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CHAPTER START---
Sitting in an annoyingly packed train car, Oberon carefully studies the map in his hands while occasionally glancing out the window.
In the distance he sees some winding rivers and low mountains rounding a valley.
'I'm almost there,' he thinks while carefully folding the map and holding it in his lap.
He's been on this train for hours, and now as the sun was almost ready to set he was counting the seconds before finally getting out.
The seat beside him and the two opposite him are completely empty, and there is one other seat with no passengers, while most of the others are completely filled.
With these many people around he decided it best not to take out his Grimoires and Journals to practice Magic.
Not only could that make people nervous, but it would also attract attention.
And he's already been in Sorcerer Weekly twice since his debut, both of which included pictures of him studying Magics on a train ride.
As he relaxes into his seat, from the corner of his eye he sees a man stealing glances at him.
The man appeared more curious than malicious, so he simply ignored it.
Until the man finally worked up the courage to come speak to him, "May I sit?" the man asks, gesturing to the window seat opposite Oberon.
"Sure," Oberon says, focusing on the passing landscape outside.
"Hi, I'm Henry, from Sorcerer Weekly."
Oberon barely surpasses his groan as he looks at the man, who is already presenting his Sorcerer Weekly ID, to prove he's with the reputable business.
Oberon glances at it, then does his best to be polite. "I don't think this is a good place for an interview."
"Ah, right," the man says. "But you are him, right? Oberon?" the man asks very quietly, nothing the boy didn't want to be in the spotlight.
Oberon silently nods.
"Wow!" some of the people glance at them as the man covers his own mouth. "Sorry, it's just, you're a lot um…I kind of expected you to be taller."
"I'm nine."
"Yeah, but you're already so cool," the man says. "Can I just get a small statement? My boss would love to finally get some first-hand information from you, this could really help my career."
Oberon looks around, seeing everyone having returned to their previous quiet conversations.
"Ok, one question."
The man almost jumps out of his seat in excitement, but controls himself enough not to make a sound.
"Ok," the man takes a deep breath and thinks very carefully about this, about his one chance.
Oberon can almost hear the gears turning in the man's hand, looking between Oberon and the notepad in his hands, then the man eventually decides to speak before Oberon gets annoyed at him.
The boy's avoidance of the press has become well-known in the Sorcerer Weekly office.
"I guess I should ask the most simple question, although it may not be the most desired–since people are more curious about your unique Cosmic Magic that nobody has ever seen," the man gets ready to write as he looks at Oberon. "What is your goal, your dream, what do you desire most, and what pushed you to become a Guild Wizard and join Fairy Tail?"
Oberon raises a hand to his chin and continues looking out the window.
"That's a big question," Oberon says as he thinks very carefully about his words. "But I suppose it all has the same answer."
The man raises a brow at this and already has his pen on the paper.
"I joined Fairy Tail, because I am weak. That's what Guilds are for, they help people who can't stand on their own grow and feel safe, we all help each other. Fairy Tail is the best place for me to learn about Magic, because Master Makarov is there, but learning from him will not be enough.
So I will go out into the world–to learn about myself, about Magics, about the world itself–and use all of that knowledge to grow. I will grow until I am strong enough to protect everyone and everything I hold dear to me, that, is my goal."
The man looks at him with wide eyes after finishing his notes, "That…is the best answer I've ever heard. Most Guild Wizards desire fame, fortune, and power, and maybe that's why you're already so strong, because you're fighting for something greater."
Oberon shrugs, "Maybe, but I wouldn't know. Honestly, I don't really pay attention to things or people I can't learn from."
"I know you said one question, but there is one thing I'd like to ask–if you don't mind. May I?" the man sheepishly asks.
"You're a lot less pushy than the other reporters, so sure, for being polite about this."
"Thank you," the man says. "You said Master Makarov Dreyar is the best person to teach you about Magic, why is that?"
"Cosmic is a unique Magic, but it demands immense Magic Energy and focus," Oberon says. "Because of that, even when I was a baby I would instinctively split it into Light Magic and Gravity Magic, and Makarov Dreyar is the 'Light Titan of Ishgar', the greatest Light Magic user on the continent."
