Chapter 14: A Visitor

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Chapter 14: A Visitor

Charlie made no attempt to hide his intention of becoming a part-time alchemist.

In Totolando, alchemists were also a popular profession. Not only could they produce all kinds of alchemical potions and become the most trusted “doctors” of mages, but they could also improve glassmaking methods while practicing alchemy. This allowed glass, once a rare commodity, to be produced and used on a large scale in Magipo City before gradually spreading throughout Totolando.

Most importantly, alchemy was closely connected to magic. Charlie was unwilling to accept his fate and was determined to try anything related to magic. His decision to begin studying alchemy was therefore an unexpected yet perfectly natural development.

After all, there were many “unorthodox methods” of alchemy circulating among the common folk. Those with a little magic talent but no formal master to teach them could sometimes stumble upon unexpected results by sheer accident. And Charlie was not completely without magic talent. As everyone knew, he simply didn’t have enough of it.

The first mage had no one to teach him, yet he became a mage.

The first alchemist had no one to teach him, yet he learned alchemy.

As long as you dared, you could throw whatever you wanted into a cauldron, blow it up, and end up with gunpowder. As long as you dared to try, you could be the next great alchemist of Totolando.

Thus, Charlie openly asked passersby where he could find shops that sold alchemical materials. He spent ten gold coins on the materials needed to make some basic potions, then took a carriage back to Gray Hat Street.

Charlie didn’t have a magic storage item, so when his neighbors saw him return with a large bundle on his back, they naturally couldn’t resist asking questions.

Within half a day, the news had spread once again.

The soul from another world stood by the upstairs window, watching. Every neighbor who passed by looked at Pinecone Tower, their head-shaking and sighing seeming to say—

Look, a wastrel lives in there. His dreams have been shattered, and now he’s desperately grasping at anything he can find. Perhaps it won’t be long before he’s driven into bankruptcy by countless failed alchemy experiments and can’t even afford the cost of his materials.

Ben said, “They don’t seem to think much of you.”

Charlie replied, “It’s fine. No matter how much they think of me, none of them would become my angel investor.”

Angel investor?

Ben’s empty skull was once again filled with questions. Angels… invest in humans? Invest in what? Then, miraculously, he remembered something his master had once said and eagerly told Charlie, “Master said that angels are all frauds. There are no angels in this world, only swindlers, charlatans, and villains disguised as angels.”

“Perhaps.” Charlie didn’t care whether angels existed or whether the gods were watching over the continent. As he processed the materials according to the instructions in The Alchemy Notes , he said, “But devils do exist.”

Ben exclaimed, “Where?!”

Charlie looked up and replied ominously, “When you struck the barber in the back of the head, he was watching from the darkness. So now he’s already—got his eye on you.”

Ben immediately panicked, his skull practically jumping three feet into the air.

Charlie couldn’t help laughing, but his hand suddenly slipped, ruining the materials.

Great. Nothing to laugh about now.

Alchemy really was a money-burning business.

Processing the materials was mentally exhausting as well. Charlie worked until evening before stopping to rest. It was also just about time to make dinner.

Tonight’s dinner consisted of bread and jam brought back from outside. There was no meat because a pot of sweet royal milk tea was still simmering on the stove. The ingredients for the milk tea were no cheaper than meat, but Charlie was more than willing to spend the money to try something new.

Unfortunately, the milk tea contained far too many spices, making it almost overwhelmingly fragrant. The ratio of milk to tea was also nowhere near as refined as it would be in later generations. In short, it was sickeningly sweet.

Charlie casually took out a tart apple, cut it into pieces, and tossed them into the pot to simmer. I can improve the recipe next time.

After leisurely finishing his dinner, Charlie waited until midnight, but the devil still did not show up.

Charlie frowned slightly, unable to figure out what the black-hearted jeweler was planning. If he didn’t come at night and instead chose to take the barber away during the day, wouldn’t that attract even more attention?

Or… is someone still watching Gray Hat Street from the shadows, making it inconvenient for him to show himself? Or has something happened to him?

With these questions lingering in his mind, Charlie waited until the next day.

