Black Hearted Mage

Chapter 318 Buying Fish 2

Under the dim, flickering light of a fishing lantern, a weathered wooden fishing boat struggled to dock amidst the surging waves. The mottled paint on the hull had long since peeled away, revealing the wood bleached by seawater. The deck was covered with the marks of fish scales and deep, shallow grooves, etched by years of moonlight. Hanging from the side of the boat were four or five carefully woven anti-collision balls made from red rattan, a species unique to the sea. These rattans, soaked in salt water, were rendered incredibly tough and filled with soft silk and linen gathered from the mountains by the fishermen—a wisdom passed down from their ancestors, both economical and effectively protecting the fragile hull.

The fishing boat pitched up and down beside the dock, its voice creaking and creaking as the waves rose and fell. Two hunched-backed fishermen trudged along the slippery deck, their bare feet whitened by the seawater, their trouser legs perpetually damp. The older man jumped out first, his calloused hands gripping the ropes tightly, his veins bulging as he battled the waves. The younger man followed closely behind, but stumbled as he jumped, soaking half his body in the icy water—such accidents were a common occurrence for them.

The boat's hold was piled with the fish they'd risked their lives to catch, gleaming faintly silver under the dim light. The fish's internal organs were extremely fragile, rotting and spoiling quickly with the slightest care. The fishermen had to sort, transport, and sell them before dawn, or their labored day's catch would become a pile of rotting fish and shrimp, uneaten. Their movements were skillful and rapid, their reddened hands sifting through the pile of fish. The salty, fishy smell of the sea breeze mingled with their stench, but for them, this scent was the taste of life.

A dark figure leaped from the cliff, gliding toward the fishing harbor on the sea breeze. Caesars controlled his descent, trying his best to maintain a steady course. However, he underestimated the fierce wind, and without power, he was blown toward the city of Hailanza. He rapidly chanted an incantation, and jet-black elemental wings unfolded behind him, propelling him toward the dock.

As the shadow silently descended on the damp dock, a father and son, sorting through the fish under the lantern light, were so startled they nearly overturned their basket. A tall wizard, swathed in a cloak as black as night, his staff, inlaid with dark patterns, gleamed faintly in the moonlight. His pale face was half-hidden beneath his hood, only his eyes, shimmering with an eerie blue light, were clearly visible, gazing intently at them.

“How do you sell sea fish?”

The magician's voice seemed to come from beside him, with a strange echo.

The old fisherman's rough fingers trembled unconsciously. He swallowed and stammered, "Master Mage, if you want the fish, take it. How dare we accept your gold coins!" When he accidentally met the inhuman blue eyes beneath the cloak, he felt a piercing chill creep up his spine.

The old magician, Caesars, chuckled softly, and the hand that stretched out from his cloak was so white that it was almost transparent.

"I have plenty of gold coins, more than you've ever seen in your life," he said slowly. "I want to buy all the fishing boats' catch for half a month. But..." He paused, a blue light flashing in his eyes, "you have to help me clean the fish heads and intestines. The wages can be calculated separately!"

The old fisherman nodded and bowed hurriedly, "Of course! Master Mage, please wait a moment. I'll call for help!" He turned and grabbed his son, lowering his voice and saying hurriedly, "Go and call Old John and the others. Tell them... tell them there's a big deal!"

The young fisherman nervously glanced at the eerie wizard and hurriedly put on his dripping straw sandals. He stumbled toward the low-slung shantytown east of the dock, his figure quickly blending into the thick night.

About half a minute later, the swaying light of several moonstone lanterns drifted towards them from the direction of the shantytown. Four or five figures hurried over the slippery cobblestones, their whispers tinged with unease and curiosity. The young man in the front kept looking back, as if to confirm whether the black-robed figure was still waiting there.

The people who came were both old and young. I had seen old John at the dock yesterday. The other two were old men in linen clothes and a little girl who was probably only twelve or thirteen years old.

The old fisherman wiped the sweat from his forehead, turned around and forced a flattering smile at Caesars. "Master Mage, please wait a moment, we will start processing." He waved to the people who came over and said in a low voice, "Be quick. This lord wants the fish cleaned. The head and internal organs must be removed!"

