A sneeze destroys a magical civilization

"You are indeed as special as Elminster's description!"

After about two or three minutes, Kelben finally took the lead to break the silence, and changed his serious expression to reveal a smile.

"special?"

Zuo Si blinked his eyes in confusion.

He really couldn't imagine what kind of language and vocabulary the Great Sage of Shadow Valley, the first chosen one of the Goddess of Magic, would use to describe himself.

At least during those days in Candlekeep, the relationship between the two was far from pleasant.

No matter in terms of world view, values, or attitude towards gods and magic, they have no common language at all.

In addition, Zuo Si himself also showed extreme disgust and impatience towards the Harpers Alliance, which must have made Elminster, the founder of the organization, quite uncomfortable.

Kelben obviously knew this well and nodded slightly: "That's right. His evaluation of you is that you are calm, smart, and knowledgeable. You have unique insights into everything, and you have a strong revenge mentality. You belong to the The kind of person who is both good and evil. He also said that if he wants to get in touch with you, he'd better prepare a valuable gift."

"Oh? So I have a gift to take? As the elect of the Goddess of Magic, the lord of Waterdeep City, and one of the famous legendary mage in the North, your gift shouldn't be too shabby, right?" Zuo Si immediately said in a half-joking tone tentatively.

"Haha, of course. Here, I think this should be able to satisfy your strong desire for magical knowledge and items."

As he spoke, Kelben took out a stack of scrolls that were approximately twenty-five centimeters in length and glowed golden from a sealed box.

His movements were very careful and gentle, as if he were afraid of causing even the slightest damage to it.

There are ten of these scrolls, and the surging arcane aura gives people a strong shock that cannot be described in words.

"What's this?"

Zuo Si asked in an uncertain tone.

He has never seen such a powerful magic item, as if its existence itself is part of the magic source of the entire world, even the sub-artifact [Arch Mage's Staff] is insignificant compared to it.

Kelben unfolded one of the scrolls, feeling the magical power flowing inside it, and replied meaningfully: "The wizard who created it called it the skin of the giant snake of the world, and the Netherese named it The Scroll of Netheril.

These scrolls are the starting point of modern magical civilization, as well as the observation and understanding of primitive magical energy.

In fact, I, Elminster, and a few other voters had read it, but only to satisfy their curiosity.

I must solemnly remind you that this knowledge is dangerous, very, very dangerous.

Some people read the contents on the scrolls, and their brains and sanity were destroyed by the vast knowledge, and they fell completely into endless madness.

Others, seduced by the power of raw magical energy, abandoned the existing ley line spellcasting system and tried to follow in the footsteps of the Netherese arcanists.

But in the end, he discovered that he could not control the violent primitive magical energy with his own talent, and was eventually torn into pieces by the terrifying energy storm.

Now, at the behest of the Mother of Magic, I turn them over to you.

I hope this forbidden knowledge can broaden your horizons, give you enough inspiration, and help you go further on the road to magic. "

"Scroll of Netherese? Give it to me!"

Zuo Si was stunned for a moment.

Because he never dreamed that the "Black Stick" would actually give such a precious thing to him.

After all, for current arcane magic users in Faerûn, these golden scrolls are still priceless treasures that cannot be measured by money at all.

It is said that no matter who it is, as long as they read a page of knowledge recorded on the Netherese scroll, their career level related to arcana will be permanently increased by one level.

Even if a Netherese scroll appears, it will trigger a fierce fight and fight.

Regardless of the red robe wizards, the Zhentarim, or other spell-casting organizations, even the high-level mages of Waterdeep City will fight at all costs to get it.

But now, these precious treasures were quietly placed in front of him, giving Zuo Si a strong sense of unreality.

"Yes. In addition, the goddess asked me to pass this on to you.

If you experience tingling in your brain or experience hallucinations while reading the scrolls, seek help from her.

Don't force yourself, there is no shame in asking the Mother of Magic for help when necessary.

Even Elminster and I barely finished reading the contents of a Netherese scroll with the goddess's company.

Believe me, the amount of knowledge recorded in these scrolls is too vast for a mortal brain to bear.

To date, no mortal has lived to read the entire scroll.

Even those of Netheril's most famous Grand Arcanists, as well as the creator of the scrolls, Wu Hui himself.

