Bloodfallen: Curse of The All Knowing

In the distance, perhaps a half day's journey away from our campsite, I could see the large stone walls that surrounded the city of Antium. It was a strange feeling to arrive at a place I was so familiar with and yet it was technically the very first time I had ever been here. On the entire journey back here there had been no sign of Saturio or any of his subordinates which was both worrying and wonderful at the same time.

Without Saturio I didn’t need to worry about him trying to steal the phylacterium, however I had no idea where he was which meant if he was going to do something I would have no way to stop him. ‘Small victories Arthur, remember the small victories.’ I told myself as I turned back to my tent and started disassembling it like everyone else was.

Hopefully we would have at least half of the remaining day by the time we reached the city as I had several things I needed to do, the most important was to join the mages guild so I could start receiving more training. ‘Learning how to cast tier three spells is my biggest priority at the moment. While tier one and two are nice I need the raw power that tier three spells provide, and the only way I have to do that is to join the mages guild and receive some training from either Henry or someone else.’

When everything was packed up we started walking again towards the city, we passed by the vibrant fields full of wheat that were starting to grow not too far from the walls. The common folk with their children looked and pointed towards us as we walked down the roads that split the fields into several sections.

While everyone else was talking amongst themselves about whatever topic came up I took the opportunity to appreciate the changes in how everyone was feeling. Unlike how it was almost dead quiet the last time when Saturio and his subordinates killed several people it seemed that everyone was just so much happier, and though I didn’t make much of an effort to befriend Hambel or Cassia I could see they were better off than the last time.

Once inside the city we stopped at a decently sized tavern that was located in the western district close enough to the mercenaries guild. Both Citro and Lyra left to take care of the payment for the contract the company just finished. Around a half hour later the two of them returned and started handing out pouches of silver coins to each of the mercenaries. Eventually Lyra walked right up to me with a pouch of my own and handed it to me. A little confused, I opened it up and found twenty five silver coins looking right back at me.

“I know you weren't officially a part of the company when you helped us, but I asked my father to pull some strings and I managed to get some more money on your behalf. I assume that twenty five silver coins should be enough to allow you to live for a while with proper spending habits.” Lyra gave me a smile before she turned away and continued handing out more pouches to the few remaining mercenaries.

Looking again at the contents of the pouch I noticed that the silver wasn’t the only thing that was inside. There was also a piece of paper bound up like a scroll, I reached in and held it in my hands as I opened it up. It was a recommendation to the mages guild signed by Lyra and who I assumed was her father due to the last name that they both shared, but there was also something else stated within the writing.

The young mage by the name of Arthur is to be awarded with an amulet enchanted with the comprehend language spell at the presentation of this document that has already been bought and paid for by the Vettonius noble family.

There was some other legal wording that I didn’t understand, but this was enough to understand what I was getting.

‘Lyra must have asked her father to do this. I remember last time the crown was the ones to award me with the amulet as well as a much larger reward. I wonder just how much will change now that I saved around a quarter of the Flock of War. Lyra will probably have a stronger fighting force when she joins the fight against the empire, but I doubt that they will make any major changes to the conflict.’

Since I asked Lyra to cast the comprehend languages spell on me just before we entered the city I still have most of the day with the spell to talk with people without that amulet. That made acquiring the amulet before the guild closed down for the day very important.

I soon stood up and made my way towards the door through the semi crowded tavern, the little snippets of the nearby conversations were somewhat interesting to listen to but were not a priority at the moment.

Once outside I stepped going north and back onto the street joining the growing crowd of people that were going about their day. After walking for around ten minutes and passing through a small market square I found the mages guild main building and stepped inside. Thankfully the lines were short enough today that I didn’t need to wait very long and I found myself up at the desk after only a half hour.

“Good afternoon sir and welcome to the mages guild, how might I help you today?” I recognized the woman at the desk who greeted me, I had seen her a few times while in the guild before but she wasn’t all that different from the other employees.

“Yes actually, I have a recommendation here with a secondary condition.” I said as I handed the recommendation I received from Lyra. The secretary looked over the document quickly before her eyes went somewhat wide upon reading the order signed by the Vettonius family themselves. The words and flustered look gave me the impression they were important.

“Just a moment sir, I need to check the authenticity before you receive anything.” The secretary's voice was a little higher pitched than normal as she quickly turned around and walked into a back room with my recommendation in hand. I was a little surprised by her sudden reaction and departure, but from what I could tell the amulet was very valuable so something like checking its authenticity should be standard procedure.

I remained standing at the desk for a while waiting for the secretary to return. The people in the small line behind me looked rather annoyed with the fact that I made their wait even longer and furrowed their brows or scoffed at me. I just ignored them and waited for the secretary to return with my amulet.

After what felt like an hour of waiting the secretary did eventually return, but she wasn’t alone and she didn’t bring the amulet like I expected. Instead there were two armed human men dressed in chainmail armor and carrying both a shield and a short sword, the swords weren’t drawn but I could tell by the posture of these men they were ready to use them. Their faces were protected by actual plate helmets unlike the rest of their bodies that appeared to have a small mechanism that allowed for lifting it up and exposing the face.

