Parvone lied on his back while bleeding profusely from the stumps left behind after his four limbs were amputated. He wanted to cast his healing spells to overcome his current humiliation, but his soul, and mind were too afflicted as a result of Nick's magic to allow that at the moment. He was really at death's door.
(How…could…this…happen?)
Nick indifferently stared at Parvone for a few seconds before turning his attention to Uranus, who was still sitting in his seat while eyeing his injured student. Nick spoke at this time:
"Ahhh…I don't intend to continue the fight. Parvone is beat. Any more, and he might die."
Parvone's eyelids quivered after hearing Nick's words. Never in his life had he been granted mercy, but now he was forced to accept it, or face his own demise. To him, this was total humiliation.
Uranus stroked his beard using his right hand while thinking:
(He is showing mercy instead of going for the kill even after I said that I would take on the full responsibility if Parvone died. Either he doesn't trust my words, or he is a merciful person…)
Staring at Parvone's mutilated body for a few more seconds, Uranus came to a conclusion:
(...It is probably more the former reason than it is the latter. So be it.)
Uranus proceeded to stand up before waving his left hand towards Parvone's position. Parvone immediately vanished from the fighting platform, leaving only a pool of blood to remind everyone that he was once there. Following that, Uranus leisurely declared:
"Nick has won. You should all learn from his example."
Yarvo, Bobby, Jenine, and Aria shook a little due to intense emotions that flared within them. They had never imagined that Parvone, one of their strongest family members that was similar to them in cultivation, would lose to someone that did not even belong to another notable family. The result of the battle really changed their world view, and that was unsettling to them.
Kirst stared at Nick from his seat, wondering:
(He has developed his magic power immensely since the inter-academy competition. Right now, he even outstrips me in terms of cultivation. How is he progressing so fast? To beat even Parvone so brutally…)
Kirst shook his head, not wanting to think too much about Parvone's crippled state. Instead he psyched himself up, not eager to compare his progress to Nick's or Parvone's:
(I am not far from attaining similar to what I saw today. In fact, I might already be there, but I still need to progress in terms of base cultivation…)
Uranus suddenly disappeared from his position, and then instantly reappeared on the fighting platform to stand in front of Nick, about one meter away, while some of Parvone's blood below his feet stained his black dress shoes. He spoke to Nick using appreciation in his tone, appreciation for talent:
"You have impressed me, Nick Capitol. Your powers are extraordinary, but still rough like an uncut diamond. Why don't you become my disciple, and be polished by the hands of the Nefari family?"
Uranus' four remaining students looked on using wide, opened eyes when they heard their teacher offer Nick a place within his inner circle, a place usually reserved for family. Kirst, on the other hand, was not surprised:
(Although legacy families prized family bonds, bringing new blood into the fold is how most families with long histories have endured the erosion of time, and pressure. Uranus' offer is natural.)
Nick raised his right eyebrow in response to the offer, thinking momentarily that becoming aligned with one of Britain's wealthiest families would open doors that were previously closed.
(I would probably gain access to all kinds of knowledge, and physical resources…)
But ultimately, Nick remained unmoved:
(...All those resources would become noise that block out the voice of my own discipline. If I did not have the ability to obtain resources on my own, fine, but that is not the case, now. Instead of being forced to bow, scrape, and take orders, I might as well guard my own potential, and secrets by figuring things out on my own.)
Life was like this at times. On occasion, one had to choose between certainty of comfort, or sustenance, and their own potential. A caged bird may be safe, and even well fed, but it is docile, and is starved of the wind that would allow its wings to properly develop.
(...At least that is what I think…)
Nick politely responded to Uranus using his words:
"Elder Uranus, this one here is hardly wise, or gifted. You should spend your time on those who are. I will have to refuse your offer."
Uranus squinted his eyes in response to Nick's words, thinking:
(Hardly wise, or gifted? Hmmm…I get the feeling that those words are not insincere, but can a man not be made wise? Also, I do not want to teach just the gifted. My interest is in the committed more than anything else, but if he insists on refusing, I will not force him.)
Uranus replied:
"In that case, let me congratulate you on the victory. You do not know, but you defeating Parvone also helped to carry out a bit of my intentions, so I will increase the financial reward owing to you to 200 vatas. Think nothing of it."
