by V. A. Lewis
Victor continued talking, ignorant of my woes. "Ah, yes. This is the perfect exercise for this."
He handed me the torch, and I stared at it bewildered. "What do I do with this?" I asked.
"I saw what you did with the torch earlier. It was a small spectacle, but lasted only a minute. Not enough time to learn anything." The young man pointed at the torch, and a magic circle formed on his fingertips.
The fire blazed larger than before, and I felt its heat all the way up to my elbows. It was like I was holding a campfire in my hand. The magic circle disappeared from Victor’s fingers, but the fire did not get smaller.
"This," he said as he lowered his hand, "is going to last five hours. Once the time is up, the flame would have consumed all of its fuel, and it will snuff out. I want you to keep it burning without lowering its intensity until we stop to make camp."
"Wait, aren’t we going to be traveling for at least six hours? How do I keep the fire alive for that long?!" I protested.
The Dark Acolyte shrugged. "Figure it out."
Then he turned around and walked away from me.
This sucks.
I trudged along the dark forest, illuminated only by the silver moonlight… and the blazing torch in my hand. Goblins moved around me in the shadows, carrying large backpacks on them. It was not that the bags were big; it was normal in size for a regular Human. However, the key word there was Human, and not Goblin. And most of the Goblins were around my height.
Sure, some were noticeably shorter than me, and even less were significantly taller than me, but on average, they were just over four feet and a half. So their bags filled with equipment were comically big relative to their size.
It was like a cartoon! I felt like doubling over and laughing at the scene. I would have, but… luckily for me, I’m too focused on this stupid fire!
I stared into the flame, smoldering brightly in the night. It was frustrating; no matter what I tried to do, the fire continued to eat up its fuel. I tried making it bigger— thinking there was some kind of trick to it— but that only made it burn out faster.
Realizing that I was an idiot, I decided to spread out the fire more. Maybe that would slow its burning?
Nope, didn’t work either.
I tried calling the fire to me, making it dance, doing all the things I did earlier, but it was all to no avail. It’s literally impossible! You can’t do this without making the fire smaller!
But that was not allowed, apparently. So I had no options I could think of. I was just left with feeling the fire— both literally, and magically. And I had to somehow deal with the former too. It’s hot!
I just stared at it, seeing the orange flames flicker, watching it flutter in the wind; it was always moving, never static— and in that sense, it was no different from regular fires.
I felt it all.
I focused. And recalled something; knowledge from another world came pouring into me. I remembered how heat traveled, how radiation carries heat from object to object. But more than, I remembered a kind of fire that did not dance. That just stood there, like some kind of statue.
The blue flames made from modern machines; that burned so hot, yet so steady. And fueled by a concentrated and an abundant source of energy. Then I realized, I could do that too.
No, I did not have to change the fire. I was fixated too much on that redundancy. No matter what shape I gave the flame, it would eat the same amount of fuel as long as it blazed at the same intensity.
But no matter how hot it was— just like the flames from a bunsen burner, a gas stove, or any appliances that created fire— they would always burn as long as they had fuel. It was a simple realization, really. Not much of an epiphany. Yet it made all the difference in the world.
I pooled mana into the flames, concentrating on feeding it, rather than letting it feed itself. And it was not easy, as the stubborn fire chose to feast on what it wanted. At first, my attempts at fueling it with mana did very little to stifle the wax burning away underneath; it consumed both sources of fuel, and chose to burn brighter.
But I felt the flames, and I felt its hunger. So I understood it.
I quenched its thirst, and fed it till it was full. I left it satiated with mana, giving it exactly what it wanted. Its gluttony was gone, so although the fire still burned, the wax burned no more.
I smiled to myself as I looked at my triumph in my hand. I was just holding a regular torch, but I held it with pride as if I were the torchbearer for the Olympics.
I felt good about myself. However I also felt hot. Because the torch was hot. I sighed. Now I have to figure out how to keep it from radiating heat to me. Or cool myself down.
