Chapter 59

It's almost 9,000 words, a bit late, but it didn't exceed 9 PM! Also, I'm asking for favorites and any support you can give!

"Cook! Cook!" Just as Cook's nose could sense the heat from Cook's nose, two calls came from outside.

"Ah, it's the mentor!" Miji suddenly broke free from Cook's embrace, then widened her eyes in surprise and said. She then quietly slipped out of Cook's room like a little kitten.

Cook shrugged helplessly but was happy because he had finally established a relationship with Miji. After feeling helpless, Cook jumped up excitedly, fell onto the bed, and began to fantasize about a happy life as a wealthy landlord, eventually drifting off to sleep.

"Mentor." Miji pushed open the door to Lori's room and called out softly.

"Miji, come here. This is the magic incantation for the Fireball Spell you've been dreaming of." Lori smiled and handed a scroll to Miji. In fact, what had just happened was easily detected by a mage's mental power. Lori didn't know how to handle the situation. She wasn't in love with Cook to the point of being mad, and she didn't know what to do with Miji, her student. However, Lori decided to interrupt the two.

Miji's eyes widened in disbelief. "Mentor, is it really the incantation for the Fireball Spell?"

There are many types of magic incantations. For example, the Fireball Spell has a complete version, where the incantation is the same, but the power of magic differs, resulting in variations like Small Fireball, Fireball, Large Fireball, Bursting Flame Ball, Exploding Fireball, and Chain Fireball. Another type is a simplified version of the Fireball Spell, which is used to create Small Fireball, Fireball, and Large Fireball. The benefit of this is making money; one incantation can earn ten times the amount, and it can also suppress others' abilities. Lori, however, uses the complete version of the Fireball Spell.

"Of course. You are my student, Lori, so why would you learn a simplified version? However, the complete version is much more complex and involves some texts from other races, so I hope you can master it quickly." Lori raised an eyebrow and said, then carefully instructed.

"Thank you, mentor! Thank you so much!" Miji said excitedly, thanking her twice.

"Go and practice until you can write it fluently, as it will be useful for making scrolls in the future." Lori looked at Miji and felt very pleased, then said again.

Miji bowed deeply and said, "Then, mentor, you rest well!" She then turned and ran out.

"Ah!" Lori watched Miji leave and close the door, then stared at the door for a while before sighing and began to meditate.

"Ah!" At the same time, in the nearby room, Melif and Alice were lying in bed. Alice's smooth shoulder was exposed, and she was nestled in Melif's arms. The events outside were completely visible to them due to their powerful mental abilities. Alice, a High Mage, could almost lock onto any object within hundreds of meters at any time. The situation between Cook, Miji, and Lori was clear to her. After a while, they looked at each other and sighed, both showing their helplessness.

Melif came to his senses and hugged Alice's shoulder, saying, "Let the young people handle their own affairs. We should focus on our own business." After saying this, Melif kissed Alice's lips and pressed his body on top of hers. Alice glared at Melif but then tightly hugged his neck.

While Melif and his group were resting in the town, the war involving millions of participants in the Muny Kingdom was nearing its end. Due to the disappearance of the supreme commander of the Roland Empire, Melif, the Roland Empire's army was momentarily halted. This pause allowed the Srilan Empire's retreating army to retreat into the mountains bordering the Roland and Srilan Empires, where they formed a solid defensive line. The Srilan Empire, being mountainous with steep terrain, made it impossible for large armies to attack certain areas, even with just a few defenders. One of the most famous places is called the Five-Man Pass, which means that as long as five people guard it, no matter how many troops come, they cannot pass.

Therefore, the Roland Empire had to halt its military actions. The main reason was that the nobles had made enough money. The Roland Empire had captured over 700,000 prisoners, and these farmers, who had seen blood, were no longer farmers but soldiers, so their price was as high as 30 gold coins, totaling over 20 million gold coins.

The Mammoth Knights lost 300 men, and the Muny Kingdom was completely looted. In fact, most of the loot was taken by the Roland Empire's soldiers, but once it changed hands from the Srilan Empire's army, it became war spoils. The value of these spoils alone was in the tens of millions of gold coins. Although the 300 lost Mammoth Knights were noble children, they were not direct heirs but illegitimate children. In the face of such a large amount of gold, everything could be set aside.

Moreover, the Roland Empire felt immense pressure, especially in logistics. With nearly two million troops to feed and hundreds of thousands of prisoners, the Muny Kingdom had no supply capabilities, even if it did, it would be considered war spoils. Therefore, the empire had no choice but to sit down with the Srilan Empire for negotiations.

