The Asshai's Bloodmage

After Salim left the room, I turned to the others and said, "That third Master might not be a servant of the temples." The two nodded in agreement.

"He should tell the students the harsh reality of how many years it takes to master a single spell, and the students should opt for an "easier" path, not to mention that he's not strict with contracts, and the fact that they'll be leaving soon means we can't help but check him out." Omar added.

"Zhang, tomorrow hire one of the guides from Salim's group and visit this Wizard's tower, confirm the benefits and restrictions of joining him. Pay attention to how the students behave in the tower, and try to ask them questions if possible. This will count as a quest."

"Leave it to me!"

"And Omar, before you go to sleep, go to the Order members' room and tell them about the options, but ask them to wait for more information, we can enter different towers if there are better benefits for everyone. Tomorrow morning, find another guide and visit the fourth wizard's tower and investigate the details involving talent and the differences between wizards. I will find a good place for us to live and another for our shop, I will look for information from the people I can find on the streets and visit a local market to see the prices of books and materials for practicing spells."

After we all discussed a few more matters, we said our goodbyes, I meditate and decide to get some sleep. Just because I can stay awake without too many problems for 1 or 2 nights doesn't mean I should do it without a reason. I need to always be alert and in my best state, especially here where strange people of all kinds are gathered.

I wake up and it's already past 6:00, I take a shower, put on new clothes, and continue to wear my red mask. Each of us still wears the masks made in Qarth in the designated colors of the Order. I wear red, Omar wears blue, Fatty Zhang wears silver, Jack wears gray, Vitarys wears gold, Liza wears pink, Zaya wears purple, and Jhon wears green. I go down the stairs of the tavern/inn and have coffee with some of the passengers who are already awake. Besides them, I see a few more guests at the tavern, all of them wearing masks, but they are noticing that the place has become very busy, some even approach and ask if we are new in town, I soon see Salim standing there waiting for me and I tell Jhon to come with me too. I introduce the two of them to each other and speak to the Asshai'i boy:

"Salim, I'm going back to the ship to negotiate the prices of the cargo with the merchants' representative. My two friends have already spoken to you about the extra guides, right?"

He nods and says that he has already guided them and I continue:

"Take the Green Sage to the message station at the port, there may be some letters for me and my friends there."

Salim and Jhon leave in a different direction and soon I return to the port alone. As I'm walking back I see how the city has changed from night to day. I can see the sun in the sky but I don't feel its heat on my skin. It's as if it can't reach me, being absorbed by the black stones all over the city. This makes it still seem like night in the city. The Ash River has lost its phosphorescent green color and is now black as oil. After a while I'm back on the Valyrian Sigh, which no longer has its name on it. I decided to remove the names from the ships after hearing certain rumors on board and remembering that I never asked people not to reveal my identity. I'm going to avoid it as much as I can before people look for me by my new title. I soon find Henry and ask if he got some sleep.

"Yes, that man was a representative of several merchants, he explained some things to me... Anyway, I've already agreed to sell my share of the special cargo and got a fair price for the normal cargo of the two ships, I need to pay the crew bonus and now that we have two ships it means we'll have to hire more men."

"You can take some men from Will's ship to balance the numbers now that some men are left on Aisha's island. That should solve the numbers problem for now. Were the prices for the normal and special cargo satisfactory?"

"Yes, I sold the cargo from each ship for 120 gold coins, that was about what we expected for the initial value of the food, we got an extra 40 coins for all the water we brought on both ships and left just enough to resupply on the nearby islands. I also sold my special cargo and Mister Jack's. Some men should be arriving soon to pack everything up, as per your instructions we left 8% of the water and 10% of the grain which will be shipped as soon as you secure a location."

I didn't have to wait long before the representative returned with several men who began loading the goods onto carts and carriages. To my surprise, there were animals pulling them, and they were large lizards, their colors pitch black. They seemed to be quite strong, but with little mobility. It must have been a creature native to Asshai since only they could survive in such an environment. Soon the man approached and began to negotiate with me about the remaining special cargo, but I politely declined, telling him that I plan to open a shop in the city together with my two other partners, he seemed surprised then asked:

"Do you plan to live in the city? I thought you would leave again."

"Yes, the ships will continue to trade on our behalf, but I will remain in Asshai with my partners, we will probably join a tower of wizards. So could you please explain to me the details I need to know about opening a shop in the city?"

"I see... You're interested in magic, our group has a tower, feel free to join us, we're fair and our contracts aren't too restrictive. In fact, you can open a shop normally without needing permission from any group in town, there are no taxes either. And since there are so many empty properties, you can buy them for a very low price too. But know that you'll need to pay someone to keep the shop open and the town doesn't have many people visiting all the time, so it's normal not to have customers for some periods of time. And some sorcerers or apprentices might think your shop is an easy target. The best thing would be to agree to pay a Master for their support or a smaller group for protection. The town doesn't charge taxes so don't expect there to be guards helping you or seeking justice. As for being part of the group I represent or the town's aristocracy, that will change over time if you manage to get their attention."

"I appreciate the invitation to your tower. I heard about it yesterday and we are still deciding which one is most suitable for each of us. Come back here later to negotiate with my partner, the Blue Sage (Omar). He will buy local goods to supply our ships." The man nods and I leave Aisha in charge of delivering a message to Omar. Jhon returns with Salim and I am surprised that there are so many letters. Only 4 are from our families. And the others are all sent to the Red Sage. I keep everything with me to read later and give the letters to Jhon to make the deliveries. There is a letter for Omar, one for Liza and Zaya, and one for Henry's family. Before Jhon leaves, I hand him a paper with very detailed instructions on a certain matter involving our old home. Jhon only reads the title (Temple of the Stranger), nods and leaves in a hurry. I then leave the ship accompanied by Salim.

"Where to, boss? Do you want to see the properties first?"

"Leave the properties for after lunch, are there any shops owned by these so-called Masters? I want to take a look at them."

"Yes, I'll take you to them!"

***

Special thanks to the Patreons:

Magic Apprentice: Parsa, Pato Senalima, Axel Bour, Gabriele Sulpizio, Vinnie, Jan, frimorigo, Scott Robertson and Takatchi!