“Have you found it yet?” The sound of horse hooves and General’s anxious inquiry came from behind.

“Found it! The second one!” Wizard raised the animal hide and scroll in his hands for General to see. Both hands gripped the hide and scroll tightly, as if holding some rare treasure. His fingers kept rubbing the emblem on the scroll.

“There’s still one left, but I’m afraid we won’t be able to get it back.” General also stared intently at that mark, his eyes just as eager, as if gazing at piles of gold coins and crowds of beautiful women. With a wave of his large hand: “Retreat!” The cavalry behind him quickly formed up into marching order and returned to the other side of the border. Along the road, a large pile of carts loaded with enormous goods and a field of corpses lay abandoned.

“Master, tell me, what exactly does this emblem of Anthony mean?” General and Wizard rode side by side, and even on horseback, General couldn’t help his curiosity, asking Wizard in detail.

“I don’t know.” Wizard answered bluntly, lowering his head to look at the emblem. “Maybe it’s some kind of strange magical pattern!”

The emblem that Wizard’s fingers were rubbing was a golden circle, filled with what Wizard called magical patterns. But if you looked closely, it was actually the Chinese character “翰”, written in standard regular script, very neat and precise.

In the royal palace of the capital, General fell to his knees with a thud, frantically kowtowing to the high and mighty His Majesty the King.

“Your Majesty, I am incompetent. Of the three stolen scroll bases, I only managed to recover two.” The responsible General was very unwilling to accept this outcome, but the situation was out of his control. No matter how furious he was, it was useless. He could only carefully report the truth to His Majesty the King.

With a “crack”, a finely carved, exquisite teacup shattered at his feet. A dignified female voice descended like a tangible force: “Are all of you in the Imperial Guard just eating for nothing? How could you mess up such a small matter?” Although there was not a trace of rage in her voice, everyone who knew Your Majesty understood that this was a sign she was entering a state of fury.

However, the angrier Your Majesty became, the calmer she appeared—this was something everyone knew. She rarely lost her composure due to anger, remaining so calm it was frightening.

“The squad guarding the scroll bases—the captain, executed! The members, all sent to the battlefield to atone for their crimes!” Your Majesty’s voice followed, announcing the punishment for those responsible for the incident: “As for your team that recovered the scrolls, the captain is promoted by one rank, and the whole team is rewarded with one hundred gold coins. Those who failed to recover them, all to the battlefield for reflection!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” General dared not say another word. Besides, rewards for merit and punishment for faults was an iron rule in the army—Your Majesty’s handling was very fair.

“The Wizard who were guarding the scroll bases!” As Your Majesty spoke, all the Wizard wore expressions of utmost respect. Hearing the topic shift to them, the leading Wizard hurriedly volunteered the punishment: “Your Majesty, for their dereliction of duty, they will be punished along with the guards and sent to the battlefield to atone for their crimes.”

“Convey my orders!” Your Majesty seemed quite satisfied with this handling by the Wizard, and quickly began to announce new commands.

Hearing that Your Majesty was about to issue orders, everyone—including the civil officials on both sides—perked up and listened intently, afraid to miss a single word.

“The scroll bases of Master Anthony, regardless of grade, are from now on classified as national strategic resources. Anyone who steals, trades, or transports them privately will be sent straight to the gallows!” This theft finally prompted Your Majesty to make a decision.

“At your command, Your Majesty!” everyone shouted in unison. No one dared to offer advice at this moment, for fear of angering Your Majesty again.

“Wait!” Your Majesty suddenly changed her mind: “The gallows are too slow. If discovered, execute them on the spot! Anyone who steals the scroll bases—once identified, exterminate their entire clan!”

Chapter One: The Legendary Mage (Part 2)

Although the underground auction wasn’t a legitimate one, it was indeed a place where you could get your hands on good stuff. Of course, since it was called an underground auction, the origins of the items were naturally unclear.

At the entrance to the venue, two fully armed Grand Swordsman stood guard, but today, they were only responsible for reception. Raised and trained from childhood by the owner of the underground auction to the level of Grand Swordsman, it was their first time witnessing such a grand event, yet they were only assigned to guard the door. Because today, even if stronger warriors were posted at the entrance, no one would think it excessive.

“What exactly is up for auction today? Why is there such a commotion?” The Grand Swordsman on the left asked the one on the right in shock and confusion. Since there was no one around, they could talk in secret.

“You don’t even know that? Seriously.” The Grand Swordsman on the right couldn’t help but sneer. Seeing that no one was coming, he lowered his voice a bit: “I heard there are three top-tier orc female slaves, an elven beauty, supposedly the ownership of an iron mine, a treasure map, and most importantly, a level nine fire dragon’s magic core, and even a divine artifact. Tell me, how could that not attract people?”