Wildness and Masks

"Lightning Eel."

Ogre muttered the scientific name of the unremarkable freshwater eel as he gazed at it.

Ogre was cautious about consuming creatures with elemental powers. Firstly, he wasn't sure what he would gain or if there were any risks involved in absorbing it.

Secondly, he didn't want to waste this opportunity on a minor elemental skill.

But the Lightning Eel was an exception.

According to the records in books.

This magical creature from deep inland lakes possessed lightning power that didn't originate from mana.

Research by the Church of Truth indicated that the lightning power of the Lightning Eel came from its own muscles and blood, and once it died, it couldn't retain this power, turning into an ordinary dead fish.

Tests showed that its mana reaction was even weaker than that of a Magic Rabbit.

Weak and unique, these two traits perfectly matched Ogre's requirements.

Ogre was certain that by using his ability to digest it, he could definitely gain lightning power!

And it wouldn't take too long to digest.

As for side effects, Ogre wasn't sure.

But he was confident that the benefits would outweigh the drawbacks, and he might truly absorb this power structure.

"Let's give it a try. It can't be that bad."

The first creature Ogre ever ate was an ordinary bird, and he didn't gain any flying power from it, nor did he grow feathers and become strange.

Ogre deduced that acquiring such abilities was more about self-modification and compatibility—and it hardly ever enhanced him.

That's why he considered the lightning power of the Lightning Eel so precious, because the book recorded that its lightning power was linked to its muscles and blood.

In other words, as long as he kept training, he could strengthen this power. Since the power came from muscles, the probability of successfully absorbing it might also increase significantly.

"Customer, are you interested in the fish here?" The vendor had quite a few fish in the tank behind him.

Selling fish in the Black Market was indeed rare.

Ogre was curious about why the vendor used such a large area behind him just for fish... Could he really make a profit?

The rent for a stall in the Black Market was fifty Silver Coins a day, enough to buy a finely crafted silver-scaled breastplate.

Moreover, Ogre had never seen anyone take fish home as magical pets—except for beautiful mermaid slaves.

Creatures in the water were much harder to sell than those on land.

Could the fish be a cover for some secret or intelligence exchange?

"I want that one." Ogre stopped pondering the backstory—he was genuinely here to buy fish.

"Fifteen Gold Coins." The fish vendor stroked his little mustache and gave a wicked smile.

"Lightning Eel, the lowest tier of Transcendent Demon Beasts, why is it so expensive?" Ogre tried to haggle.

Fifteen Gold Coins was indeed a bit much, and his money didn't grow on trees.

"It's troublesome to transport them here, and I have to help you take it away. It's a hassle, after all, fish die easily without water, and I only have a few tanks, so I have to sell the fish along with the tank water. Of course, if you have a contract scroll, you can buy it separately."

The mustached fish vendor made a valid point. Since this was the magical pet area, buyers were either sorcerers or wealthy eccentrics, and they definitely wanted them alive.

Unless the buyer was willing to use a twenty Gold Coin contract scroll to bind this useless thing.

"Not selling separately? But I only want one, dead is fine too." Ogre pointed to the smallest one in the tank with the Lightning Eel.

This action made the vendor pause for a moment: "You only want one? Dead is fine?"

As a seller, he had no right to ask what the buyer intended to do with the fish, only to emphasize the buyer's needs.

"I just want to taste it. I've heard the Lightning Eel tastes quite good."

Ogre said as he tapped the mask on his face, indicating his identity.

"Oh! It's you, I didn't expect you to live up to your name. You really are an expert. The taste of the Lightning Eel is indeed much better than regular eel." Hearing this, the vendor suddenly realized.

Ogre was quite well-known in this area.

Even some Professionals had heard of him, as everyone paid attention to promising new stars.

Moreover, he was the top fighter in the city's Apprentice Arena. Even if they hadn't seen him, they should have heard of him. There had been quite a few betting matches related to Ogre, the King of the Arena, over the past year.

"How much?" Ogre asked calmly.

The vendor held up one finger: "One Gold Coin!"

Ogre glanced at the tank specifically for the Lightning Eel.

There were quite a few fish in there, about seven or eight.

"Alright." One Gold Coin was acceptable to Ogre. It's normal for things in the Black Market to be overpriced.

Compared to traveling far to catch Lightning Eels in distant deep-water lakes, one Gold Coin wasn't expensive.

Moreover, this Gold Coin wasn't just for buying fish.

"Uh... How about I pick a bigger one for you?" Seeing Ogre agree so readily, the vendor felt a bit uneasy.

How could someone not haggle? Was he planning to set him up?

Or perhaps he had guessed wrong, and this guy wasn't just here to buy fish?

But he hadn't mentioned who referred him.

"No need, I just want the small one." Ogre saw the vendor shrink back and knew what he was thinking.

But he didn't mind and still took out a Gold Coin: "Since you got the Lightning Eel from deep-water lakes in other cities, you should have your own information channels, right?"

"That's a different price." The vendor didn't deny it.

This made the corners of Ogre's mouth curl into a smile under his mask. He had guessed correctly—this guy was actually an intelligence dealer.

These fish represented his information on the corresponding regions.

Ogre tossed the Gold Coin to the mustached vendor and asked his question: "Do you know where to get genuine forbidden potions?"

This question made the vendor's face change noticeably.

Although there were forbidden potions for sale in the Black Market, they were all inferior. Genuine forbidden potions could only be bought from real wizard organizations.

They usually didn't circulate outside.

"I need to confirm, are you looking for a finished potion channel or a forbidden potion recipe?" the vendor asked cautiously, as there was a big difference between the two, though neither was simple.

Was this guy planning to join a wizard organization by buying forbidden potions?

