Chapter 17: Ridicule
As there was still some time until dinner, Max went to the library to learn more about mana and the requirements to become a novice mage, one-star mage, two-star mage etc.
He reached the library after walking for a few minutes. It was quite a big room that was used as a library. There were many shelves full of books. He went to the mage section which had most of the details known to the public.
He quickly skimmed through a few books and found what he was looking for. But he was surprised by a certain thing.
It was not because of what he read in the books but because he was able to read at all. He didn't have any memory of his predecessor thus it was perplexing that he could read their language.
'Now that I think about it, I shouldn't even understand what others were speaking but obviously, I can and speak this language too.' Max frowned and thought for a while but he couldn't find an answer. So he dismissed it as something related to his reincarnation.
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Mage ranks were decided by many important factors. Having an adequate amount of mana was one of them. Although it is not something you can count. but same as water is also quantified in units.
Mana is the driving force of magic. Without enough mana, you can't hope to become a mage and can only become guards to some noble household or choose to be a non-magic class warrior or choose some blacksmith like occupation to make a living.
All in all, having mana is the most important thing to have if you want to be a strong mage.
A person was considered a novice mage when he or she has at least one hundred units of mana. Five hundred units of mana give you qualifications to be a one-star mage. one thousand units of mana, two-star mage. Ten thousand units make you eligible to be a three-star mage and so on.
'These mana units should be equivalent to my mana points.' Max thought and most likely this was the case.
'If this is the case, does that mean I'm more powerful than a novice mage?" He wondered pleasantly surprised by this thought. He had 308 mana points which meant he was only 192 away from being a one-star mage or at being eligible to.
"Let's go and have dinner with everyone. I will test my strength against Lilly tomorrow. I guess she is stronger than a one-star mage according to what she told me.
He then went out of the library and walked toward the dining hall.
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When he reached the dining hall. There were Anna, Emily and two of his brother Noah and William with their wives Chloe and Eva sitting by their sides.
Seeing Max coming, Anna jovially waved her hand in greeting while blonde-haired cold beauty Emily slightly nodded her head. Max looked at the two of them in a daze for a second but quickly snapped out of it and waved his hand and smiled back in greeting.
"Oh, is that my worthless brother? It's very good to see you in high spirits just after you woke up from a deadly injury. It's very surprising though. I thought that for at least half a year I won't have to see this irritating face of yours." Suddenly his brother William spoke in a mocking tone.
Noah laughed and said, "It's true that useless people live a thousand years while heroes die early." Chloe his wife covered her mouth with one hand and giggled. While William and Eva also laughed.
Max looked at both of them calmly without saying anything but he had a cold look in his eyes.
Unlike Max, Anna erupted in anger after hearing their ridicule and pointed at Noah "Brother how can you say that to him. He is our brother. You shouldn't make fun of him just because he is weak. If you continue doing it I will tell father about it." Noah and Anna were from the same mother. Noah was 22 years old while Anna was 20.
Noah clicked his tongue in annoyance "What will you say to father? We only stated the truth. And why would you always cling to him, your talent will also be wasted if you keep him company."
"Yeah, Anna. You shouldn't stay close to the trash like him. Ha ha ha." William laughed.
"YOU..." Anna was boiling in anger to the point she couldn't speak.
"Enough! If you spout any nonsense I won't mind showing you how much of a trash you two are." Emily coldly interjected.
Max looked at his sisters who clearly cared about him. He felt warmth in his heart. It doesn't matter if he scumbags as brothers if he had someone who cared for him.
Noah and William laughed awkwardly and reluctantly stopped speaking. In front of Emily, they couldn't say much as she was already a two-star mage and they weren't worth much compared to her. However, an arrogant voice sounded out at this moment...
"Ohh, Why is my beloved little sister getting angry for a mere trash. What Noah and William said I very much agree to it." Max turned to see who was speaking in this way to Emily. It was Mark, eldest son of Ashton Garfield who same as Emily was a two-star mage.
Mark and Emily were from the same mother. He was a handsome man with blonde hair and a bulky body. He had two women in his left and right arms. They were his wives Lacey and Layla. Both of them had good figures and big buttocks which looked very sensual in the way they were moving when they walk. 'It seems he is into this type of girls huh.' Max inwardly licked his lips seeing their seductive figures. Although they weren't comparable to Lilly, Anna or Emily in beauty, they still were quite attractive.
"Do you want to fight me?" Emily glanced at him and spoke coldly.
"Hahaha, why would I want to fight my dear sister? But what they said was the truth, wasn't it?" Mark said with a smile but inwardly he was furious. 'This bitch. Just you wait. Soon enough I'll be the lord of the Garfield family. Then I'll show you that having superior talent doesn't mean shit.'
Mark was now 26 years old and he became a two-star mage just a year ago. It clearly shows that his talent is worse than Emily who became a mage at the age of 22. This was the reason he hated his sister.
After a while, his father with three beautiful mature women arrived and sat in their respective seats. Everyone present including Max greeted them.
Today Max noticed each one of them. One of the women who was blonde, was the mother of Mark and Emily, Esther. She has a similar temperament to Emily but she had a different charm to her.
Another woman who wore a gentle expression on her face was the mother of Anna and Noah, Amelia. His silky black hair Cascaded down like a waterfall. Her face was devoid of any blemish. She was quite opposite of Esther.
The third woman had a petite figure with big breasts and she was beautiful too. But Other than this she had no striking features was considered normal compared to other women of the house. Her name was Mina.