Chapter 7: Apprentice Fire Mage
"Haha, I'm impressed." Reynolds let out a booming laugh and started walking closer to Eve.
"Indeed, I knew about your identities long ago, Charles. When I visited your house to ask about land matters, I checked your identity and learned about your real surname. But I didn't inform your family about you and your mother. I'm a greedy fox and do some shady work occasionally. Even the Honourable Divine Lady Nira knew about my schemes." Reynolds said while pointing his finger at the beautiful Life Goddess's statue.
"But I'm not a betrayer." He announced.
Meanwhile, John raised his eyebrows and asked.
"Then, who is the informer?"
"That… I don't know. But there is one thing I'm certain of. Your family members or the one who is after your heads will send more men in the future to kill you." Reynolds sighed as he said those words and took a scroll from the altar table.
"Now, let's get to the main task. The contract's contents, terms, and agreements have already been written in this scroll. Once you sign the contract, I'll save your mother." Reynolds calmly passed the brown scroll to John and waited for his response while folding his arms.
Meanwhile, John fell silent for a moment and narrowed.
"You don't need to see the land document?" He asked.
"Nah, no one can fool our almighty Goddess's eyes," Reynolds answered with a chuckle and signaled him to carry on.
With a deep sigh, John opened the contract scroll and read it.
Although the language appeared strange to his eyes, he didn't face any difficulty reading it.
While reading the contract, he suddenly thought of something and asked.
"Father Reynolds, my mom told me that the 'Life Potion' is very cheap in other churches. I heard her saying that it was only around 40 gold coins. Why is it so high in Life Church?"
Reynolds wasn't surprised by his question.
'He is not a naive fool after all. Unfortunately, your mother's life is in our hands now.'
Smirking, he calmly spoke.
"If you think that I'm scamming you, you can go to other churches and buy 'Life Potion' or some other 'Healing Potions' from them. I'll not force you."
A forced smile appeared on John's face as he heard Reynolds's words.
'This guy sure is a crafty one.' John clicked his tongue and shook his head.
'Other than Life Church, this city has two more churches. But I don't want to make a bet using Eve's life.' He took a quill pen from the nearby desk, dipped it into the black ink before opening the scroll, and signed in.
A heartbeat later, the scroll began to shine brightly, turned into pure light particles, and disappeared from his eyes.
'I need to find a way and repay the debt quickly.' He thought to himself and turned his attention towards Bishop Reynolds.
Meanwhile, Bishop Reynolds arrived near Eve, taking a white vial from his pocket.
After that, he opened her mouth using his other hand and poured the potion into her mouth.
Simultaneously, he recited a short incantation and touched Eve's throat.
On the other hand, Eve moved her mouth a moment later and swallowed the 'Life Potion.'
Once Bishop Reynolds noticed that she was okay, he turned towards John and patted his shoulder.
"You can go back now. Although it will take 4 to 5 days for your mother to wake up, she will be alright. If she shows any movement, I will send someone to inform you."
Saying so, he moved towards the front pew, sat on it, and started reading the holy book called 'Sacredness of Life.'
Meanwhile, John saw a notification in front of his eyes and nodded.
[Sub-Quest Completed! Rewards: 100 Exp!]
However, John did not leave the Life Church. Instead, he also sat beside Bishop Reynolds and fell into deep thoughts.
'If Bishop Reynolds is not the informant, who is?... Think John. Think. What did the informant want from us? Is he after money? Probably not. Could he be searching for treasure in our house or on our land? Possible. However, I have no idea about it. The informer must be hiding in this town and watching me like a snake!' John suddenly recalled the shadow with green eyes and thought of something.
'That shadow. Could it be?' He felt it might be possible.
'If he has some huge background, I will be in deep shit.' He thought of the worst possibility and made an emergency plan.
'I already killed 14 assassins. If the informer wants to frame me, he will try to use their deaths as an excuse. If I'm not careful, I might be captured and imprisoned. In the worst-case scenario, I might be executed in public. Although I can avoid the execution by selecting a Mage Class, I might still be in a dangerous situation.' John pondered for a moment and turned his gaze towards Bishop Reynolds.
"Can you do me a favor, Father?"
Bishop stopped reading the book, turned his head towards John, and asked with a frown,
"What is it?"
"If an execution takes place, I want you to stop the City Lord for a while," John said solemnly.
