《Markus Alive》 Chapter 01 Markus woke up with a start, his head throbbing, and he was not in his bed. ¡®I fell asleep on my table again.¡¯ he groaned. He collected himself from his groggy state and saw the drool marks on the book that his face had been on. ¡®That¡¯s gonna stain the book¡¯. Stretching himself to get his sleepiness away, he checked the clock. ¡®I slept through the morning today also.¡¯ Wiping away the drool, he tidied his table a little bit. He wish he could have someone else clean all these for him, but with all the dangerous stuff in his room, it wasn¡¯t a good idea. Finish tidying the table, he went out of the room. There wasn¡¯t much noise in the house even though there were many people working here. If he wasn¡¯t living here, he would have thought it was a ghost house. He didn¡¯t dislike it, this quietness. On the contrary, he very much welcomed it, this peace and quiet, this feeling of lonesomeness. All cleaned up, he went downstairs. As he went to the dining room, the smell of countless cuisines assaulted his nose. ¡®Steak and chicken both! They really know my taste now. I have to thank uncle Lewis for all his hard work.¡¯ Without noticing the grin on his face Markus dug in. ¡®New bread? I never tasted this. But it tastes really good. I wonder where they found this from? I¡¯m pretty sure I have already to tasted most of the bread here. Maybe from out of town?¡¯. Letting out a satisfied blurp after finishing, he got up from his chair. It was time to start his day as usual, do some magical training, maybe some magical experiments, read some magical books, walk around the market searching for anything magical related etc. He would and could do anything he set his mind to. ¡°Young master Markus, today it¡¯s Young Miss Ada¡¯s Class Ascension ceremony. She already left in the morning and asked me to remind you of the affair. If you are going, shall I get the carriage ready?¡± asked the head of housekeepers, who just entered the dining room. ¡°It¡¯s today? Then I have to go, I already promised sis I will be there. What about Father, did he say anything about going?¡± ¡°Master Theon still has not returned from his¡­. uh¡­. duties, young master¡± answered the head housekeeper hesitantly. ¡®Typical, but then I will have to change my schedule today, not that I had a schedule in the first place. Sis will have her class ascension ceremony at Master Lambert¡¯s place, I¡¯ll need about half an hour to get there on foot. It will be at noon and since it¡¯s already close to noon, I don''t have much time to do anything else.¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s alright uncle Lewis, I¡¯ll just walk, no need for a carriage. Have any deliveries come for me?¡± ¡°No deliveries for you young master. But are sure you want to walk alone, these days streets are a little bit unsafe, the word is getting around about some kidnappings. Maybe have Ramen accompany you. Just to be safe¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll go alone, it will be a nice change of scenery for me¡± Markus said as he went upstairs to get ready.
Sometime later Markus was on the road, trotting along the stone road. His house was on the hillside of the city, it was where all the upper-level people of the society lived in the city, so the area around was neat and clean, also less busy with few people out in the open except for the occasional patrol guards lurking around the area. Markus was dressed casually, trousers in black with leather boots in brown and white a shirt with long sleeves tucked under his belt, and finally a black newsboy hat, coming down on his forehead, blocking anyone¡¯s view of his eyes, his line of sight. Master Lambert¡¯s place was on the south side of the city, while the hillside was to the west. There were some busy streets to pass to get there, so as Markus walked he enjoyed the sights. On both sides of the road, sizeable shops of various architectural designs and small stalls offering food and other interesting stuff looked lively. With streets becoming busy, races of many different kinds were walking on the road and going about their businesses. It pictured a harmonious flow as if every race is getting along and becoming prosperous together. Humans, elves, dwarves were more prominently seen as compared to orcs, eldritch, ogres, halflings etc. Slowly taking in the sights, Markus neared a two-story building on the side of the road. There were not any signs stating what kind of establishment this was but almost everyone in Ravendel city knew this was master Lambert¡¯s residence. Markus just walked inside into a big hall through the main doors, some kids were doing different kinds of training in the hall. Asking directions, Markus found the place where his sister was and went to find her. When Markus walked into a back room, there were already some people there, not people per se, only some kids, in groups of twos and threes talking loudly filling the room with buzz. The eldest is around 15 years old and the youngest around 10 years. The only adult in the room was with his sister, and another girl, talking among themselves. Master Lambert was a man well into his sixties. He may be an old man in Markus¡¯ previous world but here where a ranker could easily live up to his nineties, he looked like a middle-aged man. When Markus walked to them, the first to notice him was the other girl with his sister. Elena, Markus knew her, she was kind of a celebrity in the city, she had multiple affinities and probably got a good class to go with it too and to top it off she was a beauty. There were already some teenage boys here eyeing her. ¡°Oh! Markus, you decided to grace us with your presence¡± Elena remarked sarcastically seeing him. Markus was infamous in the city as the reclusive Weizmann boy in the higher circle of society. Not that it wasn¡¯t true, Markus really acted like a shut-in, without any noteworthy public appearances. Hence the infamy. ¡°Miss Elena, Master Lambert, it¡¯s good to see you again. And thank you Master Lambert for helping my sister with all of this.¡± Markus tactfully ignored the comment by Elena and simply greeted the two of them. ¡°Ah! Young Markus you are already here, we were getting ready to start. It is good that you are here, Ada needs a close family member on a day like this. Alright, let¡¯s get started.¡± Lambert said while patting Markus¡¯ back. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of people here, I didn¡¯t know picking a class was a¡­. A ceremony I guess. I thought people just do it on their own, nothing complicated¡± Asked Markus.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°This is all Elena¡¯s fault, she invited everyone here saying there is a ¡®huge ceremony¡¯, I also didn¡¯t know anything about this until coming here. What happens if I fail the ascension, it¡¯s gonna be so embarrassing.¡± said Ada. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Ada, you¡¯re gonna do fine. Don¡¯t think about people being here and just do your best.¡± said Elena. ¡°Good luck sister!¡± Markus too cheered his sister on to alleviate her nervousness. Nodding at Elena, taking a deep breath in, Ada in a fully white dress went to the centre of the room, with an elevated platform. There she sat down cross-legged and held out a white crystal in hand. Closing her eyes she started concentrating. Slowly Ada started glowing, illuminating the room. The white colour of the crystal faded and it became transparent little by little. As this process started, everyone there started to quieten down. ¡°Little Markus, did you know that your sister has been depressed these days? Don¡¯t say no okay, I know you¡¯re way smarter for your age, I¡¯m sure you noticed her mood these days.¡± while staring at the sitting figure Elena said to Markus. ¡°Look, I don¡¯t know what happens at your house but I talked to her, she¡¯s been pretty depressed about not having anyone at home to help her with this class ascension and generally any help with anything at all, she said it doesn¡¯t feel like a house there anymore for her. Families have to be there for each other right? I¡¯m not looking to blame anyone, just spend some time with her¡± Markus just nodded as a response while holding in a sigh of his own. He knew his household wasn¡¯t the most functional one. His eldest sister wasn¡¯t at home now. His father is practically a drunkard now. While his second sister and his mother were sadly not in this world. And their family¡¯s pillar, his grandfather, he didn¡¯t even know if he was still alive or not, he hadn''t heard from him in a long time. As time went on, Ada was covered in a fuzzy layer of white light that became blinding that nobody could keep their eyes open. This went on for some time, but as time went on little by little the brightness slowly receded. When the blinding light cleared up, Ada still sat there the same as before, no different. The only difference now was that the crystal she had been holding had become fully transparent. She opened her eyes slowly, a smile blossoming on her lips. Seeing the smile everyone knew she had succeeded. Ada has finally gotten a class and has become a Ranker at Iron level. An Iron Level Ranker! ¡°Congratulations Ada! You have done it, you have become a Ranker. You have now joined an elite group of people who have a different purpose and different outlook on life. From now on young Ada you can get stronger and protect this world from the threat of dungeons.