This Lich Requests More Remuneration-Chapter 197 - 184 No One Is Clean

Chapter 197: Chapter 184: No One Is Clean

Chapter 197 -184: No One Is Clean

Amberser’s Shapeshifting was very proficient, not only perfect in appearance but also identical in voice when speaking.

But impersonating a stranger ultimately required time to practice, and in his haste, Amberser had forgotten the basic persona of Monger Greyriver.

Due to its poverty and remoteness, the Fury Tide Kingdom had few talents, and Monger Greyriver’s high-level Magic Scrolls for his sea voyages all had to be prepared by these Court Magicians.

Having just lost an embarrassingly one-sided battle against the Silent Night Pirate Group, it made no logical sense for him now to declare that he had cleverly lured the leader of the pirate band to come alone.

Although these three Court Magicians were merely workers, the war could very likely involve them. Hearing the commotion outside, could a common Legendary figure cause that? This level of combat had exceeded expectations, and Monger Greyriver’s vague explanations were unsettling. Who could be at ease?

What if something unexpected occurred and they were drawn into the war, wouldn’t it be dangerous for them?

The Court Mage addressed Amberser seriously, “I need an explanation and, without one, please forgive me for not being able to participate in this war.”

Amberser was recalling the person’s identity and took a few seconds to remember.

“Master Sharlock, you ask why I haven’t disclosed the details? I would like to ask you why you care so much about the details when, in fact, my plan has succeeded. And now, with time being critical, you are here stalling. Why is that?”

Sharlock frowned, the Monger Greyriver standing before him seemed like a completely different person, turning the tables on him.

Sharlock spoke anxiously, “What are you talking about? I am a Court Mage of the Fury Tide Kingdom; everything I do is for the good of the kingdom.”

Amberser sneered and asked, “Last year, you requested a variety of Alchemy materials from the kingdom: Demon Fungus, Namira Decay Fungus, Poison Fly Parasol, Bubble Grass, and so on, totaling nearly thirty tons. Even an Alchemy Apprentice could use these materials to concoct over five thousand bottles of paralysis and decay potions. But how many did you deliver to the kingdom? Fourteen hundred bottles, and two hundred of those I personally paid you to order.”

Paralysis potions are typically used for whale hunting, injected into the specially designed hollow whaling harpoons, they can quickly paralyze the whales, causing them to suffocate and die. But these potions are expensive; if the catch fails more than three times, it results in a loss.

Without the use of paralysis potions, deep-sea whales could overturn most fishing boats or drag them out of the shipping lanes, putting everyone on board in grave danger.

As for decay potions, when diluted properly, they are particularly effective at cleaning barnacles off the ship’s hull, which can be very damaging. But removing them forcibly also harms the hull. If one encounters a mutant variety, the cleaning process could release highly toxic fluids. Contact with this could at best cause severe illness for months, or at worst, immediate death.

Therefore, these decay potions are needed to kill the barnacles, allowing them to fall off naturally, and these too are a regular necessity for the kingdom.

Just these two items alone represented a significant public expenditure.

Sharlock’s face flushed red, and he could only exclaim loudly, “What nonsense are you spouting? Do you understand alchemy, or do I?”

Monger Greyriver wasn’t supposed to know alchemy, but Amberser did. What was Amberser most sensitive to? Anything related to money. Therefore, he paid special attention to the memory of Monger Greyriver spending privately on paralysis potions; at the time, he even thought about mocking how the Fury Tide Kingdom was being swindled.

And now, this memory had unexpectedly come in handy.

The King of the Fury Tide also asked Amberser in surprise, “Monger, when did you learn alchemy?”

Amberser laughed and said, “I originally did not know alchemy, but the magic equipment and potions of the kingdom are too expensive and produced in too low quantities. So occasionally, I would inquire with outsiders for related information. Even after the Elf Tribe significantly increased the price of magical materials, and even with transportation costs, I still couldn’t understand the accounts.

“Master Sharlock, if you want the details, why don’t we take a good look today? Let’s visit your Magic Tower first, and let me see how you concoct the potions. How about that?”

Seeing Amberser’s confident manner, Sharlock dared not let him visit his Magic Tower.

What Alchemist doesn’t skimp on the patron’s materials? If you’re not pocketing some materials on the side, are you even an Alchemist? He just thought that the Fury Tide Kingdom lacked people who understood alchemy and so had overreached.

Monger Greyriver, he didn’t know when he began to suspect him. Hadn’t they cooperated well before? Suddenly, he had changed his stance—sure enough, the hearts of those playing politics are filthy, and the previous smiles must have been feigned.

Sharlock no longer dared to express his opinion, while the King of the Fury Tide showed a surprised look, speaking to Amberser, “Monger, you seem like a completely different person, good, I didn’t misjudge you.”

The Fury Tide Kingdom sorely lacked such talents. It wasn’t that they couldn’t afford Alchemists; they lacked someone meticulous enough to analyze problems from mere traces and clues.

Amberser, however, was taken aback by the king’s words, wondering if he had overplayed his role.

Just as he was about to dial it back, another Court Magician stepped forward.

“How did the topic shift to other matters? Your Majesty, our concern is the details of this so-called plan. If anything unexpected happens, it could have negative consequences for the kingdom.”

