Cale was sitting on his bed and next to him Grischa was sleeping when William approached his room. They had talked for a while about the trip and Cale had told them that the man would probably not be pleased with their visit. Most of all, though, they should keep a low profile about how they found out about his existence. Aaron, however, said that in a pinch he would claim that the Eldest had seen him, which surprised and reassured Cale in equal measure. He had then told them some more tips about the region before Aaron handed out a communication crystal to each of them. Without exception, each of them thought the crystal was too much for them, but Aaron insisted. He needed a way to contact them at any time in case of trouble.

Cale had left them at some point, because he wanted to check on Grischa. The mage, to his amazement, had grabbed a book and started reading it. After about half an hour, the gathering had dispersed by itself and everyone went to sleep, except for William. As if he had been waiting for everyone to be asleep, he had gotten up and was now standing outside Cale's door.

Cale wrapped a barrier around the sleeping man before calling William's name. Unsurprised, the latter opened the door and asked if they could speak for a moment.

"Of course, come in."

Quietly, William opened the door and gave Grischa a surprised look, but Cale motioned him to come over.

"It's about this mission you handed over to us", William began carefully. "Excuse me if I'm being too nosy, but why exactly are we looking for this man?"

"We're hoping he can help us with some research."

"Research?"

"Yes, about a particular creature that has been sighted."

"What's different about the creature from the others?" asked William.

"It's intelligent."

"Intelligent in, like us humans?"

"Something like that. We don't know exactly what it is, but this man, Basil, has had contact with this creature before. We're hoping he can give us some information."

"Is the man dangerous?"

"I don't think so, he saved my life once. He just doesn't like people very much, which is probably because he was driven out of his former hometown."

"What? Then why shouldn't High-Magician Thopas mention your name if he saved your life? Did you have a fight?"

"Not exactly, but... it's complicated. It's important that you leave me out of the equation and let Aaron try to ask him some questions. Can you do that?", Cale inquired. William didn't respond for a moment before nodding. "Thanks."

"I do have one more question. You don't have to answer it for me, but.... the whole trouble. Are we running it because of Sir Vonstetten?"

"Don't tell anyone, please", Cale began quietly, but he was surprised that William had hit the mark directly. He smiled sadly and looked at the peacefully sleeping High-Magician beside him. "Grischa is sick. Something is eating him from the inside and that creature is to blame. If we don't do something about it, he will die very soon. Have you ever heard of a soulless mage?"

"Yes", William answered quietly, clutching his left arm as he looked at Grischa. "What exactly is happening to him?"

"His mana pool is not regenerating and this lack of balance is destroying Grischa's entire body. It's not exactly the same as a soulless mage, but the result should be similar."

"He really doesn't look very healthy, but I didn't think it was that bad. Who knows about this?"

"Besides the three of us, only Aletta, Aaron, and the Eldest. It has to be kept a secret. Currently, I just don't know who can be trusted and who can't be", Cale confessed, looking William in the eye. "So please keep it to yourself. All of it. Don't even tell Ben, can you promise me that?"

"I promise", the prince confirmed. Relieved, Cale breathed a sigh of relief before William thanked him and headed toward the door. Before he could leave the bedroom, Cale called out to him again.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Will. Be careful. The information isn't worth putting your lives in danger."

"Okay", William replied, opening the door. "Sleep well, if you sleep at all."

"You too", Cale admitted with amusement, watching his friend lock the door. He wasn't really thrilled about going on a trip without him, but since Aaron would be with them, he was somewhat comforted.

Cale paused. Had he really missed something in his fifth life?

Lost in thought, he snuggled into his bed and looked at Grischa. The sleeping man, who was the same age as his deceased father, had opened his long white hair and buried his face under the covers. Grischa Vonstetten had become a High-Magician at the age of 20, the same year Cale was born. Cale knew that he had devoted much of his life to the Magistrat before meeting his current wife a few years ago and starting a family. It was much the same in his other lives, sometimes a little earlier, sometimes a little later, but always the same woman.

