The Bookstore Mage

The next day, early morning, Ron came to a stop in front of the mysterious bookstore. The sky above was grey and gloomy casting a heavy shadow on his heart. For some reason the closer he got to the bookstore, the more nervous he found himself getting.

Very few people made him feel this way throughout his long life. One of them being the head of the family he served, The Goldhearts. The young master was still immature, and too arrogant at times, so the head assigned him to protect and try to guide him. This was the main reason why Ron was the one that came to check on the new mage, to determine his level of danger.

The young master was the youngest child of the head, but he was his favorite. Ron didn't approve of the way the head had spoiled him, but he was merely a butler, he had no say in how the head raised his children. Trying to calm his emotions, Ron recalled the Council's report. It seemed like there was a strange power interfering with magic surrounding the bookstore.

Now that he was feeling it for himself, Ron could tell that this was the abode of a high-ranking mage. He resisted the urge to use magic and stepped into the bookstore. The bells chimed above the door, as the interior revealed itself before him. The inside was small, with two shelves on both sides reaching close to the ceiling.

At the end of the hallway was a counter with a handsome-looking young man. A snow-white cat was seated next to him, turned to glance at Ron as he walked in with intelligence in its eyes. 'A summons?' That was the first thought that came to Ron's mind.

The young man was wearing a black suit and was reading a strange-looking book. He raised his eyes and glanced at Ron with deep unfathomable eyes.

"Welcome." He said and then ignored him, turning his attention back to the strange book. Ron found himself strangely fascinated with that book. He felt his consciousness slowly getting drawn into it, his eyes turned glazed as he felt the world turn dim around him.

Ron's subconscious screamed danger to him, sending alarm signals throughout his body. Ron felt helpless, but there was nothing he could do. The strange force prevented him from using magic, and the strange dangerous book kept tugging at his soul.

"Are you okay?" Came the young man's voice. It sounded like that of a devil mocking him to Ron. Goosebumps formed on the back of his neck, as the hair rose in his arms. He was unable to move, his gaze was still locked on the strange book as if he had glimpsed at something forbidden, something he should have not seen.

The young man suddenly stood up causing Ron's heart to skip a beat. He was defenseless. 'Could it be he already knew we were planning to test him?! Is this his warning?!' With a thud, the young man... No, the devil! Closed the book, pulling Ron back from his dazed state.

He felt his soul rush back to his body, and suddenly gasped for breath. The devil rushed to his side with an expression full of fake concern. "Are you okay? Here come take a seat. Do you want me to call an ambulance for you?"

"N-No, I'm good. I was just out of breath." Ron stuttered in reply. This young man was a monster, a devil! How could they come to test him? The damn Council! They should have been clearer on the threat rank!

Ron had already forgotten that the question marks on Lucien's file meant danger, and was already blaming the Council in his heart. He had no thoughts of retaliating against the young man. Not even the head of the Goldhearts family was able to immobilize and subdue him without lifting a finger.

"Do you want me to grab a cup of water for you?" Asked the monster in human skin.

Ron hastily shook his head. "No, I'm good, thank you for your concern." He squeezed a smile on his face. Now that he was already here, he should try to at least mend the relationship between the family and this monster.

For the first time, small seeds of doubt took root in Ron's heart. He was not sure if even the head could be the monster's opponent. Fear took hold of his heart, causing beads of sweat to trickle down his forehead.

The monster went behind the counter and placed his devil book behind it before he brought a chair to Ron, prompting him to sit down. Ron complied and took a few seconds to compose himself before he began to speak:

"Young master, my name is Ron, and I am the butler of the esteemed Goldhearts family."

*****

Lucien's heart skipped a beat when he heard the family's name. It was one of the four main families, the nobles as they liked to call themselves. He did not know why their butler came to his small bookstore, but he maintained his poker face. The fact that he came all the way here meant they already knew he was a mage.

'Is the magic community in this town so small? How come everyone already seems to know about me?' Lucien wondered inwardly before giving a faint smile and replied;

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Ron. To what do I owe the pleasure?" While inwardly sizing up the old man in front of him. He seemed quite sickly and weak. His face was pale like he was about to pass out at any second. Lucien even feared he might suffer from a sudden heart attack.

"Please call me Ron! The Goldhearts simply wished to extend our sincere welcome, and wish for a possible collaboration in the future, should the chance arise."

Lucien nodded while maintaining his polite smile and answered:

"I'd love to. The pleasure is all mine."

His reply seemed to please Ron greatly as his face suddenly lit up with a bright smile. "Great! Then as a token of our friendship, I'd like to present you with this small gift. It's nothing much, so I hope Mr. Lucien will accept it."

Lucien's eyes lit up as Ron pulled a black ring from his pinky and handed it to him. "This is-"

"It's the Goldhearts famed storage rings. I hope it will come in handy for you." Answered Ron in a slight prideful tone. He seemed to value the ring a lot, so Lucien was quite surprised he just handed it to him.

His first instinct was to refuse, but it was as if Ron could already read his mind, he hastily replied:

"It's not much, so I hope Mr. Lucien will give me some face and take it." Saying that the old butler stood up and gave him a deep bow.

"Now then, I shall take my leave. It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lucien."

"Huh-" Lucien did not have enough time to say anything when the old butler quickly took his leave.

"What the hell just happened?" He mumbled, before turning his gaze to the black ring in his hand.