"Are you sure?" he asked disappointedly.

"Yes". I didn't know what more to say.

With a heavy sigh, he slowly moved to his bed where he stared blankly down on it. His body looked so tired as he faced away from me, voice seeming to have aged overnight.

"Please leave"

I left, swiping the book from his desk silently as I did so.

My guard was waiting outside the room, and when he saw me he also saw the book in my hand, his eyes brightening as he took a great interest in it.

Peter lv.25 Fire Combat Mage

He obviously intended to take it, so rather than his forcing the issue and raising the likelihood of not getting the book back I made the first move.

Handing the book to him as I closed the door behind me, I offered a small explanation. "Arod said I can borrow this for a few days".

After scanning through the book the guard handed it back, expression looking mildly disappointed with the contents. Not what he was looking for?

I really do need to find a way to dump the books in my inventory, have them found in a way that doesn't connect me to the crime. Perhaps frame someone else in the process.. Arod makes a obvious choice, but thats just.. Evil?

Kicking him while he's down. Though its not quite like his life is going that great anyways..

Its not that important anyways, do they have spells to track the last person to handle a object?

Evidently any spells they may have used at the library didn't connect me to the crime, and aside from Arod's accusation in the courtyard not a single person had mentioned the matter to me. Instead they chose to leave me out of the loop, not outright inform me of what happened.

I don't mind too much though, I doubt any of the other team members were told about it. I was only asked because of the hostility I was receiving around here.

Walking through the corridors as I headed back towards my room, I was lost in thought as the guard walked silently behind me. The decision I had made back in Arod's room was hard, and I had a feeling I was going to regret it.

But factors I had to consider outweighed the scales against him. One of them was the rewards for the beastking quest and the 'find the races' quest. Both of them promised more in the way of unique things than what Arod's offer did.

I need to think bigger scale than this world, and his offer was of limited use.

Another factor I need to consider, I have to stay out of the spotlight.

I'm weak in this world, far too weak. I mean sure, I may be stronger than an average man back on earth, but when I look at the levels of the people in this world it sounds a lot like I would be curbstomped into a paste.

If not in a outright 1v1 duel, then with numbers.

Arod's offer included a potentially bad title, new assortment of spells and skills with all of them being variants of (Voice) stuff. And that (Voice) part makes the entire offer that much less attractive.

I mean sure, I could likely learn those spells and at a later date convert them into a voiceless spell. But I would also lose the chance for the beastking quest.

I have no idea if the quest can fail if I appear to abandon it, but logic dictates that making enemies with the quest giver can't go down well, it wouldn't be logical to retain the quest.

I also doubt another kingdom could give the same quest.

But really, if I had to be honest.

It would be my disdain for (Voice) and the unsureness of that title that made the decision. When I consider disappointing my teammates, failing the beastking quest and studying (Voice) magic..

Kinda makes my choice obvious doesn't it.

I still can't help but regret it, wondering if I made the right decision.

Stopping outside my room, I looked blandly at the door.

What do I even have to do in there?

I can read the book yeah, double my mana reserves.

But.

I can't help but wonder.

Is it a one-off? Wouldn't I gain greater benefit's if I read it later?

I'm not in a hurry.

Placing the book inside and turning around, I ignored the way my guard sighed as I started walking to the courtyard.

At the very least, I could see what I'm allowed to do here.

I can't practice spells, but maybe I could work on developing new spells. That shouldn't be too much of an issue should it?

The others ignored me as I entered the courtyard, focusing on their training. I noticed that Rob had snowflakes stuck on his clothes, yet he didn't seem to notice as he seemed to focus on something, formless mana flowing about him.

I'm assuming there's other types of mana I can't see frantically frothing about him, it certainly gave that impression.

His level had also risen.

Rob Barnes lv.18 Heroic Ice Mage

Looking at it, I feel almost ashamed of my own progress.

The other's had levels similar to him.

Josh Carter lv.16 Heroic Swordsman

Kira Harris lv.14 Heroic Rogue

Mark Nelson lv.11 Heroic Archer

I felt a little sorry for Mark when I compared them, its probably a good thing they can't see those levels..

Finding my own spot in the courtyard corner, my guard leaned against a wall several meters away as he watched me.

I was about to launch into meditation and experiment with some of what I had learned recently when I had a thought. Not a good thought, or even likely to work. But still, a thought.

Addressing the guard, I asked him a question "You are supposed to be following me everywhere right?"

Looking at me silently, he stared me down before he gave a curt reply. "Yes".

"As you are going to be following me everywhere, do you think you could teach me some magic?" I asked naively, almost as if I didn't know it wouldn't work.

His face almost seemed to sneer, a cruel smile tweaking at the corner of his lips.

"No."

Quickly checking my skill level with a thought, interesting. He believed my act, thought I was being serious..

I turned away however, the way he looked at me give me the shivers. Light disdain in his eyes and a ill-disguised sneer. Just what did I do to him? Do to them?

