Sorcerer’s Handbook

Chapter 230: Igors Solo Kill

Without a doubt, the two who chose “yes” were none other than Lise and Ashe.

That’s why everyone was so shocked—after all, it was one thing for Lise to be naive; she was still young. But Ashe, how old are you to still be so innocent?

Annan and Banjeet were somewhat resigned, as they didn’t quite understand the past of Ashe and the others, but Igor and Harvey felt the strongest about it—Ashe knew their histories all too well.

One was a Necromancer who played with corpses, the other a Con Artist harvesting a stupidity tax by selling wishes. Without any Contractual Restrictions, Ashe was really willing to cooperate sincerely with them?

No wonder Eternal Calamity refused to acknowledge you as a peer. If the Four Pillars Cult had someone like you, they might have been uprooted by the Divine Master… Oh wait, they already have been uprooted.

The Four Pillars Cult really shot themselves in the foot by taking in a talent like you.

In the look Igor gave Ashe, there was both scorn and admiration, mixed with emotions that were hard to define. Harvey glanced at Ashe, then closed his eyes, puffing on a Catnip Cigarette, deep in thought.

“…The three questions have ended. Lise has 2 points, Ashe and I have 1 each,” Annan announced, clapping her hands. “This means that aside from Lise, who can have her wish granted for free, the rest of us need to work to earn our reward.”

“If it weren’t for Ashe’s surprising answer, Lise would have had all of them right,” Igor commented, his tone intriguing.

“Kids always have better luck than adults. It’s only natural that a cute little girl like Lise has better luck than us.”

At first glance, there seemed nothing amiss with the statement.

But it was Harvey who spoke.

Ashe, bound by a Contract to protect his daughter, immediately hugged Lise close, while Annan and Banjeet watched the Necromancer warily, even Igor kept his distance.

Harvey sighed with a hint of resignation, “My praise isn’t the same as coveting, and besides, my hunting range for Humans is from 18 to 88 years old. Lise doesn’t qualify yet.”

“88 years old!?” The others took a step further away from him.

“You don’t understand the exquisite beauty that decay exudes, the somber charm of death… Time rusts every cog, and the noise of aging plays the march of death. The elderly are like the last Curtain between us and death, and I need only to reach out gently to lift the veil of the Grim Reaper… To forever capture the vibrant youth in a single moment is certainly a stunning form of beauty, but to eternally imprison death within an old body is an art worth savoring in detail.”

Before, everyone felt that Harvey smoking wasn’t great since Catnip could have significant effects on both lifespan and sanity. But now, they thought—just keep smoking.

“I’ll fulfill my promise now. Banjeet, please prepare a gift for Lise.” Annan looked towards Igor and the others: “So, are you willing to obtain your compensation by completing my tasks?”

“As long as it doesn’t damage our credit,” Igor said indifferently. “There’s no harm in it.”

“If not personally acting doesn’t harm one’s credit, then I can accept tasks that are a bit larger in scale,” Harvey said. “After all, work is often rare Entertainment for me.”

“In that case, can I delegate my work to Harvey?” Ashe raised his hand and said. “As the saying goes, the capable should labor more…”

“After you complete the work, I will fulfill your requests.” Annan took a pink Bracelet from the box Banjeet handed over and gave it to Lise: “Waterproof and temperature resistant, it binds upon wearing, unusable by others, and can directly connect to the Curtain. There’s already a balance of 10,000 copper coins in the account. Although the speech function is restricted, Lise can still use it for shopping. Hmm, it can also be used to open the Gospel.”

Watching Lise happily wear the Bracelet, Igor touched his own ring and asked thoughtfully: “Our rings… have most of their functions been castrated?”

Their rings could only be used to open the Gospel; other features, like connecting to the Curtain or shopping, were completely absent.

“I haven’t treated you unfairly; your rings are expensive luxuries,” Annan glanced at him. “This should be the same in every Kingdom; the more expensive the luxury, the more singular its function. Conversely, the cheap items used by ordinary people tend to be very versatile.”

“Indeed, only the Wealthy would buy sports cars that can’t handle most road conditions, while the common person’s car is fuel-efficient, durable, spacious, and has strong impact resistance,” Igor nodded. “Giving us, who live in the mire, such pointless sports cars is truly a despicable shackle.”

“I prefer to think of it as employee benefits,” Annan said with a sly smile. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I wish you all a pleasant life.”

Once Annan left, Ashe immediately wrapped his arm around Lise’s neck. “Lise, you don’t need that much money to buy clothes. How about you give it to me first? I’ll save it for you, and when you get married, I’ll give it back—”

Lise didn’t reject the dirty adult’s proposal, tilting her head she said, “But daddy, you don’t even have an account right now, how can I transfer it to you?”

“Right.” Ashe looked a bit dejected but quickly perked up. “Then would Lise be willing to buy a gift for daddy?”

“Of course,” Lise said under Ashe’s expectant gaze. “As long as daddy finds mommy, I will give a gift!”

“Hmph, if you don’t want to, just say so.”

Ashe waved to the departing Necromancer: “Harvey, give me a box of Catnip.”

Igor immediately asked, “You also think life’s too long?”

“No, I just happen to have some free time recently, and I want to test the Substitute’s resistance to poison. Also, doesn’t mastery of the spirit increase with use? I feel that using the Substitute for chores has almost stopped improving my proficiency, so I need to research deeper into the uses of the Substitute…”

Poisoning a Substitute to increase control over a spirit?

Is this some kind of unconventional training method from the Four Pillars Cult?

Igor shook his head nonchalantly and followed Lise, who was about to enter the library.

Lise, noticing the Con Artist trailing behind, immediately became alert and guarded her Bracelet, “The Bracelet is already bound, so it’s useless if you try to take it. And I’ll call Daddy to come beat you up!”

“If you don’t mind, I wouldn’t object to you calling Ashe over.”

Igor pushed Lise into the library and then closed the door, like an evil queen plotting against a little Princess.

“Lise, it’s time to settle accounts.”

Seeing this, Lise immediately backed away in fear, hiding behind a desk, tremblingly she said, “I-I’m sorry, I won’t call you Aunt Bukin anymore…”

“Hmm, that is indeed a big problem, but that’s not what I’m here to talk to you about today.”

“I’m not even here for you.”

Igor crouched down to be face-to-face with Lise.

“The one I’m looking for is the other person hiding inside you.”