Chapter 327: Uninvited Guest

Aiboke followed closely behind, while Mage Warren brought up the rear.

Xia Duo calmly cast a Protective Spell on himself; although he knew this was impossible to hide from an Arcanist, he did not care in the least.

"You are the lord of Daxia Territory, Xia Duo? You were the one who had that person behind you banish me yesterday?" After landing, Aquilain stared straight at Xia Duo, his tone quite flippant.

Xia Duo was very nervous, but he still met his gaze without fear, "It was me! Did you come here to tell me you are prepared to leave?"

"Heh, tell me, your words from before were all just a joke, right!"

As he spoke, a strange light seemed to emanate from Aquilain's eyes. In Xia Duo's vision, the person before him suddenly seemed to become familiar, like an old friend he had not seen in a long time.

Well, one certainly cannot just banish an old friend! But just as Xia Duo was about to speak, a thought suddenly emerged from the depths of his heart: if he did not banish the other party, the authority of the Tower of Time would plummet, and the series of consequences that would follow were things he could not accept.

Xia Duo wavered. Upon reflection, this "old friend" did not seem that familiar after all! Xia Duo cast aside the interference of his emotions and discovered that there was no trace of this old friend in his memories at all.

With such a violent conflict of concepts, how could he not understand that he had been struck by a trick!

Almost subconsciously, Xia Duo took the Pioneer Scepter from his Personal Space. The moment the scepter was in his hand, he felt as if his mind were wearing a thick protective cover.

Firm as a rock, it left him completely unaffected by any external power.

This also made it clearer to Xia Duo that the feeling of inexplicable familiarity from just a moment ago now seemed so abrupt.

If the other party had not asked him to speak, but instead asked him to follow, then—

Xia Duo dared not imagine that scene. If not for the intense conflict of concepts, he might never have realized he had been struck.

Thinking of this, the look Xia Duo gave Aquilain was filled with vigilance.

At this moment, his heart was pounding. Regarding an enemy who would invade his mind, he had only one thought in his heart, and that was—kill!

Forcibly suppressing the murderous intent surging in his heart, his reason told him this was not the right place, and the Tower of Time also needed more energy reserves.

Xia Duo's actions and expressions only made Aquilain let out a light chuckle.

Facing Aiboke, who had just landed and was standing at Xia Duo's side, Aquilain took two steps back, his gaze sweeping across the manor, lingering briefly on the banquet tables and the assembled Mages.

Then he said: "I heard that Tower Master Niya of the Tower of Time has become a student of the Princess? May I join your banquet?"

"No! Aquilain!" Aiboke took out his staff and said with a serious face, "You are not welcome here, please leave immediately!"

At the same time, the others from the Tower of Time finally understood that the person who had come was an unwelcome guest! Although they had set up protection before, they had not prepared for battle. Now, receiving the signal, those with staffs took them out, those with Scrolls pulled them out, and they silently spread out, appearing ready to engage in a fierce fight at the slightest sign of trouble.

Facing an Arcanist of the same rank, along with an unknown number of Intermediate Mages—at least ten—even Aquilain needed to retreat for the moment. It was not out of fear, but because it was unnecessary.

"Are you trying to challenge the Eagle Chamber of Commerce! As long as Savile Territory does not hand over the murderer who killed Asaer, I will remain here, and that includes the Mythallar Ruins!"

After speaking, Aquilain turned his gaze toward Aiboke, who was standing ready, and said provocatively: "I welcome you to come find me for a Spell exchange next time!"

Finally, his gaze fell upon the Pioneer Scepter in Xia Duo's hand, and he said with an ambiguous meaning, "Pioneer?!"

He then flew away, and Aiboke followed after him.

Afterward, the banquet continued, and the socializing continued, but after the incident with Aquilain, the atmosphere was clearly not as lively as before.

But Xia Duo did not care about that; he persisted until the sky turned dark.

In the summer dusk, as the heat subsided and the cool evening breeze arrived, Xia Duo temporarily canceled the weak elemental balancing ability of his Crimson Shelter Robe to fully enjoy this rare moment.

At this time, the wine no longer needed to be chilled with a Freezing Ray; mixed with the natural taste of summer, it seemed to have a unique flavor.

However, when Xia Duo saw the ground covered in empty bottles, his heart ached terribly. Regardless of the actual cost, the selling price at the Tower of Time was as high as 100 Gold Coins per bottle.

Drinking it does not cause drunkenness but instead benefits the spirit; even an Intermediate Mage could not afford a bottle every day. In fact, Primary Mages only had a quota of one bottle per month, and if they wanted more, they had to pay for it themselves.

But today, whether they were Intermediate Mages or Primary Mages, everyone had finished at least two bottles.

So much money! Returning to the Mage Tower, the image of the empty wine bottles drifted through Xia Duo's mind from time to time. He could only mock himself, treating it as clearing out inventory.

……

Reception Room.

Xia Duo and Aiboke sat opposite each other, preparing to discuss the details of the "enforcement action" once again.

Last night, Xia Duo did not sleep at all, spending the entire night in the Library, but he did not find a feasible plan suitable for the current conditions.

The methods he found required very harsh conditions and could not be achieved in a short time, so he wanted to hear Aiboke's thoughts first: "Aiboke, have you found any feasible method to carry out a surprise attack?"

"I have!"

Aiboke's attitude was very clear, "Today I went to the Temple to see Bishop Anbulier; he has a way for us to enter the Shadow Plane."

"Really?! That's great!" Xia Duo was overjoyed. Aquilain's protective monitoring was very thorough; currently, only by passing through the Shadow Plane could they approach him without triggering an alarm and then carry out a surprise attack.

If Aiboke hadn't mentioned it, he would have almost forgotten that Savile Territory had a figure like Bishop Anbulier. He hurriedly asked:

"Tell me quickly, how exactly did Bishop Anbulier manage to do that?"

Xia Duo could not wait to know how Bishop Anbulier managed it. If he could learn it, wouldn't that be an additional, highly effective means of surprise attack that would be impossible to guard against! But Aiboke could not tell him the answer. Aiboke only said: "This might be a special ability granted to him by the Lord of Radiance; we should not speculate recklessly. Now, let's confirm the details of the operation again. Bishop Anbulier will also be acting with us."

Xia Duo nodded and began to discuss.

(End of chapter)