"So, what do you think?"

Tensely, Cales watched Aletta as she looked at the mark with a focused gaze and examined the High-Magician's mana paths with her ice-blue eyes.

It was getting quite late and Aaron had retired to see if he could find some clues about the creature or her mark in the Magistrat's library. To Cale's surprise, he had agreed to look for Basli, although Cale wasn't sure if he could even be found. Besides, he was not so pleased by the idea, since he was sure that Theorik lived near Basil, and he actually had not planned to seek out the young fighter so early.

Grischa had really managed to hang two problem at onceon his neck.

For a while now, Cale had been thinking about how to handle the situation. But he couldn't think of anything. He didn't want to risk Grischa's life just to protect his future relationship with Theorik. The High-Magician had become too important to him for that. His thoughts therefore drifted to Philippa. She knew the death region of Winstest quite well, having lived there for years, and would be a good guide. Thus, Cale could indirectly ensure that Aaron would not have to search too long, and perhaps through Philippa he would have an option to win Theorik over.

"This is truly intriguing. I mean, don't get me wrong. It's quite dangerous for the victim, but this tattoo in itself is a true wonder," Aletta explained.

"How exactly do you mean that?"

"Look at how it was applied. The creature must have known pretty well what it was doing, because it hit right at the heart of the mana circuit and literally burned itself in. I can see Sir Vonstetten's mana appearing briefly, but this strange form immediately takes it away from him. It has deliberately attacked the source of the mana heart and is using it for himself."

"He uses it for himself? It isn't blocked?", Cale asked in wonder.

"No. It isn't. That's the second interesting point. This mark doesn't just dissolve Sir Vonstetten's mana, it bundles it and sends it away. Similar to the mana transfer. That's probably why he attacked the source directly. You have to think of it as if the creature took his entire mana circuit and transferred it into his own body, not literally, of course."

"Why would you do something like that?"

"I was thinking about that too and I currently have only one logical explanation. The creature has no mana of its own", Aletta explained, looking up at Cale. The whole story was getting more and more bizarre. "I also think that's the only reason Sir Vonstetten is still alive."

"What makes you think that?", gave Cale anxiously.

"A normal human could never produce as much mana as you High-Magician do. He manages to generate just enough mana to keep up with the demands of the mark. Others, like myself for example, would have run out completely in a matter of hours."

"Then Grischa got lucky in misfortune", Cale replied reassuringly, but Aletta grew more tense. "Whereas it wouldn't be that dangerous for a normal person."

"You could say that, but this construct does not last for eternity. At some point, his mana circuit will also be exhausted and in need of a break. When that happens, the Mark starts attacking his mana heart directly and that will become life threatening."

"And how long do you estimate this construct will last?", Cale inquired calmly, even though he cringed at the statement. They needed to find a solution, and that as soon as possible.

"It's hard to say. I suspect two months, longer if we're lucky", Aletta replied, straightening up. "Would you lend me your communication crystal, Cale? I'd like to discuss it with the healers from Frignez. All of what I'm saying here is pure theory. I don't have any real comparables, nor do I have any idea what else this mark can trigger."

Cale nodded silently and made the bright crystal appear in his hand before handing it to Aletta. She thanked him and took her leave, intending to continue the conversation over a cup of tea in the kitchen. When she left the room, only Cale and Grischa were left behind, only accompanied by a light crystal. Cale had been sitting on the chair in his loose clothes all evening, while Grischa had taken off his uniform and was sitting with only his white shirt in front of him.

Cale sighed loudly before leaning back in his chair and looking out the window.

"How could I have missed that?", Cale muttered to himself. Nothing like this had ever happened in his past lives, so why this time? What had changed? Was it really his fault that the Kormandent had attacked them? And why exactly had Grischa been hit? Because he had prevented the other 3 High-Magicians from being killed? If that was true, did the Elder know about it?

Annoyed, Cale rubbed his nose bone. His panic had subsided over the course of the evening and he began to come up with the wildest theories. He suspected that their real target had been the Elder, but he had been safely inside the barrier all along. They must have found out about the High-Magicians and attacked the capital itself for that reason; anything else would seem strange to him. But what exactly were the Kormandents and what was their relationship with the dragons? Did they work for the dragons? Were they the ones leading the creatures and if that was really the case, why had he never seen them before?

