Let's keep it simple

The magician Gerald opened his eyes as he woke up from the coma. It took a short time for his mind to clear.

The first thing he noticed after that was the incredible pain in his back, where Koal had plunged the knife. Gerald tried to calm himself and surveyed his surroundings.

He seemed to be tied to an uncomfortable chair. His hands were bound behind his back, but they were also enclosed in iron gloves, rendering any use of magic impossible. As long as he couldn't move his hands, he couldn't use magic.

Although it was pitch dark in the room, he could be sure by the musty smell that he was in a cellar or something of the sort.

It took a while for his eyes to adjust to the environment. As far as he could tell, there was furniture in the room except for his chair. There was nothing nearby that could help him in any way. Gerald's heart sank. How would he escape from this situation?

After some time, he heard heavy footsteps coming down the stairs from outside. Gerald focused his gaze on the door as Koal entered. Dim light spilled from the hallway behind the door, but Koal almost filled the entire doorway.

He stood in the shadows, and Gerald could barely make out his face. There was nothing left of the otherwise friendly and cheerful man. His eyes flashed, and Koal smiled weakly. He stared directly into Gerald's eyes and remained silent as if waiting for something. Gerald didn't want to wait.

"Sir Koal, what does this mean? If you release me now, we can talk man to man. I'm sure..." Gerald began.

"Silence!" Koal suddenly hissed.

"Oh, great Lord Magician, don't play dumb! You know perfectly well why you're down here!"

Gerald grimaced. "I don't know what you..."

A heavy blow struck him in the stomach, knocking the air out of him.

Koal stepped back and shook his hand. "Your theatrics don't matter, my... good old friend." Koal practically spat out the last words.

"You know exactly why you're in this cellar. But perhaps I can help your memory. Do you remember my daughter's Affinity examination? You were so 'kind' to perform it without payment."

Gerald froze. "What..."

"And then you were even kind enough to suggest this great camp to me. You visited me every month. Truly a true friend of this family, right?"

"I did everything I..."

Koal struck him with great force across the face. Gerald spat out two teeth. He saw stars.

Koal rubbed his hand. "Ouch..." Then he turned his gaze to Gerald, who seemed to be passing out, "Oh no, you stay awake. We're not done, my friend."

Koal lifted his chin and slapped him on the cheek. The darkness faded, and Gerald regained full consciousness.

"You were a true friend to my family," Koal continued, laughing as he straightened up, "if we ignore all the lies. If we ignore that you falsified my daughter's Affinity test. If we ignore that all you wanted was to use her for your sick experiment. To abuse her as a resource for God knows what! If we ignore all that and much more, then you were a true friend of this family."

Gerald flinched. "How do you know about it?"

Koal laughed, "I absolutely won't reveal that to you."

Gerald knew that denying it any longer was pointless. His mask fell from his face, and the concerned and confused expression turned cold and relentless.

"Oh Koal, so you finally figured it out? It was about time."

Koal laughed again. "Finally? It was about time? I've known about it for a good eight years, my dear friend. I just needed to wait for the right moment. It all went according to plan. Of course, you, the great and powerful magician, would never have expected a lowly creature like me to hurt you, let alone be capable of it."

Gerald stared at him angrily. "You will pay. They will hunt you, torture you, and then gut you like a pig."

Koal's laughter froze. He leaned forward and struck Gerald in the face.

"Well, Gerald?" He hit him again. Gerald tasted blood filling his mouth. "How does it feel to be beaten by a 'lowly creature'? Don't you want to fight back?" Koal asked and struck him again in the face.

Gerald spat out teeth once again. "You will..." he started to say.

Another fist struck him in the face.

"Don't you threaten me," Koal scolded. "We're all friends here, aren't we?"

Koal drew back his fist and slammed it into Gerald's face. Again and again, he relentlessly beat Gerald until he lost consciousness, slipping back into unconsciousness.

When he next opened his eyes, Koal was gone, but Gerald's entire body bore the marks of his visit. Bruises and cuts covered him. Gerald never would have expected such strength from an old mortal.

Gerald groaned in pain and looked around. He flinched in shock as he noticed a person sitting in the corner of the room. Slowly, the figure stood up, and in the darkness, Gerald could barely make out Nero's frail form.

Gerald didn't utter a word; he simply observed as Nero's shadow moved through the room, lighting a small candle. Nero turned towards him, his gaze locking with Gerald's. The sight startled Gerald. In Nero's eyes, he saw incredible hatred, but also immense pain. Nero's eyes were lifeless, almost resembling those of a corpse.

"Hello, Gerald," he said with a trembling voice. "I see Koal has already paid you a visit. That makes things easier; I won't have to explain as much."

In response, Gerald only spat.

Nero shrugged. "Let's make this quick. Gerald, I know what you had planned for me. Koal explained everything. I don't know what this artifact is supposed to be, but it must be something important if you've been working on it for so long. Koal was kind enough to grant me...a little "visit" to punish you, but let me make it clear—I'm not here to punish you."

Gerald stared at him directly. "Then why are you here?" he asked, confused.

"It's simple," Nero said, his voice faltering. "I want you to help me become a magician!"

Gerald burst into laughter. "Why would I ever help you?"

Nero remained silent, waiting for Gerald to continue. He knew what was coming next.

As expected, Gerald spoke again, "But I will help you if you help me escape from here. I promise you, once you get me out of here, I will make you one of the most powerful magicians!"

Nero remained silent for a while. "No," he finally said. "I know you're just a very weak magician, and I don't give a damn about your promise. Let's do it differently."

Nero unrolled a small leather pouch on the floor, revealing several tools. "I will ask you a question, and for every second you don't answer, I will inflict some kind of pain on you."

Gerald narrowed his eyes and looked at Nero. "You think I'll reveal the secrets of magic to you just because of torture? Never!"

Nero smiled slightly. "You know, I'm in excruciating pain. I don't know why, but it's almost unbearable. It gets stronger with every passing minute, driving me to the brink of madness. But I know from a reliable source that a magician's body is much more resistant, and the only thing standing between me and the end of this pain is you. So, I ask for your understanding. I'm a bit impatient. Besides, this is the first time I'm torturing with tools. Now that everything has been stated, let's get started."

Nero pondered for a moment and picked up a rusty knife. "Let's keep it simple, Gerald. So first question: how can I become a magician?" Nero asked.

But Gerald remained silent, saying nothing. Nero shrugged and took off Gerald's shoes.

"What are you doing?" asked Gerald, starting to squirm. Nero didn't answer; he simply grabbed the knife and placed it against Gerald's big toe.

"Last chance," Nero said, looking up at Gerald, but he continued to remain silent. Nero waited for only two more seconds before slashing the knife across the toe. Gerald flinched.

Nero frowned and looked at the foot. He had only made a small cut. Nero sighed. "Such a stupid mistake," he muttered and placed the knife back to the toe. Then he started using the knife as a saw.

Surprisingly, Gerald managed to hold himself together for a while, but then he began screaming at the top of his lungs. He screamed and screamed, and finally, Nero finished, and Gerald's big toe fell to the ground with a sickening sound.

Gerald gasped and sweated but had no time to catch his breath because Nero was already moving to the next toe.

"Please, no..." Gerald gasped, but Nero didn't hesitate.