Hours of research and brainstorming revealed a few options for income, some far more viable than others.

The first was theft or robbery of some kind, using magic. I was learning more about combat than ever before in my life, and a few more months of training would leave me more than capable of breaking into homes or overpowering an average person in a fight. And the Lower District of Volaris, while not a real hive of debauchery, was corrupt enough that the guards mostly looked the other way.

It was a great choice if I ignored the fact that I despised thieves and thugs. The servants’ children lived on the estate as well, and it was not uncommon for them to sneak into my room while I was away for lessons, taking sweets or toys gifted to me.

More than that, the thought of using my strength to assault other people for my benefit was, to put it mildly, unappealing. I was trying to maintain my morals, not throw them away for quick profit.

Another option was hunting magic beasts. Many of these creatures were dangerous to humans, and Ferris offered sizable rewards to hunters. Between that, and the rare resources many magical animals carried inside of their bodies, a skilled hunter could become very wealthy.

When I became more powerful, that may become an option, but I doubted my ability to handle dangerous beasts.

Alchemy and enchanting were well known to be profitable, but I lacked the skills necessary to take advantage of those options. I briefly entertained the possibility of working with Simon, but that would have to wait until I knew him better.

Despite this, my digging into enchanting revealed one possibility that was nearly perfectly suited for my particular talents. Mana crystals.

Enchanting needed energy and most enchanters would purchase crystals filled with mana that they could grind and add to a liquid, to form the “ink” used to fill in runes. While stronger enchantments required more dense or pure mana, Mist-caliber mana would still function perfectly well for basic needs.

Of course, most apprentices would lack the sheer quantity of mana to fill enough crystals to be a viable source of gold. However, my unique blend of Aether mana and unusually large core meant I was suited for this task.

When my day off came around, I would need to take a trip back into the city and meet with the alchemist Thorpe. He seemed a trustworthy man, and I hoped he could recommend a reasonable enchanter where I could buy mana crystals. I doubted it would be fast, but I needed to start earning some income.

My lessons yesterday on mana sensing and hiding revealed a simple fact that I had tried to dance around for the past month. Someone would discover my secrets sooner or later, and I needed to prepare for that eventuality. Aether was too rare, and the classes too small for me to avoid discovery forever.

Even if I got lucky and none of the students figured it out, at a minimum, I knew Professor Morell and Professor Barlow would figure it out soon. Morell was a spycraft master, and my half-cocked disguise fooling him so far was pure luck, and Barlow was sure to recognize the signs of Aether mana in my spellcraft.

When that happened, if I were lucky, the Duke would abandon funding my training, and I would be a social pariah. I would likely have to pay him back for the cost of Awakening and my education so far, and I would lack any friends or allies, but I could walk free and continue my training.

Of course, the second possibility was one I had to avoid at all costs.

If the Duke or Girem realized the full breadth of my potential, they would sell me out to the King. Duke Estton was a kind man, and I liked to think he would even regret using me for political gain. But he would still do it, if it strengthened his family. If that happened, I would be forced to leave Volaris, and probably even flee Ferris entirely.

To prepare for my eventual loss of the Duke’s support, I had also begun digging through Cortos’ collections for cultivation books. I suspected he would have left cycling techniques behind, and luckily for me, I was right. There were several books, each a few dozen pages thick, that in total explained several dozen different methods.

After two hours of studying, I narrowed down my choices to three possibilities.

Endless Horizons was a cycling method that focused on one significant advantage, which was gaining as much mana as possible. Its entire methodology was increasing the size of a mage’s core and channel as much as possible, allowing them to create massive blasts and attacks with ease.

Tranquil Authority specialized instead on control and manipulation of mana. It was slower than Endless Horizons, but it provided incredible efficiency in exchange for more gradual development. While I would lack for raw strength, I would have far more versatility with mana.

The final technique was known as Iron Forging. Unlike the other two choices, it did not have any immediate benefits to my mana development. It was slower and less efficient than even Origin Breathing, with notable difficulty progressing through the ranks. What drew my attention was the unique goal behind its creation.

Unlike nearly every cycling technique, it combined both tempering and cycling into a single process. A true master of Iron Forging would become far more resistant to the damaging effects of mana, even Aether mana.

All three had benefits and drawbacks to them, and none were perfect for my goals. Iron Forging was the best option at a glance, but it would slow my development to a crawl. Even with Cortos’ array, I was still likely to fall behind the rest of the students.

And another possibility reared its head as I considered these methods. They likely were outdated or inefficient compared to modern cycling techniques. After all, Cortos has been dead centuries, and I doubted cultivation had ceased to improve since his death.

Leaning backward in my chair, I rubbed my eyes and ran my hand through my hair. The stamina potion worked well enough to stave off physical exhaustion, but eight hours of studying still took a toll. A simple clock on the wall, built with enchantments to link to the movements of the sun, told me I had several hours until classes began for the day.

That left plenty of time to clean myself off, grab a quick meal and get ready for my first class. I briefly debated trying to get a session of tempering in before class, but dismissed the idea. Something Sig was fond of saying that training became torture when you refused to rest and recover. I also considered skipping my classes, but my musings had reaffirmed the necessity of taking in as much training as I could.

