CHAPTER 57: MERCHANT VINCENT

Disguise magic was usually frowned upon by the Mage Association because the latter strived for authenticity and neutrality.

But disguise magic was often abused and used to wreak havoc, causing numerous disasters.

Hence, there were many restrictions placed on disguise magic.

Although it was considered forbidden to learn and study them, high circle mages were still required to learn them because they needed to understand and stay prepared to confront those who disguised themselves.

To summarize, disguise magic was a controversial topic and was rarely used in any discussion to avoid the complications.

Due to such factors, Leonard’s current option to understand the disguise magic was through Mirelle or the assassin. Had he known about this type of magic earlier, he would have browsed through his palace’s library to check if there was any information.

Alas, there was no such thing as regret.

They were close to arriving at Velastra, and turning the ship back was no longer an option.

’I have to capture the middleman and take control of Velastra.’ Leonard thought to himself. Velastra was the Trade Crown, the economic capital. If he wanted to construct a smooth pavement for his future path, then controlling Velastra was mandatory.

No matter the era, wealth was always the priority. With wealth, one could accomplish many things. Naturally, there were exceptions to wealth in its capability on practical events such as a drought disaster and requiring food to survive, but such exceptions were very rare.

Another common analogy was being trapped in a desert where wealth was worthless as opposed to water.

Nevertheless, that still doesn’t deny the importance of wealth, especially when they are in a developed place.

While Leonard was pondering his moves, Mirelle shook her head and gently advised that his plan appeared great on paper, but to execute them would be arduous.

"Claudia—I mean, the assassin might not be able to divulge any information. Her disguise magic is near flawless, and it’s probably taught to her by the Assassin Syndicate." She explained and continued, "There’s no way they wouldn’t implant any restriction spells on her to not spill the secret."

Despite her explanation, she was clear that Leonard understood the concept.

Hence, he refrained from questioning Claudia right away after the slave collar became active. Even if Claudia was now his slave, it still wouldn’t nullify the previous spells.

"Then just make do with the disguise for me." Leonard was a bit disappointed, but not by much. At the very least, he could still disguise himself as another person. And as for Number 13, he could just don a mask while wearing his royal robe.

Who would dare to impede him and force him to remove his mask?

It would be fine if they knew Number 13 was a fake, but if they didn’t and attempted such an action, then they could bid their life goodbye.

No nobles or merchants would be foolish enough to attempt such a huge risk.

Sometime later, Mirelle proceeded to use her own disguise spell and cast them on him.

"Please try not to resist the mana, Crown Prince," Mirelle warned softly. Even when trying to cast some magic on him, it was a tedious thing to do.

After all, one small mishap, and it might trigger the dormant spells in him.

In the blink of an eye, Leonard had already tested out multiple appearances. But none of them were to his liking.

"You’re even more picky than some noble ladies in choosing their outfits." Mirelle twitched her mouth slightly when he banned yet another appearance.

"Can’t you just tell me what type of appearance you want instead?" She asked in an exasperated tone. He claimed that he didn’t mind and could have his appearance randomized. But it had been more than half an hour, and he still couldn’t decide on one.

"Well, I apologize for wanting to choose one that I will use throughout the duration of my stay in Velastra. Maybe you should transform into an ugly appearance and stay as that look forever since you’re in such a rush." Leonard snorted.

"Ugh, you must have a preference if you kept banning everything."

"Forget it, let me just tell you what to alter."

He blatantly ignored her accusation and proceeded to have her fix everything.

Although the instruction of the alteration was still revolving around a handsome-looking man, only Leonard himself knew full well of this apprentice.

It was his true appearance back in his old world, or more specifically, his identity as Vincent.

Despite assuming his new role and identity, there were still memories of Vincent’s life. Rather than disguising himself as someone completely foreign, he might as well be donning his old life.

At the very least, he could still invoke powerful emotion and behavior without needing to pretend to be them.

"This is the appearance you want to be?" Mirelle glanced at the mirror reflection and appeared to be briefly stunned. Although the appearance wasn’t much different than the previous ones, she somehow sensed that this particular one seemed to resonate very well with Leonard.

’Why do I feel like I’m facing another person?’ She wondered curiously. She knew the person in front of her was the Crown Prince, yet she felt foreign, almost as if she was witnessing another person.

"How do I look?" Leonard chuckled in amusement. He spread his arms wide and made a few turns to let Mirelle see clearly. He had neatly styled black hair, sharp gray eyes, and a clean, composed face that gave off a cool and confident air.

Mirelle snapped out of her daze and commented, "You look just like one of those scummy merchants. Congratulations, Merchant Vincent. You have succeeded in disguising yourself as one of them."

"Scummy? That’s perfect." He smirked and added his own adjective.

"But don’t omit the handsome part. This is important because most scummy merchants are old perverted fogeys, unlike me." He then flicked his hair and raised his chin up. Since he was going to forego his Crown Prince status, he naturally didn’t need to mind his behavior, much less those annoying etiquettes.