Realm of Monsters

Chapter 69: I Don’t Understand

Feli heard the front door creak open. She walked out of the bedroom and found Stryg sitting on the floor, his back resting on the wall.

Hey, Stryg. How did your last exam go? Feli asked.

We passed. So, everything is stellar, he said dully.

Felis forehead creased, Anything else happened by chance?

Nothing important, not really, he sighed.

Id still like to hear about it, if you dont mind. Feli sat down next to him.

He sighed, This city is strange, and everyone here thinks Im strange. The Blood Fang tribe thought I was strange too. At least I knew what mattered in both places. Things were different, sure, but the basic rules were the same everywhere. The strong trample the weak. You need strength to survive. Otherwise, your enemies will eventually kill you. Therefore, kill your enemies first. Its simple and its worked out every time.

Makes sense, she nodded.

Ive always done what is needed to get strong. I have failed many times, but I never gave up. Because I know what it takes to survive, he grit his teeth.

What are you getting at?

The secretary, Miss Byrel, the one who almost got me killed. She was my enemy. I had her killed.

...I remember.

Turns out Byrel was Plums mom, Stryg admitted.

Felis eyes went round, Oh. Shit. I see. Did you know?

No. I once asked Plum about her mom, she seemed embarrassed to talk about her. Plum only told me that she hadnt told her mom that we were friends. I knew her mom hated goblins, so I didnt ask Plum about her again. I should have.

How did Plum take the news?

Stryg laughed in derision. She used to call me her best friend, I never liked the term, but after a while I didnt care. Now? Well, now Plum hates me for ordering the death of the drow who tried to kill me. I wasnt wrong to kill Byrel, was I?

Feli didnt wish to admit it, but she was somewhat relieved that this Plum person was out of the picture. The drow was no longer a potential threat.

Well, Byrel did try murdering you, a mage. Maybe it wasnt on purpose, but at the end of the day she wanted to hurt you and almost succeeded in killing you. The death penalty made sense, Feli nodded slowly.

Right? I didnt make a mistake, I did what was needed. Plum was wrong, everything she said about me was wrong, Stryg nodded to himself.

Right, Feli agreed.

Stryg turned to her with glistening eyes, So, why do I feel like this?

His bandaged hand gripped his chest, Why does my chest hurt? My enemy is dead. I should be happy, but Im not. Im not even angry, theres no enemy left to blame. Theres no one to defeat. Im just in pain. I dont understand. I won, so why do I feel like I lost?

Feli felt her own guilt wrap around her, choking her. How could she be happy when Stryg was clearly suffering? She remembered what it was like when she lost her family, the unending aching pain of being so alone. But, she wasnt alone, not anymore.

Feli gently held his hand, You just lost someone precious to you, there is no coming back from that. And yeah, it sucks. I honestly dont think there is anything that can fix that, not even magic. But, I know holding it in will only make it worse. Its okay to feel sad.

Stryg sniffed, Im not sad, Im just

You dont always have to act strong. You have nothing to prove, not to me. I know youre the strongest goblin around, Feli chuckled.

Stryg said nothing.

You know, its okay to cry once in a while, she whispered.

Crying is for the weak, he mumbled.

Feli wrapped her arms around him, Then how about we just stay like this.

