Chapter Three - Premonitions

Hywel’s free time started once the lecture with Hildes was over, despite the fact that he was supposed to be asleep. As always, he prepared enough candles to last the whole night and sat on the desk. The scholar had gone through about other manifestations of Mana, namely familiars today. He was certain at that moment that it wasn’t a coincidence for the Lady to get him a detailed book about Sages, Shaman and Summoners, the three most common types of mages.

‘Asked the teacher probably,’ he thought as he flipped open the book to read.

‘In this age and time, which job will get you famous? Which job would pay you the best? Why, a monster-slaughtering job no doubt! Rescuing helpless maidens from the clutches of a foul beast, or saving a town from a herd of monster rats! In this edition, we will focus on the three of the most well-known and gold-gathering jobs of mages.’

Hywel flipped a few pages, skimming through the Sage and Shaman sections and taking notes of the words which were unfamiliar to him. Most of the things mentioned were covered by Hildes in the past, and so they served as a light revision of what he knew. There were some new information here and there, but the text was difficult for him to decipher and left it at that. Instead he wrote down a summary of Sages and Shamans.

In short, a Sage is expert at manipulating an 'element' of fire, water, wind or earth. To a certain extent they are capable of all four, but they usually stick to one and progress with that element. Over time those who pursued more than one element became known as Elementalists instead.

Shamans however are more attuned to nature. If Sages and Elementalist are manipulators of elements, Shamans will their surroundings to do their bidding. This can be making a nearby tree grow abnormally fast, or make the clouds gather quickly to make a certain place rain.

‘Summoners are more common than Sages or Shamans, however it is still a feat to become a well-known Summoner. As mentioned before, Becoming a Sage or a Shaman depends on the amount of study and effort one puts into their job. A Summoner’s strength however is decided from the moment they are born. There are countless variations of familiars in this world, and the familiars which a person can call is decided. This is referred to as a Summoner trait.’

“Summoner trait...” He mumbled the word in his mouth; he had learnt about the possible kind and personality of familiars, but didn't cover much about the requirements of becoming a Summoner with Hildes. It took them a fair bit of time going through the foreign vocabulary that he was bombarded when Hildes lost his composure to list a hundred different kinds of animals and monsters which could become a familiar. Recalling the lecture again, he scribbled down what he knew; a familiar generally holds the appearance of something from the nature, such as monsters or animals. These familiars are an irregular cluster of Mana willed by the Summoner, and so they are not as restricted in appearance. Basically, the familiars have a shape-shifting ability, though the extent of this ability depends on how strong it is. While this is the case, all familiars have a certain affinity to the four basic elements. No matter how great a power their shape-shifting ability is, their element will stay the same; for a familiar with a fire affinity for example, even if it can shapeshift into a fish it will not be able to last long under water.

‘Up to the time this book is written, the most powerful familiar was capable of shifting as an Orc. The Orc familiar which is the closest human-like shapeshift has shown to have immeasurable power, and so it is assumed a familiar which can shapeshift into a human would rival that of an entire kingdom's army, if not more.

A Summoner's fighting strength depends on the familiar, though only a tiny portion of the Summoners out there is gifted with a combat familiar. Instead, a Summoner excels in areas such as enhancing other fighters or laying traps with the aid of their familiar.’

After a few more pages of reading, he came across an interesting chapter, titled...

‘Contracting demons and angels.

There has been a number of records for those who successfully made contracts with demons. There are two ways to contract a demon. One is if your Summoner trait designates a demon, in which case just simply following the procedures to Summoners summoning familiars would suffice. The other is when one worships an evil god or goddess. With enough favours with them, they will provide with demons to contract.

Making a contract with a demon almost definitely involves sacrificing something dear to oneself. Most of the time this is their soul or their personality, and in exchange they are able to bind the demon to do their bidding until the contract is broken. It is said that all demons have a hideous appearance, however are able to create illusions to hide their true form.

It is yet unknown if it is possible to contract with an angel, however there has been rumours of an angel Summoner. It is assumed the procedures are the same as those with demon contracting.’

It took Hywel a few reads and re-reads to get the jist of what was said, but it was interesting to know that demons and angels existed; seeing as magic was present, it’s not an unbelievable story. Besides, there were the worshippers as well. Truth be told, Hywel had spent many days reading literature of such nature when he was still a student; his fascination of fantasy and mythology had took up his free time. Thinking back, Hywel realized that due to this reason he was always tired and falling asleep when he wasn't studying or reading even during his student times, much like when he was working as a doctor. The more he learnt about this world, the more he realized how different and fascinating it was.

