Chapter 217: The Price of Friendship
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Chapter 217: The Price of Friendship
The Price of Friendship
Working in the apothecary or the workshop always stood in stark contrast to Martel's affairs in the city, lately those involving the Night Knives. Previously, he had enjoyed the change of pace after the more harrowing events such as the fighting ring at The Broken Crown; returning to the Lyceum and carrying out mundane tasks in quietude suited him after such intense experiences.
But he was starting to feel different. While the fight last night had certainly made his heartbeat quicken, he could not avoid feeling almost euphoric at casting his spells under such circumstances, pitting himself against numerous enemies and proving the victor. Along with the chain armour, which lent excellent protection, he felt almost invincible. Clearing out brigands who harassed the locals, and getting paid for it, only added honey to his porridge.
In fact, he looked forward to returning to the Night Knives this afternoon, receiving not only his payment but also hearing about the next task. And afterwards, he had arranged to visit Shadi, resuming their tradition of spending Solday afternoons together when possible.
"Martel! Message for you." Jasper got up from his desk and crossed the entrance hall to catch Martel, offering him a strip of paper.
"Thanks," the novice mumbled, accepting the message. Was there a polite way of saying that he only wanted Henry to handle his mail for him? Feeling awkward with Jasper's eyes on him, Martel walked away a bit before reading the note.
Martel, sorry. Have to help my dad this afternoon. Next Solday? Shadi.
That dashed half his plans for the afternoon. A little annoying, since by going to see the Night Knives, he would already be halfway to the Khivan enclave, so it would have been easy to visit Shadi. Nothing that could be done about it, though. After getting dressed for the weather, Martel left the school. The first few snowdrops of the season had begun to fall.
***
Marcus greeted him with the usual grunt, letting Martel inside the apartment. "You did all right last night," the warrior spoke, more verbose than usual. "For a kid, anyway."
A meagre compliment, but Martel accepted it all the same. "Thanks. You make a decent obstacle."
Marcus snorted and walked into the inner room.
Flora sat as usual by the desk. She finished scribbling and put her quill aside. "Have a seat," she told Martel. "I was just detailing our performance last night, writing a report to the captain of our company. I made sure to mention you. You are in good standing among my superiors, should there have been any doubt."
That never hurt, Martel reckoned. "I appreciate that. My payment?"
The earthmage laughed. "You definitely fit in with a bunch of mercenaries." She placed two small stacks of silver in front of him, each holding four coins.
Martel grabbed them and placed them inside an inner pocket. "What's the new task?"
"This one is different. No fighting, but challenging in other ways. Lady Pearl wants us to catch a thief."
Martel did everything he could to keep surprise or guilt from showing on his face. "I don't know what that is."
"So you don't mind if I talk about you, Flora, and Marcus? What you were up to last night in the bridge district?"
How did he know? Martel tried to form a response, but he could think of nothing.
Jasper smiled with contempt. "Let's have some privacy." He closed the door.
Martel finally thought of something to say. "I don't care what you know. It's your word against mine."
"Ah, but it's so much more than that. I've noticed, Martel, you're pretty skilled with fire. Few novices who can create a flame hot enough to melt ice."
Martel cursed to himself. "My gift lies in air, as you'd expect from a weathermage. Fire is the closest element to air."
Jasper continued to smirk. "I'm sure that would convince others. After all, if you were truly skilled with fire, it would have been noticed during your introduction to fire magic. With Mistress Moira." His smile widened at the last part.
It took Martel a moment to catch up. Jasper knew he had not taken the course. Martel became acutely aware of his Khivan clock ticking, underlining his silence, his inability to argue in defence of himself.
"One short conversation made it obvious you never took that course, yet I hear you're due to take the novice examination later this month. How can you possibly do that when you haven't been evaluated for fire?" Jasper's expression made it clear how much delight he derived from this. "Someone is protecting you, hiding your abilities. That's corruption among the faculty."
Mistress Juliana would lose her position over this. Maybe Master Alastair as well; he had taught Martel four lessons every fiveday for a year. Nobody would believe he had never suspected Martel's talent. "What do you want?"
"That job you pulled last night. You got paid eight silvers, didn't you?"
How did he know! Martel felt trapped, suffocated. "What of it?"
"I want half. That's all. Plenty left for you. A reasonable arrangement."
Martel could not think, except for the single thought that he wanted Jasper out of here. Pulling his drawer open with an angry motion, he counted out four coins and slapped them into Jasper's waiting hand. "Get out."
"No need to be harsh. We're friends now." Jasper gave a grin. "Keep working with your nocturnal friends. In fact, that's part of our arrangement. Keep earning for us both." He turned to open the door.
Once the earth acolyte had left, Martel sank down onto his bed.N0v3lTr0ve served as the original host for this chapter's release on N0v3l--B1n.