Nick was not going to argue over getting more money, and so he replied simply:
"...Thanks."
Although Nick was no politician, he recognized Uranus' move for what it was:
(Trying to plant a seed of gratitude within me, huh? He probably hopes that the seed will grow into a tree that bares fruit, someday. Sorry, I might be grateful, but I will likely have to eventually smother that seed.)
Parvone's loss was the best example to Nick. For Magicians, danger often lurked along with the seemingly innocuous; Nick could not afford to be moved by shallow feelings.
Uranus nodded his head once before waving his left hand towards Nick. Nick was presumably forced to blink due to Uranus' magic. When his eyes opened again, he found himself just outside the glass double doors of the Nefari Travel Company. Nick mused:
(What kind of magic did Uranus use to place me here? Space magic? No, that is unlikely. In any case, my going to Wide Crag profited me much. I can go back to my company with my head held high after three months. Next, I will make plans for Greet Tree.)
*********************************************************
"Why do you think that there are twenty different companies competing for the resources within the realm, Long Hike?"
A seemingly middle-aged man stood at the front of what seemed like a small classroom, and addressed the nine men sitting at desks in front of him. The room had grooved, polished, brown, wooden floors, white, tiled walls, and a ceiling made of concrete-like material that had six one-meter-long light bulbs embedded into it.
The middle-aged man wore a white, and brown magician's robe, and a pair of black dress shoes. He had well-styled, grey hair, pale-white, wrinkled skin, and blue, bloodshot eyes.
The nine men sitting in front of him also wore magician's robes that all had almost the same design, and the exact same color - rust-red. They all seemed a little unsure of the answer to the question asked by the instructor, but one of them stood up and answered anyway:
"That is because Long Hike's resources are in high demand within the weapon, and medical sectors. Gaining more ground will likely result in higher revenues for the most active companies. I do not think any other answer would be more appropriate, right Instructor Redgard?"
The man who answered the question seemed to be in his mid-twenties, had a tanned, white complexion, well-styled, short, black hair, and green eyes. Unlike the eight other men, his expression was perpetually stern.
The middle-aged man called Redgard smiled lightly before replying:
"Your answer is very logical, Zane. Very logical indeed, but it is based on an incorrect premise. You suppose that financial incentives on Grand Earth is the reason for the competition, but you are wrong. Twenty companies are competing in Long Hike because the resources there can directly strengthen their Magicians. For example, the marsh root obtained from Long Hike can help with nourishing basic grade mindscapes, making it easier for rank 2 Magicians to become rank 3. Listen here, we Magicians operate on the premise that to achieve greater results, we need greater leverage. How does a Magician achieve greater leverage?"
A different man spoke this time to answer Redgard's question:
"It's obvious. A Magician gains more leverage by increasing their cultivation."
Hearing that answer, Redgard replied:
"Not bad, Shawn. Yes, a Magician increases their leverage by raising their cultivation, and that logic supports the main motive of those companies within Long Hike. Listen, the goal is not always the money you can gain from a realm, but how efficiently the realm's resources can bolster your own magic power. Once a Magician is strong enough, trust me, money will come.
At all times when working for a company, and when thinking about how you can develop it, the best answer would be to think about how you can first develop yourselves. That is how you see opportunity, and take advantage of it. Those advantages are what will make the company profitable, get you recognized, and then promoted. Do you understand?"
Another man asked in response to Redgard's explanation:
"Are you saying that we should be mostly self-concerned? Does that make sense? Won't people betray the company that they work for in that case?"
Redgard shook his head at the man before saying:
"Not so, Ben. Perpetual improvement is the default state of any Magician worth mentioning, and that cannot be the case if they are not self-concerned. Your words attempt to equate self-concern with a lack of character. That is incorrect thinking. Self-concern is the only way through which a man will mind his own business, and not compare himself to others long enough for him to do anything worthwhile.
In fact, I find that the most useless people are those who pretend to care about others, and so they are always mingling instead of working. In truth, they are just lazy, and looking for others to help them, or distract them. If you want to be a good employee, learn to be a good Magician, and that takes absolute self-concern; not selfishness, but self-directed search for leverage. Do you all understand?"
Everyone except Zane scratched their heads in confusion, not quite understanding what Redgard was saying. Most of them thought that he babbled a lot for a rank 3 initial stage Magician. Zane, however, declared:
"I understand, Instructor Redgard. Your words have been seared into my brain."
