Stella had decided to move and is now living in a room near Lilliana.
After a tumultuous day, they were offered a job, a generous sum of money, and a day of rest by the guild master.
Despite this, Stella was still deeply affected by the event, and decided to rest that morning, opting for a lie-in.
As for Lilliana, she decided to get up early to do some shopping.
First, she decided to have breakfast, sitting on a terrace.
She enjoyed the little pleasures she could afford with her adventurer's pay. In the past, she could only continue to look on with jealousy at the adults who could afford it, while she, penniless, had to hunt for food.
Following this, she went to a weapon shop. When she opened the door, a bell rang.
When the manager saw Lilliana enter, he was surprised by her age. He did not expect that one of his customers could also be such a young girl.
"Hello! What can I do for you?"
"Hello sir, I'm looking for a new sword, one that can withstand the blood of monsters."
The manager looked like a bear: he was stocky, covered in hair, with a very short head of hair and an imposing beard. Lilliana wondered why all smithy and armory managers looked like.
"A varnished weapon then. And a sword preferably. What's your budget?"
"Forty thousand astels."
"That's a lot of money for a beginner adventurer! I think you'll be able to find something in my shop. With that kind of money, you can even buy some F-rank blades."
"Can you recommend some of your weapons?"
"Of course."
The shop manager presented Lilliana with six swords. Each of them was a quality blade, two of them were even of F rank.
The first blade was a relatively thin blade with a wooden guard, hilt, and pommel. It was an E-rank blade that favored quick attacks and dodging.
Unfortunately, these were not Lilliana's specialties.
After she looked at all the weapons presented to her, she selected three of them. The first was a G-rank weapon, focused on parrying and counterattacking.
The blade was wide, but a rune reducing the total tear weight was embedded in it. Otherwise, the tear stats were about average.
The second sword, also of G rank, was a long and thin blade, yet relatively heavy because it was forged from dense materials. The blade increased the strength and agility of its wearer to make it maneuverable. It represented a perfect balance between maneuverability and power, a perfect weapon for pure attack.
The third sword was a classic blade of rank F. Balanced between attack and defense, it greatly increased the strength of its wearer.
The choice between the three weapons was difficult, but Lilliana decided to take the second. Although the first one suited her as well, she was afraid that she would be too restricted in its use.
So, she bought her new sword for the exact sum of twenty-eight thousand astels.
Following this purchase, it was already midday, so she returned to see Stella in her hotel room. Indeed, in addition to knowing if she was well, she had some questions to ask her.
...
The room Stella had rented was exactly opposite Lilliana's. Lilliana quickly placed her new sword in her room, then knocked on Stella's door.
"Stella, are you awake?"
A small voice echoed inside the room:
"Yes, I'm coming."
After a few seconds of waiting, a small figure came and opened the door.
It looked like Stella had just gotten up, her hair still messy and her eyes blinking erratically.
"Are you okay?"
"Yes. Better than yesterday, anyway."
"Can I come in?"
"Yes, of course."
Stella let her friend in, then closed the door.
"What do you wish to know?"
"Well, I'll have some questions about magic."
"Magic? You want to learn how to use it?"
"I wish I could use barriers."
"Barriers? It's true that being on the front lines, protection magic could be of great use. And it's just as practical as a shield, weight aside."
"Could you teach me, please?"
Stella smiled slightly.
"Contrary to what people think, it's not especially very complicated to use magic. It's more the study and research of it that is."
"And so?"
"If you want to use magic effectively you need three things: to know the runic formula, to know how to visualize those runes in your mind, and finally a certain affinity with the element you wish to employ."
"An affinity?"
"Indeed. Each person has an affinity towards one or more elements. So, people with a certain affinity for an element will have an easier time invoking magic from that same element."
"Okay, I get it. So, if I want to get off to a good start, I need to know what element I have an affinity with first? And how do we do that?"
"Simple! Just use a recognition crystal. I must have a few in my stuff, wait."
Stella rummaged through some untidy things. After a few seconds, she pulled out a spherical crystal the size of a grapefruit. Inside this crystal, many spirits of different colors were dancing.
"Here, take this crystal and focus your energy inside. When a spirit stirs, it means you have an affinity with the element of it."
Lilliana took the crystal, closed her eyes, and concentrated. Soon, a white spirit began to stir fiercely. A few seconds later, a dark purple spirit wisp stirred. Finally, a light green spirit was the last to stir. But it was the last to stir.
"Good! Good! Lilliana, you have an affinity for light, darkness, and wind. Just like you wanted, a perfect combination for physical and magical defense! It's even a pretty decent combination for the attack."
"Well, now I just have to learn a spell. And how do I do that?"
Stella laughed lightly.
"Well, as with anything, it has to be bought. The skills themselves are not sold, rather the runes are. And with those runes, you create skills by combining them. It's hard for someone to start with magic because combining runes randomly only allows you to make basic spells. But lucky for you, I come from a magic school!"
"Well, lucky me indeed! And where can I buy these runes?"
"Well... To the rune merchant..."