They were, of course, quite lost.

To the surprise of both young men, neither were that peeved at not having remembered to ask Evangelinda for directions to the Mage’s Guild. Specifically, Nozumu: as an actual tourist, he was happy to wander until he was fed up with it. Directions, after all, were just a question—to anyone—away.

“What’d they call this city again?” Ivory asked, as they passed a gaggle of [Scribes].

“Phel’s Light.”

“I’ll try and remember that. So far, everywhere I’ve been I’ve only ever known as the name of the kingdom or place that they are.”

“What do you mean? Give me an example.”

“Like, here for example: I just thought of this as me being in Pheislant, not the city of Phel’s Light. Same for when I was in Dejima—I was just calling it Dejima, not Tsumai. And Jin-Sukudoma! And then it turns out the capital of Calanfer, where I appeared, is just called The Eternal Throne of Calanfer! How unimaginative.”

Now, Nozumu had two choices. The first was the neutral option, whereby he laughed and then agreed. The second, however, was the chaos option: ‘that’s because it’s made out of a Dragonthrone’. He did quite want to opt for chaos, if only to see his reaction—and for discussion that would ensure. Did a Dragon bring Ivory here?

“You are in a new world; you are learning still. Perhaps there is a reason it is called the Eternal Throne?” he replied, choosing a third option. Drathian tutelage was founded on the idea that answers should seldom be given when the journey of discovery and intrigue was equally as, if not more, important.

“I can imagine it going either way. But I’d bet it was just basic arrogance. They love that kinda shit.”

As Nozumu was sighing slightly dramatically, Ivory stopped suddenly and grabbed Nozumu’s arm.

“Look!”

He looked to his side and saw a nicely calligraphed sign above.

“[Mystic] Staven. There’s… a hand next to it,” Nozumu replied, not understanding the reason for this episode.

Ivory waved his hands around and stuck him with a brief stare.

“A [Mystic]? That’s a class related to yours. I bet the hand is there because he reads your lifelines, or something. Back home,” he said quietly, “it was all just bullshit, but this definitely is a thing. You should go in and ask for some direction!”

“You can’t be serious. You don’t just go into someone’s business and ask ‘hello, please teach me’.”

“What’s the harm! If he tells you to shove off, well, we’ll be leaving tomorrow, so it doesn’t matter. I’ll admit it’s a bit much—I’ll pay for him to give you a reading, or whatever. Then ask. How about that?

“That sounds a bit better,” he said with a sigh.

Ivory was expecting some spooky shit when he went in. Prejudiced that he was against this kind of stuff back on Earth, he still expected some stereotypical scenes. Hanging moons, dark colours, see through shawls, spooky charms, that kind of thing. Instead, he entered something far more civilian. It looked like a studio apartment made into a shop. The room was well lit—by magic, no doubt—the walls were adorned with all manner of books… There was even a lovely painting of the seaside that took up most of the side wall.

It was on the table that the stereotypical objet d’art of the astrological scene. Some crystals, an effigy-looking thing, a little potted plant and lots more, all organised neatly. What broke the veneer was the young man sitting on the other side of the table, looking up at Nozumu and Ivory with a welcoming smile.

“Hello there. Welcome. Please, have a seat. How may I be of service to you both?”

Nozumu, having been co-opted, was waiting for Ivory to respond, which of course he eventually did, but not after a few seconds of awkwardness. Neither missed Staven’s eyes politely alternating between the both of them

“Hello! I’m Ivory and this is Nozumu. We are here for a, erm, reading?” Just saying the word made him feel like an idiot.

“Is that so. What would you like to know, Ivory?” Staven casually replied. Nozumu caught his breath as he developed whole body goose bumps.

“I—what?

“‘What’ indeed. What would you like to know?”

He said there, slightly stunned. Was this some kind of trick?

“Well, you tell me. What can you do?”

“A good, fair question. I offer a variety of capabilities on offer as a [Mystic]. One of which is to gauge prospective clients.”

