Chapter 12 – Unpleasant Meeting

After Aien had arrived in Levestein, he proceeded to commence his plan and gather more information about the academy. As it turned out, the best place was a tavern, where all sorts of rumors circulated. Therefore, he'd taken a job as a temporary worker. It didn't take him long to convince the tavern owner of his skills, and soon he was even allowed to sell his own brew after it had gone through several taste tests. Naturally, Aien didn't dare mix in anything funny this time. It would only be a matter of time until he'd be busted within this city filled with magi of all caliber. His only goal had been to gain more information and earn some money for living expenses.

It was just another day within the tavern and he held a conversation with a man as usual. That's when two men entered and attracted the attention of the entire crowd. The new arrivals had only been in here once before, but the regulars of this place would never forget the Magi, who had blessed this shabby tavern on the outskirts of town with their presence.

The seats directly in front of Aien's bar were quickly vacated, except for the person who was still talking with Aien. Serak and Yasim didn't bother with any form of courtesy and unceremoniously sunk down onto the chairs with a foul mood.

“Woah! What happened Serak?” The man who hadn't left asked. Serak's and Yasim's appearance was a stark contrast to the usual dignified appearance of a magus. Their faces were filled with scratch marks and even their fortified uniforms had some spots of torn fabric.

“This guy,” Serak grunted, a little surprised, wondering what Zoris was doing here. He wasn't even wearing his standard magus robe; instead, he dressed himself in casual attire. A pair of brown trousers with a few loose ends and a jacket that most commoners could afford in these parts.

Zoris took a closer look at the unconscious cat in Serak's hand, before looking back at Zoris and Yasim. Shortly after, he burst out in laughter, very much enjoying the distraught appearance of his two friends.

Both Yasim and Serak mumbled something inaudible before ordering some alcohol to relieve themselves of the stress. Aien's plan had worked out well, but... They should have put some more thought into it. If they hadn't been so exhausted, they might have noticed the glaring problem. At first, they'd blamed Aien for it, but after calming down, this was obviously their own fault for being thoughtless. They couldn't blame the man who, at the end of it, had helped them out tremendously.

“Two aspiring magi getting their asses handed to them by a cat. How funny is that?” Zoris continued teasing them, still not get bored of making fun of them.

“Must have been one hell of a mutant cat.”

“Yes... a cat.” Yasim sighed before he proceeded to empty his entire mug in a single sitting.

“Did you know that there are over two thousand cats in this damned city?”

Zoris' amusement only increased as he listened to the explanation of his two friends. After following Aien's plan, they waited at the spot with some of the catnip still in their possession. That's when a literal wave of cats stormed at them out of every corner in the streets, causing an enormous commotion. The biggest problem was that they weren't allowed to use any sort of Magecraft outside the Magus District. Thus, they had to endure the onslaught of cat scratches until the sentries notified the unusual incident to the closest city guards, who were still dealing with this mess. They had hastily made up some bad excuses before grabbing the right cat and left the guards to deal with this matter. Their status as students from the academy clearly helped them in avoiding serious investigations, but the whole incident was an utter chaos. Undoubtedly, rumors would soon spread across the entire city.

“Times like these make me wonder whether I should have chosen to study the Inner Focus...” Serak sighed in exasperation. The scratches still hurt and with their unsightly appearance they'd surely become a laughing stock once they returned the academy.

“Oh? Is there a particular reason you didn't do so?” Aien had decided to join in on the conversation. Not like there was anyone else to whom he could talk to as everyone had cleared some distance to give the esteemed magi their space.

Sarek raised an eyebrow at the man, who had come up with that brilliant idea. But he knew he couldn't be mad at him. Although he did wonder, whether Aien had known of this possible outcome.

“It just isn't worth it when you can become an Outer Focus Magi.” Zoris was the one who responded.

“Really? To me, it sounds like one would prefer to study the Inner Focus than the Outer Focus. I'd rather want to strengthen my personal body, for safety reasons alone than depend on outside sources.”

Zoris knew that Aien had some more advanced knowledge about Magecraft. However, the other two didn't and they looked at the man in a new light. It wasn't the kind of knowledge that was restricted, but unless an actual magus was willing to indulge in talking or teaching you, you would hardly come across this kind of knowledge. Then again, here they were, three magi indulging in talking to a regular, slightly young barkeeper.

