Lord Tharn Zon

Chapter 6.1 – The bet - part 1.1

Tharn answered after glancing around and noticing a few gazes towards them from the other students still in the cafeteria. “I guess so, but not here. Do you mind if we talk as we go to the Library? We are calling too much attention.”

Osman Halabi nodded after looking at his friends, who shrugged, showing that they didn’t mind.

As they were walking along the main corridor, he explained. “We heard about what happened in the morning during that test. Is it true that Istar is now an Apprentice? Because that is what the rumours are saying.”

“Yes, that is correct, even if she doesn’t believe herself.”

“But did she already go to the Sphere to check?”

“No need. I am perfectly capable of evaluating her Rank and Level. I didn’t check yours, but I could bet you are still a Novice, like your friends.”

Osman nodded with an awkward smile and said, “Yes, it is kind of hard to gain Levels around here, I don’t know if you already noticed. The Teachers don’t make our lives easy. Talking about bets, I have a business proposal for you. You see, my father is a Merchant, and that bet you made with Rihat sounds very profitable if you let me arrange an offside bet with the students in this School.”

“I am listening.”

“Well, I want to check with the students if anyone wants to bet on you or Rihat. You would get a share of the profits if you win, of course. A small share, because all the work to search for people to bet would be on us.”

“And if I lose, you still get a cut after delivering the money to the people that bet against me, I suppose.”

Osman Halabi nodded. “Of course. Considering that no one knows you but they all know Istar’s reputation, all the students will definitely bet against you. If you win, I get a bigger cut of the profit, but if you lose, I get a small cut. I gain money either way, but I would prefer it if you won.”

Tharn faced the nervous Istar and asked, “Do you know them? He kept on talking until now, and you didn’t say a word.”

“I… have seen them in School… I think they came from a different City because I haven’t met them before. They… helped me a couple of times when Rihat and her friends were… being mean to me…”

The Cathra boy retorted, “Although I wanted to hit you a few times! No Cathra I know would let Rihat say half the things she is always saying to you! Even if you deserve it most of the time! My younger sister is only ten years old, and she would jump at Rihat’s throat if she bullied her! I have no idea why you are so weak and stupid!”

Osman made a slight smile as he elbowed his friend. “Forgive Muranu for this. He tends to speak more than he should. He is not a bad kid, but his heart is too close to his mouth.”

The Catkind girl said while frowning at the embarrassed Istar. “Muranu is not wrong, Osman. Istar is too shy and nervous all the time, and that makes her look stupid. That is probably why she messes up her Magic so much. If she was calmer, she would be a better Mage, considering that she is always in the Library, reading and studying. I know she has one of the best grades in the theoretical classes, but her problem is the practical classes.”

Tharn tapped the shoulder of the red-faced Istar and said, “Remember what I told you. Focus on your breathing. Block everything around you and concentrate. You have to always remain calm.”

Surprisingly, she did as he told her, and closed her eyes. She took one slow, deep breath, then another. They all stopped walking and waited for her, and when she opened her eyes, she no longer looked nervous.

Synesia Bardane made a slight smile and said, “That looks way better. If you could always be like that, you would be amazing, Istar.”

“Thanks… I… don’t like it when people are looking at me or talking about me…”

“Probably if you were not wearing such a revealing dress and were using our School’s uniform, that wouldn’t happen. Your cleavage is showing off, your boobs are almost jumping out of your dress, and you are flashing your thighs to anyone that wants to droll over you, but what do I know?”

Istar put one hand over her chest, hiding her cleavage, while the other hand grabbed one side of the dress, closing the side opening as she explained, “I… didn’t have time to go to my room to change… I was in the Training Room number four, and after summoning Tharn, we went to have breakfast and then straight to the practical test…”

The frowning Catkind girl asked as Istar was rushing to follow them, “And what is your excuse now? You could go to your room and change before the afternoon classes start, you know?”

“I… I am going to do that… after showing Tharn where the Library is…”

Osman Halabi asked, a little puzzled, “Your name is Tharn? I am sorry to say this, but I have never heard of a Familiar who looked like you, could eat, or even speak like you do! Are you sure you are a Familiar?”

“That is what my Master says I am, so I guess I am one. Your proposal sounds interesting, but I have a counter-proposal to offer.”

“Very well, please explain.”

“If I win the bet, I want the same cut you will get, and you and your friends will help me increase Istar’s Rank and Level. For that, I will also help you and them increase in Rank and Level. In other words, if I lose, you gain a small profit. But if you want to be sure I win, you would want to help me. In return for that help, I will help you and your friends as well.”

