"I apologize for causing such a mess in your house", Aaron said as he slowly descended the stairs and glanced hesitantly into the large room. He was wearing the fresh clothes Cale had given him and was still drying his hair with a towel in one hand. "Has your daughter gone to bed?"

"She'll be going to bed soon, yes. Ahri has to go to school tomorrow."

"Forgive me for keeping you awake. You probably have to get up early as well."

"Don't worry about that. Have a seat. Can I offer you something to drink? I have tea."

"I'd prefer some cold water, if that's okay."

"Of course", Cale replied politely, fetching a glass and filling it with water, while Aaron made himself comfortable in front of the fireplace.

With a gentle smile on his face, Cale approached the High-Magician, handed him the glass, and sat down opposite him on the sofa with one leg bent. Aaron, on the other hand, remained stiff, almost nervous, sitting upright and gratefully accepting the water. His hair was still slightly wet and dripping onto his shoulder, but Cale did not point this out. He watched nostalgically for a few moments as Aaron took a few sips in the dim light of the fire, and then turned to him.

"I apologize for catching you so off guard."

"You don't have to apologize to me all the time, High-Magician Thopas."

"I want to. I heard that the report caused you problems."

"A little, yes. I hadn't planned on telling anyone that Karekama is in my possession. On the other hand, I never mentioned to you that I wanted to keep it a secret. So in that sense, it was my fault. Although, I must admit that I didn't expect you to mention my name in official documents from the Magistrat. How did that happen, if I may ask?"

"Admitted, I hadn't given it much thought. Your statements summed things up pretty well, and I just thought the wording was appropriate at the time."

"I see. I didn't know you placed so much faith in my words."

"I trust Raphael's judgment."

"What an honor", Cale said amusedly, leaning back to subconsciously convey to Aaron that he could relax as well. "Are you only here to apologize to me personally?"

"The Eldest pleaded with the royal family to treat the information about Karekama discreetly and in order to share it as soon as possible, I traveled here myself", Aaron replied, relaxing his posture slightly. "However, I must admit, I wanted to apologize to you for the mistake."

"Apology accepted", Cale replied quickly before Aaron could bow before him. Somewhat surprised, Aaron looked at the blond-haired man and watched as he placed his cup on the table and then rested his head on the back of the chair with his arm. "Just don't walk around in this weather without proper clothing. You'll only catch a cold, and believe me when I tell you how quickly that can happen."

"Your daughter must be sensitive to low temperatures."

"Actually, she's quite delicate in that regard. I was actually talking about a friend."

"A friend?"

"His name was Liam. We were traveling with a small group at the time, and storms were raging in Sylve. One evening, he had come down with a high fever and was bedridden for several days, not to mention the fact that we had hidden in a cave in the mountains."

"Sounds like a not-so-pleasant event."

"It wasn't, definitely not. I always kept an eye on him after that because he's the kind of person who doesn't say anything when he feels unwell. If you feel uncomfortable, please let me know."

"I will", Aaron replied, his voice now much friendlier. "Are you still in touch with your friend Liam?"

"He's no longer alive", Cale replied dryly. Surprised, Aaron fell silent and looked at him with serious eyes.

"I didn't want to reopen old wounds."

"It's okay, it was a long time ago. I mourned Liam for a long time, him and a few other people who became important to me over the course of my life. They are the reason I am here. But what can I say - life goes on. Even if you never forget those people."

"You seem to have had a difficult life."

"Definitely a life I would never wish on anyone else. What about you, you sound like you've been through a lot yourself?"

"Definitely a life I would never wish on anyone else", Aaron repeated, causing Cale to clear his throat amusedly and smile. "I lost my sister when she was still quite young, and I never really got over it. For a long time, I searched for the man responsible for her death."

"Have you been successful?"

"Unfortunately not, but he's probably already deceased."

"You seem like you've found peace."

"Now, yes. Have you ever felt such a desire for revenge that you couldn't think of anything else?"

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

"A long time ago, yes. Admittedly, I was still quite immature and inexperienced at the time, so I didn't really understand the world around me", Cale confessed, remembering the many mistakes he had made in his first and second lives.

"That sounds familiar."

"You learn and grow from your mistakes, probably one of the most important things you learn from life."

At the same time as Cale's answer, Aaron reached for his glass, coughed slightly, and took a few sips. With a scrutinizing look, Cale watched as the High-Magician then cleared his throat slightly and touched his throat as if it were scratchy. The blond-haired man, on the other hand, was concentrating on the Eldest's mana at that moment.

<"Damian">

<"By my beard, you just scared me.">

<"Sorry.">

<"Good timing, by the way. We just had a council meeting and Grischa mentioned that he would be interested in trying his hand at a communication crystal.">

<"Well, that are some good news.">

<"But it may take some time, so don't get your hopes up too soon.">

<"I know, I know. In my last life, it took Grischa over a year to gain a foothold, even with my help.">

<"Do you know how the crystal works?">

<"I do, I've memorized the crystal well over the years.">

<"I see">, the Eldest began, pausing briefly as if talking to someone else before turning his attention back to Cale. <"What did you want from me?">

<"I just wanted to let you know that Aaron is currently with me and will probably stay here. But you seem to have noticed his absence yourself.">

<"This late? Has something happened?">

<"I'm still trying to find out.">

"Are you all right?", Aaron's voice interrupted the conversation, and Cale nearly choked on his hot tea. Surprised, he moved away from the cup and held his mouth with his free hand as he looked at Aaron.