Amberser glanced at the man, recalling another name, “Master Winston, still the same reasoning, the same excuse. People who verbally express concern for the kingdom, do they truly consider its welfare in their hearts?”

Winston said disdainfully, “What now, have you found some fault with me again? Could it be that the magic scrolls I copied for you are substandard, or is there one that doesn’t work?”

Winston was a mage whose daily work involved supplying the kingdom with magic scrolls.

The power used by a mage to copy scrolls came from their own magic, so there was no way to accuse him of embezzling public funds in this regard.

However, being a mage was Amberser’s profession as well, finding problems wouldn’t be difficult for him.

Amberser recalled his memories related to Winston, then said, “Of course there is nothing wrong with the scrolls copied by Master Winston, but you have requested many talented children from the kingdom, claiming you would train them as mage apprentices. Then over the years, these apprentices have one by one disappeared. You say they died in magical experiments, but aren’t the accident rates for these experiments a bit too high?”

Winston did not appear guilty in the least and asserted as if it were a matter of fact, “Magic experiments are naturally dangerous. That time I didn’t report accordingly, do you think it was because I killed them? What benefit would that bring me?”

“Indeed, why would the magical experiments of a protection school mage be so dangerous?”

Amberser scrutinized Winston carefully because at that moment he still hadn’t found a real reason, but his instinct told him that the deaths of these mage apprentices were closely linked to Winston.

Feeling uncomfortable under Amberser’s gaze, Winston shared the same thought as Shalock; the man before him seemed like he had become someone else entirely.

Amberser looked for a long time, and then he saw something familiar on Winston.

In a serious tone, Amberser said, “Master Winston, you are not a mage of the protection school at all, you are actually a necromancer, am I right?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the other two court mages couldn’t help but step back, distancing themselves from Winston.

Winston’s face changed drastically, and he said agitatedly, “What nonsense are you spouting? This is slander, defamation!”

No wonder he was so agitated; although the School of Necromancy was one of the well-known schools among mages, the reputation of this school was not good, despised even more than the undead.

Simply put, the conflict between living beings and the undead was a matter of race, but what about a living being who sides with the undead… wouldn’t such a person be hated even more?

Necromancers differed from the undead; they were alive and couldn’t generate dark magic power on their own, so they needed to continually kill living beings to refine this power. The undead could lie dormant for decades doing nothing, but if necromancers did not kill for a period of time, their magic power would regress.

Of course, there were some necromancers who chose to be morticians without actively killing; they would pay for fresh corpses to use as experimental materials. However, the proportion of such necromancers was very low, after all, killing was simpler, while buying corpses was costly and troublesome, and not reliable.

Even though the Fury Tide Kingdom was not like Laine, concealing one’s identity as a necromancer was still a very serious issue.

Seeing everyone looking at him with strange eyes, Winston said urgently, “What proof do you have?! If you can’t present any, I will fight for my honor, and I will challenge you to a duel!”

But Amberser confidently said, “Why so agitated, does a necromancer need proof? A person who has been in contact with dark magic power for years can’t hide many things. Your pupils have already turned grey, do you think the stench of decomposition can be covered up with perfume? The gaps in your nails have been soaked in blood, and not even nail polish can hide it… too many disguises, but they’re all meaningless.”

Winston’s face turned ashen; Amberser had hit the mark on all these details.

But he still insisted, “These are all mere figments of your imagination; my eyes are naturally grey. All the other so-called disguises, they’re nothing but shadows and dust, there’s no evidence! I am willing to open up the Magic Tower for inspection, let’s see what you can find!”

He didn’t believe the other party would be able to find any clues since he had covered his tracks well in the Magic Tower.

However, Amberser didn’t even consider this direction, but merely said to Winston, “Why go through all that trouble, if you’re still dissatisfied, just cast a Withering Spell for me now.”

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“Withering Spell is a fourth-tier necromancy spell that mages from other schools can also cast, but when a necromancer does it, the color of the spell is distinctly different, and it’s much more powerful. If you’re capable, then change the attribute of your magic power for me.”

Amberser looked at Winston with disdain, a necromancer playing innocent like a lich, was like trying to fool the God of Alchemy with a test tube, utterly lacking in self-awareness.

Winston clenched his fists; he never expected every statement from Amberser to be so accurate. External appearances could be disguised, but the attribute of magic power indeed could not be faked, and the Withering Spell was precisely the kind of spell that made the difference in magic power attributes most evident. When had Monger Greyriver become so proficient in spells? He must have been pretending the whole time!

After berating Winston, Amberser then turned to the last court mage and asked, “What about you, do you also want to ask about the details of the plan?”

The last mage quickly shook his head; he too wasn’t clean and didn’t want Amberser to expose him as well.

Seeing the three court mages no longer dared to speak, Amberser then addressed the King, “Your Majesty, there is no time to lose, we must act immediately.”

Admiration filled the King’s eyes; truly a pillar of the state, it turned out that the Fury Tide Kingdom had a Prime Minister’s talent hidden among them, he had truly underestimated him before.

The King walked up to Amberser and slapped his shoulder with force, saying, “Good, start evacuating the nearby citizens immediately, and then have the Fury Tide Legion begin preparations. Monger, everyone will follow your arrangements.”