Harry, it turned out, wasn't the only one interested in the barrier, or in how to get it down. Kvothe had been to it several times as well, trying all different sorts of different variants of sympathy in an attempt to shatter the wall that trapped them in this town. And he was here this morning, doing the same, although to this point all of his attempts had been entirely in vain.
He was making his way back to town, defeated again, when he heard footsteps. He had encountered people out this way before, but it was a rare occurrence. People in the town seemed to believe that if they just stayed clear of the barrier, they could pretend it didn't exist; a rather provincial and small-minded attitude, in Kvothe's mind.
He was rather surprised with the height of the man who approached - he was certainly more than a whole foot taller than Kvothe himself. But his face looked familiar, if anything could look familiar after seeing it on those tiny devices. It was Mr. Dresden, the wizard, so he called himself. He had spoken to him several times, and found him one of the less annoying people in this place, so he stopped beside the side of the road as he approached.
"Mr. Dresden," he called, bowing dramatically. "I must defer to your greater skill in this matter, for I have been entirely unable to get a reaction from the barrier at all."