Kierra thankfully let me sleep before the sun came up. She was satisfied when I not only forgot about Fen but could hardly remember my own name. It’s still late when I wake up. The fifth bell tolls as I slowly open my eyes.

My wife is still in bed, leaning against the headboard with a book in her hand. A large platter of cold cuts, cheese, and bowls of fruit sits atop her legs and she absently chews on the food. She’s bare to the world and unconcerned, the sheets only covering her from the waist down. I bet that maid got another eyeful.

I stretch and she looks down at me. Rather than a good morning, her fingertips glowing with a soft green light touch my cheek. Warmth runs through my body, relaxing my sore muscles and filling me with energy. Even the scratches on my back close, the aches disappearing in seconds.

“Mm. That’s as awesome as ever…” What I don’t want to say is that she could have let it be for a while. I was still basking. I’ve definitely spent too long with her. “Morning, by the way.”

“More like afternoon.” She grabs a strawberry and feeds it to me. “The others have been up for quite a while and are asking for you.”

“And what you’d tell them?”

“Nothing. I imagine the maid invented some kind of story. I think the young woman’s developed an interest in me, if her face was anything to go by.”

I’m not surprised. Anyone would. The question now is, can I use that to our advantage? I have a good idea about everyone’s motives but having an extra set of eyes and ears in the manor can’t be a bad thing. Too bad I don’t know her name. It’d be weird if I started sniffing around the servants’ areas looking for her, so it’ll have to wait until tomorrow.

“What’s with the book? Didn’t take you for a scholar.”

“I very much am not. However, with so many human nobles taking an interest in my country, I thought it best I do a little investigation into yours.”

I glance at the spine. That’s an ancient history book and those only cover one topic. “So? How different is our account from yours?”

“Hmm. It’s hard for me to say. Our account is patched together from accounts from different races. The only part I can really speak on is the human invasion of elven lands while chasing down the goblinoid army that had invaded them. We weren’t involved in the war until they set fire to the Enchanted Forest to force the goblins out.”

She closes the book and sets it on the table beside the bed. “Funny. There’s absolutely no mention of the catastrophic wildfire that almost devoured our home. It was a magical flame that took months to beat. Thousands of elves died in the process. Yet all your book talks about is the glory and perseverance of the Harvest family and the great nobles that settled the continent.”

I can’t blame her for her scoff of disgust. I’d be annoyed to if someone just glossed over one of the biggest tragedies in my history. I reach over and grab one of the cold cuts. “I’m not surprised. Nobles only care about benefit. Having their reckless tactics known won’t bring them any benefit.”

“Mm. Well? What do you want to do today? There is another party scheduled and you know they will be there.”

“Oh, I know. In fact, I’m counting on it.” Remembering Gordon causes my anger to flare up and I jump out of the bed. “I was serious last night. He’s crossed the line. Gordon is going to get what’s coming to him, him and that entire family.”

“And do you have a plan for their destruction?”

The Tomes have been warring with the Grimoires for years. That question has been asked and debated over drinks dozens of times. In the end, no matter how we hurt them or what we reduce them to, one thing has to be taken care of first. “I’m going to best him in summoning.”

It’s the greatest dream of the Tomes. To contract something amazing enough to put the succubi to shame and prove we’re the better summoners. It’s never happened before simply because we don’t have an affinity or the resources to entice something like that but it’s different now. I’m different. After my rebirth, my capacity was increased. By how much, I’m not sure, but it gives me hope that I might be able to do it.

“Which is why I need to go out today. Want to come with?”

“Jac isn’t going to be happy with you leaving so suddenly,” she says as she moves the tray away and stands up. “My wife really likes to cause trouble.”

I laugh. “Trust me. You haven’t seen anything yet.”

-

The streets are busy. Our cloaked figures go unnoticed in the bustle as we head toward the Affinity Market. Most major cities have one, a market dedicated to goods and services for casters.

The law of the kingdom is equal but the citizens are not. People are divided into nobles and commoners, landowners and the people who work the land.

Summer Spire, the great capital of the Harvest Kingdom, is a city that spans for miles, divided by ‘rings’ of stone towering into the sky. From the basic life in the Outer Ring to the magic-fueled extravagance of the Noble Ring, the difference between those with a title and those without is stark. Not to mention the poor sobs who can’t make a good living inside the city and have settled in “slums” close to the Outer Wall.

Then there’s a second division between the casters and regular people.

This one isn’t as obvious, as wealth is the great equalizer. But no matter your status, if you are strong, you will be treated better. More importantly, you will look down on those weaker and not want to be associated with them. For majority of people.

Though I have some talent, I never wanted to be a caster so I never looked down on the common people who lived the life I desired most. That’s not the case for most casters, which is why they get a lot of preferential treatment.

The Affinity Market is in the Middle Ring, one occupied by wealthy merchants and sponsored artisans, making it a chore for the poor and unconnected to reach. Very close to the Noble Ring, both for the convenience of the upper echelons and to dissuade them from causing trouble, as the Royal Knights could reach the market in minutes.

The streets surrounding the two blocks of the Market are well paved and cobbled, made wider to avoid congestion. The city garrison is present in force, with knights donated from the noble houses, a force that can’t be compared to the simple city garrison. Men who can handle an angry caster with tact and know to keep out the rabble.

People dressed in fine garbs hustle between the stores. Those with casters as clients aren’t poor enough to need stalls and many casters wouldn’t bother approaching one, thinking the goods are inferior.

Kierra is looking at the rare glass windows that are used with abundance here with interest. “I can understand the weapons and the books but what are all these other trinkets?”

“Artifacts,” I say distractedly as I scan the signs. “A high-level caster writes out a spell. Then an engraver puts it on a piece of jewelry. Then a lower-level caster of a matching affinity simply puts a bit of power into the artifact and pow, instantly can use a spell way above their level or are too slow to solve for combat. The thing that makes them so valuable is that they can be used by anyone with the matching affinity so even if you have no training, you can still use—oh, wait. There it is!”

I grab her arm excitedly and pull her toward a large building at the end of the street. Its size is why I was confident about coming here without a guide. Even though I’ve only been to the Summer Spire Affinity Aarket once before this, very few buildings in the market are built like a warehouse with an arch for a doorway.

A sign on the front of the building has the symbol of magic, a white circle representing the four elemental affinities with a golden star on top of it to represent the five greater affinities.

“This is a spell hall. Poor and unsponsored casters who don’t have their own land come to places like these to test the strength of their spells. It’s also incredibly important for newbies as they have special rooms for measuring mana coefficients,” I explain as I pull her through the front door and up to the front desk. It’s time to see just how much I’ve grown.

The man behind the desk is unremarkable, made more so by his bored expression. His eyes gain a bit of interest when he notices our cloaked figures. “Can I help you?”

“I’d like access to a testing room.”

“Ah. That’ll be five silvers.”

Cheh. Stingy bastards. Five silvers for me to use a room for a few hours without them doing anything. Regardless, I hand over the money. The man sweeps it off the counter and hands me a key. “Second floor, room 3.”

“Thanks.”