And I spent the rest of the time walking figuring out how to do just that.
Several hours later, we finally stopped to set up camp in a clearing; everyone began to pitch their tents or put up small wooden barricades around the perimeter of the encampment. Meanwhile, I presented the still-burning torch to Victor.
"Ah, good job Melas," the blue haired man said as he took the torch from me. "You’ve kept it burning for almost seven hours straight. Although I see that its fuel has almost run out and you’ve suffered some light burns."
I blushed, slightly embarrassed. "Well, uh, trying to focus on feeding the fire and keeping it from burning me wasn’t easy," I explained. "At first, whenever I tried to do either, I almost completely stopped doing the other. It took a bit of time for me to focus on both at the same time. I only got a bit used to it in the last hour."
"Yes, I can see that." Victor cast a quick spell, extinguishing the flames. "Regardless, it was a good exercise for you, was it not?"
"It really was." I nodded.
"Good, keep trying to find other ways to manipulate fire. Don’t limit yourself to what you think you can do, but think outside the box; with magic, almost anything is possible." He tossed the torch to the ground, and pointed at my hand. "Now get that healed up. It’s a minor burn, but I understand it probably is quite significant for a child. Go find Karna, he knows where the healing potions are."
"Oh, thanks." I slowly spun around to walk away, then paused. "And thank you for the lesson. I really appreciate it, Victor," I added before leaving.
I barely heard Victor mumble a ‘you’re welcome’, as I searched the camp for Karna. Honestly, I did not think I needed a healing potion for my hand; it was barely even a first degree burn. I could survive without getting it healed.
But it gave me an excuse to find Karna. Because I wanted to speak with him. Eventually, I found him.
"Hey Karna," I greeted him.
The Goblin was strutting out of a tent, and stopped right outside of it. He gave me a sidelong glance and asked. "...what do you want?"
"I, uh, was told you know where the healing potions are."
"Yes," he simply said.
I hesitated. "Um… where is it?"
Karna raised a hand and pointed at one of the unloaded carts. "It’s there," he answered, then began to walk away.
"Wait," I called out to him. "There’s something else."
The Goblin paused mid-step, and frowned. "What is it now?"
"I just wanted to apologize too!" I quickly sputtered out. The Goblin inclined his head to the side, as I continued. "For what Victor did earlier. He was just trying to help teach me. But he was being a bit rude. So... I’m sorry."
The Goblin stared at me with narrowed eyes. There was a moment of silence. Then he finally spoke up. "Can I leave now?" he asked, sounding annoyed.
This time, I was the one that frowned. "Well since you asked: no," I said. "Not yet."
Karna gave off an audible groan, and I folded my arms. "See, that’s exactly it! I’ve never done anything bad to you. In fact, I barely even know you! And all the times I’ve spoken to you, I’ve tried to be nice. But for some reason, you hate me and are a jerk to me."
I gritted my teeth as I watched the Goblin roll his luminescent eyes. He’s exactly like a mean girl in some teen d
rama! I screamed internally.
I continued.
"I’m not trying to force you to like me. I know better than to do that. But I just want to know: why? Why do you dislike me? What have I done wrong? And what can I do to be better?"
My questions caught the Goblin’s attention. He stopped giving me a bored look, which was replaced with a death glare. "Why, you ask? It’s simple: because you’re weak."
I waited for him to continue, but that was all he said.
"What are you talking about? How am I weak?" I barraged him with questions, forcing him to elaborate.
Karna shook his head, irritated. "You’re weak because you are. You can’t do anything for yourself, the Commander and the Dark Acolyte have to do it all for you. Not only that, but I have to go out into towns and cities to rob potions for you, to try and find anything that can heal your slave mark."
