When the bright purple light faded again, Cadeus found himself standing at the very edge of a familiar corridor. Looking in front, he could see the central lounge of Converse Hall on the other end of the corridor.

It’s finally lunchtime, one of the periods that many people would look forward too. Students, Acolytes and Apprentices get to have a break from their stringent courses, while the Educators and Masters get to have a break from dealing with the continuous strain of coaching Magi rules and engagements.

For Cadeus, this was the one period where he could finally be at total ease.

Finally, he was out of Tenebris Vacuum. He had survived yet another day from that hellhole mostly unscathed. This feeling was so breathtaking that from the moment he stepped out of that teleportation circle, Cadeus felt that he was free from a great number of burdens.

Now, he could get to enjoy the company of his closest friends.

“Whew… we’re finally back. I really hated it when we have to go through teleportation.” Susan said, stretching herself.

“What are you going to do the rest of the day?”

“Meeting up with Pedrela and Jouna.”

“I see, more Board Quests?”

“Yup, but not the messed up ones for Procona.”

“Good for you.”

Susan just gave him a sympathetic smile. Having just tasted how intensive Cadeus’s Procona situation currently was, she could not help but feel concerned. Even though the previous clash between Cadeus and the three other students was resolved without many issues, there was still the matter of the nobles who had not fallen under the equation, yet.

“You know Cadeus.”

“Hm?”

“I wish I could help you. But since Acriscius might be involved, there is really little I can do to help.”

Help?

In truth, Cadeus seriously doubt Susan might be of any help since she proved incapable of helping him out earlier, but that was something he did not think it is right to say in front of her.

“It’s ok. I already count myself lucky I got a friend like you.”

Once he said that, Susan could not help but look to the other side and play with her ponytail with her right fingers. Did he also see a blush?

“F-Friend? What do you mean?”

“You are a noble aren’t you?” He pointed at her tie.

Susan was wearing the normal Academy uniform with the uniformed black robes. But she was also wearing a customized tie with golden edges. It’s a tie that nobles were entitled to wear during their time studying in Triple Orb Academy.

“Y-Yes, I am a noble, but that does not mean much really. I’m just a Lesser Noble, a Minor Lesser. Ah-ha-ha-ha.”

“But unlike the other nobles, you have been very kind and helpful to me for the past three months. Considering how hostile the other nobles are towards me, it must be quite pressuring for you isn’t it?”

“W-Well, to me it dosen’t matter if you are a noble or not. Besides, I am only a Lesser Noble because my parents were recently granted titles of nobility because of something they did that pleased the High Council. It’s not like I am in the know when it comes to stuff related to nobles. Besides, the other nobles don’t care so much. I’m a Lesser anyway ah-ha-ha-ha.”

Based on her current mood, Cadeus is not entirely sure if she is currently happy about being a Lesser or not.

“Besides Cadeus… are you sure you will be fine leaving things like that with Acriscius?”

“Leaving things?”

Internally, Cadeus applauded her choice of words.

“I did not even meet him in person Susan. Besides, I’m sure he has his own problems to deal with. Otherwise, he would not have send three lackeys after me.”

“…”

“Well, not like there is anything to worry about. If Acriscius really comes for me, I will come up with an idea or two to deal with him. Besides, since I owe Claire one, I might have gotten myself some sort of temporary protection.”

“Claire?”

Susan paused in the middle of her tracks.

“What do you mean?”

“You know Claire. Once someone owes her something, she will make sure that person stays alive until she is done with him. Now that I owe her, I can at least say that she will make sure I remain alive before she returns to me to help her do something dubious.”

“That is a very negative way of looking at Claire Cadeus.”

“Isn’t it true? Aren’t all the other nobles like that?”

“Not entirely…”

“Come on, you two also don’t get along right?”

“It’s not to say I don’t get along with her. Claire had this… certain air around her. It is not very easy to get close to her. She’s Pure Blooded. On top of that, she’s from the Greater Noble Families, just like Acriscius. I’d doubt that they think much of Lesser Nobles.”

“I see.”

“… You better not push your luck Cadeus.”

“What?”

“You should really stop provoking them.”

“Who? The other nobles? Now who is really doing the provoking I wonder.”

“But still…”

“They can’t change the truth no matter how much they want. Plus it is not my fault they get so rowdy just because of some name coincidence.”

“That’s because they take their noble prestige seriously. You do know what your family name represents right?”

“…”

Cadeus could not find anything to refute that one.

“On top of that Cadeus, you might not find nobles to be that much of a deal, but when you graduate as a legitimate mage, dealing with nobles will become an everyday occurrence. You better not get too much on their bad side.”

“Aren’t I already? Everyone hates this ‘imposter’ anyway.”

“That’s because they fail to see who you really are. But I’m sure in time they will.”

“… You are surprisingly very optimistic today.”

“He he~.”

To think that for a moment ago, she was throwing tantrum at him for not helping her do some hunting. Really… her mood fluctuates without prediction.

“You can join us for the day you know?”

“What? Me joining the three of you?”

“Yup.”

“Are you sure?”

“It will be fine. Unlike me, Pedrela and Jouna are not nobles. They do not care so much about the ‘imposter’ thing. Besides, they are pretty curious about you.”

Curious? Cadeus frowned at the word.

“Why would they be so?”

“Oh don’t worry, it’s not what you think it is. It’s just that it’s not everyday you see a Dark Mage step in to save someone just because they want to.”

“I see… so I am a rarity.”

“Pretty much.”

“Thanks for the offer, but I think I better pass. I need to finish that Procona Board Quest.”

“Oh right you have that… sorry I forgot.”

“It’s ok. I’ll look up to the next opportunity.”

“In the meantime, you’re meeting that White Girl again right?”

“…”

“Well, it’s your decision so I won’t stop you. You better not get entranced by the likes of her.”

Cadeus could not help but sigh.

“One of these days, I’m seriously going to introduce you to her formally.”

“What?”

Susan gave Cadeus a pure expression of shock; maybe she did not see that one coming.

“I’m serious. It is about time you really see who Sirena is for yourself. I really don’t like it when you get all stereotype whenever I bring up her name.”

Susan just stood there nailed to the ground in shock. Then she merely shook her head and waved her hand left and right.

“Don’t bother. Even if I meet her, I won’t get a good opinion of her anyway.”

“Hey… don’t dismiss an option like that instantly without trying.”

“Trust me, I already tried dealing with several decent White Mages that are around the level of that White Girl. But they are all the same, Colour Discrimination. That White Girl might be comfortable with you since you are her childhood friend. But I doubt the same would work when it comes to a complete stranger.”

“…”

Cadeus could not find anything to counter that.

“Well, just don’t let that White Girl get into your head. I’ll see you again tomorrow.”

“Yeah Sure.”

“See you.”

“Bye.”

Cadeus simply watched Susan as she went off ahead. As he watched her, he could not help but root himself on the spot.

…

…

Oh well, maybe an opportunity might show itself in future. Cadeus currently feels that he does not need to be insistent for Susan to meet Sing.

When he finally got into the main lounge, the first person he managed to find was Nadav. It looks like Sing was not here yet, which was really great. Cadeus really did not want her to smell the stench and see the cut on his cheek at the moment. Once he and Nadav made eye contact, Nadav gave him one of his usual bright smiles.

“A miracle! You’re back in one piece!”

“… Aren’t I always the same everyday Nadav?”

“Wait! For a moment I thought something happened to you. Let me check again. Are you losing a hand? A leg? An organ? A face?”

“I’m fine. Stop asking the same set of questions whenever I am back from Tenebris Vacuum. Also, can you please stop with the face? How can I lose my face?”

“Well. I have been hearing a lot of stories about how Dark Mages have this scary ability to steal people’s faces.”

“That is over exaggeration. I cannot do such a thing and I doubt any other Dark Mage would have that kind of ability. Anyways, good to see that you weren’t knocked out.”

“Hey, that’s harsh. Even I put in effort for this Procona search. There is no way I am going to let 160 profit slip from my fingertips.”

“You’re still that concerned about the money?”

That was when Nadav noticed something. He took a few steps away from Cadeus, trying his best to bear the stench emitting from his robes. Cadeus could not help but raise his left eyebrow in question.

“What?”

“You stink.”

“Yes, yes. You don’t have to mention it.”

“Why the stench?”

“I went to the swamps today Nadav. Haven’t you heard me this morning?”

“Oh right… you needed Sing’s flask.”

“That’s right.” Cadeus pulled his robes to his nose.

“Gosh I need to change.”

“Anyways, did something else happen to you Cadeus?” Nadav asked.

“What?”

“Your cheek.”

Nadav pointed at his own cheek.

“Oh…”

Darn it, Cadeus forgot how obvious the cut wound looked. As he thought about it, he brought his right finger to the laceration site. Swapping it once, he brought his finger back to eye view. The wound had already dried. There is no trace of fresh wet blood on his fingers.

“It was an accident. Nothing more.”

“No, no, no, no.” Nadav waved his hand to the left and right.

“That’s cut is too straight for a simple scratch by a branch. Who did it?”

“It was, an accident.”

“Ok fine. Let’s say it was an accident, but who is involved?”

“Another Dark Mage.”

“Another girl?”

“…”

“Yup, I knew it. Who is it? That girlfriend of yours?”

“First off, the name is Susan. Second, we are not dating. Third, no, she is not the one responsible for it.”

“Ok, but is she the one responsible for your stench?”

“For some reason, I feel that you are forcing some sort of blame onto Susan.”

“Who wouldn’t? Isn’t she the only other Dark Mage who is friendly towards you?”

“Ok, that’s an accurate fact. But if we follow on that, why would she do such a thing?”

“Well, maybe you pissed her off?”

“Why would you think of such a thing?”

“I don’t know? Did you piss her off?”

“…”

“So you did piss her off.”

“It was a minor issue.”

“Ah I see, a minor issue.”

“Yes, a small, minor, issue. I would say it was more like she’s throwing tantrum rather than getting pissed off. But before you say anything else that level of tantrum will not be enough to make Susan to cut me.”

“Then who cut you then? From the looks of it I managed to hit the jackpot that the culprit is a girl.”

“… I think you would be better off not knowing.”

“Oh? Oh? What is this? Why is my investigation switch switching into action?”

Cadeus simply pressed his hand on Nadav’s face and gently pushed it to the side.

“Who is she then? Another secret girlfriend we are not aware of?”

“She’s not a girlfriend, she’s not even a friend, and if you bring up the word girlfriend one more time, I swear it will be the last girlfriend you will say until you regain conscious in the infirmary.”

“Ok… you really are serious about it this time... Does she hate you?”

“… Something like that.”

“So a girl who hates you is responsible for that cut.”

“Yes.”

“…”

“What’s with that look?”

“Your female relationships never cease to amaze me.”

“Do you want me to knock you down now?”

“Better not. Even if you did knock me down, your efforts will be wasted.”

“Oh really? How so?”

“One, Sing would heal me if I got hurt. Two, she won’t allow you to hit me.”

“Ah true.”

“Speaking of which…”

“Hm?”

“Sing’s here.”

“What?”

Nadav pointed behind Cadeus. As Cadeus turned, he can see Sing with several of her other White Mage classmates. It looks like she is still on conversation.

“Oh great. I’ll meet you at Corals later.”

“Ok… What? Where are you going?”

“To change? With Sing that particular about fashion do you think she would like to smell this stench on me?”

“Oh, true…”

Looking back, Cadeus saw Sing wave her friends goodbye and started walking towards the two of them. When Cadeus’s eyes met hers, he immediately made his move.

“Oh crap she’s coming. I’ll see you later. Don’t tell Sing anything.”

“Ok.”

Cadeus instantly turned and started running back to the male dormitory. As Nadav looked at his running silhouette, he looked back to Sing only to see her staring at Cadeus’s disappearing figure with concern.

“Oh dear, now she’ll start asking me.”

“Of course I will start asking you.” Sing said, finally right in front of Nadav.

“Before I start, I just want to confirm. Did Cadeus just left after seeing me?”

“Yup.”

“… Why?”

“Hm… good question.”

“Nadav? Don’t try to avoid it, I saw the two of you talking.”

“Yes we were talking.”

“And?”

“Well… we were just talking.”

“Talking about what?”

“Talking about things.”

“What things?”

“…”

“Don’t beat around the bush with me Nadav.”

“Uh oh… You saw though it.”

“Of course I saw through it. You guys always mess up whenever you two try to hide something from me.”

“Ah… true.”

“So, enough chasing around, what did Cadeus tell you.”

“Um… I promised him not to tell you anything so…”

Sing closed her eyes and gave Nadav a merciless smile.

“Why exactly are you two keeping me in the dark?”

“Wait! Before you do something to me this is all Cadeus’s idea!”

“Ah I see, putting all the blame to poor Cadeus now eh?”

“What poor Cadeus?! He was the one who started it.”

“Nadav?”

“I’m telling the truth! Cadeus told me specifically not to tell you anything!”

No matter how much Nadav begged, it looks like Sing is not going to forgive the carefree clown. As she slowly walked closer Nadav can feel an enormous amount of White Magic building up within her. As she approached him, Nadav could not help but look at his surroundings. Nearby students already had their attention fixated upon them, particularly the other White Mages.

“Um… Sing?”

Sing just continued walking forward with the merciless smile that look like it came from an angel of death.

“Ah ha ha… I get it, it is one of your new jokes. You scared me already, can you please stop with the magic build up?”

With a wave of her hand, Nadav was hit square in the chest by a highly concentrated pulse of wind. The strong wind sent him flying out of the entrance of Converse Hall.

“AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!”

Luckily for Nadav, he landed on soft grass. If he were to land on one of the hard paved roads, only God would know what might happen to his back.

TOA

“Where do I start? When I first saw him again, he stinks of the swamp, and then there is a cut on his right cheek.”

“… Ok, at least nothing major happened to him. I can heal a simple cut easily. Anything else?”

“Other than the fact that he had a usual rough day? Nothing else.”

After helping him back up on his feet, Sing started her interrogation. Actually, scratch the word ‘interrogation’. It no longer counts as a ‘interrogation’ since Nadav began to spill the beans willingly.

“All right. So it’s just the stench and the cut.”

“Yes.”

“That isn’t that much of a deal. Why does he want to keep it a secret from me? Wait wrong question. What does he want to keep a secret from me?”

