Genius Mage and the Heroic Girl

Chapter 4: Blado Port

Six hundred miles away from the academy, at Blado Port.

The sun was shining, the weather was clear, and seagulls were circling above the cargo ships and fishing boats. The breeze blowing in their faces carried a faint fishy scent, the aroma of the ocean.

Although it was only early morning, the dock had already become lively. Porters were carrying boxes and baskets, sailors were humming foreign tunes while repairing the hull and scrubbing the deck, and a mustached tax official was seriously counting and calculating the goods. Children from fishing families were running and playing barefoot, weaving through the crowd.

When they passed by you, you had to be careful. Don't be deceived by their innocent faces. There might be nimble little thieves among them. Not long ago, Robb had personally witnessed an eight or nine-year-old boy quietly stealing the personal purse of a merchant from the Free City-States.

After the little boy succeeded, he even winked at the dumbfounded Robb and curled his lips into a smug smile.

The Thieves' Guild had always thrived in Blado Port. They selected promising recruits from the children of poor families, first providing them with professional training, and then signing contracts with them. According to the contract, half of the income these kids earned in the first five or ten years had to be turned over to the guild.

As one of the seven major ports of the Lionheart Empire, Blado was a prosperous trading hub with countless merchant ships coming and going every day, never lacking wealthy foreigners to target. Especially those dwarves, they always drank themselves into a stupor. Forget about money pouches, they wouldn't even notice if someone pulled off their underpants. The next day, they would open their eyes and find themselves lying n***d in some shabby alley.

Robb and his companion were doing quite well. Because of the imposing armor worn by the knight escort, few people would trouble them along the way. Robb had long taken off the mage robe gifted to him by the Sea Witch Queen, which was said to have the "strongest defense below divine artifacts". He wore a coarse linen shirt that could be seen everywhere on the street and claimed to be the knight's servant.

It had to be admitted that Third Prince had indeed considered things very thoroughly.

With Sarmi the knight escort accompanying him, Robb didn't need to use magic to escape. Naturally, the people sent by the academy to catch him couldn't detect magical fluctuations. Plus, with Sarmi's identity as a royal knight, they successfully fooled the search-experienced guys from the Second Knight Regiment.

The first thing Robb did after escaping from the academy was to strip off all his extremely luxurious magic equipment and hand it over to a trusted mage under the Third Prince.

It would be a lie to say he didn't feel heartache. With Robb's identity and status, his set of top-grade equipment could buy four or five medium-sized towns. However, compared to the long-awaited freedom, it was nothing.

Speaking of which, the old mage responsible for the handover was truly startled to suddenly receive so many extravagant dream equipment. He couldn't help but have the wicked thought of running away with the loot, but considering the consequences of doing so - being jointly wanted by the royal family and the Mage Association - the old mage had to forcibly suppress his greed. After all, no matter how vast the Dawn Continent was, there would probably be no place for him to hide.

However, although he couldn't take it away, there was no harm in trying it on. The old mage armed himself to the teeth with this top-grade equipment, disguised himself as Robb, and led the elites of the Second Knight Regiment to wander around the wilderness, looking quite impressive. It wasn't until the seventh day, when he ran out of mana, that he was captured by Captain Richard. But that's a story for later.

Let's turn our attention back to the future Supreme Archmage.

Robb had been in a great mood these past few days. He had finally escaped from that terrifying magic prison, and everything he saw along the way was particularly pleasing to the eye. Moreover, the accompanying knight escort had been trained by the Third Prince to perfection, well-versed in the art of conversation, knowing what this young master wanted to hear the most. All along the way, he had been helping the boy paint a beautiful future.

The knight escort said, "Robb, sir, your departure is like a tiger descending the mountain or a dragon entering the abyss. In the future, you will surely write a legendary tale of your own. This humble one is so fortunate to be able to accompany you. Perhaps in the future, I might even appear in the history books. My life will be worth it!"

Robb was still a bit shy and quickly waved his hand. "I actually don't want to become a legend. I just hope to live like an ordinary person, marry a wife, have children, and live happily through this life."

"Does sir have a lady in mind?" the knight escort asked, leaning in.

"Not yet," Robb said, blushing. He didn't dare tell Sarmi that he was almost twenty years old but had never been in a relationship. This was really an embarrassing thing for a man.

The knight escort became interested. "Hey, choosing a wife is a big deal. Women from different places are very different. Women from the south have a gentle nature. Tsk tsk, their skin is so soft, like touching silk. Women from the north are passionate and aggressive, performing the wildest in bed. Elven women are the most beautiful, with an innate noble bearing, but unfortunately, most of them look down on humans. Beastmen women have a different charm. Among them, cat and fox tribe girls are the most popular in the human world. It's said that there are even people with unique tastes who like those female dwarves who don't bathe for ten to fifteen days. Tsk tsk, the world is so vast, nothing is too strange. Also, Robb, sir, remember, no matter who you choose, don't go for women from the capital. They are the most calculating."

Even Robb, a novice in love, could hear the bitterness in the knight escort's last half-sentence. Judging from Sarmi's drooping face, his love life probably hadn't been smooth either. Robb sympathetically patted the knight escort's shoulder.

Sarmi adjusted himself quite quickly and soon returned to his grinning self. He had booked the ship tickets, departing in a magic hour. Robb hadn't decided where to go yet, but they happened to meet a ship owner who planned to travel around the world. The two decided to board the ship first and then decide.

Seeing that there was still some time before the ship's departure, the knight escort took the future Supreme Archmage to the city to satisfy his appetite.

The most famous delicacy in Blado Port was the Green-Backed Pricklefish Feast. Because green-backed pricklefish were rare, a table of fish feast required a full twenty gold coins. This sky-high price made most ordinary people sigh in frustration at the unattainable dish.

Of course, Robb was no ordinary person. Although he had fled in a hurry without bringing a single copper coin, the knight escort had brought a lot of money. Third Prince had instructed that all expenses along the way would be covered by him. The prince had only one requirement, which was to make sure Robb was happy. The more money spent, the greater the reward Sarmi would receive upon return. Unfortunately, they had come at the wrong time. This delicacy could only be eaten in December each year. The knight escort was quite regretful. It was a rare opportunity to dine lavishly using public funds, but he couldn't seize it well.

Unable to have the Green-Backed Pricklefish Feast, the two could only settle for the next best thing. They found the largest inn in town and ordered a table of the most expensive dishes, planning to reward themselves before setting sail.

Just as they had picked up their knives and forks, ready to dig in, a commotion suddenly erupted at the city gate.

The knight escort stuck his head out of the window, and his pupils instantly contracted.

White steeds, silver armor, swords forged from refined steel, and the lion carved on the left chest - the attire of these sixty-two uninvited guests charging through the city gate was so similar to his. The only difference was the color of the cape.

The capes behind them were the red of orthodox royal knights, while Sarmi's cape was the green of a knight escort.

"s**t, this is bad! It's the lords of the Sixth Knight Regiment," the knight escort exclaimed.

However, those royal knights, who looked imposing and magnificent in the eyes of ordinary people, were not the most dazzling existence among this group. Compared to the tall, white-haired old man they surrounded, these valiant and handsome knights were like wild monkeys popping out of some mountain valley.

The old man wore a pointed wizard's hat and a black mage robe. Elemental flows accompanied his every move. In his left hand, he carried a staff with a slightly charred top, the famous Star Luo's Eye from the Second Magic War. And in his right hand, he held a young man with a pained expression - the empire's Third Prince.

So this time, it was the future Supreme Archmage's turn to exclaim, "s**t! The Vice Principal!"