Ninety-nine percent of them, after reading more than three, their heads will explode or they will go crazy. "

While he was talking, Kelben put another exquisite holy symbol into Zuo Si's hand.

This is a emblem made of seven bluish-white gems forming a circle, with a flowing red crystal in the middle, and the entire emblem is made of mithril.

Counting the Holy Emblem of the Magic Goddess Midnight, Zuo Si now has the Holy Emblem of three gods on hand.

Among them, the holy symbol of Talona, ​​the goddess of poison and disease, was picked up casually on the battlefield. It was mainly used when performing divine spells and the priest's ability to control the undead.

The holy symbol of Ogma, the God of Knowledge, was directly embedded in the magic ring when it was transformed.

As long as you show it in front of the priests and believers of this god, you can get the other party's unconditional full help.

Looking at the scroll in front of him and the holy emblem in his hand, Zuo Si was silent for a long time and finally couldn't help asking: "Why? Why would the great goddess of magic give me such a precious gift? After all, I am not hers. Believers have never offered any prayers to her.”

When Kelben heard these words, he couldn't help laughing immediately: "Hahahaha! Not only have you never prayed to the Mother of Magic, but you have not prayed to any god.

Even Talona, ​​the goddess of poison and disease who bestows your power and your identity as the Chosen, is no exception.

To be honest, I really don’t understand the reason for your rejection and wariness of gods.

But it doesn't matter, the goddess of magic doesn't care about that.

Because your love, pursuit and research of magic are what the goddess is happy to see.

What's more, your arrival also brings a lot of magical knowledge and skills from another world.

Of course, in addition to the above reasons, there is the most important point.

That is the goddess thinks you are a person worthy of help and investment, and is very optimistic about the amazing potential you have. "

"Investment? That's it! I think I understand what the Mother of Magic means."

A flash of understanding flashed in Zuo Si's eyes.

Since he had met the God of Knowledge before, he understood how much these gods in Faerûn valued things within the jurisdiction of their clergy.

Just like Ogma wants knowledge, ideas, and inventions from other worlds.

The goddess of magic Midnight must also want to get more magic knowledge, skills and everything else related to magic.

Not only will this increase your power as a god, it will also expand your influence by spreading this knowledge to Faerûn.

"It's best if you understand. Since the end of the Year of Turbulence, I have never seen the goddess take such a fancy to a mortal spellcaster. If you don't mind, are you willing to spare a little time to discuss the mysteries of magic with me? ?"

Kelben extended the invitation in a tone full of expectation.

"Of course, it's an honor."

Zuo Si agreed without hesitation.

Compared to Elminster, who is already old and has long lost his interest in magic research, he is obviously more willing to communicate with "young (only over 900 years old)" voters like "Black Stick".

Moreover, the latter acted more like a mage, and throughout his long life he never stopped teaching apprentices, treating it as a responsibility and obligation.

Even the most powerful legendary magic will be imparted to the disciple without hesitation after meeting the requirements.

In addition, Kelben is slightly different from other voters of the Magic Goddess, that is, he is not very keen on politics, and he is not interested in changing other people's minds.

He would only choose to take action if he was seriously threatened in Waterdeep City, or if other chosen people of the Magic Goddess asked him for help.

The rest of the time, he basically stayed in the Black Staff Tower, doing research that he was interested in, or teaching the selected apprentices.

In this way, the two quickly left the room on the top floor of the mage tower and went to another place that looked like a study. They began to have in-depth face-to-face communication and explained their understanding of magic to each other.

Kelben described the current magic system in Faerûn and the principles and essence behind many spells in the most understandable language.

Even his own original [Black Rod Technique] and [Whip of Protection] did not hide anything.

Zuo Si reciprocated the favor and shared the knowledge collected and learned in the floating city tower. At the same time, he also demonstrated several abilities of his creator.

The [Spell and Barrier Destruction] even amazed this powerful legendary mage.

Because even he would find it difficult to maintain the stability of the spell structure after the energy is extracted.

Even if it is luckily released successfully, the power of the spell will be greatly reduced due to the lack of sufficient energy.

According to Kelburn's speculation, if Zuo Si is given one to two seconds to "destroy", then the power of a spell will be reduced by one level even if it is successfully released.

If it is three seconds to five seconds, then the effect of the spell will be reduced by more than three levels.

