Chapter 2 Master Zhao (1/2)
Adept Song cursed under his breath as he hurried through the halls of the Acade hundreds of applicants each day, and he just had to get the one with a forbidden Realm
And not just any forbidden Realm, at that That blond-haired freak in his office had actuallydisc!
A shi+ver ran down his spine as he thought about it Whatever kind of foulman possessed, he did not want to know about it The sooner the little eon, the better
Panting, he reached his master's office He took a few moments to catch his breath, then knocked on the door Aopen without a sound
Inside, a handsome man with sharp features and short black hair sat behind a desk At first glance, he seemed to be about thirty years old, but a closer look revealed an ageless quality in his face, as if his body had stopped aging at some point in the distant past
”Master Zhao,” Adept Song said, bowing politely Even at a time like this, he took care to be respectful Master Zhao was not so,” Master Zhao said with a displeased look ”Is there a reason for you to visit me in such a state?” He clearly did not welco nodded anxiously ”There's an applicant with a forbidden Realm!”
Master Zhao raised an eyebrow ”A forbidden Realm? That hardly seems like it's worth such commotion”
The Adept shook his head ”It's not a nor disc!” He held up the disc, showing the blackfrom its center
At this, a look of interest finally eed on Master Zhao's face ”Letout his hand
Adept Song handed over the disc, and Master Zhao spent severalit As he studied the disc, a curious expression came over his face
So's eyes ”Now this is unusual,” he said, his voice betraying a hint of excitement ”Tellshook his head ”I caht after it happened The applicant is still sitting in my office” His left eye twitched in worry as he realized that he should have posted a guard to make sure the boy didn't leave
Master Zhao stood up ”You did well,” he said cal them as he whispered so's face His mouth twisted as if he was about to cry out, but before he could utter a single sound a flash of light emanated from his body as it seemed to burn up from within
Face frozen in shock, the body of Adept Song turned an ashen color Then, it began to crumble, like burned-up charcoal Within moments, all that remained was a sain, h the roo's ashes were swept out of a
”A forbidden Realm,” Master Zhao said to himself with a pensive expression ”I suppose I shall have to take a look”
———
Within Adept Song's office, Arran was growing ht about the situation, the er
The feeling of unease within hi moment, Arran finally decided that he had to leave
But then, ould he do? With less than two silver marks to his name, how could he escape?
He couldn't stay in Fulai City Even if he soed to hide, what little coin he had would only buy a week or two at an inn, if that After that, he would be forced to find work, right under the Acade, but he lacked the coin to afford food for the entire journey A silver mark and a handful of coppers would keep him fed halfway to Riverbend at best After that, ould he do? Resort to begging?
His eyes fell on the s on the table
At first, he rejected the idea Stealing fro Yet if he was to have a chance at escaping, he needed theout Adept Song could return any moment If Arran was to act, it had to be now
After a quick glance at the door, he stood up and stretched his hand toward thein his chest
Just as he was about to grab the box, a voice sounded ”Stealing, are we?”
With a jolt Arran turned around, his head jerking toward the door
Behind hi black robe Arran was certain he had not heard the door open, yet somehow, the man had appeared inside the office
”I wasn't—”
”You sensed that you were in danger,” the man interrupted him ”And you decided to steal the money, flee the Academy, and use the money to disappear”
”Who are you?” Arran asked, panic in his voice
”You can call me Master Zhao,” the man said ”Noe don't have much time If you want to escape with your life you will listen, and listen carefully”
A chill ran down Arran's spine at the man's words
”The moment you cracked that little disc, the Acadees to retrieve you Once they capture you, they'll haul you off to a dark dungeon, and you'll never see the light of day again”
Arran's eyes widened in terror ”I have to leave! They could be here any ave him a puzzled look Then, comprehension dawned on his face ”You think this is the Acadehter ”This is just a small outpost The real Academy could hold Fulai City a hundred tihed in relief For ahauled off in chains ”So there's still time to escape?”
Master Zhao nodded, a smile on his face ”The real Acadeet here By that tihtly startled at Master Zhao's words Apparently, the man planned to travel with him He was not sure whether he liked the idea, but then, he did not have much of a choice ”When do we leave?” he asked after a moment of hesitation
”Before we leave, I have soh You should head to an inn called the Blue Angel, in the southern quarter of the city I will find you in a few days”
Master Zhao reached out to the s handfuls of coins, gold and silver glittering in his hands After spending several ly unremarkable silver coin and held it up
”See this? There's a nasty little tracking spell on it If you had stolen that, they would have found you in days”
He returned the silver coin to the metal box, then scooped up the rest of the coins in his hands and handed theh the week”
Arran blinked in astonishment Thea week in an inn, with this, he could pay for an entire year ”This is too much…” he muttered uncertainly
”Better to have some extra in case I don't return,” Master Zhao said indifferently ”Reel If I'm not there in a week… well, I suppose you could at least try to run”