The officer didn’t drown his grief in wine, nor did he blame his wife for the unfortunate event . He came to his soldiers instead and asked them a simple question “ How long will we let those damned wizards torture us?”

Then he spoke for a long time, at first only his soldiers listened and then the citizens joined in, listening to his words just as carefully as his men did . The speech went on well into the night, and rallied by him and his words, the people burned down the tower which was the orders residence.

What was interesting was that none of the citizens had been killed; nor had any of them had been affected by any sort of curse. The wizards had been simply killed by getting staked .

The news traveleds fast and the people who were sick and tired of living in fear quickly came to realize what needed to happen for the greater good. comprehend whatever is good for them very quickly.

Fires started blazing everywhere-in large towns, in small settlements and in mountain and forest villages. People began killing wizards so mercilessly that they didn’t even wait to find out whether they were black or white. A wizard? You’re about to be sent to hell with a lit torch .

At the same time raging wars just stopped as if they were magically erased and some began to wonder if the wizards had been forcibly keeping them going. Then the wizards of all denominations realized that they had to untie and summon the council which probably happened for the first time since the Century of Troubles began. All of the squabbles and old disputes had been forgotten as the threat of becoming an endangered species had become very real .

On top of that, the human sovereigns had been invited to take part in the meeting as well. Just recently they were the wizards obedient little pawns, but now they acted so high and mighty that no one could have guessed they weren’t the ones in control.

The people made high demands that the wizards had to fulfill or get exterminated. To be allowed to live, they had to give up their possessions and put up with everything. As there was no real choice there, they went with the demands.

This officially marked the end of the Century of Troubles. The boarders were freed, and although there were a few new countries now, the people didn’t care as they became the masters of their continent once again. As for the wizards, they were granted the right to live there but they were banned from taking any positions close to power and were given duties they had no way to avoid . That was the price they paid for ignoring the situation and the slow reaction .

On top of that, the Order of Truth was established. It was an institution which was tasked with watching those who possessed the magic gift and restricting its us e.

The plan wasn’t total control over the wizards, of course. Fear had to be instilled in them so that they always knew that at any moment the door of their tower, castle or house could be broken down and strong, silent people wearing black cloaks would come in and that would mean the end for them. They would tie them to a bark covered stake with thorny rope and set them on fire. The victims would tear themselves up as they writhed in pain, coughing their lungs out, their pleas unheard as their tongs would get cut out upon arrival.

Nothing could protect them from that horrifying execution. Although wizards were rather powerful, they usually lived alone and the humans severely outnumbered them . Even combat magic was useless as in the worst case scenario the humans would bury them under a wave made from their bodies. Besides, what kind of magic could one use in a closed room with their hands tied and their mouth shut?

Several decades passed and life on the continent returned to normal as the horrors of the Century of Troubles became a thing of the past. The wizards recovered several socially important positions (although they hadn’t t been allowed to take any official position as that rule remained unchanged ) and the ministers оf the Order became involved in some extra activities, such as: opening schools for the poor, giving food to the homeless and promoti ng a healthy lifestyle.

But the reason the Order was established had never been forgotten and so the dark ritual, which the wizard had suggested , wouldn’t go by unnoticed, as the brother sleuths had their ways of finding out if something of that sort happened.

He would be questioned by the Father Prior of the mission about the murders that happened here tonight and about the reason why he summoned one of them from the Dark Limits. He would also like to find out if he was trying to raise an army of undead to attempt a coup.

“You are right,” sighed the wizard, “I’ ll explain everything but it will take a lot of time of course. On the other hand, I have plenty of time now.”

“Master, how about we talk with this young man,” and with those words I was grabbed by the scruff of my neck and dragged out from behind the pile of rotten boards that I had used as a shelter when the wizard entered the barn. “I think he could tell us something, right ?”

Agrippa was an unbelievably strong man. He was holding me without making any actual effort . I may not be as fat as my friend Bubuka, but I’ m not as light as a feather either.

“Why not,” the wizard said and came over to me. “Well, young man, could you tell me your name?”

“Boneburner,” I immediately replied. “Boneburner from the Port area. I was just sleeping when those men came so I immediately hid . This was the first time I ever saw them, I swear!“

“You know w hat’ s good about this Agrippa,” the wizard said to his companion, “he is very, very confident and the way he speaks …Yes, definitely confident . Good boy.”

The wizard looked me up and down and I did the same.

The wizard was very old, much older than he looked at first glimpse. He was probably two hundred years old or even older. The wizards usually had a very long life span . Preceptor Jock once said that they could live forever unless somebody killed them.

On the other hand, they can die like ordinary people if you know how to strike just right . You need to hit their heart or their head. However, the strike needs to be deadly to avoid them casting a spell on you.

The wizard turned his gaze my face again, examining me.

“So, who are you?” he asked me in a suspiciously friendly way. “But tell me your real name now. Let’s not waste time.”