"Why must I do that for you almost every single night, while you get to stay in camp?! You who aren’t even one of us. Because you’re too scared to call yourself a Dark Crusader— even though your mother was hunted and killed by the Church— you’re too afraid to oppose them. That is why you’re weak."
His final words cut deep into me like a knife; I felt a pain in my chest, as he used my mom’s death against me. It was a low blow in every way, so it probably would have been a valid reaction for me to just storm off, mad at his comments. But I did not.
Was he insulting me in bad faith? I met his gaze, and I did not think so; he was being offensive, but that was because he truly meant those words. Yet it was not a meaningless attack, his words had some merit. So, slowly, I responded to him.
"You’re right," I conceded.. "Victor and Gerritt have been extremely kind to me, and maybe I’ve been taking advantage of it— even if it was unintentional. I was wrong."
Karna nodded, and I continued.
"And for that same reason, you’re right. Even though I didn't know you were finding potions for me from nearby towns, the pieces were all there and I could’ve put it together. I was thoughtless and exploitative. For that, I was also wrong."
I raised a hand up to the mark on my face, then took a deep breath.
"Likewise, you’re right that I’m scared," I admitted. "I’ve avoided joining the Dark Crusaders all this while, not because I’m scared of the Holy Xan Empire, but because I’m scared of knowing— of deciding. I thought I wanted revenge against them, and sometimes, I still think I do... but I’m too much of a coward to confront myself on it. So, I’m wrong on that too."
"However," I said slowly, "you’re wrong about one thing: I am not weak."
I lowered my hand to my chest, and felt my gentle heartbeats. I was calm. Completely so. I defiantly stared back at the two glowing yellow eyes, and repeated myself. "I am not weak, and I will prove it to you."
Karna looked at me warily. "How so?" He slowly reached for the weapon on his belt pocket, but I just grinned.
"I’m not going to fight you," I said. "That won’t prove anything. At best, one of us gets beaten up; at worst, one of us dies. I don’t think anyone here will be happy about either options."
"So what are you going to do?" The Goblin furrowed his brows. "If you’re not going to fight me, then what?"
"It’s simple: I will right my wrongs," I declared.
"...how does that prove anything?" Karna asked me, disbelieving.
"It takes real strength to admit one was wrong," I said. "And taking it a step further and correcting your mistake? That’s what I will do."
"What are you even talking about?"
I clarified. "You said it yourself, didn’t you? I shouldn’t get to sit around in camp while you go out and steal things that are meant for me. So I’ll go with you on your mission."
The Goblin blinked a few times, then bared his teeth at me. "Are you sure? You do realize that I’m going out tonight? You can’t delay this until later, and give the excuse that the Commander won’t let you. We leave now." He emphasized the last words.
"Sure." I shrugged.
"What?" Karna stared at me blankly.
"I mean, that’s pretty much what I expected. You did say you went out almost every night, after all. Unless, of course, you don’t want me to come with you?" I cocked an eyebrow.
"I— no. Go ahead. But I won’t babysit you like the Commander does. Do you understand that?"
"Of course," I said, grinning. "You won’t have to, because I can take care of myself."
I was not a kid, after all. Even if I was physically a kid, I was an adult mentally, and that meant I took responsibility for my own actions. And maybe if I showed off more of my magic to the Goblin, he would stop berating me.
Probably not going to happen, but it’s worth a shot.
Chapter 31: Iron-y Golems
The forest was covered by a thick darkness that came with the night and a light mist glowed in the dim moonlight, revealing only the nebulous outline of trees all around me.
But hooded figures stalked through the shadows. Quietly. Nimbly. They stepped around the shrubbery, avoiding its fallen branches as they went. There were only three of them, but they had a mission.
Well, actually, there were four of them if you included me. But I was nothing like them; they were like ninjas, while I was like a massive cannon being blasted into the night!
However, I followed them, and I tried to be as stealthy as I could.
