Above the mage

Chapter 154 Mutual Aid Society

Gaode's deduction was correct; there were indeed many red-eyed sparrows roosting in the area through which the stream flowed.

Within just one hour, he discovered five more red-eyed sparrows, all of which were instantly killed by the powerful effect of [Flame Arrow+].

In other words, he earned 6 gold coins in just over two hours, which is equivalent to the price of a 0-ring spell recipe.

Hourly wage: 3 gold coins.

Even for a formal mage, this is a very high number, let alone for someone who is only a second-class mage apprentice.

Having done all that, Gaode was already preparing to head home.

It was still early, and it wasn't that he didn't want to gather the full essence of [Red-Eyed Sparrow] in one go, but the problem was that he was "out of mana".

How can a mage without mana fight birds?

The reason why mage apprentices are called apprentices is largely because their "mana" is extremely limited.

Gaode marked his location on the map, planning to come back the next day, and then returned the way he came.

The return journey was always faster, and before long Gaode was back on the man-made path leading to the back mountain.

He was about to quicken his pace when someone suddenly emerged from the depths of the path.

Gao De glanced at her and saw a young woman with blonde hair wearing the standard robes of the Cyrus Academy students.

He is clearly a veteran student.

Because the new students should all still be working as gold miners at the bottom of Coolie Cliff right now.

I guess they're students in the potions department.

Those who can enter the back mountain either accept the "Patrol the Mountain" mission or are students of the potion-making department who need to frequently go into the mountain to take care of the magical plants they cultivate.

Gao De made his judgment in his mind.

However, he didn't think much of it and didn't even plan to greet them.

At Cyrus Academy, everyone is busy, and there is little unnecessary small talk or pleasantries.

"Gaode?" To Gaode's surprise, the other party took the initiative to call out to him first.

"Do you know me?" Gao De looked at the other person, confirming that he did not know her, and was somewhat puzzled.

"My name is Sadie, and I'm the top student in the Potions Department," the young woman introduced herself.

Then, with a curious glint in her eyes, she continued, "As you know, in the Magic Arts Department, the competition between our Potions Department and the Alchemy Department has always been the fiercest, and the instructors of the two departments don't get along very well either."

"This is especially true for me, as the top student in the Potions Department, and for Gerry Harrell, as the top student in the Alchemy Department."

"So when I heard that guy had gone crazy for some reason and went to the cafeteria to target a freshman, I paid a little attention and remembered your name."

"Later, when you brought the maid clam to our potions department for your enrollment mission, I caught a glimpse of you from afar."

Gao De understood immediately, and then put on a polite smile, "So you are Chief Sadie, I've heard so much about you. May I ask what brings you here?"

He was asking about the other person calling him over, not about coming up to say hello.

Sadie chuckled softly. "I was planning to visit you sometime, but I didn't expect to run into you here, so I stopped you. It seems you've taken on the [Mountain Patrol] mission, right?"

Gao De nodded, which was hard to deny, but he didn't say anything, waiting for the other party to continue.

"Let me be frank," Sadie said softly, "I'd like to invite you to join our mutual aid society."

"A mutual aid society?" Gao De raised an eyebrow, having never heard of such a thing before. "What's that?"

"You're probably the only one in the entire academy who doesn't know about the Mutual Aid Society and the Lion Society," Sadie said, shrugging helplessly.

However, since she had already extended an invitation to Gaode Maps, she didn't mind acting as a guide again. "You should know that the students in the academy are generally divided into two types."

"One type is like us, ordinary students who enter the academy openly and honestly through the academy's entrance examination."

Gao Deneng noticed that Sadie exuded a sense of pride when she talked about "passing the college's admissions assessment".

For them, this is indeed something to be proud of.

"Another type is like Gerry Harrell, who is a noble student who gets into the academy through family connections and back channels."

"Commoner students and noble students usually don't see eye to eye; the former think the latter are worthless and only benefit from their ancestors' status."

"The latter feels that the former is of lowly birth and is not qualified to study with them. This dislike can sometimes develop into targeting."

"Generally speaking, we commoner students can't compete with aristocratic students, since they have money and power, while our talents need time to be realized."

"Later, some commoner students couldn't stand it anymore and stood up to rally all the commoner students to join forces, help each other, and make progress together. At the same time, they were able to counter the targeting of noble students. This was the prototype of the mutual aid association."

"After the mutual aid society was established, a corresponding organization naturally emerged among the noble students, namely the Lion Society."

"That's how the Mutual Aid Society and the Lion Club came about and developed. Now, every new student entering the college is assigned an invitation from either the Mutual Aid Society or the Lion Club based on their status."

"Therefore, all the students in the entire Seres Academy are either members of the Mutual Aid Society or members of the Lion Society."

"As for you," Sadie glanced at Gao De and said slowly, "the situation is too complicated. Both sides don't consider you one of their own. So..."

Sadie gave a very subtle hint, but it was enough for Gao De to understand.

He joined Cyrus Academy through a letter of recommendation, which naturally did not meet the Mutual Aid Society's requirement of "entering the academy through admissions examination".

However, he was not from a noble family and could only be considered a commoner.

Therefore, they also do not meet the membership requirements for the Lion Club's "noble students".

"We've reached a point where we can't rely on either side," Gao De thought to himself.

"However, I feel that although you did not enter the academy through the examination, you are not among the noble students. Therefore, you meet the membership standards of our mutual aid association."

"Therefore, on behalf of the mutual aid society, I sincerely invite you to join us."

"What can I gain by joining the mutual aid association, and what do I need to give up?" Gao De asked slowly after a moment of silence.

"You will receive resources from the mutual aid society, including intelligence and information, and assistance from members of the society."

"For example, if you need a certain potion and I happen to be available, you only need to provide the raw materials and a small fee, and I can make it for you."

"Or if there are any team-based tasks, you can look among the members of the mutual aid association. If any conflicts of interest arise during the task, the mutual aid association can also coordinate the matter. It's definitely more convenient and reassuring than forming a team randomly."

"Or, if you need help from other mages with your graduation project, the mutual aid society can also lend a hand."

"But in return, you also need to provide your value to other mutual aid society members."

"For new members, we don't ask too much in the first year. Just consider it as using the mutual aid association's resources to train new members, which is a membership benefit."

"But starting from the second year, you'll need to demonstrate your value, otherwise the support group's resources will no longer be available to you."

"The mutual aid society's mission has always been mutual assistance, not unpaid help," Sadie emphasized.

(End of this chapter)