《Umbrum》 Prologue - Esoteric Syndicate Rain Haha. What a perfect weather maybe I could find something more unique but ha. Doesnt matter. A laughter echoed between the droplets splashing on the mud, a body was lying down, half-closed eyes, dirtied clothes, shivering. Despite the fact it was the end, he felt at peace, finally, he could take a rest. Or was he really at peace ? Did he really give up on trying ? Never did he have a reply, the only reply he could give was a laughter. He thought it was so unfair, unfair, it was frustrating, however, what he could except Alright, you win ...admit defeat ?
The fire kept flickering as the wind brushed it in the middle of the night. A lone light was crossing the forest, facing the wind no matter what. Held in frail hands, the torch revealed its owner. A young man with a pale ill skin, hooded from head to toes, greedily inhaling and exhaling air, half-closed eyes dulled by his exhaustion. Dozing near a campfire was not refreshing enough. His stomach groaned. Aahh On top of his exhaustion, he was starving. He bit on his own lips then sighed, stopping his ceaseless march to stare at the sky for a few minutes, his eyes gained a certain light, dim, on the verge of fading, but it had the merit of being present. His breathing slowed down and a slight smile crept on his face as unfortunate words escaped his throat. I guess I have no aaaah choices but to go there. As always, he was thinking aloud, since he did not wish to forget the words he hardly pronounced, despite his efforts, according to his experience and life, it seemed like he will always have trouble to be on same wavelength as the era he is living in. Without forewarning, the flame vanished, raindrops fell on his hood, his hand covered his mouth and he coughed, red tainting his hand. A color he could not see due to the sky blackening, his sick becoming blurry, his head feeling dizzy, his hands becoming numb The shadow kept growing, then suddenly, silence. He could not hear the droplets falling on the ground, the steps on the mud, his own breathing, nothing except a voice. Quod estis vos ?A few seconds after the voice ended, every came back and returned on their tracks, the raindrops, his breathing, he could hear everything again. His eyes closed for a few minutes, then, he opened them. A whistle escaped his lips, to cover every sounds he could hear, concentrating himself to produce a melody that requires his mind to be dedicated to it. Memories ceaselessly unfolded in his brain as he tried to think about something else. Hours later, this young man was still waking, the wind calmed down, the night began to retreat from the sunrise, threatening the existence itself of the shadow. Sticked to his clothes, the young man smirked as he saw the light and felt a certain sense of security from it. Spectator to the wonders of Mother Nature, he thought it was terrifying yet fascinating. The sunlight giving no signs of life, the animals keeping their noises to themselves against the grumpy clouds, throwing thunders and rains altering the dirt into mud. Anyway how was it called ? The Esoteric Syndicate ? He wondered as his eyes stared at the sun, at the source of life, pushing away the growing darkness at its feet. Gossips were all around it, it is a sort of organization affiliated with this country which is currently recruiting people as they always need more and more workforce. A month or so ago, he heard that they were sheltering and nourishing their trainees. The young man didn''t wish to go there, nevertheless, since he might die at this point, he does not have a choice. Days later, the sun rose once again, upon a city of white pure marble, reflecting the light on its inhabitants and visitors. It was massive city you could see from dozens of kilometers away from it. In the middle, there was a humongous edifice, extremities covered in gold, runics sign were engraved on the walls and shining a green light. Then his eyes were attracted by the entrance, the battlements were easily above twenty feet tall, perhaps thirty. However, there was a peculiar detail, only a few people were there. Usually, for a city like this, you would expect the entrance bursting with merchants, hundreds of people coming and leaving.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ...Not this time, there was not even dozen of people and it seems to be only the citizens, no outsiders at all. Were not they supposed to recruit people ? Then shouldn''t there a be a lot of people ? He could not help but asks to himself oblivious questions he did not have replies of. A familiar sigh fled from his mouth and he continued to walk forward despite the abnormalities, after all, he did not have any other choice. If he wanted to live, that is. Four humanoid shapes were visible, guarding the gate. All of them were severely staring at the young man who did not stop in the slightest. It did not budge him much. Time elapsed slowly, very slowly. For some reasons, the guards seemed to prepare their weapons while keeping an eye on the hooded and suspicious foreigner. The atmosphere seemed to be tense, their judgemental stares weighed on him, and a certain heaviness pushed him to the ground. Aaaaahhh uhm is it possible for you to come out ? It is stressing to be observed by someone I can not see the suspect said as he adjusted his hood. Following his words, someone came out of space from behind him, a young man with scarlet dark hair, a sophisticated black robe filled with pockets, especially inside the robe. His skin was lightly tanned, some wrinkles were visible on his face, hard to see but they are present along with a certain curiosity shining in his playful eyes. Naked feet, he crossed his legs and rose an eyebrow as if he was on a chair while he was floating in the air. How did you know ? He required a reply from the stranger who sighed at his question. Did you even try to hide yourself ? You were way too close and the air itself seemed to be tense like, as if something was compressing it ? He did not know how to say it, while, the redheaded frowned, his terms were way too vague and imprecise for him to understand how he was detected. I see. On a more important note, might I know why you are trespassing on our land ? Dont you know that it was forbidden for people to come here ? Also, what is your name ? Shifting the subject since the alien did not seem to be willing to explain how he noticed him. Um...brum ? Blinking, Umbrum had troubles comprehending what he heard, did he make all this way for nothing ? Since it was just said that it was forbidden, in others words, they are asking him to go back on his steps. His fingers rubbed his forehead and he continued to talk against his own desires. Uhm I was told the Esoteric Syndicate was recruiting so I just walked forward. A slight smile was then drawn on his face, albeit a forced one, however, it was still better than no smile at all. Pfft hahaha ! It was hilarious to him, the newcomer broke many laws because he heard about them recruiting, was it a joke ? Usually, nobody would crack up a jest in such a situation, nevertheless, he did. After all, if it was one of the most extremist elders of the Syndicate, he would already be buried six feet under the ground. Indeed, we are recruiting, but if you know, you must have come out a institution or something along those waters, isnt it ? At his words, Umbrum tilted his head and held his chin, he learnt about the Esoteric Syndicate in a isolated village, and the man from the syndicate sighed, understanding that he was in front of a self-taught arcanic, what else could he be ? It is impossible for an individual like him to succeed the entrance exam, on top of that, he skipped the formalities, the sweet talk, everything that was supposed to put him in a decent spot according to the examiners. Alright I understand, first, before coming, you should have sent a message through a transmitter, which you didnt as everyone is hostile to complete strangers, like you. However, there is a few tests to be accepted in the Syndicate, which you may or may not pass depending on the examiners. Is that clear ? Any questions ? It was a shame, someone who detected him through vague sensations was going to fail so quickly and will not be able to stay for long. Mmm how much time do the tests take ? Umbrum wondered after hearing about it, since he will be sheltered and nourished, he needs to know what was the bottom line, how much time will he pass safe and sound at the very least. One month. His response was curt and brief. It did not bother Umbrum at the very least who showed a rare sincere smile. One month was a lot of time, inside, he was finally feeling at ease. Sadly, he can not pass more than one month there. If only he could pass more time Thank you for your replies, shall we ? Chapter 1 - Interviewed by Drake There was nothing in this room except one desk and two chairs in front of each other on which were sat the redheaded from earlier and Umbrum the stranger. As soon as they sat, Umbrum wiggled a short time, wondering whether to remove it or not. What is it ? The mage asked, staring at the wiggling young man who immediately shook his head before lowering his hood, revealing his face after some dozens of minutes following their first meeting. Nothing special, a pale white skin, short black hair and obscure green eyes, his face was rather straight and he had a small nose. A common face to resume this, why did he even keep his hood if it was to hide such commonness ? Was it due to his personality ? My name is Drake, I will ask you a series of questions to which you have to reply the quickest possible without interruptions. No time to think, okay ? Drake warned him on a strict tone and cleared his throat. Whats your name ? He first asked a quick question in less than a second. My name is Umbr- Where were you born ? He interrupted him and Umbrum immediately shivered, understanding what he meant by no time to think. Senitis, little cottage on the countryside. How did you learn magic ? Instinct. He frowned upon such nonsense. Did you study in an scholar institution ? Yes at eight. What are your arcanic affinities ? None. ... Drake quietened down and sighed, he did not expect the level of Umbrums knowledge to be so low, you can not have no affinities, it was proven by he did not remember the name of the researcher, alas. Then he continued with the questions. Was there any mage in your family ? They were hunters and they disappeared. Suspicious. Why did you continue to use magic ? Why wouldnt I ? Good. What is your goal in coming here ? In entering the syndicate ? I simply want to survive which I badly succeeded until now. Strange, he should know how to hunt, he can just settle somewhere and live. After reuniting his answers, Drake felt perplexed, something seemed to be wrong with it,the fact that he said he had no affinities yet he studied in an institution, in others terms, he should know that it is not possible but he still says it. Was he given some fake knowledge ? He rubbed his chin and decided to test Umbrum himself. Without warning, he took his hand and stared into his eyes. Flow your mana. He did not reply and nodded at his order. Something inside him began to move around, following his blood circulation, at that moment, Drake frowned and rubbed his forehead. His thoughts were in a mess indeed, since, there was magic however no affinity as he said. Why ? He remembered that affinity was a sign of life, then having no affinity is generally reserved to undead. However the person in front of him was in flesh and alive. It was interesting, they should keep him here. Or he should. A malicious glint could be seen in his pupils as a soft and calculated smile appeared on his face. He knew what he had to do. I see. Thats interesting, I have an idea, would you like to become my assistant and skip all the tests ? Hearing that, Umbrum hesitated and asked on a perplexed tone, as if he did not want to accept this enticing proposal. ...how long willl I stay your assistant at the bare minimum ? Once again, Drakes heart felt astonishment because of Umbrum, the same question repeated itself in his head, why ? Why does he seem to care so much about time ? It seemed as if to him, the Esoteric Syndicate was only a temporary measure. He could not find any reasons to it. But why ? Umbrums face was always the same during the entire time they conversed, his smile did not change in the slightest, nevertheless, he knew one thing, he cared a lot about time and himself. One year. A brief reply softly exited his mouth, to which the future assistant nodded, nevertheless, it was not the end, there was another question. What is your goal ? It was, in his opinion, the most important matter to ask. Depending on his reply, he can deduce how honest and sincere is Umbrum, perhaps if his intentions are beneficial or not.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I wish to find the truth about my family and myself. Intriguing. It was truly curious. Simply this ? Was he not supposed to come from a simple and humble family of hunters ? Drake continued to stare Umbrum with sharp eyes. Inquiring for more details, and under this pressure, he simply complied and kept on speaking. Still, with this reply, he guessed it was why he cared so much about time, why he treated the Esoteric Syndicate as a temporary measure, because, his goal is something else, finding his family. What a foolish and stupid child. ...because when I was young, they disappeared one day without warning. I was out since well, I wanted to hunt by myself and when I was going back home, I did not find the house, no, the house wasnt even there, it disappeared as if it never existed, instead of my home, there was a hole leading to cave, I fell into it and lost consciousness afterwards, the rest doesnt matter. Either something is wrong with his memories, either his family was not as simple as he thought, why would they get wiped off the face of earth otherwise ? Alas, Drake concluded that he was honest but doubtful, everything he says seem to be the truth from his mouth, nevertheless, there is always something very wrong with it. No matter what it is. After staying silent for a few minutes, Umbrum gulped and deeply sighed as he continued to wait for Drakes decision who still seemed to be hesitating, it was only the appearance, he long decided to take him however he wanted to see if he was desperate enough to beg him. In spite of it, for once, he was right, to him, the Esoteric Syndicate was nothing more than a solution as except a slight stress, nothing significant emanated out of him. There was a better way for both of them. Alright, that''s decided, you will be now my assistant, and on your free time, you will be a receptionist and manage the missions given to newcomers, is that clear ? More details would be provided later, like when you will begin your job. Meanwhile, you will obey me. Staying quiet, he did not need to say anything, he simply nodded since Drake seemed to be in a hurry, as if he needed to hide something. So he could wait for him to finish, perhaps, if he bothered him, it might negatively impact him. Catching his thin wrist, lines began to appear all over Drake''s body, a spell was prepared using his body as an unique medium. The space around the two of them twisted, none of them could feel the sensation of their feet touching the ground, of the air entering by their nostrils and leaving by their mouth, neither could they hear anything, everything became black in an instant. In a split of second, colors returned, they could breathe, they could see, they could hear, they could smell, they could feel, every sensations came back. Drake couldnt help but cough loudly and hold his head, it was not the first time, nevertheless, he never got used to it. Each time, he felt like puking, however, he snorted and threw a glance at Umbrum who seemed to be unaffected. Stunning, that was all he thought, Drake became more interested, so indeed, this child has probably some experiences with teleportation or similar actions. With a smile that seemed hypocritically gentle, he asked. Are you familiar with teleportation ? Obviously, to inquire his personal input and to confirm his assumption. No it is the second time, but I lived this kind of things many time. Nothing related to space or time to be exact. Curses ? That was what he thought at the moment, he did not see anything else that can make you feel like you do not exist through the loss of sensations. It might explain his oddness, what kind of environment did he live in to suffer from curses ? Might also be the cause of him having no affinity. Shamefully, it was not Drakes magical field of studies. Nevertheless, perhaps he could the future results of his studies to