Klein threw the book at the goose almost on reflex. He regretted it the second the book left his hand. He hadn’t wished to do it, and he certainly didn’t wish to be the aggressor when fighting a murderous goose.

  The book flew through the air in slow motion, and Klein almost thought this was the feeling of time slowing down before a fight often mentioned in novels, until he realised that the book actually moved slowly.

  The book flew through the air calmly, as if guided by a stray hand, and landed perfectly well just beside the goose, who chose to use it as a platform to increase his height by another 5 or so centimeters.

  It honked at him, and this time it glowed. It was that familiar crimson-pink glow that he saw a few days ago. Klein instantly readied himself, his skill increasing the density and hardness of the book in his hand until it unfortunately slipped from his hand and landed directly on his foot.

  Ouch ouch fuck! It’s the damn bird!

  Klein glared at the goose who seemed to smirk at his misfortune and then it started walking. Klein stood there for a second massaging his foot as he watched the duck of a bird strut past him. Noticing he wasn’t following it, it turned back, honked at him, and walked again.

  Does it… want me to follow it?

  The notion felt preposterous for a second, and then amusing the second. The pain brought him back into the reality that this wasn’t just a random goose. It could wield powers. Luck powers, if he was understanding everything that had happened until now correctly.

  He decided to follow it from a distance and stay careful. He picked the books with some easy mana shaping–only made a touch difficult by the weight and high density of one of the books–and started following it.

  It was taking him to the dorms, he realised. The realisation came with another question of how the bird had actually gotten on the campus? It wasn’t that anyone can simply walk in without a proof of self or any identifications. The whole academy was encased in many high level wards, meant to protect the students in case of any attacks on the city or the academy itself.

  He continued to follow the goose. Through the dorm entrances, through the hallways, and into his room. Along the way, no one seemed to have noticed the duck. No wards detected it, and no faculty came to question his suspicious goose.

  As he closed the door behind him, he saw it fly up to his bed where it took some time finding the perfect spot for itself to sit. Klein sighed, put away the books on the desk, took a chair for himself, and sat facing the goose.

  A contest of eye-staring began, man and goose trying to overpower each other into finally speaking up.

  In the end, it was the goose who was reasonable enough to see the futility of this silly competition and broke the contest. Klein beamed with pride. He finally moved on to the more important questions in hand.

  “What brings you here? Are you here to kill me? How did you even enter the campus? Are you intelligent?”

  The goose honked at him in its own version of language, one that Klein substantially failed at understanding. Frustrated, the bird used its powers again, glowing pink and crimson, and in that moment somehow dust entered through the window in his room and settled on the desk in a neat calligraphy understandable to him, “I know. Dust throw with question.”

  Klein stared at the writing for a few seconds, his emotions at this form of noble conversation were completely foreign to him. Even though he had known about magic and magical beasts all his life, he had pictured them strong and fearsome like dragons and what not.

  But to think.

  He sighed and sweeped the dust in his palm through mana shaping. Perhaps a more skilled person would’ve been able to pick every dust particle individually, he couldn’t help but compare himself to that person.

  “What do you want from me?” He threw the dust on the desk again, where in some lucky coincidence, it scattered exactly into another answer, “Help.”

  “Do you want my help, or do you want to help me?” Throws dust again.

  “‘Both.”

  “Why? What kind of help would I need? And why come to me?”

  “Black robes after.”

  “Black robes? The ones you were with earlier? They are after you?”

  “You and me.” Klein forgot to sweep the dust at that moment. He stared at the words, and then at the bird for any hint of deception. Granted he wasn’t that great at reading goose facial expressions, he still understood enough that it wasn’t lying to him. Those people were really after him.

  “Why me?” He threw the dust more intently this time, as if some divine revelation would fall out of it and explain how this was all a big joke or that he was sleeping or some shit. It didn’t happen. The words formed again,

  “You ate the piece.”

  They want the system piece?

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  It made sense almost instantly. Almost everything. Why they ran into them in the first place. Why everything else seemed to have been so easy, as if no other adventurers bothered to clean up the place. Maybe there were more members in that group, and the others were gone for a while. It didn’t matter anymore. He had killed a member of theirs, and stolen something they wanted.

  They were all Stiffers too,

  For any Stiffer who has gone through this once, they’d understand the irresistible temptation behind it. Klein understood it very much. It had only been one day since he woke up, and he was already over the moon with his improvements. Life felt a little better. Like he was actually worth something more than just being able to create shitty blankets.

  “How did they know about the system piece? Why do they want it?”

  “They know. I help find. No.”