“Sir Arthur, if you wouldn't mind you need to come with us.” The armored man on the right said as the group of three stepped forwards. I was a little alarmed by the sudden armed escort which they took notice of and tried relaxing their stance.

“No need to worry sir, it would be impolite to force someone of your standing to walk around the guild with just directions like a commoner.” The right armored man said as he walked up and stood next to me and gestured towards the stairway leading upwards to the second floor. This also happened to be where they came from.

I didn’t say anything, instead I just nodded while preparing my magic just in case this was a trap of some sort. ‘I haven’t been here before, not since I died and everything reset to how things were when I first woke up. So why are they escorting me somewhere upstairs to the second floor of the mages guild?’

Every step we took up those stairs I felt like my chest was going to explode, I could only even imagine how I looked to the two armored men that were escorting me up. When we reached the top of the stairs there were several interconnected hallways that led to what I believed were offices. I was led towards one that was located on the far right of the floor. Inside was a human mage dressed in some very fancy robes sitting behind a desk, when he noticed us he smiled and beckoned us inside.

“Ah, Mr. Arthur, welcome to the mages guild. I am Amulius Armiger, a wizard of the mages guild and I am here to ensure that you receive the amulet that was ordered.” The wizard Amulius said with a smile as he reached into one of his desk drawers and retrieved a box that he placed on top of the desk facing Arthur. The box was well made and looked like something a rich person would use to store a ring or other similar jewelry, only larger.

Amulius Slowly opened the box showing a familiar looking amulet glowed slightly from the enchantments placed upon it. I reached towards it and held the amulet in my hands as I looked it over. With my knowledge in enchanting I noticed that most of the enchantments were located within the actual pendant itself rather than the silver chain.

Amulius watched as I then placed the amulet around my neck outside of my armor. Later I would tuck it underneath so it would be hidden from view, but for now it would need to be visible. Slowly I felt the magic contained within the amulet flow though my body and up to my head where it connected with my brain when I started to feel the effects of the enchantment.

“I assume that the amulet is to your liking.” Amulius said with a smile as I started feeling the effects of the amulet. I noticed that his smile was a little odd, it wasn’t a normal smile that didn’t extend very far, almost like it was forced instead of genuine.

“Yes, the amulet is working just as I hoped. Is this the only reason you brought me up here?” I asked a little uncomfortable with his eyes watching me like a predatory animal.

“Unfortunately no, I just have a few questions regarding your magical education and skill set. Are you alright to answer those questions?” Amulius reached for a small amulet around his own neck as he said this, I didn’t think much of it at the moment and just answered honestly.

“Of course, I see no reason why not. Ask away.” Amulius smiled at my statement and just picked up a piece of nearby paper and placed it before himself and then a quill.

“First question. What type of magic is most interesting to you?” I looked at Amulius a little confused by his question. I wasn’t certain why he wanted to know something like that but I was a little worried as there was a certain tension in the air.

“I would say enchanting is likely my biggest interest in magic, I already know a bit but I still have a lot more to learn.” Amulius looked to be satisfied with the answer he received and moved onto the next question.

“What are your thoughts on the Rathen kingdom and the Yolan empire?”

I tried to hide my emotions at the question, but I was certain I failed. The question was completely unrelated to the first and I had a bad feeling deep in my soul.

“Well… I know the Yolan empire declared war on the kingdom several years ago and pillaged several towns and cities near the shared border. I don’t know much else aside from the lingering feelings of hate towards each other that may lead to another war.”

Amulius smiled at my answer and nodded slightly before speaking once again. “One last question for you. Who would you say is the person that you serve the most?”

I didn’t say anything more for several seconds, instead I looked at Amulius who’s expression darkened ever so slightly in shadows cast from the lights located behind him. He didn’t look very happy with the lack of an answer and I was feeling like a small animal before a demon.

“I haven’t really served anyone in particular. I’ve helped out with catching criminals and helping law enforcement, I’ve worked as an alchemist’s apprentice, I was even a part of a mercenary company for a while. But I wouldn’t say I’ve served anyone like a servant.” I managed to say as breathing was starting to become difficult.

Then suddenly the pressure I was feeling disappeared and Amulius went back to how he was before. “Good, good. Thank you for your time Mr Arthur, and before I forget please take this.” He reached over the desk and handed me a piece of paper. I didn’t get a good look at it, but I noticed that there was a date.

“Now gentleman, please escort our guest downstairs. I am sure that he has some important work that he needs to do without us wasting any more of his time.” Amulius ordered the two guards that were standing by the door. They both bowed slightly to the wizard before escorting me out of the room and back down the stairs.

********

Just as Arthur was escorted out of the room the door closed behind the three and left Amulius alone in his office. He quickly casted a spell taking around 24 seconds to do and created a spherical orb around himself that was cut in half starting at the floor. He reached over to the communication orb on his desk and started a call with his superior.