A young man stood bare-chested in front of a desk, cluttered with vials of colorful liquids and strange herbs. The air was thick with the potent scent of these mysterious ingredients, filling the small room. Peculiar glowing objects lit up each of the four walls, casting an eerie glow over the space.
His body appeared to be badly injured, with cuts, gashes, and swelling on both his front and back, blood staining his skin. His muscles were lean, and his height was perfectly proportioned to his fra. He was massaging his right shoulder when suddenly, a sharp crack echoed through the room.
His face twisted, but no cry escaped him as his shoulder—presumably dislocated—slotted back into place, a process that would have made any normal person at least gasp in pain.
Monts later, he pointed his left index finger at the shoulder, and a blue light appeared at the tip, gradually enveloping the area. His expression changed, slowly easing into relief, and a sigh escaped his lips.
He then moved both arms in different motions, as if testing their functionality, before a satisfied expression spread across his face.
After that, he glanced at the ssy table, picked up so of the herbs, and popped them into his mouth like candy. It was clearly not candy, as his face imdiately contorted in disgust. With quick hands, he grabbed one of the vials and downed it in a single gulp. He didn't stop at just one, drinking vial after vial until every last one was emptied.
He slowly turned around and glanced at the lone sofa by the wall. With slow steps, he walked over and slumped down, as if the weight of sothing heavy had been lifted from his shoulders.
Leaning back, he closed his eyes, only to open them again monts later, his gaze fixed on the only door in the room.
...
It had been over an hour since Maverick returned. What would normally take a single jump had taken him three, with short breaks in between to make it back to Egypt to the underground base.
That final use of illusion magic and Apparition nearly made him lose consciousness, but he managed to persevere and arrive here quickly.
Fortunately, rejuvenation potions, healing brews, and dicinal herbs had been prepared in advance before he and his party left, saving him the effort of searching.
After downing a couple of potions, he began using all sorts of healing spells in his arsenal. Starting with the worst of his internal injuries, he worked thodically to nd everything else, bit by bit.
While he wasn't fully recovered, the remaining injuries weren't serious—just requiring rest and routine treatnt. It wouldn't be wrong to call him a professional healer now. At least when it ca to recovery spells, his abilities were on par with, if not superior to, the renowned healers in magical hospitals.
With slow movents, he leaned forward from the comfortable chair, pushing himself to his feet. He took a step toward the door, but before he could reach it, the door swung open with a rush, and Aisha was the first to enter.
"Wait..."
Before he could ask her to be gentle, she had already run forward and enveloped him in a big embrace. He let out a sigh. Though she was careful, it still caused a brief wince, but he didn't let any outward reaction show.
He could sense her concern, that clear emotion, his Magical-Sense detected it as soon as they had apparated here.
Ali entered next, but he remained silent. His eyes scanned him with quiet concern, though he let Aisha handle the questioning, knowing she would ask what needed to be asked.
The hug and affection weren't part of so dramatic scene but simply her way of showing care for him, nothing more, nothing less. After pulling away, she gave him a long, assessing look, her gaze sweeping over his form with concern as she examined his injuries.
"How're you holding up?" she asked softly.
His handiwork was clear—there were no visible gashes or open wounds, which seed to ease her worry sowhat. She appeared calm, though still concerned.
"I'm fine, thanks, both of you," he said, glancing between the two of them. He added, "I've taken care of most of the serious injuries. Now I just need routine treatnt and a lot of rest..." He said, trying to reassure them.
The sound of footsteps interrupted the mont, and Edward Garling entered the room. Maverick's eyes quickly focused on his teacher, surprised by what he saw. Exhaustion was clear on the man's face, as though he had undergone so intense work before arriving.
There was only one possibility that ca to his mind, and the words slipped out before he could stop them. "Teacher... Did you have a fight with that woman after I left?"
Edward gave a long, piercing stare to his apprentice, making Maverick tense. His mind scrambled, quickly trying to figure out what had happened, as the glare clearly suggested it was related to him.
Fortunately, his teacher wasn't that petty and didn't let the silence stretch. "I had to clean up the ss you two made... that woman dumped everything on ," he said, his voice laced with clear irritation.
Maverick cocked his head in confusion. "I don't understand," he said almost instinctively. He truly couldn't understand why his teacher, of all people, had to cover up the devastation after his—no, Bloodraven's—duel with Morvain.
