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Chapter 67 - 67 67 Not in His Character
Chapter 67 - 67 67 Not in His Character
?Chapter 67: Chapter 67: Not in His Character Chapter 67: Chapter 67: Not in His Character People from Alchemy City arrived sooner than expected.
Amberser was still checking which piece of equipment to clean and reuse when Gustavo Flint, the sixth seat of the Alchemist Council, arrived on the scene.
Looking at the ruined street, the face of this Legendary Alchemist turned extremely unsightly.
Gustavo Flint stared at Amberser, saying, “You sold that bar to me just so you wouldn’t feel heartache when it was time to tear it down, right?”
Amberser replied with indifference, “My dear sixth seat of the Alchemist Council, a bar is nothing significant to you.”
“I might not care about the bar, but look what you’ve done! You take action in the city, are you that eager for others to know? How are we supposed to cooperate now?!”
The real reason for Gustavo Flint’s anger was here. Alchemy City had always claimed neutrality, so it only provided the paladins with some basic information about Amberser, the kind they could also gather themselves with a little time.
And Alchemy City did not divulge any of the paladins’ activities within the city to Amberser.
This left Amberser completely reactive, initially only able to play defense.
It was only after Withered Rose sent him intelligence that Amberser bit the bullet and spent a substantial sum of money to set up this ambush.
Fortunately, Gareth had a good relationship with that wealthy female orc, who had many connections among adventurers in Alchemy City, which enabled the assassination to proceed smoothly.
But in retrospect, it still felt like a loss, since in the end Gareth had to take action, which could have been avoided for free.
Therefore, facing Gustavo Flint’s questioning, Amberser said with a smile, “My dear Flint, don’t you understand yet? My actions are precisely to provide you with an excuse to intervene. Just think about it, if these paladins attack my castle and I capture them, and you suddenly abandon neutrality to save them, what would the Laine Empire think?
“Even if the Laine Empire is not suspicious, what about others? I am a lord of Alchemy City, after all. If outsiders come to attack me and you do not help, that’s one thing, but to take sides? With the current restlessness, aren’t you afraid that the minor lords beneath you will conjoin in rebellion?
“Now that I’ve taken the initiative to destroy this street, isn’t it a perfect reason for you to interfere? You can proclaim to the public that I have violated the laws of Alchemy City, causing severe damage, which is why you present solemn negotiations or stern condemnations. Anyway, you can ponder over the wording.
“Then, I can transfer the captives to Alchemy City, and our deal will be complete, with no one able to find fault.”
After hearing Amberser’s reasoning, Gustavo Flint felt there was some truth to it, but he was also very clear that in saying this, Amberser had effectively blocked any pursuit of accountability and claims for compensation. Once he agreed to Amberser’s view, all the damages would have to be covered by Alchemy City itself.
It was precisely because he guessed Amberser’s intentions that Gustavo Flint did not persist in the matter.
This damned lich would do anything for money.
If Gustavo Flint continued to discuss compensation with Amberser, he might genuinely dare to kill some of the paladins.
Gustavo Flint asked bluntly, “When will the trade take place?”
Amberser shook his finger and then said, “Don’t be in such a hurry, we must play out the whole act. I need to take the captives back and hold them for a few days. Then you can make a big fuss before I hand them over. Only then will it look convincing. The Laine Empire has its seers, after all. We must be cautious with this cooperation.”
The words sounded reasonable, but Gustavo Flint had a vague feeling that something was wrong. Amberser wasn’t in a hurry for his payment, which was somewhat out of character for him.
Moreover, he had mentioned prophecy.
Gustavo Flint subtly rubbed the ring on his hand.
The enchantment spell was activated, and Gustavo Flint gained the ability to discern lies.
Gustavo Flint asked Amberser, “Do you have any other plans, or are you planning to break the contract?”
Who would have thought Amberser simply smiled faintly and, without answering the question, conjured dozens of Mage Hands to capture and carry away the Paladins.
Gustavo Flint frowned, wondering whether he had been discovered. Despite having used a secret spell specifically designed to be undetectable to the Undead, it seemed this skeleton was extraordinarily sensitive.
Without giving him a chance to probe further, Amberser packed all the Paladins into the Door of Randomness and teleported them to his own castle.
Before leaving, Amberser finally said to Gustavo Flint, “By the way, with such chaos in Alchemy City, isn’t the chairman planning to make an appearance?”
That chairman had always been a legendary figure; probably only Council members in Alchemy City had ever seen him. Amberser had only corresponded with him through letters and had never met him in person.
“What are you asking this for?” Gustavo Flint asked warily in response.
“Just curious. I’ve been pondering a question these past few days. Exactly what trouble lies within the sewers of Alchemy City, forcing your group of proud lunatics to seek external aid? Could it be that even the chairman can’t resolve it? He is, after all, the Alchemist closest to the Deity.”
Gustavo Flint coldly replied, “That’s none of your concern.”
Amberser didn’t press further and left the ruins with Gareth.
As soon as he returned to the castle, Amberser said to Gareth, “Those lunatics in Alchemy City definitely have another scheme up their sleeves, those bastards. They’re probably plotting to trap me.”
Gareth, still sighing over his helmet, was quite irritated. His handcrafted helmet had been damaged by Holy Slash.
Hearing Amberser’s words, Gareth asked in surprise, “Didn’t you just have a nice chat?”
“Nice my ass. Gustavo Flint tried to run a lie detection on me. He thinks I didn’t notice his little trick? We were cooperating so well, and now he suddenly distrusts me, which means they have something to hide. They are afraid I might know something. That old fellow is usually very poised and steady, not even flinching when the Elf Tribe aims an arrow at his head. But his frequent breakdowns lately are completely out of character; there must be something wrong.”
Amberser stroked his chin, trying to connect Gustavo Flint’s behavior with the prophecy he had received earlier, but couldn’t come up with an explanation right away.
After some thought, Amberser took out the Necromancy Codex and sent a message to Withered Rose.
[Diga Ultraman: Lady Rose, you’ve entered Alchemy City by now, haven’t you?]
It took a while before Amberser received a reply from Withered Rose.
[Withered Rose: I’ve just entered the city, wandering around under the pretense of an academic visit. Why do you ask?]
Withered Rose’s sudden appearance near Alchemy City with an army had been noticed by the Council early on. If Alchemy City were attacked by the Undead, that would spell big trouble.
Withered Rose, however, had never thought that her “ceremonial squad” would be enough to take down Alchemy City, as that would seriously underestimate these Alchemists. Neither party wanted to wage war, so Withered Rose casually made up an excuse, and Alchemy City “enthusiastically” invited her in, which amounted to surveillance and investigation.
[Diga Ultraman: There’s a big secret hidden in the sewers of Alchemy City, and I would like your help to investigate it.]
Amberser shared some information that could be disclosed with Withered Rose, such as the false prophecy about divine ascension in the sewers and the recent strange actions of Alchemy City.
Withered Rose quickly responded, [Alright, I will keep an eye out. But I also want to remind you to be careful, Pale Bones Sister is almost at the point of going to find Gareth, and she’s really angry now.]
Amberser: …
No way, has it already jumped to the part where heads will roll?!