Home Sweet Home

The next day was pretty uneventful, and the convoy rolled into Seton Barony without a hitch.

At the border, Zack's job was done. From here on out, Ikokha's crew would be looked after by Seton Barony's private army.

Caleb hooked him up with 200 low-quality mana stones as a bonus from Lady Ikokha.

"Please, accept this token of appreciation. You've more than earned it," Isadora graciously offered, 

"Nah, seriously, you didn't have to. It's too much," Zack protested, but his hand snatched the bag of mana stones before Caleb could even respond. Caleb was left speechless.

"Until next time!" Zack waved at Caleb and Lady Ikokha before activating [Stealth] and [Double Enhancement] - max output, to leave in style. Lightning flickered around him as he vanished in a flash of blue light.

Caleb and the crew only caught a glimpse of blue light before Zack disappeared. Caleb was speechless once again, wondering why Zack couldn't just leave normally when nobody was chasing him.

Yo, what's good?! Gotta dip in style, right? With that mask on, he must've looked hella cool earlier, Zack thought as he entered the forest and deactivated his [Double Enhancement].

He found the nearest portal to the lightning magic tower. It was the same one he'd used before, which is pretty far from his current location. But hey, he had another option. Usually, black markets had portals linked to others in the same organization.

The black market near Seton Barony had a portal connected to the one close to the portal he'd used before. But it cost 10 mana stones to use, which was like 10 tower points, he figured out by comparing their value.

Skipping the portal meant Zack could reach his destination in just 2 days, while the convoy would take a whole 5 days. He'd be cutting through in a straight line without the road and without the slow pace of a big convoy.

After weighing his options, Zack decided to cough up the 10 mana stones instead of wasting 2 days on the road. Plus, he was curious to check out the black market scene.

Two hours later, he rolled up to the black market. It was smack dab in the middle of nowhere, just a mountain of greenery at first glance. But Zack could sense some magic vibes swirling around the place.

Must be some kind of illusion formation, he figured, seeing it for the first time. As he approached the mountain, he stopped.

"Stop, 2 magic stones for entry," some voice said.

Suddenly, a square popped up in the clearing, looking like the entrance to the black market. Two level 6 magic knights and a level 3 apprentice wizard were posted up there.

"Hold up, I heard the entry fee's just 1 mana stone," Zack remembered what Caleb had said. He didn't wanna come off as a pushover; otherwise, folks would try to hustle him.

"My apologies, my friend. You are indeed correct; it is just one mana stone," the wizard corrected himself with a smile. Zack thought, this guy must've been trying to scam some newbie without connections.

Rolling his eyes internally, Zack kept it cool and handed over a magic stone from his bag. He only had a few stones in there to disguise the fact that he had a storage ring. Plus, he wore the ring on a necklace under his clothes instead of on his fingers.

Once he passed through the square, he was hit with a wall of noise. People were shouting out their goods, bargaining, and just generally making a ruckus. But hey, it was all part of the market vibe.

Some might think wizards were all high and mighty, staying calm and composed all the time. But nah, they were just regular folks. They only had to be cool when casting spells or meditating.

So a wizard market was pretty much like any other market. And this one? It's not as noisy as the one in the tower.

As Zack scanned the items on the stalls, nothing really caught his eye. The level 1 stuff like spells, potions, and artifacts were only up for grabs at the monthly or weekly auctions of the black market.

The auction spot was this huge building smack dab in the middle of the market. Zack had missed both the weekly and monthly auctions, so he figured there wasn't much else to do here. He headed over to the teleportation area instead.

Unlike the magic tower's teleportation area, which had hundreds of circles in a massive hall, here there were only two circles. That meant the black market was only connected to two other black markets.

There weren't many people around either. The apprentice wizards outside the tower were counting their mana stones like they were gold. Only the wealthy could afford to teleport.

The staff at the teleportation building perked up when they saw Zack. He'd changed out of his lightning magic robe and was still rocking his mask. But his build gave away that he was more like 14 or 15, even though he was just 10.

That growth spurt was thanks to him hitting the body enhancement spells pretty often. But even at 14 or 15, he was still a kid. And the only kids walking around without guardians were the apprentices from the magic tower.

Those little wizards were beasts, Ahem him included, hitting level 2 or 3 before they even hit puberty. Plus, they had all sorts of spells from the tower under their belt, making them some formidable wizards.

Even Zack knew better than to underestimate the original body or his fellow library members. Sure, they were considered trash in the tower, but outside? They were straight-up geniuses, at least hitting level 2 before they bounced out.

So, everybody knew not to mess with the young'uns. But, Zack still thought sticking out as a kid was too much. He could tweak his voice with his mana skills, but his body would still give him away.

Keeping his face hidden was good enough for now. Caleb had mentioned some spells for body modification like [Bone Shrinking], [Face Changing], and [Voice Changing], but those were rare on the markets.

No biggie, though. They had to be in the tower library somewhere; he just had to dig around. But back to the portal thing. It cost him 10 mana stones to use.

The familiar sensation hit Zack as he stepped into the magic circle once more. The circle lit up, and he felt the space around him rippling apart. He closed his eyes against the blinding white light.

When he opened them, he found himself in another forest. He could spot a staff from the black market, but the stalls and the noisy market sounds were nowhere in sight.

Seemed like the magic circle dropped him off outside the market itself. He nodded to the staff, confirming his location before heading to the magic tower teleportation circle.

After a 4-hour journey, he made it. As he neared the teleportation magic circle, his tower badge started vibrating.

The closer he got, the more intense the vibrations became. He used this feature to pinpoint the exact location of the magic circle. Once he reached it, the circle lit up softly, showing its position.

The badge stopped vibrating. Zack sent his mana to the tower badge, which then signaled the magic circle.

In an instant, he vanished from the magic circle. The circle stopped shining, and the forest returned to its tranquil state.

Opening his eyes, he found himself back in the tower. Ah, home sweet home. He headed back to the mission hall to report the completion of his mission. After receiving his reward, he made his way back to his room.

Reflecting on the trip, Zack realized why many apprentices were eager to take on missions outside. Initially, he couldn't see the value in the small points compensation. After all, he only made a net profit of 5 points, having to spend the rest on hiring other apprentices for his library cleaning job.

But now he understood the potential for extra income along the way. Whether it was nabbing the belongings of an enemy wizard or getting bonus compensation from clients, there were opportunities to boost his earnings. Plus, he could exchange the mana stones he acquired outside for tower points at a 2-for-1 ratio.

He thought it was a fair deal, considering tower points could score him something more valuable than just artifacts or materials, like spell books.

Although the library only offered basic versions of spells for regular apprentices, the sheer number of books meant he could find anything he wanted. And if he just needed to buy other supplies, he didn't have to exchange the mana stones specifically for tower points.

The market in the tower also accepted mana stones as currency. Zack decided to hold onto his mana stones for now and didn't exchange them for tower points. He'd make the swap whenever he needed to.

With a sigh, Zack realized it had been a long journey. He decided to treat himself to a sweet, sweet nap before tackling anything else.

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Name: Zack

Age: 10/100

Occupation: Apprentice wizard

Mana: 20/20 (87/87)

Overt Talent: [Low Mana Manipulation Correction], [Low Mana Sensory Correction]

Hidden Talent: [Limitless Mana Well], [Advanced Mana Manipulation Correction], [Advanced Mana Sensory Correction], [Advanced Intelligence Correction] 

Hidden Boss Abilities: [Hidden Strength]

HBP: 0

HB Progress Bar: 10/100% 

Expand Hidden Boss abilities Store? yes/no

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