Chapter 8: Volume 1 – Chapter 7

Tal sat at the small table in his room and stared at the unenchanted copper ring. With the two enchants done for the week, he felt tired. The recent training gave him enough information to know that he didn't have enough magical reserves left for the third cast.

Tal picked up the ring and looked at it with a sour expression. 'At least six months until I get another magical point… or something like that at least. .'

The extra time spent in meditation helped a little but not enough. Tal put the ring back on the table and lay down in bed staring at the ceiling. 'What should I do?'

Sure, Farruco wasn't a bad employer and gave him decent portions of food, plenty of time to rest, and comfortable clothing, but he still failed to mention that Tal would only be able to produce two rings per week with his current energy pool and regeneration rate.

'What if I tried to push out all I had? Maybe I can get the third enchant done if I give it my all?'

With renewed resolve, Tal jumped out of the bed and sat down by the table. He took a deep breath, put his right palm over the ring, and started to pour energy into it, attempting to make the base stamina enchant.

Rather quickly, a wave of dizziness hit him like a hammer. His hand started to shake, but a lot more energy was needed, so he pushed on. With each moment, his vision dimmed and a sense of extreme tiredness grew.

'I can't give up! Just a little more…' he could not even see his hand anymore. There was not enough energy to finish the enchant. He needed to…

Tal felt a hand shake his shoulder. "Tal!"

"Huh?" Tal responded with a confused mumble.

"I found you passed out, pale as a corpse. What happened?" Farruco asked with a concerned voice.

"I just tried to make another enchant."

"You did one two days ago. Didn't Troche tell you how dangerous it is to overspend your energy?"

"I think… I think she might have mentioned not to use all of my energy, but…"

"Boy, don't you ever try to enchant unless you know you have enough energy. The last thing I need is you dying on my watch." Farruco said in a stern voice, shaking his index finger near Tal's face.

"I will be careful, sir." Tal hastily responded as fully woke up. To receive a scolding from an employer was never a good thing, and he knew he had messed up.

Tal looked down at the ring but before he could inspect it Farruco picked it up and exclaimed, "This one is botched. I am deducting the ring's price from your salary."

'Shit! That is a five weeks salary!'

Farruco then let out an annoyed sigh and added "I will not ask you to cover the full selling price just how much it costs me to buy one, which comes down to sixty copper."

"Thank you, sir."

"Just come eat and then get some sleep." Farruco said and walked off. Tal quickly followed with uneven steps feeling dizzy. The familiar smell of freshly made onion soup invaded Tal's nose and his stomach responded with an eager growl.

Since Tal was doing less around the house and shop Farruco often ordered food from the nearby tavern for both of them and today wasn't an exception.

"Sit down, I'll get the bread. I don't want you to pass out with a knife in your hand." Farruco said.

Not wanting to make the old man even angrier than he already was, Tal sat down and started to eat. The soup tasted good with that pleasant afterburn from both hotness and the added spices.

The only downside was that today he didn't go after the food himself. The Tavern keeper's twin daughters were almost his age and rather cute. Their father had even hinted that he wouldn't mind marrying one of them to Tal when they reached the marriageable age, which was just months away.

His daydream about the girls was rudely interrupted by Farruco's stern voice. "I don't want you to take risks like that ever again. From what Torche had told me, even those mage guild weirdos don't do something as reckless as overextending their energies. You could have died, and for what? One extra enchant? You will get there naturally, and when you do I will buy the extra enchants."

"Understood, sir."

'He will nag me for at least a week. I just know it.'

"Don't make that face. I am warning you for your own good. Getting to three enchants per week early is not worth the risk." Farruco said with a grumble and dug into the food.

The old man had a point. Dying from exhaustion was not worth the risk of getting out of the contract a bit earlier. Still, there had to be a way to grow in power faster. Resolved not to give up until he found a solution, Tal finished his meal and retired to bed for a good long sleep.

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Tal removed his palm from the freshly enchanted ring and let out a sigh. 'That was easier than I expected.' he mused. The last few enchants felt less draining than before.

After the fiasco with the attempt of making three rings per week, Tal had returned to the tight schedule of making just two enchants. A revelation slowly crept into his mind. 'Could it be that over-exhaustion extended my energy pool? I need to try it again, but be more careful to not pass out.'

The plan was simple: wait till he had just enough energy to make an enchant and then cast it leaving himself with just enough energy to remain conscious.

Of course, it was easier said than done as he still had no idea how to properly measure how much mana remained within his body, but the general idea was there.

Just to be on the safer side Tal waited for a day when Farruco had left the house after working hours. With a ring in his hand, he sat at his small table with a candle providing the only light in the room.

'If I mess this up it will cost me one and a half week's pay once again. Still, I have to do it, if this works I am getting a lot more.' Resolved to make a successful enchant, Tal put the ring on the table and cast the spell. His vision quickly started to dim and he felt a wave of dizziness.

'I…have to…keep…going.' He pushed the last bits of energy into the enchanting feeling he was about to reach the needed amount. 'Just… a… little bit… more…' Tal fought against the fog that was trying to consume his mind, pushing out reserves he likely shouldn't be touching, and it was enough to finish the cast.

With a sigh of relief, he staggered to his feet and walked a few steps towards the bed. The moment his head hit the pillow, he passed out.

