"That's because there are few who know light magic." Vivianne pulled me back to the "Ability Evaluation" sign while explaining to me.
"Compared to the other four types of magic, there are very few who know light magic, so there is not much demand for it."
But it shouldn't be that expensive, if the price is determined by demand it should be cheaper, right?
"But there is one specialty of those who know light magic. Basically, they only come from a few families, and they are all nobles..." After a long and complicated explanation by Vivianne, I finally understood.
In short, it is extremely rare for ordinary commoners to know light magic, to the point of once in a millennium. Those who know light magic generally appear in various noble families, whose earliest ancestors most likely rose to prominence precisely because of their talent in light magic. So now those who buy these books are basically all children of nobles, and they are not short on money, which is why the books are so expensive.
Right next to the bookstore, there were signs up recruiting students in magic learning, with fire, wind, earth, and water magics, but no signs for light or dark magic.
It seems like no one has ever mentioned dark magic, and I don't recall seeing any dark magic books in the bookstore either. Is the human world itself very repelled by dark magic?
But right now I don't have the mind to think about the issue of dark magic. Just the light magic alone is a headache for me.
"Then I have no way of learning light magic?" I asked Vivianne blankly. This price is practically unaffordable, even with Vivianne and the others' money.
"Actually there is another way..." Vivianne seemed to already have an answer to this question, "Go find Selene, maybe she can teach you."
"Selene?" I could understand her suggestion. Selene already knows light magic, it's normal for her True Church to have books on light magic.
"But the church probably wouldn't allow outsiders to learn their magic, right?" I voiced my thoughts.
"But you are an angel!" Vivianne directly pointed out the crux. "As long as you are willing to join their church, everything will be fine."
"Let's put that off for now."
While she had a point, when it comes to religious matters, I generally have no interest. If I had to join the church and chant prayers and hymns every day, I would dislike it.
Seeing my reluctance, Vivianne didn't say anything more. She and Brennan were also not fans of the True Church.
Just then the door of the testing room opened and Nicola walked out.
"How was it?" We immediately gathered around her.
"Not bad!" As usual Nicola handed the card in her hand to us.
"Looks like you did pretty well."
Seeing her relaxed, I muttered and glanced down at the card.
"Fifth Order?"
I was truly shocked by this score. It's too much! We are both four-winged angels, why is there such a huge difference!
"It really is Fifth Order!"
Vivianne who came over to take a look was also extremely excited. She had been judging our strength according to the number of wings, so she thought we should both be Fourth Order. Who knew one was higher and one lower, she didn't guess right for either.
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These days while chatting with people on the streets, I have already learned a lot of common knowledge about this world.
The higher the Order, the bigger the strength gap. Past the Sixth Order, each step surpasses the total difference from the First Order. So, a Fifth Order evaluation clearly shows Nicola's strength is at a really high level.
"Come clean, did you use Condensation Sword?"
I stared at Nicola suspiciously, simply unable to fathom why she was so much stronger than me when we came over together.
"No! Of course not!" Nicola looked completely innocent.
"I only used the weapons provided at the site. And you reminded me earlier, how could I dare take it out in a place like this."
She had a point. If she took it out, not to mention whether the wind elemental aura would be sensed by the crowd on site. Just the power of that sword, I figured even the chief examiner probably couldn't block it. She'd likely injure them in just a few strikes. Then there's no way she'd only get a Fifth Order evaluation.
"Sorry for wronging you."
After thinking it through, I had no choice but to acknowledge the fact that Nicola was much stronger than me.
I was actually starting to realize why she was so powerful. I had overlooked the most crucial point earlier, which was that she had slaughtered countless high-order magical beasts in the first few days after crossing over. Although it was thanks to Condensation Sword, the countless battles were real experiences. Adding to her innate talent, there's no way her strength could be weak.
"No problem! With our relationship, no need to stand in ceremony. If you're weaker than me it's normal." She was in a great mood after getting a high score, and generously indicated she didn't mind. Then as if recalling something, she asked "By the way, what Order are you? Let me see."
She didn't know my results earlier since she rushed in as soon as I came out.
"This is..." The last thing I wanted to be asked about right now was this. She just had to poke the sore spot.
She was trying to spite me! I held the card in my hand, hesitated for a long time without showing her. Finally Vivianne couldn't stand it and just told her directly.
"Hahaha, so you're only Third Order!" Hearing this, Nicola patted my back arrogantly and laughed. "Don't worry, since you're weaker than me it's normal. With me looking out for you in the future, you'll be fine."
"Thanks so much for that!" Seeing her smug expression, I was itching to punch her. Such a waste of a pretty face.
"What about you Vivianne, what Order are you?" I suddenly recalled that after knowing Vivianne for so long I still didn't know her exact strength, so I took this chance to ask.
In response she took out her card and handed it to me. I saw it said Fourth Order, Magic Attribute: Fire.
"Not bad at all, really impressive!" I sincerely exclaimed.
"They say the top adventurers at the Adventurers Guild are Seventh Order, so you're already above average."
Although not as strong as Nicola, I had seen her fight with my own eyes. She was much more powerful than me as an angel, I admitted that fair and square.
"Far from it, okay." She snatched back the card, somewhat embarrassed. "Adrian and Brennan are both stronger than me."
"What Order are they? Fifth Order already?"
"No, still only Fourth Order."
Looks like the difference between the Fourth and Fifth Order is still considerable. I remember during the test, Chief Examiner Woodes even made distinctions within the Fourth Order levels.
"Then let's go take a look to see if there are any tasks we can take on." Now that our strength was tested, I suggested going over to the bulletin boards first.
The bulletin boards were on the huge wall at the edge of the lobby. Countless mission information was displayed on it with magic, looking very much like electronic bulletin boards on Earth.
"Doesn't seem to be anything suitable." After looking for a while, we discovered the vast majority were low-level 1-2 Order missions, things like helping find a cat, running errands to buy stuff, and finding lost items.
Next, there were a few tasks with exceptionally high requirements that only a few dared to undertake, such as ventures restricted to adventurers of at least Fifth Order, or even exclusive to those of the Sixth Order, aiming to secure valuable magical materials. Or investigating extremely dangerous areas within dark force spheres, assassinating specified demons.
On the contrary, the mid-level 3-4 Order missions that we currently most needed and were suitable for were nowhere to be seen.
"Can't be helped. The vast majority of adventurers at the Guild are mid level, so mid level missions are the hottest commodity, snatched up as soon as they're posted."
Vivianne helplessly explained some common knowledge about the Adventurers Guild.
"At this time, there definitely won't be any left. If you want to take mid level missions, you have to come early and line up."
Looks like no matter which world, mid-level people are always the majority.
I considered just coming early tomorrow morning to take a look. Anyway I've been waking up early every day now. If that doesn't work out, there are still all those low level missions to take. Although the rewards don't seem like much, most are just a few dozen silvers, but beggars can't be choosers. The income would be way better than part time jobs on Earth.