I knocked on the door of the room I was using, and whistled a bit. "Oi, Johnny, you decent?"

"No." he snorted derisively.

"Alright." I opened the door, walking in carelessly. I gathered my belongings, packing them into my duffel-bag, while he stared at my new outfit.

"Daaaaayum? You were gone for a day, right? Only a day?" He laughed incredulously.

I nodded. "Joined the Loki Familia, received her Blessing, went into the Dungeon, bought some new armor and weapons, made a bit of cash... yeah, I've had a hell of a day, man."

He laughed. "Tell me about it, then. I've been sleeping in here all day, I'll have to Adventure vicariously through you for a few more days!"

I grinned. "I can do that. Alright, so first thing this morning, I leave, and find the Loki Familia's headquarters, only the entire castle is surrounded by the Cliché-est of Cliché's, a moat filled with crocodiles!"

He snorted. "Of course it was."

"Right? Then I get to the middle, and I start hitting booby traps! Everywhere! Left, right, center, traps everywhere, all kinds! Now, being me, of course I didn't trip any of them, but instead, I marked them all with piles of leaves, to be a smartass." I snickered lightly.

"Ooh, not smart, why piss off the Trickster, man?!?"

"Nah, man, she loved it, 110%." I refuted

"For real? Well, I mean, showing her you were tricky too might've done it, but-"

---

"Alright, so? Any more questions?" I grinned.

"Yeah... Dr. Picket leaves tomorrow... do we have lodgings after this place?" He cut his bread and cheese into bite-size portions, while I simply gnawed on mine like a caveman.

I nodded, swallowing and cleaning my face. "Yes, the Loki Familia has a Dorm-like situation... I haven't seen the rooms, but it can't be much different than these; after all, the Loki Familia is one of the top-three richest Familia's in the city." I grinned, and ripped off another chunk of bread.

He chuckled. "And they accept all comers?"

"Not all, but it seems that Loki wants both of us in her Familia no matter what... I may have hinted that we have a lot of Dirt on one of her rivals." I hummed.

He glanced at me sharply. "Dirt? How bad?"

"Bad enough to make the other gods send the divine bitch back to heaven... by force." I shook my head.

He hummed. "Don't play the vengeance game with a God, man. Don't even dip a into that pool of shit."

I shook my head. "I'm going to pass on the information, and that's all. She won't even know it was me, because only a small group of people even know the knowledge ."

He nodded slowly. "Okay, just be careful..."

"I'm always careful. Now eat up, I need you healthy." I chuckled, and mowed down on the rest of my dinner, then laid on my side to get some sleep.

---

I sat down in front of the Tall Elf woman, waiting as she read her book, mapping out what I was going to say, and how.

'I can't just say 'hey, teach me magic', can I? No... I'll have to approach it differently... maybe I'll ask a simple question, and allow it to evolve into a full-blown lesson? Ha! That's perfect! Okay, what question could start a Beginner's course in magic...?'

"If you need something, please just ask. Your face is turning rather red." She commented simply, turning a page in her book.

I cleared my throat. "I'm sorry, I was just wondering how to speak to you without bothering you... it's a seemingly infinite conundrum."

She looked up, and smiled a bit. "I see. Worry not, I think this will be educational for us both, and I enjoy learning new things."

I nodded slowly. "Oh, well... alright... well, first, what is the Source of Magic Stones?"

She blinked slowly. "Interesting, I thought you were going to beg me for magic tips... a good change of pace. Well, magic stones come from the Dungeon. When a monster is born, a piece of the Dungeon resides in it, for life-force."

"I see... and so they live off of pure magic?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yes. No monster eats humans for anything but enjoyment. We are not nourishment for them. They kill us for sport and to defend territory, nothing more."

"Alright, that's... morbid, but good to know, I suppose." I shivered. "So, if they live off magic, why do they have organs and blood?"

She smiled. "Because they are well-made copies of real monsters, who went extinct ago."

"Oh... okay... so, what about Elves? Do we live off of magic?"

She shook her head. "Not entirely, but good guess. The connection has been studied by theologians and Scientists for generations. We survive by a combination of magic and physical nourishment."

"So the more we use magic, the faster we age?" I probed gently.

She nodded. "Even at my levels of magical usage, the effect is minuscule, but it is measurable, yes. We survive thousands of years, young Dorian, do not worry for your imminent death."

I chuckled. "That's not a worry for me. Now that I know Gods are real, the Afterlife is as well... I like that idea. But that's not why I ask."

She raised a delicate eyebrow. "Oh?" She prompted gently.

I nodded. "I ask because I want to understand Magic at it's core. It's able to gain Sentience in large quantities, and the Dungeon is, without a doubt, sentient, and it is able to keep beings alive entirely on a diet of itself alone, and extend other beings' lifespans monumentally."

She nodded. "These are all true statements... and do you draw a conclusion?"

"I do. Magic is actually Divinity." I said simply.

She blinked, leaning away from me in clear shock. "Excuse me?" She asked after a moment.

"When gods left my realm, they took Magic with them. It no longer exists. Like turning off the WiFi, I think Gods exude magic, and being around them allows people to harness the scraps of their power, and therefore use it to create physical changes to the Fabric of the Universe." I explained my theory simply.

She hummed softly, closing her book. "That is... a rather interesting theory... and I must admit it does create some questions I would like answered. For someone who has only believed in Magic for a week, I think you will make quite the Great Sage." She nodded wisely, setting the book down on the table.

"Not a Great Mage?" I chuckled.

She shook her head. "That is not for me to say, especially when I've never seen you do magic."

