CHAPTER FIFTY Negotiations

Kvothe describes Imre’s affluent arts scene and its uneasy rivalry with the University. He avoids Imre because hearing music without playing is agony, likening the feeling to addiction. Pressed by tuition, he decides to seek a gaelet there.

Kvothe visits Devi, expecting a thug but finding a young, confident former Re’lar. Devi sets nonnegotiable terms: minimum four talents, fifty percent interest per term, and blood as collateral. She explains blood lets her find him—and deters default. Alarmed by the risks, Kvothe refuses and leaves.

While pacing Imre, Kvothe spots a seven-string lute in a pawnshop. Overcome by need for music, he haggles hard and buys the ugly instrument for two talents and three jots, spending most of his tuition savings. The purchase makes his financial bind acute.

Compelled by necessity and desire to protect the lute, Kvothe returns to Devi and agrees to the four-talent loan. He provides three drops of blood, sealed in a numbered vial with wax and his thumbprint. Devi issues a note redeemable at moneylenders on either side of the river.

Kvothe heads back to the University with tuition secured and a lute on his shoulder. He accepts the burden of debt and risk in exchange for time in his studies and the return of his music.