Episode 5 – Calm before the storm (1/2)

The war across Kiel's face woke him from his restless sluilance as he quickly got up and started hisroutine

Last night, like a little child before a school field trip, he rolled and turned, too jittery to sleep, which resulted in hih rest

Kiel dropped by the kitchen to grab so to eat A warm smell of freshly baked bread combined with a sweet sels filled with cherries - his favorite

The cook bowed down to hirabbed two bagels fro one in his food pouch and taking the other one to eat on the go

Heforest It was a slightly chilling h to war with the delightful sels

He granted hiic to cool down the bagel before biting down into its tender flesh filled with sweet cherries The soft bread leaked warht tantalizing pleasure to his taste buds It sloarmed him up from inside out

Kiel tried to relax his nerves and get rid of the uncomfortable jitters He distanced himself from the situation and tried to calmly analyze what had happened yesterday One question repeated inside his mind in an endless loop: Who is Elaru Wayvin?

Was that even her real name? Wayvin was not a famous family naht The possibility of her being born into a rando a fake family name to mask their affiliation was not new, most noble families did it, some more often than others Nevertheless, ould Elaru need to hide her fae family himself, did she think he would be wary of her if he knew of her true origin? However, not knowing made him even more cautious

Every little bit of information she provided opened up even more questions

Elaru spent a week observing hiic so she wanted to find out ht to know more about him, she couldn't just casually walk into Beyd and ask around That would cause too much attention and in a matter of hours, the whole toould hear of her interest in Kiel Therefore, she clihest point in Beyd from which she could monitor him

Creepy but effective

In a short while, Elaru was able to learn ht possible She was perceptive and intelligent And ical ability withable to see ical ability? Perhaps she noticed his flaw by seeing how ular intervals (which was not much)?

Kiel's frustration with the lack of inforhis lips with each new bite His lips were turning redder It was unclear whether it was fro or the cherry syrup

He was barely aware that he was already on the outskirts of Beyd The people around hi The entire town knew him He was a local celebrity of sorts

He smiled, nodded and waved here and there, out of politeness If someone were to ask him who he had encountered on his way, Kiel wouldn't be able to rele face

There was so eerie about Elaru Wayvin

Shea sweat How? She was an elibu, which ic to accelerate, float or fly Because Kiel wasn't able to use ic often, he was forced to train his body to make up for that flahich meant he was in top shape and was able to run quite fast for extended periods of ti Elaru was just as fit, she should have been just as tired as him, if not more

Did she use that healing e would her mana pool need to be to allow her to use it twice in a row?

I his eyes Therethe last rear powder off his fingers, but that was improper since he was in public

Was Elaru a healer? She didn't look like one But if she wasn't a healer, what ic did she specialize in? She claimed not to be a spy, yet she could conceal her presence perfectly With an aura as powerful as hers, concealing her presence would be extremely problematic If Elaru isn't a spy, why bother with it? Was she a famous or wanted person? An outlaw or a celebrity? Was she on a secret mission?

What would that kind of person ith him? Elaru mentioned that she wanted him to become her 'partner' What kind of partner? Partner in crime?

The disturbing thought made Kiel's hair stand on end

He hurried into the forest where they were supposed tohim to lick it When he was sure that no curious eyes could see him under the safe seclusion of the trees, he carefully licked the sugar off his fingers It was a sensual gesture, one that could make any female blush

”Mhed soon after He should have grabbed a few ain

Kiel arrived at the designatedthe air heavy andwith its warlow

Elaru didn't seem to be there yet

Am I early? Kiel wondered

”I was afraidthat you wouldn't show”

Kiel turned his head to the source of the fa on the lowest branch of the tree to the right of hio

”Doing that is highly unpleasant and quite unnecessary” He was referring to her hiding her presence and appearing out of nowhere

”Sorry, it’s a habit” Elaru grinned guiltily and re her presence

Herof warmth to erupt in his sto It was very different from how it felt yesterday

Kiel's father once told Kiel that person's mana was like ainto one's heart Mana was in direct contact with the e which e carried over to the h the e Mana couldn't lie, it showed the pure and simple truth

The war ensured Kiel that Elaru's intentions weren't hostile Now, after he had felt it, he was all theand self-centered, yet herand welcoh, at the same time, he could tell that those fla inferno if provoked

He had never met anyone with a ht, nor pure darkness, but soood and evil

Elaru seemed like a different person entirely However, at the saes in her ree?

Kiel's false persona ell trained, so it ed to recover from stunned silence ?” Kiel asked her sweetly

Elaru raised an eyebrow and her long elibu ears twitched She was surprised at his sudden politeness ”No Why do you feel the need to pretend you care?”

Kiel sed ”Habit” His response mimicked her own response from earlier

There was no reason to pretend with her The only reason Kiel ca late, not because he didn't want to make her wait

”I would like you to clarify a fewthe soft expression with a serious one

”Hold that thought!” Elaru exclaimed and jumped down from the tree

The sudden change of velocityWhen her feet touched the ground, her long ears shook up and down a few tiinal position She approached the center of the clearing

Elaru slaround Al to her hit, the soil rose up in front of her shaping into three stu a transmutation spell 'Morph' to control the earth

Elaru twisted the soil for the corners in the process She flicked her wrist and cast another trans soft lumps of earth into lumps of rock That way, the soil wouldn't collapse when sat on The purpose of her creation was obvious – she wasstools

Kiel's mind automatically translated the spells into ranks:

”Morph” – Level 3 shape transmutation spell, quick and precise

”Material Transmute: Soil to Rock” – Level 5 material transmutation, solid state variant

Elaru sat down on the stool closest to her and motioned for Kiel to sit down as well He hesitated briefly before sitting down opposite of her

Was there really a need for co?

Elaru, as if answering his unspoken question, placed her s around it until she see for - a metal tube It was a scroll case

Elaru carefully unscrewed the cap and re which, she spread the thin yellowish parchment on the table and looked up at Kiel

”Do you knohat this is?” Elaru asked him, ready to explain

However, Kiel didn't need an explanation The first line of the text written on the scroll happened to be the name of the scroll It also happened to be written in letters so large that he could have read it from a kilometer away

It was a reusable Oath of Truth – a rare arcane contract

Arcane contracts were specialized limiter spells The contract spell would stay latent until activated by a trigger spell The person who activated it would then be put under the contract While the contract spell is active, it would limit the actions that the person can take in such a way that he does not break the contract

Oath of Truth made those who activated it unable to lie in a ten-minute time period Unlike traditional contract scrolls which were one use only, this particular one was reusable As such, it was very hard to create and, therefore, pricey