Star Forge Titan

No more words were needed. The information flowed out of his mouth like the other party's sweat, flowing down three thousand feet smoothly.

Through his words, Alvin finally understood why so many people came to Ismailia.

Even if the Witch King's secrets don't necessarily exist, the gold belonging to the Fourth Witch King is a real good thing.

Chapter 41: Poetry in Action

The possible presence of gold says a lot.

You know, although most extraordinary people want to be promoted to a high level, they also know that there are very few people who can actually become a high level.

Whether it is the difficulty in obtaining ritual materials or the various risks that need to be taken during the promotion process, they are like increasingly dense filters that block the vast majority of extraordinary people from entering the high-level gates.

The price that intruders pay is sometimes even their lives.

On the contrary, 'gold' or 'money' is much safer and is a hard currency that can be used directly as currency in most areas of the mainland.

For people living in this cruel area of ​​the Silent Desert, enough money can even allow them to escape from their impoverished hometown and live a prosperous life that they have never even imagined in their lifetime.

Apart from anything else, although few people have seen it with their own eyes, the vast majority of desert people have heard a rumor that makes them extremely envious.

That is, people living in other places can often easily find large amounts of pure water, even enough to take a bath every day.

Ivan was surprised for a moment when he heard this information, but he soon understood the harsh reality hidden in it. For those who are accustomed to abundant water resources, it is difficult to understand the cruel life faced by desert dwellers who can kill others for a sip of water.

"Power and money, these two things combined to create a bait that even the noblest people can't help but be tempted." The black-haired boy shook his head with emotion.

"Yes, yes, so... can you let me go, sir?" The gang member who originally had a fierce look on his face now smiled and asked cautiously:

"Don't worry, contracts and promises are sacred things. I have no intention of breaking the contract." Alvin shook his head.

Just as a look of smug joy appeared on the face of the desert gang member, the next words spoken by the tall masked man in front of him made his face turn pale in an instant.

"However, apart from accidents involving life, it's better not to leave freedom to bandits like you." As he said this, Ivan waved his hand.

Driven by the Lan Dou secret technique, imperceptible dark golden magic power quickly spread outward along the invisible conduction channel. The broken obsidian dagger fragments on the ground floated up on their own, and attached to the wrists and ankles of the gang members with a "click". They were solidified into two sets of shackles by Ivan using a large number of [Reshaping the World] talents.

"No, you can't do this... wuwuwuwu."

He blocked the man's mouth with mud and lifted him up like a roasted chicken. Then, with a sudden push, he easily jumped onto the roof of the surrounding building.

His unreasonably strong strength attribute combined with his equally excellent agility attribute allowed him to move as swiftly as a bird without the need for spells or the legendary light skills to reduce his weight.

After a few ups and downs, the city guard’s base came into Evan’s sight. He threw the tightly imprisoned gang members with one hand like throwing a baseball.

He was very confident in his accuracy. Even if he was dozens of meters away from the target point, he would be able to land accurately, and the error would not exceed half a meter.

In a sense, Alvin did keep his promise and did not kill the gang member.

But when the other party was thrown at the door of the city guard station in this way, tied up and with a gang identification card hanging on his chest, the despair on his face was enough to explain the tragic situation that this person would face next.

You know, for murderous thugs like members of desert gangs, any desert city-state usually deals with them by hanging or beheading.

After all, if I pity this person, who will pity the innocent passers-by they killed?

Having achieved something on his first attempt, Alvin felt lucky tonight. Of course, a single piece of intelligence wasn't enough to complete the plan. But considering the Second Wizard King's continued presence in the throne room, it would be imprudent to act too ostentatiously at this point.

Before he knew the Witch King's exact combat power, Alvin did not intend to directly conflict with him.

The Giant God Soldier now only has its core frame left. Without the Giant God Soldier's assistance, a second-level transcendent like him who has not yet reached the upper level cannot be 100% sure of defeating the Witch King who is already at the fourth level.

Then, to continue collecting intelligence, I will have to use the other two identities.

Looking at the city guard soldiers who were startled by the noise of the gang members falling to the ground, and watching them drag the former into the base, Ivan disappeared into the night with satisfaction.

The next day, the young bard, who had been ill and had been staying in the inn for several days, reappeared. His renewed performance quickly attracted many people to stop and listen. And the Bloodsworn Avenger Grippy, a young dwarf, now stood obediently not far away to serve as the bard's guard.

Under the brilliant sunlight of the desert, the bard's golden hair seemed to glow brightly, and his eyes, as icy blue as the sky, were like two dazzling gems, their brightness carrying a hint of depth like the abyss of the sea.

"Dear Mr. Apollonias."

An old man wearing traditional desert robes walked quickly to the young man, took out a rolled-up parchment, and respectfully handed it to Ivan, who was now using the pseudonym Apollonius.

Ivan stopped plucking the strings and quietly raised his hand to take the parchment.

When I opened it, it was indeed another invitation to a dance.