one of his colleague and use those funds for a deepened study and his project. Mmm, curses perhaps ? Drake wondered aloud and hearing this, Umbrum rubbed his chin, he seemed to be in deep thought, can it be considered as a curse ? That was what he was thinking. His boss sighed and said after taking a deep breath, the wood was creaking at the sudden pressure. Can you get a look around you and tell me what you think about your room ? His eyes rose up and he began to look around, it seemed to be quite old. Considering the feeling of the wood at his feet, it seemed like they were on the first floor or higher. In this room, there was a bed, neat and clean unexpectedly, it seemed to be comfortable. It has been a while since he slept on a bed. Without looking at the rest of the room, he sat on the bed. Mellow. Soft. Pure. Peaceful. This bed could be considered as an average bed, but for someone who slept on the ground for years, whose body is filled with aches and is slightly deformed due to his living conditions, it was heaven on earth. That was a feeling he did not feel since a while, the desire to sleep. His hand seemed to be caressing the bed. Staring at him with dull eyes, he coughed to make him come back to reality and stop having disillusions about a bed, no, he will not sleep yet, he is not authorized to sleep. Disinterested in everything except the bed, he still decided to look around and saw an empty bookshelf. That will be for the books you own and want later on. Following his eyes, Drake explained little by little. The bookshelf was dusty but it could easily support the weight of a bit more than a hundred books. Afterwards, there was a desk, did he really need to explain ? Of course not. And a wardrobe, dusty as well, this whole room was dusty, except the bed. Perhaps someone slept in it recently ? Drake ? That was a wild guess. Oh yeah, there are some old clothes you can wear, I used them when I was your age I guess ? How old are you actually ? Earlier, he did not ask anything about his age, after all, it is just a meaningless detail. Sixteen... Seemed just about right. Nothing much to say. Alright, everythings settled, for now, put all of your stuff here, tidy your room and then descend to the living room, we will take a meal as we go deeper into details, alright ? Umbrum nodded and opened his bag after waiting that Drake. He took out a grimoire which name was in a language that was unfamiliar. Strangely, there was only a little dozen of pages. He held it in his arms and hugged it tightly. Then he packed it in his coat. It was something very dear to him, the only item he had from his childhood. Something he will never ever leave alone. And something that wont ever leaves him. It seems like I gained quite a lot of time maybe I can find a solution if I He supposed that his master had an idea hidden between the lines considering his attitude and curiosity until now, so perhaps, he can strike a deal with him. One he will not refuse. Chapter 2 - Explanations It was quite a vast ground floor, a little dozen of tables in the living room however it was empty, there was only two people, sat in front of each other, having a simple good and ol stew. Drake was in front of him with a smile, having a meal while Umbrum seemed to be in trance in front of his plate. After the bed, it was the food, how unexpected. Two fingers flicked and his mind returned to his body, staring now at his master who was smiling widely and asked a very simple question. Do you know what is the Esoteric Syndicate ? As the mage wished to join it, he must know what is it, right ? I do not, all I know is that it is a organization affiliated to a country, that has a huge influence and that shelters their newcomers. Hearing the last part of his sentence, a sigh escaped Drakes mouth, was this child really as ignorant as he thought ? No, he was even worse than he originally thought. Alright, so let me explain first, as you dont even particularly know what is the Esoteric Syndicate you dont know what is our country as well, isnt it ? We are in Daizelkien. Formerly a lawless land and now under the control of the Esoteric Syndicate, in other words, the core element of this country, rulers of magical arts and one of the too many dominant forces in our poor doomed world. His eyebrows creased, shouldnt this kind of attitude be considered as counterproductive since Drake was trying to take him as an assistant ? Details details. That is honest of you. In the end, he could not help but comment. Drake simply continued his monologue, ascending from his seat, rising his arms and a smile was nonchalantly appearing on his face. Haha, it can be said to be everything but honest ! I am just stating facts. But who cares ? Lets just get back to some boring uninteresting subjects that we unfortunately need to know. Anyway you could say that the Esoteric Syndicate is the government itself, the state, the country, it is what represents our shady and heinous land. Their policy has been really strict, at the start, one fault was equal to be sentenced to death. It is less severe than before fortunately or easily three quarters of us would now be dead or a revolution would have already happened. Of course the ones revolting wont be peasants nor the oppressed people, why would they even bother to do such tedious tasks ? No, it would be the sentenced to death, those ones with filled pockets, costly spells, sophisticated clothes, smirks, rings who else can revolt after all ? Lets continue, we have been told to be very open to public. To change our policy, and well as nobody wanted to take such risks, right, before that, what would be the risks if we do so ? Failure, but failure is not accepted. But then what would have exactly caused this failure ? The purist. The ones obeying to the traditions to the highest degree. And imagine the person taking the mission of changing our policy with one institution in a rather desolated place, what would the purist do ? Provoke his failure as he is going against our so great traditions. His explanation was stinking the sarcasm, eyes pleated at every venomous spit falling on the table and entering his ears. And what if that person was me ? In short, I am in charge of an exclusive mission and if it works, I will one of the richest mystic as I would be the key of the future success of our Syndicate. This is why I want to hire you, you would be the first example of a random arcanist getting hired, is it not perfect for both of us ? You get to keep your life, get sheltered and stuff. Isnt it more like it an one-sided deal ? Did he even have the choice ? Of course not. His thought process began to function as he analyzed his words, first thing to do would be to solve the conflicts between the definition of different words. Mystics, Arcanists and Mages. Did it not mean the same thing in the end ? Yes and no, Mages are split into two part, mystics and arcanists, most mages are arcanist, then the second majority is the group of people being both arcanists and mystics, and the minority are the pure Mystics. An Arcanist is mage who learnt magic through studies, analyzes, experiments, in others words through knowledge and employ rigid magical systems. While a Mystic is often what you would call a monster. Similar to monsters, they can use magic without thinking, it is just natural, nothing more, nothing less, they have this instinct, this innate nature in them. They have something more than the perfectibility that mankind possess. Then, if they are described like these, arent the persons who are Mystic and Arcanist the most dangerous ? In fact, they arent as often the study is in conflict with their Mystic nature, some of them even get deprived of it by accident through studying the arcanes.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Nevertheless, in the end, they are all mages. A person wielding a power beyond imagination yet within the realms of it. Mmm do you perhaps have a map of your country ? Umbrum asked on a perplexed tone, it will greatly help him if he had a map as he easily gets lost. And as his future assistant, if he did not know where to go, wouldnt he be the one to be assisted ? It made Drake smile. Indeed, however I need one so I will give you one later, as for now, do you any real questions ? Or do I need to continue with my explanation ? At his question, Umbrum nodded and began to wait for him to continue as some of his questions might be or not replied by the explanation he planned. So, as you guessed, your work won''t be the same as an assistant in the main Esoteric Syndicate, we are... more open-minded and flexible, we are located near neighbors countries to show this, anyway, you could think of your job as a receptionist for mercenaries, but in a more... governmental way. Diplomacy, wide-scale hunting, escort, and so forth. This is the kind of business we will be running. Obviously, the true goal is to make people rely more on our services as we begin to spread on all domains. Drake smiled without much remorse, no, he did not have any, it was a common practice after all, to exploit someone''s needs for their own desires. Nothing worth mentioning either. It is simply a tacit understanding between the people and the leaders, conscious and unconscious. So, we could say that we have... assignments, I didn''t decide on the name yet, it will be a branch of the Esoteric Syndicate, the Magic Association, quite small as for now. But backed up by one of the strongest institutions in our world, am I not in a favorable situation ? It was a rhetorical question. Of course not, my role is unfortunately important, any of my errors might get me fired or death, that''s how the syndicate is, cheerful cheerful... He seemed to be tired with this situation, after a few minutes, he laughed and exclaimed loudly. Well ! I will be remembered as the Founder of the Magic Association ! Isn''t it great ?! I am entering history... I should be happy. Umbrum did not say anything, he simply kept staring at his master, literally. So... before we get you to manage the paperwork... we need to find a staff. And I have exactly six months before the official opening of the Magic Association. Six months to find a staff, it should be easy enough, no, it even seems to be too much time. Something was fishy. I need... trustworthy people, and that''s the first major problem... I have some ideas... but... it will be vaguely criticized and hard to set up... Anyway... I guess, that''s it for the explanation, you could be said to be the first person entering the staff. And you will be helping me to find the rest, your original work will begin after we completed the preparations, we are only lacking trustworthy personals after all. Umbrum frowned, he glared at him and found Drake way too suspicious. Ah, don''t misunderstand, I don''t trust you however, I don''t doubt you either which means you have potential., there was no issues with his words, Umbrum completely expected it, Alright, I explained everything... and I gu-. I have a favor to ask. This organization is going to grow big, right ?, Umbrum did not bother wasting time in roundabout way, he needed those information. A smile appeared on the chairman''s face, My family, I want... to use your future network to find them, I can draw them and tell specifics traits that they have. Like a ta- A hand stopped him from talking, a chill ran down his spine and his voice froze in the middle of his words. The hand, shrouded in a black tissue, poked his throat, a strange pressure stopped the young mage from speaking, breathless. Everything happened in a second as the hand was already fading. The moment it realized it was disappearing, it moved quickly. Fingers contorting and surrounding the throat, before it could grasp properly this white and familiar skin, it passed through it and disappeared. However, nothing happened, nobody saw anything. It was just one of those hallucinations, Umbrum thought. Suddenly, the future assitant coughed, pain filled his throat as something seemed to surge from it, his hand on his own mouth, his eyes darted toward his glove and saw blood, quickly, he wiped it off on the back of his outfit and smiled as Drake''s wrinkles creased on his forehead as if he was in deep thoughts. Something was wrong with Umbrum''s attitude according to him, the tip of his nose momentarily moved as he sniffed a peculiar scent, at first, he was attracted to it until... I accept, however, we will talk about it once the Magic Association has grown out big. ....he saw this. It was the first time, the first time he saw a bright and sincere smile on his, always taciturn and rather silent, never showing any intensive emotions, but, the moment he accepted his request. It was as if the sun was shining in front of him, someone who did not knew how happiness looks like would immediately understand what is it if he happened to meet him. To him, this smile was one of the most beautiful he ever saw, because of its honesty and... childishness. You should smile more often. hearing that, Umbrum was agape, he did not know what to say, his hands rose, he pointed his finger toward Drake while his other hand was scratching the side of his head. It did not help. The chairman smirked and showed his back, leaving him. Since Drake was bound to be his chief... perhaps, should he do some efforts ? To smile from time to time at the bare minimum. After seeing him leaving, Umbrum stayed by himself and seemed to be concentrated, the corners of his lips hardly rose and immediately fell when he clicked his tongue. "...it hurts a bit." He could not help but comment about the feeling of smiling itself, on top of that, he found himself quite... silly to practice smiling, if Drake saw him... for some reasons, he trembled at this possibility and rubbed his own temples, sincerely hoping that nobody saw him. Chapter 3 - Departure & Examen Fidgeting, he did not know what to do, Umbrum looked at a mirror in his room and tried to... smile. Unexpectedly, it was not that hard, what was strenuous was just keeping the smile for minutes, otherwise, there was nothing really hard about it. His facial muscles will just lightly ache, nothing much significant. His arms extended and he began to prepare his tools, his backpack, what he will need. Beforehand, he took a bow which simply had a rough ability, infusing mana in it will create a magic arrow, in others words, his ammunition, his arrows were his magic reserve. After, there was two mana crystal, magic battery in others words, very rare and costly, something that a countryside mage like Umbrum should not own or even use like a common item. A simple dagger, nothing special about it, and finally, his most peculiar item, the grimoire which has no use but can not leave it alone. Mm, I am ready. Drake gave him a location, behind the building by the backdoor, there would be a carriage for the both of them which will lead them to a bandit''s lair where lay one of the potential staff. A bandit as for staff. It was indeed peculiar and against all ethics. The person in question is the information broker of the clan, as far as they know, he apparently manipulated hundreds of bandits to slaughter each other and then give advantage to the he was favoring. Having him on your side was usually a sign of good luck. Adjusting his hood, Umbrum descended and went forwards the carriage as quickly as he can, he did not even bother closing the door as they already had a few guards there, people the chairman could not trust, but ones that had clear boundaries, boundaries they can''t cross except by risking their lives, and of course, they would not take a bet staking their existence. Who would except a madman ? Nobody, that is exactly it. Entering into the carriage, he noticed that Drake was in his usual clothes, he yawned and drove the carriage, strangely enough, he did not talk, he stayed mostly silent with having not much to say. Perhaps he did not know what to say. As for now, Drake advised him to smile, so he will try. Oh yes, there will be some savage animals like starving wolves, pushed to their last entrenchment, they will attack us as they need to eat. I would like you to take care of them once you are surrounded by five of them. And before you protest, it should be fine to kill them, wolves in these regions are currently overpopulated with wolves, so people are going frenzy about exterminating these so-calledviles creatures. Foolish is it not ? Casually, as they slowly left the village that will become a city, he announced to Umbrum who sighed and rubbed his temples, he never has been good at fighting after all. Or to be exact, he never has been good at magic and fighting as well. Hunting, why not ? But it is not a hunt. He is not going to be attacked by preys but by predators going crazy and probably not caring about dying. Stubborn they will be. Bloodthirsty ? No. They are just clinging on life, they do not want to spill blood. But to live, so they need meat. And where do you find meat ? That is the point. A little one hour later, the carriage settled in a green glade, seemingly peaceful, of course, it was not. The carriage seemed to be covered by a magical barrier, a light green color. And Umbrum was outside it. Holding his bow tightly and the dagger was at his hand''s reach in his right sleeve. Behind the carriage was three wolves while in front him, there was four of them. Wasn''t it supposed to be five ? He sighed. It might be... troublesome. Aren''t you supposed to be a mage ? would be Drake''s question if he could talk to him at the moment. Perhaps the wolves were triggering the hunter''s instincts he had. His hand quickly drew the string, a purplish magic arrow appeared, ready to be launched. Before the wolves could move, one of them blacked out, his eye gouged out, blood flew out of the hole, an arrow passed through its eye to reach its brain. To kill it on the spot. While noticing the end of their comrade, the wolves immediately sprinted from both sides. Three behind, and three in front. Jumping, a wolf somersaulted backward due to the arrow piercing his forehead. The wolves were now too close for him to keep using the bow. He threw it on wolf, stunning it for a while as his left hand took the knife in his right sleeve. His left hand waved and the the blade plunged into another wolf''s eye. ''Four left, and one among them is stunned.'' He reminded himself. Two were attacking his back, one was attacking his front. If he gets rid of the lone one, also the youngest, he will be able to avoid any harms. Without weapons, his fingers caressed the wolf''s throat, his mana burst inside him as words left out this cage of bones. Disappear, Edax Umbra. As he said... the wolf disappeared, no, its head disappeared as if it never existed. The headless body fell onto the ground. It was... wriggling on the ground. As he was a spectator to this, Drake shivered and observed the scene while biting on the top of his thumbs.