Chapter 53: The Temple’s Reward (Part 2)

‘Is this the other version of bad money driving out good money from another world? It looks like it is not just Priest Gavin who feels embarrassed; I bet the Knight Val who killed Zeksis Christopher also feels very uncomfortable.’ Seeing the situation, George could not help but come to this conclusion.

Perhaps due to years of noble upbringing or the strong control a power ful person has over themselves, Knight Val did not change any of his facial expressions or body movements. It was as if the news had no effect on him at all.

He calmly said, “Alright! But I think the reward for killing a Black Lead Rank strong enemy from a hostile Church should not be too bad.”

“It is really great that you think so. Although the price of this reward is a bit low for that guy’s strength, the reason is that the Dwarf Temple and the Gnome Temple did not expect anyone to actually kill that guy to claim the reward.” As Priest Gavin spoke, the palm of the hand holding the Scroll began to get a bit damp.

As if he had found an interesting toy, George immediately asked about the words the other person had just said, “Oh! You mean the Temple did not expect anyone to come claim this bounty? What is going on?”

“As I said before, Zeksis Christopher is a high-ranking member of the Goblin Church and basically has a certain number of subordinates as guards. Plus, he has been hiding behind the scenes for a long time, and almost no one knows his movement patterns. Unless they are holding a religious gathering, it is basically impossible to find him accurately. If you attack during a religious gathering, you would need to send out a huge number of people, which is basically a full-scale war. However, because the cost might be too high, both Churches did not have such plans.” Priest Gavin first explained to everyone the difficulty of dealing with that Goblin Priest of Black Lead Rank.

After taking a sip of milk tea to moisten his throat, he began to explain the reasons for the low reward: “And you should know that high-ranking clergy of their Evil Gods have some means to resist Divination Magic to some extent. So unless you were as lucky as you were to bump into him by chance, and you were a strong person who left him no chance to run, the current result would not have happened. For such a low-probability event, the Temple did not fully consider it. The reason the bounty was posted was just a routine matter in a certain sense. Plus, the fact that there were no extra victims as mentioned before created the current situation.”

George knew that what Priest Gavin just said was not wrong, but he still felt vaguely that something was off. So he asked, “How can you say that Mr. Val happened to kill this guy? It solved a not-so-small trouble for both the Dwarf Temple and the Gnome Temple. After all, training a qualified high-ranking clergy member requires a huge cost. More importantly, the time it takes to train them is long, and this gap cannot be filled in just a few years. So besides the reward given before, they should also give some other compensation, right?”

Priest Gavin nodded, fully opened the Scroll, and placed it on the table for everyone to see. Then he said, “When we just received the news that Zeksis Christopher was killed, the two Temples were surprised and also discussed the matter of the reward. But they quickly reached a conclusion, which is that the total amount of the reward will not change. This is a rule that cannot be changed; otherwise, the Temple’s bounty system would be in chaos.”

George immediately understood the meaning in the other person’s words: “So that means there will be compensation in the range of item choices.”

Priest Gavin breathed a slight sigh of relief; he did not want to ruin the Temple’s reputation because of such a thing! He quickly gave his reply: “It is so convenient to talk to smart people. Both Temples have already given the answer. You can choose any Magic Item worth no more than 5000 Gold Coins. Of course, it can also be a large batch of weapons and armor, or military supplies like healing potions. Of course, do not look at the latter as if they are easy to get; if the quantity exceeds a certain amount, these items are strictly controlled.”

“So, all Magic Items?” George turned his head and looked at Knight Val, who was sitting nearby leisurely drinking milk tea. Seeing the other person’s manner, it seemed he had guessed the current result long ago. So Knight Val must have already chosen what he needed!

‘It seems I was just worrying about nothing and overestimating myself!’ George thought with a bitter smile.

Knight Val put down the teacup in his hand and tapped it lightly on the table. The foam floating in the teacup immediately scattered. At the same time, he raised his handsome sword-like eyebrows and said, “One Magic Wand with the remaining charge of twenty Fireballs. I require the Magic Wand to be complete in both appearance and function. I think such an item should not be too difficult for both Temples to provide.”

Hearing this, Priest Gavin did not know why, sweat suddenly appeared on his forehead. He quickly wiped it with the sleeve of his robe and asked, “Are you preparing for a war?”

Priest Gavin was indeed startled by Knight Val’s request. The so-called Magic Wand is a tool used to store spells. Unlike Magic Scrolls, the latter can only be used by Spellcasters, and the spell level on the Scroll can only exceed the caster’s ability by at most two rings.

