Chapter 358: Not Very Safe
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Having a myriad of doppelgangers was an additional ability of the Einherjar’s body. It allowed Watson to release his counterpart, who possessed half of its owner’s power. Watson had never used that ability after obtaining it because the doppelganger would be useless in a one-on-one fight. If Watson had to control his doppelganger in a large battle, he might as well spend his energy creating a few large-scale spells.
Those were all his previous thoughts, but he had changed his mind. The current he was controlling was like his doppelganger. He was controlling the current to separate and fuse; it was just like how he controlled his doppelganger to do different things without interfering with each other.
With that realization in his mind, Watson activated the system fusion with all the knowledge he comprehended.
[Congratulations, Master, for successfully fusing the battle techniques in your mind. After digesting all the experience, the Einherjar body’s extra ability has evolved.]
[Advanced version of the clones: Water Soldiers.]
[Ability: with just a drop of water, you can create your own water-elemental clone. The water-elemental clone can be fused into a giant to fight against enemies, or it can be dispersed into countless tiny consciousnesses to exist in other people’s bodies. The host can obtain the clone’s five senses.]
Following the evolution of the tens of thousands of clones, Watson’s eyes had changed. They looked as if covered with a layer of gauze; it no longer had the unique youthful clarity. Countless symbols of knowledge flashed randomly within. At the same time, he used the ability to turn water into soldiers.
The water elements shot out from his body were all covered with a wisp of his consciousness. Through that wisp of consciousness, he could feel the water currents transported to different places through various channels—where they went and what they did.
A woman was taking a bath in the bathroom of a n.o.bleman’s manor in the floating city. The warm water splashed on her plump body; it made her moan. “Why is the water temperature so comfortable today? There’s almost no need to regulate it, and the water flow is just right.”
At the west gate of the floating city, the boats that had been slapped back because of the improper control of the water currents had already adjusted their positions. The waves pushed at a moderate speed that enabled them to leave the city. Many of the merchants on the boats had surprised expressions on their faces.
“Usually, when we leave the city, the rapid river water will always wet our clothes. Why is the surface so calm today? The speed is not slow either.”
The direction of the water flow affected by Watson’s mistake had been corrected. The excessive flow of water from the bathroom pipes had been restricted, and the drained pond had once again filled with water; there were even four tiny fountains at the corners of the pond that spurted out irregularly. It was like a wonderful performance that attracted the attention of many children.
Watson, who had done all that, was calm. The water droplets were his doppelganger, so he could control the movements of each drop of water precisely, including condensing them together into a hot spring. He could also change the temperature and touch; they would give a different feeling when touching a human body.
“Master Antonio asked me to partic.i.p.ate in this trial so that I could control the energy more precisely. I think I’ve completed it. I wonder if that trial can end early?”
Through the water droplet-shaped doppelganger, Watson had already grasped the terrain of the entire floating city. What was there in the floating city? The specific structure of each place was clearly imprinted in his mind. He believed that even the builder of that city could not have understood it as clearly as he did.
He was prepared to use the water-elemental doppelganger to find his master, Antonio. He wanted to ask Antonio if he had already grasped the method to control the magic elements in minute detail. Antonio had wanted him to stay there for an entire day. However, supplying energy to the floating city was no longer a burden for him. Staying there was only a waste of time.
After searching for a few minutes, he still could not find Antonio. Watson suddenly saw a scene that caught his attention.
It was a secret courtyard in the Crystal Palace. The water in the yard flowed through the cracks in the ground. Two people were sitting opposite each other, discussing. One of them was Elven, the owner of the Iris Flower Tavern, and the other was wearing a black cloak. Watson had seen his face before. It was Blake, the Holy Sword adventurer team’s captain, whom he had seen in Iron City.
At that moment, Blake and elven were sitting opposite each other. They were holding wine gla.s.ses and discussing something.
Watson deliberately let the water droplets that flowed from the ground splash out a little and fall on the floor. He began to monitor their conversation.
“Miss Elven, to be honest, you are the second a.s.sa.s.sin I have seen serving the King. You don’t look like a person from that profession.”
“Oh? What do I look like then, Mister Blake?”
