The Accidental Archmage by Edmund Batara (read out loud books .TXT) 📕

being visible. Tyler could again see runic inscriptions carved on some of the stones.

Eric and Helga were standing and waiting for them, together with a boy and a girl, their

children. After greeting the family, the Gothi sat at the head of the table, gesturing at

Tyler to sit beside him. While taking his seat, Tyler smiled at the family and greeted

them too. The family then took their seats.

The meal was simple but tasty fare. Lots of flatbread, cuts of roasted deer, and apples.

A jug of water and another jug of some beverage completed the meal preparations. Eric

gave Tyler profuse apologies for the incident while Helga looked on, still wearing her

nervous smile. Surprisingly, the children were quiet and behaved. Tyler, in turn,

accepted the apology and waved it off as an accident, insisting that it was his fault.

He then gave thanks to Helga for the potion and his treatment. To both, he gave his

thanks for their hospitality and emphasized that they saved his life. With that, the

tension in the room palpably eased. It was evident that they feared the Gothi’s

displeasure and were apprehensive about being blamed for Tyler’s mishap. Everybody

waited for the Gothi to start eating before putting food on their wooden plates.

The meal proceeded pleasantly, with Eric’s questions about Tyler being addressed to

the Gothi. Ivar maintained the back story. From what he understood, Tyler was

expected to spend a few more days with the family as part of his recovery. While

recovering, the Gothi will be visiting Tyler on a daily basis. Eric looked thankful that the Gothi will be taking responsibility for Tyler’s care and treatment.

Looking around while finishing off his mug of beverage which turned out to be ale,

Tyler noted that the room had several runic decorations. A bow and its quiver of arrows

were hanging near the main door together with a spear. A sheathed sword on a leather

belt was also hanging on the other side of the door. A small round wooden shield was

hung below the weapon. A series of red runic symbols can be seen around the

circumference of the shield. The dependence on magical means in the house and its

implements was quite obvious.

Feeling a bit dizzy from the smoke circulating in the room, Tyler excused himself and

asked to go out for a while. When he got outside, he found a wooden bench beside the

door and made himself comfortable. It looked to be late afternoon. The air was

refreshing and he took several deep breaths to remove the smell of smoke in his

nostrils.

The yard was paved with flat stones and as the wooden gate in front of the house was

open, he could see a path leading from the yard to the trees in the distance. It was also

paved with stones for about 30 feet from the yard and then continued on with a dirt

trail. The house was enclosed with a rough fence of wooden posts about five and a half

feet in height. The roughly-cut wooden planks were spaced around two inches from

each other and braced by horizontal wooden beams near the top and at the bottom.

Reinforcing posts propped up the fence in a regular manner. The one-story house was

relatively large though larger runic inscriptions again showed up on the walls. He could

see a horseshoe nailed above the main entrance.

The Gothi stepped out of the house and sat beside him. Both remained silent for a

while, taking in the fresh air and the feeling of a full stomach.

“How long was I out?” asked Tyler.

“Around two days. Eric brought you in late evening and you were asleep the whole day

yesterday.”

“Eric seems to be well-off for a hunter, considering the size of this house.”

“He has good skills and luckier in his hunts than most. A good man, simple and smart in

his own way. Also fortunate to have Helga as his wife. A practical woman with healer

skills. A good match for a hunter.”

“From what I can see, there appears to be a serious dependence on magic in this

world. The house is peppered with runic symbols. Is that normal?”

“This is Adar. With deadly magical creatures around, the use of magic evens the odds for humans and other mortal inhabitants. You need to learn about Adar’s magic if you

want to survive. If only to know what to watch out for. Fortunately, almost all humans

and non-humans born in this world have some degree of magical affinity. Those with

the least affinity would have enough for basic or simple spells, even without formal

training. Magical effects are channeled through runes and similar devices. The existence

of magical affinity means the ability for the active and direct use of such runes or at the very least, the ability to charge such runes. If one knows how.”

“Eric’s house is more magically protected than most, being outside of town and near

the forest,” continued the Gothi, “Town houses are not as decorated. The protection is

against malevolent beings and creatures for the most part. Some runes invoke blessings

from the gods.”

“You’ll teach me?”

“Some basic principles, I guess. Visitors from Earth like us, unfortunately have no such

inherent ability for magic. Passive reliance on charged runic items or similar means is all we get. When the charge runs out, we have to get a native with enough proper affinity

to activate it again.”

“But I saw you practicing runic magic!”

“My circumstances are different from yours. For the present. When the time comes, I

will be able to explain why. Your priority now would be to rest and recover. On that

note, I have to take my leave, my friend. I have to get back to Maljen, that’s the town

where I live. It will be dark soon and I don’t want to risk traveling at night, even with

my personal defenses. We’ll talk some more tomorrow morning. I have already taken

my leave of Eric and Helga. Don’t worry about them, they won’t pry and will take care

of you. Let me get my horse. It’s tethered at the back.”

The Gothi stood up and took a step to walk to the back of the house. He stopped and

looked at the roof. Tyler followed his gaze. He saw three ravens