Reincarnator RB Dragons, ch 46

"I still don't understand how you did it," said Lydia. She stuffed a spoonful of eggs into her mouth with obvious irritation. Kevin smiled in return. Based on how his cousin had taken the news when he first showed her Alariel’s letter, he'd realized she wasn't that upset about not being in charge. Of course, having a handwritten note by the great mage of Alariel might have had something to do with it too. Kevin had zero doubts that the letter was folded away somewhere safe, maybe even magically protected.

Ever since then, without explaining why, Lydia had left the inn she was staying at and came to stay at Kevin's. So for the last three days, while Kevin had been waiting for Alariel to receive the mysterious package related to his magical affinity, he'd been having all the meals with his cousin that he could share. Of course, having a dragon-sized appetite, breakfast like this wasn't going to fill her up. But Lydia truly enjoyed the taste of human meals. Kevin had known that fact for a long time now, so it was not surprising. 

If Kevin didn't know better, he might have suspected that Lydia had been lonely all by herself at the inn.

Instead of answering his cousin, Kevin just shrugged enigmatically. Normally he'd be leaving directly for Addison's, but now that he was officially an expert potion master, he'd informed Addison that in order to continue employing him, Kevin would need to be paid a minimum of twenty times more than he was currently making. Addison hadn't believed him at first, but after verifying that Kevin was indeed an alchemy expert now, the man's stricken expression had warmed Kevin's heart, and he wished he had a camera with him to preserve it for the rest of his life.

When Addison found out Kevin was Alariel’s apprentice now, he’d somehow looked even worse.

Although Alariel had asked him to help Addison with his project, Kevin knew that it was nearing completion already anyway, and there was no way she'd hold it against him he left now.  To continue being treated like relatively cheap help wouldn’t be appropriate anymore.

Over the last several days when he'd been waiting, his time at Alariel's tower had been largely the same, though. Every day he practiced a new potion, except now she was being much more active in his learning process and even checking on him several times a session. As a result, due to Kevin's speed and grace, likely at least in part to [Elvish Acuity], he'd been learning and creating two potions a day. Alariel still kept them when he was done, but now that he was officially her apprentice, she was also giving him money in an envelope before he left. He figured that it was a portion of whatever she would make on the potions he crafted every day.  Almost every new potion he tried was a success.  Sometimes he was able to improve them.

Kevin set his fork down on his plate and abruptly stood. "Okay, I'm going to go to Alariel's tower now. Are you staying here or coming with me?" Lydia dabbed at her mouth with a napkin. Kevin always thought it was funny when she did that in human form since he'd seen her tear into a huge shark in her natural state.  She’d gotten blood everywhere. 

"I suppose I will stay here and wait for you," she said.

"Sounds good." Kevin left the inn without looking back.  He’d just accepted now that Lydia was too shy to actually meet his master in person.

The walk to Alariel's tower seemed to take forever. He had to keep trying to think about other things so he wouldn't fixate on how this day, this walk, might change his destiny.  This walk was potentially ending with the fulfillment of a dream he'd had over multiple lifetimes now. 

Magic. His own magic. 

Excitement kept welling up from his stomach to his chest, but he willed it down, keeping his cool. Due to the concentration it took to stay level-headed, what began as a walk that felt like it might take a thousand years, ended up being over in a blink.

Before Kevin knew it, he stood before the doors of the tower. He took a deep breath, jiggled his shoulders to center himself, and knocked. As usual, the door swung open on its own.

He had a feeling he knew where Alariel would be. Sure enough, as he walked down the hallway, he found her seated in her favorite tea room, just as he had when they first met. In fact, she was wearing the same outfit from that day. For much of the time that Kevin had been visiting her tower, Alariel had been upstairs working. How she had known to be sipping tea to greet him the first time he came, he still didn't know. It could have been a coincidence, but with Alariel, one could never truly be sure. After all, she had a whole plethora of magical devices throughout the tower, and he only knew what a couple of them did.

In front of her on a coffee table was a thick leather book with gold leaf writing on it in a language that Kevin had never seen before. The tome drew his attention in a way he couldn’t quite explain.  It felt like…he was hyper-aware of it.

He sat without being prompted and accepted a cup of tea from the table, knowing it was for him. As he took a sip and appreciated the unique taste, he nodded at the book and said, "Is that what I think it is?" Despite his best efforts, some of his excitement had leaked into his voice.

