Once in Demonic Arts, the sea runs deep; from then on, money is a stranger.

Yveta handed eight pennies to the Fat Woman. "Is that enough?"

"Yes, yes," the Fat Woman said quickly, stealing a glance at the fierce Demon Hunter, Black Wolf. "You can take this bounty poster and find the Employer."

The Fat Woman took the quest scroll, then pressed the Guild ring on her right thumb onto the vermilion lacquer and then onto the bounty poster.

"After the Guild seal is affixed, it can prove your identity to the Employer."

Yveta took back the bounty poster and left with his companions.

They continued by carriage, spending four shillings in town on enough black bread for six people to eat for six to seven days, another three shillings and six pennies on some alcohol, and two shillings to repair the carriage roof. With the remaining money, they bought some low-quality fodder for their oxen.

Meanwhile, the Old Witch, during this time, found three spare right arms from her magic carriage. After careful selection, she attached one to her shoulder.

Finally, they also bought the Old Witch a three-shilling cotton coat and persuaded her, with much effort, to wear it.

This was to avoid attracting too much trouble.

With that, Yveta's little treasury was left with only 32 gold pounds and 2 shillings.

Don't look at the amount remaining.

Most of it was sponsored by Leili, along with money scammed through the Charm Technique.

But in reality, Yveta knew very well that this money was not enough to sustain his current team for even a few days.

Firstly, the Old Witch's daily magic research expenses were astronomical; she consumed resources on the scale of entire manors.

Black Wolf's greatsword and off-hand weapon had not been maintained yet, and he still owed him a lot of money.

Leili's weapon also needed maintenance.

Except for the maid Alicia and her child, who were particularly energy-efficient, everyone else was tightening their belts to follow him.

However, he couldn't let this situation continue.

This was also why Yveta dared not propose the Loyalty Ceremony to Black Wolf. If Black Wolf truly became his vassal, he wouldn't have the money to support him.

Could it be that his reputation as a "debt king" was going to be solidified, and he would actually have to borrow money everywhere to support his retainers?

After they left the east gate of Kali Town, Alicia, while driving the carriage, said respectfully to Yveta, "My lord, Moro Baron Territory is about twenty kilometers from our current location. The information I gathered suggests that following this official road, it should take about half a day to reach Moro Baron Territory."

"I also asked the townspeople for many interesting things. They say that Kali Town was ordered to be built by the Baron of Moro Baron Territory over sixty years ago."

"Initially, Kali Town, being at a crucial junction, collected a lot of transit taxes, bringing substantial profits to the Baron."

"Later, Ambrose, the Great Viscount at the time [Greedy Arthur], coveted Kali Town and made it a town directly under the Viscount Independent State."

"The then Baron Moro [Poor Bulvan] disagreed and wanted to contact the townspeople to hold a general assembly to resist the Great Viscount. But who knew that the Great Viscount had already communicated with the Mayor and the guild presidents in the town in advance."

"The Great Viscount [Greedy Arthur] promised them autonomy, delegated judicial power, and the right to independently recruit guards."

"Thus, Kali Town became independent."

Leili sighed, "I didn't expect there to be such an interesting anecdote."

Yveta nodded, realizing that his decision to take in this maid was not wrong.

This maid was indeed talented.

In just half a day, she had mingled with the townspeople and gathered so much information.

She was only of humble origin and lacked the opportunity given by others to do greater things.

The mountain road was not easy to travel, causing significant damage to the horses' hooves.

Therefore, they traveled slowly.

The others ate some food.

Yveta, in the carriage, was studying his magic items. Besides the Weimar Scholar Republic's iron sword necklace, the other three magic items were all equipped with apprentice-level magic spells.

He memorized the spells on the three accessories.

Then, he asked the Hearthstone Great Witch for the incantations and casting techniques for Spirit Mirror Divination.

The Hearthstone Great Witch was surprised that Yveta did not ask her for other offensive magic, such as spells for killing.

In the carriage, Yveta replied, "You said it before."

"A magic spell often requires a long time to learn."

"Now that I have magic items, I can directly use offensive magic, so I should learn divination first."

"After all, every wizard must learn divination."

The Hearthstone Great Witch said, "I see. But Your Majesty, there are three conditions to advance to a formal wizard."

"First, you must learn more than three magic spells and develop one spell into your Lifelong Magic, meaning you must learn at least 4 spells."

"The more powerful the magic, the more beneficial it will be for your advancement and after advancement."

"Second, find a source of magic power. Because an individual's magic power source is limited, even if a wizard apprentice is experienced and knowledgeable, the biggest gap between them and a formal witch is the total amount of magic power."

"Third, cultivate divination to the point where the soul generates Gnostic Mist. Generally speaking, the more complete and powerful the structure of the Gnostic Mist, the lower the risk during advancement."

Yveta frowned, "I see. It seems I still have to find time to focus on learning spells, but we are in danger now, so it's better to take a shortcut for now."

"But is there a great risk in advancing to become a formal wizard?"

"Yes, the risk is about ten times that of becoming a wizard apprentice," the Old Witch said. "I once had a very talented disciple. She only took ten years to become a formal wizard."

"But in the end, she turned into a monster with the head of a lion, the tail of a snake, and the body of a sheep."

"Because although she failed to advance, she mutated into a monster only after becoming a formal wizard, and she is still rampaging in that area to this day."

"The people there call the monster she became a Chimera. I don't know if she has regained her senses now, but actually, it's better if she hasn't. If she has..."

"All magic carries risks and costs. Your Majesty, magic is not a toy that you can manipulate at will."

Yveta gasped.

He didn't expect it to be so dangerous.

The Old Witch nodded and said, "So it's not without reason that some people detest magic. Because every time there's a magic accident, it's the nearby commoners who pay the price. But what does that have to do with me? Those who fall on the path of magic are nothing but failures."

Black Wolf couldn't help but ask, "But since you were your disciple's teacher, why didn't you get rid of her?"

"You're a Great Witch."

The Hearthstone Great Witch shouted as if her tail had been stepped on. "Of course, I immediately fled under the cover of night."

"That was a monster that a formal witch had turned into."

"I have no reason to risk my life, and there's no benefit to be gained."

Black Wolf looked at the Old Witch with contempt. "In the end, you're just a coward. As far as I know, some witches are quite responsible and clean up their own messes."

The Hearthstone Great Witch pretended not to hear and began to tell Yveta the incantation for Spirit Mirror Divination.

She repeatedly emphasized that her beloved disciple was more skilled at this divination technique and that Yveta should be allowed to meet her beloved disciple soon.

Yveta learned that to use this Spirit Mirror Divination, one first needed to prepare a mirror worth more than 100 gold pounds...

Yveta said incredulously, "100 gold pounds! What kind of mirror can be that expensive???"

"Is that mirror made of gold?"

The Hearthstone Great Witch said, her face not blushing and her breath not faltering. "Yes, and this is just for apprentices. Mirrors below this price cannot have the dark magic to trap the mirror spirit cast upon them."

"This is the rule of this spell!"

"This is already the cheapest price."

"If you want to study this divination technique more deeply, you will need to purchase even more expensive mirrors."

"However, it's possible to change mirrors later."

Yveta looked at Black Wolf. He finally understood why Black Wolf had stopped him from learning magic back then.

Once you dive into magic, it's like sinking into a deep sea, and your money is gone forever!

Alicia said from outside the carriage, "My lords, we have arrived at Baron Moro's territory."

"Please alight from the carriage."

Yveta pulled open the carriage curtain and saw a small castle nestled on the mountainside not far away. Surrounding the castle were some residential houses and a large manor.