Fragarach

Talented Alchemist

“Call me crazy, but if you are backing me up then they can’t deny that fact.” Caisein said with a smile. “We have to stop them before they made Raven sad and disappointed by doing something that he finds uncomfortable.” He added.

“I’ll do what I can.” Nyx replied.

“Then let’s go. We have a lot of old dudes to convince.” Caisein said as he put his arm on Nyx’s shoulder.

[Meanwhile]

[So Raven lives in this neighborhood? It is pretty far from what I really imagined.] Instructor Edward thought as got out of the same alley that Raven uses when he goes to school.

[This is pretty far from the academy, I hardly think there are other students who would go to the academy with this much distance to travel every single day. Except if they are quite dedicated to achieve their dreams. Hmmm, where is it now?] he told himself as he look around the houses he passes by. [The guards at the entrance told me that he lives here somewhere. I should just ask the neighborhood around here to save some time.]

[Oh! They look like they can tell me where to go.] he thought as he walk towards the person who are fetching water from the well.

“Good evening folks, may I ask where Raven Oston lives? I was told that he lives here in this neighborhood.” He said with a humble smile.

The person’s complexion completely changed the moment Instructor Edward mentioned Raven’s name.

[Did I say something wrong?] instructor Edward had a confused expression when the person look around the surroundings.

“Do you mean the kid with the purple hair?” the person whispered as he lean forward.

“Yes, is there a problem? Why are we whispering?” Instructor Edward copied what the person did and lean forward to whisper.

“If you are looking for the house that the Oston family is staying in it would be wise not to go around asking everyone that involves the Oston family especially the kid. Most of the people in this neighborhood likes to have him around.” He whispered as he pointed at a house beside a huge tree. “They live at that house.” He said as he continues to do what he was doing earlier. “Please remember what I told you earlier.” The person left.

Instructor Edward stood there with a shock.

[Wow, most of the people don’t like to have him around huh? Well, I have to commend Raven for his will to will even though he is hated in his own neighborhood.] he thought as he smile. [Well, for alchemist like myself. The background of a person is futile, what really matters is the skill that an individual has. Seeing that kid create an elixir that surpasses all the geniuses that our family has to offer proves that nothing beats talent.] he told himself as he walk towards the house that the person pointed earlier.

*Step**Step**Step**Step**Step**Step**Step**Step**Step*

*Klink!* *Klink!* *Klink!*

[I can hear the klinking of the plates and cups, I guess they are quite busy today.] he told himself as he stop in the front door.

*Knock!* *Knock!*

“Dear, I think your guest is here.”

Instructor Edward manage to hear Raven’s mother telling him that his guest has arrived.

*Opens door*

“Good evening Instructor, please come in.* Raven invited as he greets Edward with a huge smile.

“Sorry for disturbing you both. Excuse me.” He said as he entered the house.

[Wow, the interior is not a bad as what I expect. It’s quite better than an average house. It’s pretty clean too.] he thought as he look around and touch the table beside the front door. “Good day madam.” He greets as soon as he saw Raven’s mother.

“Good day instructor, we are happy to have you. Please take a sit, I have already eaten so please enjoy the food, both of you.” She greets back as she washes the dishes.

Edward’s eyes widen as he saw the smoke coming out of the bowl in the center of the table.

[Wow, that looks delicious. It smells wonderful as well.] he thought as he saw raven’s mother finishes washing the dishes and placed them on the cabinet.

“I am Karen Oston, please to meet you instructor.” She said as he offers her hand. “I am Edward Pallen. Nice to meet you as well.” He said as he shook her hand.

“Well, dear. I will go to my room. If you need anything just tell me okay?” she said as she walks towards her room. “Please enjoy the food Mr. Pain. I will go to my room since both of you might have something to talk about in absolute secrecy so I will not bother you.” She reminded with a smile.

“Please take a seat Mr. Edward, my mother and I already ate so we cooked you something.” He said as he pour some tea to get along with his food.

“What? You already ate? This is making me uncomfortable, please dine with me.” He said as he divides his food into two. “Here have this.” He said as he handed Raven a plate of food.

“But sir, I already ate the moment I arrived earlier. My mother happens to get home earlier than usual so she decided to cook food early and when I told her that I might have a guest tonight, she insisted on cooking more. And I thought that it was too much so I decided to eat most of what she cooked since I have to tidy everything up before you arrive.” [I don’t feel any hunger though, but my stomach cannot handle that much food.] he thought as he explained what happened earlier.

[That explains the number of plates that his mother was washing earlier. I am not a big eater, to be honest I prefer foods that is cooked with vegetables. I got tired of eating meat at our home since we eat meat every day and it makes me want to puke. But then again, there are vegetables in my food today with a bit slice of meat. I guess this is the kind of food that he grew up on huh?] he thought as he look at the bowl of soul with vegetables and meat inside.

“It’s making me uncomfortable if I was the only one eating out in your house. By the way what did you eat earlier? He said as he took a spoonful of soup in his mouth.

“It was mostly meat, grilled and roasted meat. I had a lot of trouble finishing the dish since I was already full with the food I had earlier that makes me think that my stomach is about to explode.” Raven said as he touches his stomach.

[Thank goodness it was meat, it was a good idea to leave the meat with vegetables to me Raven, good job!] he thought as he imagine himself giving Raven a thumbs up.

[Quite a long time has passed]

“Wooo! That was good! I never thought this dish would taste that good, especially that meat. Normally when I eat meat it would really hate I since I get to eat meat every day and I got sick of it but wow, boy this meat is incredible. It gets along with the vegetables, where did you get this meat, it must be expensive right? There are a few places where you can get this type of meat that I know of but it’s not safe to hunt there alone.” He said as he touches his belly in satisfaction.

