Changes at the Orphanage

After leaving Roydes, Bulei had remained very quiet.

It was not until Angel began rising from the seabed that Bulei spoke for the first time. "Sixty years ago, Master saw someone selling a wild Mether at an exchange gathering in the City of Truth. Master wanted to spend every last coin to buy it, but in the end, the price was simply too high, and he could not afford it. I remember that it was eventually bought by someone from the Council of True Knowledge."

"So I am truly curious—how could you afford a Mether?"

Bulei did not stop there, continuing with its doubts. "And just now, I noticed something else. Captain Beers of Ashen Time seemed to hold you in special regard. Even when Master came last time, he was not nearly so easy to talk to. Why was that?"

Angel's attention was now wholly focused on the pitch-black surroundings. He was guarding against a possible ambush, so he only gave Bulei a simple answer. "The answer to the first question is that I happened to have that many magic crystals. As for the second, I do not know either."

Bulei dearly wanted to continue asking: Where did your magic crystals come from? How could a mere apprentice possess so many magic crystals?

But it knew that likely involved Angel's privacy. It was not in any position to ask, so it could only press its doubts down for the time being.

All the way until they left the bounds of the Sina Trench, Angel did not encounter anyone attempting to intercept him. This left him somewhat puzzled. Those buyers had clearly harbored ill intent toward him at the time, so why had not a single one of them made a move?

Still, it was good that no one had