If it exceeds five seconds, unless it is a spell of level six or above, it will 100% result in failure.

In addition, the three abilities of [Refining], [Shaping] and [Transformation], and their unparalleled advantages in making magic items also opened Kelben's eyes.

For the first time, he realized that leaving behind the magic network that provided convenience to countless spellcasters was actually not a bad thing to some extent.

Just the opposite!

Direct contact with the original and manic magical energy allows spellcasters to gain more power and inspiration, constantly discover new knowledge, and create all kinds of incredible spells.

Of course, direct contact with raw and manic magical energy must be very dangerous.

Moreover, the requirements for the caster's quality (mainly intellectual attributes) are higher.

If you say that in an environment with a magic network, you can become the lowest level mage as long as it is slightly higher than the average intelligence level of ordinary people.

So in a world without the Magic Network, if you want to be a mage, you must be an out-and-out genius.

Otherwise, it is simply impossible to understand the manipulation of those complex, changeable and primitive energies that can go berserk at any time.

This can be seen from the harsh conditions for becoming an arcanist in the era of Netheril.

In this way, out of interest in the huge difference in each other's understanding of magic, the two voters got together and chatted for more than a hundred hours.

There was no pause or rest in between.

If the divine power had not endowed them with the characteristic of never getting tired, a normal person would have died suddenly by now.

But the two of them were good. Not only were they in good spirits, but they also became more excited and more speculative as they chatted. It felt like they had met so late.

Facts have proved that the gap between spellcasters and spellcasters is sometimes wider than the gap between gods and mortals.

When the last topic routine ended, a very satisfied expression appeared on Kelben's face, and he sighed with a smile: "It's unbelievable! I can't even remember the last time I was so excited. Can you tell me, you How on earth do you integrate such a diverse and complex magic system?"

"It's very simple. I will eventually transform all these different systems of magic into part of my own power, which is the card you have studied before." Zuo Si gave a straightforward answer.

"card……"

Kelben's mind instantly recalled the situation where a group of voters gathered together and were helpless with that little card. He asked in a tone full of confusion: "How is that kind of card made? It seems to be able to It can withstand all forms of attacks, and even the Great Disintegration of the Nine Rings cannot cause even the slightest damage to it?"

Zuo Si shook his head slightly and responded: "I'm sorry. I won't share this secret with anyone. If you really want to know, you can try asking the goddess of magic. If nothing else, she should have learned from the God of Knowledge. The answer is there.”

From the moment he got the Netherese scroll, he was basically sure that the goddess of magic must know his identity as a planeswalker.

After all, the god of knowledge Ogma and the goddess of magic throughout the ages have always been very close allies.

It is completely reasonable for the two gods to exchange information.

"It's really regrettable. Well, I respect your privacy. In addition, this communication was very pleasant and we both learned a lot. If it is convenient, I hope to keep communicating and keeping in touch in the future."

Kelben stood up on his own initiative and ended the discussion that lasted for several days.

Likewise, he also realized that this young man with the appearance of a ten-year-old boy in front of him must be hiding a huge secret.

Otherwise, the goddess of magic would never deliberately hide the real secret behind the magic card when she issued the oracle.

fortunately!

As a legendary mage from the lawful neutral camp, although Kelben was full of strong curiosity about this, he had no intention of pursuing it.

In his opinion, as long as he continues to maintain a good personal friendship, and then spends decades or even centuries to slowly win Zuo Si's trust, sooner or later the other party will reveal the truth to him.

"I'm very happy. It's my honor. Just right. I also plan to buy a mansion in Waterdeep City and set up a stable teleportation point. You can visit my mage tower at any time through this teleportation point."

Zuo Si agreed without hesitation.

You can ask a legendary mage for advice on various problems encountered in the process of learning magic at any time. Only a fool would refuse such a good thing.

"Build a magic teleportation point? So you want to join the Anmin Mage Guild?"

Kelben showed a rather surprised expression.

You must know that although Waterdeep City is not as strict about the power of arcane magic as Amn, it will not let those crazy mages conduct too dangerous research in the city.

In order to ensure this, all mages and warlocks must pay a one-time payment of forty gold coins and then be forced to join the semi-guild "Anmin Mage" organization.

