Pivot of the Sky

Chapter 44: Everyone Has Their Own Secrets

Why was Amon travelling in disguise? Why hadnt he revealed that he could use magic? Because he wasnt a mage, he was a sorcerer!

The ferry owners question drew the crowds curiosity. Amon had to reply, Im on an important mission that involves the secrets of the gods. So I have to travel in disguise. Please dont ask me anything about this or tell others about what youve heard and seen today!

Oh, so he was a mage on a secret mission and he had been forced to reveal his abilities because of the monsters attack! Since he had just saved everybodys life by displaying powerful magic, most who still had questions had to swallow them back into their throats when Amon told them not to ask. But the questions wouldnt just disappear.

Even if this esteemed mage was travelling in disguise, he could have at least disguised himself as a noble, an official or at the very least a wealthy merchant. Why did he have to pretend to be a plebeian? It just didnt make sense! A fleeting doubt might even flit through peoples mind: could he be a sorcerer? At the end of the day, a whim was still a whim. Nobody dared to speak of it, let alone delve any deeper.

Inanna walked ahead, hugging Amons arm and continued, In order to fulfil his duty, our esteemed mage has made the sacrifice to put on flax clothes and travel as a commoner His mission is so important that he should have never revealed his identity as a mage. He should kill all of you! Instead, he has kindly saved your lives! If any of you dare reveal his identity to others, the punishment from the kingdom would soon fall upon you!

Her words quashed the last bit of lingering doubt. The fear overpowered curiosity. passengers clearly saw how charming Inanna was. She must be the pampered maid of the esteemed mage.

Inanna looked around and her face suddenly changed. She cried to Amon, My lamb! Where is my lamb? My little lamb is missing! It must have fallen into the river! I intend to take care of it, to make sure that it wont suffer from the misery and torture of this world Amon, I feel so hurt

Inanna could always shed tears within a second. Her voice was so sweet and soft, her face was so adorable, whoever saw her crying would feel sorry for her and would like to cry for her too. A merchant came forward and greeted Amon, Esteemed mage, you have saved our lives and our goods. Now that you have lost your goods, it is our duty to make it up for you. Please allow me to compensate for her loss!

This merchant was the one who had the most goods on the ferry. The two warriors who came to Amons side were his bodyguards. He appreciated that Amon had saved his life and all of his goods, and he also saw a good opportunity to make acquaintances with an esteemed mage.

This mage was on a secret mission. He didnt know how much time this mission was going to take but he believed that one day, Amon would return to the city, to the shrines. If he could befriend him now, he might secure convenience for himself in the future. What he was planning to offer was not merely a lamb, but a large sum of money so as to leave a good impression to this young mage.

Amon did look young. In the merchants eyes, this mage was around twenty years old, and he has already mastered such powerful magic, throwing out precious scrolls without blinking. Unlike those peasants who didnt have much common sense, as a merchant, he didnt have the slightest doubt about what Amon was saying from the beginning.

Sorcerers were those who practised magic privately, without the shrines permission. How could they possess so many precious magic artefacts and use them so generously? Only with the support and resource of a shrine could a young mage with such elegant bearing be raised. Amon must derive from a high lineage and has a great future ahead of him! This was the merchants conclusion.

The merchants servants also stepped forward and handed a sheepskin purse to Amon. Amon could tell from the weight that it must be full of gold. He asked with a bit of surprise, I lost the lamb because of the monster. Why are you making it up to me?

The merchant replied humbly, If it hadnt been for you, the whole ship would now be lying on the bottom of the river, my life and everyone elses life would have been long extinguished and this wouldnt have belonged to me Your courage and power saved us all. We should be grateful for your deed. Please, dont refuse my gratitude.

The ferry owner added, My esteemed mage. Please accept our gratitude, or we will be harrowed with guilt. While the words left his mouth, the ferry owner could still feel his heart beating fast. He was frightened by Inannas words.

Experienced as he was, the ferry owner also believed that Amon was a high lord, for he had used three magic scrolls fighting the monster. He knew that the scrolls must have cost Amon a lot. If they didnt show enough gratitude and irritated the mage, as the easiest to be found, he would certainly be the first to have troubles.

Hearing the reasons given by the merchant and the ferry owner, Amon felt that it was better not to refuse their favour. He looked at the merchant and nodded, Alright then. Thank you. I bought the lamb with two silver coins. If you want to compensate my loss, then give me two silver coins.

The crowd was shocked again. Two silver coins was nothing to an esteemed mage. They thought that Amon would either accept the merchants gift or refuse it to show his generosity. On the other hand, two silver coins was far too much for a lamb. It was practically extortion. But why would an esteemed mage extort a merchant for a lamb? It didnt make any sense!