¡± congratulated master Lambert loudly. Seeing this, everyone started going toward Ada to congratulate her. Elena practically ran to hug her and squeeze her. Markus also went forward to congratulate her sister. ¡°Everyone come, let us all together celebrate the birth of a new hero.¡± shouted Elena loudly. ¡°Elena, please you''re making me embarrassed. Don¡¯t shout like that over nothing. I¡¯m pretty sure almost everyone here already has a class.¡± Protested Ada. ¡°Ha Ha Ha! Don¡¯t sell yourself short young Ada, these young ones can all have classes because they have been training since young. Not everyone has the resources, talent or the ability to overcome this hurdle in life and become a Ranker. ¡± ¡°Master Lambert is right, Miss Ada. Just the process of class ascension could have been dangerous. There have been many who have failed to control the energy crystals and have themselves blown up¡± said a little fat boy on the side. ¡°Alright Conrad, you don¡¯t need to dampen the atmosphere here by saying those things.¡± said Elena. ¡°I¡¯m sorry my lady. I didn¡¯t mean to do that. You have my apologies. I just said that to encourage Miss Ada and that her feasts are by no means simple.¡± replied the little fat boy. ¡°Okay okay! Let¡¯s all go out to celebrate today.¡± said Elena while dragging Ada out of the room and heading out. Seeing that everyone else was heading out, Markus went to Master Lambert. ¡°Master Lambert, thank you for everything you did for my sister. She could easily pass this hurdle because of your efforts master Lambert.¡± ¡°It¡¯s quite alright young Markus, your sister is already talented. Besides, I get paid to teach these young ones. So there¡¯s no need for any thanks. It was a transaction of both ways¡± Although Lambert said that, Markus knew he helped his sister by going the extra mile because of the situation at home. Otherwise, even if Ada had the talent, she couldn¡¯t have been able to become a ranker so quickly without the necessary dedication, hard work and guidance. And Master Lambert had provided all these factors for Ada. Keeping this favour in his heart, Markus followed the crowd to a place to celebrate. While following the crowd he started to wonder what kind of class her sister got. It is normal practice to keep these things a secret because no one wants to spill their class skills and traits. That was a taboo here. Because claiming one¡¯s class specifications can affect other people with the same class. Ada has an affinity for air, and she will not go for a pure mage class or pure warrior class from the training Markus has seen her undergo. She will take a hybrid class of mage plus warrior. At the iron rank there are so many classes for hybrid types with an affinity for air, and with Ada¡¯s level of skill, she must have gotten quite a bit of classes to choose from. So trying to guess what kind of class she got is nearly impossible. ¡®I wonder whether she got a common or uncommon class, maybe even a rare one. I doubt it though, but I hope she at least got an uncommon class, she trained hard these days. I¡¯m curious as hell, wish I could go there and just ask what class she got.¡¯ While musing to himself Markus went with the flow to the place of the party, it was nothing fancy, well the place was fancy enough, just what they did at the party was just eating and drinking, nothing alcoholic. Markus had a blast there eating, which earned him a few weird looks. A five-year-old, though he looked older with his height, stuffing that much into his stomach, some people would have wondered, where the hell did all of it go. It was a neat trick Markus did with magic, to increase the rate of metabolism in his body. Nothing fancy. But it allowed him to taste anything he wanted without any worries, health-wise, and that¡¯s what mattered to him. The party went on to late in the evening, by now pretty much everyone was on the dance floor, dancing to a tune being played by the band here. Those who were not dancing were sitting around tables in groups talking about whatever teenagers talk about these days highlighting Markus, who was in a corner in the hall, eyes closed as if he was dozed off. However, in fact he was doing a session of meditation. He wanted to leave without spending much time after congratulating his sister. However, every time he thought of that he was reminded of what Elena told him earlier today and stayed. So he thought might as well get some use out of the time and started meditating. Meditating in this loud noise was nothing difficult for him. Meditation was already like breathing to him. He picked it up while in the womb of his mother, an unforgettable 5 months that was, with only touch as his sensory organ, in complete and utter darkness. The only reason he didn¡¯t lose his mind was because of meditation. It helped him keep his sanity, to keep his mind in focus and not think about his solitary experience. Otherwise, anyone else who spends 5 or so months alone in darkness would have lost his mind already. It wasn¡¯t without any merits, for his trouble he had gotten a skill for it [spirit meditation]. At least that¡¯s how he consoles himself because he wouldn¡¯t want to experience it again. ¡°Markus we''re gonna leave now. I''m gonna go with Elena and stay the night there, are you going now?¡± came the voice of his sister. ¡°Oh, ok. I¡¯m also going home then, why are staying with Elena tonight?¡± Getting out of his meditation session asked Markus. ¡°She¡¯s going to the dungeons to train the day after tomorrow, and she won¡¯t be here for some time. So she asked me to come with her because we won¡¯t be seeing each other for a month or so¡± ¡°I see, okay Ada. Have fun. Congratulations again for getting a class. We¡¯ll have a spar once you return. I wanna see what your class can do?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll beat your ass you brat.¡± Ada laughed with hands on her hips trying to look fierce. After saying their goodbyes they parted. Outside, looking at the night sky Markus looked for an alley. Once out of sight, he manipulated the gravitational energy affecting him and jumped high onto the roof of the building next to him. Without being seen by anyone he went home, jumping from roof to roof very quickly. Chapter 02 A small orb emitting a soft glow floated in front of Markus, he stared at it for some time. Stretching his hand out, ¡®Luminous orb¡¯, he cast a spell. While casting the spell, he stared at the place where the new luminous orb is appearing. With his mental energy, he can sense the 2-dimensional spell structure of the spell. At least a dozen geometrical shapes unconnected from each other were inside a hexadecimal frame, giving birth to the magical effect of the spell. A small orb emitting a soft glow appeared, no different from the already floating bright orb next to it. The two orbs side by side floated, emitting the same amount of light. Comparing the two spells Markus noted that the second orb appears to be a little bit bigger than the first one. But this is not the effect he wanted, he wanted to make the orb brighter, not bigger. Dispelling the new orb, he closed his eyes. He had been at this for a while now, with no luck. Modifying a spell is no easy task, this kind of thing needs a lot of theoretical knowledge, which he lacked at the moment. Pinching the bridge of his nose for a moment he took a book from a side shelf and started going through it. The book was named, ¡°Fundamental structures of spells¡±, it is one of the few books circulating in the market on theoretical knowledge of magic. It is very hard to find information about magic because the Mage society blocks them from being available to the public. Their official excuse is, ¡®all of the present knowledge is the hard work of previous mages of the Mage society and to share their knowledge freely would hinder the advancement of magic and hinder the minds of future innovators, earn it by contributing.