Chapter 229: Chapter 184: The Final Obstacle to Unifying Itra
"Because you’re too strong. If this keeps up, the other factions will get next to nothing, even if they pull out now."
Hearing this, Isaac let out an exasperated laugh. "So they’re just going to flip the table?"
"That’s right."
"..." Isaac fell silent. He was furious, indignant, but there was nothing he could do. This was a decision made by High-level Mages. Anyone sitting at the same table as Mensa was guaranteed to be the real deal. Against an Existence like that, Isaac knew he wouldn’t even be able to escape.
His Privilege Magic only allowed him to fight weak Tier Three mages and slightly weaker Tier Three High-level Knights. Against any remotely competent High-level Mage, all he could do was flee.
It was unavoidable. For one thing, the sheer number of Privilege Magic spells they could cast was on a completely different level.
"Is there really no room for negotiation?" Isaac asked after a moment of silence, his mind clearing. ’No, wait. You came to find me, which means there’s still a way out, right? Is Princess Philo the key?’
A glint appeared in Isaac’s eyes as he quickly realized he held a trump card!
Philo might seem stupid, unskilled, and socially inept compared to Isaac, but among all the Princes and Princesses, she was undoubtedly the most exceptional and held the greatest potential.
I mean, she was a Mad Witch. How could she *not* have potential?
Especially with the Emperor watching over her, her journey on the path of a Mad Witch had been smooth sailing. Now, with Isaac’s guidance, she had grasped the true essence of their way, and her progress would only accelerate.
Of course, even so, Philo herself meant little to those High-level Mages. But she had a father who doted on her, and that father was incredibly strong.
He might not have been invincible, but in the entire world—including all known Outer Gods—the number of beings who could defeat him in a one-on-one fight could be counted on a single hand.
Faced with such an absurdly powerful figure, it wasn’t just Tier Three High-level Mages who had to tread carefully. Even Tier Four Miracle-class individuals or Tier Five Legendary Mages would have to show Philo proper respect.
Sure enough, Mensa chuckled at Isaac’s words. "That’s right. Your mind is as sharp as ever. They’re willing to give Princess Philo some face. They’ll trade other benefits for the right to leave their people in the Itra Kingdom. But as you know, that’s impossible."
Isaac nodded. ’Leave people behind? Like hell they will!’
If their goal were also Itra’s treasures, a deal might have been worth considering. It would be an easy way to gain a lot of benefits; only a fool would refuse.
The problem was, they were after the nation of Itra itself!
Therefore, the fewer people they left behind, the better.
That way, once Isaac activated the ritual to annihilate the Itra Royal Family, they could take over the entire Itra Kingdom as quickly and smoothly as possible.
Furthermore, Itra was now clearly tied to Philo’s path. This meant not only that she *had* to conquer it, but also that her reason for doing so could never be revealed. It was Philo’s greatest secret. At least, for now.
"Hmm... let me think..." Isaac mused for a moment. "I have an idea. How about this: you have them list what their people want. They pull out immediately, and we’ll just give them the items directly. I’m not sure how to handle the specifics of the valuation, though. I’ll have to trouble you to work out the finer details, sir."
It seemed like the optimal solution.
Besides, Itra had plenty of treasures. Giving some away wouldn’t hurt.
Of course, the most important part was that even after conquering the Itra Kingdom, the treasures wouldn’t belong to Isaac anyway. They were Philo’s. So what the hell did he care?
As long as the two items he wanted weren’t on the list, it was fine by him.
Mensa nodded. His thoughts aligned perfectly with Isaac’s. He hadn’t thought it through as much as Isaac, though; he simply looked down on most of Itra’s so-called treasures.
At his level, advancement was all that mattered. He had already walked the path of a High-level Mage almost to its very end. Very few treasures were worthy of his attention.
"Alright, leave the negotiations to me. As for you... keep killing! Keep the pressure on. With Princess Philo as our leverage, they won’t dare flip the table just yet."
"Understood. I’ll leave it to you, sir."
Mensa waved his hand, and his thought-form dissipated.
Isaac sighed, feeling a pang of envy. ’A thought-form that powerful... truly... amazing~’
After his sigh, Isaac shifted his focus back to the physical world. A fierce wind instantly gathered, sweeping him away toward his next target.
...
In the mysterious space, Mensa slowly opened his eyes and sighed. "I have good news and bad news. The bad news is, Princess Philo was adamant and flatly refused to negotiate."
Hearing this, the other three individuals frowned. That was... very bad news.
"The good news, however, is that Isaac is the true leader of their operation. I spoke with him about this. While he wasn’t pleased, he is clearly a reasonable man. He said leaving your people behind is impossible, but you can purchase the treasures you’re after directly."
At these words, the three of them relaxed their furrowed brows, but only slightly. They still had to pay.
More importantly, why couldn’t they leave anyone behind?
