Chapter 475 – Colorado

Chapter 475 – Colorado

Though the roads through the Colorado Mountains were difficult to traverse and frequently beset by magical beast attacks, they didn’t cause the caravan much trouble.

Intermediate magical beasts were taken down in a single encounter.

Advanced magical beasts were subdued after just a few rounds of fighting.

The sense of security was unbelievably high.

The Colorado Mountain Range, which sprawled across the northeast of the Duchy of Lance and forced merchant caravans coming from the northeast to detour for over three months before reaching Lance City—the caravan had crossed it in less than half a month.

Not a single person in the entire caravan was injured, nor was any property lost.

What they did gain, however, was a wealth of magical beast materials piled on carriage rooftops, on horseback, and even strapped to the backs and bodies of the guards.

Whether guard or mage, everyone’s purses had deflated, but the people themselves had grown a size larger.

The guards had grown more muscular. The mages had simply gotten fat.

The mages had also given up two of their three carriages to haul cargo.

This was because they’d spent all their money toward the end and could no longer afford to buy Mo Lan’s magical beast meat.

The guards could carry things on their backs, but the mages could only surrender their carriages for hauling goods.

All the mages were crammed into Goebel’s magic carriage.

Nine people—the magic carriage was so packed there was nowhere to set foot.

Only Goebel had a slightly more comfortable seat, though even he was sitting on a bundle of magical beast hides.

Those were Mo Lan’s magical beast hides, too. He’d traded this seating spot for a meal of roasted meat with her special sauce.

With the mages all gathered together and others present, no one dared to meditate. All they could do was chat.

But since they’d had no opportunity to act throughout the entire journey, they didn’t particularly care about the state of their magic reserves.

What they talked about most every day was which magical beast Mo Lan had taken down now, how surprisingly delicious certain meats were, and what magic Mo Lan had used.

Her repertoire of magic, her psychic power, her true strength—these were the topics the mages were most curious about and most interested in.

Besides the Advanced magic that appeared most frequently—Venomthorn Vine—the mages had also gradually witnessed Mo Lan cast the Intermediate spells Enhanced Metal Arrow spell, Fireball, and Earthen Collapse, as well as the low-level spells Mist Technique and Grease spell…

Adding in the magic she’d taught her three Apprentices, she covered fire, earth, and wood elements.

“Metal, wood, water, fire, earth—she seems to know magic from all five basic elemental systems!”

“I’d bet anything she also knows Psychic Magic! She always detects danger before anyone else. Only Psychic Magic can scout ahead for danger before you even arrive!”

“She’s an Advanced mage. Even if she’s just a rogue mage, it’s not impossible for her to have a low-level psychic spell.”

“But how can any mage learn magic from so many different schools?!”

“She’s a rogue mage, right? Rogue mages usually learn general-purpose meditation techniques and pick up whatever spells they can get their hands on. That’s probably why she’s like this!”

“But every spell she casts has excellent results. It doesn’t look like she lacks elemental affinity at all. Her talent must be quite remarkable—she should be considered a genius. How could she possibly be a rogue mage?”

“That’s precisely why she must be a rogue mage. If it were any of you, would you let your Apprentice learn a random hodgepodge of spells and waste their psychic power?

Which mage doesn’t carefully calculate every detail, deliberating back and forth before learning each spell, making sure to maximize the benefit?

Look at the spells she uses—they’re all doing their own thing, with no synergy whatsoever.

Only Fireball and Grease spell can somewhat complement each other.

If she planned things out properly, she could be even stronger!”

“That’s true. With talent like hers, Instructors would be fighting over her! Why doesn’t she find a good Instructor and properly plan her magical studies? What a waste!”

…

While the other mages chatted with great enthusiasm, a war raged inside Goebel’s heart.

These past days, except when he was enjoying good food, something had been weighing on his mind.

He hadn’t told anyone about being swindled out of a Magic Gold Coin.

So no one else knew about Mo Lan’s speech from that time. Goebel had originally been certain that Mo Lan was a fraud.

But after actually seeing her cast magic from so many different schools, each with impressive results, his conviction had begun to waver.

Could she have been right?

Otherwise, why would someone with such obvious talent abandon the easy path and take such a difficult road?

Someone that shrewd wouldn’t do something without good reason, would she?

“Lord Goebel, what’s been bothering you these past few days?” Grann, the Beginner mage, asked him curiously.

He’d had a nagging feeling that Goebel was hiding something.

“Sigh! There’s no point telling you lot!” Goebel let out a sigh.

He hadn’t spoken up before, and now it was even more impossible.

Please—that was Advanced mage experience bought for one Magic Gold Coin.

Whether it was genuine or not, it was knowledge that an Advanced mage had charged a fee to impart to him.

Although they hadn’t signed any non-disclosure contract, he still didn’t dare casually share it. That would be quite the taboo.

Especially after witnessing Mo Lan’s strength, he dared not offend her even less.

Thinking about how much she loved money, Goebel considered for a moment and said:

“The reason Lady Moira became a rogue mage is because she has her own convictions. At least, that’s what she told me.

If you all want to know, save up a Magic Gold Coin and go ask her for advice on magical studies. As long as you bring the coin, she’ll probably be happy to tell you.”

After all, he couldn’t be the only one losing sleep over this, could he?

“One Magic Gold Coin and you can ask her for magical advice?” Grann exclaimed in amazement. “That’s incredibly generous!”

The mages all praised Mo Lan’s benevolence. They’d already held her in high regard, and now they admired her even more.

One Magic Gold Coin to hear an Advanced mage share her magical experience—you couldn’t find a deal like that even with a lantern.

“I still have one Magic Gold Coin I couldn’t bear to spend! When we stop to make camp later, I’ll go find Lady Moira right away!” Grann excitedly fished a Magic Gold Coin out from inside his shoe sole.

“I’ll go too!” Another Beginner mage rummaged through his clothes for a while and also produced a Magic Gold Coin.

Even the magic Apprentices had each managed to save up a Magic Gold Coin’s worth, having sold their carriages rather than spend it.

“Wait—didn’t you all say you were broke and needed to borrow from me?” Goebel said angrily.

Having traveled with Goebel for so long, the mages knew he wasn’t a petty person, which was why they dared reveal their coins now.

“This is my last one.”

“It was my emergency reserve!”

“This opportunity is just too rare!”

…

“Fine! Go ahead and ask then. I just hope you don’t regret it later.” Goebel said with mixed feelings.

“How could we possibly regret it!”

During the brief midday stop for lunch, the mages took their Magic Gold Coins and went to find Mo Lan.

Mo Lan hadn’t expected this windfall—this was money that even mind-reading magic hadn’t picked up on!

What could she say? She was, of course, happy to share her insights on magic with them!

From a distance, Goebel watched the mages’ expressions shift from anticipation, to confusion, to skepticism, and finally to a grudging acceptance bordering on self-doubt. It was practically a replay of his own experience, and suddenly he felt much better.

“Hmph! That’s what you get for borrowing money from me when you had your own!”