Chapter 11 - Solution

It was only at this point that Tiberius began to realize the gravity of the situation and its danger. Not only were kings attempting to "buy" him, but they were also considering using him in ways he was unaware of. Not counting those who will seek vengeance, such as the prince. Additionally, he recognized that this "buying" phase was only temporary and that it was a polite way to ask. If unsuccessful, they might use force.

"And what do I do?" he asked, hoping Rovshen would help him find a solution.

"I don't know," he said. "I'm not in a position to defend you."

"Look," Tiberius said, pushing his plate to the front and resting his elbows on the table. "I do not expect you to protect me. You met me yesterday and even helped me today. You did more than enough for a stranger.”

Rovshen did not speak. Tiberius was right; he did understand that. He had gone above and beyond as the king's coachman, and if he did so again, he would face punishment.

“All I want is for you to tell me what I should do. I am a foreigner; even with your explanation, I still don’t understand how this world works.”

Rovshen raised his hand, trying to get the attention of the girl. “Can I get the check, please?”

“Coming,” she said, going behind the bar to get the check.

“And?” Tiberius asked.

“And what?” he replied. “Let me get the check so I can show you what to do.”

Tiberius nodded but also refused, “Okay, but let me pay this time,” he said.

As the girl approached, Rovshen took the check and, without looking at the amount, pulled a notebook from his jacket.

“Who said I am going to pay?” He smirked, tearing one of the papers, writing something on it, and signing it, together with the check. Then handed both of them to the girl.

“Thank you,” said the girl with a smile, taking them back.

“Let’s go,” said Rovshen, “unless you are going to eat that, of course.”

Tiberius was confused. Indeed, he did not eat more than a few bites, since he was carefully listening to Rovshen. After learning he was in danger, he lost his appetite. But what confused him was that he did not pay for the food but instead gave a signed check.

“I won’t, but, you just—” He tried to ask but could not even explain it.

“Oh, that? Don’t worry about it,” he said, not wanting to talk about it. But after Tiberius insisted (since he wanted to learn more about this world), he had to explain it.

It was essentially a notebook designed specifically for the royal family and their servants. The king had decided that if a member of the royal family or their personal servant used any of the services outside the castle, as long as they were within the country, they could sign one of the documents and pay with it instead of cash. Because even serving the royal family and their personal servants was regarded as a respectable and important job (apart from their slaves, of course). When the tax is collected each month, the amount on those documents will be subtracted from the total. Indeed, there were rules governing this. The owners of the businesses would be given the names of those who possess these notebooks, and if anyone attempted to deceive them, they would be reported straight to the castle and beheaded without much questioning. Except for the royalty, anyone who misuses these documents could suffer the same consequences.

Tiberius was still unsure of their destination and decided to remain silent for the time being, at least until they arrived at the location where Rovshen was taking him. They arrived in front of a building after nearly an hour of travel. The text on it made it clear that he had taken him to a magic school.

Rovshen explained, "This is what you are going to do. You will enroll as a student and study magic, mana, and how to control it. And other things that I find really boring.”

"So I am going to study with a bunch of kids," he said, pretending to smile. "Well, it could be worse.”

"Oh, don't worry," Rovshen said with a laugh, "you won't study with children. Since this school is paid, people of every age can be students.”

“I feel a bit better now.”

“You should, because you will get a discount.”

“How so?” He wondered.

“You got the medallion Charles gave you, right?”

“Yes,” he said, pulling it from his pocket and showing it to Rovshen.

“Keep it. Let’s go,” he said, entering the building.

Tiberius followed him, and they entered the Magic School of Virelia. Rovshen knew exactly what to do, so they went straight to the registration room without asking anyone. He knocked on the door and entered the room.

“Hello, Maria.”

“Hey,” she said, standing up from her desk and coming closer, “What a surprise…” As she saw Tiberius, her voice abruptly trailed off. “Hey,” she said to him, then faced Rovshen. “Is he your friend?”

“Yes, and he is the reason I am here.”

“How so?” Her brow furrowed.

Rovshen smiled and said, "Let's sit down and talk."

After they sat down, Rovshen talked about the things she needed to know. He didn't think it was necessary to discuss the prince's attack or other kings' offers to buy him. They would only make her more scared.

