A saintess? She's just a bad woman.

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"It's alright, Curtis, if you want to buy it, just buy it. You don't need to pay for it. I'm not short of money at all."

Saint Karina spoke so naturally and confidently, practically radiating arrogance.

She really was poor; all she had left was money.

He spoke in a normal tone, not like Curtis whispering in someone's ear. This made the workshop apprentices following behind realize that this was a big client with a big order.

First, Saint Karina has white hair, which makes her look like a foreigner. Then, she has an extraordinary demeanor, extremely high looks, fair skin and beautiful appearance. The clothes she wears are made of the finest fabric, and the sword at her waist is very luxurious, even more luxurious than a work of art, inlaid with precious gemstones.

Such customers are like easy prey, and they generally won't try to bargain.

It's fair to say that even if Curtis wanted a green Burginis, Santa Karina would buy it if this workshop were to sell.

Unfortunately, while Santa Karina saw steamships as a means of water transportation, she had not yet seen steam cars.

"Actually, besides the usual services, our Magical Arts Workshop also offers convenient services specially developed to cater to the summer. For example, this..."

The apprentice smiled like a sunflower, looking at Saint Karina as if she were looking at a bag of gold coins that had grown legs and could walk. He enthusiastically opened one of the display windows and took out the items inside.

"This only requires a small amount of magic to maintain the temperature below zero, so you can enjoy popsicles and iced drinks anytime. It also comes with various cooking functions."

The box the apprentice was showing was exquisite, with beautiful patterns on it.

The box is small and very light; it's clear that it was made with almost no effort.

"This is a spacious interior, about 2 cubic meters in size, about the same size as a refrigerator. You won't feel its weight when you carry it with you. It also saves space in your home. Our workshop guarantees the quality, with a one-year replacement guarantee and a three-year repair guarantee."

Then, he pointed to a small bag that came with the box. The bag was only slightly larger than the box and it was clearly a free handbag.

"If you need delivery, our workshop also offers a door-to-door delivery service."

"No, do you think I look like an idiot?"

Curtis refused without hesitation.

"Bring something decent. If I need something like this at home, there are plenty of people who will give it to me for free."

Curtis is a princess, and there are many court magicians in the palace. If she really wanted something, she could have it easily.

If you actually buy this kind of thing, it feels a bit like paying an "intelligence tax".

It can probably only fool nouveau riche who are naive and have no interest in many new things.

231. Full of doubts

"For example, the Sorey Holy Sword, the Panlong Scepter, the Haiti, the Black Magnetite, the Reincarnation Bloodstone, the Dark Moon Stubborn Stone, the Tatar Stone..."

Curtis deliberately said a string of words, which seemed like showing off, but it was also to prevent this magic workshop from trying to fool him with something so childish.

She just looks like a fat sheep, but she's not actually a fat sheep.

Curtis is good at bidding and bargaining; he's not so foolish as to buy something that's being sold junk as if it were a treasure.

“You’re joking, sir. These are all magical artifacts or top-tier magic stones. How could our little workshop possibly have anything of that caliber for sale? These could all be treasured as national treasures.”

The apprentice gave a sheepish smirk and offered an awkward explanation.

First of all, the Sorey Holy Sword is a super artifact of the highest order in the vast magical world. It contains supreme and mysterious power, and basically no one can withstand its ultimate move. Every time the Sorey Holy Sword is activated, it requires the contractor to consume all of their life force and magical energy.

This sword is even more powerful than Saint Karina's Holy Sword. The Holy Sword is at most at the level of a human sacred object, far inferior to this level.

Magical weapons are classified into eight levels from lowest to highest: Low-grade, Mid-grade, High-grade, Supreme, Earth-grade, Heaven-grade, Sacred, and Divine. Divine weapons possess the highest level of power and are the most difficult to obtain.

The Demon Art Workshop mostly sells items at the lower, middle, and upper levels. Earthly and Heavenly Saint artifacts only appear in large auctions, and divine artifacts are all obtained through chance.

The five dark spirit stones of the Dark Emperor are: Haiti, Black Magnetite, Reincarnation Bloodstone, Dark Moon Stubborn Stone, and Tataruru Stone. Haiti, for example, is the one with the greatest energy among the five dark spirit stones. The energy of Haiti alone is enough to equal the combined magical energy of the other four dark spirit stones.

Tatarushi, in human form, is the Soul Summoner, whose most proficient magic is mind reading and mind stealing. He can easily overhear other people's thoughts and hear what they are thinking.

The Coiled Dragon Scepter is a divine artifact bestowed upon the Warrior of Magic by the goddess. It contains extremely powerful magical energy, allowing the user to fight against five Dark Spirit Stones whose energy has not yet been fully restored. It also enhances the ability of the contractor to unleash dragon-shaped holy and light magical energy.

