Chapter 13: Project Prometheus: Elemental Acquisition:
Mark sat in his cramped, dark room in the Tanner's Quarter, the heavy pouch of 205 Silver Shillings resting on the rough wooden table. Outside, the city bustled, unaware that its magical foundation was about to become the subject of a hostile takeover.
"Jarvis. Project Prometheus. We have three months until the Vernal Equinox and the Core activation. We need to master three things: The Dwarven Binding Oath, and the manipulation of Elemental Fire, Water, and Earth energy," Mark said, tracing the runes of the Activation Sequence in his mind.
"Affirmative, Host. The Elemental Focus (Lvl 1) skill allows for passive detection of elemental flow and greatly accelerates proficiency acquisition in all elemental disciplines. However, you lack the foundational skills. The Master Broker class dictates we acquire the necessary training through financial leverage and optimized resource allocation," Jarvis declared.
"We buy the skills, Jarvis. We don't spend three months in an Apprenticeship. We have 205 Silver. What's the most efficient way to acquire Fire control?"
"Analysis: Fire is the most difficult element to control without an innate affinity, requiring speed and precision—two attributes you lack. Therefore, a direct, aggressive acquisition strategy is needed. Recommendation: The Mercenary Mage."
Mark raised an eyebrow. "A mercenary? They're expensive and usually crazy."
"Correct. We require Ignis Flamewright, a disgraced pyromancer who was expelled from the Mage Guild for his chaotic teaching methods. He operates a semi-legal 'Combat Mage Training' ring in the old Foundry District. He charges 100 Silver Shillings for a comprehensive, week-long crash course in Basic Fire Affinity and Pyre Casting (Lvl 1). This is a high-risk, high-reward investment."
"One hundred Silver Shillings for one week? That's almost half my capital," Mark calculated, feeling the familiar prickle of financial anxiety.
"The cost is justified. Ignis imparts raw skill, not theory. It is the most expedient path to Fire manipulation. This investment secures the Fire component of the activation key. Commencing logistical preparations," Jarvis insisted.
Mark sighed, then stood up, adjusting his cloak. He was no longer a beggar; he was a capital investor. "We're making a highly volatile investment, Jarvis. Let's go find a fire hazard."
The Foundry District was a symphony of industrial noise and heat. It smelled of scorched iron and oil, a place of hard work and harder dealings. Ignis Flamewright's training ring was located in the husk of an abandoned ironworks—a vast, soot-stained space open to the sky.
Ignis was a towering, heavily muscled man with a permanently singed beard and a chaotic grin. He was standing in the center of the foundry floor, where several low-level mercenaries were attempting (and failing) to summon tiny sparks of flame.
Mark approached him with the calculated confidence of the Master Broker.
"Ignis Flamewright," Mark stated, ignoring the heat radiating from the floor. "I am Mark Noax, a Master Broker. I require your one-week comprehensive course in Basic Fire Affinity and Pyre Casting (Lvl 1). I will pay you 100 Silver Shillings cash now."
Ignis stopped mid-shout, his attention drawn to the unmistakable sound of silver hitting the table. He scooped up the pouch, weighed it in his hand, and grinned, revealing a missing tooth.
"One hundred, you say? Most men spend a year in the Guild paying that much for theory. You want the practical skill, broker?"
"I want the result," Mark confirmed. "I need to be able to command a controlled, stable elemental flame by the end of seven days. Nothing more, nothing less. Can you deliver?"
"I can turn you into a human candle or a pyre-casting mage. Depends on how hard you work. Training starts now, broker. Get out of that fancy cloak. You're going to burn it."
The next seven days were brutal, unlike anything Mark had experienced since the Variant Alpha attacked. Ignis didn't teach through theory; he taught through pain, heat, and raw willpower.
"Elemental Focus doesn't mean you think the flame, broker! It means you feel the heat, you channel the hunger! Try again!" Ignis would roar, as another failed attempt resulted in Mark's hand being briefly enveloped in a stinging blast of superheated air.