The following morning, someone knocked on the door of Pinecone Tower. Charlie steeled himself before opening it, only to find a water delivery worker standing outside.

Gray Hat Street had no running water, so water delivery workers came every three days to supply the residents with what they needed. Of course, those short on money could always draw water themselves from the public well.

Charlie, of course, was not one of the latter.

Charlie looked at the sturdy water delivery worker, whose skin had been tanned a deep bronze beneath the sun. His gaze shifted to the large water barrels on the cart, and he began to wonder if Vic had sent this man.

If he wanted to get someone out without anyone noticing, a water barrel of that size would be perfect.

But it turned out Charlie had simply been overthinking things. The water delivery worker took his money, carried the water inside for him, then drove the cart away without lingering for even a moment.

Then what exactly was Vic up to?

Full of suspicion, Charlie closed the door again and went upstairs to peer out at the street.

He had imagined all sorts of possibilities, suspecting that anyone passing through the street might be someone else’s eyes and ears. But he truly hadn’t expected the jeweler to make his appearance in such a way.

He had come to Gray Hat Street without even bothering to disguise himself, riding openly in his luxurious carriage.

When he stepped down from the carriage with his cane in hand and a cloak draped over his shoulders, then knocked on the door of Pinecone Tower with the hand wearing his emerald ring, Charlie could almost hear the whispers coming from inside his neighbors’ homes without even needing his ears.

Mrs. Macken’s cat slipped through the window and walked along the sill with its tail held high, giving him a curious look. The flamboyant jeweler even waved at it and said—

“Hello.”

For a moment, Charlie didn’t want to open the door for him. His instincts told him that the trouble this jeweler brought with him might be even greater than the trouble caused by imprisoning the barber.

But his reason still prevailed. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door and asked politely, “Can I help you?”

“It’s only been a day, and you’ve already forgotten?” Vic smiled and gestured toward the carriage behind him with a glance. The coachman, quick to catch his meaning, took a ribbon-wrapped gift box from the carriage and carried it over to Charlie.

“This is…” Charlie realized that it might contain the alchemical materials he needed.

Repair the plank road in the open while secretly marching through Chencang.

“What did I agree to?” Charlie asked, meeting his smiling gaze.

“Become my jewelry model. I need a suitable candidate, and you need a job, don’t you? If you’re lucky, you might even get to meet the Legendary Mage of Mindo Tower.” Vic smiled.

Just as I thought.

Charlie knew this jeweler wouldn’t play by the usual rules. The jewelry-model arrangement had been completely outside the scope of their deal. Who knew what other complications it might bring? But under the circumstances, Charlie had no room to reject him outright.

Being set up like this was deeply unpleasant, yet Charlie’s expression actually grew gentler. He even put on a faintly grateful smile and stepped aside to make way. “Please, come in.”

Vic raised an eyebrow slightly but said nothing. He entered Pinecone Tower without hesitation.

Click. The door closed softly behind him.

Vic suddenly felt a chill at the back of his neck, as though some malicious gaze had settled on him. But when he turned around, all he saw was Charlie’s pale, harmless-looking face.

“Why are you looking at me like that, Mr. Vic?” Charlie asked.

“Don’t you have anything to ask?” Vic countered.

Charlie walked a few steps forward and set down the gift box. “I do need a job right now, and it seems I have no choice but to agree. I only want to know whether what you said about meeting the Legendary Mage of Mindo Tower is true.”

“Of course.” Vic appreciated the way Charlie had turned a passive situation into an active one and immediately started negotiating terms. It was much easier—and much more interesting. At least he wouldn’t have to worry about Charlie holding him back. He smiled and continued, “People always say I’m black-hearted, but as a merchant, integrity is a basic requirement.”

“Then thank you, Mr. Vic.” Charlie replied calmly, pointing toward the basement. “The barber is down there. Please follow me.”

With that, Charlie opened the basement door right in front of Vic and even walked ahead without the slightest precaution.

Vic watched his back with an unreadable expression. After a two-second pause, he followed. When he saw the bald barber lying on a pile of rags in the corner, he couldn’t help sighing. “Who would’ve thought? Even the famous assassin would end up like this.”

