The library inside the mansion was enormous, easily twice the size of the main bedroom. It was stocked full of books of varying types. Most of them were about history. Others were grimoires with secrets about magic. The rest were about general knowledge.
It took Damien a while to locate Victor in this vast space. He found him sitting at a desk in a quiet corner, his head buried in a book. He almost looked peaceful, just like a quiet old man enjoying his time reading a book.
Without even looking up, Victor sensed Damien's presence. He made no effort in hiding his annoyance in seeing him.
"You're late. Didn't I tell you to come here right after your training with Dunken?" Victor let out an exasperated sigh. "There's a stack of books over there with information you need to know. Go read them. I'll ask you questions about them when you're finished." He gestured toward a neatly organized table of books far from where he was sitting.
Damien didn't budge from where he stood, prompting Victor to slam his book shut and glare at him.
"Do you want a repeat of yesterday? Why are you just standing there? I said move!"
"I can't read the text in those books."
"What?! How old are you, boy? What do you mean you can't read?"
"I was never taught how to read. Isn't that what you're here for? To teach me how to do things I can't already do?"
Damien had no idea how to read the text in this world, as Lucas had never been taught. He didn't even know how to write.
"Hah, you really expect me to teach a grown boy how to read and write?"
"You don't have to. I could always take it up with Edmond. Do you think he'd be willing to teach me?"
"Watch it, boy. I'm growing tired of your insolence. Tsk… have a seat. I'll teach you the basics, but you'll have to learn on your own."
"And another thing: my face. Can you do anything about it?" Damien asked still standing in front of Victor.
Victor gave confused look at Damien's question.
"Sadly, there's no cure for ugliness. You'll have to live with it."
"You're a white mage; surely there's something you can do about my acne. If I'm going to be working for Master Edmond, the least I could do is look presentable."
Damien's skin was in deplorable condition. His face was so rough he almost looked like a frog. Appearance played a significant role in a person's life; it affected how people interacted with him. A change in his looks could improve his life for the better. With his current appearance, he would constantly be mocked.
In his old world, there were many different chemicals and products that could fix the problem, but in this world, there was only one solution—magic.
"Well, there might be something I could do to fix your appearance. It might even benefit me not to see your ugly face, but that's not nearly enough reason for me to help you. Do you have something else to offer?"
"Something to offer? Let me think... how about the secret to fish oil, Would that be enough?"
"Fish oil?" Victor repeated, confused and irritated by Damien's comments. He has just about had it with him and his mockery. "How would you know the secret to fish oil?!"
"It is a gift given with love from the Waltons."
The Waltons, one of the noble families that had profited most from the sale of fish oil. One of the few families that holds the key to this ever sought after liquid.
"Preposterous! The only reason Edmond married that girl is that her father agreed to supply fish oil only to him. That man sold his own daughter for a shot at a high rank, why would he just hand the secret to fish oil to you?"
"As I said It was a gift."
A gift given with love from his little sister—Lisa—the naive girl who handed over a copy of a grimoire containing the secret to extracting fish oil from the magical fish known as a Kappa. It even included detailed instructions on how to catch the Kappa.
A priceless artifact he would offer in exchange for clear skin. The notion was so ridiculous to Victor that he couldn't help but let out a small chuckle. 'What is this boy playing at?' he wondered.
"Well, let's see it. Where's the grimoire?"
Damien unbuckled his pants, held together by a piece of wire, and pulled out a thin, oddly colored book.
"Disgusting!" Victor scowled.
"I kept it here as insurance."
"Against me, You thought I would steal this from you if I found you had it?"
"No, its an insurance against Dunken. I couldn't risk him hitting me in the balls with that wooden sword. This book was my only protection."
Victor scornfully took the book from Damien, too intrigued to care about where it had been kept. He looked it over meticulously, examining the texts written inside. Without a shadow of a doubt, it was…
"Hahaha, as I live and breathe, it really is it! I can't believe you managed to obtain this!" Victor exclaimed, his excitement evident to the point where he seemed like he was glowing.
"So, do we have a deal? Will you fix the deplorable state of my face?"
"With this, I'm inclined to kiss you right now."
"Leave that for after you fix my face. I want to look like a princess when I get my first kiss."
"Pffftt! Hahaha… You're one strange kid. At least you're good for something."
Looking at the two of them, one wouldn't guess that they hated each other's guts. It was the way of the rich; feelings of hate and love were two sides of the same coin, at least for those as shallow as they were.