"what was that all about?" Luther wondered to himself, he had never felt such pressure before.
Luther's eyes widened, his body shivered and jolted tapping his fingers on the table rhythmacly with each heart beat. Perhaps.... Perhaps it's my sister's colleague? or, if not, maybe it's related to the cloaked man, but even if he is still alive, he'll never be able to locate me. First he lacks anything containing my aura to track me. Second the damage to his soul will surely lead to his demise within days, it doesn't matter what you are the soul damage is the most fatal. And he is currently weakened to make an act.
Luther grew more cautious. he chose to further delay his trip to the decaying land, fearing the stalker's keen observation, last night's encounter might have drawn his attention, though first time witnessing a human in a cat form was daunting, it was as scary as equal.
Whether it departed or not he resolved to act normal, convinced that he cannot do anything if it's still even there. he finished his breakfast and retreated to his room to study, not for university, of course, but to scrutinize the falsehoods or constraints set to mages. considering that magic can't really shield one from bullets or even a mere kitchen knife, regular society mages weren't fundamentally different from ordinary individuals, after all, if everyone is extraordinary, then no one truly was.
Luther sat at his desk, gazing out of the window overlooking the street. He opened several books, delving into the intricacies of strengths and limitations.
The only way for someone to use magic was to be born with a magic core. mana is used to control basic elements using various ways such as reciting an incantation for spell casting for beginners to advanced where you don't have to recite the incantation, the manna flows through manna channels to form a spell, there are domains of nature which is fire, water, lighting, wind, and earth. there are also spells that can be performed aside from the natural domains but they are hard to perform and also for supreme mages.
Each magic core could control only five domains, with individuals often gravitating toward one or two based on the development of their manna channels. For instance, smooth fire manna channels denoted a blaze mage, while water, earth, lightning, and wind corresponded to hydro, quake, storm, and zephyr mages respectively. Only geniuses and exceptionally talented individuals could ascend to the rank of supreme mage, mastering various other spells beyond the natural domains.
An alternative way to power is to be a swordman or a combat warrior in general
despite that revolvers dominated the era, swords are still very relevant when combined with arcane metallurgy. arcane metallurgy is a method where you can forge metal in your body to make it harder, stronger, and faster. there are 3 levels mentioned. the first where you can forge steal to your body to gain strength, speed and endurance but still vulnerable to firearms, common name for them is 'steel warriors'.
Second is mythril fusion which enhances the first level attributes plus resistance to firearms, however, it is only survivable one can still be killed, and they are called 'mythril warriors'.
The third level is orichalcum, a mystical metal that is very rare, it grants the owner resistance to most magic and complete protection against regular fire arms, only the officials or the fraction of the churches are allowed to wield, it they are Called 'orichalcum worriers'.
You can't skip to a level you must take it step by step, old bodies can't bear arcane metallurgy, in order to use arcane metallurgy you need a strong body and muscles to start, you accommodate every level in order to reach the following one with intense training and the development of your muscle in order for them to bear the fusion. With Luther having mythril forged in him to compensate for his biggest flaw, not being able to use magic, he was already stronger than the most with his own traits.
He was specialized as a mythril swordman, while others are mages and sword mages, the sword mages had quite the advantage because they had physical and magical strengths, but it's challenging to be good at both plus they are too rare.
Assuming that the domain of that cloaked man is obviously related to decay. there must be other domains with specific ways to obtain that normal mage are unaware of, it might be very well that only the high ranking members of churches and officials are aware of it and already posses power in certain domains as well.
I can't Exclude the possibility that arcane metallurgy has falshoods as well it might be more than 3 levels. This can be known for a certain individuals and unofficial factions too like the demon sect, dark order, and other secret factions.
Currently they are viewed as terrorists that defy order and Stability, do I look for them and join them in order to delve deeper?. well, surely not the demon sect the dark order is far better than those lunatics.
Luther stood up and walked to the wardrobe in his room, eyeing the various sets of Victorian-era attire. He reached his hands and grabbed a plain, slightly worn white shirt to wear. Next, he took a pair of high-waisted, dark gray trousers that were less meticulously pressed, with softer creases running down the front, and stepped into them. Then, he chose a simple, unadorned gray waistcoat and ended the attire with a pair of scuffed black leather shoes.