How could their small magic workshop possibly possess such things? However, the apprentice understood that the customer was using this method to make him realize that the person before him could not be easily fooled.

"Excuse me, guests, please feel free to look around. I'll be leaving for a moment."

And so, the other party just slipped away.

"You really scared this guy."

"What does it matter? She's trying to make a fool of me, so I'm definitely going to teach her a lesson."

In the end, the two only bought an outfit at the Magic Workshop because Curtis said he wanted to de-stress through adventure.

The clothes here are not the cheap clothing that adventurers typically wear, but magical items with self-cleaning, body temperature regulation, insect repellency, and the ability to defend against both magical and physical attacks.

Clothes are merely a form of magical artifact; they are not, in essence, fabrics that provide warmth or aesthetic appeal.

So Curtis chose a magician's robe and hat. She examined the hat from all angles, then put it on to check how it felt before finally having Saint Karina buy it for her.

Saint Karina herself chose a magic swordsman-style outfit, a very lightweight and simple garment with metal braces only covering the elbows. She didn't care about the price; she simply paid for it.

"Thank you for your patronage."

The other apprentice served the two of them.

These two sets are relatively expensive, but they can give apprentices a decent commission.

“Welcome next time.”

When I left, she warmly saw me to the door.

What follows is an adventure.

If the young emperor knew, he would probably say that Saint Karina was just playing along with Curtis's nonsense.

"I don't want to take on small, miscellaneous jobs, like finding things; I want to take on real adventures."

As a result, because the two were newcomers, they didn't get a good case.

"Isn't it interesting to think about? Two noble families are getting married, one is the Graham family, which is facing financial difficulties, and the other is the Dryden family. The family symbol was even lost just before the wedding. This kind of task is quite interesting."

What's more, the Graham family housekeeper offered a high price of 5000 gold coins when she came to the Adventurers' Guild to post a commission.

It's just a badge; it shouldn't be worth that much money.

The family symbol is indeed important, but in the face of a financial deficit, it's definitely not as simple as just replacing it.

At least, if someone is a normal person, they can simply replace the item with another family symbol, such as making a new badge, or using other heirloom-like items, or even expensive jewelry.

"Believe me, this is definitely an adventure, with secrets and conspiracies involved."

Saint Karina plans to take action now.

To cheer Curtis up after seeing the unpleasant images, she was still very kind to her beloved toys.

Instead of walking, she used teleportation magic directly. This short-distance teleportation magic was very convenient for Saint Karina within Faro, saving her a lot of time.

Graham's mansion was luxurious, and the people who received them were very approachable and polite, leading St. Karina and Curtis to the host's reception room.

The reception room was spacious, with cabinets on both sides of the walls, decorated with vases and fresh flowers. In the center were two long sofas, and between them was a table, also adorned with vases and fresh flowers. The room's windows were carved, with wooden frames and glass panes, allowing for excellent natural light.

Since it's daytime, the luxurious ceiling light above doesn't need to be turned on.

"Are you the adventurers who accepted the commission?"

Saint Karina had concealed Curtis's hair color, otherwise her red hair would have been too dazzling, and anyone who saw it would know that she was related to the royal family of the Toran Empire.

The red hair had turned into the more common blonde, and although Saint Karina herself still had white hair, the news of the Lorian Empire's delegation's visit to the Toran Empire wasn't widely known; only those involved knew about it. Like a young lady from a noble family busy getting married, she probably didn't have time to concern herself with matters like delegations.

There are actually quite a lot of gray hairs.

"Yes, Miss Graham, I took the commission. The reward is very generous, and I really can't bear to see these gold coins go to waste."

Saint Karina deliberately acted as if she wanted money, but she didn't actually want it that much.

However, it's normal for adventurers to want money. Although their equipment looks high-quality, it also proves their professional skill level.

"I must find that badge within two days. Once I've done it, I will definitely pay you the 5000 gold coins from the quest."

She did not look down on the people who came, even though they looked like delicate, well-mannered noble ladies.

On the contrary, Miss Graham was very serious.

"Two days is indeed a bit tight. But I'm very confident I can finish it."

Saint Karina wasn't 100% certain, but she was at least 99.9% certain.

Her magical skills were very high, and through observing Miss Graham, she already knew that the other party was under a terrible curse.

"Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. Thank you so much, brave adventurers."

She probably didn't recognize Saint Karina and Curtis, otherwise she wouldn't have called them brave adventurers.

Curtis is a princess, and Saint Karina is a saint. No amount of respect is too much.

Miss Graham, well, she was a pampered child, like a delicately cared-for Barbie doll, with innocent eyes and a tendency to easily trust people. Her purity, unlike that of the nobility, stemmed from a child who had truly never experienced the harshness of the world.

Saint Karina has a keen eye for people; if she says it's a child, then it's a child.

