Spellcasting Gods

moment!

A sharp dagger slashed across Billy's throat with lightning speed!

puff!

Bright red blood gushed out from the opening, splattering everywhere!

The fat man desperately tried to cover his bleeding wound with his hands, but unfortunately, all his efforts were in vain. In the blink of an eye, the blood blocked his trachea, and finally he slowly fell to the ground, suffocating and dying.

Until his last breath, he didn't understand why the other party wanted to kill him, nor did he understand why Zhang Cheng sat motionless, his face showing no shock or tension, as if everything was so natural.

The eerie atmosphere lasted for about a minute before Baelish said in a slightly apologetic tone, "I'm so sorry, he heard too much he shouldn't have, so he couldn't leave the room alive. Otherwise, who knows if it would have reached Varys' ears. You must understand, my old friend's attitude towards mystical forces isn't exactly friendly."

“I completely understand! But please remember, next time you do something like this, you'd better ask for my permission first, otherwise I will take it as a provocation.” After saying that, Zhang Cheng narrowed his eyes and gave the cloaked assassin a cold look before getting up and leaving the room.

Undoubtedly, the repeated probing by "Little Finger" annoyed him, and he also realized that none of these seasoned veterans who had lived in a treacherous environment for a long time were easy to deal with.

If he were to join Game of Thrones as a player, the challenges he would face would not only be the conspiracies and intrigues behind the scenes, but also a series of issues including succession, marriage alliances, and war.

It's important to know that Westeros doesn't believe in the idea that "kings and nobles are born with special privileges." What matters here is one's birth and noble lineage.

No matter how capable a person is, without a good family background, they can only obediently serve the nobles in exchange for completely unfair rewards.

This is why Zhang Cheng's first decision was to buy a noble title, because only by obtaining this title could he rightfully become a player, rather than a pawn in the hands of other players.

As for the fat man's death, Zhang Cheng was not surprised at all. To be precise, his fate was sealed the moment he stepped into the room.

If the fat man were smart enough, he should have stayed at the door and waited, instead of coming in and trying to participate in a conversation that was far beyond his comprehension.

Sometimes, excessive ambition not only brings no benefits but can also lead to one's death.

Gazing at the motionless corpse on the ground, Baelish's lips curled into a slight smile. He fiddled with the exquisite golden dagger, muttering to himself in a voice only he could hear, "A wizard wielding mysterious powers has arrived in King's Landing? This situation is getting increasingly interesting..."

"Sir, what should we do with the body?" the assassin asked cautiously.

"Throw him into the sea to feed the fish after dark. Oh, and by the way, send two men to keep an eye on that young man, preferably with a few spies around him. I need to know what he eats, what he does, and what kind of women he likes. I have a feeling he'll become a very useful pawn in the future." Baelish issued the surveillance order without hesitation.

"As you wish." The assassin bowed and quickly disappeared into the shadows.

However, just as he was about to leave through the hidden passage behind the brothel, he suddenly saw a hand appear around the corner, holding a silver disc-shaped device.

Before he could figure out what was happening, he immediately felt a strange red light strike his eyes, and then he began to feel dizzy and lost his vigilance.

Clearly, this disc was none other than the Enchanting Pocket Watch that he had recently acquired from Kane.

Because it is a constant spell, it was completely unaffected and can still be used normally.

"Tell me, what did Little Finger make you do?" Zhang Cheng slowly walked out and asked meaningfully.

“Surveillance! He told me to monitor you!” the assassin replied blankly.

"Oh? Just surveillance?" Zhang Cheng frowned subconsciously.

Based on his understanding of Baelish, it would be strange if the other party didn't take some action after witnessing the power of magic firsthand.

"Yes! He also asked me to plant a few spies around you to secretly gather all your preferences and habits, and he thought you were a very useful pawn."

Under the control of the succubus, the assassin undoubtedly regarded Zhang Cheng as the person closest to him, and chose to betray his original master without the slightest hesitation.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Cheng immediately revealed a mocking smile, muttering to himself, "Having witnessed power I cannot comprehend, and still harboring such thoughts, should I praise your extraordinary courage or your overestimation of your abilities, dear Count Petyr Baelish? Let us wait and see who is whose pawn, and who is manipulating the pawns to play the game..."

The words had barely left his mouth!

He raised his hand and snapped his fingers, then quickly turned and left the narrow passage, returning to the bustling street.

