The elder opened the doors to an opulent area of the magical vessel. The atmosphere was serene, like an idyllic oasis amidst the hustle and bustle of the rest of the ship. Tiny sand zen gardens stood in desks next to carefully pruned bonsai trees offering a sense of tranquility to anyone who looked at them. The elder led them to a desk that had a beautiful teapot and several cups, each one crafted with intricate designs that hinted at the importance and wealth of guests who could frequent this section of the ship.

There were plush beds and sofas with warm blankets strewn across them, inviting visitors to take a rest and large windows that offered a stunning and unobstructed view of the sea and the distant horizon. A warm, cozy fire crackled nearby providing a sense of comfort and security.

As they entered, Zosimos' shoulders relaxed, and he let out a deep breath.

The elder turned noticing Zosimos' reaction and patted him on the shoulder. "I didn't know you were so eager to cross the church... again," he said teasingly.

Zosimos winced and bowed slightly, raising and joining his hands above his head respectfully. "My Apologies for bringing trouble to you again, Grandmaster."

The elder chuckled. "Oh, come now, Zosimos. You know I'm just teasing you." He turned to Nyk and Syn. "Would you care to introduce me to your young companions?"

Nyk and Syn hurried to bow, greeting the elder politely. "These are Nyk and Syn, Grandmaster Taizhen."

"It's an honor to meet you, Grandmaster Taizhen," said Nyk.

The elder smiled kindly at them. "I hear you've been causing some trouble around here."

Nyk's eyes widened. "What? No, sir..."

"We didn't mean to cause any trouble, sir" Syn replied.

"Trouble is not necessarily bad," the elder chuckled, "It's a good way of keeping things interesting."

Nyk laughed nervously, glancing over at Zosimos.

"I noticed your surprise at Bhaltazer's sudden presence. You'll need more than just your eyes to follow a Cardbinder's movement, nice try though." Taizhen said, touching the corner of his eye and winking at Nyk.

Nyk's face tinted red. "Thank you, Master Taizhen. I'll have to work on my skills."

Zosimos spoke up, "I still don't know what would've happened to us had you not been there Grandmaster. You have my eternal thanks," he said, deeply bowing.

"No need to thank me, old friend," Taizhen replied. "If you really want to thank me though, you can always come to my house and bring with you a bottle of that fantastic beverage of yours. We'll reminisce about old times. Are you still in the business of beverages?"

Zosimos smiled awkwardly, "I am in the business of alchemy. I prepare potions for the village."

The elder raised an eyebrow. "I see. Well, if you ever feel like you need materials, please stop by my house, I'll only require a few hours of your intellect in payment, and we'll play a few games at Kaschi to see if I can finally beat you."

Zosimos humbly thanked the elder. "You honor me, Grandmaster Taizhen."

"Oh Zosimos, you can drop the formalities already. Look at you. I assume these are your kids?" he asked grinning and gesturing toward Nyk and Syn.

A sudden coughing fit hit Zosimos as Taizhen teased him with the question. "No, they're not," he said, vehemently shaking his head. "These are the kids of a few good friends of mine."

Taizhen chuckled. "Ah, I see. Well, it's nice to meet you both. You can call me Uncle Taizhen" he said warmly, patting Nyk on the back.

"Grandm... Taizhen, if I may ask, what brings you out to this remote village, so far from the Cube?" said Zosimos as Taizhen poured everyone a cup of tea.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Well that's an easy question my old friend," said Taizhen. He took a sip of his tea before answering. "I retired from the Cube recently and have been helping out in different ways around the island. This trip is actually their request to oversee Bhaltazer's ascension to the rank of high inquisitor," he explained.

"Is that what you do nowadays?" said Zosimos surprised. "That's quite a change from being a magical researcher."

"Not at all. This is just a special request to make ensure we don't have anymore... problems with the church, like the ones in the past," he said nodding and smiling mysteriously at Zosimos. "Nowadays I spend most of my time recruiting for the Academies"

Nyk and Syn jerked at the mention of the Academies in unison, exchanging a look and gazing at him with wide eyes and renewed admiration.

