The quarters were crowded but comfortable. There were bunk beds in two lines. There was no door, but this didn’t disturb me. Besides the rare movement sounds coming from the dragon, there was quiet.
‘Please make yourselves at home’ said the librarian. ‘All of the beds are free. You can choose anyone of them.’
After he left us alone, I chose a bed in the corner, and sat down. Despite all of the beds were empty, Scathach chose the same bed as I.
‘Why do you want to sleep with me?’ I asked.
‘In the past few days, we slept together, didn’t we?’ she asked, while she slipped under the blanket.
‘You were inside me’ I answered, but she didn’t answer me, just smiled.
I immediately fall asleep. I was so tired I just couldn’t keep awake. And I didn’t dream about anything. From the strange dreams of the last few days, it was a relief.
I was asleep for about six hours, but I was full of energy. After washing my face we headed back to the city. We had some crepes at a pastry shop. Between a coffee and a crepe, I asked Scathach:
‘What do you think about that Sofia?’
‘Are you a racist, Master?’
‘Of course not.’
‘Than she is going to help you’ she said while drinking coffee.
‘Will unleashing my full magical power affect my miracles?’ I asked.
‘Probably not, as long as you have faith in your God.’
‘So you don’t believe in God’ I said sadly.
‘No’ she said. ‘I believe in you, Master.’
‘Nice to hear that’ I said.
On the main road I’ve seen some wanted posters. On all of them my face was printed. Thank God Scathach also noticed them, and immediately pulled on an illusion. I don’t know whom they saw me as, but they left me alone. When we reached the gate of the town, Scathach pulled the map out and showed me.
‘This is going to be a long walk’ she said. ‘It’s about twenty-two kilometers to north-west. Will you be okay, Master?’
‘I will’ I said. ‘If we get a bit farther away from the town, and you return into me, I can use the Knight technics. It’ll be easier this way. Can you navigate me?’
‘No problem’ she said.
After she returned into me, I walked for about ten minutes to get a bit farther from the city. When I determined that I’ve got far enough, I pulled out the silver cross from under my shirt, and focused on my prayer.
The original Knight cleric style was developed in Tibet, where monks combined martial arts with aura-manipulating divine vibrations. The clerics who went on pilgrimage there showed the local monks the bases of mace-using and sword-using, and in exchange they learnt the bare-handed combat-empowering technics. Of course when they returned to Europe they went through strict magic-search, but since these technics used the same vibration as the Orator-style chants or the Caster-style lightning-calling they quickly accepted it and developed it further. The Ranger style has strong connections to the appearance of the crossbows. All of the aura-manipulating technics included anti-magic barrier, but for crossbow users quick reflexes and better aim was more important than close range combat armor and physical strength. While for a normal warrior it’s impossible to keep up with a skilled Knight, a skilled Ranger can dodge almost all of his attack and if he manages to keep the distance, his opponent is in serious trouble. Dagger- or shortsword-wielding Knights and Rangers are taught technics which help in long-range running. I took part in both trainings, and I learnt running-aid technics, too.
I put my finger on my necklace, closed my eyes and whispered the prayer:
‘My well-wisher God, please help Thy faithful servant. Please give me legs of wind to run and help those who need help. Amen.’
My aura sparkled with blue light. The aura of the Knights glows with blue, while the Rangers have green glow. Even normal humans can see our auras. This is a disadvantage when we need to hide, but I’m going to move on such speed that it won’t matter. My body was light as feather, and by increasing the frequency of my running I felt like nothing can stop me. I was orienteering through the forest, up the mountains while listening to the navigation of Scathach.
I was moving quickly on the mountain, passing the kilometers in almost no time. People usually become surprised when they hear that in the PE lessons the warm-up for the A class is thirty circles around the school. If you’re good enough, you won’t even get tired. I thanked to God for my strict PE teacher. Without him, the way up to the half-elf would have been a real pain. Even between the trees and up to the mountain, I managed to get there before the sun completely went down.
‘We’re here, Master’ said Scathach. ‘According to the map, that should be her house.’
The house was a small wooden building in the side of the mountain, surrounded by old trees. It was a nice, small house; just like the ones preschoolers draw. Little buildings like that are usually the homes of witches, but elves like living in forests.
‘Looks promising’ I grumbled.
