Chapter 90: Pact Tavern

Mage Roland hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded in agreement with Shaoke's view. After the mages conversed a while longer, Mage Roland bid farewell and left. After nearly a day of fighting, their bodies simply weren't up for a long conversation.

After resting for the night, Shaoke wrote a letter to the mage from the Blizzard Legion the next morning, inquiring about some of Mage Roland's questions. After that, life returned to its usual routine: meditation and spell practice.

After launching a few more attacks, the enemy forces outside the city withdrew completely one night. When Mage Roland informed Shaoke of this news, he finally let out a heavy sigh of relief. Having repeatedly teetered on the edge of death and grown accustomed to seeing bloody deaths, Shaoke felt he had become even more indifferent to human life than before. As a mage who had fought alongside him against enemy warriors had said, life was the cheapest thing here.

After several battles, the newly arrived mages had already been reduced by nearly a hundred. Most died directly on the battlefield, but a small number, though fortunate enough to survive, suffered injuries to their bodies and meditation spaces that prevented them from advancing even a single step further on the path of magic.

In his numerous battles, Shaoke was only injured once—by a stray arrow that struck his arm. Fortunately, the arrow's force had weakened, causing only a minor wound. Still, it took him nearly half a month of recuperation before he could cast spells proficiently again.

"Mage Xueye, I've decided to sign this contract," Mage Roland said one day upon arriving after receiving Shaoke's invitation. He discovered that the letter from the Blizzard Legion had arrived, along with a large quantity of third-rank auxiliary drugs. Of course, Shaoke also received a special reward.

After reading the contract, Mage Roland gritted his teeth and finally signed it. "Mage Roland, why did you decide so quickly?" Shaoke asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Mage Xueye, you stay cooped up in this room all day. You have no idea what's happening outside!" Mage Roland glanced at the various books on Shaoke's writing desk, shook his head, and explained, "After the last battle ended, many mages came looking for us newcomers. They wanted us to join some military units—there were representatives from the Blue Feather Legion, the Black Wind Legion, the Frost Legion... so many armies have representatives here. I originally wanted to join the Blue Feather Legion, but since you've already joined the Blizzard Legion, I made the same choice as you."

Shaoke was moved by Mage Roland's decision. "Thank you! Is the Blue Feather Legion directly under the Royal Legion?" Shaoke asked, recalling having seen the legion's name in books before.

"Yes, directly under the Royal Legion. It seems most mages here have joined this legion because the benefits are incredibly high—five hundred common gold coins per month, third-rank drugs, and the highest quality ones at that. I've heard they even allow mages to take them freely." Mage Roland spoke enviously of the various benefits offered by the Blue Feather Legion.

Shaoke gave a bitter smile. "I think you should join the Blue Feather Legion. At least the benefits are much better than the Blizzard Legion's. And once you become a high-rank mage, you might even get to study at the Royal Academy!" He now somewhat regretted his choice to join the Blizzard Legion, but remembering the contract mark already branded on his arm, he stopped dwelling on such messy thoughts.

Mage Roland shrugged. "But the Blue Feather Legion's contract doesn't specify how long one must serve. It only states that you can leave upon reaching the sixth rank. Good heavens, that's the sixth rank! I have no idea how many decades it would take me to advance to become a sixth-tier mage. If I never reach the sixth rank in this lifetime, would I have to stay there forever?"

Shaoke tidied the papers and letters on his writing desk, carefully storing them away before replying, "I think the likelihood of the Blue Feather Legion seeing combat is very low. That would greatly reduce the dangers you'd face after reaching the third rank. Don't you agree?"

Mage Roland fell silent. He actually wanted to accept the Blue Feather Legion's contract too, but he was somewhat reluctant to part with this mage before him who had become rather unsightly. After discussing a while longer, Mage Roland finally faced his true feelings and decided to join the Blue Feather Legion.

Upon hearing his decision, Shaoke immediately took out a military-grade magic paper and wrote a detailed explanation for the change of choice. He also returned all the items mailed by the other party. Mage Roland repeatedly apologized at his side, only relaxing after Shaoke repeatedly assured him that this wouldn't cause any trouble.

"Thank you, Mage Xueye! I think we should go to the tavern for a drink. Many mages gather there, including plenty of female mages!" Mage Roland suggested to Shaoke. "Besides, you haven't left this courtyard since arriving. I think you must go out for a walk. Hmm! Let's not take a carriage; we can walk slowly. The tavern isn't far from the barracks."

Shaoke thought for a moment and finally decided to go out for a walk, planning to purchase some magic materials outside for magical experiments.