“I was kind of hoping you’d avoid that question. Damn it, why does your mind have to be so sharp?”

“Nadav, clock’s ticking, don’t keep me waiting.”

“Ok, ok, ok. What is the big deal here is the cut on his cheek.”

“The cut on his cheek? Why?”

“That’s because he did not get that cut from a tree branch. A girl cut his cheek.”

“A girl?”

“Yup.”

“A Dark Mage student?”

“Yup.”

“Is it Susan?”

“Wow, you remembered her name.”

“Don’t start Nadav.”

For Sing to reprimand Nadav like this, she must be considerably serious about this unusual matter. This was obviously not the time for jokes, Nadav made sure he better not push his luck especially when it came to Sing.

“Ok, ok. No, that girl is not Susan.”

“Did he said who did it then?”

“Nope, but it is another girl that’s for sure. For some reason he seems quite reluctant to share the details.”

“A girl who cuts him, it is not Susan, and it does not seem to be a girl that is friendly to him.”

“Oh come on now Sing, a cut by itself is already a miracle. You should know how much of a danger Cadeus is whenever he has Colour Class.”

“If wouldn’t be that suspicious if it is just some random girl. What is suspicious is why he wanted to keep it a secret. Why does he want to keep it secret?”

“I don’t know. Cadeus has always been keeping a lot of things quiet whenever it comes to Colour Class. This is probably just something trivial.”

“…”

Nadav did not know how this conversation developed, but Sing began thinking deeply. She became engrossed, her arms tucked close, right thumb and index finger just below her chin. What ever for? Nadav could not say.

“No it sounds too fishy to be something trivial.”

“Come on Sing, you are over thinking it.”

“Knowing Cadeus, he won’t keep it secret unless it is something big.”

“Like I said, it’s definitely nothing.”

“There must be something.”

“You are definitely over thinking it.”

“Ah! I got it. I finally got it. If a girl did it, and he does not want to let us know who it is… it must be the identity of that girl.”

“You are super over thinking it!”

“Come on Nadav, think about it. Why would Cadeus want to keep that girl a secret?”

“Not every Dark Mage is friendly to Cadeus. It can be just one random person. I reckoned a second secret girlfriend at the beginning, but then he threatened the jabs.”

“Of course he would.”

Nadav brought his arms upwards to the back of his head.

“Won’t you find it suspicious if he has a girlfriend?”

“If he really has a girlfriend, what would you think Cadeus would do?”

“… Announce it formally, bring her and introduce us to her.”

“There we go. So why would he keep a girlfriend secret. Enough with your girlfriend jokes you, I can already foresee a day where Cadeus will seriously skin you.”

“Oh please. The last thing I want in this world is to be used as an ingredient for some kind of dark ritual.”

“So coming back to the main topic.”

“Oh God, spare me!”

TOA

Cadeus locked the door to his room. After depositing his smelly robes to the dry cleaners, he started off ahead to Coral Hall. By the time he was at the scene, he can already see Nadav and Sing sitting at the usual spot. Trying to act as natural as possible, Cadeus approached the two of them.

“Hi.”

“Hi Cadeus. How’s Colours?” Sing asked.

“The usual. So far I managed to keep my head on my neck.”

“Isn’t that great. Well at least you won’t have to think about Colours for a while.”

Cadeus placed his sling bag at the side and sat opposite her right next to Nadav

“How was Colours for you?”

“Oh… it went well. I dissected a Cavonite beetle. So it was great.”

“I see…”

Not wanting to know what the heck a Cavonite beetle was, Cadeus took a look at the contents of the table right in front of him. They had already helped him get his lunch. Looking down Cadeus could already see the standard lunch menu he took usually, one loaf of hard bread served with black pepper chicken kebab along with roasted potatoes, corns and carrots, not forgetting that hot tea with no cream.

As he started to eat, Cadeus stole a glance at Nadav. Nadav seems to be very uninterested with the current setting. He is simply resting his head on his right palm looking beyond… as if he was in dreamland or something.

“You ok Nadav?”

“Hm?”

Nadav looked back.

“Yeah… I’m fine.”

He then turned back, giving Cadeus a ‘good luck with that’ expression.

Cadeus lifted his right eyebrow. Normally when asked ‘you ok Nadav?’, Nadav will always crack a small joke. The fact that he is avoiding Cadeus seems to imply something different.

… Just what on Earth –

“Cadeus, care to share what happened?”

“Huh?”

Sing pointed to her own cheek. Right… Cadeus steadied himself, time to act normal.

“Oh, this is nothing. An accident.”

“An accident?”

“Yes, an accident. You don’t have to worry about it.”

“Which girl did it?”

“Girl?”

Sing folded her arms and gave him an emotionless smile.

Uh oh…

“Cadeus, Nadav told me. Don’t try to hide things from me.”

Ah… so that’s what it is.

Cadeus turned and gave Nadav the glare that said ‘you traitor’. But Nadav simply avoided Cadeus’s look with the usual old fashion style of whistling whilst looking at the other side with his hands on the back his head.

“…”

For Nadav to give that kind of reaction in response, Sing must have interrogated him instantly after he left the scene. Darn it… why was it so easy for Sing to fish things out whenever they try to hide something from her?

Sigh…

Cadeus rested his head on his left palm. This was a situation where he would say ‘it can’t be helped’. But that would still not save him when it came to Sing’s interrogation.

Wait… why the word ‘interrogation’? Cadeus thought.

“So, which girl did it? Was it Susan?”

Sing’s tone became more assertive. It seems that she was really intent to find out what had happened. At this rate, keeping the truth from her would result in an extremely unfavourable out come. Oh well, better spill the beans before things get even worse.

“No, it’s not Susan. It was someone else.”

“Who then?”

“You are better off not knowing.”

Sing just closed her eyes and tightened smiled. She’s smiling, but her face was not. Cadeus knew at that point of time that he was really putting her patience to the test.

Oh dear, what to do?

Things were not progressing well at this rate. It’s either Cadeus spill the beans now or… he would have to face Sing in her ‘Angel of no Mercy’ mode.

Cadeus took a deep breath, this was going to be a hassle but he want to get this done and over with.

“The one responsible for the cut is a noble. Her name is Claire Rrogust ve Chroma.”

Upon that single reply, the atmosphere around the three of them hardened slightly.

However, the two soon gave Cadeus wry faces. They soon understood the gist of his circumstances.

Given Cadeus’s unusual background, the three of them had already knew of several incidents that involved Cadeus and the nobles of his colour sectors. In fact, they kind of expected it since the first day of their enrollment, and what did you know? Trouble soon arose within their first week and the weeks that soon came within their first three months.

Of course, the two of them were not targeted. Even for the nobles that’ll be going a little too far, and fundamentally Dark Mages tend to not care about those who were not of their kind. If they were to bump into Nadav and Sing, they’ll simply dismiss them as ‘oh, they are the friends of that guy…’ and simple not care any more than that.

That was why when something happened to Cadeus, it only happened in Tenebris Vacuum and their friends were mostly left out of it. Since nothing terribly serious happened, the two of them would not ask for the specifics since Cadeus requested it.

But this time…

Cadeus did not know why they would be so thorough in knowing what had happened.

“Sigh… this is not good isn’t it?” Nadav said.

“Well… it’s actually not so bad.”

“So starting from day one, how many nobles have you already pissed off?”

“Hm… there are a couple dozen who won’t hesitate to pick a fight, but they are still nobles who keep to the etiquettes they were brought up with. As long as we keep our distance, they won’t spark a scene that will bring dishonour to their house.”

“Keep to their etiquettes is it? If that’s the case, then what about this Claire? Who is she and why did she cut your cheek?” Sing asked.

“She’s a Greater Noble, the only daughter of house Rrogust ve Chroma, one of the five Greater Noble houses of Dark Mages.”

“Oi, oi… does that mean she’s a serious big shot? Why did she cut your cheek then? Did you do something funny to her?”

“Sigh… why are you so quick to assume that it was I who did something?”

“Nadav, let Cadeus finish. So coming back, how are you and Claire acquainted?”

“We just happened to be in the same class. Given our difference circumstances, we tend to have a policy to avoid each other. But recently the two of us have been helping each other out for mutual benefits.”

“Helping her out?”

“…Sort of”

“So are you good terms with her or not?”

“Are you kidding me? Why would a noble like her get along with me?”

“Isn’t that Susan girlfriend a noble? Aren’t the two of you getting along?” Nadav butt in.

Cadeus gave him the look that said ‘you are not helping’. But he replied his question anyway.

“Yes she’s a Lesser, but she different. She does not flaunt her family name or let her noble prejudice get in the way. Quite unlike the noble junk heads I had to deal with in Tenebris Vacuum.”

“Junk heads? Ah…” Nadav applauded Cadeus’s choice of words.

“But are the two of you extremely hostile towards each other?” Sing refocused the conversation.

“… In a sense yes.”

“Oh no… he’s doomed, dddooooommmmmeeeeddddd.”

Cadeus turned and gave Nadav another light punch to the cheek.

Sing however, had a more sensible deduction of the scenario.

“But if she’s a Greater Noble, won’t she carry herself on a stricter presentation? Why would such a person cut you?” Sing asked.

“It’s a very long story.”

“We got all lunch.”

“Look, I know this might be a big deal, but there is nothing to worry about. It is not like I am in a really bad relationship with her.”

“I wouldn’t count your hopes high Cadeus.” Nadav said.

Cadeus ignored that last comment.

“Hm…” Nadav stated, he had his left thumb on this chin.

“Rrogust ve Chroma eh? If that’s really one of the Greater Noble Families, wow. It looks like you got yourself a huge black mark Cadeus.” Nadav patted Cadeus’s back.

“You don’t have to state the obvious. Besides, the situation has been the same since three months ago. There are a lot of nobles I am not in good terms to begin with. Did you forget what my family name is?”

“Yes… Don’t remind me.”

Cadeus just stared at Nadav with an unconcerned look. It’s not like this was something new. Cadeus’s relationship with the nobles was already as bad as it could be.

Although they were taking things pretty easily, the situation was not as simple as it seems. Whenever matters become related to the nobles, the situation could get very complicated with a lot of restrictive boundaries.

The nobles of Zeffernon were the ruling class of Mages. They were the wealthiest, the most privileged and one of the most influential groups of the magi society. They largely dominate the politics of Otium, to the point where it’s not uncommon for nobles to be involved with the High Council. In fact, it would be accurate to say that a good number of nobles served as direct members of the High Council itself.

It might seem so outdated since the concept of nobles ceased to play any major role on Earth. (Well, except if you want to count anything ceremonial…) However, on Zeffernon, the influences of the nobles were abnormally strong. The reason is because; the majority of Otium’s strongest noble families are all Pure Bloods.

Due to the fact that magic was from the blood, society on Otium revolves strictly on how one could utilize magic to the fullest, in other words, how could a mage maximize the usage of magic. In the usual cases, it’s always the Pure Bloods who were able to fulfill that role. Given how they had no second colour to interfere with their control over the first, the Pure Bloods were able to dwell into the deepest secrets of the supernatural elements within their own colour of magic.

Due to this reason, the Pure Bloods were often born with unique powers called Blood Gifts, and the families who cultivated their own unique Blood Gifts are able to obtain unique positions within Otium. As such, the society of Otium is strongly associated with Magi Hierarchy where the Pure Bloods usually reigned from the top.

However, being part of this special group of mages also had it’s own restrictions. There’s a hierarchical system even amongst the nobles that binds their level of influences under a single pyramid scheme. There were three major groups in this pyramid scheme, where each group clearly differentiates the level of influence each noble family could attain.

At the bottom of the hierarchy were the Lesser Noble Families. They might make up the most of the nobles in Otium, but their political influences were bare minimum. The most their influence could stretch was only towards the business guilds or the various economic sectors of Otium. In other words, they were more restricted to the roles of guild sponsors or business CEOs. If they were lucky, some Lesser Nobles could succeed and serve as minor governors in some of the more outskirt areas far from Infinitas.

A noble’s influence was dependant on the age of his family’s lineage. That means that the Lesser Noble Families were either several centuries old, or they were recently formed as a reward for certain deeds. As such, their influence pales in comparison to the other two groups.

Susan was one fine example. She’s a Lesser Noble, but her family was recently awarded with the status as a reward for something her parents did in the past. Since they were practically new nobles, the amount of influence Susan’s family could bring was more or less restricted to business contacts and private investors.

Other much older Lesser Noble houses had gained a more advantageous position, and for those who were old enough, they were given special grant from the High Council to create their own symbolic insignia.

In the Academy, Lesser Nobles were required to wear a special tie to showcase their status. Susan was wearing one such tie, but since her family was recently formed there was nothing on her tie, whereas for those those who belonged to the older and more influencial Lesser Nobles, they were able to place their family insignia on their tie.

Regardless, nobles were still nobles, and members of the Lesser Noble Families were still granted certain privileges that sort of made their lives easier compared to the common people.

The next group in the hierarchy was made up by the Greater Noble Families. Their lineages went way back to around two to three thousand years, which was roughly the period of the Age of the Exquisite where the High Council was founded. They were the pillars of the nobility, wielding the bulk of the influences a noble can attain. Their power transcends even beyond that of regional authorities, giving Greater Nobles the freedom to by-pass the magistracy whenever they feel the need to. However, they were all still answerable to the High Council.

Mages within these families were said to be born with powerful Blood Gifts, to the point where rumors even exaggerate that a single Greater Noble was more than enough to kill a large group of adult Specialists, and that’s no funny story. People generally avoid getting on their bad side; as to do so was usually a one-way ticket to death.

There were only fifteen Greater Noble families, five for each colour of magic. Each were represented by an emblem that somewhat displays the possible Blood Gifts each family was known for.

As mentioned earlier, Claire belonged to this category. Her family, Rrogust ve Chroma, was one of the Greater Noble Families aligned with Dark Magic. From what Cadeus had gathered, Claire’s family emblem is a pattern made up of crystal shards. He did not know the specifics of her Blood Gift, but it might have something to do with crystals.