  “You can find the system pieces? And what do you mean by no? You don’t know? Or you won’t tell me?”

  “Yes. Don’t know.”

  “Why are they after you then? Are they after Carell and Anne too?”

  “I escape, thank you. Don’t know.”

  “You escaped from them? You were under their control? How did I help in the escape?”

  “Kill controller. I escape.” Klein’s mind travelled to the scene of the fight. He remembered seeing it with a sort of collar around its neck, and hadn’t thought much of it back then. But looking at it now, it was obvious. The goose always followed the guy he killed. After killed him, he never found it at all.

  Maybe it fled using the same trick he used where people can’t see him?

  That was a crazy power, he thought, before returning to the rest of the more diabolical information that was revealed within this conversation. People were coming after him.

  Enemies were coming after him. After. Him.

  This has to be the most hilarious thing I’ve heard till now.

  Klein almost felt like laughing. Like one of those classic villains shown in the dramas. Only if he had a moustache, he could’ve perfected the look.

  When the amusement of the notion faded away, it left him with a cold certainty that his life might actually be in danger right now. And unlike the last time when he had help, and only two enemies to deal with, the people this time would come specifically for him, and they’d be numerous.

  They could come at him any time. Anywhere. What if they sneaked in while he was sleeping and killed him? Take away his everything and leave him to beg once again?

  Klein gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He can’t let that happen. He wouldn’t let that happen. He has defeated them once, he can defeat them again.

  Why can’t I just sit back and enjoy my business? Am I not allowed to have even that bit of peace in my life?

  But indeed, peace was never an option for the poor. They don’t get to sit back and relax, and wait for the world to turn a new leaf just for them. It has always been the hardworking and oftentimes lucky ones, who get anywhere. Who finally gets the peace that they so desperately wish for.

  I’ll get it too. You can’t snatch it away from me.

  He looked back at the goose, who looked content to sit there and enjoy contemplating ways to save themselves.

  Joining hands with it seems to be the best option. It’s a skilled luck mage. Maybe I can find more system pieces with its help? If I want to survive the attack coming my way, I’d probably need it.

  “I have a question. Why did you get free when I killed that guy? Wasn’t he a fire mage who can only throw fire spears? How could killing him actually free you?” Unless the guy had also used the system piece and awakened another skill? How could he have fire mage skill and a beast taming skill? How does this all work? Does the system choose randomly from the whole base of what it had earlier, and then give one?

  “He is the controller. You free me.” The dust spelled, and Klein stood there in contemplation.

  “Did he absorb a piece of the system too? You led him to it?” Klein threw the dust again. The gesture was starting to grow on him.

  “No. He not eat piece. Own ability.”

  “So he was not a Stiffer?”

  “He was.”

  “Then how the hell does this all make sense? How could he have two skills without absorbing a piece of the system?”

  “Own ability.” The words spelled again, and Klein was getting frustrated. What does it mean? Isn’t own ability just a magical skill or spell Stiffers like them were born with?

  “Leave it for now. How do you know about the attack anyway? And how close are they to us?” He asked.

  “Left. Probabilities tell me. Not close. Far.”

  “Probabilities? Is it a luck mage thing?”

  “Yes.” Klein didn’t ask after that.

  Okay, so the enemies are still farther away. It means that I have the time and means to deal with this threat before it gets to me. But first, I need some allies.

  “Do you want to establish a profit based partnership until this threat is over our heads?” Klein offered, and let the words fall on the table again.

  “Yes.”

  Yes! Now who else do I enlist? Klein realised that most of his friends must have chosen to go home in this period of vacation. He was left here alone, because he had no place to go.

  What has life come to be that my only ally is a magic duck.

  Klein took a deep breath.

  “If we are to get through this all, then I need to become strong. We need to become strong. As you know, I am a Stiffer, and I can’t possibly grow stronger like normal mages. The only way for me is through absorbing those pieces you guys were protecting. Can you help me find more of those?” He asked, hopeful beyond hopeful as he watched the dust move towards the destined words.

  “Yes. I know.”

  “You know where they are kept?” He asked, shocked. He thought he had found a treasure detector, but maybe he had come upon a whole treasure map.

  “Yes. I found them. With black ones. Guarded.”

  Of course!

  Klein felt a mix of excitement and a great weight at the same time. On one hand, he might get things more than he thought he ever would, on the other hand it felt like life had suddenly become way too fast and dangerous.

  He had gone toiling around retailers to take his product, to planning attacks on bases protected by probably trained adults. Perhaps even proper mages. Yet, if he overcame all of this somehow, then maybe he’d finally have the peace he so desired.

  You can’t snatch it from me.

  #