Ivory waited for him to continue, but he just sat there looking at Ivory. Nozumu was on the edge of his seat.

“Okay, gauge us.”

He replied without skipping a beat.

“You are one who understands well what one of my class can do—moreso than most. You are nevertheless a sceptic, despite the fact that your primary class pertains to magic.”

Now, Ivory got goosebumps.

“That is usually the extent of what I tell clients with my Skill—but I find, in my experience, that people seldom approach me for good natured reasons, nor are my clients usually good people. I do not know whether you are a good person, but those who are kind to animals tend to be.”

Staven looked at Misoe, and she gave him a few air-kisses. Ivory flitted between a light preen and sheepishness.

“Nozumu,” he continued, turning to him, “we are kindred. Why has your friend dragged you in here?”

Ivory looked affronted, but Nozumu replied instantly.

“He… I would like to learn the ways of my class.”

“Which is?”

“[Stargazer].”

Staven clasped his hands and rested his head on them.

“I haven’t heard of that one—it sounds like a recreational class. As I expect you know, there innumerable functions of our classes; few are mutually exclusive, the difference between them usually is the skillset they focus on. Of course, like any class, gaining a rare Skill can influence and determine your trajectory. My question is this: what can you do?”

Ivory wanted to know this as well—where the first half of the sea journey was dominated by Ivory’s magical advancement, the second half was on Nozumu. He knew he’d levelled up—but he was not so forthcoming with revealing it, not that he’d pried.

“It is… hard to explain, since I don’t really know myself. Apart from [Basic Celestial Awareness] and [Astral Sight], my Skills don’t make much sense. Ivory has helped me understand some of what it means, which has been helpful. I received a few Skills recently: I can tell what the weather for the next day is with [Weather Forecast: Tomorrow], and I have [Mana Augur] and [Ambient Mana Gatherer]. The last two seem to be related, but I do not have any idea what they do.”

Staven nodded before leaning back in his chair, arms crossed.

“Hmm. If you two would excuse me a moment, I’ll consult some notes of mine. I won’t be a moment.”

They gave each other a look as Staven excused himself.

“What about [Guiding Star]? You know how that one works,” Ivory said, confused.

“I am not going to tell him about the Skills I know a little bit about, am I? Plus, that Skill…”

“... Dangerous to tell people about, I suspect,” Ivory finished. You wouldn’t want people asking favours, or something. Nozumu gave a slight tip of his head and the two of them resumed their position.

“Did you get those Skills on the journey? As if you didn’t tell me!” Ivory asked.

“‘Owned’.”

“Ouch. Why not go to Wikipedia?”

Nozumu looked over, an eye raised: so that’s what we’re going with, huh?

“Your entire class is based on you figuring magic out for yourself. Do I need to answer that?”

Ivory turned a bit red at that.

“Well, sure. Fair enough,” he eventually replied. “Hey, are you okay there?”

“Yes. Sorry, that was quite rude of me. I like to keep a record of the people I have met, if only to keep a diary of sorts. I checked to see if I had met any colleagues whose craft—specialisation, not [Witches]—focused on the astral. You see, most [Fortune Teller] classes are derived from [Mage] and the like. Your specialisation is, generally speaking, derived from either your existing understanding, or—as I said—gaining a specific Skill or Skills. Most use tarot cards or crystal balls. I, myself, was a simple [Hedge Mage] who visited a travelling [Soothsayer] and was inspired. In [Hedge Mage] style, I tried emulating some simple Skills he displayed—trust me, it wasn’t a good look, but I was having fun. After a week, I levelled up and my class changed.”

Staven shrugged, and then gestured for Nozumu to extend his arm.

“Here—I will show you what I specialise in. I have only worked on Human hands, but the process is all the same. Open your, ah, claws out. Excellent. Further to what I was talking about before, I use this Skill to convince the drunk people with a hole to burn that I am, in fact, ‘the real thing’. With your permission, I will divine an event from your past, the present, and the future.”

“Yes. Do it.”

