K: "Ugh. Gross."
As a child of Segus faith, such words were heresy. The amount of suffering Segus had to endure was incomparable to a mere moment's drink of the foul-colored sludge, but Katachi had only complaints about its taste. Katachi worried for Deku who promised the students that he would drink the brown syrup for a whole month. It was quite pitiful that he would have to gorge down the jelly-like substance, but to be fair he brought it upon himself.
He placed the wooden cup into the bin and headed towards the exit, but he was interrupted halfway by a familiar figure. A senior with four blonde braids and a dynamic body impeded his path.
Ba: "Ahh, Katachi, you were resting here?"
K: "Bael?"
Ba: "Nice work defeating Deku back there, Katachi! I didn't know that you were, uhm..."
K: "... 'were' what?"
Bael's face flushed a bright pomelo red and she turned away in embarrassment.
Ba: "... Were... Pretty good. You were pretty good out there. You just beat Deku!"
Her eyes shone with a strange light, one Katachi couldn't quite describe... Yet it was a familiar one, a stare he felt before. Her eyes reflected the distrust and distance that he felt from the glares of the Mielfeud townsfolk. But, it might just be over-thinking on his part. She probably didn't expect Katachi to triumph over Deku, certainly not when he was much larger and more experienced compared to the scrawny figure. Yet the threat of exposure made him wary and particularly sensitive.
K: "Ah, so I did..."
His faltering confidence was not very reassuring.
Ba: "You know, I don't think you've told me the magic you've been using. Isn't it about time you explained yourself?"
Her suspicions were starting to feel suffocating. That was only natural given how the unknown magic was capable of taking down the champion of three years. Even without Bael asking, there would definitely be other students curious to hear the secret from him.
K: (Did they see it? Did they notice the two golden words glowing at the top of the mound of sand? They didn't catch on to it during Deku's first attack, did they?) "Ex- explain myself?"
His anxiety welled as he mentally prepared himself to silence everyone.
Ba: "What were you using back there?"
That sentence was almost a relief in and of itself. The fact that she questioned him meant that she did not understand, so the possibility of the Word of Power was not as prominent. Katachi had to think fast and come up with yet another convincing argument.
K: (Deku mentioned something called the Light Prism back at Cosmatral Tlod. If he hasn't told anyone else, the excuse just might hold.) "... It's called Light Prism. It's... It's using sunlight to seal off the movements of the golem."
Bael's eyes widened slightly since she had yet heard of Soltak's Reincarnate Art being capable of that before. It was a precarious gamble which anchored solely upon the opposing party's trust, but thankfully the risk was negated.
Ba: (I thought he said he was a Segus follower... I guess he's starting to become more honest now, what with everyone calling him a Soltak follower and all. May as well follow a god instead of following that incestuous legend.) "That sounds cool."
She knew the criticism people gave to Segus followers from how her cousins were shunned and imprisoned. Unions between siblings were never encouraged by the other legends and various gods, so naturally, the pacifist legend who permitted such relations was viewed with snide.
She believed that Katachi was only using the legend in name so as to avoid excessive interactions with others... Or perhaps she was giving herself an excuse, a chance to talk with the boy more. Had he followed after that depraved legend with the intent to marry a relative, she wouldn't know what to think of him.
K: (I think she bought it. That's a relief.) "Uhm, Bael, listen. I... I need to sketch out the map you lent to me, so I'm in a... uh... kind of in a rush."
Ba: (He's worried about that?) "Oh, that? You don't need to rush that. You can return me the map any time."
K: "Yes, but- but I would feel like I'd be... imposing on you."
Ba: (Imposing on me? How cute. He's like a little puppy, wanting to love me in the only way it knows how! He's so adorable!)
K: "... Bael?"
Ba: (Haa~ I'm imagining him with puppy ears, barking in a high-pitched 'arf'! I can't calm down!)
Her devotion to Image was admirable enough to visualize Katachi in obscure apparel, if not repulsive.
K: (She's in a daze again, looking at me all funny.) "Bael? Bael!"
Katachi clapped lightly before her face, pulling her conscious back from a trance.
Ba: "Huh, what- Yes?"
K: "Let's go. Your room is still a mess, right? I can clean your room and sketch at the same time."
Katachi was wholly prepared to help her tidy the house after all that chaos earlier.
Ba: "Oh, it's not messy anymore. I got it covered already."
But the need was uncalled for.
K: "Really?"
Ba: "Yeah. All I needed to do was recite two whole chapters of Lotz's meeting with Fuegil and arrest control back over my furniture. They're very obedient, I'll have you know."
K: "... If you say so." (That's kind of incredible.)
Yet he couldn't help but find the magic peculiar. For a moment there, he thought Bael was addressing her own furniture in a manner similar to pets.
K: (Is that even normal, talking to furniture like that? Or is it just something animationists do?)
Fretting over the matter was pointless. At the very least, his schedule was free for the rest of the day so Katachi decided to visit Bertund's office once more.
*** ***
Be: "Come in Mister Kotsuba, come in."
Without even knocking on the door, Katachi was invited into the room by the creepy smiling green-attired principal with the slime hat on his head. The other lady, Shelly, was absent from the neat office.
K: "How do you two even know I'm outside the office in the first place? Is there some sort of see-through magic on the door?"
Be: "Nothing of the sort. It's quite simple, really. When someone steps on the carpet outside this flap unclips itself and drops down."
