The last week of the school did go by fairly quickly. The teachers usually have some more motivational speeches but some of the lessons were informative for me.

Because of that, I managed to get a better picture of the continent. Artesis has three major powers and seven minor ones. The Order of the black shadow is one of the minor powers. The three major powers are called, Order of the Elements, Mumon Technocracy and The League.

The Order of the Elements is the closest in terms of location, while the Mumon Technocracy and the League are the further away. The Order of the Elements is a magic-based Power, while Mumon Technocracy is about artefacts and crafting. There isn’t much known about the League, however.

The order of the Black Shadow is in the northern part of the continent. It shares a border with the Order of the Elements and two minor powers called: Brotherhood of Iron, a knight-based order, and the League of Shadows.

The other minor powers had unfortunately not been mentioned. I need to get myself a map sometimes soon. Hopefully, that isn’t going to be hard.

I also found out that the Order of the Black Shadow is some kind of assassination and killing force. For it to be so open about it, I think that it has to have some connections with the Order of the Elements. Or another major player.

Today is Saturday, and the school is already over. My plans and information have to be updated:

1. Three major and seven minor powers. Osmor (the city I live in) is part of Order of the Black Shadow.
2. This Order has bad blood with League of Shadows, so conflicts and war are a possibility. Needs to get stronger in case of a war.
3. This family is not important in the city, thus it can be abandoned. It is not my family anyway, and in a sense, I did kill their kid.
4. I have a manual and affinity for soul training, also a way of hiding it is also provided. I now just need to get the ritual out of that book.
5. There are three paths to power. One of blood (Magic), one of the body (Warriors), and one of the soul. My path shall be of the blood and soul.
6. Opportunity to join the mage tower and become a mage.

I looked up from the parchment I just wrote.

„This is good enough, now let’s make a to-do list,“ saying that I crumble the parchment and take another one to write, this visualizing helps me in organizing myself:

To-do list:

1. Hide my soul affinity with the help of the book.
2. Getting rid of the second soul or putting it into a vegetative state.
3. Pass the aptitude test in the tower and become a mage
4. Make a gang, or some kind of underground force. Useful for information collecting and for secret laboratories.
5. Researching the local spices and food market. Food is important.

Looking at the parchment, I think deeply.

For number one I have the ritual from the book, that shall be done tomorrow. Number two is on hold, not enough information. Number three will be completed on Monday. Number four and five can be combined. Using restaurants as a cover and somehow controlling the cooks. That is also in line with my ‚Make food great again‘ initiative.

That out of the way, I start to practice again. It seems that the four apprentice stages are only the beginning and their standing shouldn’t be too well.

„Osric, dinner is ready!“ someone shouts from downstairs.

„I’m coming!“ I shout back.

Going downstairs I enter the dining room, the others are already sitting around the table.

„Mom, what did you cook?“ I ask. I was rather curious, because I couldn’t make out what it is.

„It is something to celebrate you finishing school and being third-best of your class. It’s called Matovel. I learned it when I was still a little child. It is beefsteaks in a roulade with cheese and some ham. With cream sauce and a lot of cheese,“ she said.

„Sound good. Thank you“ I replied. Oh god, those people are annoying. Too much body contact and friendliness, that isn’t how earth is run.

The mat-whatever did taste good, a recipe I should learn at some time.

We talk a bit about the family and what I will do to do later. I repeat what I did tell my father last time. It turns out, that my mother is a merchant’s daughter and my father is a bookkeeper for by a big company. Meh, whatever, I’ll ditch them as soon as I get strong enough.

Back into my room, I begin to meditate, or torture Subject#001.

Throughout the week, Subject#001 seem to be recovering faster and faster. This meant on one hand, that I can meditate faster, but on the other hand, that his soul is getting stronger.

Shortly I will need to find a solution for this problem.

A fight with another soul about the usage rights to the body is something I want to avoid, if possible.