Only one moon was visible in the sky, the others were hidden behind the cloudy sky that had followed them for the past week. No one was in the streets. The only sound carrying through the streets at that late hour was the one whispering over from their caravan.

Liam looked around the alley where he stood. It was deserted. So it was time.

With a single thought, Liam turned on his inner energy. It was like a flip was switched. The night was suddenly less cold around him, and the darkness less all-encompassing.

He used his [Gravity Jump] and propelled himself towards the roof of one of the nearby houses. It was an easy jump. Much easier than the ones he was used to making in Charville since the houses here were much smaller. What he had to focus on instead, was making no noise.

So he landed as silently as he could on the tips of his feet, crouching down slightly. He couldn’t risk alerting anybody of his presence, not with Bilby and his men being out for the mysterious cultivator as it was already.

He paused. There was no outcry, nor the sound of running footsteps. Even the house underneath him was quiet.

So Liam cracked his neck and began running towards the edge of the roof. At the last moment, he activated his skill and pushed off. He felt weightlessness overcome him. It was almost like the energy, which usually was holding him to the ground, had suddenly lost its interest in him. He felt light and free.

His jump propelled him forward with such force and momentum, that the street simply flew by beneath him. Almost a dozen meters were reduced to a single blur.

He canceled his skill mid-flight, a trick he had learned to not overshoot his jump, and landed easily on the balls of his feet. There was a brief wave of vertigo, but Liam pushed it down.

He was aware that what he was doing was a little risky. And he was aware that there were probably safer ways of practicing his abilities, but there was a certain rush to what he was doing. Besides, he was wearing a very flimsy mask, just a thin scarf he had cut a little, to hide his lower face. He hoped it would help.

Liam had tried leveling his [Gravity Jump] Skill in some of the forests when he first set out with the caravan, but it wasn’t crowned by much success. He wasn’t sure if it was simply that the challenge was bigger when jumping above the roofs, or if he did something wrong. But what he was sure about, was that this felt much better.

The feeling was like he was light and free and he could jump and run and that the night and the rooftops were his. He felt evasive and in control. Liam took another series of [Gravity Jumps] and soon found himself at the end of the village. There he turned back and began again. And again.

It didn’t take long for Liam to become fully exhausted. His mana was almost empty and his head was throbbing from the strain of keeping his skills running at the same time as he was trying to veil his mana.

He had been so enthralled in his practice, that he hadn’t even noticed how far the night had progressed. Most of the lights from the caravan wagons were dark now, and no sounds of laughter or conversation carried through the otherwise quiet village anymore.

They had parked their wagons directly in the middle of the town square. Because while Wedenhagen might not have a proper townhouse or an inn capable of accommodating them, they had a wide and barren space in the middle of their houses.

As Liam was resting against one of the nearby chimneys and had his gaze flowing through the twisted pathways their layout created, he suddenly noticed something. A dark shape stumbling through their wagons.

At first, he wanted to put it off as simply someone from the workers who had drunk too much and was now trying to find their way to relieve themselves. But there was something weird about their walking. Something strange that Liam couldn’t quite put his finger on. It was familiar though.

He started focusing on his mana, pushing it through his inner channels. While he cycled his focus increased and the night suddenly seemed less oppressive, less black around him.

All his sharpened perception revealed though, was the recognition that the person was a man, and wearing a scarf obstructing most of his face. He stumbled out of the circle of caravans and continued on his way along the market, vanishing between the houses.

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

What was one of them doing going into the city at this time of the night? Liam wondered.

Then he snorted as realization hit him. It wasn’t uncommon for some men in the caravan to chat up some of the town women whom they visited. It was common enough really, that Liam had even seen some of his wagon mates steal out into the night during their stay in some of the hamlets.

„Women like mysterious men,“ Barney had told him one evening over a round of cards. Only he, Barney, and Leopold had stayed at the wagon during the night, the other three of their wagon mates had all flown out. „And who is to fault them? If handsome, successful men like us come to visit their village, bringing all the riches with us that we do, how could a woman not entertain at least a few thoughts away from her husband?“

He had bellowed a deep laughter then. Leopold had just rolled his eyes.

