Kaelum had thought he’d be learning powerful techniques and magic spells immediately, but after their conversation that night, Tiela had said she was going to be thinking of a plan and told Kaelum not to bother her. Then she disappeared into his soul space, deep in thought once again. Kaelum went to sleep after his dinner.
Waking up the next morning, Tiela still wasn’t responding. For the past few days, the only time they had talked was at night. Tiela would absentmindedly answer Kaelum's questions while he would perform his breathing technique until he slipped into sleep.
Kaelum learned many things this way, things like the tiers of mages and a bit about what separates each of them. For example, anybody who trained their body, but hadn’t opened their mana veins was considered to be tier zero. Theoretically, a well-trained tier zero with a strong body could potentially defeat even third-tier knights.
The barrier between first-tier and tier zero is significant, to become a first-tier mage one needs to unblock their mana veins to let the mana flow through their body. First-tier mages are then able to absorb mana from their surroundings and fill their mana heart. Once their mana heart is full, the mage is considered to be a peak first tier.
Tiela hadn’t told him what the difference between a first-tier and second-tier was, she just responded that he shouldn’t think that far ahead, that he hadn’t even achieved the first tier yet. When he asked why a tier zero could defeat a third-tier but not a fourth tier, Tiela responded that fourth tier mages were a completely different story.
A fourth tier’s body could control externally projected mana. For example, a second-tier knight might be able to throw a fireball, but they wouldn’t be able to control it once it left contact with their body. Whereas a fourth tier knight would be able to freely manipulate it.
Kaelum thought of all the cool stuff he’d be able to do if he were a fourth tier mage while he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He took a drink of water and then stood up and stretched.
After stretching, he left for work. This pattern had continued for the past few days and Kaelum’s days had turned into a routine by this point. He would work all day with his weird breathing technique and then talk with Tiela while using his breathing technique until he fell asleep.
For work, he would wake up in the morning before heading to the west gate, where he would ride the wagon with Old Miller until they got to the camp. Kaelum would work all day while practicing his breathing technique, occasionally making conversation with the old man while he waited for Kaelum to finish loading the wagon.
Kaelum had found out that Old Miller’s father had owned a mill, hence his name, but Miller loved the forest too much to follow in his father’s footsteps. So he built a small cabin in the woods and forested outside the city of Arum. He didn't make much money, but he enjoyed it. His sons helped him with felling the trees and they would leave the number to age for firewood or they would treat them for use in the city’s walls. Like that, they made a small business while doing what they loved.
Kaelum’s thoughts would often wander to what he wanted to do. He promised to help Tiela by becoming a knight, or rather, a mage. He wouldn’t be in service to the kingdom, so he’d just be a wandering mage, or maybe since he was the future princess’s disciple he would technically be a knight of Kassivir? He had no idea.
Kaelum wondered what that meant though, what happens after you become a knight? Is he just supposed to keep training, but for what purpose? Maybe he would want to start a farm after becoming a knight, or maybe he would become a city lord. All he knew for certain was that he wasn’t too confident in his abilities, but with Tiela as his master, he would probably make something of himself.
No, with Tiela and Karrow’s expectations, he would definitely make something of himself as a mage.
After he finished filling one last wagon, Kaelum's fourth day of work came to an end. He rode the wagon back into the city Old Miller before collecting his pay. As he left, Miller told him to get home safe and keep an eye on his surroundings, it was something Miller did every night. He was a kind, old man.
Kaelum walked down the winding streets of the administrative district, ten small copper coins jingling in his pocket. On one side of each coins was the crown of Kassivir and some words that Kaelum never learned. On the other was a portrait of Lord Marcus of Arum, revealing which city the coin was minted in. Peake had taught him that.
Over the past few days of work, Kaelum had managed to amass a total of fifty copper coins, or one silver and ten coppers. Peake had made him memorize the conversion rates of all the coins when he was showing him how to pickpocket. Apparently, Peake didn’t want Kaelum to just try to steal the biggest coins, a lesson Kaelum learned after he had done just that.
If Kaelum recalled correctly, it went forty copper crowns to a silver crown, and one hundred silver crowns to a gold crown. Nobody walking around the streets of Arum carried anything larger than a gold crown, so Kaelum had no idea what was worth more than that. Below copper crowns were copper bits, but they didn’t have a set rate. They were usually cut up bits of older coins or foreign coins and they could be traded for anywhere between two to ten bits per copper crown.
Counting the few bits and coins he had hidden under his pillow, Kaelum was now worth around fifty-four copper coins. He really was coming up in the world!
During the past few days of work, Kaelum had managed to not spend a single coin. He had actually been able to get a bit of food just as a shopkeeper was tossing it, that lasted him for a couple days and Miller had given him some fruit from his own lunch on a couple occasions.
Just as Kaelum’s thoughts turned to food, his stomach rumbled. The food he had collected from the trash had run out yesterday and he didn’t have much time to get more while working until dark, by then the stray dogs or other hoodlums would’ve gotten all the good stuff. Rather than go hungry, Kaelum decided he was going to spend some of his newfound wealth.
His eyes were fixated on the pastry shop as his steps filled with purpose. As he stepped in the door, the scent of sweets filled his nostrils. Usually, he would never dream of stepping foot inside, the baker would always keep a close eye on him so he couldn’t snag anything. Now though, he had a pocket full of coins!
He saw many kinds of pastries that he had never tasted before, some had a sprinkling of sugar, while others were drenched in honey or chocolate. Finding one he wanted to try, he reached his hand to grab it, only to be interrupted by his favourite mental roommate.
‘Don’t get that one, get the one with caramel on top!’ Said Tiela. He thought she was going to reprimand him for buying sweets, but she seemed to be more excited than he was.
The baker looked like he was about to say something when Kaelum took the pastry into his hand, but Kaelum soon walked over to the counter and paid, surprising the tired-looking mustached man. It would seem Kaelum had a reputation. Honestly, Kaelum usually would've been thrown out just for entering, but the mustached Baker seemed oddly docile and even glad to have Kaelum's patronage.
Kaelum and Tiela savoured the pastry while he walked back home, the setting sun casting long shadows beside him as he walked. For Kaelum, this was the first time he had ever bought something with his own money, and it tasted like the best thing he had ever eaten, much better than stolen food.
For Tiela, this was the first time in a long time that she had actually eaten a pastry. The soldiers usually just had some form of hardtack in the war camps and she took the same meals from the quartermaster as her soldiers. Then, after coming to the past she was on a strict diet of trash or roadkill from Kaelum.
As Kaelum walked back feeling blissful, he asked in his mind I Didn’t know you were gonna pop up earlier, usually, you’re pretending to be busy until we actually get home.
‘I wasn’t pretending to be busy’ Tiela resentfully said. ‘I have been planning and thinking about our situation.’
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