Wizards: Starting as a Potions Master!

Chapter 363 Slave Merchants of Eagle Harbor

Autumn, year 58 of the Storm Kingdom.

Sunan settled in Eagle Port, a neutral port in Asia Minor.

Currently, two-thirds of Asia Minor is in the hands of the Nicomedia Empire, but about one-third of the territory is in the hands of various powers, or even in the hands of pagan tribes.

The heretics worship the desert pantheon, which, according to their legends, arose in the outer plane of the [Nature God Realm] and was a product of the gods of the heavens banding together to exclude those who were different.

Therefore, believers in the desert pantheon consider it to be more just and civilized than the gods of the heavens.

The desert pantheon has no god-king, only nine pillar gods, each of whom is equal and there is no distinction of rank.

Pagan countries that worship the nine gods of the desert pantheon generally do not force people to convert. They simply implement a system within their own countries where those who worship the desert pantheon are exempt from taxes, while those who worship the celestial gods must pay taxes.

Su Nan disembarked at Eagle Port, a port country that adheres to a desert pantheon and maintains neutrality.

Because this operation was primarily conducted within enemy territory, Su Nan did not wear aristocratic attire, but rather a close-fitting black outfit with tight cuffs. He then walked through the port with his matriarch, who was dressed in a black dress.

Su Nan and the Rubber Witch agreed to meet in Miletus, but Miletus is one of the important cities of the Nicomedia Empire.

Therefore, Su Nan planned to hire some locals from Asia Minor to disguise themselves as caravans and enter the region.

Although ordinary soldiers couldn't harm him, he couldn't just kill wherever he went. Besides, Asia Minor was a region he had never been to before, and the situation, environment, and the extent of wizard and sorcerer forces there were all unknowns.

Su Nan bought a set of merchant's clothes and even a walking stick at a century-old shop in Eagle Harbor. Then, he walked forward with the walking stick in hand, while his wife, Rye, held a parasol to shield him from the sun.

She appears to be a maid from southern Jiangsu.

Although, in a way, that's not wrong.

As he walked toward the market in Eagle Harbor, Su Nan began to recall the time he had interrogated the Shadow Assassin Wizard in the dungeon of Earl Peter in the Storm Kingdom.

First, the Pure White School has confirmed that it possesses a rare inherited magic array, which is the core magical resource of the Pure White School.

That inherited magic array granted the Pure White Wizard combat power surpassing that of an ordinary first-ring wizard, and also fueled his ambition.

However, that inherited magic array had been neglected for a long time and therefore unusable. It was only two months ago that the Pure White Wizard, through the Pure White Wizard Council of the Storm Kingdom—the Nicomedia Empire region he founded—amassed wealth and repaired their inherited magic array, the Pale Shadow Array.

That pale shadow magic circle can use the special runic power of the Shadow School to extract power from a world called the "Shadow Dimension," and can transmit power across thousands of miles, or even across different dimensions, to enhance the magic of wizards.

This is the secret to the enduring success of the Pure White School.

This means that even if a weak wizard from the Pure White School were to become a powerful ruler by relying on this inherited magic array, he could still become a dominant force.

This kind of inherited witchcraft is not uncommon, but it is more often seen in senior second-ring witchcraft organizations.

The Pure White School, for reasons unknown, stumbled upon a stroke of luck: their former wizards discovered some of these inherited magic arrays that utilize the power of different planes, which ultimately led to the Pure White School's current dominance.

Su Nan was greatly moved upon hearing this and also wanted to create such a traditional witchcraft array.

After all, he is now a second-circle wizard and has a medium-sized plane. As long as he has the relevant information, he can create a heritage wizard array himself.

Su Nan also learned from the Shadow Assassin Wizard that their school did indeed have frequent contact with a mysterious entity and had gained considerable benefits from it.

However, due to his limited status, he really didn't know much more.

Su Nan and the Black Mulberry Matriarch entered the market. The slave trade was quite prevalent among the pagans, so there were large numbers of slaves for sale in the Eagle Harbor market.

The Rye Matriarch saw the rows of iron cages lining both sides of the street, and the naked, undignified people inside them, and she gave them a strange look.

"Master, didn't you say that the administrative system on the surface is generally feudal? How come there are so many slaves? I thought I had returned to my hometown."

Su Nan smiled. "Even among the heretics, there are still quite a few remnants of the slave trade."

The rye matriarch bowed slightly to Su Nan. "I believe that slavery is the best system. The strong gain everything."

"A wizard like you should have a million elite slaves."

Su Nan glanced at her.

The matriarch immediately bowed and apologized to Su Nan. "It was my fault for speaking out of turn."

Su Nan didn't dwell on it. Instead, he found the largest slave trading place in Eagle Harbor, went directly into the white room, found a heretic slave trader, secretly used a first-circle spell [Language Proficiency], and said, "I want to buy some slaves."

The heretical slave trader glanced at Su Nan and the Black Rye Matriarch and immediately perked up.