"So that's how your Magic works, and you've had it since you were a baby?"
"Since before I was one, I was already glowing and floating around the crib, my parents didn't appreciate that at first," Oberon chuckles, remembering the pictures in his album back at his place in Magnolia, and the stories they told him about them.
"The people want to know, very badly," Henry says. "But, I'd rather not ask about your past, or personal life."
Oberon gives him a strange look, not sure why the man would avoid such a scoop, but is grateful for his restraint, "Thank you."
"Before I head back to my seat, would it be alright if I get a quick picture?" the man takes out a Kamera, which is a small square wooden device with a Lacrima Lens at the front, and a Data Lacrima within. "It would really be nice to have a picture of you that didn't involve one of our reporters being creepy."
Oberon chuckles, "Yeah, I'd really appreciate that."
As the man prepares the Kamera, Oberon floats above his seat, cross-legged, and brings his hands together.
He smiles while opening his palms, and creating the illusion of a small galaxy between his hands.
Slowly moving, the most beautiful sight Henry has ever seen.
Oberon smiles down at it while the man takes the picture.
"That was awesome," the man says, snapping Oberon out of his daydream, out of the memory of his father teaching him this trick.
"Thank you," Oberon returns to his seat. "That's the essence of Cosmic, a little exercise that helped my parents figure out what my innate Magic was."
"You know, I was really scared of talking to you at first," Henry admits. "I figured anyone that powerful while so young had to be a monster of some kind, but, at least from what I can tell, you're just a kid trying his best."
Oberon gives him a strange look, "Well I'm…happy to disappoint?"
Henry chuckles, "This is way better, but I don't think I'll tell the others how approachable you are, after all, if I'm the only one brave enough to interview you—"
"You'll get all the information."
"And you'll get bothered less," Henry says.
"Good point," Oberon says as he looks out the window, seeing a small lake. "This is my stop, have a safe trip."
"Your stop?" Henry looks outside to see the lake as well. "But, the next station is at least another hour away."
"Yeah, but this part of the track is closer to where I'm going, so I'm hopping off here," Oberon says as he opens the window. "Tell the conductor I got off early," he says before flying out of the window and toward the lake.
The man and all of the passengers in the train car are shocked as the boy leaps out the window, then relieved when he rockets off into the distance.
Minutes later as the orange hues of sunset wash over the lush land below, Oberon spots a small village that isn't on his map.
"This must be the place," he mutters while hovering high above. "But the client said only his estate was here, so, maybe it's a bit farther up, I should ask."
He instantly begins falling at abnormal speed, before catching himself a few meters from the ground.
He saw the large plains around the village already seeded, and a few people were inspecting them, but the village itself lacked anything he could notice as a pub or bar.
'I should just ask one of the locals,' he decides, then approaches a woman who was taking dried clothes down from a line.
"Excuse me, ma'am," Oberon waves politely as he approaches.
"Oh, hello there, you must be the visitor Master Eltek told us about," the woman says.
"Uh, how'd you know?"
"Well, he told us to direct you to his manor, it's a bit farther ahead, closer to the mines in the mountain."
"I see," Oberon says. "I didn't see this village on the map so I was a bit confused."
"That's not surprising," she says. "This is all private land, the valley and the mountains around it, the mines too. Master Eltek brought us along to start farming the valley while the men worked the mines, even built us these houses, bless his heart."
"Wow," was all Oberon could say while looking around. "He owns all of this?"
"Lacrima Mines pay well, and his family has been doing this for generations," she says. "Now you should hurry along if you want to get there before dark, I'll have one of the boys take you there by horseback."
"No need," Oberon begins floating, causing her eyes to widen. "Thank you for the directions," he says before flying off toward the manor.
A few minutes later, Oberon sees a gargantuan mansion tucked away in the hells, along with some more industrial buildings within walking distance from it.
Oberon sees a pair of armed guards at the gate and flies toward them.
"Hello there!" he yells out while descending, causing them to stumble back as they see him.
"State your name!" one of the men says, raising his spear.
"Oberon Alkwan, of Fairy Tail," Oberon pulls back his sleeve to show the Guild Mark,
Both the men relax slightly, but still keep an eye on him.