“Sure, we can do that. Considering that he is a guest of our king, we will help him as much as we can. But Rovshen, I want you to understand that I can’t just…”

“I know, Maria, but lower it as much as you can. He is new here, and it may take a few weeks until he finds a job. You know, King helped him a little but won't support him all the way," Rovshen said.

“Okay,” she said with a slight smile, “so, usually, it costs four hundred Velm a month.”

“Four hundred?” Tiberius’s eyes widened as soon as he heard the number.

“Do not worry,” she tried to calm him down. “you will not be paying that much; your price will be…” She double-checked a few papers. "It will be 150 velm per month. And that's the best I can do right now."

"One hundred and fifty..." Tiberius muttered. Rovshen suddenly kicked his leg and leaned slightly towards him.

"Okay, I agree," Tiberius replied. He paid the money and received a ticket bearing his name and the signature of Maria, the head of the magic school. With this, he can learn magic and take part in classes.

They left the building and parted ways, each heading in a different direction after deciding on the day and format of the classes.

On his way, Tiberius first stopped at a store to buy groceries. He also bought some fruits and even tried them. They tasted different and, frankly, better. However, there was a problem. Oranges, his favorite fruit, were nowhere to be found. It was strange when the king or his servants couldn't understand the word itself, but having no idea was even stranger. In a world where most things are similar to Earth, why wouldn't there be orange?

He gave up his search, returned to his apartment, arranged everything he had purchased on the shelves, and then ventured out once more in an attempt to discover more about the city. Although it was dangerous, he reasoned that if they had taken the prince away, it would be some time before anyone else would have the courage to attack him or even approach him.

Fortunately for him, nothing dangerous happened. He felt strange eyes on him from time to time, but that was normal. There was only one thing that confused him. Two suns, Solara and Ignion, would not set for a long time, as if the day were much longer than it was on Earth.

He returned to his apartment rather than wandering until nightfall. He made some dinner and sat in the living room doing nothing afterward until something captured his attention. A children's book titled "Tick Tock Tommy's Day." He wouldn't read a book for children to learn about time, but this one had a clock on the cover with only ten numbers instead of 12. This confused him, so he read a few pages and only now realized why daytime felt so long.

According to his understanding, time in this world is divided into three circles, each of which lasts ten hours. They would be known as 'Morning,' 'Afternoon,' and 'Night.' Solara's rise would mark the beginning of the 'Morning,' the day's first circle. As it reaches the top, the Ignion rises, ushering in the second phase, "Afternoon." This circle continues for the next ten hours, ending when Solara and Ignion set, kicking off the 'Night' circle. Novar, the world's moon, will rise and set over the next ten hours.

However, the hours of day and night, like on Earth, do not always coincide. Depending on the season and location, days and nights may be longer or shorter.

Luckily, hours, minutes, and seconds had the same ratio. Months also had exact structures and names, except every month had exactly thirty days.

He put the children's book away after finishing it and picked up another one about the nation's history. He placed it on the couch, went to the refrigerator, got an apple, and got back to reading the book while nibbling on the apple. The book, as he had anticipated, was largely bullshit: why they are superior to the other five nations, why King Tharos is superior, and so forth. He certainly wished he had something else to do, but he didn't like to go out at night, and reading fictitious history was more entertaining than staring at a wall.

After an hour of reading the book, he started to feel drowsy. He put the book back on the shelf and went to the bedroom. He tried to sleep, but couldn’t. He was feeling a little excited about going to school and learning something new. Above all, he would learn magic, which is truly beyond his comprehension.

…

When Charles brought the prince back, things in the king's castle went haywire. He awoke just before they could take him to the king and caused a commotion in the castle. Unlike the last time, when he tried not to kill anyone, this time he killed anyone who approached until the king himself intervened and stopped him.

The king then ordered his guards to take him to the dungeon and not release him until the king approved. In addition, he ordered Charles to drop Yareth’s royalty status, so any of his words or orders are meaningless.

When they took him out of the castle, he tried to scream and say something, but he couldn’t. His mouth was tied, so what people heard was just a bunch of meaningless sounds. His breathing became more rapid as he became enraged, and tears began to fall. It could not be understood, but this was precisely what he said:

"Your end will be at my hands, Father."