Twenty Percent

As the old man watched, the Imprint sparked and dissipated, the Mana dispersing into the surroundings.

"Another failure, huh?" Old Man Travis said when Fate opened his eyes, revealing his frustration and the fading glow of his pupils. "Don't beat yourself up about it. It's easier for me to do these because my Facet helps me along.

"Since you don't have the Metal Facet to whisper in your ear like I do, learning about the Element will be much harder for you. Still, I'm surprised you got so far. Judging by what I saw, you're about twenty percent of the way there, and it's only your first day!"

"Is that good?"

"Considering Metal isn't your Facet, I'd say yes. Keep working at it, and you might be done soon. Now, how are you going about this? What part of Metal did you decide to use for this?"

Fate explained the method he thought of to the old man, who afterward crossed his arms in thought as he turned back to the wand.

"Not the easiest route to go, but it might be the fastest. Overlaying Imprints is difficult, but that's only for two enchantments with two separate functions. Since these would be identical, it could work."

"Identical?" Fate asked.

"You are going to make the designs match, right?"

"I can do that?"

"Why wouldn't you be able to?" Fate's master raised a silver eyebrow, golden eyes boring into Fate. "You said it yourself, metal is used for prison cells. Wouldn't that be a bad thing for the person inside? And I can think of several ways in which conduciveness is an issue.

"Hell, this morning I nearly burned myself when I grabbed tongs I had accidentally left in the fire overnight."

Fate slapped his forehead when he realized this. He was planning on using his gut to make a separate design for his Negativity Imprint, but this sounded much easier.

Objects only had so much space, after all, and this way he'd be able to save most of that space for other enchantments.

"It's probably harder than I'm making it out to be," Old Man Travis warned. "Anyway, you can worry about that tomorrow. For now, I'm feeling hungry. What say you we go get a bite to eat? I hear there's a new burger place downtown."

Fate happily agreed – after making sure Old Man Travis would pay for it, of course – and the trio went on their way.

As they walked through the night, they talked and joked about life back in Brergan, Kravoss occasionally making a joke that Fate shared with his master, and they all shared a laugh.

'I've realized something,' Kravoss said suddenly.

'What?' Fate asked, holding the door to the restaurant, Kingi's Burgers, open for the other two.

The inside was overwhelmingly red, with booths and a bar, behind which stood an employee in red clothes. He was the only other person they could see and looked extremely tired, perhaps because of all the red in the building, and didn't say anything to greet them as they entered.

'You believe you needed a friend, and that's why you wanted a Familiar, but this man seems to fit the bill perfectly.'

'He's more of a father to me than a friend,' Fate said. 'I needed someone my own age, who hasn't lived a thousand years like the old man has.'

"You just called me old, didn't you?" Old Man Travis barked as the three took a seat in the closest booth. He was oddly perceptive for a Metal Mage.

"I apologize, master," Fate said, seeing no point in lying. "But you are old. That's why I call you 'old man.'"

"Hmph." The old man slicked his hair back, giving a dazzling smile that literally gleamed in the light of the restaurant. "I'm still in the prime of my youth. Since when is four hundred years old considered old?"

"Since… always?"

"The Empress is tens of thousands of years old, brat," Travis harumphed. "She's just got good genes. Once I break into the Master Stage, I'll grow young again, just you watch."

"I don't doubt it, old man. Should we order?"

"Fine. Let's see what's on the menu." He grabbed a wooden tablet out of a small basket against the wall and held it up to his face, squinting considerably at the words.

"Need glasses?" Fate asked.

"It's just blank."

"What?" Grabbing his own menu, he found that the old man's words were true. Other than the word "Menu" at the top, the slab of wood was completely blank.

"You have to pour Mana into it with thoughts on what you'd like," Fate heard to his side.

A waitress in red clothes had appeared next to their booth, dressed in a red shirt, a medium-length black skirt, and a red visor with the words "Kingi's Burgers" in gold letters. She wore a bright smile that showed teeth matching her pale skin, and had dark hair and eyes.

The two men poured their Mana into the tablets, and the surface of the wood rippled like water before words appeared. Fate had thought of burgers, so he was presented with twelve different options for that type of food.

'Do they have fries?' Kravoss asked.

From their connection, Fate knew that Kravoss had eaten them before. They were his favorite food, and he would often throw fits if given seeds instead of fries on what he called "Fry Friday."

'Is it even healthy for a Dracok to eat fries?'

'My caretakers were the best in their field. Would they feed me fries if they weren't healthy for me?'

'If it made you happy, then maybe.'

'Just trust me. I may look more chicken than dragon, but my stomach is as hardy as any dragon.'

'Alright, but you pick up whatever vomit comes from this.'

After ordering himself a mushroom burger and a side of fries for his Familiar, he thanked the waitress and put the wooden slab back in the basket.

Not long later, she came out with a tray full of food, placing their orders in front of them. Fate slid Kravoss the plate of fries, who sat awkwardly in the booth to peck at them, and dug into his food.