Chapter 66: Recruitment

The Royal Capital.

Kajiashi.

Walking through the city, Aaron looked around with curiosity.

Even in a national Royal Capital, the streets were inevitably cluttered, piled high with trash and the dung of cattle and horses, emitting a foul stench.

The streets were bustling, crowded with shirtless laborers or peddlers with carts selling fruits and vegetables.

By the roadside were stall owners wearing greasy aprons, selling various grilled meats and snacks.

There were small merchants hawking ointments and various potions of unknown origin along the street.

Not far away, wooden fences formed a circle containing a crowd of people tied together with hemp ropes, while slave traders outside shouted their wares or haggled with customers.

Occasionally, a few heavily made-up women walked by; they were streetwalkers from the taverns and nearby inns, openly soliciting customers on the street.

Aaron walked down a street and saw a huge square.

In a corner of the square, two guards maintained order, protecting a massive notice board.

Around the notice board, a large crowd had gathered.

……

Aaron squeezed through and looked at the notice.

It was written very simply: His Majesty the King wished to recruit a group of people possessing strange abilities.

Anyone could come forward to recommend themselves, and at the end of the notice, it was emphasized that the reward would be incredibly generous!

"Take note, this is not a recruitment for court jesters; do not think that you can obtain the reward with a few magic tricks or sleight-of-hand!"

"This time, the King needs true 'ability users'—diviners, Astrologers, Wizards, Druids... we only want people who possess real Mysterious power!"

A soldier warned in a hoarse voice: "If you are a fraud, you will taste the sting of a barbed whip..."

"What has happened to the King?"

"Do Wizards really exist?"

There were many onlookers, but no one came forward; instead, they discussed gossip and rumors with great enthusiasm, while secretly hoping for a real Extraordinary to appear.

"You don't know, I can guarantee that the King is gathering ability users to deal with the Green Forest Earl of the Green Forest, that Green Devil!"

A young man who looked like a rake boasted: "I heard he has mastered sorcery and can make trees possess life."

"No, it is said he is a Wizard who used poison to kill his own brother and father to inherit the Earl's title."

Another middle-aged woman with a waist as thick as a barrel retorted.

"That is clearly a Northern barbarian, three meters tall, capable of carrying giant boulders, and he eats a cow, three sheep, and six children in one meal!"

Another voice came from the crowd, making Aaron's face twitch.

He felt his reputation was ruined.

Although, demonizing enemies through public opinion was originally a political necessity.

'And, does this world really have no native Mysterious power?'

Aaron thought for a moment, then suddenly chuckled, stepped forward, and said to the soldier: "I am a Wizard, I would like to apply; do I need to take down the notice?"

"A Wizard?"

The crowd surrounding Aaron suddenly parted, revealing him.

The soldier looked him over suspiciously: "Are you really a Wizard? His Majesty the King needs true ability users, not frauds!"

"Of course!"

Aaron snapped his fingers.

Snap!

A flame appeared above his fingers.

Although his body was filled with Red Spirituality, he had used Pure White Ice as a seal, so mobilizing a little power of 'Darkness' was not a problem.

"It's fire!"

"He released flames from his hand!"

"A Wizard! A real Wizard!"

The crowd became restless; those in the inner circle panicked and fled outward, while those on the outside squeezed in, directly causing a blockage.

"How is it? Do I qualify?"

Aaron withdrew his hand and asked with a faint smile.

"I... I will take you to see Lord Dean Alexi; he is the Captain of the Royal Palace Guards. If he approves, he will take you to see the King."

The soldier swallowed hard and led Aaron toward a building at the edge of the square.

After reporting, the guard at the door looked at Aaron suspiciously but still opened the door.

Aaron waited in the hall for a moment before seeing a middle-aged nobleman in golden armor with a cold expression walk in.

"You are a Wizard?"

Dean asked suspiciously, his hand resting on his longsword.

"Yes."

Aaron walked to a candlestick, snapped his fingers, and made the Candle on it ignite.

At the same time, he placed his palm over it and endured the scorching heat expressionlessly: "My name is Yasuo!"

"This is much more impressive than those previous Prophets and diviners."

Dean clearly still did not believe it, thinking it was some kind of magic: "Follow me!"

He led Aaron on foot all the way to the very center of Kajiashi, to a magnificent palace.

Because he was leading the way, Aaron was allowed to pass directly and entered the palace.

"This is?"

Aaron looked at the entrance of the Royal Palace, where a row of spears stood, with several heads skewered upon them, the blood already dried.

"These were the unlucky fools who came to swindle money earlier; Prince Xien saw through their tricks..."

Dean's face was full of mockery at this moment: "Yasuo, is it? Pray... pray that your magic can deceive His Highness the Prince."

Aaron shrugged his shoulders, appearing indifferent to this.

He followed Dean into a certain room.

Incense was burning inside the room, the scent very heavy, and the light within was rather dim; there were already several strangely dressed people inside.

One old man among them was staring at the Crystal Ball in front of him, muttering incessantly.

There was also a middle-aged man whose body was covered in various tattoos of unclear meaning.

The last one was a woman whose hair looked like weeds, her body hung with various pouches, and her cheeks painted with black Shadow, looking like a Wizard.

"These people are..."

Aaron asked curiously.

"His Majesty is very busy; you can only wait for him to summon you. Not just anyone can see His Majesty so easily."

"You behave yourself."

Dean gave a warning and walked out.

Aaron looked around and discovered that these three people were all sizing him up with looks of Secrecy, having the air of peers appraising one another.

He thought for a moment and leaned toward the Wizard: "Hello, I am Yasuo, a Wizard."

"..."

The Wizard glanced at him without speaking, staring at the cauldron in front of her.

"What are you doing? Making soup?" Aaron asked: "The Legendary Wizard soup?"

"Using frog legs, combined with bat wings, lavender essential oil... and three drops of sinful blood, one can curse a person to death. I am currently cursing that Green Devil; I have sensed his Weakness..."

The Wizard raised her head, revealing a mysterious smile, though a mouthful of blackened and yellowed rotten teeth truly ruined the atmosphere.

"Alright."

Aaron, who felt not the slightest bit of Weakness, nodded with a solemn face and began to chat with the middle-aged man.

Then, he learned that among these people, the most prestigious was still the old man with the Crystal Ball; the other party was a famous Divination Master in the Royal Capital who had once correctly predicted the gender of the child in the pregnant Queen's womb...