City Lord?!
He hadn't expected there to be a City Lord in this city-state. If his guess was right, it would be the owner of this slave city-state.
He didn't pay much attention to it.
Before he heard this news, he had always assumed the slave owner was within the city-state.
His mental image of the slave owner was a man with a potbelly, greasy all over, wearing a dozen thumb rings on his ten fingers.
Such people were rich.
Their strength likely wasn't particularly great.
But—
Ultimately, this was just Chen Yu's conjecture. Since it was mentioned, he naturally asked.
"What is the City Lord's strength?"
Suni, who spoke without reservation, shook her head.
"I don't know either," Suni pursed her lips and said. "When I was brought to this city-state, I never even saw the City Lord's face. I just heard that the City Lord is a noble mage, and no one mentioned his strength. But some say he has a very powerful master."
Mage.
Upon hearing this, Chen Yu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
Could it be that undead mage?
This thought suddenly sprouted in Chen Yu's mind.
He had used the return scroll obtained from the undead mage to come to Black City. Suni just mentioned that the City Lord had returned to the city. At that time, Chen Yu had stripped the undead mage bare.
After several days of wandering and returning to this place, the timing seemed to fit.
Most importantly, the City Lord was a mage!
"Undead mage?"
Chen Yu murmured tentatively.
If the City Lord of this city-state was indeed the undead mage, then things would be interesting. He had recently profited handsomely from the undead mage.
And now he was coming to snatch his city.
Thinking of this, Chen Yu couldn't help but sigh in his heart. The undead mage was truly a good person. Not only did he give a batch of resources, but he was also willing to give a city. He was almost feeling embarrassed.
"Achoo!"
At this moment, inside the towering City Lord's castle, a pale young man who had just put on a mage's robe couldn't help but sneeze.
He rubbed his nose for a long time, frowning slightly.
"Why would I sneeze?" the young man muttered in confusion. A burly slave overseer stood at his door, hands clasped.
After muttering for a while.
The pale young man finally put on his robe and then took a portrait from the bedside table, handing it to the overseer at the door.
"Post this portrait."
"Whoever encounters this person and provides valid information will be rewarded with 5 gold. If they can provide precise coordinates, they will be rewarded with 50 gold. If anyone can bring me his head directly, they will be rewarded with 10,000 gold."
Gulp.
The overseer at the door subconsciously swallowed.
10,000 gold.
Could the head of the person in this portrait be worth so much?
It's just that—
He felt a little familiar, yet he couldn't remember where he had seen it.
"Please, City Lord, put it down. I'll go handle it," the overseer said, taking the portrait. The young man, whose face was ashen, called out to him. "Withdraw 1 million gold coins from the treasury for me. I plan to go to the Void Country to buy a set of equipment. Get the money quickly, I need it urgently."
"Uh, this..."
Hearing this, the overseer's expression suddenly stiffened.
"Why are you dazed? Aren't you going to get it?" the young man reprimanded sternly. The overseer's face was filled with unease, and he glanced at the young man, shrinking his neck as he said, "City Lord, we... the treasury doesn't have that much money anymore."
"What?!"
Immediately, anger flashed across the young man's face.
"Where is the money?"
"City Lord, before you left the city, you withdrew 500,000 gold coins. At that time, there weren't many reserve funds left in the city," the overseer whispered.
"I've been away from the city for half a year."
The young man glared at the overseer with wide eyes.
"This city earns at least 500 gold profit a day. Are you telling me that in the past six months, you haven't earned a single coin?"
"City Lord, city construction also requires money," the overseer said with a wry smile.
"Is that so?"
The pale young man suddenly sneered.
"What is the daily income of the city now?"
"2000."
"You're still honest," the young man said, clearly satisfied with this number, and snorted. "If you had lied just now, you would already be a puppet in my hands. Now, explain to me, since the daily income is 2000 gold, why can't you come up with a million?"
"This..." Read books here.
The overseer hesitated to speak.
The young man standing in the bedroom sternly rebuked him.
"Speak!"
"There was a problem with the gambling house," the overseer whispered. "A few days ago, a traveler came to our city, and all our earnings went to her. She bet very aggressively, and she was also incredibly lucky. Whatever she bet on, she won. The other people in the gambling house also bet with her, and our gambling house lost a lot of money these past few days."
The young man in the bedroom remained silent for a long time.
However—
Anyone could see that beneath his seemingly calm eyes, anger churned like waves crashing against a reef.
"You, do you have a brain?" After a long while, the young man leaned forward and whispered, "She wins, and you just let her keep winning? Can't you cheat?! Old Tori, how long have you been with me? I really don't want to suspect you, but you want to enrich yourself."
"City Lord, your subordinate would not dare!"
The overseer, kneeling on the ground, kowtowed repeatedly. The young man standing before him watched him coldly.
"Then, give me an explanation."
"We did, but..." the overseer gritted his teeth and said, "The other party seems to be a master as well. Even though we rigged the dice, when they were opened, they turned out to be what she bet on?"
"Oh?"
"City Lord, if you don't believe me, you can go and see for yourself. She is still in our gambling house. This person is also very strange. After winning money at the gambling house, she still spends it in our city-state. After spending the money, she wins it back again. Our city-state's income hasn't changed much, but the female escorts in the taverns and the slaves have earned a lot."
...
Under the cover of night.
Chen Yu, wrapped in a magic cloak, and Suni hid behind a building in the city-state.
"Young Master Chen, we've seen all the garrison points," Suni whispered, holding a laundry basket. "I also saw the canteen. I should go back. I've been gone for too long, and the overseers will be suspicious."
Chen Yu nodded slightly.
They had indeed taken a look at all the garrison points in the city, and Chen Yu now had a rough idea of the troop strength in Black City. Hearing that Suni was about to leave, Chen Yu frowned.
"Why are you still going back?"
"Just come with me. Why are you still staying in this Black City?"
"I~" Suni pursed her lips. "I want to stay here and earn some more money so I can repay you the money you used to redeem my sister."
"Ha?!"
Chen Yu was surprised.
Earn money.
It was actually possible to earn money in this Black City.
"I don't need you to repay that money," Chen Yu said softly. "Your sister misses you too. Just come with me. What money can you earn here? It would be better if you came back with me. If you really want to repay me, just stay and help in my camp."
Unexpectedly, Suni shook her head.
"I can earn."
"And I can earn a lot."
"Ah?"
Chen Yu was completely confused, and then he heard Suni whisper.
"In the past few days, a strange person has come to the city."