104 – Fair Beauties Could Be Attained Through Books
“What is this?” Levis picked up the black pearl and weighed it in his hand. “Does it contain magic power? It feels like it contains water-attributed magic power.”
“It does indeed contain magic power, it is a pearl.”
“A Pearl?” Levis shook his head, “Don"t think that I haven"t seen pearls. The pearl ornaments that pa.s.sed through my hands were not few. Once, I took a ship to the Blue Dragon Island, where I took a look at the Placid Lake and even personally dug out pearls from inside sh.e.l.ls; they were white and besides, none of them was this big.”
“This is a black pearl, dug out from a giant clam, another type of sh.e.l.l.”
“Giant clam? Was it produced in the Flower Town?” Levis grasped the key point, the Flower Town"s production was too plentiful.
“As a matter of fact, the black pearl was dug out from inside a giant clam that was inside the body of a large squid which was carried ash.o.r.e by the waves. Brother, regardless if it is a pearl or not, how much do you think it is worth? This treasure with water-attributed magic power should be more precious than white pearls.”
“Do you want to give it to me as a present?”
“Don"t be so greedy, I have already gave you your birthday present. This black pearl is a treasure I carry on me, it helps me to calm my mind – the effect is dozens of times greater than that of white pearls. Say, are you interested in buying it? As you know, my qi is of the fire attribute, while yours is of the water attribute.”
“You are right, compared to white pearls, this black pearl gives me a more comfortable feeling. How much do you want for it? In the market, a white pearl of the same size would roughly go for a few gold coins. I can give you ten gold coins for it, how about it?”
“That"s too little.”
“No, that"s already a lot, Liszt. What can it do apart from calming the mind? It is merely an ornament.”
“Perhaps a wizard could forge it into a magic equipment. It has an excellent magic power storage property and therefore, is suitable to be forged into a magic weapon. Although I cannot, but I believe that you, Brother, surely can enter in contact with wizards. How about asking a wizard to help you forge a magic equipment?”
Levis shook his head: “If its magic power was a bit more abundant, then indeed, it could be forged into a magic equipment. But as it stands, it will be difficult to forge it into a useful magic equipment.”
“Cough, in fact…” Liszt only now said his peace, drawing a circle the seize of a big bowl with his hand: “I still have a black pearl of this size. It has plenty of magic power stored inside and is definitely suitable to be forged into a magic equipment. Its water-attributed magic power naturally suits you, Brother.”
“A bigger black pearl? It is that big?” Levis was no longer calm.
The fist-seized black pearl was admittedly rare, but at the most, it would be regarded as a fairly interesting ornament. A big-bowl-seized black pearl, however, was different. If there really was such a large black pearl, then, coupled with its rich magic power, it would be definitely a good material for forging a magic equipment. For the sake of researching this rarity, wizards wouldn"t mind spending a lot of money.
“Five hundred gold coins and the black pearl is yours.”
“I want to see it first.”
“Alright.”
Liszt called his gentleman"s valet Thomas and asked him to bring back the big-bowl-seized black pearl from Marcus. A moment later, a large black pearl with a slightly irregular round shape was placed atop the study"s desk.
Levis eyes shone brightly as he gently stroked the large black pearl.
Compared with the fairly inexperienced Liszt, he was much clearer regarding the value of this treasure. Therefore, he gave a counter-offer: “I"ll give you one hundred gold coins for it. This is a novelty and although it is very rich in magic power, yet there is noway to guaranty that it really has development value. I cannot risk buying something that cannot be used.”
What he said was quite reasonable as Liszt was also not sure if the black pearl could really be forged into a magic equipment.
However, haggling was still a must. After several rounds, they finally settled on two hundred and eighty gold coins. The fist-sized black pearl was also included in the deal.
Once the deal was completed, Liszt, who was pleased with counting the gold coins, said with a smile: “Brother, notify me when the magic equipment is forged, I want to see what it does… Coming into contact with these black pearls is also a first for me.” Only after he determined their usefulness, could he reckon the real value of the remaining black pearls.
“No problem.”
When he was about to leave the study, Liszt suddenly remembered something and asked: “That"s right, Brother, has the Tulip Castle purchased any new books recently?”
“We haven"t. Since when do you like to read so much, Liszt? I"d rather drink till down than stay in the study and look at those blinding symbols.”
“There is a lot of interesting knowledge concealed inside books.”
“Knowledge?” Levis broke into laughter, “Liszt, do you want to change occupations, do you want to become a wizard? That"s not a good idea. I often deal with wizards and I can tell you that all of them are eccentric maniacs that only have knowledge and experiments on their mind. Never forget, the glory of knights is seized on horseback!”
Liszt walked out of the study.
Fair beauties and wealth could be attained through book – as a cultured person, he didn"t want to bother arguing with the likes of Levis.
……
With their cooperation confirmed, Liszt bade Levis goodbye and left the Tulip Castle.
However, before returning, he still followed the path to a castle outside of the Coral City. It was the abode of Madam Penélope. As he made a trip to the Coral City, he had to pay his grandmother a visit.
Grape ivies crept on the surface of the castle, adding a touch of ineffable gloominess to the castle as well as greatly supplementing its air of antiquity.
On the second floor, there was a platform filled with flowers and plants. Madam Penélope, apart from when she socialized with aristocrats, spent most of her time amid those flowers and plants.
She watered the plants while chatting: “Leaving the castle so early, Levis didn"t invite you to the banquet to continue the celebration?”
“I refused his invitation. There are still many things in the Flower Town that cannot do without me.”
“Qualified lords always keep themselves busy. Only by keeping themselves busy can people feel fulfilled and effectively prevent themselves from falling into depravity. Since he was little, your father has always been by your grandfather"s side, keeping himself busy all day long. It was thanks to this diligence that he could become a count before the age of thirty.”
Madam Penélope turned around, continuing to water the plants: “Unfortunately, ever since marrying these two troublesome women, he was no longer able to go any further… I really hope that your older brother can sober up a little; that little fellow is also muddle-headed. Marquis Rodrigo"s daughter is trouble.”
Marquis Rodrigo was one of the grand duchy"s seven marquises, he held the post of vice-commander in the Blueblood Knights
It was no wonder that Levis was still unmarried, he had his sights set on the marquis" daughter.
“Cousin Meopal is deeply in love with the princess and Brother adores Marquis Rodrigo"s daughter, they seem to have ulterior motives.”
“Aren"t you the same?”
“Me?”
“Don"t think that news about you guys don"t reach me just because I"m old. Athena Salmon, right? According to Lvera, she is a very adorable young girl and she admires you quite a lot. Yet unexpectedly, she was rejected by you. She is the daughter of a viscount. Although it is fairly vulgar to sell fish, but with gold coins aplenty, eating white bread won"t be a problem, am I right?”
“Ha ha.”
Liszt didn"t want to comment on this.
Madam Penélope continued on the subject of ‘young people are not sensible" in her long-winded manner, but soon, she shifted her attention to a flowerpot.
“Oh, poor thing, my black nightshade is really going to die!”