Chapter 232 The Witch and the Tailor

Chen Nuo followed the path he came by, left the Weeping Peninsula, and found the Waypoint Ruins of Limgrave.

This place had been abandoned for a long time, and flowers were starting to grow.

Well, a type of carnivorous poisonous flower, scientifically named the Giant Pink Rafflesia.

This thing sprays poisonous pollen; it's not a benevolent species.

Sensing life approaching, these poisonous flowers became slightly restless, like living creatures.

"These should be quite refreshing to eat."

Chen Nuo smacked his lips.

Instantly, the poisonous flowers instinctively realized the danger and tightened their buds, trying to pretend to be harmless.

Unfortunately, it was too late; once Chen Nuo's interest was piqued, he wouldn't easily let it go.

"A bit spicy on the tongue."

Chen Nuo took a bite of the largest cluster of poisonous flowers and gave his evaluation.

In the Waypoint Ruins, there was a hidden entrance, and Chen Nuo went down the stairs.

However, a Pumpkin Head Soldier blocked his way.

Pumpkin Head sounds quite festive for Christmas, but the story inside is not interesting at all.

These tall and sturdy soldiers were originally gladiators.

Later, because the Golden Dynasty closed the colosseums, these gladiators were forced to wear these pumpkin-shaped enclosed helmets and continue serving the Golden Dynasty.

In the long period of confinement and darkness, almost all of these Pumpkin Head Soldiers fell into madness.

As for why they were given pumpkin helmets and whether it was voluntary, Chen Nuo didn't know.

Any slight movement would cause a violent reaction from this Pumpkin Head Soldier.

After burning the Pumpkin Head Soldier in front of him, Chen Nuo came to the secret room beneath the ruins and lifted the sealed iron gate.

There was a witch here called a heretic, wearing standard magic academy attire and a Glintstone Crown.

Although her face couldn't be seen clearly, she must be intelligent and beautiful.

Seeing Chen Nuo's arrival, she spoke with some surprise.

"I didn't expect a Tarnished to find this place."

"I came specifically to find you, Sorceress Sellen."

"Oh? Since you know my name, you should clearly know that I am a heretical sorceress."

Sellen's playful voice came from inside the Glintstone Crown.

"It's fine, a heretic of your level doesn't even rank in today's The Lands Between."

Chen Nuo waved his hand and said.

Isn't it just researching forbidden magic? People without skill aren't even qualified to research the forbidden.

To put it bluntly, the so-called forbidden is just a type of human experimentation.

Doesn't this precisely prove Sorceress Sellen's skill level?

As for killing colleagues?

That's not even a thing in today's magic academy.

That place wasn't a benevolent place from the start; using classmates as test subjects is a campus tradition.

It's just that Sellen wasn't clean about it and was discovered and reported, and it happened to be during the era ruled by the Full Moon Queen.

Thus, she was exiled along with other Primeval Sorcerers.

"Why does that sound a bit heartbreaking?"

Sellen's expression was hidden under the crown, her emotions unreadable.

Thinking carefully, it was true; compared to the frenzied flame believers who want to set the world on fire, or the scarlet rot that pollutes the world, Sellen's heretical behavior really didn't rank.

"So, are you willing to accept my invitation and become my private magic consultant?"

Chen Nuo stated the purpose of his trip.

"Magic consultant? What answers do you want from me?"

Sellen asked with interest upon hearing this.

"I want to burn the Erdtree under the premise of ensuring the continental framework is not damaged."

Chen Nuo said as he reached out to Sellen, showing the Sunfire emerging in his palm.

"...You were right just now, compared to someone like you, I'm really not much of a heretic."

Sellen was momentarily speechless and finally couldn't help but sigh.

What shocked her wasn't Chen Nuo's words, but that he seemed to actually have such ability.

Sellen looked at the quietly burning Sunfire and could vaguely feel the majesty and extraordinariness within it, which seemed even more mysterious and vast than the primeval current magic she had pursued in the past.

"So, do you agree?"

Chen Nuo withdrew his hand and asked.

"Such a subject indeed has quite an attraction for me, but before that, let's talk about the reward."

Sellen's voice carried a hint of a woman's unique cunning.

Curiosity is one of the driving forces for a sorcerer's progress, and she had clearly found another interesting direction.

Chen Nuo offered a wisp of Sunfire to Sellen; this wasn't the reward for hiring her as a consultant, but a material for research.