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ''What is this... the wolf... is still alive ? Mmmm... yes... there is no blood flowing... instead of flesh, we only see a sort of... black smoke. What is it... I need explanations.'' he did not understand how it works, he never heard of anything of the sort, as for sure, it was not an illusion as... it really disappeared. Rolling on the ground, the two wolves behind him missed him, and the stunned wolf beside the mage woke up from his slumber. He got back his bow, which was lying on the ground where he rolled. There was three wolves left to kill. His foot stroke the wolf beside him, knocking it out unconscious this time, as his hands were preparing another arrow toward the wolves who were coming back to him once again. A second later, one of them felt something terrifying pass just next to it. A cold breeze. Something chilling. Its eyes darted around him and saw that its comrade was... dead. Another one, the last one beside him also got his head pierced by one of this mage''s weapon. The last one ran away. Out of seven wolves, one ran away, one was knocked, four were killed and the last one was in an unknown situation. Seeing this, Drake canceled the barrier and saw Umbrum finishing off the knocked out wolf. There was now only one left. Umbrum, what is this spell ? Inquiring about this thing he never saw, a inhumane curiosity shined into Drake''s eyes, he was... interested, he thought that it might be related to fact that Umbrum has no magical affinity. Edax Umbra, or you could call it Shadow Devouring. It is a spell I learn on my own, a mystic and innate one to be exact. I just partly mastered it. It still did not mean anything to Drake as it was only names, what were the effects ? How is the wolf still alive despite ''losing'' its head ? Since it is alive, what kind of sensations do you get when a part of your body disappear ? Before he could ask any of this, Umbrum continued on an indifferent one, explaining something he already explained many times. It feels as if it doesn''t exist. The head is generally the most dangerous place. As, he will not see anything, he will not hear anything, he will not smell anything. Silence. Complete silence, it is as if his head was erased from existence. However it has a lot of weakness. He did not really bother hiding anything about his spell. If you succeed to keep your calm and use a bit of mana, the spell will naturally be dispelled. That''s all. And even if you panick, if you use mana, the spell will be canceled. That is considering Umbrum''s capacity of mana as he needs to keep sustaining the spell over time while the one affected by the spell just need one burst and it can break the spell. Nevertheless, there was lot of potential in this spell. All non-magical creatures like undead are then a simple prey to him. Nothing more. I also need to touch the target. There is not much flaws to his spell. That was Drake''s conclusion. Unexpectedly, his curiosity was... quickly satisfied. It made him feel... conflicted about what to feel in true. Should he be pleased or vexed that it was fulfilled casually ? Mmmm... However, he still did not get the logic of the spell, even innate and mystic spells have a sort of logic behind it, but as for this one... he just did not get it. How can you temporary erase something from existence ? Mystic spells often rely on flawed logic. So, what is the flawed logic behind it. Drake could not get it, and he will never get it. He just knew that it was... unique and that this spell would never be seen again. Anyway. You... didn''t fight like a mage. That was... unexpected. You mostly fought physically, or actually, you completely fought physically. What are the spells you mostly use ? No need to explain, just tell me the names and let''s see if I know them. Perhaps there was not only ''Shadow Devouring'' that he did not know. Physical Enhancement, Mirror, Transportation, Mare''s Illusion and Edax Umbra. All of them were... known or hard to learn at the very least. In resume, Physical Enhancement need a high-leveled physical training which asks for too much for people like Mages who are supposed to be on the back-lines. Mirror generally has too much of a backlash. Transportation is a space related magic, albeit a low-leveled one, it is still hard to grasp this kind of magic. And Mare''s Illusion... is a sophisticated spell, needing the study of creatures'' anatomies. All of them had specific requirements that were far from basic spells. Compared to their effects, the requirements could be considered as too high and learning these was not worth it. Often, those people are disdained for wasting their times. And Drake did feel it this way, he wanted to mock him, his smirk could not help but slowly appear on his face... but then, he thought about it. As he has no affinity, perhaps he has... unique circumstances. While he was overthinking, Umbrum tried to smile and asked on an awkward tone. Uhm... could we get going ? Slowly resurfacing to reality, he sighed and simply nodded, the carriage took the road and continued towards the bandits'' lair. He had many questions, however when he saw Umbrum''s face, he could not ask them, it did not feel like he could, something was wrong, his eyes to be exact, they seemed to be... dead. Nevertheless, nothing is gained without a little bit of rish, his lips separated, and he was going to ask something, but at the moment his questions were going to be heard, Umbrum suddenly tripped and fell on Drake, interrupting him. Catching him, Drake sighed and smacked his forehead. Ah ! Be more attentive Anyway... it was an impressive fight. Magically-talking, it was... unique, I didn''t see any kind of spell like these, so I can''t really judge. As for the physical aspect of it... well, as you didn''t use physical enhancement, that is... well as I said, impressive ! Umbrum seemed to be embarrassed, he did not say a word, however he adjusted his hood so nobody could see he was blushing. It was... rare, really rare for him to be complimented. It flustered him. Noticing that, Drake smiled and thought on how he could exploit this aspect of Umbrum to get more information about him... the traditional solution would be alcohol, the second one would be making him emotionally panicked. Hahaha !, he was already laughing when it did not even started. He still did not see the troubles this child will be bringing to him. Chapter 4 - Overpowering the Bandits ''Unexpected'' was the first thing Umbrum thought when in front of the so-called Bandits'' lair, truthfully, it was a village. It just that every individuals, every inhabitants was by no exception a bandit, plundering and stealing as a way to make life. It was something Umbrum never thought, in his mind, bandits would be in caves or a shabby camp that gives some military vibes. None of it. It seemed to be a common village. Just perhaps their faces were rougher, their eyes colder... and they seemed to be eager to do something to both him and Drake. For example, robbing what they own. The carriage and the horses. After all, it is not everyday people cross in broad light a bandits'' lair. Alright... Umbrum, you will do the talk. At this moment, he blanked out, no no no, that was an awful idea, him ? Talk ? Negotiate ? When he is such an awkward fellow that does not know any etiquette, manners or anything in the sort, he will be too pratical and blunt, they will immediately refuse to negotiate. However, when he saw those eyes, one that do not accept a no as a reply. Umbrum shook his head and sighed. What could he do ? Say no and receive consequences of his acts ? Of course not, it is easier to talk after all. All human should be more or less similar, so they can be reasoned with as long as you guess the how. The carriage entered the village under the wary sight of the bandits who were ready to attack any time, strangely, they did not ambush them, but, they entered their base. Is there something they can do against dozens of dozens of bandits are surrounding them ? Of course not. Excuse me... we are searching your information broker for business. Momentarily, they flinched, it is as if something was off with what he said. He cleared his throat and was going to continue to talk however... How do you know ? someone interrupted him, a tanned man wearing a red bandana around his head, gritted teeth and scarred face, he seemed to be trying to intimidate Umbrum who... did not appear terrified or stunned by his interruption, he just looked at him, indifferent to his words or threatening tone. He is an information broker, right ? We need... information, so we want to see and talk to him about the price of what we wish to know. Is there something odd with that ? He sells information, we want to buy. Isn''t that the principle of an information broker ? What could they say ? For some reasons, they seemed to be overprotective toward the information broker as if he was someone essential to their group. But also that people should not know that he exists. As for why, nobody really knows but that information broker is hiding his identity or even his existence which might be why the bandits were surprised. Where is h-, quickly moving his head on the side, he felt an arrow piercing the air, passing near his cheek and lodging in the carriage. Another sigh escaped his mouth, he cleared his throat and continued to talk. First, lets not spill the blood, this is counterproductive for everyone, and next time I will need to eliminate you if you attack again, is that alright ? Of course its alright. If you die nobody, nobody will care I th well, nothing will happen to me. As for you, if you kill me. Well that is one lovely village.Like any village. It would be unfortunate well, I do not know, I never happened to see this kind of mmm... what could be the word show ? Event..?, from time to time, it seemed as if Umbrum was talking to himself, searching what to say, in others word, thinking aloud. Tis way, it seemed that he did not the bandits in its eyes at all. As if they were only part of the background. Nothing more than a pebble since he was not even looking at them. You... so, you are threatening us ? That''s perfect ! No need to have any excuse now ! Atta- An arrow interrupted him, cutting off the connection from his body to his brain. It seemed like Umbrum was keen on bow and arrows, and had the habit of aiming the eye to pierce the brain. Perhaps he could find a proper way to kill his enemies, however, in this gruel way, it was more intimidating than other since it shows that... he w as quite precise despite his appearance. Before they could realize what happened, another arrow was launched, and when they understood the situation, a third one was already on the string. Since it seemed like the information broker did not want to come out, he will not have the choice but to come out, attracted by a ruckus. The previous silence now seemed unreal, everyone drew their weapons and shouted out of rage, a magical barrier appeared around the carriage to protect Umbrum and the horse. At this moment, they condemned their fates. At least, until they run away which is unlikely considering their current stubborn and barbaric acts. Since when do you throw an sword, on top of that, if there was not the barrier, it would not even have touched the enemies, no, it would have killed one of its comrades. What a shame would that be, isn''t it ?Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. What actually happened is that the barrier reflected the sword and someone was knocked out by the pommel from fell from some meters. Whether he will wake up or not is still a question. Weapons were savagely thrown, they were literally killing each other, by accident that is. How do these bandits succeed at dominating this village with such... a weak mind... they did not realize that attacking was not worth the loss ? Or did they not have fear ? Now that he looked at them. There was something odd, their eyes. Yes, their eyes. Their eyes were red, just like beasts nevertheless they did not seem to be in frenzy or anything when they talked. Something''s off. A few minutes later, they stopped since... they finally noticed that it was useless. It was magic, they did not know how to break it, so, perhaps brute force might have worked but it did not. What could they do then ? They could only wait, for what ? For the strangers to starve. They can not move. They would just stare at them. Trying to pressure them into a corner. What they did not imagine was that Run. This word escaped Umbrums mouth as he readied his bow and aimed at one of the bandits. The barrier was still there, unmoving and impenetrable. Mana formed his arrow, he pulled the string and released it. The arrow flew toward a bandits head, nevertheless, most were not worried, there was a barrier after all. Piercing the air and pushing it away, it was going to touch the barrier however at that moment, Umbrums hand shined as he snapped his finger. The magic arrow disappeared during a split of a second and reappeared outside the barrier. ...transportation Umbrums spell changed the location of the arrow. This same arrow entered into the thigh of one bandit. Falling backwards, he held to his wound and restrained himself to scream as the blood kept gouging out of his injury. A slight smile appeared on the hunters face, he thought that the wound of the bandit will be infected then he will die. His fate was already sealed in his face. Aaah I am still so bad at aiming though He was originally aiming the head, however, the arrow pierced the leg. His spell deviated the original trajectory, it might not have touched at all. Luckily, the bandits were dumb enough to have the idea to stay close to the barrier, so to stay close from the future transportation point. Reducing the distance between his target and weapon, so his mana consumption is lighter than what it could have been. On top of that, more he wanted to transport something far away, more it was susceptible to fail. They should have ran like he said. However they did not. A second arrow was launched, and another one bit the dust, after the second death, they all began to run away, realizing that they had no chance to stand against them, at last. Despite everything, they seemed to be quite good at running. Nobody screamed when they ran, neither did they bump into each other. When people fell, someone took their hand and helped them get back to running. Some were even staying to see where Umbrum is aiming, using some language he did not understand. Seeing this, he only pulled one last arrow which did not eliminate