Bowing one last time, Tobius stepped into the glowing archway and stepped out of it on the other side. As always, the portals of the Academy worked perfectly: no side effects or ailments. The gray master found himself in the middle of a large round room in which a soft bluish twilight reigned; carpets on the tiled floor, decent furniture, a spiral staircase going up along the wall.“Welcome, your majesty.Surprisingly, as soon as the arch of the portal went out, the room immediately became brighter, and the master noticed the wizard in a sparkling half-robe the color of a thrush's egg. He was a young man about his own age, broad-shouldered, tall, with long wheat-colored hair.- Yes, I know you ... Alestan!“Your might,” the cryomancer bowed back.- Do not do that! I received the staff just yesterday.“And now you are a master,” the northerner replied coolly.“Eh… yes. Are we already in Ora?- Of course not. How do you imagine a portal hanging across the sea?— Yes, yes, you are right.
“Lovely,” he muttered, “just lovely!”As Tobius continued his manipulations, he whispered a recitative of artefact spells in parallel."What are you doing, you bastard?!"A man in a greasy shirt and with tousled hair fell down from a hatch in the ceiling. His face was smeared with what looked like oil, which dwarves anoint their mechanics, and horror froze in his eyes."Push," Tobius cut him off without being distracted, "an artifact on its last legs." I believe that they took care of it as best they could, but without a professional artefacturer, these are just pathetic attempts. Why didn't you call the master?“So,” the grubby man squeaked, “it’s expensive! We have to walk for three years to save up for one repair! Here I am...But then he will work for fifty years.“So we won’t swim so much!” Here every exit to the sea can end in a wet grave ...- Everything is clear with you. Again, the greed of people and wizards comes out sideways to both. Such a rarity! Jewelry work! The master
- A little bit more! Tobius wheezed, gasping with fear. - Almost!..The little "Frederica" slowly curved around the dragon's neck along the widest radius, while managing not to roll over.- Let's go! Let's go!— What are you yelling at?! He will hear you! the captain growled.— In this cacophony?!- He's a dragon!He's a sea dragon! He hears in the water, but here for him everything is the same noise! We passed! He's at the stern! Tobius almost wept with happiness.- Dash down, let them turn on the waver!- No!- What does "no" mean? “The captain isn't used to hearing that word on his ship, but over the last week the damned wizard has fed him those 'no's to the point of 'can't'. "We must leave as quickly as possible!" Waver...“You don’t fucking understand how a wave runner works!” This dragon is attran! He picks up two hundred knots without effort, with one stroke of fins! The wave runner will only attract him with vibration! Attrans feel the vibration with their whole body! ..Sud
"What's wrong with that eye?" she asked Umraz.“I don't know, ma'am, he's a passenger, not from the crew.“I was born like this,” Tobius explained in good melodic Scandi, “with cat eyes. It's not a disease, it's a mutation.The warrior furrowed her brows.“Don’t breed on Ora,” she said rudely, “we don’t need such deformities for nothing. Although such a frail youngster like you, hardly anyone will like it.While the wizard was tall and broad-shouldered, the woman was a quarter of a head taller than him, and even slightly broader in the shoulders, so it made good sense to think that way.“I won’t,” the wizard smiled, not at all embarrassed.Having received the duty, the Orians went home, and the lodars opened the way for the schooner to the port.“This is where our paths diverge, wisest one [A common man's address to a magician in Dimoris.],” Tomeh Belza said with a sigh, walking along the pier, “or what?“Disperse, brother Tom,” Tobius nodded.- Have you changed your mind? Perhaps you
“Here, now it’s like new.” Goodbye.As he made his way across the hall to his table, Tobius was acutely aware of the attention of others.- Hold on.- Well, you and frukht, the wisest! - Smiling broadly, almost dancing on the spot, Tom Belza began to pull on his things. “They say the truth about you Riva wizards—you are like those orcs!”- Firstly, either "Rivne" or "Rives". The word "Rivne" denotes our origin from the kingdom of Riven as representatives of the craft, but as a people we are Rivs, not Rivs. Secondly, if I wanted everyone to know that I was a magician, I would have yelled at the top of my lungs about it myself. And thirdly, why orcs?!- Well, sorry, sorry! Belza was fully dressed and sat back at the table. “I keep forgetting. Are you mad at me?“I don't take offense at anyone, Tom. Resentment is the lot of children who have small, insignificant worries. Now I just think that I drew attention to myself for no particular reason. I don't need it at all.The gray master wai
A troop of female warriors cordoned off a nickel around the gate, guarding ten bulky, low-sleigh covered sledges. Huge white deer with long hair were restless in the teams. Most of them sported not yet so large, but new horns that had already grown in order in the spring. The animals exhaled clouds of steam and constantly moved, trying to keep warm, although in addition to their native wool, they also wore thick woolen blankets. The men climbed into the sledge, arguing loudly about who would sit where, on two rows of seats facing one another. Balakhas Erdevind and Mongo Buschenglaf chose the most comfortable sleigh, as it seemed to them, and let only their closest relatives inside. It seemed that over the past time, these two had become friends in some sense, although they arrived on Ora in search of the same treasure, which could not be divided in half.Accompanied by a convoy of five dozen reindeer riders, the sledge caravan moved further north, to the halls of Jofrid's horsemen, in
