Chapter 415: Rising to the Top
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Chapter 415: Rising to the Top
Rising to the Top
Next day, in between lessons, Martel hurried into the city. He walked around for a while, checking some regular places for his quarry. In the end, he found what he was looking for, scurrying along the house walls from one hiding place to another. Moving to intercept, Martel went over and sat down on some crates. "Hullo, Mouse."
A small girl appeared, climbing out from behind a barrel collecting rainwater. "Hullo. I don't mean to be rude, but I'm supposed to be working." She glanced out at the carts and people passing by.
"Do some work for me, and I'll pay you better than what you might grab here."
She walked around to stand in front of him, looking up. "How much? What's the job?"
"Five silvers in advance. Another ten when you're done." Martel could afford to be generous, and he did not mind paying the street children more than was necessary. He untied his purse from his belt and hefted it in his hand.
The girl's eyes widened. "What do you want done?"
"Do you know a man named Ironside?"
"Aye, he runs the market. But Weasel told us we can't steal from him."
He had that much sense, at least. Martel hoped the little chief had stopped exploiting Sparrow's magic for dangerous thefts, but he would have to follow up on that another time. "You won't have to. He has a lieutenant. Short, bald, with pointy ears. Looks like a goblin, really."
Mouse giggled.
"Yes, master."
Martel knew he could learn this spell. He had figured out everything else the Lyceum had thrown at him. He just needed to stay concentrated. Keep his thoughts from straying. Remain disciplined. His biggest obstacle would be if he let himself become frustrated, which would only make it harder to focus.
"Too much fire."
The acolyte’s response came through gritted teeth. "Yes, master."
***
"Today's elixir is for the blue plague," Mistress Rana explained. "It is perhaps less severe and contagious as other diseases, but all the same, you should know the cure and signs. It resembles bloody flux in that the patient has difficulty retaining water. This leads to symptoms such as skin feeling cold or looking blue, hence the name. Best way to tell the diseases apart is whether blood is present when the patient relieves themselves."
Martel wrote it all down, hoping he never had reason to search through such liquids to diagnose a patient.
"Other than that, it is a simple elixir to make, with mostly common reagents. The only difficulty might be getting a proper attercop. Too small won't do." She picked up a small jar with a large spider inside, shaking it. The creature jumped around inside its glassy prison to no avail. "Careful it doesn't escape when you pour it into the cauldron."
Martel tried to imagine the taste of any potion brewed with a dose of spider. He wondered if having the blue plague would feel worse than the cure. Hopefully, he would never find out.
"Alright, no reason to dally. You know what to do."
He nodded and began picking up all the ingredients laid out for him, paying particular care not to drop the jar. Soon after, everything boiled merrily over fire. Stirring the concoction with the liquid, Martel tried to use the ladle to keep the spider below the surface and out of sight; every time he did so, it floated back up.
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Chapter 415: Rising to the Top
Rising to the Top
Next day, in between lessons, Martel hurried into the city. He walked around for a while, checking some regular places for his quarry. In the end, he found what he was looking for, scurrying along the house walls from one hiding place to another. Moving to intercept, Martel went over and sat down on some crates. "Hullo, Mouse."
A small girl appeared, climbing out from behind a barrel collecting rainwater. "Hullo. I don't mean to be rude, but I'm supposed to be working." She glanced out at the carts and people passing by.
"Do some work for me, and I'll pay you better than what you might grab here."
She walked around to stand in front of him, looking up. "How much? What's the job?"
"Five silvers in advance. Another ten when you're done." Martel could afford to be generous, and he did not mind paying the street children more than was necessary. He untied his purse from his belt and hefted it in his hand.
The girl's eyes widened. "What do you want done?"
"Do you know a man named Ironside?"
"Aye, he runs the market. But Weasel told us we can't steal from him."
He had that much sense, at least. Martel hoped the little chief had stopped exploiting Sparrow's magic for dangerous thefts, but he would have to follow up on that another time. "You won't have to. He has a lieutenant. Short, bald, with pointy ears. Looks like a goblin, really."
Mouse giggled.
"Yes, master."