Blake did not answer that question. Instead, he took a sip of wine. “Let’s get down to business. I’ve been staying on the second floor of Watson’s hotel for the past two days. Other than interacting with the Ptolemy family, he hasn’t made any other movements these days. That hero who caused a stir in the city was obviously not Casey, but him! The Eldest Young Master from the Ptolemy family has brought him to the secret chamber where the Sea G.o.d’s Trident is stored in the Crystal Palace to partic.i.p.ate in a secret trial.”
“Thank you, Mister Blake, for your intelligence. Thank you for your hard work. You’ve finished your mission and rushed all the way to the royal city to report to His Majesty. You even have to stop here temporarily to hand over your duties to me.”
“You’re too kind. Those are all things that I have to do. After all, you’re the person sent by His Majesty to investigate Watson, and I happen to have some contact with that young man.”
“Mister Blake, you have revealed a lot of useful information to me, and I’d like to repay you. I have prepared two boxes of 10-year-old red wine for you. When you leave, I will tell my men to carry it to your carriage! Of course, before you leave, I have another question I want to ask you.”
“Miss Elven is really forthright. What is it?”
“How much do you know about Watson’s mysterious magic that can fuse different quality items and turn them into higher quality items?”
Through the perspective of the water droplet doppelganger, Watson could clearly see that after hearing Elven’s words, the wine gla.s.s in Blake’s hand shook, and a few drops of scarlet wine spilled out and splashed on the table.
He used his sleeve to wipe the scarlet wine off the table; Blake’s expression returned to normal. “Miss Elven, you must be joking. I don’t know much about that kind of magic. So Watson has that kind of magic? It seems like there’s a mistake in my intelligence work. Before I leave, I will find someone to verify the authenticity of that matter to prevent Miss Elven from being misled by false intelligence.”
“You are too kind, Mister Blake. That intelligence was deduced from my subordinates’ reports. After all, that young man created a platinum-tier item in my auction house! The original items were from different ruins. I have checked beforehand; they were not from the same item. The young man must have some ways to improve the quality of those items. Of course, those are just guesses. It might not be right. I have some other guesses that I will not say for now; I don’t want you to laugh at me.”
Then, Elven clinked gla.s.ses with Blake and began to drink. However, both of them seemed to be testing each other.
“Speaking of Watson, since we already know that he was the fake Casey and where he is right now, what do you plan to do?”
“Of course, we have to catch him and send him to the King. Oh, right, his battle with the sea tribes destroyed the Crystal Palace, crippling a part of my intelligence network. In addition, the slaves in the tavern have been rescued and won’t be reopened for a long time. I also want to blame him for that. Just punish him a little before we meet His Majesty.”
“You plan to attack him here and now? He is with the Ptolemy family, and their Eldest Young Master is also with him.”
“What does that have to do with anything? I only know where Watson is. As for the other matters, they are not my concerns. Negotiating with the n.o.blemen is His Majesty’s task. As subordinates, we only need to help him to complete it. I have to say, Mister Blake, drinking with you has been quite interesting indeed. I believe that the people I have arranged have already arrived near the secret chamber. Let’s drink to the goal that we are about to achieve.”
Then, Watson drew his consciousness from his water-elemental clone; his expression darkened.
“The Iris Flower Tavern boss answers to the King, and so does Blake. They’ve got my movements and even sent people to deal with me?”
He had not expected that the King’s men would catch up to him in just two days in the city. The King must have thought it out; he was genuinely terrifying.
Just as he was thinking, Mike’s voice came from above. “Young Master Watson, are you still able to hold on? Do you want me to help you switch back with the Sea G.o.d’s Trident temporarily so that you can rest for a while?”
“No need, I can still hold on.”
Watson shook his head. Then, he said, “Young Master Mike, I feel that we have too few guards in this chamber, especially now that you are looking after the Sea G.o.d’s Trident. You don’t have any protective force around you. It would be terrible if someone took the opportunity to attack and cause trouble.”
“That’s impossible, Young Master Watson. Don’t worry! There are more than ten gold-tier warriors protecting the secret chamber, and the chamber’s defensive power is not something that an ordinary person could break through. There are nine layers of pa.s.swords outside the secret chamber. Even though the last three layers might not be very useful, it still has six layers of pa.s.swords. Even a master thief would need at least a few months to break through the layers of pa.s.swords. So, don’t worry.”
Mike stood beside the trident and laughed. Before he could stop laughing, he heard a loud bang. The door behind him was suddenly kicked open with a great force. The door broke into pieces and landed at his feet.. He immediately stopped laughing.