"Indeed it is," said the great mage. She uncrossed and recrossed her legs, then gently set down her teacup and gave Kevin an appraising look. "I have a feeling that you might end up being one of my greatest apprentices. I am not sure where this premonition comes from, but I have learned to trust such insights over my life. To be honest, acquiring this book was very expensive. However, it's ironic that the first two batches of your Dazzling Focus potion you invented will easily pay for this, and then some." She chuckled, shook her head, and lifted her teacup again.

Kevin understood what she was trying to say. Some of the chain of events leading the two of them here today had been decided on a whim, and now she was going to massively profit from it. The same was true for Kevin, though, and he said as much. "If I also hadn't decided out of the blue to come visit your tower the first day I met you, we wouldn't be here today."

"I suppose that is true," said Alariel. The mage gestured at the book on the table. “To be honest, even if you had not impressed me with a new potion, I might have given this to you.  Soul Mages are exceedingly rare, and I have felt something interesting from you for some time now.  So are you going to use it? It is your right."

"Use it?" asked Kevin. "I don't know what to do."

She smiled and said, "It is very simple. Just lay your open palm on top of it."

“Really?  That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

Kevin eyed the powerful mage skeptically before leaning forward and putting his hand on the book.

Lighting exploded behind his eyes.  He drew in a sharp gasp of air before more pain exploded in his head and he lost consciousness.

***

When Kevin woke up, he was confused and didn’t know where he was at first.  Then he remembered touching the book.  When he turned to survey the room he was in, he actually spotted the mysterious book resting on a table near the door.  It no longer drew him like it had before.

Suddenly, the door opened and Alariel glided in.  Kevin’s thoughts were still catching up with his eyes, so he didn’t realize that he was fully clothed and lying on top of the bed’s comforter before Alariel stopped by the head of the bed and felt his forehead with the back of her hand.

“How do you feel?”

“Fine, I guess.  What happen–”  Suddenly, Kevin’s head felt like it had been filled to bursting.  Pressure grew to an incredible crescendo in mere seconds before abating just as quickly.  When the pain receded, he was left shaking.

Staring down at his hands, he tenderly, hesitantly expanded his senses.  Now his hands looked different.  He could sense the magic in them.

Magic.

Kevin glanced up but looked down again almost immediately. The expression on his face changed several times.

Holy shit.

He’d known Alariel was powerful, he’d instinctively even felt she was dangerous.  But now something had changed–he’d changed.  Now he could /see/ how dense and active her energy was, her magic power.

“You can look up.  I have suppressed my power again.”  Kevin looked up, and sure enough, Alariel’s aura didn’t sear his eyes anymore.  “I normally cloak my power as you are seeing now.

“I saw it.”

“Of course.  I often relax my control in my tower.  And now you are a mage.”  She smiled.

“What about the book?”

“It was a consumable artifact.  However, although it has been used up, it does have a lot of information in it about Soul Magic.  I would like you to have it in case you can use it to shorten the time it takes you to learn your new magic.  Unfortunately, I have never even seen a practitioner of Soul Magic, so there’s a limit to how much I can help.

“Oh.  Okay.  Thank you.”

He slowly got off his bed, moved to the book, and retrieved it.  Once it was in hand, he was startled to realize he could read the cover.  It simply read, “Soul Magic Book.”  

“This is really mine?”

“Would you rather I keep it?  Alariel chuckled as Kevin reflexively pulled it closer.  “I believe you would like to have  it.  Go ahead.”

Kevin felt tears forming in his eyes.  He’d wanted this for so long… “Thank you,” he stammered.  “Thank you!”

“You can leave now if you’d like.  I  believe you will probably have things to do today.”

He nodded and tried to convey the weight of his gratitude in the gesture, but knew he’d failed miserably.  With that, he made his way to the tower’s entrance, left, and headed directly for the nearest forest.  He had some training to do.

On the way, he reviewed new windows that had popped up in his vision.  He didn’t ask Alariel about them, because his research over almost twenty years had never included anything like status windows being a phenomena in this world.  People didn’t normally see them.  Maybe a Champion might, or a reincarnator.  Kevin knew Alariel was not a Champion, he’d never sensed it from her .

Congratulations on learning Soul Magic!

At your current level of mastery (low), you currently have access to the following spells:

Soulwindows (passive)

Soul Shock

Spectral Weaponry

Soul Speak

Soul Mend

Soul Ward

Once you have gained experience with these spells, more information will populate.