At the end of every day, the library was always supposed to be my calm place, my home away from the budding belligerents of Cinderfall society. Our school was the juvenile version of court intrigue, where young Lady Sero Gero Bero of House Casper had to woo Lord Augustus Maximus Gilgamesh Thrustus, sixth of his name, from legendary House Heiglin. It was difficult enough trying to remember spells when a thousand epithets waited around every corner. And as I lingered on Roy's heavy-set dimples, I forgot how to relax.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZu2oviBK7r
"I just started Age of Magistry," he said jovially.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhjbQvd0VAh
"I thought you wanted help with Holy lessons?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwAHRrviquy
"I'm very skilled at neither." He lended me his textbook, Divine Mandate I, practically thrusting it into my arms.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3XxwIelRT6
And flipping open the hard cover, Miura's map flattened in front of my nose. From corner to corner, crooked borders and colored topography filled the margins. Note to self: I would hate to be a map maker. In this gigantic world, there are too many kings who play games with their crowns. The colors on this map could blend into each other at the drop of semen. Look. Caria lies to the north; the nation formerly infested with barbarians is home to a devout culture of chivalric heroes and oppression. But they give other knights a run for their damsels. Bordering them and the big rainbow of the Imperium, you’ll find principalities such as Roland, Suusemont, and Les Maigne. South, along the steppes, the tribes of the Fahrer fight and fuck each other constantly. East, across the vast and colorless archipelago, lie the Soleute, an exotic and mysterious seafaring people whose lands are mostly uncharted.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgLb70ypS8j
Amazingly, every region on the imperial map is home to some bizarre culture with its own magical affinity that follows its own set of rules. The Arcane manifests in strange ways from place to place. Curiously. Know one knows everything, but I know the nature of spells can shift beyond our comprehension. For example, in some rural backwaters, some people are born with the affinity to bend trees. It is uncanny magic, yes, but there is supposed to be a secret for every breath we take.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcS1k7KgBYP
So, with all the aforementioned knowledge on hand, I helped Roy fill his ignorance bubble for Age of Magistry. Much easier than filling his belly; and there was no harm in it, especially since it was one of my favorite subjects in the last semester.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDg43oXoziQ
"Have you started without me?" And there was Elise, tome tucked under her arm...
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7UhdYDuv8p
"You are late." I tried to sound strict and dignified; instead, I sounded like Priestess Serrina, which left me shivering.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhm9Ca3lTFz
"Yes," she smugly replied, grabbing the chair and sitting in a pretzel. "I'm here to halt your transformation into a prude before it's too late."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtGt6x1oGEb
"Hahaha... Haha... Ha."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6JY00YLOvO
One glance at me and she squinted. " Hold on. Something happened to you… today?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ094PISvcTt
I was confused and concerned. "Nothing pleasant?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQgKlqp61V8
“Recently?” Elise was already sitting very far forward, giving me a good, long once-over. Her sunny-side eyes would set fire to the drapes. I couldn’t hope to escape the angst of her scrutiny, which could combat Priestess Serrina in a stare-off contest.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxO2X72DCZF
"Yes, something happened," I admitted ruefully.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7XMzNTSFEX
"The priestess disciplined her for muttering curse words in class," Roy casually muttered.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCmJ0Q7Jrab
"Haha, no shit?" said Elise.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPrSegSD8FW
"Shhh. Not so loud; I'm in enough trouble!" I whispered. "You would know everything if you actually attended class. It's not as if I said it to anyone. I just had a strange outburst. It happens!" I was still whispering.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOWvDEhi9Kp
"Afraid we will pour onto the punishment without our illicit lexis?" She smirked devilishly then proceeded with her bitch voice. "How dare thou soileth these grounds with the feet of a foul mouth. Thou shalt knowest contrition worthy of a hormonal upstart."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsWKfMwUvP
Her Serrina impression was impressive; I snickered a little bit. "How did you do that?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLsdcve731y
"Elise, you sound just like priestess Serrina, right now," Roy gasped. "Do you know that?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR9e6VN68GR
My snicker erupted into giggling.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWfRwud5Bp9
"Sshhhh!"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzz4dmmhxX
Goodness, gracious, I forgot we were in a library.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa8OBLuCh5D
Keeping in mind my mortal sins, I sat up straight and comported myself like a disciplined lass worthy of a nun's praise. So, hunched over the desk and surrounded by stone and towering book racks, I watched Elise open her Divine Oratory book. It was a thick tome fluffed with scriptural annotations, the kinds that remind you why each spell exists and so forth.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbhEgvDDXKS
"Anyways, why should I help you with the holiest of courses?" I interrogated. “
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUaz7VZqu2U
"Because I have no interest in it," she snarled.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhmUs3bypkr
"How can you say that?" Roy protested.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡORALvMzZxo
I understood how she felt, a little. "But it's supposed to be among the greater disciplines."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaAKEAwx12A
"Sure," Elise shrugged. "But you know something; I've met plenty of sods who sell The Path of the Chant, and they are no cherubs. Fanatics have given up their humanity in the pursuit of the Seven favors. They’re cannibalistic sheep: no personalities, no humanity, no fun."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxQNjwMfOM
"But the Chant is full of spells that we take for granted," I said. Was I advocating for the ecclesiarch? There’s something I never thought I’d do. "Imagine what we’d be without the power to heal." Then again, the mending powers of the priests could not reset my leg in the end.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2lng93nfT1
Wait. Was I learning something new about Elise?
