The Wizard: Starting as a Corpse Collector Apprentice and Paying for a Monthly Subscription

While Tyron was out collecting the body...

The underground world of the Wizarding Tower of Cain is a dark labyrinth that is completely different from the bright and beautiful surface.

There is no sunshine, no flowers, only a vast network of pipes and the ceaseless sound of flowing water.

The wide sewers draw in the living water of the Heavenly Fortune River, washing away the filth generated by the entire tower, and then the sewage, purified by simple magic, is discharged back downstream.

The air was filled with a nauseating mixture of smells: fermented food scraps, the sour stench of alchemical waste, the fishy odor of excrement, and the musty smell of something that had never seen the light of day.

However, in this place that everyone avoids, a group of gold prospectors are active.

A dozen or so apprentices, wearing greasy leather aprons and with their faces covered by thick linen cloths, were carrying long-handled iron hooks and giant pliers, moving forward in pairs along the stone path on both sides of the river.

This is a long-term quest issued by the Wizard Tower: sewer inspection.

Despite the harsh conditions, this was one of the most sought-after and lucrative jobs among the lower-level apprentices.

The reason is simple: this is the sewage outlet connecting to the upper world.

Those noble young masters and ladies living at the top of the tower often accidentally flush some valuable little items down the drain.

A magic ring inlaid with amethyst, a discarded magic crystal containing powerful magic, and even fragments of a damaged magical artifact...

These are all real achievements of our predecessors.

For those important people, these things might just be trash that accidentally fell into the ground, not worth the effort to retrieve.

Even if they had considerable value, they wouldn't want these things due to the dignity of the nobility and their instinctive aversion.

But for these poor apprentices who can't even afford tuition, this is a treasure that can change their short-term quality of life and even their entire destiny.

If you're lucky enough to find one, you can sell it on the black market in the western outer ring of Lion City and have a chance to advance your career.

"vomit!"

A violent retching sound broke the silence of the sewer.

Dutch was bent over, using the pitchfork in his hand to support his body on the ground, tears and snot streaming down his face.

He had just used a pitchfork to pull a tangled clump of hair and unidentified fibers from a clogged drain.

The eerie smell from the alchemical waste liquid nearly blew his skull open.

"Damn it... what is this smell? It's even more disgusting than rotting ghouls!"

Dutch complained as he wiped away his tears with his sleeve, his square face, now covered in a beard, turning bright red.

Standing next to him was a tall, chestnut-haired young man named Morgan.

He held a huge pair of iron shears in his hand, skillfully cut through the obstruction, and then casually threw it into the trash can next to him.

Seeing his companion's disheveled appearance, Morgan shook his head helplessly:

"Hey Dutch, you've been in the tower for three years, how come you're still acting like a newbie? You can't even stand this little bit of flavor?"

Dutch pinched his nose, his voice muffled and trembling with a sob:

"Don't you know me? I've had a sensitive nose since I was little. This is torture for me!"

"If I hadn't heard that you could find good stuff here, I would never have come to this godforsaken place!"

"The last six months I spent assisting my supervisor in the alchemy lab were so comfortable! Back then, I only smelled of sulfur, unlike now where I smell like shit!"

"And my alchemy is already at level 0.2! I can already brew basic potions!"

Listening to his fellow townsman's fifth boast today, Morgan scoffed and mercilessly retorted:

"What good is level 0.2? Alchemy is a bottomless pit; it's all about feeding it with materials."

"If you don't have the money to buy the materials, even if you have talent, it's all for nothing."

"You'd better just stick to shoveling manure with me; maybe you'll find a ring today."

Dutch sighed, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes.

He is an ambitious man and doesn't want to rot in the mud for the rest of his life.

Suddenly, his dark eyes darted around, as if he had thought of a brilliant idea. He abruptly straightened up and held up a finger:

"Morgan! I have a plan!"

"I……"

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Morgan interrupted him abruptly, looking impatient:

"None of your ideas are viable!"

"Last time you said you were going to catch that black cat to use its fur for making medicine, but you almost got scratched blind by that cat."

