Aftermath

(7000+ words today, seeking recommendation votes!)

The magical fluctuations from Donald casting spells in the slums, combined with the commotion caused by his summoned creatures' attacks, could be heard throughout most of the civilian district.

The first to react were the mages of the Mage Association. A Bronze-tier mage's mental detection range extends at least a hundred paces, and if they specifically cast detection spells, they can easily sweep across the majority of Giant Stone City.

Furthermore, no one is more familiar with or sensitive to magical fluctuations than those mages with profound mental power.

A battle had broken out in Giant Stone City, and one side involved a mage. Messer and several other high-tier mages immediately cast flight spells and rushed toward the scene.

By the time his teacher and the several Bronze mages arrived, the battle was already over.

"Mage Donald, were you attacked? Who had the audacity to do this?"

One of the Bronze mages asked, his voice filled with fury.

Donald spread his hands and said:

"I am fine, Masters, Teacher. I have dealt with the assassins. I originally intended to keep two alive, but unfortunately, I couldn't get any information out of them!"

As it turned out, in the few moments it took to speak, the remaining heavily wounded assassin had also breathed his last.

Messer comforted him:

"It doesn't matter if you couldn't get answers. These are likely death-sworn; we can usually only trace them through other clues anyway!"

Messer was deeply worried about his apprentice's safety, but as the premier mage of North Shire, he quickly regained his composure and said to the mages behind him:

"I will take young Donald back to the Association for a check-up. You stay here to secure the scene and see what traces you can find. If anyone blind enough to cause trouble shows up, deal with them as you see fit—do not show anyone any face!"

The Bronze mages immediately assured Messer they would handle it, knowing exactly what to do.

Those familiar with Messer knew the old mage was truly enraged this time. His first two apprentices had both died in the power struggles of the kingdom, which was why he detested the infighting between various factions more than anything else.

Donald was his most prized and beloved young apprentice, and his talent was a rarity seen once in a century. If he were to perish in a small place like Giant Stone City before his potential could even be realized, Messer would certainly drag the mastermind out to be buried alongside his apprentice.

Messer did not use flight spells while taking Donald back; even for a peak Bronze mage like him, casting two fifth-tier spells in succession was taxing. Unless necessary, it was better not to exhaust too much mana.

By the time the City Guard arrived at the scene, they found only a few Bronze mages guarding the area, and the parties involved had long since departed.

The fact that these mages, who were usually high and mighty, were personally guarding the scene, meticulously examining every detail and allowing no one to approach, put the City Guard captain—who had received orders from the City Lord—in a very difficult position. The mages, currently in a foul mood, cared nothing for the City Lord's orders, let alone those of a mere captain.

The captain even harbored a secret suspicion that the City Lord himself might be involved in this affair; otherwise, why would he have received the news so quickly and ordered him to the scene, specifically to handle the traces left by the assassins without drawing attention?

Knowing the waters were too deep for a small captain like him to wade into, he wisely kept his silence.

That same day, the Mage Association issued a notice to all nobles and factions in North Shire, seeking the organization responsible for the assassination attempt on an official Association mage.

For decades, there had been no such brazen assassination attempt against a mage in broad daylight. This time, the mages—who usually hid in their laboratories or meditated and rarely appeared in public—were playing for keeps. Many factions operating in the shadows were implicated.

After a thorough search, while they did not find the primary culprit, they did manage to uproot two foreign intelligence organizations in Giant Stone City, directly or indirectly disrupting the layouts of many factions in North Shire.

Essentially, due to this, the underground forces in the Giant Stone City area ceased their current operations and went into hiding to avoid being caught in the mages' wrath.

Back in that same secret underground building, the young leader in black looked at his subordinate kneeling before him and asked:

"So, you were defeated head-on by the target after your ambush?"

"Yes, Leader. The opponent's strength is far above a Black Iron Mage, and he summoned a Bronze-tier magical beast. He took out the three Black Crows in a single exchange. If I hadn't reacted quickly, even after fleeing underground, I likely would have been caught by the other flying monster!"

"Hmm! Very well, you may go!"

After the subordinate left, the tall, burly man in black behind him asked:

"Leader, they failed. Should we send more men?"

"For what? To avenge them? Those sent this time were die-hard loyalists to the old man in the Dark Group. Whether the assassination succeeded or not, these people couldn't be kept alive. Dying now is perfect; it saves us the trouble of having to deal with them ourselves!"

"I am actually quite interested in that little mage. To think he could single-handedly overturn a perfect ambush designed by the Dark Group. It is said he only recently promoted to Black Iron Mage; even for a rare Summoner, this level of strength is far too astonishing!"

"But how do we answer to the Viscount?"

The young leader said dismissively:

"Answer what? Since he assigned such a task to us, he no longer considers us his confidants. Send word that the situation is too tense and we cannot communicate with the estate for a while. The old man is likely hoping we stay hidden so we don't get caught by the mages and implicate him!"

