novelraw Chapter 149: The Wizard’s Reward
Chapter 149: The Wizard’s Reward
“Probably just a coincidence. Besides, this is only my second time here. Maybe next time the sky will be clear.”
Leon smiled as he spoke, taking a piece of Prismatic Slime Jelly from his backpack and handing it to Rasmodius.
“Hmm, just what I needed. I didn’t expect you to get it so quickly. I thought I’d have to wait at least a week, maybe even a month.” Rasmodius accepted the Prismatic Slime Jelly and, with a wave of his hand, swept away all the rainwater clinging to Leon’s raincoat along with the mud on his pants.
“Come in. Since you’ve brought me the Prismatic Slime Jelly, it’s time I gave you the promised reward.”
Leon stepped into the Wizard’s Tower, watching as Rasmodius carried the jelly behind a section of wall and disappeared for over a minute. When he returned, he held two things.
“Here—5,000 gold. And here—an interesting potion recipe along with a finished product. Which will you take as your reward?”
In Rasmodius’s left hand was a thick stack of bills; in his right, a bottle of dark purple liquid with a sheet of purple paper pressed beneath it. Leon hesitated.
Money could always be earned. But this potion and its recipe might be a once-in-a-lifetime find. Still, giving up 5,000 gold for a potion with unknown effects was hard to swallow.
“Can I take both?”
After mulling it over, Leon decided he wasn’t going to choose at all. The choice was too difficult—better to toss it back to Rasmodius, the one who posed the question.Normally, saying something like that would get him looked down on—or even tossed straight out of the Wizard’s Tower—but Leon figured Rasmodius wouldn’t go that far.
To his surprise, Rasmodius actually handed over both the money and the mysterious potion with its recipe.
“You’re greedy,” Rasmodius said with a smile, “but I appreciate your bluntness.”
“So you were teasing me?” Leon grinned as he pocketed the gold and took the mysterious potion and recipe.
System Prompt:
Learnable recipe detected—Monster Perfume.
Required ingredients: Bat Wing ×30, Slime Jelly ×30.
Monster Perfume: Apply this to attract more monsters to seek you out.
Along with the potion and recipe came two crisp system notifications.
“Interesting, isn’t it? I like observing how ordinary people behave when faced with a choice. It has research value,” Rasmodius said with a playful glint in his eye.
“In truth, the money is your actual reward. The recipe and potion are an investment. In the future, I may need you to collect special materials found only on monsters. Naturally, there will be payment.”
He continued, “This potion can draw more monsters to you, helping you gather materials faster and gain more combat experience. A good support tool for the job.”
Taking back the bottle from Leon, Rasmodius poured a little of the dark purple liquid onto Leon’s raincoat. It evaporated instantly, leaving behind a strange smell.
It wasn’t unbearable—more like burnt rubber mixed with car exhaust.
“So… how effective is this? I’m not going to end up swarmed and beaten to death, right?” Leon asked, sniffing the odd scent.
“Unlikely,” Rasmodius replied. “It simply produces a scent that monsters notice. It’s not a taunt puppet.”
“What’s a taunt puppet?” Leon asked curiously.
“A magical tool that draws monster attention to help you escape. Adventurers often use them. If you’re interested, buy one from the Pelican Town Adventurer’s Guild,” Rasmodius explained.
Leon nodded, making a mental note. If they weren’t too expensive, he figured it would be worth keeping a few in his backpack as a backup plan—something to buy him time to run if things went south.
“Well, I’ve paid you, and I have what I wanted. You should go.”
Seeing Leon dawdle, Rasmodius reminded him.
“Huh? But isn’t it almost lunchtime? How about I stay and eat with you?” Leon suggested eagerly.
After all, since he was already here, it wouldn’t hurt to build more rapport with this powerful figure. Who knew—he might score something extra. Plus, Leon was curious about what someone like Rasmodius actually ate. Or did he just absorb energy like a plant doing photosynthesis?
But Rasmodius only gave Leon a sidelong glance—and the next moment, Leon’s vision blurred. When it cleared, he was standing under the largest ancient tree in the Coal Forest.
…
Leon looked around awkwardly. He’d been forcibly sent away. What puzzled him was why Rasmodius hadn’t sent him directly to the farm.
Sure, this spot was close, but he still had to walk a few minutes.
Glancing at his watch, it was only 10:30. Too early to do much back at the farm. So he turned south toward the small pier to try out his new fishing rod.
Halfway there, he noticed a commotion to the west. The ground trembled underfoot—it was hard to ignore. Curiosity piqued, Leon wondered what was happening.
If memory served, west of the Coal Forest was the Secret Woods. Aside from forageables and hardwood stumps, it was mostly home to Slimes. But Slimes couldn’t possibly cause that much noise.
So Leon set off toward the west without hesitation. He wasn’t worried—he had Forest Magic, after all. The forest itself would protect him. That was his confidence.
The deeper he went, the denser the woods became. Eventually, he had to weave around thick tree trunks to move forward. Grass and vines blanketed the ground, leaving little bare earth. It was a tight squeeze.
By now, the commotion had stopped, as if whatever happened was over. Still, Leon wasn’t about to turn back empty-handed.
And since Rasmodius hadn’t appeared to stop him, that meant the situation probably wasn’t as dangerous as he’d imagined. If it were, the so-called guardian of the forest would’ve intervened already.