I noticed Kira had been looking towards me, but as I caught her eye she turned back towards her instructor as if she hadn't been watching.

The current state of affairs isn't likely to last long, I get the feeling the others will step in soon.

When I thought about it, there was one question I had meant to ask Arod yesterday, but given the current.. fiasco. I would prefer to avoid him for now, perhaps this guard could answer it.

With an intent expression I focused on my guard, he steadily met my gaze as he tried to stare me down. But not giving in, I asked "If I'm so unwanted, why not send me back".

His face seemed to erupt them, a snarl practically springing on his lips as his expression filled with fury.

Startled and a little scared at the suddenness of it, I quickly turned around and played with a stone I picked off the ground.

Not only did I not get answers, he had actually scared me..

It made me feel unhappy. Its been some time since I've last been frightened.

Where his gaze had felt like pinpricks previously, now it felt as if redhot pokers were stabbing into my back. I couldn't help but wonder what landmine I stepped on.

When I glanced warily towards him, he didn't avert his angry gaze. Daring me to do something. Openly hating me with his being.

What's with this hostility?

As I stared at the stone, I was completely unable to relax in his presence. Kira's assassin tutor spoke to him after which he visibly calmed down, but my concentration for the day was totally shot.

I wouldn't normally admit this, but the insensitively of his hate had shocked me.

This is going to be a long long stay. Can I leave earlier?

I should request that. I definitely can't continue on in this situation.

---------

My name is Jarod, I'm an apprentice fire mage to the great mage Deca.

Three years ago there were nine kingdoms, and to the side of the nine kingdoms were the beastlands.

And three years ago, the human lands were attacked, hordes of monsters crawling across the lands in a plague we had never seen the likes of. Not a single warning was given in time, not a single hint. Before this happened, the beastlands had been a mere constant pest making unorganised raids onto our lands.

They had been easily droven off then, and after we built forts things had quietened down. But three years ago, they grew bolder and bolder, until at last they toppled a fort.

As if stirred by a great wind, the fires seemed to explode as they formed a giant conflagration, huge swathes of beasts formed into armies and making deep invasions into our lands.

THey burned villages, killed the livestock, killed men, killed women and killed children.

They were not all the same beasts, we know they are not allied within themselves just as our kingdoms are not one land. But while some attacks stole what they could on their raids, others would capture humans. And not just as slaves; As food.

Inhuman. Their behavior was abominable.

Two years ago Egar Kingdom fell. Their armies were nothing, crushed under the might of the monsters.

We heard then, rumors of the beastking. The one that united the lands under one rule.

The kingdoms may not have been doing everything they could to prevent the raise of the beastking, but ever since that time it changed. Everyone has been doing their part, preventing such a thing from occurring in their own kingdoms.

Half a year later, Busid Kingdom fell.

A long period of time passed in which I could do nothing, assisting my teacher as he assisted the sage Girlot. And it was a month after Busid Kingdom fell that he had a breakthrough, one we had never seen before.

Summoning.

We know of teleportation, costly as it is to use. Creation, making things from pure mana. But summoning from another place? Something which doesn't exist in our own world?

Simply unheard of.

And yet, Girlot had succeeded. The product of a decade of research had accommodated to one thing, he had summoned a creature from another world.

But for one minor problem, what he summoned was a small animal. Four legs and covered in scales, no noticeable ears. It looked almost like a dog, and was very very small.

Harmless sure, it seems to thrive on insects. While Girlot could have found a undiscovered species and summoned it here accidentally, at this point we were growing desperate.

Its only a matter of time until the beastking takes us all.

We threw everything we could into his research, it was costy. The summoning of the dog-lizard had cost him almost 3 years of constant mana storage and the strain on his mind when he activated the spell had been taxing.

What we intend to summon, it would take more than one man's efforts. More than ten men's efforts.

We tried to limit the burden, but time was pressing. Time was short.

Everyday we stumbled to bed tired, drained of mana and dreading the next day for the draining sensation it would give as we fueled what mana we could into the crystals. But we perspired, we had to.

If we failed, if we didn't succeed.

There are no second chances.

A month ago we were finally ready, we wanted to summon the best. The spell was going to summon a hero to save us. He had to be human, had to be compassionate to our cause. Has to be powerful.

But as we all gathered about the spell, minds linked in a complex array as we guided the mechanisms. Something unexpected happened, it failed. Blew up in our face.

Three mages were incapacitated, my teacher was brain-killed.

The only reason we didn't completely give up was the crushed mana barely being touched, only trace amounts consumed. But just what did we do wrong?

A week it took, a week to find out that the one we wanted was impossible to acquire. The backlash from the search hit our mages hard, none of us can continue the search for long. Even when we join forces, even when trace elements of mana was consumed.

Obviously, we need to find someone easier to find, easier to summon.

Human? Obviously. Compassionate to our cause? Definitely. Has to be powerful? Yes.

But we can't have all three. We have to give up concessions.

A small faction wanted to remove the human parameter, but everyone else shut them down. How could we do that? How can we entrust our lives to something that's not human. It almost caused them to be thrown out as outcasts. But we need them.

