Frostleaf City

Old Quinn's cloudy gaze carefully swept across every corner of the first floor. He saw neither people nor corpses, then turned his eyes toward the second floor.

"Amon..."

"Amon..."

He called softly, pretending he had come looking for someone.

There was no response. Only his hoarse voice echoed through the house, like a vicious ghost from the underworld demanding lives.

Old Quinn slowly climbed the stairs. Just as he reached the halfway point, a chair came flying down from above.

His expression changed, and he flung it aside with his left hand.

Amon leaped down, a stick in his hand—the only weapon he had been able to find on short notice.

Old Quinn circulated his Soul Power and viciously thrust the fork upward.

Amon swung the wooden stick, striking the very tip of the fork and knocking it aside.

Using the force of his descent, he pounced onto Old Quinn.

The two slid down the stairs together.

Old Quinn was underneath and took most of the impact when they hit the ground. Amon rolled with the momentum and snatched the fork from his hand.

"Ah... my leg." Old Quinn let out a miserable scream, clutching his left leg and wailing incessantly.

"What are you doing? I only came to borrow money from you... only to borrow money..."

"Is that so?" Amon steadied his breathing after the intense exertion. Those movements had already consumed more than half of his scant remaining strength.

He picked up the kettle from the nearby table, poured a cup of water, and set it on the ground a few steps away from Old Quinn.

"Then my apologies. Have a drink to calm your nerves."

Old Quinn looked at Amon in terror. Seeing that he had raised the fork, clearly conveying that he would die if he did not drink, he began to sob and beg for mercy.

"Don't kill me, I was wrong... I really was wrong... please..."

Seeing that he was unwilling to drink the water, Amon confirmed his suspicion and stabbed him in the neck.

Old Quinn's emotions settled down.

Amon walked over to the water vat, scooped up water with a dipper, and washed the blood that had splashed onto him. Then he washed his hands again and again.

The faint stench coming from the fork made him realize that it was a manure fork that had just been used.

Good thing I hadn't been stabbed...

Otherwise, even a tiny cut would have left a psychological scar.

Amon changed into clean clothes, found a meat-cutting dagger in the cupboard, and tucked it into his waistband. He was preparing to head for Frostleaf City.

First, the city would make it easier to gather information and offer more room for development. Second, now that he had killed Old Quinn, remaining in Grace Village would certainly bring considerable trouble.

He had no interest in wasting time arguing with the old thug's family.

At the village entrance, Amon ran into a young man carrying a bamboo basket on his back. He wore a padded coat made from tanned deerskin.

Dimitri, the hunter's son from the village. Warm and cheerful... Such information automatically surfaced in his mind.

Dimitri spotted Amon as well. He waved and smiled. "Hey, Amon, are you heading into the city?"

"You're going too?" Amon gave him a rather surprised glance. Though Grace Village was not far from Frostleaf City, the villagers rarely went into town unless necessary.

"Yeah. My dad caught a wild boar and asked me to sell it. We're also running out of salt and matches at home, so I need to buy some." Dimitri pointed his thumb at the bamboo basket on his back, which held half a butchered wild boar.

"Then let's go together. With a Lord Soul Master like you along, the road will be safer." He smiled somewhat sheepishly and unconsciously touched the woodcutter's knife at his waist.

Between Frostleaf City and Grace Village lay open wilderness. Ordinary beasts such as wolves and wild boars occasionally appeared on the road, posing a small danger.

Amon was not in good condition right now, so he was naturally willing to travel with someone.

He raised a hand and plucked a Monocle made of a crystal-like material from the void, placing it over his right eye.

This was the ability of his External Soul Bone. It could materialize Soul Power, turning invisible Soul Power into actual matter. The skill itself consumed nothing; it merely gave his Soul Power an additional special property.

This Soul Bone was extremely unusual. Rather than attaching to his body, it was attached to his Martial Soul!

Though it did not directly grant powerful destructive force, Amon could freely transform his Soul Power into transparent liquid or solid matter.

Materialized Soul Power possessed a certain degree of hardness and could lessen the impact of external force. Its hardness and shock-absorbing effect were proportional to the total amount of Soul Power he invested.

A very good support ability! That was how Amon evaluated this Soul Bone Skill.

Of course, what satisfied him most was that it allowed him to generate a Monocle anytime, anywhere.

Though his personality and memories as a transmigrator were dominant, after merging with the Amon Avatar, he had picked up some of Amon's habits. For example, he felt extremely uncomfortable if he did not wear a Monocle over his right eye.

Before long, Frostleaf City came into view.

It was not a large city, but it was the most prosperous place in the region.