In this way, Waterdeep City officials will be able to know the approximate number of mages in the city, their spellcasting levels, and whether they have committed crazy crimes elsewhere before, or have done dangerous magic experiments that caused huge damage.

Of course, "Master Anmin" is more conscientious than the "Masked Masters Guild".

After paying forty gold coins to become a member, the qualification is not only permanently valid, but also provides a platform for arcane spellcasters to communicate and trade.

Mages and warlocks can not only consign their own magic items, potions, and scrolls here, but they can also buy many rare and rare magic materials.

Therefore, as long as they are not on the wanted list and have ulterior motives, they will basically not be opposed to joining "Master Anmin".

Zuo Si already knew the rules of Waterdeep City, so he nodded and responded without hesitation: "Yes. I plan to go to the Tower of Order to register after I buy the house. If nothing else, I will frequent Waterdeep City in the future. "

"Welcome! But you don't need to go to the Tower of Order to register in person, as that will cause unnecessary tension and commotion. After all, the titles of Poison and Magic Goddess Chosen are quite scary in the eyes of many people. I will find someone to help me later. You get this done.”

Kelben took the initiative to take over the matter.

Although he knew that Zuo Si did not believe in any god, and he would not do terrible things like spreading plague just because of his status as a voter.

But people who don’t know the truth certainly don’t think so.

The fear of the Plague Goddess has long been deeply ingrained in the souls of all cities and countries on the continent of Faerûn.

Not to mention the civilized world, even those mindless orcs, goblins, and jackals in the wilderness couldn't help but tremble in fear when they heard Talona's name.

There was once an army of hundreds of thousands of orcs, but due to the raging horror of the plague, more than two-thirds of them were killed or injured in just one month.

The remaining ones have completely lost their combat effectiveness and can no longer continue to attack and plunder human cities.

"Sorry to trouble you." Zuo Si thanked him politely.

Someone is willing to take care of the "Master Anmin Association" for him. Naturally, he is happy to save himself from the tedious registration procedures and a lot of personal information that needs to be filled in.

As for whether Kelben would use a pseudonym or even a false identity, he didn't care at all.

After finalizing the matter, the two quickly walked down the steps to the lobby on the first floor.

Isadora, who had been waiting for many days, saw Zuo Si appear and immediately rushed towards him and hugged him tightly. Her pitiful eyes were like a puppy abandoned by its owner.

"I'm sorry. I was so busy chatting with Mr. Kelben that I accidentally forgot the time and made you wait here for so many days." Zuo Si gently stroked the girl's hair to comfort her.

After hearing this explanation, Isadora's originally nervous and agitated mood quickly calmed down.

Davian shrugged his shoulders indifferently: "It doesn't matter, Master. Anyway, there is food and drink here, you can also read books and take hot baths. Even if you stay for a month, it won't be a big problem. It is all about rest and relaxation. "

From the tea, food and books placed on the table, it is easy to see that the three of them have indeed received quite good hospitality these days.

After all, the "Black Staff Tower" was built by a legendary mage and goddess of magic.

Whether it is the floor space or various magical protections, it is without exception the top configuration of Faerun's traditional mage tower.

In addition, there are many assistants and apprentices, so the living protection is very good.

There is even a wise golem who is responsible for cooking.

It is that kind of special constructed creature with independent personality and thinking ability.

After briefly packing his luggage, Zuo Si formally bid farewell to Kelburn and took a carriage towards the guild in Waterdeep City that specialized in house buying and selling intermediary business.

Watching the carriage gradually disappear around the corner of the street, Laila, who had long silver hair, appeared next to her husband out of thin air through teleportation magic and asked softly: "Did you give him the Netherese scroll?"

"Well! According to the instructions of the goddess, I have handed everything over to Soth."

Kelben replied in the affirmative without thinking.

"How does he make you feel?" Laila continued to ask with interest.

"Very good. Just like Elminster described, calm, smart, knowledgeable, with unique insights into everything.

Especially the magic system from another world has greatly broadened my knowledge and horizons.

His way of thinking and solving problems is completely different from anyone I've ever seen.

I think this should be the influence of some special philosophical outlook.

If nothing else, I think I should be able to establish a good friendship with Soth. "

Kelben commented without thinking.

"Friendship? Are you sure?" Laila raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Elminster said he was difficult to get along with."

