"Tired from making potions, I was about to sleep," said Charlotte, taking a step back.
She glanced at the wine glass in Diana's hand and chuckled, "It seems like tonight's battle has progressed smoothly."
"Indeed, Carol was killed by me and Gabriel. I was the first to enter the treasure vault. You have no idea how much wealth this family of scoundrels has accumulated over the years," Diana exclaimed with admiration.
"You didn't secretly take a few treasures beforehand?"
"Am I that kind of person?" Diana rolled her eyes and then raised the spatial ring on her hand. "Well, it's just filled up."
Charlotte: "..."
Although she didn't know how much space Diana's spatial ring had, she was certain that Diana had carefully selected the treasures.
A spatial ring filled with precious items, the value was unimaginable.
Truly, she was a wealthy treasure-rich sister.
Beautiful, cunning, and intelligent.
"I only took a small portion. The rest will be counted together by the three families and distributed based on our contributions," Diana said with a self-satisfied expression, unable to hide her smile.
Not only did they wipe out the Jardson family tonight, eliminating the family crisis, but they also filled her treasury.
The Jardson family's treasure vault and the territory they left behind were enough to bring prosperity to the three families.
With Gabriel's betrayal and clever ambush arrangements, the Fox Guards suffered almost zero casualties in this battle, which was nothing short of a miracle.
With this victory, the Harriman family no longer had anyone capable of contesting the position of heir.
Her influence within the family would also rise to a new level.
And all of this was thanks to the man in front of her.
If it weren't for the antipathy potion, Gabriel would never have easily betrayed the Jardson family. Tonight was destined to be a fight of life and death.
"Come, join me for a drink to celebrate this victory," Diana turned and walked towards the dining table.
With the Jardson family's demise and Carol's death, the sword hanging over Charlotte's head had been lifted, and his mood was equally good.
Besides, tonight he had also gained a lot.
Charlotte sat opposite Diana, and Agatha had already poured red wine into the tall crystal goblet in front of him.
"Thanks for the potion. It prevented significant casualties among the Fox Guards," Diana raised her wine glass and sincerely looked at Charlotte.
"I also thank you for your protection of me and Viviane during this time," Charlotte raised his wine glass and lightly clinked it with hers.
They exchanged a smile and then drank the wine.
The wine had a soft strawberry-like taste upon entry, with a strong, dense, and complex texture.
It slid smoothly over the tongue and throat, without any sharpness, gentle and harmonious, sweet and rich.
Even after swallowing, the fragrance lingered between their lips and teeth.
"Good wine," Charlotte wasn't adept at wine tasting and lacked the vocabulary to express his feelings other than a simple comment.
Diana calmly said, "This is a bottle of wine from Elton's treasure vault, from the Black Pinot Winery.
It has been aged for more than three hundred years, priced at approximately one million bronze coins, and it's not even available for purchase no matter how much money you have."
Charlotte's eyes widened. A bottle of wine worth one million bronze coins!
So he just drank away 10,000 bronze coins in one sip!
This woman was simply a spendthrift!
Moreover, she used such a precious space ring to store a bottle of wine?!
And she opened it immediately to celebrate with him?!
He was speechless.
"The ring is full, and I brought the wine out myself. When others see me bringing only one bottle of wine, they praise my noble moral character," Diana smiled charmingly, seemingly very satisfied with this evaluation.
Charlotte: "..."
He was speechless.
He picked up the wine glass and took another sip, this time savoring it carefully.
The scent of roses and various fruits lingered delicately, elusive and unpredictable, but irresistible.
After swallowing, he felt his body slightly warming up, a gentle warmth.
He felt as if he was in a winery, where grapevines hung heavy with black grapes, and the wine cellar exuded a faint aroma.
Rows of oak barrels filled with red wine were stacked together, quietly awaiting others to savor them.
Well, this 1 million bronze coin per bottle wine indeed tasted different.
Three hundred years of aging in the cellar is the magical world's method of preservation, which allows the wine to become even more mellow and aromatic.