"My master, a distinguished emir, hopes you can bring beautiful music to his dance party tonight." The old servant said respectfully:

"I have also prepared a generous gift, as long as..."

"Okay." Alvin put away the parchment and gave a very brief answer.

Seeing his reaction, Gripi, who was standing not far away, couldn't help but frowned, and his eyes became sharp when he looked at the old man.

"That's good." On the other side, the old man who came to hand in the invitation was a little surprised, but not surprised.

In the desert city-states, the city-state nobles serve as bureaucrats who assist the Witch King in managing his numerous subjects. Although their power is not as absolute as that of the feudal lords in their own territories, they are still high-ranking figures whose requests are difficult for most ordinary people to refuse.

The word "Pamir" means "one in power" or "one who receives the order" in the ancient language of the desert. During the reign of the Witch King, only the city-state nobles who held real power, such as managing the army and finances, could use this term to refer to themselves.

An emir? I hope to get more useful information this time...

While pretending to pluck the strings again, Ivan thought silently in his heart:

Time passed quickly. As the sun gradually sank below the horizon, other areas were gradually shrouded in darkness. However, the lit candles and activated magic lamps dispelled the darkness in the throne area.

“…”Gripi walked behind Ivan. Although he did not carry any armor, he had two sharp hand axes on his waist.

"What's wrong?" Alvin seemed to have realized something. He was currently riding on the Mountain King, who was disguised as a donkey.

"Be careful, that guy's eyes always seem to carry some malice."

Grippy hesitated for a moment, then finally spoke his mind as bluntly as a dwarf could.

"Yeah, I can see it too."

Alvin couldn't help but smile at the dwarf's kindness. His handsome appearance made the desert noble ladies and girls riding in sedan chairs and carriages on the roadside exclaim in surprise.

Then he changed the subject.

"But what does that matter?"

The beautiful boy blinked, and the smile on his face revealed a barely perceptible hint of mockery.

"No angler thinks a fish is too big to be hooked."

Chapter 42 Pretending to Meet by Chance

Before the banquet began, a carriage sent by the nobleman with the title of 'Pamir' appeared outside the hotel.

Along with the dwarf Grepi, who was doing his own thing and had no intention of changing into a formal suit, Ivan, who was disguised as a teenager using a diplomat ring, got into the carriage naturally.

Although the carriage was ridden, the animals pulling it were actually two desert lizards with smooth and shiny scales. These bipedal lizards were often used as mounts in the Silent Desert, and could also be used to tow the vehicle.

The hot weather makes the carriages in the desert very drafty. Although there is a cloth sunshade on the top, there are only two or three slender wooden pillars on the four sides.

This allows passengers to feel the pleasant breeze coming towards them while the carriage is moving, while also allowing them to clearly see the surrounding scenery.

Since a large part of its economy comes from trade, the road construction in the city-state of Ismailia is very developed.

However, the quality of roads in this vast city-state still varied significantly across different areas. In the outer areas near the city walls and the outermost ring of the city, while roads were well developed, they were primarily composed of compacted dirt roads and gravel roads paved with fine stones.

Unlike other countries, in the Silent Desert, an endless sea of ​​dust, even stone is a scarce resource that requires the attention of senior officials and cannot be easily obtained in large quantities.

But when the carriage pulled by the desert lizard continued to move forward until it entered the aristocratic district in the center of the city, the road traversed by the tires had unknowingly been replaced by large pieces of flat stone slabs.

"You can feel the difference just by looking at the road surface." Alvin sighed softly.

"This is just the beginning." Gripi, who was sitting opposite him, sneered, with a hint of reminiscence and hatred in his eyes.

"Although this is a quiet desert, the extravagance of the nobles would shock foreigners." said the dwarf with a strange green-gradient Mohawk.

"Is that so?" Alvin glanced at the young dwarf with a glaring face and some doubts arose in his heart.

An ordinary dwarf avenger would not understand the lifestyle of the desert nobles.

As if realizing he had said too much, Gripi remained silent throughout the rest of the journey. It was not until he was stopped when he entered the noble's manor that he shouted again.

"What do you mean you can't enter if you're not dressed properly? I want you to apologize for wearing the traditional attire of a dwarf avenger!"

As a result of the noisy situation, although Gripi was not blocked from entering the manor, he could only stay in the servants' rest area and could not enter the banquet hall at all.

In response to this, Alvin, who was now disguised as a wandering poet, had no choice but to show a helpless expression, waved his hand and walked into the banquet hall.

There wasn't much to say about this noble banquet itself. It was more of a social occasion with a clear purpose than a party. Many adult nobles spoke to each other in low voices with serious expressions, and occasionally someone would cast magic to completely block out the sound of their conversation.

But this was of no use to Alvin. Relying on the power to reshape the world, he concealed the magic fluctuations emitted when using his core talent under the fluctuations emitted when using the bard's props. At the same time, he used his steps during the performance to secretly outline long and thin hollow pipes underground.