¡¯ It is an inspiring statement, at least partially, but the truth is that to contribute to the community one has to learn basic knowledge first. To do that there must be basic theoretical knowledge available. But all of this knowledge is also being hoarded by the mage society, and sure they will allow prospective mages to learn them freely, but only under the conditions that they sign a contract with the mage society. It is a magical contract that can bind people mystically, if someone breaks these contracts there will be a backlash that may even lead to the death of the violator. Only the mage society can make these magically binding contracts, it is one of the trump cards held by them to be a hegemon in the continent. Finished browsing through the book, Markus again got back to casting ¡®luminous orb¡¯ and making it brighter. He kept trying to adjust the structure according to what he knew, trying to find out what controlled this spell''s brightness. Even after a dozen or so tries, he couldn¡¯t figure it out. Becoming frustrated he stopped his experiments. ¡®I need a time out.¡¯ It¡¯s really frustrating for him to be stuck on basic stuff like this. If he could find some ways to get his hands on at least the basic knowledge, he could be miles ahead of where he is now. Looking outside from his window he started to think of a plan.
A week later he finds himself with three kids, not normal ones also, three budding mages. Apis, Philip and Greta, all three of them are apprenticing to become mages. There are not many mages to go around as much as hybrid warriors and as birds of the same feather flock together these three also stuck together. All three of them lived in the same neighbourhood as Markus, so he had seen and talked with them before but weren¡¯t exactly friends. Normally he avoids associating himself with kids as honestly, he was too old for that. The reason for his initiation to befriend these three is simple, they had knowledge he did not. Apis¡¯s father held a senior position in the local mage society branch. This was the easiest way Markus could come up with to get access to the information he needed. He felt somewhat bad about befriending three kids just for materialistic reasons. But he wasn¡¯t here to harm them in any way or hinder them in their path. He will help out them as well and remember this favour. Boom! The temperature around suddenly spiked as Markus and Greta looked up from their books. A fire was raging just about 20 metres away from where both were sitting. As the fire receded, came the sound of arrogant laughter. A childish face covered in sweat came into view, panting somewhat. ¡°Did you see that? Markus, Greta? I blew up the whole dummy hahaha! Flame blitz spell is so overpowered. Hahaha! Finally, I can cast it.¡± Apis¡¯s laughter continued. ¡°Yeah right, like someone will wait five minutes for you to finish your spell.¡± With that remark, the laughter died down. The one who gave the harsh comment was Philip, lazing around in the grass under a tree. ¡°Don¡¯t say that Philip, it''s his first time casting the spell, with practice he will get better. Nice work Apis.¡± sitting beside Markus, Greta voiced her congrats to her friend. Although Markus also voiced some encouragement to Apis out loud, inside he was jealous vehemently, he also wanted to learn a spell like that. But he knew it was impossible for now. The only reason Apis can learn a spell like that was because of his father, even Philip and Greta don¡¯t know spells of that level. Apis came to the open hall where Markus and Greta were and sat down. ¡°Give me a week, I¡¯ll insta cast it. Then I¡¯ll show you Philip¡± Apis shouted at Philip. ¡®Kids, naive. He can¡¯t perfect a spell at that level now, he doesn¡¯t have the mental energy for that much control. He¡¯ll at least need another 5 or 10 years. I bet I could do it now with my stats now. I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m envying a child¡¯ ¡°Yeah Apis, I¡¯m sure with your talent you can learn it quickly¡± Markus satisfied his ego a little bit. Apis was arrogant by nature, and he was easy to keep satisfied with some flattery. Besides most of the books here were from him anyway. They were all at Apis¡¯s place, in an open field used for training. This is the first time Markus has been here. ¡°You have been reading books since we got here Markus. And they¡¯re all theoretical knowledge of magic. Why are you even reading them, it¡¯s not like you¡¯re a mage?¡± asked Apis when he saw Markus getting back to his book.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Markus lied about something else too, that he is not a mage and that he is training to become a warrior. A hybrid warrior. He wasn¡¯t sure how they would react when he began reading their books, technically these were all mage society¡¯s books and these three got them because they were apprenticing with the mage society. And from their parents too. What would happen when they go home and say that they made a new friend. Their parents will be like, ¡®oh what do you guys do with him?¡¯ and the kids will answer ¡®he is reading books all the time¡¯ and their conversation could escalate to their parents questioning why is a non-apprentice reading books from the mage society. Maybe he really is too paranoid, but Markus really didn¡¯t want to limit his freedom by signing some magical contract, that wasn¡¯t in him. So he went with a lie, saying he doesn¡¯t have mental energy but it is his dream to become a mage. With this lie, he expects the previous conversation to be different. When their parents question them about him reading magic books, their answers will be, ¡®he is not a mage, he doesn¡¯t have mental energy, but it¡¯s his dream to become a mage¡¯. Hopefully, he gets some sympathy points that allows him to stay with them for some time, especially because with Apis here, he gets to read some books that are not even available to other apprentices. ¡°I hope to apply some of these theories to when I fight using my affinity. I already got some ideas.¡± Markus answered Apis¡¯s question. ¡°Oh yeah? You wanna test them now? I can help you.¡± with a smug look, itching for a fight Apis asked him. ¡°Later, you¡¯re already drained.¡± ¡°What kind of ideas have you got? Tell me¡± Greta asked, who looked excited to talk about magic. Greta is the only one in the group who seriously studies magic. Apis and Philip don¡¯t really have the temperament a mage should have. Apis always wants to blow things up, and Philip is drowsy all day around. So it is mostly Greta and Markus chatting about mystical stuff together. Seeing that Markus and Greta getting into their usual geek form Apis got up and went, shouting aloud about both of them being boring. Ignoring him, both Markus and Greta engrossed themselves in mystical secrets sharing their opinions. This was really helpful for Markus as he never really got to talk with mages about magic on a deep level like this. He really appreciates the new perspective this gives him about magic, he was self-taught and everything he knew are from books only, so talking like this gave him new inspiration. As they were talking, only Greta cast spells to validate something they discussed about as in this scenario because of Markus¡¯s lie he shouldn¡¯t be able to cast spells. When Markus saw a new interesting spell he asked about it, ¡°What¡¯s this spell? I have never seen this one. What does it do?¡± ¡°It¡¯s called ¡®Refracting light¡¯, basically it allows a caster to bend light, not that great of a spell I know. But I heard that an upgraded version of this spell could be the ¡®Invisibility spell¡¯. It should be more vastly complex than this ¡®Refracting light¡¯, but the foundation for that spell should be this spell¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, I remember something about ¡®Invisible spell¡¯ being connected to ¡®Refracting light¡¯ spell, I think my father mentioned it. But the invisibility spell isn¡¯t that useful, it can only avoid sight. There are a lot of other ways to detect someone¡± Apis, who had appeared there at some point again, sat there eating something crunchy, while a small ball of fire danced around him. ¡°Really? Then most of the spells out there now must be based on or developed on these basic kinds of spell?¡± Greta said out loud what Markus was thinking to himself. ¡®But still, Invisibility is a cool spell.