Chapters 49 & 50 Revised (Patreon)

These two I didn't think needed as much touching up as the previous ones, but be sure to let me know what you think in the comments below! Since I didn't change as much, I'm also, strangely enough, not as confident in these chapters as I am in the changes I made for the previous few.

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Ch. 49 - His Name --- Original for comparison

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When Leon walked through the door of the vault and laid his eyes on its contents, he was left stunned. Stacks of shiny gold bars and crates of silver coins were in the majority, but there were also smaller boxes on a table in the center filled with precious stones. Sapphires, rubies, emeralds, amethysts, and several diamonds the size of his fist were all glittering in the light of the magic lanterns illuminating the vault.

Leon was frozen in place; he couldn’t decide what to go and examine first. His heart raced with excitement and wonder as he stared at the obscene wealth before him, far more than he’d ever imagined would be within. He’d have considered himself lucky beyond belief to have even a few thousand silver coins, let alone all of this.

After a few moments of staring, he settled on the silver coins. The gold bars couldn’t be spent directly, and the gems—while extremely valuable—had practical uses that he wouldn’t give up just for a little coin.

He counted sixty large wooden crates, each stamped with the image of a bird of prey with its wings spread and talons outstretched, the sigil of House Raime. The crates were stacked three high, almost touching the ceiling, except for the four closest to the doorway, which were open to reveal hundreds of metal tubes, identical to what Leon had found beneath the obelisk. He estimated after some digging around that these crates, which were so numerous as to fill an entire third of the vault, had about half a million silver coins each, totaling about thirty million silvers.

Next were the gold bars. The economy of the Bull Kingdom had been overhauled several hundred years ago, phasing out both gold coins for being prohibitively valuable, and copper coins for being too worthless. Consequently, there wasn’t much Leon could do with these bars. Only royalty or the obscenely wealthy still stockpiled gold, only using the bars to pay for their largest of expenses.

Leon counted himself lucky for being in a Heaven’s Eye Bank, as this was one of the few places he could exchange one of these gold bars for silver coins. There were one hundred gold bars here, though Leon had little idea how much that was worth in silver, so he moved on to the gems in the center of the vault.

A quick count came to fifty sapphires, seventy rubies, one hundred emeralds, two hundred amethysts, and five diamonds. All the stones, with the exception of the enormous diamonds, were roughly half the size of his thumb. These he did not intend to sell. While gemstones are often used for decoration, especially in jewelry, Leon knew that they are far more valuable to enchanters than jewelers, as magical energy could be stored within them, which could then be used in place of a mage to power enchantments. How much they could hold was dependent on both the kind of gemstone and its size.

Sapphires were the most valuable in that regard, being far and away the gem that could hold the most magic. After that came rubies, emeralds, amethysts, topazes, pearls, and opals, all of which could store less magic than the one before. Just about any other gemstone was simply decorative and had little uses apart from ornamentation, with the sole exception of diamonds. While diamonds couldn’t store as much magical energy as sapphires or rubies, they still had the miraculous quality of amplifying magic that passes through them, greatly strengthening enchantments they were incorporated into, making them much more valuable than other gems.

Leon didn’t quite know how valuable these gemstones were, given that he only knew what little Artorias had been able to teach him about enchanting, but he knew that these stones would make for great enchantment material if he ever got the opportunity to study that art. It was just a shame that they were not currently storing magic power, so Leon would have to charge them himself if the time ever came—an expensive process, he’d been led to believe.

As he thought about all this, he was reminded of the enormous crystal powering the enchantments in the prison where he found Xaphan. He had no idea what that crystal was, but it certainly was no gem he had ever heard of.

‘Oh well, no use guessing now. Something to look into, should I get the chance…’

Leon stepped away from the gems and took another look around the vault, taking it all in, trying to wrap his head around just how much wealth this was. Artorias had once told him that the Great Plateau was one of the richest regions in the entire kingdom, thanks to its abundant mineral resources. Seeing all this gold and silver and knowing that it was just a small amount of emergency funds that Archduke Kyros had set aside really drove home for Leon just how enormously rich House Raime was before it collapsed.

After some thought, he grabbed a single gold bar and about five thousand silver pieces. The silver would be enough to live off of for a couple of months, while he intended to use the bar to open an account with Heaven’s Eye that was more immediately available, so he wouldn’t have to come back to open this vault every time he needed more coin.

Leon took one last look back at the vault as he left, letting a small smile appear on his face.