anyone. Astonishing. So brutish, crude and foolish when attacking however quite careful and organized when retreating. It seemed like they know only one strategy, hit and run. It is probably how their behavior during the fight could be explained. Did they ever meet mages ? It seemed that they did not as they were not careful when struggling for a pointless cause. Physical attacks are almost worth nothing against magical barrier unless they are outrageously powerful like with Trolls or Cyclops. At this moment, Drake finally began to talk on a sarcastic tone as a smirk was plastered on his face due to what he saw, a smile on his indifferent face. The pleasure of hunting ? No, it was something else, the desire to clear his mind. That is it. It seemed that Umbrum took pleasure to simply do something. Well, I did say it would be nice that you smile ! But I did not expect you to smile in those kind of circumstances ! Hearing this, Umbrum turned back and scratched his feeling, the moment he heard this, he felt his cheeks heat up and his spine turning slightly cold due to the sweat. Trying to reply and opening his mouth, he then looked nowhere as if there was something to think about. Some seconds later, he shook his head and finally responded to the chairmans casual comment. Mm then, can you just tell me when to smile..? Or am I asking something stupid ? Two of his fingers began to rub his forehead, Drake did not know what to say, it was indeed something stupid, to him that is. Smiling is supposed to be automatic and unconscious. His eyes rolled once, then, he clicked on his tongue and glared at Umbrum before smacking him. His white skin momentarily became red due to the sudden and surprising hit. Thats indeed very stupid to ask. Well, I could explain to you but that is not the time yet. Just dont think of smiling by forcing yourself or anything, okay ? The fool simply nodded and did not retort any word that Drake said, it made him sigh even louder, could he not have more personality ? Isnt he supposed to be sixteen ? That age when children abruptly gain the ability to talk so garishly it hurts your ears and deafen you in a few minutes ? How bothersome, instead, he was the complete contrary, a silent and obeying child. Perhaps Drake should not compare his younger self to Umbrum as both of them are oddballs. But he still did and found his youth to be much more foolish than he originally thought. What he meant was that he was naive and stupid. Like any children. Alright uhm so, well, someone is staying there and not moving a bit right now. Look there His finger pointed at the direction everyone was running away, there was one person in a common white shirt, a grey pant, a brown strap being used as a belt and some sandals. He was grey-haired and blue-eyed, possessing a bright and cheerful smile. His figure was neither frail or intimidating. Just your normal average peasant, perhaps what did not fit with this image was that he was clean and looked way too happy to be one. Comrades comrades ! I heard you were looking for me ! Oh, no wonder. It was the information broker, obviously, he has some tricks in his sleeves. For example, they can not kill him as they need him. Chapter 5 – Notitiam, the Information’s Broker Is it possible for you to let me enter ? As in, let''s have a nice peaceful chat on your carriage ! Beneficial for both of us oh right, before I forget, this servant''s name is Notitiam, the information broker you have been searching by turning upside down my place. Notitiam, the information broker. A man whose name was unknown until now, or not. It is probably one of his nickname. A certain cunning was glittering in his pupils, at first look, he seemed like your unoriginal gentle and foolish peasant. However, he was not. He was this pest, rotting links between men by revealing secrets he should not, spreading fake rumors, and yet stay hidden from the common eye. Filled with tricks, from toe to head, he was everything but trustworthy. How was he supposed to be one of those staff they can trust ? Umbrum could not help but stare at Drake who was smiling widely, snapping his fingers to cancel his barrier. Cold words willingly came out his mouth. Immobilize him. Oh. Notitiam sighed and rose his hands, putting them behind his head what he did not expect was that Umbrum will take Drake to his word, to its literal meaning. Both of his hands touched respectively his two legs. Shortening his chant and using more mana. Notitiams face suddenly met the ground, crushing his nose against it. The pain was sudden, he wished to slip away as fast as possible, of course he would not be able to flee from them, nevertheless, it is worth a try. What if they let him go ? Why would they do that ? Why not ? After all, some people are unreasonable and do everything according to their emotions so if they are this kind of people. He might escape. Edax Umbra, Devour. But. Something was off. No matter what he did, he could not get up. The issue was from his toe to his knee, everything disappeared. There was nothing. Neither was there blood or any wound. Instead of a wound which would represent that his legs were cut, he noticed a sort of black smoke slipping away from whats left of his legs. His hands were quivering, his fingers scrubbed his legs from up to his knee then nothing. His breath became rougher and quicker, he inhaled and exhaled deeply, sweats began to flow along his cheeks, his whole body began to trembled, he covered his mouth with his hand and restrained himself to scream. Mmmmmmm! Mmmmmmmmmmmm ! Mmmm !! His heartbeat never was this fast. Where did his legs go ? How ? He did not feel anything, however it seems like he could still feel his legs. Nevertheless, he could not move his missing parts. Then he thought, what if it never gets solved ? What if he lost his ability to walk ? What would he do ? How would he live ? Living without legs is akin to dying. Even if he was an information broker, now, he would just attract too much attention. How can he go on his work ? On living ? Then, pain suddenly stroke him, he bit his lips, pain from his missing limbs, a phantom pain, coming from nowhere, it hurt. Why did it hurt ? It was not here yet it hurt so much. His insides began to violently shake in all directions and slowly reemerge, crossing his throat. It was as if someone was piercing him with a needle and stirred the inside. His meal erupted from his stomach, spreading on the ground. Umbrum just get a rope and cancel it. Umbrum tilted his head and sighed. When he saw Notitiam getting so worked up just for missing legs, he found this shocking. It could have been more than the legs. Phantom pain might be unique and awfully terrible depending on the victims mindset. But what if it was the head instead ? Waving his hand, he slapped Notitiams cheek and his legs suddenly came back as the suffering he was feeling disappeared as if it never existed, just like his legs. Teary-eyed, he glared at the young mage and took a deep breath before feeling a certain relief. It could have been worse. Since the inconvenience faded, his mind got back on track and began to think about everything that happened earlier, trying to understand every acts, words and gestures he sensed while he was lying on the ground. I am sorry I am the type of person who can not bear pain could you please not do that again ? This is quite bothersome. It seemed that he was the kind of person that gets himself together quickly, easily broken but easily repairable as well. He stood up and stretched his arms toward Umbrum so he could get handcuffed instead of... fading away, like smoke. The young mage stared at him for a few seconds before sighing. The previous state he was in was unsightly, perhaps he was trying to act proper, there was one thing that was off. Notitiam''s eyes were focused on Umbrum, radiating a certain gentle aura... ''Doubtful'', he thought. He had something in mind. Okay. A minute later, Notitiams spine was completely straight, his face did not have a smile or anything along those lines, he was simply expressionless. However he could not stop trembling. Despite everything, he tried to keep a dignified facade. He sat within the carriage in front of Umbrum while Drake was driving them back to his home, the soon-to-be Magic Association, perhaps it was a temporary name but that is the best one they currently have on handsThe author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Notitiam, do you know anything about a controversial project of the Esoteric Syndicate ? Lies arent allowed, okay ? Hearing this voice, Notitiam shivered, remembering his previous experience, it was unique and it was something he did not want to relive once again, his mind would slowly break again. Fortunately, it was not difficult to heal. Was he weak ? Of course. But resilient, like a cockroach, he might be unable to do much, he will always get up in the end. Well, of course I do know, they are finally trying out different, but may I ask why do you want to know about that ? The Information Broker asked, quite curious about why two strangers who came out of nowhere came to ask about such a sensitive subject. The oppressor shook his head and stayed quiet, silently glaring at his captive who cleared his throat and continued to talk on a perplexed tone. I apologize for asking as well as my rudeness this project, as far as I know, isnt widely liked, on the contrary, but as the goal is to attract new blood and to open to new horizons, for simply to spread and gain more power they probably felt forced to accept. Sincerely, I do not know much about it. All I know is that it might change the face itself of the Esoteric Syndicate as it is entirely against its policies, rules and laws. That was quite a low amount of information, on top of being very basic, but more than enough as the ES has a very secure network that isnt supposed to let any details of their activities out. Perfect. The one driving is the one responsible of the project and wish to recruit you. The carriage abruptly stopped at this moment. While Notitiam fell on the floor of the carriage, definitively, twice in a row, it must be an unlucky day. With bulging eyes, Drake shouted at Umbrum who didnt fall and succeed at staying stable in the carriage. You fool ! Cant you be just a little more tactful ?! Did you hear what he said ? It is going to be impossible to get him into the staff if you act so carelessly ! I mean, look, you traumatized him with your spell, then you bluntly say what we want without first putting him at ease and there is so much I would like to say but Notitiam laughed when he saw Drakes reaction. That was so unexpected, to him at least, it seemed that the responsible of the ES project was an odd fellow. Not the one you would expect in this organization at the very least, what he thought was that he was unexpectedly emotional. But are they really ? Haha aside the fact that your reaction was unique for one of those and that I doubt that you are really one of them can I really refuse anyway ? It immediately silenced Drake who could not even continue to yell at Umbrum who did not seem to understand what was going on as all he felt was his chief holding on his collar, if he loosened his grip he might fall. Can you please er or dont let me fall ? Drake stared at him a long time, a very long time, then he lowered his head and sighed. Thinking that this kid should learn a bit for his errors, Umbrum did not seem to find in any way that he has done something wrong. He didnt fall, no, he was even pushed out of the carriage. Something cracked when he rolled on the ground, he did not groan or moan in pain, nothing. Silence reigned within and outside the carriage, Drake did not say much while Notitiam only stared at him, quietly but severely. The chairman only had a small smile as he stared outside the carriage, a few seconds afterwards, he exclaimed on a threatening tone. Go pick up the kid, and carry him as well. Did he have any choices ? Of course not. The information broker left the carriage and went toward Umbrum who did not move, he simply stared at the coming person. Nothing much could be said about them, they seemed to wear a mask, he could not see through, perhaps was it because he was losing blood ? But more he looked at the person that entwined him. More he observed, more he thought that this individual was fake. His gait was unnatural, his eyes were dull, his body was cold, however, his voice sounded warm and friendly. Ahh~ what a fool, look at yourself, what mess are you in now ? Well, thats a shame His hand pressed on Umbrums cracked bones, more and more, the pain became heavier and heavier. The victim could hear his own bones fissuring, clearly, Notitiams goal was to hurt him. To see his face twisted by pain just for a little bit, to take revenge for the pain he received earlier. You hurt me, then I will hurt you. It was this kind of thinking. Despite this, he was quickly disappointed them. The fallen did not show any reactions, his bones were on the verge of breaking, he was on the verge of losing his legs. Of losing his ability to walk, to live. Mmm I see. He tightened his grip around the knee and took a deep breath, he did not think he would have to go further than pressing on it. After all, it was a child, it should be able to cope with pain. On the contrary, younger you are, more you are sensitive to pain or so he thought when a twisted grin was slowly appearing on his face. Then, he exhaled, pushing his hands toward the ground, the knee was driven against the ground, the leg was turned in the wrong sense. Umbrum coughed blood at that same moment, lying down on the ground, he forced a smile and stared at his assailler. What a bother Then he fainted. Notitiam scratched his head, bit his thumb and sighed. He can not continue to hurt Umbrum, first, he knew that he could not go overboard due to Drake, second, it would utterly useless. As he said, pain is just a bother to him, nothing more, nothing less. It was not something fundamentally harmful. In others words, hurting him would be a waste of time. Out of frustration, the information broker punched into Umbrums face while he was unconscious, crushing his nose as well. Ha. Drake snorted as he saw this from the carriage. He did not expect the information broker to be grudgeful over pain. His original opinion was that Notitiam could be completely trusted as long as you give him what he wants, but now, he began to question his own judgement. Later, he should review why he deemed him as potentially trustworthy. Well, lets have a talk later. All he had to remember at the very least was that this broker was an actor. Chapter 6 - The “Magic Association” ... Drake and Notitiam stayed silent as they stared at each other. Unlike Drake, the broker was sweating, he knew he could not act in front of this man after interacting him. Despite his attitude, he was still a genius from the Esoteric Syndicate. How can he deceive him as easily as he manipulated the bandits ? So, would you like to tell me what you did to the bandits so I get to know some of your others talents ? Shamelessly, the oppressor asked to his hostage, his hands joint, his chin supported by his thumbs, it could not hide this twisted grin. His body was thrilled, as if he was restraining a laughter. Why did he suddenly seem to be so sinister ? Nevermind nevermind, everyone has the right to keep their own secrets after all. I will not bother you with that again unless I feel obligated to. Quickly taking this opportunity to take, he tried to keep a calm facade. Something was wrong with this situation, definitively, he could not let him have the initiative during the whole conversation. So So, could you please tell me what information you wanted to buy ? Or should I ask what is this project of yours ? Even if he had no choices but to work for him, as long as he can keep a certain initiative in this talk, he might better conditions that what would be originally given if he kept on silently nodding. Ah, for now, I call it The Magic Association, rather simple isnt it ? He did not wait for a reply and continued to talk. Anyway first, it is not my project, but the Esoteric Syndicates project, I just have been assigned to this task. With no others choices. Sincerely, I quite like the idea for this project. Before I explain, in your opinion, what are the issues with the Esoteric Syndicate ? Peculiar. Normally, people in this organization have an oversized pride in it. But Drake did not have it, on the contrary, his eyes were clear and pragmatic, he knew that there were issues unlike those nationalists. After all, it was controlling a country. Passing his hand in his hair, Notitiam sighed and closed his eyes as he rubbed his own forehead. A controversial and