Aside from Inanna, no one knew that Amon was just telling the truth. Not everybody on the ferry realized that Amon had used magic scrolls; some didnt even understand what a magic scroll was. The doubt that Amon was a sorcerer came back to some people again. But others who had experience knew the value of the scrolls that Amon had used.

Inanna spoke sweetly beside Amons ear, My esteemed mage, we have lost more than just a lamb! You used three expensive scrolls to kill the monster! She seemed to be whispering with Amon, but her voice was loud enough to be heard by the whole crowd.

Someone in the crowd protested, Leiskkhut, you are one of the richest tradesmen in Uruk! Why do you only give a lamb to the esteemed mage? Why dont you reward him for the three magic scrolls?

Someone else added, Chief, you are rich too. The esteemed mage saved your ship. You should give something too.

No matter what they thought of Amons identity, the passengers gratitude for Amon was sincere. And they were also afraid of getting in trouble for offending a mage. After all, it was the richest among them who were going to pay. One couldnt be more generous when he wasnt the one who had to pay.

The ferry owner broke out into a cold sweat when heard this sudden suggestion. If Amon had not been standing right in front of him, he would have thrown the suggester into the river. Leiskkhut, the merchant, was cursing in his mind as well. A bag of gold was enough to make friends with an esteemed mage. But he knew clearly that even with all of his goods combined, even including the ferry, it wouldnt be enough to compensate for all the scrolls that he had used.

Magic scrolls were not something that you could just buy in a market. A commoner had no chance of purchasing a magic scroll since only mages could use magic scrolls.

There were two ways to measure its value. The high nobles could go to the shrines in big cities or to the Magic Academy in the capital and submit a request of endowment to the scroll makers there, or pay a private visit to them and pay a tremendous sum of treasure to order a scroll. It cost a lot either way.

Amon shook his head, I used them to save my own life. Thank you for your kindness. But I dont need you to compensate me for that. If you really want to do something for me, help me keep this secret so that I can fulfil my mission. Dont tell anybody who I am and what I have done!

The ferry owner carefully wiped the sweat that had gathered at the corner of his forehead. The merchant felt relieved too. He replied gratefully, My name is Leiskkhut. Im from Uruk. Please allow me to welcome you, esteemed mage, if you happen to pass by Uruk after your mission. I promise you will receive the best reception I can offer.

His words were sincere. He could tell that Amon didnt intend to ask the passengers to compensate him for his scrolls. As for the lamb, he interpreted that the high price was a minimal requirement to match its owners status.

Amon smiled and nodded, Alright, Ill remember that! This world was so strange a land to him that even one more acquaintance was welcome to him. So far the only people he knew were Metatro and the mysterious Inanna. At least this merchant left a good impression.

The ferry finally arrived at the other side of the river. Everyone bowed to Amon to express their gratitude before departing. Amon stood at the fore nodding greetings to them, holding Inannas arm. Not far from the ferry was a market town. Every passenger followed Amons demand and kept what happened on the ferry secret, or at least until they left the market town and went far away enough from the esteemed mage.

The violent fight in the river was, of course, observed by the people on the bank. Many were wondering what had happened. The passengers were asked again and again and they could only vaguely answer that a monster showed up, that an esteemed mage on a secret mission happened to be on the ferry and he fought the monster, killing it and leaving incognito when the ferry came ashore. Amon succeeded in hiding his identity, but his feats could not be concealed. The news of a mage slaying a monster in the river soon spread throughout the whole town.

After he disembarked, Amon first wanted to find a carriage for Inanna. The capital was still far away, Amon didnt want her to walk all the way home. In the market town, they met Leiskkhut who was ordering some servants to move his goods discharged from the ferry onto several carts. Knowing that Amon was looking for a carriage, he proposed, Please take my coach, sir. I give it to you as a gift. This is the best coach and horses I have right now.

Amon shook his head, I am just looking for a normal coach to cover part of the way. You dont need to give me such a nice coach.

Leiskkhut interpreted this in another way. His coach was for commoners. The decorations were great and the inside looked cosy, but it could hardly compare to a mages coach. He hurriedly added, You cant find a better coach in this town. Please resign yourself to this one. Or you can consider it as borrowed from me. You can use it whenever you need. If you still remember me later on, you can have someone return it to me.

Leiskkhut had a good plan. Besides befriending this young mage, he might know who he was through the coach in the future too. Amon thought for a short while and answered, Alright, thank you. Ill return the coach and the horses to you. He was going to visit Metatro now, but one day he would turn back west, go to Cape and return Neros staff to his family. So he would certainly pass by this town again, and when he did he could return the coach then.

Amon had made a decision when he disembarked. He was going to fulfil Neros last wish. Although Nero was one of the mages who ran after Bair, he didnt do it out of a personal grudge. He was simply acting under the orders of the kingdom. It was worth admiring that he accepted the mission knowing he was going to be killed.