"My esteemed guest, by the God of the Desert, today is surely my lucky day. I have as many slaves as you need, even non-human slaves."

"Whatever you want, I, Ahmed, can get it for you."

"Even slaves of the genie in the lamp, as long as you can afford the price, are fine with me."

Su Nan glanced at him indifferently, because she couldn't tell whether the other party was boasting or had actually sold genie slaves.

Su Nan glanced at the Arcane Intuition Ring on his right index finger. A flash of light appeared on the brass ring, and Su Nan had a vague idea.

It seems that Ahmed really did sell [something].

However, Su Nan didn't care much about this. There are several ways to make a genie in a lamp. Although it is indeed quite rare, a first-ring wizard can do it. For a second-ring wizard, it is not a rare item.

But Ahmed, the businessman in front of them, certainly didn't seem like a simple man.

Su Nan asked, "Can you pay with Storm Coins here?"

Su Nan made no intention of concealing his identity, because there was no need. If any trouble arose, he would simply resolve it using his vampire hypnotic abilities.

Ahmed, whose head was wrapped in a white cloth strip to make a hat, laughed and said, "That used to be possible, but not anymore, sir."

"Because the Storm Kingdom... its very existence is uncertain right now. We dare not accept their currency. Even if we did, it would be discounted by more than 50%."

Su Nan nodded. "Then I'll pay with gold bricks."

Ahmed's smile faltered for a moment, then he was overjoyed, his smile widening even further. What an extravagant guest! He actually paid with gold bricks.

He was right; these two guests, who were clearly not from Asia Minor, were definitely not ordinary people.

Su Nan said, "Arrange some slaves for me. Ideally, these slaves should know each other, and there shouldn't be too many old or young ones."

This makes it easier to disguise as a caravan.

Otherwise, whether people know each other or not, it will be easy for others to tell.

Ahmed, being quite knowledgeable, roughly guessed Sunan's purpose in buying the slaves. "That's great. I happen to have a group of fleeing Storm Noble slaves. They were captured by the Bulgars while fleeing, and because they couldn't pay the ransom, they sold them to me as a package."

"Honorable guests, they've only been here for two weeks, they're in great spirits, and we haven't treated them poorly. Let me show you around..."

Ahmed gestured to one of his men to greet the other guests in the house, and then led Sunan and Rye out of the back door of the house and into the pen behind the house where a large number of slaves were held.

Most of the slaves here were listless and had no will to live.

Su Nan followed Ahmed, turning left and right, until they arrived at a secluded iron fence where seven people were inside.

Judging from their attire, there was a middle-aged Storm Baron, his adult daughter and son who was about 12 years old, as well as four family servants.

Su Nan immediately understood what was going on with them, after all, he knew the nobles of the Storm Kingdom very well, even better than Ahmed beside him.

Ahmed smiled and said to Sunan, "These slaves are all in good health, with no illnesses. The twelve-year-old boy can also do some work now."

"However, I can give him to you for free."

"Four servants, half a desert gold coin each, but these two nobles together demand 70 desert gold coins..."

Inside the iron bars, the woman's face changed drastically. She was hardly worth that much money, but what if someone offered that much to buy her back…

They definitely need to recoup their costs.

Ahmed smiled and said to Sunan, "Of course, if you think buying nobles is too expensive and not worth it, I can recommend other commoner slaves to you. Those slaves are cheap, with no premium..."

Sunan waved his hand and gestured for Blackie to go over and give Ahmed a gold brick, instructing him to break off a small piece from the brick, based on the gold content of desert gold coins.

Since Su Nan began exploring different dimensions and developing the underground world, he really hasn't paid any attention to gold.

Ahmed was almost blinded by the huge gold brick in the arms of the Rye Matriarch.

However, he still sensed Su Nan and the Rye Mistress's true attitude towards him from their attempts to avoid direct skin contact with him, as if he were some kind of dirty trash.

It was an air of superiority and indifference, as if he and all the slaves here were nothing more than roadside stones.

The well-informed Ahmed figured out who Sunan and the Black Mistress were. Therefore, he had absolutely no desire to provoke them out of greed.

The matriarch of the rye quickly handed over her duties to Ahmed. At the same time, Ahmed also tried to introduce himself to Sunan, indicating that if needed in the future, he could purchase slaves from him in Eagle Harbor.

Even before Rye Matriarch and Sunan left the shop, Ahmed quietly said something to them.

"Greetings, esteemed wizards. I am also from a wizarding family, but unfortunately, my magical talent is low, so I can only do things like this."

The Rye Matriarch gave him a cold laugh. "A mere first-rate wizard apprentice."

"Who do you think my master is?"

Su Nan didn't pay attention to their conversation. Now that he had finished his business, he left the market directly.

Ahmed stood at the shop entrance, wiping the sweat from his brow. "I guessed right, it really is two first-ring wizards entering my little shop."

"Doing business in Eagle Harbor has become increasingly difficult lately."

"Why does it feel like I'm encountering high-ring wizards more often than before?"

(End of this chapter)