As Mage Roland had said, the tavern was located in a small stone fortress with several spires, not far from the barracks. Dozens of burly men holding military-issue weapons stood at the fortress entrance. Their aura made it easy for Shaoke to identify them as warriors from the army. Through his perception, Shaoke sensed they were all third-rank warriors. One bald brute, upon seeing Shaoke, paused slightly before stepping forward to salute, "Mage Xueye, thank you for your help in that last battle."

Shaoke looked at the bald brute, somewhat puzzled, then smiled, "Oh! It's you. That was what I should have done. If I didn't help you, would you still protect us mages in the future?"

"Mage Xueye, protecting you is our duty. If not for your help, I think I would have been chopped into pieces," the bald brute refuted Shaoke's statement, not forgetting the assistance the mage before him had provided.

After chatting with the brute for a few sentences, Shaoke left to find the tavern inside the stone fortress.

"Mage Xueye, you helped that warrior? On the battlefield?" Mage Roland inquired about how the two knew each other. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"Yes, during the last battle, two third-rank warriors from the enemy country were ganging up on him. I just cast a spell to help him kill one of them," Shaoke explained, feeling the need to add something more. "This is what we should do anyway, don't you think?"

Mage Roland nodded in agreement and led Shaoke toward the tavern's rooms. Along the way, Shaoke noticed many mages inside the fortress. He even saw the seventh-tier mage who had received them at the barracks, as well as many warriors. Sensing their auras, Shaoke found that the lowest-ranked warriors here were also third-rank. When he sensed several fifth-rank warriors walking past with serving girls in their arms, Shaoke wisely ceased his sensory scan. He didn't want those high-rank warriors to discover a mere second-rank mage probing their strength and potentially cause conflict.

After passing through several corridors, the tavern Mage Roland mentioned appeared before them. The area serving as the tavern was quite large—essentially a separate, spacious courtyard. Overall, Shaoke felt it somewhat resembled the courtyard houses from his previous life, just much larger in area. Dozens of long tables were arranged in the courtyard, laden with ample exquisite food. Young, pretty attendants constantly shuttled between these tables and the rooms, using their trays to replenish necessary consumables like various wines, pastries, and other foods.

Mage Roland took out over a dozen common gold coins and tossed them into a large copper box beside the entrance, producing a series of clinking sounds. Shaoke was about to do the same when Mage Roland stopped him, "Mage Xueye, you don't need to contribute. Every mage here only needs to pay five common gold coins to enjoy exquisite food and fine wine in this courtyard. Only purchases inside that large building require additional payment." He glanced at the attendants, "If you want these girls for special services, you must pay extra. Also, they only accept common gold coins here; they won't accept regular gold coins for payment."

Shaoke shook his head with some frustration. Fortunately, he hadn't tried to promote his so-called advanced sales methods here earlier; otherwise, with his half-baked sales knowledge, he would have been laughed out of the place.

The two mages found a less crowded table and sat on high-backed chairs, slowly sampling various pastries and wines. Shaoke discreetly scanned the courtyard and noticed that aside from the attendants, everyone else was a mage. The lowest were second-rank, while the highest were fifth-tier. He hadn't seen many of these mages before. Roughly estimating, he realized there were even more mages here than in the courtyard where he resided. Moreover, there were many fourth-rank mages as well. With just a glance around, he spotted five or six fourth-tier mages nearby.

Suppressing the questions in his mind, Shaoke selected a glass of snow wine he hadn't tasted in a long time and slowly savored it. The familiar flavor reminded him once again of his days guarding the border in the Misty Forest.

"Would you two mages like our company?" A crisp voice interrupted Shaoke's reminiscence. Two young attendants stood beside Shaoke and Mage Roland, placing their trays on the table. One of them placed her small hand on Shaoke's shoulder, gently pressing a few times, "We can go to a small room in the back and enjoy ourselves slowly. There's plenty of fine wine there!"

Before Shaoke could respond, Mage Roland lightly wrapped his arm around the waist of the attendant beside him, "Mage Xueye, do you agree to these lovely ladies' suggestion?" Then, as if to dispel Shaoke's doubts, he added, "Haha! Mage Xueye, these girls rarely take the initiative to approach mages. Of course, unless you pay enough money—money that most mages can't afford."

Shaoke looked at the attendant standing beside him and noticed her eyes occasionally glancing toward Mage Roland. "I'd like to look inside, Mage Roland. You go ahead first. If necessary, you can head back and wait for me."

Seeing Shaoke refuse, and based on past experience, Mage Roland wisely gave up trying to persuade him to join. He shrugged. Actually, he had intended this as a way to apologize for the trouble he had recently caused Shaoke, since most mages here enjoyed coming for various forms of entertainment.

Mage Roland disappeared with the attendant through a small door. The other attendant smiled at Shaoke, picked up her tray, and resumed her light, yet enjoyable duties.