Danuta starts playing around with her new staff right away. Well, right after paying Olgierd, who in turn pays me. There just is no stopping her. In a way she is like a little girl that just got the best birthday present ever. And somehow that thought fills me with pride.

She tries the various keywords, spreading light of varying intensity all around. It ranges from a light glow at its lowest to a bright light of almost blinding intensity at full power. Where the lens on my staff produces a curiously focused light, the crystal of her staff emits a nicely uniform radiance.

Her playfulness prompts me to try the higher settings on my staff as well. After my first experience I make sure to carefully aim it away from me and especially my face and eyes though.

Even Olgierd and his wife look on as I experiment. The latter emitting a thoughtful hum, right until I try the highest setting.

Where Danuta's staff produces an uniform bright light you can't directly look at, mine produces a tightly focused beam. As a matter of fact due to the shape of the lens the focal point is about a dozen paces away, right around where the fence is.

Nawoja's hum turns into a choked cough and Olgierd bites back a curse as well.

I in turn quickly utter the key phrase to deactivate the light. My gaze, like that of everyone else present, is riveted on the fence board with the small blackened circle, with smoke still rising from it.

“Awesome!”

That comes from Danuta.

“I better get some water.”

That is muttered by Nawoja.

“You do that.”

The latter is the response of Olgierd before he turns to address me.

“I take it that was not an intended result.”

I shake my head, still staring in disbelief.

Once his wife is done splashing some water on the smoking spot she pats me on the back.

“It sure has some potential though. Still needs more work though. You might want to experiment with different lenses and something besides a staff to make it easier to handle.”

I'm still at a loss for words and just nod along as she speaks, barely noticing Danuta patting me on the back as well.

Finally, as the witch is already leaving, still sniggering, I manage to pull myself together.

“Something else entirely. Could you two make a mill for me? I want to make another mana mill. A simple handheld mill will do.”

I stop to ponder the last point.

“Actually, it if you could make it a little smaller and easier to handle than the one I already have, that would be best.”

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The two smiths ponder my request. Olgierd nods and Nawoja speaks up.

“We should be able to do it. It's just a regular mill until you enchant it, right?”

I nod with a smile on my lips.

“It is. It should be able to grind roasted coffee beans to the same consistency as the crystallized mana.”

The two look at each other and shrug. Olgierd lets his wife do the rest of the talking since she already started.

“That is the first time I hear about mana mills grinding anything but actual crystallized mana, but if you think its alright … you want a new mill because you don't want to mess up your other one with this coffee stuff, right?”

She catches on fast.

“Exactly! I want enchanting dust to be mixed in with the coffee when I grind it. We found out that it makes for an exceptional mix at the academy. But I don't want any coffee mixed in with my regular enchanting dust. And the stuff is notoriously hard to clean. Thus a new mill.”

The duo nods again. Apparently my explanation makes sense in their eyes. Now it is Olgierd who takes over the conversation.

“I'll drop by tomorrow to have a look at your mill and take some measurements. I can't exactly make any promises about the size of your new mill though since we don't make the mill stones ourselves. We have to use what we can get unless you are willing to wait and pay for custom made mill stones.”

I wince at the last part, since I already spent plenty of money today. I shake my head.

“No. If you can get slightly smaller stones I'd appreciate it. If not I'll take something the same size as my current mill. It really shouldn't be any bigger though. That would be too hard to handle and probably too heavy to move. I'm not in too much of a hurry either. I'll grind the coffee using one of my mortars for now and add the enchanting dust afterwards for the time being. In the long run it would be nice to get a proper mill though. That would make things just so much easier.”

With that just about everything that needs to be said is said. We shake hands and I take my trusty old staff and limp back home. Although, by now there isn't much of a limp left to notice. I'm still careful not to put too much weight on that foot though. Just in case.

Sour Cream is already waiting for me, sitting in the open window. Her tail swishes left and right, showing some kind of agitation.

At first I'm worried that something might be wrong.

She quickly, and to my great relief, proceeds to show me just what the issue is.

Her bowl is empty. In fact is licked as clean as it can be. Oh my, what a bad servant I am, running off all afternoon on my own, leaving her to go hungry.

I refill her bowl posthaste before she can get any more upset.

“Sorry, sweety, but you know, if it is really bad you can come and look for me. I'm pretty sure you know your way around the village.”

The look she shoots me seems to suggest that she shouldn't have to go and look for me. Before I can read any more into it she refocuses her attention on the contents of her bowl though.

I run my hand along her back to the very tip of her tail and bend down to kiss her atop her head.

As I straighten back up I can't stifle a yawn. No wonder, the sun is already setting outside and I have been pretty busy today. Maybe it is time to hop into bed. I lock the door and get changed. Before I can actually slip under the covers another thought strikes me though.

My gaze wanders to the mana mill. The mana mill with the drawer only half filled with enchanting dust. With a sigh I jump back onto the workbench and start cranking the handle once more, all the while quietly humming to myself.

After a little while Sour Cream jumps up on the workbench as well, to brush up against me.

I take a moment to scritch her under the chin.

“Don't let me keep you, sweety. Go ahead and catch yourself a nice mouse. Or maybe even two or three. I'll see you in the morning.”

That seems to be all the encouragement she needs. With only a few graceful jumps, one down from the workbench, one up onto the bed and the third up onto the windowsill and lastly out into the night, she is gone.

My gaze lingers on the window a little longer, then I resume turning the handle of the mill. I keep going for a little while longer. In the end sleep once again proves stronger than me. Ha! What else should I expect?

I jump down from the workbench and check the drawer of the mill, which still isn't quite full. It is full enough for me though. I empty its contents into the same container I used last time. Even with the glittering dust from the mill emptied into it, it still looks woefully empty. I will need so much more of the stuff.

In the end I shake my head though. It is no use worrying about it. It is what it is. Either I work that mill harder myself or I post quests for it more regularly.

I put the bowl back on the shelf, with a second bowl turned upside down on it to secure its contents.

A water or wind powered mill would be so convenient! Never mind. It would be terribly expensive as well. There is no way I'll be able to afford something like that anytime soon. It still would be nice though. Maybe, eventually …

I shake my head again and slip into bed and sleep claims almost as soon as my head hits the pillow. In my dreams I stand triumphant above my nemesis, the mana mill, this time around, thanks to the power of wind! How silly!