With Sigrún's words, Erik looked around the spacious and well-lit room with curiosity. It seemed more like a wizard's chamber than the suite he had used on the cruise, which resembled a high-end futuristic presidential suite.
This current room had tall windows extending up to the vaulted ceiling, offering panoramic views of the surroundings. The twisted wooden frames and wallpaper with patterns of golden leaves and red flames were a nod to Sigrún's magical affinities.
On one side of the room, Erik noticed a ghostly fireplace, similar to those on the facade, which emitted a pleasant warmth that filled the space. A small wool rug, capable of changing its pattern at will, lay in front of the fireplace.
The furniture was elegant and functional, with a large, plush bed that seemed to float slightly above the floor, sofas, chairs, various tables, and a carved wooden desk in front of one of the windows. The desk was cluttered with what appeared to be magical scrolls, bird feathers, and inkwells with color-changing inks, alongside pens Erik was more accustomed to.
However, the most striking part of the room was a corner apparently dedicated to alchemy practice, with shelves full of jars containing rare ingredients, a shiny golden cauldron, and a series of runes engraved on the floor around the workspace.
"This looks impressive, master. Thank you"
"I'm glad you like it, Erik."
Erik started examining the room, checking each object several times while the wolves sniffed around and rubbed against the walls. They also tucked their small toys, gifts from Sigrún on the ship, into various places, especially under the bed.
"Well, Erik, get familiar with the place. We'll start your lessons tomorrow."
After showing Erik a clock that seemed to have been carved from a single piece of moon crystal, which glowed with a soft, ethereal light, Sigrún announced with a small smile on her lips.
"This clock will chime when it's time to wake up tomorrow. Seraphina will have breakfast ready for you in the main dining room, and then we'll meet in the study I showed you earlier."
"I understand, master. I'll be there without fail."
After Sigrún left the room, the wolves started to roam around, lying down in different spots before standing up and continuing their exploration. This behavior made Erik suspicious, and he immediately commented.
"You're not staying here. This is MY room."
Upon hearing Erik's words, the wolves immediately jumped on the star-haired boy and began licking his face 'mercilessly,' to which he quickly responded in a strict tone.
"No matter what you do, I won't give in. This is my room now!!"
The wolves barked powerfully in protest, then lay down on Erik, pinning him to the ground while panting with their tongues out. Erik exclaimed in a tone that left no room for negotiation.
"Well, we'll stay like this then. This is MY room. I will never give in!"
At the end of the day, the star-haired boy ended up sleeping with the wolves in his bed.
...
…
…
Nearly two years have passed since Erik arrived at the arcane university. In this time, he finally mastered the four languages of the galaxy. His magical calculus classes also progressed well, as they were just an adaptation of the mathematics he already knew.
Moreover, he gained basic knowledge of alchemy and artificing. Although he wasn't yet allowed to practice unsupervised, he could recognize different materials and plants, as well as several runes and magic circles.
His power level also increased significantly, and he was now officially a peak-apprentice. According to his masters, this was only in terms of mana, as he still lacked the knowledge and techniques to be on par with mana users of the same level.
But something interesting that Erik discovered during this time was that he could pass his knowledge of runes to his wolves. Thanks to this, the wolves could now shrink or return to their normal size at will. They would now shrink to stay with him in the mansion and return to their original size to play in the mansion's gigantic 'garden'.
Because of this, Sigrún built them a pair of 10-meter-tall cabins in the garden and also gave them several huge toys. But the truly surprising part was how Sigrún 'built' the cabins, which was literally by casually waving her hand and causing branches to sprout from the ground and form the cabin.
(Damn it, magic is cheating...)
That was the only thing Erik could think of when he saw such a scene, all the while remembering the time he spent working on his humble cabin and those for the wolves.
…
In the grand garden of Sigrún's mansion, Erik was performing his usual exercise routine while the wolves, standing a little over 4 meters tall, ran around, jumping, chasing, and 'biting' each other.
Not far from there, Eleonora and Sigrún were sitting on garden chairs in front of a beautiful carved glass table, with a couple of cups of hot tea and cookies on it. They ate and drank while watching Erik practice.
"That bio-mystic technique never ceases to amaze me, no matter how much I see it," Eleonora broke the silence, watching Erik's movements and the Myst around him with great detail.
