A door was knocked on.

Rays of light beamed in through the window and wrinkles on the sheets on the wooden bed in the room shone. A girl slept under the ivory wool of the blanket sheets, and each knock on the door agitated her against the pillow and scrunched the covers.

Knock, knock.

“I’m up, I’m up, coming,” Ann said.

In the inn room, she dressed herself and guessed Chad had come to wake her. In casual wear she approached the door, passed the armoire where her washed equipment laid.

The door opened and she saw Chad about to knock on the door again with his right fist held up in the air.

“Hey,” Ann said.

“Morning, do you want me to come with you?”

“No, this city is safe like I said before. You could have just messaged me.”

“I’m still not used to messaging.” Chad pointed down the hall. “And my room is just over there.”

Ann had lent him some money yesterday as the coins on him weren’t accepted by anyone. She wanted to use this opportunity to rope him in completely.

“My meeting with this renowned teacher of some sort is this afternoon. What are your plans?”

“I’m going to a dungeon. I heard there are many on this floor.”

Ann didn’t know what dungeons were but she nodded anyway.

Outside she searched for a horse-drawn carriage to travel to the outskirts of the city.

She took the day off yesterday to recoup from the aches that the first floor caused her and even now, sore. On her rest day she searched for a magic teacher and found one. There were only a handful of posts, some with grayed-out names who she couldn’t get in contact with. She had settled with one, the only one that had messaged her back.

She heard trotting clops on the cobblestones heading her way.

Ann hiked the dirt path and she was a ways away from the city. To her sides laid flowers which lead to a dilapidated cottage up the hill.

Crunching dirt beneath her shoes, a bouquet of scents pleased her nose. She paused her tracks and made sure she was in the right place. She opened the menu, checked the messages, looked around, and then continued.

Ann knocked on the door. “Hello?”

The wooden floor thumped and creaked. The door opened.

In the dim room, she saw a face as old as time. The coned hat and the long white beard pointed up and down. A crimson robe pulled her eyes in. A tempest swirled around as an aura emanated away from him.

“My, you trying to give this old man a heart attack?”

Ann took a step back. “Are you Earl?”

“Yes, and you must be Ann, come in.” Earl turned and walked deeper into his home. “Sorry about the place. I have not had any visitors in a long time,” he drawled.

Ann hesitantly entered and then closed the door.

“Come, sit.” Earl gestured to a stool in the middle of the room.

She sat and faced him, her eyes soon adjusted. He looked like a regular old man now that she had a better look. The presence he exuded a moment ago was nowhere to be seen. His beard unkempt, hat ripped, and robe pink from faded red. Must have been the lighting and the kicked up dust.

She scanned the room. Open curtains. Papers sprinkled across the desk while a half-opened drawer stuck out. Books leaned on one another as well as piled on the ground. Her eyes then landed on a chalkboard which Earl stood nearby.

“I’m not one for pleasantries so let's get right on to the lessons. But before we touch on some of the theories of magic—at least from my understanding, there are of course many schools of thought about the matter—I should tell you about my qualifications before we begin. I’m an alumnus of a very well known very prestigious magic academy, which by the way I was the youngest to have ever entered in. I’ve been granted the title Elemental Grand Magus Supreme by the king himself, but as I said in our messages you may call me Earl. I have been studying and researching the art of magic for…”

Ann hunched over and listened to him drone on. A lot of what he said came in one ear and out the other. She couldn’t help but fidget on the uncomfortable wooden stool as she didn’t have anything to lean her back on.

“... questions?”

Ann shook her head.

“On to the theories then.” Earl wrote words and equations on the chalkboard. “There are two ways of casting, with chants, and without. I’m assuming you are aiming for the top of the Tower, so we’ll only be focusing on chantless magic. Using magic with chants isn’t practical at all.”

“Can you demonstrate some magic? I’ve not seen much of it.”

Earl pointed up and a small fire materialized a few inches above his finger before it sizzled out. “This is everyday magic, the very basics using the fire element.”

Earl also showed a drop of water and a piece of rock, hovered over his finger as Ann intently watched.

When he pointed at Ann, she felt a breeze pass her face and hair. “These can be used to give warmth, quench thirst, dissipate heat, and till the soil. Well, with that last one, you’d have to touch the ground—there are many applications to magic.”

