Even Annie herself hadn't expected that simply inviting Roger into her carriage would cause such a huge stir.
Out of nowhere, she found herself tangled in scandalous rumors with Roger.
And even if she wanted to clear things up now, no one would believe her.
That's the power of gossip.
"The Erotic Magic Lingerie you made—I tried it on at Norna's place. It worked incredibly well, so I really need a set for myself to boost my strength," Annie said excitedly as they rode in the carriage.
Roger looked her over. "Erotic Magic Lingerie is a type of hidden-effect gear. Its power-boosting effect is stronger than a lot of regular Magic Equipment. You deserve to have it."
"You're right! And Erotic Magic Lingerie isn't even expensive. The value-for-money is off the charts," Annie said, growing more and more excited.
On the surface, Annie was a noble heiress who seemingly had everything.
But in reality, she carried a great deal of pressure.
She wasn't just a noble lady—she was also a highly prized Arcane Magic prodigy nurtured by the Magic Guild.
When necessary, she had to carry out missions for the Guild, and she often came into contact with dangerous individuals and even the Lichborn.
In the process, danger was inevitable.
She had no choice but to do everything she could to arm herself—to keep herself safe.
And Roger's custom-made Arcane Magic Sexy Lingerie was, without a doubt, one of the best options available.
That's why, after learning about Roger's business rules, Annie had no choice but to show him her utmost sincerity, hoping to win him over and get him to take her order.
Annie taking the initiative to invite Roger on an expedition was already a special privilege—a serious gesture of goodwill.
"The Erotic Magic Lingerie I make right now is mainly focused on boosting combat strength," Roger explained, "but in a little while, I'll be able to custom-craft underwear with specific Arcane Magic attributes."
Annie's eyes widened. "The more you talk, the more I'm looking forward to it."
Roger smiled. "Then you better make a good impression."
Annie nodded. "I will."
"Are we really going adventuring in a carriage? The place you mentioned—Lichborn territory—is pretty far from here," Roger said, voicing his doubt.
Annie explained, "We're not taking the carriage to the adventure site. Right now we're heading to the Magic Guild. From there, we'll use the Guild's Arcane Magic circle to teleport directly to Lichborn territory."
"Oh, I see," Roger nodded. "Come to think of it, I haven't been to the Magic Guild in years. I had a lot of unpleasant experiences there in the past. Looking back, it still feels humiliating."
Before long, Annie's carriage pulled up to the entrance of the Magic Guild.
The Magic Guild was located in the center of Windmill Town's west street. At the front stood a three-story building, and behind it was a massive training ground covering more than a thousand square meters.
Many members of the Magic Guild came here for their daily training.
The carriage parked in the empty space beside the Guild's main gate.
Annie got out and led Roger into the first-floor lobby of the Magic Guild.
Inside the circular lobby, plenty of people were bustling about. When they saw Annie enter, they greeted her politely.
But when they laid eyes on Roger, their expressions turned noticeably cold.
They probably assumed Roger was just Annie's little sidekick.
Annie walked to the center of the lobby and approached a massive circular reception desk. There, she accepted a mission from a white-bearded old man in charge of task distribution.
She had already planned to take this expedition mission—it just so happened that she brought Roger along.
This particular task was somewhat special: it required traveling to Lichborn territory to gather intel, and they also needed to obtain some specified items listed in the mission.
After accepting the mission, Annie led Roger into the training grounds at the back and finally stopped in front of an Arcane Magic circle on the west side.
"I'll go report to the administrator. Wait for me here," Annie said.
Roger replied, "Okay."
Annie turned and went to find the person in charge of the Arcane Magic circle.
According to the Magic Guild's rules, one must report to the administrator before activating the Arcane Magic circle.
This was Roger's third time visiting the Magic Guild.
The first two times, he came to take the entrance test to join the Magic Guild, but he was mercilessly eliminated both times.
Looking around at the guild members training their bodies and practicing Arcane Magic, Roger couldn't help but feel a bit envious.
Joining the Magic Guild meant having a guaranteed stable livelihood.
