Chapter 54

Robert Antelio's private library was about 300 square meters in size, with six rows of large bookshelves standing in the room. The walls were also lined with shelves, storing various books. It was as if Gordon had entered a city made of books, permeated with the scent of ink.

Despite the vast collection, Gordon believed that with his current access, he would not be able to truly reach Robert's most treasured books. However, this was enough for now.

Gordon cast a Mage Hand and retrieved several large volumes from the top of a three-meter-high bookshelf.

"Rise and Fall of the Third Era. History Knowledge +6, Geography Knowledge +3, Nobility Knowledge +7, Religion Knowledge +5."

"Flora and Fauna of the Southern Continent. Local Knowledge +7, History Knowledge +3, Geography Knowledge +5, Nature Knowledge +8."

...

Most of the books were of this type, unable to provide experience points or allow the learning of arcane skills, but they could offer a wealth of knowledge.

To survive in this world, having a wide range of information and accurate intelligence was also very important. However, Gordon felt that his time was tight, and he had no leisure to read these miscellaneous books.

He would think about it later.

Gordon continued to wander around the private library and finally found a shelf dedicated to magic books. The black sandalwood bookshelf, which emitted a peculiar scent and had insect-repelling properties, was sparsely filled with books of various thicknesses and materials, most of which were written by Robert himself.

Gordon noticed a book with a pink cover. Generally, such a conspicuous color would not be used for a book cover. Curious, he took it down. To his surprise, the pages of the book were made of a special silk, smooth and soft to the touch, emitting a refreshing fragrance, and they would not wrinkle no matter how much they were crumpled.

The cover seemed to be hiding something, with no title. Gordon opened it and saw the words "Pink Book" written in the lower right corner of the inside cover by the Lord of the Scepter.

After glancing through the content of the Pink Book, Gordon smiled with a knowing grin: "Duke Robert is so enthusiastic about beautiful women; it's only natural that he would conduct research in this area."

Pink is a very ambiguous color, representing love, pleasure, and the goddess of joy, Lirya. This spellbook, named "Pink," naturally contained many spells related to love and pleasure.

Duke Robert wrote about how he obtained the book on the first page. It was said that in his youth, he ventured to the Moonshadow Islands in the Endless Ocean and obtained the book from a few pink fairies in the ruins of an ancient city. However, the content of the book was incomplete, lacking the full range of pink spells.

As for the author of the Pink Book, he speculated that it might have been written by the goddess of love, Aenisha, and the goddess of joy, Lirya, together.

Gordon was not interested in the origin of the Pink Book; he only wanted to see the wondrous spells recorded within.

"1st-level spell, Slight Intoxication: Causes the target to experience a mild drunken effect and increases the target's perception of the caster's appearance."

"1st-level spell, Contraception: For each level of the spell, the target is protected from conception for one hour."

"1st-level spell, Vivid Imagery: Converts erotic descriptions in a book into moving images."

"2nd-level spell, Peacock's Beauty: Significantly enhances the target's appearance."

"3rd-level spell, Spring Dream: Causes the target to have a spring dream."

...

The creative and imaginative pink spells made Gordon marvel. The wonders of these spells, if put into practice, would undoubtedly have unknown effects.

However, the Pink Book did not contain any spells that could directly enhance a man's abilities, which was why Duke Robert still needed Gordon's Vigor Ring to satisfy his wives.

Gordon read through the Pink Book from cover to cover and finally became deeply interested in a 0-level cantrip, "Depilation." This spell could completely remove all body hair from a humanoid target.

A flash of inspiration struck Gordon, and he thought of a good way to earn gold coins.

In any world, women with smooth, flawless skin are rare. Ordinary women, like men, have various body hairs. For beauty-conscious women, these unsightly hairs are a major enemy of beauty. On Earth, various depilatory creams, waxes, and devices are popular beauty products. In cosmetic and plastic surgery clinics, laser hair removal is a major money-making project.

In the world of Telos, noble ladies, wealthy women, and women in the special service industry also racked their brains to have smooth, beautiful bodies, and were willing to spend a lot of gold coins to achieve this.

If Gordon could develop a depilatory potion, he would surely make a lot of money.

