Suga'Tin sat in his office, his gaze directed at the piece of paper he was holding in his hands. Letters were rare due to the ability to communicate through rune stones, which were available to almost everyone. It was clear on the face of the academy director that what was written in the letter worried him.
Greetings my dear friend Suga Tin, I hope you remember your old friend from your studies at our academy, which you are now in charge of. I understand that because of your position and obligations that impose certain restrictions you can not leave your academy for a long time. As you understand I have a favor to ask of you and I hope you won't refuse. As you may remember, I serve under the Duke of Elasia, whose lands are in the kingdom of Svenlinch. My lord has a daughter who wants to go to the neighboring kingdom of Celihin to meet other young nobles. You are probably wondering what the problem is why I decided to turn to you, my lord's daughter was born without a talent for magic and when Duke Elazia's enemies found out about it they tried to attack her and her father more than once. I have no trust in knights or vassals and so I have decided to turn to you. As you may realize, I am unable to accompany the girl because of the threat to her father. Neither you nor the academy is interested in killing or kidnapping Enlin, unlike the mercenary guild, who may give if the other side offers more. So I have decided to ask you to escort Enlin to the kingdom of Caelihin. The two kingdoms are not connected by portals and will have to travel by riding animals. I hope you will not refuse this request, your old friend Fialin.
He didn't want to refuse such a simple request from his old friend, but as Fialin had said, he had obligations to the academy where he was the headmaster.
Leaning back in his chair and pressing his hand to his frowning face Suga`Tin was trying to find a way out of this situation when a persistent knock sounded at the door.
The headmaster was trying to remember if he had an appointment with any of the deans and professors, and as much as he tried to remember, he had no idea who had the nerve to knock on the door to his office.
- Come in, and let's hope it's something important. - The headmaster said in a loud voice as he continued to frown. - Otherwise, I won't look at what you're doing at the academy.
The door opened with a swift movement, revealing the one who was trying to get the headmaster's attention. In the passage stood the smiling dark elf who had been sent by the headmaster to retrieve Trey's stupon.
Thinking for a moment, the headmaster remembered the last conversation he had with the professor that they would be returning from Mizhen City today because of a letter he had received from a friend of Suga Tin's, and he had completely forgotten about it.
Without asking permission Nie'Lim closed the door behind her and walked to the chair where the headmaster was sitting, the girl could see that her old friend wasn't frowning because she had come.
- Sugi, is something wrong? - The dark elf looked around the office warily for a possible threat. - I haven't seen you like this in a long time.
The headmaster grumbled and glanced down at the table, considering whether to show the letter from an old friend to the girl who stood next to him.
- I'll talk about that later, but first, tell me more about what really happened to Baron Falo. - Suga'tin turned to the dark elf in a tired voice. - And not what you or stupon Trey told the king's emissary.
The dark elf shook her head and moved away from the chair where Suga'Tin was sitting and leaned against the table, looking at the frowning headmaster.
The girl did not try to hide anything, they had known each other for too long to fear that Suga`Tin would do something against her or the stuphon, who was becoming more and more interesting to the dark elf.
Describing how they had split up and how the half elf had fought alone first against the vigilantes and then against the Baron and his sons.
When the headmaster wanted to say something, the girl put a finger to Suga'tin's lips, urging him to listen.
After making sure that he was silent and waiting for what she wanted to tell him, Ni-Lim smiled at his behavior and told him how the stufon who was in his first year had summoned a wyvern.
If the headmaster who was sitting in the chair had been frowning before, after hearing this, a look of disbelief froze on his face.
- Please say that again, he summoned a wyvern?! - Asked the shocked headmaster. - If you're trying to make him a magician the world has never known, you're succeeding!
He tried to stand up, but the dark elfess put her hands on his shoulders, preventing him from rising. From the look and the enigmatic smile on Ni`Lim's face, the headmaster didn't want to guess what else the stufon Trey had done besides the wyvern the girl said he had summoned.
If someone else told him such a thing he would only smirk and shake his head as if it were a bad joke.
Many had tried to bring living creatures into their own world, but all the mages who tried to do so died or became mortal because their spheres burst as soon as they placed an animal, even a small one.
And here the professor was talking about a wyvern that was stronger and more powerful than the one the mages tried to put in their own world inside the mind.
The director remembered how surprised he was to see the young half elf's talent for sword and magic, and when Suga Tin's darkness magic appeared, he already saw a future mage who would be stronger than many in the world.
- Yes, he summoned a wyvern, but not an ordinary one. - The dark elf spoke teasingly, running her fingers over Suga'tin's face as he waited to hear who it was. - As I understand it, he didn't know he had a royal wyvern himself, as I noticed he gave it his own magic.
If before the headmaster thought he was surprised, now he froze and laughed, Suga'tin believed the words of the girl sitting in front of him, a stuphon who didn't even know that he had a royal wyvern as a servant and had endowed her with his magic.
No matter how he tried, he had no way to give an example of a mage who could do such a thing among those who were already dead let alone alive. Continuing to laugh, Suga`Ting pondered when was the last time there were mages of such power?
Before or after the exodus of the five races that marked the deterioration of magic in the world and the disappearance of such magic as light and darkness.
Freezing Suga`Tin began to feel a thought that bordered on what he realized were crazy coincidences.
The young half elf who had a talent for both sword and magic was a master of vanished magic and it was no problem for him to summon a servant in the form of a royal wyvern.
As the headmaster remembered, ancient writings kept in the library of the mage council seemed to describe cursed swordsmen.
Looking up at the frown on the dark elf's face she only nodded at his question which Suga`Tin asked with a glance.
- How long ago? - The director asked in a strangled voice, trying to hold back the trembling in his body.
He had no sense of danger from the look on the girl's face who only smirked at his question.
- I had my suspicions from the moment he demonstrated the monarch's aura. - Ni'Lim said in a caressing voice while reminiscing. - And confirmed my thoughts of his assignments and how his sword style had changed.
The headmaster remembered the dark elf telling him that the half elf had summoned the monarch's aura but back then Suga`Tin thought that the girl in front of him had seen something more than what was actually there.
- What about his sword style? - The headmaster inquired cautiously, fearing another shocking news about the half elf.
A bitter smile flashed across Ni`Lim's face as she realized that by telling her only friend everything, the girl was involving him in a dangerous situation.
If it was true what they were talking about here, then when it turned out that he, as the headmaster, had not passed on the advice of the cursed swordsman as he should have, he would die.
- First, how many sword-wielding mages can stand up to me? - The girl asked, running her fingers over the headmaster's face.
The headmaster was surprised by the dark elf's question, trying to remember which of the mages besides Suga`Tin himself would be able to resist Ni`Lim, there were fewer than the headmaster thought at first.