I stood there, looking at my hands as if they were disappointments. I felt like a kid whose parents had bought them a new toy, but forgotten to buy the batteries to go with it. For some reason, the spell wasn’t one I was currently capable of casting. The limit must’ve had to do with my class, level, or some other factor I wasn’t aware of. I thought about it, and raised my hand to cast it again. This time, I activated my reduce magic ability as I did so, and tried to set the spell to only about ninety percent output. Once again, there was nothing. I tried eighty percent, then seventy, slowly going down more and more to try and figure out if there was any level of the spell I could cast.

When I hit forty percent, I was finally rewarded. A ball of flame shot from my hand and smashed into the rocks I’d been aiming for. It was impressive, but only forty-percent as impressive as what I’d seen at the demonstration. I looked at the spell once again on my sheet.

Fireball 0.4x per day

The system was cheeky, it seemed. Didn’t tell me the spells limit right away and instead forced me to figure it out myself. While I was overall disappointed that I wouldn’t be able to cast a full fireball, even ten percent of one would likely be useful when it came to doing damage. I wondered if reducing it all the way down to one-percent would just make it the same as spark.

I considered all of this as I made my way back to the tavern. No one attempted to rob me this time, which was a little disappointing. When I arrived I found Zevrack and Millicent still talking, and enjoying some lunch. Patience was sitting with them with a bored expression on her face, but I noticed that the coinpurse on her waist was much more full than it had been before.

She smiled as I sat down, likely happy to have a conversation partner that wouldn’t be talking diagrams and magic runes over lunch.

“It looks like you did pretty well there,” I said, with an obvious glance at her fattened coinpurse.

“I did. Heard you picked up something yourself. I didn’t realize you could steal spells.”

“It’s not really stealing exactly. They still have the spells themselves, I just get to have them too. It’s more like internet piracy.”

She frowned.“Is the internet some kind of sea in Elfland?”

I shook my head, feeling foolish for slipping into Earth modes of speech. “Sure, let’s go with that.”

Millicent turned her attention to me. “So? How was it?”

“Not as impressive as I’d hoped, unfortunately.”

“Why’s that?”

“Turns out I can’t cast the full spell. I tried to, but I’m only able to cast a reduced version. About forty-percent of a full fireball.”

Millicent nodded. “That makes sense actually. You don’t have a spellcasting class, and your innate racial abilities can only take you so far. If we manage to get to level ten though, I would be very surprised if the system doesn’t offer you some kind of spellcasting class. Getting one of those would likely be enough to let you cast the spell in full.”

I nodded. I hadn’t really considered what kind of classes I’d be offered once I made it to level ten. Elle and everyone else had told me that the classes I was going to be offered would be based on what actions I’d taken in the last ten levels. That was very much like the reasoning that had occurred when I’d first been offered a class. I’d been doing a fair mix of fighting, magic, and general skullduggery, so I wasn’t unsure of exactly what that would lead to. I assumed that there were blended classes of some kind, and I wouldn’t be boxed into picking from a list of just rogue, mage, and warrior.

As I was thinking on this, Zevrack tugged at Patience's sleeve. She took about ten gold pieces from her purse and handed it to him, then he slid eight of them in front of me. I looked at him questioningly.

“She sold the things you got off the men that tried to mug you for me.”

I nodded. “So she takes a cut, then you take a cut, and this is what I have left?” I asked.

He nodded.

“So, I could’ve just asked her directly and saved myself two gold?”

He nodded. “You are not good at business.”

That prompted a laugh from Patience and Millicent.

“I wouldn’t have done it for you anyway,” said Patience, looking at me with a sly smile. “I only fence for friends.”

“Ha. Ha.” I said dramatically. I didn’t really mind. It was almost certainly safer for Zevrack to deal with things this way, and he did deserve his cut for figuring that out. We mostly shared the same pool of funds anyway, so it didn’t really matter to begin with.

Just as we were settling into lunch, Tib and Nica entered the tavern. Tib was wearing his usual breastplate and formal toga, but Nica was out of her adventuring leathers and instead wearing the skimpy garb that the local women favored. I favored it too, looking at it at least, though I did my best not to be rude about it.

They approached the table and stood above us silently for a few moments. I’d known them to be the less talkative members of the group, but it felt a little comical. Eventually I saw Nica subtly nudge Tib.

He sighed and began speaking. “I may have found a job for us.”

That perked all of us up.

“Really?” asked Millicent, “So soon?”

He nodded. “It’s uh… a family affair of a kind. My cousin is headed back to Heracleum to perform some duties at home and requires an escort both to the city, and during his time there.”

“Wouldn’t that kind of thing normally be a duty for Heraclan soldiers?” I asked.

He nodded. “Typically yes. But due to a recent quarrel my cousin is having with another official, I think it would be…safer to entrust you all with this job. If you are interested.”

“What’s the pay?” asked Patience, getting right to the heart of the matter.

“Fifty gold each, plus all food, drink, and lodging will be provided,” he said.

“When does the job start?” asked Millicent.

“A month from now. He needs to wrap up a few things here before we go.”

I looked over to Zevrack. “Are you interested in joining us on this one?”

He nodded. “I may be able to get more answers from their school.”

That figured. I looked over at the rest of the party and we looked back up at Tib. “I’d say we’re all interested."

He let out a heavy sigh and looked over us. “Thank you. I’ll see you in a month.”

“You can stay and have a drink you know. I’ll even buy,” I said. I didn’t much care for the guy, but he’d just found us a good job with solid pay, so I thought I’d throw him a bone.

“No. Thank you.” He turned and walked out of the door.

Nica nodded at us, thankful, I think, and followed him out the door.

“Hmm, I’ve never seen Tib so distraught,” said Millicent as we watched them leave.

“He was distraught?” I asked. He’d seemed as stone faced and serious ever. I don’t think I noticed even a single eyebrow twitch.

Patience nodded at me. “Yeah, he was practically trembling. Something about the job must have made him really upset. He even needed Nica here for support.”

I shook my head. “You two certainly know him better than I do. I defer to your interpretation.”

I took a sip of water and ate another bit of stew. “So, Millicent. You want to show me that rock spike spell a few times?”

She nodded. “Sure. For one silver a cast.”

“That seems a bit higher than the component cost.”

Her lip curved upward. “Part of it is the component cost, the rest is for labor.”

I shook my head. “The number of times I’d need to watch you cast it before I’d learn it would leave me broke.”

She shrugged. “Sorry, that’s the going rate.”

I sighed and turned to look at Patience. “Any chance you're up for some sparring?” I asked.

She looked away from me dramatically. “So I’m your second choice then? I’m hurt.”

“Well how about we spar and you can make me feel as bad as you do?”

She smirked. “Deal, but no spells this time.”

“Come on, they’re part of my style. I need to be able to blend them into my training.”

She shook her head. “Spells wear out. You’ll need to be able to fight without them.”

She was right, but she was also lying. “I think you just want me handicapped so you don’t wind up as bruised as last time.”

She nodded. “True, but you know I’m right.”

I sighed. “Alright, but don’t think it’ll be easy.”