I hid my necklace, and my aura faded. Scathach also took up his human form, and we knocked on the door. I heard footsteps from the house, and a girl opened the door.
‘How can I help you?’ she asked.
‘We’re looking for Sofia’ I said. ‘We need her help.’
‘I am Sofia’ said the girl. ‘Who are you?’
‘I am Eötvös Gergely, a candidate for the Trinity title’ I introduced. ‘The girl here is the Codex of Solomon, Scathach.’
‘Nice to meet you, Sofia’ greeted Scathach politely.
‘A Paladin and a grimoire?’ she asked curiously. ‘Well, this sounds interesting. Please come in.’
Sofia unlocked the chains, fully opened the door and let us in. The hut was bigger than I first thought, and a lot more homey. There was no living room, only a dining hall with a large table and several chairs around it. The hall opened to the kitchen. From what I could see, she still used the old cast iron furnace. On the opposite side there was the bathroom, and between them there was a ladder-like stair to the basement and the loft. Sofia led us to the table, sat on a chair and crossed her legs.
As I already knew, Sofia is a half-elf, but she still surprised me. First of all, she seemed years younger than me. Her hair was milk blonde, and her skin was pale, too. She had blue eyes, and small, pointy ears. She was wearing nothing but a short, jaggy, white dress, and she was bare-footed. I wonder if feet even feel cold.
‘So, how can I help a cleric and a grimoire?’ she asked with a smile. It seemed like she was having fun.
‘We heard that you can unlock anything’ said Scathach.
Sofia pulled up one of her eyebrow.
‘I won’t help in any thievery’ she said.
‘We don’t want to steal anything’ I said. ‘But we still need your help.’
‘Then again: how can I help you?’ she asked.
‘We need you to unlock my master’s true potential’ said Scathach.
‘Who is your master?’
‘He here’ she said, and pointed at me.
Sofia seemed confused.
‘But he said he is a cleric’ she said cautiously.
‘He is’ said Scathach. ‘And he is a sorcerer, too.’
‘I don’t get it’ said Sofia confused.
‘Master is an expert in miracles, but he is a very novice mage. We need to unleash his full power with the least possible danger.’
‘He has magic and miracles?’ asked Sofia. ‘How?’
‘This is really complicated’ I said.
Sofia sat back on her chair.
‘If you want my help, you need to explain this’ she said.
I sighed, and tried to give her a short summarize.
When I finished summarizing, Sofia stood up and started walking in circles around the table.
‘And what is the High King of Hexes?’ she asked.
‘I asked this several times, but Scathach never answered me’ I said.
‘I did’ said Scathach. ‘He is a person who can use both magic and miracles. This way, he has access to many other various powers as well.’
‘I thought magic and faith exclude each other. Doesn’t your religion forbid magic?’
‘It does’ I said. ‘But I believe that God gave me magic and miracles for a reason. And since I’ve already committed several taboos that would mean sentence to death to me, I don’t really care about what the rules say. What is important is faith in God, right?’
Sofia sat back to her chair, and for a minute she was in quiet. Then, she asked Scathach:
‘What would happen if I unlocked his full magic?’
‘I would have access to all of his Mana’ she said. ‘His mana regeneration speed would accelerate, as well as his capacity. Also, I don’t believe he’d lose his miracles.’
‘And what would happen if he casted a spell?’
‘He should be fine as long as he only uses me as a casting tool. On his estimated level, the absent of the staff usage shouldn’t matter.’
‘What is his magic type?’
‘Superbia’ I answered.
‘Pride, huh? Superbia types are really strong. You are a Superbia user too, right?’
‘Yes, I am. My magic is Absolute Memory Manipulation, while Master’s magic is Adaptation Magic.’
She waited one more minute, than answered.
‘Very well. I will unlock your true potential. All of it.’
‘All of it?’ I asked.
‘Yes. Please follow me.’
She led me to the middle of the room, and instructed Scathach to stand back, and me to hold still. The unlocking was simple: she only put her right hand to my chest, and showed a three with her fingers. When she lifted her finger up, a yellow magic circle appeared in the air. I couldn’t see it clearly, but I’m sure that there was a lock symbol on it. The air started glowing around me, and my body was filled with magic. Both me, Scathach and Sofia started glowing. Sofia closed her eyes, and sighed deeply. When she let her hand down, the glow stopped, but the feeling remained inside me. Sofia stepped back.
