Chapter 22

“Is that a Realm Opening Pill?” Jiang Fei said, looking in wonder at the small black pill Master Zhao held in his hands .

Arran frowned . Again, he found that she knew far more about the world of magic than he did .

“It is,” Master Zhao replied .

“So that’s how you did it!” Jiang Fei looked at Arran as if she had finally figured him out . “That’s how you opened your Wind Realm so quickly!”

Arran didn’t correct her . Although he had not used a Realm Opening Pill for his Wind Realm, Jiang Fei did not know about his forbidden Realm .

Looking somewhat smug, Jiang Fei turned her attention back to the pill . “Is it as painful as they say?” she asked, a hint of apprehension appearing in her voice .

“It’s bad,” Arran said honestly . “I passed out from the pain when I took it . “

Jiang Fei nodded thoughtfully . Then, she reached out to Master Zhao, who handed her the pill .

“I guess I’ll find out,” she said . Without hesitating, she took the pill in her mouth and swallowed it .

For a moment they sat in silence, waiting . Then, Jiang Fei’s face began to twist in discomfort .

“It’s like there’s fire flowing in my veins,” she said . There was a slight tremble in her voice now .

Soon after, she began to groan, and her face twisted and contorted as her body tensed up in anguish . As the groans grew louder and her face more twisted, it was clear that she was in a great deal of pain .

“Make it… Stop…” The voice barely even sounded like Jiang Fei’s anymore, and her eyes were wide but senseless, as if she could no longer see the world around her .

“Will she be alright?” Arran asked . He had his disagreements with Jiang Fei, but seeing her in such a state still left him worried .

“Almost certainly,” Master Zhao said . He seemed unconcerned, although the words did little to ease Arran’s worries . From what the man said, there was a definite risk .

“But enough of that . ” Master Zhao made a gesture with his hand, and Jiang Fei’s cries instantly vanished .

When Arran looked at her, she still appeared as if she was screaming, but no sounds emerged from her lips .

“I’ve put up a barrier,” Master Zhao explained . “We can no longer hear her, and she can no longer hear us — though I suspect that right now, she wouldn’t understand even if she did hear . “

“Now then,” Master Zhao continued . “There are things we must discuss . There are questions you need answered, and I have some questions of my own . “

Arran was startled . Master Zhao had questions for him?

“To start,” Master Zhao said, “we must discuss your past . “

“My past?” A feeling of foreboding filled Arran .

“You told me that after your father’s death, you decided to come to the Academy to become a mage,” Master Zhao said . “But what of the men who killed him?”

Arran hesitated . “The guards…” he began .

“Don’t lie,” Master Zhao said . “You’re a bad liar, and I’m a good listener . If you lie, I will know . “

Arran sighed in resignation . Then, he began to speak .

“Riverbend is poor . Poor enough that even some of the wealthier families struggle to provide their sons with land . Because of that, young men often take work as caravan guards or mercenaries, to save up enough coin to buy a farm of their own and get married . Many of them never return .

“Others choose an easier path, robbing traveling merchants and caravans . They don’t usually kill their victims, but it makes the region a dangerous one for travelers . The guards know about it, of course, but the bandits are locals and their victims strangers, so they often turn a blind eye .

“The bandit who killed my father was in such a group . My father was a guardsman, and during a patrol, they stumbled upon a group of bandits robbing a caravan . The bandits fled, but not before one of them loosed an arrow that struck my father . “

Arran fell silent, once more remembering what had happened .

“Continue,” Master Zhao said .

After a moment, Arran did as the man said .

“The shot probably wasn’t intended to kill, as it took him in the leg . Yet the wound failed to heal, and it got infected . It took a few weeks, but…”

Arran swallowed hard before continuing .

“After he died, I wanted revenge . So I tracked down the bandits . I found them holed up in an abandoned farm some three days’ travel from Riverbend . There were about two dozen, mostly local boys . But when I told the guards, they refused to act . “

“Then what did you do?” Master Zhao asked, leaning forward as he listened intently .

“I killed them . ” The admission came easier than Arran had thought . This was the first time he told anyone, but he did not feel the panic or guilt he had expected .

“You fought two dozen bandits? By yourself?” Master Zhao frowned, appearing doubtful .

Arran shook his head . “It wasn’t like that . I didn’t fight them . I killed them . “

“How did you do it?” Master Zhao asked .

“I traveled to the farm, then waited until nightfall,” Arran said . “They’d been drinking that night, and they only posted a single guard . My arrow took him in the throat . A lucky shot, but he died before he could scream . “

“After that, I barricaded the door from the outside . While they were asleep, I set the farm ablaze . The few who managed to escape the fire, I shot with my bow . The others…” Arran paused, remembering the screams he had heard that night . “The others burned alive . “

With that, Arran went silent . For some time, neither of them spoke .

“Do you regret it?” Master Zhao finally asked .

Arran shook his head . “They were responsible for my father’s death, all of them . ” After a moment, he added, “You must think I’m a monster . “

“A monster? For avenging your father?” Master Zhao let out a cheerless laugh . “Had you done nothing, I’d have thought you a coward . Now… now, I think you might have a chance . “

“A chance?” Arran was puzzled .

Master Zhao sighed . “Truth be told, until now, I had some doubts about you . Other than your forbidden Realm, you’re not exceptionally talented . Don’t misunderstand me — you have some talent for magic and swordsmanship, but it’s nothing out of the ordinary . “

Master Zhao’s blunt words stung, but Arran knew they were true . In the few months he had spent training with Jiang Fei and Amar, he had discovered the limits of his talent .

Amar’s skill with the sword could only be called phenomenal, and despite Arran’s best efforts, he could not compare . Jiang Fei, meanwhile, seemed to have an almost unnatural mastery over magic, controlling it like a master painter controls his brushes . Compared to her, Arran was like a child slinging paint at a canvas .

“Yet despite your limitations, you killed two dozen bandits before ever even having touched magic . ” To Arran’s surprise, Master Zhao nodded in approval . “With that, you might yet have a chance to face the Academy and escape with your life . “

“So now what?” Arran asked . Painful memories still fresh in his mind, he had little interest in Master Zhao’s compliments .

“Now, there are things you need to know,” Master Zhao said . “Things that will decide your future . Some of them, I had wanted to let rest until later . But instead, we will have to discuss them now . “

“Why now?” Arran asked . Although he would not pass up the chance to have some of his questions answered, he wondered why Master Zhao was suddenly so willing to talk . Until today, the man had shown little interest in learning about Arran’s past, and even less in answering his questions .

“Because tomorrow,” Master Zhao said, “I will leave . ”