Come to think of it, her familiar is a crystal bird. It might be something related to her Blood Gift then…

Last but not least, there’s the most powerful group within the hierarchy of nobles, the three Progenitor Families. The word ‘Progenitor’ simply represents the three families for what they were. They were the oldest Magi families on Zeffernon, and their involvement with Otium’s history spans deep into its social roots, going far back into the Age of the Exquisite, the Age of Founding and possibly even the mythological Age of Unrecorded Time.

Such age came with a vast weight of power, for their impenetrable influence stretches even beyond the authority of the High Council. Since the Progenitor families were the ones who created the High Council in the first place, they were the pillars of the current governmental system. Many members of these three families had served as Council Heads throughout Otium’s long history, making the various big decisions that made Otium what it is today.

Currently out of the three, two stands remaining, whereas the last had been lost in the 1400s.

TOA

Thinking about his own situation again, Cadeus could understand why many would condemn his current relationship with the nobles.

In seeing Cadeus sigh just like that, Nadav tried to cheer him up.

“Well, at least you are not dead, yet.” Nadav said.

“You really have to add the ‘yet’ behind do you?”

“Come on look at this, if you are really the number one enemy of all nobles, your fate is pretty much, sealed.”

“I doubt it. Three months into the world of magic and none of the nobles has ever made a move. Besides, I got temporary protection.”

“Oh? From who?”

“Claire obviously.”

“Wait, I thought the two of you hate each other?” Sing interjected.

“Nicely brought up Sing. Yes, it really does not make sense if you said that.” Nadav followed.

“That’s because I owe her, and if I know her well, she would not allow me to die until I returned her the favour.”

“Ok wait, wait. Next question, why did you even owe her favours? I thought you hated owing people favours.”

“I do.”

“So?”

“ *Irritated Sigh* Fine. I’ll explain everything. Look, the two of you know how Dark Mages have to be in groups of at least two whenever we attempt to venture in the forests of Tenebris Vacuum right?”

“Yup.” “Correct.”

“As it turns out, I had to pair myself with Claire in order to reach the forest swamps.”

“Wait, you had to pair up with Claire?”

“Yes.”

“Why would she agree to partner with you?”

“Well, because she also needs something from the swamps?”

“What about that Susan girl?”

“She had something on.”

“And this Claire just accepted you as a partner like that despite the fact she hated you?”

“She did not accept me as a partner, she exploited me for the fact that I owe her.”

“So based on just this one favour, she accepted you as some sort of bodyguard?”

“It’s escort, not bodyguard. I will never bring myself that low.”

“Aren’t they the same?”

Cadeus gave Nadav a disapproving look.

“Ok fine call it escort. So you owe her a favour before this morning. What did you do?”

“She was… the library reception when I need to look for a book. I had to owe her one in return for her to help me find that book.”

“I see… so, after the events today, you are done with her right?”

“No. I still owe her two.”

“Two? Did you mess up your math?”

“No, still two.”

“Just what happened to you?”

“One was by default. It was on the first day and I had to ask her for help. That was before I knew that she was a noble.”

“Ok, then the other one?”

“Well when I entered the forests today I messed up, she had to step in to help me.”

“I see… so what happened?”

“She saved me.”

“Saved you? Ha! But even so, I don’t think that’s specific enough for the two of us Cadeus.”

Cadeus rolled his eyes. Gosh, will this interrogation never end?

“I almost got killed by a two meter tall Criftoae. Claire saved me by casting a complex spell.”

The atmosphere between the three of them hardened again. Well… it is only natural. If you found out that your close friend almost died, how would you respond?

Cadeus brought his arms up in a surrendering motion.

“I already said it, the two of you are better off not knowing.”

“Do you always have to risk your life like that whenever you step into that forest?” Nadav said.

“Yes. Six students have already died from my group so far.”

The atmosphere between the three of them hardened again.

Just what is going on? Cadeus really felt that he is destroying everyone’s appetite.

The silence lasted for several more seconds, until Nadav opened his mouth again.

“Well, good luck~.” Nadav patted Cadeus’s back again. Clearly, another great attempt to brighten the mood.

“If she does come after you with the intention to kill, Sing and I would not be enough to help you. Pure Bloods are stronger than Mixed Bloods ten fold. There’s no chance we can best her.”

“You are quite fast to abandon your close friend here Nadav.”

“It depends, it depends. I tend to read well based on the situation. I might opt to stand up against her and die a noble death, or I might opt to step away and secure my life.”

“Go and die a death full of regret idiot.”

“Oi oi... that’s not a very good blessing coming from you Cadeus.”

Ignoring Nadav, Cadeus turned back to the only person left who is sustaining the previous mood.

“You ok Sing?”

“Yes…”

For some reason, Sing seems to be a lot more composed compared to the first time Cadeus said that he almost got killed in Tenebris Vacuum. Cadeus remembered her face back then. It was one face he regretted seeing. Thank goodness she never gave him that face ever since.

“Relax Sing, it will take a lot more to kill someone like me. Besides, these episodes that almost killed me rarely happens. I know how to be careful, every Dark Mage has to.”

Sing just gave him her usual concerned look. Though she appeared to be calm and composed, her mood is much worse. This is not the first time she heard that her friend died. But now that she had to revisit the fact that Cadeus had to face the same chance of dying every time during Colours, it only does nothing but made her heart pound with worries.

In seeing her face, Cadeus motioned towards Nadav using the corner of his eye. Once the two of them established eye contact, they both knew what is wrong and what to do.

“Come, come, enough thinking about this we better eat. Food is getting cold, and we still got that stupid powder to find.” Nadav clapped while saying.

Upon hearing that, Sing’s face returned to normal. Thinking about the Board Quest had misplaced her thoughts for Cadeus. She had begun eating again.

As the duo looked at Sing’s renewed energized self, they both stole peeks at each other and shook hands under the table.

TOA

After they finished their meals, the trio headed for the Academia gates. By this hour, the gate area would be filled with carriages lined up for the students who need to head to Infinitas for their respective board quests.

The trio had to wait in a long line of waiting students for their carriage for a couple of minutes before it is their turn to take the free carriage ride to the Capital.

“Ah~.” Nadav made himself comfortable on his seat.

“Soon, it will be back to Thuranian District. Man, I can imagine the crowd.”

Cadeus can only sigh in reply to that. He stared out of the window resting his head on his right knuckles.

“What difference does it make? It’s going to be the same as yesterday. Crowded, congested and overly lively.”

Nadav gave Cadeus a huge thumb up and replied in a tone that’s more suited to being sarcastic.

“That’s the stuff of life! You need a lot of people in order for things to be very happening!”

It is very easy to see that Nadav is simply talking for the sake of making a lively conversation. Cadeus can only half close his eyelids in response.

“… That’s not quite my cup of tea. I’d prefer it if there are lesser people. The quieter, the better.”

“Ah no no no… you’ll end up being the one who’s left out Cadeus. At this age, you cannot survive in a small community. You need to get to know people, get more connections. Things will be a lot easier once you get the connections. In the adult world it’s all about business and making acquaintances. If you don’t know the right number of people, you’ll lose out.”

Cadeus raised an eyebrow to that. Clearly, communication and connections are not plausible during his time in Colour Class.

“Making connections has never played that well for me in Tenebris Vacuum. I’d rather stick to my books.”

“You see Cadeus! That attitude is simply the reason why you will die a bachelor!”

Cadeus did not bother replying to such a meaningless statement.

It was here that sing decided to butt in and change the topic.

“So debrief us Nadav, the eight new shops you got.”

“Ah? Oh right. Well, you can forget about me spelling them out for you. They had very complicated names.”

“What about the locations?”

“Let’s see…”

Nadav took out his notebook from his sling bag.

“Five of them are in the Demerith’s Street. Three are on Carmith’s and the last one is at Derithmodule’s Monument.”

Demerith’s Street?

Cadeus’s ear twitched slightly. Now that’s a location he is familiar with.

Taking out his notebook, he flipped it to the correct page and started comparing the shops he has left. The three shops he has left are all from Carmith’s Street. Thinking back, Cadeus is aware that the other shops Sing and Nadav had are all also around Carmith’s Street and Cadan’s Waterway. It will be a lot more efficient if Cadeus took the ones at Demerith’s Street.

“Nadav, give me the five on Demerith’s Street. You guys split the remainders amongst yourselves.”

Nadav nodded at his reply. Splitting three different locations to each of them is indeed the most effective scheme.

“Ok~, as efficient as ever Cadeus. Then I’ll take the one at Derithmodule’s Monument and the four at Cadan’s Waterway. Sing, you take the ones at Carmith’s Street. Everybody ok?”

“I’m fine, but none of us has ever been to Demerith’s Street before.” Sing pointed out.

“I have.” Cadeus replied.

His two friends looked at him with utter surprise.

“Really? Since when?” Nadav asked.

“I stumbled on the street by chance using it as a short cut from Carmith’s Street to Derithmodule’s Monument. I marked it up on my map since I thought it can be used continuously in future.”

“So that street got shops, what do they sell there?”

“Same stuff we see in Carmith’s Street. Books, Artifacts, Clothes, but don’t bother, the prices there are much higher.”

“Geh! Does that mean that we have to pay extra if they have Procona?” Nadav asked.

“Maybe. But the loss will be nothing once we get our 160 profit.”

“Ah… true. Ok then! We’ll meet at Carmith’s Street!”

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TOA

Once the carriage stopped at their due destination, there is no further need for confirmation about their course of action. The three of them split up and went to their respective areas.

Well… not necessarily all three of them.

After walking for five more minutes, Cadeus still could not help but notice that Sing is still right beside him.

“… Aren’t you going to search your assigned shops?”

“Aren’t you?”

Cadeus started pointing.

“Demerith’s Street is this way. Yours are in Carmith’s Street, it’s over there.”

“It is as you said, Carmith’s Street and Demerith’s Street are linked by a walkway.”

“Yes… but you don’t have to walk the long way through Demerith’s Street.”

“I find nothing wrong with that.”

“… Are you suggesting that you want to accompany me into Demerith’s Street?”

“Why not? Since we are meeting up at Carmith’s Street any way, why don’t I accompany you? It’s a lot better than waiting around for the two of you once I’m done.”

“I see… well…”

“Is there a reason I can’t be with you?”

“Well…”

Cadeus looked ahead of him. He is standing right at the entrance to Demerith’s Street. The shops that were assigned to him are all in there. Sing’s shops are directly on the other side. She could cut in with him, but he preferred not to.

There is a reason why Cadeus specifically chose the shops in Demerith’s Street. Demerith’s Street is mainly occupied by Dark Mages, and they do not take too kindly if a mage not one of their own is found wandering on their streets.

Since social discrimination against Dark Mages is an open norm, the Dark Mages found themselves increasingly secluded from trade dealings as the items they possessed sparked various qualms and uncertainties. Books, artifacts and other potent items they possessed are shunned by the other mages due to the dangers of their usage and the ethical concerns behind it.

As a result, the Dark Mages who had nowhere else to go eventually settled down on Demerith’s Street keeping their items to themselves. This is a pure example of the social instability nowadays, and it has been a problem that is pestering the High Council for years. Cadeus is not entire sure how the adults handle politics in the High Council, but it seems that this social issue is not something easy to resolve given the long staggering standstill.

As such, the Magi merchants you will see there are Dark Mages who had failed to work with other mages, or are simply uncomfortable in dealing commerce with mages other than their own kind. Cadeus strongly doubt that the other Dark Mages will take to Sing’s presence kindly, as long as she wears white.

“I think it would be better if you go straight to Carmith’s Street.”

“Hm? Why?”

“This area of Demerith’s Street… will not be welcoming to White Mages.”

“Are you saying that street is occupied by Dark Mages?”

She catches on pretty fast, as expected of Sing.

“Yes.”

“Hm…”

From the way she curled up her lips slightly, Cadeus can tell that Sing got the full implications of what he meant. However, for some reason, Cadeus feel that what he said will not be able to stop her. Is it her curiosity to see what Demerith’s Street will be like or is it simply her wish to be there when he managed to obtain some of the powder… Cadeus could not really say.

All the more reason to discourage her now before she comes to a firm consensus…

“Yup, pretty much the bad idea. If you were to go in there, there will be trouble. I’m not implying a high possiblility, but there might be one or two random groups of Dark Mages who thinks it might be easy to pick on a lone White Mage girl.”

“I am not alone Cadeus, I got you.”

“I know, but to the Dark Mages in there, it won’t seem obvious that you have a Dark Mage companion. Besides, even if it is obvious, it will not change anything. Some of them might still try to pick a fight.”

“So you are saying that my presence there will spark a needless conflict.”

“It sounds sad yes, but it is pretty much the truth.”

“Have you ever seen a White Mage get picked on before in that street?”

“… You could be the first, since no White Mage bothered coming down here. Or at least when I am around.”

“Have you heard of any stories of White Mages being bullied every time you visit that street?”

“… No.”

“Then that does not make your statement convincing. Even though there might be some truth in what you say, you are still sharing nothing but possible speculation Cadeus.”

Cadeus sigh inwardly, there goes her academic talent in debates. Time again, Cadeus was reminded that it will take more than usual words to reason with Sing.

“But the danger is still there.”

“I think we are already in danger. We are looking for a highly valued powder after all. Plus this is not the first time where the situation calls for danger. Do you remember what happened during the Mystical Box quest?”

“… Sigh.” Cadeus rubbed his head.

When Sing becomes determined to do something, it would take all of the world’s logic to convince her to turn the other way. Though he was dead set against her entering Demerith’s Street, Cadeus felt that time was better spent searching for the powder instead of arguing this with her. Since it had already come to this point, he might be inviting unnecessary conflicts, but oh well. Cadeus could not refute Sing’s wish to accompany him any longer. She had already cut off all of his escape.

Cadeus put his hands up in a surrendering gesture and gave Sing his decision.

“Ok, you win. You can come with me.”

Sing just gave him a satisfying smile. However for some reason, Cadeus had a feeling that she was smirking to herself more than him.

Just as he was about to turn around and lead the way, Sing stopped him.

“Cadeus wait.”

“Yes?”

“Hold on, don’t move.”

Before Cadeus can enquire what is the problem, Sing silenced him by putting her left hand on his right cheek. There was a flash of bright golden light and Cadeus felt something funny around the area where Claire cut him with her crystal bird. Once the flash was over Sing let her hand down and gave him a smile full of satisfaction.

