Chapter 53: The Mysterious Map
Chapter 53: The Mysterious Map
Liam used the Assassin Legacy to track the Thief who had stolen his Spatial Bag from the rooftops. Finally, he took advantage of the Thief stopping to inspect his loot and jumped down from the second-story roof, knocking him unconscious.
After reciting a somewhat middle-schoolish slogan, Liam finally fulfilled his lifelong dream of being a show-off. Satisfied, he began to inspect the Thief.
First, he reclaimed his Spatial Bag and used the Hallucinogenic Mushroom Spores he had prepared to ensure the Thief would lie quietly for at least half a day. Then he checked the Thief more thoroughly.
After flipping the Thief's eyelids to confirm he was indeed unconscious, the red eyes confirmed his Vampire identity, which left Liam a bit disappointed.
What happened to the elegant noble of the night? How did he fall to the level of pickpocketing on the streets? Even worse, the face under the hood was that of a scruffy, middle-aged man, far from the beautiful and refined image he expected. He looked more like a robber than a Thief.
But considering the Vampire's physical abilities, taking advantage of the chaos in a place where Wizards couldn't easily cast spells was a way to leverage their racial advantages.
Still, the idea of a beautiful Thief was just something from books. Liam muttered to himself as he began to search the middle-aged man for any loot.
After thoroughly searching the Thief's entire body, he only found 2 Sickle and 6 Knut in one of his pockets.
Liam found this illogical. People in this line of work usually carried all their wealth with them, and an experienced Thief wouldn't have only that much money on him.
After confirming that no one was around at the alley entrance, Liam began to strip the Thief to check for hidden pockets.
Finally, he found a pouch sewn into the Thief's underwear, which had been enchanted with a Space Expansion Charm.
Liam felt this was a particularly awkward place to search, but the allure of wealth was too strong. In the end, he forced himself to cut the underwear with a knife, despite feeling nauseous, and retrieved the pouch.
After securing his prize, Liam covered the middle-aged Thief with his clothes to avoid any indecent exposure. He then climbed back onto the roof and found a crowded area to blend into the crowd.
With his new acquisition, Liam lost his interest in shopping.
He quickly finished his half of the street and soon left the Wizard Commercial Street.
Turning into a deserted alley, Liam entered the Multiverse General Store to inventory his loot for the day. This place could shield all location-based magic, and the expansion charm on the pouch wasn't permanent. Liam was worried that the spell's effect might fade over time, causing the contents to be lost.
Inside the store, he took out a piece of cloth and used a Levitation Charm to suspend it in mid-air. Then he turned the pouch upside down and poured its contents onto the cloth.
There was quite a bit of loot. After sorting through it, Liam found that the Thief's Spatial Bag contained a large and varied assortment of items.
He divided the items into three piles. The first pile was money, mostly Sickle and Knut, with a few Galleon mixed in, totaling around 120 Galleon, which was a decent haul.
The second pile consisted of about a dozen pieces of jewelry, many of which had family crests, likely belonging to some Pureblood Families. Liam decided to find a way to sell them in another world to avoid any trouble.
The third pile contained items with magical reactions, only three in total. One was a Knight's Sword with sharpness and rustproof runes, a formidable weapon for ordinary people. Unfortunately, it lacked magical damage, making it useless to Wizards.
The second item was a book, with the title "The Art of Fire" written on the cover in Spanish. Liam flipped through a few pages, thankful that the Spanish he had learned from Assassin Legacy allowed him to understand it. He discovered that it was a Dark Magic Book describing how to use Fiendfyre, which was both rare and highly useful. However, Liam’s current level of magic power wasn’t sufficient to learn it yet.
The third item was an ancient parchment, different from the ones he had seen on the street. This one was genuinely old, with several strangely shaped mountains depicted on it, surrounded by a skull mark drawn in red ink.
Although the drawing was incredibly realistic, almost like a photograph, Liam couldn’t figure out where it was. He missed the internet era of his previous life, where a quick search on a smartphone would have easily identified the location.
This left Liam feeling incredibly curious about the parchment’s content, but since he couldn’t pinpoint the location, he decided to let it go. After all, he was in Iceland for a vacation, and treasure hunting should be left to fate.
With that thought, Liam stashed everything he had bought into the Multiverse General Store and hurried out of the emporium to head back to the hotel. He had agreed to meet his father, Mr. Lambert, at noon, and time was running short.
Fortunately, Iceland had few people and even fewer cars, so traffic was never an issue. Liam managed to return to the hotel just three minutes past noon.
His parents were waiting for him in the lobby, and they didn’t say anything when they saw him arrive on time. After lunch and a day of rest, the next day, Liam’s family traveled to Akureyri to attend a friend of Mr. Lambert’s wedding.
After a 45-minute short flight, the family arrived in this small city.
Akureyri, the second-largest city in Iceland, is often referred to as the "Capital of the North." Located at the end of Eyjafjörður, the northernmost fjord in Iceland, it sits on the edge of the Arctic Circle, backed by snow-capped mountains and facing a pristine lake, making it a place of breathtaking beauty.
When Liam and his family arrived in July, the city was experiencing the midnight sun, with the sun visible almost 24 hours a day.
What struck Liam most about this city was how empty it seemed, with deserted streets.
Of course, it made sense. A city of around 18,000 people, but with the infrastructure of a much larger city, it was bound to feel spacious and open.
The wedding took place at Akureyri Church, situated on a small hill. Standing at the church entrance, one could see the city, the fjord, and the mountains across the water, a truly beautiful view.
The wedding itself was unremarkable, much like any typical Western wedding. Liam found the setting to be beautiful and imbued with a sense of sanctity, but it was also rather desolate.
Fortunately, after the wedding, Liam’s family had free time to explore. They had rented a farmhouse in Reykjavik and were set to enjoy a ten-day vacation.
European-style vacations and tourism differ significantly from those in China. Europeans prefer to relax quietly in one place, fully unwinding, rather than rushing from one attraction to another.
However, this type of vacation was a bit too boring for Liam. After writing each day, he found himself with nothing to do but read.
So, while his parents enjoyed the hot springs and relaxation, Liam decided to use the Floo Network to visit several tourist sites in Iceland. Mr. Lambert supported this plan, believing that boys should try to venture out on their own. Liam, however, suspected that his father just wanted to get rid of him, the third wheel, so he and his mother could enjoy some alone time.
(End of Chapter)
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