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBIDNaHwwFC
"Yes," Roy desperately agreed. "Without The Path of the Chant and the Hierophant, the Imperium would be another barbarian wasteland."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQUXohLo7LC
"I'm not contesting any of that," Elise replied in her smug manner. "You asked me why I don’t care, and I gave you an answer."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVIzcrZYQhH
"Fair enough." I could tell that Roy was disappointed, however. That plump, little choir boy remained devout. I couldn’t deny how scary I found that.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDELeB8wcXF
Less than an hour into our study session, we resorted to reading by candlelight. About then, we turned our pages to the three branches of Holy Magic. The three types of magic are...
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡik3XUmqe8k
Elise interrupted with a sigh. "Maybe it's time for a break."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsp5BBs1btk
"What?" I glowered. "The library will shut its doors soon, and we've barely brought you up to speed on a few elementary chants."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV1JpDolBni
"This is what I most need help with," Roy added. "We have to review until we can recite them from memory. I haven’t even remembered the first branch."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaEWBs8rlAY
"There has to be a better way to memorize these," Elise shrugged.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXKwXpmwH9a
My idea: "What if we had smaller pieces of parchment where you could write the word on one side and the meaning on the other. Flip through them, define, then review on the back until it sticks."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAaUTj0tAL2
"Pfft, blew Elise. “That also sounds tedious."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ym4qEWSIb
"Hey, everything is tedious, but laziness can inspire faster and better ways of doing things."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfGxGuqxKhN
"You calling me lazy?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZyRlD9yID
"No, I'm lazy; therefore, you ought to trust what I say."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡveew7J5o9N
"You guys," Roy moaned, "We have to get through this chapter before the library shuts its doors."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcIG0k9RAWy
Elise glared back at her book, totally disinterested.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA4jHZveHeI
I inspected the bored girl. "Hmmm." Maybe there was a way to lift her spirits as well as her interest. "Psst, Elise…”
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0mfCE572n
She wore the natural squint of a cat.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ68tUnnfJSz
“I met a boy the other day…”
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrDQU0TEnNi
Just that like, her eyes bloomed out from the edge of decay. "What?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbzKxwS3Pao
"You heard me." I played with a little oblivion and pretended to focus on my book. But the girl was clearly intrigued and stuffed with curiosity. I felt her aura grow eager by the second. Gossip is a potent weapon.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkRHdoL8S1y
"Are you going to explain yourself?"
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO7bd5yBjQc
"I will..."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGC643JUfRF
She squinted.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJsDIhBEDxZ
"...If we make it through this chapter."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1AXI0ZMZDv
"That's a trick, Pollux. A dirty, dirty trick."
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FCtbIoarJ
"I guess you don't want to review the three branches of Divine magic," I smiled through my teeth.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡleXsCTL4oG
Resentful then melodramatic, Elise suddenly buried her nose in her textbook. Worked like a charm!
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJFdCHhD1a
Roy wore a furrowed brow the whole time.
59Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlhHcj2AhBo
