrounding scenery shocked them even more.

Because... before them lay a long, straight underwater road, with huge bubbles supporting the seawater, and magical lamps and coral trees adorning both sides of the road.

The bright light emanating from the lamps illuminated the pristine white road, creating a dazzling spectacle, especially with the decorative coral trees on either side and the slightly dim underwater environment.

It felt like stepping into a mermaid kingdom underwater.

"It's so beautiful," Estner exclaimed.

He instinctively felt that these bubbles might be supported by something, but the magic at the bottom of the sea was too chaotic to make it clear what it was.

"This is the road built by the lord."

Samir spoke with pride as he took out a sun badge surrounded by seven-colored light and distributed it to the three men.

"Please take this badge with you, otherwise you will not be allowed to step onto this road."

"snort!"

Stein took the badge, snorted coldly, threw it on the ground, and mocked, "A mere mage like him, saying he can't even step inside?"

"Does he really think he's some kind of noble archmage?"

He walked directly toward the bubble, a layer of fire elemental shield burning around him, his eyes filled with excitement—he wanted to see what it would look like when the bubble was popped!

Estner initially wanted to stop him, but seeing that the knight Samir's face remained expressionless, he immediately felt relieved.

If Kroya hadn't been prepared, the knight probably wouldn't have been so confident, and there was even a hint of anticipation in his eyes.

Just as he had predicted—Stein tried to crash into the bubble as soon as he got close, but the result was...

"Bang!"

The bubble resisted the uninvited guest without any politeness, using even greater elasticity to bounce Stein away. Stein, who was covered in a fire element shield, was bounced far away like a fireball.

If it weren't for the expressionless Zell catching his shameful illegitimate son and disciple with magic, he probably would have been thrown into the sea to "play" with the sea dolphins.

As for the bubbles? They're still perfectly fine over there.

Being able to withstand such a massive amount of seawater and adapt to the complex and chaotic magical environment of the seabed, the resilience of the air bubbles produced by air corals is actually beyond imagination.

"You'd better just wear it properly." Estner chuckled sarcastically, put on the badge first, and walked straight into the bubble-formed passage.

Although Stein was unwilling, under the pressure of his father and mentor's gazes, he obediently put on the badge.

Led by Knight Samir, the three successfully traversed the ten-kilometer-long coral passage and, after climbing a flight of stairs, officially arrived at the Reef Island.

During this process, Zell had already prepared all his trump cards, intending to launch an attack the moment he met Kroya.

But what he didn't know was that Chloe thought the same thing.

Just as the three of them stepped onto the territory of Hanjiao Island, looking with slight surprise at the flat land and neatly trimmed trees around them—

"Whoosh—"

A crimson beam of light appeared from the sky. It was incredibly fast; one second it was on the horizon, and the next it was right above Zell's head.

It didn't appear to possess any violent magic; its crimson light posed no threat. However, this didn't mean it was powerless; rather, the fluctuations of its magic were suppressed.

The sunflower spirit, imprinted with "The Red Song," can also skillfully utilize the power of Serenade of Tranquility.

There was no violent magic, no obvious sound or light effects; the beam of light was only discovered by Zell when it got close.

The latter was slightly startled, not caring when the thing had appeared. Without thinking, he cast a magic shield and a flight spell on himself, intending to dodge it directly.

But suddenly, some intertwined thorns appeared beneath his feet, ignoring his magical shield and pinning him firmly to the spot.

Fire is the best way to deal with magical plants, and Zell is a level four mage, so he must have plenty of experience.

As he took out his staff, the energy-gathering crystal at the top of the staff, made of star iron, flickered, gathering the surrounding magic power.

He planned to thicken his magic shield while simultaneously unleashing flames to burn all the Hot Wind Thorns to death.

But then a strange thing happened.

The surrounding magic did not obey his commands at all, and was chaotic like a child throwing a tantrum.

The flames that were barely released didn't even damage the thorns' skin; they were directly absorbed by the thorns—which were mutated magical plants catalyzed by the red dragon's magic.

That tiny flame felt like feeding him.

Zell's eyes widened in surprise, and he looked around. Magic flickered in his eyes, and he could see countless extremely subtle streams of magic swirling around him.

It vaguely formed a delicate yet grand symphony.

It was these magical melodies that suppressed the elemental magic spreading between heaven and earth, preventing him from mobilizing his magic.

"How is that possible!"

The level four mage uttered a classic villainous line.

A mage capable of manipulating the magic of nature—what level of mage is this? Could it be that Celeste herself has come?

Time clearly didn't allow him to think any further.

Because of a momentary lapse in concentration, the long-accumulated rays from the sunflower pierced through his magic shield and penetrated his body.

When this terrifying magic penetrated his body, even his internal organs were vaporized.

"!!!"

Before I could even cry out in pain, a row of fiery tree stump peas suddenly appeared from the nearby woods.

They turned their guns on Zell and fired a volley.

"Bang bang bang!"

The sound of peas being fired incessantly filled the air.

Countless fiery resin peas shot towards him, instantly engulfing him. When the sticky resin exploded, it stuck him inside like a mosquito.

Immediately afterwards, several more crimson rays pierced through his skull, and the robe engraved with the sun emblem that he had placed so much hope in had no effect whatsoever.

It was even... suppressing his magic.

"..."

Such an attack would be too much for even a level 5 mage to handle, let alone a level 4 mage.

Moreover, he underestimated his opponent.

The fourth-level mage, Zell, collapsed softly into the flames formed by the resin, closing his eyes forever.

His head and body were pierced by crimson rays, only his robes gleamed in the flames.

He never saw his enemy until his death.

