Chapter 81: Fashionably Late

Inside the Hero Association, both the Word Sorceress and the Holy Light Sorceress were present. Upon hearing that someone had come to visit, they walked out together.

“It’s you.”

Before Luo Yong could speak, the Holy Light Sorceress immediately recognized him. She had always held a favorable impression of Luo Yong, someone who was close to the Holy Light.

Ahem.

“Magic Swordsman Luo Yong, greetings to you, esteemed ladies,” Luo Yong offered a sincere salutation, presenting himself as a gentleman.

“Hm?”

“Magic Swordsman? Last time, I remember you said you were a Heavy Sword Knight…”

Upon hearing Luo Yong’s words, the two women reacted differently. The Holy Light Sorceress was merely a bit surprised. The Word Sorceress, however, opened her Book of Words.

Luo Yong: …

Damn it, he had rushed over so quickly he hadn’t thought it through, and forgot all about this!

“You changed professions?”

Before Luo Yong could respond, the Holy Light Sorceress asked.

“Uh… well… Actually, I did obtain a class change scroll, haha…” Luo Yong scratched his head, smiling awkwardly.

He neither admitted nor denied the change.

“All right, the Book of Words shows you haven’t lied.”

Of course, this only applied to his claim about obtaining the class change scroll.

As long as he spoke the truth before the Word Sorceress, it was fine.

The Word Sorceress didn’t pursue the matter further, feeling that compared to the Heavy Sword Knight, the profession of Magic Swordsman was preferable—a normal transition.

“Did you come here for something?” asked the Holy Light Sorceress.

“Yes, it’s like this—there’s a matter…” Luo Yong recounted his exploration of the dungeon, obtaining the Bear Iron Shard, and being swindled by the magic shop’s clerk.

“So, the key to the Bear Island secret realm came from you!”

Upon hearing Luo Yong’s account, the two women were visibly unsettled. The matter involved a brand new secret realm; even with the backing of the Hero Association and its vast resources, they couldn’t ignore it.

“So, after losing the so-called ‘Membership Card,’ the magic shop’s clerk refused to acknowledge the transaction?” asked the Holy Light Sorceress.

“Yes,” Luo Yong nodded.

“It’s true,” the Word Sorceress affirmed, flipping her Book of Words, magical energy surging as she recorded Luo Yong’s words.

When Luo Yong finished, she nodded to her companion.

“Outrageous!”

The Holy Light Sorceress’s face grew cold, anger flashing. “These people are simply too much. Usually, they take advantage of material shortages to charge higher prices—that’s one thing—but now they blatantly break promises and seize someone’s property!”

“We, the Hero Association, will never allow such things to happen!”

“The magic shop has powerful backing. As Luo Yong said, we should contact the Mage Guild and act together…” the Word Sorceress suggested.

“Why bother? The Hero Association alone can handle such matters!” The Holy Light Sorceress waved her hand, signaling the nearby guard. With a sweep of her hand, she activated a teleportation array and entered.

“Hey—” The Word Sorceress wanted to say more, but it was too late. She shook her head and followed.

Luo Yong hurried after.

The four appeared together at the Gaoge Camp.

At that moment, the magic shop’s clerk was anxiously peering out the door, clearly nervous. Seeing Luo Yong arrive with not just the Word Sorceress but also the Holy Light Sorceress, he fled back into the shop.

“That’s him!” Luo Yong pointed at the fleeing figure.

“Guilty conscience!” The Holy Light Sorceress snorted, convinced that something fishy was going on in the shop.

They approached, but the shop door was already closed. Luo Yong pushed—it didn’t budge.

The Holy Light Sorceress’s guard walked over, expressionless, and knocked forcefully.

“Open up! We’re from the Hero Association. We need your cooperation—open the door now!”

The guard knocked for a long time, but the door remained firmly shut.

Luo Yong glanced at the two sorceresses, curious how they would resolve the situation.

“Let’s follow procedure,” said the Word Sorceress.

She took out a blue crystal sphere from her storage space. Injecting it with magic, the sphere floated in midair.

“This is a memory crystal, used for recording images so they can be reviewed later,” the Holy Light Sorceress explained to the curious Luo Yong.

“I see.” Luo Yong nodded in admiration, thinking to himself—it’s basically the otherworld version of a surveillance camera, which Blue Star had long since popularized…

“Stay behind us, don’t wander, and don’t touch anything,” the Holy Light Sorceress reminded him.