Cadeus, stunned, stayed rooted there for just a moment. But once he gathered himself, he placed his right fingers on his face at that same area. The bulge of hardened blood clot was gone, replaced with nothing but smooth flat skin.

It didn’t take him long to realize what really happened.

“Thanks… that felt good.”

“Always a pleasure.”

As he lead the way forward, Cadeus was yet again reminded how miraculous her healing powers are. Being a White Mage sure gives you a lot of useful abilities.

TOA

As he descended into the narrow alley leading to Demerith’s Street, Cadeus habitually used his free hand to put up his hood. Given his infamous reputation with his fellow Dark Mages in Tenebris Vacuum, he’d rather avoid any sort of questioning from the adults. The lesser people knew or notice him, the better.

This was not to say that all Dark Mages knew of his questional circumstances. Matters of the Academy were all kept within the Academy. The adults tend to focus more on their own careers than bother themselves with children gossips from the Academia. However, when it comes to traveling outside the Academy, Cadeus still had to take extra precautions.

In seeing Cadeus putting up his hood for the first time, Sing just posed him a question.

“Cadeus.”

“Yes?”

Sing tilted her head.

“Three months into the city and this is the first time I have seen hide your face in front of me. Why did you put your hood up?”

“Ah…”

Whenever Cadeus put his hood up, Sing was usually not there to witness him doing so. Oh well, there’s always a first time.

“Well, the reason why I put my hood up is because I’d rather not have people questioning my lineage.”

“Lineage? Oh, You mean your family name.”

“Yes.”

“I thought matters within the Academy are kept within the Academy. Do the adults know about you?”

“No they don’t.”

“Then why conceal your face? How can the adults know of your issues with the nobles? They can’t even tell if you are a Pure Blood. Unless you are telling me that putting your hood up is some Dark Mage thing special to this street.”

Cadeus paused.

Did she really not know?

He turned to look at Sing straight in the eye, as he is not entirely sure if she is clueless or not. In seeing stare at her with such intense analytical glare, Sing could not help but shift her gaze slightly to the sight, just enough to not make direct eye contact.

“What is it?”

“… Do you really not know?”

“Know about what?”

“Sing, did you know I was a Pure Blood before I told you the results from the Selection Basin?”

“Before that? No.”

“I see…”

So she really did not know.

“What has the Selection Basin got to do with this?”

“Nothing.”

“Cadeus?”

Sing placed her hands on her hip and gave Cadeus a change of look. She is still smiling. However, it seems that she is starting to get irritated for the lack of answers.

Cadeus sighed. He continued walking, explaining as he observes Sing following right beside him.

“This is an unspoken fact among Dark Mages. There is a way to differentiate Pure Blooded Dark Mages from the Mixed Blooded ones through a genetic set of physical traits.”

“Genetic physical traits?”

“Yes.”

Cadeus pointed towards the parts of his head to further illustrate.

“White hair, pale Caucasian skin and cold dark eyes. These are the physical traits that specifically identify a mage born with Pure Dark Magic in his blood.”

Sing showed a change of light in her eyes, it seems she’s starting to understand where Cadeus is coming from.

“I see, so coming from that, it will be very easy for people to recognize you as a Pure Blood.”

“Yes. It is pretty much an extremely rare set of genetic traits, even amongst the nobles.”

“Really?”

“How often do you come across a Pure Blood born with Dark Magic as you would for the other two colors?”

“I see… and since you possessed these traits, people will automatically assume that you are a noble from a very influential family, maybe even one of the Greater Noble Families.

“So since you possessed these traits… people will automatically enquire as to why you are not a noble, and then the confusion and ‘imposter’ label.”

“Yup, that’s the gist of it.”

“These traits must have been causing you tons of problems.”

“Sadly yes.”

In wanting to end this current conversation, Cadeus took out his notebook and started comparing the names Nadav gave him and the names the shop all around him

Cadeus’s family circumstances are what normal people would put as… extremely abnormal. In fact, when the masters first checked his Blood Purity during his enrollment, they were extremely shocked themselves.

Given how a Pure Blood is a de facto noble, Pure Bloods who are not nobles are an extreme abnormally. Hence, Cadeus had to answer quite the repetitive set of questions whenever the masters inquired about his family lineage. What was more alarming to the masters was Cadeus’s family name. Thought Cadeus always insisted the name was pure coincidence, many Dark Mages around him thought otherwise, and a great number hated him for it.

The two of them continued walking. The thin narrow passage finally leads to a small street. A few more steps, and Demerith’s Street was finally in view.

Demerith’s Street, as Cadeus had pointed out earlier, was a street occupied solely by Dark Mages. That statement itself was already enough to give the street a sinister feel, but seeing the street itself spoke volumes more.

Looking at the various shops spread out on both sides of the street, their painted walls were worn out as a result of dust, rain and the lack of initiative to repaint brighter colours.

The shop signages were all either rusted or partially damaged, and there were no signs of any attempts to repair or make any form of maintenance. The glass windows that were meant to display and advertise inner goods are all clouded with heavy stains. It’s difficult to see what the various stores had in mind to sell from the outside. In terms of commercial presentation, there was the severe lack of attraction.

What made matters worse was the general state of the central road. The stone paves were disoriented due to street fights that happened frequently from time to time. Dead brown leaves and twigs chocked up the road corners and storm drains, which might be the cause of the general stench emitting from the roadside.

There were also very few people out in the open. Given how Dark Mages kept to themselves nowadays, the only people who would bother coming here were only Dark Mages, and periodically very few would have the need to come down to this secluded street.

What also adds up to the lack of liveliness was also the fact that there were indications to point out any places of interests. In Carmith’s Street, you get to see tons of signs and icons everywhere to indicate vague directions. But here, the lack of such icons only adds on to the lack of vivacity.

It all just made the scene look so deserted.

After giving the same general overview of the street, Sing could only make one single comment.

“… It seems that there isn’t a lot of activity in Demerith’s Street.”

Cadeus could not agree more.

TOA

Cadeus entered the first shop on his list. From the instance he opened the door, he could see the shopkeeper dressed in the usual black robes for work. For some reason, the shopkeeper was in a good mood. He immediately greeted Cadeus from the moment he saw the door half open.

“Hello, nice seeing another Dark Mage, what do you need?”

“Excuse me, but do you have something called Procona Powder?”

“Ack! That powder again? Hm… let me see if I got any left.”

Again?

Cadeus raised an eyebrow.

It would seem that this ingredient was scouted in this shop already.

Oh darn it.

This only increases the likelihood that the rest of the shops in the street might no longer have the needed ingredient.

Sing just took a few steps in, and already there was something that caught her attention.

It’s a transparent hourglass jar placed on one of the glass display shelves, and there’s some mummified creature with multiple insect like legs.

“What is that?”

Cadeus had already suspected that she would show facial expressions of disgust. But for some reason, she seems… curious.

“Hey, boy.”

Cadeus turned to see the storeowner gesturing him to come closer. From the moment he saw Sing, his expression changed.

As the shopkeeper beckoned him to come closer, Cadeus could already guess two possible reactions. The first reaction expected was that the shopkeeper would inquire as to whether Cadeus had lost his mind bringing a White Mage into a place where they were least welcomed. This was assuming if the shopkeeper was someone who did not mind having White Mages in his shop. The second reaction was more based on the possibility that this shopkeeper was hostile to White Mages. In which this case, he would demand that Sing step out of his shop instantly and treat Cadeus with an unfriendly attitude.

Well there’s only one way to find out. Cadeus could only walk towards the shopkeeper.

“Yes? Is there something wrong?”

“Oh no no no. it’s just…”

“Just?”

The storeowner leaned forward, gestured to Sing with his eyes and spoke softly.

“Why did you bring a White in here? Not to mention a girl?”

There’s no ill intent in the shopkeeper’s voice. He’s simply expressing concern for Sing, something that’s very rare these days.

He was more of the welcoming sort. That’s very good indeed.

“Oh she’s ok. She’s with me.”

The shopkeeper shook his head.

“Still not good boy, you know how unwelcomed Whites are in this area yes?”

Cadeus can only use his eyes and shoulders to express the ‘it can’t be helped’ answer.

“I tried talking her out of it. I told her the possible risks, but she is insistent on coming with me.”

“Hmm…”

The shopkeeper scratched his head, but then he decided to drop the matter.

“Never mind. Business is priority here. So you need Procona Powder, is it for a board quest?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have a copy of the official document?”

Once Cadeus gave him the document, the shopkeeper retreated to a secluded door to the end of the shop. No doubt that is the secular storeroom where most of the shop’s stocks of items are kept.

As he waited, Cadeus stole another glance towards Sing to see that she still had her attention at the glass display. At this distance, Sing was behaving just like any other girl would when it comes to shopping. That being, taking her time to look at the product, compare prices and see if said object would suit her or if she really need it.

Although she was exhibiting such signs, Cadeus was entirely certain that the most she’s doing is just plain observation. All objects in this room were meant for Dark Mages. Even if she got something, it would not be of much use to her being a White and all.

Well, as long as she did not touch anything funny…

He was just about to turn his attention away from her when he caught something suspicious just at the very corner of his eye.

Sing’s eyes became glued to a book, and when Cadeus meant glued, he seriously meant glued to the point where Sing had an extreme interest to purchase it. It’s fine if it’s any ordinary book, but books sold in a shop that primarily sells Dark Magic items tend to have dangerous effects to those who do not know what they were doing.

Looking at the book now, Cadeus’s eyes widened in recognition. He’s familiar with that book, and he knows that Sing is well aware of it too.

The book was bound in black leather with its cover words ornamented in rare expensive roman silver. It is a copy of a book that was part of an extremely rare and priceless set known to be desired by all Dark Mages.

The reason why the set of books is so priceless is not just because of the possible contents within, but it is also because of three important words imprinted on the book cover and the leather joint.

Pride ve Lu

Once he saw that name, an all too familiar vibe went up his spine. That’s the name of one of the three Progenitor Families, the Progenitor Family of Dark Mages.

Cadeus was surprised. He did not know that there existed copies like these outside the Academy. So far, he had only seen such books in the Academy Library’s reference sections and they are very small in number. Oddly enough, the Academy could only provide one copy of each book. You could not borrow them out, plus the section that housed those books were only restricted to Mages who had Pure Dark Magic in their blood.

This copy that the two of them were looking at right now is old, just like the ones in the Academy’s Library.

As Cadeus returned his attention to Sing, her eyes were filled with absolute curiosity. Slowly, he could see her reach out her fingers possibly to turn the cover to have a quick peek at the introduction section. But before she could touch that book with her fingers, Cadeus went up close and grabbed her wrist gently.

“Careful, that book might have a curse.”

Sing looked at him with a slight hint of mischievous defiance in her eyes.

“Define the word ‘curse’ to me Cadeus.”

From the moment he hear the change in her tone, Cadeus knew that Sing’s not her usual charming self.

Sing knew that Cadeus was not academically strong when it comes to Magic terminology. She would go out of her way to test him here and then, but that is only when they are doing homework. Otherwise, she would avoid bringing up academic related work whenever they are both out of the Academy.

Plus, usually Sing would be cautious when it comes to items related to Dark Magic. However, this book alone was more than enough to set her off. Looking at her now, Cadeus could see that no matter how cautious she was in regards to things she was not familiar with, there is a hint of unrelenting desire to understand everything until she is satisfied.

That’s Sing when she has her sights on something she wants, which is something that gives Cadeus cause for him to be concern for her.

Books created by any of the Progenitor Families, particularly the Pride ve Lu, had a particular allure. Such an allure can be quite dangerous if one does not take any proper step to guard themselves when it comes to tempering with the contents within.

Even now, Sing seems to be rather tempted just to open the cover page, and that was already something dangerous just by itself. It was bad to the point where Cadeus doubts she would listen to him if he tries to stop her, even from touching the cover page itself.

Oh my, how unrelenting of her… Cadeus gave a light sigh and dug the academic answer out of his brain.

“A curse is a negative phenomenon that’s empowered by Dark Magic. It could be applied into many functions, but the basis of it was to have a condition and a trigger. Up to date, there are two major kinds of curses; the phenomenal curse and the enchanted curse. A phenomenal curse is a curse of broad definitions that can be invoked either by hexing, imprecation, substitution magic or by ritual implications. As there are various types of phenomenal curses, specific methods must be used against specific curses in order to negate, lift or even exorcise the curse completely. An enchanted curse on the other hand, would refer to the more specific Dark Magic [Guarding Enchantment] that is meant to protect personal belongings, it is made by an enchantment seal outlined by multiple layers of runic inscriptions. The curse is defined by a set of conditions given by the caster. If the conditions are not fulfilled, the curse will activate and deal considerable damage to the intruder. There are different kinds of Curses as it’s enchanting effect varies on the caster’s conditions, and a curse can only be dispelled by a White [Disarmament Spell] or by using Dark Magic to curb the layers of runic inscription.”

Sing relaxed herself and motioned for Cadeus to remove his grip on her wrist. Clearly, he passed.

“You did your homework well.”

“That’s just the fruits of my time spent in the library.”

“Shall I give you another test?”

“Please don’t. I’m not in the right mood for it.”

Satisfied with his answer, Sing soon relaxed her fingers and allowed him to release his grip.

Once her hand was free, she took another glance at the book.

“That book belongs to that family right?”

“Yes.”

“Is it a legitimate copy?”

“Pretty much. It looks very worn out like the ones in the Academy’s Library. This copy must have been used by a great number of mages before.”

“What happens if it’s a fake?”

Cadeus shook his head.

“Unlikely, copies of books from that set are only printed during the Age of Enlightenment. No one knows how to make a legitimate copy anymore. Even if someone tries to duplicate, it will be far from the actual copy.”

“Hm…”

Sing’s eyes returned to the book.

“If a mere copy would be so priceless, imagine one of the originals with the author’s very own research notes.”

“That would be easily worth a Greater Noble’s ransom. No… make that a Progenitor’s ransom.”

“Worth even for one Progenitor? Surely you jest.”

“We are talking about books written by a Progenitor based on knowledge passed down within that same Progenitor family. Surely the works of a Progenitor would be worth for one of their own kin.”

“Hm… that makes sense. Actually I think we better stop talking about this. It could spark some trouble.”

“Agreed.”

“… Are you going to purchase it?”

