Arc 1 Part 1
"I'm sorry but the crown will not have need of your services." Those were the words that echoed in the throne room. Vil kept his head down while still kneeling. The young man did not want to show the disappointment in his eyes as the king continued.
"According to the mages your affin power is that of a crafter, a laborer, and a blacksmith. We already have many of those directly in service of the Kingdom of Jus Terin." He then leaned his head onto his left hand for support on the throne. "But for taking up your time as with anyone discovered with affin abilities, you are still entitled to receive payment for cooperating of your own free will."
Ushering with his right hand a servant approached Vil. When the servant moved the bag of gold in offering, the young man raised his head. With both hands he grasped the bag and put it onto his belt.
"The money is enough for you to buy yourself land." The king stood up from his throne. "That is all." With a wave of his hand Vil was allowed to stand and take his leave.
The king looked at Vil's retreating figure then turned to see a blond knight that was at his side s tart walking out of the throne room. "And where do you think you are going my son?"
"Nothing for you to worry about father. I'm just heading out to join some friends at the adventurer guild." With a bow and a smirk the knight took his leave.
<Scene Change>
Vil walked down the main street of the capital city deep in thought. He knew there was the possibility that his abilities would be dismissed. The mage that visited his village heard of a boy that could lift objects with his mind. That boy was Vil.
People in the village thought that Vil was just naturally gifted in psionic magic and Vil paid no m ind. He wasn't hurting anyone so there was no reason to put the spotlight on him. But the old mage's eyes could see that when Vil was levitating objects, there was no flow of mana.
Affin abilities are from a different source other than mana. It was also only obtained by blood. This made people with affin rare. The Kingdom of Jus Terin sought out affin users to add their strength to the kingdom. This encouraged many that discover that they have affin abilities to present themselves to the king.
However, affin abilities are limited by their specialization. Whatever your identified affin specialization is, you are stuck with it and cannot branch to others. It can be as simple as control of fire to as broad as being a great warrior. That type affin could give you strength and durability despite your size or it could mean you have e nhanced speed and dexterity or maybe all of the above.
The mages of the king's court found that Vil has affin that affects the art of crafting in multiple forms. His psionic ability to lift objects acted more like extra hands to use tools, not to fight. And he has been able to find the optimal temperature for heating metals when he was an apprentice to his village's local blacksmith.
'But how can I sell my craft as unique and special?' Vil stopped walking and looked at the wagons traveling along one of the roads in the capital.
"Look what we managed to haul from that giant spider contract!" Vil turned his head to see a group of adventurers showing off their loot to some onlookers.
The assumed leader pulled out a sword but on closer inspection it was leaving clouds of frost. "This bad boy is going to be so useful for fighting one of those flaming armadillos!"
'That's it!' Vil hit is fist into his other hand. 'Enchanted goods are rare and are valuable in their specializations.'
Vil however did not know anything when it came to magic. Then he got another idea. He needed to not only an expert in enchanting but a partner. Vil needed to find a witch.
<Scene Change>
"Pearluna Dogma I am sorry but I can't accept you for apprenticeship." A witch said with a nervous edge in her voice. Sitting before her was a girl with ghost white skin that had the look of disappointment in her ruby colored eyes when the words were heard.
"I understand. My presence is clearly making you and your other apprentices uncomfortable." The pale girl sighed. 'My brother's time outside of our lands didn't help the vampire image.'
Pearluna then stood up and bowed before walking out of the witch's shop. As she stepped out into the bright sunlight of town she gently pulled the rim of her hat. The hat then cast a darker shadow around her, only leaving a dark silhouette of her under it.
I guess I'll try the next major town. It's going to be a long time before I am allowed to return home.'
"Miss witch!" Perluna moved turned to who called out to her. It was a young man with eyes that shined like embers as he approached her.
"Is there something I can help you with?" She asked.
"Yes, can I speak to you about a partnership? If you are available?" He started to fidget as he stood in front of her.
'He can't really see my face in the sun because of my hat's enchanted shadow. Better put on my best friendly tone to put him at ease.’ The young witch raise a hand gently and suggested, “Of course I can spare you my time. I know a place where we can speak in a more comfortable setting.”
The vampire gave him a gesture to walk alongside her as they made their way through the city. As they walked she saw how the young man was getting nervous since they haven't traded words.
"Take a deep breath," she kept looking ahead. "You have no reason to be concerned about me saying no. For what it's worth, I am nervous about you turning me away."
The young man stared at her shrouded form confused. Why would I take back my offer to you? You are the first witch that has given me a chance to be heard.”
"Well... Oh, we're here." Pearluna and the young man walked into a cozy little restaurant. When they entered, she led him to a booth with no windows near it. Once they were sitting across from one another, after ordering cups of coffee, the witch broke the s ilence between them again. "You know you haven't told me your name yet."
"My name is Vil. Forgive me for not properly introducing myself earlier." Vil bowed himself in apology. "If I may ask, why do you have yourself shrouded in shadows?"
