Greed and Ambition

Morning, June 10

The Seagull

Something was odd about Meg.

It wasn't the first time Kai had this thought. He had been brooding over it for the last week. He thought about it from all angles, always coming to the same conclusion.

Something was disturbingly odd about Meg.

With his chair pointed towards the small window, Kai sat there in deep contemplation. As the ship rolled, his head turned to his right.

On the table lay the book, The Standard Book of Spells-Grade 1, opened at the last page. Kai had remembered every single word within it by heart on the very first night he had got it. But the lure of magic was such that he couldn't help but take it now and then to read it again. The book mentioned the simplest of the charms and transfiguration spells to be learned by the young wizards.

-Concentration, proper invocation, and intention- Kai hissed what he had found to be the key ingredients to cook the tastiest magic.

A cool sensation left him and appeared around his shoulder.

Selene slithered around him, kissing his ears now and then, using her forked tongue.

-What is Magic?- she hissed.

Kai thought about it. His right hand went for Selene's head and he pulled her into his lap. His left hand kept swishing the false wand like a pen between fingers.

-Use of Mana for benefit- Kai hissed, looking down into her blind eyes.

-Benefit…-

Leaving Selene to think about the most important word in Kai's life after Power, he looked to his left.

Petyr was lying on the bed, going through the information which Meg had shared with him. When Kai looked at him, Petyr turned his head to look back.

"You should throw it in the ocean," the character said, smiling. "What's the point of having it if you can't use it?"

Kai frowned. He looked at the wand and the Stats hovering above it.

[

Item: Coreless Wand

Grade: Common

Specification: A false wand lacking a core

Requirement: Elementary Magical Aptitude

Attributes: Length - 10 inches, Wood - Mahogany

Skill: Magic Duplication

Effect:

1. Contestants can use it to duplicate the effect of genuine Wands

2. After casting a Spell of 100 MP, or many Spells of 100 MP collectively, goes into a Cooldown of 5 minutes

3. Casting high-level Spells can damage the Item, or may bounce back the Spell's effect on the user

Quality: 58%

]

Kai couldn't help but agree with Petyr.

"Are you still thinking about her?" Petyr asked, sitting up and straightening his small hair.

Kai nodded. "I just can't seem to put -my finger- on the issue," he said, scowling at the use of Parseltongue. Staying quiet had helped him, but the moment he opened his mouth, the hissing came back like an old friend whom Kai didn't like at all.

"Let's not think about it in our usual way," Petyr mumbled, standing up. "Let's think about what she lacks and not about what's odd about her."

Kai snapped his head towards Petyr as the character paced within the small room. 'Has he found something?' he wondered, knowing well Petyr would have never brought up the matter otherwise.

"What has she done in the last week, pray tell me, my lord?" Petyr asked, and when Kai opened his mouth to speak, the character chuckled, cutting Kai off. "Oh, never mind. I can't understand you, anyway. Hear me out."

Kai too stood up, sending the false wand back to his Inventory.

"Nothing," Petyr declared. "She has done nothing. If it was another 3rd-floor Contestant in her place, what would they have done? Certainly not keeping themselves in the room. Arlen is the strongest 3rd-floor Contestant we know, my lord. Can you guess the difference between Meg and him?"

Kai's eyes widened. Yes. Meg wasn't as strong as Arlen, but with her Abilities and Pokemon, she was near. Then she had the experience. Too much experience for a mere 3rd-floor Contestant. Yet, she lacked one thing.

"Greed…" Kai thundered out the word.

Petyr nodded. "Greed and ambition," he said, completing Kai's words. "She lacks both these things one can expect from a lower floor Contestant."

But then Kai frowned. "The three Order's -Contestant-…" If she lacked greed, then what was the reason to go after the Order's team? That too on the night of their departure.

Petyr guffawed. "This was also the thing that had puzzled me the most," Petyr agreed. "But it's also the easiest to explain. The reason is you."

"Me?!" Kai exclaimed, his mind already racing to think of an answer.

"Your very existence gives birth to curiosity, my lord," Petyr said. "The way you analyzed her Abilities, and the strange nightly events that followed your departure. Then there is the mysterious reason for you playing a mute. And the strange vegetative state of your victims. It makes one curious, even if one lacks greed and ambition. She had to know more about you somehow."

Kai went back to the chair and sat down, tapping his fingers on the chair's arms. Selene hissed menacingly, sensing Kai's emotions. He knew if Petyr had decided to share these things with him, then he already had a plan.

"Speak…" Kai ordered, his eyes becoming two reptilian slits as if following an instinct.

Petyr approached Kai, crouching down to Kai's ears from behind. And then the Herald of Chaos whispered his plan.

But some whispers are better left undiscussed.

*******

AN: Rejoice, 2 more chapters today. Can you guess what's up with Morning Mist? Anyway, please vote with PS guys to support the work. Thank you!

On a short note, how's the new cover?