Maverick and Mary talked a little before Dr. Gillian came into the room.

  “Your sickness was strange, Mary. You suddenly became incredibly ill with a fever high enough to make you unconscious. Whatever ailed you before seems to be gone now, but I’d like to keep you here a few days for observation.” Dr. Gillian advised

  “Is that necessary?” Maverick asked

  “Maverick,” Mary said sternly. Maverick sat and kept quiet. “That's fine, Harry. Thank you for everything.”

  “Given everything your parents did to help me, it is the least I could do.” Dr. Gillian responded.

  ‘I don’t trust Clawford and Fairen. What they said before might be the truth, but Officer Fairen is clearly antagonistic towards me. I need to be ready to flee at any time, and it would be easier if Mary were at home.’ Maverick thought in frustration

  The next day, Maverick left for the station Clawford told him about. Bridgepoor was a small town, but Maverick had never been to this part of town before. Even before his transmigration, Maverick never had a reason to go there. It was a mostly abandoned street with a few residents airing out their freshly washed covers and sweeping dirt out of their homes. At the end of Backers Street, there was a bakery. It looked just as run-down as the rest of the place, but the warm smell of fresh bread brought a tear to Maverick’s eye. He walked in and saw that this was a proper bakery. He could hardly believe it, because wheat didn’t grow well in Elmyr.

  “Hello, lad, can I help you?” An older and very broad-shouldered woman with thick white hair and blue eyes asked.

  “Yes, um.” Maverick freezes. He was torn between finally enjoying bread again and following Clawford’s instructions. He sighed in resolution, “I’m here for a soul’s feast.” Maverick said hesitantly.

  The older woman narrowed her eyes and chuckled. “Clawford told me about you.” She jumped down from the step ladder she was using behind the counter and greeted Maverick. “My name is Mrs. Packerson, and I’m a cleric. Of course, you don’t know what that means yet.” She reached her hand up to Maverick.

  Maverick was surprised. The woman couldn’t be more than 4 feet tall. He shook her hand and smiled in confusion.

  Mrs. Packerson chuckled at Maverick’s look and said, “Follow me, young Man.”

  They went to the backroom of the store. It looked like a supply closet, but Mrs. Packerson tapped the floor three times with the end of a broomstick, and the floor started to wobble. It was like Maverick had been staring at a mirage, and he just got close enough to realize it was fake.

  “Come with me.”

  The two walked down the stairs. Maverick was astonished and annoyed by how many flights there were. When they finally made it to the bottom, there were three corridors. Mrs. Packerson and Maverick went down the middle one. The rooms they passed seemed ordinary, but ever since they entered, Maverick sensed something particularly weird about this place. He just couldn’t place what this weird feeling meant. Mrs. Packerson stopped and knocked on one of the doors lining the corridor.

  “Herald, get your butt out here!” She yelled

  From the inside came a loud crash and a yell of annoyance. The door opened, and a tall man with brown hair poked his head out.

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  “What do you want, shortstack!” He yelled before noticing me. “Oh… You must be Maverick. Yes, the captain told me about you. Come in.”

  The room was full of ingredients and tools. Maverick could only guess at what use those tools had. Herald adjusted a nozzle on a burner below a glass vessel. ‘This place looks like an advanced lab compared to everything else I’ve seen. The town seems to be in the 1700s, while it looks like a proper lab from the 20th century in here.’ Maverick marveled at the room around him. When Herald noticed, he turned his head away and chuckled softly with pride.

  “My name is Herald Drigal, I’m an Alchemist. Just call me Herald. I’ll be your mysticisum instructor for the time being. Between lessons, you’ll be my assistant. For today, I’ll just give you an explanation of the basics. Every living thing has some measure of spirituality. Spirituality is used to cast spells and regenerates after a time. There is also ritualistic and non-ritualistic magic.” Herald grabbed a stick of chalk and directed Maverick to an open area of the lab. He drew an intricate circle on the ground and then slapped his hand down on the drawing. As the loud slap gave way, the circle shimmered with a beautiful tint of blue. The flickered, then the light went out. “Damb.”

  “That was an example of ritualistic magic. Anyone with enough spirituality can cast these spells. It always requires a circle and some sort of material cost. If the spell fail it’ll do that. It can fail for a multitude of reasons, but the important part is the material cost. As long as the circle is even somewhat correct, the spell will still work.” Herald threw the chalk to the side and sat in a nearby chair.

  He leaned back and kept talking. “Non-ritualistic magic is magic that doesn’t require a circle or material. These spells can only be cast by mystics or spirits and can range from combat-related spells to support or healing spells.” Herald took a piece of rusted metal from the desk and closed his hand over it. He opened his hand to show that the rust was completely gone. “That was an alchemist's ability I have called restore. Mrs. Packerson is a 4th-order cleric and has healing-related spells. Once your trial period is done you’ll become a mystic too. Our job as mystic members of the ESP is to help regulate the use of magic alongside the church.” Herald Explained.

  “What do you mean, 4th-order cleric?” Maverick asked

  “Oh, you become a mystic by undergoing a ritual. Mystics can get stronger by then undergoing an advancement ritual. If you become a mystic, you’ll be in the 5th order. 4th, 3rd, you get it.” Herald gets up and then checks on the glass vessel from before.

  Maverick follows behind him, “Is possession a type of non-ritualistic magic?”

  “I guess you could say that, although my understanding of the topic isn’t great.” Herald turns off the burner and swishes the vessel around. Pours it into a separate glass vial and corks it. “Our lesson for today is over. Take this vial down to the hall to a room labeled ‘storage.’ Simply leave it on the first desk you encounter and return.”

  Maverick took the vial and left for the storage room. The rest of the day, Maverick did similar errands for Herald. Later, while Maverick was walking home, he reviewed the situation.

  ‘So if I’m not mistaken. A demon tried to possess me, but my spirituality overwhelmed and ate the demon instead. That still doesn’t tell me what ‘conquer’ means or why I transmigrated. What I can say, though, is that I was probably lucky to survive that demon. If I’m going to protect my sister and myself, I need to get stronger. That means becoming a mystic with some combat potential.’

  Clawford was looking over some documents when a knock broke his concentration.

  “Investigator Clawford its me, Officer Drigal.”

  “Yes, come in,” Clawford answered

  Herald came in and sat down. “I know it’s only been 2 months, but I’d like to recommend Maverick for his first advancement ritual.”

  Calwford’s eyes widened in a rare moment of surprise. “What brought this on?”

  “The boy is a quick study. His understanding of the mystical has reached a point where I have nothing left to teach him. That is, unless he becomes an alchemist. He can also write and do arithmetic. It’s honestly a waste to keep him underground with me.”

  Clawford stared at him with a blank expression for a moment. “I’ll take your recommendation into due consideration.”

  Herald left, and Clawford continued his work. Later, he was messing in his office. Clawford pulled out a pocket watch and checked the time. ‘Right on time. I can’t believe things have changed so much from the initial plan. But that boy wasn’t supposed to survive in the first place. I took another look. If I stay the course, things will turn out exactly as they need to be, and we will avoid the worst of it.’ Clawford thought before pocketing the watch and calling Herald back into his office.

  “You called for me, Inspector?” Herald asked

  “I’ve given it some thought. I believe you are right. Please prepare the ritual materials and circle for later this week.”

  “Yes, sir.” Herald left to do just that.

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