Old Malik

Table of Contents

Old Malik is one of the best rune master scholars in the empire. He lives in Quanahr and is the unofficial leader of the building tower where Hélène and Julie live and an absolute proponent of all rivalries surrounding the neighbouring wall painting competition.

Background

Character: Malik is an old man with refined manner and extensive culture and intelligence. Unsurprisingly, he's also more than a bit arrogant. That has made him absolutely ferociously competitive, whether in the workplace or in his free time, such as with the neighbourhood wall painting competition.
Family and job: He belongs to an old local elite family of moderate wealth and with strong regional ties. Contrary to the rest of them, he's not chosen to involve himself deeply in politics and has instead turned his attention to magic itself. He's an expert mathematician working on pushing the limits of runic diagrams in organic magitech.
Work rivals: He has a fierce rivalry with some scholars from the capital who disdain him from living in a "back water region", but Malik refuses to move over there or to any other trendier regions to get more career opportunities.

Building 9A Rune

Leader: Malik is the non-official leader of Building 9A Rune in Quanahr. He's taken great pain to organise the building and to veto all of its inhabitants to build a community of expert mages. The resulting gathering of all this education, skills and money has ensured that it has become one of the most luxurious buildings in the city and even region, and certainly the one with the best community.
Private rivals: Malik most loathed rivals are the leaders of Building 3B Lotus. Both buildings get into very heated competition at every opportunity, and their show down during neighbouring wall painting competition are legendary in the region. Malik has led Building 9A Rune to victory for 5 years in a row and he intends to keep up this streak.
Julie: Malik has been very open-minded and has accepted Julie in the building despite her inheriting the imperial curse from her parents and everyone's else in the building protesting this decision. Julie's skills with glass blowing and magic and her quiet determination convinced him that she would be a valuable addition to their art group and help them win the wall painting competition.
Hélène: Malik gets on well with Hélène and particularly appreciates her exemplary manners and culture. It's clear to him that she's also from an elite imperial family despite her unknown family name; his current hypothesis is that she's an illegitimate child.

Hélène stepped cautiously deeper inside Old Malik's apartment, following his voice to find him at the bay window of his living room, overlooking Quanahr.
She stepped by his side, her eyes flinting outside before settling on her face,only to do a double take and swirl back towards the window.
Those damn Lotuses!
"You understand our dilemma," Malik stated softly besides her.
Hélène pinched her lips as her eyes roved over one of the buildings opposite them. It had been entirely painted pitch black, and strange shapes were shimmering in the darkness with faint bioluminescence, moving in and out of sight. And among all of this, one small eery light was catching all attention.
They waited in silence for long minutes before the painting looped back and one of the fish ventured near the light. Immediately, enormous sharp teeth set in a horrid face appeared under the light and snatched it up. In the seconds during which the prey had been illuminated, it had been clear that it was not mere fish but a long snake. Obviously mean to be the dragon of 9A Rune...
3B Lotus was Malik's nemesis, but there was only so much time one could spend in the company of such strong feelings without inadvertently absorbing them. And there was no denying the Lotuses' taunting when coming up with this...
Hélène turned back towards Malik. "We need a plan."

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Related articles

Hélène

Relationships Hélène's family · Friends (Julie, Hélène's friend, Old Malik) · Soulmates (The Emperor and his soulmates) Work Enchanting · Overview of the professions in the Empire · Runic diagrams · Fixed wards, clothes wards, and portable wards Problems Soulmates · The Sannian kidnapping announcement · The imperial curse—the ultimate judgment on traitors · Winners of the neighbourhood wall painting competition Locations Geography of the Empire of Arboise · Ilara—Hélène's home region · Quanahr—Hélène's town · Arboise—Capital of the Empire · The imperial palace · The emperor's quarters