Alex looked around a more reserved-looking room in the building, curious as to why the commander of the guards lives in such simplicity.
The answer was evident the moment he laid his eyes upon the leader. A woman in her forties sat at her desk, playing with a lavish quill. She looked bored.
Even as piles and piles of documents took up the limited space on the wooden desk, the commander didn't seem to have any intention of occupying herself with them. So, the documents sat there, waiting for time to yellow their paper and their ink to fade and smear.
Judging by the situation the Moonmare's Guards were in, Alex would bet his life savings that most documents were complaints from the townsfolk.
It was then he realized something and looked at his companion. Violet looked the slightest bit relieved as the commander wasn't a man.
'Seems like she didn't want to expose herself to some guy either. Makes sense.' Alex nodded to himself as he studied the office for a place where he could stand and not obstruct the following conversation.
Violet sat across from the older lady, but Alex turned the conversation off, letting his thoughts run wild.
It had been some time since he had time to himself, so why not think about his future, right?
In all honesty, Alex would rather spend this time thinking about other things, such as where to get some more money or what to eat, as he hadn't had a proper meal in several days, but he knew he had things that needed to be done.
The most pressing matter right now was his lack of a mana core, a crucial element if he ever wanted to trade blows with the big shots. Without a core, controlling mana was nigh impossible, even with his crazy sensitivity.
As mana should technically be immaterial, a core was the bridge that allowed beings, such as humans, elves, and others, to use this wonderful thing called magic.
'The biggest hurdle is controlling enough mana to create the core. And even if I manage to create one, I will have a limited time to place it somewhere in my body.'
Although controlling mana is vital in creating a core, what is just as important is the amount one can control. The more mana, the bigger the core. The bigger the core, the more mana it can store and subsequently handle.
On a tier-by-tier comparison, the mage with the larger core should win. And in most cases, they do. The reality was more complex, however, and it depended on a myriad of factors, such as the way one controls the mana, how sensitive one is to mana, and even how efficient one is in using one's mana.
Alex could go on and on about technicalities, but that didn't answer his question. Where should he place his core?
Although he had two potential locations, Alex felt he could do better.
'Size is important, but so is the shape.'
Most cores are round, like a bead of glass, and although there are exceptions to the rule, such as the barbarians up in the north, their cores can't truly be classified as such.
Firstly, a Northerner's core isn't created by the barbarian himself but is instead given; offered, if you will. Thus, they can shape the core however they want, but most shape it into a symbol of their language and place it on their tongue, akin to a tattoo.
'Manipulating mana without a core is hard as it is.' Alex complained. 'To take into account the shape of the core? Who knows what other shapes could affect the end result?'
While this was a passing thought, Alex couldn't outright dismiss it. What if the shape of a core somehow affected how one can use and manipulate the mana?
After a bit more thought, there is some evidence to support his wild idea. Weren't the Northerners themselves prime examples?
Sure, one might argue their Ecclesiastical magic is the result of their cores being gifted by a single source, but Alex could not deny shape could also come into play.
Reaching this point, Alex wanted to experiment and see for himself. But there was a problem. Several, in fact.
Alex sighed. 'Why lie?' Feeling dejected already, he decided to kick a dead horse some more.
There were so many problems with his desire for experimentation he simply couldn't count them all. 'Controlling the mana... figuring out how to shape said mana... figuring out how not to immediately place the core in some undesirable place... figuring out if the shape of the core did indeed change how he could control mana... wondering how would he know if the shape of the core did affect his ability. It wasn't as if he had any guidelines to compare his findings to.'
It was all a big headache-inducing situation. A situation Alex would rather avoid but couldn't. He now had two options before him. Either take a leap of faith and hope for the best, or figure out a way to learn more about mana.
Both were undesirable to Alex, but if he had to choose, he would choose the second option. What irritated him most, however, was Elder Pyrus and his tight-ass lips.
Not only did the elder refuse to tell him how to properly create a mana core, but he also refused to tell Alex anything worthwhile about mana in general.
In all honesty, Alex couldn't say his current lack of information would affect him in unforeseen ways, but he could say having said information would've certainly helped in making an educated guess.
"Haa!" Openly sighing, Alex turned his attention to the conversation happening in front of him.
Surprisingly, Violet wore a happy and... content expression on her face, completely unlike what she had worn upon entering the office. Perhaps she had also been unsure how things would work out.
That said, Alex was relieved everything went well, as he sure wasn't in the mood to fight several dozen guards only to protect this sex-worker owner.
Why would he even bother with protecting Violet? Simple. This sly little bitch withheld his pay until after he accompanied her to the guard's office.
He wanted to wring her neck, yes, but he also saw things from her point of view.
Unless Violet is a crazy strong person, which she most likely isn't, she would have to rely on others to get what she wants.
"Thank you for your understanding, Lady Vivienne." Violet said chirpily, skipping as she turned to face Alex before flashing a smile in his direction.
Viviene nodded absentmindedly, waving a hand while trying to balance her quill between her nose and upper lip.
Neither Alex nor Violet saw the commander's childish action, instead looking at one another. One smiling, while the other wondering what was going through the former's head.
Having done his job, again, Alex wordlessly pointed at the door and followed Violet out of the office.
Alas, trouble was bound to brew.