On the third floor of the former agency.
Russell looked at the bills delivered this morning. As the sole inheritor of his late mentor's legacy he naturally inherited all the unpaid bills and debts.
The only thing that made him feel relieved was that his mentor didn't have any gambling habit nor any excessive consumption impulses. He was debt free but he certainly had to pay a hefty income taxes and property taxes annually.
Now that Russell deviated from his line of work and joined the public sector instead there was no longer any required income tax for his measly salary but he still had to pay annual property taxes and monthly bills for ether consumptions and field array management.
Unlike dullards who needed a lot of things to maintain their household like water, gas and electricity, a mage could simply manipulate the elements to conjure those into how they needed it.
But by doing so they deplete the surrounding ether which in turn makes the field array that spans the entire township draw from the outside to keep the internal concentration at the optimal state.
This consumes resources to keep the field array operational without any malfunction.
Little Clover Town was situated in a Peak Third Rank Treasure Land which had special ley lines underground that spews enough ether to meet the daily consumption needs of Valiant Mages and below.
There weren't only a single Peak Third Rank Treasure Land but also multiple First and Second Rank Treasure Lands entwined in one place to be able to qualify for the designated spot of a township within the kingdom.
"Mentor wasn't focused on increasing his arcana attainment last month and with only my Novice Mage realm's consumption bills came within a two digit sum as expected, only 23, but the field array management fee remained at 112 units of ether dust?"
It seems that this charges a sum based on the area of space an individual occupies within the field array. Those who were renting a place naturally paid less compared to those who owned some property.
On an additional note, his monthly salary as a Patrolman rank police officer was only 500 units. It was truly worth lamenting that more than one-fifth of his salary was spent on bills.
"Oh well, at least I can look forward to the big reward from discovering that hideout!"
Russell consoled himself as he took out five vials, three pouches and a jar from his hat to settle the bills.
These things were filled to the brim with an ever-changing color of dust. It was naturally ether dust, the currency used by Lower Three realms mages.
Because of its peculiarity a special container was needed to prevent its loss of dissipation when exposed to the air outside.
It contains a rich concentration of ether that was rapidly absorbable and had a wide variety of usage in arcane crafts. When necessary it can replenish one's ether reserve swiftly during an emergency situation.
For efficient circulation, a division based on the container is used to denominate "units" which was the name of this currency.
1 unit for a vial, 10 units for a pouch, 50 units for a bottle, 100 units for a jar, 500 units for a chest, and 1000 units for a bag.
Russell put the items on top of the bill paper. A magical circle appeared and dim light rose taking away the items while the paper burned in a blue flame.
Having done paying his bills, he went to the meditation room and sat down on the mat. He could clearly feel his distracting thoughts vanishing replaced by a serene clarity brought by a focused state.
Needless to say, that mat was anything but ordinary.
After calming down he took deep breaths and felt the ether in the air. Using the instinctive absorption effect of the Ether Seed he stimulated the ether and let the instinct go unsuppressed.
A vast amount of ether, now visible to the naked eye, surged like a rolling white mist before heading towards his chest, specifically at the part where his heart was located, the left side.
Russell closed his eyes to perceive the Ether Seed.
It used to be imperceptible but after absorbing an arcana treasure called "Dew of Dawn", provided by his late mentor at the beginning of his apprenticeship, the Ether Seed that signifies a human's qualification to learn arcana was now visible to him as long as he focused his mind to it.
Technically speaking, after being nourished by the Dew of Dawn the seed has already turned into a sprout with four roots. It had a white mist-like body similar to ether and it hovered up and down with the same rhythm of his heartbeat.
Thus it was called Ether Sprout after one became a mage successfully.
Two out of the four roots were bright and solid while the remaining two appeared dim and hazy. Atop the two solid roots at the slightly taller one in height was a bow and the slightly shorter one had a cape levitating on it.
These were the arcane symbols he had condensed within a month, one symbolizing perception which he first condensed within a day and another symbolized speed which took a little longer, around ten days.
There were seven arcane symbols in total: a scepter symbolizing strength, a robe symbolizing defense, the cape of speed, the bow of perception, an arrow which symbolized willpower, the crown of vitality, and lastly the cloud of ether.
Only by condensing a specific arcane symbol could an arcane mage successfully use corresponding spells they had diligently learned and finally put them into practice to increase its proficiency.
Spell proficiency was divided into three levels of completion.
Chanting-level, the very first level where a mage can barely cast the spell by uttering mysterious incantations to manipulate the elements into their bidding.
In summary it had large errors on spell application with high volume of ether wastage that could be drawn from the ether reserve inside Ether Sprout.
Casting-level, the second level of completion where a mage could cast the spell by simply uttering the spell name.
It's known for having only small errors in application with low wastage of ether.
Conjuring-level, the final level of completion where mage could manifest the spell effect by simply conjuring the element at will.
It has no error in spell application aspect and also no wastage of ether.
A small part of the stirred ether noticeably failed to enter his body as if obstructed by an invisible wall.
Russell used the ether circulation method recorded in Wind Citadel Tome, the grimoire Richard practiced, and directed the gush of ether carefully towards the lower dim root closest to the one with a cape on it.
