Planet Areana. Border of the Largoth Empire and the Great Forest. Empire of Largoth. Capital Parn
The Merry Fat Man Tavern
On the same day in the evening
"I still can't believe you were able to tame the drag," said Kasis, sitting opposite me and looking at me in surprise.
…We were sitting in a local tavern. It was called "The Jolly Fat Man." Interestingly, there was no fat man in sight. The owner of the establishment was a fairly young woman. Although, given their age, I wouldn't say so definitively. But to my eye, she looked about twenty-five. Attractive, not very tall, with dark, curly hair. She smiled often, but that was probably just her professional attitude. She treated us quite hospitably. Although she showed just as much attention to the others.
She was very surprised by our group, or rather, by the fact that we had a little girl with us, especially when she learned that we were the only ones who had just arrived from the forest. But she didn't ask many questions.
"Everyone has their own reasons," was how Kasis commented on her behavior.
The inn building was large and quite cozy. It had a limited number of rooms, though. Those hoping to enter the empire had already gathered there. But the girl found us a room. Not very large, but comfortable, in my opinion. Well, I judged it based on its overall security. At the very least, it turns out there were thieves here. I broke one's arm at the entrance, the one who was reaching for my knapsack. So it wouldn't hurt to take care of that, and besides, Kasis had promised to ensure the security of our room for the next couple of days, but using his own methods. As he said then:
– You will see how artificer mages and runologists work, so you won't have to ask stupid questions anymore.
At least he added that no one would be able to sneak in. And Deya was a very perceptive girl, and not even a mouse would slip past her.
Well, I decided that if I saw it, I'd see it. It was even interesting to watch the old man's actions.
I've already realized that the local mages here operate in more than one way. There are artifact makers, some runologists, and those who work with the forces directly. There was also a more crude form of magic, like that of the shamans I met.
And the gorillas who fought the elves, it turns out, were called tarloks. Dangerous creatures, and powerful, as I've personally verified. And their weapons were highly prized. Not for the quality of their craftsmanship, but as trophies. Many aristocrats kept them and passed them down through generations. And they fetched a good price, as Kasis told me. But it's better to sell them in the capital than here. Prices will be higher there, as there are no such enemies there, while proud and arrogant aristocrats abound.
And I had three such swords. The last one wasn't Tarlak, and Kasis couldn't determine who made it. He's no expert, after all.
But the weapons of the mages and their guards were best sold at the border, since there was a certain demand for them here, while in the capital this consumer goods of the blacksmith's kind would be of little interest to anyone.
So, you could say we've settled in well.
We went down to have dinner, and then were going to walk to the local general store, where they sold everything, it was owned by the same guy from whom we bought the drag and the pegasi.
We gathered there mainly because it hurt me to look at the rags the girl and her grandfather were wearing. Although, for some reason, they didn't seem particularly bothered by it.
We chatted while we waited for dinner. I also took a look at the local guests.
Most of them were travelers like us, some locals, a few warriors, and a few unknowns. These were the ones Kasis called seekers. They were strange, reminiscent of some kind of flawed mages, but I couldn't understand their limitations. And I didn't want to ask, revealing my blatant ignorance. Deya and Kasis had already asked me several times what kind of backwater I'd crawled out of to not know such simple things. So for now, I mostly observed, but I couldn't help but ask.
"I'm just as surprised myself," I admitted honestly, "but I really liked him. I've never seen such beautiful and majestic animals."
"You should keep in mind that they are half-intelligent and it is better for you to treat him with respect, and not like a pegasus, and you also need to give him a suitable name, something that this drag himself will accept," the old man instructed me.
"Got it, I'll think about it," I nodded.
The grandfather continued to reason:
"But now something's becoming clearer." He looked at me. "I'm sure you have at least some abilities, though not particularly strong ones. Sorry, your aura is very weak and undeveloped. But you definitely have them, and they gravitate toward life magic. And that's already good. If you were able to tame a drag, that means you're at least at the level of an apprentice. Besides, as I suspected earlier, you sense sources of power. And that also suggests you have magical aptitude."
