A Master’s Recognition
"You really don't know anything, do you?" After saying that, the girl rested her chin on her hand and sank into thought. The room, which had been brimming with vitality, fell silent in an instant. In the humid air, still heavy with the lingering heat of our conversation, only the sound of her tapping her desk—tap, tap—could be heard.
My eyes naturally followed the sound to her hands. They were long, slender, and elegant, with neatly trimmed nails. The callus on her middle finger and the faint blue tint at her fingertips all blended together to give off an intellectual vibe. Even if her tone was a bit dismissive, she seemed like a fundamentally diligent person.
The paper lying next to her was filled with notes. I snuck a peek and saw she had been recording my reactions during our conversation. Race and magic aptitude: X. Difference between magic and quasi-magic: X. Basic magic knowledge: X. Everything was covered in red crosses.
"So, you... what's your name?"
"Hazel."
"Hazel?" She repeated the name, her gaze shifting. She glanced at my tail for a moment before continuing. "That’s a name that suits you. Alright, Hazel. I want you to hear this without any misunderstandings."
She seemed to be choosing her words carefully, thinking for a moment before she went on.
"It’s funny coming from someone who took your money, but I don't think you need to spend it to learn anything from me." She glanced at me, gauging my reaction, then added, "It’s not that you did anything wrong. Ah, seriously."
She ruffled her hair, then smoothed it back down as she spoke. "You did well. You're still young, but you have good focus, your eyes are sharp, and your posture is correct. But you know so little. You don't know anything at all. The things you need to learn right now, Hazel, you could learn from any of the mages scattered around this town. There’s no need to waste your money learning from me."
Do you understand what I mean?
I nodded at her words, which had come out like a sigh. Seeing that, the look in her eyes softened.
"Right. If you were the child of some noble family, I would’ve happily fleeced you. Consider yourself lucky that you’re cute."
With that, a brief silence fell. Only the sound of our breathing filled the room. The rhythm of our breaths, crossing each other regularly, gradually slowed. It felt as if time itself were slowing down to match us. It was as if someone had plucked this moment out of time and was stretching it thin. In the air that felt infinitely lengthened, the girl finally spoke.
"Your guardian looked tired."
Her voice was different now, tinged with a languid quality. Perhaps it was nostalgia. "That’s the life of an adventurer. Even if they look like they’re doing well and living fine on the outside, it’s a difficult and dangerous job. The income is unstable, they can’t get home often, and it’s not like they’re making an astonishing amount of money, either."
She counted off on her fingers as she spoke. "It’s money your brother earned by risking his life, so don’t spend it in vain. Find someone who can teach you for cheaper, and use the remaining money to eat something delicious together."
Or go somewhere fun, she added with a faint smile. But brother? Who? Whose brother?
"Let’s just say I did some charity work today. Hazel, this is a really rare opportunity, you know? I’m an expensive person." She stretched as she said this.
"Um..."
"Why?"
"I’ve been studying on my own until now... and I don't even know what I should be learning. Could you please take a look at me?"
The girl smiled and replied, "Fine, I’ll be generous. I’ll teach you everything. But in exchange, can I pet you?"
"Yes, if you..."
Before I could even finish, her rough hand reached out. My head shook as she spoke, and I made a strange sound—"Ngyak-nak-ya"—which made her laugh out loud.
"So, you studied on your own? What about books?"
"Books?"
"The textbooks you used for studying. Even if you were self-taught, you couldn't have done it with nothing."
"'Practical Magic for Adventurers'."
"Practical... magic... for... what?"
She muttered to herself, stopped moving her pen, and asked, "Practical Magic? Are you talking about Estira’s Practical Magic?"
"Yes, yes..."
"You really taught yourself with that? Are you sure?"
"Yes..."
As the atmosphere tightened, my voice grew smaller on its own. The girl closed her eyes for a moment. Then, the sound of tapping on the desk returned. A moment later, she broke the silence with a question.
"Do you know how to draw a Light Generation magic circle?"
"Yes, yes."
"You can use a pen, right?"
As I nodded, paper and a pen were placed in front of me in an instant.
"Draw it."