Once the distance exceeded the pocket watch's control range, the assassin jolted back to his senses and began to scan his surroundings with a wary gaze, but soon fell into confusion again.

It goes without saying that the poor wretch had no recollection of what had just happened, and could only continue to carry out the orders given by "Littlefinger" with a sense of bewilderment.

Hidden in the crowd, Zhang Cheng saw everything and said with a smile in a low voice, "The game has already started, hasn't it?"

Meanwhile, Baelish, sitting in his room, had just received intelligence from the north.

After a quick glance, he pursed his lips and sighed, "Catlyn, my beloved, I never imagined that after all these years, you wouldn't have changed at all. But unfortunately, no matter what you do this time, you can't change Eddard's fate. Because the chaos I orchestrated is about to begin, and it will become my stepping stone to power. My dear, the Game of Thrones has begun..."

Chapter 0098 The Sorrow of "Eggs"

As the start of the Grand Tournament draws ever closer, a large influx of newcomers has flooded into King's Landing, putting immense pressure on the already poor security situation and causing the prices of various foods and drinks to soar.

Leaving aside other places, the house that Zhang Cheng had just bought was visited by three groups of thieves in succession. The youngest of them were only eleven or twelve years old, all of whom came from a slum called "Flea Nest" and were still a group of children who had not grown up.

The motive for the theft was very simple: he was starving and climbed over the wall into the kitchen to get some leftovers to fill his stomach.

Looking at the several emaciated little ones kneeling on the ground, he sighed helplessly and ordered, "Give them some food and then let them go. Remember, Derry, don't bother me with these kinds of trivial matters in the future. You can handle it yourself."

“Yes, Sir, you are a truly kind man.” A middle-aged man of about forty years old bowed with one hand on his chest.

As a professionally trained butler, he faithfully fulfilled his duties from the day he took office, managing the large courtyard in an orderly manner without ever making a mistake.

"Very well, go about your business. And while you're at it, inform Blanco that it's time for sword practice." With that, Zhang Cheng ignored his butler and continued fiddling with the bottles and jars on the table.

With 2,500 gold dragons as start-up capital, he disguised himself as a nobleman from afar in just a few days. He not only bought a house with a considerable area, but also hired a butler, two male servants and four female servants.

Most importantly, he hired a skilled mercenary to practice his fighting skills diligently, intending to kill fifty opponents before the tournament began in order to obtain the melee class template as soon as possible.

In any case, the mission requirement was to kill fifty opponents, without specifying what level the opponents needed to reach.

This means that before the battle begins, it might be possible to severely injure the opponent or starve them for several days.

As for the best candidates, the robbers, thugs, hooligans, murderers, and rapists imprisoned in King's Landing prison would be the best targets.

All it takes is bribing the guards in their gold robes; they won't mind selling a portion of the loins privately.

In fact, every year, many prisoners in the prison were smuggled into the ship's hold and transported to the distant Slave Sea to be sold to slave owners living there.

About three to five minutes later, an old man wearing leather armor and carrying two wooden swords entered the room and bowed: "Good afternoon, Sir. I once again suggest that you give up the unrealistic idea of ​​participating in the tournament. Because with your skills and talent, even after a few years, it will be difficult for you to defeat a qualified veteran, let alone a highly skilled knight."

"Stop talking nonsense! Let's get straight to today's swordsmanship lesson." Zhang Cheng put down his research, turned around, and casually pulled out a rather heavy wooden training sword.

"Fine, whatever you want. It's not like it's my time or money that's being wasted." Blanco shrugged indifferently.

He didn't even adopt a standard sword-wielding stance, casually waving the wooden sword as he said, "I've already taught you the basic footwork, breathing, and parrying techniques in the last few sessions. Today, let's move on to the practical application. Although I personally think you should work on your muscles first, since you insist, it doesn't matter. Now, please begin your attack."

"Be careful!"

Zhang Cheng, who never liked to waste words, suddenly took a step forward and swung his sword from bottom to top in a standard low stance.

Although the postures don't look pleasing to the eye at all, they are quite effective in actual combat. To be precise, in most practical sword techniques, there are very few movements that can be called beautiful.

"Well done! But that's far from enough!" Blanco effortlessly deflected the attack with a backhand downward strike.

However, he did not take the opportunity to launch a counterattack, but simply took a step back and continued to stand in place waiting for the next round.

Clearly, given Zhang Cheng's current skill level, it would be extremely difficult for him to even pose a threat, let alone win.

