Lev woke up two hours after sunrise. Thankfully, the increase in constitution attribute had taken off nearly an hour of sleep from his schedule. From what he knew, such benefits would steadily decrease from the increasing constitution. Eventually, if they become strong enough, the need for sleep would be reduced to once every few days. Then, once a week, before some evolution or threshold inevitably removes the need for sleep. There was still a very long road to get there.
Breaking out of his daydreaming, Lev took care of his morning routine and went to Oriana’s office, where Lev was firmly reminded that he was way too early. Whoops. He returned to his room to find his roommates groggily rousing themselves. Once they were all fresh and ready for the day, they sat down on the boys’ bed—with the boys on one side and the girls on the other—and began their interrogation.
“So, what exactly is your plan?” Kayla started with the question that was on everyone’s mind. Lev had hidden from them his exact plans for once he came of age, often saying things like, “You will know when the time is right,” which kept them on their toes.
Before replying, Lev and Jack shared an amused glance, confusing the girls to no end. Lev then stated his plans, “To begin with, me and big sis will go to the Crafters Guild’s Protection and Healing Branch to meet up with a senior artificer renowned for creating the best barrier artifacts. There, I will learn the General Mana Manipulation skill under his tutelage and then spend the remaining time learning about barriers from both written material and practical demonstrations…” He trailed off, realizing everyone was looking at him as if he had grown another head.
“What…?” he asked nervously under the combined unblinking gazes.
Everyone just stared at him silently. Surprisingly, it was Amelia who spoke up first in an incredulous tone, “Big sis?”.
“Oh… that. Well, long story short, after our talk last night, I asked Director Oriana if she would accept me as a little brother and she did so gladly. But please don't reveal this in front of everyone else, only if Oriana does first.” he replied sheepishly.
After a minute of stunned silence, Kayla shook her head before leaning towards him with the intensity of a thunderstorm, “What? That’s it? THIS IS SUCH BIG NEWS, YOU BIG, MATURE DUMMY!” She punctuated her point by pulling him towards her and Amelia and tightly wrapping his arms around him. That prompted a group hug where everyone offered him congratulations and expressed their happiness for him.
After half a minute of the bone-crushing hug, Lev finally wiggled out of the embrace while holding up his hands defensively, “Alright, alright, this is enough physical contact for the rest of the season. I understand that I am underplaying this a lot but trust me, nobody here is happier than me. You know how I am.”
Jack rolled his eyes, “We are well aware of your penchant for trying to be cool and mysterious,” he said dryly, making Lev choke on his next word and send him into a coughing fit.
Clearing his throat one last time, he shot Jack a mock glare before solemnly announcing, “You are not supposed to give away my secrets,” making Amelia roll her eyes as well and getting a snort out of Kayla.
“As I was saying before being rudely interrupted, I will be studying under Senior Artificer Alec. Since he is a busy man, he will only be teaching me for a total of two months before I register for the Adventurers Guild and their mandatory training.”
“Just two months? Isn’t that too little for an apprenticeship?” Kayla expressed her concern.
“It really depends on how much effort I put into learning and well… Do I need to explain more?” Lev mused.
That mollified his friends. While two months was very short compared to the average apprenticeship, it would be enough if Lev believed it to be enough. Although he never let it show on his face, Lev was worried if sheer hard work would be enough to see him through to his goal. But he was good at schooling his face, so none of his friends noticed his inner turmoil. Four hours later, Lev made his way to the office. There, he joined Oriana before heading toward the Crafting District.
The weather outside was slightly chilly, announcing the end of the Spring season and the start of the Winter season. On Monarch’s plains, there were only three seasons. Summer, Spring, and Winter. Each season lasted for 100 days, making each year 400 days long. The Summer season marks the start of a new year, whereas the Winter season marks the end. Each year had two Spring seasons. There were still two weeks left before Winter started, and Lev was hoping to see snowfall for once in his life.
The Crafting District was exactly how Lev had imagined while also being much grander. It was relatively small compared to the other districts but possessed an aura of distinctness that was unmistakable. A Large stone road cut through the district in a straight line. Large triple-story buildings lined up on both sides, with a single large building at the end of the road. All of the buildings were equally spaced apart, allowing a small road to cut through after every three buildings that led to individually owned Crafting stores. The imposing five-floor structure at the end of the road was the Crafting Guild Headquarters. The floors were both long and high, resulting in the building being much larger than a usual building with the same number of floors.