Turns out, Ivory was right: he was reading his lifelines. Staven was carefully tracing and palpating Nozumu’s bumpy palm. Wisening up, Ivory decided to sustain a [Detect Magic] to, well, see if he could see anything.

Each of Staven’s fingers flickered with dim light; the process, after all, was magical, but it wasn’t magic, per se. There was no magic emanating from Nozumu’s end—but then he remembered the Skill of his. He leant back a bit and focussed specifically on what he expected to see from such a Skill as [Ambient Mana Gatherer]. He had to really squint before he saw it: the most translucent, barely noticeable suggestion of mana was making its way into Nozumu. He didn’t know how he was doing it, but that was the beauty of magic in this world—it does what it says on the package. Ivory resumed looking at Staven—he was tracing a finger up one of his talons.

“I will say, this is a first. Before I go on, it is pertinent to state that I am no [Doomsayer]. I strive to ascertain positive events, and I will seek to divine a different event if it is not one my client will appreciate hearing.”

Ivory’s curiosity got the best of him.

“For example?”

“For one man, I saw the argument which led to his divorce. My Skill focuses on significant events in one’s life, after all. So: your past. I saw a great gathering of people; on Drath no doubt. You were in a crowd of young and old, and a figure of great import was addressing the crowd. I speak no Drathian—what was this that I saw?”

For the second time, both Ivory and Nozumu erupted in full body goosebumps. Now it was getting real.

“That was my entrance ceremony to the academy.”

“Fascinating. I feel privileged to have borne witness, if only for a few moments. Now, your present—where my Skill is strongest. To divine one’s past is to evoke memories; it is the simplest of the three. To divine an event from the immediate present is to piece together a puzzle—consider it similar to… building a sandcastle. You leave it for an hour, and it’s gone: someone’s kicked it over, the water has crushed it, and so on. Now you must recreate it feature for feature, perfectly. You know how it looked, because you made it. But recreating it perfectly?” Staven shook his head. “Difficult. To further complicate things, you, yourself, may not have internally deemed anything significant yet. That woman you helped, who dropped all her yellats—perhaps one day she is [Queen], and bestows upon you land for your aid that day, as she was hosting the future [King] for a meal. Imagine, now, that someone else needs to recreate this sandcastle.”

“Casuality,” Ivory said under his breath.

“Hmm?”

“Like… There is a saying. A, ah, bird in Drath flapping its wings can cause a tornado in Terandria.”

Staven ooh’d.

“Exactly—I’m using that. So, your present,” he said, turning back to Nozumu, “you disembarked a ship, no doubt the one you took to get here. I recognised the appalling racket and, specifically, the Drathian section. You know, Drathian divining agents are always top quality—if expensive. Your future, now. The most difficult of all—for the future is seldom set in stone. I am crippled, in this regard, by my level—a level 40 [Mystic] or [Sage] could provide a more accurate picture. What I saw was brief, confusing and strange—from your point of view, I saw a great, blinding light. This could be something as mundane as, say, a [Flare] spell—or your death. I couldn’t tell you. But I say this, for all that this was a brief insight into your future: do not trust to it, or seek it out. Consider it a passing intrigue and, for all intents and purposes, forget it.”

Ivory had turned pale after hearing all of that, but Nozumu was composed.

“I have heard similar warnings of fate magic. Thank you for showcasing your abilities. Your speciality is some kind of… hand magic? There are [Healers] back home that operate similarly, using the body’s chakras. Are you doing something similar?”

Staven looked impressed.

“That is exactly right—my Skill, [A Touch of Insight], simplifies the process. It is the base from which I perform my services. Now, with your insight of chakras, you may well be able to utilise this form of divination—I would not recommend it, admittedly for selfish reasons: I have met no other colleague whose divination focussed on the astral and celestial.”

Staven reached into a draw and placed several bags onto his table.

“I was fleetingly curious, at first, by your reason for coming to me. The last thing I need is another competitor—it’s a cannibalistic industry—and why should I share my expertise? But I know it would be worthwhile to help your cause, so if you’ve the time, I will share with you the knowledge you seek.”

