"You have a tunic again!" Colt exclaims as he rushes over to me.

Canceling the glowing yellow bolt hovering above me, I sit up and look at him, mildly amused by his excitement at my tunic. After I left the guild hall last night, I went to a nearby store and bought myself a dark blue tunic.

Though I could have bought a more expensive one of a higher quality, I only bought one worth twenty copper. Part of the reason for that was because I'm hesitant to buy anything above my station, part of it is because if I bought one that expensive, it would draw gazes from others in the slums.

They'd wonder where I nicked it from, or maybe try to steal it from me. As it is, I had to fend off someone last night who tried to take this one, anyway. They thought they could grab it while I was sleeping but I woke up before they even reached me. I gave them a broken arm for their trouble and pointed a [Light Bolt] at them, threatening to blast their head in if they tried again.

Hopefully, that'll deter people from me for awhile. Most of us from the slums won't dream of going after a mage. Some people will probably try, but the more I fend them off, the more who will leave me alone. I should be able to move out of the slums before anyone who has Levels comes after me.

"I killed a deer with water antlers yesterday," I tell Colt as Thomas takes off his pack and sets it down. "It sold for a few silver, so I bought myself a tunic and a nice meal, then went to bed."

"That's great," he tells me. "How difficult was it?"

"It was easy," I tell him. "It died in two hits."

"Bluestream deer only have around 80-110 Constitution," Thomas says. "I'd heard a slums kid killed one, though they were saying it was a four-affinity, not a seven-affinity."

Thomas heard about my kill? Do they live near the guild, then?

"You heard about the kill?" Colt asks.

"Yes," Thomas nods and looks at me.

"The guild master's son figured out I was a seven-affinity," I say. "But told everyone I was probably a four-affinity who had been leaving behind the bigger slime cores and was probably around Level 10. I confirmed it to him not knowing he'd figured out the truth, mostly because I didn't want people knowing I'm a seven-affinity. He said water, air, fire, and light were my affinities."

"Good idea," Thomas says.

"How come I didn't hear about the kill?" Colt asks.

"I was informed," Thomas says. "This morning as I was preparing for today. Your father informed me that there was a report about a slums kid who's gaining Levels, that they'd run into some pretty strong goblins, one of which had a Grade 3 magic staff."

"Goblins with a what?" Colt asks.

"It's a serious issue," Thomas says. "So he wanted me to make sure I was careful if you go into the woods. He'd rather you not go at all until the rumor is investigated and if found to be true, then the threat neutralized."

"I'm-"

"Your father is also aware," Thomas interrupts Colt. "That you're going to want to go anyway and that you will be rather persistent about it. That's why he was warning me to be careful and keep an eye out. Considering the report that was given, the goblins encountered are a bit stronger, but within your capabilities."

"Okay," Colt says, then looks at me. "So how did the fight go?"

Colt asks me a bunch of questions about the fight with the goblins, Thomas listening the entire time. That makes me uncomfortable, my suspicions about him thinking about grooming me to work for Colt's family or even the king himself growing.

"You don't trust me," Thomas says once Colt stops.

"No."

"Understandable," Thomas nods. "It can be hard to trust people when you've grown up in the slums. I'm going to be honest with you, Max, that Colton's father asked me to see if I can keep an eye on the four-affinity slums boy. At the very least, to listen for information about him. He's asked me to do the same with you after finding out you're a seven-affinity from the slums. Those are both suspicious circumstances and he wants to make sure neither of you – or rather, you and you alone – are actual threats to the kingdom. That you aren't a spy from outside."

"I'm just me," I say. "And I'm planning on leaving the kingdom to explore the world and look for its wonders. I'm not a threat to the kingdom."

"I'm aware," Thomas says. "But we must still investigate suspicious things, and a kid who's from the slums being so powerful? That's suspicious."

"I'm not suspicious, I'm me."

"Have you ever killed?" Thomas asks.

"Yeah."

"I meant a human being," he clarifies.

"Yeah."

"And that's why someone from the slums is suspicious," Thomas says as Colt stares at me with wide eyes. "Especially when they're powerful. You don't seem suspicious to me after getting to know you, Max, but we must still investigate the possibility of it, just in case you're a good actor."

"Oh," I say. "Well, I ain't trusting you, either."

"I know," Thomas says. "That's why, even though you're exhausted enough to pass out after I train you, you don't fall asleep until we're more than a hundred yards away. You even wake if we get within that range."

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Which I find weird, considering that I only wake when someone's within a hundred feet of me. Maybe it's because I really don't trust them and this isn't an area I'm as comfortable with as the slums?

"You noticed?"

"It was noticed, yes," he says.

"You fall asleep after we leave?" Colt looks a little hurt.

"The training is exhausting," I say. "I can barely keep up with it."

"A few more weeks of it," Thomas tells me. "And you should be fine. Right now, you're building up your body and your stamina, and after about three or four weeks, you'll be at the point where you'll only need mild rest after rather than sleep."

"Okay."

"Now," he says. "Let's get training."

Colt and I pick up our wooden training swords, and Thomas begins drilling us in more strikes and other attacks. For the last fifteen minutes of it, he has Colt and me spar against each other. Colt is a vastly superior swordsman than me, so I lose every match. Being physically exhausted doesn't help me at all, but I still try to win. I do my best to figure out ways to attack that can get past Colt's guard, but he's just too good.

Even being three Levels higher than him isn't enough for me to win. I may be much stronger than him, but he's more experienced and knows how to deal with a stronger opponent. His reflexes are better than mine, too, despite my Agility being higher. My body isn't used to moving at these speeds, it's too out-of-shape.