Kelben smiled and shook his head: "No, that is just an illusion and an illusion. I prefer to believe that Elminster's weird temper has flared up again. You know, he is from the Chaos camp, and he often looks at people completely. It comes down to feel and personal preference.”

"What camp do you think Soth is?"

Leila was clearly interested in the topic.

Because she herself is also chaotic and kind-hearted, she understands how stubborn and willful she can become when her temper rises.

I often dislike or like someone for no reason.

"Soth's underlying thinking logic and values ​​are very unique. It is difficult to judge his specific alignment tendency. It may be any one of no alignment, absolute neutrality, evil lawful and evil neutrality. The only thing I can be sure of is that he definitely does not belong to chaos. camp. Because no Chaos camp can think as carefully as he does and make the best choice for himself in a short period of time."

Kelben gave his own judgment after thinking about it for a while.

Since Zuo Si has the habit of blessing himself with the second-ring magic [hidden camp], it is difficult for others to quickly detect his camp through simple spells.

So even the chosen ones of the legendary mage and goddess of magic can't do anything about it.

"Evil camp?" Laila frowned subconsciously.

"Well. I think this should be related to the frequent use of necromancy magic, or the summoning, creation and control of undead creatures." Kelben explained patiently. "As far as I know, the mentor who originally guided Soth on the path of magic was a powerful, cold and cruel necromancer. Under the influence of the latter, he did not realize that controlling the bodies and even souls of the deceased meant What, or even if you know, you don’t care.”

"Doesn't believe in any gods, has no respect for life and death, and only has an endless desire for magical knowledge and power? Why do I suddenly feel that his behavior pattern is very similar to the arcanists of the Netherese era? Similar." Laila touched her chin and analyzed with confusion.

But Kelben shook his head and corrected: "No, no, Soth is not one of those great arcane masters who are so arrogant that they think they can match the gods. He understands the nature of the gods' power very well, and even knows that the priesthood has a great influence on the thinking and thinking of the gods. The huge influence of his consciousness, without the slightest desire to become a god. There is only one thing he pursues, and that is magic itself."

"According to what you said, wouldn't he be the most ideal choice for the Mother of Magic?" Laila's eyes widened in disbelief.

Because in Faerûn, there are definitely not a few legendary arcane spellcasters who want to become gods or replace gods.

But not many people truly understand what kind of existence God is.

The arrogant great arcanists of the Netheril era are obviously the most representative ones.

They always believe that gods are just a group of spellcasters with powerful magical power. As long as they continue to improve their spellcasting level, they will one day be able to compete with the gods.

But in reality?

Becoming a god means completely abandoning your mortal nature!

That is to say, the joys, sorrows and joys of being a mortal will gradually disappear as the time of becoming a god becomes longer and longer.

Instead, there is an emphasis on priesthood and a strong hostility towards other gods whose priesthood conflicts with theirs.

This can be seen from the current goddess of magic Midnight's naked and unabashed hatred of Cyric when she first became a god, and her gradual transformation into even more hostility to Shar, the goddess of night.

The reason is that Shar controls the "Shadow Magic Network", which is an infringement of the Midnight Magic Network and the magic priesthood.

The latter would rather sacrifice his last good nature and become a completely cold and neutral god of magic, and merge the Shadow Magic Network with the genuine Magic Network no matter what.

Such a drastic change, even a 180-degree turn in thoughts and subjective consciousness, is basically equivalent to changing a personality.

Therefore, in the eyes of those who truly understand the situation, becoming a god is almost equivalent to slow suicide.

Only Melkor, Baal, and Bane, who had no concept of gods at the beginning, as well as lunatics like Cyric, would think that after becoming gods, they can do whatever they want with their powerful power.

As for the third-generation magic goddess Midnight, she understood the nature of God under the guidance of Elminster, but she didn't have much choice.

If she does not succeed the goddess of magic, the magic network will be in a state of control, which may cause a horrific disaster that will affect the entire Faerûn.

As a chosen one of the Goddess of Magic, Kelben certainly knew very well what the nature of God was. He smiled and said to his wife: "You can understand it this way.

However, South's character determines that he is destined to be impossible to become a real elector.

Because he has no faith or fear in God, if God wants to let him perform a certain task, he will 100% be rejected without mercy.

Unless the god is willing to pay enough. "

"You mean...he regards becoming the elect as a transaction between himself and God?!"