Charlie turned around. “You know his true identity, Mr. Vic?”

Vic kept him in suspense. “Are you curious about him?”

Charlie nodded. “Of course.”

Vic looked at the barber’s gleaming bald head, his fingers rubbing the emerald ring. “Could you tell me what happened to his hair first? If I’m not mistaken, he should have the same beautiful long blond hair as you.”

“He got lice, so I shaved it off.” Charlie’s expression remained perfectly calm.

“He got lice in only two or three days?”

“Maybe he already had lice. Or maybe it’s because the basement isn’t exactly a good environment.”

Liar.

Vic could tell. Charlie was such an unconvincing liar. But the thought of him shaving the barber’s head clean made Vic want to laugh. Could this be his way of getting revenge?

Thinking of this, Vic looked at the barber again. He had to admit that with Charlie’s face, even a bald head was a feast for the eyes. And looking at beautiful things always put him in a slightly better mood.

“In view of Mr. Blaze’s effective efforts to curb the spread of lice, I can give you the answer to your earlier question. Watch.”

As he finished speaking, Vic raised his cane and lightly tapped it against the ground.

In an instant, magic light flashed from the black gemstone set into the cane. Like a nimble python, it slithered down the cane, burrowed into the ground, and coiled around the barber.

Charlie didn’t dare blink. He stared fixedly at the changes taking place in the barber’s body, but the source of his astonishment was actually Vic. If I’m not mistaken, that cane doubles as his spellcasting focus, and he can cast spells instantaneously, without needing to recite an incantation.

Question: What level of magic is Vic?

Wait…

The barber on the ground had completely changed his appearance by now, pulling Charlie’s thoughts back to the present. Looking at his unmistakably pale skin and the pointed fangs barely visible in his mouth, Charlie couldn’t hide his astonishment.

“A vampire?”

“A vampire assassin from Warren. A moderate among vampires, skilled at disguise and fond of posing as a doctor to obtain fresh blood.”

Vic’s explanation left Charlie silent.

He’s already an assassin, and he’s still considered a moderate? Still, becoming a doctor and bloodletting patients to obtain their blood does seem… perhaps a little more moderate than simply drinking it directly. And getting paid as an assassin is more profitable than an all-you-can-eat buffet.

With that thought, Charlie managed to convince himself.

Vampire or not, so what? He had already transmigrated to another world. There was no reason to make a fuss over it. Once he’d composed himself, he continued asking, “If he’s an assassin, then who was he supposed to kill? The guru? And who was fighting with him in the shop?”

Vic rested both hands on his cane. “If you believe me, my dear Mr. Charlie Blaze, I know no more about what happened on Gray Hat Street than you do. In fact, after learning that the treasury had been robbed, the Black-Armored Knights and I tracked the trail to Gray Hat Street at almost exactly the same pace. The only difference was that their attention was focused entirely on the guru. I noticed the barber’s presence a little earlier, and the only reason I was able to see through his disguise was my knowledge of the vampire clan of Warren.”

So you had your eye on the barber, which led you to notice me, and you witnessed everything that happened that night…

Wait. No.

The Black-Armored Knights had already come to Gray Hat Street more than ten days ago!

Charlie suddenly remembered something.

It had happened on the night of his first day after transmigrating. Because a ship had overturned at sea, the followers of the Sun and Moon had clashed and ended up fighting on Gray Hat Street, after which the Black-Armored Knights had arrived to suppress the conflict.

If those followers had been injured in the brawl, wouldn’t they have gone to the barber for treatment?

Could the two incidents be connected?

Charlie couldn’t determine that yet.

After a moment’s hesitation, Charlie still decided not to reveal what he knew. At the end of the day, he didn’t completely trust Vic’s words, and he needed to keep his own bargaining chips.

“Mr. Vic, although you’ve openly come here under the pretext of offering me a job, how exactly are you planning to take someone this large away?” Charlie deftly changed the subject.

At this, Vic brushed a relatively small agate ring on his finger and took out a scroll from it. He answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, “We can use a directional teleportation scroll.”

Charlie: “…”

My mistake.

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