¡¯ ¡°Yeah I guess, my ¡®Flame blitz¡¯ spell is also based on a basic ¡®Fireball¡¯ spell. Flame blitz¡¯s main essence is it¡¯s so much hotter than ¡®Fireball¡¯, I can make it even hotter by getting a little bit of practice, you¡¯ll see.¡± ¡®That must be true, but the spells that are available now must have had centuries of development by countless mages, I can¡¯t possibly match that trying to develop advanced, complex spells on my own through these basic ones.¡¯ Markus signed thinking about his bleak future. ¡®I have to find spells through someway. I have already tried every shop here in Ravendel but all they have are very useless spells, the most complex spell I found from shops here is the ¡®Cleanse¡¯ spell. Do I try out of the city? Or maybe a black market? There must be some kind of black market running. There are always people wanting to buy things in unofficial channels or maybe even selling some illegal stuff.¡¯ ¡®There must be a huge market for spells, especially with how overbearing the mage society is. The problem is how am I gonna find them? They must be hidden very deep to stay away from legal authorities. If it is harder for them to find these black markets, it¡¯s gonna be even more difficult for him to find them.¡¯ ¡°Greta where did you find the ¡®Refracting light¡¯ spell? Did you buy it from a shop around here¡± ¡®Are there any shops he didn¡¯t know about?¡¯ Markus was really curious as he had never seen this spell. ¡°No, I borrowed a book from a senior, it has a lot of spells like these basic ones. The spell was from there¡± ¡°Oh¡± ¡°Do you want to see it, I have the book with me now?¡± ¡°Can I? I mean is it okay? Aren¡¯t those spells supposed to be restricted?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine silly, it¡¯s not like these are advanced spells. Besides, what are you gonna do? Learn them?¡± Greta asked while giggling, different from her usual shy self. ¡®That¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m gonna do.¡¯ ¡°You¡¯re right, thanks.¡± ¡®Geesh I¡¯m such a douche, tricking little kids like this. Remember these favours now Markus and pay them back in the future.¡¯ While laughing at his own hypocrisy, he took the book and checked it out. There were some spells that Markus had never seen before, but as Greta had said all of these are very simple spells, nothing complicated. Other than the ¡®Refracting light¡¯ there were some spells that caught his eye. ¡®Camouflage¡¯, ¡®Ignite¡¯ and ¡®Amplify Illusion¡¯. Camouflage spell lets a person hide in plain sight, but it is not that sophisticated of a spell, if a person really pays attention he may notice the camouflage. The spell ¡®Ignite¡¯ can directly ignite something. If the spell is targeted at a piece of paper the paper may catch on fire directly, there will be no flame going from the caster to burn the piece of paper, the paper will suddenly just catch fire. ¡®Amplify illusion¡¯ can amplify a sensation or feeling of a target. If a person was feeling a heat, the spell will amplify that feeling of heat. The target will not literally burn, the target will only feel the increased heat. It will not really work on a sentient being as there are no real illusions involved but maybe can use it to scare some monsters. Quickly Markus remembered as much as possible of the spell models so that he can note these down at home. This was the only time Markus saw any kind of spells from these three. What they mostly read were theoretical books on magic. The spells they had were learned from the mage society and they weren¡¯t allowed to bring any books containing spells outside. So this opportunity might be the only chance he gets to read a book containing spell models from these three. Chapter 03 ¡°Ahhhh! This is goddamn annoying!¡± slamming his hands on the desk Apis shouted out loud. ¡°What is it now?¡± Thumping his head on the table and ruffling his hair Apis mumbled quietly ¡°my dad told me that I had to get my [mana controlling] skill to 5 stars by the time I¡¯m 10 years old and I¡¯ve been doing mana shaping exercises nonstop these days, but I don¡¯t see any improvement, I don¡¯t feel any at all.¡± ¡®Oh yeah, I¡¯ve seen him with a fireball hovering around him these days, so he¡¯s been doing mana shaping exercises. But 5 stars in mana controlling skill by the time he is 10 years old? Is that supposed to be good? I don¡¯t know what¡¯s the average should be for these kinds of skills.¡¯ Markus mused to himself. ¡°What really? Good luck then mate.¡± Philip said while laughing from the side. ¡°You have to be a genius to reach 5 stars by the time you¡¯re 10 years old.¡± ¡®I guess then I must be a super genius, I already have 7 stars in my mana controlling skill and I¡¯m only five years old.¡¯ Markus was a little smug about it ¡®and by their reactions, it doesn¡¯t seem to be a common thing to have 5 stars when you¡¯re ten years old also.¡¯ ¡°Is it that much hard to reach 5 stars proficiency in [mana controlling] skill?¡± Markus voiced his doubts. ¡°I guess so, I mean if you¡¯re just training the mana controlling skill then it is possible, but being a mage isn¡¯t just about mana controlling, there are lots of other things to learn and practise, so while learning and practising other stuff it¡¯s not easy to reach a higher level of proficiency in a single skill.¡± Greta answered him. ¡°Is that so, but mana controlling skill is one of the most important skills for a mage to have, right? If so it wouldn¡¯t be detrimental even if one trained his mana controlling more than other skills right?¡± asked Markus again. ¡°True, it is one the most important skills a mage should train. But it¡¯s not the most important, the most important thing for a mage is mental energy and it is very hard to train mental energy. So mages spend most of their time trying to increase their mental energy.¡± Greta patiently answered him. ¡°I see, what level is your mental energy and mana control skill at Greta?¡± ¡°Dude, you don¡¯t ask those kinds of questions from people, it¡¯s considered rude.¡± Philip as usual chimed in from the side. ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t know that, I¡¯m sorry Greta.¡± ¡®I knew it¡¯s taboo to ask about a person¡¯s class specifications, but didn¡¯t know about this. I should go out more and socialise a little otherwise I¡¯ll miss these small details of dos and don¡¯ts of the society¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s fine Markus, you don¡¯t have to worry about it. I can tell you my stats, you¡¯re my friend¡± Greta said while smiling. ¡°I have 3 stars in [mana controlling] skill and 2 stars in mental energy¡± ¡°What? You already have 3 stars in mana controlling skill? How is that possible? How did you train your mana controlling skill?¡± Apis, who had been sulking suddenly erupted, startling everyone here. ¡°Dude! You too? Is that how you treat a friend? Geesh.¡± Having been scared out of his laze, rebuked Philip. ¡°Eh?¡± feeling a little bit awkward from his outburst Apis tried to apologise to Greta, ¡°that¡­ I didn¡¯t mean it like that. I was just a little bit surprised, I was always practising my shaping skills around you guys but I never saw Greta practising, so¡­¡± before he could finish Philip butted in. ¡°So you thought how a normie could possibly surpass a genius at my level¡± Remarked Philip snidely from the side, again. ¡°That¡¯s enough Philip, you''re not helping¡­. Uh... it¡¯s fine Apis, I know you didn¡¯t mean it.¡± Greta is usually the shy quiet type among the three of them, but today she¡¯s lecturing the two boys. Angrily glaring at Philip, Apis seemed like he wanted to say something, but choked back his words upon hearing Greta¡¯s words. He was a little bit angry at himself for stooping to the same level as Philip. He considers himself a genius, and when he heard Greta¡¯s words he got a little unsettled. He knows that when his full potential is released he will be a peak genius throughout the whole continent and shouldn''t worry about these little squabbles. Snorting he sat down. ¡®Cute¡¯. ¡°Really Greta, is there any kind of special training you did to get your mana controlling skill¡¯s proficiency high?¡±. With all the bravado he had, he was still a little unsure whether he could get his skills up to the level his dad wanted and wanted to improve any way he can. ¡°Not really, if there is anything different from you guys, it would be that I train my mind, not mental energy per se. I know that mental energy is really hard to train and it¡¯s mostly an inborn talent. But a senior at the society said that I could train my mind for better results and I think it really did.