With the successful trial production of cement, there was no longer any need to worry about the gap in the Northern City Wall, and the safety of Border Garrison Town was greatly guaranteed.
However, there was still one problem: currently, Owen was the only mage capable of undertaking the task of firing cement, and Border Garrison Town couldn't even find a second fire-element mage.
As rare talents, mages were highly sought after everywhere. Compared to a poor and remote place like Border Garrison Town, prosperous and wealthy metropolises were clearly more attractive, and most mages chose to work and live there.
Although Owen alone could shoulder the heavy responsibility and fire enough cement to repair the city wall, he was a Marquis, the lord of Border Garrison Town, and he also had to handle various affairs of the town; he couldn't stay in the cement workshop every day firing cement.
Moreover, firing cement was not a task Owen should personally undertake; it did not align with his status.
Although Owen did not care about his reputation, being treated as a joke by other nobles would not only tarnish his own image but also that of his Family behind him.
Therefore, there was only one solution: issue a commission to the Adventurers Guild to recruit fire-element mages.
The Adventurers Guild primarily operates as a task commission intermediary. To facilitate contact among the public, adventurers, and the state, it is usually established in populous metropolises with relatively developed transportation.
Many free mages choose to gather and operate at the Adventurers Guild, earning rewards through task commissions.
However, in remote and sparsely populated places like Border Garrison Town, there is no Adventurers Guild, so it is necessary to send someone to the nearest metropolis, East Rise Fortress.
Without further ado, Owen summoned Clive early the next morning, informed him about the recruitment of mages, and instructed him to send someone to the Adventurers Guild in East Rise Fortress to issue the commission.
...
In East Rise Fortress, in the bustling commercial district with a large flow of people, there is a conspicuous tall building, which is the Adventurers Guild.
Its iconic Guild emblem hangs above the main entrance, depicting a pair of wings surrounding a sword and shield.
In the main hall on the first floor of the Guild, a large number of adventurers could be seen. Some were shouting to find teammates for parties; some were gathered around the bulletin board, checking for suitable commissions; some were consulting the Young Miss at the reception desk about relevant matters; and others had just completed commissions and were collecting their rewards, and so on.
The more lively the Adventurers Guild, the more it indicates the prosperity of the city; otherwise, it would be impossible to have so many commissions to support the adventurers.
...So, our team doesn't need you.
In a corner of the hall, the captain of a certain team was kicking a team member out of the team.
Such things are common; if a team member is no longer suitable to stay in the team, they will naturally be expelled by the captain.
Generally speaking, no one would pay attention to this matter. However, this time, the person kicked out of the team was somewhat special, attracting the attention of many passersby.
This person was a young girl named Fanny, estimated to be fifteen or sixteen years old from her appearance, with fluffy flaxen curly hair and a few light freckles on her cheeks. Incredibly, she was wearing a patched mage's robe.
It seems that not all mages are highly sought after; some are not doing so well.
Captain, please give me another chance; I will work even harder! Besides magic support, I can also help you carry items.
Fanny pleaded bitterly with the captain; she didn't want to be kicked out of the team.
With your small frame, forget it.
The other members of the team said disdainfully.
Shaking his head and refusing without mercy, the captain took a small pouch of copper coins from his waist and handed it to Fanny.
Take this; this is your reward. Go find other teams; we don't need you here.
Knowing it was hopeless, Fanny had no choice but to reach out and take the pouch of coins. From the moment she received the money, she officially left the team.
Finally rid of this dead weight, the captain looked relieved and took the other team members to the tavern for a drink.
Hey, look, she got kicked out of the team again.
Oh, that half-baked mage, normal.
She looks quite pitiful; do you want to try recruiting her into your team?
Me? Don't joke with me; who would dare recruit her? No team would want a mage who can't cast spells at critical moments.
The surrounding adventurers discussed animatedly, mostly watching the show, and no one intended to invite Fanny.
Putting away her money pouch, Fanny walked out with her head down, looking dejected; she didn't want to stay there and continue to be laughed at.
As she passed the bulletin board, Fanny inadvertently overheard adventurers there discussing a commission.
Hey, look at this commission from Border Garrison Town; it doesn't require fighting dangerous magical beasts, but it offers a high reward, a full two gold coins!
But they only want fire-element mages. Do you, young man, know fire-element magic?
Uh, no, what a pity.
No need to fight magical beasts? Two gold coins!
Stopping in her tracks, Fanny turned her head to look at the crowded bulletin board. She happened to be a fire-element mage, which met the recruitment conditions.
The task wasn't dangerous, and it offered a high reward. Without much thought, she squeezed into the crowd and came to the bulletin board to look for the commission the adventurers were talking about.
After finding and reading the commission details, Fanny roughly understood.
Border Garrison Town urgently needed a fire-element mage to fire something called 'cement' for two months. If she was willing to stay after two months, Border Garrison Town would be very happy to employ her long-term, with monthly wages to be discussed at that time.
For Fanny, who struggled with daily sustenance, this commission was very tempting. She really wanted to accept this commission now and depart for Border Garrison Town.
But on second thought, she was only a half-baked mage, and it would be terrible if she went there and didn't meet the other party's requirements. Not only would she receive no reward, but she would also have to pay for travel expenses, as Border Garrison Town was quite far.
For Fanny, the loss would already be significant.
Sigh, forget it.
With a light sigh, she turned and squeezed out of the crowd, leaving the Adventurers Guild.
After leaving the Guild, Fanny did not return directly to her residence but walked towards the direction of the cathedral.
She was going to pick up a relative.
At this moment, the church's main doors were wide open, and many believers entered with devout hearts to pray to the gods.
Entering the spacious hall of the church, one could see a huge yellow four-pointed star on the wall directly opposite the main door, which was the symbol of the church. Below the four-pointed star was a statue of the deity—a benevolent and kind young female figure.
Fanny stood near the main door, looking around for a while, before finally spotting a familiar back, and then she quickly jogged over.
Priest An Li!
Hearing Fanny's call, the young female priest named An Li turned around, a joyful smile on her face.
Ah! Fanny, you're finally back.
Sorry, this task took longer than expected.
Fanny explained.
As long as you're safe and back, that's what matters. Your sister has been asking to see you these past few days! I'll take you to her.
Thank you for the trouble.
Led by An Li, Fanny arrived at the orphanage behind the church, where many children who had lost their parents were housed. Currently, a group of children were playing in the courtyard, with church staff watching over them.
As soon as Fanny appeared, a little one from among the group of children excitedly ran over.
Sister!
Fanny's sister ran with open arms, asking for a hug.
Having not seen her for a long time, Fanny naturally hugged her sister warmly and even spun around twice in place.
After putting her sister down, Fanny dotingly stroked her hair and asked, Lilika, have you been obedient here?
Of course, I'm Lilika, the sister of Great Mage Fanny!
With her hands on her hips, Lilika said very proudly.
Fanny felt a little awkward; she had just been kicked out of her team by the captain. To prevent her tall image in her sister's heart from shattering, she forced a polite smile.
There was nothing she could do; Fanny often boasted to her sister that she was a Great Mage, very powerful, and so on.