Wolfe paused in shock at that announcement. "You can use mana too?"
Uncle Ivan nodded solemnly. "That's why we cover our hands. Anyone with an active Witch or Magi Bloodline can feel the strength of the mana in you through contact. That means every failed Witch, every member of rival Families, and every female Coven Security officer.
Everyone who could be a threat to your safety and livelihood is likely to be able to tell that you have a much higher-than-usual affinity for mana. If they find out you can actually use it, death is likely to be the better of the options you will be left with.
If you are going to progress, you need to train.
I was caught and had my potential tested by the Witches at an early age. I hid my ability to use mana from them, and I was never strong, but even with their suspicion of my slight abilities, I have been under constant surveillance my whole life.
That's also why the women of the family were so interested in you.
The Coven's stronger Witches keep a Guardian, a sworn bodyguard of sorts that never leaves their side, or a Humanoid Familiar with them that they can use as a mana battery. Most of them are there for brute force or their innate mana, but if they could find a man with enough Magi heritage to gather a bit of mana on his own, he could constantly stream it to a witch and greatly increase her capabilities.
Magi can store mana within themselves, but Witches can't. They build up an aura that lets them draw mana more quickly instead. They have learned to store energy in objects like the mana crystals, but if they are disarmed, they are in a bad spot since gathering the mana for a spell takes a few seconds. Having a familiar that is strong enough to keep up with the demand cuts that time in half. That's why the Guardians exist, to cover them until they can cast their spells.
Don't think that they are weak, though. Their spells are incredibly strong. They just aren't as fast as the Magi were said to have been.
If you go to the Guardian Academy for a year, they will teach you about spells, so you can defend a Witch against them. Use that knowledge to better yourself. It's a chance I didn't get because they caught on to my abilities too early, and I was forced to flee until I was too old for them to want me as a Guardian anymore.
After a year, if you haven't been chosen to accept a contract with a Witch, they will expel you from the program, and you can return here to the Family, where we will make sure you are well provided for.
If you do find a Witch you like, that's your choice. Remember, the bond is for life, and they won't let you go if they realize how powerful you are."
Wolfe listened quietly through the entire speech, taking in the new information about the benefits to a Witch of having a magic user as a Guardian and what that could mean for him.
There were some definite upsides, like a whole school full of sexy Witches in their school uniforms. The uniforms were a legendary tier cosplay among the youth of the lower levels, so the real thing had to be better.
Then there was the knowledge he could gain. He already knew that someone like him could use at least basic magical abilities without reagents, so he could take in a lot of what he needed to know just by proximity.
But the risks were equally high. Being found out could lead to a life as nothing more than a mana battery for some snobby and power-hungry Noble Witch.
Once that happened, it was all over for him. Rumours said that the witches could track their Guardian anywhere and see through their eyes. For that reason, kids in the lower levels hid from the Guardians, and nobody but the Witches knew if that was all that they could do.
"When you said that Cassie was going for training, you meant that she might have the potential to be an actual Witch, right?" Wolfe asked.
"She almost certainly does. The Noxus Family has been around since before the war, which is why our Bloodline is blended, and our daughters have the chance to be Witches.
That is also how we survived the Culling at the end of the war, by relying on the Witches in our family to keep the remnants of the Magi Bloodline going. All the men who could use mana, or who could even strongly sense it, were killed, but the daughters who survived and didn't show enough potential to become Witch Nobles reformed the Family and quietly started seeking matches that would rebuild our heritage.
I am old already, so her memory has faded among the younger generation, but my mother ruled the family for sixty years. Like the others from families who weren't selecting marriage partners with as pure of a witch heritage as possible, her ability had faded from what Witches were once capable of. However, she still had enough magic to pass the academy's first year before being expelled for low performance and becoming a commoner Witch.
Both you and Cassie will be going to the academy. Her as a Coven applicant, you as a Squire. Find her an appropriate Guardian if you can, as I believe she has it in her to pass the first tests.
Once she finishes the first year, she will be a Commoner Witch, and our Family territory will be recognized by the Nobles again. It will be a great thing for the Noxus Family. If she can go further, she will become my successor, even if I have to kill her cow of a sister to keep her safe."
There was the ruthless Uncle Ivan, the Family Head that everyone knew best. Nothing was out of bounds if it was for the betterment of the family. Nothing at all.
Wolfe knew that was why Uncle Ivan was so keen to send him to become a Squire. The chance that he could attach himself to a stronger Witch and bring them back to the family would be a failsafe against Cassie failing, but Wolfe didn't really mind.
Being convicted of being a Magi was a death sentence, and being caught with the ability to use magic but not convicted was no better, and Wolfe wasn't strong enough right now to protect himself. He needed to learn to master the powers he had and to learn to fight better than any common brawler. Only then could he live his life without fear of abduction.
He had at least some tiny bit of power but didn't have an entire Family, and a Witch mother behind him as Uncle Ivan did in his youth. Even with that, Ivan had been forced to flee for years and was still under surveillance.
"Just let me know when I need to leave, and I will be ready." Wolfe agreed. It was an order from the Family Head and not really a choice, but politely agreeing cost him nothing.
Roman chose that moment to speak up, reminding Wolfe that he was still in the room. "There is one week until the applicants leave, but it is best that you stay here until then. We can clean out your apartment for you, but it is best not to go out and expose yourself to the schemes of others who have seen you enter the Main Family. At least not so soon after you have awoken your powers.
I will train you until you leave. Uncle Ivan taught me the same way, and family records have a technique for building your power. Supposedly, it will grant a worthy inheritor the Legacy of the Noxus Archmages. Only time will tell how much it helps you."
Roman stood up from his chair and stepped to the bookshelf on the wall of the office. He took down a plain leather book, more of a folder than what Wolfe would have called a proper book since it only had a few pages, and placed it on the table.
"This is what we still know of how to advance as a Magi."