The Tower Lord was still waiting when Leon emerged from the vault, about half an hour after he had entered.

“Everything was to your satisfaction, I trust?” he asked, and Leon nodded in response. “Wonderful!”

“… There is something else I would like to speak with you about, Tower Lord.”

The Tower Lord smiled jovially, and said, “Please, call me Ajax. Your grandfather and I were friends, after all, and I hope we can be friends as well.”

“Right…” Leon felt more than a little awkward at that statement, but he continued regardless. “I would like to open a more traditional banking account with Heaven’s Eye. This will be my deposit.” With that, he placed his gold bar on a nearby table. “And, I would prefer that everything we do be done with the highest level of discretion. I hope you can understand.”

“Of course. The loss of your family was a tragedy, and I understand the need for… subtlety. No need to fear, Leon, I will personally ensure that as few people know about you as possible!”

The two men sat back down, while the Tower Lord waved his hand, causing a small stack of papers to appear on the table in front of them.

“First things first, we’ll need your ID papers.” Leon frowned at this, which Ajax noticed. “I take it, then, that you don’t have your papers?”

“I d—" Leon was about to answer that he did have his papers, but he had an instinctive aversion towards using them, but the Tower Lord interrupted him before he finished.

“—Because if you don’t, we at Heaven’s Eye have the power to issue you a new ID. It won’t be the same as what the nobles here use, but they are perfectly acceptable in this Kingdom.” Ajax then waved his hand again, causing a few more papers to appear on the table. “Just write down the name you wish to go by, and I’ll have a new ID made for you.”

Leon cracked a small smile, understanding what Ajax was saying. He pulled the papers closer and took a look at them. From what he could tell, he only needed to write down his name, and the rest would be done by Heaven’s Eye. He quickly wrote down his first name, unwilling to abandon it despite his name being known in the Kingdom. It was his last name that gave him pause. He hadn’t given it much thought as to what he should call himself in front of other people, so he sat and thought for several moments before Ajax spoke up.

“It seems fairly obvious that you have come here from one of the Northern Vales…” he looked meaningfully at Leon’s silkgrass shirt, relatively long hair, and Snow Lion coat. “… and whenever one of the Valemen comes down south, they are always given a name that indicates where they have come from. For instance, the Brown Bear Tribesmen, who control the only vale connected to the Great Plateau, would be named ‘Urs’, ‘Ursus’, or ‘Ursine’, when issued their IDs. You might find that going by that name to be unpleasant, but it could also help you to avoid further scrutiny if people assume you to be nothing more than a barbarian.”

Leon nodded. He had told Charles that he was from the Northern Vales, so it would be far easier to continue with that story given that it was true, even if he did omit a few key details. He wrote Ursus down for his last name and handed that form back to the Tower Lord, who accepted it with a smile. He glanced at the form, then rose and made for the door. He sent Elise to get the ID made, and she was back within ten minutes, by which time Leon was already done filling out the rest of the forms, so Ajax sent her off again, much to her relative frustration.

“So, with all that done, you’ll be using this gold talent as your deposit?” The Tower Lord gestured at the gold bar, and Leon nodded in response. “Ok, this will put your account at about six million silver coins.”

Leon’s eyes widened when Ajax said that.

‘Six million for a single damned bar?!’ he silently shouted. His eyes flickered back to the large vault, still sitting in the room, knowing that a hundred more bars were waiting for him in there, utterly dwarfing the silver that shared the space.

After giving Leon a few minutes to process this, the Tower Lord spoke up. “Do you plan on staying here in Teira, Leon?”

Leon didn’t immediately answer. Ajax didn’t mind, though, he was just making small talk, and was starting to get used to Leon’s usual silence.

But it was still a compelling question for Leon. He’d been intending on joining the Knight Academy down in the capital, but he had to admit that knowing someone like Elise was here in Teira, he was tempted to stay.

But it was only a temptation. He had answers and revenge to seek, and he wouldn’t find either in this city.

“I think I’ll be heading for the capital,” Leon reluctantly said. “My intent is to join the Knight Academy.”

“Ah, an honorable goal,” Ajax said. “We also have a Tower in the capital, and if you do find yourself in need of our service, feel free to stop by. My sister is the Tower Lord there, she runs a tight ship and will have you sorted out in no time. Should you ever require exotic materials, weapons, armor, and enchantments, then look no further. We also have branch offices in most major cities across not only the Kingdom, but the entire continent, so you’ll never be too far from assistance should you require it.”