¡± ¡®Training the mind?¡¯ ¡°What kind of exercises do you do?¡±. ¡°Revision, I guess. Well mostly I read as much as books and magical theory and spell models, that¡¯s why that senior gave me that spell book also. Then while meditating I cast ¡®mind focus¡¯ on myself and try to remember as much of its content as possible. I think by training my mind, my control over mana increased.¡± Explained Greta. Upon hearing Greta¡¯s answer Apis didn¡¯t look any happier than before. Markus knew why, Apis wasn¡¯t one to read books, he was more of an action guy, Markus didn¡¯t think he would last meditating, staying in one place. Seeing Apis¡¯s face, Greta also seemed to realise what Markus was thinking and tried to console him. ¡°Maybe Apis what your father wanted to do was to set a goal high and have you pursue it, so that even if you don¡¯t reach the goal you may end up in a better place than before.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know my father, he means what he says, no ambiguity behind what he says, he¡¯s very direct straight to the point.¡± Apis grumbled. Everyone seemed to quieten down after that, but before long everyone got back to their business again. Apis to his shaping exercises, Philip to his lazing around, Markus and Greta back to reading.
As it got darker Markus said farewell to his friends and walked back home. He had learned a lot today, new spells and discussing magic with Greta is also very useful, finally to top it all off a very much needed lesson on common knowledge. ¡®I really seem to act like a reclusive shut-in more and more¡¯.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡®But I really liked that idea of mental training Greta suggested, although my mental energy is already at 9 stars, it may come in handy further down the road. I¡¯ll research the topic when I have time in the future.¡¯ Markus was a little smug about his 9 star mental energy, only a little push and he¡¯ll reach bronze level mental energy, it will be an improvement from his current iron rank mental energy. But he wondered how long he could keep up his facade, and once he is caught his relationship with three youngsters will sour, they will maybe even hold a grudge against him. ¡®Meh, I¡¯ll think about it when the time comes too.¡¯ Coming upon his home, he nodded to the two guards stationed outside his house and went in. As it was already dark the house was lit up with lights, while crossing the lawn Markus thought about what he should do first, eat or have a wash. Just as he got closer to the main door of the house, he felt a wind behind him, a wind caressed his back, his whole body and it was not a normal kind of wind, he could feel it and it picked up speed, more and more. Suddenly Markus felt like he was in a huge storm, as the huge wind pushed him forward from his back lifting him from his feet. ¡®Why is there such a fierce wind, is it even a wind?¡¯ Markus panicked a little bit. This was surely not normal. There was not much on the lawn of his house, it had some small decorative plants but they were more like colourful bushes. So there weren¡¯t any tall trees on the lawn area that Markus can take cover on. The wind pushed him and carried him toward the front wall of the house, his feet off the ground and he was heading straight into a window, if he hit the window at this speed it would not be pleasant for him. Was he under attack or was this some magical phenomenon that he didn¡¯t know about? Steeling himself he cast [soul sense], it¡¯s a skill not a spell, he had picked up because of his trait. It allows him to sense souls around him in a specific diameter. ¡®There really is someone, and he is gaining on me fast. Shit¡¯. He cursed to himself. What is even happening, he hadn¡¯t provoked anyone in his stay here yet, maybe an enemy of his family or just some plain robber or something. Whoever or whatever this is, he is in for a fight. The assailant was gaining on him fast, and he will be within his melee range quickly. Thinking of this, he brought his hands together in front of him, palm to palm, like in a prayer, and concentrated. His hands sticking together didn¡¯t have any practical meaning to it, it just allowed him to focus more easily. Focusing, he started drawing mana from his own mana pool, then he directed them behind him to build a wall behind him, a mana shield. It only took a second as a wall of mana appeared behind him giving off a bluish shine. It was rectangular in shape, had more width than height. But covered his back all the same fully, at least Markus hoped. Done with that, still in the worshipping pose, he started manipulating his own gravitational energy. Now although the wind affecting him subdued, he was already in the air about 2 metres off the ground and going in fast towards the full glass windows. So he made himself as light as possible, this made him pick up even more speed, but as he hit the window nothing happened, it was like a piece of cotton floating in wind hitting the window. Sliding on the window, he landed on the ground. Turning around quickly he checked for his assailant, he had gained more distance between them as he had hoped with him picking up speed, allowing him to catch a breath. The assailant was dressed fully in dark, fully covered from head to toes, a dark coloured mask on his face only showing two slits for where the eyes should be, with a drawn-out sword in hand. Markus noticed that as the assailant neared him, he was not running towards him, he was in a stance of attack and he was sliding towards him keeping that stance and not running. The assailant was very, very fast and Markus will be within his melee range soon, a situation which Markus very much liked to avoid. Holding both of his hands out ¡®Omni push¡¯, Markus released a force of gravity which pushed everything in front of him. If he could focus just on the assailant, he could use ¡®Solo push¡¯. That will only affect the assailant and push him back. But the assailant is very fast and was not coming at him in a straight line, he was zig-zagging therefore hard to lock on to. So Markus decided on ¡®Omni push¡¯. The torrential force of gravity went through the area even more fierce than the winds, leaving no way to avoid the wave. Just as he expected when the force of the wave went through him, the assailant couldn¡¯t content with force and was thrown back, disoriented. When the force wave died down the assailant was back on his feet. But without coming to attack him, he stood there observing a Markus. ¡®All this commotion should have alarmed his people at the house now¡¯ but he was not hearing anything, it is a bit worrying, what exactly is happening right now. Just as he was about to shout out aloud and see whether anyone could hear him. His assailant started running toward him fast, not sliding like previously and jumped. While in air he started rotating on his own axis, perpendicular to the earth, generating a huge wind storm. All the wind in the area seemed to be aiding him as he started spinning faster and faster and building up momentum. Zoooom. With a deafening boom it came at Markus, the power it had built up seemed substantial. Seeing the incoming furious vortex of wind, he began to consider his options. Will a gravitation push like Omni push be enough? It seems to be carrying a huge amount of power. The tip of the vortex seems to be glittering, reflecting the light off of the sword at the front. With a steeled mind he decided to face it head on. He activated a skill [Mana body]. Mana started coursing through his body furiously, stretching his mana channels to the limit, visible from the protruding nerves running all over his body. Clenching his teeth he held in the pain he felt throughout his whole body. Like electricity running through his body, mana started to visibly run throughout his whole body. He started to glow blue, his hair floating upwards also glowing blue. Comparable to a man bathed in electricity. Ignoring the pain he felt, he started concentrating on his right hand. Ambient mana and mana from his own mana pool started gathering on his right hand, it was chaotic at first but slowly started to take the form of a sphere. As more and more mana gathered inside the sphere it started radiating a heart palpating power. Just as the assailant who is now a spinning storm of wind was upon him, Markus pushed his right hand toward the sword tip. The mana sphere which is at least one foot in diameter and spinning top collided. Kaaachaaa. A deafening boom reverberated through the area, the glasses behind him shattered, ground beneath the explosion cracked and dipped. The grass beneath got destroyed. With a scream the assailant was thrown away, he-no she sounded familiar. ¡°Ada?