"Oh dear," Thessaly said. "We’ve ended up in the wrong section entirely. Though this is interesting—when did we acquire so many new fire magic texts? Must have been that shipnt from the Northern Tower archives..."
Almost imdiately, Yamamoto’s attention caught on one book in particular out of the bunch. The spine was worn leather, and the title, embossed in gold read Theoretical Applications of Elental Convergence.
That was nothing fantastic though, at least to Yamamoto, he barely understood what that even ant. What caught his attention was the na below, the author of the book... It read, Ludger Vex.
’No way?’
He reached his hand and pulled the book from the shelf. He flipped through the pages, just taking a look at what might be contained inside. It was densely written, filled with diagrams and mathematical formulas that made his head hurt just looking at them. Who knew that sothing like magic would still needed such complex mathematics looking mysteries?
"Oh my!" Thessaly’s voice was suddenly bright with excitent. She’d noticed the book in his hands. "Ludger Vex! Now there’s a na I haven’t heard in years. Are you interested in advanced elental theory? That’s quite ambitious for soone your age."
"Haha, I’m a swordsman, I doubt any of this would be of much help to . Instead, who could have written such a complex work? Do you know anything about the author?" Yamamoto asked carefully, masking his question under innocent curiosity.
Thessaly’s eyes lit up in a way that made Yamamoto realize he’d triggered sothing dangerous—a librarian who loved gossip being asked about a scandalous figure.
’She isn’t only passionate about work, is she?’
"Do I know anything?" she repeated, practically vibrating with eagerness. "My dear boy, sit down. This is quite the story."
She gestured to a nearby reading table, and they sat. Thessaly leaned forward conspiratorially, as if sharing state secrets.
"Ludger Vex was one of the most brilliant young mages to erge from the Northern Mage Tower in decades. We’re talking about fifteen, sixteen years ago. He was barely into his late teens when he published his first paper on elental convergence theory—the idea that different elental magic could be combined at a fundantal level, not just cast in sequence. Though he was not the first to think it, he was the first to publish a full work on it, and a comprehensive one at that."
She tapped the book in Yamamoto’s hands. "This was his masterwork. Such a revolutionary idea that completely challenged traditional magical pedagogy. The old masters at the Tower didn’t know what to do with him. Out of the blue, this youngster had surfaced, proposing theories that made their life’s work look like children’s exercises."
"What happened to him?"
"Politics," Thessaly said, her enthusiasm dimming with obvious distaste. "It’s always politics, this one, perhaps more. The senior mages felt threatened. The youngster’s ideas suggested that magic could be understood systematically, and anyone with proper training and comprehension of its complexities could achieve what the old heads had spent decades learning through so called "talent" and "gift", and rare skill tos. Can you imagine? The gatekeepers of magical knowledge realizing their gates were unnecessary?"
She shook her head. "They couldn’t tolerate it, so they sched. Accused him of dangerous experintations—which, to be fair, wasn’t entirely false... Ludger did push boundaries, uncomfortable ones, but then they went further. They claid he was colluding with demons, that his knowledge was unnatural, that he must have gained it through forbidden pacts."
Yamamoto listened intently, pieces of the puzzle falling into place.
"And it gets worse," Thessaly continued, lowering her voice even further, even though there was no one close to their particular table. "They claid he was working with the Elves of the north, sharing human magical secrets with them and betraying humanity."
She glanced around as if worried soone might overhear. "Of course, that’s all nonsense politically. Everyone who pays attention knows there’s... communication between human and elven scholars for a long ti now. It’s just not discussed publicly because of the old tensions. But accusing soone of it? That’s career suicide. Worse than career—it’s exile or execution."
"So what happened to him then?"
"Driven out of society of course, at least about fifteen years ago now," Thessaly said sadly. "The tower formally expelled him after they stripped him of all his credentials and banned him from practicing magic in any official capacity. He disappeared completely after that. So say he fled to the wilderness, others claim he died, either from sha or from one of his dangerous experints gone wrong, or whatever... nobody really knows."
She looked at the book. "Such a waste of talent. That mind, those ideas—he could have changed magical education forever. Instead, politics and fear of change destroyed him. It’s a pattern I’ve seen too many tis in academic circles. The old guard protecting their status, brilliant young minds crushed before they can threaten the established order."
Yamamoto stared at the book in his hands, seeing Ludger in a completely different light. It was like he wasn’t as much the villain he knew him as, but more of a victim... ’Never gets old, does it?’
A genius destroyed by people afraid of change. It sounded cliché, but that was just the reality, in any world.
Thinking about his encounter with Ludger again and all the circumstances surrounding him, Yamamoto couldn’t help but realize how that Ludger was actually not that villain he knew.
"Are you alright?" Thessaly asked, noticing his expression. "What are you thinking so intently about?"
"Just... processing," Yamamoto said. "It’s a tragic story."
"Too many of them in the magical world, I’m afraid. Talent and innovation punished, diocrity rewarded with tenure." She stood, brushing off her robes. "Now, we got completely sidetracked. You wanted information on binding oaths, not fire magic history. Let actually guide you to the correct section this ti."
"Actually," Yamamoto said, "could I check this book out? The one by Ludger Vex?"
Thessaly looked surprised but pleased. "Of course! It hasn’t been borrowed in years. Perhaps his ideas deserve a second look from a new generation." She produced a ledger from seemingly nowhere. "Na for the checkout?"
"Yamamoto Odinson."
She wrote it down, then paused. "Odinson... you’re with Iron Vanguard, aren’t you? I heard about the new recruit."
"News, travels fast?"
"Always does in a city like Mashlow." She smiled. "You’re younger than I expected, even researching binding oaths and reading advanced magical theory. Most adventurers your age are more interested in better swords and bigger monsters."
"I like to be prepared." He said with a light smile.
"Wise. Very wise." She finished recording the checkout. "The book is yours for two weeks. Late fees are one silver per day, so do try to return it on ti. Now, shall we actually find the magical contract section, or would you like to browse more?"
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