With the supplies provided by the Guild, you could ensure a lifetime without worrying about food or drink.
Even more so, you could access unimaginably vast resources through the Guild.
Roger was definitely tempted by that.
"Isn't that Roger? What, are you here to take the Arcane Magic test again?" A young man around eighteen or nineteen years old recognized Roger and came over to ask.
His nose was unusually large, and his face was long. If he grew his hair out and wore an Arcane Magic cap, he would look like an evil old witch.
Roger didn't know many people, but Ham—the one who approached him—was one of the few.
They rarely met, and Roger couldn't even clearly remember who Ham was, just that he looked somewhat familiar.
Besides Ham, a few others nearby were also watching Roger curiously.
Roger stared at Ham and asked, "Have I ever fought you before?"
Fighting seemed to be Roger's only impression of Ham.
"You have a good memory if you still remember that. But I have to correct you—we didn't fight. You got beaten by me, right there," Ham said, pointing toward the distant trial hall.
Hearing that, Roger suddenly recalled.
When he was a teenager, he had taken the Arcane Magic test here once. His power hadn't met the standards, and he was mocked by others.
Ham was one of those who laughed at him.
Later, Roger got angry and fought Ham.
Unsurprisingly, he was no match for Ham and ended up with a bruised and battered face.
Back then, Ham was already a level three Magic Warrior. Now, he had grown much stronger—he had reached the level six Magic Warrior rank.
Looking at Roger now, he was still just a rookie Mage with level three power.
"No wonder you came over to talk to me—you wanted to show off your strength and deliberately humiliate me," Roger said coldly.
His thoughts and soul were much more mature than Ham's childish mindset, so it was easy for him to see what Ham was really after.
Knowing Ham's style, he would probably try to start something with Roger again.
He wanted to bully him on purpose and embarrass him in public.
Roger had already recalled being bullied at the Magic Guild while they were still in the carriage.
And now, here he was again, being humiliated by an old enemy.
Like a lowly clown, treated as a joke by everyone.
Ham waved his hand dismissively. "No, no, no, I'm not targeting you because you're not worthy of my attention. But if you insist on testing my strength, I can give you a chance."
Roger said, "To be blunt, you just want to bully me."
Ham raised his fist and growled fiercely, "The weak deserve to be bullied!"
After saying that, he suddenly swung his fist toward Roger's nose.
Roger hurriedly stepped back to dodge.
But he didn't expect Ham was only pretending to attack, not really throwing a punch.
Ham was a level six Magic Warrior, with combat power many times higher than Roger's.
Even if Ham didn't use his full strength and just threw a normal punch, Roger wouldn't be able to withstand it.
Seeing Roger retreat in fear, Ham laughed loudly, "Hahaha! Look at you, such a coward! I haven't even touched you and you're already scared like this."
Roger's face darkened as he said, "Know your limits. Aren't you afraid I'll come back for revenge someday?"
"Come for revenge? In your dreams!" Ham shouted arrogantly.
He immediately launched another attack, swinging his powerful fist toward Roger's cheek.
"This guy is really hard to deal with!" Roger's expression turned grim as he quickly retreated to dodge the blow.
He knew well that as a Magic Warrior, Ham's physical strength was immense. Without even needing a Battle Aura, Ham could easily defeat him.
And all Roger could do seemed to be just dodging.
"Hahaha..."
"Man, you're so useless!"
"What are you afraid of? Fight him!"
"What a coward!"
"..."
A few Magic Guild members laughed at Roger.
They knew Roger couldn't beat Ham and were deliberately watching for a joke, hoping to see Roger embarrassed.
This was the treatment of the weak — humiliation, beating, bullying, and no dignity.
At this moment, after several continuous attacks, Ham was finally about to land a punch on Roger. With just one hit, he could beat Roger to the ground.
"Bang!"
Suddenly, a striking sound rang out.
To everyone's surprise, Roger wasn't hit or hurt.
"Ah!"
Instead, Ham screamed sharply as he was struck and flew backward, crashing heavily onto the ground.