sensitive subject, on top of that, they were likely in outpost of this same organization, despite the fact that Drake was in charge of it, he could not control the crew unlike Umbrum, an outsider. ... Its policy. Accepting only geniuses coming from an esteemed institution is foolish. It will limit the amount of people working for them. Plus, it creates a lot of internal conflicts as those so-called geniuses have outrageous egos, when everyone wants everyone to bow down at their feet, obviously it will be a mess. You could say the problem itself are the people and the ones accepted. Since those people arent open-minded, on the contrary, they are in their own little world, thinking to be the center of the world while they arent. Drake nodded as he was reminded of his youth, foolish indeed. He was one stupid child, exactly what Notitiam said. He was part of those fellows, repulsing and weak, boasting at every little and meaningless actions they accomplished. Then I will say its organization as for how to explain, I will probably not be able to do so, I will be quite confusing. Mmmm I feel like it was organized for a small-sized land rather than a country. Its not systematic enough, its rather strict but there arent enough positions I suppose ? Perhaps because the staff is quite small as well mmm honestly, I dont understand much the organization. Well, if its hard to understand, it can produces confusing for the ones in Esoteric Syndicate lets say E.S. to make it short. And well, if the staff is confused about what position they should hold there would be real issues about the management of the organization. Indeed. Drake only nodded and waited for the next. Mmm I suppose its not everything but the project is like creating a new association, deeply rooted to the E.S., that will not have these issues, then slowly spread it, right ? Exactly, it was it. Drake did not need to explain the basis, he could just fill him out with the details later, as for now, he will discuss the terms and conditions of the contracts. I will give you what you want and you will work for me, your network will be quite useful for The Magic Association. His sight darkened, what he wanted ? What was he talking about precisely ? Was it exactly what he wished for or something else ? Did Drake know more than he expected ? Or perhaps, he knew everything. What do you mean by _________________________________________________________________________ Slowly drifting toward the light, his eyelids trembled, his pupils were troubled. Brutally, he raised the higher part of his body, the chest heavy, the breathing agitated, the skin sweaty, the hair messy and his legs unmovable. But that was fine, he could feel them, the blood flowing along the veins, reproducing the same cycle again and again and again sustaining his frail and feeble life that could have faded so many times. He found himself to be in his bedroom, lying down on the bed, realizing that he was at his home, his muscles and bones relaxed before he began to check on his own body.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Mmm lets see His hands caressed his own skin, searching the pain, the fissures, the broken bones, the inconvenience of a body, when it trembled, it meant that he found one of his injury. A few times, he shivered and bit his lips out of the suffering he felt. Despite everything, he did not expect his legs to be in this state, he would not be able to move for at least a month, it is, according to him, way too much time of rest. As for now lets just sleep over it, I can wake up later and ask them if they have any way for me to recover quicker Obviously, he could not count on his natural constitution, his body was fundamentally weak, forged through hurts at a very young age provoked it to be almost crippled. Fortunately, even if he does not have much strength, below the average at least, he had an outrageous agility. A good in an evil as they say. It was the same room, nothing changed, except that it was clean, there no dust at all and his belongings were arranged in a specific way. But no messages, no letters, no apologies, nothing, it was quite disappointed, why did he even expect to meet decent people. He is just a stranger that nobody cares about after all. How foolish. Quod Estis Vos ? Falling over his bed, he held his own head as he heard this voice, this condemned voice, those forbidden sons, he did not want to hear any of it. No matter what, it will always come back, he will always hear some otherwordly voice calling him, asking him something he does not understand, what does it mean ? However, this voice had the power to instill dread into peoples heart, mercilessly taking control of them to accomplish goal. Ahhh Aaahh Aaaaaa His voice grew weaker and weaker as time went on, as if he felt a certain weight in his throat. An arm was embracing his throat, slowly strangling him, or so he thought. No words escaped his mouth, nor sounds, he could not even moan in pain, nevertheless, he was still struggling, his heels kicked his mattress and bed many times. What are you..? He wanted to ask this question, but he could not. Eyes darting toward his aggressors arm, he observed it, perhaps he will not survive, but he wished to know. Wished to know who would attack him, at least, he would like to know more than Quod Estis Vos ?. All he knew about them was a question he keeps hearing since years and years if he could at least see what they look like. Cladded in a black cloth, seemingly frail, scanty arms, was the assaillant underweight ? Their fingers were unusually long and dried, devoid of any life or blood, its embrace was cold like a corpse. Death perhaps ? So soon ? It was coming by itself ? No I cant accept it not yet I still have right, I need helpat least try. He could not escape its embrace but he could call for help, attract someone that could help him. He tightened his fist, his nails piercing in his own palm, blood tainting the sheets, lines began to appear on his right shoulder. It was spreading, the lines grew longer and longer, following the veins of his body until it reached his right hand. The lack of oxygen began to make his sight goes blurry, his head felt dizzy, his already pale skin became even more pale, becoming closer to a corpse-like color. Physical Enhancement Skipping the chant, the mana consumption became humongous, he felt pain from his whole right arm. His muscles were getting contracted more and more violently, his skin turned slightly red due to the spell. And his fist waved hitting the wall, or the ground, he didnt remember much, but what could not escape his senses was This quake, the floor, the planks, the walls, the ceiling, the bed, the mattress, the grimoire, the bow, the crystals, the door, everything trembled, after this strike, his whole right arm became swollen, but, despite all of this, the embrace was still choking him, it did not move an inch. He could not breath, unaffected by physical attacks it seems, is it a sort of ghost-like creature ? A monster ? A phantom ? How did it bypass the guards and Drake ? Wasnt he supposed to be a genius ? Then how and why ? Why was it tracking him since those so-long years ? His sight darkened, his raised arm naturally fell, devoid of any control, his eyelids were half-closed, his pupils were emptied of any emotions. Walking on a thin and tensed string with a broken leg, it was his situation, there was no solution, no way to survive, thats it. Its the end unless someone came. Light disappeared, nothing could be seen, he fell asleep. Suddenly, a red light could be seen from under the door, then, not even a second after this light appeared, a red fiery light passed through the door, aiming at the bed, but before it could touch the creature and Umbrum, it stopped. The young unconscious mage fell down off his bed, the arm swollen, the legs broken, the mana exhausted, the life returning, nothing was holding him. Umbrum ! Drake shouted as he saw the young mage he recently recruited lying down on the ground, he knew something happened. Swiftly, he checked his body, ripped his clothes, revealing his white skin and scars, however, he did not pause on those worthless details, and his hand passed-by his body toward his face. The whole body was warm, except the face. His finger descended under his chin, immediately, he instinctively removed it. ...Cold. The chairman muttered, something happened, definitively, someone broke into the building, caught Umbrum by the throat and tried to freeze him, nevertheless, was his goal to kill ? No, it was slow. Very slow. He wanted this mage to suffer from the coldness. ...who, how, why... For the who, there were way too many people, how many elders did not agree to the Magic Association project ? Easily the majority. As for how, it considerably reduced the list, he prepared many barriers, the only people who could break into would be folks more skilled than Drake. It can be counted on a few hands, under fifty people he supposed. And people who had a reason to do so could be counted on a hand. However, those four should be crushed under tons of paperworks and thus would not be able to lay a finger on them. Then, nobody that Drake knew. Someone from a foreign country ? Someone wanting to stop the Esoteric Syndicates expansion since they might see the potential of this project. Who knows ? However, the project should be secretive enough. Who would reveal ? Prideful people believing in their organization, able to sacrifice their lives for such thing as principles, unwilling to change and to adapt to their era ? Obviously, they would not ever betray the organization, they would rather die in the most awful pains, which might be one of the reason of why they dislike Drake. He would not die for the Esoteric Syndicate. Never. Then as for why would they attack Umbrum ? In his opinion, it was quite simple. He was one of the first individuals he personally recruited in his staff, then will people be confident that they will be safe under his watch if he died ? Of course not. Holding this young and frail mage in his arm, he tightened his grip and muttered on a furious tone. In his eyes, he was not seeing a person but a road, the path of his future, or at the very least. The starting point, once he passed it, he would not mind losing this thing. As for now, what he needed was him to be safe and sound, to be encouraging. They will pay for this and dreadfully. Looking at his throat, his legs, his right arm, he sighed. He could easily heal him, at first, he did not wish to but now, that is needed. He poked his white right cheek which bounced at his touch. His expression was so peaceful and calm, his lips seemed to have bled, his visage was slightly wet due to tears, his whole body was swollen. However, no expressions of pain, just reluctance and acceptance. How pitiful. Chapter 7 - Deception and Confidence A reflection of himself. No, it was not a reflection. It was as if he was out of his body, was his soul outside it ? Was it his subconsciousness ? He did not know. All he could see was darkness, lacking sensations, he did not even feel like he was moving when he turned around. Was he falling ? He did not know either. His corporeal shell was sinking into the bottomless obscurity, eyes closed. Objectively, it was unique to see your body from a third partys point of view, however, Umbrum was not shocked in the slightest and felt like he was turning around the body, did he ? For some reasons, he could see progressively his body from a different sight, in front, behind, at his right, at his left perhaps ? How troublesome. Thought the halved soul wandering around the body, invisible and fading. As comfortable as always, isnt it ? A nostalgic thought erupted in his mind, it was not unfamiliar to this situation. Neither was it the first time, this out of body experience in an abyss of obscurity ? It was usual. This apprentice always felt free in those situations, free from worries, free from burdens, free from responsibilities, free from his sensations, nothing else could put him more at ease. Originally seeking for his long lost family that disappeared in his childhood, his heart slowly drifted away towards calmer outlooks where he could finally take a rest from this struggle he has been living in since what ? A dozen of years ? Quod estis vos ? It echoed, echoed, echoed, echoed like a droplet falling on a calm lake, resonating and drawing on the water continuous circles, coming forth and on. No matter where he go, he heard this voice, nevertheless it never assaulted him or so he thought. Why was he here ? How did he get here ? Why did he felt so suffocated when he opened his eyes ? Suddenly feeling once again the encumbrance creeping on him, sticking to his whole being, he gazed once again at his body, something was definitively wrong. His corporeal shells throat was missing, no, to be exact, only the surface of it was missing, he still had his neck however the front disappeared with a certain imprint, the form of an hand. A skeletal hand, lacking flesh, only have its bare bones covered by a smooth material. What the What is it ? Why is it there ? How did it affect him ? Nothing has ever touched him in this place, but this time it was not like usual. No, he should not stay here, he can not stay here. For the first time in his life in this place, a feeling of alertness was ringing in his heart. An urge to breath, to get fresh air, to get back his sensations, his burdens, his worries, surged from deep within. Suddenly, his eyes opened, feeling full once again, his whole body trembled, he felt shivers running down on his spine, he was on his bed, the wall was intact, the bed seemed to be just like how it was before he fell unconscious. Quickly, his hands ran over his throat, checking his throat, trying to see if anything was different, however, it was just the same. His corporeal shell was still the same. Nothing changed. Something was clear despite this situation, something was wrong. It happened, it assaulted him, it tried to kill him, it was not only a voice, it was something real, it existed, it was there since so many years, it was beside him, it was whispering something to his ears since so long as far as he remembered, it always has been here. This thing, haunting him, devouring his sanity little by little like a delicacy. Haa Haaa Haaaaaaaa. The air was entering and leaving his lungs quicker and quicker, little by little, panic was the only thing that filled his mind, calm down, he needed to take back his breath Then, before anything could happen, the door of his bedroom was slammed, Drake entered and stared at Umbrum with an expression that mixed apprehension and relief, at first, his heart felt at ease, seeing that he was awake, nevertheless when he saw his state, clutching on his chest, his eyes constantly leaking tears, his body quivering out of fear and a certain loss of safety. Umbrum ! Wh- HAAAA! Interrupting him through shouting, Drake did not even bothered with talking and rushed to him without asking permissions or anything, his arms embraced him, while his mouth let out a sound : Shhhh Feeling this sudden warm surrounding his body, his lung suddenly became peaceful, less tensed, more relaxed. His heartbeat slowed down, his shell was supported by his friend or so he thought. Quickly realizing the situation he was in, the mage whispered a few words before closing his eyes and fainting once again.