Simply Vanished

I had to speak with my grandpa first. Besides the deal with Peet's disguise, I had to talk with him about those Imperials and their plans. "Oh, Anna. Do come in. It's quite late, but do you need something?", he asked. "Grandpa, we need to talk", I said seriously. He wasn't sure why the serious attitude, but asked me to take a seat.

"I've learned something interesting today. Apparently, the Imperials are planning something big", "What do you mean? What's that about Imperials? Who told you that?", he asked, a bit confused. "Yea, you aren't involved in these plans. They meet without you, and I'm not sure why. Anyway, that wouldn't matter much to me, not normally. The problem is, their plans concern my North as well as the Elysian Empire", I explained.

"As to who told me that? Peet, the First Class student himself. He's not even allowed to know that, just happened to find out by a coincidence. Before you question his truthfulness, I don't have any doubts. He's much more truthful than that Henry, and others from the First Class", I added.

Grandpa reclined in his chair and heaved a sigh. "Tell me, how much did you find out? I'm talking about the Academy, not the so-called 'big plan', and yes, I wasn't aware of any plans", grandpa asked. That took a while, but I told grandpa everything there was to be said. He was a bit mad that the top floor Formation got handed to a student, but didn't really bash me over that.

"I'm not against him leaving. He is right, the Academy saw better days. My hands are mostly tied, I'm doing whatever's in my power, but there's not much. I'll help you with his disguise, but the bigger issue is their plan… There might be a few reasons why they don't involve me", he said.

"One of them could be a kind of lack of affiliation. Yes, I've been chosen as the headmaster, but I'm not a pawn for the families. Though the Imperials give me orders, and listening to them isn't optional, I'm not in their 'faction' if you will. The other reason, they know about me and the North. I've been there a few times, and they might be aware that your mother is my daughter. Basically, they know you are from the North", he added.

That second reason was worrying, but not a certainty. "I'll try to find out something, but you leave this matter alone from now. Don't poke your head any further, because we might get in real trouble. I'll have to notify your father too. If the situation is bad, we can't resolve it by ourselves. He'll need to step in… and he's more suited to find information than me", grandpa said and took out some sort of orb.

He broke it, then explained his actions. "Your father told me to break this in case I'd like to move… Or contact him. He should arrive in a few days, therefore don't do anything stupid, understood?", "I'm not a kid, grandpa. You don't have to repeat yourself a few times. Besides, we don't know what it is yet. They might have no clue about me, or the North", I replied.

"Perhaps, but I'm still worried. Alright, go get some rest, it's later already… Thank you for telling me everything as well", he added before wishing me a good night. I spoke with my friends about everything as well. They needed to be updated on our situation, and warned not to do something stupid, or reveal anything unnecessary.

Me and my friends behaved as usual for the next few days. Grandpa promised to help out with Peet's disguise, and that he did. I received some sort of flexible mask from him. He assured me no one would recognise Peet in that. He didn't mention anything about the plans or Imperials. Whether he found something out or not, was a mystery to me.

I didn't waste these few days either. The library's top floor had a few interesting auxiliary Formations. My plan was to memorize and then draw them for future reference. We could later modify and change these Formations, but the basic layout and Runes were important for the start.

Three days went by, but my father didn't arrive. Whether they were busy or he simply took his time, that was anyone's guess. Instead of worrying about that, me and Peet had to meet once more. He didn't have any other useful information for me, though advised to leave the city.

"I'm not sure what they are up to. Though they don't seem to be in a rush, perhaps you should leave the city just like me. That way, they can't really watch you guys", he proposed. "We'll probably leave soon anyway. Though there's nothing to worry about yet. How about you? When do you plan to leave?", I asked instead.

"Probably tonight, or the following day. With the disguise, I'll get a horse no problem, and just be on my way. The soldiers won't even realise a student left the city", he replied. "Where will you head?.. You don't have to answer, if you don't trust me. I'm asking because we might have a chance to meet in the future. I'd like to check your school and students out, hehe", I asked.

"No, I'll answer that. You could've sold me out a long time ago, there's no need for suspicion on my part anymore. I'm going towards the south… far south to be precise. There's a village called Rockyhill Village… or was. I'll find out once I'm there. Let me show you on the map…", he replied, then pointed out his destination.

Peet wasn't joking, his journey on a horse would take him a few good months. Though without any cities close by, he'd be pretty safe from the watchful eyes of the Academy or Imperials. "Great, I'll pay you a visit one day... I have a few auxiliary Formations from the top floor as well. You can have them if you want", I said.

"Sure, anything from the top floor is great. I'll take that gladly… You helped me out so much, I'm really grateful. Though this is probably the last time we meet, at least here. Be sure I'll repay your kindness if we ever meet again. It's time for me to leave now. Take care of yourself, and watch out", he replied then left.

Peet simply disappeared the following day. Henry and others only realised he was gone the day after that. They searched the city, and even asked people for the whereabouts of Peet. They asked me as well, but all they got from me was 'I don't know, haven't seen him since a few days back'. After three days of Peet's disappearance, they actually sent soldiers into the Great Forest. Ultimately, they found nothing.

Peet was clever, and he knew they'd search for him. Perhaps even notify other soldiers at other cities, but he wouldn't visit any. He planned to hones his skills in the wild, while slowly making way towards his final destination. As for us, my father didn't arrive even after six days. Grandpa cursed him a bit, but there was nothing to worry about yet.

Nonetheless, me and my friends decided to leave the Academy. Grandpa could notify my father all the same. Besides, just as Peet suggested, they couldn't watch us if we weren't inside Ortava. Grandpa was against the idea of me leaving, but there was no need for us to sit there really.

"Once he's here, just tell him we went to see the Imperial City… Don't worry, I'm not going to do anything stupid. We'll tour the city, and leave. We'll head towards Savala Town on our way back, he should be able to find us no problem", I assured him. "Haah… As stubborn as your father… and mother… I guess I'm stubborn as well. You want to check out that Falcon, eh? Alright, you can go, but no funny business. Once your father knows everything, I'll ask him to pick you up", he replied defeatedly.