Chương 68: Book 2 Chapter 20 - Zoey Trellen

Zoey reminisced on how advancing to tier 1 had been euphoric. The effort to prepare for the breakthrough had helped acclimate her body to increased mana saturation, and she had felt herself getting strong throughout the process. The breakthrough itself, though, went above and beyond that. She had experienced an additional influx of power all at once, in the moment of the breakthrough. Her instructors had warned them to be sure and lie down during the breakthrough attempt to avoid injuring themselves.

Once her core formed, a small, marble-sized sphere behind her sternum, her body had almost seized up from the influx of power. She had felt a surge of mana course through her, and immediately felt stronger, faster, and more alert. That had motivated her greatly to work on advancing to tier 2. After advancing to tier 1, her next task was to form her meridians, the channels that carried mana all throughout her body. After that, she had to strengthen and condense her core to initiate the breakthrough to tier 2.

Those steps had been more challenging, but she had still performed slightly faster than average, advancing to tier 2 in just over three months. Advancing to tier 2 had pretty much guaranteed her a high paying job as a guard captain or leader of a mercenary group. Her parents had thrown a party for their entire neighborhood block to celebrate. Work of this kind would pay more than her parents made, which was a considerable achievement. Once again, the breakthrough had been amazing.

It was a feeling that, by itself, drove her to seek further advancement, regardless of the financial benefits that came along with it. From a purely social and financial perspective, the true breakthrough came at tier 3 though. That was where new jobs and opportunities opened up. As a tier 3, she would be treated as an honorary minor noble. She could be invited to social gatherings as an attendee, instead of a guard.

She would be eligible for marriage into a noble house, or possibly even to become a noble herself, if she didn't mind moving to a smaller city or town. Advancing to tier 3 required enlarging her mana meridians to allow for greater mana throughput, while also strengthening them so they could handle the increased load. After her meridians were larger and stronger, she had to enlarge her core as well.

Once that was complete, she condensed the core once again, which helped increase the potency of the mana she could wield. Condensing the core was the final step, and triggered the breakthrough to tier 3. It had taken her just over ten months to advance, which her instructors assured her was well within the normal range. What they didn't say, but implied, was that she was no longer performing above average at this level.

The vast majority of academy attendees never made it to tier 3, so she was above average in a general sense. It was simply too difficult for some, as it required a great deal of effort and discomfort, sometimes even pain. Others lacked the necessary spiritual attunement for it to even be possible, regardless of effort. Once she broke through to tier 3, she had entered the upper echelons of society. However, for those that did make it to tier 3, she was no longer above average.

They hadn't outright told her that in so many words, but the implication was clear. The special instruction and attention she was getting had tapered off after that. She was just another student at that point. She hadn't let that discourage her though, and was doing everything she could to make it to tier 4. Her parents, on the other hand, had been over the moon when they learned she had advanced to tier 3. Her dad told her that her mom had cried tears of joy for days. Zoey's future was certain to be bright.

Time at the magical academy included not just instruction on how to advance, but also practical experience shaping spells and controlling magic. She had classes on magical theory, mana control, elemental attunement, and more. The academy courses lasted for three years. It was long enough to help those who were able advance at least to tier 3. It was long enough to learn the ins and outs of mana control. It was long enough to learn the rules of society that centered on mages and power tiers.

Now, it was time to get a job. Unfortunately, the realities of life weren't as simple as the theoretical model the academy taught. Zoey had found that most noble and wealthy houses already had their house retainers lined up long in advance. Most who attended the academy were from wealthy houses, Zoey was a rare exception. Children and relatives were hired right out of the academy, regardless of talent.

Learning magic and advancing through the tiers was somewhat of a chore for most of her peers, something they had to do before taking their place in the family. Those that excelled were praised and given powerful positions. Those that didn't excel were welcomed back all the same, with pats on the head for having tried. Zoey, whose future absolutely depended on her ability, had pushed herself hard. She had learned faster, worked harder, and put in more time and effort than anyone else in her year.

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Her hard work paid off in the growth of her personal capacity, but she had failed in one critical area. She hadn't spent time making friends, or joined any social circles. She had been too focused on her studies, on learning everything she could. Now that she had graduated, she didn't have any connections. The houses she applied to work at didn't know who she was, didn't have any reason to hire her.

When they found out that her parents were tanners, and that she didn't offer any kind of social-connection value, they moved on to other candidates. A tier 1 or tier 2 whose parents were wealthy was a better business connection than a tier 3 whose parents were nobodies. If she advanced to tier 4, that would likely change, since the more powerful you were the more social value you offered on your own, but it was hard for anyone to know if she would advance to tier 4.

