Free The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss Page B

her
soul: wild as a fire, sharp as shattered glass, sweet and clean as clover.”
    Kvothe shook his head. “No. It began at the
University. I went to learn magic of the sort they talk about in stories. Magic
like Taborlin the Great. I wanted to learn the name of the wind. I wanted fire
and lightning. I wanted answers to ten thousand questions and access to their
archives. But what I found at the University was much different than a story,
and I was much dismayed.
    “But I expect the true beginning lies in what led
me to the University. Unexpected fires at twilight. A man with eyes like ice at
the bottom of a well. The smell of blood and burning hair. The Chandrian.” He
nodded to himself. “Yes. I suppose that is where it all begins. This is, in
many ways, a story about the Chandrian.”
    Kvothe shook his head, as if to free himself from
some dark thought. “But I suppose I must go even further back than that. If
this is to be something resembling my book of deeds, I can spare the time. It
will be worth it if I am remembered, if not flatteringly, then at least with
some small amount of accuracy.
    “But what would my father say if he heard me
telling a story this way? ‘Begin at the beginning.’ Very well, if we are to
have a telling, let’s make it a proper one.”
    Kvothe sat forward in his chair.
    “In the beginning, as far as I know, the world was
spun out of the nameless void by Aleph, who gave everything a name. Or,
depending on the version of the tale, found the names all things already
possessed.”
    Chronicler let slip a small laugh, though he did
not look up from his page or pause in his writing.
    Kvothe continued, smiling himself. “I see you
laugh. Very well, for simplicity’s sake, let us assume I am the center of
creation. In doing this, let us pass over innumerable boring stories: the rise
and fall of empires, sagas of heroism, ballads of tragic love. Let us hurry
forward to the only tale of any real importance.” His smile broadened. “Mine.”
     
    My name is Kvothe, pronounced nearly the same as
“Quothe.” Names are important as they tell you a great deal about a person.
I’ve had more names than anyone has a right to.
    The Adem call me Maedre. Which, depending on how
it’s spoken, can mean “The Flame,” “The Thunder,” or “The Broken Tree.”
    “The Flame” is obvious if you’ve ever seen me. I
have red hair, bright. If I had been born a couple hundred years ago I would
probably have been burned as a demon. I keep it short but it’s unruly. When
left to its own devices, it sticks up and makes me look as if I have been set
afire.
    “The Thunder” I attribute to a strong baritone and
a great deal of stage training at an early age.
    I’ve never thought of “The Broken Tree” as very
significant. Although in retrospect I suppose it could be considered at least
partially prophetic.
    My first mentor called me E’lir because I was
clever and I knew it. My first real lover called me Dulator because she liked
the sound of it. I have been called Shadicar, Lightfinger, and Six-String. I
have been called Kvothe the Bloodless, Kvothe the Arcane, and Kvothe
Kingkiller. I have earned those names. Bought and paid for them.
    But I was brought up as Kvothe. My father once told
me it meant “to know.”
    I have, of course, been called many other things.
Most of them uncouth, although very few were unearned.
    I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow
kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian
and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at
a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that
others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and
written songs that make the minstrels weep.
    You may have heard of me.

CHAPTER EIGHT
    Thieves,
Heretics, and Whores
    I F
THIS STORY IS to be something resembling my book of deeds, we must begin at the
beginning. At the heart of