„How come you’re not enjoying the finer things of the town today then?“ Liam had asked.

The man had flushed a little then. „I’m not feeling like it today…“

„Oh okay,“ Liam said.

„It’s true, not every night has to be about whoring through hamlets,“ Barney paused for a moment, then he added: „Besides, I have been here before. And let’s just say, I shouldn’t get entangled here again.“

Even Leopold had laughed then, and Liam had joined him. After a moment of hesitation, Barney joined him as well, although for different reasons.

Liam remembered that conversation with a wistful smile while he was soaring above the rooftops of Wedenhagen. After taking three longer breaks, and half a dozen small ones, his mana seemed to be regenerating somewhat slower.

Maybe it was time to call it quits for the day. The moon was already far into the night sky, and not a single light in the village or the caravan was still on. And, Liam had to realize proudly, that he had even exceeded his goals for today. He had managed to gain three whole levels in [Gravity Jump], putting it on the same level as Gravity Manipulation.

He stopped at the edge of one of the smaller houses, and gently lowered himself into the streets. He landed with a soft thud and strolled his way back towards the caravan. It was a good feeling to finally be leveling his skills again. He had missed the excitement of making progress, the rush of leveling, and the energetic tingle he got when he cycled mana.

He could have never imagined that cultivation would be that much fun.

A shrill laughter pierced the night. It was followed by a slightly deeper manic chuckle.

Liam froze midstep. Before he even consciously thought, his body was already moving in the direction of the sound.

He glided silently through the streets, while his heart was pounding in his chest. He noticed how tight he clenched his fist and forced himself to relax a little. It had been a long time since he had heard sounds like that. A very long time. But still, they brought forward all the same feelings.

Finally arrived at a small alley between two cobblestone houses. He peeked around the corner.

Two shapes were leaning against the house wall roughly in the middle of the alley. Liam couldn’t make out their faces, but one of the shapes was distinctly female with long hair.

It took Liam a moment to see the unmoving body at their feet. The two of them just sat next to it, chuckling manically. Liam’s pulse quickened.

Out of instinct he used [Gravity Jump] and pushed off. The two looked up in shock as Liam suddenly appeared in front of them. The woman tried to get up, but fell, whereas the man just continued to babble nonsense at Liam.

„What are you doing?“ He almost screamed and kneeled next to the man on the ground. He was scarily cold to the touch and there was foam collected at his mouth. His eyes were glassy and distant.

Liam almost wanted to scream and ask the other two what happened. But he didn’t even turn towards them. He knew that would amount to nothing. There was no point in talking to rubar smokers when they were like this.

„I thought I sensed a strange signature,“ a voice beamed toward him from the end of the alley.

Fear froze Liam’s heart as he recognized the voice as one of the caravan’s cultivators. He scanned the alley for possible exits. The man had blocked the road leading into it, but he should be able to jump over the walls to the side.

But would he be quick enough once he was on the rooftops? He could already see the ominous green energy gathering around the man’s hands. He wasn’t here for a mere talk.

If he wanted to escape, he needed to be quick. His mana was running low thanks to all the practicing. If he wanted to pull it off, he needed to regenerate some of it first.

„Trake.“ He pitched his voice in a way to make it less recognizable, deeper. Liam was grateful for the absence of lanterns in the alley, he hoped it would help obscure his face.

„Ohh you know my name, that’s a little unfair no? The least you could do is give me yours.“

„I’m afraid I can’t do that,” Liam said, grateful for his mask.

„You seemed to have misunderstood me,“ his teeth flashed in the moonlight. „I’m giving you a chance to give it to me nicely. If you don’t feel like that, there is always the harder way.“

„Is Bilby too proud to do his dirty work himself?“

„He has better things to do. Besides, I wanted to have a little fun with you as well. Not a little of what you stole belonged to me.“

„Well you can take it-“

A green sphere of energy crashed into the ground in front of Liam. Small bits of debris were thrown into the air together with a cloud of dust. The two rubar smokers cried out hysterically.

“Come on, mysterious cultivator. Make it fun!” Trake laughed.