Chapter 76: Cynthia

Just as he was about to ask for the price, a commotion came from the direction of the market square.

The arguing from the market interrupted their conversation. The merchant frowned and said apologetically:

"It seems that there is a situation in the central square. That is the place where apprentice lords are most accustomed to conducting slave duels. You might as well go and take a look. These goods won't run away. You can come back and continue choosing whenever you have time."

Luo En pondered for a moment and decided to go and see the situation. After all, behind any public conflict, there is often information worth paying attention to.

When he left the Blake Exchange, his mind was still sorting out the information he had just obtained.

According to some conversations with the merchant just now, the other party said that almost all medium and high-level apprentices in the school would cultivate combat slaves. This is both a symbol of strength and a practical means of protection.

"Perhaps when my status is more stable and my funds are more abundant, I should also consider cultivating a combat slave."

Luo En pondered: "It's best to be the kind of composite type suitable for long-range and close combat, which can cooperate with my fighting style."

………………

The sky was near dusk, and quite a few apprentices had gathered in the central square of the market, forming a loose circle.

Luo En squeezed through the crowd, wanting to find out what was happening.

Across the crowd, he keenly noticed a familiar figure. The brown long hair and straight posture were exactly Trish.

He wanted to go up and say hello, but soon discovered that Trish seemed to be confronting a woman wearing a purple dress.

"Who is that? Why are they confronting each other here?" Luo En asked an apprentice who was watching the fun curiously.

The apprentice turned his head, originally with a bit of impatience in his brows, but after seeing who it was, a flash of surprise appeared in his eyes, and his attitude immediately became friendly.

"Apprentice Luo En, long time no see." He nodded slightly in greeting:

"I am Norris. When the law enforcement team handled the Darren mutation incident last month, I had met you once."

Luo En didn't have much impression of this name, but clearly, the importance Lady Allen and Holt placed on him had left him quite a reputation among the apprentice group.

He nodded politely: "Hello, Apprentice Norris, what exactly is going on over there?"

Norris's gaze swept toward the center of the crowd, explaining softly:

"The ones arguing over there are Apprentice Trish and Apprentice Cynthia. Trish is a student of Wizard Corinna, while Cynthia is the proud student of Wizard Marshala. These two mentors have always been at odds in the school, and the infighting between their disciples is also a common occurrence."

"Then what is the reason for their dispute?" Luo En frowned slightly.

"I heard it's because of an ancient notebook about star energy conversion."

Norris shook his head: "This kind of scarce data has always been the fuse for disputes. Both claim that the data should belong to their mentor's research."

Luo En felt a bit puzzled. Although the resources within the Black Mist School were not very abundant, the two official wizard-level mentors shouldn't have any public contradictions because of this little thing, or maybe they were just pushing the boat along...

"But now it's not a simple argument. I guess they are about to get serious." His thoughts were interrupted by Norris's words.

During their conversation, whispers in the crowd rose and fell, with anticipation, worry, and quite a few gloating expressions.

Trish stood at one end of the open space, her expression calm and focused, the whole person exuding an introverted aura of self-confidence.

And opposite her was a woman wearing a purple silk dress, wearing a silver crown inlaid with starlight stones, with a mocking expression on her face.

Looking at her appearance, she was much older than Trish, and those eyes revealed a kind of almost arrogant coldness and contempt.

"That is Cynthia?" Luo En confirmed with Norris in a low voice.

"That's right, it's her." Norris nodded, his tone carrying a hint of hard-to-detect fear:

"She is not a character to be trifled with. Rumor has it that the average lifespan of her male servants does not exceed half a year."

"Servants?" Luo En frowned slightly: "She should be a high-level apprentice, does she still have time to play with servants in addition to cultivation?"

"Of course, that is her biggest personal hobby." Norris lowered his voice: "Cynthia has been a high-level apprentice for several years, and she is also one of the members of the candidate wizard sequence."

"Can you tell me specifically about this candidate wizard sequence?"

Luo En asked, pretending not to understand, although he had already learned relevant information from that booklet that primary apprentices must read.

But since the other party mentioned it actively, he just took this opportunity to learn about the specific operating rules from Norris, who was an insider.

Norris scanned the surroundings to ensure no one was eavesdropping, then explained in a low voice:

"That is a special list, and only those apprentices who are considered to have the possibility of advancing to official wizards can enter. However, the information on the apprentice manual is not complete. In fact, after entering the sequence, the school will give points based on their performance. Apprentices with higher rankings will get more resources and opportunities."

"Trish should also be in this sequence, right?" Luo En asked again.

"Yes, she just entered not long ago, maybe a month or two." Norris nodded:

"But because her mental aptitude is exceptionally excellent, her initial points are quite high. It is said that she directly surpassed some old-qualified sequence members, including Cynthia."

"So this conflict actually has nothing to do with that data?"

Luo En keenly noticed the key.

"Hmm... you are very smart, it really has nothing to do with it."

If it were an ordinary person trying to pry information out of him like this, Norris would have walked away long ago.

But thinking that this young man was a potential newcomer highly valued by his captain, he still explained the intelligence he knew tirelessly:

"That data is actually not important to the two official wizards. This is purely an excuse Cynthia found. Her real purpose is to use this to suppress Trish's upward momentum and incidentally improve her own points in the sequence."

As the two were talking, the atmosphere in the center of the open space suddenly became tense. Cynthia paced with elegant steps to the center of the venue.

"My dear little Trish."

Cynthia opened her mouth, her voice sweet and pleasant, like honey, but every word carried hidden blades:

"Do you really think that ancient book should belong to Lady Corinna?"

"Of course." Trish responded calmly, not overwhelmed by the other party's aura:

"The ancient book clearly records the resonance theory of star mapping and mental fluctuations, which is exactly the focus of Wizard Corinna's recent research."

"Oh?" Cynthia raised an eyebrow:

"It seems you know a lot about the mentors' research. It's really surprising. A newcomer who has just joined the sequence dares to evaluate the work of two mentors. Do you know what this behavior is considered in the candidate wizard sequence?"

"Rude, but I am not rude." Trish replied neither humbly nor arrogantly:

"I am just stating the public data recorded in the school's database. If Senior Sister Cynthia thinks these data are wrong, she can submit a correction application to the school."

The whispers around became more enthusiastic. Many apprentices showed surprise. Trish's response was too calm, not at all like a newcomer who had just become a medium-level apprentice not long ago.

Cynthia's face became more gloomy. Clearly, she didn't expect that the language trap she had carefully designed would be resolved by the other party one by one.

"Good." She suddenly changed her strategy, a dangerous smile appearing at the corner of her mouth:

"Since words cannot resolve the dispute, I propose to decide the ownership of the ancient book in the school's traditional way."