It was one of his backup plans if something went wrong.
"Execution?" Bishop Reynolds widened his eyes in surprise and asked hurriedly,
"Who's Execution?"
A forced smile appeared on John's face as he pointed his finger towards his chest.
"Mine."
'What?! Why?' He felt that the young boy appeared more and more mysterious!
Bishop Reynolds turned his face seriously and asked.
"What did you do?"
"I killed a bunch of assassins," John said, explaining everything while skipping some information.
"I'm amazed by your brutality. Although I love to help you, I don't want to offend Ethan Walker." Bishop paused for a moment and added,
"But if you died before paying the debt, I will lose 500 gold coins. Moreover, the contract will also become invalid."
In truth, Bishop Reynolds wanted to find out what this kid was up to.
Meanwhile, John curled his lips upward and nodded.
"I hope you won't turn back on your words, Father," John said and stood up from the front pew.
After that, he bowed to the Goddess Nira's statue and walked out of the Life Church.
But as soon as he walked out of the dome-shaped building, he stopped and furrowed his brows.
At that moment, ten security guards in brown uniforms arrived at the Life Church's entrance and held different weapons.
As soon as they saw him walking out of the Life Church, they surrounded him and pointed their weapons at him.
Then, a black-haired officer took a step forward and announced.
"Charles Miller, You are under arrest for killing the citizens of Riverdale. Multiple witnesses say that you killed more than ten people in your house."
'Charles Miller? A fake surname, huh.' He nodded inwardly and glanced at the officer.
He looked around 25 to 30 years old and had short wavy hair, an oval face, thin eyebrows, fair skin, and wide-set green eyes. Currently, he wore brown pants and a brownish-black shirt with many star emblems and even held a short sword in his hand.
John took a step back as he analyzed the person and spoke coldly.
"I did kill a few people. But they are not citizens of Riverdale. They are professional killers sent by my family members to assassinate my mother and me. According to the Arc Kingdom's law, I killed them to defend myself. You should have already found out about their real identities, right?"
Unfortunately, the black-haired guy didn't hear his words fully and responded.
"But killing someone in this city is still a crime, Charles. Say your useless excuses to the City Lord during your execution."
'Tch, a typical policeman.' He clicked his tongue and decided to play along.
"Execution, is it? Are you sure about that? Do you have the power to arrest an apprentice mage?"
"A-Apprentice Mage?" All the security guards took a step back in anxiety and muttered in unison.
John had already expected their response and smiled.
Mages were precious treasures in any kingdom and had an excellent reputation among the masses.
Moreover, one needed considerable luck or money to get any Mage Class gems.
John was very familiar with these types of class gems.
In the Mystic Worlds game, wealthy NPCs would send multiple quest missions to search for Class gems from the Mystic Towers. Players would form a team and hunt Boss or Mutated monsters for days to complete a mission.
But what was more complicated about this game was getting a corresponding class gem was even harder.
Although the class names and ability names differed, John felt there must be some link to this game.
Moreover, there were no Mystic Towers in this strange world.
Instead, 13 Lawful Churches controlled and monopolized these gems all over the continent.
As for where they get these Mystic Gems, no one knew. However, few lucky ones could get these 'Class Gems' due to pure luck by killing monsters.
Yes, many monsters were lurking in this mystical world, and some of them were very dangerous.
However, getting a 'Class Gem' is very slim, as in the 'Mystic World' game. There are similarities between the Mystic World game and this strange world.' John mused in thoughts.
"You are not a mage! You are still a classless human." The black-haired officer snapped out of shock and spoke.
Alas, the soldiers didn't dare to capture him because of his earlier words and showed confused looks on their faces.
Only the black-haired officer approached him, but his colleagues warned him not to act rashly.
'It seems he has no plan on backing down.' John shook his head and turned his gaze toward the game interface.
'1396 Exp. Well, this should be more than enough to flip the situation.' He shifted his gaze toward the main class option and started to ponder.
…
[Available Classes for Host: Apprentice Swordsman (300 Exp), Thief (380 Exp), Apprentice Warrior (340 Exp), Learner (120 Exp), Cook (140 Exp), Dancer (100), Teacher (150 Exp), Archer (450 Exp), Killer (400 Exp), Deceiver (250 Exp),… Apprentice Fire Mage (750 Exp), Apprentice Darkness Mage (1000 Exp), etc.,]
…
'There are only two mage options on this list. It might be due to one's elemental affinity.'