The words unspoken by the level 21 [Wise Mystic] were ‘I will level tonight’.

“Well,” he said, leaning back in his chair, “some of it.”

Immediately, the facade of mysticism vanished. Staven retrieved multiple items from the bags that Ivory recognised as belonging to, well, witchy spiritualism.

“I’ve tried my hand at many different forms of divination. Tarot reading is a big one—simply put, each card is representative of a certain aspect: say, death, life, and so on. A question is asked, and the divination comes in the form of interpreting the drawn cards. Popular with [Charlatans], since one can simply learn the meanings of each tarot, but a potent form of divination nonetheless. I, myself, dislike it—too complicated, and I don’t like relying on a set of tools as the basis of my work. In a similar vein, crystal balls, like the one I have here. I’ve not had it work for me, but one gains vision of a desired event—like a scrying orb, but not attuned to any ‘television’. Don’t give me that look, Ivory—it’s heavily augmented by Skills, and only really worth it once you’ve invested in it. In my opinion, anyway. Then you’ve got the more ‘hands on’ approach—animal divination. [Seers] love all that, though they have a poor reputation among the common citizenry. A rich [Lord] or [Lady] is more likely to see one, rather than me—they are welcome to it. Anyway—hands on approaches. Looking at bird formations, patterns of ants, and all sorts of other stuff. Chicken entrails, fish guts…

The list went on and on, and Ivory thought he may even dabble. But no—they were here for a purpose. When Staven was catching his breath after rattling off another ten ways one can perform divination from the behaviours of animals, Ivory butted in.

“What about what Nozumu can do? I know what an augur is, but how would his Skill work?”

“The thing is, I have very little idea. As I said before, bird formations and gut stuff is known as ornithomancy, performed by an [Auspex]—a deep commitment to the craft. How a [Mana Augur] would work is, unfortunately, unknown to me. Perhaps by collecting a certain amount of mana, you will be able to gain an answer to a question? Obtain a vision? [Appraise] a class? I don’t know. Skills that activate on nigh-happenstance are… undesirable, to a [Mystic] like myself, who needs to be able to work at a moment’s notice. I don’t even have the knowledge to say whether the Skill is rare—I simply am too ignorant. The only advice I can give in this regard is to trust yourself; you will know what to do when the time comes.”

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Nozumu exhaled, looking a touch overloaded. Staven started packing away his magical apparatusses as he reassured him.

“Let’s go back to what you can do. Knowing, now, of all the different ways your power can manifest, what can you do?”

Ivory didn’t understand—it sounded like the exact same question from before, but Nozumu clearly got it and had a talon to his chin in thought.

“I’ve been having some strange dreams, since I have been more aware of my class.”

“Dreams?” Staven replied, leaning further in. “What kind of dreams?”

“Nothing special—in fact, they have been a bit too normal. I have been dreaming of just… doing normal things. Some I have just been sitting upright while I am in bed, others I have walked around.

Staven had a look of curiosity on his face that Ivory interpreted to mean ‘I have no idea if this is relevant at all’.

“You could be having lucid dreams?”

Both turned to look at him.

“A what?”

“You’re basically dreaming, but you’re awake. What? You are dreaming, but you are conscious that it’s a dream, and you’re in full control.”

“Interesting, interesting… I can’t say I have ever heard of that, but I suppose it’s possible.”

“Oneiromancy, you know? Have you not met any [Oneiromancers]? No? Dream divination?”

Ivory’s childhood knowledge of RuneScape was coming in handy.

“I have not, no. There is much that I do not know—as is the way. I will have to bring forward my trip to the library, it seems! I haven’t any bookings for today, perhaps I will close up shop and head over soon. I hope I have been of assistance?”

“Yes, you have. I appreciate it very much,” Nozumu replied, and stood up to bow. Staven wasn’t used to a) such a response and b) one so curteous.

“It was a pleasure to meet the both of you.”

