I crept back to society a few minutes after Darko’s group. No form of exhaustion could rival the mental burden known as meeting new people. I hadn’t embarrassed myself as much as I had expected, but I’d received enough warnings to spark anyone’s anxiety. My life as a mage was about to become a living nightmare.

Huss waited for me at the top of the stairs. He leaned against the wall, looking annoyed. “You ruined it, huh?”

Screw you too, I thought. One hell of a guide you are.

“It was too good to be true, then,” Huss said. “I guess I should have known. Darko’s group is on a different level. To think they’d decline one of the most talented mages awakened in years…”

“Where are the toilets?” I asked.

Huss grumbled under his breath before pointing at a door in the lounge. “The garderobe is being cleaned right now. Make sure you don’t shit on the cleaners.”

I didn’t get the joke but gave Huss an awkward smile. I made my way to the door through the lounge. Conversations quieted again, but this time I was too annoyed to get embarrassed. I kept my eyes on my feet, pretending as if nothing bad was going on. I needed a break from all this fantasy nonsense.

There were no male or female signs, only a single heavy door. An awful smell of waste slapped me the moment I entered. The dark restroom had no modern motion detection lights, not even a kerosene lamp to let me know where to piss. It took my eyes a second to adjust.

Jesus Christ, I thought when I identified the source of the smell. I was faced with a wooden pallet acting as a toilet. A round hole was carved into the planks—a seat that would likely leave splinters on anyone brave enough to sit on their bare ass. There were no flush buttons, no hand washers, not even a roll of toilet paper in sight.

Sounds came from inside the hole. I wrinkled my nose and peeked down.

“Emergency?” a voice from below called.

That was when I realized that the “cleaners” weren’t cleaning the toilet bowls and floors. Someone was inside the toilet, cleaning waste.

I suppressed a scream and rushed out, forcing my way through the heavy door. My face must have been pale. A man nearly spilled his beer as I rushed past. I headed straight to Huss behind the counter.

“That was quick,” Huss said.

“What the hell is that?” I asked. The horrid smell was still stuck in my nose.

“I told you the garderobe is being cleaned,” Huss said.

“Is this country aware of the invention called ‘sewage system?’” I asked.

“Sewers?” Huss gave me a look. “We are in Volés, not inside the walls of Arkber. Our sewers work manually.”

“Showers, then?” I asked. “Toothbrushes? Washing machines? How do you guys clean yourselves!”

Huss sighed. “You didn’t tell me you were a noble, Your Royal Highness.”

My words caught in my mouth.

“The bathhouse is behind the Count’s mansion,” Huss said. “It’ll cost to enter, though.”

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

“What about food?” I asked. “A place to sleep?”

“Good luck,” Huss said. He poured a mug of ale for a waiting customer. The man paid in bronze-colored coins, in a currency I had never seen before.

I felt like fainting there and then. Call me entitled or whatever, but this was too much. How the hell could I pee while a guy watched from below?

Huss finished serving the customer, then turned back to me. “I’ve given you all I could. The best help you’ll get from me is nothing at all. Guild masters are obligated to send lost awakeners straight to the nobles, unfortunate as it is. From now on, we don’t know each other. Lie low and don’t come back before you can prove your magic won’t make you insane. Darko introduced you to a teacher, did he not?”

“What did they mean by ‘going insane’” I asked. “They mentioned the ‘corruption of mages.’ Does it relate to me?”

Huss’s sideways glance only got worse with each question. “Of course it relates to you. The Corruption eats at anyone unfortunate enough to grow mana chords. The bigger the chords, the more you risk. I would rush to the teacher if I were you. Better to enslave yourself than to fall insane.”

My head wished to ignore what I just heard. “You can’t be serious.”

“Magic is either a curse or an opportunity,” Huss said. “Awakeners have two paths: enslavement, or power. Assuming they don’t go rogue and get themselves hunted by the Mages’ Association. Whichever path you end up on depends on luck and determination. Weakness is not a trait mages can allow to show.”

I stared at him. Any more insane warnings, and I might have collapsed right there and then.

“Learned mages are often the most powerful beings in the world,” Huss said. “Remy and Shena are no exception. The Corruption attempted to ruin them, too.”

“I’m not going insane right now, am I?” I asked. My throat felt heavy.

“From my perspective,” Huss said, “you’ve been insane from the moment you woke up. You’ve got a week before totally losing your mind, I’d say.”

I stood there like an idiot with my mouth halfway open.

“Oh, right.” Huss’s head perked up. “I almost forgot. Before you go, my messenger had one more message left for you. She said it was important.”

“Yes?” I said.

Huss looked around, making sure no one was near. Then, he stepped closer and spoke softly. “I have no idea what any of this means, but Shiela said you would know. ‘The system opens if you say ‘status’ with intent. The system is still under development, but I have confirmed it as operational.’”

We stared at each other. “Any insights?” Huss asked. “What does Shiela mean?”

Shiela deserves a punch in the face, that’s what it means, I thought. “I don’t know,” I said.

Huss sighed. “Good luck figuring it out. Now, get out. I’m serious. The Guild isn’t a place for you. I’m risking my place and authority by letting an awakener in the wild. You are not associated with me, and I don’t want to see you again. Promise me, you won’t go insane.”

A lump had formed in my throat. It was hard to speak without letting emotions out. Any more insane warnings, and I would have cried.

Make fun of me all you want. Call me a wimp, or anything of the sort. But man, maybe my soul should have been eradicated. I clearly wasn’t built for this world.

“Go!” Huss said. “Get out of my bar, before I throw you out.”

The command registered. I fled for the door, walking past the lounge with my eyes on the floor. Everyone stared. I pushed the door open with the weight of my body and stumbled out.

A gust of evening air welcomed me to the bizarre sight of two large moons orbiting the night sky.

[Cillian Bermeyer]

[Level one]

[Recent awakener]

[Abilities: Fireball, Carillia’s assistance]

Fireball - The bread and butter of every mage’s arsenal. The fireball is inter-dimensionally the most popular choice of all offensive spells. Its effectiveness and power are hard to beat for a spell so simple to cast. I thought it was only natural for the fireball to be your starting spell.

* Goddess Shiela’s description of the spell “Fireball”