Ann shot up, straightened her back. “How can I do that?”

Earl wheezed out a laugh. “Finally got the first reaction out of you. When I saw magic for the first time I reacted the same as you.” He coughed. “You have to feel mana within and around you which is the first step to learning chantless mana, but you say that you couldn’t ever since you were born?”

Ann nodded.

“And you’re sure?”

Ann nodded again.

He scratched his chin. “I’ve heard of rare cases like this.” He came closer to Ann and put one hand on her shoulder. “Pardon. Can you feel anything at all?”

Ann shook her head. “No, nothing.”

Something was there, something foreign, but she didn’t know what it was. It wasn’t strong enough to mention.

Earl released his hand and walked into the room next door. Ann heard drawers opened and closed, glasses clinked against one another.

“You’re in luck, I have been researching ways to increase one’s mana sensitivity—a concoction of mine,” his low muffled voice could be heard in the other room.

Earl came back with a small vial in his hand.

He held the vial by the neck, tilted it back and forth from left to right. “Found it.”

She locked eyes on the vial with the clear liquid inside. Doping?

“Don’t look so afraid, I’ve tested it, it should be the safest and quickest way to get a feel for mana. You don’t want to spend the rest of your life trying to, do you?”

Ann paused for a moment. “How much?”

“No need to fret, this thing is made cheaply.” He handed it to Ann.

Ann popped the cork. No smell.

Earl observed her as she downed it. “Well, do you feel anything?”

A pressure pushed down on her, from within and around her. Different from the sense of touch, the pressure came from someplace unclear. That sense of pressure heightened more and more. She fell and then clutched herself into a tight ball.

Ann’s discomfort turned to anguish. “What did you give me? I feel like I’m dying,” she muttered.

“Don’t be so melodramatic. Your body is adjusting to your new sense, it will pass. I'm certain.”

Earl’s words died out, it was the least of her concerns. Pain was existence as she lost awareness.

Everything went black.

Ann awoke to a dimly lit room. As her vision cleared, she realized she was in bed.

A figure appeared at the edge of her vision, and she turned her head to see Earl standing there.

"You're awake."

Ann tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness washed over her.

"Take it easy. Your body is still acclimating."

"Where am I?" Ann asked weakly.

"You are still in my home. Rest. Tomorrow we will pick up where we left off."

Too weak to retort, Ann closed her eyes.

A teacher and a student were in front of a desk with four snow globes in front of them. The globes had four different scenes: models of flames on hay, a beach with a wavy ocean, wind chimes hung on trees, and layers of sedimentary rocks.

“You don’t have to give me that look. You’re fine and you can feel magic now, which by the way, would have taken years to develop, rejoice,” Earl said.

“You better not try anything again I…I have a god backing me.”

“That wasn’t my intention and you drank it out of your own volition.”

“And did you have to sleep right next to me?”

“It's my only bed. Would you have a frail old man sleep on the cold hard floor?”

Ann exhaled deeply. “So what’s that then?” She pointed at the globes.

“Place your hand on one of them then channel some mana into it, it shows if you have an affinity with that element or not.”

“How can I channel mana?”

“That unfortunately can’t be taught, only by feel can you achieve it. Think of it like flexing muscles. Just simply push your mana out of your fingertips.”

She had gotten used to the sensation of the ambient mana around her as well as the pool of mana within.

Mana inside a person can be manipulated and shaped then cast into miracles, or in other words, magic. Spent mana can be replenished over time from the ambient mana in the air or from a potion. Says Earl.

Ann placed her right hand on the globe with models of flames. She closed her eyes and focused on the mana inside her.

The new sense was a meld between sight and touch. A vast colorlessness in the shape of shadow pressed across her body. A stir. Is this how to move it?

She nudged bits of mana closest to the tips of her fingers. It was impossible to move anything larger.

It wouldn’t exit. Blocked.

Earl sighed. “Nothing yet—I wonder what I should have for lunch. This could take a while,”

Ann gripped the globe tightly. Brows furrowed.

“Oh? keep doing what you are doing the color is changing.”

Ann imagined the globe as Earl’s skull.