‘Wow’ she said. ‘This was an amazing flow of magic. I’ve never felt anything like that.’
‘This is the true power of my Master’ said Scathach. Was this my imagination, or she seemed really impressed?
I looked at my hands.
‘Somehow, I feel different’ I said. ‘Did you unlock something else besides my magic?’
‘I unlocked your true potential, including the gates you had in your mind and in your body.’
‘In my mind and body? What do you mean?’
‘Normally, in the brains of humans there is a limiter which limits the amount of incoming information from the outer world. I unlocked that gate for you. It should help you learn faster.’
‘This won’t go without penalties, right?’ I asked.
‘In your case, I determined that it should be safe. Also, your mental gates were unlocked, so you can understand everything better.’
‘Did I become that strong?’ I asked, and looked at my hands again.
‘Why don’t we test it out?’ asked Sofia.
‘Try it out? Where?’ I asked.
‘There is a huge, unexplored dungeon a few kilometers away. It’s really long, and there are some pretty nasty undead monsters there. You can test your powers there without anyone disturbing you. But…’
She looked through the window. There was dark outside.
‘It’s pretty late. Why don’t we go there tomorrow? I have only one bed, but plenty of blankets and pillows. The floor isn’t cold; you can sleep on the rag if you want. You should go to sleep as soon as you can. We’ll have a hard day tomorrow.’
‘Lately, every day was really hard’ I sighed, and took a blanket and sat on the rag.
Despite Sofia put a blanket for Scathach too, when the lights were out she slipped under mine. I always have to remind myself that she is a grimoire, not a human, but it’s still embarrassing sleeping with her. I hope I’ll get used to it soon.
Just as she promised, Sofia woke us up early in the morning. The breakfast she made was delicious; she made scrambled eggs with toast, and we drank pine tea (I had no idea it could be so tasty). As we were eating, I couldn’t stand to ask:
‘How old are you, Sofia?’
‘What do you know about half-elves?’ she asked back, avoiding the answer.
‘Not much. Being a half-elf won’t increase your chances to become a mage. They can recover from their wounds like humans, but they are vulnerable to diseases just like elves. That’s all.’
‘You’re like an encyclopedia’ Sofia bit in a toast with jam, then continued speaking. ‘Even in the case of half-elves there are two groups. There are half-elves who are closer to being humans and ones closer to elves. I’m the later. My aging is decreased. I haven’t grown an inch since I was thirteen. This was nine years ago.’
‘You seem even more childish than Scathach’ I said.
‘Don’t be so mean. My mental aging is slowed down, too. I’m not a kid.’
‘Okay’ I said, and changed the topic. ‘Where is that unexplored dungeon?’
‘Four kilometers to the north. The entrance is hidden and there is no trodden path to it, but I can lead you there. It’s so scary that I don’t dare to go in deeper, but I cleared the first two rooms, so there are no more walking corpses there. But I don’t know what’s behind that iron door at the end of the third room. The whole place is filled with rune magic, so you can learn some there, too.’
I was in quiet. A week ago I could never imagine that I’d go down to an ancient crypt to learn magic, and to become strong enough to save the world. Destiny is sure tricky, huh?
After breakfast, we changed clothes, and – for my big surprise – Sofia armed herself, too. Now she was wearing a chain mail and armed shoes. She also put on a hat, which covered her ears.
‘Are you ready?’ she asked. ‘Than, let’s go.’
We left the house, and she locked the door. Unlocking magic seems to be useful.
‘Scathach?’ I asked.
‘Yes, Master?’
‘Do you have any analysis spells?’ I asked.
‘Yes, from both Invidia and Acedia.’
‘Both Invidia and Acedia have analysis spells?’
‘Yes, and Superbia also has these kinds of spells. You know, Acedia users are lazy, so they want a shortcut in learning. Invidia users are envious to others, so they want to know what others know. And since Superbia users want to be better than everyone, they also have scanning spells.’
‘Can you teach me one?’ I asked.
‘Sure, but why?’
‘You said that if I manage to understand how a spell works, I can copy them. If I have a good analysis spell, I can do that easier, right?’
‘You came to this conclusion earlier than I expected, Master’ she said. ‘Yes, and with my memory magic, I can teach you in an instant’ she said.