"Caleb. I'd like to shower, change, and get something to eat. I haven't gotten the chance to it all day long", Grischa spoke up, causing Cale to look up at him and nod.

"Right. Yes. Let's go back to your apartment."

Cale stood up and extended his hand to his friend, who accepted it gratefully and stood up. He looked a little wobbly on his feet, but didn't let it show. Cale grabbed Grischa's uniform and led his friend down the stairs to the door outside. They encountered a few mages in the hallways, but that didn't interest the two High-Magicians much. Cale, who walked around in clothes he would also sleep in, and Grischa, who walked through the halls with only half his uniform, ignored the looks of the others.

After a short walk they had reached the apartment and the first thing Grischa did was to taking a bath.

"You should take some things with you, it would be better if you stay with me until further notice", Cale explained, who was sitting in the doorway of the half-opened door and started back into Grischa's room.

"I can completely forget about my privacy", Grischa admitted, partly amused, partly sad, but he did not deny Cale's request. They were silent for a few minutes, so Cale leaned his head against the door frame and closed his eyes. Grischa peeked out from the bathtub and looked at his avoidably exhausted friend. "You're a weird person, you know that?"

"Yeah, I hear that a lot, but I can see why you think so", Cale replied, smiling weakly.

"How come you never told me you wrote the Chronicles of Creature Lore?", Grischa inquired curiously. Cale had expected this question, even though he had hoped not to have to answer it. It put his whole identity in jeopardy, but strangely enough, it didn't bother Cale nearly as much as he had thought. Probably because Grischa had already exposed him once back then, 12 years ago.

"I wasn't in the mood for the annoying questions from you guys" ,Cale replied dryly.

"You'll have to go through it now: where did you get all that information?"

"What do you think? You would only get such detailed information if you've fought the creatures before", Cale stated matter-of-factly. He had never actually intended to tell anyone about his secret, but here he sat now, wondering if he could tell his dying friend.

In fact, all the creatures in the five books, Cale had already encountered in person once. Throughout his life, he had always focused on acquiring as much knowledge as possible, and that included the creatures themselves. Only the sixth book was full of creatures he knew only from stories. They were by far not as accurate and to be considered true as the other books. For this reason, he kept this volume to himself, in his secret compartment with all the other documents, which he hid better from the outside world. After all, there were dozens of controversial documents in it, where he would only get himself into trouble, and he didn't want to carry it around with him all the time. There were just too many for that.

"The Chronicles have been circulating for over fifteen years. How old were you back then? 7? You must have been at the Magistrat by then when you wrote the Chronicles, right?"

"I was in second grade", Cale confirmed loosely.

"You always were a weird kid. Are you telling me you fought all these creatures as a kid and then published these books?"

"I got around a bit, yeah."

"At seven? You know what I did when I was seven? Herding sheep. How did you even get it published, with no money at all?"

"Have you forgotten what I used to look like?"

"Ah."

Grischa seemed to remember Cale's magic. One of the special forms, like zero magic, was changing appearance. Cale had been able to do this since his first life, but he couldn't really explain how he had learned it. In any case, he had mastered it to the point of perfection that even most High-Magicians could not see through his facade. However, that was largely because they didn't really pay attention to him, unlike Grischa. He had been watching the young mage more closely for only a few minutes when he noticed the mask around his body and became horrified. When he told his colleagues about his discovery, they initially thought he was reticent, but by the next day they had all gathered and were following Cale from a distance. The 12th High-Magician remembered clearly the feeling when he sensed the strong presence of the others and had turned backwards in surprise before looking at dozens of pairs of eyes.

He was busted, but he didn't run away. Instead, he just smiled, letting the others know that he knew exactly what was going on. From that day on, Grischa had been fascinated by his genius and had never left him alone. And it was that very day that had destroyed his then plan from the ground up.

"That still doesn't fully explain my question", Grischa said and straightened up. He reached for a towel and began to dry himself off, his gaze casting to the mark on his back. "How long has it been since you've been a 3rd stage mage?"

"What do you think?"

"I don't know. At first, I thought you must have been about 10 years old, but I was never sure. After all, your self-control was extraordinary even then. It took me 7 or 8 years back then to even begin to control my Igrikum that well, but you? Was it like that from the time you were born?"

"No", Cale answered honestly. "But you're right about one thing. I've possessed the Igrikum for a really, really long time."

"How about you tell me the whole story for a change?"

"Would you even believe my story, Grischa?"