¡± ¡®fuck¡¯ cursing to himself he quickly tried to contain the mana without exploding outwards, it was not easy. The technique was already released, he couldn¡¯t stop it, the mana is now out of his control, maybe he could direct the explosion away from Ada? Quickly thinking he tried to push the explosion towards the ground, as Ada was being thrown away in the opposite direction of Markus. ¡®The wind force in Ada¡¯s attack is making my own turbid mana even more chaotic. Shit! Shit! Shit!¡¯. Inside of the sphere that Markus released, mana was rotating in opposite directions in a balanced way and upon contact this balance is broken and a huge explosion is created. And now this force of destruction with Ada¡¯s own force is going haywire. Usually, when he releases the technique the explosion is going outward of him, that was how he created this technique. But now, if he lets this force explode outward Ada will surely get caught in it. Mobilising his mental energy, he gathered the available ambient mana upon his hand and pushed downward, he pushed the force of the explosion to the ground. ¡°Ahhhhhhh!¡±. His right hand was now physically in the range of the chaotic force and it was shredding it. Blood was mixing with the force of energy, giving birth to a red coloured fog. The only reason his hand was not totally mangled was because the mana running throughout his body protected his flesh. ¡°Kaboom!¡±. Finally as the force of energy got compressed to the ground it exploded, throwing Markus away from the epicentre. ¡°Shit, my hand got fucked! I hope Ada is okay, what the hell is she even thinking, and why is nobody coming out. Goddammit it hurts.¡± Chapter 04 Looking at his bandaged right hand, he tried to move his fingers a little bit. ¡°Ow!¡± ¡®That hurt.¡¯ Yesterday night¡¯s incident had earned him a bloody right hand and a few sore spots. Other than that, he was okay. Important thing is that Ada came out safe, she had a few bruises but nothing serious. Creak. The door to his room opened and an old man barged in, a head full of short white hair, with a squarish face. This is not someone Markus sees very often. ¡°Grandpa Abraham. How is Ada? Nothing to worry about?¡± ¡°Your sister is fine, she has already forgotten about her injuries. She is far too excited, talking about your powers kid. Well, it¡¯s understandable, even I got a little roused when I heard the details about your fight. It''s not everyday you get to hear about a five year old beating a ranker.¡± Signing. ¡®This is not a situation I really like to be in. I never wanted to draw any unwanted attention to myself.¡¯ Markus knew with Ada being involved this will surely spread. He didn¡¯t want to be known as a genius and cause people to be wary of him. That is the opposite of what he wanted. He may have to control the damage a little bit to guide his reputation back on track, as ¡®a harmless geeky boy¡¯. ¡°In this old life of mine I have travelled far and wide in this continent, but I have only heard about talent like yours once or twice. You should properly take advantage of your gifts Markus, this world is not an easy world to live.¡± While caressing his now lost hand he said to Markus. Markus also directed his gaze to the missing limb, trying not to stare too much. Grandpa Abraham is a war veteran, went to war together with Markus¡¯s grandfather. He had lost his arm along the way somehow. As far as Markus knew the old man didn¡¯t have any family left, that¡¯s why he is here with Markus¡¯s family now. Looking after them while his grandfather is away. He is a silver ranker, the only silver ranker in the household. In a city where there is only one Gold ranker he is enough of a deterrence. He usually stays in the back of the house in a little shed. Rarely does Markus see him as he has asked not to be disturbed. Only in exceptional situations like this does Markus get to meet him. ¡°Yes Grandpa Abrahama, I will train hard without slacking off.¡± Markus answered like an obedient boy. ¡°Just hard work will not be enough to walk the path of a ranker, you will need guidance. Guidance from proper masters. I know you have a dream to become a mage, but your last night¡¯s performance also shows you have talent for a physical class. And frankly I believe you can tread far more easily in a physical class than being a mage¡± ¡°This¡­. I will think about it¡­¡± Markus replied sheepishly. This did not elicit a response from the old man right away, he just kept staring out of windows for a while before finally saying. ¡°Markus, I know you¡¯re a special kid and a very smart one. You have viewed this world with a very different perspective since you were young. So I want to believe that you understand the consequences of the decisions you make, even now, as a youngster.¡± ¡°I know that you had your reservations about joining the mage society, but if you want to be a mage and don''t want to join the mage society that means you are against it. Even if you don¡¯t see it that way, that will how the mage society will view you, especially if you become a powerful mage.¡± ¡°Markus my boy, your future will be not easy if that happens.¡± finally turning around looking straight at Markus he said, ¡°Think very hard before every decision you make.¡± As he said that sentence his eyes seemed to contain deep wisdom of life. ¡°Alright enough of this old man¡¯s rambling on, rest up now, if you want me for something you can find me anytime you want¡±. Leaving his last line he went out. As the old man was at the Markus said ¡°Grandpa Abraham, don¡¯t tell Ada about how serious my hand is, she will just feel bad about it and sulk for days.¡± Turning around from where he was, he looked at Markus with an unreadable expression and just said ¡®fine¡¯ and went out. After the old man went out, Markus thought deeply about what he said. Markus already knew he will have to go against the mage society at some point in the future. But he never thought how seriously mage society takes rouge mages. ¡®Will the mage society really be hell bent on getting rid of me if I don¡¯t join them and become a powerful mage.¡¯ But he knew there were mages outside of mage society, usually the league and the chamber have powerful mages of their own. Maybe they are also in the same situation, having to sign heavily restrictive contracts. ¡®Sign, what should I do? Maybe I could find some middle ground, not the two extremes of being a mage or not being a mage¡¯. As Markus was thinking there was a soft knock on the door, turning around he found Ada. ¡°Ada? Are you well enough to be walking around?¡± Ada was in a loose gown, more like a hospital gown, with some kind of green paste smeared on her bruises. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine. Doctor said everything will be fixed automatically in a day or two, nothing serious. How are you? Your hand? Uncle Lewis told me it was pretty bad.¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ¡°It¡¯s nothing serious, it will heal soon.¡± An awkward silence followed, well not awkward for Markus just Ada. Finally clearing her throat, ¡°I¡¯m sorry about last night, I didn¡¯t think things through¡­. But it was fun right? I never had an intense fight like that while training, it got me all pumped up on adrenaline. What do you think of my last technique, I call it ¡®The Twister.¡¯ Cool name right? I¡¯ve been training my ass off last week to perfect that technique, I think it came out pretty good. Master Lambert has been saying that because I¡¯m wind affinity I have to be faster in everything I do, but I never had a powerful technique with a lot of fire power, that¡¯s how I came up with the twister. And, and you markus, you were so freaking cool! When you started glowing and when your hair started floating upwards, it was like you were dancing with lightning, and that last technique, that mana ball, even now remembering it I feel the chills I felt at that moment. We¡¯ll defini-¡± ¡°ahem ahem, why are you staring at me like that?¡± Seeing the stare that Markus was giving her her rant stopped. ¡°What were you even thinking last night Ada? Someone could have been seriously injured, you know. That, last was not fun you know, I was fighting for my life and you could have gotten hurt even more. If you want to have a spar we can do that, but never again something like that, okay? You have to promise me.