“Oh! What do we owe you?” Ivory asked abruptly. Staven smiled knowingly.

“Your payment can be levelling. Level, and return to me and indulge me with your newfound insight. You are both welcome to join me, by the way.”

“We are engaged, but thank you. Can you please tell us where we can find the Mage’s Guild?”

“Just around the corner. Turn right once you leave, and then one more right. It will be near the end of the road. I will see you both out.”

“Gwah.”

“And you. Your companion certainly is something. How did you come by it?

Misoe excused him calling her an it.

“Well,” Ivory said as Staven locked the deceptively tatty front door, “I was in Drath, and I saw this seal performing magic, so I cast [Detect Magic]—she started eating the magic! She flew over to me, and the rest is history. Isn’t that right, you greedy walrus?”

Staven had a sparkle in his eye, at that. He indulged, once more.

“Did you pass the fish markets on the way here?”

“Yes,” both responded.

“I gave a reading to a [Fisherman] a few days ago—family friend. Told him he’d encounter good fortune. A basic reading which I seldom perform, but my grandmother insisted. I don’t need a Skill to imagine I will be hearing from her soon!”

“Ah, ha ha, yes, well thanks again. See you again!”

Staven gave a wave and headed off in the other direction.

The light, salty breeze that wafted through the street was truly revitalising. It perked the two of them up, putting a spring in their respective steps.

“Have you ever had a lucid dream?” Nozumu asked.

“No, but I’ve tried to. It’s meant to be really hard to do—gotta, like, lay down still without moving at all, and god knows what else. But that’s without magic. I reckon you’re either doing that or sleepwalking and remembering it.”

They turned the corner; the Mage’s Guild wasn’t in sight yet.

“I will see what happens with that. What did you think of all he said, Ivory?”

“Me? He’s the expert—what do you mean?”

“I don’t know… even though I had no expectations, I am still disappointed that out of all the ways of divination, he didn’t know about what I can do.”

“No one knows everything—as he said, it’ll come in time. Maybe we ban the almanac and you just focus on what you already can do. Using your Skills probably gives experience—what’s the weather going to be like tomorrow?”

Nozumu frowned.

“This ‘game’ system you were explaining. [Weather Forecast: Tomorrow]. Cloudy and hot!” he exclaimed, abandoning his annoyance of having his home compared to some recreational activity.

The rare vim in his voice made Ivory do a double take.

“Favourable conditions for you…?”

“No—when I cast it last time, it took me a few minutes before it came to me. It came almost instantly just now.”

“Huh. That’s what I’m talking about! Eventually you’ll understand all the kinks of how all your Skills work. What’s its cooldown?”

“What?”

Ivory drooped his head.

“How long before you can cast it again?”

“Why would I need to cast it more than once a day?”

“You could be travelling somewhere else—that’s not the point. Knowing the ins and outs of what you can do will help you level. Try and use the Skill again.”

Nozumu complied, once again closing his eyes as he activated the Skill. Ivory saw this happen two more times.

“I can’t.”

“Thought so. I don’t have any cooldowns on mine I don’t think, since it’s all based on how much mana I have. The way I think of it—and Hidenori confirmed it—is that I have a kind of ‘magic organ’ that I am training when I use magic. It’s like anything, really: you practise anything enough, you’ll get better at it. Walk before you run, all that. It surely applies to you as well.”

Nozumu said nothing; he felt stupid for not realising that he already knew that—his first class, [Drathian Undergraduate], even had Skills that aided in this way. As was always the way in life, the practical application of something trumped that of knowing it theoretically.

“Well, we’re here,” Ivory said, breaking the silence. “It’s weird to say that this one’s smaller than the one in Calanfer, for how huge this one is.”

Nozumu looked up at the mammoth structure before him. Just looking at it made you know this was a place of magic. Where the guild Ivory had first seen was more regal in appearance, this one embodied that of the sea. Magical motifs of boats, shifting from the more unremarkable solo-vessel to warships flickered in and out of sight, not to mention the shimmering aquamarine of the structure itself.

