Chapter 483: Smooth Inquiry
“That… that… first question…”
Scotti, who was lowering her head and tightly clutching the parchment, softly read out the first question written on it. However, her trembling demeanor made it seem as though she were the “suspect” being interrogated.
“May I ask… Lord Cyan, did you accept the ‘Dragon Slaying’ mission and… and reach the Hoth Mountains with a Master-Level Mage named Benlajie Nokani?”
“Yes!”
“Then… then may I ask… can you confirm… that the evil black dragon ‘Ovakain Acidmaw’ was solely responsible for… the eruption of the Sleeping Dragon Volcano?”
“Yes!”
“Finally… the last question, were you completely unaware… of the Abyssal energy fluctuations occurring in the Raging Wave Desert?”
“Yes!”
“Mhm! Then I… Scotti Danny, in the name of the Mage Guild Inquisitor, declare… that Senior Mentor Punk Cyan of the Thought of Truth is completely unrelated to the disaster in the Hoth Mountains… and the anomalous events in the Raging Wave Desert. All accusations against Master Punk Cyan are invalid. Therefore, in accordance with fair and rigorous law enforcement, and in pursuit of eternal justice and goodness—the Mage Guild confirms that Mage Punk Cyan… is not guilty!”
After stumbling through the contents of the parchment, Scotti finally let out a long sigh of relief and set the parchment down. The little girl standing in the center of the Inquiry Room hall timidly wiped the sweat from her forehead. Then, with an expression that said “the task is finally complete,” Scotti cautiously glanced in Kirk Weilen’s direction.
“…………Very well, that settles the matter.”
It took Kirk Weilen two or three seconds to process what had happened. Although he had anticipated the Mage Guild’s perfunctory attitude, he had not expected it to be this blatant.
In fact, not only was Kirk Weilen stunned for a moment, but even Punk, the one being interrogated, was taken aback.
He had no idea the Mage Guild’s approach could be this perfunctory. After all, on his way here with Kirk Weilen, Punk had been constantly racking his brains to ensure his lies were airtight. Yet… who would have thought the Mage Guild’s so-called “righteous trial” would consist of nothing more than these few casual, mundane questions? Had he known, Punk wouldn’t have bothered concocing piles of logically coherent nonsense!
Of course, no matter how absurd this inquiry might seem, considering that the Legendary Spell Ankazan Flamebrow, who oversees the Gray Rain Country, is a spellcaster affiliated with the Mage Guild, no one would dare to challenge the Mage Guild’s authority. Thus, no matter how sky-high the level of perfunctoriness in this “inquiry” was, for Punk, it was undeniably good news.
No matter how unbelievably smooth and effortless the outcome seemed, at this point, the troubles Punk had stirred up in the Hoth Mountains and the Raging Wave Desert were truly over. No matter what happened in the future, no one would ever be able to bring this matter up again.Since the “innocent” verdict for Punk was issued by a branch of the Mage Guild, this small branch not only represented the Legendary Mage “Incinerator” Ankazan who presided over the Gray Rain Country, but also symbolized the prestigious Legendary organization—the Mage Guild—renowned throughout the Faerûn Plane.
If anyone dared to murmur about this matter again… it would no longer be a mere grievance against Punk, but a provocation against the Mage Guild’s authority and a challenge to the dignity of a Legendary Caster. In such a case, even before Punk could react, the Mage Guild would be the first to deal with the “rumormonger.”
Realizing this crucial point, Punk no longer cared about the perfunctory inquiry. After all, the outcome was entirely beneficial to him, and minor awkwardness in the process or details wasn’t worth dwelling on.
However… according to general etiquette, after such a “cover-up,” Punk, as the beneficiary, should still offer a small token of appreciation. This gesture didn’t need to be particularly valuable; it was more about demonstrating a friendly attitude.
Of course, offering something too cheap would be seen as a provocation.
After careful consideration, Punk retrieved a grayish-white gem from his Storage Ring and said to Scotti:
“This is a humble gift. You may deliver it to your mentor. I believe your mentor will know how to handle it.”
Without waiting for a response, he pressed the fist-sized gem into the pale-faced Scotti’s hand and turned to leave, not wanting to waste any more time.
The gem he had just handed to Scotti for delivery was not, as he claimed, intended for her Formal-Level Mage mentor. It was one of the spoils obtained from Sorsend’s Storage Ring—a piece of Icesilver Stone containing the trapped souls of hundreds of thousands of goat-headed creatures. In terms of value, it was wealth only a Master-Level powerhouse could possess. In the face of such an item, Scotti’s Formal-Level mentor was merely a “messenger.” Ultimately, this gift was destined to end up in the hands of a Master-Level powerhouse within the Mage Guild.
Punk felt no regret over gifting such a valuable Soul Gem. For one, these items were painstakingly collected by Sorsend over the years. Secondly, while these souls might have been highly useful to the deceased Caster… Punk’s upcoming research topics didn’t require large quantities of low-quality intelligent creature souls, so he decided to offer this item to the Mage Guild as a gesture of goodwill.
Lastly, the wealth amassed by Sorsend, the Level 19 Caster, was truly “abundant.” Dozens of similar gems containing hundreds of thousands of souls were stored in Sorsend’s medium-sized Storage Ring. Parting with one wasn’t a significant loss.
After his adventure in the Raging Wave Desert, Punk was now a well-established Level 19 Caster. If he advanced to Legendary in the future, all these Master-Level items would become useless. Thus, there was no need to be stingy at this stage.
After catching the gem Punk had thrust into her hands, a flustered Scotti quickly tucked it into her small backpack.Just moments ago, she was certain she had seen several grotesque faces emerging from the gemstone. Now holding this precious yet icy “gift,” Scotti felt her body temperature rapidly dropping.
“That… if there’s nothing else… I’ll take my leave as well.”
Seeing Punk about to exit through the main door, Scotti took a deep breath and quickly crouched down to gather the scattered magic books from the floor.
The young sorceress no longer wished to remain in the cold, oppressive Thought of Truth for even another moment. Missing her companions from the Mage Guild and her warm, comfortable bed, she was growing increasingly impatient to return home.
(End of Chapter)