Chapter 167: Thugs

It wasn't hard to smuggle the mayor out of the camp with only 10 Erantell guards surrounding the area and with Barry the captain explaining the situation.

Even when several guards saw the mayor's unconscious body in tow, with Tristan and Serene being there, they didn't dare to intervene despite their suspicions. 

The group of seven, plus one when counting the collapsed figure they were hauling behind them, pulled a cart out of the camp and began to head southwest.

A few hours into the journey, Tristan suddenly heard a scream.

Uriel, the Erantell mayor, just awoke from his slumber with a jolt. He sat up ramrod straight and looked around, his eyes enlarged in fear.

"Took you long enough to wake up, Uriel."

The fat elf scanned his surroundings, his eyes darting around. He had found himself in some kind of small, wooden cart pulled by horses. He realized what Tristan had done to him and quickly panicked.

"You…! The king will know about this!"

Tristan pulled the reins on his horse tighter, letting it move closer to the cart. With a smile, he turned around to look at the mayor.

"Uriel, I did ask you nicely, but you didn't listen."

"Of course I won't listen, you are no better than a thug! What are you planning to do to me?!"

"Shhh…" Tristan shushed him in a falsely soothing manner. Though there seemed to be no venom in his voice, there was still something condescending about it, as though Tristan was chastising a child.

"Uriel, I only want you to help for the first month. I am sure the king will appreciate it. I need you to tutor and advise me things about being a mayor. Just for a month."

Tristan spoke in a friendly manner and his tone was pleasant, but each time he even moved a finger, the fat elf looked like he was going to jump out of his skin from pure fear right then and there. His clothes had begun to dampen from sweat.

"Please, Uriel." Tristan twitched his finger once more, a clear warning not to test his patience. "I am so desperate here… You will help me, right?"

Uriel was not convinced. In response, he merely grumbled under his breath.

Tristan sighed passively. "I don't think I can do it without your help… Do you want to see another elf mayor dying here, Uriel?"

Tristan said it in such a way that others might think he was speaking about himself, but the mayor knew all too well that he was being implicitly threatened.

The fat elf turned towards Serene and gave her a pleading gaze, but Serene simply pulled harder at the reins of her horse, making it gallop faster and move further away from the cart.

"I know you are a smart guy, Uriel. Give me a number for one month of your time."

Uriel went silent for a moment. "100 gold coins."

"Done! For a hundred gold coins, you will stay with me for three months!"

Uriel's eyes widened to the size of saucers. He had expected Tristan to try and deceive him, but not to the extent of outright lying to his face.

"No, no! I can't leave my town for three months! That's not possible. 1 month is the most I could do."

"Alright then, it will be thirty gold coins. Thank you, Uriel."

The mayor's mouth gaped open, prepared to retaliate, but Tristan cut him off.

"Let this be the beginning of a good relationship between us and between the two neighboring town" 

Tristan certainly did not have 30 gold coins, nor did he have any idea as to how he would acquire them, but he couldn't care less. If he wasn't able to get that amount, he could just change the terms again. But right now he will make sure the fat elf will help him for a month.

Tristan smiled to himself wickedly on the fact that he now had an experienced mayor to help him.

When dusk began to fall and the sky had darkened, they decided to take a break. 

Herrera viewed this as an opportunity to get closer to Tristan, who she was itching to talk to ever since they left the campsite. She immediately gravitated towards him the moment their cart stopped. 

Tristan saw it as an opportunity of a different kind. With a fire magician travelling among them? He took it as a chance to discuss with her the fire spells he had just purchased. He would even be able to try them out tonight, since he now had a critical eye to assess his abilities. 

It took him a few minutes to be able to cast the tier [Heat Detection] spells. The spells worked similarly to Katra where he could sense specific energies around him; in this case, it was heat. Tristan tried it out with [10 Blood Essence], and as a result, he was able to detect living beings as far as 500 meters away from him. 

Most of them were large, warm-blooded mammals that generally emitted more heat. Smaller animals such as birds or rabbits were much harder to sense. 

One interesting thing he learned was that he just realized he could somewhat control the strength of his spells. With half of the number blood essence, he could still perceive to use the spell with a shorter range. This definitely opened up a way to cast his spells more efficiently. It wasn't easy, but he was sure he could master it. 

The Tier 3 spells were a different story. He had examined the scroll several times, even asking for Herrera's help now and again, but it was still going to take him a few more tries to be able to cast them.

Each time he called on her for assistance, the female magician acted overly intimate with him. She was always standing too close, her touches always lingering just a bit longer than they were supposed to. 

Tristan realized that Serene had been paying special attention to Herrera's behavior, and he could feel her eyes burning through his back whenever it happened. But honestly, Tristan was still unsure what the elf wanted from him. Maybe this would finally urge her to become more open towards him.

When dawn arrived, the group continued their journey.

Carleon was located exactly on the border between the Evergreen Forest and the Chaotic Plains. 

Tristan can see the changing of the terrains, a lush forest on his right and dry yellow lands on his left.

The sun had just begun to set, and the cool evening air started to nip on their skin. They were closing in on the town. 

Carleon Town was much rougher in appearance. The houses possessed a much simpler structure, but were more sturdy with walls that spanned across a distance.

As they drew nearer, they could hear the noises of people doing their final chores for the day before presumably heading home. 

After passing through a few farms, the group of eight finally arrived at the gate. 

The sound of their horses' hooves trotting across the pavement caught the attention of the guards, and they were halted right in front of the gate.

The man leading the guards was burly, dark skinned, and fully armored. Uriel had mentioned that his name was Gazef. A sword was strapped onto his waist, and clamped over its hilt was a hand riddled with scars, a small testament to the battles he endured in the past. He introduced himself as the head of Carleon Town's guards.

Uriel responded by greeting him and bringing Tristan forward.

"Captain Gazef, this is Carleon's new mayor, Lord Tristan of the Vanyar elves."

Tristan and Gazef's eyes met, and the man nodded in respectful greeting. Or at least, that was what he pretended to do.

Tristan tried to scan him quickly so he could understand who exactly he would be dealing with there. 

[Human – Male]

[Battle power – 110]

[Spirit force – 30]

So, it seemed the man was not bluffing. Tristan had to admit that he was very strong, at least as strong as the combat experts of the Kingsblade. He checked the blood seal success rate with his scanner.

[Blood seal : 1400 blood essence needed] 

[Success rate: 29%]

A part of him was interested in trying to obtain another powerful warrior as one of his underlings, but another part of him knew that his blood essence was limited, and currently there was no way to replenish it. He would have to wait.

"Tristan, with the death of the mayor, he will be your go-to guy." Uriel explained.

"Lord Tristan, what is it you wish to do first?" The burly man said, bowing slightly.

Tristan thought about it for a moment. "Just gather up as many of the residents as possible, as I want to see them for myself…"

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