Neros scrolls had saved Amons life today. If the merchant knew to repay Amon for saving his life, Amon should also repay Nero and return his staff and ring to the shrine of Cape, according to his will.

He didnt stay long in town. Driving the coach, Amon left the quay with Inanna. Instead of following the main road, they turned to a half-obsolete path in the wilderness. The east side of the Euphrate River belonged to the state of Uruk. On the open fields were grasslands, farmlands and rolling small hills covered with woods. The land seemed to be a lot more fertile than that in Duc. They could feel the prosperity and peace from the scene along the road.

It was actually Amons first time driving a coach. He spent half a day learning to control the horses with the reins and make them trot forward along the road. He even used air magic to give orders to the horses, there were always small gusts of wind around the horses ears that came from nowhere.

Inanna lifted the curtain and smiled sweetly, Amon, my brave hero, my handsome hunter and esteemed mage. How can you be so bad at driving? The horses are well trained. They know where to go once they hear the cracking of the lash Theres a lash on the coach, but I suggest you change to the one the old shepherd gave you that day.

When they bought the lamb outside Som, the old shepherd had given a lash to Amon. He kept it in his bag at all times but didnt really have any time to look at it. On Inannas reminder, he took it out of the bag. As soon as he had it in his hand, he was shocked. He immediately removed something out from the bag, the string of the monster that he had fished out from the river.

The material of the lash and the string felt so alike! More than that, they should be the same material!

What the lash differed from the string was that it was not coiled but stretched out like a normal rope. It must have been processed. Equipped with all kinds of theoretical knowledge about magic artefact making, Amon had no idea how the string was processed into a lash. After all, he hadnt made a real artefact himself yet.

Amon knew very clearly how horrible the monster snake was. However, a shepherd had processed the string of the monster into a lash and had given it to Amon. Amon should realise that the shepherd wasnt an ordinary man either! In fact, he was even more mysterious than Inanna. But since Inanna had hinted to him about this, she must have known who the shepherd was. Following this reasoning, she must have had ulterior motives leading Amon to the old shepherd to buy a lamb that day in Som!

Inanna had once claimed to Amon that her real status was too high to be mentioned to anyone. But Amon believed that what he had experienced with her was not any less complicated than what she claimed in her story. Amon changed lashes out and waved it forward. With a crisp crack, the two horses trotted forwards with an elegant pace. There was not much need to control the coach anymore.

Even with the enjoyable scenery and the horses briskly jogging across the vast plain, Amon didnt feel the least bit of relief. Instead, the cool wind passing his neck sent chills down his spine.

Upon seeing the lash, he realised that he had been used. A beautiful shepherdess crying at the foot of the mountain, an old herdsman in Som, a monster in the river they now all added up, telling Amon that he had stepped into an arranged plot.

Inannas story must be far more complicated than she claimed. It was certainly not a coincidence that Amon met her twice no wonder Schrodinger warned him about her!

Amon drove the coach onto a small path not only because he wanted to avoid people, but also because he had something to ask Inanna. But now he found that he didnt have the courage to open his mouth. What did this mysterious and dazzling woman want from him? His back tensed at the thought that she might still be looking at him from behind. After a while, he finally spoke, We are not on the main road to the capital. Inanna, are you familiar with this path? Are we going in the right direction?

Inanna gently put her hand on his shoulder,

The road is right under your feet. Ill be your guide. Dont worry and go ahead. Through this path, we can bypass the city of Uruk along the east bank of Euphrate. Then we can go back to the main road and head for Bablon City Ive lost my lamb in the river, but I still have you my handsome Amon! Why are you nervous? What has disarranged your heartstrings? You must have questions in your mind. Why dont you just ask me?

Inanna spoke intimately to remind Amon of the extraordinary lash after they crossed the river. She knew that Amon would realise something unusual and questions would grow in his mind. Now she was asking him to speak.

Her delicate hand on his shoulder should have made Amon comfortable, but Amon felt a little scared. He was even more nervous than he had been when facing the monster snake in the river. Thinking carefully, he concluded that Inanna shouldnt bear any ill will. So he tried to be natural and asked, Inanna, how did you know that I had scrolls?

He had been holding this question since they had been on the ferry. But he couldnt let these words out in front of the crowd. It was Inannas prompt that had helped him recall that he had those scrolls in his bag so that he could use them to kill the monster and save his life. However, he was sure that he had never opened the bag to Inanna, nor had he revealed that he knew magic. How could Inanna have possibly known that he had magic scrolls in his bag?

Inanna stroked Amons shoulder softly and teasingly, You didnt tell me that you knew magic. Thats your secret. We all have secrets, dont we? You used magic to kill the monster when we were on the ferry, and I also know that you carry many precious parangons with you. So its normal that you would have scrolls with you, no? You told people that you are on a secret mission. Im still here with you. You wont kill me to cover up your secret, will you?