While Curtis still possessed aristocratic arrogance, Miss Graham completely lacked that quality. She was very approachable and did not look down on Saint Karina and Curtis simply because they were novice adventurers, exceptionally beautiful.

"It would be a pleasure to work with you, my employer."

Saint Karina stretched out her fair hand and said something witty.

Miss Graham, however, was clearly hesitant. Unlike adventurers, whose profession was fraught with danger, she was someone of truly noble status.

However, upon seeing Saint Karina's sincere smile, which could melt away any doubt, Miss Graham's hesitation vanished. Like ice melting and glaciers merging into the sea, her hand reached forward slightly.

Just before he was about to take Saint Karina's hand, suddenly, the housekeeper next to him, with a serious face, a very stern look, nasolabial folds, and white strands in her hair, spoke.

"If your parents were still alive, Miss, they would be furious to know that you so easily trusted these so-called adventurers. And they're so young, they seem inexperienced, newcomers, probably even students from a magic academy...!"

"Miss, this crest is a family heirloom, left to you by your parents. It's very valuable, more precious than 5000 gold coins. You shouldn't have entrusted this task to a rookie adventurer team; there are only two of them."

Curtis was clearly in a bad mood when questioned like this. She was about to retort when Santa Karina glared at her and shut her up.

There was nothing she could do but grit her teeth and swallow her anger.

However, Miss Graham did not share her housekeeper's prejudice. Although she did not insist on shaking hands with Saint Karina, she did tell her housekeeper.

“Melville, don’t be so rude to our guests. They may be new adventurers, but they are the only ones willing to help us. The Dryden family’s valet went to the Adventurers’ Guild and demanded that our commission be withdrawn. He said that our family simply doesn’t have the money to pay for this commission and even provided receipts for our family’s debts.”

Now, Saint Karina understood.

No wonder those seasoned adventurers didn't even glance at this quest. Logically speaking, such a generous reward for simply finding something shouldn't be going unanswered.

Even if you try and can't find it, 5000 gold coins will only take up two days. There's no limit to the number of adventurer teams you can accept the task, and the gold coins will be paid to the team that finds it first. So that's where the trick is.

Generous pay for disproportionately heavy workload. The consequence may be that the employer is unable to pay the wages.

The Graham family is heavily in debt. Even if the housekeeper claims the family crest is adorned with many gems, making it a treasure worth over 5000 gold coins, the prerequisite is finding the item first. Furthermore, since they demand the crest be returned to them, regardless of its veracity, the crest cannot be sold on the black market to pay the adventurers' reward.

The rumor that this family was on the verge of collapse was spread, and it just so happened that the family belonged to the young master whom Miss Graham was betrothed to. As a result, countless adventurers believed the news to be true.

"Um... don't worry, Miss Adventurer, as long as you find the badge, I will definitely pay the reward."

This time, Miss Graham's words sounded somewhat forced.

She was probably too embarrassed to lie.

Santa Karina didn't expose him; she wasn't short of money, Curtis was just in a bad mood and came to have some fun with her.

5000 gold coins would be a windfall for any ordinary person, and would also be very tempting for nobles. But not for Saint Karina. If she wanted 5000 gold coins, she could add as many zeros as she wanted to that amount, and the young emperor and His Holiness the Pope would be more than happy to help her achieve it.

However, Saint Karina is not extravagant; she generally wouldn't spend money like that.

The previous adventurer equipment only cost 6 gold coins. Although normal equipment for new adventurers only costs silver coins, less than 1 gold coin.

“Melville, remember this: whether these adventurer ladies are newcomers or not, their willingness to help me indicates they have kind hearts… or perhaps, a heart yearning for money. Whatever the reason, as long as they are willing to help, they deserve to stand here, before me, even if it's just a handshake with aristocratic etiquette.”

After disciplining her servants with the authority of the head of the household, Miss Graham apologized to Curtis, whose brow was furrowed and whose expression was clearly displeased.

“I’m sorry, Melville didn’t mean any harm. As you know, my parents died in an accident when I was young, and they were killed by demons. Melville has been taking care of me ever since. She’s just too much of a worrywart. I’m all grown up now, and she still treats me like a kind child who doesn’t have my own judgment.”

Miss Graham bowed her head in apology to Curtis.

Now, another idea was confirmed. St. Karina knew where Miss Graham's naiveté, her bewilderment, her childlike innocence came from. It was probably from her housekeeper's overprotection.

This resulted in Miss Graham lacking social experience, making shallow and overly kind choices. The housekeeper, being a servant, chose to obey Miss Graham on important matters, treating her with great respect, as if she were a true mistress.

If they hadn't met Saint Karina, but instead a conman or other adventurers, their family would surely have perished.

"Humph."

Curtis simply snorted and didn't bother arguing with Miss Graham.