As Ajax said this, Elise returned with Leon’s new ID in hand. It wasn’t anything special at first glance, but it had many of the same enchantments placed upon it as the account cards, verifying the holder’s identity. All Leon would have to do to show that he was the proper holder of the ID was to activate a simple light enchantment, and the borders of the ID would flash green. As the enchantment was tied to the blood sample he gave Heaven’s Eye earlier, no one else would be able to activate this enchantment.

More than a few kingdoms were extraordinarily jealous of how skilled the Heaven’s Eye Guild was at enchanting, as creating these kinds of IDs was beyond them. There was even some speculation that such techniques were unknown even to the four Central Empires, though it was hard to say for sure, as the empires were in no hurry to clarify something like this.

After handing Leon his new ID, Elise hovered for a moment, hoping to have something a bit more to do now instead of being relegated to courier. However, before she could say anything, Leon rose to his feet, his business with Heaven’s Eye effectively concluded.

“Well, Leon, should you ever need our services again, don’t hesitate to come back,” Ajax said as he and Elise escorted Leon across the room. As they passed the vault, he made a subtle hand gesture, and it began sinking back into the floor. It would only take five minutes or so for the vault to sink through the entire tower and back underground, where all the other vaults were kept.

“Yes, we’ll do everything we can to ensure that your needs are met!” Elise enthusiastically said as she lightly took Leon by the arm. Leon’s cheeks reddened, but he made no attempts to get her off of him.

Before reaching the door, however, something seemed to occur to Leon, because he stopped and looked at the Tower Lord, his embarrassment quickly vanishing from his face, replaced by a stern seriousness.

“There is… something else you could help me with…”

“Please, say it, and I’ll do my best to make it so!”

“Not long ago, a Paladin came through here, I think ‘Roland’ was his name? He lost a man-at-arms…”

“Ah, yes. Sir Roland is a good man, and I hope his missing man is found. Even now, the city guard is still tearing the city apart looking for him.”

“What was the name of this missing man-at-arms?”

Ajax was curious about why Leon would want to know this, though he knew that asking would probably be pointless, judging by the look in Leon’s eyes and the mild thread of killing intent that wound its way through his aura. He was a bit worried about the young grandson of his late friend, but he eventually decided that he needn’t pry into Leon’s business.

“His name was Adrianos Isynos.”

“Adrianos Isynos…” Leon muttered. He didn’t say anything else and walked the last few steps to the door.

‘Adrianos Isynos…’

Elise glanced back at the Tower Lord with a questioning look, but he almost imperceptibly shook his head, discouraging any inquiries. She scowled, then hurried after Leon, taking his arm again as he left the room. However, unlike the other times she’d gotten so close to him, Leon barely seemed to notice, lost as he was in his thoughts.

‘Adrianos Isynos…’

This name echoed in his mind, and his thoughts turned back to the team that had assaulted his home and left his father mortally wounded. It was all he could do to restrain his killing intent and keep quiet.

‘Adrianos Isynos…’

He had his first real thread to follow, something to go on more concrete than just ‘one of Roland’s men-at-arms’.

The lift doors opened, and Leon immediately stepped out into the entrance lounge. He made a cursory inspection of all his things, making sure that he hadn’t left anything behind. He had his gold card and his new ID, so he made to leave. He didn’t notice any of the stares from the other patrons, the glares of disgust at his clothing style, or the occasional envious gaze from having such a beautiful attendant on his arm.

Elise finally released him at the door, giving him a glowing smile which he returned as best as he was able. Without anything more to say, he said his goodbyes, and left, hoping he’d get the opportunity to see her again. But soon, pleasant thoughts about Elise were driven from his mind as that name resounded in his mind once again.

‘Adrianos Isynos…’

No matter what was to come next, he knew that it was a name he’d never forget.

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Chapter 50 - On to the Inn --- Original for Comparison

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“Leon!” Charles, who was still waiting outside of the bank, noticed Leon walk out, and approached once Leon and Elise said their goodbyes.

Leon saw Charles run up to him and collected himself. He had gone a little out of sorts after learning Adrianos’ name, so he clamped down on his emotions as best as he could.

“Charles,” he said, his tone giving nothing away.

“So, did you get everything done that you needed to?” Charles was bursting with questions for Leon, especially about what business a Valeman could have with such a large bank, but he kept his mouth shut when he saw Leon again.

“Yes.”

“Ok… um, on to the inn?”