Several veteran fishermen exchanged bewildered glances, but no one dared to ask further questions. They swiftly gathered around the pile of fish, unsheathed their sharp knives, and expertly scraped the scales, gutted the fish, and removed the gills. Fish blood, mixed with seawater, flowed through the cracks in the stone slabs, and the fishy odor permeated the damp night air.

Caesars stood quietly by, with only a snow-white beard visible under his cloak. His eyes followed the fishermen's movements, and every time a fish was cleaned, a hint of imperceptible satisfaction flashed in his eyes.

A dozen or so sea bass were quickly processed and weighed. The old fisherman bravely asked, "Master Mage, where are you shipping these fish? Do you need us to help you load them?"

Caesars shook his head gently. "No need." He tapped his fingers on his staff, and a faint blue light streamed from the tip, shrouding the pile of cleaned fish like mist. The fishermen stepped back in shock, watching the fish slowly rise in the blue light, then twist and shrink strangely, being sucked into the storage ring on his hand.

"This..." The young fisherman's eyes widened, his throat tightening. The old fisherman grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it hard, signaling him to be quiet.

Caesars put away the pouch, took out a shining gold coin from his cloak, and threw it into the old fisherman's fishy hand.

The old fisherman hurriedly took it. Before he could even say thank you, Caesars added, "The extra silver coins are your wages. If you continue to have your fish handled like this again when your fishing boats return to port, I'll buy them all!"

"Yes, Master Mage!" the old fisherman replied a little excitedly, holding the gold coin. The price offered by Caesars was slightly higher, and the gold coin was of better quality.

"By the way, what are you doing with the fish's innards?"

Caesars saw that the little girl was collecting fish viscera, and the last few buckets of what was left after processing the sea fish were carried back to the fishing boat by the young fisherman.

"Master Mage, these fish heads and entrails are bait for catching shrimp. Oh, and we also have shrimp traps!"

"Hurry up and collect the lobster traps. I'll be waiting here!"

As Caesars spoke, he looked out at the vast ocean. In the distance, there were vague spots of light approaching the pier, and another fishing boat was returning to the port.

Two hours later, the thick darkness still enveloped the bay, like a piece of velvet soaked in ink. The fishermen had long since departed, clutching their polished gold coins. Only dozens of empty fishing boats remained, bobbing against the waves on either side of the dock. The rotting planks creaked in the salty sea breeze, a sound that murmured something ominous.

Caesars trudged across the damp rocks back to the tent on the cliff. The puppy was scratching at the dying charcoal fire with its front paws. Sparks flew with its movements, streaking fleeting golden lines in the darkness. The little creature's whimpering was thin and rapid, its wet nose constantly pointing toward the silver-scaled fish wrapped in seaweed in the corner.

"Luckily, the sea fish here are cheap, otherwise Master Caesars would have been bankrupted by you!"

Kaisas took out a grill from the space ring. When the iron rack was unfolded, it brought up a string of burnt debris. As he spoke, he knocked on the grill with a dagger to clean up some of the food residue on it.

As the sky in the east turned a crab-shell blue, the last few fishing lights on the dock died. The salty morning breeze blew up a few fish scales stuck to the ground, their iridescent hues interwoven with the brown stains of blood into strange patterns. Waves pounded against the wooden piles, each wash making the blood seeping into the cracks seem lighter.

The steward of Baron Sesis's palace nearly tripped over the slippery fish entrails when he arrived at the dock carrying a glass lantern. His lantern illuminated rows of fishing boats swaying with the waves. In the cabins, there were neither the usual piles of catch nor the familiar figures who were always hunched over.

"Go to the shantytown!"

The steward kicked the empty fish basket, and the wicker basket rolled far away on the cobblestones. "Drag these untouchables hiding in the shabby shack out and interrogate them—" His roar startled a few seagulls, "How dare they sell their catch to other buyers today!"

A few minutes later, Bard, the arrogant middle-aged steward of the Sesis Palace, arrived at the filthy, dilapidated shantytown with a dozen burly lackeys. The muddy road was filled with foul-smelling sewage, and every step sent a nauseating splash of filth. The air was thick with the stench of fish, the stench of rotting fish piled high, mixed with the damp, moldy odor, which made these pampered people frown.

"Go and call out that old bastard, Old John!" Steward Bud pinched his nose and stood there in disgust, his pair of shiny leather boots refusing to move another step forward. "This old guy is the most eloquent of these low-class people. Go!"