¡± Markus chided Ada, his voice louder than usual. ¡°Okay okay, I promise. You don¡¯t have to shout about it, I know I was reckless¡±. Ada apologised while looking pitiful. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you got uncle lewis onboard with your crazy idea.¡± ¡°He he! He probably didn¡¯t think two brats like us fighting would cause such havoc¡±. Ada said while giggling. ¡°Now leave me alone, I want to rest. Oh, and if you see Ramen tell him to come find me?¡±. Markus said while shooing Ada away. ¡°Rest well Markus, we¡¯ll have a another go when you''re all well.¡± Ada said while smirking. ¡°Ramen? I don¡¯t think he¡¯s here today. Uncle Lewis also told me that he came bruised up a couple of times, maybe he¡¯s gotten into some trouble?¡±. ¡®Bruised up? I¡¯ll have to check on him, he¡¯s not the type of kid to get into trouble.¡¯ After Ada left, Markus seriously started to ponder about his future options. He knows that he wants to be a mage, he will never reconsider that. But will he really have to sign in with the society? As a man who really likes his freedom, he didn¡¯t like having his freedom restricted. But if he wants to be a mage that is not shackled by any contracts, it will not be an easy road ahead. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he started to consider his options. ¡®This won¡¯t do, I don¡¯t have enough information. If I want to see any viable options beyond the mage society I have to find if it can be done. I¡¯ll go to Mister Eckbert¡¯s shop tomorrow and talk with him.¡¯ ¡®What should I do?¡¯. He couldn¡¯t do any spell testing as him mana channels were stretched to the limit last night, it would not be healthy to stress them anymore. ¡®Should I read a book or something?¡¯. He thought while eyeing the books on his shelf. There wasn¡¯t any book here that he hadn¡¯t already read. But with all the free time he has now, he wasn¡¯t sure what to do. ¡®God, I really don¡¯t have life besides magic now¡¯. Markus groaned on his bed, trying to get into a better sleeping position.
Next day, as Markus was on the way to Mr. Eckbert¡¯s place, he noticed an acquaintance of his. On the side of the road sitting behind a small stall selling medicinal herbs was a little girl. She wore a brown one piece that was way too big for her, with unkempt hair and very haggard straw sandals. When the little girl saw Markus coming towards her, she greeted him happily while getting up. ¡°Uhhkass¡± ¡°Hello to you to Emma¡±. Markus replied with a smile of him own. Then pointing to a herb in the stall he asked, [ How much for the Prancing Laceflower? ] Reading the hand signs of Markus, Emma replied, [ you can take it, no need for money ]. Emma picked up the herb and gave it to Markus. He didn¡¯t deny it, just that unseen to Emma he put two silver coins where she sat earlier. Whatever she or others say about her pride or about pitying her, she really needs the money. He knew that money may even decide whether she will have a meal today or not. After handing the herbs, she asked, seeing his bandaids [ did you get injured? ]. [ yes, my sister beat me up. ] He said while showing a pitiful smile. [ That can¡¯t be, I know Markus is really powerful. Tell me the truth. ] [ It¡¯s true, she really beat me up, I am not some powerful guy as you think ] [ like I¡¯ll believe you ] She said while puffing up her cheeks. [ How is your mother now? Is she well? ] Seeing the question, her smile died down, although Markus could see her efforts to not show it. [ She¡¯s better now thanks to your help. But mother is not trying to get better, she is always going back to the bad stuff. ] Now her eyes are wet. ¡®Idiot¡¯. [ Don¡¯t worry Emma, when she sees her little girl working so hard to get her better she¡¯ll come to her senses. ] Markus said while trying to salvage the situation. But seeing the tears building up in her eyes, he knew he had failed. Now she will keep building it up until he is out of her sight to let it all out. ¡®Haah, way to go Markus.¡¯ [ I am going to meet a friend, it¡¯s already getting late so I¡¯m going. Tell your brother I said hello. ] ¡°Bye!¡± ¡°Bah bahi¡± He could hear her ¡®bye bye¡¯ until he turned a corner into an alley. Trying not to be seen, he stuck his head out a little bit later, to see what she is doing. ¡®Heh, She¡¯s a strong girl.¡¯ With a smile on his face, he headed for his destination. Chapter 05 When Markus entered Eckbert¡¯s shop, he still had a grin on his face. The walkway from the entrance of the shop to the counter was surrounded by, if said pleasantly, rare relics of the past and if said plainly, just junk. Well, antique junk, it isn¡¯t all worthless. As Markus walked to the counter surrounded from both sides, it looked cramped. The old orc sitting behind the counter doesn¡¯t seem to notice Markus¡¯s arrival, engrossed by the paper in his hand. ¡°Ahem¡±. ¡°Huh? Oh, Markus. What brought you here today?¡±. The orc still seems to be in a haze as he replied automatically upon seeing Markus, as his eyes bulged comically upon finally registering who Markus is. ¡°HAHAHA! Markus, you¡¯re finally here, I have been waiting for your return, I have something for you here, haha, oh boy it¡¯s gonna be a happy surprise for you¡±. The overly loud and overly enthusiastic orc got up from his chair to head back inside his shop to get whatever surprise he got for Markus. Pausing on his foot, squinting his eyes a little bit he said quietly to Markus, ¡°boy, will you close the shop¡¯s door, the less people know about the products you need, the better¡±. Hehe. ¡®Weird old man, you could have just asked like a normal person to close the door, without being creepy about it.¡¯ While internally complaining, he did as asked. Although the old orc is not the most social person Markus knows, he is still a trustworthy person. That¡¯s why he keeps coming here. The orc came back with a big book, ¡°I got this for a big sum, so it¡¯s gonna cost you a bit. But it¡¯s gonna be worth it, take a look.¡± He still had a big smirk on his face when he handed it to Markus. With a suspicious look on his face, Markus took the book from the orc. It was very heavy, his hands dipped because of the weight. Reminding him that although the orc in front of him is a mage, he is first and foremost an orc, a race renowned for their physical prowess. Among the sentient races, only giants can triumph over them. As he began reading the book, he recognised it to be a spell, and from the initial read he learned that it is a spell named ¡®Dual mind¡¯, allowing the caster to divide his mind to focus on different things, allowing parallel thinking. ¡®But, but¡­ this whole book is a single spell?¡¯ He confirmed it by checking the end of it. ¡® It really is, but why is it so long?¡¯ ¡°Haha! Never seen a spell so long?¡± Seeing the questioning look on Markus¡¯s face the old orc asked. ¡° That''s a three-dimensional spell. How is it? It¡¯s your first time seeing one right?¡± ¡°Really? Yeah, this is the first time I¡¯m seeing a three-dimensional spell. Where did you even get it? I thought there were none in circulation. Are all three-dimensional spells so big?¡±. Markus marveled at the news. He had never seen a three-dimensional spell. The only spells he had had or seen were one or two-dimensional spells. Three-dimensional spells were deemed too dangerous for the public and they are never sold in a shop. ¡°I bought it off from someone who came to Ravendel. You¡¯re right about none being in circulation for sale, even this one was sold because it is not potentially dangerous in its effects.¡± ¡°But still it did cost a lot¡±. Eckbert said, pain visible from his voice. Markus knew the story of Eckbert the Orc mage a little bit, he had picked up clues from their conversations to form a narrative. He is from the nation of the orcs, had talent for magic but because orcs are a physically intensive race and had no education system to bring up a mage, he had decided to run away from there. And he had searched throughout the continent, ways to gather knowledge and become a powerful mage, finally ending up in this small city. Though from his bearing Markus tends to guess he had not succeeded in his endeavor, he is still only an Iron ranker, not that much rich. As mages tended to be very wealthy people. ¡°How much was it?¡± ¡°150 gold coins.¡± ¡®That is expensive, I don¡¯t have that much with me now.¡¯ Seeing Markus wincing, Eckbert quickly said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not asking you for the whole price, let¡¯s share the price, as fellow mages let¡¯s bear the burden of this together as we try to learn together¡±. ¡°I¡¯ll only take 90 gold coins, the extra 15 gold for the effort I had put into searching the book and miscellaneous expenses. What do you say?