The Mage Quarter

Every combat professional was an asset to the kingdom. It wasn't easy for a commoner to become one. Some had to undergo arduous training, while others needed to awaken their talents...

For most melee classes, anyone with a decent physique and talent could eventually complete their class advancement after long and arduous training. Holy professionals, on the other hand, needed a deeply devout heart, had to strengthen their spiritual power through practice and commune with the Holy Light, and they too had a considerable chance of advancing.

But for a mage, for example, without innate talent, one could forget about becoming a mage. Elemental affinity, mana control and powerful spiritual power were all indispensable... The requirements were so high that very few mages emerged.

The odds of becoming a mage mentioned here applied specifically to humans... As for dwarves, rest assured, there were absolutely no mages among them. They simply didn't have the talent!

To be honest, the Azeroth Continent was not fertile ground for cultivating mages. One of the most important reasons was that the concentration of active elements in its atmosphere was not particularly high... This was also the fundamental reason so few human mages emerged. Even the first step of absorbing elements was difficult, let alone casting magic.

But the continent had once given rise to a highly advanced magical civilization, that of... the High Elves!

Absorbing elements from the atmosphere was too slow, so the ancient High Elves increased their mana by drawing on the Sunwell. With its nearly inexhaustible mana, the Sunwell brought this society a more advanced magical civilization... and also brought about their doom! For various reasons, the Sunwell exploded, leaving the High Elves, who had long grown accustomed to relying on it to store mana, at a complete loss. They could no longer easily draw the meager elemental power from the atmosphere, just as a rich heir accustomed to feasts could never get used to gnawing on a single coarse cornmeal bun a day... They all became addicts, addicts who desperately craved magical elements.

After the Sunwell exploded, the elves split into different factions. The Night Elves came under the control of the Druid faction, and the demigod, or immortal, Cenarius personally took on apprentices among them. His prized disciple, Malfurion Stormrage, was able to command the vast majority of the Night Elves thanks to his powerful natural magic. Spurred on by his orders, and having personally experienced it all, the Night Elves were unwilling to fall into addiction and stopped practicing magic... That was why no mages came from the Night Elves.

Unlike the Night Elves, the surviving High Elves could not control their people's addiction to magic. Under Prince Kael'thas's leadership, they renamed themselves Blood Elves and joined the Horde. They were somewhat more rational than their ancestors. Though they still could not control their addiction at times, they were trying to find another way to free themselves from their dependence on it... That was why the Horde possessed the most elite mage fighting force: the Blood Elf mage corps.

Humans lacked the Blood Elves' natural advantages and complete magical system, and they did not share their Night Elf allies' resolute attitude toward magic, but they had strengths of their own... a powerful ability to learn and innate creativity.

Human mages, represented by Archmage Jaina, emerged against this backdrop... Only those who had never eaten a feast would cherish that little bit of coarse bread all the more. Human mages, who had never used the Sunwell to obtain magic, took the scant elements in the atmosphere for granted. Thus, they had no complaints and no addiction to magic. Combined with their brilliant creativity, this allowed them to put their limited magical reserves to the best possible use...

Take their signature Blizzard spell, for example. It was first created by humans. If High Elves had created it, they would surely have poured out the Sunwell's mana to forcibly create a world of ice and snow. But humans would not do that, because they lacked the resources for such extravagance. So they came up with the creative idea of using ice-element resonance. By spending only a little of the ice element stored within a mage and using it to trigger a resonance with the ice elements in the surrounding world, they could produce Blizzard, a large-scale spell that left even High Elf mages dumbfounded...

That was humanity's brilliant creativity, utterly unlike the High Elves' mindless way of using magic. But clearly, it required extraordinary talent...

So among the Blood Elves today, a mage was merely a profession. But among humans, they were unquestionably masters... partly out of respect for the profession's power, and partly out of respect for the talent it required.

Aige really did return to the Oakwood Tavern. He found the owner and sincerely apologized, explaining that his anger had made him forget to pay earlier. He settled the bill of 1 silver and 50 copper, then left amid the owner's effusive praise...

Once again, he passed the real estate office without going in. Ordinary combat professionals did not necessarily have an easy life either, and probably had no spare money to buy property in Stormwind City, did they? He might not get a warm reception if he went in, so perhaps he should wait until he had obtained his junior mage certification.

