"Elementless casting?
Ghost nodded, switching into teacher mode. He gestured wildly with his feathers as he spoke, punctuating his speech with random squawks.
"Yes, an inferior form of using a legacy, often used by goblins, probably other easterners as well. Converting elemental magic to elementless wastes a lot of energy, so it's better to stick with the original most of the time. Goblins run into an issue here- It's essential for the majority of the populace to use life legacies, and since they're limited to just one element of legacy, this forces them to rely on elementless casting."
Edol nodded, acknowledging how useful Ghost's ability to grow potatoes was. Still, surely there weren't that many people stranded in the woods. The idea of a powerful magic-wielding military force rolled over any potato-growing makeshift army in Edol's mind, and the economic advantages of magic would surely be far superior to a few potatoes.
Seeing the doubt on Edol's face, Ghost continued.
"All of my legacies are quite powerful, much more than a mere commoner could come to possess. They also don't regenerate endlessly like yours- though most will have at least triple the energy. On average… they can probably grow a potato every day or two?"
"Okay, but shouldn't something like a wind legacy be even more useful? Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen you use wind magic. It should be able to help you fly!"
Ghost's head shrank back into his body in fear, and he glanced around to make sure no one was listening- forgetting that the duo was speaking directly into each other's minds.
"Are you crazy?! I don't want to be hunted down like those psychos from the Cult! Wind legacies are a death sentence, throw them to the ocean or turn them into a government somewhere. Hell, even having possession of one is reason enough for someone to torture you!"
"Huh? Why?"
Ghost shrugged, still glancing around nervously.
"I don't know, they cause famines or something. Why would I go out in search of info that might get me killed? Having a wind legacy means death, end of story."
"A- alrighty then. Still, why not use earth or some other element?"
Edol reached down to the ground, a small, and a small, hard, hook-shaped chunk of earth rose to meet his hand. It was a suitable size to use as a fishing hook for the silvery fish swimming meters away in the river.
"With their extremely limited mana pools, most common folk use all their energy on Danu's spell of cleansing. Being able to grow potatoes in a pinch is much better than having some weak earth magic that'll never be used. As for why the spell of cleansing-"
Ghost stretched his beak towards the river, and a small ball of water followed it back out, hovering in the air above his head.
"Dirty water, with a bit of water magic, becomes clean water. It's incredibly useful, and it was once essential for there to be at least one water legacy holder for every five people. After the popularization of Danu's cleansing spell almost 140 years ago, though…"
Ghost let the ball of water drop to the ground, and little droplets splashed against his talons. The giant bird then leaned back to the river, pulling out another ball of water. This time, instead of using water magic to cleanse it, Ghost began scratching an intricate yet simple-looking formation into the dirt.
"A miracle of spellcraft. How Danu managed to create such a complicated yet easily performed spell will likely remain a mystery forever. Unlike almost every other spell, you can put any element of mana into this one and achieve the same result, with nearly no loss in the transition. It's no wonder she's still worshiped as a goddess around the world."
After he'd finished scratching away at the dirt, Ghost pumped a small amount of his water legacy into the spell, and the water bubbled for a moment before settling.
"Clean drinking water, available to anyone who can memorize this simple spell diagram. Must have sucked to be a water legacy holder when Danu's church started spreading this spell shortly after her death."
Edol watched in amazement, silently memorizing the outline of the spell's diagram structure on the ground. Something about the idea of this spell formation entranced the ex-mathematics student. He could imagine that the hastily scribbled marks on the ground had once been beautifully drawn, sharp angles with mathematical precision.
'So cool… I want to try!'
"Yo Ghost, how I can make my own spells like this? Can you teach me?"
Ghost spluttered out the water he'd been drinking, chuckling.
"Me? I might be pretty cool, but I'm no legendary mage. If you manage to make something amazing like this, I'll worship you as my master! The only way to get better at understanding spell diagrams is to venture into relic tombs- or to go to a spell college, I suppose. Heh, you should try studying the tomb spell. Been around for longer than history itself, but no one has even the slightest idea of how it works. Probably 'cause you gotta die to use it, but I think that's fine. More loot for me!"
Ghost hopped away from the river, turning back to Edol.
"Enough chatter, where are my fish?! You've been sitting there with a spaced-out look on your face for the last minute, probably dreaming of something stupid. Fish, now!"
Edol sighed, mourning that the info-dump was over. He now was able to solidify a few new goals.
Improve magic for ease of beating up Ghost. (Not to overcome his fear of talons, of course).
Learn about creating spell diagrams- journeying to relic tombs or a spell college was a must.
Survive until the day he could see his family again.
Edol smiled at his mental list, ignoring that survival was only ranked third. Perhaps dying repeatedly had damaged his perception. The duo had already discussed their theories on death now that they'd been summoned.
Their conclusion?
"Yea, we'll probably be sent back to hang out with Mr. Spider if we die. Anything but that, please!"