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Chapter 217: The Price of Friendship
The Price of Friendship
Working in the apothecary or the workshop always stood in stark contrast to Martel's affairs in the city, lately those involving the Night Knives. Previously, he had enjoyed the change of pace after the more harrowing events such as the fighting ring at The Broken Crown; returning to the Lyceum and carrying out mundane tasks in quietude suited him after such intense experiences.
But he was starting to feel different. While the fight last night had certainly made his heartbeat quicken, he could not avoid feeling almost euphoric at casting his spells under such circumstances, pitting himself against numerous enemies and proving the victor. Along with the chain armour, which lent excellent protection, he felt almost invincible. Clearing out brigands who harassed the locals, and getting paid for it, only added honey to his porridge.
In fact, he looked forward to returning to the Night Knives this afternoon, receiving not only his payment but also hearing about the next task. And afterwards, he had arranged to visit Shadi, resuming their tradition of spending Solday afternoons together when possible.
"Martel! Message for you." Jasper got up from his desk and crossed the entrance hall to catch Martel, offering him a strip of paper.
"Thanks," the novice mumbled, accepting the message. Was there a polite way of saying that he only wanted Henry to handle his mail for him? Feeling awkward with Jasper's eyes on him, Martel walked away a bit before reading the note.
Martel, sorry. Have to help my dad this afternoon. Next Solday? Shadi.
That dashed half his plans for the afternoon. A little annoying, since by going to see the Night Knives, he would already be halfway to the Khivan enclave, so it would have been easy to visit Shadi. Nothing that could be done about it, though. After getting dressed for the weather, Martel left the school. The first few snowdrops of the season had begun to fall.
***
Marcus greeted him with the usual grunt, letting Martel inside the apartment. "You did all right last night," the warrior spoke, more verbose than usual. "For a kid, anyway."
A meagre compliment, but Martel accepted it all the same. "Thanks. You make a decent obstacle."
Marcus snorted and walked into the inner room.
Flora sat as usual by the desk. She finished scribbling and put her quill aside. "Have a seat," she told Martel. "I was just detailing our performance last night, writing a report to the captain of our company. I made sure to mention you. You are in good standing among my superiors, should there have been any doubt."
That never hurt, Martel reckoned. "I appreciate that. My payment?"
The earthmage laughed. "You definitely fit in with a bunch of mercenaries." She placed two small stacks of silver in front of him, each holding four coins.
Martel grabbed them and placed them inside an inner pocket. "What's the new task?"
"This one is different. No fighting, but challenging in other ways. Lady Pearl wants us to catch a thief."
Martel did everything he could to keep surprise or guilt from showing on his face. "I don't know what that is."
"So you don't mind if I talk about you, Flora, and Marcus? What you were up to last night in the bridge district?"
How did he know? Martel tried to form a response, but he could think of nothing.
Jasper smiled with contempt. "Let's have some privacy." He closed the door.
Martel finally thought of something to say. "I don't care what you know. It's your word against mine."
"Ah, but it's so much more than that. I've noticed, Martel, you're pretty skilled with fire. Few novices who can create a flame hot enough to melt ice."
Martel cursed to himself. "My gift lies in air, as you'd expect from a weathermage. Fire is the closest element to air."
Jasper continued to smirk. "I'm sure that would convince others. After all, if you were truly skilled with fire, it would have been noticed during your introduction to fire magic. With Mistress Moira." His smile widened at the last part.
It took Martel a moment to catch up. Jasper knew he had not taken the course. Martel became acutely aware of his Khivan clock ticking, underlining his silence, his inability to argue in defence of himself.
"One short conversation made it obvious you never took that course, yet I hear you're due to take the novice examination later this month. How can you possibly do that when you haven't been evaluated for fire?" Jasper's expression made it clear how much delight he derived from this. "Someone is protecting you, hiding your abilities. That's corruption among the faculty."
Mistress Juliana would lose her position over this. Maybe Master Alastair as well; he had taught Martel four lessons every fiveday for a year. Nobody would believe he had never suspected Martel's talent. "What do you want?"
"That job you pulled last night. You got paid eight silvers, didn't you?"
How did he know! Martel felt trapped, suffocated. "What of it?"
"I want half. That's all. Plenty left for you. A reasonable arrangement."
Martel could not think, except for the single thought that he wanted Jasper out of here. Pulling his drawer open with an angry motion, he counted out four coins and slapped them into Jasper's waiting hand. "Get out."
"No need to be harsh. We're friends now." Jasper gave a grin. "Keep working with your nocturnal friends. In fact, that's part of our arrangement. Keep earning for us both." He turned to open the door.