He didn't want to sound all fancy and elegant he deemed to blend with the environment he was about to go to, west borough. He planned to finally scrutinize the place and outlawed looking for traces of any secret factions.
Blindfolded, He walked out of the apartment and headed for a puplic carriage، in the process he didn't notice any signs of being followed. he in tended to take a puplic carriage to the nearest railway station، he entered the carriage and handed the driver 4 pence.
Starlon city had its own extensive railway system, connecting every borough and major city. Being the capital of Raiden kingdom and housing an immense population Starlon city boasted several stations. The carriage ride to the station was uneventful and soon Luther found himself at the entrance of the underground station.
Th station was vast and crouded, with the noise of people's chatter echoed and the sound of hundreds of footsteps resonating throughout. In the center stood a huge mechanical clock, it's tick-tock reminding everyone of the time. Large gates at the corners of the station led to various destinations and the air was thick with steam from the trains.
Luther joined the crouded line to buy a ticket. he purchased a second-class ticket for 6 pence to west borough. The ticket was engraved with information about the journey, his train departure was in 15 minutes from gate number 5.
Boarding the train, Luther showed his ticket at the platform gate. As the passagers waited for their journey, they were guided by signs and announcements. During the journey, ticket inspectors through the train, checking tickets to ensure everyone was in the correct class and had paid the appropriate fare.
It didn't take long until Luther arrived at west borough, the poor and outlawed distract. Exiting the station to the main street, he was met with a bustling crowd. The various types of people filled the street, those who slept on the ground lacking a bed and a home's warmth, street hawkers selling pretty much anything they could find. At it was barely 7 a.m., many people were already heading to work, most of the them were a factory workers at the edge of the borough, while other unemployed sought jobs for the sake of survival.
Luther observed the harsh reality of life here. An old woman, appearing to be in her fifties, sat on the street in a ragged dress. Her face was covered with wrinkles, and her figure was so thin it seemed ghostly. He could feel the coldness emanating from her body; she was starving to death.
"Mister, are you wondering how a person could be in such a sorry state?" a voice resonated behind Luther. The fact that he called Luther "mister" meant that Luther's disguise could be seen through. After all, one can dress rigidly, but what can be done about unrough skin, a face that doesn't look pale, or a fit figure?.
That was exactly what Luther wanted. He had intentionally left flaws to be noticed, making it easier to find an informant. Usually, they made a living by selling information to reporters about recent events, and that was precisely what Luther wanted.
Luther turned to face the speaker. It was an old man who appeared to be in his fifties, with brown hair that was thinning slightly. His wrinkles made him look older, but Luther knew he was younger.
"Most people here can't afford to get educated and learn how to read, let alone learn magic. They don't even have a magic core, including me," he started explaining professionally, wanting to give Luther the impression that he was well-informed. "So, most of them had to work several jobs until they became rusty and were abandoned. Others had good families until they went bankrupt and couldn't afford rent. They died on the street as well".
"Do you know where I can buy a gun?" Luther asked."Of course!" A smile surfaced on the man's face. "One pound." He looked at Luther with zero expectations; after all, it was his first customer early in the morning.
Luther retracted a one-pound note from his pocket and handed it to the old man.
"Praise the light!" The old man was very happy with his pay, clearly a believer of the sun god. "Go to the Fierce Eagles bar on Yavet Street in the Mugan River district. Find Benson and tell him Claive introduced you".
When the man suspected to be Claive left, Luther allowed his emotions to surge. He lifted his hands, grabbed his face, and tilted his head up, letting out a long breath. That was almost half of his long-time savings! Although Luther convinced himself that it was worth it, he still couldn't shake off the feeling of being robbed like that.
Raiden kingdom currency comes in three denomination, copper pence, silver nol, and gold pound. One nol is equivalent to 10 copper pence, and one pound is equivalent to 20 nols.
Luther knew that in this borough a week's salary for a factory worker is slightly equivalent to one pound.
"Let's first find that bar " murmured to himself and left the perimeter....