The place here looked like a meeting hall in the middle of a very vast palace, its walls were golden colored decorated with crimson red lines, as for the ceiling it carried a huge chandelier made of pure gold.
On the red mosaic floor there is a huge table comprising about fifty chairs, but the attendees in it in general were only five people.
They wear luxurious purple clothes.
(The purple color in that era was expensive and difficult to obtain, therefore it symbolized the bourgeoisie and the wealthy and kings)
But this hall is not for the king, rather it is merely the palace of the young sorcerer Laith.
Everyone agrees that Laith is the best businessman in his generation among the sorcerers.
He was sitting in the main seat wearing a ceremonial robe in purple color and holding a cup of fine wine, took a sip from it and said: «Let us wait for Arkan and his allies then we start the meeting».
Next to Laith on the left sits in luxury the head of the sorcerers' guild... it was a great position among the high officials, his job defending the interests of official sorcerers before the authority of the kingdom, and his name is Chodo.
Next to the head of the Babylonian sorcerers' guild there is a person who looks more annoyed by Arkan's delay than the rest, he was almost completely bald old man and his face full of wrinkles... people call him old Ribeiro, and he is the tax official in the city of Babylon.
«O Laith O colleague, I appreciate your appreciation for the importance of Arkan's presence, but you can start the meeting and when he arrives he will catch up and continue with us».
This man who was next to Laith on the right, looked in middle age, and like the others a high official at the level of the city of Babylon where he works as a judge on farming matters, as for his name it is Salim.
The sun set.
One of the attendees who was sitting at the far right of Laith asked: «When will your friend and his allies come, he has delayed unbearably».
«I don't know when he will come O virtuous sir, but if he does not arrive after a quarter of an hour.....»
«Gossip is bad O colleagues».
Arkan arrived finally.
All the attendees rejoiced, for finally this atmosphere of boredom and gloom will disappear.
Except Laith who did not hide the frown from his face.
Arkan noticed this clearly: «Laith, it seems you won the challenge».
Everyone plunged into a pit of confusion... are these two newcomers challenging each other in the presence of the head of taxes and a judge and the head of the guild?
What disrespect this is.
«Hahaha, Arkan, I crushed you here, with you only the head of the sorcerers' school while I managed to convince all these big brothers».
Laith continued: «O my friend, you must pay us ten thousand dirhams for each one as compensation for waiting for you all this time».
Arkan and the head of the sorcerers' school advanced toward the round table and sat.
Old Ribeiro abandoned his silence but was not kind: «Arkan, since when have you not paid your taxes».
«Sorry sir, I am suffering from financial problems, when I am able I will definitely pay the taxes».
Arkan is a cheerful man, but in serious matters he transforms in a parallel way.
In fact it was strange to find Laith and Arkan sons of the same generation and same age, one of them adorns his palace with golden chandeliers while the other suffers with mere taxes.
The head of the sorcerers' school stood in an official manner: «May I know what this challenge is O colleagues?»
Laith, since he was the host, had to answer: «Collecting the largest number of supporters for us in our case that we will raise to the court regarding Mater and the Eclipse Cave gang».
Everyone burst out laughing: «Ahahahaha, so that's it, you are competing over who of you has greater influence».
It turned out that it is Laith.
«Arkan, try harder next time».
In an unconscious way old Ribeiro and Chodo and Salim did not feel that they were mocking Arkan.
When the director of the sorcerers' school noticed what was happening he could not remain silent: «The matter is only that I sent Arkan to a farm on the borders of the city of Ur, it had been attacked by an ifrit».
Here spoke the fourth man whom Laith had brought: «And what happened, how did the matter end?»
«They all died».