The Sorcerer's Handbook

Above the Shattered Lake.

A transport ship was plowing steadily through the waves. Finger Sharks leapt from the water one after another. Their tiny teeth clinked against the hull, as if they were trying to taste the massive vessel.

Inside the ship’s only VIP cabin, a kind-looking ogre reclined in a plush chair. He chewed on a pipe and exhaled a swirl of pale green smoke. ”Is Hollis trying to rally the Everlasting Wine Club?”

On the light screen before him stood a tall, handsome, bald goblin with sharp ears. He wore a tailored black suit and wire-rimmed glasses. At this point in time, he was flipping through documents with his brow furrowed in concern. His voice was tight as he spoke, ”Yes, Mayor. I’m afraid they are. They intend to impeach you and cut your term short. You were the central figure in the 424 Incident. If Hollis manages to unite the moderates and calls for a mayoral vote, it will be extremely difficult for us to maintain support. Even the councilors aligned with us will come under pressure from their constituents.”

The ogre muttered, ”Who would have thought that after fighting Andrei for so long, the one who snatches the prize in the end would be that bastard Hollis...”

Snap!

He bit down hard. The pipe, crafted from white jade and ivory, shattered between his teeth. He chewed the fragments a few times and swallowed them whole.

”How can politics function with vermin crawling everywhere?” he roared.

The gentle lines of his face hardened into a fierce scowl. ”How dare Hollis, an indecisive, mediocre, easily manipulated human who has never changed anything, think he can compete with me?”

”Mayor, if things truly fall apart, we could wait for the next term—”

The ogre interrupted, ”There is no next term! There is no second chance, Keppert. Once I step down, it’s over. There is no coming back.”

He raised three thick fingers. ”In Caimon’s history, there have been fifty-one elf mayors and forty-two human mayors. I am one of the only three mayors from a non-standard race.”

The Blood Moon bestowed honor upon all races, but some races, elves and humans in particular, received far more, simply because of their appearance. They were considered standard races. Orcs, ogres, and goblins were not.

Over generations of selective breeding, non-standard races had been shaped to resemble standard ones more closely. The most primal and ferocious offspring were never allowed into the orphanages and ”recycled”[1] at birth.

The ogre tapped his teeth. ”Do you know what I sacrificed for this seat? I pulled out all my fangs and replaced them with neat white teeth. Every morning, I trim my nails, because an ogre’s claws can grow overnight. Every week, I undergo photon skin treatments to keep wrinkles from forming.”

He laughed bitterly. ”And even then, I wouldn’t have been elected if not for the citizens’ curiosity. Three golden degrees, a Two-Winged Gold Sorcerer, and more titles than I can remember. None of that would earn me a second chance. Watching the same clown perform twice? People simply won’t do it.”

He fixed his gaze on the goblin. ”Keppert, do you know why I chose you as my secretary? Because you’re a goblin. Only you understand this. Only you’ve endured the same ridicule I have.”

The goblin hesitated.

Fernandez noticed his hesitation and raised his artificial eyebrows. ”What is it you wish to say?”

Keppert’s voice carried a trace of sorrow. ”Mayor... why didn’t you save the citizens? You knew foreign sorcerers were invading, but at first you dismissed it as a rumor, insisting nothing had happened.

”Then you claimed it was a series of murders and dispatched the Heresy Court. After that, you labeled it a terror attack and mobilized the armed forces. By the time real action was taken, it was already too late. Only then did you call in the district adventurers. If the truth had been revealed from the start—”

Fernandez replied calmly, ”Revealing the truth immediately would have caused panic. Crowds would have fled all at once, giving the invaders the advantage. Tell me, what would you have done differently? Over a hundred well-prepared foreign sorcerers were scattered throughout the city, and I have already ordered the Heresy Court to act.”

”There was still the research institute and the church!” Keppert insisted. ”If they had stepped in, the invaders never would have been able to run so rampant!”

”They had no reason to intervene,” Fernandez said flatly. ”The invaders did not threaten their interests. They were under no obligation to protect Caimon.”

”But you’re the mayor. If you had forced them to act publicly, the citizens would have supported you!”

Fernandez glanced at him. ”I see it now. Hollis wants me out of the office. But you... You want me dead.”

”No, I— I didn’t mean that—”

Fernandez continued coldly, ”Perhaps, if I had forced them to act publicly, the research institute and the church would have helped repel the invaders. My reputation might even have been preserved.”

His voice dropped, sharp as ice. ”But no one commands the Blood Saint or Moonshadow clans without paying a price. No one. Once I leave the office, I will face a long death. And the other politicians will use me as a warning.”

Keppert’s face fell. ”So... we just stand by and watch the citizens get slaughtered by the invaders?”

Fernandez waved a hand impatiently. ”Do you think I lack compassion? Or does your compassion need to be so theatrical? The attack will end soon enough. Vacant posts will be filled, destroyed buildings will be rebuilt, and jobs will be created. In a few months, Caimon will return to normal.”

