Letter of Recommendation

Amid congratulations, the intermediate mage in charge of the assessment handed Aige a magic badge. It had a violet background and a silver star, and could be worn on the left arm as a mark of a mage's rank.

The apprentice badges Aige had seen before all had the same background, but their main design was a green leaf, with up to five leaves. That meant magic apprentices were divided into five levels. After promotion, the green leaves were replaced by stars: one for junior, two for intermediate, and three for senior. There were supposedly moon and sun insignia beyond those, each also with a maximum of three. The hierarchy was strict...

As the intermediate mage pinned the one-star junior mage badge on Aige, he also evaluated his performance in battle. "It's an honor to provide a promotion assessment for a mage like you, Your Excellency. Although you showed nothing remarkable in the number of spells you used throughout the trial, casting only Fireball, Frostbolt, and Frost Nova from beginning to end, the first two are basic spells that any apprentice mage can use. Frost Nova, however, is a signature skill of junior mages, and the main reason you succeeded in advancing."

"Although you had no advantage in the number of spells you knew, the experience and control of distance you displayed in battle were excellent. I believe you've already been through many battles. You could even be said to have a clear psychological advantage against opponents such as Murlocs. Your understanding of magic is very deep, your fundamentals are solid, and you have great potential!"

"I have a suggestion for you to consider. You know very few spells, which is quite a significant weakness. I hadn't seen you register before, which means you came from an informal background, so it's no wonder. I suggest you find an opportunity to study at Violet Academy for a while, learn some basic magical theory, and expand the skills in your spellbook."

"Master, does someone like me still have a chance to study at Violet Academy?"

"Of course! Violet Academy is a public magic school run by the kingdom. It welcomes talented people from all walks of life to study there. Not everyone can attend for free, though. Magic apprentices receive five years of free education. In your case, as far as I know, you haven't received any free education, so under the academy's rules, you should be able to study there for free for at least the first year."

"Master, are you sure about that? If it's possible, I really would love to study systematic magical theory. It would be a great help on my future path in magic!"

The young master had always envied life at a magic academy. If he had a chance to attend for free, he'd be a fool not to take it...

"Absolutely, positively, without a doubt. I'm one of the second-year fire magic instructors at Violet Academy... one of them. When it comes to school policy, I know a little more than a rookie like you!" the middle-aged man said proudly.

An idea occurred to Aige, and he handed him a linen bandage. "Master, this is a medical bandage. It can be used in battle to heal some injuries. A powerful mage like you might have use for it in combat sometimes. Even if you don't need it yourself, you can give it to a friend or colleague."

"Heh, looks like you really want to go to school, huh? You've even brought out a gift... Oh, this is good stuff! I can sense some life energy in this bandage. It really is good stuff. It's not as precious as a life potion, but on a battlefield, it might just save a life! Still, it's too valuable. I shouldn't accept it, and I can't! Also, stop calling me master. I'm only an intermediate fire mage. My name is Deke."

Deke tried to refuse, but no matter how Aige looked at it, he seemed half willing to accept. Aige insisted on pressing it into his hands. To him, the bandage was genuinely easy to obtain, though others might not see it that way... It was perfect for doing someone a favor!

This wasn't necessarily pulling strings. To be honest, he had a good impression of the man. Deke also had a keen eye, and Aige was quite impressed by his evaluation. The bandage was just a small token of appreciation... As it turned out, that very bandage later saved Deke's life, but that was another story.

"All right! I won't stand on ceremony, then. I'll write you a letter of recommendation. Bring it to the academy next semester, and with my backing, studying there for a year for free shouldn't be much of a problem. Remember, summer vacation lasts two months. That means you must report to the school at the beginning of September, and you'd best come a few days early. There are some formalities to take care of."

True to his word, Deke immediately wrote a letter of recommendation and handed it to Aige... The two exchanged a smile.

Across a small river lay Stormwind City's Cathedral Square. Unlike the noisy Trade District and the quiet Mage Quarter, this place was solemn and dignified. Priests and knights came and went along the streets from time to time, as did people seeking medical treatment and worshippers.

The landmark here was the cathedral, a holy place for Priests. Apart from their own members and the fanatics who attended services on schedule, ordinary people couldn't enter at all... This made Aige want to go in and see whether, as in the game, there was an instructor here who could teach First Aid. Though he couldn't get inside, he could always ask, couldn't he?

"What? First-aid bandages? Of course! The hospital has lots of them!"