"What do you mean?" I was curious about what Kasis was talking about, although I already had a rough idea of what I was about to hear.
However, Deya answered me instead:
"Grandfather says you always chose campsites near sources of magical life energy. We noticed that. And that's good; those are the safest places in the forest. You seem to sense them quite well. I, for example, can only find them if I use my magical sight, just like Grandfather, by the way. And that's difficult. My elements are air and water. Which is also good. I can sense their sources anyway. For example, here in the fortress there is a strong source of water power." The girl waved her hand somewhere behind her.
I glanced over. Yes, I saw a bluish spot there, a little further down. Incidentally, a thin thread of magical energy extended from it to Deya.
"Don't worry if you don't feel it," she said. "Very few mages are born with the ability to control multiple powers at once. They're called generalists. They're usually not as powerful as other mages, but they can use their abilities where more specialized mages become weak. This doesn't apply to air mages, though. It's everywhere. But even here, there are limitations. For example, if there's a powerful source of any other power nearby, it simply converts all nearby energy to its own type. And in such places, mages of the same type as the source are strongest." After a moment's thought, she added, "So mages try to build their homes and dwellings close to the source of their power."
But I was interested in something else.
"Deya," I asked, "does it mean that if you sense a certain source, you have an affinity for that type of magic?"
The girl looked at me in surprise:
"No, of course not. I can sense all magic. I just need to use my magical gaze to do it. The Seekers over there," she pointed to the group that had caught my attention, "can sense many types of magic, but because of that, they can't work with them at all. Or they can work, but only with small amounts of magical energy. And that's second-level weaving at most, and not always even then."
Listening to her at such moments, you wouldn't think you were talking to a twelve-year-old girl. But, as I understood it, Kasis had been raising her since childhood, and he couldn't teach her anything other than magic, as that was all he knew. That's why she had such knowledge. I didn't even have that yet.
"Oh, by the way," I recalled my idea and turned to the old man. "Kasis, I wanted to ask you something. Those artifacts that the seekers collect in the forest should, in theory, fetch lower prices here? Or is that not the case, that they cost the same in the capital as they do here?"
"It's much cheaper here, of course. But you have to understand what you'll be selling in the capital and to whom. Every mage has their own suppliers. Local goods are usually used as ingredients or preforms for future magical items. And they might simply not sell them from you. Although..." He paused. "I imagine the academy would buy everything, but at a slight discount."
I chuckled.
– The main thing is that this discount does not exceed the difference in the price of the goods.
"You don't have to worry about that," the old man said. "They'll ask for no more than twenty percent. With a discount like that, they'll buy everything you have in the city. But at the academy, they'll buy everything in one go."
"I see," I nodded, "but how can we tell which artifact from the forest is more valuable?"
"Well, it's simple," the old mage replied. "You need to choose the ones with the most accumulated power; they'll be valued much higher. But don't count on the locals not knowing this. They studied at the Academy of Magic themselves. After all, they teach both seekers and rangers there. But the training time and cost in these departments are significantly lower than in purely magical ones."
"Well, that's pretty much what I thought," I commented on his answer. "I was just curious about the principle. And I also wanted to figure out if it was profitable to buy something here and then sell it there."
"Of course it's profitable," he shrugged. "It's not for nothing that buyers come here every month. Those guys over there," he nodded at the searchers, "are sitting here because, apparently, someone's supposed to show up soon."
"Okay," I said, wary. "From now on, let's get into more detail. So, they have all the merchandise now, and they're ready to sell it. To anyone, or just to a buyer?" I glanced at the people sitting separately and some strange guys who resembled our boxer, Valuev.
Deya called them ogres.
"They shouldn't really care. A third-party buyer is actually more attractive, since they won't ask for discounts like a reseller. Those resellers sometimes charge up to thirty percent for buying the entire lot."
"Interesting," I muttered under my breath, and, having already realized that my decision was the right one, I quickly stood up. "Come with me. I'll need your help." I turned and walked toward the tables where the seekers, or searchers, were sitting.
"Good afternoon, dear ones," I greeted the people who looked at me.