Osman disguised his interest as much as he could while their friends had their mouths wide open, and he asked, “What kind of help do you need?”

“Meet us after classes in Training Room number four. I will explain what I need for Istar to increase her Rank, and yours. During classes, I want you to focus on the subjects and make notes for me to read afterwards. I want to know what the Teachers teach around here. It will also serve as a concentration exercise. Listen to the Teacher, take notes, block every noise and distraction around you, and empty your mind.”

“That will be extremely boring! Some theoretical classes are a pain!”

Tharn gave a slight smile to the annoyed Human boy. “Exactly. It is a concentration exercise. Difficulty helps. Don’t forget to take notes. That is also to help you because you will get used to blocking everything around you while concentrating on what the Teacher is saying and noting down everything. Concentration is extremely important to a Mage. It is the fundamental step to a higher Rank. The amount of Magic you can use is important, but concentration is what makes you able to use your Magic properly.”

“I know that already. The Teachers say that all the time… Darn it, doing that will be so darn boring… But if you can help me get a few Levels, I guess it’s worth the shot. I just… do you honestly think you will be able to make us level up?”

Tharn pointed with his thumb at the nervous girl behind him. “I made her reach Adept Rank Level 19 in seconds, and you know how she is. Imagine what I could do with you if you do as I say!”

“Well, I guess I could try. We have a deal then. The Library is right after this door. Do you need anything else, or can we go? Our classroom is on the other side of this building, and we need to get our textbooks from our rooms.”

They quickly left, and Istar opened the door. As Tharn entered, he looked around, amazed by the number of bookshelves in rows, full of books.

He followed Istar to the woman that was seated at a desk near the entrance, and she raised her eyes from the book she was reading and stared at Tharn with a puzzled look when Istar told her the list of books she wanted to give him to read.

The woman guided them along the rows of bookshelves, stopping occasionally to pick a book that she handed to Tharn, and going to the next bookshelf right after.

In the end, he was holding a big pile of books, and she returned to her desk after one last glance at him, still puzzled not only by his clothes, judging by the way she looked at him from top to bottom, but also wondering why he wanted to read all those books.

Istar went to an empty table and said, as Tharn was seating, and opened the first book of his pile, “Will you be alright here all alone? Because I need to change and go to my classes. I will come here when it ends to get you.”

“I will be right here. One last thing: do you need to pay for the food I am eating in the cafeteria? Because I don’t have coins like those that Rihat put on the table, but I can sell a few things to pay you.”

“I can pay. I have money. My parents send me money every month to pay for my expenses here, and I save money because I don’t eat candies or cakes, and I don’t enter in bets or games that could make me lose money. The other students are always betting or entering unofficial tournaments of Magic Duels to earn extra money, but I never do that. I don’t see the point.”

“Really? We need to try that as well. Maybe tomorrow, or the day after. By the way, where am I supposed to sleep? Is there a room for Familiars to use?”

Istar turned bright red and whispered after checking where the librarian woman was. “I guess… you will have to sleep in my room... Maybe on the floor, on a corner? I only have one bed… and… you can’t sleep with me… I don’t… want you to sleep with me... It would be strange…”

“Alright, I can sleep on the floor. Don’t worry, I will make a comfy bed for myself. Get going, or you will be late. Synesia was right about one thing. Although your dress looks absolutely gorgeous on you and accentuates your sexy figure, it is indeed far too revealing, and you might lose focus during a fight if, while you are trying to evade a Magical attack, one of your breasts bounces out of your dress.”

Istar put her hands over her chest, covering her cleavage when she noticed Tharn pointing at it, and stuttered, “I… I d-don’t n-normally use this… I-It was a gift from my mother… I only use it for special occasions, and Summoning my first Familiar sounded like a special occasion… Most female Mages use this kind of dress to distract men and make them think they are not a threat…”

“It is indeed distractive. May I suggest you wear a white shirt or a white blouse under it? That way, you won’t need to worry about your breasts popping out. It will still be a distractive dress, but you will be less worried during a fight. When you get enough confidence in your Mage abilities, you can use that dress like it is right now, or you can lose one more button to be even more provocative. If you unbutton those three buttons and put a thin rope around your waist to serve as a belt, the dress will be open until your bellybutton, your cleavage will be more visible, and you will show a good amount of breast to distract your opponent.”

Istar turned bright red and backed away slowly while saying hesitantly, “I… need to go to class… Yeah… I need to go…”

She ran out of the Library, and Tharn slowly shook his head. “She is still young, or she lived a very sheltered life, but she will learn with time…”

He looked at the first book and mumbled, “Too many things to read…”