Chapter 427: The Extraordinary Youngster with an Impressive Background
"Oh? Is someone really providing relief for the refugees?"
As Ophelit lifted the curtain and looked outside, Nipede, seated opposite him, also took in the sight outside the carriage window and saw the source of the commotion.
This took Nipede by surprise, and also brought him some comfort.
"It’s rare to encounter such kind-hearted people."
Not only was Nipede sighing at this, but Antie, too, seemed to be curious about the situation outside, gazing out of the carriage while directing her attention to the three people distributing food.
"Eh?"
Very quickly, Antie noticed one of the three people.
"That little sister in the middle is so pretty, Grandpa."
Antie was attracted to the exceptionally beautiful girl with a lovely figure, who was a bit flustered as she handed out the food.
"Indeed, she is quite beautiful." Naturally, Nipede had also noticed the strikingly noticeable girl, nodding his head and stroking his beard, "With such beauty, she mustn’t come from an ordinary family."
"Isn’t that obvious?" Antie agreed with her grandfather’s point of view, "An ordinary family wouldn’t have the resources to aid so many refugees, and, Grandpa, did you notice that meat?"
"Of course." Nipede smiled and said, "Although it’s faint, there is still undissipated Magic Power lingering on the meat; that’s probably not ordinary meat, but the flesh of magical beasts."
What Nipede said attracted the attention of Ophelit, who had been staring earnestly outside.
"Magic beast meat?" Ophelit was quite astonished, "Are those people actually using the precious meat of magical beasts to help the refugees?"
"That’s right." Nipede affirmed with confidence, "It seems that the master of these people is a very generous individual indeed."
As he spoke, Nipede almost subconsciously turned his gaze toward the carriage that was stopped on the main road.
Antie and Ophelit likewise turned their gaze and took a look.
The next second, all three of them saw at the same time the youth standing in front of the carriage, gazing in the direction of Karudy.
"That young man..."
Nipede’s eyes twinkled, and his expression gradually became profound.
"Who is he?"
Antie developed a bit of curiosity about that youth.
Ophelit scrutinized the young man for a while, silently contemplating, before gesturing to Vite outside the window after a moment.
"Do you know who that person is?"
Ophelit pointed in the direction of the young man, asking Vite and a group of gate guards.
Vite and the guards exchanged glances with each other.
"I’m sorry, we don’t know that person." Vite replied respectfully to Ophelit, "He has a very unfamiliar face; he is probably not a local from around here."
Vite was the captain of the guard, having watched over the gates in Karudy for four or five years, he had some knowledge of the appearances of the nobles and wealthy merchants who often came and went through Karudy’s gates.
If even he hadn’t seen the person before, it proved unlikely that the individual was a local from the nearby area.
Unless, as a local, he had never once come to Karudy.
But was that possible?
Karudy was the wealthiest city in the Mepros territory; while average citizens and refugees might be dismissed, anyone with a bit of wealth certainly wouldn’t miss the chance to visit this town.
Since he had the ability to aid so many refugees here, it meant the person must be a rich and influential figure, very likely a scion of a great noble family.
The offspring of a great noble family, upon hearing rumors about Karudy, would find it improbable not to visit and take a look.
After all, not only does Karudy have many famous craftsmen who create weapons and armor, but it is also home to renowned Alchemy Mages who produce numerous magic item goods; anyone with a bit of money would want to see for themselves, and the rich and carefree heirs of noble families would be especially interested in the vast array of equipment and items in Karudy.
Even Nipede, a great Magician, couldn’t help stopping by Karudy while passing through, not necessarily without the thought of seeing what excellent items might be available.
Antie was the same, initially curious about Karudy and even looking forward to finding powerful magical items here, until she met Ophelit, and her mood took a sharp downturn.
Under such circumstances, Vite was confident that the person was an out-of-towner, not a local from the nearby area.
"Is that so?" Ophelit narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Looking at his attire, he doesn’t seem to come from a very influential background; he might just happen to come from a somewhat wealthy family."
At least, that was what Ophelit hoped for.
Unfortunately, that hope was shattered in the next moment.
"You are mistaken, Master Ophelit." As Nipede still stroked his beard, his gaze remained fixed on the youth, he smiled and said, "That young man’s background is definitely not ordinary; that much is certain."
"Why?" Antie asked her grandfather with some confusion, "That man’s attire does seem quite plain; how did you determine that he comes from an extraordinary background?"
