He took the plain envelope carefully, staring at it with scrutinizing eyes. It seemed entirely ordinary. A smooth but easily crinkled paper, sealed simply by tucking the end into the envelope itself. Liam hobbled over to the nearby wall where his duffel bag contained his clothes. Rin approached as well to collect her own clothes.
Eventually, after almost a minute of overcoming his fear that festered for two months, he opened up the envelope. Inside was an almost destroyed letter. The paper was crinkled beyond comprehension, which smudged the ink the words were written in. He had to bring the letter almost all the way up to his eyes just to read it.
"No shit." Liam scoffed, more taken aback than anything. Rin looked over with a raised eyebrow, assessing the boy who stood leaning against the wall with a letter. He looked up at her, feeling her gaze, as well as catching it in his peripheral, and sighed.
"Just my friend. He's gone down to the Spiritual Tomb of Albion."
"Jeez." Rin replied with a sour look on her face. The fact that she had such feelings about the Tomb didn't inspire much confidence in Liam.
Ben had, apparently, signed up for expeditions into the Spiritual Tomb of Albion. It was essentially an uber-deep cavern created by an old dragon primarily underneath the school. The Clock Tower utilized it for it's many magical materials and artifacts, as well as the different creatures that inhabited it.
It was also popular for magi from young families to spend countless years there.
Liam gave another sigh, this time more somber than the previous. Ben hadn't talked much about his families condition-but the fact that he decided to go down into the Tomb suggested it might've been rougher than he thought.
While he was glad to finally get some sort of response from Ben, a different section of his heart couldn't help but feel utterly disappointed. He had expected that the letter was from his mother's family.
'It's been two months. Why hasn't anyone reached out to me?' Liam shoved the papers into his bag, a frown now permanently printed onto his face.
"If it's any consolation," Rin spoke from beside him, picking up her clothes. "If he's half as strong as you are, he'll survive."
He smiled at the attempt at relieving him of worry, but Liam knew she left out a key point. Most people who enter rarely come out-except after years of working off their contract.
"Thank you for the sparring session today. I'm glad to know someone can knock me to the ground."
He slung his bag over his shoulder as he stood up. Rin grinned and nodded, placing her hand on her hip.
"Who knows? Maybe in another year or two you could become my assistant."
"Assistant? Aren't you just a student?"
The girl snorted as she made her way to the buildings' exit. "Correct. A third year student."
Liam widened his eyes in surprise. He hadn't really interacted with any senior students. He barely interact with any students to begin with, aside from Ben, Flat, and Gray. He made an 'oh' shape with his mouth as he approached the doorway.
"If I do, will you teach me that fighting style?"
"Maybe. If you're strong enough."
Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.
"Big expectations." Liam chuckled as they exchanged goodbyes. He left the training hall and almost sprinted to the shower, eager to finally get clean.
- -
"I thought we were gonna go look at some smartphones!" Flat whined as they entered the El-Melloi storage-house. He walked with his hands behind his head, practically dragging himself through the building. Liam rolled his eyes at the boys comment.
"I quite literally specified after we get the djinn."
"I didn't know I was coming along for that!" The boy protested further, his sky blue eyes wide with emotion.
The "warehouse" was by far the nicest looking building Liam could have imagine having the label of warehouse. The inside was ornate, with light wood floorings and smooth, dark red walls. The lamp which hung from said walls had intricate metal designs along the glass, which emanated a deep orange light. The many assets and trinkets the El-Melloi family gathered over their entire of existence shown on display like artifacts from a museum. To be fair, most of them probably costed more than any museum exhibit.
They reached the back of the room, where the quality of artifacts dropped steeply. Simple materials and common, yet useful, Mystic Codes lay on several podiums half a foot of the ground. Eventually they came across a large metal vessel, made of a distinct yellow brass. A six pointed star was painted in black ink on the cover, which Liam now realized was the Seal of Solomon.
Liam adjusted himself accordingly, making sure his shadow was cast over the brass vessel before beginning his working.
"Collect (Bind), establish the ring, deepen the surface."
Mana flowed into the boys circuits, transforming into Magical Energy in mere moments. The words activated the energy, molded it, establishing the bounded field around the vessel in accordance with his foundation. His shadowed widened to fill the two meter wide circle of energy which surrounded him and the djinn.
During the previous two months, Liam had to strategize his efforts and research. While not necessarily ideal for a mage with low talent and no magic crest, he stumbled across a relatively unexplored Thaumaturgical Foundation.
Abyss Magecraft.
The Mystery of the ocean and it's true depths. The monstrous creatures that may lurk beneath, malformed through unknown means. The darkness that penetrates the unexplored caves deep in the Earth.
It synergized well with his Water affinity, as well as Britain's very land, being an island nation with close ties to the ocean.
The Bounded Field he just established meant to separate interaction between the inside and outside. No exit nor entry would be allowed while it was up. Flat stood outside it with crossed arms, examining the different artifacts they previously passed.
Liam placed his right hand on the brass vessel and closed his eyes. He stretched his mind and senses to it, hoping the entity inside had enough intelligence to comprehend his words.
"I wish to establish a contract." He spoke aloud as well as through his mind. "I offer you freedom in exchange for your assistance, when called upon. The freedom's only limit is to bring no harm to me or those I specify."
Silence. He heard nothing from the vessel, nor felt any response. Liam sighed but continued, even going so far as to stretch magical energy through the container, although this was easier said than done. The Seal resisted his attempts, but he could feel specks piercing through, like particles through a sift.
"Do you accept?"
The vessel shook once.
With a grin, Liam tore off the lid, which bore the same six pointed star as its front. The spirit soared out from the brass container. It collided immediately with the bounded field, it's gaseous body smushing against the imaginary wall like a slapstick cartoon. It slowly floated back down and hovered in front of Liam.
While his earlier words and energy had already formed the base for the actual Contract, he was surprised it didn't attempt to attack him once it was free.
"Collect (Bind), congeal the darkness and return to the all. Join and conjoin, merge and be one." Liam spoke the incantation, pulling from his Od to connect with the djinn. It accepted, taking the magical energy inside it's blue form.
"The Contract is final." He said. The words stiffened the energy, cementing the new connecting between the two. It integrated seamlessly with the djinn, which Liam could now hear begging to be let free. He obliged as he tore down the boundary, allowing the formless spirit to dissipate as it charged out of the boundary.
"Took you long enough." Flat said with a grin, obviously not bothered. Liam returned the grin as he replaced the lid on the container before making for the exit.
"Sorry I'm a second-rate magus." He replied jokingly. They exited the warehouse, now heading outside of the college town and for London itself. On the way, Flat perked up, as if he had just remembered something.
"Right! I almost forgot! Sir wanted me to tell you that a message came for you from China."
Liam stopped dead in his tracks and faced Flat.
"What?"