Stryg didnt respond, but he held Feli tight. His shoulders shook as he heaved quietly. She stayed quiet and stroked his silver hair. She felt pity for the goblin who could not cry.

~~~

A few days later Stryg found himself at the academy, following Loh down a long stone hallway.

Master, where are we going?

Now that youre finally done with your exams, we are going to take care of something that you should have done a long time ago. Loh glanced back at him, Whats the condition of your arms?

I finally took off the cast last night, but I still cant move my right arm very much. My left arm has completely recovered from the burns. Stryg stretched his left fingers in a show of dexterity.

Thats good. What about your lips?

Completely recovered. He paused in his steps and winced, You heard about that, huh?

Its not everyday someone manages to piss off Rime and get away with it. It was foolish to have cast a flame spell without any prior training or practice, especially without use of your hands, Loh raised an eyebrow.

I understand. I just wanted to get a little payback for Rime assigning us with the damn dragon project, I wont be having class with him again anyway, he muttered.

Its not always best to antagonize your enemies. You have to learn how to deal with them properly, how far you can push, especially when you have something to lose, like your grade.

So Ive learned. His shoulders slumped.

Loh gave him a side-long glance. She had noticed he had been feeling depressed these last few days, but she didnt know why and he didnt seem to want to talk about it either. She preferred to give him his space.

Loh cleared her throat, Nonetheless, Im very impressed. You were able to cast a proper flame spell with only your mouth. Sure, you burned your lips, but you havent even learned how to use orange magic yet. What with the proper training and an amazing mentor like myself, hmm Well, lets just say I might make an amazing mage of you yet.

Really? Strygs eyes glimmered with hope.

Dont let it get to your head, kid. She stopped in front of a door, Anyway, Im glad at least one of your hands has recovered, youll need it. You may be done with classes, but theres still one more exam you need to take.

She opened the door and ushered Stryg inside. The room was empty save for a wooden table and a lit candle in the corner. Ten crystal orbs with silver disks inlaid sat on the table top.

This is-

Chrome-probes, Loh interjected. I wanted to give you a proper chromatic identity examination. Without any interruptions this time, she closed the door.

But, Ive already taken the exam and we already know Im a tri-manifold mage. What difference does it make?

You might have taken the exam, but that idiot, Byrel, never let you finish. The exam is more than just letting you know what chromatic colors you have. It may not show you what spell form youre talented in, but it does show how much innate potential you have for the color.

Stryg walked over to the table, How can they tell me my potential?

Well, they cant tell your potential per se. There are many factors that determine a magis power. Not just talent, but skill, condition of the body, intelligence, control of ones will, the ability to maintain focus under any circumstance, and a hundred other factors. Although, some factors are more important than others. One of the most important being your mana limit.

Loh spread her hands. Chrome-probes help figuring that out. As mageborn, our bodies absorb the innate chromatic mana in the air. Our body then stores it within our hearts. But, the heart is a muscle and each one is unique. Which means that each mageborns heart can hold only a certain amount of mana at once, a limit you could say. Now, like the strength of your muscles, that limit can be increased with training, but only by so much. The larger the original mana limit, the greater the potential limit.

Loh tapped one of the crystal orbs, The chrome-probes are enchanted to absorb a specific amount of mana based on the users limit. And since people only take the exam when they start out, its an easy way to see their limit and gauge their potential limit. The darker the crystal orb becomes, the more mana your heart can hold. You recently told me that one of these orbs turned dark black when you first touched it. That means your heart has great potential for black mana.

Stryg nodded, That makes sense. Professor Gette said Im the most skilled black mage among his class, of course I cant cast necromancy spells, so I still didnt score that great.

Well, Stryg, lets have a proper exam this time, to see where all your talents lie, Loh picked up one of the orbs.

This orb is set to absorb black mana. I know youve already practiced with black magic and have even been tested, but were doing the exam thoroughly this time. So, lets start here, she handed him the chrome-probe.

Stryg held it in his left hand.

Just relax and let the mana flow through, Loh said.

He nodded and took slow deep breaths. He could feel the mana flow through his heart, through his veins, and into the orb. The clear crystal magestone absorbed the inky black mana and became pitch black.

Mana is ethereal energy and therefore normally invisible to the eye. But, through magestones we can see manas true beauty, Loh said.

It really is pretty. The corners of Strygs mouth turned up.

Okay, you're a talented chromatic black, check. Next. Loh handed him another chrome-probe.

Stryg picked it up and watched as the clear magestone was dyed a dark grey.

Dark as well, its to be expected. You have been training in grey magic, so it makes sense why your grey mana limits would already be high. Still, you cast an advanced grey drain spell on your first day of class, so I dont doubt that your original limit was quite high too.

Stryg placed the orb on the table, Heres to hoping I actually have some talent in the other grey spell form.

Dont worry, Ill teach you curse spells soon enough. Now, for the real fun part, this next one is set to absorb orange mana, she grinned.

They both stared as the clear magestone transformed into a dark orange.

Thats my apprentice, talented in the same three colors as me, she laughed.

Stryg sighed in relief, he had hoped, yet there was still doubt in his mind.

Looks like luck has brought us together, kid. This is worth celebrating. Lets go out to eat, my treat, Loh smiled.

Sounds great, I havent gone out to eat in a while, Stryg returned the smile.

Okay, but first, she picked up another chrome-probe, Lets finish the test. You never know.

Understood, he reached out and grabbed the enchanted magestone.

He never thought he would be lucky enough to be a tri-manifold mage and now he was talented in all three chromatic colors. Despite all the horrid things that had happened, he was grateful for this. Fate, it seemed, had a funny way of doing things.

His eyes widened as the magestone turned a dark green.

Ill be damned, Loh whistled.

I-I dont understand, Stryg stammered.

It just means you are super lucky, Loh grinned.

She grabbed the chrome-probe and passed him another, Dont stress about it. Once in a while a student comes along with four colors, its quite uncommon, but not unexpected. Although, their mana limits tend to be quite low.

Her smile fell, the magestones clarity transformed into a dark blue hue.

~~~

Loh tapped her foot incessantly as she sat in the luxurious waiting room.

The vampiress secretary bowed her head deeply, The principal is ready for you now.

About damn time, Loh stood up, pushed past the vampiress, and swung the principals office door open.

Hollow Shades most powerful mage sat at his ornate desk, skimming over a few tomes.

Mage lord Elzri didnt bother to look up at the intrusion, So, you finally decided to come.

Loh clenched her jaw and stood her ground, Im not here for you, grandfather.

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