Leon still had his five thousand silvers in his pack, and for a brief moment was tempted to find an inn somewhere other than in the slums, but he thought better of it. ‘Best not to make a scene, keep things low-key…’ he thought. So he nodded to Charles, and they set off back to the slums.

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Elise and the Tower Lord watched Leon walk down the street from a window in the Tower Lord’s office. The window hadn’t been there earlier, but the office had hundreds, perhaps even a few thousand convenience enchantments woven into it. Ajax could turn a wall in his office into a transparent window almost at will.

“You seem to have taken a liking for that one. Finally find someone who caught your eye?” the Tower Lord asked teasingly.

“Oh? What gave it away?” Elise asked, genuinely confused as to how he knew. Any trace of playful seduction in her demeanor was gone, replaced only with a mildly relaxed business-like attitude.

“What didn’t give it away? You’re usually far more aloof to our guests, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you approach one of your own will! But you were practically all over young Leon!”

“Well, it’s rare to see someone so young yet so strong. Even rarer to see someone with that kind of power not trying to flaunt it or to show off.”

“Not for you. How many balls and parties did my sister throw for you back in the capital, trying to find you a match? I’m sure you’ve met at least half the nobles in the capital. Undoubtedly there were more than a few who were possessed of comparable strength with a pleasant attitude.” Ajax glanced over at Elise.

“You’d be wrong, and besides, there were none who also held a gold card and had a name like ‘Leon Raime’,” she said with a mischievous smile. “Besides, all those boys my mother introduced me to were strong, impeccably dressed, well-mannered, and mind-numbingly boring. But Leon… he was quiet and unassuming, not drawing much attention to himself, but all that vanished when you said his name. I was intrigued before, but he gave no prior impressions that indicated he could be so decisive. Truth be told, I was starting to think him just as boring as everyone else until that happened. He was ready to fight despite your obvious power, of that I have no doubt. And yet, he’s still so innocent! It makes me want to tease him even more, have some more fun with him…”

“Be careful, Butterfly. He’s still a Raime, so he’ll have his fair share of enemies. I’d hate to see you get hurt or worse by whoever attacked his family.”

“I’m willing to take the chance,” she replied. “I’d rather take the chance that Leon will prove himself a better man than most other nobles I know than settle for someone who thinks of no one but themself.”

Ajax nodded, understanding that she was still young, barely even twenty years old, and hadn’t even had a single boyfriend before. She felt like she needed someone different and unique, and compared to most of the nobles she’d been introduced to, Leon fit that mold perfectly. Fortunately, Ajax had been left with a good impression of the young man, and he didn’t think it necessary to further warn Elise away from him. She was old enough to make her own choices and to take her own risks.

“Uncle, I’m going to return to the capital.”

Ajax looked back at his niece, his eyebrow rising in intrigue. “Gotten bored of this place already, eh? Finally ready to go home? About damn time I say, my sister has been sending me messages almost weekly demanding that I give her news about you.”

Elise sighed. She loved her mother, but she could be a little stifling and overenthusiastic in her support of Elise. Case in point, the dozens of parties she threw for her daughter to meet the eligible men in the capital. It was too much, and by the time Elise was eighteen—two years after coming of age—she needed to get the hells out of the capital.

It had been two years since then, but until now, she hadn’t been quite ready to go home. She glanced out the window again, but the reason she was going home had vanished from sight. As a sixteen-year-old third-tier mage with an illustrious name and a gold card, Leon was the first man she had met that she felt even came close to meeting her very high standards, so she wanted to keep an eye on him. Even better, he was cute, adorable in his innocence, and he had great potential. She wanted to be as close to him as possible, to watch him grow and see if her interest could lead anywhere, and the only way to do that was to follow him back to the capital.

“Oh, by the way, you’ll be coming home to another step-father, my sister has taken another husband,” Ajax said with some slight embarrassment.

Elise resisted the urge to facepalm. As a Tower Lord, it was legal for her mother to have a harem, but she was always so flippant and casual about it. By Elise’s relatively outdated count, this would make her thirty-fifth step-father, not to mention her mother always takes three additional concubines for every new husband.

“Whatever. Let my mother do as she will. I may have to look into getting a private place, though, a place where she can’t bother me about starting a harem of my own.”