Diana was willing to bring out a million-dollar bottle of wine to celebrate and share with him, which warmed his heart.
"Oh, by the way, I found something in the treasure vault that I think might be useful to you and brought it out," Diana said as she started searching for her enchanted ring.
"We don't have to be so formal between us..." Charlotte replied politely, but his eyes were filled with anticipation.
This was something Diana had deliberately brought out from the Jardson Family's treasure vault.
What could it be?
A gem the size of a pigeon's egg?
Rare weapons?
A stack of banknotes?
You see, even a bottle of wine in his family's vault was worth a million.
After searching for a while, Diana finally pulled out a yellowed piece of parchment from the ring, placed it on the table, and pushed it toward Charlotte.
"What's this?" Charlotte's heart sank halfway.
Since coming to this world, he had developed a psychological aversion to ancient-looking parchments like this.
Deceived once by the Inquisitor and nearly suffered at the hands of a parchment tonight, now Diana was presenting him with another piece of parchment.
"I took a quick look, and it should be a method to reconstruct the magic source," Diana said.
"What?!" Charlotte was shocked and quickly picked up the parchment.
The parchment was very old, and the edges were starting to crumble.
Fortunately, the inscribed words had not vanished, and he focused on reading them.
"Method to Reconstruct the Magic Source: In the southwest of the wilderness, north of the Kowi Mountains, there is a place called Yaxi Swamp. Cross the swamp and find the Fire Pool.
Take the flames from the pool, mix them with ten materials such as Green Magic Stone, Western Bluegrass, and the bones of a Mirage-winged Flying Fish, and brew a pot of thick soup.
Dig a pit by the Fire Pool, pour the soup into it, sit and bathe in it for a day and a night, and the magic source will be regathered!"
The text was short but quite hardcore.
If Charlotte understood correctly, the so-called Fire Pool should be an active volcano.
Extract magma from the volcano, and then dig a pit next to it and bathe in it. And bathe for a whole day and night?
This was simply outrageous!
He turned the parchment over, and on the back of the parchment was a rough map.
It was roughly at the same level as the map he received at the West Bar Inn.
"Where is the Kowi Mountains?" Charlotte asked tentatively as he looked at Diana.
"The Kowi Mountains are located in the southwest of the wilderness, it is the heartland of the wilderness, about three thousand miles from the Abyss," Diana replied.
"Thank you," Charlotte carefully folded the parchment and put it away.
The heartland of the wilderness, three thousand miles from the Abyss.
What did that even mean?
That was completely a forbidden place.
Never mind that Charlotte was currently just a useless piece of rubbish, even if he were a senior mage, he wouldn't dare to venture into such a place.
Typically, adventurers only ventured a couple of hundred kilometers into the wilderness to hunt for prey, occasionally encountering powerful magical beasts.
The deeper one went into the wilderness, the greater the risk of encountering high-level magical beasts.
Therefore, regardless of whether this method of reconstructing the magic source was true or not, it was of no use to him at the moment.
It would be more practical to spend a single gold coin.
"Aren't you supposed to be excited?" Diana couldn't help but be surprised when she saw Charlotte's lackluster response.
When she found this piece of parchment in the treasure vault, she immediately thought of Charlotte.
As a former magical prodigy, having his magic source destroyed must have been a heavy blow to him. Now that there was a possibility of rebuilding it, he should be ecstatic, right?
Before taking out the parchment, she had even imagined Charlotte being moved to tears and worshiping her.
But now, this was it?
"Mum, I'm excited," Charlotte nodded, somewhat perfunctorily.
"Do you feel like you can't reach that place with your abilities?" Diana seemed to sense his thoughts.
"Are you saying that you'll send me there?" Charlotte looked at Diana, his eyes revealing a hint of expectation.
If he could restore the source of magic, perhaps he could regain the power of an advanced mage.
Then, with a sword in his right hand and magic in his left, he would be invincible!
Just thinking about it made him a little excited.
"No, I won't," Diana honestly shook her head.