“What is your name?” Agrippa asked sternly and shook me at the same time. “Who do you work for ?”

“Chris,” I murmured unwillingly, I knew I shouldn’t lie this time, it was clear it would turn out badly if I did. “I’m Chris the Tout. I’m an apprentice of the code-bound thief Jock the Three-eyed.”

“What strange names you have,” the wizard said and sighed. “Agrippa, where are these names even popular ? The Kingdom of Forcehade, the very kingdom where two hundred years ago the great art of empty words verse was born? The tackiness is appalling.

“It’s a good name, sir ” I murmured, “why don’t you like it?”

“Shut up,” I heard Agrippa’s powerful voice and was shook again without any sign of mercy.

“ ’A bit talkative, but that’s not a bad thing…” the wizard said and grabbed my chin with unexpectedly strong and cold fingers and pierced me with his gaze . “What did you kill that young man for? Who told you to do that? Who hired you?”

“Ain’t got the slightest idea, sir !” I wanted to howl at the top of my voice. I wasn’t sure who had requested it, but I doubted that they’d believe me . ”Go, the one who cursed you before his death, told me to lure the young lord to the backstreet, where he and his chapel folks greeted him.“

“Chapel folk?” the wizard asked with a frown .

“Ye p,” I replied, averting my gaze . “Here they are, all the king’s men… lying dead.”

“ A gang,” Agrippa explained . “Different towns, different names . Continue.”

I was given another shake . Holy Lionella, the man was so strong ! He had been holding me for quite some time now and he didn’t look the least bit tired .

“I lost at dice to Go two weeks ago,” I started speaking slowly. “I got into debt. I usually don’t care for money, but this time it was a favor . A gambling debt is a holy matter and I had to pay it . I tricked your young lord into following me to the alley . It’s part of my job, I’m good with such things.”

“The young baron was a smart and cautious man,” the wizard protested . ’Besides, why would a ruffian like you interest him? You are not a whore, are you ?”

“I cut off his coin purse,” I confessed and sighed, ’and let him notice me. It’s a common trick. You let your victim chase you and lead them into an ambush … I didn’t know that Go would kill him, I swear. I thought he’ d shake him out of his pants and knock him out cold . If I knew about the murder they planned, I wouldn’t have put my head on the chopping block! ”

“And what about the gambling debt?” Agrippa asked with a chuckle . “It’s a holy deal, isn’t it?”

“They’ re different than me. I’m a thief; my job is to pick pockets and be subtle while doing it . Fat Go was a thief, too. I don’t know why he decided to kill him.”

Well, sometimes you needed to get personal with your clients . I had never killed anyone before, but if I happened to get into a fight with someone… Well, it would be my life or theirs. And I don’t feel like dying.

“ So... You really know nothing?” the wizard asked, completely missing what I just said . “Nothing at all?”

I nodded. “They caught your baron, tied him up, gagged him, and brought him here. Along with me, but I hid . If you hadn’t showed up, they would’ve killed me, too , so thank you very much for your help, sirs .”

“He’ s cunning,” the wizard said and laughed. “Did you hear that, Agrippa? He thinks us his saviors! I like him. He’s got spirit.”

The wizard came up to the baron’s corpse and shook his head.

“What shall we do now? The baron is dead and our plans have gone down the chute . What shall I say to my colleagues?”

He picked at the puddle of the coagulated blood with the tip of his high boot, cocked his head to the side , examined the corpse, and then turned to us .

“Agrippa put our new friend down.”

I felt a wave of immense relief the moment my feet touched solid ground .

“The height is the same,” the wizard said thoughtfully as he looked me up and down . ’The face... They have nothing in common, but the height and the body-built… More than I had expected…”

“I don’t think that that’s a good idea, master ,“ Agrippa said, concerned.’What do a baron and a dock ruffian have in common? Such things you can’t find even in romance , and they’re an encyclopedia of stupidity.”

“Don’t read them then,” the wizard advised .“ It’s a stretch, yes , but it’s better than nothing.”

“We still have some time. Let’s stop in Fox Wood,’ Agrippa said and came up to the wizard. ’We will find somebody better there. I’m sure that your friend Antioch will be happy to help us .“

“And to have me owe him one, no doubt,” the wizard grunted with a bitter expression on his face. “The debt is only a part of the problem. He will know everything about my plans and he will find out that he wasn’ t summoned to the Conclave . If I borrow a disciple for our plan …”

“He’ ll tell everything to Master Antioch before he informs you of anything,” Agrippa said. “ I was wrong.”

“The problem isn’ t him telling everything first,” the wizard said in a tone a teacher used to lecture their students, “the problem is that I shall know only that which Antioch wants me to . A true friendship requires everyone to be equal . Difference of any sort makes that friendship either a patronage or a competition.”

“ Those are very wise words, sir,” I said sincerely . “ Hit me right in the heart, they did.”