A scepter was half condensed on top of it and with this incoming ether the progress of condensation increased as it became a bit more solid.
This was how a mage typically increases his arcana attainment, a continuous nourishment of ether to solidify an arcane symbol.
After a session of ether absorption, he opened his eyes with satisfaction.
"As expected of High-tier aptitude! The scepter is expected to be condensed in ten days. A day to condense the first symbol, ten days for the second, and only around a month to condense the third. Goodness! If High-tier is like this then what about the Top-tier?"
Russell couldn't help but wonder just how fast those prodigies with the highest qualification advanced their arcana attainment.
Ether Seed Aptitude refers to a mage's fundamental connection with the ether and the elements of the world.
It is said that in ancient times humans were mere livestocks raised by other powerful races and monsters.
With the progression of time the intelligence of the human race increased and they slowly shed their barbarity and ignorance before eventually smoldering the embers of freedom and ambition in their hearts.
This was the very moment when Ether Seed began to appear within a mysterious space inside the heart of a few humans. To sum it up, Ether Seed is the crystallization of human intelligence passed down from ancient times representing the special connection an individual possesses with the ether and the elements.
So, the better the quality of the Ether Seed the more the connection one had with the world thus faster one's progress.
This quality was popularly dubbed as aptitude by mages.
Ether Seed Aptitude was divided into five tiers: Pseudo-tier, Low-tier, Mid-tier High-tier, and Top-tier.
It has to be said that there was a reason why his late mentor Richard and then his recent backer Walter showed goodwill towards an insignificant nobody like him.
A mage's aptitude only accounts for half of their qualifications, the latter half depends on the grade of their Inherent Intellect.
The higher the grade the easier one can learn spells and comprehend nuances as well as find errors during practical application to quickly increase the proficiency thus having some protective means and self-preservation methods to safeguard their path to enlightenment.
Just having a faster attainment speed isn't enough in this dangerous world, it has always been the case of survival of the fittest.
Without great strength brought by mastering terrifying spells how can there be any talk of arcana enlightenment?
Inherent Intellect was divided into five grades: Subpar-grade, Ordinary-grade, Excellent-grade, Extraordinary-grade, and Genius-grade.
Russell was quite depressed when he measured his intellect grade.
It was the middle point, Excellent-grade.
At that time he had asked Richard in disbelief, "Since my aptitude is High-tier, the second to highest possible rank then shouldn't my intellect also be in conjunction to it. Why is it a grade lower instead?"
"There aren't any iron rules regarding this. I have even heard of a case in the prefecture where a certain scion of a prominent family had subpar intellect despite being at the top in aptitude."
"Oof, that's rough!"
The reason why he didn't know his own qualifications as a mage despite having the Eye of Inquiry was only because of a simple reason.
It couldn't unravel information about himself no matter how long he stared at himself in the mirror or on any reflective surface.
Maybe I am the most deeply hidden being in the entire Wismar, or so he convinced himself with this temporary explanation.
While Russell was diligently increasing his arcana attainment, Deep Observer, the assassin who took his bounty, staked out his home while reading a parchment under the light of early hours of the day.
Shockingly, the parchment he held in his hand had the stamp of the police department at the very end!
At the rightmost corner of the top was his facial sketch drawn with great detail and below it was his public information.
[Officer Name: Russell Auburn
Officer Rank: Patrolman
Arcana Realm: Two Symbols Novice Mage
Stationed Location: Little Clover Township
Current Age: 19
Years in Service: 0
Birthplace: Little Clover Township
Home Address: 8th Building, Block C, Commercial District, Little Clover Township
Practiced Grimoire: Wind Citadel Tome
Specialized Arcane Craft: Arcane Painter (First Rank Late Stage)
Qualifications: High-tier Ether Seed Aptitude, Excellent-grade Inherent Intellect
Note: 1. Only became a mage around a month earlier, 2. Confirmed to have performed the sole role of discovering the hideout of dark mages of a major criminal group "Million Beast Mountain"]
"Heh! I didn't expect a little genius to come from this remote place. Let's see what else you're hiding!"
The reason why he used the codename of Deep Observer as his assassin identity was due to his modus operandi. He would always meticulously observe his target's actions, behaviors, and daily life before crafting a unique death for the target.
His master taught him that art of killing was never about mindlessly rushing to the battlefield to settle the score in one stroke but it was about a craftsman's creativity during the process and care for the art piece at the end.
Creatively craft the death scenario and show care by actualizing it!
There's no rush in squashing an ant who was two major realms lower than him. His attitude towards this bounty was one of amusement and playfulness.
Trump cards from the Valiant Mage's legacy?
Deep Observer never put its threat in his eyes. With his strength and experience he had braved far harsh situations and survived.
Not to mention, he also had his own trump cards bestowed by his master who was far higher in realm than some dead mage of Lower Three realms in this small place.
Even if that Chief Constable, who was said to be backing this kid, came in person to obstruct him he could not only retreat calmly under his pursuit but may also be able to slay him if given an opportunity.
At least in this town, he, the Deep Observer, was in an invincible position!