“Shall we?” Ivory said.

“Money, Merchant’s Guild transfer. Do you need to do anything?”

“Nah, but I’ll have a look around, I guess.”

Fortunately, this guild wasn’t as busy—owing to the fact that virtually everyone had business at a Merchant’s Guild. A quick glance around confirmed that, at the very least, this Mage’s Guild was organised in a similar fashion to the one in Calanfer. They walked to a counter where a bored [Mage] began to put on his customer service face.

“Welcome to the Mage’s Guild. How can I be of assistance?”

Despite the fact that Ivory saw his transition from ‘I don’t want to work the counter’ to ‘I love my job’, he still felt like he was going to have his needs met and his problems fixed. Nozumu likewise.

“Hello. I am here to accept a delivery of money that has been sent from Drath.”

The man blinked a few times before exhaling through his nose.

“That is a job for the Merchant’s Guild.”

“I have come from the Merchant’s Guild, where I created an account for myself. I was told that I needed to come here to receive it.”

The man raised an eyebrow.

“Who told you this? The Merchant’s Guild?”

“No, but they confirmed to me that this is what I needed to do.”

The man looked down at the little blue rock mounted on his desk and mouthed a ‘huh’.

“Very well. I will need your identification—what is your name?”

“Nozumu.”

He kept his look for a few seconds, waiting for a surname, before carrying on. The guild directory immediately displayed ‘Nozumu, Peacock Beastkin’.

“Account creation less than an hour ago. A delivery—not bound by [Street Runner]—for a Nozumu, of 15 gold pieces… to the Merchant’s Guild… [Speak] spells upon request… and two [Messages]. You are welcome to wait in the study with your messages as I finalise things with the Merchant’s Guild.”

The [Communication Mage]’s spirits were lifted slightly, at being able to perform his usual role. He wouldn’t make the mistake of gambling for better shifts again. He picked up two rolls of paper and handed them to Nozumu.

“I will confirm the job’s completion with you shortly. It’s on your left when you turn around, behind the scrying mirror.

Nozumu thanked the man and they made their way around the study. The scrying mirror was on, showing Wistram News Network—a Human was on the air discussing Fissival’s alleged stifling of Gnollish magic.

“Oh, it’s actually just television. You know, I learned magic from one of these—some [Mage Teacher] was on to teach little kids the basics of magic,” he said, collapsing on the Sparkhawk down cushion-lined lounges. “[Light]. My first spell.”

The little orb of light lasted only a few seconds before Misoe lurched forward and ate it. Nozumu nodded casually, catching only the part about [Light]. He was busy reading one of the [Messages]. Ivory looked back at the scrying mirror.

“... fair to say that it is by Drake hands that such an affront to magic has been committed? Should we not wait for proof? On the other hand, that a war happened due to it is in itself telling. Viewers—send us your thoughts. Whom do you think is to blame? What should be the repercussions? We will read…”

“Jesus Christ, that’s wild,” he sighed. “’Phone in to have your say on the war’. Whew. Glad I’m here. What’s the letter say?”

Nozumu was still finishing it off, but he looked up in response.

“It’s what Hidenori said, but in greater detail. There is a second, though…”

He unfurled the paper and began to read.

“‘This is addressed to your Human friend.’ What?”

Ivory had a blank look on his face—as one would.

“Is that like, the header? Or the whole thing? Pass it here.”

“The whole thing. Maybe it can only be read by you?” he replied, handing the paper over. It was considerably shorter than Nozumu’s, which was at least four pages strong.

Ivory saw the brief sentence as the sheet passed into his hands. As he touched it, a gentle green glow appeared from his fingers that were making content. It spread across the page, illuminating the message for its intended recipient. Even for Ivory, with his dedicated literacy Skill, it was a bit hard to read—it was seemingly written in cursive.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Greetings to you, Ivory Henderson.

