Sleepily, Ben opened his eyes to the first rays of sunlight announcing a new day. Silently he straightened up, yawned briefly and stretched his body. It was still early in the morning, Ben had slept around 5 hours, but nature was already wide awake. Birds were circling above their heads and somewhere in the distance strange creatures were making muffled sounds, reminding him of a dog barking.

Ben looked around. Between Philippa and him slept the little healer, smiling serenly while slumbering, the very picture of a goddess. The archer had snuggled almost right next to her, breathing softly. Ben's gaze wandered around the entrance to the shelter and he spotted Cale. To his surprise, William was lying right next to him while the mage stood guard. Just as he had promised.

Inconspicuously, he watched as Cale silently gazed into the distance. Relief spread through the tall swordsman as he discovered the peaceful expression on the mages face. Even Ben knew that the newcomer was on the verge of a nervous breakdown yesterday and was doing his utmost to ensure the safety of the group. And exactly for that, Ben was also infinitely grateful to him.

From the day William and Ben first met, they had always been together. They had explored the huge house together as children, had lessons together and learned to wield the sword from the same teachers. Over time, the two developed a close friendship that went far beyond what Ben's father had intended at the time. Unintentionally, the two always drove each other to peak performance, which is why Ben could proudly claim to be able to handle the sword so amazingly well at such a young age. But William had one big problem: the constant pressure from his father. Better. He always had to be better than the others and was never allowed to show weakness, never. He didn't have much free time after a certain age and the little time he had, he used to learn or train. William's father had started a competition among his three sons, in which William himself, as the youngest sibling, drew the short straw. And while he was focused on catching up with his two older brothers, Ben spent his time watching his father work.

Cale felt the big man's gaze burning into him, which is why he turned to him and let a sad smile appear across his face. With that single expression on his face, he apologized to Ben for the harsh way he had treated him and the rest of the group yesterday. But Ben trusted Cale more than he would have liked. While he always kept an eye on his friend, ever since the magicians presence, he felt like he could breathe a little easier. He could feel it - William meant more to Cale than he cared to admit. Like an older brother looking out for his younger siblings. Maybe a person like Cale was what had been missing in William's life. A person who cared about him without profiting from it, and a person who stayed by his side despite everything. It could be said that Cale built a relationship with William similar to the one he had towards the innkeepers son Luke. He became a kind of big brother who could give him the attention he needed to grow. Only, William was not yet aware of this fact himself.

Ben formed a "good morning" with his lips before he stood up and quietly walked to Cale's side, who returned his morning greeting. He then stood next to the entrance of the shelter, folding his arms in front of his chest and staring into the distance.

"Are you all right?", Ben wispered. He was aware that he hadn't slept very much the last few days, so he worried about Cale's health.

"I'm fine, thanks for asking. And yourself? Were you able to get some rest?"

After yesterdays action, Ben had realized a few things. Cale was not weak, on the contrary, he was actually quite powerfull. Probably even stronger than himself, if a mage could be compared to a swordsman at all. But what fascinated him so much about Cale was the fact that he didn't show it. He hid himself. He didn't want to be recognized. Just like themselves.

"I slept great. Haven't been this fit in a long time. I feel like I could move mountains", Ben exaggerated, clearing his throat in amusement as they both spoke in hushed voices so as not to wake the others. Ben lowered his hands and finally turned to Cale, not looking down at William. "Can I ask you something?"

Somewhat surprised, Cale paused. Ben wasn't the type of person who was big on logic. His knowledge of the world and its dangers was limited. He was only interessted in his swordmansship and his family, but anything else didn't interest him much. He didn't think much of manners, was always a bit loud on the road and had a heart for people, but asking questions wasn't exactly his forte.

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"Sure, ask away."

Cale was therefore relatively interested in what was on the mind of the otherwise disinterested swordsman. Since Ben had just woken up, he looked relatively sleepy. His hair was tousled, his eyes not quite open, and his shirt was unbuttoned wide. He had certain similarities to a bear that had awakened from hibernation.

"Are you a High-Mage?"