Of course, there were not only people there, but there is no point in listing them all.
"And you too, northerner," replied the powerful ogre.
What did I say, "northerner" again? Is that written all over my forehead?
"May I?" I said, pointing to a couple of empty seats.
"Sit down," said the same leader of the detachment, and he could not have been anyone else.
"Thank you," I replied. "I'm Stepan, and these are my relatives, Kasis and Deya," I introduced my companions.
"Trok," said the ogre, "Kiral, Sern, Biryuk," a nod in their direction, "the rest are not our team."
"Got it," I nodded. "We came to you on business."
"We hadn't guessed," the ogre chuckled. "What do you need? We can't take you as companions; we'll head straight into the forest."
"No, you misunderstood," I replied. "I'm interested in your finds. Grandfather," I pointed at Kasis, "said you could sell some things at a relatively good price. So we came to you to find out if you had anything for sale."
"And this," he looked at us, "depends on what you're interested in."
Who the hell knows what we're interested in, so I turned my gaze to Kasis. He just shrugged and replied:
- I have to look first to understand.
I look at the ogre.
He peers at the old man, and I see a slightly purple line moving from him towards Kasis, and then Trok confidently says:
- So you are a magician.
Kasis nods.
"Then I understand." He points toward the door to the street. "We have everything in stock. We can go and have a look."
"After dinner," I stopped everyone, noticing how the hostess herself was setting the table for us. "Why is that?"
"No problem," Trok replies, "finish and come on over."
We stood up and went to our table. We ate, and only then did another belated thought occur to me. Or rather, a question I'd missed.
"Hey, Kasis, I didn't ask right away. How much do these artifacts cost?"
He looked at me in surprise, shook his head and only then answered:
"From gold and up. True professionals don't usually collect small change, but if they find it, they'll sell it either as extras or in bulk for a dozen gold pieces. Something truly valuable can fetch up to a hundred. If they have artifacts belonging to ancient mages, even non-magical ones, then we're talking about a thousand or more."
"Hmm…" I said and thought: "You won't make much money, if anything."
Yes, there is one more thing.
- What is the ratio of gold elfar to imperial coins?
"Usually three to one," Kasis answered quickly.
He already understood that I didn't start all this for nothing.
- Good. And the Tarlok ones?
"Eh," my grandfather looked at me in surprise, "they don't have their own currency."
- Yes? - And I reached into my backpack. - And whose are these then?
He looked at the coin given to him, then turned his cautious gaze to me and asked:
- Where did you get it?
"From the same place as the sword," I shrugged. "That's why I thought it was their money."
Grandfather relaxed.
"These are Irian gold coins. They'll exchange them one for one, but only in the capital. No one will take them here. There, I'll find someone to sell them to; I know a money changer."
"Okay," I replied, "then let's go."
The Tarrloks had different types of currency. Of the coins I found, I was only able to identify those that belonged to the elves and the imperial ones. Now I've identified the latter as well. There weren't many of them. Just twenty. But they were there.
But now, in addition to my gold and silver, I also have a small emergency reserve in the form of these coins.
We got up from the table.
"We're ready," I said, approaching Trok's squad.
"Let's go," he replied. "The house we rented is nearby."
His companions also rose from the table and headed towards the exit of the tavern.
* * *
"Did you hear?" one of the locals asked the other.
They sat at the table next to the seekers.
"These three must have money if they're going to buy anything from Trok. He doesn't deal in cheap stuff."
"Yes," nodded the second, "but that old man is a mage. We can't do this without Cherp."
"Well, we'll share," the first one shrugged, "he doesn't take that much." But then he added, "It's just a shame about the girl, I'll have to give her to him. Better to just kill her. I don't like what he does to them."
"But there are no other magicians here who are ready to take down their own," the second one shrugs.
Having concluded their brief meeting, they rose and followed Throk's team and the mage who had left with them outside. They didn't have much time. They needed to prepare an ambush for these three. The death mage would neutralize the most dangerous of them. And they could handle the girl and some brat.
