Chapter 13 - Ahead Of Schedule

Two weeks had passed since Zoris returned to the academy and nothing much had changed for Aien since then. Spending his time conversing with the regular folks, he learned more about the state of affairs and the conflict with the 4th magus that tried to rise to power.

At present, the world of humans continued to be in a stalemate. The three empires couldn't come to an agreement while the magus had become surprisingly low-profile, leaving only meaningless rumors and wild speculations. From his sudden death through assassination to an all-out war that brewed on the horizon, everything was there.

A slight problem for Aien, since that turned out to be the only thing people talked about nowadays. The circulating rumors didn't help with their anxiety, and no matter how Aien tried to steer away from the topic, the thoughts of the public were all focused on their uncertain future.

Aien could only imagine how flustered the people in the other cities must have been, considering how these people acted in the most fortified city of Ethena.

During his breaks, Aien spent his time strolling through the city and studying everything within his sights. If something intrigued him, he would play around with it at random or perform some miscellaneous tests. He'd once tried to grab one of the flying envelopes, only to realize that there was an invisible barrier surrounding them. That was after all the effort he went through chasing them for hours.

On a day like any other, he'd decided to do something he'd wanted to do for quite some time. After some walking around, he arrived in front of a building that weirdly stood out from the rest of the city. Instead of trying to reach into the sky, it was built into the ground more horizontally. The roof was shaped into a triangle with sharp edges, while the entrance pierced through the low ceiling. It was apparent that the building was not usually designed with an entrance of that height, yet it only barely allowed humans to pass through after lowering their heads. On the roof, the letters 'Spacial Storage' were carved into the stone, indicating the building that housed the only other race found in this city.

Two dwarves stood in front of the entrance, clothed in heavy plate armor. Not a trace of their skin could be seen, and their race could only be differentiated by their small but vast stature. To the human eye, it looked almost comical how bulky the dwarves were despite their lack of height.

After entering the building and descending a stairway, Aien found himself in a wide hall that was made of blinding-white marble. The insides weren't decorated with any furniture or the likes, but numerous carvings could be seen within the walls. Especially eye-catching was the family crest on the ceiling. Dwarven crests most commonly depicted something resembling a  shovel that was decorated with various different embroideries, depending on the family it represented. This particular crest was a shovel that stood upright on its head with a handle that was twisted into a circle and intertwined with itself.

After Aien lost interest in studying the various other carvings that depicted some sort of dwarven story or myth, he proceeded to the counter. Separated by a wall of stone, there was no way to see the appearance of the dwarves on the other side and only a few small slits in the wall allowed for their voices to pass through.

“How can I help you?” An incredibly deep voice that couldn't possibly have been made by a human came out from behind the wall.

“I want to register for a Spacial Pouch,” Aien stated his inquiry. He'd found out that it recently became prevalent to carry around a pouch that was invented by the dwarves. Despite its tiny size, it could house objects that were exponentially bigger than itself. A convenient item that was beloved by magi and the public alike. The only method to acquire one was to register at one of the dwarven banks that could be found throughout the entire empire and beyond. Overnight the invention had taken the world by storm and the first signs of their impact could be seen. Their relatively low price allowed almost anyone to purchase one. That's how within the last year alone during which the first Spatial Pouches were distributed, the banks of dwarves sprouted out across the empire like weeds.

“Please press your hand against the light.” The voice answered emotionlessly. In response, a place in the wall lit up in the form of a handprint. To prevent theft, the Spacial Pouches were bound to each owner and to accomplish this, humans and dwarves had to work together to combine their Magecraft with the inventions of the dwarves.

However, when Aien pressed his hands against the light for several minutes, there were still no signs of the process having finished.

“I'm sorry, but we can't create an imprint for you.” The voice eventually said. Despite its lack of emotion, a trace of confusion could be found within as it pondered over the matter.

“...Does that mean I can't get a Spatial Pouch?” Aien asked, slightly annoyed. Not at the dwarf but at himself, since he could guess what the problem involved.

“We can still make you a pouch. But we can't restrict its access only to you.”

“That's fine then,” Aien said with some relief. The pouch was too useful to find another solution. As long as it was only the imprint that didn't work, it would be fine for him. Because of the well-known existence of the imprint, most people didn't try to steal them anyway. The process didn't take long, and soon a small pouch appeared in a shute below. Without further words, Aien took the pouch and left. The dwarves weren't particularly fond of conversation, so after he left a few gold coins, the transaction was over.

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On his way back, Aien fiddled with the pouch and marveled at the mysterious invention. He'd already held one before from one of his customers and wondered how something like this was even possible. While the amount fit into one pouch wasn't infinite, it was practically speaking close to it. Even a merchant would never have to carry around an entire carriage of goods anymore.

Almost anything could be placed within, and most importantly, the weight didn't increase. Aien was sure that over the next year as the use of the pouches spread, the world would change tremendously. It left many others wondering as well how all of this worked. Naturally, the dwarves wouldn't expose their secrets that drastically improved the worth and standing of their entire race. While the method of spacial housing was quite convenient´and profitable, it couldn't compare to this. Since they had an agreement with the humans, no other race would force them to reveal said secrets either. At least for the time being.

