“We’re here! What a magnificent castle! Nindy, I remember you telling me that your home is somewhere near here.”
A green-haired girl asked the girl in front of her.
The girl had an oval face with some baby fat. Her long chestnut-colored hair fell to her waist; she tied them with a thin metal ring. She had a pair of round blue eyes on her snow-white face; she stared at the enormous black castle nearby in a daze.
“Well, my home is near here; it is within the range of the castle! That’s strange. Have I been away for so long that I remember wrongly? Maybe they have migrated and sold the land to the castle owner?”
Nindy glanced at the endless black wall and frowned. “It’s my fault for being too busy all these years. I don’t have much money, and I don’t write home often.”
She did not remember any black walls or tall buildings in the shape of a crescent. Instead, there was only barren land, a three-story wooden house, and a small chicken farm.
Her full name was Nindy Garry. She was 18 years old and a water element iron-tier mage.
She had been tested for her talent in magic when she was very young. At that time, her parents were delighted. They sold most of their unused assets and spent a large sum of money to buy her a book—the Encyclopedia of Basic Magic. She had managed to become a mage apprentice with the knowledge she learned from the book.
An apprentice referred to those who had started to learn magic, but they had not reached the iron-tier yet.
She became a water element iron-tier mage when she was twelve years old. She was forced to leave her home because she could not develop her talent there. First, she went to Monte Town; she had hoped to find a powerful mage as a teacher. In the end, she did not achieve her wish. After that, she traveled around the Holy Dragon Kingdom; she tried to improve herself while she improved her knowledge.
While she was on her journey, Nindy realized that her talent for magic was a good thing. Even though magic was the strongest of the four professions, it was also the most expensive to learn. When those powerful bronze or silver-tier mages took disciples, it was not as she had imagined. They taught patiently and prepared exquisite staffs or magic books for their beloved disciples as welcome gifts.
On the contrary, if they wanted someone as their master, the disciple had to prepare a tuition fee that might be a staff or a hundred to a thousand gold coins. After that, the master might only give the disciple a magic scroll. They would not know what to do with that.
It was the same for mages who were born with powerful support behind them.
They did not have to become a disciple, and they did not have to worry about not having enough resources. However, once they used the resources, they had to become a part of the family. They could not betray the family for the rest of their lives, or they would have a miserable ending.
Once there was an heir to a minor noble family who was attracted to her beauty. He showed her kindness and promised her one-third of the family’s magic resources if she were willing to marry him. However, the man was quite short, and he was pretty fat—Nindy considered his proposal very carefully before she rejected him.
Then, she returned to Monte Town three months ago. Nindy decided to become a low-level mage in the Mage Guild. If she worked hard on missions, she might have a chance to advance her rank. She would head home when she became a bronze-tier mage, but she did not expect that her first mission would allow her to return home. She also did not expect her home to be missing.
“Nindy, you should have some faith in your family! Perhaps they did not sell the land; maybe the Blackmoon Castle had bought it. Perhaps your family is working with them, or maybe your sister has married the owner. Nothing is ever certain.”
When she heard that, Nindy snapped back to her senses; she had a strange look in her eyes. “Indix, I should remind you that I have seven siblings, and three of them are girls. I am the eldest daughter, the second child in the family. My sisters are only 12 and 11; they are still too young to get married.”
Nindy did not think it was a good idea to be a servant or be a nobleman’s concubine. Everyone should live independently. She would have lost her temper if Indix were not her best friend in the Mages Guild.
“Alright, we’ve arrived at our destination. Everyone, take a rest! Here is a water element bronze-tier combined attack spell. You can pass it around later. This is your reward.”
Folson looked at the Blackmoon Castle. He took a water bottle and a piece of wholemeal bread from the small bag on his waist. He tore it gently, threw it into his mouth, and swallowed it with the water.
As he did so, the small bag did not change in size—it was a magical item. The bag had ample space in it, and it could hold many things.
A few mages nearby, including Nindy, looked at that scene with envy. They only had bread that was either dried or hard like a stone in their pockets; they started to eat it.
Folson stared at Blackmoon Castle for a while; then, he gasped.
He thought that his old friend, Zangwill, had exaggerated the situation in his letter, but he had been right. Blackmoon Castle was an inexperienced force. They must have added the word castle to the name. He was shocked when he saw the scene; it was much more magnificent than he had imagined.
“I didn’t expect Zangwill to deal with such a huge monster. It is no wonder he wanted me to bring five people with me on this mission, and he wants to pay them 100 gold coins each too.”
Blackmoon Castle was like a giant beast that laid on the ground; it made Folson uneasy. However, he suppressed that emotion.
The stronger his opponent, the more generous his employer would be with his reward. Perhaps he could even raise the fee when he saw them next—maybe 120 or 150 gold coins for each mage. If the employer agreed to his request, he would give the other mages an additional ten gold coins each; he wanted to show off his generosity.
..
Two hours later.
Folson and his team of mages met Wilber and the other manor owners at the Wilber Liszt Manor. The owners had prepared a feast to welcome their arrival. Then, Folson mentioned that he wanted a raise because Blackmoon Castle was more powerful than expected.
“Sir Folson, I appreciate your professionalism and ability as a mage. I approve of your request, and I will give each of you 140 gold coins as a reward! Unfortunately, that is all I can offer. If I have to pay for more, then I will be forced to reduce my manpower.”
Wilber gave a pained answer to express his position.
“Thank you for your generosity, Master Wilber. There is no time to lose. Let’s set off now.”
Folson understood the situation; he smiled in satisfaction. The 140 gold coins offered was within his expectation.
Wilber asked, “Are you sure you should go now? The feast hasn’t officially started yet.”
“I’m sure.” Folson maintained his calm smile and waved his hand. A strange-eyed owl flew from the manor and landed on his shoulder. “It’s better to celebrate after the completion of the mission. Not only can we enjoy our spoils of war freely, but we can also trample on the bones of our enemies, raise our wine glasses, and drink until dawn. It’s not like we have anything else to think about then.”
“Lord Folson, you’re an admirable mage!”
Wilber nodded, and at that moment, his tone was much more sincere. “I’ll get someone to inform Miss Nightingale. At the same time, I’ll assemble our army now. We’ll set off for Blackmoon Castle in an hour! I shall announce that the war has begun.”