Laila was stunned.

"Yes! Talona, ​​the goddess of poison and disease, gave the power of the chosen people of Thos without any consultation.

That's why he is now indifferent to Talona's church in the mortal world.

However, in return for gaining the power of voters, he ignored the behavior of churches that used their names to recruit believers and expand their influence.

How about it? It's interesting, isn't it? Ha ha ha ha! "

Kelben couldn't help laughing happily at the end.

Although there are some "unbelievers" who are like crazy people in Faerûn.

But this was the first time he had encountered someone like Zuo Si who knew what God was but still dared to put himself on the same level as God.

After a few seconds of silence, Laila immediately started laughing too. While laughing, she said: "Listening to what you said, Soth is really an interesting person. By the way, I don't know if you have noticed that, recently, Priests of Talona began to preach in the areas around Waterdeep."

"Preach? Talona's pastor!" Kelben's face instantly became serious. "When? How big will it be? Is it dangerous?"

"Hmm...how should I put it?

Unlike the previous guys who liked covert operations.

The pastors seemed mostly young and were not fear-mongering.

Instead, they teach the poor how to identify poisonous plants and reduce the occurrence of disease and plague by maintaining good hygiene habits.

It doesn't feel like a priest of an evil god at all, but rather like a follower of a neutral god. "

When she said these words, Laila's expression was quite strange, with a hint of relief in her nervousness.

After all, if this change is long-term and large-scale, it means that Talona, ​​the goddess of poison and disease, may be planning to change her own camp.

In Faerûn, gods influence believers, and believers can in turn influence gods.

If an evil god has more good-aligned believers than evil-aligned believers, he may make changes for this reason.

Although similar things don't happen often in Faerûn, there are many precedents.

"Change camp? It seems that we need to pay more attention to the whereabouts of these priests of Talona Church in the future." Kelben muttered to himself, stroking the thick beard on his chin.

…

At the same time, far away in the Temple of Talona in Askatra.

As the chief priest of the Amn Church, Yvette was standing in front of the huge statue, checking the report just sent by her subordinates.

After about a few minutes, she immediately asked in a shocked tone: "Are these reports true? The entire church has grown to 60,000 believers in just a few months?"

"Yes, officiant." A priest nodded excitedly. "Because the young people who have recently received the goddess's favor and become priests have been preaching in places where there are many poor people how to maintain hygiene and avoid getting sick, while also treating them for free, they have successfully attracted many people to become believers."

"Master Priest. I have something to say about these young new priests."

Another senior priest suddenly stood up.

"What do you want to say?" Yvette glanced at the other party with some displeasure.

But the latter responded excitedly: "It's about doctrine! Those young pastors have edited the original doctrine without authorization! I think this is completely blasphemous!"

"doctrine?"

Hearing this word, Yvette's face suddenly became extremely ugly.

Because no matter in the church of any god, it is a very serious crime to modify the doctrine without authorization.

Just when she wanted to continue asking other people to find out the situation first, Talona's statue suddenly began to shine with a dazzling light.

After a while, the parchment that reported the increase in the number of believers slowly floated up, and then was directly sucked away by the divine power, disappearing in front of everyone's eyes.

moment!

The entire temple became silent.

Especially the guy who had just accused the young priests of blasphemy began to sweat involuntarily on his forehead, and his whole body was shaking slightly uncontrollably.

Anyone who is not a fool can see that this move by the goddess of poison and disease is a disguised approval of the young priests' tampering with the doctrine.

This also means that the entire Amn Church has to make a decision.

Should we continue to follow the same preaching methods that everyone hated in the past, or should we adopt this new teaching that can quickly expand the number of believers.

Suddenly, the eyes of all the senior priests present turned to Yvette as the officiant.

After hesitating for a moment, the latter immediately said: "Regarding this matter, we'd better ask the goddess's elector, Your Excellency Soth. Because these changes only appeared after his arrival. And the goddess once made it clear However, the Plague Child can represent her will."

"voter?"

"Ah! I really want to understand something."

"Could it be..."

"Shut up! Don't say it!"

"That's right! This matter must be kept strictly confidential!"

After the high-ranking priests present exchanged glances with each other, their mental states became extremely excited.

It didn't take long for them to disband and return to the cities they were responsible for, intending to vigorously promote those young priests recognized by Talona.

