"Who is he?", Aaron asked cynically. For a brief moment, he could still hear the Eldest inquiring about his condition, but then silence descended upon them completely. Despite his keen hearing, which he had developed during his search for Fiet's family, he could no longer hear any sounds, and he noticed something he hadn't felt before.

Mana. A whole lot of it, similar to what he himself had.

More than Aaron had ever expected from a normal human, and it was emanating from the stranger. A powerful man who was close enough to Raphael to call him by his name.

But that was precisely what caused Aaron to feel astonishment and doubt. Raphael and he had known each other for over 200 years, and he was sure he knew everything about his oldest friend. But who was this man who seemed to have such a familiar relationship with him?

"Zod Adenia. I met him and his daughter yesterday in Persiven", Grischa explained calmly. "Frignezer, obviously. Apparently, the Eldest summoned him."

"Did he tell you how he and Raphael know each other?"

"He evaded the question, but they seem to be old acquaintances."

"Nothing more? Did you find out anything else useful?"

"Why are you asking me that? Isn't the Eldest allowed to have friends of his own?", Grischa replied snappishly, annoyed by the way Aaron was treating him.

"Don't you find it strange that Raphael left for several days without giving any specific information, coincidentally at the exact time when the creatures attacked a city and... now a stranger too?"

"You and your paranoid nerve", Grischa replied simply, followed by a long sigh.

After yesterday's argument, Grischa had no desire to endure a lecture from Aaron. Aaron may have been his teacher, and he may have learned pretty much everything he knew about the Magistrate from him, but he still found it rude to be treated so dismissively by him all the time. Without another word, he left Aaron standing alone at the door and made his way to his apartment.

Aaron, on the other hand, stood in front of the door for over 10 minutes until he too lost hi patience. With a suspicious look on his face, he set off to find the stranger's daughter, his thoughts going round in circles. He thought it is impossible for the Elder and Zod Adenia to be old acquaintances, because he would most likely know about it. If that were the case, it would mean that Zod Adenia was a very old man. He considered it even more unlikely that he would not have noticed that another magician had lived over the centuries. Therefore, his thoughts clung to the most plausible solution he could find.

And that was Groka.

Yesterday, the Magistrat had received information about what had happened in Groka and that it was suspected that the two magicians - who had helped - came from Altona. Dozens of people described the two unknown heroes as incredibly powerful magicians who single-handedly killed hundreds of thousands of creatures and brought the people to safety. When Aaron read this news, he immediately thought that the Eldest was one of these magicians. It seemed unusual to him that he had disappeared without explanation and that this coincided with the attack. But until now, he had no idea who this second magician could have been.

Until Zod Adenia showed up at the Magistrat.

After searching for a while, he spotted a Rangar carrying a little girl on his shoulders. One turn of his head told Aaron immediately that this girl was the daughter of the mann he had been looking for. They looked so much alike that it was almost eerie.

"Aaron, what a surprise. I thought you would avoid the festival?", Rangar said loudly, causing everyone around them to turn toward them. Dozens of families and children had gathered on the Magistrate's training ground and were being entertained by the young magicians, led by Rangar. He enjoyed showing off his skills to the public and received a steady stream of duel requests as a result.

"Do you always have to draw so much attention to yourself? Who is this little girl?", Aaron asked, watching as the child looked down and held onto Rangar's head.

"Ahri Adenia. She's the daughter of a friend of Grischa's."

"Grischa's, really?"

Aaron knew deep down that this statement was not true. Either Grischa had lied to Rangar or, more likely, Rangar had misunderstood the situation. Grischa didn't seem to have the slightest idea who Zod Adenia was, so how could they be friends?

"Yes, indeed. Ahri, this is Aaron Thopas, the third seat of the Magistrat. Like me, he belongs to the inner council."

"Hello", the girl said meekly, keeping herself hidden.

"You don't need to be afraid of him, he just looks grim, but he doesn't bite."

"Father said I should be wary of strangers."

"Didn't your father also told you, you should listen to me? He's not a bad person, trust me", Rangar said with a broad grin and lifted the girl from his shoulders. He carefully set her down on the ground, but despite the high Magician's statement, she preferred to stay by his side rather than approach Aaron.

"May I ask where you come from, little girl?", Aaron tried to get some information.

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"I'm not a little girl, old man. My name is Ahri Adenia", the girl called back irritably, causing Rangar to stifle a laugh.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you. I am Aaron Thopas. Where are you and your father from?"

"From Altona, very close to the sea", explained the blonde-haired child, while the High-Magician sighed inwardly. She was too young to know the name of the place where they lived.

"I see. Where is your mother?"

"Mother died when I was born. Father doesn't talk about her much and always gets very sad when I ask him about her," she announced in a soft voice, so Rangar carefully placed his hand on her head and bent down next to her.

"I'm sorry we're bringing up unpleasant memories. My mother also died when I was very young. You must miss her", Rangar said lovingly. The girl quickly shook her head and looked up at Rangar.

"I still have my father."

"That's right, your dad is still by your side", Rangar said kindly. Aaron, on the other hand, watched the scene from a distance. If the question of the mans identity weren't tormenting him, he certainly wouldn't be trying to strike up a conversation with a child.

"Are you from Groka?", he asked bluntly, causing Rangar to give him a surprised look. The girl, however, shook her head.

"No, but Grandma's little sister lives there."

"You have family in Groka?", Rangar asked, his eyes wide.

The little girl nodded eagerly.

