“Can I talk to you guys for a minute?”

Paegis went to see Mahon and Jorik at the end of their meal. They still had one hour to go before the beginning of the final, so they quickly agreed and followed Paegis up to an isolated room on the second floor of the arena.

“Allow me to be blunt.” The old master started once they were all seated comfortably. “Will you fight the final or forfeit?”

“Fight.” Mahon answered with a calm voice.

“Even knowing what their true power is?” Paegis asked, and his voice didn’t carry any hint of surprise.

“Yes.” Jorik answered this time.

“Actually, if Myrthil was still able to fight, we might have a harder decision, but if it’s only the two of us, then we have to give it a go.” Mahon completed.

“In dire need of a king’s favor?” The old master continued as if he was making the conversation, but there was an underlying tension in his tone that made Mahon and Jorik uncomfortable.

“You can put it that way.” Mahon answered hesitantly.

“And if that’s not too indiscrete, can I ask you what that favor is?” Paegis’ face didn’t show anything.

Mahon and Jorik exchanged a silent look at the question.

“Actually, let me ask this in a different way.” Paegis spoke again before they could answer. “The other finalists are Ill Immortals. We’re already aware of what they would ask the king, and we can’t agree to it. But as you’re aware, refusing would create an unprecedented event that will undermine our king’s public image right at the new dawn of a perilous area where our neighbors want to wage war against us.”

Paegis took a short break, letting the information sink into Mahon and Jorik’s minds.

“Because sorcerers have been hidden all this time, the public assumes this trio of Ill Immortals is just part of the Hawks and normal citizens of Finem. We can’t remove them from this tournament. For personal reasons, I can’t act against the Ill Immortals. I’ll have a word with the Hawks very soon, but in the meantime, our hands are bound. We fell into our own trap with this tournament.”

Paegis sighed slightly before shaking his head and resuming his speech.

“Anyway. What I did to Virrion earlier sapped his magic power. Right now, he’s trying to cleanse himself, but I still have some control over his magic. I can help you win this fight by limiting his power. No one will notice because the king gave both teams enough time to rest. Everyone will just assume you’re able to restrict his power further than you actually can. Don’t get me wrong, it’ll still be a very hard fight. But at least now you have a decent chance.”

Paegis took turns eyeing Mahon and Jorik, making sure they understood his message clearly. His face then showed a little frown, as if to warn them, before he continued.

“Now, you see where I sat. You two appear friendly, and from what I’ve gathered, you seem legit. But you’ve strange powers and appeared out of nowhere. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. I’m sure you’ve already heard that expression before. I know the Ill Immortals and what they’re capable of. But I don’t know you. And I refuse to avoid a danger just to jump right into a bigger one. So tell me. What favor do you so direly need to ask the king?”

“We just want to become Counts.” Jorik started to explain.

“Count? What for?” Paegis scrutinized both their faces with rapt attention.

“We need to access a book only available to Counts or higher.” The noble continued with a sweat.

Paegis sighed. “Look, do I need to squeeze every information out of you or can we directly move to the main point?”

A short silence followed, during which the heat in the room slowly started to rise. Mahon and Jorik exchanged another look.

“We want to meet an Immortal King.” Jorik finally blurted out.

“Oh.” Paegis seemed to be taken by surprise by the revelation.

“Thing is, we don’t even know if they still exist anymore.” Mahon added. “There is a book that we believe has the clues to find them. But we can’t access it unless we’re Counts.”

“Hmm….” Paegis didn’t say anything for some time before he asked. “Is it related to your strange powers?”

“Maybe.” Jorik shrugged.

“To be perfectly honest, we aren’t sure either.” Mahon completed after seeing Paegis’ unsatisfied expression.

“So, some kind of quest to find yourself?” The master of the Protectors Circle asked.

“Yeah. You could put it like that.”

Paegis became silent, musing about what he had learnt while Mahon and Jorik were eyeing him attentively. They stood absolutely no chance against the man, and even though they didn’t think he would attack them, they remained on the alert.

After a long minute, the temperature dropped back to a normal level, and Paegis sighed. “I don’t want to disappoint you, but if you’re looking for Immortal Kings, you might not find what you seek.”

“We believe we might find clues that some would have missed out.” Mahon retorted. “As long as we have access to this book, we might…”

“They exist.” Paegis interrupted him. “I know one of them.”

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“What?!”

“The man actually leading the Ill Immortals is an Immortal King. Well, I said leading, but I should actually say behind the Ill Immortals. He’s more at their mercy than the opposite.”

In front of Mahon and Jorik’s face, the old man couldn’t hold back a laugh.

“Ok, I’ve said too much not to say it all. Let me tell you a story few know. Legends about Immortal Kings and how they created the Ill Immortals are true. How Ill Immortals became corrupt is true as well. But not because of some dark parts deep inside the human’s heart making them diverge from honest paths. The reason is actually much simpler. The Immortal Kings are ill.”

Seeing Mahon and Jorik become confused, the old master clarified his words.

“It’s not a bad word play. They’re really ill. They live for thousands of years, yes, but it comes at a cost. They inevitably become crazy at some times. They suddenly lose their memory day after day for decades. Until, one day, for no reason, it stops. No one can explain it, but it’s how it is. Immortal Kings then have to start over their education as if they were children. They’re somehow able to remember things from before their memory loss, but the world changed too much for it to really matter. If decades are nothing for them, it’s almost a lifetime for us. Corruption spread further among the Ill Immortals every time the humans took its lead and Immortal Kings were in their crazy phases. Along the ages, the Ill Immortals drifted further and further away from their initial purposes. Immortal Kings became less and less competent and willing. They started dying. Today, only one of them is still alive.”