‘I hope this [Message] finds you well’, is, I am told, the shibboleth of such endeavours. Even now that you are away from our dear Drath, I am still learning more from you—well, I have learnt as a result of my having known you. You see, it has been an age since I last sent [Messages] for my own pleasure. When you are as content as I, you seldom seek those outside your immediate sphere. Oh, what a fool I have been! My eyes, as ‘all-seeing’ as I like to claim, have been opened.

The first topic I wish to discuss—briefly—is one of business. You’ll forgive me for enchanting you; the lives of most are short, and it would have been a poor reflection of Yurluxiamo had I not seen fit to defend you against malicious agents of Drath. Which, of course, they were. Bureaucracy bores me so—know that the threat has been eliminated.

I have been made aware that you’ve been offered passage back to our fair home! It would please me to invite you back to Yurluxiamo, should you take up the [Premier]’s offer. Rarely do outsiders come to Drath, far fewer are invited.

Oh, but I have already strayed from the old stylings. Perhaps I shall just speak and see where the wind goes.

[Message], what a spell. Would you believe that I had not even heard of television? Wistram are a cheeky lot—the connection goes two ways! How they forget decorum. Be sure to encrypt your own, should you come into possession of a scrying mirror. Chandrarian [Gladiators]—what a thrill it is to watch! I am not beyond a little gambling, for all I know its allure. I have a favourite, of course, but I won’t tell. Such things are fit only for one’s own self, you know. Should you travel to Chandrar in your pursuit for great magic, tune in, if you’ve the stomach. I’ve a mind also for newspapers, too! The wanderlust of my youth, now barren, once a verdant oasis, is now seeing its first drops of water in ages—how wonderful it is to stay up to date with the world, without having to leave my beloved home. I—”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It cut off!” Ivory exclaimed, seeing nothing beyond that ‘I’ at the very bottom of the page.

“No, something is up. There—the top of the page is glowing. I can’t read her writing very well, is it different?”

Ivory looked at the top of the page and chuckled.

“Yep, it’s different. She’s incredible.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

—I wonder if I should do something similar. Perhaps the [Emperor] would enjoy knowing the whims of his subjects. Ah, I am thinking aloud—but is that such a sin? A pall upon those who would demean it.

I shan’t keep you—of course not. I am occasionally reminded of your look of awe at my magic. I hope you will take this compliment in the spirit in which it is given—for a weak Human to have made such a mark on a being such as myself is extraordinary indeed. Why, just today, I have received four students from the Dejimaean academy—a [Dancer], [Swordfighter], [Plant Grower] and [Massager]! The crucial exchange of expertise will once again thrive in Yurluxiamo.

Write back, should you find the time. So often have I first read the flowery words of those whose correspondence finds me before they themselves. Always a disappointment, though that is in part a failing of my own doing.

Hmm, hmmmmm… Guinevere Chalidge of Samal. This will be your recipient, should you send me a [Message] in return.

Do enjoy yourself.

Jiji 🐍

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ivory placed the reset [Message] on his lap. He turned to Nozumu, and the two shared a long look of awed disbelief. He had, of course, been reading this aloud.

“Where do I even start?” he said, his head craning back onto the deliciously soft cushioning.

“You have made a strong impression on the Matriarch… The [Emperor] himself would consider her a confidant.”

“I didn’t know there were newspapers—that’s another Earth—” he whispered that part—“thing. She said it as if it’s new… but maybe she is just oldschool.”

Before Nozumu could reply, he saw the [Mage] that had served them look over with a wave.

“I think the [Mage] is finished. Let’s go up.”

Ivory carefully folded the message and placed it in his Bag of Holding as they went back up to the counter.

“Thank you for waiting—I did not want to interrupt you reading your [Messages]. Everything is all sorted—I have been in contact with the Merchant’s Guild, and your gold has been successfully transferred, and will be at intervals arranged by your benefactor. Is there anything else I can help with?”

“Why, yes!” he said with an emerging grin. Nozumu looked at Ivory with sudden concern—if he had conventional ears, they’d be heating up. “My friend here, see, is from Drath. Can you let him know what you can do at a Mage’s Guild?”