Drip, drip. Mana sunk into the device, one drop at a time.

“That's enough, stop.”

Ann opened her eyes. The transparent globe turned into a red ball.

“A deep red, you have a strong affinity with fire. Try the other three.”

The globe changed back to its original transparent state when she lifted her hand. She checked her affinity with each of the other globes. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead.

“A deep blue… deep brown… and deep green.” Earl rubbed his chin. “Don’t see that every day. I don’t have devices to check for other affinities so this will have to do.”

“Why not?” She wiped the sweat away.

“I only have affinities with these elements and that’s what I'm going to be teaching you. Come.” Earl dragged Ann along next to the chalkboard and then pointed to an equation. “Affinity, control, and imagination; multiplying them will determine the power of the miracle. Affinity, you either have it or you don’t. Control is what mages hone for, strive for. And imagination, it's often overlooked, but perfect beginners. You should be able to produce a miracle—magic, try it.”

Ann pointed her finger up like Earl had done yesterday.

“Stop.”

Ann put her arm down. “What?”

“Your control isn’t good enough—you need a wand.” Earl hurried to the other room. After some rummaging, Earl placed a wand in Ann’s hands. “Hold it like this, wouldn't want to get burned now, do you?”

She held the wand with the tip tilted up and away from her head.

“Let’s try fire magic. Do what you did before, but only think of fire. How fierce it looks, how hot it feels, and the crackling sounds it produces when it burns things down.”

She closed her eyes.

“Don’t close your eyes—that’ll be useless in combat, it's best to not develop bad habits in these early stages of your learning.”

Her eyes shot at Earl. He’s right though.

She focused her attention back and then her vision dimmed, but the wand. A picture of fiery flames of fire raged as she squeezed droplets of mana into the wand.

Sparks flickered above the tip. Not enough?

Focus.

A scene unfolded of the campfire she and Chad had made. Alone in the darkness, eyes fixated and stared at the light. It gave warmth as the woods cracked and settled in the cold of night. Sat still, the fire danced to consume the twilight.

Tiny flames flickered on and off.

“Wonderful. You’re making quite the progress, dear student.”

Ann had stopped the flow of mana and then wiped the sweat off of her chin and forehead. “Thanks.” She suppressed a grin.

"You'll become accustomed to spellcasting soon; it's just a matter of refining your control. Practice until you can effortlessly circulate your mana throughout your body.”

“My whole body?” Her head spun at the idea.

“Yes, once you can accomplish that, visit me again for the next lesson. You’ve already demonstrated that you’re capable of achieving a similar feat with the other elements. All that is left is practice practice, practice.” Earl stuck out his right hand.

It took Ann a second to understand.

Ann opened the menu. “So one gold for two days?”

“One and a half.”

“That drink you gave me, you said it was cheap.”

“The concoction? Oh no, this is for food and lodging.”

“It shouldn’t be that much.”

Earl bent over with a hand behind his back. “Argh, my back—it took some doing to get you to bed and I didn’t sleep well last night.”

“You didn’t sleep well? I didn’t. You had the blanket all to yourself and I woke up from the cold.”

“My back, my back.”

Ann sighed and just sent him the money.

Earl stood up straight. “Thank you very much, now let's have something to eat, shall we? It’s on me.”

Ann's regard for Earl took a slight dip, but an idea brightened her mood a bit.

Ann and Earl sat next to the kitchen table, where they had eaten some of Earl’s food, preserved food in the morning. They were too salty and sour.

“You said it’s your treat right?”

“Yes, I did.” Earl looked at the table of freshly cooked meals.

Food from restaurants, fast food, and food stalls laid before them. They came with utensils and plates, as they had been served at their respective places.

Ann held up an item stick. “This is a better way to preserve food. Let me know which of them you want.”

She didn’t know if it would preserve food, but she still wanted to sell the item sticks to Earl with a markup. She hadn’t decided by how much though.

“I’m interested in your shop ability, you called it? What makes a shop a shop? Does it make copies of the item or does it snatch it away from them? How many times can you buy a single item? What happens when—”

“I haven't tested it that thoroughly yet.” Ann interrupted.

“Well then, let's get to work—first we eat, I'm famished.”