Zuo Si knew nothing about the changes that had taken place in the Church of the Goddess of Poison and Disease in Amn.

At this moment, he was following an eloquent dwarf lady to visit a two-story stone building with a yard and garden in the northern part of the city.

“This house was originally planned and built by a wealthy businessman sixty years ago who paid a large sum of money for the most famous designer at the time.

The main material is a large rock that is hard and not easily weathered and corroded, and the interior decoration is entirely composed of marble.

Whether it is stairs, guardrails, pillars, or walls, they all present a pure and gorgeous white color.

The hall on the first floor is very spacious and can be used by the owner to hold various banquets.

The kitchen can accommodate up to eight chefs working together, so no matter how many guests there are, there is no need to worry about a lack of food supply.

As for the yard and gardens, they now look a little untidy from being left unmaintained for so long.

But believe me, as long as you spend a little money to hire a gardener and plant some beautiful flowers, it will definitely make visitors feel refreshed.

As for the second floor, there are ten rooms in total.

One of them is the master bedroom for the owner to rest, with a spacious semi-enclosed balcony.

In your spare time, you can sit on the balcony, sip tea and enjoy the distant scenery.

In addition, there is a study room with many books and bookshelves.

As long as the entire payment can be made in one lump sum, the books will become freebies.

In addition, the cellar is also very spacious, which can not only be used to store food and wine, but also has a hidden secret room.

If you encounter danger, you can hide in and seal the only entrance.

Finally, and the best perk.

If you buy this house now, we will provide you with a professional housekeeper, two maids, three male servants, a chef, a gardener, a dog trainer and five loyal and ferocious hounds for free. and a heavily armed guard.

And these people will be paid two months' salary in advance.

How about it, are you excited? "

Seeing the dwarf lady blinking at him, Zuo Si's mouth twitched slightly, and he deliberately pretended to be embarrassed and said: "But the price of seven thousand gold coins is too expensive. You know, it's just a few streets away. There is not much house, only one or two thousand gold coins."

“How many streets away?

That's all close to Seldus Street!

How can it be compared with this place!

I'm afraid you don't know yet?

Decades ago, there lived a notorious and crazy pharmacist on that street.

He poisoned countless people near this street and lifted up the paving stones to bury the bodies underneath.

I heard that the guards at that time dug out eighty corpses from those stone slabs.

Only a poor man with no identity or social status would live in such a dangerous place. "

With a look of disdain, the dwarf reduced the security situation around Seldus Street to nothing.

Of course, to some extent she was right.

This road can be said to be the narrowest and longest alley in Waterdeep City.

Due to the towering walls on both sides, there is almost no light visible at night, making it perfect for committing crimes.

Seeing that the roundabout bargaining was unsuccessful, Zuo Si immediately changed his mind and tried: "If I pay the full price to buy this house now, how low can you reduce the price?"

"Six thousand five thousand! The most I can give you is a reduction of five hundred gold coins. This is already the limit! If it drops further, I won't be able to get even a penny of commission from this transaction."

The dwarf lady gritted her teeth and looked like she was having a tearful sale.

However, Zuo Si, who has the ability of a voter, recognized that the other party was definitely lying almost instantly, so he extended a finger unceremoniously: "Five hundred is too little, at least one thousand should be reduced. If you agree to this Price, then we can sign the contract now and pay the bill immediately to complete the transaction. If you don't agree, forget it. Anyway, there are plenty of vacant houses in Waterdeep, and I can always find a more suitable one."

The dwarf stared into Zuo Si's eyes, as if to confirm whether this was some kind of threat or whether he was really issuing an ultimatum.

After about three to five seconds, she finally sighed like a defeated rooster with a frustrated look on her face: "Oh - well, you're awesome. Six thousand gold coins is six thousand gold coins. Now, let's go to the city. The notary office signs the contract, and then handles the title deed and house transfer procedures.”

Soon, under the leadership of the dwarf lady, Zuo Si completed all the procedures for purchasing the property in accordance with the laws of Waterdeep City.

It has to be said that the tediousness and complexity involved are simply more troublesome than buying and transferring a house on earth.

If it wasn't for someone who was familiar with the process, it probably wouldn't have been possible to get it done even in a day's work.

It seems that even in the magical world, bureaucracy and formalism still exist.