But he has never been one to follow the rules, nor will he be bound by so-called standard postures.

After his first attack failed, a sly smile crept onto his lips as he raised his wooden sword high and made a forceful slashing motion.

Out of habit and instinct, Blanco immediately chose to parry with both hands wielding his sword.

Just as the two wooden swords were about to collide, Zhang Cheng suddenly raised his foot and kicked the opponent hard in the groin between his legs.

This time, his movements were swift and sharp, leaving his opponent no time to react.

next second...

boom!

"Ah ...

Blanco clutched his lower body and collapsed to his knees in agony, his face contorted in pain.

Without even asking, it's obvious that he must be in a lot of pain right now, so much so that he can't even hold onto his sword.

As a mercenary who had faced countless dangers, this was the first time he had encountered such a despicable, shameless, and vile tactic, so he fell for it without realizing it.

"Hehe, how does it feel, my dear swordsmanship teacher?" Zhang Cheng asked with a hint of pride.

“Fantastic! I guarantee that if you used this move in a formal tournament, you would be infamous for eternity, and His Majesty the King might even strip you of your noble title.” Blanco replied through gritted teeth, clutching his injured testicles.

Seeing the other party's disheveled expression, Zhang Chengshi couldn't help but burst into laughter: "Hahahaha! Don't worry, I'm not stupid enough to use it in the martial arts tournament. I just want you to judge what my chances of winning are if I pick up a sword now and duel with an ordinary person?"

"That's hard to say. I personally think most people would have a hard time blocking that kick you just made. What's wrong? Did you run into some trouble?" Blanco struggled to his feet and asked with concern.

"No, no, let's end today's swordsmanship here. I've already gotten the answer I wanted." With that, Zhang Cheng tossed the wooden sword aside and continued fiddling with the trinkets on the table.

Seeing that his employer had no intention of revealing the information, Blanco did not press the matter. He gave a slight bow and then turned and left the room.

No sooner had he left than Zhang Cheng changed into a gray cloak, took a sword and a bag of golden dragons, and slipped out silently through the back door, heading straight for the King's Landing prison.

Two days earlier, he had already contacted the warden and agreed on a price. All that was left was to pay the money and then kill the criminal in the lowest cell of the prison.

Chapter 0099 The Dungeon

The dungeons of King's Landing are located on both sides of the moat. They are a place that can send chills down your spine at first glance. You can often hear miserable screams or maniacal laughter coming from inside. Locals and outsiders alike usually try to stay away from them. Only illegal traders who secretly deal in slaves frequent this place.

Zhang Cheng, who had concealed himself with a cloak, carefully made his way through the dimly lit tunnel and gently knocked on the iron fence.

boom! boom! boom!

"Who are you?" a guard walked over and asked, staring at him with his light gray eyes.

"Who I am is not important, what's important is that I brought this." With that, Zhang Cheng lifted the bag full of golden dragons and shook it vigorously twice.

Upon hearing the clanging sound of gold clinking, the guard's face immediately lit up with undisguised joy. Without uttering a single word, he quickly opened the gate and gestured with a smile, "Come with me, sir."

"Thank you!" Zhang Cheng calmly placed a gold dragon into the other person's palm.

After several days of in-depth investigation, he had a pretty good idea of ​​the situation of the King's Landing garrison—the "Golden Robes"—which could basically be described as utterly corrupt.

Having lived in tempting big cities for a long time, they are very similar to the imperial guards of the Song Dynasty. Many of them have long lost their fighting spirit and are only thinking about how to make money, rather than improving their combat skills.

In particular, the twenty-odd people in charge of guarding the dungeon colluded from top to bottom, constantly selling ordinary criminals with no money or power to slave traders and making huge profits from it.

Anyway, there are countless poor people in the slums, and more than one-fifth of them have committed theft, so catching them is incredibly easy...

The two walked one after the other through the gloomy and damp corridor and soon arrived at a large hall with a brazier. Because it was underground, there were no windows, making it feel particularly oppressive and gloomy. In the middle of the hall sat a slightly overweight middle-aged man.

Upon noticing someone enter, he immediately placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, alert: "Who goes there?"

"Your Excellency Warden, this gentleman has brought a large bag of money; he must be planning to discuss business with you," a guard quickly stepped forward to explain.

"A big bag of money?" A hint of greed flashed in the warden's eyes, which immediately vanished into a smug grin. "Please sit down. I love discussing business. But before we officially begin, could you show me your sincerity?"