Pfft.
Nia burst into laughter at Astrachior's suggestion.
"Dad, please stop insulting Shadowcaster. How could Zayne even be mentioned in the same breath as him? He is not worthy of polishing Shadowcaster's boots. That guy saw a Dragonblood Troll and almost wet himself before running for his life."
"And Shadowcaster's command of fire is on a completely different level. He could even wield Hellfire. Zayne cannot do any of that. If those two were actually the same person, I would gladly work as his maid."
She scoffed. One man made her heart flutter, the other made her skin crawl. How could they possibly be the same person? The idea was ridiculous.
She would sooner believe that Shadowcaster was just a hallucination than believe Zayne and that man were one and the same.
"Is that so? Perhaps."
Astrachior smiled faintly, pushing up his glasses. He did not argue further, though a sharp glint flickered in his eyes.
...
A full moon hung high above the dark sky.
Moonlight flowed along the filthy alleyways like liquid mercury.
"Finally."
Zayne exhaled deeply as he stepped back into his home.
It was a cramped shack in a slum full of sewage and rot, yet to him, it was the safest place in the world.
He sat down, trying to calm the excitement gleaming behind his eyes.
A level 16 classholder.
An SSS rank Forbidden Spellcaster.
Sixteen Forbidden Spells at his fingertips.
He was no longer a powerless nobody.
Even if someone discovered his immortality, he could flee into the wilderness and vanish. With his current strength, capturing him would not be easy.
Just having the ability to protect himself filled him with a sense of peace he had never felt before.
Knock knock knock.
The sudden knock at the door made Zayne tense instantly.
This was the slums. Even thieves avoided this place because everyone here was poorer than them. So who would come knocking at night?
He prepared himself for a fight, then opened the door cautiously.
Standing outside was a middle aged man in a spotless suit, holding a briefcase. His expensive clothes looked wildly out of place against the grimy surroundings.
"And you are?" Zayne asked.
"You must be Zayne. Finally found you!"
The man wiped sweat from his forehead and held out a damp hand.
"Let me introduce myself. I am Ravi Kapoor, manager of Hardman Vitality Oil Company."
Zayne stared at his wet hand without any intention of shaking it.
"Ah, sorry. Cars can't get in here and walking was… quite a journey," Ravi said awkwardly, wiping his hand on his pants.
"What do you want?" Zayne asked bluntly.
"Well! You recently awakened as an SSS rank, and you broke Old Shipyard Port's record in the novice realm. I wanted to ask if you would be interested in shooting an advertisement."
Ravi held up three fingers.
"I can offer you two hundred thousand dollars."
Zayne paused.
At last he understood the man's purpose, and he couldn't help sighing inwardly at how cheap a normal person's life truly was.
Before awakening, he had nearly sold every organ he had just to scrape together a few thousand.
Yet now, simply because he became famous as an SSS rank, someone wanted to pay him two hundred thousand just to film an ad.
In the past, he would have needed to sell ten kidneys to earn that.
Seeing Zayne hesitate, Ravi quickly pressed on.
"And that is just the starting fee. If you become our official spokesperson and perform well in the upcoming exam trials, the company is prepared to offer up to one million."
Zayne narrowed his eyes.
He truly did need money. Being a classholder meant burning cash constantly.
Skills were free thanks to Endless Spellcraft, but gear required real money. His only equipment was the low tier ring that Norton had given him.
Seeing Zayne's interest, Ravi stepped aside politely.
"Standing here is not ideal. How about we discuss this over dinner?"
"Fine." Zayne nodded.
A sleek black luxury car waited at the entrance of the slum.
He did not recognize the model, but he could tell it was far from cheap.
Ravi opened the door for him. They rode for ten minutes before stopping at a remote restaurant.
"Come in, come in, Zayne!"
Ravi ushered him enthusiastically.
The interior looked new, as if the place had opened only days ago. A faint scent of fresh paint lingered in the air.
Once seated in a private booth, dishes began to arrive quickly.
Zayne dug in without restraint.
The food was excellent, tender chicken with a rich curry aroma. Zayne ate as if starved.
He had never tasted anything this good growing up.
"Slow down, Zayne. If it's not enough, we can order more," Ravi said with a cheerful grin, piling more food onto Zayne's plate.
"Mmm, thank you. You're such a good person."
Zayne was genuinely enjoying himself, unaware of Ravi's increasingly twisted smile.
"Of course I'm a good person. How's the food, Zayne?"
"It's great!" Zayne said happily, swallowing another bite of chicken.
"You don't feel dizzy?"
Zayne blinked. "Maybe… a little."
The moment the words left his mouth, his vision spun. His head tilted sideways, and with a heavy thud, he collapsed onto the table.