She faced me, and knocked on my forehead with her forefinger’s phalanges. Memories appeared in my head: thoughts about how this spell works and how to cast it.
‘Huh’ this was the only thing I could say. Scathach’s magic is surely amazing. I remembered that it took me hours to memorize a two-page long chant, and I learnt a spell in an instant.
Sofia safely led us to the dungeon entrance. The walk was long, but it felt good. Right now, I’m not chased by anyone. No one wants to kill me. Even if this situation will change in a few hours, this feels so nostalgic.
The entrance was hidden, just as Sofia said. The door was made of stone (strange, isn’t it?), and when I pushed it, it didn’t even move. Sofia smiled.
‘I was the one who locked this door. You cannot open it like you tried.’
She placed her hand on the stone. The magic circle appeared. It was spinning in the air for a few seconds, than she put her hand down. The heavy door silently opened, and we stepped in.
After the door, a tight corridor with stairs led down. There were unlit torches on the walls.
‘Candlelight’ whispered both Scathach and Sofia. Two radiant light orbs appeared over their heads.
‘Analyze’ I whispered the spell. Usually, I use the chant True Eyes to see magic, but this time I needed to see its casting process. Candlelight wasn’t a difficult spell. The only thing the user needs to do besides the incantation is to focus on an image of candlelight, and order the Mana to take its characteristics. The English incantation is only good for determining the duration.
‘Candlelight’ I whispered, and the same light ball appeared over my head. Scathach approvingly looked at me.
‘Nice job, Master’ she said. ‘You analyzed and replicate a spell in an instant. This was good for a first spell.’
‘This was your first spell?’ asked Sofia amazed.
‘It was’ answered Scathach. ‘As I said earlier, Master is an expert in miracles, but a novice in magic.’
The first room was amazing. Looks like Sofia wasn’t kidding when she said that this dungeon is huge. It was made of stone bricks, and in the walls small excavations were built for the corpses. Now only a few skeletons were there. Even in the white light, this place was amazing. The second room was similar, just larger. But something wasn’t right.
‘Where are the corpses of the reanimated bodies?’ I asked.
‘I burned them all’ said Sofia. ‘Without a divine weapon, this is the only viable solution.’
I agreed in my mind. Divine weapons are against sorcerers, but they are useful in negating necromancy, too. Besides that, only fire can put the undead to eternal rest.
In the middle of the last empty room, Scathach stopped.
‘Are you ready, Master?’ she asked.
‘I think so’ I said. She nodded.
‘I’ll return into my grimoire form. If you want to cast a spell, I’ll help you. I’ll also give you back your sword, but I don’t want you to use it.’
‘But I don’t know much spells’ I said.
‘Then here’s my next lesson’ she said. She stood in front of me, closed her eyes, and kissed my cheek.
My mind became full of memories. It was like I spent months or whole semesters studying magic. But I also felt that this isn’t Scathach’s full arsenal. Scathach’s body started glowing, and she returned onto my arm.
‘Well, do you remember any new spells?’ asked Sofia.
‘You can say that’ I said.
‘Are you ready?’ she asked.
I nodded. I was a bit nervous, but even if I fail with the spells, I still have my chants. She also nodded, and opened the door.
The corpses almost immediately woke up. Some of them were holding a sword and a shield, but others used great axes. I was excited. First, I tried one of the fire spells Scathach remembered. I reached out my hand and said the spell.
‘Combustion!’ I shouted. A violent column of fire left my hand, and incinerated half of the undead.
‘Wow! Amazing!’ said Sofia. She seemed seized.
The remaining undead became more careful. They circled around me, trying to surround me. But I remembered another cool spell. I raised my arms, and when they came closer, I pushed both of my arms down, and said:
‘Sonic boom!’
This spell was amazing. All of them were knocked back and suffered heavily damage, similar to the Knight technic War stomp. But that wasn’t all. When the undead got up from the ground again, they started attacking each other. This spell also confused them, making them think that their allies are enemies.
‘This is cool’ I whispered.
I annihilated a large group of undead just by two spells. There is an Aramaic undead-slayer chant, but that one is long.
‘Are you ready for the next room?’ asked Sofia.
‘I am’ I said.