Redgard nodded his head at Zane in appreciation while thinking:
(Zane Walters, Shawn Martin, Tony Gillies, Ben Facey, Jordan Kelvin, Frank Tenison, Edison Calhoun, Irish Tepid, and George Green. The latter eight are full-time, rank 2 employees of The Realm Exploration Company, while Zane is only a rank 2 intern, yet he is the only one that gets it. Sigh…my time is up anyway. Maybe they will be able to figure out the meaning behind my words on their own later. This company hired me to lecture, but I do not plan to man-handle deaf ears.)
During the past few months, Nick gave Joyce, and Dewy the authority to hire instructors to educate the staff, or help fine tune their skills. The Magicians of the company were not exempt from these learning sessions. In fact, their further education was treated as more important than the same for any other group of staff because they will be needed to help explore realms later to extract natural resources, which were the life-blood of The Realm Exploration Company.
Redgard dismissed the men without trying to ask anymore questions. He himself immediately turned into a small cloud of grey smoke before vanishing, slightly overwhelming the rank 2 Magicians with his rank 3 initial stage magic power. As soon as Redgard vanished, Ben Facey turned towards Zane Walters, and said:
"You actually understand what Redgard said? You must be a weirdo like him."
Zane lightly smiled before saying:
"I don't care if I am a weirdo. I want to be a good Magician, so I will listen to good advice."
Irish Tepid sneered at Zane:
"If you wanted to be a good Magician, why didn't you stay at your academy for as long as the rest of us? Stop being a pretender."
Zane internally sighed when he heard Irish's words:
(I mistakenly informed these men of how long I spent at Raylam Priest Academy before graduating. I only spent three years, which was not what most people did, but I had no choice. My family is not well-off, and I did not get a scholarship to attend the academy. I could only afford to do well enough in my classes to graduate, and obtain a license to be a Magician. I am trying to learn more, though. That is why sissy helped me to get access to these lectures within The Realm Exploration Company.)
Tony Gillies silently looked at Zane for a few moments before saying:
"It's not that most of us think ill of you, but you should try to take our feelings into account when you try to seem like the class star."
Zane heard that, and remained silent in response. His expression became a little downcast, but he remained determined to learn. He soon excused himself:
"I have to go talk to my sister. I am leaving."
When they heard Zane mention his sister, no one continued to pick on him. His sister happened to be the person responsible for managing supplies within the company, and although she was a normal person, there were rumors that the boss, Nick Capitol, favored her. No one here was willing to cross Nick just to humiliate an intern.
Zane left the small room, which was recently built on the first floor, to take the elevator, which he rode to the fourth floor. Once there, he walked down the plain, marble-tiled hallway to get to a polished, lumber-like door that had a name card attached to it that read, 'Riley Walters, Head of Supply Management'.
He knocked twice on the door, and then waited for a female voice to say:
"Come in."
Zane opened the door, following which, he went inside the office, closing the door behind him. The office seemed simple enough. The floor was carpeted using a simple red carpet. There were two bookshelves placed against two adjacent walls that had a few books in them, and there was basic office equipment, like a computer, a printer, and a large amount of stationary piled in one corner.
Directly opposite from the door, there stood a pine desk where a woman was currently sitting in a standard office chair, and reading paperwork. The woman seemed to be about thirty years old, had average height, a pale-white complexion, a head full of short, blonde hair that reached down to her shoulders, styled eyebrows, and green eyes; she wore an all-black pants suit.
Riley looked up from her documents before speaking to Zane:
"Zan-Zan. How was the class? Did you learn anything from it?"
Zane openly sighed before replying:
"Sissy, I told you not to call me Zan-Zan here. What if other people heard you. I would be a laughing stock."
Riley chuckled in response to hearing her little brother's concern. She tried to allay his fears:
"Don't worry. I will personally bite anyone that makes fun of you."
Zane openly sighed again. Despite the fact that he was twenty-five years old, and even a licensed rank 2 Magician, his sister still treated him like a high school student. Although he felt the warmth of her care, he wanted her to be more aware of the time, and place. Zane soon ignored Riley's words, and said:
"Instructor Redgard said some interesting things that the other rank 2 Magicians resented me for understanding. That's pretty much how it went."