"Here, look." Trok laid out on the table in front of us about fifty different stones, whole and broken bones, some branches, a small animal skull, some kind of rodent, and separately, a little to the side, he placed some herbs and some plants.
"You've got a lot here!" Kasis marveled, studying the items laid out on the table with interest and admiration, along with Deya. "Have you been on a long search?"
"Almost three months," Trok shrugged; it seemed like it was normal for him to be in the forest for so long.
"And I see, not in vain," Kasis pointed to the table.
The ogre nodded in agreement.
Something else struck me. In five days of traveling along the highway, without going particularly deep into the forest, I collected twice as much. Either I see better, or who knows what.
Kasis began to put aside the most brightly glowing objects.
"This is the best there is," he said. Then, nodding toward the herbs and plants, he commented, "I don't touch them, as I don't understand the specifics of working with them." He looked at me. "Perhaps something caught your eye?"
He was right; I was intrigued by one particular plant. It stood in a small pot and was a fairly powerful source of life force, mixed with something else strange. I'd never seen such a color before. But if you judged solely by the intensity of its radiation, it was the most interesting.
"This," I said, nodding at the pot.
We also put this one aside.
Trok announced the prices for the goods we'd chosen. It came to almost four hundred gold. That was practically all my cash, even including all the elven coins. But, as I understood it, it was a good investment, one that would yield a tangible profit upon my arrival in the capital. I didn't have enough for my studies anyway, and now I could at least confidently pay for the first and perhaps second years of the academy. That is, if, as Kasis said, someone bought these goods from me. But it was worth the risk. Even if I sell them for next to nothing, I'll at least have covered the first year of my studies. We'll see.
After a bit of haggling, we even got a forty-gold discount, since we were getting the most expensive item all at once. Overall, I think it was a good deal.
Having stowed the artifacts in my backpack, we left Trok and his crew's house. It was already getting dark. It was time to settle in for the night at the tavern. But I remembered my desire to stop by the local shop, so we headed there first.
"They're coming," said one shadow to another.
"I see," the second one responded. "As soon as the mage falls, jump on the guy and take him down. I'll finish him off, and then we'll grab the girl."
Cherp warned them they'd have no more than a couple of minutes. He stood nearby, focused on something. But his actions were unnoticeable, as he didn't even move.
The trio approached the alley where the local bandits were hiding. But suddenly, the young man walking next to the old mage tripped over something and took a few quick steps forward to avoid falling.
"Why doesn't the old man fall?" thought the first one.
And suddenly he heard a hissing sound coming from behind him. He turned around and was surprised to find the hilt of a dagger protruding from Cherp's neck. Then the bandit saw his pupils dilate. The mage had clearly noticed something behind him. But he hadn't had time to do anything.
Two quiet steps—and two bodies fall. Another calm step forward—and cold eyes look at the mage-killer. And then the young man, with a thrust of his hand to the right, yanks the dagger out of his neck, cutting it almost in half.
"Styopa, what's there?" a child's voice calls out.
- It's okay, I imagined it. I'll be right out to you.
As soon as we left the house where the seekers lived, I noticed three lurking figures. Two were ordinary people, but the third was completely saturated with some kind of black-gray, incomprehensible, sticky energy. And if I were to guess what kind of mage this was, I would somehow conclude that he was using borrowed power. And then only one thing came to mind: sacrifices.
This company was waiting specifically for us.
There was no way we could get out of this alley without the ambush they had set. So what awaited us?
I see some kind of black energy structure in our path, a control thread from it leading to the mage. It's almost at the end of the alley. But as soon as we reach it, the unknown people will be behind us. I don't like this at all.
What else? Whether they're armed or not is unknown. How can I find out? I need to see the strangers before the others do. And then figure it out on the spot. How can I do that? To do that, I need to be about five steps ahead of Kasis and Deya. Can I do that? Without a doubt. The road is dark. It's hard to see what's lying on the ground. So if someone trips and almost falls, no one will be surprised.
I draw my knives discreetly. I don't know, maybe I'm lucky in this world: in dead ends and narrow streets, short weapons are much more convenient. Although I don't deny the usefulness of other weapons on the battlefield. True, in this world, I've never found myself in such situations. Luckily.