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The inn Charles brought Leon to was about as Leon expected from seeing the rest of the slums. Made primarily of wood, but with a foundation of stone, and no enchantments powerful enough that he could sense their presence. That didn’t mean they didn’t exist, for the kitchen would have to have an ice room, though such things were so simple and cost so little magic power that they weren’t easily perceivable in a place as abundant with magic power as the great city of Teira. Ice rooms were basically the same as the ice shack Leon and Artorias had in the Forest of Black and White, just a large room with a few carved ice runes that kept the place below freezing.

The innkeeper behind the counter by the entrance was an older man, perhaps in his fifties, and barely a first-tier mage. Even without advanced breathing techniques, any commoner’s lungs would adapt to the magic in the environment given time. Most would never see the second-tier without proper instruction and training, though.

“Hey there, Pops, I found you a customer!” Charles’ unabashed sociability kicked in, talking loudly and waving to the surly innkeeper. The innkeeper himself just glared at Charles, but otherwise ignored him.

“What do you got?” Leon asked, his tone subdued even by his standards.

“A bed in a group room for twenty silvers, or a room all to yourself for fifty,” the innkeeper replied, appreciating Leon’s quiet and businesslike demeanor, in extreme contrast to Charles.

“And food?” The first floor was taken up by a number of tables, chairs, and a bar, so Leon knew that this place would have something to eat.

“Dinner in an hour, breakfast around an hour after sunrise.”

“Got it.” Leon counted out fifty silvers, and the innkeeper gave him a key.

“Third floor, end of the hall.” Leon stoically nodded to the innkeeper, who stoically nodded back.

Leon made for the stairs, with Charles just behind.

“Nice, a single room! I have to make do with a bed in a group room, sharing with five other people!”

“Hey, Charles, how secure would you call this inn? Are there problems with theft and break-ins?”

“Oh, no, not at all! This place has some good beer for a very cheap price, so many of the younger guardsmen come here to drink and relax. No one messes with a bar favored by the Guard.”

Leon nodded in acknowledgment. The two soon climbed the stairs to the third floor, and Leon saw that there were only about ten rooms here, compared to the twenty he saw on the second floor.

When the two arrived at the door at the end of the hall, Leon turned to Charles and said, “It’s been a very long day. I’m going to rest for a bit here, but I’ll be down for dinner.”

“Alright! I’ll meet you there!” And with that, Charles bounded back down the stairs so enthusiastically that he kind of reminded Leon of a puppy.

Leon unlocked the door and pushed it open. There wasn’t much to say about the room—a bed, a table, three chairs, a couch, and a fireplace. There was a door leading to a bathroom, and Leon found a toilet and shower with functioning water runes, and though they weren’t all that powerful, he was still very pleasantly surprised. He immediately dropped his pack on the bed, closed and locked the door, then took a shower.

Ice shacks and utilities powered with water and ice runes were required by the royal government, so even the most run-down inns and houses would have running water and a place to store and preserve food. But, of course, places like this inn wouldn’t have nearly the same level of care put into their construction as in the wealthier districts, so the shower Leon took was cold and the water pressure was lacking, but he got clean. Since he was a third-tier mage and had little reason to sweat, he didn’t stink, but he still felt dirty, and even a cold shower left him feeling refreshed.

As he cleaned himself, he kept replaying the day’s events in his mind. Most prominent in his thoughts was the name Adrianos Isynos and what it might lead him to, but the more he stood beneath the water, the more his thoughts began to drift. Elise kept popping up in his mind, with her fire-red hair, her flirtatious demeanor, her confidence, her almost unbelievable beauty. If there was going to be any single reason for Leon to stay in Teira, it would’ve been her, but Leon hadn’t the temperament to stay in the city for a girl, even one as gorgeous as her.

After a few more minutes, Leon found himself thinking about Ajax. The Tower Lord was an old man, old enough to have apparently been friends with Leon’s grandfather. Leon already regretted leaving the Tower so soon, since now that he had some time to think about everything, he wished he’d asked Ajax more questions about his family. He knew next to nothing about House Raime save for what Artorias had deemed worthy to relay, which was quite possible the only thing that Leon resented his father for. Leon could understand and sympathize, but now that he realized he’d passed on a perfect opportunity to learn more about his family, he couldn’t help but kick himself.

It wasn’t a big enough reason to go back to the Tower before he left, at least unless something more important came up, but Leon had a strange feeling that he was going to come back to Teira one day. As his thoughts drifted back in Elise’s direction, he couldn’t help but smile and hoped he could find an excuse that wouldn’t embarrass himself soon.