'Even though Darkness Mage looks cooler, they have a bad reputation in Charles's memories. Moreover, my affinity towards Darkness is average only.' John also felt a strange attraction toward the Apprentice Fire Mage Class.
'This feeling is much more powerful than before. Darkness Mage or Fire Mage. A tough choice, indeed.'
'Surviving without external help is almost impossible in this unknown magic world. I know nothing about the Darkness Mage class. Is it a curse-related class? Or Black magic? Shadow magic? Do churches hate them? Will they burn me in the name of purification if they discover that I become Dark Magician? I can't bet my life on this class. On the flip side, Fire Mage has a good reputation among the masses. Life or gamble. I choose life.'
He hesitated and selected the 'Apprentice Fire Mage' option.
...
[750 Exp deducted!]
[Apprentice Fire Mage Class achieved!]
[2 Free Attributes Rewarded!]
[+1 Wisdom obtained!]
[10 skill points]
[Spell Book option will be available from now on!]
[You can use Experience points to buy suitable fire spell models!]
[With your current wisdom, you can only create two spell models!]
[You have an 'Inheritance Gift' in your body]
[Opening the 'Inheritance Gift'…]
[You have learned a unique 'Inspect' skill]
…
Multiple information about fire elemental spells appeared in John's mind!
'I can think faster than before.' He was surprised when he glanced at the 'Inheritance Gift' notification.
'[Inspect] skill? It doesn't look like a special skill, though. Maybe it can evolve in the future. Hmm, Main Class gives me more attribute points. Also, I need to increase my wisdom to build more spells, huh? Is my wisdom higher than the norm? Why? Is it due to transmigration? It looks like it.' He nodded thoughtfully and noticed a piece of information from the system.
No, it was a warning notification.
[The System strongly advises the 'Host' to learn more about '******' language before constructing the spell model!]
Although he eagerly wanted to know about '****** Language,' he dismissed it and shifted his attention to the current situation.
'Next, I need to increase my body strength. Otherwise, I won't be able to use the full extent of my assassin skills.' He pondered and added one free attribute to 'Strength' and another to 'Constitution.'
After that, he shifted his attention to the 'Spell Book' option.
[Available Fire Spell models for the Host: Fire Orb (430 Exp), Fire Arrow (250 Exp), Fire Breath (250 Exp), Fire Shield (320 Exp), Flame Body (350 Exp), Flame Jump (540 Exp), Fire Wing (450 Exp), Fire Wisp (240 Exp), Fire Blade (459 Exp), Fire Prism (310 Exp), etc.,]
'Exp again?' He grunted.
'This is also a tough choice. Should I select the [Fire Orb] spell or [Fire Arrow] spell? But these are all Rank-1 spells, right? Can a Rank-1 spell kill a Rank-2 Mystic? What if it didn't? Wouldn't I be wasting all these exp points? Yes, I can kill multiple Rank-1 Mystics using my assassin skills. So, I should focus on my survival first. Let's see. If I choose the Fire Wings spell model, I can intimidate the soldiers and even escape if something bad happens.' Multiple thoughts whirled in his mind.
He decided instantly and clicked the 'Fire Wings' Spell model.
Something exploded in his mind within a second, causing him to stumble a bit!
At that moment, the Security Caption and others noticed his strange behavior and gripped their weapons tighter.
"He is bluffing! Capture him now!" Security Captain roared in excitement.
At that moment, twelve weird mystical letters emerged in John's mind and formed a red crystalline hexagon!
No, it was a spell model!
The 'Fire Wings' spell model flickered in his mind and began to glow like a raging fire.
'F*ck! I'm losing focus!' He also saw a strange timer in the corner of his eyes and was stunned.
'Constructing spell models will take time? 58 seconds?' He was utterly stupefied.
It was unexpected!
At that moment, the spell model construction started interrupting his focus too!
'Thankfully, I already made some backup plans. I hope Bishop intervenes when the time comes. Otherwise, I've no choice but to escape.' He thought inwardly.
Meanwhile, Noah and a few other brave guards arrived near him and kicked his legs. Due to the attack, John lost his balance and fell while staring at the dark-orange sky.
'Haa, I feel so tired.' A heavy sigh came out of his mouth.
The construction process continued in his head, causing him to lose focus.
Meanwhile, multiple soldiers attacked him with fists, making him immobile.