“Maybe… I don’t really know. Even if I wanted to, it will definitely cost me big. Like about – ”

“OK! Where’s the kid who wants the powder?”

Before Cadeus could continue down into the specifics, the shopkeeper called for him. Looking back at the counter, he can see the shopkeeper putting a small sapphire blue container on the table.

This looks very promising. Cadeus looked back to Sing with a smile of possible guarantee. In response, Sing could only shrug her shoulders and smiled him to motioning forward towards the shopkeeper.

“Ok, count yourself lucky, I got one last pack of Procona Powder. But I doubt it would be enough for your board quest. Still, better than nothing.”

Cadeus’s eyes gave a hint of hope. He was not that entirely concerned with the quantity. As long as there was progress, Cadeus would be able to regain confidence to see that they will pull through in getting the necessary amount of the powder.

The shopkeeper laid a small sapphire blue container on the counter table. He opened the lid and double checked the contents inside.

“Yup, Procona. Do you want to see for yourself?”

Cadeus leaned forward and took a look.

As his eyes came into contact with the now dubious material, all he could see was a sort of grayish sand. The smell seems to be slightly intoxicating, and for some reason it smells like concentrated ethanol. Comparing the sight of the powder to the fluid he got earlier from Tenebris Vacuum, Cadeus can clearly see some similarities. There is no doubt that the thing in front of him is indeed Procona Powder.

“What’s the weight?”

“Hm… about 130 grams.”

130… it is still not enough compared to the 800 grams they needed. But it is still better than nothing.

“Sing, you recognize this?”

“Yup, that’s Procona all right.”

“How much are you charging?”

“Hm… the standard price for 130 grams is about 35 Duches. But since the demand and rarity shot up I’ll charge ten Duches extra.”

“What the… 45 Duches? We’re students, can’t you cut us some discount?”

“Hey, hey, that’s not the right thing to say boy.” The shopkeeper waved his index finger.

“In times like this you have to think like a trader in active business. What you ought to do right now is try to bargain for a lower price.”

In seeing Cadeus giving the disbelieving look, Sing took the initiative.

“How about 38 Duches? Three Duches profit.”

“44 Duches! One short for the lady.”

“How about 40? Somewhere in between, you gain more while it’s enough for our pocket money.”

“Hm… then again you are students. Fine! 40 Duches, sold!”

The shopkeeper reached out with a flat open palm and allowed Sing to slap hers in return. As she paid and collected the sapphire container and gave Cadeus the V for victory, Cadeus could only watched feeling useless as Sing made the exchanges as if it was nothing.

The only thing that is enough to snap him back to attention is when he realized that he had not even put out a single coin to pay for the powder. It was here that he begun searching for his money pouch.

“Ah wait. I need to pay you back.”

Sing only shook her head in response.

“No need. I earned a little extra today during Colours.”

“Are you sure?”

“If you feel bad about me paying for you, then how about you do something for me in return?”

“Um… sure, what is it?”

“Buy me some food once we are done.”

“Ok, is that all?”

“Hm… I wonder.”

Sing turned around and exited the shop, leaving Cadeus behind to ponder at the meaning of her last words…          

“Hey boy.”

Cadeus turned to see the shopkeeper shaking his head.

“What?”

“First you bring that girl in a place where she might get hurt, and you even make her pay your ingredient for you. Have you no shame?”

“Eh?”

It seems that the shopkeeper came into some sort of mild misunderstanding.

“No, no it’s not what you think. I already told you, she insisted on coming with me and she paid the money before I could do something.”

From the way the shopkeeper continued to shake his head, it became obvious to Cadeus that his counter argument sounded like a lame excuse.

“Sigh… you better watch yourself kid, if you keep this up, sooner or later your girlfriend is going to dump you.”

Ok, scratch that. This guy came into some sort of serious misunderstanding.

“What are you talking about? She’s not my girlfriend.”

The shopkeeper reached forward and patted Cadeus on his shoulder.

“Ah I got it, trying to avoid getting on the bad side of your fellow Dark Mages. Perhaps that’s the reason why are you keeping your hood up. I can respect that, but if you are that keen on a cute girl like her you best be more honest in future. Don’t be afraid to express your feelings! There are a good number of Darks out there who fell in love with Whites. If this is that big of an issue, it would have been a frequent scandalous subject for the news reporters.”

“Uh huh…”

Cadeus was not sure if this shopkeeper was speaking from knowledge or from personal experience, but it was certain that he’s lost in his own realm of delusions. Cadeus felt that any further attempts to correct this misunderstanding would indirectly make matters worst.

Wanting to be rid of this current topic, Cadeus took a glance to the black book on display.

“What’s that book doing here?” Cadeus pointed.

“Huh? Ah… that book.” The storeowner raised his head in recognition.

“Over the past three years, I sold that copy three times, and three times their purchasers returned it to me without a demand for a refund. Strange eh?”

“They returned it?” Cadeus widened his eyes in amazement.

“I thought books belonging to that set are priceless, why would they return it?”

“Hm… that’s a funny one.” The shopkeeper crossed his arms.

“Books belonging to that Progenitor family are indeed priceless. But what good is the book if you can’t fully understand the contents within?”

“Huh?”

“You see, books written by any of the progenitors, particularly the Prides, tend to be heavily coded. It is said that such well detailed contents are only meant for those within their family.”

That seems strange.

Cadeus had read some of the famed copies in the Academy Library’s reference section. It all made sense to him… is there even a need to decode it?

“The book is coded?”

“Yup coded, every page filled with symbols, riddles and mysteries. If you take the page word by word, none of it makes sense.”

“If it is coded, it can be deciphered. If someone deciphered it, won’t it be easier for others to read?”

“Hm… I wouldn’t want to put so much thought into that. You see, your suggestion is not new. In fact, many had tried to decipher the pages. But the thing is, not many have been successful so far. It probably had something to do with how the book was written, or perhaps there are various magical barriers within that the author had inventively included to avoid people from stealing his ideas. The heck, even the nobles are not entirely successful. It will take generations for even a Greater Noble to decipher one single book. Imagine dozens of those books lying around.”

“But what if someone decodes the whole book?”

“It’s possible, but the decoding makes sense if you know how to decode it. Even if it’s decoded, not everyone will see the same picture.”

What the…

Cadeus was sure that the copies he had read from the Academy’s Library all seemed fine. He did not feel any codes or mysteries underlying within the words. All of it made sense. In fact, it only made his spell casting a lot better over the months.

Cadeus took another good look at the book. Will this copy be the same? Or will it be full of codes that he would be unable to make sense?

…

…

Cadeus was getting an unfriendly vibe.

It’s just like what the shopkeeper said.

Books made by the Pride ve Lu were only meant for those of their own kin.

Only a Progenitor from that family would be able to understand the contents within.

Not even the progenitors from the other two Progenitor Families would be able to make sense of the books.

But if he could make sense of all that he had read so far…

Cadeus immediately cut himself from that thought.

Nothing was proven. Nothing could be assumed.

Besides, his ancestral lineage had nothing linked to anything magical.

Just like any other Dark Mage who bear their eyes onto that book, Cadeus was just curious.

“Can I purchase that?”

“What the… are you sure you want that?”

“I’m keen, how much are you charging?”

“The standard market price for a copy of a book written by one of the Prides nowadays is 1,876,500 Duches.”

Cadeus nearly fell over.

“1.8 million Duches?!”

“Hey, that’s only a legitimate copy. Wait till you count the zeros for the originals.”

“…”

Cadeus stole a painstaking look towards that book.

In seeing that same expression countless times by the various keen purchasers before, the shopkeeper sighed.

“All right, I’ll sell that copy for 20 Duches.”

The painstaking look Cadeus had progressed to absolute shock.

“Hey, don’t get me wrong. I’d gladly sell that book for it’s standard price. But the thing is, I already sold that book three times, and when the buyers returned the book they did not even demand a refund. Believe me when I say its good money, but even I am starting to feel bad seeing this book doing nothing but collect dust in my shop right now. Technically speaking that’s no way to treat a priceless item like that. Plus, the Intellectuals tend to get very expressive when they see books getting mistreated as merchandise. If that thing is going to collect dust, at least let it collect dust outside my shop.”

“Can’t you just cast protective charms?”

“Ha ha ha. Now that’s something hard. Whatever leather or ornaments that family used, it rejects any external enchantments or curses.”

“Even though this is just a copy?”

“You’ll be very surprised. It is said that the Prides are very protective of books created by their own kin, be it copy or original.”

“But they are all dead. So what’s the point?”

“Dead? Physically maybe, but what’s to stop a few powerful necromancers from raising their dead to help them decipher the book?”

“Did such a thing really occur?”

“Hm… there was one weirdo who did tried such a thing, but that was I think… six hundred years ago?”

“…That’s quite far back don’t you think?”

“It was a time where the Prides were still around. We don’t know much about what had happened. But even if the Prides are not around anymore, the High Council has their own way of making sure that the dead Progenitors are not disturbed from their graves. Besides, even if anyone could raise the dead, they need the grave first, and the thing is, no one knows where are the graves.”

“Is that so…”

Cadeus’s gaze went back to the book.

“What about external damages?”

“Why don’t you try burning it?”

Cadeus could only open his mouth in response to that daring comment. If an Intellectual were in this room, he would respond towards that kind of remark with an extremely violent intent.

The shopkeeper smiled.

“It’s just a joke. Besides, you won’t even be the slightest bit successful. Unless you possessed a fake copy.”

“I see…”

“So 20 Duches or not? I am starting to rethink about this.”

“No! I’ll pay up now.”

At the very least, Cadeus scrambled for his money pouch and took out the right number of coins; this was one of the very few moments he wished there would be some of Earth’s plastic bank notes.

Once he was done giving the shopkeeper the twenty Duches he offered, it’s time to claim the book. Cadeus walked back to the display and slowly reached out his hand, he was just about to touch the cover when he paused.

…

…

Now that he thought of it, he couldn’t be 100% sure if the book had any direct curses that can come into effect upon touch.

In seeing Cadeus acting so cautious, the shopkeeper couldn’t help but bring himself to laugh.

“Think boy! People bought that book three times. Look, the book’s clean. No hidden curses or whatsoever. Do you seriously think I would sell a book that can be so lethal to my fellow Dark Mages? Well, if Whites and Greys are keen on probing that’s a different question.”

Even though Cadeus took the shopkeeper’s word to account, it’s still difficult to accept that it’s 100% safe. There was a reason why books published by the Progenitor Family were all treated with extreme caution.

Well, there’s only one way to find out.

Cadeus took a deep breath and placed the tip of his fingers onto the rough black leather.

…

…

…

Nothing.

Cadeus felt nothing.

No anonymous spell activated, no curses reacting.

The book seems safe at the moment.

Holding the book in his hand, Cadeus posed one final confirmation.

“What about the possible curses that could be hidden within the pages?”

“Nah… like I said, the book’s clean. I read it myself, but I couldn’t make anything of it within the first few pages.”

Smiling, Cadeus kept the book into his sling bag.

“By the way, you are intending to visit other alchemical shops to get that powder right?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know where to look in Demerith’s Street?”

Cadeus took out his notebook and show the shopkeeper the list Nadav gave him earlier.

“Hm… I see, you did your homework… well here’s one advice. Forget about these other shops, they do not have the powder anymore.”

…

…

…

What the shit?

“Why?” Cadeus pressed for an answer.

“Well, a few days back there were a group of crazed Alchemists who marched down this street demanding the powder from all five shops. All they want is quantity. They did not care about the price.”

Sure sounds like the type of Alchemists that Felkor hated…

Hold on.

If these Alchemists were demanding the powder from all sorts of shops, could that imply that they did the same to the other shops belonging to other streets?

“What about the alchemical shops from the other streets?”

“Hm… I’m not entire sure. They don’t seem like the sort to make a major scene like that in a bigger street. Chances are that they had to split up and do it more… quietly.”

Cadeus was not sure if he should take comfort in that or not.

Withi his business over, Cadeus gave the shopkeeper his thanks and left the shop.

“Goodbye, you might want to reconsider bringing your girlfriend here next time.”

Cadeus did all he could to shut out that last remark from his ears.

TOA

Disappointment.

Even though the first shopkeeper told him that the rest had run out of Procona Powder, Cadeus had to personally check the rest just in case only to be met with total zero stock.

As he exited the door, Sing was already outside waiting. He shook his hooded head to the sides to inform her of the obvious result.

“No luck?”

“No.”

Sing had to wait outside for him three times. Only one other shopkeeper than the first is more open to White Mages. The rest are just plain Anti-White.

“Sorry that you have to wait.”

“It’s fine. I get to see what Demerith’s Street is like.”

“… Too bad it does not have the same liveliness compared to what you see in Carmith’s Street.”

“True, shame.”

Come to think of it…

Now that Cadeus paid extra attention, Sing really looks out of place being in Demerith’s Street. Oh… and he did not meant it the harsh way. A White Magi model student sitting on a partially broken bench patiently waiting. In comparing her to her obsolete background, she’s like a living scene coming out of a portrait.

Oh no… not good.

Cadeus shook his head.

This was not the time to get distracted.

Sing got up, ready to leave for Carmith’s Street.    

“Shall we?”

“Yeah… hold on.”

At the corner of his eye, Cadeus saw five Dark Mage students coming towards them.

“Tch… this is so irritating.”

“What do they want?”

“Trouble.”

In counting the possibility that those students did not see his face, Cadeus kept his hood down. From their body language, it’s rather clear that they were not trying to make friends. These students were after something else.

Given the relative state of the whole Procona issue, they must be another group who had taken up the recent additional demands for Procona.

Ah… Cadeus soon deduced their background.

These five students must have been doing some of their Procona hunting only to encounter the ‘out of stock’ dilemna. Out of luck, these five must have noticed Cadeus and Sing’s comings and goings from the alchemical shops down this small street.

Since they noticed that the two of them had been entering alchemical shops specifically, they must had assumed that the two of them had managed to procure some Procona. Instead of going into the same shops they had entered, these five students must have decided amongst themselves to resort to thievery.

‘Give us your powder or suffer the consequences etc, etc.’

Cadeus could instantly expect them to say that line in the next few seconds.

“Sing, do you still have the powder with you?”

“Yes?”

“Ok, keep it with you. If this develops badly, shout.”