However, just as both sides were secretly contacting each other, Melif and Alice disappeared and were attacked. This made all the nobles, big and small, hesitant to take the lead, as the Melif family, though not powerful, had a very influential family in the empire, the Claris family.

When the emperor of the Roland Empire, under the immense logistical pressure, sought the opinion of the Mage Tower, the negotiations finally came to light. Although many young and passionate people were shouting for revenge, without the support of the nobles, it was all talk.

"Mentor! Alice and Melif still have no news. Should we let them continue negotiating?" Rody asked Monty Claris, who had just returned from the Magic City, with some concern.

"Hehe, it's fine. The prophecy master in the Magic City has predicted that they will have a narrow escape and will return by the Harvest Festival." Monty Claris waved his hand and said.

Rody asked skeptically, "Mentor, is the prophecy really that accurate?"

"Chuckle, you haven't touched the rules yet. The sun rises every day from east to west, and the stars change cyclically every year. These are all the power of the laws. Forget it, I won't say more. When you reach my level, you will vaguely sense the power of the laws." Monty laughed and said, but seeing Rody still confused, he waved his hand and said.

"But the Srilan Empire went too far this time." Rody, hearing Monty's words, wisely avoided the topic and turned to the war.

"Ah, Rody, how can you not see it? This war can be considered a win-win situation for everyone." Monty was speechless and his tone became slightly heavier.

"Please, mentor, enlighten me." Rody, taken aback, quickly bowed and said.

Monty, hearing Rody's words, stood up and instructed, "For the Srilan Empire, they not only recovered a large amount of grain but also lost nearly two million young men. This allowed the Srilan Empire to successfully overcome this crisis. Think about it, if the Srilan Empire hadn't started the war, what would have happened?"

"Rebellion, starving farmers would have rebelled." Rody pondered and said.

"Right, rebellion. Once a rebellion starts, can the army remain intact? Most soldiers come from the common people, and there are various factions that would try to profit from the chaos. The Srilan Empire would inevitably fall into internal strife, causing significant domestic losses and facing a powerful empire nearby. Emperor Srilan XIII was very shrewd. When the signs of rebellion appeared, he found the Muny Kingdom as a big target."

Rody was sweating, clearly chilled by the politician's tactics. Monty continued, "As for our empire, although we lost 300 Mammoth Knights, the nobles and soldiers gained a lot. Most of the Muny Kingdom, except for the grain, became the spoils of the nobles and soldiers. There were also tens of thousands of slaves, and the spoils and the sale of slaves require taxes. The emperor can benefit greatly from this. As for the Mammoth Knights, there are still many. As for the 300 noble children, in the face of such huge profits, they are nothing. Moreover, the fertile land of the Muny Kingdom is the main prize. Rody, believe me, the royal family of the Muny Kingdom is probably extinct, and this will be blamed on the Srilans."

"Mentor?" Rody felt cold all over, knowing that his mentor would not lie.

"Chuckle, Rody, you should focus on your magic. Politics is too dark, darker than you can imagine." Monty, seeing Rody's expression, patted his shoulder and said earnestly.

Sada is the name of the town where Cook and his group were staying. After a night of heavy rain, a sunny day followed. When a beam of sunlight playfully shone on Cook's face, he finally woke up. Cook stretched lazily, lay for a while, and then reluctantly got up. The soft bed, after a month of adventure, was so hard to leave.

"Ah!" When Cook opened the door, he found that Lori and the others were already up, and two maids were busy. The innkeeper was smiling, clearly these maids were brought by him.

"Alright, they will be our Lily's maids from now on." Melif looked at the two maids and sought Alice's opinion. Alice nodded slightly, and Melif said.

"Thank you, my lord, thank you for your kindness." The innkeeper was extremely excited. These were mages, and high-level mages at that.

"Hmm, is this girl your daughter?" Melif pointed to one of the slightly plump girls.

"Yes, my lord!" The innkeeper nodded quickly.

"Hmm, this is the contract. You can use this to find our family in the capital." Melif casually wrote a contract and handed it to the innkeeper.

"Thank you, thank you, my lord." The innkeeper, seeing the elegant handwriting, was extremely excited and decided to ask the mayor to verify the signature later.

"And this one?" Melif pointed to the other thin girl.

"She is the daughter of a distant relative. Her family..." The innkeeper stopped, as this girl was actually chosen from the slaves in the basement by Del.

"Ahh, I see!" Melif waved his hand, mistakenly thinking she was a survivor of the war, as they were still in the Muny Kingdom.

The innkeeper Del quickly bowed and said, "The kitchen is preparing breakfast. Please wait a moment, my lords."

"Father, I already have maids." When Del left, Lori said in a sweet voice.

