Arcane Innovator

After I shared my intention to purchase the opulent mansion with Alaric, as we stood there in the lavish garden, his eyes widened, and he stammered in disbelief, "You... you're serious? This is such an exorbitant sum of money. Are you sure you can afford it?"

"Yes, but I might need your assistance with administering the payment..." I replied to him with an innocent face.

"You see... I need the source of my coins to remain a secret for now so that it doesn't cause a big commotion. Would it be possible to transfer the coins to you, and you would then administer the payment in my name?" I asked him with expectant eyes.

"Hmm..." Alaric thought for a bit while stroking his beard.

Seeing his hesitant expression, I quickly interjected. "I know I'm asking for a lot, but I promise you won't regret it. I will make it a worthwhile endeavor for you... What would you say to a 10% provision from the sale?" I smiled at him mischievously.

He instantly froze, and then he stared at me for a long time, seemingly going through some sort of inner battle, but in the end, he smiled brightly at me. "It would certainly cause some rumors if you started flaunting such wealth out of nowhere... If it was just about the payment itself, it could of course be arranged..."

"Thank you, Master Alaric!" I exclaimed happily.

But then Alaric raised his hand as he furrowed his brows. "Hold your horses, Darian. I said I would only help you with the formalities of the transaction, but as you are still a minor, you still need a guardian to sign the deed..."

"Don't worry about the rest; the payment is all I need... My sister will be joining me in the city in a few weeks, and she will sign the contract in my name." I replied with a carefree smile.

'Perfect...' I thought with a smirk after we shook hands, sealing our agreement. Now Alaric will think that my extra funds came from some sort of deal with the Court wizard in the wake of my talent's discovery, while everyone else will think it came from Alaric...

And since my newfound status was only a single step below being a noble, nobody would bother to investigate the real origin of the coins as long as I kept up my appearances...

Before we boarded the carriage and went back to the Guild, I smiled as I took one last look at the opulent mansion. I quite liked the place. Although it was kind of expensive, it will certainly make an impression on any future guests.

I personally don't care about the over-the-top decorations, but what I like about the place is the somewhat secluded location together with the high fence overgrown with ivy, which will block any curious onlookers from bothering me...

'Not to mention, given the huge size of the building itself, I will be able to take my potion-making business to a whole new level.' I thought happily.

When we got back, we settled on the details, and I returned to my apartment. Alaric promised to contact the caretaker of the property to arrange an official tour of the mansion with the city's representative so that we can proceed with the purchase.

It will still take some time before Helga arrives in the city, but I need to start the preparations as soon as possible so that I can move in quickly after the sale is concluded.

'That is one problem taken care of, but how should I deal with this?' I released a sigh as I looked at the huge pile of coins in front of me. I need to somehow secretly move them to Alaric's office without anyone seeing me.

Although we didn't discuss the transfer of coins in detail, I wanted to deal with it as soon as possible so that Alaric wouldn't be able to change his mind about our deal when he had an opportunity to think it through...

I wasn't afraid that Alaric would try to rob me as he believes the coins come in part from the Court wizard himself, so he wouldn't dare misappropriate a single coin as that would normally spell a death sentence for someone like him.

'But this is still too heavy to carry by myself, so I need a cart at least. Well, time to pay Aunt Ingrid a visit, then...' I smiled as I headed out into the city.

***

"Hello, Aunt Ingrid!" I said with a bright smile.

"Ah, Darian! What a pleasant surprise! What brings you here? It's rare for you to come for a visit," Ingrid chuckled amusingly.

"Could I borrow one of your carts again? I need to move some stuff..." I asked innocently.

"Sure, but isn't it a little bit early to be preparing for winter?" She replied with a perplexed face.

"Oh, it's not it; I just need to move some materials for work... When we are on this subject, is Uncle here? I would also like to buy a few boxes from him."

"Yes, he is with Konrad in the workshop... Come with me. I will tell him you are here." Ingrid blinked a few times before promptly showing me the way.

I then followed my aunt to the workshop. I could see it bustling with activity as several laborers were putting together pieces of furniture and other things.

'It seems uncle's business is booming...' I thought as I walked to the back, where I found Leif writing something in his office.

"Darian!" Uncle boomed. "What brings you here? Please forgive me that I can't meet you in a more pleasant setting, but as you can see, we are very busy..." Leif said apologetically.

