Chapter 34 : Chapter 34
Chapter 34: Countermeasure, Strategic Retreat
After returning to Valencia, Ryan and Nika began asking around for information about the Warwick Family.
The results matched what Gram had said.
In Valencia, the Warwick Family could truly be said to cover the sky with one hand.
Because of Nika, Ryan had already effectively offended the Warwick Family.
With the strength he currently possessed, there was no way he could stand against them.
And there was no chance he intended to hand Nika over to the Warwick Family.
That left only one option now.
Run.
What, was he supposed to stay and wait for the Warwick Family to come arrest him?
There was no need to ask. Gram had undoubtedly been reporting Nika and her younger sister’s situation to Kiel on a regular basis.
Now that Gram had been killed by Nika, Kiel would likely learn very soon that something had happened to him.
Ryan’s only advantage now was that he remained hidden in the dark.
As long as he left Valencia before Kiel could react, then he and Nika could temporarily avoid the Warwick Family.
Although the Warwick Family could dominate Valencia without challenge, that certainly would not be the case in other towns.
Other large towns had powerful families of their own as well.
What worried Ryan, however, was the possibility that the Warwick Family had dealings with other families.
If that was the case, other families might try to curry favor with the Warwick Family by searching for the two of them.
Thinking about it that way, leaving the Mia Empire altogether was the best option for now.
Then, once he became strong enough in the future, he could come back and wipe out the Warwick Family in one stroke, solving everything once and for all.
Ryan had read quite a few novels and understood the principle well: if you failed to kill a snake completely, it would only come back to bite you later.
Ryan and Nika returned to the inn.
He laid out all the thoughts in his heart to Nika without holding anything back.
“I’m sorry, Master. I’ve caused you trouble.”
Nika bent down in apology.
“There’s no need to apologize. My original goal was to travel around and broaden my horizons anyway. All this means is that we’re leaving here early and moving on to the next town.”
Ryan waved his hand dismissively.
He did not regret buying Nika as a slave.
Leaving aside the help she provided during adventuring, just her service every night gave Ryan a level of pleasure beyond compare.
With Nika’s figure and beauty, if she had been on Blue Star in his previous life, she could have become a celebrity with ease.
And yet someone like her devoted herself wholeheartedly to serving him every night, letting him enjoy treatment fit for an emperor.
Of course he was going to protect her properly.
And more importantly, Nika had a younger sister.
Twin sisters.
How powerful was the allure of those two words when put together?
In any case, Ryan certainly had that sort of thought in the back of his mind.
And now, since they needed to leave the Kingdom of Mia in order to avoid the Warwick Family and head to another kingdom anyway, Ryan decided that their next destination would be the Kingdom of Candel.
Not only would he be able to experience new customs and scenery there,
he could also search for Nika’s younger sister.
If they found her, then that would be the best possible outcome.
If they did not, then at least he would have given Nika an answer.
Thinking of that, Ryan looked at Nika and said, “Nika, our next stop will be the Kingdom of Candel. We’ll search for your younger sister while we’re there.”
“Ah!”
Nika cried out in shock, hardly able to believe it.
Then she covered her mouth as tears began to stream down uncontrollably.
They were tears of gratitude.
Nika said excitedly, “M-Master, thank you! I don’t even know what to say.”
“There’s no need to thank me.”
Ryan stroked her head and said softly, “You do need to prepare yourself mentally, though. We might not find your sister. Or we might find her, but she may already have gone through something terribly tragic. Do you understand that?”
“Yes, yes, Master. I understand.”
Nika nodded through her tears.
She knew her younger sister might already have suffered abuse.
But the mere fact that Ryan intended to search for her was already enough to move her deeply.
“Master, I know this may be shameless of me, but I still want to ask you something. If my younger sister truly has been abused, then could I ask you to buy her back from her master?”
Nika asked uneasily.
She knew that asking such a thing was shameless, but for the sake of her younger sister, she could only force herself to say it.
“Mm...”
Ryan fell silent for a moment.
When Nika saw his silence, she immediately grew anxious.
But at present, she had nothing.
The only thing she possessed that could still interest Ryan was this body of hers.
Wait, her body?
Nika suddenly realized something: her younger sister looked very much like her.
And that resemblance was not limited to their faces. Even their figures were similar.
If her own body could attract Ryan’s interest, then could her younger sister’s body do the same?
At this point, Nika had already thrown caution to the wind in order to get Ryan to save her younger sister.
“Master, my younger sister is more or less the same as me. If Master can bring her back, then my younger sister and I can serve you together.”
Nika hinted.
She did not know whether such words would work.
Nor had she asked her younger sister’s opinion.
But right now, this was all she could say.
As for her younger sister’s opinion?
That was beside the point. Everything depended first on whether Ryan could bring her back.
If Ryan failed to bring her back, then all of this would amount to nothing.
“Uh...”
Ryan stared at Nika blankly.
He had not expected her to say something like that.
