Somnial shut his book, shifting in his seat as he studied me.“I suppose that means you really don’t know who I am,” he muttered to himself, then sighed. “Time truly is the great equalizer.”The mage gestured to the second armchair, so I sat. “Redding—my village—is pretty isolated. So I don’t really know anything about, uh… Argadian nobility?” I said, postulating about the man’s status. “Or much about Argadia’s history at all.”Somnial chuckled, shaking his head slightly. “How nice, to live in a time of peace,” he said softly.I frowned, trying to decipher the old man’s words with my limited information. Argadia being in a peacetime suggested that it hadn’t always been. That much was obvious, because I knew the country had an army, as Mishel had been a soldier. His sons had died serving the army, but that couldn’t have been that long ago. No one in my village ever really talked about a recent war, though.But then, I also knew there were opposing forces in the world. The administrator had heavily implied as much when he informed me about [Mana Manipulation].“So Argadia isn’t in conflict with its neighbors?”“Oh, it very much is,” Somnial answered. “Humans will always squabble over borders. Especially during peace.”I shook my head. That seemed like the opposite of peace. “I’m confused. And also about what that has to do with you being, uh, the great sage.”Somnial hummed to himself, then stood, walking over to the bookshelves. He browsed a bit, then shook his head, muttering to himself as he crossed the room to a different bookshelf, and withdrew a small book. He walked over to me and handed me the book before settling back down into his armchair.“That’s the grimoire for [Create Light],” he said. “The one our mages learn, as opposed to your revelatory skill. Take a look.”Confused, but curious, I cracked open the grimoire and started (...)