Once the lead student took a step forward, Cadeus decided to cut to the chase.

“What do you want?”

“I believe the reason is obvious.” The lead mage said.

“What is it specifically?”

“Don’t play dumb idiot. We’re here because you got some of that Procona Powder right? Now hand it over.”

There we go, just as expected.

“You guys are wasting your time. I don’t have the powder.”

“Don’t lie imposter. Everyone knows you got a clue to get the powder.”

Oh? So they knew his identity from the get go?

Cadeus pulled back his hood.

“Who sent you?”

“Shut up, do you seriously think we are obliged to tell you?”

Cadeus began to consider.

From what he said that ‘Everyone knows I got a clue to get the powder’, it just seemed to be a statement that was rather biased based on a general rumour or assumption without a firm credible source. It had only been half a day since the requests for Procona soared up last evening. Whoever came up with the idea that Cadeus immediately had some source to obtain the powder was just plain dumb.

However, he also could not disclose the possibility that Claire might have went back on her words and ‘tip-off’ the others on how he found a way to obtain the currently valuable powder. Although it’s less likely she would have done so, the possibility remains.

Oh well…

Cadeus shook his head slowly. There was no point in further thinking about this. As someone who had long anticipated this kind of situation, Cadeus knew that this was something inevitable.

In losing patience due to the lack of any response coming from Cadeus, the group of grumpy Dark Mages began to move in closer.

Cadeus sighed. He took a step back.

The lead student walked up towards him and gave one final warning.

“Last chance. Hand over the powder now, and we’ll consider letting you walk away without hitting you.”

The students behind Cadeus giggled with ill intentions.

Clearly, that last remark was not very convincing.

“I already told you, I don’t have the powder.”

“Oh well, since you are so uncooperative, we’ll just beat the crap out of you and ask your White friend back there.”

Sing merely glared back at them but they were not in the least intimidated.

All right, now they pushed the button.

Cadeus took a deep breath in and out.

Just when he was about to Cast [Lightning Arc], a new voice interrupted the session.

“Oi! What are you guys doing?”

“Geh!? It’s that student council fellow.”

“Eh? Why is he here? I thought he is always holed up in the Academy!”

“Shit! It does not matter! Run!”

And with that, the five hostile students suddenly broke off and abandoned the scene. Cadeus could not help but root himself on the spot.

As Sing was looking at him with uncertainty, Cadeus merely shook his head and raised a hand to tell her to not do anything.

If an Educator exposed the fight, he would normally run and drag Sing with her. But in this case, if he attempts to run, it would be more difficult to believe that he was not the instigator. Well the reason being, since he was talking about that guy.

“Tch! Those idiots ran off again. As for the two of you, hold it there where I can see you – Cadeus! You again?”

In seeing Cadeus, that guy threw his hands to his fringe in exasperation.

Cadeus simply did not reply. This person in front of him was so stressed up right now to the point where he could become a volcano if Cadeus said something that might seem provocative, oh and Cadeus really meant it literally.

Usually, he would be unconcerned about trivial reactions, but not when it comes to this guy.

This person in front of him is a noble since he was wearing his own customized uniformed robes that the nobles wear. But that was not all. He was also wearing the Academy’s Student Council armband on his left arm.

At first glance, this particular gentleman Cadeus was looking did not have that particular aura that fit his status. His hair was messy due to work overload, and his character did not possess the same dominating aura Cadeus often gets from Claire.

Davian Mutare ve Coronus. He’s a Dark Mage noble from the Academy’s Student Council.

However, as a noble, his sense of duty was no lesser than hers. He’s the Dark Mage representative on the Student Council that’s in charge of presenting the wishes of his Dark Mage brethren. That’s quite the responsibility, considering how Dark Mages were so ridiculously messed up as street ruffians.

In seeing that Cadeus was going to remain his quiet poker face, Davian sighed and started the questioning.

“What the hell did you do this time?”

“I did nothing.”

“Of course you did nothing. Why else wouldn’t you run?”

“If you know the answer you should have asked a different question.”

“Shut up. I’m in no mood to hear your smart mouth. What caused this ruckus?”

“Some idiots want me to hand over an ingredient that’s not within my possession. When I am being honest with them, they started getting violent.”

“Tch! Usual bunch of useless shitheads… Do you recognize any of them?”

“No.”

“Aaaarrrggghhhh!!!” Daivan tore at his head out of frustration.

Looking at Cadeus again, he asked one more question.

“What is the name of the ingredient?”

“Procona Powder.”

“That thing again?”

In hearing that reactive comment, Cadeus suspected that the issue of Procona must have already been brought up within the Student Council. Given how pricy the powder was right now, it’s going to be normal for the powder to be a common source of conflict. No doubt the Student Council must have approached the Educators to issue warnings, such as what Educator Garth did earlier.

“Are you looking for that thing?”

“Well… yes.”

Upon hearing that, Davian immediately gave Cadeus the very reaction he expected. He took a deep breath and gave him a warning.

“Look Cadeus, you may not be the instigating type, but if I hear one fight where you got involved.”

“Yes, yes. It’s the detention room for me. Not like it’s going to matter.”

“Oh hell it will matter. It will go on your record and you will have the Master to answer for.”

As Cadeus could sure be an instigating factor of numerous fights, he was already on Davian’s ‘Attention List’. There were often times where Davian’s interference actually saved Cadeus from dealing with retarded mages trying to pick a fight for unfounded reasons. However, that doesn’t mean that he was in a good relationship with him.

Come to think of it, why was Davian here?

Cadeus decided to open his mouth and ask.

“What are you doing here anyway? Aren’t you usually holed up on your table back at the Student Council office?”

In hearing that, Davian twitched his left eyebrow.

“… I will ignore that question, and you will do so to not mention such a thing again.”

It really appears that Cadeus hit a soft spot there. He is not deliberately provoking him, but even he got to admit he is curious as to how Davian escaped his overwhelming duties back at the Student Council.

Amongst all the Dark Mages, Davian was the only person thoughtful enough to be part of the Student Council. Since he was the only Dark Mage present, he was automatically appointed as the Dark Mage representative in the Student Council.

His role assignment was plain simple. All he had to do was address the problems Dark Mages had and see if he could solve it. If not, he had to see if such a problem should be brought up to the Student Council.

However, this responsibility merely results in him being buried in overwhelming piles of papers that was usually about lodging complains and damage reports. Generally these were just feedbacks from the general public concerning the damages done by Dark Mage students who picked out random fights in the open street. But given the destructive powers of Dark Magic spells, fights caused by Dark Mages always results in damages.

It’s quite common for Dark Mage students to instigate fights over even the most minor of things. Wagers, ingredients, deals gone wrong, and even books were the most noted reasons for such meaningless outbreaks. When there was a fight, there will always be damages, and the locals who were caught into it would always demand some sort of compensation.

Since they can’t point a direct finger towards the student Mages who they can’t totally identity, they turned to the Student Council. As the representative of the Dark Mage students, Davian had to deal with the frustrations and complaints of whoever got hurt.

Sure sucks to be part of the Student Council, answering for the mistakes and the irresponsibility of his Dark Mage peers.

“Well, I’ll thank you for getting me out of this one. But we got to go.”

Grab.

Davian grabbed Cadeus’s left shoulder before he could make a turn for it.

“Tell me one honest thing. Do you have any Procona on you right now?”

“No. I’m all the more baffled those idiots attacked me based on an unsupported assumption that I somehow got the powder.”

Davian gave Cadeus another analytical look.

Guilty until proven, he decided to let Cadeus go.

Not forgetting Sing, Davian turned to her.

“Take care. If this bugger gets into any trouble, don’t hesitate to inform me.”

“Oh… ok.”

Not caring any further about her relationship with Cadeus, Davian departed the scene with frustration in his temples.

Once Davian was at a considerable distance, Sing turned her face to Cadeus.

“A Dark Mage in the Student Council? That’s the first I had seen such a thing.”

“Don’t worry. He’s the only one.”

“What's his name?”

“Davian, Davian Mutare ve Coronus. You can imagine the hell he’s going through right now.”

“The poor thing. Everyone in your colour sector gives him tons of trouble am I right?”

“Don’t even start imagine. Sigh… let’s get out of here before more punks show up.”

TOA

While waiting for Sing, Cadeus sat down on a nearby bench feeling hungry.

Looking around, there were no eateries.

Of course there are no eateries, he was in Carmith’s Street. If he needs food, he will have to walk to Flomernia’s Street, which is all the way at the other end of Thuranian Dinstrict. It would take literally half a day if he wants to get over to that side.

The other option of course, was to head off to Felkor’s. But that would require some distance to cover.

Oh well… might as well wait for dinner.

Looking around, Cadeus observed the life of Carmith’s Street.

In sharp contrast to the lifelessness of Demerith’s street, Carmith’s Street boasts having the commercial lifeblood in all of the Thuranian District.

The shops were painted with bright colors of white, green, yellow and blue. Artificial lights supplied by magic artifacts illuminated the street regardless of the sun. Advertisements and posters of the like were seen on almost every wall. Shopkeepers were often out in the open, trading with other shopkeepers or confirming stock intake with whoever that’s bringing in more items to keep the shop alive.

Today, it was not as crowded as usual. However, the activities were still quite vibrant. Well it should be. Carmith’s Street dwarfs Demerith’s Street four times the size and it’s heavily reputed to be the richest market district in the capital.

Admist all of the variety of goods, Cadeus felt that there was one flaw in regards to this district. The eateries in Carmith’s Street were all spread out, and it requires quite the bit of legwork just to get from one eatery to another. There was no single convenient location where various eateries are located… well, maybe that’s something for the street to improve in the future.

“I’m hungry…” Nadav said.

“Agreed. If only they had some eateries somewhere…?”

All of a sudden Nadav was sitting sloppily right next to him.

“Nadav? Since when you were here?”

“Just now?”

“I see… Any luck?”

“Nope. The shops are all sucked dry of Procona.”

“Damn…”

“Yup. All, sucked, dry.”

That was said in a rather lethargic tone.

In wondering about his friend’s fortunes, Nadav turned to him.

“Any luck in Demerith’s Street?”

“Only got a small box worth of 130 grams.”

“Are you serious?”

Nadav almost jumped out of his spot.

“Yup. Had to pay 40 Duches for it.”

“Aww that sucks. But still! 160 Profit~.”

“True. But I think we might need to make some of the powder on our own.”

“Oh no… don’t mention it please…”

“Don’t get depressed. We’ll get the right amount.”

“Ah… I’m, so, hungry~… is there a chance of a lunchbox hiding somewhere inside that bag of yours Cadeus?”

“Not one fat chance.”

“Damn it. Well at least I asked.”

“Not in one out of a million – ”

Hang on…

Cadeus suddenly recalled. He did have some food with him. Taking out his sling bag, Cadeus started searching within. Books, maps, scrambled loose copies of documents… it had to be there somewhere. Once Nadav started noticing Cadeus’s behaviour, he could not help but continue to observe, speculating whatever was going on inside Cadeus’s head.

“What is it? You really got food?” Nadav asked.

Cadeus answered his question by taking out the food box Susan gave him earlier previously in Tenebris Vacuum. In seeing Cadeus holding such an atypical object in his hands, he suddenly jumped out of the bench.

“What this?! All of a sudden our Cadeus is holding an object 100% full of suspicion!”

“Stop treating me as if I ate something weird you idiot!”

“ *Exaggerated grasp* That box! That’s no ordinary box!”

“… You just love making a big deal out of everything don’t you?”

“No I’m serious! That is the magically enhanced box that’s said to preserve all the freshness of any food contents within as long as you don’t pry open the lid!”

“…” Cadeus gave Nadav a look that totally said he did not believe a single word of it.

“What? It’s true! I’d take you to a shop at Derithmodule’s Monument! They displayed food boxes like that out in the open. Those are expensive! Their price is set in-between 190 to 230 Duches!”

“I see, I see.”

“You really did not believe me do you?”

Cadeus did not bother answering that.

“So what’s inside?”

“I’m about to find out.”

Cadeus laid the box on his lap and slowly pried off the lid. Once the lid is removed, the two of them zoomed in to inspect the contents within.

Susan had prepared Cadeus three different triangular sandwiches. The first was prepared with cheese, bacon, lettuce and tomatoes with a hint of garlic mayo sauce. The second was filled with a smoked salmon mixture with prickles and edible olive leaves. The last had smashed peas, pesto sauce, onions stacked along four layers of roast beef and turkey ham. The bread crusts on both sides of the three sandwiches also add points to the presentation. Cadeus could tell that Susan spent quite the effort preparing this.

“Wow… such elegancy… it really makes my mouth drool…”

Nadav was starting to have a dangerous look in his eyes.

“…”

Cadeus immediately covered the opening.

“Hey!”

“You’ll drool onto it.”

“Who wouldn’t? It looks so good!”

“Do you still think I will let you do that? Be considerate of the person who’s going to eat it.”

“Well…”

Nadav gave a capitulating look that spoke volumes.

“Sigh… All right… you may have one sandwich.”

“YES!”

Cadeus took out one of the sandwiches and passed it over.

“Here you go.”

“Eh? Why did you hand me the bacon? I wanted the smoked salmon!”

“Beggars can’t be choosers.”

“…”

Nadav grudgingly took the sandwich and munched quietly.

Cadeus took out the smoked salmon sandwich and started eating as well.

“MMM! This is good!”

“Mm…”

“Man! I’d gladly give my set of polished boots for a box like this. Where did you get this?”

Cadeus continued munching.

“Hold on a sec… you are never the type to have such an expensive gadget on you.”

Cadeus ignored that comment. He knew where this conversation was going.

“Oh ho~? What’s with that silence? Did someone give it to you?”

Cadeus continued munching away.

“Who gave you that box? Oh wait let me guess! That Dark Mage girlfriend of yours – ”

PUNCH!

Cadeus confirmed that self deduced answer with a solid punch to his face.

As he collapsed onto the hard floor, Nadav immediately sat up covering his bleeding nose while checking to see if he had spilled any edible contents.

“Oi! That’s mean!”

“It’s justified.”

“Justified? How the heck was that justifiable?”

“I already told you. Susan is not my girlfriend, and I already warned you that if you mention the word girlfriend one more time, I’ll make sure that it will be the last thing you say until you woke up in the infirmary.”