Edward gave him a look that suggested he was staring at an idiot. "Your duel with Morvain broke the mountain, not to ntion the other damage. Or did you forget that already?"
"I didn't forget," Maverick said, "I'm just confused why you had to cover it up. How did you even do that? Did you restore the place?"
Edward scoffed. "Don't be stupid. Even I can't restore a mountain. I did my best, so now at least that area doesn't look like a scene from the apocalypse."
"I'm really confused now, teacher... I an, technically, the guy who fought Morvain and you don't even know each other... wasn't that what we were going with? Why did you have to restore it even a little in the first place?"
Edward sighed, looking tired. His student still had much to learn. These matters had never been explained to him, not even during Maverick's training, so he couldn't really fault him.
He figured this would be a good ti to teach a quick lesson to his pupil. Before starting, however, he cast a wandless scan over Maverick to confirm he wasn't in any imdiate danger.
Satisfied, he turned to address the room—it was important for Maverick's subordinates to understand this too, considering his grand ambitions.
"The Statute of Secrecy isn't as simple as you think," Edward began, his tone serious. "There's a lot," he paused for emphasis, "a lot of work that goes into keeping it intact. It's not just about erasing the mories of a few No-Majs."
"Often, when so lunatic witch or wizard loses control for whatever reason, they end up causing significant public damage." His eyebrow lifted as he glanced at his pupil. "For instance, tonight..."
He continued, "Most of the ti, these incidents are witnessed by normal humans. If there are only a few witnesses, it's manageable... but when the numbers are too large, it becos impossible for the Oblivation team. Our numbers are pitifully small. So, we have to rely on No-Maj governnts to help clean up our ss."
"But even they can't keep doing it if it happens too often. Saying 'gas explosions' or so other flimsy excuse every single ti won't work. The No-Maj public aren't stupid."
The Arch-Magus's voice was steady, carrying the weight of experience. "Even though the magical and non-magical governnts—and even the ICW—have special teams to clean up these kinds of aftermath, the noise you two made," he said, fixing his student with another pointed stare, "woke up every important person, magical or not, from their beds. etings are already happening, and I wouldn't be surprised if an ergency world security council is called."
He paused briefly before continuing. "And since I was there, and as a speaker for the ICW, it beca my responsibility to deal with it. Well, that woman's too..." He sighed and waved a dismissive hand. "Anyway, I've been fixing the ss. It's not perfect, but it should be enough to keep the No-Maj public from asking too many questions."
He finished, glancing at Maverick, who now looked deep in thought.
To them, the Statute of Secrecy was just a functioning law, but they had no idea about the complicated work being done, especially by the two parties operating behind the scenes.
For Maverick, this was the first ti he was hearing about it. But contrary to what anyone might think, Maverick was now even more convinced that the Statute of Secrecy needed to end. But he didn't voice his thoughts.
After a mont, he glanced at his ntor with a slightly apologetic look. "Sorry, teacher... will this cause you any trouble?"
Edward waved his hand. "Don't get wrong. What you did, you had my full support. I'm just telling you how the world works, not my opinion..."
"Besides, like you said, whoever fought Morvain has nothing to do with ... I was just there... coincidentally, and ended up having to do the clean-up. Anyway, you managed to slip away even when Maxi asked you to co with her to the ICW... so no questions will be raised at ..."
Maverick once again understood how lucky he was to have this man as his backer. Otherwise, he'd be in all sorts of deep trouble by now.
"I see..." Maverick muttered. "So... what happens next?" he asked, curious and looking to see if there was anything he could do to help.
Edward sighed. "I have to et with so No-Maj leaders and explain things since I was there. You don't have to worry."
Just then, Aisha cut in. "But why do you have to do it? I an, you're a speaker at the ICW, an Arch-Magus. Why explain yourself when you've already done more than enough?" She fidgeted as soon as she finished speaking, clearly realizing her words had co out impulsively.
Edward turned to et the witch's gaze. "Order," he said firmly, his voice steady. "There are billions of them, and we're just a few million. Do you really think it would be the sa when we have to deal with the swamp if we flaunted our power to every leader, crushing them like bugs?" He paused, his tone calm but instructive. "Girl, this world is far more complicated than you think. And if you believe the Arch-Magus are the most powerful people in the world, you're sorely mistaken..."
"Thank you, teacher..." Maverick quickly interjected, sparing Aisha further embarrassnt. Besides, he didn't want Edward lecturing his subordinates, even if he was his teacher.
