Chapter 142 : Secret Maneuvers! Deception and Scheming!
Chapter 142: Secret Maneuvers! Deception and Scheming!
Additionally, after the dwarven blacksmith forged the Thunder God’s Hammer, his fifth condition now had a tool to grind with.
In fact, Leo estimated that as long as he maxed out his Dark Extinction Cross Sword,
his fifth condition—time spent using a high-quality sword—would also be fulfilled.
“Looking at it this way, among the requirements for Sword Saint, the biggest bottleneck is probably still Spirit Attribute.”
Improving Spirit Attribute remained the greatest difficulty.
And that was with Leo having skills that could increase Spirit Attribute.
If it were an ordinary person not chosen by the panel,
then trying to improve Spirit Attribute would likely be completely impossible.
Not dwelling on it further, Leo had already planned out his next training steps.
First, he would place Lightning Breathing Technique and Rock Breathing Technique into the training list of his First Mind.
Breathing Techniques, as the most convenient training method,
could be practiced anytime and anywhere as long as potions were available.
Thus, the two Breathing Techniques would be alternated. During the gaps, Leo would enter Shared State to gather intelligence.
As for the Second Mind, it would mainly be used to practice swordsmanship and Alchemy.
Alchemy would take priority, and any spare time would be used for sword practice.
After becoming a knight, Leo’s training tasks had become increasingly demanding.
It was now difficult for him to spare time to manage his previous horse business.
Moreover, after becoming the Seventh Knight of Blackstone City, Leo could already receive a share of the city’s tax revenue.
He was no longer worried about income.
And there was also a source of income he hadn’t expected before.
That was gifts.
Almost all noble families regularly sent people to Blackstone City to maintain relationships.
As part of the city’s visible leadership, Leo received quite a number of gifts and offerings.
This was the wealth brought by power.
As long as his strength increased, his status would naturally rise.
At that time, money would come to him on its own.
And he wouldn’t even need to do anything.
The position Laforin had arranged for him was Specially Appointed Swordsmanship Instructor.
However, Leo had never actually gone to teach.
Laforin turned a blind eye to it.
Because Leo had taken on a large portion of the Alchemy work.
“Teaching those kids is too much of a waste of time. No experience gain at all—might as well raise horses.” Leo suddenly had an idea.
He planned to later request a position as a stable officer from Laforin.
So that all the horses in the city would periodically come to him for inspection.
To expand his intelligence network.
Leo’s current intelligence network consisted of two main parts. One was information obtained from fragments of horse memories.
During this time, he had discovered that most of Blackstone City’s people and horses were heading outside the city.
There were a large number of hunting missions, and almost all Quasi-Knights were active outside.
Leo had informed Victor to take Arthur, Fidis, and the others along when going hunting.
During this period, they were also mostly outside the city.
The more hunting missions there were, the fewer Beastkin remained nearby.
To find prey, they had to go farther and farther away.
“Too bad that after all the effort of so many people in Blackstone City, the greatest result—the Tier 3 Body Tempering Potion—ended up benefiting someone else.”
Thinking of the hard work during the Alchemy process, Leo felt displeased.
After this, he planned to focus on letting the mice operate underground around Anthony’s place.
However, it seemed that Anthony wasn’t particularly friendly toward mice.
He would need to find a time when Anthony wasn’t home to thoroughly search his residence.
Not only to take back the potion, but also to investigate any other secrets in his room.
“What kind of power could make that Body Tempering Potion fly back from hundreds of miles away in an instant?”
Just as he was thinking, Leo’s expression suddenly changed.
“Hmm? Speak of the devil.”
Just then, he heard approaching footsteps.
The moment he activated Hunting Moment, he already caught a familiar scent.
It was the unique smell of Calming Tea from Anthony.
After not seeing him for a while, Anthony seemed to have come with some new scheme.
“Lord Leo, Lord Anthony has arrived.”
The one speaking was one of the four servants who had stood out—Penny.
Among the four, she spoke the least and had the simplest mind.
Leo had observed them for a while.
Among them, only she was the most diligent and dependable.
At home, she had elderly parents and a young younger brother.
People with both elders to care for and children to support were often the most hardworking.
Thus, Leo had given her an opportunity.
Basically, any instructions or meal arrangements were relayed through Penny.
If she performed well, Leo planned to improve her conditions later.
Before long, Anthony entered carrying two large bags of gifts.
“Hey Leo, long time no see.” Anthony wore his signature smile.
His eyes narrowed into slits, making his pupils invisible.
“Hey Lord Anthony, I’m really sorry—you came to see me, yet I haven’t had time to visit you.” Leo’s attitude this time was noticeably warmer than before.
Anthony seemed to find a familiar conversational rhythm. “Ah, I heard your Alchemy skills have improved rapidly. You can already take the lead. That means you’ve spent a lot of time on it.”
Leo’s heart skipped a beat.
As expected, the anonymous note he had written with his foot hadn’t had much effect.
Laforin’s trust in Anthony wasn’t something a crooked note could shake.
