Trinity of Magic

Ezekiel walked the hallways of the school building. He wandered the school for a while, still thinking about all that he had learned. The clear ringing of a bell finally managed to wake him from his thoughts.

He remembered that he still had subsequent classes. Next came Mana Manipulation. This was followed by Magical Theory, and then it was time for lunch. After hours of studying, his mind was tired. As he walked into the dining hall, he could smell the heavenly aroma of the delicacies on offer.

The Elementium had a general dining hall. Ezekiel was free to use it even though he was not living in the dorms. This fact didn't do Ezekiel any good, however. He didn't have the money to afford the lunches they served. He normally searched out a corner in a deserted hallway and nibbled on the hard rinds of bread and moldy apples that were usually all he could afford.

If he was lucky, the lunch break ended without any of the students searching him out or accidentally stumbling upon him in his hiding spot. Those encounters usually didn't go well for Ezekiel; today, though, he was spared.

In the afternoon, he attended his Blood, Space, and Mind classes. Because of his tri-affinity, his afternoon classes went on for three times as long as those of an apprentice with a single affinity. By the end of his third class, his core usually felt so depleted and tired that he could barely rouse any magic at all.

Despite the rigorous workload, he persevered. Day after day after day, driven by a burning desire to succeed. He knew these affinities were his only hope of making a name for himself at the academy. No matter what anybody said, Ezekiel still believed that he would make it all work somehow.

After his last class of the day, Ezekiel packed up his things and made his way out of the academy. His luck for the day had apparently run out, however. As he walked through the courtyard, he caught the attention of a group of noble students. Ezekiel grimaced as he recognized them.

"Well, well, well, look who it is," one of them sneered. "If it isn't the king of Blood Magic himself!"

Ezekiel kept his head held high and continued walking, neither slowing nor turning to face them.

Still, Ezekiel kept walking.

"How is your perfect affinity working out for you, Oh Genius One?" someone jeered.

And before he knew it, insults were raining down on him from all sides.

"Get lost, weirdo!"

"This is a place for real mages."

"Commoner scum!"

"It's called ELEMENT-ium for a reason!"

Ezekiel's fists clenched at his sides, but still, he refused to rise to their bait. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he spotted Lilly in a doorway, but when he looked again, there was no one there.

He took a deep breath and tried to push away the anger and frustration that threatened to consume him. This was not the first time he had experienced this, and worse, since he had joined the academy. He knew he would have to endure much more to reach his goal. But he refused to let them break him. He would succeed, no matter what.

After he left the imposing gate of the academy behind, the taunting insults of his classmates also faded into the distance. He made his way to the crafter's district. The meager savings he had come to the capital with had long since dried up. Anything he needed to live now, he made running errands and by helping out at different workshops in the crafter's district.

He held up his hand in greeting as he approached a woodshop where he had worked before. "Hey, Archie," he said to the woodworker. "Anything I can do for you today?"

But the man only shook his head. "Sorry, boy, not today. It's been a slow day. Come back tomorrow."

Ezekiel nodded and continued down the street, stopping at all the open shops to offer his services. His luck for the day had evidently run dry completely.

"Not today," was all he heard wherever he went.

Eventually, he found himself standing in front of Markus' uncle's shop much earlier than he had planned. Hammering was coming from inside, but he hesitated out front. At that moment a man stepped out of the door.

"Hi, Armin," he managed to say while looking down in embarrassment.

Well, well, well, look who it is," Armin said.

For a split second, Ezekiel was transported back to the scene in the courtyard of the academy. One of his bullies had used almost identical words to cajole him. But one look at Armin's welcoming smile and open face put Ezekiel's nerves at ease, and he managed to return the smile.

"You're early today," Armin said with a frown. "No work?"

Ezekiel shook his head.

"Oy, Markus! You want to take a break?" Armin called over his shoulder.

The hammering stopped, and a few seconds later, Markus appeared in the doorway, brushing sweat off his brow. "Did you say break?"

Armin gestured towards Ezekiel. "Let him take over for a while. His spindly mage arms need the exercise." He winked.

Markus immediately flexed his arm, which had indeed grown quite muscular over the weeks.

"You make a good point," he agreed. "I'll let Zeke have a go."

Without waiting for Ezekiel's response, he handed him the hammer and plopped down on a stool behind the counter.

Ezekiel hesitated for a moment. But then he put down his satchel, grabbed the hammer resolutely, and went to work on the steel that Markus had been working on. Even though the muscles in his "spindly arms" started burning a few minutes in, he didn't stop folding and hammering until Markus called him to eat.

Like every night, Ezekiel sat down to dinner with Markus and Armin. And like every night, he listened to Markus and Armin discuss business and jobs and the goings-on in the crafter's quarter. Occasionally, he chimed in with a question or responded when either of them asked him something directly. But he never brought up anything from the academy and only gave vague answers when they asked him about it.

"That guy came by today again while you were out," Markus stated with a frown. "Said that we need to do another delivery next month."