"You do? What about Miji?" Alice tapped Lori's forehead. Lori was well-mannered, not interrupting when her parents were talking and only speaking after the guest left.

"Alright then!" Lori, hearing her mother's words, finally reacted.

"Actually, these girls from common families are the best. They have clear backgrounds and are the best choice for maids." Melif said with a deeper meaning.

Melif then saw Cook and called him over, "Cook, these are the new maids. The plump one is Mary, and the thin one is Martha. These are their new names. Martha, Mary, this is Cook, Miss Lori's guardian knight."

"Hello!" Cook, not knowing what to do, bowed.

"Cook, go and prepare some clothes. We need to change." Melif then instructed, clearly they needed new clothes.

Cook, helplessly, left the inn, followed by Martha, as she knew the sizes of the women's clothes. Cook muttered to himself, "What is this? Asking me to buy clothes without giving money? Where are such masters? If this continues, I'll go bankrupt."

The town was not very large, about 200 meters in length. The tailor's shop was not far from the inn. Cook went in and handed the task of selecting clothes to Martha, sitting on a chair.

"Done!" Martha said carefully to Cook.

"Done, how much does it cost, sir?" Cook looked at Martha, who was holding a large package of women's clothes, including some undergarments. Cook also picked a few for Melif, Mike, and himself, a set of linen warrior's clothes. He then asked the shopkeeper.

"28 gold coins. These are all made of the finest fur and linen." The shopkeeper was a couple in their thirties, and a deal of this size was rare.

"Here, give me a receipt for 30 gold coins." Cook counted out 28 gold coins and gave them to the shopkeeper.

"Sure, sure, right away!" The shopkeeper immediately took the gold coins and quickly wrote a receipt.

"Here! A share for everyone." Cook put a gold coin into Martha's hand. If Martha were not to be Miji's maid, Cook would not have given her a gold coin, at most two silver coins.

"This... this... isn't right?" To Cook's surprise, Martha looked afraid.

"What's there to be afraid of? Take it. I'm telling you, money is essential. What will you do without it?" Cook, while quickly wrapping the clothes, said in a seasoned tone.

"But, but..." Martha stammered.

"Come on, you're a girl. You'll need to buy some private items. You can't always ask others for them. Take it and hide it in your sock. It won't make noise and is very discreet." Cook was speechless.

"Thank you!" Martha, hearing Cook's words, thought it made sense, put the gold coin in her sock, and said softly.

"Let's go! We'll check out the general store to see if there's anything good." Cook, after checking, found he still had over 50 gold coins, some from Del, some from the constable, and some his own.

However, just as Cook left the tailor's shop, two dark figures descended from the sky. When Cook reacted, he found Little Bad on his right shoulder and Big Mouth on his left. More annoyingly, Little Bad was covered in mud, while Big Mouth was cleaner.

"Money, my money, I want to buy things!" Little Bad extended his small claws and said confidently.

"Sure, but look at you, all dirty. You've made my clothes dirty." Cook picked up Little Bad and took him to the large water pool in front of the general store to clean him. Each household and shop in the wooden town had a large water pool.

"Let go, let go, I'll wash myself. Don't change the subject. I'm very smart, you know." Little Bad struggled and said.

"Alright, how many gold coins do you have?" Cook let go of Little Bad and asked.

"Here." Little Bad opened his mouth, and several small seeds rolled out. He pointed to the seeds floating on the water.

"Eleven, impossible!" Cook counted and asked in disbelief.

"That's right. Big Mouth and I went back to the places you promised and put a seed in my mouth at each spot. We were busy all night." Little Bad stood on the edge of the pool, shook off the water, and said proudly.

"Uh!" Cook's face turned green. No wonder he hadn't seen them last night. They had used this primitive method to count the gold coins he had promised, which Cook himself couldn't remember.

"I want more." Big Mouth shouted from the side.

"Alright, Little Bad gets eleven, and Big Mouth gets sixteen." Cook had no choice but to agree.

"But are you sure you want them now? Do you know how heavy eleven gold coins are? And how will the people around you react?" Cook smiled slightly and asked.

"Hmph, we want to buy things." Little Bad jumped back onto Cook's shoulder.

Cook spread his hands and said, "Alright, let's go. I was going to buy something anyway."

The general store had everything: dried fruits, seeds, and farming tools. Little Bad and Big Mouth each bought a large bag of dried fruits and honey, which Cook roasted. It cost less than ten silver coins, with honey taking up most of the cost. Cook also bought a large bag of various dried fruits, including chestnuts, walnuts, and acorns, as well as honey and cream. He also carefully prepared some seeds, as he was a wood mage and