Roric took a deep breath, and the warm air filled his lungs, a soothing balm to his frayed nerves. He then turned his attention to a string of shops across the street, his thoughts a whirlwind of questions and doubts. He noticed that for the last month, these men had been frequenting a certain jewelry shop in the evenings. It was the same jewelry shop that Elias had entered a few days ago, but of course, Roric didn't know this. A month of discreetly investigating had shown that the shop in question had been opened for not more than two years.
'Does this then mean that these men have been in Aerthos for that long a period using it as a cover for whatever activities they are engaged in, or is their presence a more recent development?'
In any case, he decided to sneak in that evening and use his abilities to get more information before approaching Alaric.
He paid for his food and left, carrying a paper bag with his daughters pastries. He deliberately passed by the jewelry shop, glancing through its glass windows and after moving away by five meters, walked past a man in a tattered cloak sitting on the ground with his wares displayed in front of him, a big, worn straw hat casting a shadow over his face. Roric normally wouldn't have stopped, but this was the second time he'd seen this man. The first time, he was too concentrated on following those men to give it much thought to what he had sensed. Now, his mind was free to wander, and his eyes, thanks to a unique gift, widened.
'Resonants' are aspects of one's Trait that an individual unlocks once they attain enlightenment or understanding of an existential authority their Trait embodied. 'The Lovers' Trait had the authority over Bonds, and its first resonant was giving the user the ability to see the bonds in people. It could be relationships, family ties, or even grudges all in the form of silver threads connecting the two or more bonds.
Why this was important was that Roric could see a silver thread that connected him to this old man, meaning they had some form of connection. Roric's eyes narrowed.
'Where do i know him from?'
The man raised his head and stared at him, sunlight reflecting off his blue eyes.
"If you aren't gonna buy anything, then I'ma need you to fuck off." He said in a gruff voice, pulling out his gourd from within the folds of his clothes, and took a few deep, long gulps, finally sighing in satisfaction. Roric recognized those blue eyes , as well as the voice and the obvious passion for drinking.
"It's been a while, Professor Siegmund Kalbfeish."
"Took you long enough to recognize me you bearded bastard. I'm no longer a professor so you can drop the fancy title and didn't i tell you kids I don't enjoy the formality of a name?" The man said.
"I'm sorry, S.K." Roric apologized.
"That's better. Now that we've gotten reacquainted, I repeat, fuck off if your not going to purchase anything." S.K. replied. Roric just chuckled.
"Your speech is as refined as ever." He said with a smile.
Internally, he was wondering about S.K. Professor Siegmund was one of the pioneers in the creation of Artifacts, bringing forth new techniques that not only preserved a majority of an artifact's characteristics but could alter them to create entirely new functions as well.
He had been a professor at Fazhan University 19 years ago when he, Alaric, Elara and their group had been students. However, he disappeared a few years after Elara graduated after reaching the Praetorian stage for unclear reasons. Some say he was in a disagreement with the 'Thoth Order' over ideals while others said he was being pressured into developing weapons and left because he couldn't stand it anymore among others. He then disappeared, with many being unable to find him for whatever reason they sought him out for. However, there were sightings of him all over the country and even abroad from time to time over a period of years.
Roric looked his teacher over, his sharpened skills as a hunter enabling him to see what was truly going on. The man had a tiredness, and his movements were slow as if it ached to move. Even though his beard was overgrown and his cloak was oversized, Roric noticed that he had grown lean and based on his worn sandal sticking out of the cloth he had been moving about quite a lot. There were dark circles under his eyes, and the liquor he drank smelt of coffee. He was drinking it to keep himself awake.
'But why?' Roric wondered
'What could the proud and arrogant Siegmund Kalbfeish be running from?'
"Are you done with analyzing me yet, Roric Thorne?" S.K. asked, interrupting his thoughts.
Roric was a bit stunned, as there was no change in his posture or facial expression.
"Nothing gets past you, professor." Roric said as his smile widened.
"Of course, I wouldn't be the greatest Artisan in the world if I didn't have the memory to at least memorize all the mannerisms of all the people I've met."