Elemental magic explained part 1.
From the whole population, about 1 of each 5 people have some magical aptitude. While this changes between races, the average holds true for most of them, with some races with fae ancestry going as high as 2 out of every 3. Of these, 4 in every 5 will have a single element. Three will have a "creational" elements (air, earth, fire, water) and the fourth will have a "transcendental" element, light or darkness. Most will be able to only use the lowest magics like lighting a candle, making a faint light, create a handful of water or blowing leaves.
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Spellcraft explained part 1.
There are two kinds of spells one can cast. Formulaic spells are carefully designed and always generate the same effect (with a small wiggle room for changes) whose intensity depends on the affinity level and skill of the caster. They require study to understand the formula and take time to mentally construct (the casting time). On the other hand, spontaneous or ad hoc spells are created by willpower and intent in directing the magic. Instead of pouring mana into a carefully built construct, one just wishes the effect and then releases the mana. It is faster but unreliable and prone to accidents.
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A beautiful village girl ran up the hill once she saw the group camping in the trail leading to her uncle's cabin. Behind her three town guards with leather armor and spears and circling above a small dragon the size of a housecat.
"Uncle! Uncle!"
The girl kneeled near to the burly man, taking in his wounds and situation. She paid no mind to the two other girls keeping watch over him. The guards came right after she and Skippy landed on Aidan's body.
"You two, girls. What happened here?" The lead guard shouted with a commanding voice. He seemed suspicious.
Sora glanced at Aidan and he thought on what to say. They had to stick close to the truth because the man would give his own version of his story later. He decided to be 100% honest.
"We were traveling to Elmhill when we were attacked by a vicious wolf pack. Our dragon companion strafed the wolves but this man was sneaking behind them and was caught in the crossfire by accident. We used a healing potion on him." Aidan pointed at the empty flask next to the wounded hunter.
"Why would he be stalking behind the wolves?"
Aidan shrugged. "I don't know. We met him when we came across his cabin, but we left after exchanging a few without entering. We are in a hurry to get our companion here somewhere safe so we declined his invitation."
The guard assessed their situation. Two very young girls traveling with an unconscious boy in a stretcher and a pseudodragon. The hermit hunter was a nice guy, but not the best-looking bachelor in town by a huge amount.
"We have more questions, but we need to take Gurf to the healer. My man will carry the two and you follow us."
'Gurf should be the hunter', thought Aidan. But he raised an arm when the other guards were about to reach for the stretcher. "I'd rather ask the gentlemen to escort us. My companion and I are strong enough to carry the boy."
The guards used a tarp and wrapped the hunter in a makeshift hammock using a long sturdy pole. The leader would escort the group.
They left the wolf bodies behind. The surviving wolves would come back and eat their brethren. This would reduce the threat from wolf attacks. Aidan hid Skippy underneath the cloak. No need to draw attention to the small and valuable dragon.
It was already night when they reached the town walls. For a town that size the walls would be made of wood logs, but in this region, stone is more abundant than wood. When they crossed the gate they could see some dwarves going on their business. Dwarves could see in the dark and had very little need to sleep. They were industrious and worked for most of the night.
"Halt." The lead guard commanded Sora and Aidan. The other two guards and the town girl kept going on and disappeared in the still busy streets. The guard continued. "We need to register everyone that comes into town. What are your names and where do you come from?"
"I am Dawn, the boy in the stretcher is Brenton and my furry friend is Skye. We hail from Yutis."
The guard whistled. "Yutis. It is on the other side of these demon-infested hills. You didn't cross them but if you went around you would be coming in from the north, not the west."
"We were traveling around and training ourselves, but our friend got a strange curse that drains his mana. He can't wake up." Aidan saw the guards scare a little. "Not contagious or we would all be dead. He is like that for over a month."
"Yeah, and you have that..." Aidan interrupted him.
"Please keep that a secret. We don't want to cause more trouble for the esteemed guard."
The guard eyed the girl closely and used a low, commanding voice. "Don't leave town. We are not arresting you girls right now because of your goodwill in calling out for us. But we will have more questions later. Pray that Gurf recovers."
Something stirred inside Aidan. He straightened his back and suddenly the attention of all guards and some of the curious bystanders was drawn to his figure.
"I regard that this demesne is one bound by law and honor, senior guard. And so are we. Our statement is the truth and we stand by it. Of course, we are more than willing to comply with the kind requests of this esteemed senior guard, but we won't be subject to any kind of demeaning treatment. I hope I was clear."
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There was not an ounce of sarcasm or even a threatening tone in the line that came out of the girl's mouth. The veteran guard measured the girl again. Her demeanor right now, her countenance screamed aristocracy now that he took note of it. Was he dealing with some traveling noble from the neighboring country incognito? Or is he being scammed?
'Then again, this girl has a freaking fire-breathing dragon as a pet. I thought my life was over when I saw the critter flying from afar, mistaking it for a larger dragon. And this girl has not even a dagger on her. I bet she is a mage. Better play safe.' The guard thought.
"Then it is settled, lass." He answered. "I am Peter you can find me here at the west gate. Please let me know if something comes up and don't leave town without my knowledge. I recommend the Stout Goblin inn two streets down that way. Are you sure you don't want the healer to look at your friend?"
"No. Pleased to make your acquaintance, senior guard Peter." Aidan curtised perfectly without even thinking of it. "We shall be on our way then."
They left carrying Aidan's stretcher to the Stout Goblin. The guard watched the girls go and remembered the curtsy she made. "Girl, your name is trouble."
