Dox was taken aback, scratched his temple, and muttered to himself, "Did I write something like that? I don’t remember."
The Gray Merchant chuckled, "I remember that magazine was ’Southern Domain’s Light,’ the third to last issue before it ceased publication."
Upon hearing ’Southern Domain’s Light,’ Dox suddenly understood, "Oh, I remember now!"
Dox turned to Vay and said, "Isn’t this the masterpiece I wrote after we learned about Nagil while we were in Loren Bill?"
Vay looked at Dox with disdain, "...You can talk about yourself, just don’t drag me into it. I only know that you were very excited when you heard about Nagil, I didn’t know you wrote two high-profile articles because of that."
"And, ’Southern Domain’s Light,’ this magazine, ha."
Vay didn’t specify the situation of ’Southern Domain’s Light,’ but the undisguised contempt in his expression showed how much he disliked the magazine, to the point of not even bothering to discuss it.
Although Angel had never heard of the magazine ’Southern Domain’s Light,’ he still remembered Diabolo once complaining to him about the chaotic state of publishers in the Sky Mechanical City. Diabolo was once in charge of the registration work for publishers. According to him, during his employment, publishers applied for registration and closed down every day.
The reason for the closures was mostly due to arrogance, offending some Transcendents. But most weren’t truly closed down; they’d just make a show of it and then apply for registration under a new name. This is why there were closures every day and applications every day.
In order to attract attention, the worse and more lacking in substance the publishers were, the more they’d choose some sensational magazine names, not even considering whether their own level could uphold these names.
For instance, ’Grand View of Truth,’ ’Secret of Origin,’ ’World Talk’... names that were grand and empty, with the actual content being meaningless fluff.
By its name, ’Southern Domain’s Light’ seems similar to these...
By the way, speaking of Diabolo, I wonder how he’s doing lately?
While Angel’s mind wandered, on the other side, Dox didn’t care at all about Vay’s disdainful tone, and even said with pride, "Thinking back, it feels like I’m returning to those passionate days."
Vay continued to mock, "Passionate? More like an adrenaline rush leading to a useless roar."
The Gray Merchant: "The Red Sword Wizard’s articles did indeed stir up some passion."
Vay looked at the Gray Merchant in astonishment: Dox’s self-congratulation is enough, why are you, a wizard criticized to death in his article, joining in the fun?
Moreover, why are you praising Dox? Is this a pre-battle strategy to lower Dox’s guard?
Vay glanced at Dox, and sure enough, Dox was already looking at the Gray Merchant with admiration, a look of agreement among heroes.
Vay thought to himself, fortunately, the Gray Merchant miscalculated; if Dox were about to fight him, with Dox’s head so inflated from the praise, performing at eighty percent would already be good.
"Hey, why are you flattering him? Don’t forget, they’re enemies now." The floating Wicked Woman told the Gray Merchant.
The Wicked Woman’s attitude was more restrained than before, even her tone more cautious.
The Gray Merchant: "I wasn’t flattering him, I was simply putting myself in the Red Sword Wizard’s shoes. Writing those articles at that time indeed kindled a lot of passion."
Pema whispered in the Magic Elephant’s ear, "So the Gray Merchant was so empathic in the past?"
The Magic Elephant chuckled but didn’t answer. It was the Shepherd, lazily leaning against the wall, who said, "Even now, the Gray Merchant’s empathy is quite strong~"
Pema didn’t believe it, but the Shepherd didn’t explain further. If the Gray Merchant’s empathy were poor, how could his personality have changed so much due to a memory?
After answering the Wicked Woman, the Gray Merchant looked at Dox, "I wonder if the Red Sword Wizard could answer some of my questions?"
At the Gray Merchant’s inquiry, Dox, who had been in a "fond memories" mood, suddenly withdrew: "No."
"You’ve got some sense, huh," Vay murmured.
Dox rolled his eyes at Vay. Vay had been settled for so many years, and still had the impression of him from years ago. Is this good or bad? Actually, not bad. It’s rather nice for someone to always see you as the youth you once were, isn’t it?
The Gray Merchant, despite being refused, did not show disappointment and courteously said, "That’s a pity. We’re also forced to fight you; I believe you can understand."
Dox remained silent; he wasn’t the one to respond to such non-specific topics.
"Words are useless, let’s begin." It was the Black Earl who spoke. He turned the stone slab, initially wanting to look at the Wise Sovereign behind him, only to find that the Wise Sovereign had vanished. And the black-robed man in the sky, previously an energy phantom, was now in his true form, his robes fluttering in the breeze.
The sudden voice of the Black Earl caused the Gray Merchant’s pupils to constrict, and even the floating Wicked Woman’s pupils narrowed into slits.
They had been speculating about what was on that floating stone slab, why it had such potent energy. Now it had spoken, and its tone carried an authority utterly different from Dox’s.
This made them feel a sense of foreboding.
They vaguely recalled a rumor.
It shouldn’t be possible, could they be so unlucky to encounter someone from that family here?
"May I know who you are..."
The Gray Merchant was about to confirm the identity of the other party but was interrupted by the Black Earl, "Don’t waste time, let’s start."
After speaking, the Black Earl’s gaze turned upward to the Wise Sovereign in the sky.
The Wise Sovereign, with a new appearance, seemed less youthful but more mysterious. He didn’t respond to the Black Earl but addressed the Gray Merchant’s side: "If you had agreed to my small test before and succeeded, the reward I offered would have been the right to choose the battlefield and propose a rule that didn’t violate fairness. For instance, you could suggest a truthful self-introduction before the match; wouldn’t that reveal the answers you wanted?"
"Such a pity... not only did you reject my test, but you also failed to find them, alas."
The Gray Merchant bowed apologetically, "It’s our fault for disappointing you, Honorable Judge."
The Wise Sovereign quietly watched the Gray Merchant and suddenly laughed after a few seconds, "I’ve been wondering what she would use to threaten you, and didn’t expect this move."
Dox: "What move?"
The Wise Sovereign glanced at Dox, "Imprisoning the person who knows you best."
Dox furrowed his brow, repeating softly, "Imprisoning the person who knows you best"... Soon after, Dox commented, "Her methods are truly low."
Although many wizards are shameless beyond limits when it comes to schemes involving others, more sensible wizards usually avoid harming others. This method, in Dox’s view, was rather despicable.
However, Dox clearly misunderstood the Wise Sovereign’s meaning.