She was certain she would, she could feel it deep down that she wasn't stuck yet, but nobody wanted to take her word for it. She had applied to dozens of jobs to work for nobility or the wealthy houses in Portish, but to no avail. So now, she had decided to start looking at smaller cities outside of Portish. As the county seat, tier 3 mages were just too common amongst the upper class in Portish, even though they were rare in a general sense. In smaller cities, though, she would be a more valuable asset.

She wasn't sure how to find those jobs though, and had been considering travelling to smaller cities to seek out employment. As luck would have it, when she checked with the city offices the previous day to see if they had heard of any jobs in smaller cities, they had! They gave her a time and place, where she would interview with some potential employers today. House Yountal, from Easton. She had never heard of either House Yountal, or Easton, but she was nervous all the same.

Failing to find a job in Portish was embarrassing, and she refused to settle for a guard job. She was a tier 3, and wanted to be paid a fair wage for her abilities. If she failed now to secure employment even at the smaller cities around Portish, she would die of embarrassment. After everything her parents went through to secure her education, she needed to show them it was worth it. She had shown up fifteen minutes early, just in case they were ready before the allotted time.

The clerk, a mortal who was working the front desk, told her the interviewers had stepped out for lunch, and would be back shortly. Zoey waited patiently for them to arrive. Zoey felt the group return with her magic sense, but there were only two mortals and some tier 1s present. The tier 1s ended up being a guard contingent, and to Zoey's surprise, the two mortals were the representatives from House Yountal.

Her surprise was short lived, as she reminded herself that her parents were also mortals, but that didn't stop them from being brilliant business owners. Her only worry was if House Yountal could afford to employ her. They didn't have a single tier 2 guard with them, which was worrying. Being from a smaller city, maybe they didn't know the true cost of employing a tier 3 mage. She steeled herself for a lowball offer, and mentally rehearsed the most polite ways to turn down such an offer.

She didn't want to be rude, it wasn't their fault if they were poor. Once they returned from lunch and got properly situated, the clerk called her name, and showed her to a back room. The interviewers smiled as she walked in. One of them was an extremely attractive man, and her mind blanked momentarily as she walked to the chair they had set out for her. Relax, Zoey, she reminded herself. Breathe. This is just an interview, you're not here to ogle that man…

or his chiseled jaw, or his perfectly groomed stubble, or his deep, mesmerizing eyes.

"Zoey?" the woman asked. Zoey pried her eyes away from the man-turned-art and looked at the young woman. She looked to be about Zoey's age, and was fairly pretty. She carried herself with an air of confidence Zoey hadn't seen in many people, let alone a mortal. Zoey nodded.

"Zoey Trellen, at your service." The woman smiled.

"My name is Shian. Shian Yountal." She pointed to the man.

"This is Dustin Savage, my estate manager. Thanks for coming in today, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine," Zoey said.

"Tell us a bit about yourself," Dustin said. Zoey made eye contact as he was speaking, but barely heard a word he said. Those eyes… Once he stopped speaking, she had to mentally replay the sounds he had made to figure out what he had said.

"Ah, uh… yes," she replied, getting off to a rocky start. The mundaneness and commonness of the question soon registered in her mind though, and she fell into a familiar rhythm. This was just another interview, and she had a lot of practice recently with interviews.

"Well, my name is Zoey, I grew up here in Portish. My parents own a tannery business. I graduated from the Portish Magical Academy four months ago, and I'm a tier 3 mage. I have excellent mana control, my meridians are strong, and ready for an advancement to tier 4, and I'm working on developing my first concept." Well done! Perfectly delivered, Zoey. First, sell yourself, so they want to hire you, then later bring up the salary expectations.

Dustin nodded along as she talked, but Shian got a curious look on her face.

"Meridians?" Shian asked.

"Tell me a little bit about that." Zoey re-checked her magic sense. This woman was a mortal, not a tier 0. Not someone who had learned about magic and stalled before forming a mana core, but instead someone who had likely never been to a magical academy at all. Once again, Zoey worried about the financial ability of House Yountal to pay her fairly. Not wanting to be rude, though, she answered the question as best she could.

"Mana meridians are what carry my mana throughout my body, Lady Yountal. It strengthens my body, helps me cycle mana through my core, and also allows for mana to be channeled throughout the body. Thicker, stronger meridians allow for faster cast times, as well as more potent magic."

"I see," Shain replied, the light of pure curiosity gleaming in her eyes.

"And what was that you mentioned about a concept?" Zoey sighed mentally. Was this 'interview' really just going to be a free lesson in magic theory that resulted in a sub-par job offer? That would be a first. Oh well, it was best to showcase her knowledge and value, just in case.