Aien arrived back at the tavern and proceeded to store his few belongings in the pouch when suddenly excited shouts from Zoris could be heard from the outside. Aien wondered why he'd come this soon again, but from the looks of it, he brought good news.

“What are you doing here so early? Need someplace to hide again?” Aien greeted him with a casual smile of his.

“Haha! My friend, this time I'm here to take you away!” Zoris said, excited. It had taken him two weeks of talking to various authorities but he'd eventually gotten the permission.

“Don't tell me... you succeeded?”

“Yes! I did it! An acquaintance of mine told me there is a perfect opening for you. You still have to agree to her conditions, but I'm sure it isn't anything terrible.”

As if struck by lightning, Aien didn't react to the news at first. But soon tears leaked out from his eyes, and with trembling excitement, he flung himself into Zoris arms to embrace him in a big bear hug.

“Thank you, Zoris! Thank you so much!” Aien said, his voice struggling to form the right words. Embarrassed Zoris released himself from Aien's sudden explosion of emotions and coughed slightly.

“Don't be so emotional, Aien.” He didn't know that it meant that much for Aien to enter the academy. A slight feeling of happiness welled up within him as he thought about the good deed he had done.

“Pack your things. We'll get going right away.”

Aien nodded and went to see the tavern owner. He had already gathered all of his necessary belongings and the only thing left to do was quit his job. The owner was somewhat reluctant to let this diligent worker, who was very popular among his customers, go. But when he'd heard that Aien was about to join the academy, his attitude did a complete change. He'd wished him well and even gave him an entire salary worth twice the work Aien had done. After some back and forth, Aien reluctantly accepted the kind gesture and left with Zoris towards the Inner District.

“Take this and hang onto it. Without it, you won't be able to enter or leave the Magus District.” Zoris handed over a small medallion that depicted the symbol of Ryeka. It was made of some sort of metal that resembled bronze. Whatever it was, Aien barely felt any weight from it when he held it in his hands.

It didn't take them long to reach the boundary that divided the districts. You could always see some people pressing their hands against the air as they stared at the white-robed men and women on the other side. At first glance, Aien couldn't see much difference behind the line that separated two different worlds. The buildings were slightly taller, and all of the people wore the same uniform. Except for the occasional fumes that came out of the various buildings, it seemed the same as the Outer District.

Aien had once probed this boundary before, on one of his strolls. Back then it'd seemed like an invisible brick wall that no amount of strength could ever move. But with the possession of the medallion, there was nothing. All resistance disappeared, and consequently, he didn't feel anything different when he passed through the barrier. The only noticeable change was the gazes of admirers who stared with curiosity and envy at the man who could enter their land of dreams.

Zoris realized that Aien seemed quite excited nonetheless and chuckled at his behavior in amusement. The man seemed almost too calm and perfect most of the time. Thus, his earlier reaction, and his reaction now, that resembled a curious child, was a nice change of pace. Usually, Aien seemed always so serious and down to earth that it was almost scary. Always knowing the right way to behave or what to say. Sometimes he wondered how a young man at the age of twenty-three could have such a steadfast nature. As if he was trying to become a perfect human without defects. His current reaction, which was more similar to a commoner, finally made him seem more humane.

“These medals are usually reserved for the few non-magus nobles. There aren't many of them, but for rare political reasons, we sometimes have to welcome them to the academy.”

Zoris and Aien made some idle talk as they closed in on the academy. Now that Aien was actually inside the Magus District, he realized that it was far bigger than he'd assumed. With the distance they'd already traveled, they should have already arrived outside the city bounds.

“Why is this place restricted anyways?”

“It's mostly for the safety of the public,” Zoris explained. “Magecraft is the accumulation of experience. In other words, a lot of experiments. Each construct created by the magus is unique to himself, after all. There is no proper, one way or method that you follow to become a magus. Which spells a lot of trouble... You'll soon find out for yourself. There isn't a single boring day here, where experiments of all kinds go haywire. We have tons of defense mechanisms, but in the worst-case scenarios, most Magi could defend themselves as well. After all, a big part of our training is to prepare us for war. That's why you should remember not to stroll around by yourself.”

Fitting to the end of Zoris' explanation, a tremor ran through the ground accompanied by a distant sound of an explosion. That's when Aien realized that the barrier really was separating two different worlds. There never were any signs of disturbances to be found within the Outer District.

“Oh, that reminds me. If you ever hear a siren, follow the sentries to the closest shelter.”

“Why? What does that mean?”

“A sirene means that a construct at the Fith Step or above is out of control. It rarely happens, since there aren't many Magi of that caliber here, but when it happens, hope that you are at a nearby shelter. I have told you before the path of a magus is dangerous. I know that won't change your mind but beware that now that you have chosen to associate yourself with Magecraft, its dangers will follow.”

Aien nodded in understanding. He obviously knew there was no safe path for him to get what he wanted. Sometimes you needed to take risks. The only thing you could try and do was to reduce them, but it was impossible to completely avoid any kind of risk. 

“We are here,” Zoris said. They had walked up a long set of stairs for several minutes until they arrived at the academy, where they stood in front of its gates that reached into the skies and out of their sights. Behind, they revealed the third world hidden within the city, and the place Aien had longed for.