The next five rooms went easy. I tried lots of different spells, while also experimenting with combos. It was strange. The whole time, I never ran out of Mana. So this is what Scathach meant by me being on the same level as a white mage.
‘Don’t be over-confident, Master’ said Scathach’s voice in my head. ‘Even you can run out of Mana if you keep casting spells.’
‘I’ll keep it in mind’ I answered.
We arrived to the final room. The door here was different: it had a strange dial-like lock on it. There were three dials, with four runes on each.
‘After this room, the necromancer is staying’ said Sofia. ‘If you kill him and destroy the runes he’s guarding, the undead won’t revive again.’
‘So basically I can learn necromancy, too?’ I asked. ‘That’s a banned art too. It is black magic.’
‘Nobody asked you to use it’ said Sofia.
‘I already know lots of necromancer tricks’ said Scathach. ‘They are dangerous, but this is all. Nothing too extraordinary.’
Sofia opened the last door. The room behind it was different than the previous rooms. Instead of having several excavations in the walls, this room only had a single coffin on it. When we entered, the cover of the coffin fall down, and a corpse got up from it. This undead was different than the others; it was a former hero. He had a different sword with a strange engraved shield, an old iron chest plate and an iron helmet. He had a violent, purple aura. Just by standing in front of him, I knew that he was an experienced and respected warrior. He looked at me with glowing blue eyes, and charged at me.
‘Here we go’ I said.
First, I pulled up a shield, which tossed away everyone who came close. After the corpse was staggered, I tried some destruction spell. Just like I’d held a staff in my hand, I moved it and said:
‘Spirit Lance!’
Probably from the tried spells, this was the most powerful. It emitted a large spear of pure soul energy, which was glowing white and blue. The undead hero tried to block, but the spear pierced it. I have the feeling that this is going to become my favorite spell.
‘Well done, Master!’ said Scathach. ‘But for the final blow, why don’t you try some spell modifiers?’
‘Modifiers?’ I asked.
‘Spell modifiers can change the default characteristics of a spell. The only thing you need to do is to incant the spell, and leave the rest to me!’
‘Okay’ I said. I chose a spell, moved my arm, and said:
‘Explosion Orb!’
‘Modifier: multiply!’ said Scathach.
Instead of the white glowing orb I expected, five similar orbs appeared. The undead hero had no chance against it. The only thing I saw was a white explosion, the hero fall down, and never stood up again. Sofia walked into the room, and pointed at the wall on the other side of the room.
‘This is the rune. If you destroy it, the corpses won’t wake up again.’
I pulled out my sword. The Silver Knight’s Sword started gloving in my hand. If I do this, I’m going to follow the rules. I stood in front of the rune, and started chanting:
‘Oh high God who rules Heaven, please help Thy faithful servant to destroy the spawn of the evil, and put the longing heroes to peaceful, everlasting sleep!’
I put the end of my sword on the rune. For a moment, the rune glowed, than fainted and disappeared. I turned around, putting my sword away.
‘Looks like we’re done here’ I said.
Scathach appeared on my side.
‘You handle magic really well, Master’ she said. ‘If you continue evolving like this, you’ll become the full High King of Hexes soon!’
‘Hey guys’ said Sofia ‘Couldn’t we get out of here as soon as possible?’
‘All right’ I said. ‘Let’s go.’
We went through the rooms again. I noticed that without the corpses, these rooms weren’t scary at all. But when we arrived to the exit, an ugly surprise was waiting for us.
My reflexes helped me notice the danger. Without thinking, I jumped, and grabbed Sofia’s arm, pulling her away.
‘Watch out!’ I said.
In an explosion, the entrance collapsed. When the dust finally disappeared, with a lot of coughing we stood up.
‘What was that?’ coughed Sofia. ‘Why did the tunnel collapse?’
‘It was an assassin’ I said.
‘An assassin?’ asked Sofia.
‘I felt his presence in the last moment’ I said, checking the ruins. ‘He wanted us to get stuck in the dungeon.’
Sofia looked around.
‘How are we going to get out of here?’ she asked. ‘There’re no other exits.’
I looked at Scathach.
‘Do we have any spells to get out of this cave?’ I asked.
‘Of course’ she said. ‘But don’t you think that we should deal with the assassin before it?’
‘I agree’ I said. ‘Would you please show yourself?’
