I polished the rusted sword, watching as the cloth wiped the rust away revealing the splendor of its glory, again. The cloth was laced with purple lines and glyphs and my eyes shone the same magenta of the goddess that claimed me a year ago.
"Are you all done?" Tyresa asked, popping into the storefront.
"Yeah." I answered, setting the sword down. I stood up and wiped my brow, turning to Tyresa. "Is there anything else you need done?"
"Nope, you've cleaned every speck of this place, again." Tyresa frowned at again. "How 'bout you take the rest of the day off and actually go do something fun?"
"Fun? Like what? There isn't really anything fun about this primitive world."
She frowned at the world primitive and clicked her tongue disapprovingly.
"Just go get some sun, little Elias." Tyresa pushed me out the front door. "In my name, close what runs from you. Learn what refuses to be learned. And never be polite with your desires."
The door slammed shut and I found myself stuck in an alleyway. I let out a sigh and turn, exiting the alleyway and into the bustling city streets of Camar.
What do I do? I wondered. I had spent every waking moment learning and following Lady Tyresa around and now that I've been here for a year, she suddenly just tossed me out. Should I get something to eat later tonight?
I smiled at that idea and headed off into the market. I shopped around, buying ingredients for some kind of pasta. I had learned the hard way to make actual pasta sauce since they didn't carry around jarred or premade sauce.
Lady Tyresa will love this. I thought as I finished paying for the last of my food. I turned, humming, almost bumping into a cloaked individual.
"Excuse me." The cloaked individual — a woman — quickly bowed her head before continuing.
I turned watching as the cloaked woman dissolved into the crowds as the rustle of armor drew my attention.
"Excuse me, sir, have you seen a cloaked woman pass by?" A magi-knight asked me. "She has red hair and is wearing strange clothing not from these lands. She's a fugitive and must be apprehended at all costs."
Could they be talking about that girl I saw earlier? I wondered.
I pointed in the direction she went. "I saw a cloaked woman go that way."
"Thank you, sir, for your help." The magi-knight saluted me before turning to their colleagues and rushing deeper into the crowd.
"What's that all about?" I whispered, continuing back to the shop. I retraced my steps, humming a song from Earth as a road block appeared before me — more knights and a growing crowd.
"There's nothing to see here." One of the magi-knights motioned. "Please, go around whilst we work."
I pushed myself to the front, noticing the broken cobblestone roads and sheets covering what looked to be a couple individuals. Out of pure curiosity, I filled my eyes with mana, noticing the traces of magic were recent.
"Sir, please clear the area. The magi-knights are currently working to clean the scene." The knight told me. My eyes dissolved of mana and I stepped back.
"How long is it gonna take? I need to access that alleyway." I pointed. He turned and looked before replying.
"It'll be at least twenty minutes. You're free to sit nearby while we clean up. I'm sorry for the inconvenience." The knight apologized.
"It's alright. I hope you find whoever did this."
I planted my butt in one of the nearby benches and set my things off to the side. I summoned my notebook and pen and open the notebook to one of its written pages.
I might as well review some lessons while I'm waiting. I flicked the pen around my fingers as I mindlessly as I half-heartedly read the notes I took.
Over the course of a year, Lady Tyresa taught me much about old magic principles. Creativity, fluidity, and adaptability. The old principles were free whilst new magic was stifling and honestly, stuffy like a turtle-neck sweater.
I flipped some pages to some modern magic spells I'd been dissecting. "If I can learn all the formulas for the spells in this era, I can definitely keep them in my repertoire for later... Although, that's been hard with all I've been doing."
The explosion ripped through the square before I could finish my notes.
"Hey—get back here!" A magi-knight shouted.
Smoke billowed outward as a red-haired woman burst through the debris, landing hard enough to fracture the cobblestones beneath her feet. Violet mana flared around her body—raw, unstable, and unmistakably old.
"So that's the source," I muttered. "They really were chasing her."
The magi-knights moved in fast. Too fast. A shield bloomed in front of her, blocking the first wave of attacks, but I could already see the problem. One knight began charging a wide-range lightning spell—far too large for a crowded district.
That spell will kill civilians.
The woman must have sensed it too. She leapt back, ignoring the tri-element strike crashing toward her, chanting under her breath. A golden beam wrapped around her just as lightning tore down from the sky. The discharge arced wildly. Straight toward the crowd.
I didn't hesitate. The staff hit the ground with a dull ring. Mana across the square collapsed—not dispersed, but unraveled. Spell structures snapped apart into floating threads of violet glyphs, spiraling helplessly in the air.
"Oh," I breathed. "So it really does work like that." I reached out, fingers twitching, and pulled the glyphs together. The lightning dissolved mid-arc, energy compressing into harmless motes before fading completely.
Silence slammed into the square.
The red-haired woman didn't waste it. She vanished. The magi-knights scrambled, weapons raised, trying to trace her mana—but there was nothing left to follow.
I dismissed the staff and bent down to gather my things. A hand grabbed my arm.
"You!" A knight snarled. "What did you just do?"
I looked up at him—blond, broad-shouldered, and furious. "Prevented casualties."
"You interfered with an active operation!"
"And you charged a city-level spell in a marketplace," I replied calmly. "That's negligence."
His fist tightened.
"That's enough, Aldric." A woman stepped forward—his captain, judging by the insignia. Her eyes flicked from the warped cobblestone to the dissipating mana traces, then to me. "…You neutralized five active spell formations," she said quietly. "Without casting."
I met her gaze. "You're welcome."
Aldric sputtered. "Captain, he ruined everything!"
"You ruined protocol," she snapped. Then, to me, she bowed. "Thank you for intervening. We would've caused far greater damage."
I reached into my pocket and briefly showed the King's medallion.
Her spine straightened instantly.
"I trust this matter ends here," I said.
"Yes, my lord."
I turned to leave.
"Wait," Aldric blurted. "You think you're better than us just because—"
I paused, glanced back, and let a single glyph flicker into existence between us.
"No," I said softly. "Because I think before I cast."
Then I walked away.