"The time before last you said you were going to deliver love letters to a female apprentice in hopes of hooking up with a rich woman, but you ended up getting beaten up by her suitors and begging for mercy on your knees."

"I'd rather pray I dig a magic ring out of this quagmire right now than believe your lousy plan!"

After saying that, Morgan ignored Dutch and turned to continue searching for the next possible treasure trove.

Dutch looked at his companion's retreating figure, his heart filled with disdain.

"Tch, mere mortals."

"How can you possibly succeed by relying on luck? You need to have a plan! You need to take initiative! You need to let luck come to you!"

As he thought about it, he took off the mask that was already soaked through, preparing to get some fresh air.

However, just as he took a deep breath...

Dutch was stunned.

His nose twitched twice, and an expression of disbelief appeared in his eyes.

"Hmm? This taste...is strange!"

In the stench-filled air of the sewers, there was a faint yet unusually strong fragrance.

It was a smell he had never encountered before.

It's like the sweet aroma of onions brought out by high temperatures, mixed with the smoky aroma of bursting oil, and an indescribable, soul-stirring meaty flavor.

"Gurgle..."

Dutch's stomach started growling, much to his dismay.

Just one sniff made him feel so hungry that his stomach was sticking to his back, and his mouth was watering uncontrollably.

"This smells amazing!!"

Dutch stared wide-eyed, secretly vowing that this was the most fragrant smell he had ever ever experienced, even a hundred times more fragrant than the roast suckling pig he had smelled outside the most upscale tavern in the city!

"In this world, rich people really know how to enjoy life..."

Dutch couldn't help but sigh:

"Just how delicious must something be to travel down that long pipe and still retain such a rich aroma in this stinking sewer?"

Curiosity instantly overcame the fear of the stench.

Dutch was like a hunting dog searching for a scent, its nose constantly twitching as it followed the faint fragrance forward.

After passing through several crisscrossing water outlets, he finally stopped in front of a smoke vent located on the top of a wall.

That enticing aroma was wafting from behind that dark iron fence.

Dutch looked up at the smoke vent, his brows furrowing slightly, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes.

"That's not right..."

"This place... doesn't seem to be connected to the pipes of those noble dormitory areas."

Although he doesn't usually come to the sewers, as a veteran apprentice who has been in the tower for three years, he still has a general understanding of the Wizard Tower's structure.

The noble district is on the east side, while this place... is on the west side.

"Morgan! Morgan! Come quick!"

Dutch turned and shouted, his voice echoing through the empty pipes.

Morgan, in the distance, was using pliers to pick up a shiny piece of glass. Disappointed upon seeing it was a wine bottle, he walked over somewhat impatiently.

"What's wrong now? Have you come up with another terrible idea?"

However, when he got closer, his nose twitched and his expression changed instantly.

"By the Father... what is this smell? It smells so good!!"

Morgan swallowed hard, feeling his stomach rumble with anticipation.

Dutch pointed to the smoke vent and asked with a serious expression:

"Morgan, you know this area well. Where does this smoke vent lead?"

Morgan looked up and carefully examined the location of the smoke vent, then looked at the direction of the surrounding pipes.

He closed his eyes and quickly constructed a three-dimensional structural diagram of the wizard's tower in his mind for comparison.

A moment later, he opened his eyes and said with absolute certainty:

"This ventilation duct on the west side... if I remember correctly, it should lead to the morgue."

"The morgue?!"

Upon hearing those three words, Daqi, who had just been basking in the glow of delicious food, instantly felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him.

His pupils dilated suddenly, and a chill ran down his spine.

Morgan's face also turned extremely ugly, as if he had swallowed a dead fly.

"Why is there such a strong smell of meat coming from the morgue?"

The two looked at each other, both seeing deep fear and disgust in each other's eyes.

You should know that the smell coming out of the morgue on a daily basis is nothing but the stench of corpses and the smell of preservatives; it's the most nauseating gas in the entire sewer system.

But now...

Dutch swallowed hard, his voice trembling slightly, carrying a hint of disbelief and speculation:

"Could it be... someone's inside...?"

He didn't dare say what came next, but the meaning was already quite clear.

In this wizard's tower, filled with taboos and insane experiments, anything is possible.