“Well, I am glad that you manage to enjoy your meal. I got the meat from the ruins, I hunt there every day before I go to the academy.” Raven said with a smile as he cleans the table and bring the plates in the sink. “I think mother would be happy to know that you like her dish.” He added.

“The ruins huh? There are quite a talk about these days about the ruins, especially when the guild was caught by the surprise of the beasts dwelling inside the ruins. Thank goodness most of them manage to get back alive.” He said as he sips from his cup.

His eye widen immediately after taking a single sip from his cup.

“It surely was the talk of the town lately-“

“WOW! This tea is a blast!”

Raven was interrupted when Edward exclaimed after taking a sip from his cup.

“Where did you get this tea?! This is amazing! I never tasted tea as wonderful as this, this is astonishing.” He said with an excited face.

[I can’t wait to take another sip.] he thought as he look at the liquid inside his cup.

“I got the leaves from the ruins as well.” Raven said with a smile.

“For a house as small as this, you have a lot of hidden treasures huh? This is amazing, are you selling these?” he said as he tries to figure out the leaves that Raven used.

“We don’t really sell it since we don’t think that is has a lot of value and we think it is a good offering for our guests so selling it would be a little.” Raven said with an awkward face.

“It’s a shame, I think it’s quite good. Then can I ask to bring some at home? It is a good pair for studying, since it seems to calm me.” Edward said with a smile.

“Of course Sir Edward, I can pack you some later. So what are we going to talk about?” Raven asked as he sat on the chair beside Edward.

Edward’s delighted face turned serious the moment he senses the atmosphere changed, his behavior change along with his expression.

“Do you want to leave this neighborhood?” he asked with a serious tone.

Raven was confused on what his point is so he look at him with a confused expression.

“I don’t know what you are talking about.” Raven said with a concerned face.

“I know it’s confusing that I brought that up out of nowhere. You see when I was looking for your house earlier, a person told me that not everyone in this neighborhood likes the fact that you are here. So I was thinking that I can offer you something that might change your daily life. Do you want to hear it?” he said with a serious tone.

[Did something happened when he was looking for our house?] “Okay, let’s hear it.”

Raven focus his eyes on Edward as he breaths deeply.

“What do you say we make a company?”

“Huh? A company?” [Did I hear him wrong?] he repeated in confusion.

“Yes, a company. With your indescribable talent as an alchemist, a single bottle of your elixir can change the course of history. I was surprised when I had a taste of it inside the room, it erased the negatives in my body in an instant. Do you know what that implies?” [I know that I may be exaggerating a little bit here, but every time I remember what happened inside the room and the results earlier. I will inevitable get goosebumps since it is too good to be true.] he thought as he wait for Raven’s reply.

“I don’t really know what to say Sir Edward, I mean my only goal in life is to defeat the demon lord in his wake and that is the sole reason why I decided to attend the academy so that I may learn the things that I did not learn from my mentor.” [Though I think the lessons in the academy is lacking if I compare it to Aranx’s teachings.] he said with a calm expression.

[So that is the only plan he has, defeat the demon lord in his wake. It’s not a bad goal but he needs to aspire in other things as well.] he thought as he look at Raven with a sad face.

“Your talent as an alchemist will be wasted, it truly is a waste. My family has been nurturing a lot of alchemist for so many generations, following everything that our ancestors had told us. It is a bit disappointing for me to discover someone more talented than us without any prior education compared to us, it hurts my pride as an alchemist. I decided to hide this truth from my family since it might affect you in so many ways that you can think of and I don’t want that. I was hit really hard when you said that elixirs are made to help others, I really was. Because most of the alchemists right now is only looking at the money that they can rake in because of their fame, they do not really care about the quality of the elixir that they out of hence destroying the face and the honor that our ancestors struggle to create.” Edward said with a sad tone.

[It’s true, sometime in the future. I might leave mother again since having a mortal body requires my vitality to use the original powers of Aranx. Who would take care of my mother when that time comes, I also need to make sure that she is safe, is should have included that in my plans. I cannot disappeared without having my mother in good hands. I can see that Sir Edward is different from other alchemist like Aranx said they should be and I am glad that I get to meet someone like him.] Raven thought as he thinks hardly about what Edward said.

“Can you give me a more time to decide Sir Edward?” he asked in a humble tone.

“What are you talking about? You have the time in the world, just tell me if you are ready to decide.” He said with a stern expression.

Raven smiled as depressing atmosphere seems to have changed.

“But can you promise me one thing?” Raven asked with a concerned face.

Sir Edward nodded in reply.

“Can you keep this a secret from my mother? I don’t want her to be involved in any troubles that may come.”

[So he asked for something like that, he really is a good boy.]

“*sigh* Of course, I will do everything in my power to keep her from knowing anything.” He said with a stern expression. “Huh?” he mumbled when he felt something in his chest.

[So he is telling the truth, I was afraid that his view might change after our conversation, I guess he really is different from other alchemists.]

(In case you are wondering what happened here, Raven used Fragarach to know if Edward is telling him the truth so he pierced Edward in the chest with Fragarach and revealed the truth in his words. It happened so fast that Edward did not realized what happened.)

After talking about other things it was time for Edward to go home

“Thanks a lot for the tea and the dinner. I think I need to come by more often from now on.” He said as he waved his hand to Raven and his mother.

“Oh! Please do instructor, we would be glad to have you over.” She replied with a smile.

[At the Arcan manor]

*BOOOM!*

Caisein was surrounded with all the family members from both Eran and Arcan family, overwhelmed with great mana aura pressure from all of the members while Nyx is standing in front of him holding the holy sword Ascalon.

“I may still be a novice when handling this thing but I promise you, none of you will not leave unscathed if you touch a single hair on his body.” Nyx said with a cold tone.