Chapter 320 Investigation of Elkeson

This chapter is an extra reward for the "Autumn Admiring Cherry Blossoms" event.

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The Secret of Sea Serpent Monsters?

“It’s not a book introducing powerful magic, but just an educational book about sea monsters?” He was about to lament the irrelevance of the reward when he noticed the words “sea serpent monsters” in the title of the magic book. His heart sank.

The phrase “sea serpent monsters” immediately brought to mind the Dulumichita that had chased the mermaid Acheronides—a giant six-headed sea serpent monster.

He then recalled the invisible dragon series of quests, which were also connected through magic books.

At this moment, he strongly sensed that danger had always been lurking around him: “Perhaps this is the beginning of the Dulumichita series of quests. That intermediate-level sea monster might have never left this area, hiding in the shadows, watching secretly!”

Highly possible.

Otherwise, there would be no reason to reward a sea serpent educational book.

However, despite the threat of the Dulumichita, he tensed up only for a moment before relaxing. He had survived the invasion of the invisible dragon; what could another intermediate sea monster do to him?

With the help of the smoke missions, dealing with this sea serpent would not be too difficult.

The power of fate was not to be trifled with.

Moreover, sea monsters could only live in the deep sea. If it dared to come to the shallow waters, it would be courting death. The current Flower Town and the current Liszt had grown much stronger.

“I need to be cautious for a while, complete more smoke missions, and obtain more information about the Dulumichita and the series quest rewards… Finally, eliminate the threat!”

As his thoughts flickered,

A new smoke mission was released.

“Mission: By examining the magic books Elkson had brought, do you feel the agonizing screams of magic apprentices on each book? That helplessness and despair after their souls were shattered. Please exonerate the magic books of their wrongful accusations. Reward: A research notebook.”

The grievances of magic apprentices?

Liszt furrowed his brow deeply and thought, “What does this mean? Is it implying that Elkson killed many magic apprentices behind the scenes to obtain these magic books? It shouldn’t be the case, should it? Elkson doesn’t seem like a murderer, and would killing magic apprentices grant you magic books?”

His intuition told him that Elkson wouldn’t casually kill magic apprentices.

But his rational mind told him it was necessary to thoroughly investigate Elkson and not trust anyone blindly: “If Elkson really is a murderer, to exonerate the books of their wrongful accusations, would I have to kill Elkson… I’ll return to Flower Town first and then decide the next step!”

On Coral Island, killing at will was strictly forbidden, a rule enacted by the Earl.

Even nobles could not kill at will outside their territories; even within their territories, killing at will would result in punishment from the Earl—although a Lord had absolute jurisdiction over their territory, if they acted against the noble code of conduct, the higher Lord would teach them a lesson.

Of course, nobles usually cherished their serfs and wouldn’t kill them casually. Higher Lords wouldn’t usually interfere with what their followers did on their own lands.

There was no need to quarrel with his followers over the lives of a few commoners.

However, magicians were not nobles and dared not casually harm lives. The nobility would definitely punish them. Liszt appreciated Elkson, who was polite and not rigid, making him a great cooperation partner. But as a noble, if Elkson were found to be casually killing people, he would not hesitate to act.

After a night’s rest.

The next day, they set sail back to Flower Town. During the voyage, Liszt no longer felt the boredom he used to experience on sea trips. Gort, who was returning with him, never stopped bragging. Meanwhile, Liszt kept observing with his telescope, making sure the Dulumichita didn’t quietly approach him.

In the vast sea, an intermediate sea monster was not easy to deal with.

He was prepared. If he encountered the Dulumichita, he would not resist. He would stop the ship, retract the Sea-Stabilizing Pearl, let the Dulumichita wreak havoc, and hide in a small boat to wait out the danger. He would coat himself in the juice of the smoke herb and wait for the Dulumichita to finish its rampage before rowing back home.

This is not cowardice.

This is helplessness.

He has to return to Flower Town, but encountering the dulmicita in the vast sea without preparation would only lead to a quick death if he resisted.

However,

Without the mermaid Acheronides on the ship, the dulmicita might not be interested in the Flower—he had sailed back and forth dozens of times recently and had not encountered the sea monster, which shows that it has little interest in the ships.

Tension filled the air.

He safely returned to Flower Town.

Liszt headed straight to the castle and began searching through the magic books that Elkson Truth had brought. Some of the magic books, which he was certain contained no "harmful" content, had been given to the mermaid Acheronides to read, while the rest were left on the bookshelves in the study.

"During this time, I’ve only received two crates of books from Elkson, and the reward should be among them." After a quick search, he found *The Secrets of Sea Serpent-like Monsters* tucked away in an inconspicuous corner of the bookshelf.

This book hadn't been seen by him before, probably placed there by Butler Carter after he helped organize them.

Before preparing to flip through it, he called for the guard Parris.

"Lord Baron, do you need me for something?"

"A small task, I hope you can help me with it. As you know, I like magic books."

"Of course, people in the town know that Lord Baron loves reading."

"These books were procured on my behalf by Elkson Truth, but now I suspect there might be some issues with their origin. I want you to discreetly investigate and confirm whether they were acquired through legitimate means," Liszt said, not wanting to directly interrogate Elkson.

First, he didn’t want to tip him off prematurely, and second, if it turned out to be a misunderstanding, it would be awkward.

"It’s a simple task, and I’ll get it done quickly, Lord Baron."

"Then let’s talk about the task reward."

Parris suddenly smiled, "It’s just a small task, so consider it on the house."

"Gossip?" Liszt raised his eyebrows, it seemed that some people were unhappy with his salary arrangements. "I’ll address this gossip."

"No need, Lord Baron, I don’t mind these."

After Parris excused herself and left to carry out the task, Liszt did not forget what she had said. He immediately called for Butler Carter, "Mr. Carter, do you know that some officials in town are complaining about Parris's salary being too high?"

"Sorry, Sir, I seem to have not noticed that aspect."

"Make sure the servants gather information from the town officials whenever they’re out. If they hear anything concerning, report it to me right away."

"Yes, Sir."

After instructing Butler Carter, Liszt planned to conduct a slow investigation.

When he was alone in the study, he picked up the milk tea on the table, and his expression quickly darkened.

Muttering to himself, "I’m not a tyrant. In fact, I’m a reasonable person. As a lord, I’ve never mistreated my followers... If there are issues, they can raise them to me directly. But to question my decisions behind my back, is that a challenge to my authority as a lord?"