-Year 7335, Derylini Peninsula – Port of Derys-
The lighthouse light grew during the night. First a yellow dot on the horizon. Then a flashing beam cutting through the darkness with a heartbeat rhythm. Now, during the day, I see it in all its splendour.
It is a tower of dark stone, tall, topped by a slowly rotating crystal. But what catches my attention are the runes — hieroglyphs carved into the stone, from top to bottom. They glow with a faint blue light, pulsing. Magic.
"The Derylini lighthouse," says old Remus behind me. "They say a mage built it centuries ago. The hieroglyphs drain mana from the air and turn it into light."
"So magic can be written?"
"It can. And spoken. And also with plants and stones. There are many ways, boy. Some easier than others."
I look at my hands. At the system paper in my tunic pocket — useless, illegible. If only I could learn written magic... but I don't know where to start.
The boat docks at a small pier, surrounded by fishing boats. The port of Derys doesn't have the majesty of Dennis Decatry. It's more rustic, dirtier. The smell of fish is almost suffocating.
"We've arrived," Gustavo announces, his voice tired. His leg is still immobilised with cloth strips, but he doesn't complain. He never complains.
Remus ties the boat to a wooden beam. He waves goodbye.
"Watch out for smugglers. And for merchants who charge double just because you smell of the sea."
"Thank you, Remus," I say.
"Don't thank me. Pay the next fisherman you save."
I laugh. It's the first genuine smile in days.
---
We step onto the pier. Sara jumps first, stretches, breathes deeply.
"Solid ground! Finally!"
"Don't wander off," Gustavo warns. "We don't know this place."
"It's a port, Gustavo. Not a jungle."
"Ports have more snakes than jungles. They just walk on two legs."
Ariny descends in silence, her eyes scanning the stalls and buildings. Ana comes last. She steps off the boat with a dry jump, her face closed. Her dark golden hair still retains the burnt tips. The scar on her chest isn't glowing now, but I know it's there.
She still avoids my gaze.
Revulsion speaks louder than gratitude.
---
The Derys market is an irregular square, surrounded by stalls of wood and stone. There are sellers of fish, bread, cloth. And of strange objects — stones that glow, dried plants in small bags, carved sticks with symbols.
Gustavo guides us through the crowd.
"We need food. And a place to rest. The boat to the academy only leaves tomorrow."
"Another boat?" Sara groans. "I've had enough of the sea."
"It's crossing a lake. Half an hour."
"Half an hour smelling like fish."
"The lake doesn't smell like fish. It smells like water."
"Water smells like fish if it has fish."
Ariny sighs.
"Shut up, Sara."
"I won't shut up."
"Shut up."
"No."
I let them argue. I move away to examine a rune stall. A grey-haired woman sells stones with engraved hieroglyphs. The symbols glow faintly, like the lighthouse's, but dimmer.
"Protection stones," she explains, noticing my gaze. "You put them under your pillow and nightmares won't visit you."
"Do they work?"
"If you believe, yes. If you don't believe, also."
"What do you mean?"
"Natural order magic doesn't need belief. It needs ingredients. The plant heals, the stone protects, the wind obeys those who know the words." She points at the runes. "This is written magic. Hieroglyphs. You need to know how to draw them and have mana to feed them."
"And spoken magic?"
"Chants. Ancient words, in languages no one uses anymore. Each word has power. Saying the right word at the right time... can save a life. Or kill."
"And how do you learn that?"
She looks me in the eyes.
"At the academy, boy. Or with a master. Alone, you die before you get the first syllable right."
---
We leave the stalls and enter a tavern to eat. The place is dark, with worn wooden tables and uncomfortable benches. But the smell of stew is tempting.
We sit in a corner. Gustavo orders food for everyone. Ana sits at the end, sideways, as far from me as possible.
Sara is already chatting with a girl at the next table. Ariny watches the door.
A bearded man, sitting at the counter, speaks loudly to the innkeeper:
"And that golden-haired slave! Killed two assassins with a dagger! Saved the baron's daughter! They say the baron made him a squire."
"I heard he's as beautiful as a god," adds another.
"Beautiful and dangerous. His eyes... aren't normal."
The innkeeper laughs.
"A squire with one week of freedom? He'll be a corpse sooner."
"Baron Féris protects him. And that man has long claws."
I store the information.
*Zirinos. Golden hair. Killed two assassins. Became a squire.*
*Another like me? Or something different?*
---
Gustavo finds an inn near the pier. It's modest — shared rooms, cloth curtains for walls, dirt floor. But it's clean and the owner seems honest.
"Two rooms," Gustavo says, counting coins. "One for the girls. Another for me and Ethan."
"And the boy?" asks the innkeeper, pointing at me.
"The boy stays with me."
Ana enters the girls' room without looking back. Sara waves at me before closing the door. Ariny has already disappeared.
I stay in the corridor, alone.
---
At night, I can't sleep.
Gustavo snores in the bed beside me. His leg is stretched over a pillow, immobilised. His face in the dark looks older.
I leave the room. The corridor is empty. The candles on the walls flicker.
The backyard door is ajar. I push it and step out into the night.
The lighthouse glows in the distance. Flash. Pause. Flash. Pause. It's hypnotic.
I look at my hands. I remember the system. Strength 10. Stamina 2. Speed 65. Female Repulsion 101.
*Useless. I am useless.*
"Can't sleep?" a voice asks behind me.
It's Sara.
She's leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed. Her dark red hair glows in the moonlight.
"You too?"
"The sea is still moving inside me. Even on solid ground."
"You're not used to it yet."
"No."
She sits beside me on the stone floor. We sit in silence, watching the lighthouse.
"What are you going to do at the academy?" I ask.
"Learn. Get strong. I don't want to feel what I felt at the port again."
"Fear?"
"Powerlessness. Watching the monster destroy everything and not being able to do anything." She looks at her hands. "I can't throw fire properly. Ariny can't make a shield that lasts more than two seconds."
"You'll train."
"So will you."
"I don't do anything."
You stayed. Gustavo said so. You said you couldn't swim, but you stayed."
"I couldn't swim, but I learned fast."
She laughs. The sound is soft, almost a surprise.
"You're strange, Ethan."
"I know."
We stay silent a little longer.
Then she stands.
"Let's sleep. Tomorrow we have a boat to catch."
"I thought you didn't like boats."
"I don't. But I like standing still even less."
She goes back inside. I stay.
The lighthouse flashes. Flash. Pause. Flash.
'We are here. In Derylini. The same place where Zirinos became a hero.'
'The same place where Arth Erréndias lost everything.'
'And tomorrow... tomorrow we go to the academy.'
I look at the starry sky.
'May the gods put up with me.'