Chapter 20: Endless Bad Luck
n
n
n
nFor the next three days, Vicente and Andrew would travel around Saltstar City in search of local contacts with whom they could do business.
nSome of Andrew’s acquaintances had already made deals with others since he had been delayed for weeks in getting to this place.
nBut there were still opportunities for him in this city not to thwart his plans completely.
nAfter the meetings that the two went to in those days, they had managed to get through negotiations with two local merchants and would be talking to them again in the next few days.
nAndrew still had a few names to visit locally, but unlike what he could do in smaller places, anything that someone like him was going to do had to be scheduled in this city.
nThe level of local business was much higher than he was used to, and as someone who was still small, this man had to wait for the time when his contacts could receive him.
nHe had managed to find some of these contacts for the moment, but for the others, he would only be able to see them in the next few days, for when he had managed to fit in his meeting with these people.
nBut this was not a problem for him or Vincent. As merchants, they were people who knew that one bad day was not enough to bring them down and had the patience to keep trying.
nAmid these initial conversations, Andrew had been looking for a 3rd stage doctor to care for Nina.
nThere was no classification for professionals in this world. Doctors or any other professionals were classified according to their levels of magic.
nBut even if this was not enough to rank the best professional, in general, it was enough because the higher the cultivation and the number of pentagrams, the better the skills of one.
nSo even though there might be some doctor with enough understanding to take care of Nina while being only a 2nd stage magician, Andrew was focused on more powerful magicians.
nHe wasn’t rich enough to hire magicians like that continuously. Yet, for an exclusive service, he had enough to do so.
nAnd so, he and Vicente had gotten an appointment with a doctor for Nina this afternoon!
n…
nLeaving the resort where they were staying, the Fuller family went by carriage to a doctor’s office in the central area of Saltstar City.
nThis place was a little far from the beach where the resort was located, but luckily there was no traffic.
nEven in such a large city, there were not enough wealthy people to have so many carriages and wagons around the city. As such, the wide local streets held the movement of this place well, and those moving in animals or carriages had an easy time reaching their destinations.
nThe streets were not perfect. Some had potholes or were quite uneven. But overall, they were good enough for horses to run at speeds of up to 20 kilometers per hour.
nVicente and Nina saw the well-developed center of Saltstar City, passing in front of the local royal academy, to which this young man could not help but look and sigh.
n‘Ian must have already passed his entrance exam…’ He imagined, sensing that his friend would soon begin his journey at such a renowned institution.
nBut even though he knew where to look for Ian locally, Vicente had no intention of doing that.
n‘Better leave him alone.’ He shook his head negatively as he closed his eyes momentarily. ‘I don’t need to bring Ian into the chaos of my life.’
n“Mr. Fuller, we have arrived at Doctor Mayer’s clinic.”
nWith those words, they proceeded forward into the interior of a three-story round tower-shaped building, where many people stood in the vicinity, on balconies, and at its entrance.
n“Doctor Mayer’s clinic is on the 3rd floor of the Saltstar City Medical Guild.” Their guide said. “Here, the province’s top doctors can test their skills, buy resources, and get good contacts. Anyway, this is the best place for doctors in the whole province!”
nVice’s group was uninterested and simply ignored this information while that man continued to present his surroundings joyfully.
nHe loved everything about this city and loved to explain the places he took his customers.
nWhen they reached the 3rd floor, Andrew immediately identified himself with the secretary of the doctor who would be attending to his daughter.
nAn instant later. “Mr. Fuller, Doctor Mayer will see you and your daughter in a moment.” She said before allowing only those two to enter.
n…
nAn hour later, Andrew and Nina left Doctor Mayer’s office.
n“Father, what about it? Is there a problem with Nina?” Vice quickly approached his old man and questioned, feeling his heart beating harder.
nAndrew said nothing, only indicating for them to return to the carriage.
nBut the sad look on his face could not hide the truth from Vicente.
n‘There’s a problem.’ He swallowed his saliva, looking at his little sister with pain in his heart.
nHe pressed his teeth against each other and said nothing, remembering once again the names of those responsible.
n‘DAX… MALIK!’
n“Father, what’s wrong? What did the doctor say?” Lauren couldn’t see the expressions of her family members, but the silence carried a lot of information.
nAs Andrew entered the carriage, he looked at his two children and continued to cuddle with little Nina.
nAfter thinking about his words, he closed his eyes and said, “I don’t want you to say this to Nina, but the procedure she went through to recover part of her brain left some sequelae behind.
nShe is fine now, but it will damage her little by little. The doctor who attended us said that she would not regain her mobility and may lose movement in part of her body as she grows.
nTo make matters worse, he believes she has less than a 10% chance of making it through the awakening and controlling her mana.”
nAwakening was not something with a 100% chance of success. Some people didn’t get the slightest compatibility with at least one Magic Gem during the awakening ceremony and missed this essential element in the magical path.
nIf Nina’s chances of getting that were low, then even becoming a low-level magician like Andrew would be impossible for her! 𝒆𝙣𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝙚𝙩
n“It can’t be…” Lauren said with pain in her voice, feeling the urge to hug her little sister.
nVicente understood his sister’s misfortune and said nothing, committed to finding a solution.
n‘Maybe a 4th stage doctor… I have to become influential with 4th stage cultivators to get revenge, so I will try my luck then, Nina.
nI promise I will try!’ He looked at his little sister as she had an uncertain look on her face, knowing something was wrong with her, but not exactly what.
n