These independent hollow tubes connect different areas and can capture sounds from the surface and transmit them to the last place where Alvin stayed.

Despite being under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he remained like a hunter spreading a wide net, calmly collecting information from various regions. Although most of the information contained only the common intrigues among the nobles, Ivan did eventually obtain a piece of information that might be considered useful.

The great Second Witch King, spoken of by the nobles as the one who created Menes, seems to be inclined to leave the palace recently.

According to the nobles, the Second Witch King has not left the glass palace for nearly ten years, not even during the Living Water Festival when the rain was cast. If it were not for the monthly magical ritual of extracting the vitality of the city residents as a blood tax, others would have doubted whether the Witch King was still alive.

Just looking at this point, her behavior is completely like that of a otaku from another world.

As he was thinking, Ivan suddenly noticed someone approaching him. He looked up and saw Heidi, whom he hadn't seen for several days.

The hot weather makes the dresses in the desert area not as complicated as those in Linde and other countries. The short average life expectancy makes the desert people have a fiery and open enthusiasm. The women here can even show off their beautiful waists as long as they are confident in their figure.

It is obvious that the female mage is very confident about her figure. The two-piece clothing shows her fair skin and slender waist, and you can vaguely see the beautiful mermaid line.

This makes the wearer look as seductive as a desert dancer who can dance in a small space, while the layer of gauze covering the outside prevents her temperament from appearing too seductive.

The delicate gold chain is inlaid with sparkling gems, and paired with a pure white dress, it does not look tacky at all, but instead reveals an exquisite beauty.

Most of the other people at the party were preoccupied, but the women were quite interested in the new young bard, so Heidi's behavior did not seem out of place.

"It seems your work is going well." The female mage raised her wine glass and looked at Ivan meaningfully.

"As you said, it went very smoothly." Alvin looked up and smiled brightly, as if he was having a very ordinary conversation with the other party.

Meanwhile, the jeweled necklace hanging from the sorceress's dress flickered with a faint, rhythmic glow. From a distance, it looked like the natural reflection of a gem under a lamp. However, if one interpreted it with the help of a mental table, one could decipher detailed textual information.

It was in this inconspicuous way that Heidi quietly conveyed a few short messages to Alvin.

The content of the conversation didn't surprise the latter, and her expression remained calm. After some more casual, normal conversation, Heidi returned to the group of ladies, where laughter and teasing could be heard from time to time.

Apparently, the new young troubadour attracted their attention.

As for whether this kind of attention is good or bad, it’s hard to say...

Chapter 43: The Second Meeting

The message Heidi conveyed was not complicated. It was mainly to remind Alvin that he was being targeted.

To be more precise, it was this young bard named Apollonius who was being targeted.

As for the reason, it's actually not complicated. It's just some trivial matters between the bards and the nobles.

Unlike Lind and Elrond, where the revolution occurred at the technological level and extended to multiple fields, thus launching the overall process of modern national evolution.

The nobles in most areas of Gondwana, a vast and ancient land at the center of the Palladian world... are actually quite boring.

Their entertainment activities were far less developed than those of modern people. Apart from banquets and hunting, there were basically no other fun activities. This was especially true in desert areas due to the hot weather. Unless they had to do so due to living conditions, people in tropical areas tended to stay at home most of the time.

Therefore, bards became a very popular group of people. Whether they were singing poems, telling stories or performing dramas, they could always bring a lot of entertainment to the bored nobles.

Of course, some of these unscrupulous and good-looking practitioners have other jobs. These individuals with limited moral cultivation will, for money or other reasons, actively or passively explore another unique and different kind of fun with the noble ladies when they are alone, which is different from art.

Well, it's just that sometimes, not only the ladies but the husbands too want to see if they can have a little fun.

In short, it's very ridiculous.

In the hotel, Alvin, who took off the ring and returned to his true appearance (a muscular man with a height of two meters and five), was not surprised by this. He even felt that the other party was quite reserved for not stopping him before the end of the banquet.

Perhaps he didn't want to appear too rude considering that other nobles were present.

The Titan bloodline, who had returned to its original form (?), suddenly moved its ears slightly, and slowly glanced towards the window of the hotel room.

Although he had chosen a more expensive hotel to avoid unnecessary trouble when using the identity of Apollonius, this obviously could not prevent the evil thoughts of those with bad intentions.

The window was pried open from the outside, and a nimble figure quickly climbed into the house. His movements made almost no sound, and it was obvious that he was an extremely experienced wanderer.

In fact, the Wanderer was originally just a common supernatural class with specialized action abilities, but it was precisely because of the increase in these unscrupulous criminals that this class became almost synonymous with bandits.

The target was a young bard, who looked like an underdeveloped teenager with slender limbs. It shouldn't be too difficult to kill him.

This was the thought running through the uninvited guest's mind before he sneaked into the room, but when he looked up and saw the scene inside the house clearly, he suddenly felt as if his eyes had deceived him.