All Eight Elements

On the way to the next town, we stopped at two villages where I earned some extra money using my Cleanliness spell. Charging ten copper coins per use—a fraction of the price I charged in the city—I managed to attract a decent number of customers. The caravan's presence naturally drew villagers, and curiosity brought them to me. Once word spread, especially among the women who appreciated staying clean, I ended up quite busy.

Yuri and Luca, ever the protective guards, stood watch behind me as I worked.

"Hey, Matthew," Yuri asked, tilting his head, "why only ten copper coins? You charged half a silver in the city."

Luca chimed in, "Yeah, isn't that a bit cheap, Matthew?"

"Well," I began, "when I first started offering Cleanliness at the Adventurers' Guild, I planned to charge this price. But Naana told me that if I kept it that low, I'd take all the customers from the orphan kids who cast Clean for just one copper. That's why we set it at half a silver."

"Ah, the orphan kids, huh? Makes sense," Yuri said, rubbing his chin. "Ten copper for Cleanliness would've wiped out their customer base."

"So, technically, the fair price is ten copper coins?" Luca asked.

"Maybe," I admitted. "But since the spell is so mana-efficient and I can cast it dozens of times, Naana suggested raising the price. Still, in a village like this, ten copper coins is all most people can afford."

"True," Yuri agreed. "Villages don't have as much coin to spare. But you should definitely rethink your pricing once you're back in the city. You're underselling yourself."

"Exactly," Luca added with a smile. "Your Cleanliness is worth so much more."

I nodded thoughtfully. "Thanks. You're probably right. But I might just avoid doing this in cities altogether. Standing out too much can be risky."

That much I had learned from my first experience in the city.

After making some pocket money, we resumed our journey, the caravan's wagons rocking us gently toward our destination. By the end of the planned route, we arrived at the next town without incident.

"Alright," Yuri said, stretching as we approached the town gates, "first thing's first: finding an inn. In this town, that means The Stag's Hoof Inn."

"You've been here before?" I asked.

"Yeah," Yuri replied. "We've passed through a few times on jobs. That inn's a good spot—cheap and comfortable."

"Then let's head there," I agreed.

After bidding farewell to the caravan, we secured a room at The Stag's Hoof Inn. Fortunately, they had a four-person room available. It was slightly more expensive than separate accommodations, but keeping the three of us together felt safer.

"Alright," Yuri said as we settled in, "I'm going to check out the Adventurers' Guild. Luca, stay here with Matthew."

"Got it. Take your time," Luca replied.

With Yuri gone, Luca and I decided to relax in the room.

"So, Matthew," Luca began, "you come from a family of magicians, right?"

"Yeah. What about you?"

"I'm the child of priests," she said, smiling nostalgically. "I started practicing light magic long before I turned ten."

"A priest's child becoming an adventurer? That's unusual," I said, surprised. Priests were well-respected, and serving the temple offered stability and security. For someone with Luca's proficiency in light magic, it seemed like a natural career path.

Luca laughed softly. "Yeah, I get that a lot. It's not the most logical choice, is it?"

"What made you decide to become an adventurer?"

She hesitated before speaking. "Promise you won't tell anyone?"

"Of course."

"It's because of Yuri. He's my childhood friend—our families lived near each other. He's always been there for me, helping me out when things got tough. I wanted to repay him."

"Repay him? How did he help you?"

"My parents were strict. Both were priests, so my life was all about studying and training. It was suffocating. Yuri would sneak me out, show me the world outside. He made life bearable."

"I see."

There was more to her story, I was sure, but we weren't close enough yet for her to share everything.

"What about your parents? How did they feel about you becoming an adventurer?" I asked.

"Oh, I didn't tell them," she admitted, her tone sheepish. "I just left. They're probably furious."

I imagined Yuri wasn't exactly popular with her parents.

"Your turn," Luca said, her gaze curious. "Why are you heading to the capital?"

"My father's last words," I explained. "He told me that if anything happened to him, I should seek out his friend in the capital—Craig Alexis. I don't know much about him, but if my father trusted him, he must be a magician."

"What about your mother?"

"She wasn't around by the time I could remember anything."

"Any siblings?"

I shook my head. "No. That's part of why I left. I didn't want to stay in the village, getting by with the bare minimum. I want to become a proper magician, and the capital's my best chance."

Luca nodded approvingly. "You're ambitious. I like that. If you can cast Cleanliness, you must have light and water affinities. What else can you use?"

"All eight elements," I replied without thinking.

"Wait, what?" Her eyes widened in disbelief. "All eight elements? Are you serious?"

"Yeah. But I'm not especially good at any of them, which is kind of frustrating…"

"Not good? Matthew, that's incredible! Once you unlock your status, I bet you'll be an amazing magician."

I smiled faintly. The eight elements—earth, water, wind, fire, ice, lightning, light, and darkness—were impressive enough. But I didn't mention my proficiency in space-time magic. That was a rarity my father had cautioned me to keep secret.

Luca was still marveling over my revelation when Yuri returned.

"What's all the excitement about?" he asked.

"Matthew can use all eight elements!" Luca exclaimed.

"What? Seriously?" Yuri gave me a look of admiration. "Kid, you're already a top-class magician. You're going to blow everyone away when you hit ten."

"I'm still learning," I said modestly.

"Don't be so humble," Yuri said with a laugh. "Own it."

"Exactly!" Luca agreed.

Once the excitement died down, Yuri shared the news he'd gathered. "The next caravan heading to the next town leaves in a week."

"A week? That's… a long time to wait," I said.

"Yeah," Yuri admitted. "Guess we'll have to find ways to kill time until then."