‘Maybe I’ll find one after searching that palace…’ Leon thought to himself, practically salivating at the thought of looking around his family’s old palace. He’d have to find a way to break in, but he was not about to leave the city without at least trying to get inside those ruins. ‘After dinner…’ he thought as his stomach began rumbling.

Eventually, he left the shower, dressed, secured his blade around his waist, and left the room. He kept all of his papers, bank cards, and IDs in his pockets, but left everything else locked away in his room. The door and lock were sturdy, so he wasn’t too concerned.

Charles was waiting for him down in the dining area. As usual, Charles talked Leon’s ear off with stories from the mining town he grew up in, and Leon just listened and watched the other two dozen or so people in the inn.

Something that interested Leon was a group of off-duty guards loudly complaining at the bar.

“Why d’ we have ta help in ‘is search?! I’s the Paladin’s guy, let the damned Paladin find ‘im!” one man drunkenly shouted.

Another, slightly more sober guardsman responded. “It’s precisely because he’s the Paladin’s man that everyone’s gotta help. ‘Sides, the paladin himself has other duties, so he can’t search with us.”

“Oh, horse shit! The fucker was last seen in the Exarch’s place, so he either went AWOL or he got snatched by some dickhead noble. No use haltin’ half the patrols in the city to find this guy, ‘specially when we got hundreds of other missin’ people to keep an eye out for.”

“Well, boss says jump, we gotta jump…”

“Damned assholes. All of ‘em, assholes…”

Leon soon stopped listening to them, as they just turned the focus of their complaints from the search for Adrianos to their boss. Leon didn’t really overhear much, anyways, but he was at least willing to bet on Roland not being involved in his father’s death.

After paying a few silvers each for dinner, Charles intended to talk to some of the ladies at the bar, but Leon stopped him first.

“Listen, think you could show me around a bit tomorrow?”

Charles looked a little hesitant. He guided Leon around today because he was grateful to him for saving his hide from the thugs, but he couldn’t just stop his job hunt for him. Fortunately, Leon noticed his hesitation.

“I can pay one hundred silvers for your time. I just need to find a good tailor and a barber.” Leon had been in the city for a while now, and he was well aware that he stuck out like a sore thumb thanks to his clothes and long hair, so he intended to change that.

Charles’ eyes lit up when Leon mentioned payment, but he restrained himself from immediately accepting. “A hundred coins for just that? Of course, but are you sure? You could buy a much better guide for that money.”

Leon frowned. Talking to Charles was difficult enough, he wasn’t willing to meet another new person. “Well, if you feel that I’m not asking enough, I suppose you could show me a bookstore or two, preferably those stocked with enchantment textbooks.”

Charles’ eyes practically gleamed with the promise of a job, even one that was temporary.

“Of course!” he said enthusiastically, staring at Leon like the younger man was his savior.

The two made plans to head out again after breakfast, and Leon made for his room while Charles swaggered over to the bar, the promise of coin putting some confidence into his step.

When he returned to his room, Leon’s eyes found the window, through which he could catch a few tiny glimpses the distant ruins of Teira’s palace from between the block apartments of the slums. He quickly locked the door behind him and barred it by jamming a chair under the doorknob. He then rummaged around in his pack for a minute or two and retrieved a pair of maps. One was the map of the city and the other was his map of the old palace. The main entrances to the old Raime palace may be locked down now, but he still had methods to access the estate.

The map of the palace grounds had no less than five secret tunnels leading to various places around the city, with several access points per tunnel. Leon cross-referenced with the city map to find the closest access point and hoped that the tunnels hadn’t been discovered in the years since the fall of his House.

Leon glanced out of his window again. The sun had fallen, so the sky was dark, but the main streets were still bright from the numerous magic lanterns that filled the city. There weren’t so many here in the slums, but he could see the luminous glow from the southern districts with ease. The city was still so bright, in fact, that Leon could only make out the brightest of the stars that he had been able to see up north.

Leon leaned back on the couch, intending to relax for several more hours, giving everyone still on the streets the chance to get tired and go home, when he heard a voice in his head.

[Leon.]

[Xaphan! You’ve been pretty quiet, what’s up?]

[It looks like you’ve got some time, so let’s talk. There are some important things we should discuss…]

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And there we go, the first few chapters that I wanted to revise over and done with, for the most part - assuming there aren't glaring holes that all of you see that slipped my attention. that means that probably some time this week or next, I'll be making these changes official by going back and updating the posted chapters. This week, I'll be starting work on a much more daunting challenge: revising the first half of the Knight Academy arc.