“Huh? Am I in the infirmary?”

Saying that last sentence with a tone of 100% pure sarcasm, Nadav feign ignorance and started looking around him in search for the so-called infirmary.

This guy…

He’s really asking for it.

“… It seems that I was rather lenient towards you. Do you want another go?”

“What’s going on?”

All of a sudden Sing came back. Now her eyes were glued to the box on Cadeus’s lap.

“Cadeus, did you buy that?”

“No?”

“Where did you get that? That’s the expensive food box that is said to preserve the freshness of anything you cook.

Nadav stared at Cadeus with a bewilderment look, as if to say ‘see? I was right!’.

Sing’s eyes went from the food box to the sandwiches to their hands.

“Boys, what were the two of you doing while I was gone?”

“Um… well this is – ”

“Oh this? Oh, nothing~. We’re just enjoying the food that this guy’s girlfriend prepared for him.”

Cadeus immediately shot out a small fireball from his index finger.

“OUCH! That’s Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot!”

Nadav instantly jumped up to stop the small fire with his free hand, causing the nearby passersby to look on their ruckus.

Looking at how things were going, Sing can guess the overall picture.

Ignoring the idiot who brought this upon himself, Sing came closer to inspect the last sandwich. When she saw how detailed the sandwich was made, even her eyes went wide. Then her eyes locked onto the half eaten sandwich on Cadeus’s hand, then to the one on Nadav’s.

“When did she prepare this?”

“Hm? Seems like she did it yesterday.”

“What for?”

“I don’t know… maybe it’s for the book I found for her.”

“Does she prepare sandwiches for you often?”

“No, this is the first time.”

“I see…”

Sing took another look at the last sandwich.

“Can I… try the last one?”

“Huh? Ok sure.”

Cadeus brought up the food box, allowing Sing to grab a hold on the last sandwich.

When she just brought the sandwich into her mouth, her eyes showed some doubt. She’s probably wondering if the food will taste good. But once she took the first bite, she just froze there.

“Umm… Sing? Are you ok?”

“T-This sandwich!”

“Huh?”

“This delegate taste of vegetations with discrete richness of the meat. The seasonings are also well mixed. Along with the crustiness of the bread… just how did she…”

What the heck?

All it took is just one bite.

Are girls that self-conscious when it comes to food preparation?

Cadeus could not really say.

“Um… so any luck Sing?”

“The smashed peas are also so soft. Maybe she grinded it for around half an hour or so… And she did this along with pesto sauce? Her choice of flavour is good.”

“Um… Sing?”

“You see? You see? She made such delicate sandwiches for him just out of the blue, plus she preserved it in such an expensive preservative food box. Cadeus you asshole, isn’t this as good as having a girlfriend?”

“For the last time…”

“OK! OK! SPARE ME THE LIGHTNING!”

BBBZZZZZ!!!!!

“AAAHHHH!!!!!!”

TOA

Once they stopped behaving like idiots out in the open, the scene shifts back to Felkor’s Café.

Since they caused such a ruckus, the three of them soon felt thirsty. The sandwiches were refreshing, but even for Susan’s unique recipes they were a little bit dry. So the three of them decided to head off to Felkor’s again, hoping to see if he had any special new drink up for sale.

When they arrived, they saw the usual busy scene inside the café. When Felkor saw them, he gave them the usual welcome and told them to have a seat first.

As Nadav sat down, he took out his electrically fried cloak and took a good look at it.

“Ah… I need to get a new cloak.”

“Don’t you have any extra?”

“Nah…”

“Hm? I thought the Academy issued two cloaks per student?”

“My first one got fried because I mis-spelled a fire spell remember?”

“Ah right… that was during our first few sessions on Arcane Warfare. But frantically speaking, you deserve that one.”

“Aaahhh…”

Out of frustration, Nadav thrust an accusing finger towards Cadeus.

“This time it is your fault Cadeus! Do you know how one cloak cost nowadays?”

“At least you still got your uniform. That lighting I casted would normally go through such thin fabric.”

“…”

“Besides, if buying a cloak on Zeffernon is so expensive, why not buy a cloak on Earth?”

“Um… hello? Did you forget how long will it be until summer vacation? Also, what makes you think I would bother visiting Earth now that my parents have shifted back to my grandmother’s house?”

“… True.”

“Ok I’ll tell you what. Since you are definitely going back to Earth during summer vacation, you’ll buy me a cloak from there as compensation.”

Cadeus gave a though, he sighed.

“… Fair enough.”

“Don’t get me any plain ones ok? Get me a… let’s see… that it! I want a fur coated cloak, white on the collars and grey on the rest.”

“… Where the heck can I find something so – ”

“No complaints! You destroyed one of my cloaks. That’s the least you can do until you find something better or I find something more practical.”

Practical?

Cadeus raised an eyebrow to that single word.

“… So you just stated such a demand for the sake of demanding?”

“Well… an overly furry coat might make me look out of place…”

Cadeus just frowned in irritancy.

“Sing’s our witness here. Right Sing?”

“Mm…”

Unlike the other two who are unusually particular about fashion, Sing is still observing the preservative box inside out.

In seeing her so unusually engrossed, the two could only look at each other.

“Um… Sing?”

“Hm?”

“Witness.”

“Right, got it.”

Nadav gave Cadeus a sneer that spoke volumes of his intent.

“Not counted. She was not listening.”

“Nope! She clearly said it.”

“She’s more interested in the preservative box.”

“So what? She said she would be the witness to this issue!”

Felkor, having done with his customers, came up to their table with the usual menu.

“Hey guys… Eh? What happened to you Nadav? Did you get burned?”

“Nothing. I just gave him the good old lightning treatment.”

“What for?”

“…”

“Sing?”

Felkor turned his attention to Sing, and then he saw the food box right next to her.

“Ho? What’s that? Oh! It’s that preservative food box.”

“You know it?”

“It’s a top seller these days. Whoever came up with that idea is sure earning loads of Duches.”

“So you did not know who made it?”

“Nah… probably some Artifact Crafter who had a smart brain. When did you guys buy this thing?”

“Um… that is – ”

“We didn’t buy it. This lucky guy here got it from his girlfriend.”

“What? Cadeus got a girlfriend?”

“For the last time. There is nothing going on between me and Susan.”

“Bull shit. This guy is hiding something.” Nadav gave him the down thumb.

“Hm… I don’t know what to make of this… Sirena? Care to explain?”

“Cadeus got three sandwiches from a Lesser Noble Dark Mage called Susan as a reward for getting her a book.”

“I see… How’s that getting a girlfriend?”

“Cadeus saved her before, literally.”

“Ah… I see. So she’s spotted her own knight in shining armour.”

“Totally a knight in shining armour.”

“You guys…” Cadeus gave up.

Felkor smiled. It’s good to see them in such bright spirits in comparison to what they had yesterday.

Feeling bad for teasing Cadeus, Felkor decided to change the subject.

“Oh by the way, I have some news that might be of some interests to you three.”

“What?”

“Your Board Quest.”

The three of them sat up straight.

“Procona Powder has become a nightmare for every Alchemist in the city. People are already starting to call this event Procona Fever.”

“Procona Fever?” Cadeus asked again.

“Yup. Just a night after the demand soared, and that’s what everyone’s saying already.”

“Is this the talk of your customers?”

“Well it’s not just them. It’s coming from the other Alchemists as well.”

“The other alchemists? Did a couple of them show up in your café today?”

“Yes, but it is also not just the usual ones. I still keep tabs with my old colleagues. They are having the same problem right now.”

“So even the legit Alchemists are having trouble.” Sing said.

The three of them look at each other and sighed.

Felkor could not help but give them the wry face.

“Well don’t look so down. It just means that you guys will have to make the powder on your own.”

“You make that sound very simple Felkor…” Cadeus said.

“It is simple. You just need the right materials. Sirena should know right?”

“Yes. But Felkor, wouldn’t the materials in question be running out of stock?”

“Oh dear… more hunting to do?” Nadav clawed his own face.

“It should be fine. There should be quite the number of sources from your respective zones… remember the places where you all had colour class? There should be something.”

“Do you have a list of ingredients where we can collect?”

“I should have…” Felkor squeezed his eyes in deep thought.

“If I remember correctly, there should be fifteen different methods surrounding thirty-four ingredients.”

Nadav nearly fell from his seat.

“The easiest method should be using – ”

“Felkor! We got more guests!”

“Argh! That’s Jasper calling me for help. I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

And with that, Felkor left the trio to themselves.

“Well… I’m not going to sit here and let my throat go dry. I’m getting black tea. Do you guys want anything?” Sing asked.

“I’ll get the chocolate milkshake.”

“Milkshake?” Cadeus raised an eyebrow.

“Do you want to dehydrate your body with more sugar?”

“Shut up! What’s wrong with milkshake?”

“Cadeus? Anything?”

“Apple Brisky Emeloi. No sugar.”

“Ok.”

“Wait, let this be my treat. I still owe you for the item in Demerith’s Street.”

Sing just gave Cadeus a smile.

“Ok then. I’ll need at least seven Duches.”

“Got it.”

As she left to order their drinks, Cadeus took a good look around him. The people surrounding them were mainly adult mages who were pretty much engrossed in their own conversations. It seems like this was a good chance to mention the fluid. If they keep their voices low, they should avoid eavesdroppers.

Cadeus waited until Sing returned with the drinks, then he opened his mouth.

“Before we start talking about anything else, I got something to show you… don’t look at me like that Nadav, it’s got something to do with our Board Quest.”

“Oh phew… for some reason I thought you would be sharing something out of the blue.”

Ignoring the clown, Sing returned her attention to Cadeus.

“So what is it?”

“Like I said, this has something to do with our Board Quest. So whatever comes next, please keep your volume down.”

As he said that, he gave an extremely serious look.

When Sing and Nadav first heard that, they looked at each other then back to Cadeus. Once Sing and Nadav saw how serious he is, they got the message.

“Ok, we’ll keep quiet.”

“Fire away Cadeus.”

“Ok. First, take a look at this.”

Cadeus took out the flask with the grayish fluid from his own sling bag.

“Hm? That’s my flask isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“That’s the stuff you said you were getting from the swamps right? It’s so weird. Why are you showing such a disgusting stuff to us?”

“I’ll keep it short.”

Cadeus reduced his volume.

“If my information serves me well, this is Procona in fluid form.”

The two of them looked at the fluid and back to Cadeus with a hint of doubt.

“Yes I know, very unlikely isn’t it? Well, read this then.”

Cadeus took out the book ‘The Swamp comes Alive’ and laid it out on the table. All eyes drew to the paragraph that Cadeus’s index finger is pointing.

““…!””

“T-This is?!”

“Are you frigging serious?”

The two instantly threw their eyes from the book to the fluid in the flask. Then, they shifted their sight to Cadeus as if to see if he’s seriously playing some joke on them, which is so unlike his character.

“… Why are you two staring at me like that? That hurts you know?”

“When did you get this book?”

“… Not too long ago.”

“How exactly long is this ‘long ago’?”

“Why do you have to make it sound so suspicious?”

“Why do you have to keep such a thing from us up till now?”

“Please… I went through the trouble to do some digging and owe Claire one favour just to get my hands on this information.”

“Favour? Oh! So that’s the book that you had to ask her during that time she was the library receptionist.”

“Yes… it was as if my fate was sealed damn it…”

“Well… (with a softer voice) if the book is true, we can get to make as many powder as we can get right?”

“That’s what we have to find out. At least I have the fluid now.”

Sing simply took the flask and kept it in her bag.

“I’ll see what I can dig up tonight. I learned some powder making processes from my dad. With some extra reading, I should be able to get the proper procedures. As long as it is fluid form, it should be doable.”

There she goes, Sing’s as reliable as always.

“Ok. I’ll also see if I can return to the swamps to get more of the fluid. Back then I saw multiple Draborg plants. They are all ripe. I can see them all swelling fat with the grey fluid.”

“You still want to go back there, even though you almost died there today?” Sing said.

“It will be fine if I am not alone. Nadav will be coming with me.”

“Say what?”

“I said, you would be coming with me.”

“Hold on a minute! You need an Educator’s permission from your side to allow a non-Dark Mage into Tenebris Vacuum.”

“It’ll be fine. Educator Garth is a surprisingly tolerant Educator.”

Well… he’s more interested in his thesis to not give a damn anyway…

“Hold on, hold on. You want me, to go into that dangerous forest with you?”

“Yes? Or are you going to abandon your friend here while he tries to secure your 160 profit?”

“Geh! That’s unfair!”

“It’s not. Besides, the swamps are mostly uninhabited. The creatures that usually attack students are in the deeper parts of the forest. It’s not like we will see much.”

“Sing! There is still time to stop this bugger! Say something!”

“…”

“Sing!”

“Give it up Nadav. We need that powder by tomorrow.”

“NNNOOOO!!!!”

Nadav gave up in exasperation.

The whole issue lasted until 4:30 pm. Now that they got a new lead, it’s time to head back to the Academy to start some powder making.

TOA

By the time the trio left the shop, it is already 4:34 pm.

There is still plenty of time to do some extra shopping or settle any minor quest. But Sing wanted to head back early to read up more about making the powder. Cadeus also wouldn’t mind heading back to Tenebris Vacuum to see if he can make another trip to the swamps with Nadav.

But before they can head back to the Academy, there’s still one last thing Cadeus needed to do.

As he looked at Sing and Nadav, they were already walking on the road heading to the Carriage Centre.

“Hey guys.”

Cadeus stopped his two friends.”

“Can we spare a moment? Before we head back to the Academy, I need to get one last thing done.”

“Hm? You need to do something Cadeus? Oh wait let me guess! Another lady’s favour?”

“Nothing like that you idiot. I need to call my mom.”

At that very answer, the two of them suddenly got a sense of déjà vu. Out of the three, Cadeus was the only one currently who had a parent back on Earth. He had to give frequent calls back to Earth to do some family catching up.

“Oh… right. I forgot about that. It has been a while since your last call right?”

“Two solid weeks. Knowing her… if I don’t call her soon enough, she’ll probably make a fuss out of it.”

“You’ll need to get to the Thermos Building right? That’s at the High Council District…” Sing said.

“Yes.”

“How long will you take?”

