Karl couldn’t believe his ears, the Grand Scholar agreed to let him enter the magic institute! His heart and mind were now filled with joy and he tried his best to stop himself from jumping in joy. Right now he could feel that there was stupid grin plastered on his face but this was only a small amount of his inner jubilations leaking out.

“But there will be conditions” Silver Eye then added.

“Yes of course, I don’t mind”

Karl at this point doesn’t care what the old man’s conditions were. Heck he doesn’t even care if he has to clean the toilets in exchange. Right now the door was opening right in front of him and all he has to do is enter it.

“First off since you are unable to use magic I cannot accept you as a student of the institution” Silver Eye explained

“But, I will give you a special rank; Seeker” Silver Eye clarified

“Seeker?” Karl now a bit perplexed.

“Yes, Seeker. This title is my response to your determination in finding the truths behind magic, think of it as way of respecting you passion” Silver Eye explained while smiling

“But your rank will have a few privileges and limits. You will be allowed to take residence inside the Institute itself, you can also carry with you any “instrument” that you deem useful for your endeavours. However, you will not be allowed to see the higher level ancient books hidden away in the archives for now atleast”

“For now?”

“DIdn’t you say you were here to find the hidden rules of magic? With every new discovery you make, your clearance level will also be increased. At first you will only be allowed General Archives and from there you can work your way up. Don’t worry, not everyone is allowed into the more secretive archives, not even the scholars. It is as you say, I am afraid of them losing their way and abusing their power” Silver Eye continued

“I can live with that, anything else?” Karl asked with enthusiasm

“You will also be assigned a partner to assist you in your work. After all you are not able to use magic so having someone who is able to will greatly increase the speed of you progress. Don’t worry the person I will assign as your partner is every bit as passionate as you when it comes to magic research. She happens to be the candidate for the next Grand Scholar” Silver Eye exclaimed

“I see, that is indeed very helpful, and I do understand that you need to keep an eye on me since I am still an outsider am I correct?” Karl smiled at the old man

“Very perceptive, but please don’t think bad of it” Silver Eye apologetically said

“No, no. I don’t mind at all.” Karl declared

“Oh and by the way, how can I contact you once I am ready. I mean it might take 1 to 2 weeks for me to prepare my things and get permission from my higher ups” Karl explained

“Ah do not worry, I have eyes everywhere” Silver Eye said as he looked at the parrot resting on his shoulder

“Once you arrive back at Lancia, be it the castle or somewhere else, I will personally come and pick you up”

“Oh I see thank you very much. I look forward to working with you in the foreseeable future” Karl bowed to Silver Eye once again.

“As do I, young man. May we enter a golden age together” Silver eye replied

“Thank you, and I’m sorry for taking up your time. You must be really busy since you are the head of Dawnward after all”

“No, not at all. It was a fruitful meeting anyway. Well then if you have nothing more to ask, then I will now take my leave” Silver Eye said as he excuse himself.

Karl now walked back to the meeting room with his mind high in the clouds. He couldn’t believe that he was allowed entry into such a prestigious institute. He could not have asked for something better. He has done it, he has taken the plunge into the unknown and will pioneer a new field in science.

He also appreciated the rank he was given, it gave him a lot of perks and at the same time it gave him incentives to work hard towards his goal. Plus he will get a partner who was equally as passionate as him, at least according to Silver Eye. He hopes that he could get along with her. Then it hit him and he suddenly stopped dead on his tracks

“Wait a minute, her?” Karl stopped walking as if only remembering this important detail.

Then the image of the red haired woman at the banquet flashed through his mind.

“I have a bad feeling about this” Karl said to himself as if bracing for disaster. He hoped deep in heart that his guess was wrong

Karl then began walking again, but surprisingly he bumped into Nelson and others along with the King. It seems the meeting was over and both the King and Nelson were all smiles. It seemed that they were both satisfied with whatever agreement they reached. The King then noticed Karl walking down the hall and smiled at him

“So, how did it go young man?” The King asked Karl

“He accepted me into the institute your Majesty. I cannot express my gratitude enough, don’t worry I will be able to repay with new insights on magic!” Karl replied to the King excitedly

The King only smiled back as Karl joined the rest of delegation. Then he glanced at Nelson who’s smile looked very “frightening”. Nelson’s smile gave him the impression that everything went according to his plan, but Karl paid him no heed. After all, he doesn’t care about politics.

The King then escorted them back at the square where an Airbus was waiting for them; it was now time to head back to Fort Spearhead.

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Silver Eye was now a few meters away from the castle premises when the parrot on his shoulder talked to him once more.

“Why did you do that?” The parrot asked

“What do you mean by that?” Silver Eye feigning ignorance

“You know exactly what I meant, the Outsider. Why did you accept him?” The Parrot asked in an agitated voice

Silver Eye paused for a moment and then made his reply

“I saw it in him too, a bright flame burning in his eyes, the same flame I saw in Burning Rose. The burning desire to learn is not something I can ignore and I know that he will bring great gifts to magic” Silver Eye said reassuring the Parrot

“It’s your intuition again isn’t it” The Parrot asked a bit sceptical

“Why of course, have I ever been wrong?” Silver Eye asked

“You were never wrong about the people and their future contributions to magic, but the first time you listened to your intuition. Disaster happened” The Parrot said in an ominous tone

Silver Eye then stopped and a pained expression can be seen on his face.

“This time it will be different” He said in a hopeful voice

“I believe that Burning Rose and Karl Hoffman will go down a different path. I know that this time, there will be a different outcome.”