Chapter 24: The Runeology Department

  The guesthouse was very small and plain, only containing a small single bed, a desk, and a chair. As Damon got settled into the room, he thought about his entire interaction with Claire. She was undoubtedly an interesting girl, but one he would prefer to stay away from. During his thoughts, he suddenly remembered the letter of recommendation he had received from Igor. Due to the excessive enthusiasm and vivacity displayed by Claire, he had completely forgotten to give it to her. In the end, it was unnecessary, but he still felt a bit frustrated at himself for getting pulled into her momentum and becoming distracted too easily.

  Damon soon calmed his mind down and regained his tranquility, preparing himself for his daily cultivation before calling it a day. After completing the cycle for both paths, he discovered something peculiar.

  “The concentration of mental energy in the atmospheric essence has remained consistent, no matter where I practiced the Sutra. However, the amount of arcane energy I absorb is far greater within this academy than anywhere else I’ve been. Even if the surroundings have nothing to do with the fire element, there is a substantial increase in all elemental motes. Cultivating here will increase the rate of my progress by at least two-fold.”

  Damon pondered the reason for a while before speculating on the cause. He believed that either the Assembly had forcibly drawn in the surrounding arcane energy and concentrated it on the city, or the city was established at a location with naturally high levels of arcane energy. After coming to this conclusion, he retired for the evening.

  At dawn the next day, a Channel Weaving Disciple from the Runeology department had personally arrived to guide him. He was a friendly-looking old man with a bald head, but a long white beard. He was slightly hunched and carried a walking stick, even though he moved by flight. He was wearing black robes with verdant lining. His collars and sleeves had the drawings of several runes indicating his department.

  “Greetings, young man. You must be Damon Fletcher, yes? My name is Levi Moore. From today onwards, I will be just a senior apprentice to you. Here at the academy, your status is dependent on your contributions and skills, rather than your realm. Of course, while it does matter, we share knowledge, attend classes, and research together regardless of cultivation level. This applies to all departments except for one. Combat. In combat, your strength correlates directly with your stage, so they have a hierarchy of strength over there.”

  The affable old man explained as he handed Damon a small bundle containing his academy robes and identity badge.

  “Greetings, Senior Levi. How do the majors and minors work in terms of departments and lessons?” asked the curious Damon as he accepted the bundle.

  “The department you enter is generally quite broad with many specialized fields of study. You can learn a bit of each instead of majoring in one. For the minor in combat, this is a requirement, as joining the academy means you can be conscripted into combat missions when required. They do not provide this environment just to expand their businesses; the Assembly is just as focused on battle strength as it is in commerce. Anyway, I will explain further once we get to our department block. Since you can’t use the flight spell, I’ll have to cast it on you temporarily. Are you okay with that?”

  Damon nodded in response and waited in keen anticipation. He had never flown through the skies before and was looking forward to it. Levi chanted the spell before casting it upon himself first and then on Damon. They slowly drifted up into the air. Levi patiently waited as Damon got used to the feeling of flight. Although he did not cast the spell, he could control his direction and speed himself by channeling his own arcane power. After a bit of flying back and forth, Damon quickly got the hang of it and flew over to where Levi was waiting.

  “Ho, ho! Not bad for a first timer! Now, see if you can follow me. The spell should last around half an hour. It should be more than enough to get to our destination.”

  Levi flew off, traveling much slower than if he had been alone. Damon trailed behind him, flying in an awkward and erratic manner. It seemed it would take a lot of practice to become good at maneuvering through the air. Although mainly focused on keeping up with Levi, Damon could now see the different areas of the Academy. Apart from the entrance hall and guesthouses, the area was filled with numerous other buildings. Most looked to be residential dormitories, but a few looked to be lecture theatres or buildings filled with study rooms.

  Damon could also see many students standing in open training grounds, practicing their spellcraft. All manner of brightly colored spells flew around in these designated areas. In some areas, he could see pavilions where groups of people sat around watching a demonstration. These ranged from potioncrafting to calligraphy, and even a forging event in one location. This Academy was definitely a mystical institute of learning.

  Eventually, they reached a large building covered in runes. Though they weren’t currently active, the runes made the building look mysterious and foreboding. They landed at the entrance of the building, where a few robed apprentices could be seen entering and leaving.

  “Oh? Senior Levi! Are you out of your research lab today? You barely leave that place, what could have made you come out for a stroll?” asked a passing student. Some of the other nearby students also stopped and came to join the conversation.

  “Senior Levi! Now that you’re here, I have a question for you regarding enchanting artifacts. Artifacts are usually three-dimensional, meaning there can be a curvature when engraving the runes. Will this affect the runes in any way?”

  “Senior Levi, Senior Austin from the Forging department was looking for you earlier. He was surprised to see your lab empty!”

  “Senior Levi, your last lecture on the material differences between engraving and inscription of runes was very informative. When will you hold another lecture for us juniors?”

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  The small group of apprentices suddenly grew into a large crowd around Levi. It seemed that Levi was quite favored among the students and was vastly knowledgeable in the field of Runeology.

  “Who’s this? He isn’t wearing the Academy robes. Is he a new recruit? Haven’t seen a newcomer in a while. Are you here to join the Runeology department? I recommend you turn tail and run away and join the Potioneering or Tinkering department instead. Runes are alluring, but they will do your head in after a while.”

