Limits

The old man finished narrating his story, so I began asking. My first question was similar to the one, I once asked Nick in the past. "How can you know, that what she wrote was true? Maybe it was just a story, nothing else". He replied, in a similar manner to Nick. He said "I didn't tell you that story to convince you, or make you believe. I told you that story, because it hides a secret. The rest is up to you".

He pretty much answered most of my questions, with that one answer. 'The rest is up to me' I thought. I had a few other things to ask, and that I did. "When was the Selesian Era?". The old man smiled, and replied "Many years ago. From what I know, it was at least 3500 years ago". I asked shocked "Then that means, the Art of Stealth is as old as 3000 years?". He nodded his head while saying "That is correct. Don't get me wrong, even Royals know this story. They know what a master in the Art of Stealth can do. These are not filthy Arts, these are the Arts they fear".

He continued "The Art of Stealth, as well as the Art of Hidden Weapons, are the original titles. People changed the name of the Art of Rage. But, you will learn about that, when the old monster arrives". I asked "You called the other masters over?". He laughed while replying "Of course. After all, you will need to hear all three stories properly. Beware though, they are a bit more… You will see when they arrive".

I didn't know how to take that. 'Whatever. I will find out, when they come' I thought, and asked another question. "You said that you will not teach me, only give me hints. I guess the story is the first hint in that case?". He nodded, and said "Yes. Even if you figure out what that secret is, mastering the Art of Stealth will not be easier. It will still take you years. I personally became a master at the age of 64. I had to wreck my head and practice for around 37 years, but I succeeded".

I asked surprised "It took you 37 years, to master the Art of Stealth?". He replied vaguely "More or less. Anyway, you can stay in my house. You will take care of your own needs, I'm not your mother". I thought about it for a while. 'On one hand, learning under their gazes is an excellent opportunity. On the other hand, I should visit Ortava, and make sure Fox made it back alright' I thought. I asked "You want me to stay here. I will, if you can do a favour for me. I know I should be repaying you, but I need something".

He replied "That's a reasonable request. What is it that you need?". I replied "I would like you to check up on a certain person in Ortava. I want to know if she is there, and alright". He said "Ortava is quite a distance away from here. I would have to run all this way…". I felt like the old man was asking for money. I said "If you want money, I'm not wealthy, I never was. I can give you some of my medicine in exchange".

He looked at me, and replied a bit offended "Did you seriously think, I would extort a youngster? I was just thinking about the route I would need to take. Boy, I will go check up on that lover of yours, but you will stay here and train. I don't want the Royals to find you again. I can move around, but if they find you, you are dead. Don't forget, you killed a Royal Guard. Although he was weak, a Royal Guard is still a Royal Guard". I replied "She's not my lover, we are friends. Either way, I thank you. You can find her in the Academy for the Formation Masters. Her father is a Formation Master there, and she wears a mask".

He replied "I know, I saw both of you. I watched you since the funeral. You didn't seriously think that I just stumbled upon your fight, and helped you out?". I just shook my head, and didn't reply. What he did next, totally stunned me. He just laid on his bed, and closed his eyes. I asked confused "What are you doing?". He replied with his eyes still closed, "Can't you see? I'm resting". 'Is that guy for real?', I thought and asked "Weren't you supposed to check up on my friend?". He replied "And leave you alone with two monsters? I will go after they arrive".

"Alright", was all I could answer. The old man mentioned I could stay in that place, but I had no bed or anything I could use there. I decided to build another house outside. 'After all, I might have to stay here for a while' I thought. With that in mind, I left the house. What I noticed outside, stunned me. I was at the peak of a mountain. 'Wow! I didn't think we were in such a remote area. I don't even know where I am' I thought.

The mountain was very tall, and the view was staggering. But, I couldn't see any cities when I looked down. 'Wait! There is a village that I can see' I thought, and recalled the map of the Empire. There were a few villages next to a mountain, but I wasn't sure which village I was next to. 'I was travelling west, this might help' I thought. To my surprise, the west was void of any villages or settlements, that featured a mountain. The central region of the Empire had one such village. 'It must be the central region of the Empire then' I thought, and looked in the opposite direction.

'This is not central region' I immediately realised. What I saw at the opposite side, was a sea. 'This is west, or maybe even south… I don't know anymore' I thought. The old man told me that Ortava is far away, therefore it couldn't be the east. Towards the north, was the North. The Endrosian Empire had little to no sea in those parts. 'North east is the Imperial City. I doubt we are there. This can only mean, we are in the western or southern regions of the Empire' I thought.

The views although beautiful, were overshadowed by one thought. 'How the hell did that old man carry me all the way here?' I asked myself. I had no clue where I was, and maybe it was for the better. 'If I don't know where I am, the Royals shouldn't be able to find me here either. I overestimated myself. The Royals are much stronger than I imagined. That guy alone gave me loads of trouble, and he is supposed to be weak Royal Guard? Now they are also aware of my ice powers. No doubt they will try to hunt me down. A human with a different hand, as well as the Forbidden Arts… This old guy really saved my life' I thought.

I had only a few choices. I could decline their mentoring, and return North. Or, I could stay and move in with that old man. 'I will go to the North in the future, but that can wait. Mastering my skills, is the most important matter right now' I thought. With better skills or even mastery, Royals wouldn't pose as much threat as they did to me at that time. 'I will need a bed and perhaps another chair. I will need food as well. There is nothing here at the top of the mountain, so I will have to descend' I thought. No trees grew at the peak of the mountain either. I had to descend anyway.

I descended until the midpoint of the mountain, where I found trees and even animals. 'These animals…' I thought when I saw them. Those were not some simple wolves or bears, all of them were of Silver Variants. Not that this posed any problem for me, but I was a bit surprised.

I hunted down two bears, and cut one tree down. I didn't want to drag a whole tree upwards. I simply made some planks after cutting it, and stored them in my bag. 'This should be enough' I thought, and returned to the peak. Inside the house, the old man was still relaxing in his bed. I didn't pay him any heed, and worked on my bed. Fortunately, I had supplies of nails and whatnot with me. I learned to carry all of that crap with me, for situations like the one I was currently in.

With my bed quickly pieced together, I used the fur from the two Silver Bears I hunted before, as my bedding. 'I still have some planks left, I should make a chair, and perhaps a shelf or something' I thought. I went back to work. A while later, I had a shelf for books or medicine, as well as a chair. My furniture was much better than what the old man had on offer. 'There's nothing I can really do here, besides some training. He will check up on Fox, when the other two arrive. Until then, I will try some things out. Thanks to Royals, I didn't have time to test those things out. Although I also learned something thanks to them' I thought, and left the house.