Estner and Stein were both stunned—the former marveled at how easily Kroya had killed a level four mage in such a short time; the latter was terrified, his legs trembling so badly he almost collapsed to the ground.

Stein's first reaction was to run away.

An illegitimate son with magical talent and a knack for flattery and sycophancy naturally possesses many treasures, such as the magical artifact he has just produced that resembles wings.

He infused it with magic, and wings immediately wrapped around his body, flapping as they were about to carry him away from the island of Hanjiao.

Facing the cold wind high in the sky, he was even plotting to steal his deceased father's treasures. He wouldn't mind fleeing abroad to become a wandering mage if he could obtain those treasures.

But how could Kroa possibly let him go?

Suddenly, a bamboo stalk that looked like a warrior emerged from the shadows of the nearby woods.

Its roots leaped directly into the sky with a forceful effort, jumping more than thirty meters high. Long swords formed of white thorns extended from the bamboo leaves and branches, and it slashed at Stein with a leaping strike.

It's a very simple and unadorned jumping chop move.

The moment they touched the wings, the bamboo leaves and branches instantly extended, blocking the flow of magic at the point of contact.

This bamboo, crafted by the Titans, is incredibly sensitive to magical nodes, easily cutting off the magical supply to the wings.

The wings, devoid of magic, instantly shrank back to their original size, perfectly enveloped by its bamboo leaves, while the shield on its other branch struck the panicked Stein.

The force was just right, knocking him unconscious.

Immediately afterwards, Bamboo carried Stein and landed on the ground very steadily, without even shaking the snow on the ground, it was extremely light.

After giving Estner a knightly salute, he carried Stein away as if he were a sack of potatoes.

Estner: "..."

His face showed not only surprise, but also a hint of admiration—it was because of his extensive knowledge that he knew how much exquisite control was required to sever the magic node in an instant without damaging the artifact itself.

And that's how a bamboo plant accomplished it so easily?

His friend, whom he hadn't seen for a while, seemed to be much more capable than he had imagined.

"It's been a long time."

While he was still hesitating, Chloe's figure appeared in a burst of light, looking at "his" friend and scrutinizing him.

Estner's appearance wasn't much different from what I remembered, except that he looked much sharper and more aggressive.

"You're out." Estner walked over naturally and gave Chloe a hug.

To be honest, Kroya wasn't quite used to this kind of hugging etiquette. His body stiffened for a moment, but he quickly recovered.

Because he sensed Estner's joy, a pure joy of seeing a friend.

In fact, after being here for so long, there are very few people who can be friends with Croy Adam; at most, only Rob is one.

Everyone experiences loneliness at some point, even a reclusive magician.

"Your magical energy is a little weak." Kroya hugged Estner back and patted the latter's back. "Let's go, I've prepared the food and am just waiting for you to arrive."

"I've never tried food from the seaside before. How is it different from food in the capital?" Estner asked, intrigued.

"Of course, come with me."

Kroya left with Estner, completely ignoring Zell's corpse, which was encased in flame resin. However, after they left, Rob personally led a group to collect the body.

It's temporarily placed in a coffin made of ice, and Kroya will deal with it after he's finished with his work.

……

Inside the castle.

The castle is now Kroya's private residence, and it has been renovated by him, filled with the mystery and beauty of a mage.

Exquisite and gorgeous magic lamps are placed on transparent crystal, as if floating in mid-air, resembling a river of lights, illuminating the entire restaurant.

The carpet is made of lush green grass, and there are also some colorful indoor decorative flowers growing on it.

On the wall to the side, there are photos that the Woody King "took" in his spare time. Some of them are of towering waves, some are of schools of fish leaping, and some are of sea fog rising.

On the long table, all sorts of delicacies were laid out—crab, lobster, squid, shark fin, scallops…

The table was filled with delicious food and gifts from the sea.

That's the advantage of being a lord.

Do whatever you want on your own territory. All the output of the entire territory belongs to the lord. The Mage Association only cares about whether it can place its influence in various places.

Estner looked left and right, and surprisingly felt a little envious.

"Kroya, life here is really nice. Maybe I should apply to become a lord somewhere else too?"

He was just saying that casually, of course. Although he really liked farming, he couldn't handle it if he actually had to do it.

Moreover, his advisor would absolutely not allow it.

Kroya shook his head and began to complain bitterly: "When I first came here, the islands were almost all deserted. I spent a lot of time researching and cultivating them, and even sold my family heirlooms."

Fortunately, my efforts paid off, and I successfully established my territory using magical plants and magical beasts.

"...Is it that hard?" Estner immediately waved his hand. "Then I'll pass."

"Oh, right, this thing."

As he spoke, he took something out of his spatial artifact.

It was a piece of parchment with the mark of the Mage Guild on it, the very contract left behind by "Kroya" and Stein when they made their bet.

"Now that one of them is dead and the other has been captured by you, I, as a notary of the Mage Association, declare... you have won the bet."

In a casual tone, Estner took out a stamp and gently pressed it against the mage association's mark on the contract.

The contract immediately burst into flames.

A ball of light flew out from inside and slowly landed in front of Kroa.

Kroya raised an eyebrow, looking at the orb of light.

As the light gradually dimmed, a beautiful magical plant appeared inside the sphere of light.

It resembles a banyan tree, about half a meter tall, with its crown shimmering with starlight. The aerial roots hanging down are made of clear moonlight, surrounding a "well" formed by the roots.

A trickle of water was gathering inside the small well.

Without a doubt, this is the bet that Stein brought out when he made a wager with the original owner: the legendary elven magical plant, Moonlight Dew Grass.

However... this thing looks more like a Moonlight Dew Tree, doesn't it?

(End of this chapter)