In a mysterious city where the sun never rises, the sky is constantly bathed in the soft glow of a luminous moon and myriad twinkling stars. The chilly air wraps around you like a silken shroud, sending shivers down your spine. A small, unassuming building stands at the far western edge of the city. It doesn't draw attention to itself, blending in with the surrounding structures, yet it's strategically positioned to be visible to those strolling along the street.
"Sir, this is a 2nd grade elixir called Lovia Flower. It is characterized by a unique fragrance that can induce infatuation and thoughts of desire in those who inhale it. While not exceedingly rare, Lovia Flower is not commonly found. If you sell it to regular elixir shops, it can be exchanged for 200 mana crystals. However, you can receive 500 mana crystals if sold to Love Love Paradise."
In the assigned guest chamber within the building resided a 16-year-old youth with jet-black hair. A third of his locks were intricately braided, while the remaining strands were arranged in a tousled, spiky manner. One of his distinctive features was a dark, diamond-shaped marking positioned between his eyes.
His attire clearly indicated that he was no ordinary attendant. He sported a white tunic beneath a deep blue shirt adorned with a gold-trimmed, high collar. A crimson sash encircled his waist, securing the shirt in place. Additionally, he draped himself in a sweeping, navy-blue robe.
He sat facing a middle-aged man in a worn-out robe, describing the characteristics of the exquisite purple plant he had just examined.
The middle-aged man frowned as he said hesitately, "Where is Love Love Paradise?"
The young man raised his eyebrows in shock.
Love Love Paradise was a notorious place in the city, renowned for its brothel services. Its reputation had spread far and wide, extending its operations to multiple cities within the empire. Consequently, it would be uncommon for individuals, especially adult men, to be unfamiliar with this establishment.
The young man briefly wondered if this old man was living in a cave. It was hard to believe that a man of his age could be unaware of Love Love Paradise, given its widespread reputation.
"Sir, from here, you can walk south and arrive at Magnolia Street. If you see many adult men wandering around there, then you've found the right place."
A few moments later, the young man watched the middle-aged man exit the building after paying the appraisal fee. With this, his job for today was basically finished.
Not long after, he also came out of the building.
As he looked upward, all he could perceive was a vast void of darkness. Time seemed to stretch endlessly, with no sign of the sun's return, as if it had been suspended in this perpetual state since the city's inception. Perhaps this is why it's called Evernight City.
This young man is Gilgamel.
He was a transmigrator from Earth with an unremarkable background.
He was an ordinary college student who tragically perished in a fire due to a stove being left on.
Struggling for oxygen, he found himself waking up as a newborn baby with no recollection of the reincarnation process. This sudden and mysterious transition left him without a memorable experience.
Long story short, he was reborn as a noble child. However, his noble status did not shield him from a life filled with mistreatment and hardships.
Despite his elevated standing, the reality of his existence mirrored that of a beggar. His daily routine involved pleading with the servants for food, and he was a frequent target of harassment by his half-siblings.
This harsh treatment stemmed from his mother's origins as a servant, which left him marginalized within his own household.
As a transmigrator, how could he possibly accept such treatment?
If it weren't for something that held him back, he might have run away from that hellish house as soon as he could walk and talk.
It was quite miraculous that he managed to endure it for twelve years.
In his previous life, he was an orphan, but even so, he managed to survive and put himself through college.
In this life, he had no reason to live dependent on others, particularly on those people who viewed him with disdain and treated him as if he were disposable.
At the age of twelve, Gilgamel decided to leave home without his father's and other relatives' approval.
After journeying through several small towns, he eventually encountered a compassionate elderly couple who offered him work at their cozy inn. His tasks included cleaning and serving the guests. Despite the difficulties, he experienced no abuse during his time working at the inn.
After six months, an unexpected visitor appeared at the inn. She was a woman who claimed to be a travelling fortune teller. Lacking the money to pay for a room, she proposed using her skills in exchange for accommodation. Despite the scepticism of others, the generous elderly couple allowed her to stay for free.
Feeling grateful, the woman insisted on utilizing her divination skills and eventually had the chance to perform a divination on Gilgamel.
Gilgamel accepted the offer, intrigued by his first encounter with a fortune teller.
The divination Gilgamel received had a short and simple message: "Your greatest opportunity lies in the South!"
