"Ah, I almost forgot to tell you." She rummaged through the deep folds of her worn robes, her hands moving quickly as she searched for a particular item somewhere within the many pockets and hidden spaces.

Alaric waited patiently, watching her movements with curiosity as she finally produced the object she wanted to show him. He knew how much she enjoyed the food he prepared, so for anything to distract her from it, even for a moment, it had to be something truly significant.

He almost chuckled at the idea, amused by how seriously she took both her duties and small pleasures, and how rare it was for anything to pull her attention away from a good meal.

"Ah, here it is. An elder gave me this as a token of gratitude after I saved him from being mugged on my way here earlier," she explained, holding out a golden card. The card gleamed in the dim light, almost identical to the one Alaric had received before.

’Interesting,’ Alaric mused as he weighed the golden card in his hand. ’That explains why her hair looked especially disheveled today. She must have been out shopping, and then got caught up in this little incident, which delayed her and left her just enough time to make it back before the evening rush at the inn.’

Ever since she decided to help out at the inn, she had committed herself to working the evening shift, carefully arranging her day so she could assist with the busiest hours and support Alaric when he needed it most.

"Did he tell you anything about what the card does?" Alaric inquired, his voice tinged with genuine curiosity. He turned the card over in his hand, studying its intricate engravings and the way the gold shimmered under the dim light. The card’s weight and fine craftsmanship matched his own, reinforcing his suspicion that it was from the same source.

"He did," Eva replied, her eyes reflecting the memory. "Apparently, he’s a prosperous merchant who specializes in supplying Beast meat to practitioners. This golden card, he said, is an exclusive privilege pass; anyone who holds it receives a fifty percent discount, no matter how much Beast meat they decide to purchase." She recounted the earlier encounter, still a bit awed by the generosity and the merchant’s status.

"Don’t you find it odd?" Alaric mused aloud, his brow furrowed in thought. "A mortal running such a lucrative business in Beast meat, something usually reserved for powerful practitioners. Where do you think they source their supply? It can’t be easy for a non-cultivator to acquire such rare resources."

"Hmm." Eva tapped her chin thoughtfully, her gaze drifting as she considered the question. "I can’t say for certain, but I suspect the Archive Academy is involved somehow. It makes sense that such a well-connected institution would provide resources behind the scenes, ensuring we have access to what we need, perhaps as part of a larger plan to support practitioners like us."

He nodded at the reply. Without giving much thought, he stood up and walked to his table, producing a card almost similar to the one she had just given, making her eyes widen slightly.

"You also have one?"

"I was going to wait until you end your shift to discuss this, but I have a theory. We know this city is specially created to cater to the poor and those without much background to speak of, right?"

Eva nodded slowly, considering his words. Alaric continued, "But here’s what puzzles me: how are these people supposed to afford all the things available here if they don’t have the money to pay for them? There must be some hidden mechanism at work, some way for them to get what they need."

Her eyes widened after a brief thought. She thought about the situation she was in before, the golden card she was given, and the one he just produced, linking everything together. "You mean these situations are nothing but an act to provide rewards to us?"

If all this were true, she felt lied to. ’No wonder that incident felt off. When that thug said he meant no harm, my instinct didn’t tell me he was lying. So he truly did not wish to harm that elderly man. It was all an act to lure me, to see if I would help or not; maybe they were also testing that other female who was hiding. I could sense she was also a cultivator.’

But something confused her greatly, ’Why would they take such a risk though? Not everyone is benevolent enough to hand them over to the city guards; some would kill those thugs without even thinking. They must have something that protects them from such situations.’ She rationalized.

"In a way, yes," Alaric said, nodding slowly. "But I suspect it’s more than just a reward system. I believe it’s also a test, though I haven’t gathered enough evidence to be certain. After I received my golden card earlier, I decided to investigate. I watched the old merchant for a while and noticed he had only one card, which he’d already given to me. Now, if you think about the number of merchants and the influx of cultivators arriving in this city, it’s only a matter of time before this system faces challenges, potential conflict, or scarcity."

"I see what you mean," Eva said, her tone shifting as understanding dawned. "If people can’t afford to buy what they need, some will inevitably turn to less honest methods, coercion, theft, or worse, in their desperation to improve before the selection."

"Yes," He nodded in satisfaction at her thought process, "I would like to believe they would likely provide other ways to benefit those people, but..." His thoughts wandered to the underground tunnel briefly before shaking his head.

"That’s why I want us to be prepared for when that time comes." Alaric reached for a piece of parchment paper he’d been working on earlier, his handwriting neat and elegant. He handed it to Eva, saying, "It’s not a complete plan yet, but it’s a start." The thought of gambling his safety on an uncertain future unsettled him; he preferred to have contingencies in place, rather than risk everything on a ’what-if.’

At present, Alaric felt a strong sense of confidence in his abilities; every practitioner he had encountered so far was someone he could easily best, barely requiring any exertion on his part. Most of these individuals were still at the flesh-tempering stage, relatively early in their cultivation journey and far from mastering the more advanced arts. Yet, the future remained shrouded in uncertainty. There was always the possibility, no matter how slim, that practitioners of much higher stages could surface. If that happened, he had no way of knowing whether his current skills and strategies would be enough.

It had been close to a century since the academy last opened its doors to new students. This unprecedented gap meant that for decades, many cultivators had been striving to break through their limits, waiting for the rare chance to participate in the selection. Now, with the academy finally recruiting again, the likelihood of encountering high-level practitioners, those who had honed their skills for fifty years or longer, was dramatically higher. Alaric understood this would make the competition fiercer and more unpredictable than ever before.

"You have really thought this through, haven’t you?" Eva said while reading through the parchment paper. "You want to create a private organization that deals with practitioners instead of residents. This way, we can keep an eye on the practitioners seeking to find trouble."

She continued before expressing her doubts, "No cultivator would do this much work without benefits. What benefits are you planning to provide those who seek to join this organization? Would it even be approved?"

"Refined resources. That’s the benefit." He said nonchalantly. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Shock passed through Eva. "You mean..."

"Exactly," Alaric confirmed, nodding. "I’ll offer them resources I refine myself, pills, elixirs, potions, even specially prepared food. We both know that refined resources are exponentially more potent and effective than consuming raw ingredients. That edge should be more than enough to entice even the most ambitious cultivators. And as for anyone who tries to create chaos or pose a threat..." He let the sentence hang, his expression darkening with resolve, "we’ll be prepared to use force if necessary."

"Anyway, I trust you have taken into account every variable and eliminated every margin for error, so I will handle the recruitment starting tomorrow, as for now, I have people to attend to." She said before dropping the parchment and making her way towards the door.

Alaric nodded, "You should get your meal first before you start working. I will take my time to finish up the plan. Tomorrow, I can also visit the captain of the city guards to discuss our plan."

That was the right thing to do; creating a security group without the knowledge of the people in charge was destined to end in a clash. He would win, but why go through the trouble?

’He seems to have changed a little?’ She thought departing from the room.