“Understood,” Luo Yong replied.

“Based on the account of the aggrieved Magic Swordsman Luo Yong, officers Anne the Holy Light Sorceress, Emma the Word Sorceress, and Guard Kaid are here to investigate the magic shop’s breach of trust and refusal to pay rightful property…”

Standing at the shop’s entrance, under the glow of the memory crystal, Anne recited the situation in an emotionless tone—well, more like a spell—summarizing the cause for the record. The Word Sorceress assisted, nodding and flipping pages.

“Now, we will question the magic shop clerk!”

Anne declared loudly, pointing. The memory crystal flashed intensely, expanding its recording range.

The guard then used his spear to lightly touch the shop door—left, up, right. With a strange magical surge, an entrance appeared, reminiscent of a certain cartoon’s magic door.

“Amazing!” Luo Yong exclaimed inwardly, thinking the guard’s skills were wasted not being a thief.

Ahem.

“Let’s go in,” said the Holy Light Sorceress. Under the crystal’s light, the guard entered first, the others following.

“Remember what I said,” Anne reminded Luo Yong again, worried he might touch something.

“Understood,” Luo Yong replied, nodding emphatically.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, strong magical light flashed behind the counter—a magic array had been activated. Inside, a figure looked at the intruders with a strange expression: smug, angry, and, when facing Luo Yong, filled with resentment.

“Not good!”

“Don’t let him escape!”

In the blink of an eye, the figure vanished, teleported to some unknown place.

“Damn, we’re a step too late,” Anne remarked.

Luo Yong: …

So, justice always arrives a little too late?

“The magic array is destroyed—one-way teleportation, shouldn’t be too far,” the guard reported after examining it, shaking his head helplessly.

“Let’s see if anyone else is here,” Anne said.

They searched the shop. Beyond the storefront, there was a storage room, filled with equipment and scrolls.

“Let’s go—seal the place, lay down a barrier!” Anne led the way out, saying to Luo Yong, “We’re here to investigate, not touch anything. Everything is being recorded…”

“Once we contact other branches of the magic shop, or their headquarters, this matter will be thoroughly investigated.”

“You’ll receive an answer then.”

“All right,” Luo Yong sighed, glancing back. The guard waved his spear, closing the “magic door,” restoring the entrance.

Then he pulled a talisman from his pocket and stuck it to the door.

On the talisman, a complex magic array shone brightly. In a flash, a barrier enveloped the entire shop.

“Uh…”

Luo Yong felt as if something had suddenly been lost…

But what exactly had he lost?

After parting ways with the magic shop staff, Luo Yong wandered the camp alone, thinking he’d better find his teammates and explore the Lion Island secret realm together—or join them in some quests, just to experience it.

Halfway there, as Luo Yong casually dispatched a few monsters, he suddenly shouted—

“What the—?!”

He saw gems drop from the monsters and lie on the ground, untouched. Only then did Luo Yong realize that his magical automaton, the Money-Grubbing Spider, hadn’t come out with him!

It had been sealed in the magic shop!

“Damn it…”

Luo Yong stood stunned for a long while, speechless.

Thinking about how he’d have to pick up the gems himself for a while, he felt utterly bereft.

…

Lion Island Secret Realm.

“Ah!” Curse Witch Elia lay on the grass, looking utterly despondent, sighing repeatedly.

She turned to Wendy, conflicted, and asked, “Do you think I’ve lost my mind? Why don’t I want to pick up gems anymore?”

“Is this really me?”

“Why do I feel nauseous at the sight of tactical scrolls?”

Wendy: “I don’t want to talk right now.”

The others—Storm Sorceress, Wild Hunter, Barbarian Priest, Lily the dual-element Mage, and Mira the Forest Guardian—felt much the same.

Only Fatty, and the jubilant Sally, ran around collecting gems and scrolls, one burying himself in treasure, the other reveling in the gem pile.

That day—

Ever since Luo Yong bent down to pick up the fallen gem, he quickly returned to the rendezvous point, waited for his teammates to arrive, and entered the Lion Island secret realm with them.

Then, lying atop the giant lion formed from the secret realm key, Luo Yong emotionlessly summoned four level-20 skeleton soldiers and began sweeping the secret realm.

The scene was, for a time, extremely bloody.