Once the earth acolyte had left, Martel sank down onto his bed.N0v3lTr0ve served as the original host for this chapter's release on N0v3l--B1n.
Chapter 217: The Price of FriendshipThe Price of FriendshipWorking in the apothecary or the workshop always stood in stark contrast to Martel's affairs in the city, lately those involving the Night Knives. Previously, he had enjoyed the change of pace after the more harrowing events such as the fighting ring at The Broken Crown; returning to the Lyceum and carrying out mundane tasks in quietude suited him after such intense experiences.But he was starting to feel different. While the fight last night had certainly made his heartbeat quicken, he could not avoid feeling almost euphoric at casting his spells under such circumstances, pitting himself against numerous enemies and proving the victor. Along with the chain armour, which lent excellent protection, he felt almost invincible. Clearing out brigands who harassed the locals, and getting paid for it, only added honey to his porridge.In fact, he looked forward to returning to the Night Knives this afternoon, receiving not only his payment but also hearing about the next task. And afterwards, he had arranged to visit Shadi, resuming their tradition of spending Solday afternoons together when possible."Martel! Message for you." Jasper got up from his desk and crossed the entrance hall to catch Martel, offering him a strip of paper."Thanks," the novice mumbled, accepting the message. Was there a polite way of saying that he only wanted Henry to handle his mail for him? Feeling awkward with Jasper's eyes on him, Martel walked away a bit before reading the note.Martel, sorry. Have to help my dad this afternoon. Next Solday? Shadi.That dashed half his plans for the afternoon. A little annoying, since by going to see the Night Knives, he would already be halfway to the Khivan enclave, so it would have been easy to visit Shadi. Nothing that could be done about it, though. After getting dressed for the weather, Martel left the school. The first few snowdrops of the season had begun to fall.***Marcus greeted him with the usual grunt, letting Martel inside the apartment. "You did all right last night," the warrior spoke, more verbose than usual. "For a kid, anyway."A meagre compliment, but Martel accepted it all the same. "Thanks. You make a decent obstacle."Marcus snorted and walked into the inner room.Flora sat as usual by the desk. She finished scribbling and put her quill aside. "Have a seat," she told Martel. "I was just detailing our performance last night, writing a report to the captain of our company. I made sure to mention you. You are in good standing among my superiors, should there have been any doubt."That never hurt, Martel reckoned. "I appreciate that. My payment?"The earthmage laughed. "You definitely fit in with a bunch of mercenaries." She placed two small stacks of silver in front of him, each holding four coins.Martel grabbed them and placed them inside an inner pocket. "What's the new task?""This one is different. No fighting, but challenging in other ways. Lady Pearl wants us to catch a thief."Martel did everything he could to keep surprise or guilt from showing on his face. "I don't know what that is.""So you don't mind if I talk about you, Flora, and Marcus? What you were up to last night in the bridge district?"How did he know? Martel tried to form a response, but he could think of nothing.Jasper smiled with contempt. "Let's have some privacy." He closed the door.Martel finally thought of something to say. "I don't care what you know. It's your word against mine.""Ah, but it's so much more than that. I've noticed, Martel, you're pretty skilled with fire. Few novices who can create a flame hot enough to melt ice."Martel cursed to himself. "My gift lies in air, as you'd expect from a weathermage. Fire is the closest element to air."Jasper continued to smirk. "I'm sure that would convince others. After all, if you were truly skilled with fire, it would have been noticed during your introduction to fire magic. With Mistress Moira." His smile widened at the last part.It took Martel a moment to catch up. Jasper knew he had not taken the course. Martel became acutely aware of his Khivan clock ticking, underlining his silence, his inability to argue in defence of himself."One short conversation made it obvious you never took that course, yet I hear you're due to take the novice examination later this month. How can you possibly do that when you haven't been evaluated for fire?" Jasper's expression made it clear how much delight he derived from this. "Someone is protecting you, hiding your abilities. That's corruption among the faculty."Mistress Juliana would lose her position over this. Maybe Master Alastair as well; he had taught Martel four lessons every fiveday for a year. Nobody would believe he had never suspected Martel's talent. "What do you want?""That job you pulled last night. You got paid eight silvers, didn't you?"How did he know! Martel felt trapped, suffocated. "What of it?""I want half. That's all. Plenty left for you. A reasonable arrangement."Martel could not think, except for the single thought that he wanted Jasper out of here. Pulling his drawer open with an angry motion, he counted out four coins and slapped them into Jasper's waiting hand. "Get out.""No need to be harsh. We're friends now." Jasper gave a grin. "Keep working with your nocturnal friends. In fact, that's part of our arrangement. Keep earning for us both." He turned to open the door.Once the earth acolyte had left, Martel sank down onto his bed.N0v3lTr0ve served as the original host for this chapter's release on N0v3l--B1n.