“How do you know all that?” Mahon asked after he had tried to make sense of everything that had been said and gave up.

He would have time for that later on, while now was the best time to ask a person who actually knew things.

“Do you think people as powerful as me just sprout out like that?” Paegis showed a sad smile. “I love Finem, but it’s still a backward country. In another life, I was the head of the Ill Immortals. I tried to make things change for the better. And I believed in their cause. Until the last Immortal King lost his memories and the cycle started over again. I tried for years to hold things on my own, but in the end, I could only give up. It was too late. I came here and tried to build something from scratch. And in some ways, I succeeded. I’m proud of what the Protectors Circle has become. But I’m no Immortal King. I’m old and tired. And I know very well what will happen once I die. Others have tried before me. The Protectors will slowly disappear or become corrupt. That’s inevitable. Be it humans or Immortal Kings, the only difference is the lifespan of the cycle, but as long as it exists, there is no stopping its ineluctable conclusion. Failure.”

The three men watched each other in silence as Mahon and Jorik didn’t really know what to say. The massive information dump was also a bit too much to digest instantly.

“I’m sorry.” Paegis broke the silence again. “I didn’t want to ruin your hopes if that was your only lead, but…”

“I don’t know what to say…” Jorik spoke first. “There is too much new information that is…” He threw a look at Mahon as he searched his words.

“When exactly did the last Immortal King start to lose his memory?” Mahon decided to clear some areas before trying his luck at what that meant for them.

“Hmm… Something like thirty-five years ago.”

Mahon nodded slowly, not wanting to make bold assumptions. Yet.

It was too much of a coincidence, though. Nightmare had started approximately thirty-five years ago, too. And it cleansed people’s memory.

But they had cleared the Amentiae almost a year and a half ago now, and they hadn’t seen anyone besides the two of them in Nightmare for months. It didn’t match.

“Do you know if he’s still losing his memories today?” Mahon asked.

“I haven’t spoken to him since then, but from our records, an episode usually lasts fifty or sixty years, so I believe he still hasn’t come back to his usual self.”

“Do you know what Immortal Kings really are?” Jorik went with his own questions after Mahon fell back into silence.

“No. I’ve my own theory, of course, like everyone else. They’re probably a remnant of Fada hybrids with humans, but I’ve never known for sure. I’ve asked many times, but he refused to answer. Your guess is as good as mine.” Paegis looked at them. “Is it really important to you?”

“No, I was just curious.” Jorik then continued with his next question as if it was nothing. “You said they have a way of remembering things from before?”

Paegis sighed. “I see where you’re coming at. Yes. They have one. They must have, otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to hold the Ill Immortals for millennia, and everything would have collapsed at the first memory loss. They are obviously able to pass some things from one cycle to the other, and their true nature and purpose are probably hidden there. Whatever it is, it’s probably a gold mine of information about our history. But I don’t know what it is. Or where it is. Trust me, I’ve searched for a long time. It must be something simple enough they can find it after decades of memory flushes. But I’ve turned over every stone of Gedrain, and I found nothing.”

“Gedrain?” Mahon repeated.

“Yes. That’s the name of the country of the Ill Immortals. Anyway,” Paegis turned back to Jorik, “I don’t want to crush your hopes again, but finding that information is relying as much on faith as hoping the Fada will come back today.”

“So, the only option is to wait twenty years for that Immortal King to recover and tell us himself?”

Paegis shook his head. “Even if you had a way for him to talk, and that’s already stretching it a bit far, I’m afraid you won’t even have the time. The Ill Immortals are crumbling from both the inside and outside. It’s probably their last cycle. A revolution is brewing in Gedrain. That kingdom will be gone in the next few years, and the last Immortal King with it.”

Mahon and Jorik’s faces weren't pleasant to see. Their hopes started to crumble. Paegis flashed a comforting smile.

“If you don’t have any other questions…” He started.

“Have you ever heard of Amentiae?” Mahon interrupted.

“No. What is it? Is it related to your weird control over fire?”

“Not really. I just wondered if you had heard that word, but it’s not really important…”

Paegis smiled at Mahon’s lie. “Right. Now, if there is nothing else, allow me to continue. I’ve already given you the favor you planned to ask the king, so what will you ask for now? I suggest some gold. A shiny sword would be good, too. If you get what I’m saying.”

“Wait. We still don’t know how to go to Gedrain.” Jorik intervened. “I’ve never even heard about that kingdom.”

Paegis waved his argument off like it was nothing. “You’ll be able to find that easily in the library. I believe geography is one of the freely available topics, even if you’re not a noble. But if you insist, you can ask for noblehood. But two new Counts would mess things up a bit too much. Just ask for a Lord title. That should be more than enough.”

“Do you trust us to win, then?” Mahon asked.

The old man was actually hard to read as he seemed capable of joking and reducing them to ashes in the next second.

“Let’s say you seem the least bad of the two options. And I like you more. But know that I’ll keep a close eye on you, though. Try something funny when you officially ask for the king’s favor, and you’ll have gained an enemy you’d rather not have.”

The sinister smile of Paegis caused the duo to shiver as they remembered the raw power the magician had demonstrated in the arena barely an hour ago.

“Ok. We have a deal.” Mahon extended his hand, and Paegis shook it firmly.

“We have a deal.” Paegis echoed while nodding.

“That leaves us with the easiest part, then.” Jorik joked. “Beat the Ill Immortals.”

“Oh, I forgot to say.” Paegis smiled gently at the two men. “Don’t just beat them. Kill them.”