"Sorry, I got a little lost in my thoughts."

<"I'll check in with you later, Eldest.">

<"All right">, the mage replied, and his mana disappeared a moment later. Cale carefully put down his cup and laughed a little sheepishly. He hadn't moved physically during his short conversation about Grischa, which Aaron had noticed. And Aaron probably hadn't recognized the Eldest's mana either, because he wasn't capable of that ... yet.

"Hopefully nothing bad."

"That remains to be seen. I was just thinking about my daughter and the fact that children are disappearing here in Bellator."

"They're disappearing?"

"Worrying, isn't it? The royal family has been working on the problem for a while, although I can't say exactly what they're doing. However, they don't seem to be finding any clues."

"Strange, yes. It almost sounds like someone is kidnapping children."

"That was my first thought, of course. But why?"

"Perhaps for illegal activities, or they sold the children as sacrifices to Winstest."

"Winstest only sacrifices people they know to be of pure blood. They wouldn't use strangers because they're afraid of angering the gods. So it's a superstition to scare little children", Cale explained, repeating the words he had heard from Philippa.

"Really? Then you know more than I do."

"I know a few people who used to live in religious communities."

"You seem to know a lot of people."

"I do", Cale confirmed dryly. "I've been around a bit."

"With your daughter?"

"Before she came along."

"You must have been relatively young."

"I guess", Cale evaded the statement. "Aren't you?"

"Yes, yes. In my younger years, I also traveled a lot before I met Raphael and stayed by his side."

"You must have known each other for quite a long time."

"Didn't he mention that to you?"

"He did, but we talk more about work than personal things."

"Really? I had a different impression."

"I was aware of that", Cale replied and began to laugh quietly until he noticed that the light was fading. Fengari had hardly put any wood in the fireplace, so Cale got up and carefully added a few logs. "You are welcome to stay here tonight, High-Magician Thopas, in case my intentions were not clear. Unfortunately, I have not yet prepared the guest room, so I can only offer you the living room at this time."

"You are too kind, but you don't have to do that. We High-Magicians can fly and..."

"I know, but with the storm right now, I'd rather have you inside my four walls than out in the pitch-black sky", Cale interrupted him, adding three pieces of wood with his bare hands, clapping his hands together, and straightening up. "Please make yourselves at home. If you need anything, just help yourselves."

"Thank you very much for your hospitality", Aaron replied, and for the first time that evening, he relaxed a little and leaned back.

He must have realized how crazy it was to set out for home in this weather. His problem, however, was that he hadn't planned on staying here. He literally had nothing with him except his wet clothes, which Cale was about to take care of. As Cale walked over to the armchair where he had prepared a blanket and pillow, the High-Magician spoke up.

"Could I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

"How are you hiding Karekama?", Aaron asked cautiously. " I haven't seen it back in Exarion and even now I don't sense the sword."

Surprised, Cale paused in his movement, half-crouching, and turned to Aaron. It had been relatively easy to use zero magic in front of Julius Venlan, but Aaron knew exactly what this special form of magic was. He had seen it often enough and tried to learn it himself. So Cale couldn't pass it off as something else in front of him.

"You tend to ask the right questions", Cale replied, dropping to the floor and sighing.

"I do?"

"I can't lie to you when it comes to magic", Cale replied calmly, reaching out his hand and making the sword appear in his hands in a fraction of a second. Aaron's mouth opened abruptly and he stared at Cale as if he wasn't sure if that had actually happened.

"Was that... zero magic?"

"To normal people, I claim it's a Karekama ability."

"You've mastered zero mag...", Aaron began, then started coughing, which he tried to suppress, quickly reaching for the water.

"I know a thing or two about magic."

"That's quite an understatement. Do you know how few magicians have mastered this form of magic?"

"I only know two besides myself."

"Me too", Aaron replied dryly, staring at the blond-haired man with a serious look. "Where did you learn that?"

"It can't be learned."

"What do you mean, it can't be learned?"

"You're born with this gift, and I'm pretty sure it's not the only ability that's inherited that way."

"Now you're confusing me, Sir Adenia."

"Have you never wondered why so few people master zero magic?"

"Of course I have."

"And how many types of special magic do you know?"

"A few."

"But you don't master any of them - except for one."

"Which one?", Aaron asked in surprise as Cale made the black sword disappear.

"Your Igrikum."

Aaron fell silent abruptly, and although he said nothing, Cale knew exactly what conclusions he was drawing.

"Even before your time, there were third-stage magicians who wandered this world", Cale continued. "And most of today's special forms of magic originate from these magicians."

"How did you come to this conclusion?"

"Stories teach us many things - we just have to listen carefully."

"You are a mystery to me, Sir Adenia."

"But from what I can see, this idea doesn't seem far-fetched to you, does it?", Cale said amusedly, catching Aaron holding back a comment. "By the way, I would be very happy if you would call me by my first name. Only if you don't mind, of course."

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