The guests left the sleigh with noise and laughter. They stretched stiff limbs, talked loudly and were just glad that they could get to Cardenwig, which seemed so warm and safe. They were shown the way to the hall of the konani, and the guests hurried through the open gates, from which the hot and inviting smell of food poured out.- Wow, finally!Don't rush, Tom. The wizard wrapped himself in mimicry and exhaled a thick cloud of white vapor. The frost was getting stronger. Look around and remember everything.— Yes you what, the wisest?“Listen, we voluntarily entered a well-fortified and guarded castle. On the one hand, tall walls, on the other, an abyss, there is only one gate. Judging by the size of the barracks, there are at least a thousand guards alone, and most likely twice as many. The guard guards Kardenvig, and the squad accompanies the horses on campaigns, I read the description of the local way of life in the history of Kalebdin ... Now Yofrid is here, in the fortress, wh
“How cold it is here… I don’t understand how they can live on this cursed island! However, this is not so important! I was able to get to Cardenwig without incident, had to look away from these women, hide and steal food, but I still got there! However, you can’t stay here: the old woman has eyes everywhere, and they are already looking for me! I'll try to collect food for the journey - I need to run! Now just west. On Ora, inhabited by people, there is nowhere to hide an entire library. If you're reading this, then you've made it here too. Be careful! The best thing to do is run now!”Tobius bit his lip thoughtfully as he reread the message. If his predecessor hadn't perished here, then he had gone further... west? Coming out from behind the stag, the wizard looked towards the chamber.The gates of the banquet hall were wide open, and half-drunk suitors walked out of them, accompanied by the Orians, in clubs of warm fragrant steam. They walked with songs and laughter, stomping loudly
After Tobius Moth entered the Academy grounds in front of hundreds of wizards, everything went awry. After some time, many heard through the Astral the appeal of Tobius, in which he denounced the archmage Shivarius the Polyhedron, calling him a renegade, guilty of the war with the Zulans and sabotage of the Academy. After that, hours passed before the barrier that kept the magicians out of the campus began to lose stability, and they began to diligently hit it with all available spells, despite the constant interference in the form of the air element. In the end, the barrier was broken through, and, having risen to the top of the main tower, the magicians found the rulers of the Academy there in full force, alive and unharmed.The guilt of Shivarius the Polyhedron was confirmed by the words of the stewards, and the wizards of the Academy were ordered to immediately begin the search for the missing traitor. But neither Archmage Shivarius nor Magister Tobius could be found. They weren't
As the Polyhedron and the Free Gyenjoylin battled, Tobius chose the moment tensely. It was not easy, because, unlike himself, Shivarius effortlessly parried and counterattacked the magical creature. He was fast, deadly, masterfully interspersed with sword and staff strikes with magical attacks, pushing the gyanjoilin and lashing him with energy chains that appeared here and there from the air. Shivarius knew plenty of ways to inflict pain and injury on a creature that could disintegrate in smoke and reunite. The moment came, and Thobius did not miss it, dishonorably hitting the archmage in the back with the Ice Drill. The impaled renegade fell to the ground, and the Gyenjoylin immediately struck his chest with his blade. But instead of dying, Shivarius turned into a flock of asps that flew up to the ceiling, merged together, recreating the unharmed body of the wizard, and he collapsed on the back of the gyenjoilin's neck, plunging his sword into his unsteady flesh. Crying terribly, th
And Chaos."I'll tell you what, boy, let me out!" Let me out and I'll kill Shivarius! I swear I'll finish off this nasty bastard, I'll pop him like a stinky pimple and then lick the contents! Don't hesitate, I will! Of course, I'll kill you too, but at least your death will be quick... maybe... I don't know, I haven't decided yet! But you can believe me, I will make Shivarius suffer for a long time!“I came here for nothing.- No, wait, wait, let me out ... no, just loosen the fetters a little! Even a nobody like you can do it, come on, give me a little chance, buddy! Let's!- Never!— Like this, right? And you have no other choice! You can’t do it yourself, boy, the task is not up to you!I was hoping for advice!- What advice?! Do you hear yourself?! What advice were you hoping to hear, slug?! Do you think there is some workaround? Do you think there is a way for a nonentity like you to bring down a colossus like Shivarius?! You live in the real world, motherfucker! In real - not in