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. I am sorry for d Unable to finish his sentence, after fixing the bed and Umbrums appearance, covering him with a blanket, his face became indifferent, greatly contrasting with the previous alleviation and worry that was shown on his face. Post-traumatic stress disorder ? He thought as his finger brushed the mages hair, it looked like it should be rather easy to convince him later of what he wanted him to think. Lacking support, Drake will become it. Lacking friend, Drake will do the same. Lacking family, he shall do everything. If everything goes according to his plan, the apprentice shall get better, as well that he will execute his wishes without much complains, on top of that, he will do so cheerfully. All he has to do is simply to reassure him. And wait for his awakening. _____________ Quod Vos Estis...? This voice haunted him, this question that keep getting asked ceaselessly without explanations nor reasons tormented him. It felt like this sound, this interrogation was echoing with his soul itself. Trying to take it away, trying to capture it, to grind it, to lick it, to devour it, to replace it, to absorb it Reaffirming his will, he felt less apprehensive, he might be weak-minded, but he never was the kind to give up easily, no, on the contrary, patience is a virtue after all. All he had to do was to remember this warmth, to temper his spirit in turmoil. _____ His eyelids lifting, his pupils saw the light once again. This time, he did not feel any harm around him, his body was still trembling, his mind was still wavering between sanity and alienation, in spite of this Exhausted, there was nothing around him, nothing to haunt him, to strangulate him, to freeze his soul, to siphon his mental health. ...I am fine. I am fine. Everythings fine. Right. It is not here again. It disappeared Umbrum couldnt help but mutter without making much sense everything he thought on the spot. Once again, the door moved, softly, but it moved, someone peeked, it was Drake, having a smile on his face. In his hand, there was a mug filled with a hot drink that Umbrum did not know at all. Hardly, the corners of Umbrums mouth raised upwards. Once again, he forced himself to smile, to convince himself that everything was alright, that nothing was wrong while truthfully, it seemed that his world turned upside down so suddenly without much motives. Silently, Drake approached and gave him this mug, he looked away and then the mage thought that he could take this opportunity to question him about what concretely happened before and while he was sleeping. ...Drake, did someone was in my bedroom ? Or did someone intrude into the building with suspicious motives? Drake shook his head and ruffled Umbrums hair after talking on perplexed tone, seeming not understand where he was going by asking those questions. There was nobody at all. I just saw you out of your bed earlier, screaming, and there was nobody. Nobody at all. Perhaps, you were tired since.. well, I threw you out the carriage. Blood loss plus being exhausted, it did seem like that he hallucinated. However, since when does he see this thing? Hear this thing? Feel this thing? Too long, but never did it hurt him. Eventually it could have been an hallucination since the very start ? Right, he never thought of this. What if all of this has been fake since the very start ? It did not make sense after all. Nobody could hear, feel or see it except it. Couldnt it be aa simple figment of his imagination ? His mind fooling his sense after being traumatized by the creeping loneliness. Alone for years, his mind forged a shape of darkness that seemed to be present, faking a certain company. No no no, all this pain it could not be fake, could it ? A huge part of his life, this creature that has been on his side can only be true, right ? Nevertheless excluding what happened when he was on his bed hours earlier. Did it ever touch anything ? Did it ever make any other sound that this action ? Did it ever emanated any feelings ? No, it was just like a puppet, a marionette, a doll As if it did not exist, except for him, did it exist, the fowls see what they see as they say. Understanding everything or so he thought, he knew that in the first place, his worries, his apprehension was baseless. However, it means that this whole time, he was really alone, completely isolated from the world, thinking that an hallucination was true, beside him In the end, there was nobody. Nobody. At. All. Lifelessly, his pupils raised toward Drake, is it someone ? Is he real ? Is he an hallucination ? No, he is warm, he is something he can touch, he can hold him Ouch The mug burnt his hand at this second, as he was lost in his thoughts, he didnt feel the heat concentrating in his palms, slowly hurting his skin. Momentarily, his hand blench, almost letting his mug go. Holding it rather carefully, his lips settled down on the mugs surface, he gulped, its taste was perplexing, it was bitter yet soft, that was something he never drank before. Slipping out of his worries, a certain meek curiosity arose in his eyes, he could not help but ask. What is it ? Umbrum felt less tired after ingesting the beverage, Drake sighed in relief, it seemed he was glad that his trainee was not as affected as he originally thought, he seemed to be at ease, in peace. It is coffee. Do you want to know how it is made later on ? Well, before that, we will have heal your legs, you cant really crawl and accompany me, after all. Ashamed of his deeds, Drake scratched his head but did not apologize, he did not feel much remorse about pushing him out of the carriage, what if he hit his head ? What if he died because of his action ? Yet no remorse at all. As if it was normal. At least, he isnt a hypocrite just a shameless and heartless scoundrel ? Adjusting his glasses, Umbrum sighed as warmth took over his body, replacing the cold and loneliness that has been haunting him. Despite everything, he was alive, safe and sound, cared for; soon to be healed by his friend, could he ask for more ? Of course, he could ask to find his family. Although, he practically lost all hope to locate them in this wide and stained world. As long as he had someone with him, he imagined he was alright, that the universe was bright, brimming with life, seeking for happiness for everyone Thank you. That was all he could say. Deceived, he could only trust him as he had nobody else in this grey broad world. Chapter 8 - Introduction to Magic The pages were fluttering, slowly making its way toward the introduction, the shadow of the past were fading lets go back to the origin. Once upon a time, magic did not exist. No, it was all just a fantasy. A fantasy, they say. A myth. Yet, nowadays, magic is a sign of life. If something does not have mana, it is considered as a dead being, as if mana was blood, the liquid representing life, without it, we are nothing more than shells, that bunch of rotten dirty fleshes. Reading this completely biased introductory book to magic, the mage sighed as he continued to read it, it could not be more basic than this. Then, why is there magic today ? Yes, everyone should wonder about that, if it was not there in the first place, why did it become vital ? How did it become vital ? What happened ? The most common theory was that the world was dying. It was reaching its expiration, it could not produce enough energy, the branches lost their leaves, the trees lost their branches, the forests lost their trees, the land became dirtied, the snow melted, the seas dried, the air faded, life was dying. So, the world was in such a state ? The apprentice wondered as he felt another question rising, why was it dying ? However, this question shall not be replied. Then, here comes magic, to revive the world, to balance death and life. How ? How was it possible ? What could revive the world ? It just sounded so shallow. The World itself gave up on its dominance on life and death. It became a cycle, independant from fate, recycling spirits, shaping them through merits and demerits, recreating a balance, forming values Dominance on life and death ? Cant the author be less vague ? It gave it up to who ? The essence of magic ? The existence of magic ? What is it in the end ? Magic is basically everything that defines our lives as it is under its jurisdiction. To sum it up, Magic simply came to compensate the Worlds Declining Will. Magic originates from something outside the world, it could be considered as a stranger unknowingly plundering the countrys power purposely. It took advantages of its current weaknesses, manipulating the royalties like puppets Life drastically mutated, the rules of the world gradually altered into something way more flexible. Any creatures that were either alive or dead could minutely take control of the world, wielding fire, water, air and so on. All signs of life. The inherent barrier between the world and its inhabitants disappeared. Anyone with the strength, the control, the concentration, the knowledge, the ability, the talent, the essence to pull it off could literally defy the World, overpower it and distort with the laws that were created beforehand. This book was perplexing, it did not explain much about Magic, it was just a story like any other, a legend, a myth, a hypothesis that still needed to be justified, that still needed to be approved. Concretely, it was very unlikely to be like this, but anyway, it was just a story, like any other expecting to be told by a so-called sage, sages that do not exist or so the reader thought when he was reading this book. Magic is life and death, the ability to control the world, partially that is. A resume of what magic was according to this controversial author. Then, how do we use magic ? As I said earlier, magic doesnt come from this world, then, from where does it come from ? It comes from another plane, the Esoteric Plane, this plane seemed to have fusioned with our world, How and why would not be explained ? My scope of knowledge is limited to our good ol world. The Esoteric Plane is now like a mirror, yes, a mirror representing all the life and death of our world. Every beings has a mind, a soul, a spirit which are mediators between the world and the plane Today, we would call these Mana Cores. What is a Mana Core ? It is basically from where our mana come from, where it is produced, Mana Cores ar purely spiritual, if you cut someone to pieces, you would not be able to see it. The mana core could be said to be in the Esoteric Plane, in the representation of the life that is present in the plane. The mana core is parallel to the corporeal shell, there is definitively a link between the two, however, they will usually never melt, get together unless in extremes conditions. Like oil and water, mana core and corporeal shell will always be away from each other.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Sometimes, the corporeal shell can drag the mana core and pull it out to his world, using it to alter the world through using magic, through chanting a spell. Every time you use magic, you draw it out from the other plane to affect the limited reality and space you are living, you can not imagine that basically everything is endless and thus cannot end, then, we are forced to limit the space so it can accord more or less properly to our own sensations and intuitions. Reading this, the mage did not feel like he understood anything at all, but then rubbed his chin, trying to understand the world of the book. The most basic action is to communicate with the foreign plane, in others words, to awaken your magic. Then, it is to use, in other terms, to stimulate, to trouble the water of the plane and let the river cross the mages world so he can in some sort of way save the mana that has been bordering your corporeal shell. What he has read is basically how magic works in his world, it is basically an introduction indeed. The object itself, the effect it can have on the populations and so on, thus manipulate as long as it originally come from the second plane. There was nothing he could say to solve this issue, he could simply observe what will happen to the world through the flow of magic that is going to discharge all of its dirt on the mana core. Was there something else that could be used to introduce magic, mana core and so on ? Maybe. Perhaps. Still, nothing was realizable in the mages opinion, the origin and birth of magic were discussed, why it happened and all kind of event reproduced according to one of the many actors. After, it is only a matter of knowledge and feeling, more your emotions based on an element of the second plane was deep, profound and unquestionable, it could trigger the greatest and most dangerous spells. While your knowledge is based on how each strings from each cores are connected, how they work out together and how certains combinaisons can appear. The pages stopped fluttering, their mouths closed, the story time ended at that moment, people did not wish those voices to explain about this vital element that reigns over life and death in this little world. Some details are better undisclosed. Alright, this is the end of this very short story, how did you find it ? Instructive or useless ? The latter I suppose as learning those do not ease your training, it just gives you some informations about how Magic first came to the world. It was necessary for the world to breath for a second time, to be born again. To see the world in its whole exactitude. In the end, they still needed magic to live. Anyone wielding magic is thus considered as a stronger person than the average, you do not need much to be above the rest, you just need to be able to chant some spells, to show that you know what you are made of. Nothingness. The evolution of life can be considered as the evolution of magic. Today, some people talk about creatures that do not utilize magic. No, about magicless creatures, beings that arent alive nor dead then. What are those then ? Do they even exist ? Since people talk about it, there is an origin. At the bare minimum, there is at least one creature that is unaffected by Mana. First, it must be independent from the cycle of life and death, it must come from the world itself. Roughly, everything that was inscribed into the world was magicless, then, it is something that came before the cycle of life, the uprising of magic.. something that dominated life and death. That something would be the magicless creatures we can notice from time to time. The only knowledge we have from them is that they exist, the basic characteristics of those are still unknown. One day, someone will capture one of these creatures and we will be able to explain precisely how and why magic came to this world. The book definitively closed. There was nothing more they could say, the readers put their hands on their ears, hoping they would not hear the slightest sound from the polemist that created controversy all around him with his thoughts. Finishing to read, Umbrum felt like he ended up with more questions than responses, but at the very least, if he had something to question, it meant that he got some relevant information from the text. ...and I will need to do this for when we will begin to recruit Muttering under his breath, he rubbed his forehead as he continued to write a discourse along with annotating the text to perhaps understand the bigger picture through many separated elements, trying to link it with some references that could facilitate his understanding. Before continuing, the young mage under Drakes wing wondered about the choice of this book, he only began to study it because he was told to do so, however, now that he thought about it. Why this book ? It seemed to be unedited, written by a child trying to sound serious...or so he thought when he was reading and rereading it. Perhaps because this book, in fact, was rather simple ? Because it is cultural reference for both low and high-class citizens ? The former for the stories told to children while the second for the history of Magic in Dailzelkien. Right, this written artwork was a turning point of Magics history, altered the way how so many people originally saw magic as what unique people can do, when in fact, if provided the right materials, anyone can use magic. Anyone can be a mage, good or not, anyone could be one. It was the point, it destroyed an illusion with its simplicity. Everyone has a chance, everyone can do it. The message was quite strong and significant for its era which also concern this era as magic is still reserved to a certain type of people. So this is why he wanted this book to be chosen because it gave such a bright image such a positive outlook on the individual there was no elites, no concrete hierarchy because it exactly fitted how his project shall become, all the Magic Association will be. Eventually all kind of people will reunite here Will this really happen ? Will people trust Drake and Umbrum ? It was a question that became vital to this mage, if it did not work, he will feel greatly pained for his friend. As for why this became necessary to him, this is really simple he needed to read before going to do what is needed... Chapter 9 - Healing and Favor After some dozens of minutes, Drake sighed, when he saw Umbrum in this state, he could not help but feel like he should solve this issue, first came the healing. Rolling up his sleeves, he quickly rubbed his hands and said as he respectively laid his hands on his left and right legs. I am going to heal you, so dont move an inch alright, it might hurt a bit after all. That was to be expected, the mage closed his eyes and waited for the pain to come, however, nothing happened, or to be more exact, he did not feel anything hurting him at all. Was that an issue ? No, however, it might mean that nothing happened, that he was not healed, it would be troublesome. While his eyes were closed, Drake indeed healed Cinis legs, what was unique was that, no light or any spell could be seen from his hands, nothing. It was as if he only touched CInis legs then he was healed. Was it usually