After Nero had spent some time conversing with Koal, the old woman entered through the door. Nero was sitting on the sofa, enjoying a light meal. He was also served a good wine, which according to Koal, was a rarity in the camp due to the scarcity of vineyards.

Nero had taken only a few sips of the wine when the old woman entered. She was the mistress of the house and Koal's wife.

"Christina has arrived home," she said.

"Oh, how wonderful," Koal exclaimed, interrupting his elaborate story.

"Bring her in. I want to introduce her to Nero."

The woman nodded with a smile and went back out. Faint voices could be heard, and shortly after, a young girl entered through the door. She had curly brown hair and eyes the color of earth. She was dressed in a long gown that almost entirely covered her figure.

"Hello, little one," Koal greeted her. "How was your expedition?"

Christina didn't respond but instead curiously studied the unfamiliar man in front of her father. His eyes, as black as the abyss, were fixed on her, seemingly piercing through her. The coldness in them sent shivers down her spine.

"Who is this?" she asked her father, disregarding his question.

Nero raised an eyebrow, and Koal shook his head in disbelief. "What kind of manners are those, Christina?" he lightly scolded her. "That's not how I raised you."

Christina looked from Nero to her father. "Oh... yes, I apologize. My 'expedition,' as you call it, involved several hours of meaningless work. Why should I even do that in the first place?"

Koal sighed. "Your old man won't live forever. Eventually, you'll have to take care of yourself."

"Don't say such things, Father... Now, please introduce me to our new guest."

"But of course. Christina, this is Nero. He is here to teach you the basics of mathematics. Nero, this is Christina, my beloved daughter and the treasure of this house. You shall be her tutor."

Christina frowned. "Why do I have to learn math?"

"Don't ask foolish questions," her father said. "Every piece of knowledge you acquire will help you in life. All magicians are highly educated, and yes, they all have to learn math too."

"How do you know that?" Christina asked, annoyed.

Koal glanced at Nero, rolling his eyes. "Because I am befriended by a magician. You should know that."

"Yeah, yeah, alright, Father." Now she looked at Nero again. He inwardly sighed.

"So?" she asked him. Nero looked at her inquiringly.

"Can you speak, or are you mute?"

Nero was momentarily taken aback but then smiled warmly. "Of course, I can speak."

"Oh, very good. I was wondering," she said.

Nero had to compose himself. "So, what do you already know in math?" he asked, feigning interest.

"Let me think... hmm... nothing," she answered, grinning happily.

"Well, then at least I know where to start," Nero muttered.

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"Ohhhh," said Christina. "It'll be just fine."

Nero looked at Koal again. "How much should I teach her?" he asked him.

"Just the basics for now. We'll see what comes next," Koal replied.

"Okay, should we study here, or...?"

Koal shook his head. "You can study here. Christina, please have a seat. Is it alright if I stay?"

"Of course," Nero replied, as he had already expected that. Koal loved his daughter more than anything and even gave up his former life just for her. He would never give her into the care of a stranger.

Christina sat down next to Nero and leaned back, sinking deep into the sofa.

"Alright, let's begin..."

It took Nero nearly four hours to teach her just the basic mathematics. After the four hours, she understood the fundamentals of subtraction and addition, as well as the initial concepts of multiplication and division.

Overall, Nero was amazed by her intelligence. While she could be a stubborn child, she grasped things quickly.

Nero was not dissatisfied with the task. He received sixty credits, even though only half were promised. Besides, the task was relatively simple and not demanding.

However, Nero did not consider it a success. His goal in this assignment was to learn more about magic, but he had gained very little new information.

Nevertheless, Nero continued working on other assignments in the following days. In case nothing else worked, he had to try to position himself.

But that would be his last resort. Until then, he would seek another opportunity. Nero worked not only for Koal but also took on other tasks.

Once, he even went to a field to harvest wheat. It was a laborious task, and Nero was hardly in a condition to do it. Not only was he undernourished but also thirsty and generally untrained.

The other field workers even started making fun of Nero's work, but he simply ignored them and completed the task.

Nero learned from this experience that tasks involving knowledge transfer were far more effective than working in the fields.

He also learned more about the camp's situation from Koal. One day, as they sat playing chess again, Nero asked him with interest,

"Have you ever seen one of those mortals who were allowed to leave the camp and were chosen?"

Koal tilted his head thoughtfully. "No," he said, shaking his head. "In the twelve years I've been here, I've only encountered a few magicians, and I only know two of them somewhat better. But none of them came from one of the Ascension Camps."

Nero pondered this. He had already expected this.

"Then how do you know that all of this is true?"

Koal sighed. "Quite simply, we don't know. We just have to trust in the power of the great Lords. Besides, I have a very good friend who is a magician, and he would have told me if it were otherwise."

Nero furrowed his brow. "You actually have a magician as a friend?"

"Yes, for a very long time now. I met him in the second year of this camp. He told me a little bit about the magic itself."

"Like what?" Nero asked.

Koal waved it off. "I have already told you everything he told me. Unfortunately, he's not allowed to tell me more."

Nero sighed inwardly. He looked at the naive Koal. He knew that life wasn't that simple, but now he had a new idea.

"When will this magician visit again?"

"Probably at the end of the month," Koal answered absentmindedly, "Why?"

"Well, I would like to have a conversation with him."

Nero was certain that this magician could help him get out of there. He just needed to ask him to perform an affinity test. Nero was sure he had a magical affinity. It had to be so, considering that not long ago, he himself was a powerful magician.

Of course, there was the possibility that Nero had also lost his affinity, but he had to at least give it a try.

"Of course. I'll let you know when he comes. I'll send a messenger to your address."

A few days ago, Nero revealed the problem that he still didn't have proper accommodation. Koal had immediately helped him get one nearby, right in the second district.

The price was, of course, exorbitant, but Koal had made sure that Nero could afford it.

Nero had been lucky and seemed to have pleased the old man.

He received good payment from him for almost doing nothing.

After a few hours, Nero left the old man's house and said a friendly goodbye to him and Christina.

He stood at the door, lost in thought, gazing into the distant horizon. Then he started walking. He walked past the mortals who showed no interest in him. He was just another cog in the wheel. Not even a month ago, he was the master of a gigantic army. A conqueror of entire worlds, but now he was no better than a lowly slave.

He took a deep breath when suddenly a sharp pain spread across his chest. Nero gasped and staggered. He accidentally bumped into a large man but couldn't pay attention to it.

Desperately, he grabbed his chest, and slowly, the pain became somewhat bearable, and Nero's vision cleared.

-What the hell was that?- he asked himself internally. He realized that the pain was still there, but only faintly.

Suddenly, a screech reached his ear. Confused, Nero turned around and saw a man writhing on the ground, screaming like a dying animal.

"HOW DARE YOU?" the man screeched hoarsely. "HOW DARE YOU, LOWLY MORTAL, COLLIDE WITH A CHOSEN MAGICIAN OF THE GODS?"

Nero wiped back from the screeching man,

"Ohh...fuck!"