But more than being silent, they were also fast; Karna led the way, moving so far ahead of me I could only see the vague shape of his figure ahead of me. The second Goblin stalked close behind him, however the third lagged behind a bit to wait for me.
I did not know his name, but I was immensely grateful for what he was doing. Thanks to him, I was not going to get lost. Honestly, I would not be surprised if Karna was purposefully trying to leave me behind so I was stranded; I could not ignore the possibility that he was planning on killing me out here in the middle of nowhere.
I felt for my pockets, but there was nothing in it. I did not have a weapon; there was no sword, dagger, or knife hanging from my sides. I was not given any time to grab anything to protect myself with so I could only rely on magic to fight.
To be honest, it wouldn’t have made much difference if I had a sword or a shield since I did not know how to use those effectively; the only weapon I could’ve used was a gun, and we did not have those. It was far too expensive to supply a large armament of mana tool weaponry, especially considering magic could do most of what those did for free.
That only meant that these Goblins were dangerous even when unarmed, and that was not a good thought for me to have considering my woes.
They got further and further away from me. The gap widened as I allowed them to get away, slowing down out of fear. I felt my heart jump when I saw the figures in the distance stop. Only a single thought crossed my mind, Am I going to die here?
Then I spotted the shape beyond the three Goblins— the dim light illuminating the empty night.
We’ve arrived.
I nearly sighed in relief. I quickly regained my composure, and stepped beside the Goblins.
I looked in the distance, and saw the buildings spread out before me. It was not like Bys or Boleria; this city was far smaller and less grand. Its barely ten foot tall walls were made mostly out of wood, and its buildings were not particularly remarkable either.
Is this really it? I thought to myself. Before leaving, Karna told me we were stealing from a relatively well known Alchemist in the region; I honestly expected someone like that to live in a bigger city.
I turned to the Goblin to ask the question, but before I could open my mouth he raised a hand to silence me. "Stay quiet," Karna whispered. "We’ll observe for a bit, then sneak in when the guards switch."
I nodded. Right, he still doesn’t like me.
I did not want to annoy him, so I did not speak after he explicitly told me not to. After all, I was doing this so he would not hate me… or at least, so he would stop being a jerk t
owards me. So I lay in the grass next to the Goblins, and watched with them.
It was dark, and I could not see so clearly; the Goblins however, could see without an issue thanks to their night vision. Their eyes trained on the guards like hawks staring down at their next prey.
I only saw the briefest of movements, shadows taking the place of one another, torchlight coming and going. Then after some time, more figures came and others left.
We watched this happen three times. In the fourth cycle, Karna gave us the signal. We ran out of the thicket, straight for the city walls. I was far more quiet than before, trying to run silently through the forest gave me a lot of time to practice. I still made a little bit of noise, but it was not enough to alert any of the guards.
I was the last one to reach the walls, but it was not an issue. We hugged close to the walls, hiding under the battlements as the new guards came up onto it; light shone in my peripheries, although it did not cast a shadow. I could not see what they were doing up there, but the restless footsteps of boots and the mundane chatter told me they were bored.
I heard a guard complaining about being overworked because of what happened in Bys. He said that Besha was too far away, so nothing like that would ever happen here, and his extra duties were thus pointless.
It sounded so… normal.
It almost reminded me of my friends complaining about school back when I was on Earth, chatting with... myself. The conversations were rarely about anything serious. We just… talked. Just like the guards while they were at work.
They eventually went away, and Karna got to work. He kneeled by the wall, two hands held together to the other Goblins up. The first went, then the second. I blinked when it was my turn.
Now’s not the time, I snapped myself out of my hesitation. I took a few steps back, and with a running start, Karna threw me up the wall.
One of the Goblins— the one who was waiting for me in the woods— reached out and grabbed me as I was mid air. He pulled me onto the ramparts as I tried to land on my tippy toes. It was not a graceful landing; I could hear a soft thud as my feet impacted the wooden floor. But it was quiet enough not to alert any guards.
