Watching the Wandering Gray Robe wizards crowding around the notice board, worked up and excited, Ronan suddenly recalled what Old Wells had once told him—"What comes next is when people really start dying."
Ronan fell silent, suddenly worried that Old Wells, who was short on money for a ship ticket, might also be tempted by those gleaming Magic Stones and impulsively take on those high-risk, high-reward missions.
Bigmouth Jacob had told him that Old Wells had lost his daughter in his early years, so he had always treated the equally helpless Venecia as his own daughter. Now there was Sheryl too... For the sake of his "daughter" and "granddaughter," it was not impossible that he might take a desperate gamble in his old age. Ronan hurried over to sound Old Wells out.
Fortunately, Old Wells proved far more clear-headed than Ronan had imagined. Having lived through one Black Wizard Land invasion, Old Wells understood the risks hidden behind those missions better than anyone.
He had indeed accepted missions from the notice board, and had even encouraged Venecia and Sheryl to do the same, but he had only taken the most ordinary and simplest material-processing and material-gathering jobs.
The rewards were meager, but at least they provided another source of income, barely enough to keep them living in town.
Only then did Ronan relax.
On the fifth day after the conscription order was issued, Barry and his father boarded a ship with the formal wizard and potion master they spoke of and left Hoddam.
It was also on that day.
Ronan finally managed to break open the last Storage Waist Pouch in his possession, the one taken from the advanced apprentice Black Robe Wizard.
Inside the cold, dim little room, the windows were tightly covered by thick curtains, allowing only faint