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Three days later they were called by the guard. Gurf had awakened. The girls barely left their room during that time, using the time to allow Aidan to recharge Lumina's mana pool. He found that it was easier to replenish the spent mana than to increase the maximum available mana, reinforcing Aidan's theory that he was burning his own magic to restore Lumina.
They left Skippy watching Aidan's body in the inn room and followed the senior guard to the healer. They found Gurf and the village girl in a common ward. Eight beds were kept close by in a room, five them occupied by people. The stench of blood and pus almost made Aidan puke. Sora had a heightened sense of smell, but it also meant she smelled everything all the time. To her, everything in a human town smelled like night soil, blood, and pus. It would take an overpowering smell to make her gag.
The man's face was no work of art, but now it was hideously ruined. Even with the healing potion's help and whatever help the healer gave the man, he was a walking horror. Aidan forced himself to take in the man's visage without flinching. He was glad Lumina hadn't surfaced that moment. His niece was by his side, glaring daggers at the two newcomers. It was obvious she was blaming them for what happened to his uncle.
Uncomfortable silence took over the room. The senior guard, Peter, cleared his throat.
"It seems Gurf confirmed your version of the story, Miss Dawn. He offered you his hospitality, you declined, he was worried about your safety and followed you. When he saw the wolf pack he attacked the wolves but then was caught in your... fire magic."
Aidan sighed in relief. But Peter wasn't done.
"However, the fact is that your reckless use of magic caused this man great grief. His niece and him demand compensation from you."
Aidan froze. In his behalf, Sora took the lead.
"And what form will this 'compensation' take, senior guard Peter?"
"Ten gold pieces. That should be enough to pay the traveling expenses to a bigger town where a priest will heal his face."
Aidan's mind ran some calculations. A gold piece is worth a hundred silver coins, or two thousand copper coins. It was half the bounty on his own head. But it was an insurmountable amount of money for two girls with no background to raise in a frontier town like this one. There was no lack of jobs in the town, with its own branch of the 'Hunters and Explorer's Guild'. But they would need to climb the rankings in the guild to access the better-paying jobs. Again Sora spoke on their behalf.
"We don't have this much money. But we agree to the compensation. Healing this man's burns caused by our magic because he was sneaking up on us. If these terms are fine, we shall settle this dispute."
Squirrel-kin were innately sociable. They were excellent merchants and diplomats, and Sora received training since a young age to be his companion. Not to count the formal schooling she received in the academy. After all, she didn't skip a whole year hospitalized like Aidan and Lumina.
"You do agree to the gold compensation then?" Peter asked.
Sora shook her head. "No. We do not agree to fund this trip or any other cost. We agree with the healing, in whatever form it takes. If it requires travel outside this town, then we will escort mister Gurf back and forth. Fact is that Mister Gurf stalked us in the wilderness with unknown motive..." She was brutally interrupted by the niece.
"My uncle is no stalker! He is the kindest man in this town, unable to harm a child!" She unwittingly sprayed saliva on Sora's face.
Aidan handed a handkerchief (a recently washed one) to Sora and she wiped her face. Peter noticed the intricate embroidery in the cloth. It only reassured him of these girls' origins. That was the reason he was trying to settle things peacefully. He knew it would take only one piece of paper to ruin his entire career or even end his life. And he witnessed first hand both how the little dragon could deliver a letter and how he could maim a man. Gurf was caught at the edge of the fire breath aimed at the wolves after all.
Sora also noticed Peter's eyes following the handkerchief and looked at the piece of cloth herself. The letters L. Y. were visible along the royal symbol of the Yutis kingdom. She nonchalantly hid the handkerchief in her pockets, making a mental note to look in Lumina's luggage for identifying items and hide all of them.
"We vow to heal the burns in your uncle's body. We also vow to not depart from this town until we do so, however, we will leave town to return later if we get a paying job or mission to do so. Only that." Aidan summoned the courage to speak. He had one thing he could try, but it was a far shot. He suppressed the urge to complete with 'I hereby swear on the name of the house of Yutis'. But he made a note that the urge happened, and from where it came.
"Is that acceptable, miss?" Peter asked the niece. She agreed. "Then I am calling in a priest of Sancus, god of oaths to sign the contract with us. The ladies have two silver coins for the contract, I presume."
"We do." Sora answered.
With a contract signed by Gurf and Aidan overseen by the priest and senior guard Peter, the girls left the healer and made their way to the tavern. Aidan was angry.
"Great! We are stuck here until we heal that guy now. Why that helpful uncle had to tail us? We could handle that wolf pack just fine, couldn't we?"
"It would take an enormous amount of time to gather that much money working at the guild. And we haven't even registered yet. How is your magic?"
"I am on the verge of getting a C ranking. It slows down a bit because the top tiers have big gaps between them. But at least I know I can use magic if needed. It recharges faster than it grows."
"Good. With the threat of prison gone, we should be able to walk freely in this town. Let's go to the guild and get registered."
"Fine. Lead the way, Miss Skye!"
"As you will, Lady Dawn."
They entered the hunter's guild and found some strangely dressed foreign guys wearing fancy armor and weapons. One of them pointed at Sora and spoke loudly.
「見て、見て！リスの女の子！」(Hey, look! A squirrel girl!)
Aidan understood what they said, even though he had no idea how. Something churned inside him and he felt like running away to the other end of the world. He grabbed his friend's arm and whispered.
"No, not them! Let's get away from here, now!"