Potential

[James Galeheard's magical talent has been successfully identified!]

[Beep! James Galeheard's talent is estimated to be [Grade 1]. According to the database, grade 5 have an 80% chance of becoming a magus by the time they reach 50. For grade 4 talents, the probability falls to 40%, and 15% for grade 3 talents. As for grade 2 talents, only 3% of them manage to reach the magus realm. Grade 1 talents becoming magi are very rare, and is usually relative to a prestigious legacy, extraordinary luck or amazing refining skills in a craftsmanship allowing them to purchase materials to further advance in their cultivation]

'What a disappointment...', George thought inwardly.

He was pretty excited, and could see him already teaching the old butler so that he would follow him on his journey. However, George had overestimated how rare magical talent was. In fact, it was amazing already for James to possess grade 1 talent. Most individuals would not react to magical power at all, to the point that it would be nocive to them.

Only one out of a thousand commoners might possess some kind of magical affinity. As for the talent grades, it depended heavily on one's background and ancestry, but based on the sample that George had gotten in the Abyssal Bone Forest Academy, roughly 80% of acolytes possessed grade 1 talent. This also explained why he was never offended in the Abyssal Bone Forest Academy as a grade 5 talent, and why Magus Kroft and Merlin showed goodwill towards him even though they didn't know of his alchemical prowesses.

George was magically bound, and could not pass down the set of meditation technique taught in the Abyssal Bone Forest Academy. However, Lady Emma, in an attempt to seduce him and bind him to the Billing Household, had already showed him her personal library. There, there were grimoires of magic about water-elemental spells and magical theories as well as blood rituals and the method to convert human life into negative energy stones, which were a catalasys to his cultivation.

'Create a war, huh...? James might not be of a high grade, but eventually, spiritual force will rise. Eventually, I aim at creating a potion that raises spiritual force to earn magical crystals. Even without talent, he will reach rank 2, or even rank 3 as long as he puts in the effort. Such a subordinate would be useful to me, even if I become a rank 1 magus'

Creating a war would provide many benefits, as James hinted at.

First of all, the demand of spiritual potions would rise tremendously. Since an acolyte without magical power would lose all of their firepower, the value of a spiritual potion was the same as a trump card, allowing them to cast one last defensive move, or one last offensive spell that would save their life. In front of survival, the price of a dozen magic crystals would seem rather small.

Second of all, the Billing Household would be able to redeem itself in combat. At this rate, the mayor might even consider beheading Lady Emma, who was the main culprit in the sacrifice of hundreds of criminals. Thankfully, she had not killed anyone who was not sentenced to death, but the Mayor might not hear reason, and instead act out of fear for dark path acolytes.

Thirdly, an environment where military achievements are encouraged would be the best place for George to rise. Besides military achievements, he would be able to display his medical skills and alchemical skills to their fullest extent.

In other words, a war would allow George to earn a massive fortune and a deep-rooted influence in the heart of its citizens. He would be able to form relationships with many merchants, artisans and warriors who would feel some sort of loyalty towards the one who saved them from annihilation. Wandering acolytes in the region might consider settling down in Melvinger City as mercenaries too, and would eventually purchase his goods for a high price.

However...

Creating a war was easier said than done.

Melvinger City was not called the [City of Knights] for no reason. It was a relatively safe place to live in comparison to the rest of the region. In a 50 kilometres radius, it was the only human settlement as the rest of the region was infested with wild beasts such as dire wolves, sky eagles, giant alligators, boars, bears.

However, these species were difficult to control, and even as an acolyte, George lacked the means to attract those monsters and wild beasts. Although magical beasts were said to be just as intelligent as men, they were not enough to pose a threat to the massive Melvinger City, where there were hundreds of knights and a dozen wandering acolytes with an arsenal of spells and weapons capable of taking down the strongest rank 0 magical beasts.

'Melvinger City almost fell thirty years ago, because an orc chieftain had united several tribes and led a charge with thousands of orc warriors. Unfortunately, orcs are difficult to reason with...', George thought, 'And after the orc hunting expedition that Melvinger City leads on a yearly basis, there are no major orc tribes...'

[Humans]

Humans would be perfect. They were greedy and prideful.

Unfortunately, Melvinger City was the only major human settlement, and part of its wealth came from refugees settling down in the City Of Knights, a safe haven hidden in a forbidden land full of monsters.

'Orcs it is, then...But first, let's visit our friend John. The poor boy must be taken aback by the news'

Friends step up in times of need. Unfortunately, George was not showing up just to comfort the man he had crushed in the Knight Festival. He was here to scan Lady Emma's collection of books. He only needed a glance to import it in his biochip's database. And it was the perfect opportunity to collect his due.