Giant Stone City's Mage Association. Donald had been holed up in the library for three whole days. During that time, he had hurriedly taken care of meals and other necessities, then replaced sleep with meditation, trying to record as much knowledge from the books as possible.
Most of what he read concerned the history of the world, the strength of the various Professionals, and introductions to the gods.
In just three days, Donald had learned more about this world than he had from the previous Donald's seventeen years of memories. After all, the original Donald had been a penniless young man from a noble family, not a Professional. How could he have access to these precious books reserved for mages?
Early on the fourth day, with his teacher Messer watching him with growing concern, Donald finally stretched his slightly sore shoulders and left the library, satisfied but with a touch of regret. He would have loved to pack up every book in there and take them with him.
"What a shame I'm short on time. I have to go take possession of the two manors I bought today. Otherwise, I'd really like to stay here much longer."
After taking over the manors, he would have plenty of matters to handle in person, and he likely wouldn't be back at the Mage Association often. That was why he had made the most of these three days, ignoring the spells the other apprentices were studying and memorizing, and instead absorbing as much knowledge across a wide range of subjects as he could to lay a solid foundation for the future.
Besides, with the Book of Truth in hand, he wouldn't be as defenseless in the face of danger as those apprentices.
After taking his leave of his devoted teacher, Messer, and the other two mages, and exchanging greetings with the attendant William, Donald left the Mage Association.
As expected, the butler, Code, was worried about his young master. But he had household matters to attend to, so each day he took turns sending Clinton and the other two men to wait with the coachman outside the association. The moment Donald came out, they hurried over to him.
"Take me to the Noble Council Administration Office!"
Donald said nothing more. As soon as he got into the carriage, he told the coachman to set off.
When he saw Sir Jesse again, the man immediately came forward to welcome him warmly.
"Donald, you've come at just the right time! The survey is complete. Once you sign the contract, the two manors will officially be yours! I'll send someone to fetch a priest of the Goddess right away!"
Hearing that, Donald couldn't care less about noble decorum and laughed with delight. The man's somewhat affected manner and flamboyant clothes even seemed much more agreeable to him now.
"Thank you so much, Jesse! Once the manors are built, you'll be the first guest I invite!"
Addressing each other by their given names showed that the two had begun to form a friendship. Nobles generally addressed one another by their rank or title.
The transfer of noble fiefs, the swearing of oaths, and the transfer of property such as manors all had to be witnessed by someone of high standing, such as a high-ranking noble, a royal representative, or a servant of the gods, to be legal. Buying a manor was not quite so complicated, but Sir Jesse, as the official in charge, was not qualified to witness the transaction. In such cases, local nobles usually asked a respected local lord or a member of the clergy to serve as witness.
Unlike the other countries on the continent, the Kingdom of Selt was currently a monotheistic nation. From the monarch down to the common people, the only true god they worshipped was the Goddess of Agriculture. Of course, many people were either broad-minded believers or nonbelievers. The Goddess of Agriculture was a loving and tolerant true god; she would not consider you a heretic simply because you did not worship her.
As the Church of the Goddess of Agriculture was the only church legally permitted to spread its faith in the Kingdom, its structure was relatively loose compared to the churches in other countries on the continent, where religious conflicts ran high. The Church also had little ambition for secular power, which was the main reason the Celt Royal Family could accept the Goddess of Agriculture.
It was worth remembering that the Celt Royal Family had once been a vassal noble house of the Ancient Magic Empire under Bannai. They hardly had a favorable impression of the churches of the gods that had brought about the collapse and fragmentation of their great empire.
About as long as a meal later, an attendant led in a young priest from the Temple of the Goddess of Agriculture in the city.
"Jesse, what do you need me for this time? Hurry up and tell me. The bishop has church business for me to take care of!"
The cleric was a handsome young man, but his manner of speaking was extremely arrogant. It was obvious at a glance that he came from a noble family.
Still, he had good reason to be proud. Though young, he was already an assistant deacon under the Temple's bishop, a position far above that of an ordinary local noble.
Word had it that he had come down from the Royal Capital to gain experience, but he had fared much better than Jesse, who was an illegitimate son. His willingness to witness this manor transaction was due to his friendship with Sir Jesse.
"Don't be in such a hurry. Let me introduce you. This is the future Sir Merlinar, the man buying the manors. Donald, this is my friend from the Royal Capital, Martin. He's the only son of Court Marquis Sadi and is currently an assistant deacon under the bishop of the Temple in Giant Stone City!"
"It's a pleasure to meet you!"
Donald greeted him first. He did not need to be especially deferential to the heir of a court marquis, but since Martin was also a member of the Church, he had to show him proper respect.
Priest Martin had initially looked down on Donald as a country noble. The fact that he was the heir to a Hereditary Knight's title had earned him some respect, but he had not yet officially received the title, and there was no telling if he would inherit it successfully. But then Martin noticed the blank badge Donald wore. His expression briefly froze before he broke into a warm smile.
