The door was opened by a charming girl with chestnut hair, slightly older than the mage himself.
"Grain? What brings you here? I thought you and Ragni were working on the bridge right now," Levris didn't expect anyone, and of course, the arrival of her disciple was a surprise.
"I came to talk to Grivor."
"Huh? Well, come on in. He's behind the house, communing with nature," the girl whispered the last sentence. "Well, at least that's what he says. In reality, he just sits for hours on a large stone, gazing at the forest from a high cliff."
When the young people rounded the house, they saw the silhouette of a man sitting on the stone.
"Hm, so what did you want from me, young man?" The old man felt Grain's presence without even turning around, at a distance of ten meters.
"Uh, me?" The mage was initially flustered about what he wanted to ask the old man and why he rushed here. "My name is Grain Diter, I..."
"Ah, yes, yes, yes, the young and promising earth mage. The girl spoke a lot about you."
"The girl?"
"GOOD LORD!!! I asked not to call me that!!!" Levris blushed with embarrassment, which only amused the old man.
"Oh, come on, tell me, young man, she is beautiful, isn't she? Or do you have someone better nearby?" Grivor continued teasing the youngsters mercilessly.
"Uh... well..." It was time for the young man to be embarrassed. "Of course, there are many beautiful girls in my guild, but I think Levris is also very charming."
The young people shifted their gaze timidly.
"Wait a second! I didn't come here for this!"
"Oh, how abrupt! Come on, spill it, what business could you have with a frail old man, who's just living out his days?"
"You may be old, but you don't look frail at all."
"Well, it's all about proper nutrition, and of course, gazing at beautiful young girls," the old man grinned slyly, glancing at Levris.
"That's not what I'm talking about! You may behave like an old man, but I think you are much older! Tell me, how do you know so much about earth magic!?" Grain finally got serious; Grivor's words could no longer confuse him.
"Well, in my youth, I traveled a lot and met many mages, including talented earth mages. I learned all this from them," the old man shrugged indifferently and snorted.
"You told Levris the same version, but I don't believe it. You know too many details about earth magic that only a master of this element can know. Even if you learned this from your fellow travelers, they must have been on a completely different level than contemporary mages. HOW OLD ARE YOU!?"
The old man remained silent; he didn't want to answer that question, nor did he want to waste time.
"Why do you need such details? I won't tell you my exact age now."
"Tell me, do you always sit here?"
"Yep."
"And you never leave?"
"Nope."
"We almost died on the bridge just now; we were hit by a mudflow."
"What? Grain, what happened to you?" Levris couldn't hear Kurone and didn't know what happened.
"Nothing serious, just Ragni got hurt a little, but she'll be fine from such a blow. But we were saved by a cliff falling across the stream. Everyone thought it was me, but I could never do that, and the cliff itself couldn't fall. The cutting edge was smooth, as if the cliff was sliced by a gigantic sword."
"Come on, lad, tell us how your thoughts have brought you to this," Grivor propped his chin with his hand and smirked, looking at the mage.
"So, only a very powerful earth mage could have cut the mountain, much stronger and more experienced than both me and Levris combined. For example, an annoying old man pretending to be a fool, not understanding what's going on!"
"Heh," the old man just smiled in response. "Well, who am I, in your opinion?"
"You're an earth mage, very ancient and powerful, possibly even a direct contractor, who has survived to our days. Am I right?"
"You can check anytime," the playful grin didn't leave the old man's face, and it further ignited the young mage's fervor.
"Grain, he's probably joking. Don't take it all too seriously," Levris tried to stop him, but the young man picked up a large stone from the ground and sent it straight at Grivor.
"Hmm, primitive," without lifting a finger, the old man just snorted, and the stone crumbled into sand: "I thought you wanted to test how strong a mage I am, and you start with something so feeble. I could handle you even in my sleep."
"Grivor? So, you really are an earth mage?" Levris was puzzled.
"Ah, sweetheart, you're undoubtedly a strong and clever sorceress, but too naive. Even your apprentice saw through my origins, and you believed that third-rate tale about my acquaintances. Well, tell me, why would I study magic from them if I weren't a mage myself?"
"Huh? Well, if you say so."
