I think you can't even imagine the happiness of a warlock.

After realizing the practice of obtaining additional spellcasting abilities in a slightly less safe way, Rufus almost immediately concluded that someone in the Alchemy Society might have such a plan.

It is because of too much understanding that it leads to suspicion.

Therefore, he no longer wasted his energy on asking people to invest in him, and rushed to North City, the front line bordering the grassland in the north.

It is said that various accidents occur there all year round due to wars, and the death rate is slightly higher than elsewhere in the kingdom. People often disappear for no apparent reason - it is said that they were scouts of the orc tribe who died.

But in Rufus' view, those weird and bizarre incidents might not all be due to the harassment of orcs...

……

After bidding farewell to the prosperous young alchemist, when Chen Zhou returned to the guest house, he found that the Penguin had returned from the Alchemy Association and Meta Town.

"How was your communication? Can you confirm the evidence that Norton transmitted scraps?"

Chen Zhou wondered, is the Penguin who traveled thousands of miles to other dimensions to investigate evidence of crimes more like a kind of interdimensional detective than a special envoy?

"In fact, the lamplighters themselves are also a variant of investigators, and their main job is also investigation."

Shushu promptly gave an explanation. Of course, this investigator was not that investigator.

Cthulhu and the like, coming to the magical world is actually not that dangerous.

"Hey, should we say that the negotiation has been completed or that the negotiation has not been completed?"

Faced with Chen Zhou's curiosity, Tira didn't know how to sum it up: "The process of exchanging alchemical knowledge was indeed smooth. They also invited me to go to the front line to observe the battles of the latest batch of steam knights and a mysterious alchemy application plan. "

"Mysterious plan?" This attracted Xiao Hei's attention. "As far as I know, when humanoids give up on such things, it often means that it is an unspeakable event."

"Yes, Shushu thinks there are quite a lot of Riddlers."

Chen Zhou nodded, yes, but now he can kill the Riddler through "Detection of Thoughts".

"Ahem, your focus is always very strange."

Tila waved her hands in an exaggerated manner, making one worry whether her feathers would fall off.

"The big plan mentioned by the Alchemy Association is probably an initiative to use alchemy in combat or people's livelihood."

According to her investigation during this period, it is obvious that alchemy has entered every corner of the Norton Kingdom, and even ordinary civilians can enjoy the convenience brought by alchemy with a meager salary.

With such a high popularity of alchemy, it is not an exaggeration to call it "high magic".

It's just that because the alchemy used by the Norton Kingdom has huge flaws, the harm they are about to face is equally serious.

"I'm very curious about how the Norton Kingdom's Alchemy Association is preparing to deal with the upcoming side effects of alchemy. Maybe their big plan to let me visit this time is related to it."

Portal?

Tila felt an ominous premonition inexplicably. Could it be that they were preparing to transfer the polluted land to other planes through the portal, and then pull new materials from the inner realm?

Don’t do that kind of thing. If such a major disaster cannot be prevented, the principal of the Monopoly Association may beat her to death...

"So we also want to go to the front line with you?" Chen Zhou suddenly remembered what Rufus said before leaving. There must be major hidden dangers in North City on the front line.

"That's right!"

Tira nodded seriously: "Anyway, we are going to the Frostfall Land in the north to investigate the Great River Territory. We just happened to be on the way."

Chen Zhou, who already felt that something major was going to happen in North City, had no choice but to join in the fun... After all, he still had to go to the north to assassinate the Earl of Frostfall.

three days later.

The three astral adventurers, who had completed academic exchanges, investigations, and travels in Meta Town, followed the caravan's carriage on their journey to the north.

After looking at the scenery along the way, I realized that there was more than one place in the Norton Kingdom that was contaminated by alchemical waste.

This century-old pollution is so abnormal that even Tila can't help but wonder why the people in this country haven't changed due to the toxins permeating the atmosphere and water flow.

"Perhaps the Norton people we saw have been mutated due to alchemy." Xiao Hei, looking out the window, subconsciously raised a possibility, "Don't you think there is any difference between the Norton people and humans in other places? "

"I don't think so."*2

In Tila's view, the human race basically looks the same, and at most the differences are only "different feather colors of birds", and there is really no difference.

For Chen Zhou, who comes from another world, the appearance of human beings in this plane is actually the same type of people - foreigners, they all look similar, and at most they can distinguish between beauty and ugliness (in terms of personal aesthetics) Degree.

Or maybe he simply didn't care?

Xiao Hei was dumbfounded. Are you an intelligent creature or am I an intelligent creature?

Even automatic gnomes who are not good at recognizing images can detect the specialness of the people of the Norton Kingdom!

"Just check the Blue Star forum. Shushu guesses those Blue Star people must have discovered something."

Chen Zhou shook his head. Unfortunately, the battleship staying above Blue Star interfered with the use of the forum.

"Lily feels that the people here in Norton are a bit sickly, and their mental outlook is very different from that of the people over there. 』

"Leader?" Tila was puzzled. She didn't expect that her fellow adventurer was actually a lord.

Xiao Hei on the side was holding his forehead with a headache, and the gears were rattling, thinking that Tira had not yet discovered the true identity of Cen Stormstout.

"There's no rush. I'll ask the Star People when I have time later."

Just when Chen Zhou was about to restart the communication between Blue Star's substitute and the Archbishop and others, the carriage they were riding in suddenly started to shake violently.

No, it was not the carriage that was trembling, but the ground beneath their feet!

"Oops! It's a mutated sandworm!"

"Quickly find cover and don't move around, they can detect the vibration!"

Through the shouts of the caravan personnel outside, the three realized the culprit who attacked them.

"This isn't a boat we're on, is it? 』

"Don't talk nonsense." Chen Zhou hurriedly pressed his head. "It is natural for adventurers to encounter monsters. Moreover, it is normal for the place we are to be rich in mutated creatures."

Hearing this, Tira stuck her head out of the window and discovered many monsters that looked like super giant earthworms, with half of their bodies exposed above the ground and opening their bloody mouths to hunt for prey.

Faced with such a large monster that can freely come and go underground, sense things through vibrations, and can release toxins due to mutation, the caravan's guards seem very reluctant.

Upon seeing this, Penguin's instincts aroused on the spot: "Let's go out and have a look, maybe we can find an opportunity to make money."