¡± Thinking for a while he said yes, ¡°but I¡¯ll pay in installments for four months¡±. He trusts the orc to not over price him and take advantage of him. The orc also accepted Marku¡¯s terms. And seeing Markus still marveling at the spell book, he decided to explain a little bit for him. ¡°Three-dimensional spells aren¡¯t recorded in books, they are recorded in tomes. The complex spell models cannot be recorded on paper, this one is not so complex compared to a normal complexity of a three-dimensional spell¡± ¡°Yah, I¡¯ve seen mentions of tomes in books, but I never knew they are used to record spells, and I see what you mean, you can¡¯t really put a three-dimensional spell model into papers, and I can only imagine how complex four-dimensional spells are.¡± Markus voiced his thoughts. ¡°The dual mind is usually a two-dimnsional spell, but this one has been fine tuned to keep it running with a low, minimum amount of mana for a long time, that¡¯s why it is so complex now and has reached the threshold for a three-dimensional spell. ¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Even if the spell is not that useful and costs way more than it should, I mostly bought it because it¡¯s not everyday that you get to study a three-dimensional spell.¡± ¡°No! This spell might be more useful to me than you thought, if it really needs only a little bit of mana to keep channeling the spell that is, I need to go home and check.¡± ¡°Hahaha! Really? That¡¯s even more wonderful if the spell can really be useful, don¡¯t worry about the mana needed for channeling it, I already tried it and it really needs only a little bit of upkeep, you¡¯ll like it.¡± The old orc laughed gleefully. ¡°So since we co-own the book, when can I have it?¡± Asked Markus. ¡°You can take it now, I tinkered with it already, if I need it back I¡¯ll ask you.¡± ¡°Sweet, thanks! I¡¯ll send the money as quickly as possible.¡± Markus was now visibly happy. ¡°Sure sure! No hurry. So why did you come here Markus? Just to check whether anything interesting has come up or for something specific?¡± ¡°Ah, I almost forgot about it, I came here for some advice.¡± Said Markus checking back the closed door. ¡°Ahem, it¡¯s not really within the realm of legal dealings, so I don¡¯t want to burden you if you don¡¯t want that kind of trouble.¡± Eyeing the young human suspiciously, asked the orc, ¡°what kind of trouble are you talking about? Tell me about it first. ¡± ¡°Ahem, well¡­ I¡¯m looking for spells, real spells, that can do real magic. Like three or four dimensional ones. ¡± ¡°And I know they are not so easily accessible, putting it mildly¡­ hehe. Yeah, anyway¡­ I know that the chance of getting real, complex spells in a legal way is practically nil for me if I don¡¯t join the mage society. So¡­ so I wanted to ask, do you know any channels where I can get spells and any kind knowledge¡­ well¡­ uhm you know, illegally.¡± At the end of the sentence he felt a little bit lacking in air, ¡®where did all the oxygen go?¡¯. ¡®It isn¡¯t that easy asking someone for help to do something illegal as I thought¡¯. With the influences Markus had from his home world, he has a psychic barrier about breaking the law of authorities, as a normal person should. That is why he is still fidgeting around. ¡°That is a logical conclusion you have come to if you don¡¯t want to be under the mage society. And I don¡¯t blame you for thinking about that. If you can¡¯t find the spells in a legal way, then find them illegally. Sign..! I¡¯m not gonna lie, even I had entertained those thoughts before.¡± Eckbert¡¯s tone was more serious than what Markus had been used to. His face also looked stern. He continued. ¡°But if you start threading this path, there is no going back Markus. You will have to live in a constant fear of getting caught, it will be a life of a criminal, yes, you will have to live the rest of your life as a criminal. Is that truly what you want Markus in your life?¡±. At the end of the sentence his voice was high pitched, emotional. Maybe because he feels relatable and had some bad experiences. ¡°Huh, this¡­ ahem. Mr. Eckbert. You don¡¯t have to get worked up about it. I have already thought about it, I have a plan on how to go about this¡±. ¡°Really? What kind of plan could you have possibly thought of. You are just a kid Markus. Even if you are smart for your age, you don¡¯t know how the world works, it is cruel and unforgivable for any tiny mistake.¡± ¡°I know that, but just hear me out. My plan is, convincing the world that I¡¯m not a mage.¡± Markus said with all the seriousness he could muster. ¡°........ what? That¡¯s it? What the hell does that even mean? HAHAHA! You can be pretty funny at times, you know Markus.¡± Eckbert laughed at the stupidity or maybe the sheer absurdity of the idea. Markus waited for Eckbert¡¯s laugh to die down and said, ¡°I know how it sounds, but I can pull it off. With my affinity and my mana controlling skill I can fight an Iron ranker without losing already, if I go around only showing my prowess as a hybrid type, I can convince others that I have chosen a hybrid class. I can-¡± ¡°Wait, wait back up, you can already fight against Iron rankers? Boy, don¡¯t lie to me. Hybrid or pure warrior classes get an improvement to their physical stats when they level up to iron rank that, it¡¯s impossible for normal humans to be able to contend against.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t believe me I can show you.¡± Markus said without backing down. ¡°Hmm¡­ really now?¡±
Walking back home with a huge book in his hands was not that inconvenient for him as his affinity allowed him to make it as light as possible. He had the old orc¡¯s promise of help in finding spells, but he didn¡¯t get what he hoped, an already available channel. The old orc said he would search for fellow minded people, to find exchanges that can be done anonymously. Although the orc may have gotten a little bit too excited after Markus showed him his prowess. They had moved back into the shop, where there was a small courtyard, the old orc¡¯s house was behind the shop. They had a little bit of a contest there, without Markus using spells, well, he didn¡¯t know any combat worthy spells to begin with anyway. The orc too didn¡¯t know any offensive spells, what he did mostly was shooting mana bolts at him and Markus had to avoid them and get close enough so that he could hit the orc at a melee range. Which was not hard, considering the orc was only an Iron ranker, he still has not received a class option to rank up to Bronze level. So all his mental energy, mana pool was within manageable level for Markus, he didn¡¯t even have an affinity. With markus¡¯s ability of manipulating his own gravity, he made some maneuvers that could have only done by physical intensive classes. And finally within the orc¡¯s range he hit him with an oscillating orb, the same technique he used against Ada, just not that powerful. Though Markus couldn¡¯t damage him, that was where he saw the old orc using a real spell, it was a defensive one. The orc called it ¡®Aegis.¡¯ It is an advanced version of mana shield, but many times more powerful. The orc had gotten it from a mage of the mage society, under contract that he will never divulge the spell model. Markus¡¯ wasn¡¯t exactly sure of the circumstances under which the orc had gotten his spell. It was a regret Markus couldn''t learn that spell, it was a pretty good defensive spell. Now he had to act his part, ¡® the less people know I am a mage better, the main thing about is not being in the radar of mage society, if they deems me as a potential threat or something and monitor me as a person of interest it will be really hard to move around, maybe not now but if I become a powerful mage.¡¯ Markus didn¡¯t like to act like a kid with other kids around, but it will be a crucial step in convincing others that he is not a mage but a training hybrid warrior to spar with other kids a little bit. ¡®Make some effort now and your future will be much easier Markus.¡¯ He was on the east side of the city now, most of the poor lived in this part of the city. It wasn''t clean as other parts of the city. The road is still a marble road, but it was heavily damaged from here and there. Showing the lack of maintenance of this part of the city as a whole. As he was walking in thought, he was reminded of Ramen today being absent and Ada seeing him bruised up sometime ago. ¡®I¡¯ll go check on him since I¡¯m already here.¡¯