It was likely that Lady Manta had told Laforin about his Alchemy, and Laforin had then informed Anthony.
With over a decade of relationship, Anthony had always been Laforin’s strategist and trusted aide.
Many decisions in Blackstone City, though discussed among the knights, were often first proposed by Anthony to Laforin.
It could be said that Anthony’s influence in Blackstone City was second only to one.
It seemed that bringing him down wouldn’t be easy.
But Leo had no intention of exposing himself now. If he did, the consequences would be disastrous.
He might be bitten back by Anthony and even become a target of the Wilderness Knight Order.
The best approach was to stay hidden. Leo had quite a few covert methods at his disposal.
After a moment’s thought, Leo replied, “Not really. It’s all thanks to Lady Manta’s praise. She’s the one directing—I just follow her instructions.”
“Humility.” Anthony sat down. “I appreciate your humility, Leo. But sometimes being too humble isn’t a good thing. If you have ability, you should show it.”
Though Anthony seemed to be speaking casually,
Leo felt there was more beneath his words.
Soon, Anthony shifted to the topic of training. “So, how’s your Breathing Technique progress? Been busy with Alchemy lately.”
His tone was like that of an elder caring for a junior.
But Leo sensed that Anthony was particularly interested in his training progress.
“To be honest.” Leo frowned and sighed.
“What’s wrong?” Anthony’s eyes lit up instantly.
“It’s been quite some time. I’ve used quite a few Body Tempering Potions, but there’s been no real progress.” Leo deliberately concealed his true strength.
“That shouldn’t be. Your talent should be the best among us.”
Anthony appeared puzzled. “But don’t worry. You’ve only recently broken into the Knight Realm. Advancing from Low-tier Knight to Mid-tier Knight takes a long time. Fast cases take years; slow ones can take decades.”
“However, I’ve already started practicing a Second Breathing Technique.” Leo said, half-truthfully.
“You’ve started that early?” Anthony’s eyes brightened noticeably.
As the two sat facing each other, Leo gestured to his servant. “Penny, bring the chess set.”
“Yes, yes, let’s chat while playing.” Anthony smiled, trying to ease the atmosphere. “Leo, don’t rush. Do you know how long it took me to break through to Mid-tier Knight?”
Leo widened his eyes. “How long?”
Anthony interlocked his fingers and made a cross gesture. “Ten years…”
His eyes grew deep.
Looking back now, he didn’t even know how he endured those ten years—each day wondering if tomorrow would bring a breakthrough, or if it would never come.
Leo watched Anthony’s expression.
Internally, he cursed his hypocrisy.
But outwardly, he appeared empathetic.
“Sigh, knight training is like this. You might break through, or you might never. I’ve heard of knights—even High-tier Knights—who went insane from this.”
That much Leo had indeed heard.
Some knights, after long periods without breakthroughs, collapsed under the pressure and became mad.
“But you’re still young. Everything is just beginning.” Anthony seemed to compose himself and took a sip of strong tea. “Come, it’s been a while since we played properly. Relax a bit.”
Anthony quickly made his move.
Leo looked at the man before him.
It felt like every sentence was comforting on the surface,
but in reality, Anthony was constantly feeding him negativity.
What was he trying to do?
As Leo pondered, his Second Mind began to act.
At this moment, Anthony’s room should be empty.
……
Inside the dim room, a robust mouse crawled out from beneath the bed.
After losing its tail to Anthony yesterday, Anthony had poured boiling water into the original burrow, scattered poisoned bread, and sealed it with plaster.
If it had been an ordinary mouse, it might have died.
“Seems this guy isn’t as kind as he appears. Ruthless.”
The mouse, Steve, darted out and began searching the room.
To reward the mouse for its injury in service of a great cause, Leo had given it a name—Steve.
In Shared State, Leo observed that Anthony’s room was quite large and lavishly decorated.
Carved crystal chandeliers, silk curtains, and various unfamiliar items.
Compared to Leo’s minimalist style, Anthony’s room clearly reflected noble luxury.
Steve sniffed around rapidly. His sense of smell was sharp, but the room was filled with perfume and Calming Tea scent.
Finding the specific scent he was looking for among such strong smells was not easy.
He continued tracking various scents,
then climbed onto the bed, sprinted, stepped on the soft pillow, and leapt upward.
Steve finally reached the tall headboard.
“The potion was placed around here before.”
Looking around, he spotted two tightly sealed drawers.
At first glance, they didn’t even look like drawers—extremely well hidden.
Steve approached and sniffed them but couldn’t detect the potion’s scent.
However, Leo’s mark indicated that the white ant should still be somewhere in this room, though the distance only allowed for rough direction.
Steve tilted his furry head and raised his front paws.
His sharp claws dug into the gap of the drawer.
With a forceful pull—scrape!
Three white scratch marks appeared on the drawer edge, but it didn’t open.
It was locked.
Steve tried again, but still failed.
Sealed so tightly—there was definitely something suspicious.
At that moment, Steve suddenly froze.
Just now, Leo’s Shared State duration had ended.
Without precise commands, Steve could only retreat along the same path.
……