Then what are you even talking about?! Charlotte tried to keep his smile from wavering, took a sip of his drink, and calmed himself down.
"During this time, I need to take over the Jardson Family's territory, and I don't have enough manpower to ensure your safety to get there," Diana seemed to explain.
"What about after taking over the territory?"
"There still won't be enough powerful people to safely escort you there. After all, it's the core zone of the wilderness, filled with level six or seven magical beasts."
Damn it, you're useless! Charlotte's hand trembled, almost spilling his drink.
"Of course, if you have enough money, you can hire an experienced mercenary group and ride a flying mount directly to that place," Diana offered another suggestion.
"Mercenary groups that undertake such tasks are not uncommon. You can easily find them in the Abyss or Calva."
That might be a solution!
Charlotte's eyes lit up, but he still asked cautiously, "How much would it cost?"
"Hiring a small mercenary group equipped with knights, mages, sentinels, and tanks, daring enough to venture three thousand miles into the heart of the wilderness, probably wouldn't be less than one million copper coins."
Do you think you're funny?
Charlotte wanted to leave. He didn't want to chat with this woman anymore.
No fun.
If he had one million, would he still need to worry about his livelihood?
For this unclear and elusive beast fur, he had to spend one million copper coins and take the huge risk of going deep into the wilderness.
Unless he were an idiot, he wouldn't do such a thing.
Currently, his transition to being a knight was very successful, with fast and stable leveling up. He didn't feel an urgent need to restore his source of magic.
The smile on Charlotte's face didn't disappear, it just shifted to Diana's face.
She took a sip of her drink, and the lingering liquid on her lips made her red lips even more seductive.
She looked at Charlotte, smiling and saying, "I have to ask, are you unwilling to add Harriman's name to the sign of the new clinic? As long as you agree, I can promise that you will live very well in the Abyss."
"No, the clinic can only be mine," Charlotte nodded decisively in response.
"I can invest one million copper coins as capital and take a thirty percent stake in the clinic," Diana toyed with her sapphire ring and her smile became even more radiant.
Charlotte's hand holding the wine glass froze instantly. The glass was less than a centimeter away from his lips, and he couldn't help swallowing saliva as he confirmed, "One million copper coins?"
"Yes, if you agree, I can pay the full amount right now," Diana nodded, beckoning to Agatha.
When Agatha poured her a glass of wine, she picked it up and gently shook it, watching the crimson liquid sway in the crystal glass.
"You know, for me, it's just a bottle of red wine."
Charlotte's smile instantly turned somewhat bitter. Yes, one million copper coins were merely a bottle of wine for rich people.
"I refuse," Charlotte smiled and said.
"Huh?" This time, it was Diana who was stunned, and even the red wine glass at her lips froze.
"You know, the price of the antidote for magic aversion is also one million copper coins per bottle," Charlotte played with the crystal goblet in his hand.
"For a cellar-aged wine, you drink one bottle and there's one less, but as long as I'm willing, I can refine as much antidote for magic aversion as needed."
"Thank you for the wine, it was good," Charlotte stood up, nodded slightly in acknowledgment, and then turned and walked toward his room.
Diana watched Charlotte's figure, her frozen expression gradually fading, and a smile grew on her face.
She murmured to herself, "Indeed, he's a man who can't be controlled with money. Grandfather's plan has completely failed. Interesting. What exactly can move him? Is my charm not enough?"
The room door closed slowly, and Charlotte clenched his fist, fiercely punching the air twice.
This damn pride! That's a million copper coins! And it's the full support of one of the three major families in the Abyss!
He... refused.
"When I turn around, I should look cool, right?" However, soon he started to reflect on a more important question.
This is showing off with a million copper coins.
If he doesn't look cool, it would all be in vain.
As for the talk about the scene with the million potions, it's just empty words.
Due to an agreement with the merchants, he couldn't engage in the illicit sale of magic antidotes.
He had already informed the merchants in advance about using dozens of bottles of magic antidotes to bribe the Black Magic Guards, and he obtained their understanding and permission.