“ Drop the act, lad,” Agrippa advised . “Flattery won’t get you far with him, believe me . If master decides to send you behind the veil , he’ ll do it. And if he decides to let you go, you will be free. He’ ll do it regardless of your attempts to suck up to him.”

“ That is correct,” the wizard said and looked at Agrippa. “You see, I am warming up to the thought of trying and using him.”

“Master, I’ m telling you that he’ s as noble as I’ m a chapel master,” Agrippa persisted .

“’ And why do you think that, Agrippa? ”

At that moment, I suddenly realized that if Agrippa won this little argument of theirs, I’ d be most likely sent behind the veil. However, I doubted that the wizard would openly talk about his plans in the presence of somebody who would later be able to tell them to others. He didn’t seem to see me as a threat . Besides, who’ d reprimand him for the death of a thief?

“All right. Suppose that the height and the built aren’ t important... What about his appearance?” Agrippa started but the wizard waved his finger .

“Who really knows what he looks like?” he retorted. “Who had ever seen him ? Or rather, where we’re headed, who had ever seen a baron from the Forest Region in the blessed Duchy of Himmelstain ? These barons aren’t known by sight even in the neighboring courts, let alone their offspring. And this one wasn’ t even the heir, but the third son . Remember how his father was ready to kiss my hands when I was taking him? He was saying goodbye in such a way that it was clear that they would never see each other again.”

“All right,” said Agrippa and nodded,” and how about his manners? How can you compare the baron and this guy ?”

“There’ s not much difference between them,” said the wizard cynically . “Barons who live in the outskirts are hardly better than savages. Your grimaced when you saw how dogs licked their plates. I think that a pilferer from the capital of an enlightened kingdom knows more than a baron from a rural one . Our confidant was able to read and write, but Mr. Tout …”

“ I can do that, too !” I exclaimed . “I can both read and write in Сommon and in Falcon . I even know some of the Ice Island runes . A couple, but still!”

“Do you?” the wizard asked with a note of excitement in his voice. “I nteresting. I have to admit that King Egibert V looks after his people . Even street thieves are literate here.”

“ That makes me more concerned than happy,” Agrippa remarked gloomily and grabbed me by the collar. “I get Common , but where did you learn Falcon and the runes ?”

Common was called such , as everyone in Ragellon, from the South Ocean to the Forest Region, spoke it. However, Falcon wasn’ t so widely used as it was the language of the Elves who had lived a kingdom separated from the rest, on the easternmost tip of the continent . And the Nordlig runes weren’ t the most frequently used alphabet.

“Interesting ,” the wizard said and looked at me . “ You’ re a prince in exile, aren’t you? Or, perhaps, you were kidnapped from your ancestral home and your poor a comtesse mother has been desperately trying to find you? I’ ll be very displeased if, at the most crucial moment, I find out that you’ re a high-born ’ and that your bloodline urges you to accept the key from your ancestral castle.”

“Alas,” I replied in a tone saturated with bitter disappointment. “I’ m an orphan . If it were like you said, I would’ve claimed rights for at least a part of the property. Or killed my relatives .

“ Truly an interesting lad,” the wizard said and looked at Agrippa. “He has only a couple of principles and an itching palm.”

“He’ll sell us the first chance he gets .” I couldn’t help but feel like Agrippa didn’t like me. At all. . ’By the way, you haven’t answered our question yet.

“I used to eat in a gentry house,” I started with the firm intention of telling the truth this time as the wizard seemed to be able to tell when I was lying . “Their son was taught different subjects and I was told to share the classroom with him so that he’d feel smart by seeing how dumb I was . I was allowed to listen but not to answer.”

“What a ... progressive method of teaching,” the wizard said.

“t’s a modern trend. I thought that you must’ve gone through something like that as your manner of speech is quite good and you can express your ideas more or less clearly. What do you say, Agrippa?”

“I agree . However, he’ s unlikely to know how to handle a weapon.”

“He seems full of surprises, so who knows? ,’ the wizard said and looked at me with a glimpse of hope in his eyes.’ Can you handle a sword?

“No . But I know how to handle a knife ,“ I assured him. “I can also fight with a staff but I’ m not so good with it. I can also use my fists. One needs to know that to survive on the streets .”

“Staff ,” said the wizard and snapped his fingers. ’It’s something at least. We have some time, although not much . You’ll show him the basic stances on the way.”

“On the way to where?” I asked . “I don’t consider myself curios but…”

“On the way to where we need to go,” the wizard replied, came up to me, and ruffled my hair. “All in its due time.”

At that moment, he pulled my hair so vigorously that tears gushed from my eyes.

“Don’t ever think that you’ve been given your life back , son,” he said in a very quiet voice . “I shall lend it to you and nothing more. It’s not your life , but the life of the Baron Erast von Rut, the third son of his family. From now on, you’ re him. And for the sake of all the gods living here on Earth, try not to disappoint me even a little. I am a very, very kind man . Wicked people simply kill those that they don’t like, but the kind ones… They will make you wish that you had’ never been born .”