“While that's true, their statuses are simply too different. An Outer Focus Magus will always be regarded much more highly than an Inner Focus one. Most of us at the academy strive to join a noble house or the military. It's as simple as that. Society values one more, thus its worth goes up.”

“Speaking of Magi.” Serak chimed in, changing the topic and looking at Zoris. “How come, you of all people is sitting around here, having a casual conversation with a barkeeper in the middle of the day? Shouldn't you be at the academy, tutoring first years?”

When Zoris chose to ignore the question and refused to give an answer after several more inquiries, his friend knew what was going on.

“... Are you serious, Zoris? Ms. Elritch will kill you when you return.”

“That's why I'm not returning,” Zoris answered, obliviously ignoring the fact of how irrational that sounded.

“Looks like someone's getting more than a little slap on the wrist,” Yasim said enthusiastically while gloating at Zoris' misfortune as much as he had done earlier.

“Shut up! You go and try to teach those imbeciles they let inside the academy, without going crazy!” Zoris erupted in a fit, throwing his hands onto the counter and causing his half-empty mug to fall over.

“Day after day, week after week, I have to explain the same stuff! Over and over again! For an entire year, until the next batch of idiots arrive, who are just as clueless!”

“It's a fair exchange to avoid the mandatory military service.” Serak sighed, slightly bummed out when he thought about his own situation. In the past, it had seemed so distant, but the time was eventually coming closer.

Zoris quietly cursed to himself some more but didn't argue about this matter any further. Times like these really made him appreciate and hate the background he had. But he had to admit, it was better than the mandatory military service. For a magus, this was probably the most dangerous time of their lifetime. The three made some more small talk with Aien before two of them headed out to report their mission's success. Zoris still refused to return to the academy and hung around Aien's bar who didn't mind keeping him company.

“So... I don't know how to say this... I'll just put it bluntly. Is there any chance for me to join the academy without becoming a magus?” Aien asked as he was wiping over the tables and cleaning up the tavern. It was now past closing time, but Zoris still didn't seem to leave any time soon.

“Difficult...” Zoris said with a frown. The two of them had met some time ago. At first, just like his friends, he was similarly intrigued by the display of Aien's 'Magic tricks' as well as his own search for refuge. After some drinking, the two grew to know each other better and Zoris had ranted about his problems to Aien. The latter eventually offered him to help him hide for as long as he wanted and their relationship only grew closer ever since that day. Zoris knew about Aien's passion for Magecraft as well as his utter lack of talent. He couldn't believe that Aien didn't possess any talent, but even he, a certified First Step Magus, couldn't find anything when investigating him personally.

“I can help you somewhat, but it would definitely help more if you could prove your worth somehow. You said you were proficient in medicine? Is there something else?”

“Only Medicine and Botanics.”

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“...Ahh!” Zoris moaned with annoyance, trying to think about how to find a solution. He really wanted to help Aien out after all he had done for him. A few words from him would be enough to get most accepted as a student, but this wasn't possible in Aien's case. Instead, he had to find a spot that Aien could fill and bring merit to the academy. However, most of the mundane tasks that didn't concern Magecraft were handled by automated constructs that barely needed any maintenance nowadays.

“If you only had bad talent, this wouldn't be as much of a problem... Why do you want to learn Magecraft anyways? It's not like you can do anything with it, even if you get the knowledge.”

“I'm just mesmerized by it,” Aien answered in a longing tone as his eyes sparkled with unending curiosity. “Sentient winds that keep cities clean and envelopes that fly to their receiver on their own? What's there not to like? Even if I can't use it personally, I would be satisfied with knowing how it all works.”

Zoris nodded, understanding where Aien was coming from. For many commoners, even the most casual artifacts and constructs could captivate them, and cases like Aien's interest were actually quite common.

“I'll see what I can do,” Zoris said, trying to sound reassuring. These words alone were enough to lit up the hope within Aien's eyes.

“Thanks, Zoris! I can't repay you enough! If you ever need somewhere to hide again, you can count on me!”

“Haha! It's fine. It's not like it takes up much of my time. Heck, when I can think of a useful position for you, I might even get excused from Ms. Elritch's wrath... Wait, that's it! I'll need to figure this out one way or another!" Zoris said much more fired up now that he found a hint to solve his own predicament as well.