Riley put on a thoughtful expression for a few seconds before saying:
"Be sure to tell me if any of them give you trouble, okay."
Zane nodded his head once while replying:
"Sure."
Zane sat in a padded metal chair that was placed at the right side of Riley's desk before speaking to her further:
"Sissy, I would really like to get a job here to help explore realms. I have tried with other similar companies, but they all say that my abilities are too weak to be considered. I am tired of being an intern. Help me out."
Riley's face showed a slightly troubled expression as she thought:
(It's not like I have not tried, but with Nick gone, only Joyce, and Dewy have any say on hiring new staff. That doesn't even matter anyway because they do not have the authority to just hire Magicians. Nick has been gone for months, and we are all afraid of contacting him for personal reasons. I don't want Zan-Zan to remain an intern either…)
Riley spoke optimistically in response to her brother's request:
"Don't worry, Zan-Zan. I will find a way to help you out. I may have only recently began working for The Realm Exploration Company, but I think that the owner is a decent man even though he acts a little cold. I will introduce you two when he returns even if it costs me my job."
Zane's insides felt warm after hearing those words. He really did think that his sister was the best person alive. He mused:
(Hopefully the owner is as decent as sissy says. Most of the Magicians that I have met are temperamental, and slightly crazy. In any case, at least there is a chance that I might be permanently employed.)
RING! RING! RING!
Just then, the black smartphone on Riley's desk rang. She picked it up using her right hand, and immediately accepted the call without even checking the caller ID:
"Hello. This is Riley."
Zane waited for Riley to end her call before he continued to speak to her. Riley's next words while speaking with the person on the phone were:
"I will be there immediately, Nick."
Zane heard that name, and wondered:
(Isn't the owner of The Realm Exploration Company named Nick Capitol?)
The call apparently ended because Riley placed her smartphone in her right pants pocket before telling her brother:
"Get up, Zan-Zan. We are going to see Nick, right now."
********************************************************
Nick sat in an office chair within the first conference room, waiting to speak to Riley about materials that he wanted to get his hands on before he made the trip to Greet Tree. Within the past hour, he had already spoken to Joyce, and Dewy in this conference room to find out about the states of his employees.
He was told that most of the staff, including Carl, and Hank were simply bored, but he replied that they would have to cope with that for now because he was working on setting up a big operation.
(That is all I could say. Since the plateau where I had intended to cultivate calamity lilies was destroyed by my magic power, I will need to work on another long term income strategy. I could just set up another area to cultivate the calamity lilies, but I cannot stall my cultivation to do that. I only have about one and a half years until I must report to the Order of the United Realm. My cultivation takes priority for now, so I can cope with being dragged into that organization's drama.)
The Order of the United Realm had a noble mission - to expand Grand Earth's control, and production capacity within important Realms. Although Nick knew very little about the internal state of the organization, he knew that such a mission must involve a lot of sacrifice, and conflict. He was not going to naively go there, and simply hope for the best.
(I have to strengthen my own leverage!…)
While Nick thought about the things that he needed to do in two years, the door to the conference room finally opened. Riley walked briskly to stand in front of the oval table along with someone else. Nick raised his right eyebrow in slight confusion in response to seeing the other person. He had never seen the black-haired man that arrived with Riley before and, so indifferently asked:
"Riley, who is this, and why is he here?"
Riley breathed in deeply before answering Nick:
"It is good to see you again after so long, Nick. This person is my younger brother, whom I told you about before you left for your travels. After you left, I was able to get Joyce to give him an unpaid internship, so he is still here. I…was wondering if I could speak to you regarding him."
Nick was even more confused, now:
(What does your brother have to do with me? Sigh…whatever. Riley does decent work, and hasn't annoyed me until now. I might as well hear her out.)
Nick disinterestedly replied:
"Speak your mind, Riley. This is your world, after all, I'm just living in it."
Riley ignored Nick's tone, and latter words because of the importance of this introduction to her brother's future. She knew that since her family could not afford to give her brother a thorough education on magic, he was therefore unlikely to get a good job with a good company, or even with the Government. For a Magician, that meant accepting a less than mediocre position to act as cannon fodder for some shady organization.
(This concern's Zan-Zan's life, so I cannot be shy, or afraid. Nick will have to accept the imposition!)