"In any case, our true elites are hidden in the south, outside of Giant Stone City. This place is just an empty shell. Even if the old man wants to betray us, we can abandon this base and escape in time!"

While all of North Shire was in an uproar over the assassination attempt on a mage, Donald, the person involved, had been ordered by his teacher Messer to stay at the Association for three days.

During these three days, aside from practicing his own spells and reading in the library, Messer would arrange specific lessons for him whenever he wasn't busy with administrative duties. Over the three days, Donald made significant progress in his study of alchemy, essentially able to concoct several simple potions by following the formulas.

Of course, this was also thanks to the practical experience from his chemistry classes in his past life; otherwise, it wouldn't have been so easy to pick up. After all, he had been studying alchemy for less than a month, and this discipline undoubtedly required a solid foundation.

However, after idling in the Association for three days, Donald began to feel restless. Although he had sent Clinton to deliver a letter to the manor, the butler must be extremely worried after hearing the news of the assassination attempt!

Therefore, when Clinton returned from delivering the letter and brought George and Bush along, Donald asked his teacher for leave, preparing to return to the manor.

After all, the manor was newly established, and there were many matters requiring his decision.

Seeing the three fully armed guards, who were not just ordinary kingdom soldiers but possessed strength at least at the mid-Black Iron stage, and considering Donald's own strength, even an average Bronze-tier enemy might not be able to harm him. Messer felt quite at ease regarding his apprentice's safety.

Moreover, the Mage Association had made such a grand display specifically to deter those with ill intentions. Given the deterrent power of all the mages in North Shire, it was unlikely any faction would be foolish enough to target Donald again.

Thus, the old mage nodded and gave his permission. Donald, having been cooped up for days, left immediately to head toward the civilian district to continue his unfinished business.

The William family was considered quite well-off in the civilian district. Whenever the mage's attendant, William, was mentioned, the commoners in the area would show expressions of envy. Being able to work in the mysterious Mage Association and interact with those powerful mages was a job that even those in the wealthy districts would covet.

What's more, the mages were never stingy. The monthly wages were enough for William to support his family, and with the occasional tips, he could afford to send his two sons to study under the Sword Master.

Although he himself and his first two sons lacked the talent to become mages, which made William's childhood dream difficult to realize and inevitably caused regret, he was already very satisfied with this life. Moreover, ever since he got acquainted with that genius mage, William had placed all his hopes on his youngest son, hoping he could become a true mage, even if just a formal apprentice.

However, all these hopes, all of this, were shattered when he was inexplicably fired a few days ago.

Ever since he woke up that morning, William had been in a low mood and silent. After his wife tried to comfort him for a while without success, she went out to work.

She had another part-time job at a merchant's house in the wealthy district, where she usually helped the employer's wife with clothes, altering sizes, and doing some sewing to maintain the household. Although the handiwork of female laborers was generally not as good as that of professional tailors, it was a compromise for small merchant families who couldn't afford professional tailors.

After his wife left, his youngest son, who was not yet five years old, played alone in the yard. William sat dejectedly by the door, watching. In reality, his heart was in turmoil.

"Should I go or not? Maybe that lord has forgotten about me!"

He had previously revealed some information about the club to that noble mage, earning him a verbal promise that if he encountered any difficulties, he could seek help from that lord, whose status now surpassed that of ordinary nobles.

But that was just a casual remark from a powerful figure, and he might have forgotten it afterward. Would he still remember a mere servant like himself? William was afraid that if he sought help, he wouldn't even be able to see the lord. However, if this continued, his family would not be able to put food on the table, so he was in a dilemma.

Just as William was struggling internally about whether to go or not, he heard a voice from outside the door.

"Excuse me, is Mr. William at home?"

William looked up towards the door and saw four richly dressed people standing at the entrance. The tall man at the front, who was asking politely, looked like a noble guard. The young noble behind him, flanked by two attendants, was none other than the genius mage noble young master he had been thinking about these past few days!

William couldn't believe it for a moment. A noble lord, and a great mage at that, would actually come to his humble home to visit.

However, years of experience as a servant allowed him to react quickly. He rushed forward, opened the wooden door, and bowed:

"My lord mage, it is truly William's honor to see you again!"

Donald said with a smile:

"What, William, aren't you going to invite me in?"

William was flattered and also ashamed, saying:

"It's too humble here, how can I let my lord mage dirty your clothes!"

Donald chuckled, indicating he didn't mind, and pushed the door open to enter William's small courtyard first. Clinton, the attendant, naturally followed closely behind.

Although the courtyard was small, it was very tidy and not messy. It could be seen that William's family were all diligent and clean people. This made Donald, who had come with a purpose, quite satisfied.

Seeing that the important figure did not dislike his humble abode and had kindly entered, William felt compelled to respectfully invite him inside to sit and talk.