Chapter 302 Inquiry and Reluctant Departure

After chatting with Mage Roman for a while, Shaoke left the mage tower to survey the deaths. Mage Roman, along with Lan Wei'er, returned to the top floor to rest. In particular, Mage Roman required a great deal of rest, as operating the mage tower to repel the attacks from those practitioners outside had drained her greatly. Without the energy supply from the elemental pool and the assistance of the White-robed Cleric, Mage Roman didn't know if she could have held on.

When Shaoke appeared outside the mage tower, the team of fewer than a hundred mages had already fully tidied up the damaged estate. Following Shaoke's instructions, after retrieving the identity tokens of the deceased, they used Arcane Fire to reduce the bodies to ashes, which were then stored in small wooden boxes for preservation. This was carried out smoothly.

All the maids and servants staying in the estate had been killed. A tally showed that over a hundred low-rank mages had also lost their lives in this attack. Although Shaoke had already anticipated the situation to be dire, he hadn't expected it to be this severe. Gazing at the large pile of wooden boxes, Shaoke could only sigh softly. He then, as originally planned, prepared a substantial amount of gold coins to compensate the families of the deceased. This was especially true for the young maids and servants who had been working there and had families to support. The aftermath work continued until dawn before being temporarily concluded.

With many maids dead, the mages had to prepare their own meals. Fortunately, these mages had all experienced war and plundered elsewhere, so they weren't unfamiliar with such tasks. After breakfast, Shaoke instructed the mages to rest in the living room on the first floor of the mage tower. For the first time, he felt that the mage tower he had built was too small, strengthening his desire to construct a much taller one.

News of the attack on one of the major powers' headquarters in the Blue Feather Empire quickly spread among the various factions. However, their intelligence was not precise enough to know whether this sudden assault was a deliberate act of retaliation by certain groups. As a result, some faction leaders frantically issued orders to expel all outsiders, uncertain whether their own strongholds might face similar devastation.

After a period of rest, the mages resumed their patrol duties in the streets as ordered by Shaoke. This time, Shaoke ignored what the Eighth Tier Mage had said and commanded all mages under his organization to eradicate any combative groups they encountered, even at the cost of casualties among civilians or others. This order greatly pleased the mages, as the death of over a hundred comrades the previous night had pushed their anger to the boiling point.

Using an Amplification Spell, he announced that his territory should avoid conflict and remain clear of onlookers, Shaoke then sealed the mage tower's main gate and set off alone toward the estate where the various faction leaders gathered. There, he intended to explain the previous day's events to the Eighth-order Practitioners.

Perhaps because other leaders had already received the news, Shaoke arrived at the estate to find all the leaders present in the living room, although the Eighth-order Practitioners had not yet arrived. Some acquaintances offered formal condolences. Shaoke merely nodded briefly in response, saying nothing. He sat silently in a chair, waiting for the arrival of the Eighth-order beings.

After one magic hour, an Eighth-order being entered the living room. The familiar aura quickly revealed their identity—the Eighth Rank Blue Robe Female Mage.

The female mage calmly swept her gaze over the assembly and then said, "Mage Xueye, regarding what happened last night, we have already inquired with the head of the Yisage Empire stationed here." She took a deep breath before adding, "The answer was disappointing: they denied any involvement." Afterward, the female mage shifted her gaze to the other leaders, but she remained silent for a moment and said nothing further.

"Honorable Mage," an elderly man dressed like a scholar rose and respectfully saluted the Eighth-tier mage before asking, "If we were to encounter a situation like Mage Xueye's while performing our duties, I'd rather not take on such missions." The old scholar then added, "I certainly don't have a stone tower like that to withstand the bombardment of over a hundred Seventh Rank beings." After offering another salute, he sat down without another word. The other leaders also watched the Eighth Tier Female Mage nervously, hoping to receive concrete assurances to prevent a repeat of Shaoke's misfortune.

The result was disappointing. The Blue-robed Female Mage simply shook her head calmly. "We cannot give you any guarantees. I only ask that you all be patient for a while; believe that these people will leave this place after some time." With these words, the Blue-robed Female Mage furrowed her brow—a behavior she had never displayed before the leaders—indicating that this matter was indeed troubling her deeply.

"Honorable Mage," Shaoke suddenly stood up and stared intently at the female mage's pale face, "I think I'd better get back to work and stop troubling you." After saying this, Shaoke saluted and awaited her response.

"This time, the Yisage Empire has dispatched over thirty Eighth-order Practitioners, alongside five Ninth-order beings and one Tenth Tier being." The female mage finished this statement, then stood up and looked at Shaoke. "I think telling you this should make you understand what it means. I cannot ascertain who specifically ordered the attack on you, but I hope you'll think carefully before taking any further action." She added, "And these are just the forces they've shown; the hidden practitioners are far more numerous." After saying this, the female mage gestured for Shaoke to leave, and the other leaders were also dismissed.

This time, Shaoke didn't take a carriage; he walked back to his territory. There were numerous conflicts along the way. Within just one magic hour's walk, Shaoke witnessed dozens of skirmishes on the streets. The once bustling streets had fallen into chaos again. Merchants and ordinary residents remained hidden in their homes, avoiding attacks from outsiders. Yet, some groups forcibly broke into estates, killed the owners, and looted all valuables.

Shaoke did not intervene in these incidents. He silently pulled his cloak tighter and continued walking toward his own area. The situation there was much better. Whether due to the bloody killings by his mage team or other reasons, there were no fighting groups on the streets. Although the streets were noticeably less crowded, there was still some semblance of prosperity.

Shaoke did not rush back to his ruined estate. Instead, he sought out a seemingly luxurious tavern located within his jurisdiction. Though he had never visited it before, it was in his area. The tavern had five floors. Following custom, Shaoke was led by a servant to the topmost floor.

An empty seat by the window was available, and the mage sat down and leaned against the window frame, enjoying cakes brought by the maid. There were many guests upstairs—mostly merchants and some mercenaries. The merchants were skilled at conversing over drinks, while the mercenaries preferred silence, eating quietly, resting briefly, and then quickly leaving.

Shaoke did not spend much time observing the crowd. After eating some soft cakes and good wine, he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes to rest. The maids offered massage services, but he declined. He couldn't be sure these maids wouldn't attack him during a massage. Having ruled this area for some time, he had often encountered trained ordinary people launching close-range attacks against him. Such attacks were most likely to succeed when a mage's mental detection relaxed around ordinary folks, and Shaoke had suffered from this weakness before.

Customers came and went. Throughout, Shaoke kept an eye on the street. In just two magic hours, he noticed that his patrolling Wandering Mages had passed the tavern three times. Contrary to his earlier instructions, they were not walking but riding flatbed carriages, which conserved their energy and allowed some rest. Naturally, their patrol frequency increased accordingly. When the patrol passed again, Shaoke intercepted them and ordered them to split into three rotating shifts for rest. Afterward, he purchased a large quantity of fine pastries and led over thirty mages back to the ruined estate.

With the return of some mages who had joined his organization, over a hundred mages were once again gathered in the estate. However, most were below the Fifth Tier, so Shaoke arranged tents and simple shelters for them. After quickly completing transactions, he dismissed the low-rank mages. However, he temporarily hired the Fifth Tier Mages using potions, as he urgently needed mages to maintain order. At present, the shortage of warriors was also becoming a significant issue for his organization. If all the mages were Sixth Tier, the situation would be very different.