Riley began to introduce her brother:
"This is my younger brother, Zane Walters. He has recently graduated from Raylam Priest Academy. To be honest, he only spent three years there because my family could not afford the expense of letting him stay longer, but he obtained his magician's license. He has been unable to find employment at any reputable places, and so I would like him to work here. Please, give him a chance to work with us!"
Zane stood at Riley's left side, watching his sister plead his case, and his heart was moved. He observed Nick's indifferent expression while listening to Riley's words, and became worried for her:
(Sissy won't be fired for this, right?)
Nick was really disinterested in this situation, and did not want to spend time on it, but he soon decided that since Riley was making a request so earnestly, he should give her at least the bare minimum respect by taking it seriously. He responded by asking Zane a question:
"Zane, is it? What is your specialization?"
Riley's lips quivered after hearing Nick's question because she already knew the answer. Zane himself awkwardly answered:
"I…do not think that I am good enough, and I also have a basic mindscape, so I did not declare a specialization when I received my license…"
Zane put his head sown a little when he said those words, his expression becoming slightly downcast. Seeing this, Riley held Zane's right hand using her left hand, trying to get him to cheer up, but it had little effect. Zane thought:
(Sissy doesn't get it. Every time I tell another Magician about my situation, they laugh at me, or mock me. Now, it is going to happen in front of my sister. This is the worst…)
Nick observed the man that was not far from his own age, and within an instant, all his own memories since childhood replayed within his mind. For some reason, Nick's expression softened, and his previous disinterest was washed away. He said:
"Yeah…I guess that happens sometimes. If it is a job you want, you can have one as the person that will help Riley in her dealings with outside vendors. Going forward, a Magician will need to be with her when negotiating deals so that we don't get screwed by unscrupulous merchants."
Nick made up a justification to partly convince himself, and others, but in truth, he just wanted to help if he could:
(If the Government had not given me a chance when I was in high school, I would not even be a Magician today.)
Riley's face lit up after hearing Nick's words. She was actually going to be able to take care of her brother while he developed at the company. She was overjoyed. She then spoke without restraint:
"Thank you, Nick. You're the best boss ever!"
Nick felt awkward hearing that kind of praise, but he could understand Riley's excitement as well as her actions even though he himself had never received such help from a sibling before. Zane lifted his head up all the way, and looked at Nick with astonishment. He almost could not believe what he had just heard. Zane stayed silent to prevent his voice from cracking because of his intense emotions.
Riley, who was still holding his right hand, shook it intensely, and made eye, and head signals to get him to thank Nick. Nick waved his right hand after noticing Zane's surge in emotions, indicating that thanks was not necessary. Instead, he told Zane:
"If you are going to work effectively with Riley, you will need a specialization, and to increase your cultivation. What are your highest affinities, and what path do you have the most interest in?"
Zane answered honestly, not expecting that Nick would take so much interest in his situation:
"My two highest affinities are with time path, and information path. I think that if I could, I would like to specialize in time path."
For anyone, that would be the obvious choice. Time path Magicians were in high demand, but their services attracted the highest fees in all of magic, whether it be for agriculture, realm exploration, or cultivation. High time path affinity was also about as rare as high space path affinity, and time path did not lose out to space path in terms of mysteriousness.
After hearing Zane's words, Nick thought for a while:
(Of course I am helping the man to this extent. When helping someone who has told you their situation, you have two choices - to actually help them, or to mostly ignore their needs. The former choice involves solving their problem completely, not just giving them temporary relief. For example, I despise charity programs that feed the homeless, but do not give the capable persons among them the opportunity to find reliable housing; it was obvious neglect.
I did not expect him to have high time path affinity. This has become interesting because time path is really useful, but I cannot cultivate it myself. Hmmm…I might as well make a decent investment…)
Nick thought for a little longer before making his decision known:
"I will assign 5 vatas for your brother's meditation, and foundation laws to be changed to suitable ones that can make proper use of his time path affinity. He is also to be provided with special instructors that will help him get to rank 3 as soon as possible. Time path is a rare path with many implications, and so a rank 3, time path inheritance cannot just be bought on the street. I will get him one after I make a trip to a certain realm in a few days."