Pearluna took a deep breath and placed her hand on the rim of her white witch hat. The shadow around her faded revealing her looks to Vil. Her mid back length hair and skin were devoid of all color, just white as snow. That drew attention to her ruby red eyes that looked on with expectancy of being judged. Her white lab coat was open revealing her dark blue collared button shirt with a lime green bowtie.
"My name is Pearluna Dogma." The witch analyzed the looks that Vil was giving her. His eyes widened at first but it was not fear of her. Instead he just seemed to be in a trance taking in her appearance. She decided to test the waters that were his thoughts. "Is there something wrong with my appearance?"
She waited for the inevitable response of being told politely to leave. Then she heard him whisper to himself. "Pretty."
"Ohh? See something you like?" She said with a playful narrowing of her eyes.
Vil then shook his head out of his trance and ran a hand through his shoulder length black hair. He then cleared his throat. "I mean why hide your appearance?" I only guessed you were a witch due to your hat."
"Vampires stamina and strength is drained when in direct sunlight. The sun won't kill us, but being in such a vulnerable state is not preferable when around others tha t may want to do harm." Pearluna explained. "There are also many stories, both true and untrue, about vampires. They've made people fear us."
"I don't think you're scary." Vil smiled. Pearluna smiled back appreciating the compliment.
As much as she liked talking to Vil so far. He did request her to hear him out about a partnership. "I appreciate the sentiment but you wanted to speak to me about something else, did you not?"
Vil sat up straight. "Yeah, you see I have affin. The kingdom pays affin users to present themselves to the king to see what their talent is. If the king deems it so, the affin user can be inducted into service and usually is fast tracked tow ards becoming a noble. However, if not the user is given a large sum of money for wasting their time traveling to the capit al. I am one of those that got rejected." He looked disappointed in himself on the last sentence.
The witch nodded her head. "What was your affin identified as?" It's uncommon for an affin that surfaces to be considered useless." She couldn't think of an affin user that had a bad ability.
"It was identified to be about crafting, according to the mages. Right now the only thing I know I can do is lift things with my mind. I've used it as an extra set of hands when I was apprenticed to my home town's blacksmith." He demonstrated by lifting his traveling bag next to himself. Vil let it float for a few seconds before setting it back down.
"Not a bad ability to have. But why does a young smith like you need a little witch like me?" Pearluna inquired. To her he did not really need her. He is a young man that finished his apprenticeship for smithing and has a simple affin that can help him forge faster. It sounded like he could setup in any town and be fine.
"I want to make special items. Things that will say that they are from me but are useful. I eventually realized that enchanted items, weapons or otherwise, are prized from the lowest adventu rer to the richest noble." Vil then bowed his head. "So I'm asking, will you join me with your magical talents in venturing to create enchanted items?"
The witch before him tilted her head to the side a bit. She giggled and then leaned forward and used her hand to push the young smith's head up. "Please don't be so formal with me. I only recently graduated from the sorcerer academy and here you are asking me for help like I'm som e sort of princess."
'Even though it's not far from who I am.'
She found him very endearing and sincere. But her status as the daughter of an influential vampire count needs to be kept secret. Not because she is in hiding, but because he did not react to her last name and was treating her a b It more normally than others. She wants to keep it that way.
"You're in luck as well. I prioritized learning enchantments and alchemy when at the academy. Most graduates specialize in learning for more combative environments, like the monster hunting adve ntures are so fond of doing.” She took a sip from her coffee. "But where do you want to startup this little enterprise?"
Vil pulled a map out of his bag and put it on the table. His amber eyes stopped scanned the map and then he pointed at a coastal town. "We will have to cross the Naiadian Sea, but Mariana is a trade town close to a mining company's qua rry. I can get a contract with the miners to smelt their ore into ingots as a way to have a steady flow o f money and get a percentage of the ingots for ourselves. We can then use those ingots for creating enchanted items or fulfill requests.”
Pearluna nodded her head. Vil had a plan and she appreciates that he was not just improvising on the spot. However, Mariana was a little concerning to her.
'That's where mother and father met. We don't own any property so the Dogma family hopefully did not leave too big of an influence there. Hopefully I won't be recognized by name.'
"Also, I wasn't planning on it, but Mariana is not far from the border to the Vampire Territories." Vil realized. "If you feel homesick we can easily go there for a visit."
The vampire then suddenly leaned on the table. "That won't be necessary!" She then saw Vil's amber eyes widen in confusion. Pearluna then leaned back and cleared her throat. "Forgive me. I meant to say that I am partaking in a family tradition. When a young vampire comes of age they are to experience the world outside of the Vampire Territorie s for a few years. It is to help us see perspectives of non-vampires and know that there is more than just us. I cannot return home until the designated time."
"I'm sorry." Vil said. "I can pick another location if Mariana is too close to home."
"No Mariana is still outside of our lands. I can be there with no repercussions” Pearluna then picked up her coffee. "I'll journey with you as your partner in this enterprise. Here's to the beginning of a beautiful partnership."
She raised her glass to Vil. Vil did the same with his and their cups clicked. They both finished their drinks and got out of their booth. They left the restaurant with their bags and made for the exit of the capital.