With a serious look, Ben stared into the dark eyes of Cale, who showed a spark of surprise. But Ben couldn't help himself. He was probably wondering as much as the rest of the group where Cale got his knowledge and why he was so incredibly good with magic.

"Ha, I had not expected that", Cale replied sheepishly, rubbing his head with his hand, taking a deep breath for a moment and answering the question in a proud voice. "Yes, I am. I am the 12th High-Magician of Altona."

Ben was a little bit surprised. Usually he was wrong with his statements and guesses, but this time he had hit the nail on the head. Inevitably, he had to remember what he had learned as a child from his fathers friend, Tavian Hagn. Being a High-Magician was the highest recognition a mage could receive. It showed that he possessed a certain level of knowledge and power, and was also tested by the inner Council and the Elder himself. Ben did not know the exact requirements a mage had to fullfill to become a High-Magician, but the fact that there were so few suggested that it was quite the feat. Yet just such a mage sat before him. A mage who had learned from the best mages in Altona and himself was considered as one of the best of his kind. One of the most powerful mages on the continent, if not the world.

"I honestly expected Aletta to ask me that, but no. It's you. What gave me away?"

"Tonight...", Ben began carefully, paused briefly, then explained himself. "... Your zero magic."

It wasn't until he realized Cale's confused look that he began to tell the whole story.

"When I was smaller, I spent some days with my father, his friend and a colleague from Altona. This man was also a High-Mage, as I learned later. If I remember correctly his name was Odin. The four of us were out one time and got involved in an awkward situation. Some smugglers had kidnapped children and we unintentionally ran into them. My father and his colleagues, of course, immediately intervened and took care of the smugglers, while the High-Mage took care of the children. He had conjured blankets from thin air and wrapped the children in them before they were taken away by soldiers some time later. I asked him at the time how he did it and he said it was zero magic. When I asked if I could learn to do that, he just laughed and said that even normal mages couldn't do that. He said that it was one of the most difficult types of magic and he knew only two other mages besides him who could use zero magic. Both were High-Magicians as well."

Silently, Cale listened to the story. It was the first time he had heard it, which unsettled him. Neither from Ben, nor from Odin himself, had he ever heard this story, which finally left him wordless. He knew everything. He knew exactly when something was going to happen and where it was going to happen, predominantly with only minor deviations, but the last few days had completely deviated from his plan. Ben's story was no exception here, and the fact that he was hearing it for the first time unsettled him. Something was different this time, he just didn't know what yet.

"Well... and then that happend yesterday. I saw you conjure arrows out of thin air, and that's when I realized very quickly that that was zero magic and you had to be a High-Mage."

Slightly annoyed, Cale rubbed his head. What an awkward situation. He wanted to avoid the group putting distance between themselves and him when they learned about his position. But that was exactly what was beginning to cause trouble.

"Ah, don't worry. I'll keep this to myself."

Seeing the surprised look on his counterpart's face, Ben inevitably smiled. Cale was completely stunned. The brute, who liked to act instead of pondering on an issue, suddenly spoke like a wise old man. Ben's gaze wandered to William, who continued to sleep peacefully, which gave Cale goosebumps.

"But there's one more thing I'd like to know if it's not too personal", Ben finally added and Cale wondered at what point he had left so many open gaps in his relationship with Ben.Therefore, he didn't know what to expect. He couldn't guess at all what was going on in Ben's head. Normally he is open to strangers, but not like this and especially not so quickly.

The mage couldn't help remembering the situation during storm. When he gave Ben the order to go ahead with the girls, he didn't discuss it at all, he just did it. Even if he had made an effort to build a friendship based on of trust during the two weeks, would he just leave William to a stranger like that?

The sword bearer had turned away from the mage, standing expressionless beside him and staring at the sky. Cale's gaze turned away from the man and he looked to the sleeping body below him. He looked at the man who meant everything to him and the reason he would run himself ragged all the time if need be. William. Third prince of Sylve. He looked to the man who made him what he is today.

Cale sighed inwardly. He knew full well that Ben would not neglect his duty as bodyguard to the third prince, which was why he suddenly had an uncomfortable suspicion about the question that was about to hit him.

"Why exactly do you have to go to Altona right now?"