I said that on a long voice, which echoed in the dungeon. And suddenly, I could feel his presence.
The assassin appeared on the other side of the room. I have no idea why I didn’t sense his presence earlier, but I could clearly see him now. He was wearing the black leather armor of the assassins. That armor is comfortable and makes no sounds during movements, but offers weak protection. If I strike him with the Silver Knight’s Sword, he has no chance to escape.
‘Who are you?’ I asked.
He didn’t answer, but pointed at me.
‘Eötvös Gergely, you committed several taboos and betrayed both the Church and the Way of White. Because of the sins you committed, I must kill you. Prepare to die, traitor’ he was speaking on a deep voice, but it was obvious that he distorted it.
‘Sofia, hide somewhere’ I said.
‘You don’t have to tell me twice’ she said, and hid beyond an urn.
‘I’ll help you, Master’ said Scathach, and returned to her grimoire form.
I pulled out the Silver Knight’s Sword, and the aura appeared around me. But the assassin didn’t stay put either. She pulled out a long sword from the scabbard on her back. I have never seen a weapon like that. It had two separate, parallel blades: a white one and a black one. Where the two blades met, the blade was wider, and had a strange, circular engrave on that. That’s a strange weapon for an assassin. I’d imagine it easier on a battlefield than in the hands of a silent killer. Through her mask, he whispered:
‘Spirit of murder, I summon thee. Come, Seyia!’
His aura started glowing violently. Of course, now I understand! That sword is a Spirit’s metal vessel, and the circular engrave is the Spirit’s mark! Is he a Summoner?
No, he isn’t. When he rushed forward, he didn’t use any chant or prayer. His aura was unchanged. So is he using a melee combat reinforce Spirit?
He stroke down me, and when I blocked, the black blade started glowing. I almost lost all of my energy, and jumped back.
‘W-what was that?’ I asked.
‘Be careful, Master’ said Scathach. ‘This is the Demon Sword Spirit, Seyia! Any weapon enchanted by it violently absorbs both Mana and divine vibrations. Each time you get hit by that, it’ll be harder to protect against it!’
‘So I have to win quickly, right?’ I answered.
He is a talented fencer. It became clear to me after trading a few hits. With the absorption, I dare to say that we’re even. But I have other tricks. I used War stomp, which knocked him back, and I got the upper hand. In the medium range, Scathach had the chance to cast some spells. She was good: after the assassin managed to block a few Dark Orbs, she changed to area of effect spells. Once, the assassin was washed away by water, and before he could stand up, several fire explosions tossed him away. But he was tough. The demon sword absorbed the spells without touching them. The longer the battle takes, the stronger he is going to be. I have to end this quickly.
‘Scathach’ I said. ‘Please don’t do anything.’
‘What?’ asked Scathach in panic. ‘He’s going to kill you!’
‘Trust me, Scathach’ I said. She calmed down a bit.
‘As you wish, Master’ she said.
I canceled my aura. The assassin smelled the rat.
‘Do you give up?’ he asked. ‘Are you ready to die?’
‘No’ I answered. ‘I’m not going to give up. I’ll kill you without any supernatural forces or divine powers, just with my own strength.’
‘Than, prepare to die, traitor!’ he shouted, and charged at me.
I lowered my sword, and held it in waist height. And just before the assassin stroke me, I performed a large, low slash. I remembered this move. Two years ago, my swordplay teacher showed this trick to me. There are no tricks beyond this move. This only depends on dexterity. I practiced this move a lot, and now it’ll pay.
The assassin collapsed behind my back. The Spirit also disappeared. I looked at the assassin’s body, and I suddenly felt sorry. He relied too much on her Spirit, and fell for a simple trick.
‘Are you done?’ asked Sofia, as she came out.
‘Yes, it’s over’ I said.
Scathach returned to her humanoid form, and looked at the assassin. I could see the anger in her eyes. She kneeled down, and pulled out a piece of cloth under the belt.
‘What is that?’ I asked.
‘This is the Hood of Nyx’ she said. ‘It’s a Celestial Treasure that can make its user invisible, hiding his very presence. I guess this is why he risked destroying the tunnel.’
‘How?’ I asked.
‘This Celestial Treasure’s trump card is that its user can become one with the shadows, being able to ˝swim˝ between them. Using this, he could easily get out of here after killing us. Dirty trick.’
