Magi's Path (Aether's Revival Book 3) by Daniel Schinhofen (motivational books to read txt) 📕

“Gregory,” Lightshield said once the door closed, “does it bother you? The lack of training for your magic?”

Gregory didn’t answer. Instead, he gave it some thought. “At times, sir, but you’ve told Dia before that foresight can’t be taught, as it’s intuitive. I couldn’t hold onto my moments of frustration with that being known.”

“But many others would,” Lightshield said. “They would feel that an attempt should be made, regardless.”

“Foolish, sir. If you could teach me at all, I know you would.”

“You are wiser than your years. In time, I would think you will grow to lead the newer generation of magi, and perhaps, even the clan.”

Gregory looked away from the elder. “That’s high praise, sir. I just do my best.”

“May that always be the case,” Lightshield said before he upended the bucket of water over his head to rinse the soap off.

Gregory quickly finished and helped Lightshield over to the bath.

“Tell me, Gin, how do you feel our clan will do in the tournament?” Lightshield asked after a minute of soaking.

“Well. They’ll easily be in the top three unless something goes completely wrong. They have a good chance of winning it all. The Eternal Flame, Han Merchant Exchange, and Swift Wind are my biggest concerns. Most clans won’t have outfitted their apprentices as well as ours, but those three will have, and I’m sure they have trained hard, too.”

“Hmm, yes, those were my thoughts, as well,” Lightshield said. “The Eternal Flame will not just be trying to win, though. They will be looking to dominate and, when they face our clan, they will even try to kill our apprentices.”

“Sir, we’ve worked hard,” Gregory said. “We know the danger we’ll be facing... not just from them, but from everyone we’ll face. If or when we face Nick and his friends, we will win. There is only one thing I worry about with any of them.”

“Do tell,” Lightshield prompted him when Gregory hesitated.

“The light that Nick can make with his armor that cripples Yuki’s magic... It would leave her exposed in a way that neither I nor Jenn would be.”

“That is a concern,” Lightshield nodded. “I will consider ways to overcome that. For tonight, set that fear aside. We need to show our potential clan members the positive side of the clan.”

“I will do my best, sir,” Gregory said, bowing to him.

Chapter Fifty-six

Gregory was seated at the dining room table along with Gin, Lightshield, and the male staff when the women joined them. He smiled— Yukiko was the first one through the doorway, with Jenn only a step behind her, and both were smiling at him. Daciana, Nessa, and Victoria followed them with Velma, Murium, Inda, Indara, and Bishop behind them. Gregory was surprised to see Clover and Ling come in after them, and Dia was the last one into the room.

“Welcome to Aether’s Guard, Apprentices and Novices,” Lightshield said. “I hope you did not mind the tradition of cleaning up before dinner.”

All five guests admitted they didn’t mind and had, in fact, enjoyed it.

“I am glad. We will be having dinner before we discuss more about the clan.” When they agreed to his suggestion, Lightshield motioned to Ravol. “We are ready, Ravol.”

Ravol brought the fully-laden cart to the table. He set the covered platters down first, then placed a handful of pitchers with different beverages on the table. “Tonight, we have a standard clan meal. The elder wanted you to see something commonplace and not a grand feast that might skew your ideas of the clan.”

With that said, he removed the lids to the food. “We have boar with a spiker fruit glaze, and bane boar in the same glaze. The bane boar is prepared for a low apprentice, so novices, you should temper it with some of the regular boar if you want more. To go with the boar, there is wild rice with pieces of spiker fruit mixed in and lightly-buttered charid with herbs.”

The scent of the meal made a couple of stomachs growl. Both Clover and Daciana suddenly looked mortified. Their blushes deepened when a few chuckles came from the others at the table.

“To drink, there is an aether-infused wine in the red pitcher, so those of apprentice rank five and up can have a little more of a boost with their food. The white pitcher has a wonderful juice to temper the aether infusion of the meal if you need the help. Lastly, the green pitcher has regular wine for those of us who are not magi.”

“Thank you, Ravol,” Lightshield said. “We do not stand on ceremony for the meals. Once they are served, we just help ourselves.” Putting action to words, Lightshield grabbed a big chunk of the bane boar for himself.

The other members of the clan all loaded their plates. The guests hesitated for a few seconds before they got their food, but they were soon trading serving platters and utensils to fill their plates with the others.

Clover was effusive in her praise to Ravol— she loved everything there was to have. Ling, like Gregory, had only taken a token serving of the charid. Nessa was the opposite, taking a large helping of the charid and letting Ravol know she loved it. Victoria asked Ravol about the herbs used in conjunction with the charid. She clearly understood cooking and explained that she used to help her mother at the inn.

The meal was a little louder than normal, but otherwise, everything felt normal to Gregory as he ate. Yukiko and Jenn bantered with the guests, clearly referencing an earlier conversation they’d had.

“I loved the bath. It was amazing,” Clover replied to a question from Jenn. “It’s even better than the ones in the training halls.”

“I think that it was the company,” Victoria said. “They