Martel knew he could learn this spell. He had figured out everything else the Lyceum had thrown at him. He just needed to stay concentrated. Keep his thoughts from straying. Remain disciplined. His biggest obstacle would be if he let himself become frustrated, which would only make it harder to focus.
"Too much fire."
The acolyte’s response came through gritted teeth. "Yes, master."
***
"Today's elixir is for the blue plague," Mistress Rana explained. "It is perhaps less severe and contagious as other diseases, but all the same, you should know the cure and signs. It resembles bloody flux in that the patient has difficulty retaining water. This leads to symptoms such as skin feeling cold or looking blue, hence the name. Best way to tell the diseases apart is whether blood is present when the patient relieves themselves."
Martel wrote it all down, hoping he never had reason to search through such liquids to diagnose a patient.
"Other than that, it is a simple elixir to make, with mostly common reagents. The only difficulty might be getting a proper attercop. Too small won't do." She picked up a small jar with a large spider inside, shaking it. The creature jumped around inside its glassy prison to no avail. "Careful it doesn't escape when you pour it into the cauldron."
Martel tried to imagine the taste of any potion brewed with a dose of spider. He wondered if having the blue plague would feel worse than the cure. Hopefully, he would never find out.
"Alright, no reason to dally. You know what to do."
He nodded and began picking up all the ingredients laid out for him, paying particular care not to drop the jar. Soon after, everything boiled merrily over fire. Stirring the concoction with the liquid, Martel tried to use the ladle to keep the spider below the surface and out of sight; every time he did so, it floated back up.
Chapter 415: Rising to the TopRising to the TopNext day, in between lessons, Martel hurried into the city. He walked around for a while, checking some regular places for his quarry. In the end, he found what he was looking for, scurrying along the house walls from one hiding place to another. Moving to intercept, Martel went over and sat down on some crates. "Hullo, Mouse."A small girl appeared, climbing out from behind a barrel collecting rainwater. "Hullo. I don't mean to be rude, but I'm supposed to be working." She glanced out at the carts and people passing by."Do some work for me, and I'll pay you better than what you might grab here."She walked around to stand in front of him, looking up. "How much? What's the job?""Five silvers in advance. Another ten when you're done." Martel could afford to be generous, and he did not mind paying the street children more than was necessary. He untied his purse from his belt and hefted it in his hand.The girl's eyes widened. "What do you want done?""Do you know a man named Ironside?""Aye, he runs the market. But Weasel told us we can't steal from him."He had that much sense, at least. Martel hoped the little chief had stopped exploiting Sparrow's magic for dangerous thefts, but he would have to follow up on that another time. "You won't have to. He has a lieutenant. Short, bald, with pointy ears. Looks like a goblin, really."Mouse giggled."Yes, master."Martel knew he could learn this spell. He had figured out everything else the Lyceum had thrown at him. He just needed to stay concentrated. Keep his thoughts from straying. Remain disciplined. His biggest obstacle would be if he let himself become frustrated, which would only make it harder to focus."Too much fire."The acolyte's response came through gritted teeth. "Yes, master."***"Today's elixir is for the blue plague," Mistress Rana explained. "It is perhaps less severe and contagious as other diseases, but all the same, you should know the cure and signs. It resembles bloody flux in that the patient has difficulty retaining water. This leads to symptoms such as skin feeling cold or looking blue, hence the name. Best way to tell the diseases apart is whether blood is present when the patient relieves themselves."Martel wrote it all down, hoping he never had reason to search through such liquids to diagnose a patient."Other than that, it is a simple elixir to make, with mostly common reagents. The only difficulty might be getting a proper attercop. Too small won't do." She picked up a small jar with a large spider inside, shaking it. The creature jumped around inside its glassy prison to no avail. "Careful it doesn't escape when you pour it into the cauldron."Martel tried to imagine the taste of any potion brewed with a dose of spider. He wondered if having the blue plague would feel worse than the cure. Hopefully, he would never find out."Alright, no reason to dally. You know what to do."He nodded and began picking up all the ingredients laid out for him, paying particular care not to drop the jar. Soon after, everything boiled merrily over fire. Stirring the concoction with the liquid, Martel tried to use the ladle to keep the spider below the surface and out of sight; every time he did so, it floated back up.
