"I want you to swear on three things-" Erweine said.
"Three things-" Flint repeated, pausing.
"Yes. Three things. One, you won't rush out until we've confirmed their identity. Two, you will diligently continue your training without overexerting yourself. And three- you will join the Magus guild."
"Two, three, I can agree with. But the first-"
"Then I cannot… No, then I won't tell you."
Eyes slightly raised- Flint just stared at the old woman. He knew she was right.
And he knew she was only putting on those conditions for his sake.
Yet-
Biting his teeth- "And how long do you think it'll take you to confirm?"
"At the very least, two months."
A deep breath. "Alright. Tell me-"
"Put out your hand first-"
Flint nodded and obliged.
The woman took his hand in hers- "I'm binding you with a two-way curse. This curse binds me to find out the identity of the culprit within two months, and it also binds you to uphold your three conditions. Do you agree?"
Thoughts ran through his mind.
Lots of thoughts.
But at the very end-
"Sure."
He didn't have a choice.
Not anymore.
"If you or I break the covenant, we're going go through one week of intense pain and would be liable to pay the other party 100 gold. Be mindful of that." The woman smiled. "Now with that out of the way-"
"Go on-" Throat clogging up-
Dry.
He was at the limit of his patience.
Ahem- "Three weeks ago- the overlords had been seen in the port of Drum. They were there to hunt. The magic that wiped out your village, was said to be really bright, with a tiny explosive sound. At least that's what the eye witnesses reported. There was apparently a shockwave that traveled far. According to my knowledge that's the spell- Quake Blast- and there's only a handful of people on the continent who can cast it along with me."
Flint forgot to blink. His eyes burned, yet he just stared at the woman-
Egging her to continue.
"And I do not think the overlords are among those handful of people. However, at the same time we can't be serious of that. After all, those three possess immense strength. And though I only know of those handful of people, there's always a chance someone else exists under the radar."
"Yes, I think you mentioned all these before as well. What's new?"
The woman grimaced a bit. "We've found traces of Void-" She also glanced once at her daughter who put her hands in her mouth, covering it up.
"Void?" Flint paused. "I'm sure that element was supposed to be have been lost."
"Yes. But I know two people who can use it…"
"And those two are."
"Arack Verman and Duanne of the Seran tribe."
Flint hadn't heard of either.
But he did know one thing- "And you're suggesting one of them might have done it?"
Throat drying- it was hard to swallow.
What was he even swallowing?
Air?
"Yes," The woman paused. "As a matter of fact, we've sent a mail to Ms. Duane and she agreed to meet us in a month's worth of time. Meanwhile Arack seems to be out of the continent at the moment. And would also soon return. All the while, we're trying our best to-"
Flint stood in front of her- towering a bit- "Are you sure- you can find the culprit in due time?"
"You have my word-"
A breath-
He backtracked and sat down. "Thank you…"
"You're welcome but- as per the third condition-"
"I'll join academy, at least for two months. I won't be able to stay for long since I'll have my apprenticeship duties and all that. But I'll be diligent…" He didn't look up, his vision was down, down at the floor-
So close-
Yet-
So far away.
Teeth clenched, fist formed, eyes blood shot… "I'll join the academy…"
"Good… now go get yourself cleaned up-" Erweine said. "Veine dear, would you mind helping him?"
"Of course-" Erveine said, walking over to Flint. "I was planning to-"
***
Bandages redressed; Flint sat tight in a small room provided by the academy.
It came with a bed, and a table.
Nothing more-
Nothing less.
"How much does one need to study here for a month?" Flint asked.
Erveine was just about to leave- "3 Gold a month- for tuition and-"
"Total-"
"10 gold."
"I'll enroll tomorrow then…"
"Tomorrow? You don't plan on going out again tomorrow, right?" She asked, just to confirm.
Flint look at her eyes- he stared. "Yes."
Squinting a bit- "Alright…"
She left.
'Alright?'
A faint smirk… 'Gotta earn a lot more…'
Though he had a lot of questions-
Though he had a lot of worries-
And though he had a whole lot money to make-
Flint-
Lied down-
Covered his eyes with his arm-
And slept.