I chuckled awkwardly, and scratched my left ear slowly. "Well... I've never actually-"

Her confusion cleared, and she chuckled softly. ", yes. The infamous Question, 'Will you teach me Magic, Queen Riviera?'. Hmph."

"Well, I-" I went to apologize, but she raised a hand, waving it gently.

"Don't apologize, Young Dorian, I understand, truly. And yes, I would love to teach you. I also appreciate that you made sure I received something asking me a favor." She nodded appreciatively.

I grinned, attempting to hide my blushing cheeks with a casually placed hand. "You noticed, huh?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yes. Crafty, just like Loki, but with noticeably less malice behind your manipulations. I don't hate that in a person. So let's get started."

I smiled. "I'm ready for anything."

---

I blinked at the parchment under my nose, and slowly looked at Riviera. "Uhm..."

"You need a Circle to cast magic, so you'll need to customize your own. Every single mage does it." She shrugged callously, and sat straight, eyeing me.

I nodded. "Okay, and what aspects are necessary? I've never-"

She held up a hand. "I'm aware you've never done this. Here." She placed a book in front of me. "Read chapter 3." She said simply.

"Lucky number 3..." I mumbled, cracking open the book.

---

'Patterns, as well as Symbiotic pairings of symbols that represent words of power, (,) are one of the most crucial, yet underrated parts of any magical circle. The patterns allow the magic a pathway, honing your spell like a blade, to either a Razor Sharp accuracy, or a dull failure.'

"Hmm... patterns and words of power..." I nodded and added a few more aspects to my drawing, writing notes on the side.

"Less talking, more drawing." Riviera said simply, turning a page.

"I talk while I work, it helps me think." I retorted.

Her gaze flicked to me, and then that pencil-thin eyebrow twitched upwards. "Talk, then. In your mind." She said simply.

I grumbled at her faulty logic, and continued trying to match up the symbols to be mirrored on the opposite sides.

---

I eventually incorporated several Symbols and Patterns into the final design of my Magic Circle. The Triple Yin-Yang, the Triangle, the Tribellum, (tripled lines in a design, giving the optical illusion of a pyramid shaped, 3D geometric drawing,) and all of them came back to three circles, within another three circles, and another three, which were each within one circle, creating more and more illusions.

In the Tribellum, on all six different lines, I wrote Latin words with easily rhymed ending syllables, which could be matched and made into several different poems with a thought. That part was challenging, but I always did love challenges.

I ended up creating six different verses, each with several different meanings and interpretations, connecting to a different element, either: Earth, Air, Fire, or Water, and also the two Idealistic Elements, the only ones open to opinion, that were two sides of a coin, Light/Dark, Sun/Moon, Life/Death.

I nodded, finishing by signing my work, and leaned back, pushing the page over to Riviera. "How's that?" I asked.

She hummed, turning it slowly, and read the poems I'd included, translated to English. "Well crafted... what's this language you've written in?"

"Latin? It's a Dead Language, in Midgard, but it flows off the tongue easier than English... and I'd assumed it was the language of magic, because that's what the legends say, but seeing as how you, a Master Mage, can't read it, I'd say I was... wrong?" I sighed.

She hummed. "Well, you can't read or write in Elvish, which is usually the language used, so some other language no one can read is good enough... well, now you need to inscribe it on something."

I nodded and pulled the small Quartz sphere out of my pocket. "Will this do?"

"It needs to be flat, or it will cast oddly." She shook her head.

"Well, exactly, ma'am. If I inscribe it on a sphere, wouldn't the Circle turn into a Sphere, surrounding me while I cast?" I asked.

She blinked slowly. "I can see your logic... well, if it fails, you may try again. Go ahead, then." She sat down again, and watched carefully.

I hummed. "I'm not actually sure I can draw this without screwing up-"

"You will draw it in the crystal. Be calm." She said simply, and handed me a quill with a white-hot tip.

I nodded, and breathed deeply, then set the hot quill into the crystal.

I drew with quick, deft strokes, confidently inscribing every single detail, letting the work calm me even further, until I was only barely aware of Riviera, or her scrutiny.

The circle extended just as I'd envisioned, expanding into the third ring, and all three circles overlapped just right on their half-lines, creating the illusion that the circles never stopped.

If you kept turning the crystal, it never ended, perfectly sealing itself. I blew out the dust, and smiled. "How's that?" I asked.

Riviera gently took the sphere, and smiled. "It is very well carved. Test whether or not it works, now."

I nodded, and set it into the bottom of a wooden cane, then tapped it against the ground, pulling on the magic in my blood, like she'd coached me.

Instantly, a sphere of magic surrounded me, spinning gently. I laughed loudly, and raised my hands. "HA!" The sphere faded, and I grinned. "So it works." I nodded, attempting a facade of calm.

She nodded. "So it does. Well done, Dorian.

I smiled. "Now let's try some actual magic!!!"

She hummed. "Perhaps you're ready... alright. Read me one of your poems from your... Sphere." She crossed her arms.

I nodded, and focused on the words for one of the Fire poems.

"Let them say, as they must say something:

A kerosene beauty.

It burned.

-

Let them say we warmed ourselves by it,

read by its light, praised,

and it burned."

She nodded as the room heated up noticeably, but that was all. "Good... so you've got only Elemental magical spells?"

"I... wasn't aware more types existed?" I blinked.

She sighed. "Okay, we'll work on that later. You need to learn a magic Spell. I have a few Grimoires with Elemental magic in them... if you do some chores for me, I'll be happy to give them to you." She smiled.

I let my magic dissipate. "Chores? Like what?"

She smiled again. "Oh, nothing difficult..."