In the castle of the School of Sorcery, a disappearance was discovered after roll call. The most unruly student, Maron, was missing. After searching his room, they found that he had taken a notebook of spells and an alchemical kit for casting enchantments.
Him again?! shouted the headmaster in displeasure.
Please don't worry, please don't worry, rushed Grinalda, the deputy head, who had brought the bad news.
The headmaster frowned. His gaze bored into the deputy like a drill. She was a kind, plump woman of advanced years.
I warned you that people like him could never live side by side with us, the sorcerers. His place is swinging a club on the battlefield, not seeking the truth of existence.
Don't jump to conclusions. You know his tragic history. This is all just adolescent foolishness, the deputy pleaded.
I'm tired of beating my head against a wall. Levns will never learn humility, and that is the most important thing in the study of magic, the headmaster reflected, gazing out the window.
Levns, humans, and mages had for ages lived each in their own way, never interfering in one another's affairs. But invaders who arrived one day from across the sea upended the usual course of events. All of them were forced to unite to defeat the Drevni, a people who were very cruel and greedy.
The Drevni were a failed experiment of the druids. The druids promised a warlike human tribe invulnerability and strength through spells, but they cheated and laid a curse of bark skin upon them.
According to their plan, the warriors were supposed to turn into trees overnight, but something went wrong. The people grew bark, and their hands became gnarled roots. With these roots the Drevni destroyed the druids and set out to conquer other lands, because they could no longer accept any other way of life.
But let us return to the School of Magic. There, preparations were in full swing for the search for the naughty student. The headmaster personally decided to find the runaway and publicly expel him from the school. And, no less important, to confiscate the alchemical kit.
Why do you go searching yourself? Senior students can handle this perfectly well, the deputy said anxiously.
You won't fool me this time, Grinalda! I remember how last time, when he ran away, you hid that little scamp in the stables for a week. You waited until I cooled down and melted my heart with the story of how he was found as a baby on a battlefield, all alone...
The headmaster fell silent, and his gaze filled with sadness. But a minute later he continued in the same stern voice:
This world is very cruel, and order can only be maintained through laws and unbreakable rules, which your beloved Levn does not value at all!
Grinalda wanted to object, but the headmaster cut her off sharply, as if slicing the air:
I have said all I have to say!
At sunrise, the headmaster and two senior students set out to search for Maron.
That they were heading in the right direction was confirmed by a fisherman they met, from whose river fish mysteriously leapt out and neatly stacked themselves onto his cart. With a single gesture, the headmaster lifted the spell Maron had cast and ended the fish parade.
The fish, coming to their senses, began to wriggle and jump back into the water. The fisherman shook his head quickly, looked at the travelers with a lost expression, and muttered to himself:
I must be imagining things. I should go sit in the shade.
The headmaster and the students continued on their way. When they had moved away from the fisherman, one of the students asked:
Honorable headmaster, why didn't you leave the catch for the fisherman? It was only a minor spell that won't bring anyone harm.
There is no such thing as a minor spell, the mage replied. Do you think nobody would notice that a poor fisherman suddenly has a year's supply of fish? I am certain his life will change drastically and not for the better. People will appear who don't like such a sudden windfall. In the end he will be accused of theft, because nobody would believe his story.
But how could you know how people will behave? Maybe they will start to respect him? the student asked, puzzled.
I have lived on this earth for two hundred years and I know people, the mage replied calmly.
Half a day passed after the meeting with the fisherman. The travelers entered a village and once again came across the runaway's trail. The local butcher refused to sell meat and kindly invited the villagers to taste his most delicious cabbage.
Could this situation bring someone grief? the student asked. This butcher is known throughout the whole district for his rudeness and foul temper.
Before answering, the headmaster lifted the spell from the butcher. Then he led the students aside and said:
You see only one side of the coin. I know this butcher has worked in his shop since childhood, and he buys his meat in the neighboring village. The road there is dangerous, with many bandits and thieves. They all know that it is best not to cross the butcher.
Imagine if the butcher were some kindly old grandfather. Everyone would love him, but not for long. At the first meeting with robbers, the good man would lose his goods, and perhaps his life. And the villagers would be left without meat. Our world is not black and white. It has many shades.
They walked on in silence, when suddenly the very same careless student the headmaster had been searching for jumped out at them. There was fear on the young man's face.
There, there... Maron tried to say something, stammering.
Calm down, said the mage sternly. Tell me clearly, what are you running from?
Having collected himself, Maron realized that before him stood the headmaster of the School of Magic. But he was not frightened; in fact, he sighed with relief.
It seems I have done something very bad. I wanted to dress the statues of the ancient ones in silly costumes so that people wouldn't be sad as they walked past, but... the runaway fell silent without finishing.
Tell me everything from the beginning, the headmaster calmly ordered.
I found a statue of an Drevni king, Maron began, and I wanted to dress him up as a jester with a simple spell, but something went wrong! The people who were passing by somehow got angry and chased after me with pitchforks and clubs.
You see, students, the headmaster began calmly, Maron gave in to his emotions. He thought he was doing nothing wrong and only wanted to entertain the people. But look at where his actions have led.
Remember that whoever holds power must learn to think with a cool head and make balanced decisions. Look at both sides of the coin. He did not consider that the statues stand on a battlefield where many people died, and that this is no place for jokes.
Maron had sat all this time with his head bowed, and tears ran down his cheeks. The headmaster approached him, sat down beside him, and spoke calmly but firmly:
Maron, I hope you have learned your lesson?
I have learned it, the mischief-maker said quietly.
Then chin up, and let's go fix your mistakes. I will talk with the people, and you will lift the spells from the statues. And then we will return to the school.
Can I really go back to the school? But I have caused so much trouble, what am I to do now? the student said sadly.
The headmaster looked at the student with a kind gaze and said quietly:
Looking at you, I too saw only one side of the coin. Before making a decision, it would not hurt to look at the other side as well.