"Oh, don't worry about it! I won't keep you for long. I was just wondering if I could buy some sturdy boxes or chests from you, something like you have here on your table but a little bit bigger..." I said as I sat on a rickety chair beside him while pointing at a small chest.

"Hmm?" Leif raised his eyebrows. "You mean this cash coffer? Why would you need something like that?"

"It doesn't have to be exactly like this, just something sturdy enough that I could use to carry heavy stuff. I have some materials that I need to move." I quickly added.

"Well, I can sell you a few boxes we use for storing nails during construction work; I'm sure they are sturdy enough. Come with me; I will show you." Leif said as he gestured for me to follow him.

"Here they are," said Uncle after we got to what looked like a storage area.

"These are perfect! I will take four of them." I replied with excitement.

Given their size, I guess that I could fit around a thousand coins into each one of them. I paid for them, and I added something extra on top for the borrowed cart.

Soon I was whistling a tune as I pushed the cart stacked with heavy construction boxes along the city streets on my way to the Northern Quarter.

I waited till the next morning so that there would be fewer people on the streets before I levitated the boxes filled to the brim with coins slowly, one by one, down the stairs and stacked them on top of the cart with the help of my magic, as they were too heavy for me.

'Ugh, I would never imagine that being rich was such hard work...' I thought as I panted heavily after I loaded the final box.

Then I pushed and pushed with all my might as I slowly made my way into the Guild's building to give the coins to Alaric. I manipulated the air around the cart so that no clinking sound would escape from the boxes, giving away their alluring contents.

The guards at the gates of the Fortress let me pass without a hitch when I showed them my Guild card and said that I had a delivery for Master Alaric.

'His influence seems high even outside the guild,' I thought pleasingly as I made my way to the back of the Guild's building. I then asked one of the clerks to send a word to Alaric and ask him to meet me here, as I didn't want to leave the cart unguarded.

After a while, a surprised-looking Alaric came to the courtyard. "Darian? What are you doing here so early? I thought we settled on a meeting with the city's representative for tomorrow..."

"Sorry for the intrusion, Master Alaric. I hope I didn't interrupt you from something important, but I brought the coins for the transaction we discussed yesterday..."

"Coins? What coins?" Alaric said with a puzzled face before he realized what I was talking about and instantly paled.

"Wait, you brought it here?" He whispered with wide eyes, "Where?"

I pointed toward the cart before slightly lifting one of the lids, showing him the insides overflowing with shiny silver. Alaric paled even more and carefully looked around to see if we were alone before leaning over and whispering.

"When you told me you would bring the coins, I thought it was just a manner of speaking." He said it, sounding frightened for the first time.

"I would never imagine that you would just walk in here like this. Such transports are usually done in armored carriages under heavy guard. Where did you even keep such a fortune?" He asked with exasperation.

"Hmm? I kept them in my room; obviously, where else should I keep them?" I replied matter-of-factly.

"You did what?" Alaric's eyes were threatening to pop out of their sockets.

"Do you imagine what kind of mayhem it would cause if someone found out you have such wealth lying around? Especially in the Northern District?"

"Well, that is exactly the point. Nobody could imagine I had such wealth laying in plain sight. That is why it was safe to leave it there for the time being." I said with a smug smile.

Alaric released a heavy sigh and shook his head. "Whatever's done is done. I will arrange for someone to move it to the Guild's vault, and I will come with some excuse later..."

"But you must be very careful about such things in the future. I know you don't have much experience in such matters given your age... But there are a lot of dangerous people in the city who wouldn't hesitate to hurt you for only a fraction of the coins you have in your possession," Alaric warned me in the end. His usually aloof face was replaced by a serious one.

I nodded with understanding, as I have already had my fair share of dangerous encounters, but that is something that Alaric doesn't need to know.

We spent the rest of the day discussing the logistics of the purchase. Alaric used his connections and expertise to ensure a smooth acquisition of the grand mansion.

Alaric had been true to his word, assisting me at every step of the way. It seemed my newfound wealth and influence had indeed piqued his interest.

I will still have to wait for the final contract to be drafted and then have Helga sign it when she gets to the city, but it shouldn't pose any problems. It looks like this opulent, unsaleable mansion will find a buyer after all...