The servant whose name was called turned pale, but he had no choice but to go in. He tiptoed through the sewage-filled alleys as if avoiding the plague, fearing that he would dirty his brand new clothes. In the shabby shack, pairs of vigilant eyes watched these uninvited guests through the cracks.

"Butler Bud, what do you want to talk to me about?"

Less than two minutes later, the hunched old John appeared before everyone. He wore a patched gray linen jacket, his rough hands covered in scars from years of fishing. He lowered his head humbly, creating a stark contrast with the sleekly dressed Bud, whose silk robe gleamed in the sunlight.

"Old man!" Bud walked up and grabbed Old John by the collar, spitting all over the old man's face. "Who is so audacious as to buy all the sea fish that Master Cesis wants? Tell me!"

Old John was strangled, but he remained calm. "It was... a wizard... He lived on the cliffs at the southernmost end of the bay..." The old man swallowed hard. "Before he left, the wizard specifically told me that he would buy all the fish and prawns for this month. He also said... and..."

"What else?" Bud increased the strength in his hands.

"He said...if anyone is dissatisfied, just go find him..." Old John closed his eyes, as if recalling that chilling scene, "The magician said...he specializes in curing all kinds of dissatisfaction..."

Steward Bud's face flushed crimson, like an enraged rooster. His meticulously trimmed goatee trembled with anger, and his jeweled brooch jingled against his heaving chest. Never before in this land had anyone dared to so brazenly challenge the authority of the Sesis family.

“Good…very good…”

Bard gritted his teeth as he let go of the old man, his fists clenching beneath his silk sleeves. Though furious, he wasn't foolish enough to provoke a mysterious sorcerer. The most important thing now was to return quickly and report this shocking news to the Baron.

Steward Bud turned around with a gloomy face and strode away. His expensive leather boots stomped heavily on the muddy ground, splashing dirty water that stained the servants' trouser legs, but no one dared to complain.

"Go! Go back home immediately!" he shouted sternly, with suppressed anger in his voice.

The servants hurriedly followed, and the group hurriedly left the shantytown, as if staying even a moment longer would taint them with the abject poverty of the place. Old John watched them retreat, a complex emotion flickering in his cloudy eyes. He slowly raised his hand, wiped his collar, which had been wrinkled by Bud, and muttered softly, "Now... there's going to be something interesting to watch."

At the same time, on the cliff at the southernmost end of the bay, a gray-black tent stood alone. The sea breeze whistled, and waves crashed against the cliff, making a dull roar.

Caesars stood in front of the tent with a sophisticated magic telescope in front of him, and the corners of his mouth raised slightly.

Half an hour later, Bud rushed into the magnificent house of the Sesis family, breathless. He had nothing in his hands, fine beads of sweat on his forehead, and the hem of his expensive silk robe was stained with mud. However, he did not bother to tidy up his appearance and rushed straight into the old housekeeper's study.

"Something happened!"

Bard shouted at the top of his lungs the moment he entered, his voice shrill and piercing from his rapid breathing. He gesticulated wildly, exaggerating what had happened at the dock. "That damned magician was incredibly arrogant! Not only did he steal all our seafood, he also threatened that if anyone from the Sethis family dared to go looking for him, they'd be gone forever!"

The old butler was checking the account book. Upon hearing this, he suddenly raised his head, a look of shock on his wrinkled face: "Wait, you said that the magician lives on the southernmost cliff?" He put down the quill in his hand and lowered his voice unconsciously.

"Absolutely true!"

Bud patted his chest and assured, then lowered his voice and said mysteriously, "I deliberately took a detour to the cliff to check, and there is indeed a strange tent set up in that damn place!"

As he spoke, he shuddered unconsciously. After the earthquake more than ten years ago caused the middle of the cliff to collapse, it became an isolated peak and it was impossible for ordinary people to climb up.

The old butler's expression grew increasingly grave. He slowly stood up, his bony fingers tapping the oak tabletop unconsciously, making a dull sound. "This is a serious matter... Bud, you should go down and rest first. I must report this matter to the Baron immediately!"

The old butler straightened his clothes and walked towards the baron's study with steady steps. His back looked particularly solemn, as if carrying some ominous premonition.