Spell-Casting began with a focus on simple mana control exercises. Professor Merton had us summon a single mote of mana and start moving it around using our minds. I smiled when I realized I felt no sense of discomfort when the energy flowed through my channels.

The exercises were challenging but not impossible, with the most considerable difficulty lying in maintaining control over the mana for longer than a few seconds. I thought my focus was much better, but all it took was a single stray thought to cross my mind before I began losing control over the mote.

In Mana Theory, we continued to practice Origin Breathing under Professor Clemons’ watchful eyes. Although I now had more advanced methods to learn, I still needed to master this technique before moving to a more powerful one.

To make sure my mana did not grow more powerful, I purposefully released all mana I inhaled back out into the air while practicing my cycling. If nothing else, I could practice bringing the energy into my body and acclimating to the sensations.

I nearly fell asleep in War Theory, bored to near-tears by the droning of Professor Thorne. The class would lull me to sleep on a typical day. After eight hours of constant reading and studying, it was almost torture.

When I got to Martial Combat, I was ready to crawl my way through sparring and return to my room for sleep. Unfortunately, Sig noticed my less than enthusiastic attempts and looked at me with a predatory look.

“Oh, are we boring you, Vayne? I noticed you yawning! We can step it up a little if you’d prefer. I’d hate to think we are taking it too slow for your taste.” Sig said, while Amelia watched with a frown.

I shook my head at Sig, taking a deep breath before replying, “I am sorry, Sig. I spent a bit too long studying last night, and it took a bit of a toll. I will make sure it does not happen again.”

Sig sighed before crossing his arms, a cold look in his eyes. “That’s not good enough. I know training is not always easy, but these skills are a matter of life and death. If you don’t take this seriously, you can leave my class.”

Amelia stepped forward to my side as my blood ran cold. “Sig, he made a mistake. I’m sure Vayne is taking his training seriously.”

I stayed silent as Sig glared at me. It felt as if hours passed before he nodded, and we resumed our drills, though with a notably tense atmosphere.

When I went to leave the class, Amelia offered to eat dinner with me, which I gratefully accepted. I decided on a hearty meat soup and dark bread, one of my favorite meals, while Amelia ate a grilled fish of some kind.

“Sorry about Sig. He takes training seriously. Sometimes too much.” Amelia said after we began to eat, looking at me with sympathy.

“Can I ask you something, Amelia? Why does Sig focus so much on martial combat? I can understand wanting to be able to defend yourself, but I have never heard of a mage that prefers a staff to a spell.”

Amelia looked at me, taking another bite of fish and chewing.

“It’s not my story, and when Sig feels comfortable, he will tell you himself. All I can say is that he has a good reason to place value in skills besides magic. He means well, but he can sometimes be a bit abrasive.”

It was as good an answer I would be getting tonight, and I mentally resolved to apologize to Sig in the morning. I still was not sure his reaction was warranted, but at least I could do my part to smooth out tensions.

“How have your classes been, besides Martial Combat, I mean?” I asked Amelia, deciding to change the topic.

Amelia shrugged, poking her food with her fork. “They aren’t bad, I suppose. Dueling and Mana Theory are easy enough, though a bit slow. I’m also taking a class called Espionage, which is much more interesting than I expected.”

I leaned forward and tried to feign surprise at the class name. “Espionage? Like spying? What sort of class is that?”

“We haven’t done much spying yet. In the first class, the professor locked us up and told us to try and escape using some solutions he provided. The riddle was very easy, so I decided to solve the cipher he gave us instead. I want to win, but I hate feeling like I won too easily.”

Had she solved two solutions before I could solve one? Well, that was a sizeable blow to my ego.

“Wow sounds tough. I have heard about ciphers, but I have never had to solve one myself. What did it say?”

“It said ‘this was very easy to solve, don’t get cocky.’ I think the professor has a bit of a sadistic streak to him.” Amelia said, laughing and shaking her head.

I burst into laughter as well, cursing myself for not discovering the solution. The fact that I was unable to figure it out was another failure on top of a pile of failures I was amassing.

Discussions about classes filled the rest of our dinner, and after we finished, I bid her farewell and returned to my room. Fortuna greeted me as I entered with a soft meow.

Sitting with a sigh, I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. I heard the patter of paws, and sharp claws poked me in my side. Opening my eyes with a wince, I looked over at Fortuna, who stared at me.

“I think I am starting to run myself into a corner, Fortuna. Sig is angry at me, Amelia is smarter than I gave her credit, and it is only a matter of time until my plans fall apart. I doubt you have an easy solution available, do you?” I asked, reaching out and petting the cat, who arched his back at my touch.

Shaking my head, I stood and made my way to bed. I had already gotten lucky twice, first with my talents and then by finding Cortos’ vault. A good nights sleep may help clear my head and make a solution clear. Lying down for the first time in almost two days, I fell asleep in just seconds. Nightmares filled my dreams that night, as I relived a future I was desperate to change.