Chapter 17: Ridicule

As there was still some time until everyone gathered for dinner, he decided to visit the library to learn more about the mages. He quickly reached the library. The library was quite big. There were hundreds of shelves full of books. He went to the magic 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 after reading a few books.

It was not because of what he read in the books, but because he was able to read the language written at all. He didn't have any memory of "Maxwell." Therefore, it was perplexing that he could read their language.

'Now that I think about it, I shouldn't be able to understand what they were saying, but I can.' Max frowned and thought for a while, but didn't seem to understand. So he dismissed it as something related to his transmigration.

A few factors decided the mage ranks. Mana was the most important factor. Although, it is not something you can count on just like water. However, it 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 a guard for 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 is considered a novice mage when he or she has at least one hundred units of mana. Five hundred units of mana qualifies you to be a one-star mage. One thousand units of mana makes you a two-star mage. Ten thousand units makes you eligible to be a three-star mage and so on.

'These mana units should be equivalent to my mana points." Max thought.

"It means that I'm stronger than a novice mage now in terms of mana." He was pleasantly surprised by this. He had 308 mana points, which meant he was only 192 away from being a one-star mage or being eligible to be.

I will go and have dinner with everyone. I will test my strength against Lilly tomorrow. I guess she is stronger than me.

He then went out of the library and walked toward the dining hall.

...

When he reached the dining hall, there were many people already sitting. There was Anna, Emily, and two of his brothers, Noah and William, with their wives, Chloe and Eva.

Seeing Max coming, Anna jovially waved her hand in greeting while the 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 even though you just woke up from a deadly injury. It's very surprising though. I had thought that for at least half a year, I wouldn't have to see this irritating face of yours." His brother, William, commented in a mocking tone.

Noah laughed and said, "It's true that useless people live a thousand years while heroes die young." 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 your father about it." Noah and Anna had the same mother. Noah was 22 years old, while Anna was 20.

Noah clicked his tongue in annoyance. "What will you say to your 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 so close to the trash like him. Hahaha." William laughed.

"You..." Anna was boiling in anger to the point that she couldn't speak.

"Enough! If you spout any nonsense, I won't mind showing you how much of a piece of trash you two are." Emily coldly interjected.

Max looked at his sisters, who clearly cared about him. He felt warmth in his heart and noted this silently.

Noah and William reluctantly stopped speaking after Emily had spoken. 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.

"Oh, why is my beloved little sister so upset over a piece of trash? What Noah and William said, I too, also think the same." Max turned to see who was speaking in this way to Emily. It was Mark, the eldest son of Ashton Garfield, who, like Emily, was a two-star mage.

Mark and Emily had 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 when they walked.

'It seems he is into this type of girl, huh.' Max inwardly licked his lips at seeing their seductive figures. Although they weren't comparable to Lilly, Anna, or Emily in beauty, they were still 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?" he 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 had become a two-star mage just a year ago. It clearly shows that his talent is worse than Emily's, who became a two-star mage at the age of 22.

After a while, his father and 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 Noah and Anna, Amelia. She was gentle looking just like her daughter.

Another woman with an indifferent look on her face was Esther, the mother of Mark and Emily. Her silky black hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall. Her cold beauty had a different charm to it.

The third woman had a petite figure with big breasts, and she was also quite beautiful, but not on the same level as the other two. She was the mother of William and Mina.