“Hm… it will take me around twenty minutes to get to the High Council District by foot. I should be done with my call by around 5:30 pm. Then if we take the carriage again, we should be able to head back to the Academy just in time for curfew.”

“That’s above fifty minutes.”

“Yes…”

“Truth to be told, time is getting rather limited. I’d rather head back first and read up about the powder making process.” Sing said.

“I see. Sounds good. What about you Nadav?”

“Erm… you go on ahead. I’ll head back in case Sing needs something where I can help.”

“Ok, I’ll see you two later then.”

“Later.” “Don’t get into trouble.”

TOA

The High Council District was at the very centre of the capital city. It’s the most isolated and highly secured district in all of Infinitas.

The reason should be quite obvious just by looking at the name of the district. It’s the place where the High Tower was located, the very epicenter where members of the High Council would gather to discuss major issues regarding magi politics.

Other than the High Tower, there were only a couple of administrative buildings. Nevertheless, the security of this district was said to be the most impenetrable in all of Otium.

It’s said that every building was thoroughly inspected and guarded by a perfect magi field spanning the entire building from basement to the highest level. Over a hundred barriers, field layers, magi traps of various levels, hundreds of Magi Enforcers serving guard duty along with mutated chimeras and powerful creatures, and the various stories further exaggerates.

Anyways, the High Tower was not Cadeus’s destination.

The building he needs to go to was called the Thermos Building. It’s just one out of many administrative buildings handling various sorts of paperwork, but it mainly deals with issues relating to Earth; Migration to Earth, visiting Earth, dealing with students who have family on Earth, and other stuff like that.

When Cadeus entered the building. The first thing he saw was the same receptionist. She’s a lady going by the name of Miss. Seinlier. Overall she’s a free and easy lady. When Cadeus first sign in his full name, she gave him the dubious face. But after she heard the story from a certain acquaintance, she passed the issue enthusiastically and treated it as if it were a piece of an unsolved puzzle. Over time, she would tease him in regards to his identity.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes? How can I help you? Oh I remember you, Mr. My Family Name is Pure Coincidence.”

Sigh…

She instantly recognized his face on a whim… she must have really liked his circumstances.

“… I would like to use the Dimensional terminal please Miss. Seinlier.”

“Haha~ you are such a cute boy~. Ok let me see… ah yes. Room six is open. Do you remember the casting sequence or do you need me to go through it with you again?”

“No I’m good. I’ll take room six.”

“Ok. As usual, sign here with your name.”

Cadeus simply wrote his name and handed it back.

There, done.

Cadeus thought that he is done with her for the moment. However, it seems that she’s still had something for him.

Once she received it, she gave him a playful sneer.

“Heard anything new from Mr. Morrison?”

Ah… this again.

“No. But hopefully he would find something that will clear up the misunderstanding.”

“Eh? Nothing? Not a single thing?”

“The last time I heard from him was two months ago.”

“How disappointing. Aren’t you at the least concern if there is a lead?”

Truth to be told, Cadeus was curious. However, information regarding the investigation of his lineage would probably not be revealed for quite some time. Mr. Morrison already assured him as such, the leads he had were very vague, too vague, for anything worth noting. His investigation would probably take several years, which is why Cadeus did not feel like rushing him at the moment.

“If I heard nothing, it will do me no good to speculate. Besides I got more important things to do at the moment.”

“Ah… the Academy. Are you still under Garth?”

“Yes.”

“Does he still give you free time?”

“Yes.”

“Ah ha ha~ that’s so like him.”

“Is he still the same?”

Cadeus instantly recalled that Miss. Seinlier and Educator Garth were former schoolmates of the same badge intake. She must have been one of the many females who got captivated by his pretty boy looks.

Come to think of it… Miss. Seinlier is still single. She had already asked Cadeus once if he could help her ask Educator Garth out on a date. Obviously Garth denied any sort of interest, but now it seems that she’s still interested in a possibility.

All right, since this knowledge just surfaced again, time to tease her a little in return.

“Oh don’t worry, even though he’s getting lots of love letters from both teachers and students alike, he’s still married to his Conjuration thesis.”

“A-Ah… I see.”

In seeing her faltering, Cadeus took the opening and immediately ended this conversation.

“Can I go now?”

“Sure, go ahead. Tell Garth I said hi~.”

“No problem. I’ll also let him know you’re still single and still looking.”

“That’s unnecessary!”

There we go, easy peasy.

And with that, Cadeus left her and approached the secular corridors.

TOA

Entering room six, the room was designed for single users. It ‘s a small tight room with only one seat and a terminal looking device resting on top of a table. All the four walls are sound proof. Perfect for keeping privacy for the exchanges made.

Cadeus pulled out the chair, sat down and looked at the terminal.

The device is magically enhanced. Cadeus did not know the specifics, but through some phenomena, it could establish a link with anything across the other world.

It’s roughly like Skype, just that it’s done with magic rather than with electronics.

The steps to activate the device sounds complicated at first, but with one or two tries, it’s pretty straight forward. All the caster need was to supply the terminal with magic along with mental images of his home. It could be images of his house, his parents or even the very computer they use. The trick was to allow the terminal to differentiate location, houses and people in order to avoid confusion amongst students who might be living in the same area. Then all that’s left was to think about the computer that the parent will use and think of the device like an ordinary computer.

Cadeus checked the time again on his pocket watch. It’s already 4:55 pm. If the timing was exactly corresponded, his mother should be using her computer right now.

Well… only one way to find out.

Cadeus took a deep breath.

He powered up the screen and contacted the other side.

[“Hi Darling~! How are you?”]

“Mom… I don’t mind you calling me darling. But can you please do not say it in such a way that it sounds like I’m your husband?”

The image of his very own mother appeared on the screen. Surprisingly, it took only a couple of seconds before the other side fired up her screen. She must have been anticipating this…

She must have just been released from work. Cadeus could discern that by looking at her background. She’s at home, but she did not change out from her business suit. It’s either that or she’s about to leave the house for her night shift.

[“Have you been busy recently? You did not call me these past few days. Mommy’s been so lonely.”]

There she goes, putting up a face and pouting on purpose like that.

“Ah yes… I have been busy. I got a lot of projects coming up.”

[“Ah ha~! I see, I see. Getting along with your classmates?”]

“Yes… things have been good.”

Cadeus slightly hesitated when he told the lie. But it appears that his mother did not catch the slight awkwardness in between.

“Mom, are you going to work night shift soon?”

[“Ah yes, but it’s fine, I can spare a couple of minutes. No need to rush.”]

“Ha…”

[“Hey guess what? I am due for a promotion!”]

She gave him a big V for victory.

“Promotion? Oh… for your business corporation right?”

[“That’s right. Though my salary will increase, I will be traveling more often for conferences. I am due for a flight to Hong Kong soon.”]

“I see… that’s good.”

[“He he~ I hear Hong Kong got many interesting things. Do you want something I can send over? A souvenir? Food? Would you want some particular snack you can only find in Hong Kong?”]

“Um… I’ll take the food then.”

[“I will be leaving tomorrow, should be back home in about a week or so, so don’t call me until then. This Hong Kong conference will have a lot of big shots coming in so I need to prepare myself thoroughly.”]

“So when will I expect you to be back?”

[“I think things will be back to normal at around… the 24th? 25th? I think 25th, yes, standby that date for now.”]

“Ok… but if you are going to travel more often, then what about your part time modeling?”

[“It’s ok, I’ll find some time. My modeling manager is doing all the scheduling after all.”]

Oi, oi…

She just waved the matter away as if it was a minor thing…

As usual, she sure has that level of confidence in what she does… Cadeus thought.

“Are you sure your scheduling is all right?”

[“No worries. If there is anything that clashes I’m not the one doing the answering. If things mess up, the fashion company will simply sack my manager and replace him with another one.”]

Ouch…

Cadeus felt slightly sorry for whoever was currently serving as his mother’s manager.

[“By the way… have you been keeping in touch with Mr. Morrison?”]

“… What?”

An unexpected topic Cadeus was not expecting to hear surfaced at that very instance.

[“You see, he has been making appointments to meet up with me recently.”]

“Whatever for?”

[“Just reporting to me how your progress has been, ensuring me you are not playing lazy.”]

“Mom… that actually hurts you know.”

[“He mentioned you were very talented, and he was asking me if there was anyone in our family history who had similar talents.”]

Ah… that’s just probably Mr. Morrison digging leads on the investigation regarding his family name. The ‘Talented’ portion must have been an indirect implication to magic.

“What did you tell him?”

[“I said no, our family history is pretty much normal. No particular ancestor stood out.”]

“I see… was there any mention of the family tree?”

[“Nope. I did not mention it. You had it anyway so it would be pointless for me to talk about it. Besides, it didn’t seem that important to bring it up anyway.”]

“Right…”

Showing Mr. Morrison the family tree might be a big boon for his investigation. But from his mother’s point of view, Mr. Morrison’s question might have been meant for casual talk having nothing of any relevance. She was not aware of his investigations, nor would she be interested if she were informed.

Cadeus knew that his mother is the type who valued individual actions and merits more so than a person’s background. Investigating into a person’s family background is clearly not within her interests.

Due to Mr. Morrison’s investigations, Cadeus had considered countless times in the past three months to just spill the beans and tell her about Magic and Zeffernon. But in the end, he concluded that it’s best not let her know anything related to magic.

It’s better to let things lie low for normal people. Like what Emanuel Kent said, Ignorance is bliss.

Cadeus’s mother is ignorant of the existence of Zeffernon. She did not have the gift to use Magic.

When the mages on Earth discovered Cadeus’s supernatural talent, they approached his mother with offers of scholarship to Triple Orb Academy under the disguise of an academic High School. Cadeus did not know how his mother came to accept his enrollment, but he suspected that the mages probably used some mind-convincing spell to persuade her into allowing him to come over.

[“Anyways, look at this!”]

“Hm?”

[“Jian~, jian~!”]

Cadeus’s mother flashed out a magazine.

[“Your mom hit the front page for this month’s issue!”]

What Cadeus ended up looking at, is an adult fashion magazine where his mother is seen wearing a scantily looking set of undergarments.

…

…

…

Cadeus was this close to slamming his head on the table in exasperation.

“Mom… such contents are unsuitable for the young.”

[“Haha~ don’t be too shy Cadeus. Admit it! I still look sexy for my age right?”]

“Mom… I’m only sixteen years old. This is not something a mother should be showing her underdeveloped kid.”

Cadeus’s mother put up an evil smile.

[“Not bad, you aren’t in the least responsive.”]

“If I am responsive in a particular way, I might get arrested for it.”

[“ *Pitiful sigh* My dear boy is not in the least interested.”]

“Of course. I’m looking at my mother modeling with such exposing pieces of garments. It’s embarrassing. Please don’t tell me you were hoping I would have some sort of reaction.”

[“Ah~, ha~, ha~? Is my dear boy blushing?”]

Cadeus waved her scheming face away.

“As if. Watch how you present yourself to your own son for once.”

As a boy, Cadeus would be lying if he said he wouldn’t have a reaction seeing such a revealing magazine page. But the person in the magazine is his own mother. If he were to have some sort of reaction, there will be something very wrong with him fundamentally as a human being.

[“Ha…”]

Cadeus’s mother rested her head on her knuckles.

“What? And what’s with that self-pitying look on your face?”

[“Do you really have nothing else to tell me?”]

“Like what?”

[“You have been three months away from your own mommy. Don’t you have anything interesting to share?”]

“Share as in… what?”

From the minute he said that, Cadeus instantly knew that he fell into his own mother’s trap.

Oh crap… maybe I should have kept silent. He thought.

Every time he called to talk to his mother, this was one topic he had to avoid at all costs.

Fortunately for Cadeus, she forgot to ask this of him the last time. But it seems she remembered not asking him about it, and she’s not going to let him off the hook this time.

Cadeus’s mother flashed him a cunning smile.

[“My dear boy~ have you finally found someone?”]

There we go…

Cadeus was really starting to get a headache.

It’s always this question.

Why this question?

Of all questions, why this question?

“Mom… this is the seventh time you have asked me this question. Why are you always interested in that sort of thing?”

[“Because I have to spot check. Who knows? You might even be hiding a girl behind my back without telling me.”]

“… Why would I bother doing that kind of thing?”

[“Quit beating around the bush. So? Have you finally found someone? Are you finally going out with a girl?”]

“No and no.”

[“You are lying.”]

The tone of her voice became one of accusation. Now that caught Cadeus off guard.

“… What makes you think I am lying?”

[“Mother’s intuition.”]

“Just based on that?”

[“You can call that being biased, but I can tell you are hiding facts from me.”]

“Hiding what?”

[“You are going out with girls, aren’t you?”]

How on earth, could her intuition pop up when it came to this sort of thing?

“… Yes.”

[“Ah ha! So? Has anyone caught your eye?”]

Cadeus thought back about the girls he met already.

So far there’s only Sing, Susan, and Claire…

“… None so far.”

When his mother heard that, she gave an expression that clearly said ‘what a troublesome son I have’.

[“Sigh… what trouble. You never went out with anyone during your elementary education, or your middle school education. And now you are still saying no girl has caught your eyes? I’m the one who’s starting to worry here.”]

“… You sure love to keep a detailed record of my love history.”

[“Of course? A mother will always be curious who would her dear boy will go out with.”]

“I see…”

Something akin to an alarm can be heard from the other side. It’s that same old jazzy tune from some Waltz Disney fairy tale movie.

“Mom, I think that’s your phone ringing.”

[“Is it? Oh right it is.”]

“… Please change that stupid ring tone.”

[“Oh shucks… I need to go already or I might get caught in the highway jam… Any ways, 25th ok?”]

“Noted.”

[“Make sure you get a girlfriend the next time we talk!”]

And she shut off her screen, ending the session with the same last words.

As Cadeus shut the terminal down, he leaned back on his chair and looked up towards the ceiling.

“Girlfriend huh? You make it sound so simple mom…”

Given how almost every mage hate or dislike him due to his family name circumstances, finding a girlfriend could already be considered an extreme challenge. Besides, getting a girlfriend was currently far from his mind with the number of activities he had to do daily.

Cadeus rubbed his head.

“Sigh… perhaps I’ll just not call her until I get myself a girlfriend.”

Of course, that was not possible.

With nothing else to do, he simply got up and left the room.