But losing absolute control over the clinic for a million copper coins was something he couldn't accept.
He opened the system store, and his wealth balance was 40,220.
He directly purchased four bottles of strength potions, stored one of them in his spatial ring, and drank the remaining three bottles.
Feeling the abundant energy within his body, he sighed helplessly. It seems tonight will be another sleepless night.
...
Duru Manor.
In a quiet courtyard.
The ancestral elder of the Duru family lay in bed, pale-faced and weak.
All the core members of the Duru family were present, wearing solemn and heavy expressions.
In the battle of life and death against Elton earlier, the elderly ancestor, who was already aging, forcibly took action.
Though they won with the help of Alfred, it consumed his vitality and he could no longer sustain himself.
Roland stood by the bedside, holding a magic staff,
attempting to use healing magic again.
The elder grabbed Roland's hand, shook his head slightly, and said, "It's no use. My time has come. This time, you've done well, removing a great threat to our Duru family."
"Elder..." Roland's face showed a pained expression, and his eyes were red.
He used to play in the elder's courtyard when he was young, and the elder also taught him magic. Their bond was extremely close.
But starting from ten years ago, the elder's health had been deteriorating, and even falsely claimed to be dead, leaving behind a desire to accomplish something important for the Duru family before his actual death.
With Elton's death tonight and the destruction of the Jardson Family, his wish was fulfilled.
"The Harriman family doesn't have the same malicious intentions as Elton.
That girl will take Alfred's place. You are kindhearted and wise.
After I'm gone, you must make the Abyss a better place, rather than maintaining its current bleak and polluted state."
The elder held onto Roland's hand and earnestly said.
Roland's lips moved, but when he met the elder's expectant gaze, he nodded in agreement, "I promise you, I will make the Abyss a better place."
A smile appeared on the elder's face, and his gaze turned to the core members of the Duru family standing before the bed, clan leader Joseph, Roland's uncle Kenneth, and the two clan brothers.
He asked in a low voice, "From today onwards, Roland will be the sole heir to the position of the next clan leader. Who agrees? Who opposes?"
Everyone remained silent for a moment.
Joseph raised his hand and said, "I agree."
Kenneth and his two sons exchanged glances. Under the elder's gaze, they could only raise their hands with a forced expression, indicating their agreement.
The battle tonight that destroyed the Jardson Family was almost entirely orchestrated by Roland. They didn't even know how Roland persuaded the Black Magic Guards to betray. He minimized the losses of the Duru family to the greatest extent.
The three families divided the Jardson Family's assets, with the Duru and Harriman families taking the lion's share and the Daniel family taking a smaller share, enough to satisfy the Duru family.
Roland not only played a significant role but also acquired the elder's position by succession.
When Joseph steps down, the position of the clan leader will naturally belong to him, and no one can shake this.
"Leave now, Roland stay." The elder said, his voice weary.
Joseph and the others had to leave the room, closing the door behind them.
"Get close to that young man from the Clayton family. I met his parents before. They were remarkable individuals, but they were ruined by those fools from the Physician Association."
The elder whispered, "If he encounters any trouble, do everything in your power to help him. He has brought a miraculous change to the Abyss. Perhaps he can bring a miracle to this world as well."
Roland was surprised by the elder's evaluation of Charlotte, but he still respectfully nodded.
"These are my collections. I'm giving them to you." The old ancestor slowly removed the ancient ring from his finger and placed it in Roland's hand.
He looked at Roland, whose eyes were red, and smiled with satisfaction, saying, "When you were young, your two useless cousins used fireball spells to burn sparrows, but you used healing spells to treat their injuries and released them when their wings grew back.
At that moment, I knew that you were different from them, that you were the one who could truly lead the Duru family in the right direction.
Roland, the world is in chaos, but you must hold on to your true self..."
As the old ancestor's hand relaxed, it slowly slipped onto the bed, motionless.
Roland stood by the bed, tightly gripping the ring, tears streaming down his face.