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The journey through Egypt with the Knights lasted another week, most of which was spent in Alexandria. This city was quite different from anything I had seen before in Egypt. It was much better maintained, and richer than Cairo, and the people here did not look as clumsy and poor. Maybe, because of the proximity to the Mediterranean Sea? In general, we spent time on the beaches, visited various temples and mosques with interest. However, we did not go inside - one should respect others' culture, and visiting a Muslim temple in European-tourist clothes is akin to spitting on the religion.
Unfortunately for me, I didn't find anything really interesting among the possible magical souvenirs and other merchandise, and the educational material on magic, whether scrolls or books, are firstly in Arabic and secondly for apprentices and wizards with citizenship of the North African Commonwealth of Magical States. It turned out that there was one big magical school in Morocco for all of North Africa. Except that I didn't immediately guess that it was Morocco because the local wizards call it Al Maghrib Al Aksa. And there's also a magical university, where you get some kind of specialty, but what they can teach me I do not understand - the language barrier.
In general, we returned to England in a good mood, and Knight also got a little tan. I, on the other hand, was still aristocratically pale, and my hair hadn't even burned out. To be honest, I was worried about them turning into the straw, but no - still the same blond-blond with quite manageable and straight hair.
So, while searching for changes in my appearance because of the sudden but unnoticeable climate change, I noticed one interesting thing - I really grew up! Well, I mean, how old am I now? Thirteen? And I'm almost as tall as John, and he's a hundred and seventy-six centimeters. He's not tall, but by English standards, he's a medium. I'm a little short. I was expecting six feet, maybe a little more, because I was used to that, but now I was suddenly worried that I might exceed that bar. Was it the potions and the training? Maybe, maybe. On the other hand, if there is no growth spurt, then at this rate, I would grow to the size I wanted.
The day after I arrived, I decided to bring up an important point at breakfast. So, sitting in the dining room, done with breakfast and just finishing my drinks with my foster family, I spoke:
"John, Sarah, there's an important conversation."
John put the paper down and looked at me carefully, and Sarah nodded her head to let me know that she was participating in the conversation but that she was not going to be distracted from taking care of her potted flowers.
"Anyway, here's the thing. You know what I know, what you know... Anyway, it's no secret to anyone here that I'm adopted."
"Of course it is, and we talked about it a long time ago," John shrugged.
"Well. I didn't tell you, but I remember something from when I was a baby."
The Knights looked somewhat interested now. Even Sarah was distracted from the flowers on the windowsill, sitting down at the table.
"After doing some, so to speak, investigation, I came upon the ancestral home of my birth mother."
I didn't know what else to tell.
"I see you're at a loss, aren't you?" Sarah smiled. "Just tell it like it is. You've shown yourself to be a conscientious young man for a long time. Christian, our eldest, left home at sixteen, showing his independence."
"Well," I exhaled, "it's quite an old wizarding family, an entire clan, with a history that goes back hundreds of years. The only thing is that it's in very bad shape right now, in the middle of nowhere. There's only one person left alive who can inherit but is probably incapable.
"How is that? Oh..." though John "Incapable of leaving offspring?"
"Most likely. He's now in his twelfth year in a wizarding prison. Falsely accused. There are three other women, sisters, but the bloodline is old and dates back to ancient patriarchal times, like tradition. A woman simply cannot inherit there. And besides, one of them is in the same prison, the other is married to a wizard in the first generation."
"Hmm, what kind of prison is that after which people are incapable of making children?" Sara asked a reasonable question, suspiciously straightening curls of black hair.
"A magical prison. Not only are there wizards on guard there, but some of the most dangerous magical creatures, whose mere presence has a deleterious effect on the psyche, and they themselves can drink the soul. Literally."
"What a nightmare!" Sarah put her hands to her face, and John frowned.
"I hope you'll be a law-abiding citizen of Magical England, Max."
"That's not all. They say that in Azkaban, that very prison, even the stones are imbued with horror and misery. And when it comes to magic, "drenched in misery" must be taken literally. I recently noticed that magic is quite well felt by a kind of sixth sense. It's hard to describe in words... Anyway, it's bad out there."
"You were talking about the three sisters," Sara reminded him.
"Yeah. It's a murky story, and I only know the outcome. The third, the youngest, is my biological mother. However, for some reason, her husband decided that I should be kicked out of his family. She seemed to be against it, but, as I said, it was too murky. Anyway, a couple of rituals, and I'm no longer related to my biological father, genetically, magically, or otherwise. As I recently found out, I should have died after that, but, well, I didn't. It turns out that I am almost a perfect copy of my mother, only a boy. Accordingly, I am the only man capable of inheriting the bloodline."
"I don't understand," John said with a frown, "What reasons are needed to doom your child to death like that."
"And mother is not better," Sarah grunted.
"There are many magical ways to impose a will, to make you forget something, and so on. But what I'm saying all this for - I'll be spending a lot of time in my ancestral home in the near future."
"Hmm," John scratched his chin thoughtfully. "And what would joining the inheritance give you? How practical and sensible would it be?"
"Tough question, really. It is a lot of responsibility, coupled with a huge library of magic, a house protected by magic, where many generations of wizards have lived. Believe me, the fact that they lived there makes a big difference. Just as Azkaban is saturated with fear and terror and stuff, this house is saturated with kindred magic."
"Strange this 'magic' of yours," John smirked. "But, you've made up your mind, haven't you?"
"I'm not sure."
"I'll tell you this, Max. When you get an opportunity in life to achieve something, to get something more than is given to others, you have to seize the opportunity. Doubts because of possible difficulties and failures will only lead to disappointment and many sorrows in the future. It is better to decide to do something than to regret then about the unrealized opportunities and wonder, «What would have been if?»"
"So you don't mind?"
"Of course!" smiled Sarah. "You're not the first child in the family. We know very well that sooner or later children leave the parental home, the main thing is to give them a good start. Some sooner, some later. You, Max, are ready to start your own life now. That's weird for us."
Sarah put her hand on her husband's shoulder.
"Weird and unusual, but it doesn't mean we're going to hold you back in any way."
"Well, I'm not moving out completely," I smiled. "Not until I graduate."
"Still. If the inheritance option might give you more opportunities and prospects, it's worth considering."
That attitude couldn't help but make me smile. Frankly speaking, I was afraid that the Knights would not like such an idea. Even though I knew them well enough, and they were not strangers, I still had my doubts. But here, everything went quite easily and without conflicts of interest.