Alex sat frozen.

“Officially it’s Planet DZ-47-III. But I’ve named it Bambee,” Nekya said with a grin. “We haven’t explored the entire planet yet. But from the reports I’ve seen, the dominant locals are humanoids. The lower species can’t practise magic at all.

“But it’s a relatively new world from the looks of it,” she shrugged, “Even in the cities there are only a few casters. Most of them are simple commons…”

Alex heard only half of what she was saying. He was still trying to process the fact that he was offered to manage a world just now!

“…the Faith of Nekya is spreading quite far. There are a few loyalists that still believe the Royalties are divine, but that should –“

“Nice one Nekya,” Alex forced out a laugh and chuckled. “But if you want to crack lame jokes, pay up. I’m leaving.”

Nekya stopped and squinted her eyes to slits. “What do you mean? I’m serious, they prayed the Kings and Queens before I-”

“Come on Nek. You can’t just ask people to be Managers out of the blue,” he asked, huddling towards the table. But added, “Can you?”

“I forget how little aworlder mages know about planetary expeditions,” Nekya shook her head silently. She scratched her cheek, adding, “Well I can’t make you an official Manager. There are… procedures for that. But I’ll pay you the same-”

“So I won’t be a manager, but I can manage?” Alex asked.

Nekya gave a wink and said, “Yeah, that’s about it. I mean an official Manager has a ton of experience and spells and stuff. I don’t know it all – but I’m trust you, You'll do just fine.”

“So let's get this straight,” Alex asked with raised eyebrows. He wasn't going to fall for it with just a wink. “You want me to go to this other planet, Bambee. As an unofficial Manger. Into a city that is in the middle of a war. With no experience in combat or commanding armies? Oh, and you can’t pay to hire a mercenary army either, right?”

“Umm… I will hire a few mercenaries to protect you.”

“Come on Nek. I don’t know anything about Worlds. You’re sending me to die,” Alex shook his head.

“I know this it’s not the best, but I’ll never try to just send you off to kill. I trust you,” Nekya winced and tried to reassure him with a thumbs up. “Look, I’ll sweeten the deal, I’ll give you is a recommendation. It's supposed to be a secret, but you need recommendations from Worlders to get trained as a Manager. I’ll give you my recommendation along with the Leycrals I promised before.”

Alex’s eyes lit up and he sat back straight.

This was news. World Managers were shrouded in as much secrecy as the Worlders themselves. As mages entrusted with the precious planets of Worlders, the bunch were an enigma. What they did, how they selected and trained, nobody knew for sure.

But there would occasionally be news of some little known mage suddenly become a World Manager and become a hotshot overnight! But the little knowledge that low-aptitude mages like aworlders could become World Managers, and take part in planetary expeditions was enough for most mages to pin all their hopes on it.

Alex didn’t give into these wild hopes just yet, “It’s no use to me if I end up dead. And no offence, you could just go back on your word, you know. No way would anybody take my word against yours.”

“So you’re not completely opposed to taking the job,” said Nekya, flashing him a wink.

Alex smiled in defeat. It was embarrassing how easily she had him figured out. But this was an opportunity he would never get again. “Yes. But-”

“I get it. Big bad Worlder trying to take advantage of the poor little mage,” she smirked. “I’m not trying to take advantage of you, believe me. I’ll send a Simulacrum with you to Bambee. It won’t be much help to you in a fight. But it should be able to answer any question you may have.”

“Simulacrus?”

“Not –acrus. Simulacrum – it’s an advanced [Cloning] spell. It’s not easy for Worlders to enter a local-world. We get suppressed by the native world’s conscience because of our high mana-aptitude. But the Simulacrum is completely mundane.”

Alex nodded. He never asked before why the Worlders didn’t just take care of the problems in their planets themselves. After all, it would be a fairly simple task with their massive mana reserves. But it would make sense if Worlders couldn’t enter local-worlds.

“And secondly, I wouldn’t choose you in a fight, like ever. No offence, but your mana-aptitude is kind of sad.”

Alex grimaced at the last comment. But he could not refute it. A thirteen mana-aptitude was bad even by aworlder standards.

“As for your safety, I have a few people on retainer there. A lot of the locals are loyalist of my religion as well. All I need you to do is command them and keep the Leypoint under control and running for two weeks. That’s all I want,” she explained.

Alex tapped his finger on the table, his forehead creased in concentration.

“How you do it is up to you. I don’t care what happens to the city. Hell, Gypsum can get razed to the ground for all I care – I just need the Leypoint. And if things go out of hand, my Simulacrum will get you to the Leypoint. You can teleport back, no questions asked.”

Alex sat silently and continued tapping on the table.

He replayed her words in his mind, making sure there wasn’t anything that was left unsaid. After a moment, the tapping stopped.

“So I don’t have to fight or even try and keep your city. If I want I can just go and come back immediately and collect my Leycrals!” Alex gave her a half-smile, “What’s the catch?”

Nekya clutching her chest in mock and groaned in pretend, “There’s no catch at all. I guess I’m a trusting person.”

“No, you’re not. I remember you refusing to sit in class for a month because you thought someone had hexed them.”

“Stop making stories,” she pouted, “Just that there’s a bonus if you complete the assignment successfully. Fifty Leycrals upfront and another fifty if you finish it successfully. And of course, you have to sign a fiduciary soul-contract.”

Alex flinched. There was a catch after all.

“Soul-contract?”

“That’s standard procedure,” Nekya replied with a shrug, “I know they have a bad reputation. But they’re quite common among us. I’m trusting you to take care of my world.”

Alex’s scrunched up his face. A soul-contract felt dirty. And the thoughts of his life, if he broke the contract, filled his mind.

“It’s just a fiduciary soul-contract. Do you even know another Worlder you can sell me out?” she smirked.

“Fine. I’ll do it. But I want you to add the manager recommendation thing there as well,” Alex said, his mouth curved into a smile. He had no idea what the recommendation was worth or how to use it. But if it was something kept from the public eye, it had to be worth something.

The table fell silent for a moment. Finally, she gave in and nodded, “Fine, you can have the recommendation. But on the condition that you finish the assignment successfully.”

Alex mulled his options. He would get to travel to a new world – Bambee. Earn a hefty sum of Leycrals and there was even this recommendation he could get if things went well. There was no downside to this, apart from the slight chance of death.

He shook his head, dispelling all lingering thoughts. Alex extended his arm with a broad grin, “You have a deal Nekya Heavenfort.”

Nekya’s face immediately lit up. She quickly jumped onto her feet and hugged Alex.

“Thank you!” she said. “You won’t regret this, I promise”

***

Excerpts from Out-of-Favour Potions, Tinklenourish Magazine: Spoiler

Potion of strength is a handy potion that every household should have. From lifting heavy formation plates to opening jars, this potion can be used for many purposes.

The ingredients for making this concoction is easily available. But make sure to store the liquid in a damp and shaded area.

While consuming do note to remain in a calm state of mind and not engage in any debate, fight or romantic activities. It can cause prolonged weakness or even untimely death.