A week passed fast for Darius despite being mostly in the bedroom and memorizing a spell model. The problem was not the model itself but its mathematical modifications. Every spell had to be fitted for personal use, resulting in Darius losing many of his saved magic stones to get enough meters and particle scales to get everything functioning properly. The memorization was the easiest part. Some of the calculations frustrated him to no end. Many variables could not be known or measured. In some cases, he had to estimate. Its applications complicated the spell, but the particle basis was fairly straightforward. When Darius finished the model, he felt like imaginary wheels burdened him. First, he got agitated and thought his sea of conspicuousness was almost full, but it wasn’t. Darius was not happy about it, but he could not do much. To be on the safe side, he could not memorize more spell models. Nervously he imagined the spell model part and cast the familiar into existence. Something very vague came into being in the room. It was like a moving fist-size shape that constantly changed its form. Darius marvelled at how light went past it, barely blurring the view on the other side. He had imagined it would be like the shadow or darkness of a shadow tendril golem. Then he chuckled

“With that size, the spell would have killed me”.

Darius focused and commanded familiar to go to a different room. Before he could do anything, the familiar flew through to door and went downstairs. This action was taxing to Darius. He could only think how harder it would be for the familiar to penetrate the stone wall. Then he focused again, and he could at the same time see his bedroom and large fireplace opening downstairs. At first, they felt very dizzy, and his head felt hot, but he got used to it. It seemed that he could keep it up for a while, maybe 10 minutes. Next, the familiar was commanded to go outside. But the familiar burst out of existence after the door and several steps outside. It seemed that the current limit was around 20 steps at most. Not the worst but not excellent either. Darius summoned the familiar again, and it appeared next to him. It seems that he could not summon it to another room. While going through the model and spell modifications, Elvira walked inside carrying lunch. After placing the food on the writing desk, she turned around and went white with shock.

“Master, what is that thing next to you” She pointed her finger next to Darius.

“Ah, it's just my familiar. I’m testing the spell model.”

“Ah, well, it's good that it's yours, but do you know how dangerous it is to test spells like this? How long have you been studying it?”

“Oh, about a week?” Darius glanced back at Elvira with a buzzed expression.

First, Elvira could not speak, and she stepped two steps behind until her back hit the corner of the bookshelf, and she snapped back into focus. She just stopped and stared at Darius like she had seen a ghost.

“How long it normally takes?” Darius asked.

“Ehh, more than a week, that’s for sure. Usually spell model is rechecked for at least one or more months not to make mistakes and get killed. You got lucky that you are alive now.”

“Oh”, Darius was taken aback. “Well, I checked all the measurements and calculations were correct, and the model was fairly simple to memorize.”

“Yes, master, but even one symbol mistake or larger measurement error can ruin the spell model and kill its caster.” Elvira answered in a complete monotone, staring at him with bewildered eyes.

Darius awkwardly scratched his head and looked at the floor while thinking. The world of magic seemed more complicated than he had assumed.

“I am sorry, master. It’s just that I don’t want that you to die for malfunctioning spell model, not to talk about your missions alone.”

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Darius was still middle of thinking and gave only a slow nod. Elvira looked at him scaringly and hesitantly, but she knew Darius would consider her words.

“I’ll try to remember that. I don’t have to do most of the missions or do them alone anymore. How were the things when I was gone?”

Elvira nodded and lifted her head. “It seems that we are lacking food and some basic equipment sometimes. Slaves bought everything they needed, but we could make more dry food for missions. Most of the missions have been profitable with herbs, even more so after potion sales to Lord Lumbert.”

Darius kept nodding on several issues and continued, “We have sizeable storages of basic and even intermediate herbs and minerals; only weaponry metals would need more missions, or we would have to acquire a mine, but considering how much we need everything, it's better to concentrate on our alchemy business and taverns rather than try to expand to too many businesses. It is just easier, requiring fewer people and time.”

Elvira nodded and added, “Yes, and we would need to double the number of slaves; we now lack food sometimes, and we have to buy them costly.”

Darius thought awhile and answered, “Okay, we now have 93 slaves. We will need to raise this amount considerably and find better-quality slaves. We also have to compensate the number of support people. It seems that to keep up 30 knights, we need around a bit more than the same amount to keep things working. Support people are easier to buy, and cheaper weaving and cooking don’t cost much, but we would need more acolytes we could have for alchemy, which would raise our profits. It is just so damn expensive.”

Elvira chuckled. “It would be a hundred times more expensive if they were not slaves.”

Darius smiled, but dark thoughts never subsided. What he wanted was more magical instruments, spell model books and a library of books on magic. Despite all his efforts, earning, and risk-taking, he could only buy basic gear and books. Every intermediate book and instrument would cost several hundred or more magic stones, which would be as difficult as reaching the moon at this rate. Even if he could double or even triple the income from potions, it would not make even a dent in these expenses.

“Being a mage is very costly. We have to figure out better ways and make higher-grade potions. Elvira, from now on, only dedicated attention to high-grade potions. Leave all the rest to your underlings.”

“Yes, master.”

“That being said, bring me all the magic stones we have.”

Darius watched the busy street outside while Elvira left and the sturdy wood door closed. Then he closed the curtains and locked the door while leaving the key in the keyhole. He lifted the rug a bit and pushed one wood blank away. After digging a bit of sawdust, he found the safe box and opened it. He took a handful of banknotes and a small sack of magic stones with him and tidied everything back to its place. After opening the curtains again and unlocking the door, Darius returned to watch outside.

His current home was a large six-story high whitewashed building on the main road of the merchant district. It had a sizeable underground cellar and two-story high stone walls supporting the whole building. The district mainly had stores and taverns with auction houses. Usually, the same building was dedicated to multiple stores and functions, and most of the wealthier merchants without nobility rank or with low nobility rank were living upstairs of each of these larger houses. Darius had to repair the whole building before moving into it. The sawdust in walls and floors had started leaking, and all the surfaces were old. Even now, there was much to be done, but noises on the busy streets were much quieter now that the house had multiple window frames and renewed sawdust inside the walls and floors. In essence, he lived already like a minor noble, but he had not been thinking about the rank yet. He had been trying to be unnoticeable while starting his businesses and gathering more slaves. But he could not continue like this for long without nobility rank. Even paid, one would raise his status enough to deter nobles from harassing his trades and slaves.

Elvira knocked on the door and woke Darius from his thoughts. “Here, we have acquired 32 magic stones during your time away. Most of these came from high-grade potions, but we also managed to sell several ores for additional profit. Rest is still gold.”

“Good, keep buying magic stones with all the cumulating money.”

Elvira bowed and left while Darius counted magic stones. He had 46 magic stones, a small fortune, but not much to go by. He had to make the best of it. After dressing the dark cloak again and putting half moon token on his neck, Darius went downstairs after entering the enormous hall with a fireplace and tables and chairs here and there. Darius found a large man sharpening knives and sitting by the fire.

“Jurid, we are leaving; gather the men.” Jurid nodded, and in a moment, they walked outside on the bustling street of the merchant district.