Only after seeing the magical beast of the seventh rank, the Velocidragon, and its mysterious magus
master depart, did Hogg calm down. "Uncle Hiri." Hogg immediately turned to look at his housetaker
Hiri. "Immediately order some people to recover all of the melted gold from within those piles of
ashes. This adventuring party was quite extraordinary as well. No doubt, they had a great deal of
wealth on them. I hope they had enough to recompense the losses we have suffered today" Hogg
stared in all directions, seeing how so many houses had been reduced to rubble. "Yes, milord." Hiri
nodded. "Hillman." Hogg turned to look at Hillman. Smiling, he said, "What do you think?" Hillman
nodded as well. "I was absolutely terrified. When I saw that magical beast of the seventh rank, the
Velocidragon, and that mysterious magus, I knew that Wushan township didn't have the slightest
ability to fight back in any way. If such an exalted personage as a magus of the eighth rank
decided to destroy our town on a whim, I doubt anyone would dare to criticize him, much less
sanction or punish him." Magi had extremely high social standings. Normally, even an ordinary magus
had the same social standing as a noble. And a magus of the eighth rank? Even if he was in the
presence of a king, he would not need to kneel or show obeisance. He could just chat while staying
standing. From this, one could tell how exalted a level an eighth rank magus held. "Right. So, we
should all celebrate the fact that not a single person from Wushan town perished today." Hogg
laughed. "It definitely is worth celebrating," Hillman nodded and laughed as well. "Hillman, take
some men to assist Uncle Hiri. After finishing up, please address the issue of the commoners who
lost their houses." Hogg instructed. "Yes, lord Hogg." Hillman assented. Hogg looked behind him
carefully, then asked Hillman suspiciously, "Hm? Where did Linley go? He was just here a moment
ago." "No idea. Didn't notice." Hillman shook his head as well. "My lord, young master Linley has
already went home." Hiri said from the side. "Although, when he left, he seemed to be in a daze.
No clue what he was thinking about." Hogg thoughtfully nodded. If there was one thing which the
Baruch clan manor did not lack for, it was rooms. In the days of the Baruch clan's glories,
hundreds of people lived here. The population now was much lower than before. Even an eight year
old child such as Linley had his standalone quarters. Within Linley's bedroom. Linley was kneeling
on the bed, his brow furrowed in thought. Again and again, the terrifying power of the 'Dance of
the Fire Serpents' swam about in his mind's eye. Those seven huge fire serpents and the tempest of
flame they generated repeated in his mind over and over again, as well as how they instantly turned
everything around them to ash, including the powerful warriors and magi of the small adventuring
group. "Magi are so powerful." Linley felt a thread of desire in his heart. "Although I am a member
of the Dragonblood Warriors clan, the density of Dragonblood in my veins is too low. The fact that
anyone with Dragonblood is totally unable to utilize any other battle-qi cultivating methods is
something which will hold back my ability to develop my warrior abilities to the maximum. I wonder
if it would be possible for me to be a magus, instead." Linley suddenly had the desire to become a
magus. "That Velocidragon was terrifyingly powerful as well. If I were to have a Velocidragon,
then..." Linley began to think back to the awe-inspiring might of the Velocidragon. It's
lightning-fast, whip-like tail had so easily shattered the stone projectiles aimed at it, and had
demolished any houses it touched. Its enormous body resembled huge siege weapons which armies might
field in a war. Once it charged forward at a fast pace, considering how tough its scales were, the
Velocidragon really would be a terrifying opponent. "Magical beasts...I wonder how someone acquires
a magical beast." Linley desired to have a magical beast of his own as well. For whatever reason,
as he lay on the bed, Linley simply couldn't fall asleep. He tossed and turned, his mind filled
with images of the Velocidragon and the 'Dance of the Fire Serpents' which the magus had displayed.