The real reward, a Memory Stone that sorcerers regarded as a treasure, was casually set aside by Sellen.

"Give me some time, and I will give you the answer you want."

Sellen looked at the Sunfire she had contained and murmured softly to Chen Nuo.

She had clearly entered a state of focused research, her voice carrying some fanaticism and thick self-confidence.

Seeing this, Chen Nuo prepared to leave, but just as he turned around, he heard Sellen call out to him.

"By the way, it's not convenient for me to leave this place. You'd better provide me with some more samples related to the Erdtree; it will be beneficial for my research."

"Alright, Witch Consultant."

Chen Nuo nodded in agreement.

Sellen indeed couldn't walk around outside because what appeared before Chen Nuo was only her clone, or rather a soul projection; Sellen's true body was sealed in the Weeping Peninsula.

Walking out of the Waypoint Ruins, Chen Nuo recalled the locations of various Golden Seeds.

These should be the experimental samples that most fit Sellen's requirements.

There was originally one on the Weeping Peninsula.

However, that thing was found by Simba before, treated as an evil object and given to Chen Nuo, and finally burned as kindling by him.

After all, it was a novel thing he had never burned before; Chen Nuo was a bit curious about what the texture would be like when it burned.

Playing with fire for a long time leads to such bad habits—always wanting to burn something.

Children, don't learn this, or you'll wet the bed.

Honestly, it was a seed of the Erdtree after all; it was quite resistant to burning.

But once burned, it was burned; there was nothing to regret.

There are still many Erdtree seeds in the Limgrave area; he just had to find them again. It wouldn't take much time, and Chen Nuo didn't need them anyway since he didn't need to upgrade the Sacred Flask.

Shortly after Chen Nuo set out, while passing near the Murkwater Cave, he saw a sneaky figure crouching on the ground, seemingly setting a trap.

And what he used as bait for the trap was a treasure chest.

"..."

Seeing this behavior, Chen Nuo knew who this bald man was.

Patches, not a hero, nor a warrior, but a crazy hyena howling freely in a chaotic world.

What he liked most was setting traps, luring greedy people, and launching sneak attacks from behind.

After all, what Tarnished could refuse the temptation of a treasure chest?

Anyway, Chen Nuo couldn't refuse.

"Let me see?"

A sudden voice sounded behind Patches, scaring him so much that his hair stood on end.

Who had snuck up behind him?

Before he could react, his sticking-out butt received a heavy kick, and his body instantly flew up, rolling down towards the cave.

"Holy shit!!"

Patches fell into the cave and let out a terrified cry.

This plot isn't right!

How did I become the one falling into the trap?

Who the hell kicked me?

Patches tried hard to look up, but the distance was too far and the angle was too poor; he could only see the scene of his carefully prepared treasure chest being opened, unable to see the person's specific appearance at all.

The physical pain from falling into the cave was far less than the humiliation his soul suffered.

Patches began to shout and scream as if his defenses had been breached.

His nerves weren't quite normal to begin with, and now he was even crazier.

Then he saw his treasure chest being thrown down by that person from above, who left a disdainful remark at the end.

"What kind of trash is this? Even a dog wouldn't want it."

"Aaaah!!!"

If a dog doesn't want it, I'll take it, okay!!

Patches felt like his head was about to explode.

Chen Nuo clapped his hands, didn't even look at Patches, turned around, mounted Torrent, and left.

Patches wasn't a good person, but there was no absolute necessity to kill him; keeping him around for amusement was fine too.

In a good mood, Chen Nuo hummed a little tune on the road.

Melina, as the only listener, also shared this joy, while also feeling a bit surprised in her heart.

She didn't expect that Chen Nuo, as a descendant of warriors, could not only cook but also hum tunes.

An unheard melody—was it from the Badlands?

Melina was a bit curious but didn't ask; she just listened silently.

The tune Chen Nuo was humming was taught to him by Princess Twilight Heart, a work of the elves from the First Era, naturally beautiful and pleasant to the ear.

"Lord, is that you?"

An urgent voice came from the nearby bushes, interrupting this brief moment of beauty.

Chen Nuo looked sideways; the voice came from the bush itself.

However, through the disguise of transformation magic, it could be seen that the so-called bush was actually a small demi-human.

Who would be so bored as to use transformation magic to imprison a demi-human?

Truly having nothing better to do.