The [Mage], not really knowing anything about Drath, obliged him. The theoretical red ears of Nozumu had now travelled to his face—and it was all too real. He was positively flushed with embarrassment.

“A Mage’s Guild defines its surroundings,” he began; Ivory stifled a laugh at that. “It is the centre of service for a city. As you will now know, a Mage’s Guild is where you go if you wish to send or receive [Messages]—the guild works in conjunction with the Runner’s Guild to deliver [Messages] if need be. It is here you can indulge in news, current affairs and also local events: we import notable newspapers and newsletters from our sister guilds scattered across both Terandria and afar. As affiliates of Wistram, we have Wistram’s newsletters containing all-you-need-to-know information about current affairs from a variety of [Commentators]. As an important local hub, we also have flyers and pamphlets detailing any local events happening—be it a local play, community fishing days, children’s play days, and anything else—it can change daily. One of the more popular events is magical sparring, held at the Relic Mage’s mansion—tryout applications are available now.”

Ivory’s eyes lit up at that—but what a shame that they were leaving!

“... and any other general inquiries can be made here. We can put you in touch with any [Enchanters], [Spellscribes], [Architects], and soon. The sky’s the limit.”

“Wow,” Ivory said. “Has that helped, Nozumu?”

“Oh, yes. It has.”

“Great! Thanks a lot for your help—could I get a thing for that magical sparring?”

“Of course. Here you go.”

Ivory took the leaflet with a smile—this was worth coming back to Pheislant for, unless there was some equivalent in Calanfer. Regardless, Ivory one-handedly undid his bag of holding and slipped the pamphlet in. The [Mage]’s eyes went wide for a little bit upon seeing the Bag of Holding suddenly appear, and made a mental note to check after his shift about concealment charms. Also to check about seals.

“Have a pleasant afternoon.”

Ivory could hear some fierce discussion from the scrying mirror going on as they left the guild—clearly, someone had a dissenting idea about that war that had gone on.

“You do know that the Mage’s Guilds here aren’t so foreign to me, right?”

“Sorry, sorry. I couldn’t help myself,” he said, with little regret in his voice. “Look, I’ll make it up to you once we’re back in Calanfer. I actually know a little bit about the place—well, I know how to know.”

Nozumu rolled his eyes—he was learning the flair of dramatism.

“It isn’t a competition. Wait, is that…?”

Nozumu was looking at a woman casually leaning back against the opposing building. Upon seeing the pair notice her, she kicked off and began walking towards them.

“Howdy partners!” she said in that distinct accent. “I’m surprised, you know. Was that rehearsed back there?”

“Huh?”

“Nozumu there really had your back. I was just fucking with you.” Evangelinda coughed a few times into her elbow. “Much better. C’mon, you really thought there was actually a half-Elven village named Australia? I suppose my acting is better than I thought.”

Her accent had switched from the stereotypical Texan accent to that of an English one. Before she knew it, Ivory had embraced her.

“You ass,” he choked out, with tears rolling.

“Aww, don’t start! You’re the first I’ve met after so long; I couldn’t help myself. C’mon now,” she said as Ivory withdrew, “they love me in the guild, so I took a half-day. Come to my place—let’s talk there? You are welcome too, of course, since you are obviously aware of us.”

Nozumu and Misoe just looked at Ivory for confirmation.

“Yes, obviously! Lead the way.”

Ivory wiped his eyes and held out his arms as Misoe drifted over to him.

“It’s a lovely place that I rent from the guild. Nah, what the hell—as if that’s the first talking point between two Earthlings!”

Everyone laughed at that.

“So, how did you—”

“Ah ah, not yet,” she interrupted. “I’ve played out how I want that discussion to go in my head too many times to count. Plus, not out in the open. Tell me first about your friends here!”

Thus began the first small-talk of both Earthers’ time in this new world—in fact, it was Nozumu doing most of the talking! It was no skin off either Earthers’ back—The Talk™ was close at hand.