Winter was over by the time Sir Hugh came back home, leading a long trail of horse carriages and soldiers, mostly on foot. Not a single member was marching properly, their armour beaten and full of dents, most if not all having bandages over one part or another of their body. Some were noticeably missing a limb or two. Even so, everyone was in a cheery mood of having made back from the battle safely, being able to meet their family again soon. Sir Hugh, who was clad in full body plate armour with a giant spear in hand, its length almost twice the length of the warhorse he was on, steadied his mount as they reached the Inmos Mansion entrance. Lady Inmos who was following behind also steadied her mount behind her husband. With a single effortless strike of the spear to the ground, the troops halted and fell silent.

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“We will stay here for the night and tomorrow continue our way back to the Glordia Palace where your families are waiting for your safe return. Have a well-earned rest and as usual will depart at the crack of dawn. Dismissed!” His strong voice was heard by everyone in the troop, and with his final command, the soldiers resumed their chatter as they casually walked into the mansion. The servants, who were already informed, had prepared the guest rooms and the medical facilities ready. The crowd filtered into the mansion, the masters of the mansion forgotten by all for the time being. The said masters, after checking that all carriages and horses were accounted for, made their way up the floors.

Unlike the time when Lady Inmos last visited, Sir Hugh did not knock or wait for the servants to open the door to his only son’s room; a single push and the door no longer stood in the man’s way. A cool breeze greeted the couple as the door opened, the lingering cold of Winter making its final waltz before the inevitable. Against the partially opened window sat a silver-green haired boy with one leg propped against the window, the other hanging down the windowsill. His eyes flickered opened to see who had barged in. Recognizing the tall, bearded figure, Hywel got up and bowed as formally as he could. The man did not move but just looked at him; last time they saw each other was when he had woken up from the illness, and showed that he did not remember anything. That shock was the main reason why he was away from the mansion far longer than ever before; almost a year. It was his wife, Ann, who had convinced him that he was now back to ‘normal’ for the most part, though none of his past memories had returned.

“That’s enough,” He called out with his commanding tone he use on his soldiers. There was a slight flinch from the boy at the amount of charisma and authority the man had, but he didn’t lose his composure as he looked up. Their eyes met, and unlike what first impression Hugh had of his son, he saw that his eyes were shining brightly; yes, he could see fear within those eyes, but also determination and potential.

“Ann,” he called back at his wife, coming to a conclusion. “Valce will be staying here for a little longer. Go pass on this message.” Lady Inmos made a questioning face, to which Sir Hugh answered in a small voice after a brief glancing at his son. The Lady smiled as she realized what her husband was hinting at, happily exiting the room to locate the head guard.

“Sit down,” Hugh spoke in a less commanding tone to Hywel when Ann went out of sight down the stairs, closing the door behind him and pulling the desk chair for himself. Hywel obliged, sitting back against the windowsill.

“There is an Inmos House tradition,” he started. “To hold a coming-of-age ceremony when the 'head of the house' candidate nears adulthood. It is to show to the members of the House that the candidate is worthy of becoming the next head. And if you fail, you are banished from our family.” He had spoken in monotone, but to Hywel’s ears the man’s voice took on an ominous tone.

“Your ceremony was planned to be held on the next full moon, a few days after the day of your fifteenth birth but due to your... state, we had decided to call a distant relative of a similar age to hold the ceremony instead. Whether by luck or ill fate you have recovered in time to have the choice of entering the ceremony as well. You will be risking your position in the ceremony; if you fail, you will never be allowed to set foot within the Inmos territories as a House member ever again. If you succeed, your relative will face that fate instead.” He paused, wondering if he should say the rest or not. He opened his mouth again after a time.

“If you back away, you are disgracing the family tradition. You will still be part of our family, but you will no longer be welcomed to stay within this mansion, or see my face ever again... so decide well.” With that he stood up, looming over his son. His hand went down on Hywel’s head with an unexpected amount of softness, and the next part was said in a much gentler voice.

“From tomorrow onwards you will be taught by Valce during the day and Hildes during the night. You will need to be familiar with both swordsmanship and the lore of the world regardless the path you choose, so learn well. You have up until the next full moon to prepare and decide on an answer. Remember this; the other candidate, while roughly the same age, has been training since they were born. They have more experience and memory than you. If you are going to fight, then use that amazing head of yours that Hildes never cease to praise about to the full extent.”

He stepped out of the room without hesitation after that, muttering under his breath. Unbeknownst to all but Lady Inmos, his treatment towards Hywel was his way of dealing with the sadness of his prideful son having to suffer such fate.

‘...Good luck son; you’ll need it if you’re going to compete.’

For the first time since Hywel woke up as a boy into this strange new world, he realized first-hand that even in this luxurious world, there were problems and ordeals to face. It wasn't something he did not foresee, but there was a massive difference between just knowing and actually experiencing it. And for a moment he dearly wished he was back where he was from with all his heart.