Reforged Chapter 66: Held in High Esteem

Duke was undoubtedly the center of attention at the banquet, even as Medivh's apprentice, Khadgar, was officially promoted to Archmage. No one could divert the conversation from Duke.

That's because Duke had become an Archmage at the age of fourteen and was now on the verge of breaking through to the rank of Sky Mage. Although Khadgar tried hard and possessed a deeper foundation in magical knowledge than Duke, he had only become an Archmage at the age of fifteen. If there hadn't been a Duke, Khadgar would have been the focus of the kingdom's high society. Unfortunately for him, there was Duke.

Even the sharpest of prodigies paled in comparison to Duke.

Out of respect for Medivh, the nobles offered their congratulations. However, Khadgar clearly heard their whispered evaluations.

"Well, compared to a real genius like Duke, Khadgar is just at this level."

"Keep it down. After all, Duke has a talent on par with Medivh, a ninth-grade aptitude."

"Didn't you see Medivh wanting to take Duke as his apprentice back then? Khadgar should be grateful. If Duke had become Medivh's apprentice, would he even have the resources he has now?"

In the end, Khadgar was still just a fifteen-year-old teenager. Even with his complicated past, he couldn't be as mature and composed as an adult. His forced smile couldn't hide the disappointment on his face.

He suddenly longed for Medivh's comfort, as only Medivh, the most powerful mage on earth and the wisest and most tolerant of mentors, could offer him solace.

He turned his head, only to feel like he'd been struck by lightning. What did he see? A cold, detached mentor. If Medivh had appeared stern, that would have been one thing, but after months of absence, his face was adorned with an indifferent, mocking expression.

What had happened to his teacher?

Khadgar was stunned.

Before the banquet officially transitioned into the ball, there was a tradition where nobles and invited guests presented gifts to the king.

King Llane was usually quite gracious during this event, as it was an opportunity for the less fortunate to seek rewards and for the wealthy to show off.

The gifts weren't just material possessions. For example, a less affluent individual might offer a poem praising the queen, the young prince, or the princess, and still receive a reward from the king.

Duke watched in disbelief as a minor noble recited a poem to the king that went something like, "The beautiful queen is like a star in the sky, blinking like a frog, blink by blink..."

Duke didn't know if it was the translation provided by the system's spirit that was flawed or if it was just a terrible poem, but King Llane dismissed the noble with a few gold coins amid the laughter of the other nobles.

It seemed that even performing arts were divided into different levels of quality.

Duke also presented a gift, and the master of ceremonies declared that his gift would be the grand finale after reviewing it before the banquet. Unfortunately, Medivh also decided to present a gift, so Duke's ended up being the penultimate one.

The master of ceremonies first presented a gold-inlaid, carved camphorwood box on a red velvet-lined tray to King Llane. The strong camphor scent, with its cooling and slightly spicy sensation, immediately invigorated both the king and the queen.

"What is this?" King Llane asked with a smile.

Duke gestured for the master of ceremonies to open the box, and the nobles immediately uttered murmurs of envy.

Inside was a pristine white pearl frost.

With whitening, acne removal, and freckle reduction effects, this was a new trend that had emerged in the past week. Every noblewoman who tried it raved about its effectiveness. Under the manipulation of the cunning merchants Duke and Jones, a small, palm-sized round box of this new concoction sold for almost 20 gold coins.

Now, Duke had gifted several pounds of it to the queen.

The queen could clearly hear the gasps of the noble ladies.

Her eyes curved into crescents as she laughed, "Oh, this must have cost Sir Marcus quite a bit."

"For the beauty of the queen, it's all worth it," Duke bowed deeply.

How extravagant! Duke wondered how many copper coins he had spent on this. Perhaps it was due to the lack of response from his conscience, but Duke felt he had become more cunning.

Pearl frost, was claimed to be made from the most precious pearls ground into powder. But would Duke, who laid the foundations of the sea trade route and been corrupted by cunning merchants, use so many pearls to make powder?

Not a chance.

The so-called pearl powder is scraped from the clamshell. On the sea island, those who truly understood pearls would never buy pearl powder, because the pearl powder on the market could be bought from fishermen who raise artificial pearls for only 15 units of currency, enough to fill a washbasin.

The Stormwind king, queen, and numerous nobles valued that box of pearl frost as priceless... In reality, the most expensive part was the box itself!

Of course, Duke would never reveal this secret.

As for the gift presented to the king, it was a goose egg-sized, perfectly spherical pearl. Its round shape, flawless luster, and delicate texture emitted a soft iridescent glow under the bright candlelight. It was this gentle beauty, combined with the mysterious charm and elegance, that reminded one of the ultimate femininity of women.

Upon seeing this large pearl, every noble's face displayed longing and envy.

Such a beautiful pearl would surely bring prestige even before the kings of the seven kingdoms!

King Llane was also stunned, his face filled with excitement - Duke had really put his heart into this gift. This magnificent pearl would be suitable for mounting on a crown.

"You have spared no expense, my loyal subject," King Llane said.

"By chance, I managed to obtain it. Only Your Majesty is worthy of such a splendid pearl," Duke bowed deeply, his face directed towards the floor.

It wasn't that Duke was overly polite, but rather, he feared he wouldn't be able to contain his laughter. Before crossing over to this world, who didn't know that the larger and more beautiful, the purer the color of a pearl, the more likely it was to be fake?

Pearls are formed when clams open their shells to ingest sand particles and other foreign substances. These foreign substances stimulate the clamshell to secrete a pearl-like substance to wrap around it, and then the pearl is formed.

Making round pearls is not difficult.

All you need is a larger glass bead inside, and the rest of the clamshell takes care of itself.

Now, Duke had several giant clams more than two meters long in the Western Wilderness sea area, and he had already instructed Vara to drill a hole and lock the giant clams. As long as Duke wished, he could produce pearls the size of human heads.

To be honest, Duke's ability to flatter was solely because he wanted to undermine Medivh, who was under the control of Sargeras. Duke had a vague idea of what Medivh would present next. He wanted to win over Llane and Anduin's hearts first, so when Medivh eventually let them down, their disappointment would be more profound and painful.

Having received the king's praise and the promise of further favor from Llane, Duke stepped back, allowing the focus to shift to Medivh, who had been watching the proceedings with an enigmatic, faintly amused expression.

The room grew tense as all eyes turned to Medivh, who stood calmly, biding his time. They eagerly awaited his offering, curiosity piqued by the grand gifts Duke had already presented. Medivh seemed to thrive on the anticipation, a sly smile playing on his lips as he prepared to reveal his own contribution to the festivities.