The air was tense in the Inquisitor’s office while Maya explained their reason for coming. The Professor was sitting on a chair by the Inquisitor’s desk, and Inquisitor Victor was seated behind his desk. Behind the Inquisitor’s seat was a large, wide window. Almost the entirety of the southern side of Bhaile-Morn was visible from it. The views stretched on beyond the wall of the capital – the Southern side of the Empire was laid bare before their eyes.
Ash pried his eyes off of that view and glanced around the office. Oaken bookshelves lined the walls, filled with old tomes, rolled up parchments and stacks upon stacks of papers. A set of couches and a low table were the only other furniture in the room except for the Inquisitor’s desk and the seats placed around it.
“I see,” Inquisitor Victor spoke up eventually, once Maya was done explaining everything. “Well done Ash.” A faint smile touched upon his lips before he turned his gaze to the Professor. “Since you’re here, Professor Maple, what do you think his best course of action would be?”
Maya pressed her lips together as her fiery gaze focused on the Professor. She seemed excited, almost impatient.
“Hmmm…” The Professor ran his fingers along his chin, then smoothed his robes as he pondered. A few moments later, he let out a sigh. “Grey mana is quite the problem…” He concluded. “What’s the situation of your funds, Ash?”
His heart sank. He looked away, clenching his fists around the cloth of his cloak. “I’m afraid I don’t have any funds, professor.” He could feel the judgemental gazes of everyone in the room. It was embarrassing, shameful. Everyone was able to buy a mana heart, everyone had the funds, everyone but him.
“Dad.” Maya’s sharp voice startled him. “Can’t we-“
“No.” The Inquisitor’s voice was sharp like a blade, it cut off Maya’s words, startling her into silence. Her eyes widened as blood rushed to her face. “Why not?!” She asked, a fire lit in her eyes. She clenched her fists and walked up to her father’s desk. “You don’t have a good reason, do you? Or you would have explained it. So why not?” She was almost shouting, her voice filled with a mix of anger and confusion.
“It is forbidden by the Emperor’s decree, may he be blessed.” The Inquisitor’s cold eyes turned to Ash. “I wish I could help you.” There was no emotion in his voice, no compassion, no regret, nothing. He had decided, possibly a while ago, and now he simply delivered the cold, cruel facts.
“Why?!” Maya shouted in frustration. “I need him to be strong, because he’s supposed to act as my eyes until I can start seeing mana!” She turned to the professor, pointing at him. “You said so! It was your idea! How is he supposed to do that if we can’t get him a good mana heart?”
“Maya-“ He tried to speak up. He didn’t want her to be angry on his behalf. He wasn’t entitled to any help from the Inquisitor after all, nor did he want to become a charity case.
“That’s enough.” The Inquisitor’s voice was calm, but his words cut through the noise like a blade through butter. “All there is to be said about this has been said. Now,” He turned to the professor. “Professor Maple, thoughts?”
Maya bit her lips but didn’t speak up. She walked away from her father’s desk, and sat down on the couch, pouting.
“The Military Academy’s hunt is beginning in a few days, right?” Professor Maple asked. “Since the Auction is out of the question, and you’ll be away for the foreseeable future, his best option is to join the hunt. If he’s lucky, he’ll even get an arcane heart.”
Damien clicked his tongue. “Unlikely.” He folded his arms. “Would the High Tower not be able to organise a hunt of our own?”
Professor Maple shook his head. “No, we’ve stopped doing that a couple of decades ago. Too much hassle, and too few participants.” He looked at the Inquisitor. “Unless you take him to hunt for a heart…”
Inquisitor Victor leaned back. “Don’t jest.” His gaze lingered on his desk. There was a closed envelope, sealed with wax. There was a sigil on the wax, but Ash was too far away to see it properly. “I have received my orders, and waiting for however many weeks for my return would only set him back further.”
“Right.” Professor Maple shrugged. “The Military Academy it is, then. Do you have some paper?” he asked. The Inquisitor nodded and handed him a piece of paper, and some ink. Professor Maple quickly wrote down a letter, then sealed it in an envelope before giving it to Ash. “You’ll go there tomorrow and give this to the guards at the entrance.”
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The Military Academy was located by the northern gate of Bhaile-Morn. It had it’s own inner wall, complete with a gatehouse guarded by an excessive number of guards, and several watchtowers that were probably more for decoration, since there was no reason to watch the city itself – the city guard existed for that reason, after all.
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Ash was only allowed through the gates after he handed over the envelope, and waited nearly an hour for it to reach the right people’s hands. Afterwards, a guard accompanied him inside. While they didn’t enter the Military Academy itself, Ash did get the chance to steal a few glances through open doors.
The Military Academy was the exact opposite of the High Tower in terms of looks. The building was made from smaller marble blocks, but it was crude and simple. There were no statues commemorating famous mages, nor were there any decorative fetishes on pillars or around the windows.
The soldier led him across the courtyard, to a small group of people gathered under the shadow of the outer city wall. There was a larger group of soldiers gathered off to the side, and two mages wearing a set of grey uniforms and carrying staves.