Cale grinned. He remembered tonight's conversation regarding love. In fact, in his second life he had often toyed with the idea of laying down his revenge and just keep living, but he owed it to his friends. He had probably just used old age as an excuse, but he had always been afraid of what would happen if he were trapped in that time loop forever. He had spent a lot of time with people in the beginning, but with each death he felt the relationships distancing themselves.

It was a wonder, really, that the group was still an important part of his life after all these centuries, and that Grischa had managed to do the same with just one try. What was it about the man that Cale liked so much, anyway? He was almost always busy with some research, where Cale was frequently on the verge of just telling him the result, but somehow he always enjoyed seeing how someone grows with his experiences. He had often brought Grischa out of his blockades when he had not made any progress for weeks, but actually only with the intention that he would need his abilities. Was it perhaps the long conversations? Or the trust? Or was it the feeling of family that he felt with Grischa? The feeling that had always come up short in his other lives? Had he become so lonely and desperate that he didn't even realize it himself? Was that why he felt so liberated to finally be able to share his thoughts openly with someone?

Silently, Cale sighed and lay down on his back before staring at the cloudy sky through the large window.

Cale had been asking himself the question since his first rebirth. Why exactly was he the one who had the ability to start his life all over again after death? Was there something special about him or was it just pure coincidence? Why was he sent back to the day of the attack on Groka and not further? Had he always had this ability, or was it passed to him? Was there anyone before him who had the same problem? How was he the only one who knew what the future held?

Suddenly, Cale paused. The Eldest.

What exactly was the Eldest's Igrikum? All Cale knew was that the mage received visions from the future occasionally. But was it really his Igrikum, and if that was true, why couldn't he control it? Were his abilities limited? Could he only see certain things? Why did the Eldest make such a big secret about it? Did he not trust the High-Magicians? Was that the reason why he had not forced anyone to reveal his Inspiration and Igrikum? Who else knows about his Igrikum, besides Grischa? Why had he seen the other High-Magicians die, but not Grischa?

Cale simply did not understand. He didn't understand the Eldest's Igrikum, he didn't understand the situation, and he didn't understand why the creatures were attacking them. What exactly was the dragons' goal and why was the Kormandent helping them? How come Cale never saw a dragon fight by himself in his whole life? Were they too fine for it? And what did the Dragon Queen really hope to gain from the situation? In his 4th life, he had lived to be almost 100 years old and had been poisoned by apparent comrades, but even then the dragons never approached humans. So what were they waiting for? That really every human in the entire world had died? And then why was Winstest so uninteresting to them? Were the gods somehow connected to it after all? Did they want to kill everyone who didn't belong to the Three Gods Faith?

Annoyed, Cale rubbed his head. Sometimes he had days when his thoughts could keep him up all night. Why was it always the impossible things that kept him awake? Couldn't he have some luck for once in his life and get an answer to his questions? Why was he reborn and what did the dragons want?

"What a shitty situation", he cursed softly and let his gaze fall outside. The townspeople were celebrating victory against the creatures today as well, though none understood at what cost. They all had no idea that humanity was inclined toward extinction. Perhaps he should make an active effort to ensure that more people were able to fight and acquire knowledge about the creatures.

The thought made him think of his Chronicles, which he had written in this life under false names. He found it rather funny that Aaron had consulted the Chronicles even though they had no official confirmation. Perhaps the man had been in contact with the creatures before, but had never mentioned it. Was that one of the reasons he was always so rude to Cale? The other High-Magicians seemed to have accept him by now, only the 3rd seat did not.

Hadn't Aaron been one of the High-Magicians who had opposed Cale's appointment as High-Magician? What exactly had been his problem back then? Certainly not his talents, because he knew magic better than Grischa did at that time. Perhaps because Cale was only 16 at the time and he didn't want to take on a child in the Magistrat? But if that was true, why had the Eldest, of all people, spoken out in favor of Cale?

Suddenly a thought ran through his mind.