  “Hey, Alistair! Stop trying to dissuade him! I went to the guesthouse to fetch this boy myself because he is a rare talent in Runeology. At his young age, he has already completely comprehended a rune! How many of you could do the same at his age?” shouted Levi in mock annoyance.

  The eyes of all the surrounding students turned at once to look at Damon. He suddenly felt like a caged beast being ogled by a group of buyers.

  “This boy is a rare talent? He’s just a teenager.”

  “Yeah, he barely looks old enough to start cultivating.”

  “How could he have already mastered a rune at his age?”

  “Although runes may seem simple on the surface, you must comprehend the fundamental principles behind them before you can infuse energy into them. Surely you mean to say he has just memorized the shape of the rune, Senior Levi?”

  The many students, varying in age and gender, could not believe the words Levi had spoken. If someone as young as Damon had mastered a rune, what did it make them, who were still struggling?

  “Nope, although he drew it out with normal ink and quill, it was perfect. You can’t draw like that without comprehending the rune to its core. We will give him some materials and test it to confirm, but I believe this young man can truly start engraving or inscribing that rune immediately with the right equipment and materials.” Levi looked at Damon with sparkling eyes as he responded to the crowd.

  Damon felt uncomfortable from all the attention and asked, “Senior Levi, could we please proceed with the orientation?”

  “Yes, yes. First, I’d like you to do a little test for me. Afterward, I will have someone guide you to your dorm room and explain the rest of what you need to know. Move aside, everyone. Get back to your tasks.”

  The surrounding apprentices all reluctantly dispersed, leaving just Damon and Levi.

  “Let us head in then.”

  A few minutes later, they were standing in a large hall, being used as an experimental chamber. Apart from Damon and Levi, one other Node Awakening Initiate and two additional Channel Weaving Disciples were also present. They also had many runes drawn on their robes. The number of runes seemed to indicate their proficiency with Runecraft.

  “These three fellow apprentices are also senior apprentices of the Runeology department. They are very knowledgeable with runes and will also be observing your little test alongside me. They are James Baldwin, Olivia Hayes, and Skylar Brooks.”

  Damon greeted each one with a smile and a polite nod. James Baldwin was a tall, dark-skinned, middle-aged man with short gray hair and beard. Olivia Hayes was a pale middle-aged woman with average features and long black hair. Skylar Brooks was a fair-skinned young man with an average build and delicate features. Along with his long lilac colored hair, he could be mistaken for a maiden.

  “Come, sit here at this desk. This parchment is made from the hide of a first-tier essence beast, the ink is made from a first-tier essence plant, and the quill is a low-grade first-tier artifact. These are the most basic materials needed to start inscribing runes. For engraving, you will need a chisel-type artifact instead. We just need you to channel your arcane power into the quill as you draw the rune you did yesterday. Remember to deliberate on your comprehension of the rune as you do so.”

  Damon sat down at the desk and inspected the quill. It looked like the feather of a bird-type essence beast had been encased in metal, with a pointed tip. After inspecting the materials, he calmed his breathing before starting to inscribe the rune. As the quill ran over the parchment, it left behind a shiny line, glowing with a red radiance. The rune he was currently drawing was ‘fire’, and therefore was imbued with flame energy. Thankfully, the arcane power required to draw such a rudimentary rune did not cause any additional pain or damage to his Arcane Node.

  After completing the rune, Damon let out a deep breath of air. As he did so, he noticed the same deep breath of air being let out by the four other individuals surrounding his desk. It seemed they had held their breath as well. They seem to be taking this very seriously. Perhaps mastering any runes perfectly at my age is more significant than I thought. If they knew I could copy all runes without any effort or comprehension, they would make too big a fuss. I can’t reveal everything right now, or I may attract unwanted attention. Grabbing just enough recognition to get me ahead on my path of cultivation is what matters most.

  “This rune… You must have studied fire for a long time to get such a high level of understanding. Though, you are still so young… Maybe your comprehensive ability is just that great?” Levi said in contemplation.

  “Damon, do you have any other runes you have proficiency in?” asked Olivia curiously.

  “How could he have proficiency in any other runes at his age? Mastering one rune is already impressive enough,” scoffed James.

  “Hahaha! James, you are just jealous because it took you over a decade to master your first rune, aren’t you?” Levi joked.

  “Senior Levi, it’s not good to joke about that! You know Senior James has a short fuse!” Skylar whispered in Levi’s ear.

  Damon quietly picked up the quill again and continued to draw some other runes, making sure to leave slight mistakes on them. As the others watched wide-eyed, sighing in both pity and amazement, James was brooding inwardly. This boy. His talent is too high. It is already annoying that we have Skylar as a Senior Apprentice in the Runeology department, but for a completely new recruit at the early stage Node Awakening realm to show such remarkable results… This won’t do.

  Damon quickly finished drawing five more runes. With this, they had confirmed Damon’s talent in Runecraft without a doubt. He had displayed proficiency in multiple runes on top of his already mastered fire rune. Even if not quite a freak of nature, they had still picked up a genius. The four Runemasters were too focused on the runes or their own thoughts to realize Damon had drawn these without the assistance of an arcane sight ability. Their assessment of Damon’s talent may have increased drastically had they known.

  James, however, was beginning to feel increasingly jealous toward this new apprentice. Damon was still just a teenager, yet he had accomplished feats in Runeology that had taken him more than a decade. As the resentment began to settle deep in James’s heart, he had a thought. Surely this boy has some sort of secret… A secret method to comprehend runes at an astonishing speed. A cold glint flashed past his eyes.

  Academy arc!