The situation now made a little more sense to Aaron. Perhaps the Eldest knew about the relationship between Zod Adenia and the city of Groka. Perhaps he was hoping for insider information, but that didn't explain the stranger's mana. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was missing something. Something obvious that would explain why he felt so uncomfortable in Zod Adenia's presence.

"I see. You must be worried about your family."

"Father said they are strong and we don't need to worry."

"Strong?", Aaron repeated with interest. He immediately thought that the girl was talking about other magicians, but her answer shattered his thoughts.

"Yes, my uncle is a soldier."

"I see, then he will certainly be able to protect himself and his family", Rangar interjected, casting a malicious glance at his colleague. Rangar didn't like the fact that Aaron was obviously questioning the little girl about who exactly her father was and wasn't interested in the fact that they might have lost relatives. "How about we get some chocolate?"

"Oh, yes! Chocolate!"

"But not too much! Do you hear me? Otherwise, your dad will scold me!"

Ahri Adenia nodded happily.

"Bye, bad man", she said, leaving both Aaron and Rangar speechless. Rangar began to laugh loudly, while Aaron stared in disbelief at the girl, who waved hypocritically at him and then stuck out her tongue. He felt as if he had lost to a small child, and Rangar's reaction only made things worse. With Ahri by the hand, the broad-shouldered mage returned to the crowd and headed for the food, causing the girl to jump up and down with excitement. Aaron stared after them wordlessly, sighed, and held his head in his hand.

<What a mess.>

The girl used sophisticated language, and both her clothes and Zod Adenia's clothes were made of fine materials. They must be a wealthy family, that much was certain. They came from Altona, presumably on the south coast, and had been on their way to Sylve before the situation escalated.

Aaron had figured that much out, but the real question of how the Eldest and Zod Adenia knew each other remained a mystery. He couldn't ask the child because Rangar had intervened early on, so where could he get this information?

From Zod Adenia or from Raphael Maron.

Aaron felt terrible for intruding on the Eldest's privacy, but this man preoccupied him far more than he should have. Mainly because of their relationship, but also because the stranger could be a High-Magician whom Aaron simply did not know. He already disliked Zod Adenia, so how would it end if the Eldest decided to accept him into the magistrate?

<Am I... jealous?>

Aaron immediately shook his head and turned away from the large, open space. He wasn't jealous, he was offended that he wasn't allowed to know what the Eldest and Zod Adenia were talking about. It was this one reaction that had made him so angry. Why did the Eldest send him out of the room? He never did that, after all, they were more or less equals. The Eldest had only taken the leadership position because Aaron neither wanted nor was able to do so. He had even let Rangar and Grischa take precedence because he did not feel worthy of such a position.

Not after everything he had done in his past.

"Aaron!", the cheerful voice of his colleague Sefra Risztus called out, causing Aaron to look in her direction. She came straight toward him, followed by Ziyad Mike. Ziyad also gave him a friendly smile as his attention shifted to Rangar and he came to an abrupt halt. He stared into the distance with wide eyes, which Sefra had also noticed. "Is something wrong, Ziyad?"

"That girl...", he began, pointing to the little blonde girl at Rangar's side. "By the Elder's beard..."

"Do you know her?", Aaron asked immediately, hurrying toward the pair.

"I... that's the girl from... my insight", he announced, turning to Aaron. "Do you know who she is?"

"Her name is Ahri Adenia. Her father is a friend of the Eldest and is currently visiting the Magistrat", Aaron announced when they were finally close enough to talk undisturbed. "Excuse me if I... sound rude, but what exactly did you see in your vision?"

"It's okay, I never understood why you make such a big secret of it anyway", replied Ziyad, letting his gaze wander back to the child. "A little Frignezer girl hiding in the tall grass with a little boy - that's what I saw. The two children were wearing elegant uniforms with red ribbons and were talking quietly until a woman appeared. This young woman was carrying laundry outside and hanging it up. Maybe it was her mother or the mother of the boy next to her, I don't know. They didn't seem to be related to me. It's not really relevant... the two children were discovered by the woman and had to crawl out of their hiding place."

"And you're sure it was this girl?", Sefra asked again.

"Pretty sure, yes."

"What if you're confusing her with another girl? Frignezers all look kind of the same, don't you think?"

"Not this girl. I don't know why, but she was different. In my insight, she behaved surprisingly... mature, and her eyes... they seemed so all-knowing. That feeling... when I saw her, I can't really put it into words," Ziyad explained, without taking his eyes off the girl. "She seemed... even if this sounds strange... to be important. Very important, in fact."

"Do you know how old she was in your insight and where exactly they were?" Aaron asked.

"No. It wasn't Fringez, it was too green and too warm for that. I would guess Altona or Sylve, and judging by the weather, it was summer, sometime around noon. As for her age, she should be exactly the same age she is now."

"Fascinating", Sefra said thoughtfully. "Perhaps a new High-Magician? Someone who will later become important to Altona?"

"Possibly, yes", Ziyad replied hesitantly. "Aaron, you said her father knows the Eldest, right?"

"It seems so, yes. Although I can't really tell you much about it. Today is the first time I met them", Aaron clarified. As he thoughtfully watched the little blonde girl, he thought about Sefra's statement.

Could it really be? Was this girl a new Apostle who would join them? Just like Sefra had done with Grischa back then? She definitely seemed to have what it takes, but something about the child struck Aaron as strange. Not just because of her behavior, but mainly because of her mana. He couldn't put his finger on it, but this girl was not normal. Just as Zod Adenia was not normal.

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