She set the ink bottle down in front of me. Drawing a magic circle wasn't difficult. I had heard that Light Generation was the most basic yet important magic an order-type adventurer needed to handle. I had memorized it first.
"How do you reduce the brightness by half?"
"Should I change this part here?" I asked, pointing to a corner of the magic circle. It was a spot I had vaguely thought controlled the output, as it appeared in all sorts of magic circles.
"Do you know how to draw other magic circles?"
"What about Magic Arrow?"
"What about Water Generation?"
Questions and answers followed. Unlike when I was thinking leisurely, having to answer her questions on the spot made my head spin. By the end, I even felt dizzy. The girl didn't look entirely composed, either. At first, she had let out exclamations like "Hmm" and "Oh" with a relaxed expression, but now she looked almost shocked.
"Did you memorize all of this?"
"No. About half..."
She ruffled her bangs and leaned back in her chair. "Why on earth is there someone who teaches themselves with Practical Magic..." She let out a long sigh and continued, "Hazel, I take back everything I said earlier. I also take back the part about not charging for today's lesson. Do you understand?"
She turned her body toward me. Then, she grabbed both of my shoulders with her hands. Her gaze was intense.
"My name is Meredith. From now on, call me Master. Try it."
"Ma, Master?"
"Right. Good job." Meredith grinned. "Your guardian is worth emptying his pockets for. I thought he was someone who didn't know the ways of the world, but he had something to rely on, didn't he?"
With that, she roughly ruffled my hair. I felt my hair puffing up in every direction.
"Are you going home alone?"
Seeing me nod, Meredith began to roughly tidy up her desk. "Then let’s have dinner. Your master made some money today."
Before I could even refuse, Meredith grabbed my hand and led me out of the room. It was a mage’s hand—rough in places from calluses, stained with blue ink here and there, but incredibly beautiful and warm.
The inn where Meredith stayed was, to put it simply, located in a second-class accommodation district. It wasn't the best in the city, but it was an area where clean and decent inns were gathered. Good inns naturally attracted successful people. Consequently, the level of the restaurants that settled around the inns was also high. After all, if you weren't exceptionally good at cooking, you couldn't compete with the inn food.
The restaurant Meredith led me into was, of course, a good one. I could tell just by looking at the sign, which had proper writing on it instead of just pictures. If it had been a mediocre restaurant, I would have tried to run away, saying, "Ameryel is waiting for me with dinner ready."
What came out for the meal was a bird leg dish with the thigh attached. A warm, brownish sauce was drizzled over the perfectly roasted meat. There were two plates, one for each of us. I could feel my tail wagging. Worried that I might kick up dust, I curled my tail forward and held it in my arms. If I were kicked out for being a beastkin slave who kicked up dust at the table, it would be a regret that would last a lifetime!
A basket of white bread and a plate of thinly sliced cheese were placed on the table one after another. My mouth watered. It watered so much that my salivary glands stung and ached. My stomach wasn't just growling; it felt like it was churning. Waiting was not an easy task.
Finally, a waiter approached the table with a metal bottle and glasses. As the waiter went to pour the drink directly into the glass, Meredith lightly raised a hand and stopped him, saying, "Leave it, we'll do it."
"Will you pour it?" Meredith said, holding up her glass. She then lowered her arm holding the glass to the side of the table so it would be easier for me to pour.
I grabbed the metal bottle. The liquid inside sloshed, and the scent of sweet fruit and alcohol overflowed from the bottle. I carefully tilted it. The deep ruby-colored liquid drew a gentle curve as it was sucked into the glass.
"Thank you. Enjoy your meal."
I put the bottle down and watched Meredith quietly. She sipped her wine, then looked at me, who hadn't touched the food yet, and asked, "Are you waiting for me?"
When I nodded, she said, "You’re so polite. Now I know why the old fogies are so obsessed with this kind of thing," as she tore off a small piece of bread and put it in her mouth. Then she tore off the rest of the bread and placed it on my plate.
The meal was delicious. I thought the portion was large, but it was so good that I finished it all. Meredith watched me with a silly grin throughout the meal. It was quite a while later that I learned there was a tradition among mages of forming a master-disciple bond by raising a wine glass.