"Interesting kid." Phil muttered to himself. He experienced a multitude of emotions: anger, fear, hope, excitement, and amusement. All of these in mere fifteen-minute exchange, that too with an eight-year-old kid whom 'he' had kidnapped.
"David, what do you think of this kid?" Phil inquired, glancing at his assistant. "He is a very interesting and smart kid. Perhaps the most intelligent I have seen yet," David replied.
"Should we trust him?" Phil asked, his brows furrowing.
David looked at him and hesitated before responding, "I don't know. If everything he said was true, then we have no choice but to trust him. After all, we need to get our hands on the soap first. It has immense potential, and it's not something we can afford to lose."
Phil nodded but remained cautious. "I thought the same, but his'master' is a big variable. Anything might occur at any given time, and we would be powerless to do anything to prevent it," Phil explained as his expression got serious. He then peered through his window, seemingly lost in thoughts.
Meanwhile, Orin had fortunately returned home before the nightfall, but his father, worried, still scolded him for being careless.
"I understand that you are planning and doing things to get us out of here, and as your father, I'm powerless and unable to help you, but still, your safety is the most important thing. I had told you to get home before the dark! You never listened and always came late and didn't really say anything, but now, look, it's already night. What if those bastardly muggers tried to do something to you? What would I have done then?!" His father's fury masks a deep guilt for feeling unable to protect his son. He wished he could provide more than just a crumbling roof and meager meals that could barely sustain life.
Orin too felt guilty for making his father worry, but he believed it was necessary and had to be done. After reassuring his dad properly, they both went to sleep.
As the dawn broke, Orin headed straight to Hannah's house with soaps tucked in his pocket and pouch.
"These are all the soaps I have," Orin said plainly. He didn't have a good impression of Hannah's family, but since he couldn't really change his plan, he had to stick with it.
Looking at the soaps, Phil's eye shone with excitement. What he saw wasn't some'soap' but a whole lot of gold coins—a treasure trove of gold coins! This untouched market was going to be his.
"Haha…..Good! Good!" Phil laughed heartily, very happy at what he was seeing now. "David, put those 'soap' in the chamber and be careful not to damage it. Also bring me the Oracle contract. " he added
Phil then glanced at Orin and asked "Do you know what oracle contract is?"
Orin shook his head; he didn't know anything about it except for the fact that the contract was named similar to the name of the temple, but he had some of his own guesses.
"Your master didn't tell you about it?" Phil asked mockingly.
"No? Why would he?" Orin replied nonchalantly.
Phil chuckled and then explained, "Oracle is the name of the temple that the mages reside in. They as well as us worship the god Aurelon, the veiled seer. They also issue Oracle contracts in the name of God, but it is very expensive and not easily accessible, but I was able to get it due to my connections." He was clearly very proud of this.
"What if we breach the contract?" Orin asked curiously. The law here was not that good and very lax. The town mayor hardly did anything except take taxes from the people and fawn over nobles and the Oracle. He was notorious for neglecting his duties apart from collecting taxes. So, he was very curious about how the contract worked.
"Good question," Phil replied with a smile. "If any one of us breaches the contract, the mages from the temple will personally intervene against the violator."
Phil then handed him the contract and told Orin to read it before signing it. Although Orin didn't know how to read or write, he could somehow still understand the language. The conditions written were reasonable and according to what was said the prior day.
Orin and Phil then signed the contract, which then suddenly floated in the air and disintegrated. Orin looked really surprised; this was his second encounter with magic. He had first seen magic when he saw a mage kill a huge beast that ran rampant in the town. He was just 3 years old then, and from then on, he was determined to learn magic.
Phil didn't notice the surprised look in Orin's face because he was just as equally surprised and baffled at what was happening. Although he had heard tales of such occurrences, he had never personally experienced it, and experiencing it firsthand was entirely different. Oracle contracts were unnecessarily expensive, and unless they were of extreme importance, people generally avoided them.
"Now that we are officially partners, I hope we can leave any past grievances behind and forge a new relationship." Phil was a smart person; he knew better than to be petty and proud with such an opportunity around the corner. He then proceeded to apologize, which Orin accepted outwardly, but what Phil didn't know was that Orin was extremely petty, in some cases more than those cultivator young masters. He was not going to forget the kidnapping case and vowed to return it back tenfold.
"Don't sell these too quickly," Orin advised. "Bring them outside one by one, so that it becomes a rare thing and becomes more valuable. Also, I need you to create another identity for me, preferably as an illegitimate child, so that I can start going to school."
Phil wasn't really surprised any more. He recognized Orin's intelligence and knew what he was talking about, so he just nodded, affirming his request.
"When can you get it done?"