Rayven blinked at the question. He was caught a little off guard.
"A mage?" he repeated and chuckled...
He was still unsure how they viewed mages, so he had to be careful.
So, instead of giving a direct answer, he pushed another question. "Do I look like one?"
Nara tilted her head while looking at Rayven's attire. She gave him a long once-over before she gave her assessment.
"A bit. You've got that soft look. Pale skin, delicate hands, no sword-calluses… You either read books for a living or throw fireballs…"
Rayven chuckled as he brushed a thumb across his knuckles, which were still sore from clenching a sword during last night's battle.
"If I could throw fireballs, I wouldn't be standing here trying to hire bodyguards, would I?"
Indeed, he doesn't have a fireball spell but Mana Flick.
"That's fair," Miki said as she adjusted the newly repaired sword at her side. "Most mages don't walk around looking this lost either. Besides, magic's not something you just pick up. It's expensive and complicated… It's even political sometimes."
Rayven's eyes lit up. It seemed that these two knew about Mages. He might as well learn from them along the way.
Nara then added… "And they're boring."
Miki rolled her eyes. "Only because you flunked the magic theory class back at the Hall."
"Because it was boring!" Nara groaned. "Just moving mana or even just accumulating it takes too much time. Who cares about Magic Spells? Just give me a sword and something to hit."
From this conversation, Rayven has already learned a lot of things about mages.
It seemed that not all people who had the talent to learn magic would want to study it. It was quite unexpected, as he thought that it was a huge blessing to be able to wield magic…
'I guess it still depends on your situation, huh…' Rayven mused.
Though he was still unaware of the full story, he believed that he'd get more information about it if he just asked them. It didn't seem like a secret matter after all.
"So, magic is really that difficult to learn?"
Miki glanced at him like he was an idiot. However, she was still kind enough to explain it to Rayven since he would become their employer for some time.
"Very... The only people who really get to learn advanced magic are nobles or those with backing, like a patron or a family legacy. Most of the time, magical talent runs through bloodlines. If you weren't born into it, tough luck."
"And even if you're born with a little bit of talent," Nara added, "you still need tutors, mana stones, scrolls, and enough gold to drown a horse to buy all the materials that you need. You'd probably need years to learn a single spell if you have low-tier talent… That's why most villages only have old self-taught mages or potion-brewers. Maybe someone who knows how to light a fire with their pinky if they're lucky."
Rayven nodded slowly, absorbing every word.
It seemed that if they wanted to use magic for combat, they would have to pay a price to learn such spells.
'So magic is inherited, expensive, and locked behind social class…'
As Rayven thought of this, he couldn't help but thank his Coinbound System once again.
"What about sword practitioners?" He asked. "Is it the same?"
This time, Rayven decided to just act completely clueless since that was the truth anyway. Thankfully, the two didn't mind his questions.
Perhaps because they would receive free food and 10 Silver Coins from him very soon.
"Sort of," Miki replied. "Sword schools exist everywhere, but only the big ones—like ours—teach proper mana channeling if you have some talent. Of course, we don't really cast spells as the school doesn't have any Spellbook, but those who were lucky can use mana to enhance our bodies, speed, endurance… that kind of thing."
"I'm learning a lot from this conversation… I think that I must treat for a meal at the very least." Rayven suggested that he wanted to continue with the conversation and learn more about this topic.
"Hahaha… I guess you just want to hear more about it… Right, you can think of our school's method to use mana as buff magic." Nara chimed in. "But we call it 'martial flow.'"
Rayven gently nodded as he heard a new term. Martial Flow.
At this time, Nara's stomach loudly announced itself with a grumble…
"…I could really go for lunch," she muttered while placing a hand over her belly.
Rayven gave a short laugh. "I was just about to offer."
"Now you're talking," Nara beamed.
"Just something simple though," Rayven added quickly, "I'm on a budget."
"Oh no," Nara groaned dramatically. "Not the 'budget' word. We've been budgeting our food as well for the past week…"
She already felt allergic to that word, since the two of them had been saving money for a while now.
In the meantime, Miki was just happy to get a free meal.
Just like that, they left the workshop behind and headed toward a small eatery nearby…
This eatery had a grumpy old woman selling meat stew, flatbread, and barley tea.
Rayven paid five copper coins each for their meals. Not exactly extravagant, but the food was surprisingly decent.
"You know… if you keep feeding us, we might just call you Young Master Rayven." Nara teased with a laugh as she devoured her food.
"Please don't," Rayven said as he took a sip of his tea…
"I like it," Miki added with a sly grin. "It suits your face, Young Master Rayven."
Rayven groaned and shook his head. "Can we not?"
Nara decided not to tease him anymore, but she just couldn't help but guess Rayven's identity.
"But I really think that you are a noble!"