so easy to heal someone with magic? Or was it just Drake? In both cases, it was quite shocking, in a just a few seconds he was healed as well that a sudden surge of energy appeared, it felt as if his whole shell was burning with vigor. His shock could be seen on his face, agape, wide-eyed, and raised brows. Then, he thought about it and sighed sorrowfully, that was something he will never be able to. As, after all, the magical spells he is able to wield are significantly limited due to his condition. That was impressive but, didnt you say it would hurt? Umbrum could not help but be curious about it, it was likely the contrary of hurt, it was even easing his pain and relaxing him. Casually smiling, Drake faked a punch on his leg and reply on a light tone, without shame. I just wanted to see how you react to my warning, and it was just as expected. Calmly as if you were used to it. His reply made this foolish child quiet, he did not want to talk about it. However, in his opinion, it was more he did not give any reactions and thought that it meant that what you dont do or say mean something which was something he never realized, silence could be considered as a reply as well. ...; what could it mean? He did not know, perhaps, Drakes reaction to his silence would respond to this pointless question. At the very least, he would have learnt something very basic between human relationships. Something he should have been taught a long time ago instead of discovering it by himself. Are you perhaps upset? So, silence as reply can mean that someone is upset, it does sound logical. If Drake knew what this little one was thinking, he would realize that he has no experiences with social or anything that need bonds. If he knew, he would realize how easy it should be to push him toward the way he wants him to go, but of course, he didnt. No I wanted to see how you would react to a silent. Basically, Umbrum copied Drake who at his word went blank, in others words, there was hardly any expressions on his face, since it wasnt something he expected. Did the child joke? It was a first. On top of that, it was well used. A sigh escaped his mouth and his friend smacked his head without an inch of hesitation. You little scoundrel., despite everything, a wide smile could be seen on his face, this action made him quite happy. It meant that his protegee was feeling slightly better after what happened to him in the recent day along with the despicable and illusory lies he told him. The apprentice laughed as he barely felt anything hitting his forehead. Anyway I have a favor to ask, I need you, absolutely. Suddenly changing his tone into one that didn''t fit the previous mood, Cinis could not help but feel slightly tensed and immediately asked something. Do you need to reinforce the security? This was biased towards his life experiences who became quite influential to his way. Unable to unlink his bonds and consequences of the pain to his hallucination as Drake said. Shamefully to this poor child, his friend shook his head after making a deep frown, he was confused, clearly, as he did not understand why would he need to reinforce the security? He is here after all, isn''t that basically one of the best protections? No no, that is completely unrelated you see, I am an influential person, and if I talk to the people, it might be quite intimidating, then, I need you to speak in my stead, you must be more familiar with common people, I suppose? It was understandable, however, Umbrum thought about it and anticipated the future if he accepted and decided to talk to them. It would be a disaster, him? Talk? Communicate? Wasnt Drake basically asking him to lead his project to a disaster? D-Drake thats really, like really a bad idea I cant refuse, I can only accept as I am greatly indebted to you but please rethink of it, you know how I talk, I am not really someone eloquent who can convince people As a matter of fact, Umbrum indeed knew nothing of relationships as he always avoided crowds and approached little groups he could befriend with. Thinking for a bit or actually not since everything was already decided since the very start. Dont worry, you would do great, dont worry too much about it. And well, even if you mess up, thats fine, I can not choose anyone else, I only trust you among all the people here. He said confidently as his eyes seemed to pierce through Umbrums essence who could not help but be agape, that sentence moved him, or what was left of him after the catastrophe, what could he do? Someone trusted him, him, out of all people. He could not believe it, so, that was no because he was indebted, no, because he was trusted?You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. I I dont know what to say, this this can I really believe you? After all, I mean, it just has been a few days, why me? You could simply ask Notitiam he is an information broker, of course, he should know how to speak to people a bit more than me no, way more than me I dont know how to talk to them without feeling awkward, uncomfortable, embarrassed and so on. Notitiam is someone who must speak quite a lot of people, his words must be filled with tricks I wouldnt even be able to understand he is much more suitable than me, and perhaps, after a few days, you would find him trustworthy more than me even so. Bursting out in laughter, Drake held his stomach after trying to seriously listen to the one he shall entrust the future of The Magic Association, the name was decided, it was a gamble he did not expect to hear such a refusal. This child was really foolish, or perhaps he could say selfless and mindful. Nevertheless, in this world, those usually die first unless their background or strength could not be underestimated. Which in this mages case was unlikely, he was still a kid with no social experiences, or at least, he barely had any experiences of how society can be harsh. Hahahahaha! You little scoundrel, you think I can trust Notitiam? Cant you just take some responsibilities and help me? I can even teach you some magic spells if you wish to. I want it to be you, Notitiam is shady, way too shady, as an information broker, he has pretty much a lot of reasons to backstab me, while as for you why would you attack me? This time, he could not deny him, if he asked himself this question, he would say that he has nobody to attack, nobody at all. As who cant he hate or love when there is nobody around? To be exact, when there was nobody around. Today, Notitiam and Drake seem to be with him, perhaps out of circumstances, despite this, it felt better. Better than the trips he has taken to arrive here. Haa alright, I will help you but do not expect much from me please else you will be greatly disappointed in me just dont say I didnt warn you, okay? Taken aback and having no choices but to obey, Umbrum felt a certain warmth due to Drakes tactless care for him, someone who basically gave a meaning to him, when was the last time it happened? Way too long ago, so long that his memories about it are hazy, it originates from the time he started learning magic, five years ago perhaps. Whatever, he never wished to remember, that was something that could wait, for now, he shall live in the present and forget what does not exist anymore, the past isnt while the future has yet to be, thus he shall continue to walk on this endless line without watching where he is going, he will see how it goes. Whether it turns, it returns, it comes back, it jumps, it deviates, or whatever it can, he will go forward. Haha, dont worry, after all, I cant go back on my words, can I?, Drake said while shrugging, it slightly irritated the young child who shook his head and replied, continuing what Drake said. Yes, after all, time is irreversible, you can not go back, you can not stop, you can only go forward, more and more. Even if people say you are going back on your steps, it is wrong, you are returning, because, between when you started, and when you came back, time passed, and people change, they change constantly, people can not stop changing, as at every minutes, at every seconds, at every instants, we change whether we like it or not. It can be the same for It seemed that sometimes Umbrum can go ramble what people would usually call useless nonsenses, who cares about time anyway? The meaning of it and so on, Drake simply listened and smacked him once he could not hear due to his voice becoming lower and lower as he was simply expressing his own thoughts, forgetting about the surroundings, closing himself in his own world, letting people observe him like how a warder would watch his prisoner throwing a fit while both of them being in different worlds. Ouch why..?, rubbing his forehead, he could not understand why he did this once again, did he do anything wrong on accident a second time? Doubtful, to be safe, he decided to apologize before getting cut off by this same person who smacked him. Umbrum you were thinking aloud, and your voice became so low that I could not hear you can you talk louder?, basically, it was as if he admitted overhearing what Umbrum was saying who made abstraction of the world around him. Ah no, I cant I mean thats only what I think and its quite lacking in terms of content and quality I cant do that I was just mindlessly thinking I have no proofs of what I said, awkwardly, he tried to shift the topic to something else before Drake commented on something else, trying to reassure him for what he will do in the future. Anyway, I wont say you were eloquent, but your manners were quite charming while you were thinking aloud, it made you feel humane which is basically something that most people think that mages do not possess, humanity, humility, modesty and so on. If they talk to someone who is like anyone, like them, that has flaws, wouldnt it seem more affordable for them? Wouldnt they be prone to join the Magic Association instead of discussing with an artificial and unreachable individual like me, who knows how speeches function and how to manipulate people. Arent you quite suitable in this case? Getting back so abruptly on the previous topic, Umbrum could not react properly but then his brain processed what he heard from Drake who still had this smile that could not be wiped off so easily. Since, he would need to contradict him, nevertheless, how? It was frustrating, silently, the Magic Associations chairman stared at him, waiting for him to reply. Minutes passed, and the young mages face became redder and redder as he did not find any way to refute him. I give up I am ignorant I cant deny you on a subject I dont know a thing about, deceiving people was far from something he could do. Just like a child, he was more or less naive and innocent. Obviously, he could do crimes, but according to his view, he would never ever mean anything bad. Haha, lets continue then, once we get down, I would have you talk to the peasants that were invited. They should be here in a few hours. And thus, Umbrum needed to get prepared as quickly as possible since he did not have much time because of Drakes carelessness. Chapter 10 - A Talk In Public Uhm well, welcome to the Magic Association, so how am I supposed to start that..?, Umbrum, being on the ground floor, was in front of two dozens of peasant that were incredulously watching him. They seemed not to believe that the person in front him was welcoming him, he was so awkward. Alright, so, first, I will introduce myself, I am Umbrum, part of the Magic Associations responsibles, under the supervision of our Chairman, Drake. I am a mage since my childhood, so first well, why are you here? To learn magic? To become stronger?, instead of a conference or an one-sided talk, the mage thought it would be better for it to be a discussion. ...are you really a mage? , that was the first question, he needed to prove his identity as a member of the Magic Association, he did not have the choice. Otherwise, Drake would be branded as a liar. First, he preferred to clear any doubts and misconceptions they may have. So first, I am an unusual mage, what I mean is that the spells I use are not common, so what you will see is something you will probably never see again if you become a mage as well, that is., afterwards, he decided to show his signature spell, the one he used the most during his whole life, one that simply devoured the existence of something. Edax Umbra, a spell that only him could use, that only him knew. This spell is only known and usable by me, if you do not understand, I will explain later on, for now, please, just watch., exhaling and inhaling deep breaths, the young man seemed to be quite stressed and then, after a few dozens of seconds, under the eyes and gazes of the peasants, both of his arms disappeared, as if they never existed. Seeing this, a few screams ensued before both of his arms come along with his voice explaining as quickly as possible. This is my spell, it erases the existence of things overall, or so we could say. But thats temporary, basically, it doesnt hurt anyone, I need to be in physical contact with the person for it to work, And well, I need to use my mana, how to say you see when you are keeping your breath underwater? At a moment, it will run out, and mana is similar I suppose?, as he was trying to explain, midway, he stopped. Why? Because, seeing their reactions, he thought they needed time to digest what they have seen, some seemed to be astonished, excited, terrified, anticipated, but none of them seemed to be doubtful anymore, they were believing in him. ...do we need time..? Perhaps you want to eat something, so as we are waiting, I can ask you a few questions and perhaps well, give first-hand advices for if you want to learn magic that is Trembling, Umbrum was slightly afraid, around a meal, the atmosphere would usually be more familiar, so, more embarrassing and awkward for him as they might begin to tease him about what he might do. However, despite everything, in spite of all the flaws he has shown, it seemed that he has done a good work considering the smiles he could see on their face, it was the best he could do, he could just bring those smiles. . The meal seemed to be creamy chicken with mushrooms, it was something Umbrum never ate, chicken he already did, although, what was this strange cream? And those slice vegetables, it seemed to be as thin as leaves. Using a fork, he pierced the chicken and cut it with a knife before eating this piece accompanied by cream and mushroom, slipping between his lips, he felt surprised by its substances, it seemed that it will melt into his mouth, it was just so Delicious!!,Umbrum almost screamed as he ate this. The people that were invited stared at him before laughing so loud that nothing else but laughter could be heard in the ground floor, the mage they just met was really just a normal kid, he just had magic in more but personality-wise, he was a child, he could even be their son or little brother according to them. After a little hour or two, they finished their lunch, happily and cheering for the young mage who was feeling more and more stressed as time continued to flow, to go forward like a river. He was back at his previous seat, standing straight and reluctant, he wished he could not feel stress. In front of them, he still needed to talk, however, he was not good at explaining, he just seemed to be someone that people liked to hang around with, afterwards, taking him as a mentor would not be appealing to anyone considering his personality. Anyway, now that you are convinced by magic, I have a question do any of you know how to read?, strangely, more than half of them knew how to read, Umbrum felt that it was strange, he thought that none of them would be able to read. It was rather a good news, a little smile crept on his face as his heart seemed to be more at ease. I will be honest, it will be really, really hard for you to learn magic without being able to read. As it requires a lot of studying, so, first, I will be honest, it might be a harsh requirement but you need to be able to read., some seemed to be perplexed as they felt quite odd, so, if they read they can use magic.