He paused, then continued matter-of-factly. ”Because of this sudden disaster, consumer spending will rise over the next half year. As for the elderly who failed to escape in time, most of them are already gone. From the city’s perspective, this incident is a net gain.”

Keppert stared at him through the screen. ”Mayor... you...”

Fernandez said evenly, ”This isn’t merely my personal opinion. The Bureau of Racial Protection, the Heresy Court, the Development Planning Office. Every major branch of civil administration is signaling the same conclusion. Once the attack ends, the next six months will be prime time for the Administrative Department to rack up achievements.”

He spread his hands. ”Keppert, the mayor is only a temporary custodian of the civil system. When the bureaucracy aligns in one direction, my disaster relief orders will naturally slow. Why swim against the current when following it conserves resources?

”Think of it as gardening. Wildflowers and weeds must be cut back for the garden to thrive. In the Blood Moon Kingdom, pruning is forbidden. This time, someone else is doing it for us. Why not take advantage of it?”

He leaned forward slightly. ”More importantly, the Blood Saints crave corpses, while the Moonshadows delight in death. Both clans are enjoying this massacre. This is a game played by gods. The civil administration cannot afford to anger them. You understand that, don’t you?”

The goblin murmured, ”This is too much...”

Fernandez tapped the table. ”If you want to rise higher in politics, stop worrying about good and evil. Bureaucracy recognizes only order and chaos. Class dismissed. Take a fifth of my treasury. No. A third. Use it to secure the support of the non-standard race councilors.

”Give one-seventh to Syrin. The Woodpeckers will eliminate Hollis and whatever remains of the Everlasting Wine Club.”

Keppert’s face went pale. ”Mayor, you can’t. You’ll face another memory extraction before you leave prison—”

”I’ll erase it myself,” Fernandez replied coolly. ”But Hollis isn’t ordinary. He’s a human councilor. The Heresy Court will investigate everything. This is a gamble.

His voice dropped, sharp as ice. ”If you don’t, you won’t stand a chance.”

His eyes flared wide like copper bells. The killing intent pouring from him made Keppert realize, for the first time, that the mayor before him was a genuine ogre.

Fernandez continued, ”I barely convinced the other race councilors. Even the elves agreed to my proposal. For the first time, Caimon’s races are united.”

He clenched his jaw. ”If luck favors us, we will discover the correct Virtual Channel and invade the foreign domain first. We will earn enough glory to please the Blood Moon Lord, secure my reelection, and buy me time.”

His teeth ground together. ”Unfortunately, ogres are not a lucky race. But no matter the cost, I cannot allow my term to end early. I will not hand the mayor’s seat to that sycophant Hollis.”

His disdain sharpened. ”Humans are more arrogant than elves, more shortsighted than goblins, lazier than orcs, and greedier than ogres. They are the most unreliable race of all. They would carve off their own flesh, drink Blood Saint blood, wear Moonshadow skin, and exploit their own kind without hesitation. At this stage, a few small mistakes are unavoidable.”

Keppert stared at him in disbelief. ”Assassinating councilors is a small mistake? Then what’s a big one?”

Fernandez answered without hesitation. ”Getting caught.”

Outside, the ship slowed and came to a stop. A voice sounded over the speaker. ”Mayor Fernandez. Transport Ship 322 has arrived at Shattered Lake Prison.”

Fernandez walked to the window. His fingers glimmered faintly as he touched his temple, drew out a thin white thread, and flicked it into the sea. A Finger Shark leapt up and swallowed it whole.

Turning back to the screen, he said, ”I’ve already forgotten everything I told you. The rest is in your hands, goblin.”

With that, he cut the connection.

Escorted by two Bloodrage Hunters, Fernandez left the cabin and stepped off the transport ship into Shattered Lake Prison.

Within the yellow boundary lines, two neatly dressed guards waited.

The hunters offered Fernandez no courtesy. They handed the documents to the more handsome of the two guards. ”One prisoner on this transport. Sign here.”

The guard reviewed the papers and nodded. ”Confirmed. Mayor Arandor Fernandez of Caimon City.”

One hunter said. ”Can you handle them alone?”

The guard replied, ”Apologies. Half the prisoners and most of the guards are in the infirmary with stomach issues, possibly from the last food batch. Could you assist with moving the supplies?”

The hunters muttered, ”I heard Caimon recently uncovered a batch of toxic Lala fertilizer. Might be related. Fine. But we don’t know where the warehouse is.”

”I’ll lead you,” the handsome guard said.

He turned to his colleague. ”I’ll leave the Sinner’s Directory registration and cell assignment to you.”

”Understood.”

Fernandez glanced at the other guard standing nearby. Something about him felt indistinct. His facial features were blurred, as if the sunlight itself had swallowed them.[2].

The guard said softly, ”Mayor Fernandez, welcome to Shattered Lake Prison. Here, you will experience hospitality like no other.”

1. In other words, killed on the spot. ☜

2. Hint: Who’s the one with the ability to conceal his facial features? ☜