A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 287 Planting a Trap for the Order

Rorschach used [Mage's Hand] to scoop out a little water, and the Earl subconsciously took a few steps back.

He first used the "Revitalization Technique" to reactivate some microorganisms to ensure the success of his demonstration. Then he sprinkled in a little sugar, and sure enough, the small "living water" started to writhe again.

"Is that some kind of magical powder? Did the cult make it?" The count watched Rorschach warily.

Rorschach guided the orb of light to illuminate the sugar: "No, it's just ordinary sugar. Since Mr. Elgin has already reaped quite a harvest, he probably doesn't need this little bit of supplies."

"you mean"

"Look, we can stimulate the 'living water' without the powder, and the effect may be even better. How to use it is up to the Earl of the semi-submersible area. I just hope that Mr. Elgin will not grovel to the Order."

The Earl patted his chest: "Of course! I will always be the lord of the semi-submersible zone, and I will not yield to any sneaky scoundrels. Besides, look, their leaders and followers have been fed monsters by me; there's no room for negotiation!"

These days, boomerangs are everywhere. Just don't slide to your knees too quickly. It would be best to use the ideas I taught you to cause more trouble for those lunatics. Rorschach didn't dwell on his oath and instead demanded more reward: "Count, you asked us to investigate the cults and the living water bodies in the territory. We've exceeded expectations and taken care of everything for you."

"Okay, so what do you need?"

"We're going to another area. Do you have a map of the Shadow Realm? Also, if we go to that Marquis's territory, do we need any identification or anything like that?" Since everyone is emphasizing the rules, whether Luo Xia follows them or not is another matter, but at least we should try to figure out what the rules and regulations are.

Elgin seemed to have heard a joke: "Identity documents? Identification documents for scum who might fall to the ground at any moment? Sir, you've got it wrong. We don't need to collect a head tax from those rats, why bother with population statistics?"

The count didn't explain his source of income, but frankly, there wasn't much of a decent economy in the semi-submersible zone. He reluctantly fulfilled Rorschach's first request, taking a piece of parchment from his pocket.

Rorschach took the paper tube handed to him by the Count. It was more like a piece of leather than paper, not properly processed to be a medium for writing. When Rorschach unfolded it, he saw a map of the shadowy land drawn in deep blue ink, almost like a tattoo.

The map was drawn very unprofessionally, without a scale. There was only a directional marker in the upper right corner, showing the Jiaomaoding area, the semi-submersible area, the underground river, the core area, the deep-sea area, and the ancient ruins area, as well as overlapping areas. The core area, like the Jiaomaoding area, has a small cluster of houses, and a crown is marked in it.

There are other markings similar to those in the cartoon, such as Rorschach seeing many, many sheep in the bottom left corner?

"My lord," the old coachman said anxiously, but the count waved his hand. "I don't need it anyway! This is what the monk deserves." He turned around, indicating that he was going back to his own train. "I'm tired, let's go."

Wet footsteps echoed through the sewer corridor as the count and his entourage walked away into the distance.

Rorschach was still looking at the map. After a while, based on the information on the map, he said, "We happen to be on the edge of the semi-submersible area. If we continue down the tunnel, we can reach other places."

Freddy ruffled Coalball's hair: "Alright, you should go find your big family! Just cross the Scorched Heap District and you'll see a towering mountain of garbage. That's where your people are, a kingdom of rat whisperers!" As he spoke, the poet glanced at Singlev, the dwarf who had almost become king.

The little coal ball turned pale (if you could see it): "Burnt, scary! Dangerous."

Jiao Mao Ding was indeed an eerie place, where deathly energy and the smell of burning lingered, and the wandering soldiers of the old empire resembled undead creatures.

"There are indeed dangers on the road. How about we split up? I'll take Little Coal Ball to the Garbage Mountain. That way, I, the poet, can talk to the Rat Whisperers and guarantee that the tribe will accept Little Coal Ball." Actually, Freddy was thinking that he had already completed most of the initial task, and it would be dangerous to go any further. He might as well take the opportunity to slip away.

"We haven't found Ms. Caroline yet, the commission isn't complete, and you can't leave without the final payment." Rorschach thought Freddy was a good guide.

Unexpectedly, Little Coal Ball grabbed Freddy's leg with one hand and wrapped his legs around it as well, then reached for the dwarf's clothes with his other hand: "Little Coal Ball doesn't want to be separated, doesn't want Garbage Mountain."

Seeing the two employers hesitate, Freddy quickly said, "The core area and other areas are going to be even more bizarre and dangerous. Are we really going to bring children along and cause trouble?"

"Little Coal Ball isn't a child!" The maid released her grip, whistled, and the bat fluttered back and forth. "Little Coal Ball can communicate with flying mice."

Indeed, it's quite convenient to communicate with small animals in this environment, and you can even let bats roam underground and use sound waves to navigate the map for the team. "I suddenly realize that Little Coal Ball is more useful than you, Freddy."

"Huh?" The bard felt looked down upon and quickly brandished his little lyre: "I can inspire your fighting spirit while you're fighting, and I can even fight in melee! See! Mages are afraid of melee combat, aren't they?"

"First of all, I don't seem to be able to benefit from your singing." The bard's playing does indeed stir up the magic in the environment, similar to how the nobles trigger etheric resonance, but his playing has a smaller range and a more obvious effect, but it has no effect on Rorschach, who can control the magic in his body.

"I don't really feel anything. The noise will interfere with my ability to hear the enemy's footsteps," the dwarf said, scratching his head.

"As for melee combat," Luo Xia swung his [Mage's Arm], instantly creating a large crater in the pipe wall: "No need for you to trouble yourself."

Freddy finally accepted the situation: "Alright, I'll reluctantly take on the responsibility of offering suggestions. So, where to next?"

What happened to the strategy we were promised? Rorschach looked at the map: "According to the information provided by the Earl, we'll go to the core area to find the so-called Marquis."

The dwarf pulled out his compass, and the four of them headed towards the general direction of the core area through the complex pipework.

"Have we been here before?"

The dwarf scratched his head. "The compass is working fine, right?" He used the light from Rorschach's orb to double-check his equipment and map. "We should...we should be...we should have arrived by now?"

Underground, the four fell silent. The sewer system was extremely complex, like a dark tunnel with constantly appearing intersections that seemed to form a maze. The rudimentary map did not clearly depict the entire system.

Just as Rorschach hesitated about whether to use [Sculpting Stone] to clear a path, the bat suddenly called out twice to the little soot ball.

"There's movement up above!"

Rorschach floated the orb to the vault and located a section of a rotten cast iron ladder and a manhole cover.

Once it quiets down, besides the sound of water, you can occasionally hear the manhole cover swaying slightly, or something passing by.

"Let's move the manhole cover and go out from there."

(End of this chapter)