Chapter 672: Truth and Payment

Chapter 672: Truth and Payment

Crumble how? Dallion asked.

The building guardian had indicated nothing of the sort. Just to be on the same side, Dallion had had a brief talk with him to check. The guardian seemed as surprised as anything, although he did admit not knowing how the shardfly infestation occurred in the first place.

The walls are made of us, the shardfly replied. If all of us leave, therell be nothing holding the building.

An instance of Dallion made its way to the far wall in the room. On cue, masses of shardflies moved to the side, revealing an openingor rather a doorwayleading further in. Purple light came from within, illuminating the entire space. Whatever was there had a lot of magic.

Did the mage build you? Dallion asked the building.

I was created three centuries ago, the guardian said with pride. Mages come and go. Some of them modify me, adding a new floor or basement. None of them bother mending me. They just slap their symbols on top. Its unpleasant.

When this is over Ill mend you, Dallion went through into the new room.

If the previous part of the cellar had plenty of shardflies, this was literally composed of them. Dallion could sense them in the walls and floornot as part of it, but rather the building blocks that composed it.

See? The light emerald shardfly flew onto Dallions shoulder. Told you.

Yes, you did. Dallion looked around.

At first glance, there was nothing remarkable about the room: a few workbenches, an iron chest and a few wooden mannequins. The latter did raise some questions, though, after a brief conversation with their guardians it became clear that they were just brought down here to be out of the way. The interesting part came when Dallion tried talking to the chest. Not only did it contain the greatest amount of magic, but the item itself was an artifact, more specifically a sphere item.

Dallion expected the chest to be locked tight, but to his surprise it opened without issue. The mage either felt confident that no one would venture into his lab, or he had lost the chests key, for he had filled it with aether cubes the size of a mans fist without any safeguards. A single of the cubes was a veritable fortune. The magic coming from the chests contents was massive, making their way into the room itself.

This woke you up, didnt it? Dallion asked, closing the chest again.

This was definitely a first. He had seen a lot of weird things in ruins as a hunter, but this was the first time hed come across anyone digging their way into a shardfly hive. The creatures had probably been in hibernation for centuries, surviving on a constant diet of low magic that was abundant in the area. That had changed when the mage had created another room and brought a strong source of magic.

Yeah, the shardfly replied. It feels more comfortable in the other room.

Dallion sighed. He could see the issue. It was both simpler and more complicated than he had hoped. Whether or not the structural integrity of the building would be compromised should the shardflies leave was beside the issue. Based on the emotions emanating from everywhere in the room, it was clear that the creatures had no desire to leave. No doubt the mage had tried to force them out, resulting in an appropriate response. Getting the insects back to their nest would be difficult, if not outright impossible.

Once again, Dallion faced a choice. At his current level, he stood a good chance of killing off the shardflies, thus solving the mages problem. The prospect terrified him almost as much as the ease with which he considered it.

What will you do if the sources of magic are removed? Dallion asked.

Youd steal them? The shardfly flicked its wings menacingly.

Someone will.Findd new stories at novelhall.com

The creature hesitated, pondering the question. Clearly, there wasnt a simple answer as far as it was concerned.

What if the mage puts the magic you like in your nest, then seals it off? That way everyones happy. Dallion paused for a few seconds. You can tell what Im capable of. Id really not fight you, but if you dont want to leave or get back to your hive

Id seal off the entrance youve made, Dallion continued. Just in case.

Hmm. Just a few potions, you said?

A few dozen. A lot less that you could have lost.

The mages left-hand fingers danced through the air. His symbol making was fast and elegant, completing the spell in seconds. Dallion managed to recognize the symbol for space, when suddenly the room contracted, as if the door was pulled to a foot from the desk.

Im not paying you a thing, the mage said with suppressed bitterness. With the potions youve cost me, consider yourself lucky Im not telling your instructors about this!

Dont worry, he wont dare, Nil said. If he could have done something, he would have already.

I understand. Dallion pursed his lips. Yet, not paying one hunter is the same as not paying all. I doubt this incident will cause hunters to stop taking Academy tasks, at least not right away. However, it would be an unhealthy precedent to have, especially since you dragged me to take care of your problem. I might be an apprentice, but when doing hunter jobs, standard rates and conditions apply. Unless I decide differently.

A glint of fear emerged in the mages eyes. He opened his mouth to argue, but quickly closed it again.

Hes smarter than he looks, Dallion thought.

There are no stupid mages, dear boy. Just arrogant ones.

You saved the chest, right? the man asked, seeking for a way to save face. Nothings missing from it?

The aether cubes are all there.

There was still a large amount of reluctance emanating from the mage.

You dont have to pay me in gold, sir. Not that it was a lot. Knowledge would work just as well.

Knowledge? The mag narrowed his eyes.

Anything that will help me become a better mage.

The mages fingers danced through the air again. This time, the spell caused a small booklet to appear in his hand. Looking at it, Dallion saw Basics of Potion Making written on the cover. It was unclear how valuable the book waslikely not particularly much since it had the word basics in the title. The one main advantage was that Dallion was able to read it.

Here. The mage tossed the booklet at Dallions face.

Faster than the human eye, Dallion caught the book inches from his face. This was the first time a client had resented him so muchpossibly with the exception of Countess Priscord. Every fiber in Dallions body told him that he might have problems further down the line. However, this was the Academyit was expected that hed have problems further down the line. The trick was not to piss off the really important ones. Everything else could be amended or renegotiated.

Thank you, sir. Dallion smiled. Please call me if you have any other issues with the shardflies. Itll be less costly than calling anyone else.

A quick spell later and the distance between Dallion and the mage had increased to a hundred feet. An interesting tactic and markedly passive-aggressive.

Ill be waiting for you to call me, sir, Dallion shouted, not in the least phased. Spellcrafting started to lose its glamor, and after everything he had been through, such tricks werent even impressive. Enjoy a nice day.

The door slammed shut in front of his face. Now, there was nothing else but to go back to the library.