[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-above-the-mage":3,"chapter-above-the-mage-above-the-mage-chapter-82":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Above the Mage!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2257086,4404,"Chapter 82: Artisan Guild","above-the-mage-chapter-82",82,"\u003Cp>After returning to House 437, Gao De lit a kerosene lamp and spent some time tidying and cleaning the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having settled everything, Gao De, now temporarily settled in Bremen City, sat alone in the empty hall and reorganized his thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once he realized Hogen City was no place to stay, his thinking became clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, he needed to sell the herb garden—something he could never take with him—for the best possible price.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, with the proceeds from selling the herb garden, he would leave Hogen City and use the “Exemption Recommendation Letter” left by Master Seda to enter the Serais Magic Academy and receive systematic, formal “Basic Mage Education.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But clearly, this was just one sentence to say.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Implementing it would be complex and troublesome, far from something achievable overnight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For now, he would not consider how to travel from Bremen City to Shengxien City, where the Serais Magic Academy was located—after all, even getting from Hogen City to Bremen City was no easy feat for him now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Simply verifying the authenticity of the “Exemption Recommendation Letter” was no simple matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet if he did not uncover the origins of this “Exemption Recommendation Letter” and why Master Seda had never used it, Gao De would never dare to show up at the academy with it in hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he went through all the hardship to reach Shengxien City only to find the letter rejected, that would be the least of his worries—he feared it might bring him death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Master Seda’s death, if anyone in the world still knew the origins of this “Exemption Recommendation Letter,” it could only be his wife, Lady Misu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, he needed to get close to Lady Misu, then find a way to learn the truth about the “recommendation letter.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, among the twenty letters Master Seda had carefully preserved, many useful clues and details were hidden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, after arriving in Bremen City, Gao De was able to directly follow the address revealed in the letters and locate Lady Misu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If there was any way to contact Lady Misu without arousing her suspicion, it was undoubtedly by renting the property Master Seda had left to his wife.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Master Seda left for Hogen City, Lady Misu had relied on renting out this property as her sole source of income.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Gao De indeed needed to rent a house to settle temporarily in Bremen City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was foreseeable that he would remain in Bremen City for a considerable time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, he needed a job that could generate income.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, to avoid spending his savings dry—even though 300 Xien gold coins would last him a long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second, to avoid drawing attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike his past life, where unemployed youths were commonplace and unremarkable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this world, a person without a job always stood out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After careful consideration, he ruled out fixed employment: it lacked freedom, restricted his movements, and interfered with his plans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides, he would never work for someone else!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for freelance work, his old profession as a potionist seemed decent at first glance, but upon closer thought, it was unsuitable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without the herb garden, costs could not be kept low.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, as a newcomer in Bremen City—a major metropolis—his limited potion output could not secure a stable client in the short term.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In short, it was hard work with little reward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, Gao De chose a profession with no future in Hogen City but great potential in Bremen City: repair artisan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides the profit, becoming a repair artisan had another advantage: frequent exposure to magical items would indirectly expand his knowledge of magic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the blooming season came the period of the year with the most sunlight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Flower Flame Month ended; the Sunlight Month arrived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De’s first morning in Bremen City began with a cup of black tea costing 1.5 copper coins and a wheat bread spread with honey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a simple breakfast at a small diner, Gao De boarded a public carriage and arrived at the Artisan Guild in the Siren District.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stepped off the carriage, entered the lobby, and stood before the young female receptionist in charge of welcoming guests.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sir, are you seeking a suitable artisan, or do you wish to join our Guild?” the receptionist asked, smiling as she looked at Gao De, now dressed in new clothes. “I wish to join the Guild, but I have no connections to any official members who can recommend me,” Gao De said bluntly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s fine. You don’t necessarily need a recommendation from an official member—if you pass the Guild’s assessment, we welcome you,” the receptionist said confidently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How is the assessment conducted?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What type of artisan are you? Jeweler, clockmaker, carpenter, or blacksmith?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Repair artisan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Repair artisan? Really?” The young female receptionist showed a look of surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course. What’s wrong with that?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Repair artisans are always scarce and in high demand at our Guild. Sir, please wait here a moment—I’ll inform Master Ba of this news.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“By all means,” Gao De nodded slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The young receptionist then swayed her graceful figure and hurried upstairs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a short while, she returned with a middle-aged man wearing a black classical robe—the man must be Master Ba, as the receptionist had mentioned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re the repair artisan Anna spoke of?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Ba’s initial enthusiasm faded as he looked at Gao De, his expression turning suspicious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Indeed, he was still too young, Gao De thought to himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although his physique had grown somewhat sturdier since he first arrived, and he had deliberately dressed more maturely, his youth was impossible to conceal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in most people’s eyes, the profession of repair artisan required years of experience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My father and grandfather were both repair artisans. I learned from them since childhood,” Gao De repeated the excuse he had used for Lady Misu. “If you doubt my ability, there’s still the assessment, isn’t there?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine,” Master Ba said without further words. He placed a small round bead on the table. “If you can repair this Light Pearl, you pass the assessment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There’s a workshop upstairs. You may use any tools and materials free of charge.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De said nothing. He picked up the “Light Pearl” and gestured to the receptionist, Anna. “Show me the way.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under Anna’s guidance, Gao De entered one of the workshops on the second floor of the Artisan Guild.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The workshop held a large table covered with various tools, including carving knives and magical ink pens needed for repairing magical runes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De stepped into the workshop and told the young receptionist, “Please wait outside for a moment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he closed the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The receptionist had no objection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Repairing magical items required precision; an observer might distract the artisan and cause the repair to fail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What she hadn’t expected was that the door opened again just fifteen minutes later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sir, what is this?” she asked, puzzled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>According to her knowledge, even the most basic daily-use magical item typically took at least half an hour to repair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had he given up?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such a young man couldn’t possibly be a qualified repair artisan, the young receptionist thought, yet she felt an inexplicable sense of disappointment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Done,” Gao De handed the Light Pearl to Anna.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Already… done?!” Anna couldn’t believe it. Seeing Gao De nod in confirmation, she hurriedly said, “Wait here—I’ll take it to Master Ba right away!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Saying this, she clattered down the hall in her leather shoes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De smiled as he watched Anna leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1249,"2026-06-19T14:28:48.629Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","5dcda78c39269512eaf4642e9444230a620f394d00589c805d3d29f751e313b3","above-the-mage-chapter-83","above-the-mage-chapter-81",529,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fabove-the-mage-cover.jpg"]