Chen Nuo flicked his finger, and a wisp of fire fell on the bush, instantly breaking the magic.

"My hair, hiss, so hot!!"

The demi-human Boc jumped up from the ground, reaching out to rub the top of his head; his already sparse hair had been scorched off in a patch, and his expression inevitably held a trace of sorrow.

"Why are you here, Boc?"

Chen Nuo asked.

"You actually still remember my name?! This is truly an honor."

Boc was a bit excited, his expression joyful.

"Of course, you're a good seamster, Boc."

Chen Nuo nodded as if it were only natural.

Boc's eyes were moist and red, but in an instant, he remembered something, his expression fell, and he sobbed softly.

"I'm no longer a seamster; my Sewing Needle was taken by them. That was left to me by my mother..."

"Little Wood, you poked me again."

Chen Nuo looked back; Melina had already tucked her hand into her sleeve, her gaze wandering, not daring to meet his eyes, like a child who had done something wrong. Boc's short story had touched her heart.

"Lord, are you talking to me?"

Boc couldn't see Melina and didn't know what Chen Nuo was saying.

"I'm talking to Little Wood; it's none of your business."

Chen Nuo turned his head back. In a place he couldn't see, Melina pouted slightly.

"Oh."

Who is Little Wood?

Is there someone else nearby?

Boc was puzzled but didn't dare to ask more.

"You said they took your Sewing Needle? Who are 'they'?"

Chen Nuo continued the plot progression; what needed to be asked always had to be asked once.

"My kin... they think I'm ugly and small, and they bully me every day."

Boc lowered his head and replied.

"You do look both ugly and small."

Chen Nuo nodded, agreeing with this evaluation.

Hearing this, Boc's eyes instantly filled with a bit more loneliness and dejection.

"But that doesn't stop you from being the best seamster I've ever seen. Since your tribe doesn't accept you, are you interested in working for me?"

Chen Nuo's words shifted, making Boc suddenly look up with an unbelievable gaze.

Was he being recognized?

Boc instinctively wanted to nod, but then he remembered he didn't have his Sewing Needle and could no longer sew.

Seeing his pathetic and aggrieved look, Chen Nuo knew what he was thinking and spoke directly.

"I will take back the Sewing Needle for you. After that, you will be my private seamster. How about that?"

"It would be my honor, Lord, but my kin are many. For you to be alone, it's too dangerous."

Compared to taking back the Sewing Needle, Boc was more worried about Chen Nuo's safety.

"Listen well, Boc."

Chen Nuo interrupted.

Boc instinctively stood up straight.

"Standing before you is the future King of The Lands Between, the Lord of the City of Dawn, the descendant of cooks, the one who truly wields the iron pot, and the servant of Little Wood."

Chen Nuo recited with the aura of a king.

If one were to ignore the string of titles at the end, his gravitas would surely have been much greater.

However, with Boc's intelligence and experience, just the first title made him dizzy with shock. He couldn't hear the subsequent titles clearly at all and immediately threw himself to the ground, offering his loyalty to the King.

Fate had finally favored him, this poor and humble demi-human.

It actually gave him the opportunity to serve the King.

What does "future King" mean?

In Boc's heart at this moment, Chen Nuo was already his King.

"O King, please accept this meager offering from your humble servant to express my endless gratitude."

Boc took out some mushrooms he had gathered earlier from his bosom.

"...I accept."

As a King, Chen Nuo indeed couldn't refuse the sincere offering of a subject.

Since that was the case, he would try to catch a wild chicken tonight and stew a pot of chicken with mushrooms.

Chen Nuo was already considering the combination of ingredients.

"Let's go, we're pressed for time."

Chen Nuo picked up Boc and had him lead the way.

Boc's tribal cave was in the Coastal Cave, not far from the Church of Elleh.

After circling around, it was like returning to the starting point.

Chen Nuo led Boc into the damp and dark cave. Along the way, there were campfires set up by the demi-humans, giving off a sense of daily life.

"Lord, it's right here. Actually, I could sneak in and take back my things."

Boc couldn't help but suggest again.

Having not witnessed Chen Nuo's strength with his own eyes, he was still worried that his King would encounter danger.

Chen Nuo didn't speak. He wanted Boc to see for himself that power is precisely the reason for becoming King.

"Boc, did you lead a Tarnished here?"

The demi-human chief saw the newcomer and shouted.

That expression was a bit like he'd seen a devil.