When he finally woke up in the morning, the sun was illuminating his small room. Tal sat up with a long yawn and looked around. The ring was still firmly on the table. In the excitement of the current success, he jumped out of the bed with his legs wobbling a bit and quickly grabbed the ring to inspect it.

'Feels like it should! I did it! Third enchant this week.' With a satisfied smirk, he put the ring into his pocket and walked out of the room, quickly descending the wooden stairs to the first floor of the house.

Farruco was quietly brewing a cup of morning coffee for himself without paying much attention to Tal's approach. The old man seemed to be far too used to living alone, and he didn't acknowledge Tal's presence most of the time unless there was a need to interact.

Tal didn't know why Farruco had chosen such a lifestyle, as the merchant didn't talk about his past, only once mentioning that he had three adult children who had their own lives and rarely visited due to the required travel distance. The only proof of that was the constant stream of letters Farruco received, which he read by himself always having a subtle smile on his face.

"Sir, I did it! I made another stamina enchant!" he enthusiastically said , presenting the ring to his employer and adding, "I was careful this time." before Farruco could lecture him about being careless.

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The old man picked up the ring, put on his glasses, and inspected it. "Looks fine. Let's see… I could give you one silver for this."

"One silver? But an enchanted ring costs fifteen silver." Tal protested.

"I can sell them for fifteen silver, you are just receiving payment for the work."

"Sir, that is way too low!"

"Don't argue with me, boy. You agreed to sell all the enchants to me and for a price I deem fit. When you have earned enough money to get a trader's license, you can sell them to whomever you want and hope to get a better deal."

"Understood, sir." Tal said through his teeth as he accepted a single silver coin for his efforts. By all means, a fair price for the work should have been three to four silver, but for now, there was no way out of the unfair deal.

At least now Tal knew how to push his limits and then who knows? Maybe soon enough he could make four or even more enchants each week and earn enough money to buy out the contract. After all, Farruco had to buy all the enchants he made.

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Troche took a small sip of wine from the glass she held and said in a calm voice. "Don't you think you are ripping off the boy a bit too much?"

Farruco let out a long sigh and leaned back on the sofa he was sitting on. His old friend had a tendency to act as a moral compass from time to time and dampen the mood.

Once a week they would visit each other and talk about business or old times when both were still young. This week he was visiting Troche at her home, and they were sitting in the veranda overlooking the plain green backyard with unkempt grass and few fruit trees.

"I need to get back my investment, you know. I didn't think Tal would progress so fast."

"Overextension sometimes causes bursts of growth, as dangerous as it is. I should have explained it better to him."

"I will not hold it against you." Farruco said and took another sip of wine and tossed a small piece of cheese in his mouth. "I was thinking of maybe training another boy like Tal after he leaves. What do you think of it?"

"Why not? There are shortages of enchanters, and the count is breathing on my neck to produce more stamina rings since harvest season is taking its toll on his people."

"Oh, the count himself visited you?"

"He came into my shop two days ago, bought all the rings I had, and asked when the next batch would be ready."

"I have about two dozen of them laying around…"

"Great! I will send him to you then. I want to work on more profitable enchants." Toche said with a slight annoyance in her voice.

"Monster hunters gearing up for the season?"

"Yes, pestering me daily about grade one enchants. We surely need more youngsters like Tal; there is always more demand than we can provide."

"Why not take your own apprentice?" Farruco asked.

"People with both talent and brains are lining up to become casters." Torche said with a tone that dripped with sarcasm.

"That bad, huh?"

"You know how it is! I tried to take multiple apprentices. Last one stole silverware and ran off. One before that was too twitchy to sit down and meditate, and one before him couldn't control the amount of energy she poured into objects. Not to mention the few you sent in my direction that were barely trainable."

"A shame. Say, how about we train Tal for more advanced enchants? Surely there is profit in it."

"That boy is too smart to fall for an unfair deal the second time, and I doubt he would stick around once I fully train him." Torche said and drank what remained in her glass.

Farruco picked up the bottle from the small table and poured more wine for her. "At least he will earn me a few gold coins. If nothing else, I can be on the lookout for other potential 's plenty of stragglers like him, so I'm sure we'll find someone worthwhile. ."

"You are too optimistic. Most of them are only good for either hard labor or brothels."

"Have at least some faith in the youth." Farucco said with a chuckle

"I'm too old and too tired for that. Be happy you found one to profit off of."

"You are not that old, still in your prime in fact." he said with a smooth voice.

Torche gently hit him on the shoulder replying. "I'm not going to fall for your vile charms, you sly dog."

"Can't a man just compliment a lady anymore?"

"That you can, but I know you far too well."

"My hunting days are in the past now."

"Sure. Didn't that widowed seamstress from the barrel street try her charms on you?"

"Eh, I'm too old to remarry. Too much trouble that business is." Farruco said dismissively "Better tell me what should I do with Tal? How should I keep him around?"

"Offer a better deal. The boy isn't planning to work for a noble or open his own shop. As long as you give a fair deal, he is likely to stick around."

"It will not last for long. I have a hunch that boy aims for big things." Farruco said solemnly and took a big gulp of wine. His plan to keep around the boy for two years was already crumbling. At least he had already made the invested money back.

Who could have guessed that Tal would be so eager to get out of the contract he agreed upon to get magical training?

Edited by Edgy

Proofreading by placid_void

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