So said the young apprentice Priest he asked. Aige actually went to the hospital for a look. There were large numbers of patients seeking treatment, as well as many healers. Most still relied on medicine... What? Injections? Surgery? He was obviously expecting too much. Treatment was basically limited to medicine. Most people at the bottom of society had no access to the Holy Light's aid. Only high-ranking nobles and combat professionals might have a Priest cast Heal on them... The class system was everywhere.

Aige got to see the so-called first-aid bandage as he had hoped. It was just a snow-white bandage with not a trace of life energy, used only to wrap wounds and prevent infection. It had no other effect... It was a far cry from his linen bandages, which could restore health on the battlefield.

Well! There was no doubt those were his own specialty! He really couldn't give them away casually in the future, lest he get into trouble...

Stormwind City's largest orphanage was also here. Many children orphaned by Warriors who had died for their country were housed here, with people assigned to care for them. The conditions were a little poor, but at least they were still alive... The government couldn't be blamed. They were already being fairly conscientious. Having something was better than nothing, and it was a purely charitable institution that made no profit whatsoever. It was good enough that they could keep it running, wasn't it? As Aige passed by, he kindly donated one silver coin, the equivalent of a hundred-yuan bill. Once placed, the bet was final!

Beyond Cathedral Square lay the Dwarven District. Rumor had it there was an underground railway leading to the dwarven capital of Ironforge, but Aige didn't have time to concern himself with that for now. He had experienced it in the game anyway, so it could wait until he had time later. His current task was to complete the delivery of the goods to Stormwind City and find the dwarf Lok Wildhammer...

The task wasn't difficult. With directions from passersby, he soon found the dwarf master. Calling him a master wasn't undeserved, since he was in charge of teaching mining skills and worthy of the title.

"I've received the goods. I'll sign for them now... Why are you still here?" Seeing that Aige hadn't left, Lok asked in the distinctive, deep voice of a dwarf.

"Luxiu told me to collect payment after delivering the goods. You're supposed to pay the one-silver-coin reward for the task, Master!" Aige was frustrated. Had someone played him for a fool?

"That damned profiteer Luxiu tricked me again! Doing business with humans is never easy. Forget it, it's not the first time anyway. Take your silver coin and stop hanging around in front of me, or I might give you a taste of my pickaxe..."

The dwarf master roared in anger, but in the end he didn't make things difficult for Aige...

"Huh? You've got your money. Why haven't you left yet?" Lok, who was lying on the ground examining minerals, started up in surprise again.

"Speaking of pickaxes, I wonder if you're interested in the kind Kobolds use, Master? Honestly, Luxiu cheated both of us, so I feel a little bad taking your money. I have a pickaxe that dropped from a Kobold. You're an expert in this field, so if you're interested, it's yours!"

As he spoke, Aige took out the pickaxe the Kobold had used and handed it to the dwarf miner.

"Hey, it really is a Kobold pickaxe, huh? Rough workmanship, inferior quality, but what's going on with this grip? And why is there a little groove here?"

Lok quickly emerged from his study of it. "Though this Kobold pickaxe isn't much to look at, there are a few little details worth borrowing. You're a good lad, as honest as us dwarves. Let me buy you a drink!"

With that, he poured a large mug of yellow liquor from the oak barrel beside him. "If you're a friend, down it in one!"

Master Ai was no pushover. He had been a formidable drinker in his previous life, and since coming here, his improved physique had made his tolerance absolutely first-rate. Without another word, he downed it in one... Then he wiped his chin. "Authentic dwarven ale. You'd have a hard time finding this in an ordinary tavern! That hits the spot!"

"Haha! You're a good lad too! I like you. Have another!"

The young master took the second large mug, casually pulled a bottle of Milly's homemade wine from his storage space, and handed it over. "Try it. My wife brewed it. If you dare say it's bad, I'll tear your house down!"

"Haha! Good! Huh? A genuine ten-year vintage from the Northshire vineyard? You've got quite a background, lad!"

"You know your stuff! Is it good enough for you?"

"Of course. We dwarves never turn down good wine like this. But honestly, good as it is, it doesn't hit the spot like ale!"

Naturally. Wine had a relatively low alcohol content, and dwarves preferred strong flavors and potent spirits. Letting him be the judge was bound to get a biased verdict!

The two of them squatted in front of the dwarf's oak barrel, drinking cup after cup and having a wonderful time...

"Aige, right? Next time, help me deliver a shipment to Ironforge. Payment on delivery again. Just take it to my buddy at The Great Forge. Take the underground railway and give them my name. If that gnome attendant dares charge you, I'll tear down his damned railway!"