4 Chapter 1 Cold Small Town_5

As he followed, the cloaked man walked into a luxurious restaurant. The restaurant was dazzlingly decorated from the outside and the roof was covered with glazed tiles. Ah Dai thought to himself that the man must have a lot of money if he could afford to dine here. Thinking this made him secretly pleased; if he could snatch more wallets, perhaps Uncle Li would let him have a feast of steamed buns. He squatted down in the corner near the entrance of the restaurant, waiting patiently.

"Go on, get out of here, where did this little beggar come from? Go away," said the doorman of the restaurant. He kicked Ah Dai with disdain and disgust.

Ah Dai was used to arrogant doormen like this one. He eagerly nodded and bowed before moving away quickly, squatting again in a dark corner where he could shield himself from the wind and snow.

Playing with a sharp little knife in his hand, Ah Dai waited patiently, not in any hurry. After all, after a meal, one must always come out.

An hour finally passed and the man in the large cloak walked out. To Ah Dai's excitement, the man was coming straight toward him. A frontal confrontation was the best opportunity to act. He quickly got up, steadied his mind, and walked toward the man. The man was tall, and Ah Dai only reached to about his stomach. As the distance between them dwindled, Ah Dai scratched his hair with the hand holding the knife. When they were about a meter apart, Ah Dai pretended to stumble, bumping into the man.

Ah Dai felt as if he had run into a wall. He was in indescribable pain. He lifted his head unintentionally and got a good look at the man's appearance. It was an old face, covered in countless fine wrinkles. He seemed to be in his seventies or eighties.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't do that on purpose," Ah Dai quickly apologized.

The old man only grunted and didn't say anything. He continued on his way, apparently unaware that his cloak had been slit open and his money bag was gone.

Seeing the man did not hinder him, Ah Dai happily dashed forward. He slipped on the snow, and fell flat on his face, causing the injuries from Uncle Li's thrashing the day before to throb with pain. Even so, he couldn't hide his excitement. When he got his hands on the money bag, he found it unusually heavy. Even if it was filled with only copper coins, it was enough for him to complete his task for the day. He got up unsteadily and darted into a small alley. He looked back and seeing no one was following him, he breathed a sigh of relief, patted his chest, and sat down. However, what Ah Dai didn't know was that his theft victim pursued a special profession on the continent - that of an alchemist.

The most respected profession on the continent is the clergy. Apart from the clergy, there are several other professions above ordinary workers in every country. These professions have formed their own guilds and become distinct forces on the continent.

The Mercenary Guild is the largest guild with its members hired to execute simple or difficult tasks at the request of their clients. They are paid varying amounts according to the difficulty of the task. Their ideal place for assignments is the widespread Mercenary Guild Branches. However, these branches don't serve mercenaries for free - they charge a fee based on the task's difficulty. Groups formed by mercenaries are known as Mercenary Corps. These corps are usually hired to perform complex tasks because clients are willing to pay a high price for their quality service. Both mercenaries and Mercenary Corps are ranked from Level 4, the lowest, to Level 3, Level 2, Level 1, Special Class, and the highest, Super Class. Climbing up a level is very difficult due to the large number of mercenaries and Mercenary Corps. Mercenaries or Mercenary Corps of higher rank are highly respected by their lower-ranked peers. They carry different badges issued by the Mercenary Guild according to their level.

Next is the Mage Guild. Magicians, being second only to clergy, are a rare breed on the continent due to the particularly high-quality requirements for mastering magic. Even more rare are those that master Light Magic, as they are almost always recruited by the Holy Church. Magicians are often highly paid in the military and any Magician above intermediate rank is typically given a noble status by their kingdom. Thus, the profession of a Magician, representing honor and power, is coveted by commoners. Magicians are categorized into Junior Magicians, Intermediate Magicians, Senior Magicians, Great Magicians, Magus and Magic Instructors. As government subsidies are their main economic source, they usually get badges from the Mage Guild, matching their ranks, in order to receive the corresponding remuneration. Of course, attaining a badge entails passing an assessment by the Magic Guild. The Mage Guild is unique in that it gives money without needing any payment.

Last is the Alchemist Guild. Although it has fewer members, it is highly respected in all kingdoms. The guild is often taken over by the countries because an alchemist produces much better weapons than a blacksmith. The reason why the Empire of Tian Jing was named so was because it had the largest Alchemist Guild among the four kingdoms. Alchemy largely overlaps with magic; most alchemists are good at Fire Magic. What makes them superior to magicians is their intimate knowledge of various minerals and medicinal substances. Powerful alchemists often produce high-grade divine weapons. These are invaluable and are favored by royal families and even the Holy Church. Alchemists, besides assassins, are the wealthiest among all professionals. They are categorized into Apprentice, Junior, Intermediate, Senior, Special and Master Alchemist. While they do have corresponding badges, high-level alchemists usually disdain to obtain them.