To choose a place where they could reside for a long time, there were a lot of things that had to be considered.
Firstly, it has to be cheap. Benjamin was not so rich that he could simply squander money everywhere. Secondly, it has to be somewhere less populated, since nonconformity often brings judgment, so keeping a low profile was essential. And lastly, he needed a lot of space, enough to let everyone practice their magic.
This can be considered pretty demanding specifics, but fortunately the city of Rayleigh was unique. Without much effort, he managed to find the perfect place.
The house in front of him used to be a fairly huge workshop, but because of fierce competition from the industry, this place was ruined by their competitor. With tales of hauntings and curses and the like, their business slowly died. In time, the owner could only sell it at a low price as a storage space for other people. Not too long after that, there was a fire, which made the people believe in the rumors, and nobody dared to put any supplies here anymore.
In the end, the owner could only sell it at an even lower price to a group of mercenaries. After the mercenary group moved in, nothing happened, but the rumors were already imprinted in the people’s hearts. And so, this mercenary group was ostracized by the others and did not have a pleasant time there.
Benjamin did not believe in the rumors, and the term "ominous" did not affect him. From the way he saw it, this was a cheap and big house, and it will soon be their safe house.
After discussing it with the owner, Benjamin used a hundred and twenty pieces of gold coins to purchase this huge house that came with a backyard.
After the transaction, the mercenaries had to pack up their things, so they agreed to pass the house to them after two days. Benjamin gave them the money, took the receipt, and walked away satisfied.
Then, he went to the magical creature ingredients shop, bought a few ingredients for potions, and took it back to the hotel for the two potions masters to use.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtAs for the new formula, it was not something that he could easily get.
From Will, he understood that in Ferelden, books related to the mages are not something that are on display in shops for sale. To get this knowledge, they had to go through the other mages, or in other words, from the Mage Freemasonry.
Regarding the Mage Freemasonry, the two of them did not have much information. They only knew there was such a group that has great influence in Ferelden and Carretas, but they do not show themselves much. The more detailed information, based on their status in the society, is something that cannot be understood by them.
In reality, in the country of Ferelden, mages were a mysterious career.
But...shouldn’t mages be mysterious in the first place?
Benjamin felt as though he was going to go crazy with the different set ups among the countries.
After being busy for an entire day, he finally could get some rest after returning to the hotel. For the rest of the day, aside from eating, he spent it on meditation. Very quickly, it was evening time. He laid on his own bed and gently fell asleep.
The next day, Varys led a few mages to sell the potions they made in these few days. On that morning, Benjamin went out on his own.
He carried the black feather and headed to the location the mafia "crow" mentioned.
To determine whether the invitation was real or fake, it must be investigated from here. To him, this mage’s gathering was very important. And so, he could only travel to them.
To tell the truth, he was not worried that he was putting himself in danger. This so-called mafia was only a slightly smarter group who gathered together. They were still middle and lower level individuals in the society, so they could not harm him.
The "crow" boss who wants to make a connection with the mages must also only be hoping to widen his own circle of influence through the gathering. Looking at it from another angle, the power of the mage is something that they cannot fight against, so they want it.
After more than half an hour, Benjamin came to an isolated street. He followed the System’s instructions, walked up to a door, and knocked on it.
With a creak, the door opened only slightly. After some thought, Benjamin pulled out the black feather, and passed it through the small crack of the door.
There was silence behind the door.
Benjamin did not panic. With his water element sensing technique, he already knew that after the man behind the door took the feather, he had a look of shock on his face, he did not know what to do. He even forgot to let Benjamin in. He hurriedly rushed to the back, as though he wanted to inform their boss.
So, after waiting for a while, Benjamin pushed the door open on his own and walked in.
In the dark hallway a while later, he met a group of people who rushed towards him at the stairs. When that group of people saw him, they were stunned for a while, but one of them recognized him and said respectfully.
"Master Mage, how did you get in here?"
Benjamin shrugged, and looked at the men and said, "You are the "crow" boss?"
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmHearing this, the big guy shook his head and said, "Master Mage, don’t panic. Our boss is at another location, I will take you to see the boss now, please don’t be angry."
Benjamin nodded his head. He was not even surprised. In any case, they were one of the bigger mafia groups in the city of Rayleigh, so they definitely would have back up plans.
The few men took Benjamin up the stairs, opened a random door and they went through the secret passage behind the tunnel. They passed through deep secret pathways, and after ten minutes, they came to a place that looked like a backyard.
The entire backyard was not big and it was well maintained. When Benjamin emerged from the dark passageway, he was welcomed by the aroma of fresh flowers and a gentle breeze. He was actually surprised by this.
Are mafia bosses nowadays this artistic?
With great expectation, very quickly, he found the only shadow in the garden.
Wearing a blue long dress with an apron wrapped around it on the outside, she was half squatting, and in her hand was a bottle. Her movements were slow, and she was watering a rose bush.
She had an aura of a rich girl. Her brown curls were tied into a pony tail, and there was a straw hat on her head to block the sun. A butterfly flew around her, and a few crows stood on the grass next to her.
When Benjamin noticed her, she also noticed Benjamin who just walked out of the secret entrance.
At that moment, she excitedly stood up and faced them. She pulled off her hat, tilted her head and let out a sweet beautiful smile.
A few men walked past her, bowed to her and respectfully called out, "Boss."