Who's Speaking Behind?
Garrett dared not turn around, fearing he might drop the book he held. He steadied the book on the shelf, then turned to look at the person by the door. Who was this?
The newcomer was a young man, around twenty, with sandy hair and dressed in a black mage robe. Seeing Garrett turn, he grinned widely, his white teeth shining brightly:
"Mage, sir." Garrett bowed, puzzled: Who was this overly familiar guy?
As he bowed, he noticed the man leaning against the door frame, his right foot barely touching the ground, seeming hesitant to put weight on it. Suddenly, it clicked for Garrett: No wonder he couldn't recognize himyesterday's explosion in the mage tower left his face blackened. The only thing familiar was that set of big white teeth...
"Mr. Elliot! Is your foot not healed yet?"
"How could it be so quick?"
The man's face fell as he gingerly moved to sit at the table, obviously not handling yesterday's twist lightly. Garrett approached and inspected, asking, "Didn't you get it healed?"
"Are you kidding? Healing potions are too expensive!"
Elliot exclaimed. But then, realizing his outburst wasn't suitable in front of a newcomer, he awkwardly chuckled. Garrett had moved over to him by then:
"Ohright, you're a healer. Go ahead!"
Garrett crouched by his foot. Upon careful observation, he noticed Elliot's right ankle swollen like a bun on the outside, not so bad on the inside, but the top was visibly swollen. Garrett gripped Elliot's ankle with his left hand and pressed firmly on the outer ligament with his right thumb
Elliot cried out, jerking away. He hopped on his right foot, his left foot in the air, trying to escape:
"You're a healer! Where's the healing spell!"
"If I'm a healer, I need to check!" Garrett retorted, not looking up, focused on Elliot's right foot: It can still take some pressure, good sign, likely no fracture. As for the ligament, just a bit of pressure and it hurts this much, probably a tear in the lateral ligament
Elliot tried to escape with a limp, unable to run fast with one leg. Wanting to cast a spell, he was repeatedly disrupted by pain. Garrett grabbed him, crouched down, pressed along the outer edge of the ankle bone, poking and rotating:
"Does it hurt here? What about here? How about this rotation?"
"Ah... it's okay here, it's okay... Ah! Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch! Let go!"
Great, pain with inversion stress, indicating significant pain while inverting the foot. There's tenderness at a specific point, suggesting the anterior talofibular ligament is probably torn, the posterior talofibular ligament seems okay, and the calcaneofibular ligament is likely fine.
Now, it's about soft tissue contusion and swellingGarrett focused, envisioning foot anatomy in his mind, and his fingertips started glowing.
Repair ligament damage, speed up local tissue metabolism, quickly absorb swelling, heal injured soft tissues
The swelling on Elliot's right ankle gradually subsided. He breathed a sigh of relief: "Ah... it doesn't hurt anymore..."
He immediately wanted to pull his foot away. Garrett grabbed it:
"Wait! Let me double-check!"
Pressing, rotating, making him hop. After this routine, Garrett finally confirmed that Elliot's ankle injury was treated.
He sighed in relief, supporting himself up from the floor with the chair. Elliot enthusiastically hopped over, grabbing Garrett's hand, shaking it vigorously:
"Oh, thank you so much!"
His attitude had changed drastically. No longer condescending as when he first came in, now treating Garrett as an equal. Garrett nodded along, thinking:
In the world of mages, no knowledge is free. So, obviously, healing spells aren't either. Since Elliot found healing potions expensive, it would be best to ask for something that's important to oneself, yet easy for the other
"Mr. Elliot, you said what I did was wrong?"
Elliot smacked his forehead loudly. After the checking and treatment, he had forgotten why he came. He pointed at the bookshelf:
"I said what you're doing is wrong! Flipping through aimlessly, wasting timeyesterday you said you hadn't even learned magic scripts?"
"Yes, Mr. Elliot." Garrett breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, the savior had arrived; he didn't have to waste energy on novels anymore! That book was especially heavy, covered in copper!
He earnestly asked for guidance:
"I indeed lack basic magic education. Mr. Elliot, could you please advise me on the order to read these books?"
In any discipline, the order of learning is crucial. Like in his previous life studying medicine, first anatomy, then physiology; then onto pathology, pathophysiology.
Once those basics were clear, moving onto diagnosis, then surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, pediatrics, infectious diseases, dermatology, and all the other specialties.
Trying to learn advanced without mastering the basics was akin to building a tower on sand. Without wind or waves, given a bit more time, it collapses.
So, what about magic?
This power resides within oneself. Without a clear order, just picking up a book, was it a death wish?
Garrett had considered gathering books he knew and finding an apprentice or, better yet, a mage to ask the proper sequence. Before he could figure that out, Elliot had appeared at his doorperfect!
Elliot's eyes lit up. Healing potions were expensive, so surely, the healing spell wasn't free either. Asking for advice on book reading order? Perfect.
He silently recited a phrase and waved his hand. Whooshing sounds followed, and all the books flew off the shelves, hovering in the air, forming semi-circles around Elliot. He glanced around, then pointed:
Swoosh, about ten books landed on the table, piled up. Elliot waved again, and the remaining books scattered, each grouping returning neatly to the shelves, as if they were never touched.
Pointing to the table, Elliot said:
"Start with these few. 'Magic Script Studies,' 'Basic Meditation,' start with these two. Magic symbols, spells, elements, and potions, it doesn't matter. If you get tired, 'History of Magic,' 'Alchemy Basics,' 'Illustrated Guide to Magical Creatures' can be leisurely reads..."
Garrett's journey into magic studies had finally begun!
Though... not very smoothly, it seems...