The enigmatic woman who delivered the message also warned him that missing this opportunity would be irreversible.
Her words left Gilgamel feeling both sceptical and hesitant for quite some time, prompting him to seek the counsel of an elderly couple.
The elderly couple kindly said, "Feel free to go. You can always come back if you don't find anything."
With that encouragement, Gilgamel finally decided to head south without knowing what awaited him.
He continued to walk south aimlessly for seven days and seven nights until he finally arrived at a large city, which he later learned was called Evernight City, a city owned by a wizard organization called Owl.
Since then, he realized that the greatest opportunity he had been looking for might be here!
He was overcome with excitement when he made this discovery.
His excitement reached its peak when he also learned magic exists in this world.
Those who possess magic are known as wizards and witches. However, only those with a talent for magic can become one of them.
Gilgamel happened to possess that talent. Although it was only at the lowest level, it was better than having none.
Talents in the realm of magic can be divided into four distinct categories, each with its own unique characteristics and abilities.
Chaos talents are individuals who possess a natural affinity for manipulating the basic elements of fire, water, wind, and earth. However, they are often considered to be of the lowest rank due to their relatively slow progress in harnessing mana.
Medium talents are wizards who exhibit a strong connection to fewer than the four basic elements. Their adeptness at gathering mana surpasses that of chaos talents, allowing them to progress faster in their practice.
Advanced talents transcend the confines of the basic elements, displaying an affinity for more specialized forms of magic such as wood, ice, lightning, light, darkness, and more.
Finally, abstract talents represent the rarest and most extraordinary category. Individuals with abstract talent not only exhibit exceptional proficiency in mastering magic at an accelerated pace but also possess the remarkable ability to comprehend and employ an extensive spectrum of magic.
Different magic talents each have their own unique advantages and drawbacks. Take the chaos talent, for example. Although it has a slow training speed, it allows wizards to master and utilize all magic spells based on the fundamental principles of magic.
In contrast, medium talent offers a faster training pace than chaos talent, but it comes with limitations in terms of the variety of magic spells that can be learned and used. It depends on the number of elemental affinities the wizard possesses.
Similarly, the advanced talent is constrained by the wizard's affinity.
However, the abstract talent is an exception. Wizards endowed with this talent have the remarkable ability to wield any magic in the world.
However, Gilgamel heard that this talent is rare among wizards, and once they appear, they immediately become a bone of contention for wizard organizations.
On the other hand, chaotic talent was more prevalent, comparable to a ubiquitous weed. If it weren't for his unique talent, Gilgamel would not have been able to join a top wizard organization like Owl.
There were numerous wizard organizations in the Moniyan Empire, and the Owl was among the top three.
The leader of the Owl was renowned as one of the most powerful wizards in the empire. Due to its esteemed reputation, the Owl maintained stringent recruitment standards, typically making it difficult for wizards with chaos talents to join.
However, Gilgamel, with his chaos talent, managed to slip in, thanks to his appraisal talent being recognized by a senior member of the Owl. With the support of this influential figure, Gilgamel adeptly navigated his way within the organization, ultimately ascending from an ordinary mortal to a First Circle Wizard.
In the world of magic, every aspiring wizard begins their journey as a Novice Wizard.
This initial stage is where beginners learn the fundamentals of magic, mastering the basic magic spell: Telekinesis, mastering the manipulation of objects with the power of mana and mind.
Advancement in the wizarding world is marked by progress through ten levels, referred to as the First Circle Wizard through to the Tenth Circle Wizard. As novices climb the ranks, they evolve from the weakest, symbolized by the First Circle Wizard, to the most powerful, embodied by the Tenth Circle Wizard.
Usually, it took less talented individuals like Gilgamel about two years to level up from Novice Wizard to First Circle Wizard. However, he managed to achieve this milestone in just a year, all because he had a Goldfinger!
Since becoming a Novice Wizard, Gilgamel has acquired a unique ability linked to a mysterious book that appeared in his mind.
This extraordinary book allows him to identify any object within his line of sight. However, this ability comes with a cost. Gilgamel needs to consume a certain amount of mana crystal every time he wants to appraise an object. The cost varies depending on the object's value, with higher-value items requiring more mana crystals.
To make the most of this ability and earn extra income, he decided to open a small business in the city that offers object appraisal services. This not only assists him in his training but also allows him to utilize the unique power of the strange book.