Chapter 22: S-Class Magical Girl Calis, Magical Furnace |
Two days later.
Jonas brought Olivia to Tars City.
This was a large city with a population of about 60,000.
After eating something, the two began searching the city for the talents they desired.
Jonas refused to believe that among so many people, there wasn’t a single genius he wanted.
However, ideals were beautiful, but reality was harsh.
Jonas scanned the crowd but couldn’t even find one with an A-level talent.
Their ability values were pitifully low.
The talents of the Empire’s people were far worse than he had imagined.
How could it fall to me to pick?
I still have to check the slave market, but the slaves with talents would have already been taken…”
Thinking of this, Jonas felt a headache coming on.
At this moment, Olivia whispered softly,
“Master wants to find people who haven’t been selected by the nobles yet.
And in large numbers, right?”
Jonas nodded.
Olivia fell silent for a moment, then said,
“Young Master, I actually know of a place.”
…
West of Tars City was a large area filled with taverns.
Due to the Empire’s poor governance,
this place had grown even dirtier and more chaotic.
Passing through the taverns,
Jonas could smell the mingled sweetness of fermented malt and sweat in the air.
Inside the taverns, drunken men bared their chests, casually placing their greasy hands on the waists of female servers, letting out coarse laughter.
In a corner, heavily made-up women half-undressed lay entwined with strange men, their scarlet lip marks smearing the edges of wine glasses.
Jonas asked, “Here?”
Looking at the place, Olivia’s eyes showed a trace of fear.
She had escaped from a similar place with her younger sister.
She shook her head and said, “This is only one side of the taverns, serving the vile addicts.
Behind these taverns are even dirtier dealings.
Countless girls, women, and children from various races are captured, then packaged and sold to nobles or even auctioned.
There are even special performance shows.”
Olivia swallowed hard.
“The bloodiness and violence in the performance shows might be beyond what Young Master can imagine.
Here, there are no human rights, only prices.
I believe that among so many people, there will be the talents you want.”
As she spoke, Olivia looked somewhat lost.
She lamented the fates of these girls but was powerless because she was once part of a similar place herself.
Being able to escape and stand beside the Young Master was her greatest fortune.
Jonas patted Olivia on the back and said,
“Don’t worry. Our territory will grow stronger and stronger, strong enough to dominate the entire Empire.
Then, new regulations will be established, and such phenomena will never occur again.
By that time, there will be no racial discrimination or such chaos.”
“Mm, Young Master, I believe in you.”
…
In the dimly lit back room of the bar,
Jonas and Olivia each wore a mask.
They had paid one gold coin to enter here.
The chaos in the Empire had made human trafficking more rampant.
It happened in almost every corner of the city.
This was the largest trading hub.
Here, not only were there races and peoples Jonas had never seen before, but also nobles who had been kidnapped.
And as long as you had money, you could take away anyone here.
On the bar counter were exquisite wine glasses, the red wine shimmering faintly. Batches of people were brought in one after another.
Jonas swirled the wine in his glass and took a light sip.
The burning sensation stimulated his throat; although it was very low-quality wine,
in such an environment, it was hard to spark one’s hormones.
“Won’t you try?”
Olivia hesitated a bit but still took a proper sip.
The moment the alcohol entered her throat, she couldn’t help but cough.
“Cough cough cough—”
The girl’s face flushed red from the alcohol, her white hair on her forehead standing slightly on end, and she gave Jonas a somewhat complaining glance.
There were many “products” here, even more shady transactions than the slave market outside.
Jonas had been sitting here for two hours.
Yet, he still hadn’t found his target.
Sure enough, geniuses were very hard to find.
If he couldn’t find an S-rank, he could bring back some A or B-rank slaves instead.
Just as he was about to get up, a commotion came from the entrance.
Immediately, their attention was drawn over.
A large group of gang members escorted several people dressed as nobles into a private room.
Outside the private room, several swordsmen stood guard.
At the same time, they dragged in an iron cage covered with a cloth, not wanting outsiders to see what was inside.
Jonas instinctively looked toward the cage.
His eyes widened involuntarily.
[Charis]
[Magic Talent: S]
[Awakened Skill: Mana Furnace]
[Mana Furnace: 100% magic affinity, called a walking “Magic Gathering Array.”
The Mana Furnace transfers to others when the girl’s primordial yin is taken,
and she loses all magic power.]
Seeing this message, Jonas’s eyes immediately widened.
He naturally knew what 100% magic affinity meant.
A mage simply borrowed natural elements and converted them into their own power.
100% affinity meant nearly 100% mana conversion.
Compared to ordinary mages who only converted around ten to twenty percent of mana,
this 100% mana conversion was ridiculously high.
Simply put, even if she cast low-level magic, its power was seven to eight times that of a normal mage.
No wonder her aptitude rating was S.
This awakened skill was absurd.
If he could obtain this ability himself, combined with a tenfold ability return,
his magic wouldn’t just upgrade quickly, but he could fight beyond his level.
Combined with his swordsmanship,
he would be invincible.
…
However, if her primordial yin was taken, it meant she had nothing left.
So this girl was the best “furnace.”
The nobles here were cautious because they clearly knew this girl’s talent skill.
Judging by their more magnificent clothes than his own, their status was definitely not simple.
It seemed unlikely he could buy her with money.
Jonas glanced at the person beside him.
He said to Olivia, “Let’s go. The person we’re waiting for has arrived!”
He exhaled lightly and said, “But it seems we can’t buy her. We have to take her by force.”
…