She had long black hair, but she had tied it into a high ponytail with a blue hairband, making her appear extremely capable.
Perhaps she heard the footsteps, as an impatient expression appeared on her face, and she said flatly, "Today is the weekend. State your business and don't waste my rest time."
Durin knew it was impolite to disturb someone on the weekend, but he had no choice. He could only brace himself, make his attitude even more humble, and cautiously say, "This student has some questions about the Mage Armor spell that I can't quite figure out. So, I'd like to purchase some advanced knowledge of magic runology."
Instructor Ashley looked deeply at Durin and continued, "The information and knowledge for a Mage Apprentice to advance to a Mage costs 1 gold cogwheel. You are only allowed to borrow it for 10 days, after which you must return it to me. If there are any signs of damage, you will owe me 15 gold cogwheels. However, you are permitted to copy it down, but not to sell it externally."
Durin quickly took out a gold cogwheel from his inner pocket and respectfully offered it.
Instructor Ashley's fingertips glowed with magic, and then an ethereal arm directly grasped the gold cogwheel in Durin's hand, causing it to float in mid-air and fly into her left palm.
Next, a thin book flew out from a bookshelf inside the house and landed steadily in Durin's hands.
"This contains how to decipher the composite rune for Mage Armor, as well as several other simplest and most basic composite rune models," Instructor Ashley said, beginning to usher him out after receiving the money. Before he left, she warned again, "Remember, you must not sell this privately without my permission. If I find it circulating outside, you can forget about staying in the Magic Academy for the rest of your life. I will also have the Piltover Hall of Justice send people to arrest you!"
"Instructor, please rest assured, this student will keep it in mind."
Durin quickly lowered his head and replied.
He was unwilling to incur the resentment of a Mage of unknown strength for a paltry profit, and even less willing to be pursued by the Enforcers of the Piltover Guard.
Durin rushed back to his residence. The book detailed how to outline and draw several of the most basic composite rune models, including Mage Armor, the speed of magic transmission, and the frequency of synchronized mental power usage, etc. All he needed was time to familiarize himself and memorize them.
He began to copy on the table; he only had ten days to borrow the book, so he had to organize all the content, as reading and recalling in his mind were two different concepts.
As he wrote, Durin effectively memorized the content once. After finishing writing, he began to check against the book. In this way, he checked, learned, and memorized simultaneously. By the time he was starving, it was already evening outside.
Durin believed that with this knowledge, and his learning ability alone, he would be able to master his first spell, Mage Armor, in at most a month and a half.
He wasn't sure if this counted as exceptional talent or just average learning ability.
Durin chuckled to himself and headed out to a nearby tavern—the "Night Party."
Long hours of studying had left him famished; he needed to eat dinner first and also see if there were any tasks he could take on to earn some money and supplement his household expenses.
As soon as Durin entered, he was choked by an indescribable, pungent smell, causing him to sneeze. The scent of sweat, tobacco, and alcohol all mixed together, making Durin frown as soon as he stepped inside.
It was the time of day when work ended, and workers from Vocal Avenue were gathering in groups of three to five, feasting in the tavern, enjoying their rare leisure after a tiring day. The once spacious area had become somewhat crowded.
Several waitresses continuously served drinks to the long tables, while a few bushy-bearded Northern men arm-wrestled each other. The noisy shouts and continuous table-slapping made Durin extremely uncomfortable.
But as Durin entered the tavern, several gazes remained fixed on him.
The electric lights had already brightly illuminated the tavern, and the tavern owner stood behind the circular bar, wiping a glass in his hand.
Durin walked over to the tavern's bulletin board, which was already covered with a thick stack of posters.
The tasks here were all uncompleted; if someone accepted one, the poster would indicate the signature time of the task taker, allowing for a rough estimation of the task's value. As for completed tasks, they had long since been torn down one by one to claim the bounty.
Durin casually browsed through them; most were tasks posted by commoners: catching cats, running errands, and even farming tasks like helping with weeding.
The rewards were mostly small items or food, and while money was sometimes given, it was always very little.
However, there were a few yellow, or even red, pages, which generally represented high-risk missions, but naturally, high risk came with high rewards. To gain a certain status in Piltover, one had to complete these missions.
For example:
"Exterminate the Gnolls Infesting the Lumber Mill: These wolf cubs, emerging from the mountains, have attacked the lumber mill outside Piltover. Although Piltover always advocates for peace, it will never surrender its home. The Hall of Justice requires strong mercenaries, acting as bounty hunters, to hunt these Gnolls for their heads. Time limit: 15 days. Reward: 1 silver lun coin per Gnoll – Piltover Hall of Justice."
"Escort a Large Caravan: Recruiting thirty mercenaries. Destination: Besilico in Noxus. Mercenaries must present a mercenary certificate issued by the Piltover Hall of Justice. Time limit: 30 days. Reward: 1.5 silver lun coins per day – Hosskarl Family Merchant Guild, Caravan Manager Heddo."
"Acquisition of Petrified Cockatrice Stomachs: Main source: riverbanks near the Pilt River. Currently buying at a high price of 80 copper circle coins each. Time limit: 30 days – Hosskarl Family Merchant Guild, Medicinal Materials Manager Hank."
...
Durin was intently looking at the bulletin board when several mercenaries approached him. They had been watching Durin since he entered, and respectfully asked, "Sir Mage, do you need to take on a mission together?"
He glanced at them: patched leather armor, iron swords wrapped in cloth strips, and boots whose original color was indistinguishable. Clearly, these mercenaries were of the lowest tier, with limited skills, relying on numbers to complete more dangerous missions.
"We plan to deal with the Gnolls at the lumber mill outside Piltover. If you're willing to join, you can take an extra tenth of the spoils," one of the mercenaries offered.
"...Let me consider it," Durin mused for a moment, then replied.
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