After handing over work with the Prime Minister in Snowy City, Benjamin left Frieden.
The treaty has been signed and the transaction has been completed. Naturally, he does not need to do the rest personally. Publicity, enrollment... He has hired specialized personnel, who will be responsible for the daily work of the Magic Academy on Freden's side, so he does not need to worry about it as the head.
For people like Benjamin, it's better to open a path and let the people behind just follow his path.
Frieden's path has been opened by him, and next, naturally, is Ikol.
The location of the Magic Academy was chosen near the national border to achieve the purpose of connecting the magic circles of the Three Kingdoms. And since an organization with international influence is to be formed, Icol, as the country with the most mages, cannot be left out.
But... Benjamin also knew that opening this road would be as difficult as cultivating a fertile field in the desert—almost impossible.
The Queen's feud with them has become serious, and it is absolutely impossible to reach an agreement like Freden's on the surface. If Benjamin dared to show up openly in Icol, it would be a sign of mercy from the Queen if thousands of mages did not come to surround him.
However, he also knew that there were still some wild mages among Icol who had not joined the Mages Guild. They were squeezed out by most mages and struggled to support themselves in some remote corners. When Benjamin first entered Icol, he came into contact with several.
—These people are definitely the best to win over.
Therefore, he decided to take the risk and go to Ikol. The border between the two countries was not so tightly guarded. He was alone and could sneak through and accomplish his goal without the Queen even realizing anything.
What's more... it's not like he has no acquaintances there.
"Hello, please help me send this letter to Regina, to a guy nicknamed Boss Silver Fox. He is your registered mercenary, and he can definitely be found."
After the Mercenary Association issued such a commission, Benjamin flew to Ikol.
In the territory of Carites, the mercenary association is really inactive. Except for high-end mercenaries like Miles, there are not even powerful mercenary groups. This is also the reason why they had a fierce fight with the church before, but the Mercenary Association has never had any sense of existence.
—Not only because they interfere in the internal affairs of various countries, but also because the more powerful mercenaries like to go to Frieden and Ikol, and there is no way to make money if they stay in Carites.
Of course, the Mercenary Association is also a very important organization for the Magic Academy. Benjamin had contacted them before, and they said that the academy hadn't even been built yet and they didn't know what the first batch of students were like. They need to go through a period of observation and evaluation before they are willing to establish a long-term friendly cooperative relationship with Benjamin.
Therefore, Benjamin could only put them aside and try to recruit as many mages as possible.
It took him about two days to sneak under the water with a bubble in his hands, and he used the river to sneak across the border. After a long time, he came to Ikol again, and everything he could see in front of him still hadn't changed much.
Members of the Mages Guild are still active in various places, and portraits of Benjamin and his men are still hanging on wanted posters everywhere.
After disguising himself, he quickly flew to the capital, Regina.
Judging from the news he heard along the way, the Queen has been very peaceful recently. Since the withdrawal of the army, she has been staying in the palace every day and handling government affairs as usual. However, her attitude became much more negative than before. There are rumors that the Queen is grumpy as if she was in menstruation every day, and officials dare not say a word.
Benjamin guessed that it was probably related to the ceremony he interrupted.
In any case, he and the Queen were mortal enemies. He didn't come to Regina this time to see the Queen, so don't worry about it.
The inspection on the city gate was not very strict, so when he found an opportunity, Benjamin sneaked into the city, and finally contacted the boss of the "Silver Fox" who was still active here through the Mercenary Association.
After many days, they met again.
"When I saw that wanted notice, I thought you would never come back to Ikol again in this life."
In the hotel room, the old man opened the door, looked at Benjamin, couldn't help but shook his head, and said with some emotion.
"There is no one who will never come back." Benjamin smiled and said, "If I told you that one day I might return to the Kingdom of Hori, would you not believe it even more?"
"… You rock."
The old man gave a thumbs up expressionlessly.
Then, after talking about old times for a while, Benjamin got back to business and said seriously: "Let's not talk about these anymore. Have you investigated everything I told you in the letter?"
"You came so fast, where did I have the time to investigate?" the old man said, "but regarding the news about the mages around here, I can tell you responsibly that there are no free mages near Regina. This is the absolute territory of the Mages Guild. If you want to find a free mage, you should go to a more remote town to find one."
"Not one?" Benjamin asked.
They say that the Great Hermit is hidden in the city. There should be some powerful free mages in Regina City, right
"I can help you continue the investigation, but I advise you not to hold out much hope." The old man said unequivocally, "There is really no soil for the development of free mages here. The degree of tyranny of the Mages Guild is higher than you think. Be high."
"... Then try your best to find it."
Benjamin also felt a little helpless and could only answer like this.
It's best to get in touch with some exclusive circles of wild mages, otherwise, it would be so scattered in various places, and it would be very inconvenient for him to contact them.
What a hassle...
"By the way, there is also the president of the Mages Guild. Have you helped me contact him?"
After thinking for a while, he asked again.
—This time I came to Icol not only to recruit local free mages, but also to meet with the president here.
If the president hadn't reported the news in time, they wouldn't have known that the queen was faking her death, let alone the treasure under Glory. Don’t forget, the president specially sent his student 800 miles to Glory to deliver the news - doesn’t this show the other party’s sincerity
Whether it is to thank him or discuss the next step of cooperation with him, Benjamin must meet with the president.
"This matter is actually not easy, but I still found a way to do it for you." The old man raised his chin proudly and said, "Tomorrow night, he will come to the hotel to see you. The whole message is delivered It is absolutely confidential and no one will know about your meeting.”
Hearing this, Benjamin felt a little less stressed and nodded.
If the acquaintance of the "Silver Fox" boss could provide him with some help, then the president of the Mages Guild could provide them with much more. Even if the other party feels uncomfortable being the president, he is still a president after all!
He is definitely the person who knows the most about the mage world in Ikol.
"In addition, this is the dispatch list of the mage team that I compiled." The old man took out a small notebook, handed it to Benjamin, and explained, "During this period, where will most of the members of the Mage Guild be sent? It’s all recorded. As long as you avoid those places, even if you keep a high profile, you probably won’t be discovered by the people from the Mages Guild.”
Benjamin took the book with a somewhat surprised look in his eyes.
"I thought you couldn't do it in such detail."
"What nonsense is this?" the old man said expressionlessly, "Besides fighting, I am the best mercenary in Regina. Most of the difficult intelligence tasks have been solved by me. Without the suppression of the church, I'm much more famous here than I was at Havenright."
"… awesome."
Benjamin was really impressed. At such an old age, to still be able to get around like this in the capital of a country is worthy of someone who has been a mercenary all his life.
"Don't you feel tired?" He couldn't help but ask, "After losing your only son, I thought you would find a place to live in seclusion, away from the hustle and bustle of the world."
"Seclusion? What's the point of that? It's been so long, is it possible that I still cry every day?" The old man looked at Benjamin as if he was mentally retarded, "I like to work. After organizing that brat's funeral, I’m much happier now.”
"… All right."
Benjamin was speechless for a moment, so he could only say this.