Arcane Heir: History's Strongest Mage

"So let me get this straight…" Melody said, leaning forward on the edge of the bed as Michael completed his story. The morning sun rays streaked in even brighter than before.

"You've been keeping these secrets from the time you arrived at our manor? Even my father doesn't know?" She asked, her expression unreadable.

Michael nodded, feeling a little guilty. He was hoping that she would understand his reasons, but he was prepared for the backlash. After all, he had practically been lying from the beginning.

Melody slowly nodded, letting out a long sigh. "Thank goodness…"

"Eh?"

Michael shot her a questioning glance.

Thank goodness?

But his question was answered soon after.

"If my father knew this information and still decided to use you as a shield for me… I wouldn't be able to forgive him." Melody added, her complexion recovering slightly. There was relief in her voice, surprising even Michael.

"I'm sorry that you went through that Michael, and I'm sorry that you were dragged right back into noble politics against your will."

His eyes landed on her soft features. Her words were sincere—there was no judgment, no anger. Just relief, and sympathy.

Michael felt a hand fall upon his shoulder.

"Thank you for confiding in us man." Rudy said, wearing a comforting expression. "It must have been a tough burden to carry by yourself all this time…"

"Yeah," Michael admitted, smiling wryly, "but now that I have friends who I can trust, there's no reason for me to do it alone anymore."

"Damn right!" the guy grinned, flashing him a thumbs up.

The atmosphere turned harmonious in the next moment, and Michael felt as if a weight had been lifted from his chest—something that he'd carried for all these years. It was an amazing feeling, but he hadn't finished yet.

"These are the pills and scrolls I found in the mana-scarred lands." He said, waving his hand and retrieving the two pill bottles and ancient scrolls inside of his storage ring.

They fell onto the bed in front of the two teens whose eyes widened with interest.

"Pills!?" Melody's eyes lit up, her hand surging forward to collect the pill bottle with intense speed. She ignored the scrolls, as if they were ordinary pieces of paper, causing Michael to smile wryly.

"Can I open it?" she asked Michael, her eyes shining with enthusiasm.

Melody was an alchemy nut, he wasn't surprised that she would immediately gravitate to the pills.

"Sure, but just be careful… I took one last night for the first time, but I'm not sure what it actually does. My soul absorbed the medicinal energy—but then nothing happened." He admitted, looking a little worried.

"Your soul did?" she asked with a frown. "Could it be…"

Melody removed the stopper on the pill bottle, causing the scent of magical herbs to fill the room almost instantly. She carefully tipped the bottle until a single longan-sized pill fell into her hand before putting the stopper back into place.

Michael tensed, expecting his soul to kick up a fuss again at the appearance of another pill—however, even after a few seconds, it had no reaction. He raised an eyebrow, not knowing what to make of the situation.

Is it because my soul is still absorbing the medicinal effects of the pill? Or is it one of those medicines that only a single dose is effective? He thought silently.

"It's so beautiful…" Melody said, bringing it closer to her face to inspect the spherical pill.

"Beautiful?" Rudy scoffed, "It looks like a dung ball…" he remarked, pointing to the brown pill that smelled of herbs.

Melody shot him a fiery glare, "Your head looks more like a dung ball… This pill is from a lost alchemical art of pillmaking. Mages used to make amazing medicines, but the techniques were lost after the great war—now we're reduced to using cauldrons to make potions." She lamented.

Her knowledge passionately spilled out as she stared bright-eyed at the pill in her hands.

"And if what Michael says is true, this could be a super rare pill targeted at souls. Though the methods were lost, a tome of medicinal pills was discovered by the alchemy association classifying some pills and their effects." She continued, turning to Michael.

"There was only one pill that had an affect on the soul in that tome…"

Michael gulped, feeling a sense of trepidation and excitement, waiting for her to continue.

"Soul fortification pill. It's said to increase the purity and density of one's soul." She added, "scholars believe that this was one of the contributing factors as to why there were so many violet mages in ancient times. Since pills like this existed—their souls were stronger, able to venture deeper into the Arcana."

"You sure know a lot…" Rudy stated, scratching his head. "So you're basically saying that this pill will make your soul stronger?"

As he said this, the guy deftly grabbed the pill atop Melody's palm with his thumb and forefinger, examining it.

"Oi! Be careful with that!" Melody surged to her feet with panic.

"Relax, I'm not going to eat it. Not without permission anyway." He said, looking at Michael with a small grin.

"Are you sure that there was only one type of pill aimed at souls?" Michael asked, his tone graver than the mood would have suggested.

Melody looked a little taken aback, but she shook her head. "That was only one tome, I can't guarantee that there isn't missing information. But since you're still alive after taking one last night—it shouldn't be anything harmful." She surmised.

Michael seemed a little relieved after hearing so, but he had some reservations.

That nightmare I had last night… Is it related to the pill? He thought silently.

Surely not…

For a moment he thought about just ignoring it, but something inside nagged at him. The nightmare felt too real to just be his imagination. So after a brief moment, he decided to tell the two about it.

The two listened to his tale, but neither seemed too concerned.

"I doubt it's an effect of the pills," Melody replied, "though research on souls has stagnated ever since the great war, nothing like how you described has ever been recorded."

"She's right," Rudy added, placing a hand on his shoulder, "you've been through a lot man. I still suffer from nightmares occasionally—though they're a little different."

Michael wanted to agree with them—wanted to pass off the nightmare as something simple. But something nagged at him.

However, he decided to leave it for now. His two friends had already moved on, now focusing their attentions back on the pill that had found its way back into Melody's hands.

She grabbed the pill bottle and swiftly placed the longan sized pill back.

"It will lose its efficacy if its unsealed for too long," she stated matter-of-factly.

"Thanks," Michael nodded, waving his hand and putting the bottles and scrolls back into his storage ring. He could see the slight disappointment in both of their faces—but there was no greed—something that made him thankful.

With a small smile, he addressed them. "Let's wait a few months and see if there are any side effects of taking the pill. If there isn't, I'll share them with you."

"Eh? Really!?" Rudy's eyes lit up with excitement, practically jumping for joy. "Thank you man! You're my big bro from now on." He shouted, patting Michael on the back with hard shots as he laughed.

Melody too was extremely interested, but her cheeks turned slightly red a moment later. She cleared her throat and spoke softly. "Thanks…"

Michael smiled, feeling some warmth mixed in with his now stinging back from Rudy's slaps. He had been so worried about revealing his secrets to his friends, but now that such a weight had been lifted from his shoulders—he felt content.

These guys are true friends…