Chapter 11

“What kind of talk is that? Are you perhaps a lackey of Rome?!” The woman’s gaze became sharp.

Ward Jimmy couldn’t understand any more. Why would a corporal from the royal family treat the people of Rome in such a way? Weren’t the two nations always meant to maintain peaceful relations with each other?

“I just spent too much time meditating at the mountain gate. I became somewhat isolated from the outside world.” Ward Jimmy tried to brush it off with a laugh, then put on a serious expression.

“Why, with the princess being so seriously ill, isn’t help sought from the Roman Empire? I remember that earth demons aren’t uncommon in the Roman Empire.”

“Hah!” The woman sneered.

“Ask them for help? Come on! A year ago, we should’ve sent messengers to Rome, offering to send over an Earth Demon King under any terms. But those idiots in Rome actually thought of making the princess marry their old king!”

Ward Jimmy sighed. If he remembered correctly, their old king had just celebrated his seventieth birthday the year before last. How could he still have such stamina?

“The princess had just reached puberty a few days ago. How old was she even a year ago? That old man still dares to think of making her his wife! Ugh!”

“Can’t you change your request?” Ward Jimmy thought of Alice Louise, who once tried to engage in a dual relationship with Vanny Jimmy. He could understand how she felt.

“Do you think we haven’t thought about it?” The woman seemed to recall the most infuriating thing that had happened. She clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her flesh, causing drops of blood to appear.

“We tried to negotiate with that beast, saying that the princess hadn’t yet reached puberty, so it might not be appropriate to marry her at this time. We were willing to accept any conditions, as long as the princess wasn’t forced to marry. But that monster replied, ‘Then let the Byzantine princess die.’”

“What illness did the princess actually have?”

“The cold poison seems to have been with the princess since birth. It just wasn’t detected before.”

“High Elves.” Ward Jimmy softly called out to the High Elf celestial demon, whose element was fire. It was uncertain whether it could cure the cold poison within the Byzantine princess’s body.

“A mere cold poison isn’t worth my attention at all.” He spoke in an extremely arrogant tone. As long as his spirit could be restored, not to mention cold poison, even the Cold Ice Phoenix would be nothing more than a target for him to swat with his tail.

Ward Jimmy chuckled to himself. It seemed that the Byzantine Empire owed him a favor.

“What do you think? I’ll cure the princess’s cold poison. In exchange, I’ll take the Earth Demon King’s inner core. Also, you’ll have to tell me where the water source is. How about that?” Ward Jimmy asked.

This transaction is a sure winner for both parties.

“Why should I trust you?”

The woman dismissed Ward Jimmy’s proposal with disdain. In her eyes, Ward Jimmy was nothing more than a brat with slightly better skills. His magical power wasn’t even as strong as hers. How could he possibly have the confidence to cure the princess’s illness? He was probably just another man who wanted to take advantage of the princess’s beauty.

"Just this alone."

When Ward Jimmy activated that trace of divine fire within the energy core, the high elves’ divine fire manifested. All beings were stunned by its brilliance. The woman couldn’t help but swallow hard as she watched the purplish-golden flames dancing at Ward Jimmy’s fingertips.

That cluster of flames possessed extremely powerful spiritual pressure. Even she, who was only at the Junior Third level, found it extremely difficult to deal with those flames. Yet, the man before her had magical power that wasn’t even at the Junior Second level.

“What is this? One of your skills?” the woman asked.

“Sort of, it’s part of my skills,” replied Ward Jimmy, then extinguished the flame.

Actually, he didn’t know exactly how to describe it. He certainly couldn’t say that he’d pulled it out of the energy core, could he? But one thing was for sure: that fire was extremely powerful.

“I still can’t fully trust you,” the woman said, sighing. “But I can trust you for now. That Inner Elixir of the Earth Demon King is with you. Once we leave Peach Mountain, you’ll come with me to see the princess. If you’re able to cure her, the Inner Elixir will be yours. If you wish, I’m also willing to give myself to you as a reward for saving the princess.”

“Let’s skip the part about ‘giving my heart to you’. After all, I have a minor living with me. It wouldn’t be good if I corrupted her. Since you…”

“But.” Before Ward Jimmy could finish speaking, the woman interrupted again, “If you fail to cure the princess, or if you make her condition worse, I’ll personally kill you, as well as that underage girl you mentioned!”

“…I understand.” Ward Jimmy took the woman’s uninjured hand, drew an invisible pattern in her palm, then said with a smile, “This is the mark of our agreement. I won’t go back on it.”

The woman looked at Ward Jimmy’s face. For some reason, her heart skipped a beat.

It seemed like she had a premonition that the man before her might truly be able to cure the princess’s cold poison.

“My name is Dawn Allen. Please tell me yours, so I can address you properly in the future.” Dawn Allen clenched her hand around that mark. She remembered it.

“Ward Jimmy, the Ward who watches Ward.”

Ward Jimmy laughed. It seemed like the girl truly trusted him. But… if she found out that he was actually from the Roman Empire, who knew how she would react to him then.

Perhaps they’d already taken action.

Ward Jimmy thought to himself.

After feeding Vanny Jimmy some water, Ward Jimmy began his own cultivation. When he was attacked by the beast horde, he realized a fatal problem.

His first spiritual skill, the Purple Golden Demon Claw, was extremely powerful. However, it took a long time to summon the divine fire of high elves to activate it. On the battlefield, even a single second could mean the difference between life and death. Therefore, he had to master the Purple Golden Demon Claw thoroughly before encountering any high-level spiritual beasts.

At least it can be cast instantly, without the need for a lengthy process of channeling spiritual energy.

To harness spiritual energy more quickly and effectively, one must strengthen their physical body and improve the integration between their own energy and the magical forces of heaven and earth.

Ward Jimmy’s physique, after going through two rounds of Primary Level 1 training, was now much stronger than that of an ordinary person at the same level. However, it still wasn’t strong enough to wield Instant Spiritual Skills.

Not enough!

These three words kept popping into Ward Jimmy’s mind.

To survive on Peach Mountain, this amount of magic is far from enough! He must work harder, fight more desperately. He absolutely cannot let that old scoundrel Angelo Churchill get his way!

Ward Jimmy somehow found a huge rock. Without using divine fire, and relying solely on his spiritual power, he clenched his fist and struck the rock hard.

The boulder remained completely motionless, while Ward Jimmy’s hand was bleeding profusely. This clearly showed just how much force he had used, and how hard that boulder really was!

Ward Jimmy seems to be at odds with that huge rock. During the day, he uses magic to wrap the rock around his hand, continuously hitting it. At night, he sits on top of the rock, using the magic within his body to make the rock even more pure.

Dawn Allen took the medicinal pills that Ward Jimmy gave her. Her injuries improved somewhat, and she began her own training. Her skill is the advanced sixth-rank Shadow Poison Lan, focusing on toxic properties. Previously, she used her first spiritual skill—Shadow Illusion—to get Ward Jimmy out of the clutches of the beasts.

Nowadays, it’s very easy to charm Ward Jimmy with Phantom. But…

Dawn Allen silently glanced at Ward Jimmy, who was meditating with his eyes closed. Then she shook her head.

There’s no need to act like this with Ward Jimmy.