NOTEN HOUSE OF MAGECRAFT AND ANTIQUITIES
The Noten House of Magecraft and Antiquities was a magnificent emporium that drew curious gazes and whispers of wonder from all who passed by. Above the main building, a sign bearing the shop's name in elegant, flowing script hangs proudly, Noten House of Magecraft and Antiquities.
Inside the shop, the exterior boasted an ornate facade, with arched windows framed by intricate carvings depicting mythical creatures and swirling enchantment symbols. The door, crafted from polished mahogany, is adorned with brass fittings and glimmered softly in the daylight.
A chime tinkled melodiously, announcing our arrival and an old man came to receive us.
"Ha, you are here, let me show you around", Hugo, the elderly man who persuaded me to escort their caravan offered us a tour of the House.
The Noten House of Magecraft and Antiquities was a very large shop that consisted of many buildings enclosed by private walls. There were shops and showrooms, workshops, and offices, and even accommodation for workers and staff inside the Noten House.
"This is a big place, you boys will get lost if you don't follow me closely", Hugo told us.
Without Hugo bringing us around it was easy to get lost among the many buildings in the House, which was much larger than our entire village.
"Here this is where we keep the lantern, I promised to you", Hugo told me as he brought me to a shop that displayed only magical Heart lanterns.
"Wow, there are so many lanterns here", Minna said to us as she checked the lanterns on offer.
Each Heart lantern offered here has a special function and is essential to the development of a templar's magic.
"Templar magic is by design a random endeavor because the advancement of Templar Stars at every level of magic advancement was random. However, to be efficient, it is more beneficial to specialize in specific templar stars, be it either Conjurers and Knights, who may want to specialize in their fields", Hugo explained to us.
"Do you mean with the right Heart Lanterns, we can increase the chances of templar stars forming in a particular region instead of randomly?" Raven asked Hugo.
"Yes, that is one of the tools the best templars in the region use to develop their templar magic. So, Conjurers would prefer more advancements in their Conjuring magic while Knights might prefer more Power. The Heart lanterns here would help in the specialization", Hugo explained to us.
"Wow, no wonder the rich folks can become so powerful in templar magic, it's because of tools like this", Bommurs said to us.
"Which lantern would you like to have young master Orion?" Hugo asked me.
I had a special Angel Affinity, so the specialized Heart Lanterns don't benefit me.
"I'm not interested in specialization, do you have heart lanterns that promote faster magic advancement overall instead", I asked Hugo.
Hugo hesitated for a while before he told me, "I'm afraid we do not yet have such an artifact. Nobody it seems will want templar magic to develop quickly bb uncontrollably. Gaining templar magic in unspecialized regions is a waste and a burden", he said to me to my disappointment.
I was disappointed that there was no Heart Lantern in the shop that was suitable for me when Amelia came inside the shop and overheard our conversation.
"Young conjurer, I know what you want, and I know where to get it although you won't be able to find it in our shop", Amelia said to me.
"Really, where can I get such a Heart Lantern?" I asked her.
Amelia seemed to have guessed that I have a unique templar affinity that could grow more magical stars in the templar sky than usual although I don't know if she could confirm that I had the Angel Affinity.
"There is an antique Heart lantern in town which would double the efficiency of magical heart absorption", Amelia told me.
"Great where can I get that?" I asked her.
"It could only be won through the Young Mages Competition that would be held in a few days, I missed that one, sorry. But you won't be able to get that lantern unless you won the competition", Hugo told me to my disappointment.
"What is the Young Mages Competition?" Raven asked them.
"The Young Mages Competition is a prestigious competition held every three years in Antenne town that invites young talents not older than seventeen to compete. The winner will win a rare antique, the Isolation Lamp and be entitled to enroll in the Antenne School of Templar Magic which is one of the most prestigious magic schools in this region", Hugo explained to us.
"Wow is it really the Antenne School of Templar Magic? It's a really good school but it's not easy to get in", Minna told us.
Even Minna had heard about the school.
"Hugo, can you enroll us in the competition?" I asked Hugo the Noten House artificer.
"Hmm, the competition is on an invitation basis and only major Houses and families in the region have the invites", Hugo told me as he looked at his young proprietor.
"It's not easy to get an invitation to the Young Mages Competition, its open usually only to the major families of Nymera", Amelia told us.
"What if we trade our promised heart lantern for four invites to the competition", I asked Amelia.
Amelia was the manager of the White Horse Oddities and Treasures in Gaesov Town. She was recently promoted to manage Noten House of Magecraft and Antiquities in this city and her family, the Noten Family of Antenne owned the House and she was quite influential in the town.
"What if we try to help these kids get an invite, our family never asks for one in recent years anyway which is a waste for a major family in Nymera", Hugo said to Amelia.
"You never asked for an invite?" I asked Amelia.
"Our family produces business people and few prominent Conjurers or Templars, so we seldom bother to join these competition which make us look bad if we lose", Hugo told us and explained on her behalf.
"Well, perhaps we should do it differently this time for a change", Amelia said to us.