Mark's Endurance 9 was barely enough to survive the constant physical and magical strain. But his Intelligence 20 and Elemental Focus (Lvl 1) were the keys.
Jarvis worked overtime, silently translating Ignis's chaotic, instinctual instruction into precise, logical commands: "Ignis commands: 'Feel the burn in your gut.' Translation: Engage Core Muscle Set Beta to stabilize the ambient energy channeling through the wrist helix. Modulating flow rate: 4.5 units per second."
Mark wasn't learning magic; he was learning the logistics of manipulating energy—finding the most efficient physical and mental pathways to channel the wild element.
By the end of the fourth day, Mark had achieved his first controlled success: a tiny, stable orange flame hovering steadily over his palm.
By the seventh day, exhausted and smelling permanently of smoke, Mark could reliably summon and hold a softball-sized globe of pure, controllable fire.
[Skill Acquired: Pyre Casting (Lvl 1)]
Grants the ability to summon and control low-level Elemental Fire for utility and basic combat purposes.
[Elemental Proficiency: Fire: 10% (Basic)]
Ignis looked at the flame hovering above Mark's hand, his wild eyes showing a hint of genuine awe. "You learn faster than any apprentice I've ever had, broker. You don't have an innate affinity, you have a talent for control. Now, get out. You're done."
Mark collected his remaining possessions. Remaining Capital: 105 Silver Shillings. He had burned through nearly half his fortune, but he had acquired the Fire component.
Mark returned to his safe room, exhausted but exhilarated.
"Jarvis. Fire acquired. Now we need Water and Earth," Mark stated.
"Analysis: The Water element requires adaptability and flow, requiring a high degree of control and low visibility. Strategy: We utilize the Royal Academy's Aquatic Elemental Theory course. This will be an espionage acquisition," Jarvis detailed.
"The Academy? Alistair will be there."
"Irrelevant. The Aquatic Theory class is lecture-based and massive. You will register under an assumed name, Marcus N. Oaks, and use your Intelligence 20 to absorb the information in a fraction of the time required by normal students. We are not paying for the degree, only the data."
"Cost: 35 Silver Shillings for the registration and required texts. The skill acquisition will be slower than Ignis, but it is necessary for the precision required for Water manipulation. This secures the Water component."
"And the Earth component?"
"Earth manipulation is tied directly to the Basic Stone Skin skill you already possess. We require a catalyst—a rare Elemental Crystal that allows the user to channel external Earth energy. Acquisition: The Elemental Market in the Merchant Quarter. Estimated cost: 50 Silver Shillings."
Mark checked his remaining funds: 105 SS.
Water Training: -35 SS
Earth Catalyst: -50 SS
Remaining Capital: 20 SS
"We will be almost broke, Jarvis, but we will have the three elements and the Binding Oath translation. It's a clean investment plan. Execute Phase Two: Water Acquisition."
The next morning, Mark, now using the alias Marcus N. Oaks, secured a spot in the massive lecture hall of the Royal Academy's Elemental Theory department. He found a seat in the back row, blending into the crowd of hundreds of earnest students.
The lecturer, a dry, elderly woman, began the first lesson: "The fundamental principle of Aquatic Elemental Theory is Flow and Conservation…"
As the professor droned on, Jarvis began his high-speed assimilation. Mark sat there for four hours, copying notes with enhanced focus, but he felt no immediate magical change—just the cold, beautiful certainty of knowledge being integrated into his Intelligence 20 core.
This was the Master Broker's true power: turning raw capital into optimized, accelerated knowledge.
AUTHOR NOTE :
[I'm Authors kun, I'm sorry for not updating on time everyday, I was Hospitalised, sorry everyone. I'll upload everyday from now on,
And I'll cover all the chapter I missed till date,
From Chapter 9 - Chapter 13
I'll update today
And from Chapter 13 - Chapter 18 Tomorrow, I'm pinky promise you
SAME RULE, 5 POWER STONE = 3 NEW CHAPTER
AND
5 HONEST REVIEW = 3 NEW CHAPTER
**** everyday 8:30 pm 'evening' new chapter ****]