That's it. I'm here. It's time.
Step. I stumble very naturally, especially considering that I actually did stumble. And I fly straight through the alley, barely managing to stop before the energy web.
The bandits are armed. Their swords are drawn. The mage maintains his spell. I see. These are also enemies. Then we act accordingly.
I throw a knife at the mage's neck. He's wearing no protection. I can't tell what's underneath his clothes, so I target his neck.
I wait a moment. The bandits should start to bustle about. I see one of them turn around. Now two quick steps forward. Crouch, dodge the oncoming blow, and slash at the first enemy's throat.
Another step – and a second blow. Bodies fall. It's a good thing it's dark here and this alleyway isn't visible from the main street.
All that remains before me is a mage with some kind of putrid darkness within. I don't deny death and understand its importance, so I'm relaxed about those who will work with it. But this is something else. As I said, it's very similar to sacrifices and the death that comes with them. So, without regret, I pull out the dagger, trying to inflict as jagged a wound as possible. Let him feel the pain I inflicted.
I take a step back to block the view from behind, as I sense Kasis and Deya approaching the corner.
"Styopa, what's there?" the girl asks.
"It's nothing, I imagined it. I'll be right out," I answer calmly.
After waiting for my acquaintances to move on a little further, I search the corpses. I take nothing from them except money. They're locals; I saw them in the tavern. And if I show up with anything that belonged to any of them, there will be questions. And I don't need them.
I emerge from the alley and am met with a strange gaze from Kasis. The old man is no little girl and understood perfectly well what had happened there. He merely nodded at me as I passed. He had no questions for me.
He reminded me of Petrovich in some way. Both grandfathers were cut from the same cloth.
We went into the shop. There, I sold all the weapons that weren't of interest in the capital. I also sold the mages' amulets and scrolls, figuring their value was significantly higher here than there. After all, there's no such competition among those who create them. I earned a whopping twenty gold pieces from this, which showed how profitable trading magical artifacts and such can be. It instantly recouped all our expenses at the outpost. Plus, we bought Deya and Kasis some decent clothes and travel bags. I remembered the elf's careless words and bought a pair of boots, incidentally, made by them. The elves sometimes bartered them at the outpost. They fit me perfectly. There was nothing else of interest in the shop. At least not for me.
A day later, we paid the entry fee and left the outpost. And now we're on imperial territory.
As I left the outpost, I realized why it stood in that particular spot and why it was impossible to bypass. It turned out that right behind it lay a gigantic chasm, two hundred meters deep and about a kilometer wide. Across it was a vast stone bridge. A colossal structure. The work of dwarves, as Kasis had said. On the other side of the bridge was another outpost, but smaller.
We could have flown out immediately, but we had to register our entry into the Largot Empire, so we had to visit the second commandant of the next outpost. And then it turned out that the duty could be paid right there. You just had to drive or walk there. Nobody told us about this. Well, what's done or not done is done. Besides, we accomplished some useful things. For example, I acquired a dredge named Tiir. We also bought artifacts found in the forest and planned to resell them in the capital. Kasis promised to help with this, reminding us of the promised twenty percent discount.
But the main thing is, we're in the empire. Admittedly, I didn't notice much of a difference. The air is the same, the forest is the same. And, apparently, all the same troubles.
In two days we will be in the capital.
Well, no. One significant change did occur. I was flying. I never thought it would be so pleasant.
Kasis and Deya looked at me like I was an idiot doing all sorts of crazy things. But I was deliriously happy! And it seemed my mood had infected the others.
The road to the capital promised to be unforgettable.
Empire of Largot. Roadside Inn "At the Crossroads"
A day later
"Kasis, who is this?" I was intrigued by the strange group sitting in the corner of the room.
A strong magical aura, but somehow unusual. Somewhat similar to mine, but more pronounced. It wouldn't be possible to hide the fact that you're a mage. However, they could also manipulate its visible manifestation. Which, apparently, they were using. I noticed this when a hooded girl sitting with her back to me—I could tell she was a girl only by her figure; she was too feminine and alluring—dimmed her aura a bit. This is what drew my attention to the group.
