Mages weren't only a single profession. One could become a runesmith, healer, a highly paid construction worker, pharmacist, and various other jobs that came up with it. Runesmiths and healers were high-level mage professions since they could only be practiced after one becomes an acolyte, while a construction mage could be learned before one could become an acolyte.
It was a whole level of information that Aric had accumulated after reading and researching for the last 2 days. It wasn't easy to gather it either because this information was open to the public, and one didn't need to write, so the information was all over the place. He could only take bits and pieces and understand in the end.
And he was glad that he took the time to understand. The table in the library and silence provided him enough time and patience to do his work. Now that he had the general idea of the situation around, he needed to work and get his footing.
Starting from this small city itself.
After coming out of the library, he went to the administration office. He needed registration for staying in this city. Basically, if one was a traveler, one wouldn't need one, but if one wished to stay in the city, then that person would have to go to the administration office and register himself.
It was the medieval times; one wouldn't need proof of his nationality, especially not from someone who wasn't even a mage yet. Thus, it didn't take much to register himself as a citizen of the Oakwood Empire, which cost him a single silver coin.
Here,
100 copper coins = 1 silver coin
150 silver coins = 1 gold coin
The 1 silver coin did sting him a bit, but then again, he wouldn't need to register himself elsewhere from now and could stay at a rented place in any city of the empire. After he was done with this, he spent the rest of the day searching for a place where he could build his base on, I mean, where he could stay in the city and not just teleport in order not to draw suspicion.
There was no agency where he could look for a renting place, and thus he steeled his heart and went back to the same bakery he had asked for directions before.
"Uncle... Hello."
"Ah... You again... You want to buy something more? Or was the bread not good enough?" The man seemed to remember Aric pretty well.
"Uncle, the bread was fine. I am new to the city and thus wanted to ask if there was a place where I could rent? Do you know someone who might have a vacant space for me?" Aric said.
"Huh? With you alone? Where are your father and mother?" The man was surprised that such a young child was responsible for such a big arrangement.
"They are a bit away for a journey and had left me with some money to fend for myself," Aric said. He didn't want to disclose too much. He could have easily said that he belonged to the village where the bandits attacked, but he refrained. It was better to be anonymous for the sake of his future. The man got the cue that the boy here didn't want to be pried, and looking at the attire the boy wore now, he looked well off for himself.
"I do know someone who might be able to rent to you. Why don't you come with me in the afternoon? My name is Albert. What is your name?" The man asked.
"Aric."
"Does 2 pm settle well with you?" Albert said. Aric nodded. There were still a few hours before the clock turned 2 pm, so he could wait. Meanwhile, he could roam around and help his communicator make an in-depth map of the place.
He walked around and saw the vibrant colors and homes. The city wasn't wealthy in any way, but it had a sense of 'togetherness' that most of the people in his world had lost. Or at least from what he had seen during his stay in Mumbai.
Seeing the happy, joyful faces of the people around gave him some kind of peace. But he also felt detached. Probably because he wasn't from this place and thus couldn't relate to them at their core. Which was better for him in the long run since he might have to leave this place someday and go elsewhere.
At sharp 2 pm, Aric arrived at the bakery. Albert seemed to have not noticed the clock and was surprised to see Aric. He turned to see the huge wall clock on the side and said.
"By the love of Aurelius, look at the time! I am sorry, Aric, work has been messy, as you can see I am handling baking the bread and the shop. Just wait a few minutes. The new bread will be baked in a few minutes, and then we can go."
"It's fine. I will wait," Aric replied.
"You use funny words, son," Albert said and got to work. Aric didn't know what to say to him about that. He was brought up in India, and thus his command over English wasn't like the natives, and thus his choice of words fell short to those people. Hopefully, he will be able to alleviate that problem in this life.
After a few minutes, Albert was ready and closed the bakery. Albert didn't ask about his past but rather what he wanted to do by staying here.
"I will start a business."
"You mean like a shop?" Albert asked.
"Something like that. I have a product and I will need to see if any shop will be willing to sell them," Aric said.
"What kind of product?" Albert asked, curious like any other person.
"You will see," Aric replied with a smirk.
"Kid, you think you are old enough to play some mind games with me?" Albert asked in fake anger.
"No, uncle, it's just that I can't explain the product, and it's better you see it. I will receive the first batch soon."