Arguments roared throughout the palace as our ranks were filled with strife, every mage of a different opinion of what we should do. But slowly, Girlot began to persuade everyone to one opinion, to one decision.

Instead of summoning someone with power, we can summon someone with great potential.

If we train that person, they can destroy what we cannot touch.

Three searches, that's all we can safely handle.

On our first try, all four sages linked to the spell with every mage from the weakest to the strongest were linked up, trusted apprentices not allowing for the slightest distraction from the outside world.

In a great rare moment, everyone was of one mind.

And I feel lucky I wasn't part of it. I was just a apprentice.

The first summons succeeded, but it succeeded beyond our wildest hopes.

We found our hero, and a light film of sweat formed as the room focused their attention to guide him to our world.

And then we found another. Low moans escaped some lips, but we perspired. We can still do this.

But we found yet another, some mages collapsed, others desperately held on. The crushed mana runes in the center of the room wildly glowed with light as they burned through their resources.

We wanted to stop, had to stop. But it keeps finding heroes.

Another hero was found, mages unable to break off their connection. More mages collapsed, some forcibly broke off their connection bringing great pain to those who were still unwilling to give up.

And with a group groan of pain and wail, our last hero was found.

And praise the gods, nobody had died.

As quick as they could, mages began to unlink themselves from the spell, puking and fainting where they stood.

The two sages Girlot and Rebi were still linked to the spell, being of strong mind they continued to guide our heroes to our world. A small assortment of mages accompanied them, relieving them of mental fatigue as the spell began to come to fulfilment.

But less than a minute later, Girlot and Rebi collapsed. The mages collapsed. The spell collapsed.

Everyone connected to the spells collapsed, and with a rising sense of terror. We discovered.

They had been brain-killed.

The one saving grace was that Girlot didn't fall immediately, but we almost wish he did.

As he lay on the ground, breath hoarse and blood escaping from his orifices he screamed five words, sentence heard over the entire room. Enough to send us into despair.

"Monster! We summoned a monster!"

A low pained whisper followed, words barely heard as he struggled to speak.

"It struck at us.."

A collective chill ran down our backs as he gasped out his final words. "It struck at us deliberately"

His breath faded as his body stilled, healing spells unable to save him. We were at a loss what to do. Our doom had been assured.

And then with a sudden flickering, the spell forcibly re-assumed itself. Not a single one of us were controlling it, but something was. Something had taken over our work. Something was coming, something we didn't want.

The spell would take time to complete, and we used that time to evacuate.

Not a single word about the entire affair escaped from the chamber, every mage present was sworn to silence.

Save for the king, not even the apprentice underlings knew of this. We can't afford it, can't let the kingdom know how badly we had failed.

We had intentionally leaked word of the summoning, spread to raise hope where we could. The other kingdoms inquired about it, but were unwilling to provide resources that we demanded for the summoning. Unwilling to give us so much without their own mages confirming that such a spell existed.

We showed them the dog-lizard, but they were unconvinced. They wanted to see the spell, to know enough about the spell to replicate it on their own, but in the end we didn't need them. We could do it on our own.

A detachment was sent below as everyone was evacuated, disposable guards surrounding the circle. Would the monster expose his colors?

The summoning was slow, completely unguided. But mana was being consumed, something was going to arrive.

I'm told the monster looked human, looked like the others in the circle. But the spell woven into the summoning didn't show him how to speak in our tongue.

He looked about with a calculating look, as if he knew more than he should. And then he faked a reaction, showing nowhere the amount of surprise he did and completely convincing the heroes.

A duke was sent below, unknowing we had summoned a monster and believing it was just a safety precaution. He masqueraded as the king, welcomed our heroes and when he made our request to the four heroes, the monster looked thoughtful, judging. As if he was weighing how we could serve him.

We want to separate him from the heroes, but they resist. Believing him to be one of their own. We are desperate, we can't allow them to abandon us, we need them to help. So we had to give in, while it is still a monster, there's still a chance that the monster could help us.

We can't do anything. We don't know anything.

He crushed the crystal under his palm, the mage present told us it was like the monster had smiled. That he had expected this. And frankly, its impossible to do what he had done. Even the great sages showed their talents above the crystal. Scenes of the ice world, flickering pictures of places we didn't recognised. They still showed their talents.

But under his own hand, the crystal seemed to shatter into itself. Unwilling or unable to show his future. Would it have shown a creature stabbing its claws into the back of a man? Or was his own talent of the void, destruction and chaos.

No one wanted to train him, everyone avoided responsibility. So many mages had died for this monster, the faction that called for a direct attack on him was not small. But we don't dare, the beastking is a bigger threat.

So we assigned a joke of an apprentice to him under a shallow pretense. The apprentice knew he was being snubbed, even if he didn't know why. He went along with it.

The apprentice was harmless, knew little and was a easy pawn to sacrifice.

I know him, knew the apprentice. But I'm just glad it wasn't me.