He had a promising future as a Martial Artist, so why take this crooked path?

"I just need you to tell me where I can get genuine forbidden potions." Ogre was making preparations for both possibilities.

"I can't give you the exact location, but I can tell you which city and area you can find them for trade..."

The vendor rubbed his fingers together, indicating that as long as he was needed, he was safe.

In this line of work, you needed to be bold. As long as the profit margin reached three hundred percent, he'd even sell his family!

Well, if he had any family or friends left.

"How much?" Ogre asked coldly.

"Two hundred, no, just one hundred Gold Coins..."

"Then I'll find someone else. Just give me the fish."

Looking at this greedy guy, Ogre felt speechless—were all unscrupulous merchants so money-hungry?

"Eighty, just eighty Gold Coins, and I'll tell you." The mustached vendor quickly put on a smile—how could he let a deal slip away?

"Ten, or I'd rather ask those potion sellers." Ogre wouldn't agree so readily this time, as that would make him an easy target.

Not to mention he didn't have eighty on him right now, even if he did, he wouldn't give it.

His earlier quick agreement was just to prove he had money.

"Theirs are defective, from wild wizards, but mine is..."

The mustached vendor stopped mid-sentence, realizing he had been tricked by Ogre.

"Twenty at most. To be honest, I don't have much money on me."

Ogre took out a small pouch and then a few more Gold Coins from his bag—these were his winnings from today's match.

Although this wasn't all the Gold Coins he had, it was close enough. Ogre wouldn't carry all his savings with him.

Looking at the money pouch in Ogre's hand, the mustached vendor swallowed. This was undoubtedly a lucrative deal, and earning some extra cash shouldn't be a problem: "Add five more, and I'll tell you."

"I only have twenty-two on me." Ogre shook the money pouch and placed it in front of the mustached vendor.

The vendor hesitated for a moment, then seemed to make a decision and nodded: "Alright, I'll consider it as making a friend." Earning a little less was better than nothing; that ticket was worth at most three Gold Coins.

Ogre naturally didn't believe the nonsense of these intelligence dealers, especially the part about making friends—this guy even dared to sell wizard information, let alone friends.

But he did lack his own information channels, so the deal was a necessity.

"I need to see the goods first." Ogre said in a deep voice.

"Alright, please wait a moment." The mustached vendor seemed in a particularly good mood after completing a deal.

After rummaging through some boxes.

Finally, a scroll was presented to Ogre.

Ogre took the scroll and found it was an identity magic scroll, somewhat similar to the barrier outside the Black Market.

"The magic on it can last for four months, my customer. At the end of each month, for three days, a trade is held there, and you can buy what you need."

"Where is there?" Ogre asked.

The mustached vendor just smiled and stared at the money pouch in Ogre's hand.

Seeing this, Ogre didn't hesitate and handed it over.

The mustached vendor took out a few Gold Coins and bit them, then he piled on a smile again, gesturing for Ogre to come closer.

Ogre glanced around, then looked at the small vendor in front of him and leaned in a bit.

"Seris City, Dole Street, Thirteen Peach Tavern..."

"Seris City..."

Ogre didn't doubt the mustached vendor's information—if intelligence dealers sold false information, they wouldn't last in this business.

It's just that Seris City was a bit far from here.

"In a month or two, can I buy a ticket from you? Can you arrange it?" Ogre added a layer of insurance, indicating he would continue to do business with the vendor.

In Seris City, horse-drawn carriages might not be feasible. It would take months to walk there, and the best option was the Church of Truth's steam train.

But that required a registered national Professional or noble to purchase.

"Of course, my customer, just prepare the Gold Coins by then." The mustached vendor chuckled.

He understood what these Professionals were thinking—wasn't it just lacking legal status?

This was simple, just forge one, he was familiar with it.

Unless something unexpected happened—like a bishop-level knight from the Church of Truth personally checking, otherwise, there'd be no problem.

"Then give me the fish." Ogre put away the ticket and pointed at the tank.

"Uh, alright, please wait a moment."

The vendor gave Ogre a strange look, realizing this guy really was here to buy fish. Then he put on insulated gloves, picked up a net, and scooped out the smallest one.

The Lightning Eel, suddenly pulled out of the water, struggled and released electricity, but it didn't harm the prepared vendor. Instead, it stunned itself, saving the trouble of killing it.

Ogre was taken aback—how could it electrocute itself?

It was the first time he had seen a creature that harmed itself with its attack.

'This fish must have a screw loose...'

But then he thought about how even mages couldn't withstand their own magic, and Ogre felt at ease.

It was probably just a dumb fish.

"Goodbye, customer." The vendor even included a net bag for Ogre to carry the fish.

After Ogre left completely, the vendor took off his gloves and weighed the money pouch Ogre had given him.

Then he smiled.

Compared to the previous sycophantic smile.

His smile now seemed more natural and meaningful.

"Tsk, young people, just a little act, and they believe it..."

Not that he sold fake goods or false information—he just played with semantics.

Wizard organizations were indeed hard to find and couldn't be casually revealed, but wizards needed to trade, and trading places weren't that hard to find. As long as the place was big enough, it would definitely attract wizards.

...

Ogre, of course, didn't know that the ticket he bought could actually be purchased at the trading place for just three Gold Coins...

Ogre had overestimated the conscience of unscrupulous merchants.

But even if he knew, Ogre probably wouldn't care much, at most just hold a grudge—

It was just a spur-of-the-moment inquiry, also to confuse others and prevent them from linking his abilities.

Matters that could be resolved with existing money weren't really matters.

At least, Ogre was in a pretty good mood now.

Because he was about to complete this 'meal.'