This is probably them trying to make sure I know my place, which isn't really necessary. I know that I'm inferior to them.

"Good job, both of you," Thomas says when our match finally ends.

"I did terrible," I say. "That's why I's covered in fresh bruises."

"I can heal you," Colt tells me. "I know a basic flesh-mending light. Want me to?"

At least I know their healing is good for me. Regardless of their motives, they want me alive and healthy, so I know they'll heal me without an issue. I pull off my tunic and allow Colt to heal me, then the two of us go off and look for stuff to add to our lunch.

When we return to the fire that Thomas has started, we find five rabbits sitting there, along with some actual cooking supplies. There's a skillet and a pot. I guess he got tired of just cooking directly on the fire using sticks to hold them?

As usual, I watch Thomas as he cooks, doing my best to commit what he does to memory. Once I set off on my adventure, I'll likely need to cook my own meals. Even though he's only cooking rabbits right now, I'm sure he'll make other things for me to learn from time to time. If we continue this pattern for awhile longer, at least.

There's every possibility that they'll stop being nice to me at some point.

"Max," Thomas says as we eat. "What do you know about the elements? What they can do and how they interact?"

"Uh," I say. "I know fire and water are opposites, with water being strong to fire. I know that light is also strong against shadow, and that light can do healing stuff and shadows can be nasty."

Like poisonous, weakening, and various other horrible things.

"Okay," Thomas says. "The elements are divided into three groups. You've got the four basic elements, which are fire, water, earth, and air. Fire and water are opposites, and earth and air are opposites. However, this doesn't mean that one is inherently superior to the other. Water puts out fire, sure, but fire can melt ice and evaporate water. It depends on how its used. For earth and air, they are opposites as well. Earth can stop the air, while air can erode and break the earth. Light and shadow are opposites as well, with light pushing back the shadows and shadows pushing back the light.

"As you stated," he continues. "Light magic can heal and shadow magic can have foul effects. Toxins and corrosion are the more common forms. A talented enough shadow mage can even put someone to sleep, induce panic, inflict blindness, and more."

"Oh," I say. "Okay. So that's why shadow mages are looked at badly? A lot of 'em probably assassinate or something."

"Correct," Thomas confirms. "Though not all shadow mages are evil. Our queen is quite talented at shadow magics, and she's beloved by most."

"Not all?"

"Everyone has their enemies," Thomas tells me. "And our royal family more than most. His Majesty the King is the more likely target, however, as it's his lineage that rules our glorious kingdom. The elder prince, his heir, is also talented with shadow magics without using them for evil, though the younger only knows a basic [Shadow Bolt] for dealing with light-attuned enemies."

"Oh, okay," I say. "So it's not all evil. Okay."

"Correct," Thomas nods.

I think for a few moments as Colt gets out the stuff for my lesson on reading and writing.

"What are slime cores used for?" I ask. "They're bought up a lot, but they're also very cheap."

"Alchemy," Thomas answers. "And magic crafting. The cores are ground into dust, and that dust is mixed into things. The type of slime determines the effect. A flame slime's core can be used to create a potion that boosts your resistance to heat, while an ice slime's core can be used to create a potion that boosts your resistance to cold."

"Oh," I say. "I've seen some people collecting the goo from the slimes, too."

"Yes," Thomas nods. "If you can bottle up the slime after killing the beast, you can sell that. Alchemists use it to make salves. Flame slime and light slime are in high demand, the former to make burn creams and salves while the latter is used in healing salves. Shadow slime can be used to make antidote salves."

"How much does it sell for?"

"Depends on the slime, to be honest," Thomas answers. "And the quantity."

He gestures with his right hand, a blob of glass forming before shaping into a vial.

"This vial," he says. "Can fit three ounces of slime. Fire slime, light slime, and shadow slime might sell for a couple of copper for one of these, while you might need a few of these just to get one copper for others. Then there are exceptional cases."

"Exceptional?" I ask. "Like… needing a hundred of those to get a copper?"

"No!" He laughs. "The other way, actually. Have you noticed that some slimes are more common than others?"

"Yeah," I nod. "Like, ice slimes are rarer than water slimes, and I see metal slimes from time to time, but they ain't very common."

"Metal slimes are an uncommon slime," Thomas says. "But that's compared to other slimes. They're common enough that you'll likely see a few of them if you go into a slime-infested area like these fields. The type of metal slime they are determines how useful they are and how much their slime will sell for. Have you sold any of their cores yet?"

"I got annoyed with how tough they were when I first started, so I stopped hunting them."

"You can sell a metal slime core for a copper, each," he tells me. "Some of the rarer variants and the bigger ones can sell for more than that. They can be used to enhance metal weapons."

"So a really rare variant could sell for a lot?" I ask.

"Yes," he answers. "But remember that the rarer the slime, the more powerful it is at the base and the faster it'll grow in power."

"Will do," I nod.

At least I know that it's better to target the less-common slimes if I want to sell their cores. I'll work on making glass vials, too, to collect goo in. There might be days where I don't want to go into the forest and hunt, so killing rarer slimes will earn me a little bit more money for less work and collection.

"Ready for the lesson?" Colt asks, sitting expectantly at the boulder.

Thomas is normally the one who teaches me how to read and write, but it seems Colt's going to do so today.

"Yeah," I sit across from him, and pick up the piece of chalk sitting on this side.

"Today," Colt says. "You're going to learn how to spell your name."

"Can I learn to spell yours, too?"

I'm not that interested in learning how to spell his name, I just mostly want to see the difference between the spellings. If I'm feeling brave enough after learning our names, I might try to ask about how to spell Thomas's name.

"Sure."

"Awesome."