After two days of practice, Rhode had more or less mastered how to use Mage Hand, and had gained a deeper understanding of one particular application.
Grabbing things.
That was the function he needed most right now.
He needed to use Mage Hand to pick up the rubble at the entrance to the Jade Mine, piece by piece, and toss it aside until the entrance was clear again.
Rhode had also learned a support spell along the way: Glamour.
After all, Lilia's headscarf was a rather crude disguise, and a close look at her features would still reveal differences from a human child's. Rhode wanted to solve that with magic.
Glamour was a spell that applied a temporary effect, lasting for a certain amount of time after it was cast.
In actual use, this spell could be extremely powerful and complex, even capable of concealing an entire city.
From what Rhode knew in his previous life, the magical city of Dalaran sometimes used this sort of glamour to make itself "disappear" and prevent ordinary people from wandering in.
But Rhode only wanted to make Lilia look more human, which was simple. In fact, the spell model he drew contained just five spell nodes and two energy circuits, so he mastered it quickly.
Then Rhode went to the Jade Mine and got to work.
The huge hand grabbed a rock and tossed it aside.
Then it grabbed another rock and tossed that aside too.
Lilia stayed in the shade of a nearby tree, alternating between watching Rhode grab rocks and practicing with her branch.
Normally, only the miners coming to work visited the mine. Now that its entrance had collapsed, none of the townspeople came anymore, allowing Rhode to cast his spells without worry.
Rhode could now summon a huge hand about three meters wide, capable of lifting very heavy rocks.
But such a huge Mage Hand also consumed a considerable amount of mana. His morning's work only cleared some of the debris on the surface of the entrance. The large rocks that had fallen farther inside would have to wait until his mana recovered.
It was noon now, and the blazing sun high overhead seemed to scorch everything beneath it.
The scenery farther down the road wavered slightly in the shimmering heat.
"Let's take a break," Rhode told Lilia.
"Okay. I'm hungry." Lilia put away her branch sword.
"We'll eat in town today instead of going back to the farm." One reason was that the Jade Mine was closer to town. The other was that, seeing how much Lilia loved practicing with her sword, Rhode wanted to find Marshal Redpath and ask whether he could teach the little girl some swordsmanship.
"Yay!" Children always liked eating out.
Rhode slung his small travel bundle over his back and led Lilia along the road toward Southshore, where they found the town's only tavern.
Unlike those in big cities, the tavern here was tiny, probably only a few dozen square meters.
Its entrance had a low wooden door, and they could see inside from outside.
Several old but clean round tables stood surrounded by round stools. The pleasant scent of bread drifted out, mingled with the slightly sour stink of alcohol.
Rhode also saw several men gathered around a table, drinking from large gray wooden mugs and talking loudly without a care for anyone else. They looked drunk.
Rhode pushed the door open and went in. The tavern's owner immediately turned toward him, her eyes lighting up as she called, "Oh, Rhode! We don't see you here often. What can I get you?"
Of course, Rhode knew the woman. Her name was Monica.
He usually cooked his meals at his own farm to save money, so he rarely visited the tavern. That was why Monica said they didn't see him often.
Monica wasn't exceptionally beautiful, but there was something very pleasant about her.
She had short brown hair and large, water-blue eyes. Her smile was sweet, and her voice was lovely too.
"Do you have anything cheap and tasty?" Rhode sat on a chair in front of the counter and asked with a smile, "Don't recommend anything too expensive. I don't have much money."
"Then I recommend the honey bread." Monica glanced at Lilia beside him as she spoke. "It's good for children too. Add a bottle of our local milk, and you couldn't ask for better. Or how about some turtle soup? That's our chef Jason's specialty!"
"Uh... no turtle soup. Just honey bread and milk for two to start with."
"All right. Just a moment, please." Monica went back into the kitchen and soon emerged carrying a tray with two long loaves and two cups of milk. The bread was spread with waxy-golden honey.
"Here's your bread and milk. Six copper coins."
The honey bread looked quite substantial, and the cups of milk weren't small either.
Only six copper coins for everything. Prices really were low in the countryside.
He took out six copper coins and handed them over. Monica accepted them, then counted out three and put them back into Rhode's hand.
"You're Southshore's hero, and a mage too. You get half off today," Monica said with a smile.
Rhode was taken aback, but soon understood.
The mayor must have told everyone after returning. Rhode didn't know exactly what he had said, but it must have been something about Rhode being a good mage who would help repair the mine.
Besides, Rhode had lived in town for several years, so the townspeople knew him fairly well.
Thus, although everyone had always felt a certain awe toward the mysterious profession of mage, once they learned that this mage was Rhode, they quickly stopped finding it anything special.
And everyone knew he had saved that child. Such heroic deeds would remain etched in the townspeople's hearts forever, so Monica had naturally given him a discount.
Rhode didn't stand on ceremony. He smiled and nodded at Monica, accepted the coins, then picked up his bread and took a bite.
Mmm, delicious.
Lilia ate even more eagerly, taking a bite of bread and then a sip of milk, leaving a milky-white smear below her lips.
As she ate, she mumbled, "You're so nice, miss! Do you like Rhode?"
When Lilia and Rhode were alone, she sometimes spoke Elvish and sometimes Common, but outside, she always spoke Common.
"Oh, you silly child. What nonsense." Monica blushed and fled into the kitchen.
Rhode gave Lilia a light smack on the head, and she stuck out her tongue.
Just then, one of the men drinking nearby turned around and shouted, his face flushed red, "Heh, he just happened to save some kid. Nothing but luck! I could've done it too. Why don't I get half off?"
Only then did Rhode realize that this drunk was Bondes, the mining foreman who had led the others toward him that night.
"Exactly! And this fellow wrecked the mine, leaving me out of work. Shouldn't he pay me for my lost wages?" another drunk chimed in. This was Hackett, one of the miners.
"I'm sorry, but the mayor should have explained things to you," Rhode said. "I'm clearing the mine, and it should be ready soon. As for the wages you've lost, I'll reimburse you."
Better to avoid trouble if I could.
Besides, he really was at fault for damaging the mine entrance while practicing Fireball.
"Heh, if saying sorry fixed everything, what would we need a marshal for?" Foreman Bondes stood and strode toward Rhode menacingly.
The other men stood too. There were three of them in total.
Drunks were such a nuisance.
They might normally have listened to Rhode's reasoning, but once they were drunk, nothing got through to them.
Or perhaps they were simply looking for trouble.
It was the same old reason-jealousy made people lose their minds.
Perhaps this time, their jealousy had less to do with him being a "hero" and more to do with that "half off"-or, more precisely, Monica's special treatment of Rhode.
Anyone in their right mind wouldn't pick a fight with a mage.
"Let's talk outside," Rhode said. He stood as well and walked toward the tavern door.
He didn't want to wreck Monica's tavern if a fight really did break out.
Then he would have to pay for the damage again.
Earning money was hard work.
After resting for a little while, he felt that a fair amount of his mana had recovered.
A mage with mana should have no trouble dealing with three ordinary drunks... right?
"Hm?" Lilia was still chewing her delicious honey bread. Seeing Rhode get up, she hurried after him with her cup of milk, remembering to take another sip even as she ran.
"Ha! You've got guts!" The drunks grew excited.
This was exactly what they wanted.
So they left the tavern too and stepped onto the open patch of ground outside.
In a small town like this, word of a fight spread quickly.
A crowd of onlookers soon gathered around the open ground.
Everyone watched the main figures in its center-Rhode and the three drunks.
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