"Who?" the old man asked, looking around.
"Those in the corner," I nodded in the right direction.
At first, my grandfather looked incomprehensibly in the direction I was pointing, but then I noticed how a purple channel extended from him into that corner.
"It can't be," he said incredulously and carefully looked around the rest of the room.
Apparently, he was looking for the same kind of people, but there were no more like these unknown ones.
It seemed his increased attention to their group had provoked a reciprocal reaction. They were interested in us, too. As the saying goes, don't wake a sleeping dragon; it might not like it. A young man, I'd say, rose from the table with the strange people, but his aura was far too saturated with various impurities.
Kasis stared tensely at the man approaching us. I did too, actually. I didn't know what he was planning on doing here, but just in case, I started calculating how to eliminate him. I couldn't shake the feeling that he was a walking killing machine, and although he seemed to be moving toward us casually, I could sense his readiness for battle. These were dangerous men. Very dangerous. I'd never encountered anything like them. Not in that world, not in this one. But here, I knew, many more surprises awaited me. This made me even more curious about who they were. You always need to know such dangerous opponents and understand their capabilities.
A man approached us. Looking closer, I realized my mistake. But what kind of man? He looked more like an elf, only slightly pale, which was hidden from view by the hood pulled over his head. But before he could say anything, Deya's childish voice rang out:
- Uncle, you are a real vampire, a true one?
Who? A vampire? Are there those around here? Now, at least, my fears about him are clear. And how to kill him? I don't have any silver or aspen stakes, and I don't know anything else about them. And they sit by the window, not particularly afraid of sunlight.
Having realized this, I began to monitor him and the entire group with my peripheral vision.
He chuckled. It's unclear whether it was in response to Deya's question or my preparations for battle. But I don't care. If necessary, I can handle it.
He must have sensed something and looked at me in surprise. Perhaps it was my icy calm, somehow reflected on my face as I calculated the options that would allow us to at least escape the battle without losses on our side. And he looked at us all with more interest.
"At least now I don't have to introduce myself," he said. "May I sit at your table?"
"Yes, of course," nodded Kasis, "sit down," and he pointed to the nearest chair.
"Thank you," he said.
But despite his politeness, the old man was still very tense and collected.
"He's afraid of these strange people called vampires." – It doesn't take a genius to figure that out.
For some reason, I was curious: can they really turn into bats? Although I'm not even sure that the latter exist in this world. And I couldn't help but glance first at the vampire sitting next to me, and then at the others, who were also glancing in our direction.
"Are you interested in something?" he asked me.
"Well, actually, yes," I answered honestly, "but I'm afraid your charges will try to kill me for my curiosity. So I'd better refrain from asking questions."
"A wise decision," the vampire replied, glancing at his group and turning to the old man. "My name is Garh," he introduced himself.
"Kasis," the grandfather said in response.
"You, as I understand it, are a mage, and, judging by everything, you're very surprised by our appearance here. But we have the Emperor's personal permission for this." And why, I wonder, did Kasis believe him so immediately? I'd ask to see that document. "And the youngsters you see at our table are merely future students of the Academy of Magic."
"What?" Kasis was surprised, jumping up and, ignoring the vampire, who was taken aback by his behavior, approached those seated at a separate table. "And all mages," he muttered quietly, looking at them. "And apparently, they've undergone special combat training," the old man muttered under his breath, shaking his head as he walked around their table, where the vampires looked calmly at him. Then he sighed mournfully. "So why did this happen to me, I ask? What did I do wrong? First the bandits, and now these?"
He returned to our table. Garh looked at me questioningly. But I didn't understand anything myself. So I simply shrugged. But Deya understood everything immediately. Like I said, she's a smart girl.
"Grandfather is the dean of the runology department," she said to the vampire, as if that explained everything.
Apparently, this was truly enough for the vampire, unlike me. He took a closer look at the old man.
"Kasis ArDomas?" he asked.