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The three buildings of the Healing and Protection Branch and the Defense Branch were on the left side of the main road, whereas the Attack Branch and the Provisions and Essentials Branch were on the right side, bringing up the total number of buildings on each side to six. All of the buildings were made primarily from white stone and marble, mixed in with colors corresponding to the branch they were associated with.
The Attack branch had the red color mixed in with white. The melee to short-range attack sub-branch had more elaborate red patterns, similarly in conjunction with white, whereas the Medium to Long-Range Artillery sub-branch had red strips running along the structure. The Defense Branch had shades of blue blended in with white in its different sub-branches. However, The Healing and Protection Branch only had one design for all of its buildings. It was also the fanciest of the bunch because it was not as heavily protected and armed to the brim with different tools compared to the Attack Branch and was not as Robustly built as the Defense branch. The lack of excessive tools and defenses made room for decorations, which the designers made phenomenal use of.
The Protection and Healing Branch had no clear distinctions like the different sub-branches of the other two Branches. Healing and protection synergized extremely well with each other, making all three buildings combined known as one. The last branch of the Crafting Guild was called the Provisions and Essentials Branch. This was where all the tools of daily life and other necessities were created and distributed. The Crafting Guild made sure to remind everyone of the importance of the last branch and treated it as an equal to every other branch. Or at least that was how it seemed to Lev from his rare trips to the district. Like every other district, the Crafting District was also heavily policed by guards. They patrolled along the roads and observed the crowd from the top of branch buildings, ready to act at a moment’s notice.
Lev and Oriana made a beeline toward the third building of the Healing and Protection Branch. There were two stoic and intimidating guards standing at the entrance, glaring at them like they were criminals being escorted to prison. Once they entered, the first thing Lev noticed was that the Hallroom they ended up in was crowded. People in all sorts of gear and getups were milling about, some interacting with the three reception booths on the right side. Sweeping his gaze from right to left, he took note of the hallroom splitting into two different corridors with multiple rooms. A set of stairs went from the left of the receptionist booths to the next floor. On the left side of the hall room was a massive shop displaying the wares of Branch, ranging from common and affordable to extremely expensive artifacts.
Oriana moved towards the stairs, not sparing anything a single glance, and ascended without stopping her stride for even a moment. The second floor was a long hallway with rooms on both sides that began with another receptionist booth on the right. Oriana took the next flight of stairs without pause, where they eventually ended up in the residential area, mess hall, lounging area, and classrooms. All branches of the Crafters Guild had classrooms with apprenticeships in mind. Lev’s mind was distracted by the cleanliness and fresh air. Somehow, the interiors were always fresh. Whatever tools or artifacts were at play, they were advanced enough to work while hidden from sight.
Passing many rooms, Director Oriana stopped in front of the door of room 7 and slowly knocked twice. A few moments later, the door was opened by a middle-aged man. He was on the shorter side, being around 5’ 8’’, with dark blue hair that almost seemed black. He was currently wearing a casual black T-shirt and black pants. With his small stature, white-colored skin, and dark blue hair, he looked decently charming. He had a relaxed expression on his clean-shaven face while he observed the duo.
“Senior Artificer Alec,” The Director nodded in greeting.
“Director Oriana,” Alec dipped his head significantly in return. He then looked towards his new student and nodded once, prompting Lev to bow lightly and introduce himself.
“Greetings Senior Artificer Alec. My name is Lev, and I am very grateful that you have taken me in as an apprentice. I'll make sure to make the best out of your time and prove that taking me in was a worthwhile endeavor.”
Alec observed Lev with a flustered expression before he burst out laughing. Frozen at the spot, Lev just watched as the artificer tried to control his laughter. He looked towards Oriana for any clues, but she was suspiciously avoiding his eyes while trying and horribly failing to hide a smile. Slowly, it dawned on him that he had been set up for her entertainment, manipulated into thinking that laying it thick from the start would net him some positive points. By the time Alec got himself under control, Lev had already come to terms with the harmless prank.
“There’s no need to be so stiff, boy. I don't know what Oriana here told you, but I am not one of those old coots who are hellbent on proper traditions and titles. You can call me Alec or Sir Alec if you prefer. Now, please come inside and make yourselves at ease.”
“I appreciate the offer, Alec, but I need to finish up some work before sundown. Besides, Lev is a smart boy. I’m sure he won't give you any trouble.” Oriana said and started walking towards the stairs. Lev gave her a slightly sour look, to which she just winked back. Alec, watching the exchange silently, looked at Lev’s face and then at Oriana’s retreating back. Eventually, he just shrugged to himself and beckoned Lev to follow him.