Northland Province bordered the Far North. Due to its harsh natural climate, it was vast and sparsely populated. Frostleaf City lay in the northern part of Northland Province, making this even more pronounced. The nearest other cities were also more than a hundred li away.

"Stop." A guard at the city gate stopped them. "The entrance fee is one Copper coin per adult. If your goods exceed fifty kilograms, you need to pay one extra."

He glanced at Amon and added, "Children can enter for free."

Dimitri hung the bamboo basket from the weighing beam. It did not outweigh the counterweight, so he skillfully tossed a Copper coin into the iron collection box.

The guard nodded and waved them through.

After entering the city, Amon asked, "Do you know where I can find work in the city?"

"Work? You aren't planning to return to the village?"

"No. I want to take a look around. There should be more opportunities in the city."

"Hmm..." Dimitri held his chin and thought for a while before saying, "When I came here a few days ago, I saw Icewind Primary Soul Master Academy recruiting teaching assistants. Maybe you could give it a try."

"Thank you for the information." Amon nodded.

After they parted ways, Amon made his way toward the academy by asking for directions again and again.

As he reached a corner, a child with long red hair suddenly rushed out and slammed into him, only to be knocked backward by the recoil of the impact and fall down.

"Sorry, sorry." She quickly scrambled to her feet, apologized, and hurried away.

Amon pinched his Monocle and watched her retreating figure, clicking his tongue.

"Interesting."

More than ten minutes later, he arrived at his destination.

Two guards with iron rulers hanging from their waists stood at the entrance, leaning against the pillars on either side listlessly.

One of them yawned, glanced at the approaching Amon, and muttered in confusion, "A child? Never seen him before. He shouldn't be a student here."

"Hello, this is Icewind Primary Soul Master Academy, correct? Are you still recruiting teaching assistants?" Amon asked.

"You are a Soul Master?" The guard immediately straightened away from the pillar, asking with a trace of respect.

"Yes. I heard you were recruiting teaching assistants, so I came to try."

"Please follow me. I'll take you to see the dean. He personally handles all personnel matters."

Led by the guard, Amon arrived before a two-story stone building. He went upstairs, turned right, and came to the dean's office.

The guard knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Dean Shi Guantao was an old man who looked to be in his sixties or seventies. His head was full of white hair, a long beard hung from his chin, the wrinkles on his face were not deep, and his eyes shone brightly.

"Dean Shi, this gentleman is here to apply for a teaching assistant position." With that, the guard consciously withdrew from the office.

Shi Guantao nodded and turned his gaze to Amon. Looking at this half-grown child, he hesitated slightly before asking, "Introduce yourself."

"My name is Amon. I am a level thirteen support-type Soul Master, and I have considerable experience in close-quarters combat." Amon briefly introduced himself.

"How old are you this year?"

"Um... twelve."

"Let me see your Martial Soul."

Amon readily complied, extending his right hand. Accompanied by flickering gray light, a translucent worm with twelve rings and starry colors continuously wriggled in his palm. At the same time, a yellow Spirit Ring slowly emerged, radiating a faint glow.

"A century-old Spirit Ring? At your age, you should be able to pursue further studies at an intermediate Soul Master academy, shouldn't you?" Shi Guantao asked with some confusion.

"There are always things in life that do not go as one wishes, as well as all kinds of helpless circumstances." Amon shrugged, the corners of his mouth pulling slightly back into a smile.

To Shi Guantao, that smile carried a hint of bitterness.

He nodded and said, "The salary for a teaching assistant is not high: five Gold Soul Coins per month, with meals and lodging included. There will be a one-week probationary period. Of course, if your performance is good, the compensation can be raised accordingly."

Amon asked in some surprise, "That's all? I thought there would be some sort of assessment."

Shi Guantao laughed heartily. "It isn't that complicated. The work of a teaching assistant is not difficult, and formal academy teachers will guide you. Besides, the students you need to teach are only from the lower grades. Any Soul Master can do it."

Any Soul Master could do it... The words sounded simple, but the threshold was actually not low. The condition of being a "Soul Master" alone eliminated more than ninety percent of ordinary people.

"Do you have a place to stay?" Shi Guantao asked.

"No. I only came from the village today."

"I'll take you to the staff dormitory."

After arranging his accommodations, Shi Guantao handed Amon a card bearing the academy's emblem. It was proof of his faculty status, and with it, he could enjoy many conveniences within the academy.

It was already nearing evening. Amon planned to buy a few suitable outfits and sample the local specialties while he was at it. He unconsciously touched his chest, only then remembering that his lovely Gold Soul Coins had already left him.

Recalling his collision with the red-haired child on the road, he raised his right hand to adjust his Monocle and murmured softly:

"Interesting. I got pickpocketed..."