"Yes," the grandfather nodded sadly.
Garh stood up and bowed his head:
"We'll be happy to place the best young mages from all the coastal clans under your command. Don't worry, we've selected the most calm, composed, and level-headed."
But this didn't reassure the old man much. I clearly didn't understand something, so I looked at Deya, silently asking for clarification.
"They're all rune mages, and blood mages too," she replied to my questioning look, "so they'll probably end up in Grandfather's department, plus they might even get access to the combat training grounds. But that's up to the rector and the academy council to decide."
Garh looked at the girl in amazement.
"You surprised me with your knowledge," he told her.
"Well," Deya looked at him a little sheepishly, "I'll be studying there too, after all. So I have a general idea of what's going on."
He nodded at her words and turned to me:
- And you're probably planning to join the rangers.
"I don't know," I shrugged, "I don't have the same magical abilities as she does," I pointed at Deya.
The vampire chuckled:
"But you weren't at all concerned about who we were. You simply considered us as potential targets, made some calculations, and then calmed down," he said, and then suddenly asked, "Are you so confident in yourself, young man?"
To this I could only answer one thing:
- No, I have confidence in you.
I couldn't explain to him that it didn't matter to me who my opponent was. I just knew how to kill them as quickly and efficiently as possible. And they were no exception. Whoever they were. It was second nature to me. As Petrovich said, I was a genetic predator and killer. I wasn't offended, I just tried to learn from him and control my alter ego. After all, humans are the most dangerous predators, and no matter how you look at it, I'm still human.
While Grandfather was deep in thought, Garh walked over to his table, where the young vampires were seated. He said something to them, and they turned in our direction in surprise. Then, one by one, they began to approach us and bow to Kasis, who took it in stride.
The other patrons of the tavern also observed this scene.
"What are they doing?" I asked Deya.
"I don't know, but I think they welcome their future mentor, because he will be responsible for them throughout their time at the academy.
"I see," I nodded and began to examine the vampires approaching Kasis one by one.
"They really do look like elves," I thought, looking at them. "Mostly guys. But there are four girls."
There goes the one who first drew my attention to them.
"Wow, it turns out it's not just elves who are beautiful," I thought, looking at the alabaster goddess who walked past me and didn't even notice my miserable existence.
She slowly bowed her head and, like everyone else, said her name. And it made Kasis look at her in surprise.
"Ra'Gort?" he asked.
"Yes," the girl nodded calmly.
"And you…" the old man wanted to ask her something else.
"It doesn't matter," she interrupted without even listening to the question.
"Okay," he nodded. "Nice to meet you."
When the vampires retreated to their table, I turned to Kasis:
- And who is she?
"Who?" the grandfather began to play "me, you don't understand."
- The girl who was last?
He looked at me, and then, apparently having decided something, said:
"Renia Ra'Gort," and after a short pause, he added: "As I understand it, the granddaughter of the rector of the academy."
"Wait," I was surprised, "but she's a vampire."
"Well, yes," Kasis shrugged.
– So it turns out that her grandfather is a vampire too?
- Nobody denies it.
"Business…" I said and looked again at the next table.
At that moment, that same girl, Renya, turned around. She glanced at me with an indifferent glance and turned away again.
So, I realized I don't know a damn thing about this world. I'm trying to get into the academy, which, as it turns out, is run by a vampire. Although, the others didn't seem to care at all. So, I'll have to reconsider my views on life, too.
We stayed in the tavern until morning. The pegasi needed a rest. My drag didn't need it, though, and he was racing ahead.
And in the morning, the following became clear. The young vampires hadn't left; they were waiting for us. Garh decided to send them with us, or rather, with Kasis, as they told us, and he himself had left for the capital that evening; he had some urgent business there. So there was nothing left to do but take charge of these vampires. After all, Kasis would essentially be responsible for them from now on. And so our small detachment grew considerably.
It was pleasant to see the surprise on the impassive faces of these gentlemen when they realized whose drag was standing in the stall. But they still didn't pay much attention to me. Just someone had joined the troop and stayed there. He just kept going.