"Sir Donald, you're certainly young and accomplished. May I ask which mage you're apprenticed to? I've met quite a few of the mages here in Giant Stone City while accompanying the bishop."
"What? Donald, you're an Apprentice Mage?"
Jesse, who knew little about the mage system, had never noticed the badge Donald had acquired before his second visit. Donald had never mentioned it, either.
Martin smiled and said:
"Jesse, you're still as absent-minded as ever! Haven't you noticed that Sir Donald is wearing the badge of a fully recognized Apprentice Mage?"
Ordinary people couldn't forge these badges. Anyone capable of making a convincing replica could pass the test and obtain a genuine badge, so there was no need to fake one.
Donald answered:
"You don't need to be surprised, Jesse. I only became a fully recognized apprentice a few days ago. My teacher is Master Messer!"
Martin was taken aback.
"Do you mean Master Messer, the only Silver Mage in North Shire and a master alchemist?"
"That's right. I'm fortunate to be able to study under Teacher Messer!"
Martin and Jesse both drew in a sharp breath and looked at Donald with undisguised envy. Martin took it better; the White-Robed Bishop he served oversaw the affairs of an entire shire and was himself a Silver-tier powerhouse, so he was merely impressed by Donald's standing. Jesse, on the other hand, was intensely envious of Donald's good fortune. Fortunately, he knew his place and did not let his envy turn into jealousy. Instead, he resolved to do everything he could to cultivate a good relationship with Donald.
The contract was signed quickly. With Martin, a young priest of the Goddess of Agriculture, serving as witness, Donald and Sir Jesse signed on behalf of the Merlin Family and the Royal Family, respectively. Martin also signed his name in the witness section. Magic and divine arts could verify whether documents were genuine in this world, so there was little worry about anyone forging papers or contracts.
During the proceedings, Donald worried that the priest of the Goddess might discover the Book of Truth. But then the spirit within the Book of Truth sensed his anxiety and sent him a thought that put him completely at ease. As it turned out, unless a true god's avatar appeared in person or descended through a believer's body and mind, even the most powerful Professional would not detect the Book of Truth, a high-grade divine artifact. That included the gods' servants and Professionals such as priests.
From that point on, the land of the two manors officially belonged to Donald. As long as he did not break the Kingdom's laws or defy the gods, even His Majesty the King had no right to take it away.
After Donald made a symbolic offering of fifty Gold Sol to the Goddess, Martin left, thoroughly pleased. Before he went, he made a point of inviting Donald to visit him. Donald naturally agreed, promising to invite him to a banquet once the manor was built. Then, after bidding farewell to Sir Jesse, Donald took his copy of the contract and rode out of Giant Stone City, heading back toward Red Maple Town.
As they passed by Red Maple Town, Donald suddenly instructed the coachman:
"Go back to town and pick up the butler. Then turn off here. We're going to see the manors!"
"Yes, sir!"
The coachman replied, cracked his whip, and drove the carriage back to the old Merlinar house to pick up the butler. Then he took the road outside Red Maple Town and headed northwest.
Donald's two manors lay northwest of Red Maple Town, bordering the outskirts of Green Cloak Forest. They occupied a large stretch of wasteland that had once been part of a baron's fief.
The carriage passed by the town without entering. In just over ten minutes, it reached the nearer of the two manors.
Donald looked at the scene before him and nodded. It was satisfactory enough.
Butler Code scooped up a handful of dirt and said excitedly to his young master:
"Young master, although the small manor is overgrown with weeds and has been neglected for years, the soil is still excellent, not much worse than the farmland around Red Maple Town. If we plant crops and tend them carefully, we'll surely have a bumper harvest next year!"
"That's right, sir. My wife has been growing an acre of barley for the lord in town, and this year's harvest was pretty good. The soil here looks even better than the lord's fields!"
The coachman had also gotten out to examine the small manor's land. His assessment made the butler even happier.
Donald wasn't too worried about the soil quality. He had his own way of improving it. The only thing he needed to consider now was safety. According to Sir Jesse, the previous owners had all eventually given up the fertile little manor and sold it back to the Royal Family at a low price because the magical beasts from the nearby forest often came to ruin the crops and scare off the workers.
"It looks like this place needs a proper overhaul!"
With the Book of Truth as his great cheat, Donald wasn't worried about building up the manor's defenses against magical beasts.
Unfortunately, the previous owners had dismantled all the buildings that came with the manor to recoup some of their costs. All Donald had been left with was an old wooden hut with a gaping hole in its roof. At least the boundary markers and fences had not been taken down along with everything else, sparing Sir Jesse's surveyors a lot of trouble. Otherwise, the manor wouldn't have ended up in Donald's hands.
Still, this worked out well. It would make it easier for him to rebuild the place from the ground up and make it as secure as an iron fortress.
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