"You can’t judge a person solely by their appearance, Antie." Nipede touched the ring on his finger and said, "Look at the decorations the young man is wearing on his person; those are all magical items."
"Of course I know that’s a Magic artifact." Antie was not so ignorant as to miss that, but she said, "Yet Magic artifacts aren’t just possessed by the extraordinary, anyone with a bit of money can usually get their hands on one, so that doesn’t really prove anything, right?"
"The problem is that I can’t even make out the details of those Magic artifacts." Nipede said with a wry smile, "The glove and the Amulet are manageable; judging from the way Magic Power is released, they should not be particularly rare or precious items, but the pendant hanging around that young man’s neck and the ring he wears are different."
As someone regarded as a master, Nipede, who had lived to this age, certainly was not lacking in insight and experience.
He was especially outstanding in the perception of Magic and Magic Power and could easily see through most people’s backgrounds. He also had his own methods for identifying magical items such as Magic artifacts.
From Nipede’s perspective, the Magic artifacts the young man wore, particularly the emerald pendant and the dragon claw gemstone ring, were quite remarkable. Both in the flow of Magic Power and in their operating mechanisms, they were not comparable to ordinary Magic artifacts.
Therefore, Nipede could be certain that those two items were exceedingly powerful and precious treasures, likely relics from the ancient Magic civilization that had survived to this day.
Especially that emerald pendant, it felt to Nipede as though it might be even more valuable and powerful than all the Magic artifacts he himself possessed.
How could such treasures possibly be purchased with money?
That’s why Nipede dared to assert that this young man’s background was anything but ordinary.
Moreover, the young man himself was also strange. Despite his elegant bearing, he was practically unnoticeable; to Nipede’s perception, he was like utterly transparent, and if the other hadn’t stood boldly in front of him, he might not have noticed his presence at all.
Nipede had even tried to sense the other’s Magic Power and had leveraged the power of one of the rings he wore to enhance his perception of Magic Power.
However, Nipede felt nothing at all, as if there were no Magic Power present in the other person whatsoever.
This was intriguing.
In this world, there are many people with faint Magic Power, but those without any Magic Power at all don’t exist.
Everyone has Magic Power; it’s just a matter of more or less.
The fact that he couldn’t sense Magic Power from the individual was already highly telling.
"Hmm?"
As Nipede observed the young man carefully, he noticed that the other had also cast his gaze this way.
He looked over calmly, with a plain expression, a pair of eyes shimmering with a transparent luster, giving Nipede the feeling of being seen through completely.
"Interesting." Nipede smiled and turned to Ophelit, saying, "I beg your pardon, Young Master Ophelit, but could you please wait here for a moment?"
"What’s the matter?" Ophelit asked in mild surprise, eagerly inquiring, "Is there something the master needs to do? I can instruct the knights to serve you!"
"No, this is not a task for others." Nipede smiled repeatedly, peculiarly, and said, "I just wish to meet a young man who is both intriguing and accomplished."
Speaking so, Nipede rose to his feet and stepped out of the carriage.
"Wait for me! Grandfather!"
Antie quickly followed suit.
She was joking—she’d rather chat with the refugees than be alone with that nauseating young lord.
Furthermore, Antie was also curious about the young man who was about her own age.
Thus, Nipede and Antie left the carriage together and stepped down from the coach.
Watching this scene, Ophelit’s expression faded from his face.
No longer courteous, no longer smiling, his face darkened, eyes gleaming with a predatory light, like a tiger ready to devour its prey.
"Jack."
Ophelit called out expressionlessly.
"Present."
The response came from the fourth individual sitting beside Ophelit, who had remained silent the entire time.
He was a lean figure dressed in Swordsman’s attire, holding a sword in his hand, with a rigid face that made him seem like a moving corpse.
Just sitting there in silence made him seem chilling; if it weren’t for the fact that the other occupants of the carriage were far from ordinary, normal people wouldn’t have dared to share a space with him, let alone speak to him.
Ophelit was commanding this Swordsman called Jack with an air of superiority.
"Go and check who that young man and the people around him are," Ophelit ordered, "especially that young man, investigate thoroughly for me."
Jack stiffly nodded and then vanished from the carriage.
Only after this did Ophelit turn his gaze back outside the carriage, fixating on the girl distributing food, his eyes filled with infatuation.
"So beautiful."
"Such a beautiful girl has taken the initiative to come to me; how can I, the young lord, refuse to accept her?"
"A pity I need to maintain appearances for now, and must therefore proceed slowly..."