“Alright, I'll sneak back into the academy while it's still night out. Next month, the academy holds another recruitment event. I'll meet you there. Until then, you might wanna check out the church. No matter how you look at it, your lack of Aer is really bizarre. I don't wanna scare you, but maybe you are cursed? Or something like that... Anyways letting a priest check you out, shouldn't hurt. See you!”

After bidding his goodbye, Zoris disappeared within the night. Aien noticed that there was not a single trace of sound when the man moved with incredible speed, something he attributed to his Magecraft.

He thought over Zoris' last words and considered whether he should heed his advice. He felt some apprehension about visiting a church but coming to the conclusion that it wasn't that bad of an idea for his problem, Aien decided to bite the bullet.

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There were a total of four churches in the city and Aien had chosen to visit the southern one.

During his walk there, Aien thought about how everything had worked out so far. As he had planned, he was able to make some connections. If his 'parlor tricks,' wild statements and boasting hadn't worked out, he would have thought about other methods to reel in some bored magi into his tavern. There were enough of them in the city anyways.

After that, it wasn't too difficult for him to strengthen these connections, but he was surprised about how lucky he'd been with his first few catches. His observation skills told him that Zoris seemed quite promising. You couldn't hide the years of education invested into a noble child. No matter how much Zoris tried to play peasant or dress up like one, it would always seep through. The youth clearly had some sort of background, and with some more luck, Aien would be able to join the academy sooner than he'd thought.

He put these matters aside for the moment as he arrived in front of the church. From the outside, it looked similar to the one he had grown up in. Far too similar. The only difference being that it was not as run-down. A wide-open front gate that welcomed any visitors and spires that rose into the sky. The whole point of the architecture in this city seemed to mimic Ryeka's follower's desire to get closer to the heavens. As far as Aien knew, they believed in providing fairer judgment from a place that could watch over the world.

When Aien stood in front of its steps, he stopped his movements. He felt unusually uptight and memories about the past also filled his mind. There was something about the church that filled him with unrest as a familiar face of an old woman appeared in his mind.

Suddenly a hand grasped him on the shoulder, making him return to reality and realize how much he'd spaced out. So much so that he didn't even notice the stranger behind him. Displeased at his own defenselessness and the man's sudden appearance he turned around. He hid these unpleasant feelings as usual, and with a kind smile, he confronted the man...

“May I help you?” The gentle voice of a girl traveled out from behind the veil that was hiding her face. Her hand contained a strength he wouldn't have attributed to a woman, so he'd initially judged wrong. Furthermore, her timid appearance was another stark contrast to the strength hidden in her arm. Even worse than that, she wore the uniform of a nun similar to Mother Catherine's, which seemed to worsen the unwell feeling in his chest. Silence fell between the two of them while Aien tried to recover and put his thoughts in order. There was a reason he hadn't visited the church earlier and it turned out he was right not to do so.

Meanwhile, the veiled woman took his silence as the indication for trouble and her gaze fell onto his neck. She could see traces of a chain made of gold protruding out from behind the shirt he was wearing. She reached out her hand to reach the chain, but that's when Aien recovered from his stupor and prevented her from doing so. He grasped her arm that tried to touch his necklace, but when he had reached it, he felt an unexplainable sensation of pain. A burning unlike any other he'd felt before, one that could not be compared to the heat of a fire.

“I'm sorry!” The young woman quickly loosened her arm from his grip with surprising ease and hurriedly bowed her head in meekly fashion because of what she had just done.

“I didn't want to offend you. I apologize if I have done so in any way.” The girl continued, her voice filled with much regret. She appeared to be sincerely worried that she had wronged him as she waited for his reaction.

“No, of course not. I have to excuse my own behavior. I was a little startled by your sudden appearance.”

An awkward silence fell between them once more. It was rare for Aien not to know what to say, but the girl resumed the conversation on her own after she had taken a few calming breaths.

“I'm sorry to tell you this, but this necklace is a fake.”

“Excuse me?” Aien asked startled. His necklace?

