"...Not exactly. There are species affinities for magic but humans don't have any; but I'm not sure if you can do it because you're not from my world and that might matter."

"Mmm, it takes more than one spell to cultivate, say, a witchwell... I could maybe teach you a simple dragon spell or something but there's nothing obvious to actually cast...?"

"How do witchwells work? It sounds like a pool of power that witches can use. I wonder how it'd interact with my mana."

"It doesn't look anything like your mana, so probably not much? But yes, that's about what it is."

"Oh well. It's not that urgent, really, and I can still get tech from bar."

"I might think of something that you could reasonably cast to see if you can do any of my kinds of magic, it's just I started with witchery and therefore things I think of as 'introductory spells' involve spending ages cultivating your witchwell first."

Bella gets started on making the protective amulet.

And eventually she has a protective amulet!

Gren turns it over in her hand a few times. "Hm. I can sort of copy the way it's trying to protect things, but I don't think I can make more. I'd have to power the copy myself. Still, this will be excellent. How many can I badger you into making, and are you quite sure you don't want something in return?"

"I'll make as many as you can cover expenses for unless that's, like, fifty. It'll be my good deed for the day."

"Many thanks. Bar, how many of those can I cover expenses for on another 900 Svalten?"

Twelve.

"Twelve it is, then, unless that's too close to fifty. Say, what other kinds of magic do you have? I can make out more than two sorts on you - the witchcraft and dragon spells you mentioned, and the lenses had like a dozen different flavors to them."

Bella orders the ingredients and blanks for another dozen. "It depends on where you draw the line between 'knowing' and 'having'. Witchcraft is most clearly the second; others include sorcery and elf magic and dwarf magic and a little borrowed wizardry and unicorn spells and stuff."

"I can see why you became a magician. I'd be one, if I lived in your world."

"It's great."

"I almost want to visit. I probably would, if I had a sure way to get home again later."

"I don't think I can guarantee that. I don't know how to finagle interdimensional travel on a reliable basis. Sorry."

"The bar itself and your healing trigger and protection amulets are plenty nice already. Can't have everything."

"Alas. What I wouldn't do with everything."

"Stop or contain all the really nasty problems in the world, then start going down the list of everything from most to least interesting?"

"More or less."