But here's the strange thing. Deya quickly became close with the rector's granddaughter. I don't know what they talked about all the time, but this haughty, seemingly detached beauty always smiled at her. I, however, admired her from afar.
There were advantages to traveling together, of course, beyond the aesthetic pleasure I derived. Once everyone at each checkpoint knew who was in the squad, no one even asked us any questions. Apparently, vampires were "respected" here, and very much so. Otherwise, we would have had to spend a couple of hours at these checkpoints.
Here I saw the magic in action again, preventing the aerial riders from flying past the empire's garrisons. It pulled the steeds to a small landing pad and prevented them from taking off without permission from a local mage. Deja said it was typical air magic and that such traps could be circumvented; she even knew how, but it was illegal, so we decided against it. Although, to me, it would have been easier to either fly around the net spread out in space or avoid being caught by one of the magical probes dangling in the air.
And so we reached the capital of the empire.
Empire of Largoth. Capital Parn
The evening of the next day
The city turned out to be big. Very big. Even bigger than I expected from Deia and Cassis's descriptions. But I've seen cities much bigger. I haven't been there myself, but I've seen them. So they weren't exactly thrilled. So, the city, well, it's big. So what? It was written all over my face. Admittedly, they took my silence for a bit of timidity.
"Don't worry," the old man told me, "he's scary at first. And there are only so many people here because the academy is accepting applications. It'll be much quieter in a month." He pointed to the gate through which we would enter the city. "We're going that way. After we pass, we'll have to split up. You won't be allowed where Deya and I will be staying. It's on the academy grounds. But in that area," he pointed to the low houses almost at the city wall, "there are some nice rooms for rent." "Few people know this, but those are the houses of the mages living on the academy grounds, and to keep the housing from sitting idle, they usually rent it out. Especially during the influx of applicants. You'll be able to find something there. Don't agree to a price higher than half a gold piece a day. And don't pay more than a week's rent. Then the prices will drop sharply. This isn't a good time. But there's no other way around it. The capital is a very expensive city." After a brief silence, he continued, "You can also get food there. There's a decent tavern called 'Spotted Lyrs.' Tell him you're from Kasis, and they'll give you a small discount. A friend of mine runs it. A former searcher. Incidentally, for some reason I didn't think of that right away. You can try selling your artifacts through him first. He'll take about five percent for finding buyers. But he'll find those who will buy at the highest price. That's much more than the academy will pay. And what's left, you can sell there." The old man continued, pointing to various sections of the city. "This is the artisans' quarter, there's the mercenaries' quarter. Beyond that is the inner city. But it's best not to go there. Mostly aristocrats live there, and there are also embassies of various states. In the center is the imperial palace. And along the perimeter of the inner city live mostly ordinary citizens, shopkeepers and the like. Yes, over there is the city market." Further on is the student quarter. It's called that because senior students and young faculty members rent housing there. And beyond that is the academy grounds themselves. You can find me there. There it is.
Hmm. That academy took up almost a quarter of the city. And now almost all the bustling people were heading towards it.
The city was large, and from where we stopped, its layout wasn't very clear, but it was still visible. Flights over the city were prohibited. There was protection. I spotted it almost immediately. So I couldn't see everything in detail, but I got a rough idea of where everything was.
I also understood where to look for Kasis and Deya, if necessary, and where I should go myself. After all, I've firmly decided to try to get into the academy. But first, I'd like to observe the student recruitment process and how it all works.
There in the commission I could also find Kasis.
We agreed that if I got in, I'd find him and he'd work out some sort of housing arrangement so we could be housed close to each other. I wasn't opposed to that, although I didn't really care. But Deya wanted to be closer to me, and I didn't mind that…
Here was our turn to enter. There was no way to just squeal through. Every other VIP in the capital was like that, so we had to wait in the general line.
But no one had any questions for us at the entrance either.
Well, then we split up. I went to where I was supposed to settle in for now, and Kasis went to the academy to sort out his own issues. However, I hoped we would meet soon.
I've practically made it to the academy. All that's left is to scrape together enough money for my education and get through this unusual placement.