Aige had a great deal of pent-up frustration over owning a decent property in a big city... You know how it is! In Nanjing, forget buying an apartment in the city for less than two million. An average price of over fifteen thousand per square meter? You could only get one in Jiangbei for that. A newly listed apartment in Nanjing's most expensive school district reportedly cost three hundred thousand per square meter. A hundred-square-meter place with three bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen and a bathroom would cost thirty million... Could you believe it?

The young master did want to get a rough idea of property prices first, so he could consider buying a place here once he had the money. If possible, he even wanted to own one or several medium-sized storefronts in the Trade District, so his wife could collect the rent now and then and they could live off it... But for now, it was only an idea. He could put it into action later.

After passing through the bustling Trade District, Aige arrived at the dedicated Mage Quarter in the west of Stormwind City. Compared with the clamor he had just experienced, it was like another world. It was quiet here... far too quiet!

Only a few magic apprentices were about on the main road, and the handful of magic item shops had scarcely any customers. There were hardly any people here!

But... no ordinary commoner dared enter this place at will. Aige remembered crossing a small bridge on his way over. When he reached the other end, he felt a thin film hold him back for a moment. After the mana within him was naturally stirred, the film abruptly vanished. Aige was then able to pass through without trouble. He remembered that the two elite greatsword master guards had merely glanced at him and let him through without a word...

Thinking back on it now, the young master did not believe there was nothing strange about that sudden film... He figured it had to be a barrier that kept ordinary people out, allowing only mages or combat professionals through. That was the real reason there were so few people in the Mage Quarter.

In fact, although his deduction was broadly similar, the barrier's function was completely different from what he thought. Though most people in the Mage Quarter were mages, commoners without mana were still allowed in. After all, no matter how badass the esteemed mages were, they still had to eat, didn't they? Were they supposed to demand that every cook and food delivery person be a mage?

The barrier's actual purpose was to keep outside noise from entering. It was a soundproof barrier, creating a relatively quiet environment for the Mage Quarter, which bordered the Trade District. Many mages lived here, along with a great number of magic apprentices. Whether researching or studying magic, they needed to be free from outside disturbance. In addition, although mages were very careful when conducting magical experiments, accidents were unavoidable. The barrier also kept unexplained explosions from frightening ordinary commoners...

But it actually had a third purpose: identification. Whenever someone passed through the barrier, the mages who had set it up could obtain a general idea of the information they wanted. It was not as detailed as one might imagine, but they could at least determine whether the person was hostile or an enemy...

The Mage Quarter was not small, but its only real guards were the two elite Stormwind City soldiers Aige had seen earlier. They were there for appearances, too. As long as the barrier raised no alarm, they did not even bother questioning people.

"Um... could I ask where I should go to get my mage certification?"

The architectural style here was truly bizarre, completely at odds with the orderly styles of the other districts. The other districts had clearly been planned, with broad roads running across them in a neat, stable layout. But here, how could he put it?

It was far too haphazard...

That was Aige's first impression!

It definitely had not been planned, or it would not have been such a mess! The buildings seemed to have little connection to one another, scattered here and there as if their owners had each claimed a plot of land and built whatever they pleased. Even neighboring buildings had completely different styles, with nothing in common. Especially those mage towers of all different sizes...

If someone claimed that the disorderly cluster of buildings here had nothing to do with those mage towers of different sizes, the young master would not have believed it even if beaten to death.

Mage towers! What mysterious things they were! Only mages at the Grand Archmage rank, levels 60-69, or above were qualified to build them. They could arrange the space inside these mage towers, which belonged entirely to them, however they wished. Most mage towers had to possess at least the following functions:

1. Defense. A mage tower had to ensure the safety of the mages inside. The materials used were relatively sturdy, making it difficult for enemies to break in from outside...

2. Early warning. A mage tower had to be able to perceive its surroundings within a certain range and provide advance warning.

3. Facilities for magical research and practice. The owner could research magic here without worry. This was the most important function of a mage tower. Of course, a mage qualified to build a mage tower was also qualified to have a considerable number of magic apprentices, so space for them to practice magic had to be planned out as well.

4. Offensive power. This was an optional function of a mage tower. Besides requiring defensive capabilities, some mage towers were also expected to possess considerable offensive power. When a mage tower with a mage stationed inside stood at a vital location, it would be an absolute nightmare for the enemy...