With Madison and Alice having went upstairs to negotiate privately, the three men downstairs sat quietly. It had been unexpected that Alice would request to speak privately with The Queen, but it did make sense that she’d do so. Regardless though, Enzi, Ronny, and Risitro in an awkward silence. Ronny was quiet because he didn’t want to speak to Risitro, Enzi was quiet because he didn’t want to make things worse, and Risitro was quiet because the others seemed not to care for him.

Risitro took a swig of liquor Enzi had served earlier to loosen up. It really did taste more like poison than a beverage, but he finished his glass quickly. He felt his muscles relax as the booze made its way through his bloodstream and found that he felt more sociable than before, “So, Mr. McKitty, what kind of magic do you know?”

Ronny looked up, glared, and looked back down. A few seconds later, he let out a quiet sigh.

“I could teach you some, if you’d like. I’m not as well-versed as The Queen or your Innkeeper, but still a good deal better than most.”

That warranted a response. Ronny spoke concisely, “What magic do you know?”

Normally, Risitro would have been more cautious with that kind of information, but the booze rendered him a little less clear-minded than usual. Plus, Ronny wasn’t much of a threat, not yet at least. His growth from the last time they’d met was noticeable—not just because of the presence of magic, but also because his muscles looked more toned and wirier than before. For now though, there was nothing to worry about, “I mainly use enhancement-type spells. Simple but effective techniques like Boost Strength and Quick Step are reliable in nearly every situation.”

“And how would I go about learning these?”

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“Depends on the person. Ability Users are born with the ability to use a certain spell, which makes things easy for them. Regular people, however, have to spend years learning the fundamentals before they can think about using magic for anything more than lighting a candle.” He added, “I think you might be an ability user… or something resembling one.”

Risitro’s words conjured up thoughts about The System, but Ronny had no intention of letting him know about its existence, “If I were an ‘ability user’, how would I learn what my ability does?”

“Most people, like Queen Madison, know what their ability is at birth, but some learn later in life. An example of that is my father, who didn’t realize he had an ability until he was strong enough to use it.”

Enzi joined the discussion, “Your father, The King, has a summoning ability, right?”

“Yes. It wasn’t possible to summon the creatures his ability allows him to summon until he was powerful enough on his own to earn their respect. It could be the same for Ronny.”

“So, you think that he’ll naturally find his ability if he just gets stronger?”

“It’s likely. I don’t know the specifics, but he didn’t have mana the time I met him. He’s stronger than he was in our last encounter, so it’s reasonable to assume that strength has something to do with his magic.”

Ronny sighed, “So when you said that you could ‘teach me some’ magic, you really meant that you wanted to help me train?”

“I was getting to that. Queen Madison offered Enzi the opportunity to train in for a position in the Royal Guard earlier, and I’d like to extend that opportunity to you…”

Ronny stopped him there, “I’ll pass. I won’t work for you. I think you know why.”

“Fair. In that case, my invitation remains open. Come whenever you like.”

“I won’t.”

“Suit yourself.”

♦

Madison and Alice came down from upstairs after a while, and they got to the now crowded foyer, Madison declared that, “I’ve got her on board. We can leave now, Risitro. She’ll be visiting the Palace tomorrow.”

The two left without another word. It was closer to dawn than nighttime by the time they were gone.

“What terms did you guys agree on?” Ronny gestured for her to sit.

She took the hint and collapsed onto the chair, “Good God, it’s going to a rough couple of weeks.” She went on, “And I’m as good as dead…”