The weather was gray as if there were signs of snow.
A group of people walked to Blackmoon Town; they were led by Christine, Morgan, and Jack. They were dressed in impressive clothes, followed by a group of guards and other manor owners.
“Christine, why do you think the master of Blackmoon Castle would summon us for a meeting?”
Morgan turned to look at Christine as he walked, and he saw the gorgeous golden armor she wore. His eyes were full of envy.
“What else can we do about it? A week ago, Blackmoon Castle was in a battle with the Mage Guild from Monte Town, and most parts of the town were destroyed. He must have called us to ask for money to help rebuild it,” Christine said.
“We have to pay him again. They had asked for things from us last time; when would they give us benefits?”
Morgan was a little dissatisfied.
More than a week had passed since the battle between Blackmoon Castle and the Mage Guild. The news of Blackmoon Castle’s victory had reached the manor owners; they were relieved. If Blackmoon Castle were defeated, they would not remain as allies.
He did not know why Blackmoon Castle was always involved in fights with the other powerful opponents. Morgan knew of two recent battles—one was with the Demoness Bandit Gang. Previously, he was threatened by the bandit gangs. He wanted to build a good relationship with Blackmoon Castle, so he always brought precious drinks with him during his visits.
They also heard that the Mage Guild had invited the most knowledgeable mage in the kingdom—the astrologer. However, the man became Watson’s master, and it meant that they would need to curry more favors with him.
Since the astrologer was Watson’s master, perhaps the battle was only an act to harm the other manor owners like them. Otherwise, why would they be fine every time a fight broke out in Blackmoon Castle? They even made them pay for things. He had reasons to be suspicious.
“Morgan, if you’re unhappy, you don’t have to come. I can see that you’re unwilling, but you’ve brought quite a lot of things with you! Did you say that so that we would bring fewer things with us? And so that you can keep the benefits for yourself?”
Christine seemed to be hinting at something as she looked behind Morgan. A few guards were carrying huge boxes in their hands. Inside those boxes were bottles of exquisite wine, and each bottle was worth more than a silver coin; hundreds of bottles of wine were worth dozens of gold coins.
It seemed like Christine had exposed Morgan’s intention; he fell into silence.
During the Demoness Bandit Gang incident, Watson had summoned them, and he had given them gold-tier armor as compensation. Perhaps he would give them something better at the next meeting.
He hoped that it would cause dissatisfaction among the other manor owners. Watson would reward him if the others did not have similar-quality items.
He also wished for gold-tier armor. He was extremely envious of the armor on Christine’s body.
“Morgan, if you want to use that method to sow discord between us and cause us to be displeased with Blackmoon Castle, then forget it.”
Jack stroked his thick black beard, and he smiled. “I’ve also brought a lot of things with me. The main ones are medicinal herbs and equipment that can be used to equip monsters. I believe that Young Master Watson will be satisfied.”
“Hmm, who wants to sow discord between you two? I’m just saying what I’m thinking.”
Morgan snorted coldly. He was thinking about the more than ten manor owners who had been invited to the castle the last time. They were one-third of the manor owners who had signed a contract with Blackmoon Castle. Each of them had brought a lot of things. Some of them brought rare food and meat, and some of them had brought armor and knives. One even brought more than 20 beautiful young girls for Watson.
Those people were his competitors.
Just as he was considering whether to send someone back to the manor to fetch some precious wine, a manor owner who was traveling with him suddenly pointed into the distance and exclaimed, “Look, Blackmoon Town’s wall looks different now!”
What nonsense! The walls must have crumbled after the battle, so of course, it was different from the past!
Morgan wanted to say that, but when he looked in that direction, he saw an endless wall of lava that flowed in the distance. He widened his eyes; he was unable to say another word.
Green smoke curled upward from the dark red wall. Outside, there was a river of lava that was several meters wide. Before he could get close, a surging heatwave hit him.
“Perhaps the walls were destroyed by fire magic?” Christine also muttered in surprise; she felt that something was not right. The lava had not damaged the walls. Instead, the lava looked like a defensive measure. Did Blackmoon Castle design that wall?
As she thought about that, she saw a crack on the wall closest to her; it revealed a huge ruby-like pupil. The wall moved forward, and a bulge appeared.
Argh!
The sudden change made Christine scream. “It’s moving! The wall is moving!”
“Christine, what are you talking about?”
Jack looked at Christine suspiciously, and then he looked into the distance. “The wall is perfectly fine. Nothing happened.”
Christine focused her eyes and saw that the tremble and the huge eyes in the distance had disappeared. It was as if everything she had seen was an illusion. She muttered, “That is strange.” She followed the other manor owners and walked to the front of Blackmoon Town.
As they got closer, the city wall that was more than ten meters high and burning with lava appeared even taller. They felt like tiny ants beneath the city wall, and they could not help but feel respect in their hearts.
“That lava river is so wide. How are we going to cross it?”
The lava had blocked their path, so someone asked that question.
The others looked at each other; they had the same doubt. At that moment, the towering wall in front of them suddenly rose higher with a loud rumble. They stood up. The wall grew four limbs, and a head popped out as a huge vertical pupil split open in the middle.
“It moved! I told you that the wall moved!”
Christine screamed shrilly. The manor owner and the guards beside her were all in shock. They muttered, “What kind of monster is that?” Their bodies trembled.
“Welcome, manor owners, to the new Blackmoon Town.”
After he moved the wall, Watson led 65 Blackmoon Knights and walked out slowly. He waved his hand, and a long blade condensed from thousands of ice crystals appeared. It turned into a bridge that stretched more than ten meters long and several meters wide on top of the lava river.
That move was a battle technique that he had previously fused with the Northern Wind mercenary group leader, Ron. It was called the Thousand Blade Ice Soul Blade. The blade could be assembled freely, and it could be formed into a sword. Naturally, it could also become a bridge.
At that moment, the bridge formed by the ice blade spanned across the river of lava. Green smoke rose from it, and it was melting. However, it melted very slowly, so the manor owners had time to walk on it.
“Welcome, manor owners.”
Dozens of Blackmoon Knights stood behind Watson; they shouted in unison to greet the manor owners. Their voices shook the sky.
“Young Master Watson, what exactly are those—”
Christine’s face was pale.
“Come in, and let’s talk first.”
Watson made a gesture of invitation. The group of manor owners stepped on the ice bridge and entered the castle. After they entered the castle, they saw a majestic shadow that streaked across the ground. They raised their heads and realized that it was a fortress that looked like a small hill flying across the sky. On the ground, there were buildings that looked like temples. Flowers and trees were planted outside those buildings.
Occasionally, a temple would grow two legs and climb out from the ground. They would become giants that were 100 meters tall. They would change to another place and lie down again.
The ground was full of such monsters.
The manor owners realized that Blackmoon Town was well-maintained; they did not see a single dilapidated scene. It seemed like the town was even more luxurious than before, and they were stunned.
They thought that Watson had called for them to help with construction, but it did not seem like they needed their help. So, why were they there? Was it to show them the terrifying monsters? Did they want to scare them?