I Created Scientific Magic - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Carl, Why Did You Betray Us?

Translator: Lonelytree

Kaka…

Suddenly, a crisp caw of a crow interrupted Lin En’s gaze. Lin En looked back regretfully and looked in the direction of the sound. A palm-sized gray crow was standing on the counter, staring at him.

The owner of the [Drunkard] Tavern was a genuine Gwitt merchant. He had a shrewd and unscrupulous aura. When he heard the crow’s cry, he stopped wiping his wine glass and greeted Lin En warmly with his yellow teeth.

“What a rare unfamiliar face. Welcome to the [Drunkard] Tavern…Do you need anything, my guest?”

“A cup of Gulo wine, four years old. If I’m not wrong, it should be seventeen Saikas copper coins.” Lin En walked straight to the front of the stage and arranged the copper coins in his hand on the table in five, five, and seven parts.

The owner of the tavern sized up Lin En. His gaze stopped on the longsword hanging on his waist for a moment, but his expression did not change. “That was last year’s standard. Now… It’s worth 21 copper coins!”

Lin En was stunned for a moment. Before he could answer, the beautiful female customer beside him pursed her lips and said teasingly. “Old York, are you trying to scam the newbies? How come I didn’t know that the price of your Gulo wine had suddenly increased?”

As she spoke, the female customer looked at Lin En with interest. Although 17 copper coins for a cup of Gulo wine wasn’t considered a luxury, few people in the [Drunkard] Tavern would be so generous… Especially since that person was young and had strong muscles. She believed Lin En shouldn’t be the good-looking but useless type…

Old York didn’t mind the woman’s words and grinned. “This year, two cargo ships have turned over at the port. The raw materials for the Gulo wine are scarce, so it will definitely be a little more expensive….”

Lin En frowned and spoke again. “But I only have 17 Saikas copper coins!”

The young female drinker’s interest in Lin En immediately diminished by half. It seemed that he was just another poor man who squandered his savings for a sip of good wine.

“Then I suggest you change your taste…” Old York shrugged.” Of course, if you’re interested in earning some extra money, I can help you. Lauder the Cripple is looking for someone to help him with his private work. He’s always generous!”

The Cripple, Lauder? Lin En raised his eyebrows. He had heard this name more than once when he was in Ur Town to gather information.

The rumors about the other party were not very positive…

“Okay. I’m looking for a job anyway.” Lin En’s thoughts spun, but he still nodded and agreed.

Old York swept the copper coins on the table into his pocket and called for the waiter to take over his work. Then he looked at Lin En and spoke again.

“Come with me. The Gulo wine that you want is placed in the cellar. Take it first before I bring you to see him…”

Seeing that Lin En had followed Old York without any warning, the customers who were watching the show couldn’t help but gloat.

Everyone living in Ur Town knew that although the cripple Lauder was generous, he was also famous for being callous. It was rumored that many people who worked for him had mysteriously disappeared, and sometimes, not even a corpse could be found.

His workers might have the money, but they wouldn’t have the life to spend it…

..

Old York led Lin En through the kitchen and into the storeroom filled with wheat flour and wooden barrels. They stopped in front of a huge, dirty wine barrel.

Kacha…

Old York pressed down on the lid of the wine barrel on the side. With the sound of wine surging, the wine barrel slowly rotated half a circle. The wooden board at the bottom suddenly popped out, revealing a secret passage that was half the height of a person.

“Follow this path. The person you want to see is inside!” Old York lowered his voice and stuffed the candle holder into Lin En’s arms as he warned impatiently. “Take care of yourself, and don’t cause trouble for me!”

Lin En thanked him, picked up the candle, and walked straight into the secret passage. The huge barrel full of wine stains behind him rotated back to its original position, followed by the sound of wine being refilled.

The faint light from the outside world disappeared, and the secret passage was pitch-black. No one knew where it extended to. Only the weak candle in his hand could illuminate the path ahead. The smell of inferior wine could be smelled in the air.

Lin En walked along the dark tunnel, his heart already alert. His mind kept recalling the information of his fellow apprentices.

As his teacher, Kru had been running around all these years. He didn’t have a fixed residence and wouldn’t keep every acolyte by his side.

After all, it was really eye-catching to have too many unfamiliar faces suddenly appearing in a city. It was not conducive to hiding one’s identity.

Therefore, the host had a very limited understanding of these people. He had only met most of them a few times and knew their names and appearances.

The only person he was familiar with was Joni, who had sent him the letter.

Of course, this familiarity was only one way.

To be precise, Carl had a subtle feeling for Joni that was similar to young love.

To put it in words that he could understand, it was unrequited love.

As Kru’s most favored disciple, Joni’s magic talent was very high. She was only one step away from becoming an official wizard. She was also the leader of the apprentices after Kru’s death.

Unfortunately, this one-sided relationship was obviously unable to provide him with any help.

While Lin En was distracted, the narrow tunnel in front of him gradually became wider. Through the weak candlelight, Lin En realized that this tunnel actually led to a dense forest outside Ur Town.

It was already late at night, but the sky was not as dark as he thought. Silver moonlight shone through the gaps of the forest leaves, and the solid yellow soil ground seemed to be covered with a layer of transparent gauze.

Was this a feature on Monday?

Through the dense trees, Lin En could vaguely see the bright stars and the huge moon in the sky. According to Karl’s memory, this strange astronomical scene only happened once a year and lasted for about three to five days.

However, there was no record of moonlight affecting magic power.

Then again, the host had only become a mage for half a year…

Just as he was thinking, a series of rapid air-piercing sounds suddenly sounded. A dozen condensed [Magic Missiles] flew out from the surrounding closed forest, blocking his escape route.

A trap?

This thought immediately appeared in Lin En’s mind. He reacted in the next moment. He flipped his empty left hand and threw a ball of gray powder into his palm. It was the last remaining casting material from the host-[Red Fire Ember]!

Lin En threw it with force, and bits of powder instantly ignited under the effect of magic power, forming a scorching hot wall of fire in front of him.

However, the new spell that was hastily used,[Inferior Fire Wall], was naturally no match for the combined efforts of several apprentices. [Magic Missile] penetrated the sea of fire almost instantly.

Fortunately, Lin En’s goal had been achieved. The heat waves and high temperatures caused by the firewall made these magic creations lose their aim and hit the tree trunks and yellow soil behind him.

Seeing the four figures under the black robes form a semi-circle around him, Lin En silently pulled out the longsword at his waist. At the same time, he opened the storage bag that contained White Phosphorus and prepared for battle.

Due to the lack of time, the amount of white phosphorous he produced was limited. However, now was clearly not the time to hold back…

However, before Lin En could make a move, a cold voice was heard.

“Carl, why did you betray us?”