The Asshai's Bloodmage

 I was in a hurry, I needed to get back to the ship after finding our new home and shop, delivering the letters, meeting with the members of the Order of the Sages to decide which tower we would choose, not to mention that we had several other tasks involving the shop. I started to miss Ted and Aisha, Ted decided to follow his brother on another trip on the ship, and I don't trust the locals very much when it comes to recruiting. Aisha is on the ship at the moment, but her duties will be related to the shop we are going to open. This makes me think about the Tower, I should try to get everyone on the crew and even the passengers to take the test... What if someone else has talent? Although I don't yet understand what talent and special physique meant, it might be important to have more help to take care of smaller matters, I need employees to take care of the mansion and I already promised to help the passengers in any way, besides, they are loyal to me and harder to corrupt.

Salim and I were inside a carriage that he rented for me, Asshai was a huge city despite having few inhabitants. The best mansions were in the inner city, and this was also where most of the wizards' towers were. An old, hunchbacked man had just joined us in our carriage.

"Mister Rafael, please tell me what kind of property you are looking for and I will try to guide you to the ones that best fit your request."

"I only need a mansion and a shop, I will tell you what I need and I want a description of them. We don't need to go to all of them, I will prioritize those that will fulfill my purpose."

I ended up telling my name to the man in the carriage and to Salim, but the pronunciation in Asshai'i was different. The name that had leaked out was Valyrian and had differences between languages. But with all the important figures knowing about my arrival it wouldn't take long for them to connect who I was. That would only give me a few more days. So I continued with my specifications:

"First I would like to understand why mages prefer Towers? What is the problem with mansions?"

"It's all about security and efficiency. Firstly, Towers are easier to defend, they are circular in shape, have only one entrance, and windows only on the highest floors. It's hard for anyone to cause you trouble, and they are also huge and deep, making them perfect for dangerous magical experiments, with a good amount of isolation measures in case something goes wrong. Furthermore, everything in this city is made of black stone, but only the Towers have a special magical function of converting some kind of magical energy from the environment to perform some functions. Of course, this energy is only enough for basic functions, and maintaining a tower still costs a wizard a lot of money, so only Masters or large organizations can maintain one."

"Are they all the same size?"

"No, there are 3 types: Small, medium, and large. The larger Towers are already occupied, and most of the medium ones are too. But there are still many small ones, and some of them have mansions in the surroundings, as you are looking for. But if you insist on having a large or medium tower, I must warn you that some of them cost no money and are free."

I raise an eyebrow as I look at him, and this time it's Salim who speaks:

"Boss, technically, all the Towers in this city have belonged to a mage at some point. The question is whether they're still alive or dead. The company this gentleman represents guarantees the security of the tower. All they're charging is a cleaning fee to make it safe for the new resident. For example: This information costs some money, but I'll tell you for free. We haven't seen a certain Master named Esmer in over 800 years. Everyone thought he was dead. But last night the lights in his mansion were turned on and some people were seen in the garden. Someone soon went to investigate and discovered that Esmer was alive. But his Tower was almost invaded and looted. The only reason they didn't invade it was because everyone feared the infamous Blood Mage and his experiments that were still alive inside it. People call these places Dungeons. These Towers are usually the ruin of adventurers and wizards who decide to seek riches quickly in the city."

My eyes shine at the word "Dungeon" which in the games of my world were called Dungeons. There was such a thing right here inside the city!

The representative who saw my eyes change begins to speak in a somber tone:

"Salim said you were new to the city... There are hundreds of these Dungeons in the city, some are traps created by cruel Bloodmages, Cultists and Necromancers who use some treasures just to attract more guinea pigs for their experiments. Others have Shadowmancers who have been in their laboratories for hundreds of years doing some important experiment, when interrupted you will wish to die rather than fall into their hands. The worst of all are those who died in their own experiments, new races, diseases, curses and things so terrible that they are unspeakable are inside these towers. The history of Asshai has recorded 5 great Calamities and all of these 5 were caused by people opening Towers of dead Masters. When you have time, try to read about these 5 Calamities and you will better understand the dangers of such places."

My excited look immediately changes to complete terror. If even the people of Asshai call what happened the 5 Calamities, then something very bad must have happened…

"A small tower with a mansion will do, as close to the port as possible. I have no other conditions for the house, but the store needs to be at least 2 floors underground and 3-4 above ground and close to the mansion and the port. Do you have something in mind?"

"Yes, I have a store with 3 underground floors and 3 upper floors. It is also close to the port and in a place where there are already two popular stores, it is a 20-minute walk from the port. The mansion has one 20 minutes by carriage from the store. This mansion would be the closest I have to the store."

"And the price? Do I get a discount for buying both?"

I smile when I say this and thanks to my mask that covers everything except my mouth I hear the man laugh too.

"You can buy the store for 300 gold coins, in addition to the floors mentioned it covers the equivalent of 2 common plots of land, the tower is 500 coins for the cleaning fee. This is the standard price for smaller towers, I am not charging anything for mansion that comes with it."

I nod, the store is a little pricey, but being a 3-story building it should be fair after I confirm the square meter of the city. The store divided into 3 will only be 100 coins for each of us. And the mansion and tower I can use some of the money from the Order of Sages. It's also time to issue new points and collect more money to buy some useful things for our group.

After a while we arrive at the first store, the size is adequate and I sign the papers closing the deal, the store next door sells herbs and across the street there is a blacksmith, I remember that I will need a backup blacksmith until mine returns from Aisha's village. Soon after we leave the store location we head towards the mansion, and before we even get there I already see the black Tower pointing to the sky. I see two more Towers of the same size nearby, and other Towers with larger sizes even further away. The tower is 4 stories tall, and according to the old man it has 4 more undergrounds. The other towers are not much taller in height, but their undergrounds are. The width of the tower decreases as it rises into the sky, but there is still enough space on the top floor for a large suite. I see the mansion next door, also made of the familiar black stones not unlike the store I saw earlier. So I listen carefully to its details and leave it to look at tomorrow. So, a little anxious, I let the old man guide me and I go in to look at the new Tower.

I see two doors after entering, a black counter made of black stones and several black tables carved from the same stone. I ask about the peculiar interior that resembles a tavern, and the old salesman says that each Tower varies with its own design. This one has a pub-like entrance model, some have shelves carved into the black stones, but with the huge space that can easily fit 100 people seated or a few more standing, I am satisfied.

This place is just a reception, so I don't care much. I decide to go down first and am surprised when I go deeper. Each underground floor is 25% larger than the previous one, all of them have bars like in prisons with cells of different sizes, completely closed rooms made of dragon glass. And also several pieces of furniture left by the previous owner that will guarantee me a lot of savings since they can be reused. I was then explained how the Tower's magical system worked, and the places where more resources could be used to provide more energy to the tower's functions. Things like rare minerals, silver, gemstones, amber, dragon glass, living beings and even soul stones could all be consumed by the strange tower to ensure more energy. I didn't know what the last resource was, but I knew I would find out soon. The upper floors of the Tower had more rooms and separate halls, the purpose was to be private residences and additional laboratories, the space on the second floor for example had enough for all the members of the Order to have a large and spacious room. The other spaces in the tower as well as their purposes would be left for the members to discuss their best uses. After a while checking everything and asking all the questions, I signed the second document and paid the full amount, zeroing out the Order's remaining funds, and immediately returned to the ship with Salim.

Special thanks to Patreons:

Magic Apprentice: Parsa, Pato Senalima, Axel Bour, Gabriele Sulpizio, Vinnie, Jan, frimorigo, Scott Robertson and Takatchi!