They whisper something to each other before one of them opens the gate and rushes into the mansion.
"Follow me, Master Eltek is waiting," the man says as he begins walking toward the mansion.
Eventually, the man leads Oberon inside, but instead of a meeting room he takes him down into the basement of the mansion.
"The basement?" Oberon asks.
"This is where it is, and he wants this resolved as quickly as possible," the guard says as they enter a large wooden door that was already opened.
"Oh thank goodness," a tall red-haired man in a suit says as he passes a hand through his unkempt hair.
Oberon immediately notices how haggard the man is, with hollow cheeks and sunken eyes, his suit seemed to be wrinkled in ways that screamed he's been stressed lately.
"You may simply call me Mr. Eltek," the man says. "We really don't have time for pleasantries."
As Oberon steps fully into the room he looks around, not seeing any items in the room aside from a massive Adamantite vault door which occupies almost an entire wall.
There were runes carved into the metal that occasionally glowed and shimmered, almost taking his breath away.
"Wow, that's incredible," Oberon mutters.
"That it is, and I need to get inside of it, but I seem to have been locked out of my own vault," the man says before he signals both the guards to stand at either side of the room.
"The Job poster said you needed someone who could get through a Magic Barrier, not break into a vault," Oberon says.
"The vault isn't the problem, I can easily open it," the man says as he begins walking forward with one hand reaching out. "This is the problem," he eventually touches an invisible wall, and above him, Runes appear, floating in the air.
"No human shall enter this area," Oberon reads the runs aloud. "Someone used Rune Barrier Magic to lock you away from the door, but an Enchantment this vague can't be that strong."
"True, but he had weeks to prepare it," the man says as he turns back to Oberon. "My brother, for all his faults, is an exceptional Mage. But he is a drunkard, who whored his way through Ishgar before leaving the continent and breaking our parent's hearts, which is why they cut him off and out of the will."
"So this is revenge?"
"Yes, he visited a few months ago looking for his inheritance, when I told him about the change he promised to change his way, and I agreed to return a portion of what would have been his inheritance if he did so."
"Then why did he do this?"
"Because I caught him five bottles deep in the cellar, having an orgy with some of his traveling companions he invited into my home without my consent."
"Gross," Oberon says.
"Quite, but I gave him yet another second chance," the man says, bitterly. "He sent them away, and played on my compassion. Spending the next few weeks making this Enchantment to spite me, then had them return and steal anything that wasn't nailed down."
"Does he have a bounty on him?"
"If he touched the servants and employees he would, but since only I was affected I decided to leave him be," the man says. "However, I need the contents of my vault for a meeting I have with the king in one week, and when I came down here three weeks ago to double-check everything, I discovered the barrier."
"That explains why the reward for this Job became ten times higher a few days ago," Oberon says."You really need what's in there, otherwise, you could wait for the barrier to get weaker over time."
"Yes, so please, tell me you can break it…"
Oberon folds his arms, thinking about the situation, then walks forward and stands in front of the barrier.
"There are two options here," Oberon says.
"I'm listening."
"The first is the most simple," he says, and casually takes a step through the barrier, shocking the three men.
"You already broke it?!" the man reaches forward, only to have his hopes crushed as the barrier stops him. "What?"
"This type of Magic is invasive, so it doesn't work on me," Oberon says. "I can open the vault and get you anything or everything from inside, then you simply keep activating the barrier until it runs out of Magic Energy."
"That would be quite simple," the man says. "But the vault is Enchanted to only open for me, not to mention the other reinforcement Enchantments to increase the durability of the Adamantite."
"Then option two, is what you need in the vault fragile?"
"No, it's paperwork," the man says.
"Good, then it can handle a bit of shaking, which will happen when I break this barrier," Oberon says. "If you have anything in the house that can't handle a bit of shaking, you should get it out of here now."
The man immediately looks to one of the guards, "Go make sure the Lacrima Mine is clear, if anyone is in there send them home."
"Shall I go evacuate the mansion staff?" the other guard asks.
"Yes, take your time and make sure you miss no one, we will wait until you both return," the man says as both guards leave the room.
