Infinite Body Prince

Hawk Hadrian flapped his wings as the sense of weightlessness washed over him. He looks down at the concrete buildings pressing against each other. Unlike in the lower districts, these ones don't look forced but as if they made the decision to.

There were two schools. Both were to the furthest west and east of each other.

To regular people, I wonder if these factions matter. Or if there's any difference.

They were more like opulent estates and not what Hadrian had imagined the schools to look like with only a few hundred students and staff.

Research on their own respective paths were hidden or non-existent while that of the other paths were put at the forefront.

If the schools were closer or the same institution, I could have infiltrated both at the same time.

Hadrian had thought.

Well, the books and knowledge he'd obtained were rather disappointing.

Higher ranked mages don't have to worry themselves with such magic schools.

Anything beyond rank three was mostly speculative on both parties or what few they had managed to learn.

For most, they'll spend years just to rise in rank. And those who do, have better things to do.

He also did manage to obtain some books on the world, which for all his life, had mostly been the lower districts.

Time flew as Hadrian flipped the pages. Thanks to the Alia vessel, who knew how to read on account of her mother working in a lord's property, he could too.

Dragons in the north, Titans and elves to the east, Angels to the west, mermaids and leviathans in the oceans and seas.

Hadrian chuckled.

Could the world truly be this big?

He looked down at a map of curved out continents and the different human empires.

His index finger lands on where his city supposedly is. It looked small. Well, everything looked small on the map.

There was a sea separating the human continent from the dragon continent in the north and the angel continent to the west.

The titan and elvian continents were connected to the human continent to the east.

Those corrupted horrors fill the south, though it seems there isn't much record on that.

The south had no end and Hadrian understood it must be because they had not seen that far to map it.

I wonder how different they are.

He meant the races and world.

Perhaps, when I'm done with my revenge, I can go and find out.

Snapping his fingers, the book disappeared in his hand.

Once more, he found himself wishing he could snap his vessels to that space. They were useful, but had made his journeys to the schools rather difficult.

…

"I've indeed never heard of such paths of magic." Emil and Aelia's mother says to them. She has a sharp mature beauty to her, like she could level you down with just a stare.

It's only their mother they feel safe telling. Their father isn't around. He's off somewhere doing viscount's work. Their mother would usually be busy too, considering she's an important and powerful member of the merchants guild, but today she was here.

Her beautiful face is twisted in a contemplative look. "What is it you can do, exactly?" She asks as the three of them lay on the large bed in the master bedroom of the Viscount's manor.

Aelia, who's apparently of the soul path, says her abilities have to do with light and shadows. As of rank one, anyway.

"I can seemingly merge my feet with the shadows and glide above the ground without worrying about tripping." She's excited to tell her mother this. You could hear it in her tone.

Getting up off of her bed, she demonstrates for them. Her feet, up to her ankles, do merge with the shadows. Like moving on ice, she moves her legs and it's like she's sliding above the bedroom floor.

"I can also sense through shadows, and even see through my own." Aelia says. "Like a back pair of eyes."

Their mother nods with a half smile. "That is indeed very useful." She says. "What about you?" She turns to Emil as Aelia joins them back on the bed.

"Nothing much to show for." Emil mutters.

Her mother squeezes her shoulder, "go on." She says.

"Fine." Emil sighs, "my thinking has been fastened. It's like reality slows down and allows me to think. I can also easily pick up on others' actions and meaning behind their words. While my body isn't now as agile as Aelia's, it isn't as fragile anymore."

"Makes sense for the mind path, I suppose." Their mother says. "In any case, it's good news you've both awakened. Life can be…. Difficult, if you are not a mage."

She hugs them both tighter, her arms wrapped around both of their small shoulders. "But we must be careful. Magic, like sorcery, when one plays with something they don't fully comprehend there's always a price to pay."

Both Emil and Aelia nod at the same time.

…

"Word's been spreading about strange shapeshifters." pouring his bearded friend a drink, the man said. "It might be a lead."

"Where from?" Bearded man asked, taking a sip of his drink on the wooden cup.

"Doran's street. Possible connections to Magloire Mob." The man answered.

"Tsk. I don't want to be involved with them."

"Eh. I was simply telling you. You seemed obsessed over the matter. If you could get your word to the magloire mob, they could pay you twice. For the information and getting your revenge."

The bearded man didn't respond, only twirled the cup in his hand.

"You might want to hurry though. Since about a week ago, these four youths won't stop blabbering about a strange child killing a man in a street and the man waking up from the pool of blood."

Without saying anything, the bearded man got up, paid and walked out the tavern.

He made his way to a small brown tent. For a long moment, he stood by its flaps. Following his intuition, he walked in.

It was dark and The smell inside was strong.

"Mother…. " his face down, the bearded man mumbled. "I need your assistance." He got to his knees.