Morgan's long face immediately contorted as if he'd seen a ghost, and he shook his head repeatedly.

"Probably not? The bodies in the morgue are handled by apprentices, and the audit department checks the accounts every month."

"Who would dare to be so bold? Are they courting death?"

However, Dutch's black eyes started to move again.

The fear gradually subsided, replaced by an excitement and fervor akin to discovering a new continent.

"Anything is possible here, my dear Morgan."

Dutch lowered his voice, his tone carrying a hint of conspiracy:

"If someone is really secretly doing something disgusting, blasphemous, or even forbidden..."

"That will be our chance!"

Upon hearing this, Morgan rolled his eyes and waved his hand impatiently.

"Come on! All you talk about are opportunities, how many opportunities are you really going to encounter?"

"Even if someone is grilling in there... well, what's it to us? You want to report it? You might get silenced!"

After saying that, he turned to leave, clearly not wanting to get involved in something that sounded very dangerous.

"Don't go!"

Dutch grabbed his old friend and fellow countryman's sleeve, staring intently at him, his tone utterly serious:

"Think about it, Morgan."

"A mysterious cannibalistic tribe hiding in the wizard's tower is secretly performing blasphemous rituals in the morgue, and may even be stealing our wizard's tower's assets..."

"If we could investigate this matter thoroughly, even if it's just figuring out the source of this fragrance..."

"This is absolutely big news!"

"If we expose this, we'll definitely become famous!"

"In this place, reputation is a resource! Once you have a reputation, you can attract the attention of your mentors and prove that your abilities go beyond just cleaning sewers!"

Upon hearing these words, Morgan stopped in his tracks.

He was silent.

Although he always verbally criticized Dutch, deep down he also longed to climb the ranks.

Who would want to spend their whole life in this dark and gloomy sewer, relying on scavenging garbage to try and win that illusory miracle?

If this can actually be done...

It is indeed an opportunity.

At this moment, the fragrance in the exhaust vent had gradually dissipated, seemingly just a fleeting moment.

Morgan turned around, looked at Dutch's calculating face, and tentatively asked:

"What...are you planning?"

Upon seeing this, Dutch immediately curled up a smug smile.

He extended a finger and gestured in the air a few times, like a wise sage surveying the world:

"First, we need to figure out the pattern of these fragrances."

Is it every day? Or at specific times? How long does it last?

"Then, we need to find out which morgue it came from and who is in charge!"

Dutch's eyes grew brighter and brighter, and his speech became faster and faster:

"Next, we can treat this as a 'mysterious legend' and spread it among the apprentices."

"The core selling point is: a mysterious cannibal hidden in the sewers can actually cook up an enticing aroma that is even more delicious than a royal banquet, attracting poor apprentices."

"These kinds of bizarre and terrifying stories spread faster than a plague!"

"Once this matter blows up and attracts the attention of higher authorities or law enforcement..."

"Let's step forward again, as the first discoverers and tipsters, and present our investigation results!"

"At that time, not only will I be able to achieve merit, but I'll also gain recognition throughout the entire tower!"

Morgan was stunned for a long time after hearing the plan.

Finally, he couldn't help but give a thumbs up and exclaimed sincerely:

"Dutch, your idea... has finally come true for once."

"This time it does sound quite feasible."

Dutch raised his chin smugly:

"Of course! I'm a future alchemy master!"

He patted Morgan on the shoulder and quickly assigned tasks:

"You're in charge of determining which morgue this ventilation vent leads to. Don't rush, but be quick!"

"I'll take charge of crafting this story and making sure it spreads throughout the entire lower-class apprentice circle in the shortest amount of time!"

"This time, we brothers are going to turn things around!"

Upon hearing this, Morgan was filled with anticipation and fantasies of being surrounded by countless students who flattered him and were favored by his mentor.

"Let's do it!"

Meanwhile, on the other side...

A sneeze!

A sneeze nearly made Tyron slip and fall flat on his face, but he continued running at full speed.

Because behind him, a pack of wild dogs was hot on his heels.

Tyron was on the verge of tears: "Damn it, it's like the mantis stalking the cicada, only to be chased by the cicada!"