"Is there anything I can do to help? Maybe with the restoration work... I an, this whole thing is my ss, so..."
The Arch-Magus waving his hand dismissively. "Just focus on healing. You've got plenty of recovery ahead..." He paused, then changed the topic. "what's next for you, kid? Another country?"
Maverick humd in thought. "Probably take a break. Go ho. I have to spend so ti with my new sister... and write to Bella too... it's been a month since I last wrote her..."
Edward raised a brow at him. After a mont, he said, "Be sure to see her on her graduation..."
Maverick gave a sheepish smile. "Of course..." Then, as if recalling sothing, his tone changed, becoming more excited. "By the way, teacher, I have sothing to show you..." he said, then walked to the door, taking the lead.
The three of them followed without asking questions. They rarely saw Maverick looking this excited, and seeing how suddenly he had beco like this, they too grew curious.
Soon, Maverick entered a familiar room, where there were three desks scattered with various items.
Edward, Ali, and Aisha remained outside at his instructions, and shortly after, they saw him co out carrying a bunch of things.
Edward raised an eyebrow, looking at his pupil. "Are those No-Maj cell phones?" he asked, noticing two hand-sized rectangular items in Maverick's hands.
Maverick nodded as he walked up to them. "Yes, exactly what you think it is," he said, handing one to his teacher.
Edward took it, showing slight confusion, but he didn't ask questions.
Maverick moved a few steps back and then glanced at his teacher. "Teacher, suppress your magic and turn it on..."
Edward did so without hesitation. This wasn't the first ti he had used electronic devices.
Maverick dialed the other phone's number, and sure enough, after a few seconds, a ring echoed throughout the hall.
(Author's Note: If you think they wouldn't get a signal there in the underground base, normally, yes, they wouldn't. But let's just assu it does.)
Edward looked at his student, unsure of what Maverick ant, but waited for an explanation. He didn't believe Maverick would do anything unnecessary, especially now.
The young Great-Magus did not keep them in suspense for long. "Teacher, you taught that this is how we magicals use electronic devices—by suppressing our magic so it doesn't interfere with electrical signals."
He shifted his gaze to Aisha and Ali before adding, "Unfortunately, 99% of the magical population can't actively or passively suppress their magic…"
"This isn't breaking news, you know," his teacher interjected.
Ali and Aisha looked puzzled. The topic of electronic devices had never crossed their minds. From school, they were taught that magicals simply couldn't use Muggle electronics, and that was the end of it. There had never been any further explanation, not even publicly. It was safe to say they hadn't even bothered using electronic devices in their entire lives.
Maverick's gaze moved from the puzzled witch and wizard to Edward. "I know it's a known fact, though not very public," he said, then reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a strange-looking crystal. It was about the size of his finger, flat and rectangular, with intricate patterns carved into its surface. "Watch," he added.
They all watched, intrigued.
Maverick smirked before focusing on the phone in his hands. He placed the finger-sized crystal onto the back, aligning it with the flat area carved. The distinct cut made it clear that it was hand-made.
With a subtle wave of his fingers and a flicker of magic, the patterns on the crystal's surface glowed for a brief mont, flashing for just an instant.
Now, aside from the strange rectangular crystal affixed to the back, the phone looked exactly the sa as before.
Maverick turned the phone on again, then glanced at his teacher, before saying, "Dial the last number..."
His teacher didn't raise any questions and did as asked. After a while, the phone in Maverick's hand began to ring. This was still nothing unusual for the Arch-Magus, as he knew they were both masters of mana control.
However, his curiosity grew. He didn't ask, though, and chose to let his student continue.
"Alright... now what?"
Maverick chuckled. "Patience, teacher," he said, then glanced at Ali and Aisha. "Ali, co here..." he called.
Ali, looking confused, followed the instructions and beca even more puzzled when Maverick stretched out his hand and gestured for him to take the phone.
The Magus, still unsure, pointed to his own chest and asked, "?"
Maverick nodded. "Yes! Take it, place this side against your ear, and the other end toward your mouth..." He handed the phone to Ali after pressing the answer button.
Ali took the phone and followed the instructions, though he was very confused. He presud the phone would lose all power as soon as he touched it, but—
His eyes widened—and not just his. Edward and Aisha's expressions also turned to shock.
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Author's Note:
Just a quick update — up to Chapter 92 is already available on P AT r30n!
PAT r30n [.] com / RyanFic
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