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. After on top of the studying, there is the practice and the need to have a mentor to initiate your training unless you are really lucky. The studying will probably take at the very least before beginning to use magic one year? Then, to use practical magic that can be utilized commonly, that will not be useful, two years? I dont know, it is rather uncommon for people to have the same way of learning, same abilities and so on. Everyone is different after all. I cant give something precise or an average that will not help, you can consider this as a gamble, its risky, it might be not worth it as for me, I lost and won things, its not only benefits. Hearing this broke the legend of magic they had in their mind, they thought that immediately once they learn magic, their lives will become innumerably better, however, even if the person in front of them seemed pretty unreliable, he was still someone who knew how it works since he is a mage who probably struggled. So err my friend might scold me for saying this but those who are ready to sacrifice something in order to gain something should stay while the others well, you are not fit to be here? You should live like you always did and be happy, just remember the most important is to be happy., hearing those last words, they felt odd, He seemed to be wishing them luck in life, however, he was telling them to leave as well, was it not a paradox? Wouldnt you wish people to be happy and stay with them afterwards? Unless you are sick and going to die, but he was not, he was young. Nevertheless, his words seemed like he was disappearing. Afterwards, only a few people were left, only six stayed, among them, four knew how to read, it was rather unexpected in his opinion. It was still above his expectations, he thought that he deterred them enough to make all of them flee, although, some stayed. Four girls and two boys stayed, all of them were of different ages and social classes it seemed. He guessed he will have to ask the identity of each of them turn by turn once Drake comes back, first to establish if they really have the will to go forward on this way, or if they are just pretentious. Well, I will have to interview all of you one by one, turn by turn, in private and say report to Notitiam and Drake oh, and just in case if you dont know it, Drake is the chairman, he seems to be rather young despite what you might think since he is basically the founder of this association while Notitiam, you might or might not have heard of him, he is not a mage or anything, he is good at gathering informations I suppose?, he did not know how to describe them, at a moment, he desired to speak about how impulsive they were and how they were so easily influenced by their emotions, nevertheless, he quickly shut his mouth after rethinking it twice or thrice. It will ruin even further the image they had of the Magic Association. Descending, some footsteps could be heard, the stairs seemed to be grinding for some reasons, it was disturbing, on top of attracting attention, everyones eyes turned toward the people going down. When we talk about monsters, hearing this, they understood what he meant, they immediately discovered who they were. It was the chairman and the informant, it was quite quick, once he spoke about them, they descend the stairs, was it not suspicious? More than half of them were thinking this while two seemed to be fascinated by the two coming down, just like children, it was cute in its own manner. Greetings, my name is Drake, the current chairman of the Magic Association, or to be honest, this association has not been founded yet, it is a project for the greater good, for everyone to joins it under lighter requirements and more open-mindedness as we wish to differ from the Esoteric Syndicate. I will let Notitiam, a rather reliable person you can count on., people might not have noticed, but clearly it was a sarcastic comment on Notitiams inherent nature to take advantage of people and their naivety. As well as to manipulate them to get more informations, to get more power and so on, basically, he seemed like a gentle person who was the contrary of his looks. Drakecor V. Aesitla is his full name, however, he completely dislikes it. So if you call him like this, he will basically low-key ruin your lives and souls at the same time, your morals will be destroyed in little pieces, stomped and thrown in an incinerator, after, he would throw the ashes in the se-, before he could even finish his sentence, he felt a sudden pain, his stomach seemed to have gone deeper into his body, or to be blunt, Drake punched his belly with a wide smile that could be seen by everyone. Notitiam, next time you want to badmouth me, cant you just do it when I am not here, I dont mind, I just have troubles imagining your life worse than what it is currently so its fine., Drakes sarcastic tone lightened his words, as in they did not take it seriously, if they did, they would obviously escape from this building as quickly as possible. Obviously, Notitiams life could be worse, so they thought they were just fooling around. Anyway, lets get back to the point since you are six and we are three, each of us will take two people to interview, and each of us will go into different rooms, I will stay here as for me, Umbrum will go to his bedroom to interview you, while Notitiam well, lets just throw him outside. Just kidding, in my office., Notitiam shook his head and climbed the stairs, Umbrum hesitated and decided to follow him, he felt like something was wrong with what he said, making an interview within his bedroom? Why? Wouldnt it be a bit too awkward for both of them? Or was there something in his bedroom? Did they do something while he was on the ground floor? Aaaaaaah, a long sigh escaped his mouth as he felt hesitant whether to really do it or not, perhaps, while he chooses who goes to which room, he could clean a bit the place to make it look a bit more professional? At the very least, he could try, succeeding was another question. Chapter 11 - Reversing the Roles So, welcome to my place I suppose?, currently in his room, Umbrum was clearly embarrassed when he received the first one which was a young man with a dashing look, blond hair and blue-eyed, his outfit seemed to be filled with pockets, on the outside, on the inside he seemed to be quite polite and respectful as well. His ample clothes seemed to hide quite a lot of things, he initially thought. What is your name and profession? Or what you are supposed to be?, Umbrum immediately sat on his chair and tried to make himself comfortable, letting go of his body while crossing his arms, keeping a stern look, or so he tried as much as he could. My name is Mark, seventeen, Mark Erich, my father was a merchant, so, normally, I would doomed to become one as well, however, fortunately, my father is obsessed and fascinated by Magic. If I could get my own life and freedom with the Magic Association, I would be greatly pleased, everyone would be pleased. A young promising merchant, so that was what he is. His father is willing to give up his greatest fortune for magic then? Isnt that quite the young mage did not know how he felt about it, but definitively not good as far as he knew. Your motivation is basically because you wish to be free and have your own life? Mind explaining a bit about this and it will be great if you could give me your goal., he preferred to have many more details instead of only this, which first gave him a bad impression, at the very least, the person in front of him was honest. It was the only good point he found. Its either that or I sign a contract I do not wish to another solution will be running and living on my own, but all I learnt was how to trade, to play with the prices, and so on, how would I survive in those conditions? Then I suppose it is simply to break my ties with my father who simply treated as a way to continue his might. I have a talented son while you dont., as if I was simply an item. I want to get away from that., hearing that, Umbrum nodded and began to write something about this person, a resume of his previous replies as he is not sure if he says the truth or not. Trying to stay as stoic as possible and not to show any emotions, he then continued on an indifferent yet forced tone, his voice was a bit low. I see once you get magic, how would you feel? What would you like to do? How do you see your future? If you are not talented in magic, would you strive for it or give up? Then, if you are more talented than your peers, what would you feel about them?, in his opinion, it was rather important, what is important between them should be the relationships or they would end up like the Esoteric Syndicate who closed themself to the world around them, with as relationship only one thing, power. That is could you give me a few minutes to think about it?, Umbrum shook his head and said on a frank and blunt tone which contradicted with the image of himself he showed until now. Can you give me a moment to find an answer that could give me your favors? Of course not, you reply to me now, if not, in three seconds, he tried to remember how he was interviewed by Drake the first time, do not give any opportunity to the other to think properly about what he would say. I-I will feel stronger and would like to rise up my future is probably bleak I would strive until I can feel safe. Superiority, I would neither help or deter them however., it was not bad, but it was not that good either, at the very least, he still had some humility, he wrote down what he thought about. Okay. I think it should be enough. Just, dont ever try to deceive anyone here, you will basically be courting death. Because, if you lie, Drake can easily discover everything about you, all of your secrets, all of your tricks, and so on., giving this warming with a small smile, after a few minutes, Umbrum gave a sigh and almost fell off his chair, he stood up, took a deep breath and seemed to be wordless, what could he say? Since the very start, who was the most stressed among the two of them? I. am sorry for well I was a bit errr harsh?, spectating to such a difference between what happened before, during and after this questioning, Mark restrained himself from laughing. His face seemed to be so dumbstruck, while the previous minutes were horrible, the possibility of chuckling at such a foolish expression was worth the try, on top of that, did he lose anything? Not really, it was a gamble, he never expected to be easily taken by the mages. So when he noticed that they were prone to invite him, he was expectant, he would be disappointed if it didnt work out, although he would be proud of himself. Hahahaha! No need, no need! Honestly, that was quite shocking when I saw your attitude suddenly changing like that, I wondered if you were wearing a mask, but I guess, you just changed it because you needed to, for Drakecor Valon Aesitla, or just Drake as Notitiam, that damned information broker, I knew he must had some backing, but for them to be mages, it was really unexpected, I suppose he won the big prize!, if he knew, if he knew. While Mark seemed to be falling deeper and deeper into his fantasies, someone knocked at the door.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Open! The servant down there told me you were finished!, the first reaction of the young mage would be : What servant?, now that he thought about it, he knew more than Drake and him residing here, but who else than them particularly? He never saw them around, as if they were hidden somewhere. For sure, it was confirmed in his mind, these soldiers, away in both daylight and night, were present, wandering between the walls, above the ceiling, under the ground they must be somewhere. Alright, Mark, you can leave. It looks like she has a timely timing, as expected I suppose., the end of his sentence felt off, it gave an odd aftertaste, was there something strange to her timing? Was it what he meant? Of course, he meant nothing, he just shared his thoughts like he usually does, though, that was something Mark did not know. A few minutes later, Umbrum was in front of a girl, a peculiar one that is. She had purple hair and sharp eyes that seemed to scold everyone that was in front of these, constantly judging people he supposed? Oh, thats you, what is your name? Age? Job? Or what you were supposed to do?, even before she could take a seat or anything, questions were directly asked, before Mark could give advices or anything, questions already came over her, and it seemed that Umbrum did not have the time, his voice was prompt and unwavering, of course, it was temporary. Before Mark left, she heard the words he left. It will be fine, just relax., since he said and that they knew each other since a while, she immediately felt a bit better and concentrated on what will be going on. My name is Initia Attonia de Calor, nineteen years old, young noble girl that was supposed to be married, well, I was a housewife. I just accidentally smashed my partners genitals., what should he do in this situation? Umbrum was initially shocked and felt scared at this thought, while it may not be the most useful part of his body, it is still a sensitive one that transmits pains. Her voice, despite being quite mellifluous, seemed to be exuding disdain. How would Drake react? He took a second to calm himself and announce to her on a composed tone, or so it seemed. Another threat and you are out. Dont reply to my warning, else you are out as well., listening to his seemingly cold voice, she sighed, she thought that what he showed before was acting, in other words, he never was a foolish mage like common people. She felt a bit disappointed, during a fraction of a second, she wondered whether she should leave or not. I might as well give it a try., she thought as the disappointment was dismissed and sent into the depth of her mind, then the procedure continued as it should have been, through basic questions. What is your goal by joining the Magic Association? I am just curiou- I see, once you wield magic, how would you feel?, curiosity according to Umbrum was not a convenient goal, as he said, it requires a lot of sacrifices, and would she sacrifice something for curiosity? She would inevitably regret it. Ah, eh, nothing much?, that was better than superiority or so he thought as he kept on asking questions. Initially, he had a bad impression of her. If someone is less talented than you, how would you feel about them? Why should I car-, neither bad nor good, gradually, his opinion on her was neutralized. How would feel about them if you are more talented?, this time, it seemed that she will not reply to his question. Initia simply stared at him and clicked on her tongue as annoyance crept on her, being cut off so many times in a row felt irritating, wishing she could just take her sword and slash at him, she bit her lips and then sighed. I suppose we are finished, it is enough., after noting everything on a piece of paper, he sighed and rubbed his forehead, the act was dropped. The young women glared at him, fury could be easily seen on her face as it was completely red, as well that her fists were closed and kept on tightening as time continued to flow. So uhm, I suppose you can leave? And come later once Drake chose whether you stay or not according to our reports., his voice seemed to be softer, as if the ice melted and that he was liberated from a burden. Sincerely, Umbrum felt awful from cutting off each time her words, however, he simply took example on Drake, on how his interview went and decided to copy him. Unexpectedly, it was not really hard. Oh and I suppose you are lucky, since you are more likely to be accepted. I was interviewed by Drake, it did not go well for sure., if it was not bad mouthing, Attonia did not know what it was. Now that she thought about it, they are lucky, even if according to her, Umbrum was a faker, he was just an apprentice in the end, a rookie compared to the two others. Acknowledging this fact, she wondered a few seconds how could they end up with someone like this, wouldnt they have another comrade like a great mage? Something seemed off now that she thought about it. However, she knew now that she should not mess with people like these, when she thought about the spell this young mage showed on thee ground floor, her whole body trembled out of fear, what if it happened to her? And the two others were worse. Indeed., and then she left the room, lost in thoughts, when the door closed, Umbrum fall onto his bed and laid down as he felt the comfiness and warmth of it. A very long sigh escaped his mouth, it lasted a few seconds. He looked at the ceiling, stretched his arms and felt relaxed. Its finally finished it was so stressing!, for once, he rose his voice. Usually, only when his emotions piled up till the container doesnt have any space left, he will do something out of his character, but this time, he was just happy to have gotten rid of Initia and Mark, both of them stressed him, he needed to keep this straight face, he felt so repulsed, wearing this mask, acting like someone he was not, while it was effective, it was disgusting. At least, now, he does not need to do so, he can just rest. Ah, and then, after closing his eyes, no sounds could be heard, only a weak snore, hitting the walls, echoing and fading.