Claude disappeared without a trace. He had tested the power of Magic Missile and Cautious Shock on the Blacksnake scum and gained some experience in actual combat, which made him feel rather happy.
As for the mess he left behind, he couldn't be bothered to think about it. Who cares? What does that have to do with me?
The alleyway was soon lit up and a large number of Blacksnake and Shark gang members swarmed over. It was inevitable that they would have to face off again. Curses could be heard throughout the residential area on both sides of the alleyway.
Thankfully, the few leaders who rushed over were still clear-headed and managed to suppress their subordinates from getting into a bloody fight with Shark.
Gerrard had already recounted the events of the night several times. As for Catherine and her sister, they had long since returned to their two-storey building.
They didn't care about the lives of the Blacksnake gang members. When Jaydra said that they were going to treat the injured, Catherine impatiently brought her sister back.
Eight of the gang members were f * cked over by a masked man.
Four of them died. The guard with a triangular blade in his abdomen, the dark-skinned man with a fine iron dagger in his back, and the one with an unknown hole in his abdomen. The last one was suffocated to death due to a heavy blow to the heart.
Two of them were heavily injured and had holes in their arms and thighs. One of them had fainted due to excessive blood loss, and the other was the skinny one whose face was almost completely caved in.
The other two were on the verge of death and it was unknown if they could be saved.
One of them was Squint-Eye Kamadi with his four limbs broken and a small portion of his tongue cut off. The other was the tenor with his balls crushed.
Had it not been for Gerrard's emergency treatment, the four who were still breathing might not have been saved.
So, the leaders of Blacksnake rationally ordered their men to barge in and bring the residents on both sides of the alleyway over to ask about what happened and whether what they saw matched up with what Gerrard said.
Gerrard and his two men couldn't do anything about it. The main reason was that what they said was too unbelievable.
A mysterious masked man popped out of nowhere and asked Squint-Eye Kamadi and his men to make way for him. All the leaders of Blacksnake knew that given Squint-Eye Kamadi's temper, conflict was inevitable.
However, this time, Squint-Eye Kamadi and the others were the unlucky ones.
"You really didn't hear any gunshots?" This was the umpteenth time the Blacksnake leader had asked.
"It's true. We didn't see the masked man with a gun in his hand. We didn't hear any gunshots or see the light of a lit match. The masked man didn't have anything in his hand …" Gerrard answered for the umpteenth time, and his saliva was almost dry.
"That's impossible. Their bodies were clearly wounded by flintlocks. Such a huge hole can only be made by a flintlock. How can there be no gunshots?" The leaders of the Blacksnake Gang were also puzzled.
Another leader of the Black Snake Gang walked over and said to the boss, "I've asked clearly. The residents on both sides of the alley said it was no different from this kid. I don't think it was done by the Sharks. We know how many experts they have. One against eight isn't something they can do."
The boss of the Blacksnake Gang rubbed the bridge of his nose in distress and nodded. He said to Gerrard and the rest, "Thank you for your help this time. I'll repay this favor in the future. You guys can leave now."
After Gerrard and his men left, the boss thought for a moment and took out a name card. He summoned one of his subordinates and instructed him. The subordinate took the name card and ran away.
Half an hour later, the subordinate brought the fat old man, Hurian, to the scene.
The boss dismissed his subordinates and personally accompanied Hurian to check the corpses and injuries.
A short while later, Hurian checked all the wounds and circled the scene. He spoke a few words with the boss of the Blacksnake Gang before leaving.
The boss stood there in a daze for a long time before he smiled bitterly and ordered his subordinates to collect the corpses and the injured.
"Are we not going to take revenge?" another leader of the Blacksnake Gang asked in puzzlement.
"We can't."
The Blacksnake Gang's boss pointed at the gunshot wound with a bitter smile and said helplessly, "That wasn't caused by a gun, but by a spell.
Ol 'Three and his men were unlucky and blocked the path of a mage. That's why the masked man told them to make way.
Think about it and you'll understand. If it wasn't a mage, who would have the confidence to make us give way? "
"You're saying that Ol 'Three and his men had a conflict with a mage?"
The boss nodded. "Do you understand now? Ol 'Three is unlucky and we don't know if he will implicate us.
Increase the security during this period of time and leave more men at the headquarters.
I heard that mages are petty people who seek revenge for the smallest grievance. I hope he won't come looking for trouble with us. "
The Blacksnake Gang quickly cleaned up the scene and left. This left Gerrard and his men puzzled.
Usually, when something like this happened, regardless of whether they could find the culprit or not, the residents on both sides of the alley would be in deep trouble. The Blacksnake Gang would use the masked man as an excuse to brazenly enter their homes and rob them.
Losing money was a small matter. What they were most afraid of was being accused of being an accomplice of the masked man and taken away. If they didn't destroy their homes and gather money to exchange for the masked man, they might never see their families again.