However, a Magic Wand is a spell item that can be used by anyone who has received special training as long as there is an activation device, with no other excessive restrictions. But its price is also very high. Taking the Fireball Wand as an example, the price of a newly made one is almost 12,000 Gold Coins. Most importantly, magic like Fireball is very hard to buy.

Let’s talk about Fireball. It creates a burst of exploding fire with a low hum and has a very long range. After the explosion, it deals fire damage to all living beings and objects within a 20-foot radius. The power of Fireball also varies depending on the strength of the Spellcaster. The smallest version is equivalent to a large offensive grenade, while the largest version can basically match the power of an explosive incendiary bomb fired by a 155-millimeter heavy cannon in the 21st century.

This is a spell that can only be learned by Mages at the peak of Gray Rock Rank; even those who have reached Red Iron Rank have few area-of-effect spells that can compare to it. So those Mages have developed many ways to use it! For example, they can change its shape into a scorching small sphere the size of a pea, then use accurate shooting and distance control to make it explode directly inside the enemy’s defensive facilities through arrow slits. The most critical thing is that Fireball can ignite flammable materials and cause damage to objects in the area. It can even melt low-melting-point metals, such as Lead, Gold, Copper, Silver, and Bronze. In a closed space with obstacles, if the damage from Fireball is enough to shatter or destroy such obstacles, Fireball can spread beyond these obstacles.

You can imagine that in war, from blowing open city gates to burning supplies, from destroying the enemy’s formation during an attack to solving siege weapons during defense, the uses of Fireball are everywhere, which makes it the most cost-effective battlefield spell. And a Mage at the peak of Red Iron Rank can only use Fireball three to four times a day at most, relying solely on their own power, depending on their personal aptitude.

So, if used well, that one Fireball Wand can even determine the success or failure of a certain battle. Especially against a country like the Kingdom of Lucia, which has many people but lacks experts of matching strength, the effect is outstanding. No wonder Knight Val chose such an item directly.

“What’s wrong? Do you feel difficult? If it is hard to find a used one, we can make up the difference to get a brand new Fireball Wand.” Understanding Knight Val’s thoughts, George immediately pressed the advantage, giving the other party no chance to evade. Seeing George’s performance, Knight Val immediately showed a satisfied expression.

“Are you sure you want this Magic Item? It is very easy to accidentally hurt others.” Priest Gavin seemed to want George and the others to give up this idea.

After all, this is like someone buying dozens of rocket shells in America. Even in countries that allow gun ownership, such heavy firepower weapons put a lot of psychological pressure on the seller during the transaction.

“We want it. Since our Acting Lord has already said that we can make up the difference to exchange for a brand new one, the two Temples, which want to avoid so much trouble, should have no reason to refuse, right?” Although Knight Val’s tone was gentle, it gave people a feeling that there was no room for refusal.

“Acting Lord?” Priest Gavin looked at George, who had just sat down, with a confused gaze. It seemed he could not make a decision, so he used the short staff to contact others in the Temple.

During this waiting period, George felt a bit uneasy, fearing that the other party would find some reason to ask for a different reward. Although this practice would have a slight impact on the Temple’s reputation, it was not something they could afford.

It seemed he received an accurate reply, and Priest Gavin spoke: “After careful consideration, all three of our Temples have agreed to your request to make up the difference for a brand new Fireball Wand. Including the deduction from the Temple of Justice, you still need to pay 7,000 Gold Coins.”

“7,000 Gold Coins? Do you want equivalent vouchers from the Woking Temple or gemstones? If you want cash, I will send someone to the Woking Temple to exchange it immediately.” George immediately agreed, as if he was afraid the other party would change their mind.

Priest Gavin gave a surprising reply: “You must be George Ouster Bolerum, the Acting Lord of Bolerum Territory. More accurately, the Gnome Temple is very interested in the Paper Armor in your territory; they hope you use this to pay off the remaining fees.”

“How many Paper Armor do they need?” George suddenly understood one of the reasons why the other party agreed to deliver the Fireball Wand. This was essentially an equal arms trade.

Priest Gavin held up two fingers and said, “200 sets of Paper Armor. This price is much lower than the price you sell for. However, Gnomes are smaller in size, so each set uses less material. Plus, with such a large purchase volume, they think this price is still appropriate.”

George’s heart was bursting with joy, but on the surface, he still made a show of struggling: “Then it is a deal, but when will you take the goods?”

“The Wand will arrive in one month. At the same time, a Magic Document will be sent. After signing the document, the Gnomes will send a Caravan to Bolerum Territory to collect the goods in two months. That means you have three months to prepare from now on.” Priest Gavin gave a very perfect plan.

“Okay, they will definitely be satisfied.” George said with a smile.