“I wasn't sure earlier, but I'm almost certain now.” The woman resumed and Aien could almost feel her penetrating gaze from behind the veil. Despite the veil blocking the view, he felt more uncomfortable the longer she looked at him. As if she could look into the depths of his soul and reveal secrets, he wasn't even aware of himself. It made him remember a story he had once heard from Mother Catherine. That those that carried Ryeka's will were bestowed upon with eyes that could see through any facade and thus pass a fair judgment.

“You carry a supposed ward against evil in the form of Ryeka's Divine Symbol. Unfortunately, it's not made of actual gold and it hasn't received a blessing either. Or maybe its effects have dwindled over time.”

Her gentle voice was devoid of any malice. The very presence of her voice brought with it the feeling that she was someone who could never hold any harmful intentions. Untainted by the world and filled with innocence, she must have been someone who believed in the goodness of all men. At least that was the impression Aien got from her.

“If you want to, I can ask the High Priest to perform a blessing on my behalf.”

“It's not necessary. It's just a... memento. And I guess it'd usually be quite expensive, no?” Aien dispersed the surfacing thoughts about Mother Catherine. The young woman had nothing in common with her despite her clothing, but her sincere worries for a stranger made him reminisce.

“Of someone dear?” She asked, her head slightly tilted and ignoring the matter of money he had pointed out.

“I guess you could say so... This 'ward against evil,' what do you mean by that?” Aien hoped to change her attention to something else.

“A ward against evil, depicting the God of Judgement's symbol, would bring its bearer fairness. Some devils hide, scheme and manipulate within the boundary, away from all sight. But those who bear Ryeka's symbol will be able to discern them, bringing fairness to the contract made between the participants.”

The woman answered dutifully. It wasn't an answer she had thought of her own, that much Aien could tell. Instead, it was merely reciting what she must have been taught countless times over the years of her life. On a side note, Aien remembered that he shouldn't judge people's age by their appearance alone. While it was a complicated process to reverse age, from what he'd heard, it was popular among women for obvious reasons. But upholding a youthful outward appearance certainly wasn't the only use of this magic...

“Fairness of the contract? Don't tell me Ryeka's church approves of devils?” Aien focused on the topic at hand. Hearing that Ryeka's church wasn't outright out to hunt devils as their sworn enemies left him a little surprised.

“We carry Ryeka's will to bring fairness to the world. How humans proceed to act upon the fairness is for each individual to decide. We will judge the devil's actions. Nothing more and nothing less. We are not those who enforce Retribution. While we will relay acts of evil that threaten the fairness of the world, we won't act on our own.”

Once more, another passage she cited from out of her mind. A mind that was filled with quotes, ready to be used for any necessity. This was enough for Aien. While this was some interesting information, he didn't care much about the rambling from churches at the moment. He turned around to leave, but the young woman spoke up again.

“Didn't you come here because you were troubled?”

“Not really. I have been in the city for quite some time and just remembered I haven't visited the church yet.” Aien planned to postpone his actual reason for coming, still unnerved by the existence of the veiled nun. Then, he thought about how foolish this was and stopped in his tracks. Since he was already here, he should get it over with and ask her. She appeared to be quite knowledgeable after all.

“But that reminds me. I do have a question if you don't mind.”

“Of course. I'd be happy to help.

“Do curses exist?”

“If by curses, you mean the malicious use of magic, then yes, they do exist.”

“Then,” He rephrased his question, “does a magic exist that could rid a human of all of their Aer?”

He wasn't quite sure why he thought this random nun would be able to provide him with an answer. But there was more than one reason for the lousy vibe he got from her. His gut feeling told him that she wasn't just an ordinary nun. There was also the earlier sensation of touching her as well as the veil that hid her face.

The girl fell silent. There was no indication that she felt suspicious or anything so Aien guessed that she was seriously pondering the matter.

“None that I know of...” She eventually provided him with an answer that didn't get him any further.

“But that doesn't mean one doesn't exist. Considering the 'ordinary' magic of the higher races which seem like miracles to us humans, I'd expect for anything in this world to be possible.”

Much to Aien's relief, the woman didn't press the matter further or questioned why he had asked something like that. He didn't want to continue talking to her anymore and ended their conversation.

“I see... Thank you anyways, you saved me some trouble.”

“I'm glad I could help. May Ryeka's judgment be righteous with you.”

And with that, the two parted ways.