"Yes, it's truly fascinating, and it seems that with each passing year, it becomes more refined and efficient. But that technique is quite rare; with Erik's permission, I've tried to replicate it a few times, but for some reason, it doesn't show even a tenth of the effectiveness it offers him," Sigrún added while elegantly sipping her tea.
"Yes, it's truly made just for him..." Eleonora seemed to start reflecting deeply on something but was quickly interrupted by Sigrún.
"Yes, but let's talk about how the schedules will be from now on."
"Have you told Erik that we'll start with magic?"
"No, not yet. First, I want to define the schedules. So far, Erik has shown very good compatibility with the aegis system and sacred geometry, as well as alchemy and artificing. So, I was thinking of only giving him Sundays off and having you take Saturdays."
"Sig, are you sure you only want to give Erik one day off?" Eleonora asked with a tone that revealed a hint of concern, causing Sigrún to respond with an ironic smile.
"Erik seems to be bothered by having nothing to do. As soon as he learned to read, he spends all day in the library when he has nothing to do, so it's not a concern."
"Fufu, our disciple is very diligent," Eleonora commented with a slight, elegant laugh that mixed some amusement with a bit of pride, to which Sigrún responded with a worried expression.
"But I'm really a little concerned about that attitude, Eli. Erik hasn't even left the mansion in the last two years."
Sigrún's words made Eleonora nod, who then turned to look at the star-haired boy training, while she commented in a more serious tone.
"You're right. Besides us, my disciples, and the assistants, Erik doesn't know any other humans... maybe we should talk to him about it…"
After giving Erik a deep look, Eleonora turned back to Sigrún and commented with a serious expression and a grave tone.
"By the way, the results of the investigation into Erik's background arrived a moment ago."
Sigrún looked a bit surprised at Eleonora for a moment but quickly recovered and asked, "What did you find out?"
"Nothing yet, I haven't reviewed them. I wanted us to be together."
"Then take them out quickly."
After being urged by Sigrún, Eleonora took out a small wooden tablet covered in runes from her storage ring. Then she quickly imbued it with mana while closing her eyes, but soon, her expressions began to change visibly.
Eleonora's expressions were a strange combination of sadness and rage, quickly escalating to terrible murderous intent that almost burst out uncontrollably, until the tablet turned to ashes.
After taking a deep breath in an attempt to stay calm, Eleonora quickly took another wooden tablet covered in runes from her storage ring and issued some orders in a strict, emotionless tone.
"I want the old apothecary and the ruffians in Luminary before the month ends."
"What happened?"
Sigrún asked, a bit confused and somewhat surprised by her sworn sister's outburst, who responded seriously after taking a sip of tea to adjust her mood.
"You'll understand soon, but more or less everything Erik said was confirmed. There really was an old blacksmith with connections to the Jade Lotus Union, though at a very low level.
That's why he knew about chi concepts, and the exercises the old man practiced were a variation of some exercises elderly civilians practice in their lands. They are the same ones Erik demonstrated, and it was well known that the blacksmith practiced them frequently in his workshop."
"What about his background?"
"That was the most complicated part. Erik was abandoned at an orphanage the day he was born, so the director of the orphanage took care of him. But she died when Erik was only three years old, and the new director was very xenophobic. So, because Erik didn't look like anyone from the area, she ended up throwing him out of the orphanage when he was only four."
Sigrún's eyes turned dangerous as she released a terrifying bloodlust and looked Eleonora in the eye while asking.
"Is she still alive?"
"Unfortunately, no" Eleonora replied with an equally dangerous smile.
"That's a shame."
Sigrún's murderous look vanished as if it had never existed, and she elegantly sipped her tea before asking.
"And tell me, how did my Erik survive on the streets at such a young age? Who helped him?"
With Sigrún's question, Eleonora's dangerous smile disappeared, replaced by a slightly complicated expression as she responded.
"Well, it can't really be said that anyone helped him. After being thrown out of the orphanage, Erik slept in the town bazaar's streets and helped people find better prices and such. Apparently, he learned to calculate prices just by watching and listening to the merchants, and thanks to that 'job,' he got food and some clothes."
Sigrún and Eleonora's expressions were not pleasant to see; they seemed a mix of sadness and terrifying murderous intent. But they quickly restrained themselves, and Eleonora continued sharing the investigation's findings.