Chapter 43: Conjurer Reuben

Gerian had indeed executed a brilliant maneuver this time.

Among the three major mage families in Jarrosus, except for the Merlin Family that had taken a whirl earlier on, the Mannes Family and the Saruman Family had not even made a move. The reason for their inaction was not hard to imagine—as one of Jarrosus three major mage families, they knew each other through and through and shared an unspoken understanding. The three families knew how many bottles each should take, and no one would undermine this tacit understanding.

Too bad Gerian would not give them the opportunity. You liked to play modestly? Then I’d simply give you a push. The Merlin Family had taken three bottles just now and would surely not be satisfied. Everyone knew they had the most level-four apprentices. The other two families had not taken any bottle and would be even less likely to give up. This was the Arcane Magic Potion: if the opportunity was missed, who knew when the next one would come.

This time, it would be impossible for the three families not to fight at close range, even if that was not what they wished for…

There seemed to be a hint of smoke in the quiet hall.

The three families were sitting at the first row, not far away from one another. They had occasionally exchanged a few words at the start of the auction. But as the alarming news came out, each of the three parties seemed to have erected an invisible wall around them. No one was in the mood for talks anymore; their eyes fell on Kevin, waiting for the small wooden gavel to drop…

The atmosphere in the hall became a little stifling at once, like the panic-stricken feeling one would get before the storm struck.

By this point in time, the six underground forces and the eight mage families had lost all their chances to contend in the auction. Their wealth and power were a far cry from the three big mage families’. In fact, even if they had had the chance, they would not have dared to step forward. In the entire Jarrosus City, who would dare to challenge the three giants head on besides the Guild of Magic?

The quiet guild hall was meant to be the stage for the three big families.

But they were still feeling nervous. The auction of the Arcane Magic Potion would likely change the currents in Jarrosus City. Even a small detail might decide the life and death of thousands of people.

“See, the guy in front wearing a black mage robe and covering his head with a hood is the patriarch of the Saruman Family, Reuben Saruman.” The only people who were not tense would probably be the old and young hiding in the back. Gerian looked relaxed, stretching his chubby fingers out toward the front row and patiently introducing VIPs to Lin Li.

Lin Li took a glance from a distance and found the aura coming out from the leader of the Saruman Family a little peculiar. It was pure feeling, not about strength nor magical wave. It was just sheer sense that this person was weird, as if he was dead, and however you looked at it, it’d always give you an uncomfortable feeling.

“You felt it too?” Gerian chuckled as he saw the bewildered look on Lin Li’s face. “Strictly speaking, this fellow is not really a real mage. He’s actually a conjurer!”

“Conjurer?” Lin Li was startled by that word, and thought of McGrenn and his daughter. “You mean, he’s skilled in curse spells?”

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“That’s right. Isn’t it weird, the leader of a mage family is in fact a conjurer…”

“You have insider information?” Lin Li knew the old man had to have some insider information judging from the look on his face.

“Actually, it’s not really an insider information, almost half of Jarrosus City knows about it.” There was some fear in Gerian’s voice. “In Jarrosus City, other than that old bastard Matthew, Reuben is the one I fear the most. This fellow didn’t have any magical talent when he was young; he was still a level-four apprentice at 20. At that time, not to mention us, even his father had given up on him.

“Not long after his 25th birthday, Old Saruman announced his successor: Reuben’s half-brother, Sosa. On the day Old Saruman announced the news, Reuben disappeared from Jarrosus City. His disappearance lasted for five years. No one knew where he went, and no one knew what he did in that five years. He did not return to Jarrosus until he was 30.”

At this point, Gerian paused slightly before he continued, “After he returned, the first thing he did was killing. From his half-brother to his father, those who were qualified for the position of the patriarch were killed off by him in a night. After that, Reuben had the whole family tightly controlled in his hands with his iron fist. In the subsequent 30 years, he had even brought the then-small Saruman Family to become one of the three biggest families in Jarrosus today!”

“Ruthless!” This was Lin Li’s only comment on Reuben Saruman.

“This guy is a lunatic.” Gerian shook his head. There was a sense of frustration in his tone as he said, “Although Matthew is formidable, at least he has a weakness we can grasp. For example, his brothers and son. But this lunatic from the Sarumans, there’s really nothing I can do with him. Unless you have an absolute power that can kill him with a flip of your hands… But this lunatic knows how to endure, and he will not provoke an invincible enemy unless he is absolutely confident.”

Lin Li did not pay much attention to Gerian’s final comment, for he had another thing on his mind.

Did the curse on McGrenn have something to do with the Saruman Family?

But after much deliberation, Lin Li could not figure out any possible reason behind it. McGrenn and his daughter were merely ordinary adventurers—their strength was only at a level-five or six. Wealth and power were far from the answer as well. With Reuben Saruman’s status, there was no reason he’d want anything from them.

While Lin Li was racking his brains, Kevin announced the climax of the auction.

“Ten bottles of Arcane Magic Potion, starting bid 100,000 gold coins. Let the bidding start!”

“110,000 gold coins!”

“Right. Felic, you must know this person. The richest man in the whole Jarrosus City all the way till Felan Kingdom, the patriarch of the Mannes Family: Ysera Mannes!

“The Mannes Family?” On hearing the name, Lin Li couldn’t help but think of the Gilded Rose that had bloomed over Jarrosus. If he hadn’t seen the staff selling for thousands of gold coins in the Gilded Rose, he would not have thought of concocting potions to make money. But the funny thing was that after circling a round, that money would be made on Gilded Rose…