The White-robed Mage, who had been displeased from the start, was the first to speak up. "Are they doing something shady? Why can’t we leave anyone behind?"
The White-robed Mage hadn’t considered it too deeply. The thought of someone wanting to conquer the Itra Kingdom had never even crossed his mind. The kingdom was complete trash. Aside from its hoard of treasures, it was worthless, and even those treasures meant little to people of their stature.
Besides, the Itra Royal Family wasn’t weak. They had a Tier Four Miracle Knight, though he couldn’t participate in this War for the time being. The current King, however, was a High-level Knight, and as the host of this event, he had a small privilege that allowed him to fight at his full strength.
So, the White-robed Mage was just trying to use this as leverage to haggle with Mensa. After all, if they agreed right away, wouldn’t they be getting off too easily?
The other two thought along similar lines. However, one of them belonged to the same Wizard Sect as Isaac, and the other preferred not to make enemies, so both tactfully remained silent.
Mensa wasn’t flustered in the slightest. He gave the White-robed Mage a casual glance and said, "Of course it’s shady. Have you forgotten? That boy Isaac is a Mad Witch. He’s currently preparing a sacrificial ritual—and it’s a large-scale one at that. He definitely doesn’t want to take any chances."
Hearing this, even the White-robed Mage was silenced for a moment. He then nodded slowly. ’Indeed...’
’That does sound like something that kid would do.’ To be honest, he’d seen his fair share of Mad Witches and had personally killed quite a few. But this was the first time he’d encountered one this insane.
’Holy shit,’ he thought. ’The kid is in the middle of preparing a sacrificial ritual for one Demon God, and he still finds time to make a deal with another Outer God. And the scale of this ritual... it’s unprecedented!’
A sacrificial ritual of this magnitude would be considered high-end even among Tier Three rituals.
A mere Tier Two Wizard, daring to personally orchestrate a Tier Three sacrificial ritual...
There was no denying it. The guy was truly mad.
Fucking unhinged, even!
So, after a moment of silence, even the White-robed Mage had to sigh and begin negotiating the prices for the various resources with Mensa.
What else could they do?
Kill him?
Mensa was watching. Besides, Isaac was a member of the Flesh Sect. Killing him would mean making a mortal enemy of the entire Sect.
The Flesh Sect had never held Mad Witches in high regard, viewing them as lunatics with no future who would sooner or later get themselves killed by their own foolish games.
But that only applied if a Mad Witch was killed by an Outer God as a result of their own meddling. If someone else killed them...
...then you’d better be ready to compensate the Sect for the loss of a peerless genius!
That’s why, even though the Flesh Sect looked down on Mad Witches, it was also the Wizard Organization every Mad Witch dreamed of joining—and not just because of its sheer size.
Soon, a deal was struck. The various factions, large and small, would pay a total of 323 million Gold Coins for their desired resources, with 200 million of that amount to be paid in the form of specific, special resources.
They couldn’t afford to dawdle. Isaac was moving fast. Every minute they spent deliberating could mean another death, and the worst part was, they had no way of knowing if the next victim would be one of their own people.
Soon, Mensa’s thought-form delivered the outcome of the negotiations to Isaac.
Isaac’s eyes widened when he heard the staggering sum. ’Itra... was this rich?’
While the three hundred million-plus Gold Coins figure was a bit inflated—far above market value—it was still an astonishing amount.
Furthermore, the two hundred million Gold Coins’ worth of rare resources were valued at cost. Their actual market value was likely several times higher!
In that instant, Isaac’s mood soured.
He’d originally planned on selling off some of Philo’s things just to piss her off a little. But who would’ve thought that old fox Mensa would get such a high price for them? With this deal, they were actually making a huge profit!
Damn it!
If he’d known, he would have gone to "negotiate" the price down himself!
But it was too late for that now. The powerhouses had already agreed on a price, and a Little Underling like him was powerless to change it. So... it was time to get down to business.
Isaac glanced at the "lucky" Female Knight on the ground, who was staring at him in terror. He summoned a gale, masking his position from the Barrier’s senses, then flew straight for Roton Fortress. Partway there, he abruptly changed course and headed for Itra Royal City!
At the same time, Philo also received word from Mensa. This time, she didn’t hesitate. She immediately roused the stupefied Remington and began to divide her forces, preparing to take over the entire Itra Kingdom as quickly as possible.
The Philo of today was no longer the girl who once thought she could compete with Isaac. She was now keenly aware of the insurmountable chasm that lay between them.
As a result, no matter what outrageous things Isaac did, nothing he did surprised her anymore.
While Philo and Remington were busy conquering cities and strongholds, Isaac, having concealed his movements, had quietly arrived in the skies above Itra Royal City.
’I wonder,’ he thought, ’how many Heavy Pressure Hells can a High-level Knight take?’
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