My System Just Exploded, And You Ask Me to Become a God?-Chapter 22 --Huge Profit? Think Again

"Joad, didn't you say that was phoenixfire herb?"

"Phoenixfire herb? I've never even seen one. I just made that up on the spot."

Ivy was stunned.

So... everything had been part of Joad's act?

Wasn't that a little... evil?

Still, she couldn't help but ask,

"But... Joad, didn't you really want that crimson witchgrass?"

Joad simply smiled. He wasn't in any rush—

after all, that crimson witchgrass would be his eventually.

And besides, the other guy had gone out of his way to provoke him—he wasn't just going to let that slide!

On the other side, the young man handed the crimson witchgrass over to the old mage behind him, explaining what had happened.

"Grand Scholar, look! I specifically bought this phoenixfire herb! We totally scored, didn't we?!"

The old mage furrowed his brow and carefully examined the herb.

But soon, his frown deepened.

The young man couldn't hold back his curiosity.

"Grand Scholar... is something wrong with it?"

"This is just a regular crimson witchgrass! You idiot!

You actually spent over thirty thousand mana stones... for a crimson witchgrass?!"

SMACK!

The old mage slapped the young man hard across the face.

The young man dropped to his knees, stunned.

"T-That's impossible... I heard him say in his transmission—"

Then his pupils suddenly shrank.

Wait a second... he was starting to realize something!

Next to him, the old mage let out a long sigh.

"We've all been played!"

His face was full of rage, but deep down, there was also a bit of doubt.

He'd been watching the entire exchange from the start—

He'd sensed something unusual from the herb's magical energy and had silently approved of the young man's decision.

But now it turned out that even he had been duped.

"That damn brat... I'm going to kill him!"

"Enough!"

The old mage shouted sternly and added,

"If you kill him now, the Pyrothian Kingdom will punish you.

And don't forget why we came here in the first place."

That snapped the young man back to his senses—though deep inside, his hatred only grew.

"Grand Scholar... I swear I won't let him get away with this."

The old mage nodded and said coldly,

"Come. We're heading to Ilan Royal Academy."

...

No one—including the Grand Scholar—had expected to be outwitted by a nobody and end up losing over thirty thousand mana stones.

If word got out... they'd be the laughingstock of the entire realm.

Meanwhile, Joad wasn't in any hurry to return to the academy.

Instead, he took Ivy to find a nice place to eat.

After finishing their meal, Ivy finally couldn't help but ask:

"Joad, aren't we going back to the academy yet?"

"No rush. First, come with me somewhere."

He brought Ivy back to the same shop from earlier.

As soon as they arrived, the shopkeeper rushed out to greet them with a beaming smile.

"Mr. Joad, we really owe you one.

Thanks to you, we actually sold that crimson witchgrass at such a high price!"

"Here—20,000 mana stones. Please take it.

And if something like this comes up again, don't forget to stop by!"

"Absolutely!"

Joad pocketed the mana stones, while Ivy stood off to the side—completely dumbfounded.

Wait a second...

What was going on?

Why was the shopkeeper giving Joad money?

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Unable to make sense of it, she turned to Joad and asked directly.

Joad just chuckled and said,

"Actually, the shopkeeper and I had a little partnership going on..."

Ivy blinked in surprise, still not fully grasping it.

"But Joad... what if the Pyrothian Kingdom people figured it out?"

Joad shook his head firmly.

"That's the shopkeeper's problem. How would I know?"

"But..."

Ivy bit her lip and hesitated.

"But Joad, what if they come back and cause trouble?

Wouldn't the shopkeeper be in danger?"

"Relax. That won't happen."

Joad's eyes gleamed with confidence.

"This shop is backed by the Mage Association.

Even the Pyrothian Kingdom wouldn't dare mess with them."

"So Joad... you had all this planned out from the start, didn't you?"

Joad shook his head again.

"Not really. It was just a spur-of-the-moment thing."

For a while, neither of them spoke.

"...Joad, you're kind of evil."

"Eh, not too bad."

...

Ivy stared at Joad's back, her thoughts spinning.

The more time she spent around him,

the more she realized—Joad wasn't just some ordinary guy.

He was really good at scheming. And when he struck, he struck hard.

Thank goodness he's on my side...

If Joad ever turned on her, she probably wouldn't even realize she'd been tricked until it was too late.

...

On the other side—

The old mage and his group had just left Pugisburg,

when his body suddenly trembled. His face darkened, and he nearly snapped the wand in his hand.

"Grand Scholar, are you alright?"

The young man approached, clearly worried.

SMACK!

Another slap—much harder than the first.

The young man flew through the air, pain exploding across his face.

He felt like his skull had nearly cracked open.

"You fool! This is all your fault!!"

The old mage was pale with fury.

His mind power had been tracking everything around them—

and he'd sensed everything that happened when Joad returned to the shop.

In short—

he, a dignified Grand Scholar of the Pyrothian Kingdom's Royal Academy,

had been tricked by a lowly student!

If this news got out, how could he show his face again?

And the one who started it all...

was the youth lying on the ground.

Bleeding from the mouth, the young man slowly got up and stared at the old mage,

his eyes full of both fear and hatred.

"Grand Scholar... y-you..."

"Shut up, you useless waste!"

The old mage roared, his voice booming like thunder and ringing in the young man's ears.

He glared down with eyes full of murderous intent—he could barely hold himself back.

"Joad... I'll kill you!!"

The young man clenched his teeth, each word forced through gritted rage.

His eyes blazed with fury.

He wanted nothing more than to turn around and tear Joad to pieces.

"I'll make you pay. I'll make you wish you were dead!"

...

Ilan Royal Academy, Royal Academy Grounds.

Joad brought Ivy back to the academy entrance.

"Ivy, head back to the dorms for now."

"That's it for today. Take tomorrow off—we'll continue the day after."

Ivy nodded sweetly and replied softly,

"Okay, Joad."

...

Meanwhile,

the Pyrothian Kingdom's delegation also arrived at Ilan Royal Academy.

Headmaster Simar personally greeted them.

"Welcome to Ilan Royal Academy.

To what do we owe the honor of your visit?"

The old mage's face was dark. He took a deep breath and slowly answered,

"We've come... for academic exchange."

Simar frowned. Something about these people didn't sit right with him—

there was a storm brewing behind their expressions.

...

Joad returned to his dorm.

He took out piles of magical herbs from his storage ring.

It was time to start brewing potions for Ivy.

He expertly began processing the herbs—grinding, purifying, mixing...

...

Night fell.

Ilan Royal Academy sank into stillness. Only a few dorms remained lit.

Joad's was one of them.

He was still hard at work brewing potions—

completely unaware of the dark figure lurking beneath a nearby tree.

The shadow stared at his dorm with burning hatred.

...

In her own room, Ivy lay on her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling—

lost in thought.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Finally, on the morning of the third day, Joad appeared before Ivy once again.

"Joad!"

Joad smiled, nodded, and handed Ivy a storage pouch.

"The potions are ready. Now—let's head to the ruins."