— Eishubeihwan.“Master wishes to give me a new name?” the gyenjoylin asked in a leaden voice.- The owner wants to give you this polyhedron. Take it somewhere where no one will see it, throw it as many times as you like - and put the fallen signs into your new name. By doing this, you will become your own master.The tiny wooden craft was in a wide palm, and the gyenjoylin stared at this priceless gift in disbelief.- Can't be…“I am an honest wizard and I keep my word.“Oaths given in the name of the Mage of Mages do not have to be kept before those whom he commanded to rule.“I have always fulfilled my oaths, to whom I gave them, to the king or the goldsmith,” replied the gray master.Gyenjoylin hid the ball in his belt and, materializing the sheath, hid the blade in it.“Shivarius will kill you if he catches you. Hide somewhere else... I don't know how you could beat him."Even with your help?" Tobius slid along the edge of the abyss. - I do not intend to change my decision, altho
The danger was warned by a sharp gust of wind, which was nowhere to be expected in a room devoid of windows or a second exit. Tobius jumped back just in time to avoid being hit by lightning. Directly under the ceiling, on huge bright wings, a giant butterfly soared, fanned by a halo of iridescent glow. This beautiful creature would become an appropriate guest in innocent children's dreams, if fireballs, lightning and deadly ice arrows did not rain down from its delightful wings, from which the wizard had to leave insane zigzags.He blocked part of the attacks, diligently answered, attacked, maneuvered, defended himself, attacked again, but the butterfly flew quickly, beat accurately and accurately and did not know fatigue. It was Bambaleska, one of Pongemonius' beasts, summoned to Valemar by Shivarius the Polyhedron. Saturated with her master's magic like nectar, she set up an ambush near the ipspiroch and patiently waited for the stupid young wizard to reach for the artifact. Fightin
Tobius tossed all three blueprints forward, energized them, and trapped the spirit in a triangular trap. Boards with luminous lines revolved around the pascantes, held together only occasionally by discharges of magical power running between them. Thobius cast a banishing spell, using the sharp knob of his staff to draw a polysyllabic drawing in the air with a septagram at its base. Pascantes pounded with his fists on the barrier that stopped him; He tore through the Gray Wall fairly quickly, but the second trick really gave him trouble. The revolving blueprints contracted as Thobius cast the spell, and the gray magister had only to “squeeze” a little to throw the pascantes somewhere in the area of the Arimead archipelago, when the spirit nevertheless split one of the typesetting wooden plates and freed itself.The magic system could not exist with less than three reference coordinates. The next blow knocked the spirit out of Tobius, he flew off into the open interior of the cabinet
— Open it, there is a lot of interesting things in this book, but the most important thing for you is now on the flyleaf. Come on, open it up and try to read it.Thobius obeyed, opening a sheet of the thinnest parchment, which had yellowed with time, and saw on it an even line drawn in blue, barely distinguishable ink. On a hunch, he touched the badges, pouring a drop of his magic into them, and they shone as if filled with blue flames.Jassar... Ansafarus? Something quivered in Tobius's soul and exploded.“I remember what it was like to hold for the first time something that Jassar himself once held before me. And not just holding on. He created this book, created the matter of which it is composed, inscribed everything in it, from the first to the last character. It's Jassar's book, Tobius. I went through the arms of death and great torment to get to it, entered the Wild Land with a dozen faithful, experienced, proven associates, friends whom I loved like brothers and sisters ... an
"What does that mean, charm?!" - the officer shouted, trying to block the screams of the indignant crowd.“It’s just that sometimes people need a little help to be human.But no one heard him. The guard held back the indignant, flying from everywhere, but rotten vegetables and insulting words did not reach; the irritated city fathers hurriedly retreated, accompanied by guards - they, too, could have been punished for a disrupted performance, although they were not to blame for anything. Tobius, on the other hand, looked around carefully and thought - people deliberately save rotten meat until better times, so that later they can throw it at someone, or some quick-witted hawkers go through the crowd and sell spoiled food for everyone, before some drunkard is wrapped in pads and it will be possible to use the sufferer's face as a target?The magician struck the ground with his staff, and his voice sounded like thunder, reaching the ears of all those gathered:It was my prisoner! I fough
He walked around the building, as he had done on his first visit. The walls of the inn were protected by prayers that warded off not only evil, but magic itself as it is. It was impossible to get inside, but Tobius was not used to looking at the world from the height of a chicken perch, he looked wide and far, like a soaring eagle. Mainly because he had a flexible, inquisitive mind, but the ability to fly also helped.Soaring on the Wings of an Eagle, the wizard climbed to the very top of the tower, to where Marin had an office. Having looked into the windows that had not been washed for a long time and making sure that the holy grace does not protect them, the gray master broke several glasses and got inside.Despite the fragments that scattered on the floor, the former office did not begin to seem any more dirty; a mess, mixed with desolation, already reigned inside. There was no doubt that someone, most likely experienced "sniffers" of Investments, climbed the premises far and wide