Although he struggled a bit, the construction of the spell models caught him off guard.
But instead of panicking, John curled his lips upward and grinned.
'Spell model construction is over.'
'Stats Window.' He muttered in his mind.
[Name: Charles Nightwind
Race: Human
Rank: 1 (Common)
Class: Level 1 Apprentice Fire Mage (0/150)
Sub-class: Level 3 Trickster (0/337)
Health Points: 45/61 (Fatigued)
Exp: 196
Attributes:
Strength- 10
Dexterity- 11
Constitution- 10+1= 11
Wisdom-11+1 = 12
Charisma- 12
SP (Skill Points): 10
AP (Attribute points):
Class spells:
Fire Wings
Sub-class skills:
Trickster's hand- 20
Clown- 20
Sixth Sense- 50
Unique skills:
Snatch-51
Conceal- 50
Dark Vision- 44
Intermediate Dagger Arts- 50
Inspect- 20]
...
He was pleased as he saw his body status.
'I have already upgraded most of my unique skills. But there is one unique skill that I don't need to upgrade in the future. [Dark Vision] skill has almost reached its peak. Even if I add more skill points, it won't give any extraordinary results.' He muttered inwardly and shifted his focus to the [Inspect] skill.
After thinking for a moment, he added ten skill points to the [Inspect] skill, looked at the black-haired officer, and cast the [Inspect] skill on him.
A cold glint appeared in John's deep-set jade eyes the next instant.
[Inspect (30) skill has been activated…]
[Wisdom Check…]
[Inspect succeeded!]
A moment later, the black-haired officer's information appeared in front of his eyes.
[Name: Noah Moore
Race: Human
Rank: 1 (Common)
Class: Level 4 Soldier (204/506)
Sub-class: None
Health Points: 35/35
Attributes:
Strength- 11
Dexterity- 10
Constitution- 12
Wisdom-10
Charisma- 9
Class skills:
Shadower-21
Charge-23
Fearless Body-20
Weapon proficiency (Basic melee weapon proficiency)-24
Sub-class Skills: None
Unique Skills: None]
'He isn't a strong guy. If not for the unexpected accident-'
He instantly shook his head and lay there motionlessly.
'It's better to take things smoothly. Prison is not a bad place to take some rest.' He muttered inwardly and cooperated with security officer Noah.
Meanwhile, Noah cuffed his hands using a handcuff chain and waited for the reinforcement team to arrive.
Bishop Reynolds also walked out of the Church at that time and frowned.
'What the hell happened?'
In confusion, he hurriedly approached Hunt and asked.
"What happened, Hunt?"
"Father!" Hunt got surprised by Bishop Reynolds's sudden arrival and immediately answered,
"They are arresting him for killing 14 men in his house. Even though I tried to tell these security guards about the kidnapping incident, no one listened to my words. Charles also said that he became an apprentice mage in panic, but these guys are hell-bent on arresting him."
'Apprentice Mage?'
Bishop Reynolds' eyes widened as he heard Hunt's words.
He instantly turned his gaze towards Charles, casting [True Eyes] skill on him.
A second later, surprise appeared on his face!
'H-How?! I didn't see any changes a while ago!' In shock, he thought of a possibility.
"Interesting! He must have acquired some skill to fake his information." He muttered slowly.
Hunt looked worried. "Fake information?" he asked.
"Nothing. Don't worry about Charles's safety. He is playing with these fools." He patted Hunt's shoulder and added slowly,
"Don't sneak into the City Lord's mansion often. Quite a few people had already started paying attention to your movements. Even your partner Robb is getting suspicious of you and asking for more information about your background. I understand you want to live with her normally, but our mission is more important."
Hunt's face turned pale as he heard Bishop Reynolds' words and asked stiffly, "F-Father, what should I do?"
"Lay low for now. Although City Lord didn't care about this secret affair, we can't act recklessly. We need Charlotte's help in this matter. She is the only one who has a more friendly relationship with Target. Also, be careful of Charles. He appears to have changed. We have to keep a low profile for a while. As for getting the 'intellectual being- A-035' from that place, we have to change the original plan."
Upon hearing those words, Hunt nodded in understanding and quietly walked away from Bishop Reynolds.
Meanwhile, more security guards and patrol officers arrived near the Life Church entrance and transported John to the Iron Prison through a horse carriage.