It was useless to call the police. The Blacksnake Gang could just say that the man had been released a long time ago and that it was none of their business if they couldn't find him.
Perhaps the missing man was an accomplice of the culprit and escaped out of fear. They could even find many witnesses to prove that what they said was the truth.
But this time, the Blacksnake Gang left in a hurry and didn't do anything. The residents were brought out for questioning before being released. This was truly surprising.
The gathering at the supper stall in front of Hurian's grocery store was about to end. However, Hurian was called away by someone. His mage friends thought that something had happened and sat there waiting for him to return.
Seeing that Hurian's expression wasn't right, they hurriedly asked what had happened.
Hurian recounted what he had seen and finally sighed, "It's too cruel. Although that masked mage is young, his methods are really vicious. Four of the eight hooligans were killed by him and the other four were seriously injured. Perhaps two of them can't be saved.
This kind of person is very rare in our world of mages. Right now, I'm worried about whether tomorrow's transaction will be able to proceed smoothly.
If the student is like this, his teacher must be even more extraordinary.
Looks like I'll have to write a letter to the imperial capital and ask if anyone knows them. It'll be easier to deal with them in the future and prevent us from offending them for no reason … "
A rather old man laughed. "What are you worried about? You have the underground magic market backing you up, so no one will be willing to offend you.
Compared to us roaming mages, you don't have to worry about your safety.
Didn't you say it just now? The masked mage said that he got your address from a letter sent by his teacher from the Royal Capital.
Since that's the case, tomorrow's transaction will be guaranteed. They should know their limits and won't force you to trade. Otherwise, they won't be able to do anything on the continent in the future … "
"Haha, Old Sark is right. Hurian, as the person in charge of the underground magic market in Whitestag, you should be confident about that."
Another old man laughed and said, "However, I quite admire that masked mage. He should be ruthless towards those hooligans.
Centuries have passed and magic practitioners like us don't have a good reputation apart from being evil in the various kingdoms of the continent.
Sometimes, when I think about those war magi who dominated the continent, I can't help but yearn for them.
It's a pity that we weren't born in that era. "
A middle-aged man in black robes couldn't help but laugh when he heard that. "Teacher Bai Qi, don't reminisce about that era. It's the end of magic now and times have changed. No matter how powerful a war magus is, they won't be able to beat a gun in the hands of mortals.
Didn't we learn magic and become rogue mages so that we could explore the mysteries of magic and be free and unrestrained?
Otherwise, we can become registered mages and stay in the capital. We can even become guests of honor of those high officials and nobles … "
"Ptooey, who wants to become a registered magus?
The old man called Old Sauk said disdainfully, "Are registered mages real mages? They're just a bunch of lackeys kept by those in power. Apart from using magic to please and serve those in power, do they have any other abilities?"
"Calm down, Old Sark."
Hurian comforted him with a smile, "Registered magi aren't real magi. They're just clowns in the world of magi.
It is precisely because of this that there is the existence of our underground magic market.
The underground magic market doesn't serve clowns, but all roaming magi who worship freedom.
It's because of the persistence of true magi like you that the magic heritage of Freia will continue to be passed on.
Come, let's have another toast. "
Everyone raised their cups and finished the rye ale.
The bearded man asked, "Hurian, you said that the masked mage used Magic Missile to deal with the hooligans. Does he have any other combat spells?"
Hurian thought for a moment and shook his head, "No. The only magic imprint left at the scene was a Magic Missile spell.
I checked carefully and didn't find any other magic imprints. I reckon that's the only combat spell he knows.
In fact, only three people were hurt by Magic Missile. The rest were injured by his bare hands. That masked fellow's close-combat skills are very powerful.
I suspect that he mainly uses close-combat skills with Magic Missile as a supplement.
But that's still very rare. Only a few dozen combat spells have been passed down over the centuries, and they're all treasured by their owners, not willing to use them in front of others.
The masked man was lucky to be able to learn the combat spell, Magic Missile.
Perhaps that's why he was so arrogant as to provoke the hoodlums of Blacksnake and ask them to make way.
He's young and hasn't suffered before, so he doesn't have any apprehensions.
If news of him using Magic Missile to injure people gets to the special department in the imperial capital, he won't have a good life in the future. "
"That's right. He's young and prideful. All of us were like that when we were young."
The bearded man filled everyone's cups with rye ale again. "Now that we're old and have suffered a lot, we've learned to hide ourselves and keep a low profile.
Hearing Hurian talk about that masked young magus reminded me of my youth and made me feel rather emotional.
It's a rare opportunity to meet up with everyone in Whitestag to drink and chat. Usually, we can't even gather together because we all have our own matters to attend to.
I'll be leaving Whitestag tomorrow morning and I've already booked a ship.
I don't know when we'll be able to meet again.
So, I'll borrow Hurian's rye ale to toast all of you. I wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
Cheers! "