Since the target market was not practical adventurers but women who would pay any price for beauty, Gordon could set a very high price for the depilatory potion and still make a tenfold or even twentyfold profit. Moreover, a 0-level cantrip only consumed one point of mana, allowing for a significant increase in daily production.

The more Gordon thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. A plan began to take shape in his mind. Duke Robert, with his power and influence, would not bother to make money from depilatory potions, but Gordon was different. He was not satisfied with the few dozen gold coins a day from "Duro's Treasure Chest." He wanted more wealth, which meant a better life and more resources for his magical research.

Learning a 0-level cantrip was exceptionally easy, and Gordon quickly mastered the Depilation spell. The casting material required only a single hair, making it extremely cheap, with almost no cost.

Gordon continued reading the Pink Book, and before he knew it, it was noon. He left the Duke's private library and went to the dining room, where the water elemental maid had already prepared the meal.

After lunch, the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside.

The crisp sound of metal boots clattering on the ground grew closer. The next day, Farah appeared before Gordon again.

Her long silver hair was tied up, making her look more neat and tidy. She wore a full-body silver-gray armor, with colorful fur lining the edges. This armor was suitable for combat in cold regions, providing both warmth and good protection.

Gordon realized that he had been so excited about finding the Pink Book that he had forgotten about the duel with the Duke's daughter.

"Are you ready, Gordon Freeman, the mage?" Farah emphasized the word "mage," her disdain evident.

Gordon felt like a typical victim of a false accusation.

From Farah's background, it was clear that she blamed her father for her mother's death and harbored resentment towards Robert. As a result, Gordon, being a mage and favored by Robert, became her target. She wanted to oppose her father through him. Given her character and values, if Gordon had a different identity, he might not have been targeted for such a minor incident as seeing her body.

Well, it was too late to think about that now. Since the words had been spoken, the duel had to take place.

The last duel with Hao Lin, Gordon had wanted the entire city to watch. This time, he hoped the fight would take place in a secluded area, with no third party knowing. Although Gordon knew he was framed, others would not believe him. It was best to handle the matter as discreetly as possible.

"The basement is a spell practice area, quiet and empty, and strong enough to withstand our duel. It's a good place to resolve our misunderstanding."

"Whatever," Farah said.

The rules of the duel were simple: either incapacitate the opponent or force them out of the arena.

The two stood in the temporarily marked duel area, and Farah eagerly revealed her weapon. A flash of light, and a large, heavy mace appeared in her hand. Gordon was surprised to see that the mace's head was an ice crystal with frosty spikes.

"This is a high-end item, at least a superior-grade magical weapon," Gordon couldn't help but grimace.

In this limited space, facing such a wide-ranging heavy weapon, his frail body as a mage would not fare well. Even a steel-reinforced heavy shield would likely not withstand several heavy blows from Farah's mace.

Gordon didn't know how many hits his Animated Shield could withstand.

Fortunately, this was a private duel with few rules, allowing the use of magical items. Otherwise, Gordon would have no chance against the silver-haired girl with her innate strength and half-barbarian blood.

As for how to defeat her, that was a bigger challenge. Using the strongest attack spell? Even if he won, leaving a beautiful woman injured or disabled would be pointless. Gordon's tastes weren't that extreme. Even if he put aside his chivalrous feelings, if he went too far and injured Farah, how would he explain it to Duke Robert later?

But he had no control spells that could defeat her without hurting her.

"Ah, I should have learned a Charm Person spell. But she would probably resist a low-level spell easily."

While Gordon hesitated, Farah took decisive action. The mace, carrying a cold aura, whistled toward him.

"Clang!"

The Animated Shield in front of Gordon was knocked back by the mace, its surface covered in a layer of pure white frost, almost losing control.

But in that moment, Gordon suddenly had an idea.

"Although it's a bit underhanded, to win without hurting her, I have no choice."

He quickly pulled out a hair, chanted a short incantation, and pointed his left index finger forward. A thin pink beam shot out from his finger and entered Farah's chest.

He cast Depilation on Farah.

The silver-haired girl suddenly showed a strange expression, shuddered, and tried to suppress a sound. Then she put away the ice crystal mace and ran off.

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End of the page.