"Fuck those army bastards and the whores that birth them!" Armin cursed. "How do they think that we will be able to manage that?"

Ezekiel was shocked by this level of outrage from the amiable man. He had never heard Armin curse before, not even in jest. Whatever this was about seemed to have truly enraged him.

"Calm down, old man!" Markus said, looking around nervously. "You don't want anybody to hear you talk like that. By the emperor, we both know people around here have got punished for less these days."

Armin did not calm down at all and instead doubled down. "What else are they gonna do? Refuse to pay? They are not even paying the full cost of the materials. Anything less and they might as well just break in and steal the fucking things!"

"Uncle, enough!" Markus said, his voice hard. Armin was taken aback by the tone and stared at Markus. Only now did he notice his nephew's frantic signaling toward Ezekiel. He looked over and saw that the boy's eyes were opened wide.

Ezekiel had known that Markus's uncle was getting pressured by the military. They were forcing him along with all the other blacksmiths to create weapons and armor for cheap. He had not been aware, however, of how severe the situation had become. Armin had always talked about the fact as if it was merely a minor inconvenience.

Immediately, he felt bad for living at Armin's place for free. It was one thing if the man had money to spare, but now Ezekiel started to feel like a burden. He was not earning enough to even pay for the food he ate. The look in his eyes changed and he started to consider his options.

Makus immediately noticed the change in Ezekiel's demeanor and gave his uncle a scolding look. The man looked embarrassed by his behavior, but the damage was already done. Markus tried to reassure his friend.

"Don't worry about it, Zeke," he said, his voice upbeat. "If things get any worse, I'll just work a little extra. I could also not demand any payment, it's not like I need the money for something right now."

Ezekiel smiled at his friend's words. He was truly touched by the offer but didn't even consider it for a second. He nodded, agreeing to the offer on the surface. Deep in his thoughts, however, he was already down a road he had considered for a while now.

After dinner, Ezekiel went to his room. He had told the two men that he was going to practice his Magic. He didn't want them to disturb him. The moment he had closed the door behind him, he went to the other side of the room and exited through the window. It was time to put his plans into motion.

Ezekiel walked through the streets of the capital, the sun was just beginning to set. The days had started to get a little warmer lately. Spring was around the corner. It didn't matter to Ezekiel either way. He now understood that his Blood Magic, which was categorized as a type of body magic, was keeping him warm. Ezekiel had learned that Body Magic was comprised of three affinities: Blood, Flesh, and Bone. The three affinities had one thing in common. Mages with body affinities had the biggest increases in physical strength.

The boy made his way through the deserted back alleys. He was heading unerringly toward his intended destination. Ezekiel wondered about the other effects his affinities had on him. He had been taught in no uncertain terms that Blood Mages had stronger bodies. Ezekiel had also learned that Mind Mages had an increased intelligence. This came apparently at the price of a somewhat detached and cold personality.

Ezekiel didn't believe that last part. He didn't feel like he was turning cold and calculating at all. Did this have anything to do with the still unknown effect of his space affinity? Or did multiple affinities cancel each other out?

He was still pondering his affinities when he arrived in front of a certain building. Ezekiel gulped as he heard the boisterous atmosphere from within. This was it, it was time for him to prove himself. He would not turn back now.

Ezekiel gathered his courage and pushed the door open. In his nervous state, he pushed too hard. The door swung open and impacted loudly against the wall. A lot of heads turned in his direction. Upon only finding a nervous kid, most went back to what they had been doing.

With a sheepish expression on his face, the boy entered the lounge. He wished he could sink into the ground, never to emerge again. This was not how he had hoped his entrance to go. He looked around the lobby. He could see a bar in the back and tables all around. Most were packed with groups of 3-6 people. The men and women here looked dangerous. The look in their eyes let Ezekiel know that they were no strangers to violence.

He stepped up to the reception desk. This late in the day there was no queue , so he walked right to the front. A lone girl was manning the table. She was filling out some kind of report by the looks of it. The girl had long brown hair and a pair of glasses on her face. She was rather plain-looking, and in her mid-twenties by Ezekiel's estimate. Still, she had a friendly enough face and Ezekiel was certain she would be easy to talk to.

The receptionist looked up, as she heard the approaching footsteps. With a friendly face, she started a customary greeting.

"What can I do for..." She cut herself off as she noticed Ezekiel's young-looking face and Elementium robes. She looked him up on down, taking his measure. After a moment, she spoke again.

"Is this your first time here?" She asked.

Ezekiel merely nodded, he didn't trust himself to not make a fool out of himself again by speaking.

"Well, there are a lot of Elementium students who come here for a little bit of a diversion. Let me extend a formal welcome to you. What's your name, by the way?"

"Ezekiel from Feldstadt," he replied.

"Ohhh a commoner Mage, that's a rarity. No matter, welcome, Ezekiel from Feldstadt, to the adventurer guild!"