When Riley, and Zane heard Nick's words, their hearts almost stopped. Nick was clearly making a big investment in Zane, and even planning to get him an inheritance that was impossible for people like them to obtain. Riley was so happy for her brother that tears fell from her eyes. She held Zane's hand tighter as a result of her rising emotions. Zane kept silent, but he was just as happy if not happier than his sister.
Eventually, he spoke to Nick simply using a grateful tone:
"Thank you, Nick."
Remembering Uranus' words back at the magic tower, Nick replied:
"...Think nothing of it."
After a minute of watching the brother, and sister duo collect themselves, mostly Riley, Nick said:
"Enough time wasting. Riley, I plan to visit the Greet Tree realm in a few days. I want you to get some magic, and other materials for me. I will probably be gone for a few months; I will email you a list. Zane, make sure to take your classes seriously, and do not settle for anything ordinary. You are to choose the meditation technique, and foundation laws with the most potential, and not just ones that will give you a quick, momentary gain. Do you understand?"
Even though time path was cultivated by relatively few people, obtaining a rank 2 meditation technique, and set of foundation laws that coincided with the affinity was not that hard if you had enough money. Zane responded using a stern expression, and tone:
"I understand, Nick."
After giving his instructions, Nick dismissed both Riley, and Zane, but only Zane left after Riley's urging. Seeing that Riley stayed, Nick asked her:
"Is there anything else that you want?"
Nick wanted to think about his cultivation, so he wanted to get everything ordinary out of the way, first. Riley seemed hesitant for a few seconds before she walked closer to Nick to stand at his right side. She then hugged him tightly for two seconds before wordlessly running out of the conference room. Nick remained shocked for about a minute after it happened before muttering while feeling a bit of warmth inside:
"What an honest woman."
Nick quickly buried the feeling of warmth, and his expression hardened again. He then began to make plans for the coming days:
(Riley should be able to get me the materials in two, or three days. After that, I will return to the Nefari Travel Company, and make my move…)
Three days later…
Nick was in his office, storing the materials that he had asked Riley for within his space band. Because of the 200 vatas that he had received from Uranus Nefari, Nick did not have to worry about not being able to make payments to the Magicians Association, or about the working capital that his company needed to function, at least for a few months.
He was wearing a light-red silk polo shirt, a pair of light-blue jeans pants, a pair of thin, black leather gloves, and a pair of black leather combat boots.
When Nick was finished storing the materials into his space band, there were two knocks on his office door. Not used to the sudden interruption, Nick awkwardly said:
"...Come in."
Zane opened the door, and walked inside, after which, he approached, and stood in front of Nick's desk while wearing his rust-red magician's robe, and a pair of black work boots. Nick never asked whose idea it was to have the Magicians wear standard magicians' robes, but since it was not relevant to their cultivation, he did not really care about it either.
Nick asked Zane:
"Do you need something?"
Zane answered while maintaining his usual, stern expression:
"I just wanted to get your opinion before you left. Rank 3 instructors have been coming to the company to tutor just me in preparation for me to adopt a new meditation technique, and set of foundation laws. I get that I will be studying to specialize in time path, but what should I focus on, battle proficiency, or other areas? Which is most important?"
Nick understood why Zane was asking because that question could well determine his survival in dangerous realms. He also felt a little pleased that Zane came to ask for his opinion of his own accord:
(He does not seem to want to waste the resources that I am giving him. That is good.)
Nick explained simply:
"You will have to decide what kind of Magician that you want to be first before you decide how you will cultivate. The former decision should be what guides your latter decisions. Don't worry about money, or status. Just focus on how you can make yourself more valuable in the long term."
Zane internalized Nick's response before asking him another question:
"What kind of Magician are you?"
Nick was not bothered by that question since it was so vague, so he thought that he might as well give Zane an answer than would help him, but not using words. Nick immediately exuded thousands of magical units of deep-blue miasma magic energy that engulfed both he, and Zane.
Following that, he activated Cursed Vessel, which resulted in the deep-blue miasma gaining a partially red hue. Zane was surprised because of the sudden change, and was even more surprised when he heard a hair-raising, beastly cry that seemed to prevent him from moving, or thinking properly.
Before Zane knew it, the beastly cry, and the blue miasma faded. He realized that he, and Nick were now standing within a busy commercial district, in front of a building that had a large signboard that read, 'Nefari Travel Company'. Zane recognized the name Nefari, and was sure that this commercial district was not in the immediate vicinity of the company building. He looked at Nick with doubtful eyes, thinking:
(Did Nick teleport us kilometers away from the office just like that? I couldn't even resist, and I certainly do not understand how he did it. Wait…is he implying that this is the kind of Magician that he wants to be?)
