You don't become a mage because of your good looks. It all starts with a Giambattista and Bekker test - yes, the same optimist Bekker who maintained that magic does not have to be destructive - which will determine whether you'll be of any use in this profession. From then on, it's years of learning - hard learning, comparable to being sentenced to row on the galleys or work in the quarry... Of course, afterwards, you become someone of import, you put a notable title before you name, you become a beacon to women and trouble alike, and possibly even know how to use your sword, but... For every one who manages to achieve this there are 10, if not 100, that don't. And nobody knows how they end up - most probably, they're never heard from again.​