"Oh my, Grain, you're probably in for a hard time with her, but don't try to shield her from her foolish mistakes."
"Don't lecture me; I'm not done yet!" Grain spread his arms and lifted all the rocks around him into the air. "And can you handle this?!"
Three dozen boulders flew at the old man simultaneously, but he just snorted disdainfully.
"How feeble," Grivor waved his hand slightly, and the boulders turned into sand: "I thought you were trying to do what I've been teaching the sweetheart these days. You're undoubtedly better at it, but still quite weak. You couldn't even move a rock back then when your friends' lives were at stake."
"Shut up! I want to become stronger, precisely to protect my friends, and you, with no one to care for, wouldn't understand me!"
"Oh, really? Let me help you then," the words struck Grain, and he stomped on the ground; the earth under his feet trembled. A moment later, the ground collapsed, and Grain found himself knee-deep in solid rock: "See, that's how I'm helping you. The closer you are to the earth, the stronger the connection. If you want, I can bury you deeper to establish a stronger bond."
The expression on Grivor's face was no longer playful as before, while Grain, not listening to him, tried to free his legs, which were held by the old man's magic.
"Ah, youngsters never listen to me; you'll never free yourself like this," Grivor stomped again, and now Grain sank into the earth up to his waist. "Think more constructively and don't succumb to panic."
"Stop it!" Levris, who had not been involved in the confrontation until then, stood up for her apprentice.
"This is a dispute between men; you'd better not interfere, sweetheart."
"And stop calling me that!" Levris waved her hand, and a pillar of dust rose from the ground. The sand into which Grivor had turned all the rocks a couple of minutes ago obeyed the sorceress's will.
"Phew," the old man whistled in surprise. "Controlling sand and dust is the most challenging aspect of our magic. You deserve my praise. Such abilities compensate for all the drawbacks of our magic: its straightforwardness and predictability. But still, you won't be able to defeat me."
"But I'll try!" The girl clenched her fists, and the dust gathered into thousands of sharp little stones. Swinging her arms sharply, Levris sent them all in Grivor's direction.
"Hmm, not bad," however, raising one hand, he effortlessly stopped all the stones. "It seems you've realized that with earth particles, you can control not only to split them but also to unite them. Unfortunately, you lack experience. Let me show you how to deal with flowing and flexible earth."
The old man smiled and with light finger movements turned the pebbles back into sand, and then into a whip-like shape made of sand.
"You need to think more freely; after all, you're earth mages, not bookworms. It's not necromancy with a bunch of complex spells. Here, you just visualize and execute," the old man swung the sand whip, and Levris tried to dodge the strike. The whip passed by her leg, leaving only a trace on her clothing. "Well, dodging is useless anyway; you'd better try to counter me."
The old man delivered a couple more strikes, but the teacher evaded each time, avoiding the hits at the last moment.
"Well, this is getting boring, and I think that's enough," Grivor released the whip and pointed his index finger at the girl's legs.
"Ugh!" In the next moment, Levris was lifted into the air. The sand left on her legs after the whip's strikes formed two rings that lifted her by the ankles.
"Let me go!!"
"Oh, come on, delight the old man a little more," slowly raising his finger, he continued lifting Levris into the air.
"Release her!!" Now Grain stood up for his teacher.
"Why, it's your turn now; first, dig yourself up, and then you can speak up. I told you to take the shovel, now it's too late," the old man continued mocking the girl, paying no attention to Grain.
"You!!! " Grain was furious, and it gave him strength. Gathering all his power, he pulled his legs out of the ground, simultaneously destroying the base of the rocky cliff. Cracks spread from where he stood to the edge, and the entire ledge, along with the stone on which Grivor was sitting, began to collapse.
"Ooh, it's getting dangerous here," not particularly concerned about losing support under him, the old man deftly jumped and built a bridge of rubble to move to a more stable ground. "Phew. Young man, you've surprised me. Not bad with your powers. But I guess I'm too old for such sudden movements."
The old man made another chair for himself out of the earth, and he sat down on it, catching his breath.
"Well, alright, you won. I won't be able to continue fighting with you in this condition. Now, I'll answer all your questions."