"You really do care about your people that much?" Oberon asks.
"I assume you were expecting the usual selfish, arrogant, perverted, wealthy family?"
"Well, yes, those are the types I've met until now," Oberon says.
The man sighs, "When you grow up in an empty house, where everyone is always working and has no time for you, where you spend more time with the servants than your family, they become your family. And I'd like to think I always take care of them."
"And your brother is different?"
"He went to the Magic Academy, but the Magic Council kicked him out for bad behavior, He thought since our family had money he was untouchable, but the Magic Council cares not for such things, and he cared more about doing all the debaucherous things we were forbidden from as children…and he has yet to stop."
"Well, hopefully, he comes to his senses someday."
"Yes, I hope so too," the man gives Oberon a sad smile. "Now, how exactly will you be breaking this barrier?"
"By using my innate Magic, Cosmic," Oberon says. "My Magic acts as a magnet of sorts for Magic Energy and Magic in general, forcing it to crash against me, and whoever has more Magic Energy wins."
"So you effectively plan to pull it into a test of sheer Magic Energy, and eventually drain it," the man says. "Do you have that much Magic Energy?"
Oberon shrugs, "If it doesn't work the first time I'll just get some rest then do it again.
"Incredible," the man says. "I myself am not a Mage, but I've had to learn about Magics due to the nature of our family business. Magic that makes you invisible to what you call 'Invasive' Magics, and allows you to force them to break by slacking your Magic Container against them…it sounds unreal."
"I get that a lot, but most people don't know about this so I'd like to keep it quiet, if you don't mind," Oberon says.
"Well, you're contracted not to speak of anything from this Job, so I see no problem with me doing the same," the man says.
"Unless some of your friends want to hire me, then you can tell them."
The man nods as they hear both the guards walking down the stairs in the hallway outside.
"Sir, both the mansion and Lacrima Mine are clear," one of the men says as the other nods in agreement.
"Well then, you may begin when ready," the man gestures to Oberon and then gets to the other side of the room.
Oberon takes a moment to focus his Magic Energy, standing there with his eyes closed as he clears his mind.
Then, he leans forward and touches the barrier, feeling it blocking him from moving toward the vault.
The entire area is filled with glowing green Runes, written on the air in front of him.
The men look at him curiously, then feel a sudden draft in the room.
They share some curious looks with each other before focusing back on the boy, seeing the ground beneath him crack slightly as the wind speeds up.
They then see pure Magic Energy being released from his body, white light exuding from him and dissipating into the air around them.
They look at the barrier carefully, not seeing any reaction from it.
Then after a few more seconds, the neutral Magic Energy changed, becoming void black with shining stars.
Like the night sky was pouring off of Oberon.
"Just a bit more," he says as the Magic Energy grows and grows, eventually enveloping his body in a pillar of Cosmic Magic Energy.
A narrow pillar that just barely shrouded his entire form, and within it he appeared as his same humanoid figure, but his clothes were mostly gone, leaving him glowing bright white in the void.
The men look around nervously as the mansion feels as if they're experiencing the longest earthquake of their lives.
But what they also see is the Runes reacting. Shaking, moving, rushing toward Oberon's hands pressed against the barrier.
And a few seconds later, the entire barrier shatters.
"Gah!" Oberon stumbles forward, dropping to one knee as he restrains his Magic Energy once more.
"Are you alright?" one of the guards asks as he kneels beside the boy, seeing him covered in sweat.
"Yeah, I just, haven't done that enough to get used to it," Oberon says between ragged breaths.
"Well young man, it seems you've completed the Job," Eltek says as he presses a hand on the vault, and the mechanisms inside immediately begin to turn and open.
"Great, then I should get to the next town," Oberon says as he stands up.
"Before you leave, we have something to discuss," Eltek says.
"And what's that?"
"Well, would you prefer cash, or would we let the bank handle it?" Eltek asks.
END CHAPTER---
Discord: discord .gg /eHuxNeZfyS [Come chat with me]
pat.reon: Keanu_Eugene [Read ahead & support me]
You.tube: @KeanuEugene [Giving away all my writing knowledge]