“Wait here,” The guard told him, pointing at the smaller crowd of younger men and women. “Do whatever the soldiers and guards say, and the hunt will be safe as a walk out in the city.” She left after that, prompting Ash to approach the small crowd.
There were perhaps a dozen people, all wearing the Military Academy’s uniform – a set of robes coloured pale red and grey, and a long, dark red cloak.
“Oh, well look at that.” A voice said as soon as Ash approached the group. “We have a guest, everyone!” It was a young man, perhaps a year older than Ash. He had a smirk on his lips as he raised his voice. “It’s someone from the High Tower!”
His chest tightened as Ash glanced around. He could feel the awkwardness in the air. The gazes focused on him, like they were weighing him, deciding on his strength, on his value, on his worth. He forced a weak smile. “Right, thanks for having me.” It took effort to keep his voice steady. Wishing they would all return to whatever they were doing, he walked past the group and leaned against the wall, keeping his eyes on the ground. Look away, he begged inwardly, just ignore me!
“Any time, mate!” The same person laughed out loud. he came close with a rather proud stride. “So, what brings a someone like you to our humble academy?” He brushed his messy, platinum hair back with his fingers as his smirk widened.
Slightly annoyed by the other man’s loud voice, Ash made a vague gesture indicating the people gathered around. “Aren’t we all here to get our mana hearts?” He asked with an innocent smile.
Before the conversation could continue, the soldiers who had gathered off to the side made way to the two mages. The mages approached the group – a middle aged man and a younger woman. The man’s uniform was decorated with gold embroidery, while the woman’s lacked these decorations.
“First of all, congratulations to all of you for being ready to receive your first mana hearts.” The man’s voice echoed in the courtyard, empowered by a simple spell he cast. A simple pattern weaved of thin strands of dark red mana floated near his mouth. “I will explain the rules of this hunt before we set off. If any of you decide that you can’t follow these rules for any reason whatsoever, I welcome you to drop out of the hunt and find another way to acquire a mana heart.”
He took a deep breath before continuing. “Firstly, you will do whatever me, her, or the division soldiers say.” He pointed at himself, the woman, and the soldiers gathered behind him. “Secondly, do not wander off by yourselves. Thirdly, no fighting amongst yourselves – we’re on a hunt for mana hearts, not on a competition…” He continued listing the rules one by one. Even the soldiers behind him seemed relieved when he finally finished.
“Am I clear?” he asked, looking at each and every one of them. A few seconds passed in awkward silence, then the man nodded with approval. “Very well. In that case, let us set off. We must reach the mountains by nightfall.”
The road leading north from Bhaile-Morn was well-maintained, and often used. While the road itself was made of wide stone tiles, there were numerous smaller roads and pathways branching off of it. Some led to farmhouses and fields, while others snaked through the trees, disappearing deep in the forest.
There were not many hills around. In fact, when Ash looked ahead, he could see all the way to the distant mountains unobstructed. The road went straight, without any turns and bends, so what would have usually been several days' worth of travel instead became a long day’s journey.
They stopped soon after noon, when the Spire of Kindling was shining the brightest, and had a simple, yet fulfilling lunch before setting off again. “Are you tired already?” A mocking voice reached Ash’s ears soon after they set off again.
Confused, and unsure if it was told to him, he glanced over his shoulder. The young man with the messy platinum hair was walking a few steps behind him, with a smirk on his lips. Ash raised his eyebrows. “Hardly.” He replied, then hastened his steps to catch up with the group of three young women ahead of him.
“You’re studying at the High Tower, aren’t you?” One of the girls asked as soon as he was in hearing distance. “Are you a noble? Why did you join our hunt instead of just buying your mana heart at the auction house?” She continued without even pausing to breathe.
“Calm down, Theresa.” One of the other girls piped up with a chuckle, then looked at Ash, clearly waiting for him to answer.
Theresa reminded him of Fionna a little bit. “Yes, but I’m not a noble. The hunt is the only way for me to get a mana heart.” Seeing their eyes widen, he smiled.
“How did you get accepted then?!” Theresa asked. “All of us tried, but they said we weren’t skilled enough!” The disappointment in her voice was palpable.
“I suppose I was lucky?” Ash suggested, unsure of how to answer that.
“You probably have shown some potential – either good mana sight, a mana pool that’s not completely empty, or golden mana.” The voice startled Ash, he hadn’t even noticed the middle aged man slowing his steps enough that he was walking next to the girls. “What colour is your mana?”
Ash grimaced. “Grey. I was told it’s not very useful.”
The mage visibly flinched. “Oof.” He awkwardly smiled. “Not very useful is one way to put it, yeah.” He let out a sigh, then looked at the girls. “What was his name again?” he asked quietly. Had there been no breeze to carry his voice to Ash, he wouldn’t have heard him.
Their conversation quickly turned to how the girls lacked proper manners once it turned out they hadn’t even asked his name. With that amusing conversation to listen to, time seemingly flowed, and they soon reached the foot of the mountain range cutting through the empire.
They set up camp for the night as the last lights of the Spire of Kindling vanished. “Tomorrow, we will pass through the Howling Valley, so make sure you are well rested. We will leave at first light, and hopefully emerge on the other side before nightfall.”