She was practically selling her own younger sister outright.
Still, this suited him perfectly.
The moment he imagined such blissful days, Ryan felt a heat rising in his lower abdomen.
“All right. No problem. I promise you.”
Ryan immediately gave Nika his word.
“Really? Thank you, Master.”
Nika said in delight.
To her, Ryan was simply the best master in the world.
Since her father’s death, no one in this world had treated her this well.
Now that she had already come to enjoy such a good life, how could she let her younger sister continue to suffer?
She wanted to bring her younger sister over and let her share in this happiness as well.
“Good. Since we’ve decided, then there’s no time to waste. We’ll rest for one last night here, and tomorrow we leave Valencia.”
“All right, Master.”
“Mm. Enough of that for now. My desire is running high at the moment. It’s all because of what you just said. How are you going to make it up to me?”
Ryan asked with a wicked grin.
“Uh...”
Nika lowered her head and looked down, only to discover that Ryan was already ready for battle. Her face instantly flushed bright red, and she said in a low voice, “I will leave everything to Master’s disposal.”
“Hahaha...”
Ryan laughed, picked Nika up in his arms, and turned toward the bedroom.
...
Ten thousand words omitted here.
...
Early the next morning, Ryan and Nika slowly woke up.
After packing their belongings, they went downstairs and checked out of their room.
Immediately afterward, Ryan brought Nika to the teleportation magic circle in the center of town.
The teleportation magic circle was located in the center of the town. It was circular in shape, about thirty meters in diameter, and paved with dark gray stone.
The surface of the stone was carved with grooves, and silver metal lines had been embedded into those grooves, forming an intricate pattern of runes. The runes linked together in rings, spreading outward from the center in five concentric circles, each evenly spaced.
At the center was a square purple crystal set into the stone. Its surface was smooth, and within it one could see a faint flowing glow.
Around the edge of the teleportation magic circle stood twelve stone pillars, each about five meters tall. They were made of the same material as the stone below, and their surfaces were also carved with runes. At the top of each pillar was a small blue crystal that continuously emitted a faint glow.
The teleportation magic circle was enclosed by a waist-high stone wall. The wall had four entrances, each guarded by two guards in iron armor, holding spears in their hands. They stood upright and scanned everyone entering and leaving.
Beyond the wall was a plaza paved with stone slabs, worn smooth with use.
The square was crowded with people, most of them waiting to use the teleportation magic circle.
There were adventurers in leather armor, carrying packs as they queued at the entrances.
There were merchants in luxurious robes, accompanied by several servants hauling goods, with the cargo piled on the ground and covered with cloth.
Each use of the teleportation magic circle required one hundred people before it could be activated.
This was done to maximize its efficiency.
Using the teleportation magic circle cost five Gold Coins per person, and if someone had goods that took up extra space, then they had to pay more.
These fees were used for the daily maintenance of the teleportation magic circle and the consumption of Magic Crystals.
Each activation of the teleportation magic circle required one space-attribute Magic Crystal.
That was why the rule existed that it would only be activated once one hundred people had gathered.
When Ryan learned of this rule, he could not help feeling intensely envious.
Spatial Mages were simply too incredible.
Not only could they make money by producing spatial backpacks, they could also earn money through teleportation magic circles like this, bringing in an endless stream of wealth.
It could be said that for a spatial Mage, even breathing made money.
And that was not an exaggeration in the slightest.
Even while breathing, a spatial Mage could absorb mana from the air, store it within their body, and then use that mana to create Magic Crystals.
Of course, none of that had anything to do with Ryan.
Because he had no magical talent, and no matter how much he envied them, it was useless.
Still, Ryan found himself thinking: what if one day he had to face a spatial Mage as an enemy?
His weapons were certainly powerful.
But there was one necessary condition.
He had to hit the target.
Only by hitting the target could he inflict damage.
If he could not even hit a spatial Mage, then what was the point of talking about fighting one?
For now, the only method Ryan had thought of for dealing with such an enemy was saturation fire.
He would take out several submachine guns and unleash a wild barrage over an entire area.
Using spatial magic also consumed mana.
As long as he could maintain saturation fire until the spatial Mage’s mana was exhausted, then he would be able to win.
Do not blame Ryan for always thinking about enemies.
This world was not peaceful.
Danger would always appear sooner or later.
Without sufficient vigilance, there was no way he could live freely and at ease.
Ryan and Nika arrived at the payment counter and handed over ten Gold Coins before waiting.
About an hour later, one hundred people had finally gathered.
In the next moment,
those hundred people stood inside the magic circle.
The purple crystal at the center of the magic circle brightened, the silver metal lines began to glow white, and the runes lit up one after another, forming rings of light.
The rings gradually expanded, covering the entire magic circle as the radiance grew blinding.
Whoosh!
A pillar of light shot into the sky from the magic circle.
In the blink of an eye, the light faded.
The hundred people standing on the magic circle had already been teleported away.