Chapter 209: Chapter 208: Wizard Country and Non-Wizard Country
“Gulp,” Macbeth swallowed the marmalade, closed his eyes to carefully savor the “delicious” taste, and then opened his eyes to look at Richard and the other two. “What are you following me for? It seems you’re all quite curious. Well, it’s no big deal telling you. What I brought you here for is actually quite simple—it’s… to kill someone.”
“Kill someone?” Nancy was taken aback. “Kill who?” Clearly, the person worthy of Macbeth, a certified Wizard, going out of his way to kill was definitely not an ordinary person.
Macbeth smiled lightly and did not directly answer Nancy’s question. Instead, he gestured around the room, asking the three, “Do you see that this inn is quite lively?”
“Uh…” The three of them looked around and indeed found it very lively; most of the seats were filled. To say there was no vacancy was a bit of an exaggeration, but it was almost true. If Macbeth hadn’t been wealthy, they might not have been able to pick out a quiet corner spot.
“Actually, if it were any other day, this inn wouldn’t be this bustling. The reason it’s now is that many people have come to participate in and watch the swordsmanship tournament hosted in Kairo City.”
“Swordsmanship tournament?”
“Mm, the swordsmanship tournament. You don’t need to know exactly what this event is; it’s just something a bunch of people concocted out of boredom,” Macbeth said with a hint of disdain. “Similar events include archery contests, hand-to-hand combat competitions, and the like—there’s no real difference.
You just need to know that Kairo City, which is hosting the swordsmanship tournament, is the capital of this country we’re currently in, called ‘Pu Aiji’.
Pu Aiji, on this island of ‘Lisben,’ used to be a small and inconspicuous nation. However, in the past few years, there have been some changes. The new king, named ‘Amon Huf Regidov,’ is commonly referred to as ‘Amon’ or ‘Hu Fu.’ He’s very young, only in his twenties, and yet his abilities are exceptional.
As a king, not only does he have audacity and methods, but he also has a high level of charm that has made many people loyally follow him. This has led to him doubling Pu Aiji’s territory in less than three years, raising the alarm and enmity of many surrounding nations.
Of course, this wouldn’t be a big problem in and of itself. After all, any country might have an exceptionally outstanding king that makes the nation a bit stronger. However, the problem is that this Amon Huf’s ambition is too great.
After expanding his territory, he didn’t stop but continued to train his army, mined many iron mines, and bought a large number of slaves. It’s said that he’s now even beginning to have people plan a vast tomb for himself so that a few decades from now, when it’s completed, it will match his noble status upon death.
All these are symbols of his ambition; he plans to unify the entire island of ‘Lisben’ and even attack other islands. This is intolerable. And what’s more outrageous is that, to accelerate the achievement of this goal, he’s even trying to turn ‘Pu Aiji’ from a non-Wizard Country into a Wizard Country.”
“Non-Wizard Country? Wizard Country?” Nancy’s eyes flickered with a slight confusion. “What are those?”
“Mm, you haven’t fully entered the Wizard World yet, so it’s normal for you not to understand. I can explain it to you. Non-Wizard Countries and Wizard Countries are classifications made by Wizard Organizations based on the nature of a country.
Generally speaking, an ordinary country is considered a Non-Wizard Country, even if it’s powerful, it’s not particularly dangerous. But a Wizard Country implies that the country has Wizards as an official power of the state.
Whether hired or homegrown, once it has Wizard Level official powers, it means that country poses a certain danger and must be taken seriously. Because a Wizard Country will have an overwhelming advantage over its neighboring Non-Wizard Countries, it could disrupt the regional Balance of Power and could at any time make a lightning-fast annexation.
The rise of such countries can be incredibly swift, and without proper handling, a moment’s hesitation could turn it into an uncontrollable monster. It would then drag the entire world into the quagmire of a Wizards’ war, causing the world to lose Order and become chaotically disordered.
This situation, according to historical records, has occurred several times, each time with great loss. Therefore, to avoid repeating the same disastrous outcomes, all Wizard Organizations remain vigilant to prevent it from happening again.
It’s not to say that any country can’t become a Wizard Country, but Wizard Organizations must carefully consider its position, surrounding environment, and the character and abilities of its ruler.
Previously, on your journey aboard the large ship, the constant extortion you faced indicated that there were quite a few Wizard Countries along the way—only Wizard Countries would dare levy taxes on passing Wizard Ships. But those Wizard Countries had only a handful of wizards each and restrained each other, creating a different form of Balance of Power, posing no danger.
However, Pu Aiji is different, whether it be its location, the region it’s in, or its ruler, it should not become a Wizard Country. Hence, I’ve come.”
“So, the person we need to kill is King Hu Fu,” Richard’s eyes flashed, beginning to understand what a Wizard represented in this world.
A true Wizard was almost equivalent to a Strategic Level weapon on modern Earth. And Wizard Organizations were the manufacturers of these Strategic Level weapons, having to carefully control where these ultimate weapons ended up.
The occasional allocation of a few Strategic Level weapons to a country didn’t affect the regional situation too much. However, it was unacceptable for a single country to possess too many Strategic Level weapons or for a capable country to acquire an excessive number of them, as this might break the regional Balance and potentially allow a country to develop the ability to research Strategic Level weapons independently.
When a country could continuously cultivate new Wizards like a Wizard Organization, the invisible reign of Wizard Organizations over this world could face catastrophic destruction. Driven by interest, Wizard Organizations would by no means allow such a situation to happen; therefore, any signs of it would be immediately snuffed out.
Similar practices exist on modern Earth too. Superpowers can sell or station Strategic Level weapons in smaller countries, but if those smaller nations attempt to develop them independently, they will face devastating consequences.
Indeed, this is a pragmatic world.
Richard muttered to himself internally.
At that moment, Macbeth spoke up, looking towards Richard, “Right, the person we’ve come to kill is King Hu Fu. You’ve answered correctly, but unfortunately, there’s no reward for doing so, ha.”
“Let me put it this way,” Macbeth said, modulating his voice, “Amon Huf is a capable man, and should his country become a Wizard Country, the consequences are unimaginable. Therefore, he must be killed. Fortunately, he’s not difficult to kill; on one hand, he’s just an ordinary person, needing only a simple attack, even a minor injury can lead to his complete death. Furthermore, his temperament is not perfect, so he can be manipulated.
He is somewhat ostentatious, and this swordsmanship competition was held at his behest to satisfy some of his pleasures. Hence, at the final battle of the swordsmanship competition, he will certainly be present to watch.
I’ve brought you here, prepared to disguise myself as a Noble with a Swordsman participating in the competition. If you make it to the finals, I can then move smoothly into the arena of the finals and get close to Hu Fu’s viewing area. When the time comes, once Hu Fu appears, we can strike and kill him directly.
Otherwise, if I try to enter the venue by other means, I may have to kill many people and create many uncertainties, which could also likely lead to chaos and allow Hu Fu to escape.”
“Now you understand what I brought you here for, right?”
“Mhm,” the three Richards nodded.