Taizhen and Zosimos laughed at their reaction and resumed the conversation. "Recruiting for the Academies, yes, I can see you doing that"

"Indeed, I could see myself as well when they made the offer, and I daresay I'm quite good at it. Easy to prove as well, in this last trip for example, thanks to my instincts," he paused and winked at Syn, "and the gods' will, I managed to find an Orange one. Bhaltazer has agreed to take a detour to bring them along with his son to the closest academy for assessment."

Zosimos nearly choked on his own tea. "An Orange one!?" he exclaimed.

Taizhen grinned and nodded.

"That's outstanding," Zosimos said, his eyes widening in amazement.

"And yet... I wonder if I am destined to bring a few more to the Academy" he said, looking at Nyk and Syn.

Zosimos held his breath, worried. "I don't think..."

The elder's gaze briefly rested on Nyk and Syn, with a distant look as if he was seeing through them. He gazed at Nyk and barely stopped, then intensely looked at Syn for a few moments before resuming his casual attitude. "Or maybe not, hahaha," he said laughing.

Zosimos let out a sigh of relief.

Nyk and Syn looked at each other, confused by Zosimos and Taizhen's exchange, but dismissed their weird behavior, letting the group fall into a comfortable chatter, enjoying their tea and each other's company.

Although every now and then, Syn couldn't help but notice Taizhen glancing at her.

Suddenly, a few blasts from the ship signaled their arrival at the city of Azuria.

"Well, I believe we have arrived at our destination. Did you happen to leave any of your belongings in the storage room?" asked Taizhen cheerfully.

Nyk and Syn nodded while Zosimos patted his bag. "Not this time, my old friend."

"Let this old fool join you then. I just need a moment to gather my things," he said standing up and heading to the next room.

The group stood, ready to set off toward the storage room, but as soon as Taizhen left Syn approached Zosimos. "Is everything okay, Zosimos?" Syn asked.

Zosimos shook his head quickly. "Yes, yes, everything's fine," he said, avoiding her gaze and quickly joining Taizhen upon his return.

Nyk and Syn frowned, wondering why Zosimos was acting so strange.

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They navigated through the ship's corridors, pulsating signals on the floor serving as a guide. Upon reaching the ship's entry area, Syn headed to a bustling room. Inside, Nyk's gaze was instantly drawn to a massive, semi-translucent screen that dominated an entire wall. The screen was several meters long and teemed with activity as people from all over the ship gathered around it, eagerly waiting for their turn.

A mustached, fat man appeared to be in charge, directing a long line of workers who labored tirelessly to unload boxes. One after another, transparent boxes containing magical artifacts, shimmering crystals, ancient scrolls, and mysterious metallic pieces that pulsed with otherworldly energy materialized out of thin air before the screen.

Nyk's head was spinning as everyone acted as if objects materializing were the most natural thing in the world. Now that he thought about it, he had absolutely no idea what Syn had done with their wares. She had asked him to hand her the bags and the cart before he left in a hurry to explore the ship, and he had assumed she would just drop their belongings in a room. This was a wildly different scenario from what he had imagined. Had he missed all of this just hours ago?

"Your stunned face never ceases to amuse me. I wonder if a fork would be more or less surprising to you," sneered a familiar voice behind him. Nyk quickly turned to see the tall boy wearing purple glasses, with Bhaltazer behind him, directing the group of young Cardslingers.

Nyk glanced over at Syn, who appeared unaware of the insult, and decided to ignore it, quietly backing away and joining her and the others in the queue, not without giving a nasty look at the amused boy.

The group caught Taizhen's attention, who left the line to approach them. "Did everyone retrieve their belongings from the vessel storage?" he inquired while the colorfully dressed children secured differently shaped items wrapped in cloth to their backs and sides.

The orange-clad boy stepped forward and bowed respectfully. "We kept everything in the storage rings and only took out our weapons as instructed, Grandmaster."

"Excellent," Taizhen nodded. "I think it's time for us to say our goodbyes. Don't hesitate to visit me." He said waving to Zosimos. Then, turning to Nyk and Syn, he looked again at them with that strange intensity, shrugging after a few moments. "Hmm... strange..." he murmured, "Well kids, I hope we'll see each other again, do take care."

The confused duo bowed to Taizhen while enduring Bhaltazer's hostile gaze before he turned to lead the young group off the ship.