Before Zane could ask any more questions, Nick said:
"I find your sister pleasant, so I hope that you two will do well under my care. When you get back to the office, make sure to work hard."
After saying that, Nick exuded deep-blue miasma magic energy again that moved to engulf Zane. In mere moments, Nick activated Cursed Vessel, resulting in the deep-blue miasma gaining a partially red hue before vanishing along with Zane. Nick had sent him back to the company office.
He then proceeded to walk through the glass double doors of the Nefari Travel Company. When inside the reception hall, he happened to spot Cylus Nefari speaking to the rank 2 female Magician that Nick had seen previously at the reception desk.
Nick approached them quickly which resulted in Cylus turning around to face him. Cylus greeted Nick using a neutral tone:
"Hello there, Nick. What can we do for you today?"
After the battle between Parvone, and Nick a few days ago, Cylus' world view had been altered, and he no longer thought of Magicians without notable backgrounds as less than.
(Parvone's injuries had been healed, and his limbs restored by Uranus, but he was still mentally scarred by the incident. He has not spoken to anyone since the battle. Nick really did a number on him, and so I cannot continue to think arrogantly when evidence that defeats my own thoughts of elitism has appeared…)
Nick answered while maintaining his usual, indifferent expression:
"I want to go to Greet Tree today."
Cylus nodded his head once in understanding before giving the female Magician some discreet instructions. Cylus then spoke to Nick:
"Follow me."
Cylus led Nick beyond the familiar side door, where they walked down the hallway for about fifteen meters before stopping in front of a door on the right side. Cylus introduced:
"This is the door that leads to Greet Tree. On the other side is a storefront that our family owns within the main city of Greet Tree, Everest. You will have to return to the same storefront for the return trip. Let me warn you, Everest has many factions stationed there belonging to many different countries on Grand Earth, so if you piss anyone off, don't expect my Nefari family to move to protect you."
Nick replied to Cylus:
"I wouldn't expect you people to protect me, anyway. Besides, how could a nobody like me possibly cause any trouble?"
Cylus squinted his eyes in suspicion after hearing Nick's words, thinking:
(A nobody, huh? Do you think that I was born yesterday? A nobody would not have been able to defeat Parvone. Not to mention that I still remember the powerful blade path, and space path spell that you used against Parvone. How could a nobody have something like that? Hmph! You should try fooling your mother, first, before trying to fool me.)
Cylus unsquinted his eyes before continuing:
"Also, Regular Magicians are a dime a dozen within Greet Tree, so you should probably lay low. That way, you will not attract any unwanted attention since you do not have a faction to depend on."
Nick flippantly responded to Cylus' concern:
"Thanks for the advice, mom."
Cylus ignored Nick's poke at him. He proceeded to open the door, waiting for Nick to enter through the doorway. Nick did not waste any time in stepping through the doorway that only revealed a dark void to the eye. Once Nick stepped all the way through, Cylus closed the door. Cylus then muttered:
"Nick can sure be an asshole. How could someone like that defeat a rank 3 middle stage Nefari? The world has gone crazy."
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When Nick completely walked through the door, the scene of a bustling reception hall appeared in front of him. The reception hall was fully carpeted using a gold, and red carpet. It had many red, and grey painted metal chairs, and tables that were being used by its patrons. The ceiling featured a soft, white light that was present throughout, and that was clearly emitted using magic.
Most of the persons within the hall had blonde hair, dark eyes, and also wore a magician's robe. Nick was the odd one out in this situation. Some of the people noticed Nick immediately, and sneered before returning to minding their own business.
Soon, a middle-aged man wearing an all-black pants suit approached , and greeted Nick. The middle-aged man had a mix of blonde, and grey hair, pale-white skin, and aged, dark eyes. Nick did not fail to sense the rank 3 middle stage magic energy that leaked out from the man.
"Hello, my name is Reeve Nefari. If you need any assistance while within Greet Tree, you can ask me for help, anytime."
Nick did not hesitate to ask:
"I need to find a store that sells rank 3, time path inheritances. Do you know a good one?"