I took a closer look to the body and checked the pulse.
‘He is still alive’ I said.
‘Kill him’ said Sofia. ‘He tried to kill us too. He deserves it.’
‘No’ I said. ‘I have a better idea.’
A spell came into my mind. This was not a normal spell tough; it has a brutal effect. If it was possible, I never wanted to use it, but in this situation it can come in handy.
First I casted the spell on the body. Then, I pulled out my silver cross, and started the healing pray. The divine light came for my aid again: it illuminated the whole room, and vanished the wounds.
‘What are you doing?’ asked Sofia, and tried to interrupt the casting, but Scathach stopped her.
‘He is a murderer!’ she said. ‘He tried to kill us!’
‘Please trust in my Master’ said ‘I’m sure he has a plan.’
When I finished my pray, the divine light disappeared.
‘Scathach’ I said. ‘Take away his sword.’
Scathach took away the sword, as well as the shroud. A few moments later, the assassin opened his eyes.
‘Good morning’ I said. ‘Please don’t move. You were seriously injured.’
The assassin moved his head.
‘If you’re looking for your sword or shroud, we took them all. And I don’t recommend you to attack either.’
‘Why?’ his voice was calm, but still altered.
‘I put a curse on you’ I said.
‘Curse?’
‘If you lie to me or attack me, this curse will stop your heart.’
‘You’re lying’ he said.
‘Feel free to try it’ I said.
Fortunately or unfortunately he didn’t try it. Instead, he pulled down his mask.
‘You seem to be serious’ she said on a higher voice.
Apparently, the assassin was a she. She was young, and had short, red hair. She seemed to be around my age.
‘You’re a girl?!’ wondered Sofia.
‘Of course’ she answered. ‘Sometimes, girls are better assassins than boys. We can get in places where boys cannot.’
‘What is your real name?’ I asked. ‘Remember, if you lie, you’re going to die.’
‘Réka’ she said. ‘Szepesi Réka.’
‘Who sent you on me?’ I asked. ‘The Church or the mages?’
‘A half-armed man’ she answered. ‘He didn’t tell me his name, but I’m sure he was a cleric.’
‘Weinberg Christopher’ I grumbled. Is he so angry that he’d send an assassin on me?
Réka was playing with her fingers in the meantime.
‘And, what are you going to do with me?’ she asked.
‘What do you mean?’
‘You put a curse on me and took all of my weapons away, right? I cannot stop you, but without killing you I cannot return either. So, what’s the plan?’
I looked at Scathach.
‘Can you take us out of here?’ I asked.
‘No problem’ she said.
‘What is your plan?’ asked Sofia.
‘Come with me, Réka’ I said.
‘What’s your plan?’ she asked.
‘I’ll tell it later, once we got back to the surface.’
On the surface again, I looked at the others.
‘All right, I think I have a plan’ I said.
‘What would that be?’ asked Réka.
‘First, you’ll have to call your principals. You have to say that you’ve killed me, and neutralized the grimoire. Do you have any keywords?’
‘Keywords?’ asked Sofia.
‘Simple words that mean more than you’d believe first. They’re used to indicate if the user is in danger’ I explained.
‘I didn’t know such words exist’ said Sofia.
‘So, do you have any?’ I asked from Réka.
She opened her mouth, than closed it. She was thinking.
‘Don’t forget that if you lie, you die’ I reminded her.
‘We have’ she admitted finally.
‘And, what would that be?’ asked Scathach.
‘Storm’ said Réka.
‘Than, don’t even dare to say it’ I ordered. ‘Now, let’s go.’
‘To where?’ asked Sofia. ‘I don’t want an assassin to come inside my house.’
‘We won’t go back there’ I said. ‘Sofia, thank you for your assistance. You were a big help. But I don’t want to abuse your hospitality. If you’d forgive us, we’ll take our leave.’
Sofia – for some reason – blushed.
‘I-if you want to, you can have lunch at my place’ she said. ‘Y-you see, I don’t have many guests.’
I smiled.
‘If you invite us, we gladly accept’ I said.
‘But the assassin needs to stay put’ she said quickly.
I nodded, and started walking back to the direction we came from. Scathach immediately joined me, linking arms with me. A moment later Sofia and Réka joined us, too.
alfabetagregor 