Bertund pointed at a flap on the wall and demonstrated its function by pulling the flap out before closing it back in. The hinges squeaked and a solid tense sound of a strummed belt was heard when the leather strips were stretched to its fullest allowed. It was easy to see how the two sounds were clearly distinguishable from the ambient noises.
Be: "It's pretty easy to tell if someone is outside the door loitering around or has just arrived. We automatically close it and call people in whenever it opens."
K: (It's one thing to know if someone's at the door, but how did he know it was me? It could have just as easily been another teacher. He's hiding more than he reveals... As expected of a sorceror.) "It's an interesting construct."
Be: "I agree. Apparently, this was implemented since Sage Raufid's era. So, I've heard this from Shelly earlier – You wanted to discuss something with me? Is it about adding yet another course to your curriculum?"
K: "Yes. I- I mean, no! No. Uhm... Missus Shelly couldn't teach me any water magic at all because she isn't good with it. So, I was... I was hoping you'd teach me water magic."
Bertund maintained his creepy smile as he assessed the situation at hand. He got up from his seat and walked towards the bookshelf in the room, picked up a book and began flipping through its contents.
Be: "That is an interesting offer, Mister Kotsuba. But the thing is, I don't teach magic for free. If you were to request for a normal teacher to assist you in basic spells and the like it would be fine and we can have it arranged. But as the principal of this school and a head figure for aspiring magi I cannot simply teach someone a spell."
K: "Why not?"
Bertund paused the flipping and looked at Katachi with a slightly wider smile on his face.
Be: "Because, Mister Kotsuba, when I teach magic that is a guarantee that you will not just learn... but master it."
The brilliance of the principal shone through for that brief moment, and beneath that eerie smile was a schemer far creepier than the façade suggested.
Be: "I can teach anything and everything about whatever magic I've managed to learn myself. And that is the reason why I am the principal, not a teacher – If I simply allowed anyone to study under my supervision, they will quite literally become a second version of myself, a replica if you will."
That would defeat the purpose of having an academy without question.
B: "The elemental affinities, the limitations of astrology, details and lore and even the most advanced of spells, all of the tough reading, deciphering and researching, the construction of mediums and weapons, all of that can be mitigated and even negated under my proficient teachings. That wouldn't be nice if everyone became as powerful as the principal now, would it?"
K: (From the way he phrases that I'm guessing that anyone who studies under him will learn everything as though the experience was inherited... Does he have a kind of magic to transfer his knowledge to others, allowing them to master the spells as well as he does? I wonder which legend that's derived from?) "... That sounds amazing."
Be: "That is why I cannot afford to teach a student for free, unlike the normal education the other teachers here provide. This academy is a place to nurture, ripen and foster the power of potential magi. It is not a factory for producing sorceror-class soldiers. If you wish to learn spells from me you will have to pay."
K: (I suppose great power comes at a great price. But, what do I pay with?) "Pay in what terms?"
Be: "As you probably have guessed, my favorite food is roasted newt. My favorite pet is slime, and my favorite color is green. If you wish to learn a basic spell, offer me something green. If you wish to learn an intermediate spell, fetch me something slimy, or a slime-related by-product. If you wish to learn an advanced spell you would have to catch and roast a newt for me by yourself. Those are my terms."
Even his demands seem to defy common sense. Or, did it? Bertund was always dressed in his green prominent attire, he was always seen with his slime hat and he was likely enjoying newts every once in a while. Perhaps that in itself was a ritual of sorts he derived at to maintain some spell after studying the Path of Image for so long. Katachi could not resist the urge to ask.
K: "... What's with the funky currency?"
Bertund's smile receded a little and he began reading the book he was holding.
Be: "There are children around who rely on their parents' money in order to obtain fame, fortune, status and power. I despise those who would use others' gold for their own advantage – And you may have noticed, but about a third of the students here are rich."
Katachi recalled some of the students he saw around the school and their uniforms hemmed in gold and silver.
Be: "Some of our students here have families rich enough to purchase this entire academy. That would distort the fair, balanced learning environment this place is supposed to be, would it not? Is that not defying the wishes of Sage Raufid himself?"
K: "I guess you're right."
Be: "So, Mister Kotsuba. You now know what you need to do. What have you to offer me?"
K: (I should go get a newt then.) "I'll be right back."
Katachi exited the room silently with a determined look in his eyes.
*** ***
Two and a half hours later, Katachi arrived at the principal's office once again.
Be: "Come in, Mister Kotsuba."
As he stepped through the doorway Katachi was greeted by Bertund and another teacher in the room. This particular teacher looked familiar, to say the least – His upper torso was bigger than his lower torso and he looked like a gorilla human.
Be: "Yorn, let us discuss this some other time. I need you to tell Shelly that the mess hall has refreshments prepared for Minister Lein. It will be cleared at six in the evening so alternate to route C after the last two rounds conclude."
The man resembling an inverted pear grimaced slightly when he saw Katachi holding a cage in his hand.
Y: "If you would excuse me."
Yorn slowly shuffled his way out of the room, avoiding collision with the furniture to the best of his ability. With the door closed behind him, Katachi could openly discuss with Bertund on his issues again without as much restraint.
Be: "I was expecting a roasted newt, but you actually went and caught a live one?"
K: "Segus forbids killing."
Be: "Fair enough. I believe Mother Rinnesfeld mentioned something along those lines in her letter."
K: "Yeah. Specifically, though, she... She mentioned that the church which, well, we lived in served Segus, so it wasn't very clear."
His stuttering was quite amusing to the sorceror.
Be: "It's fine, the message got through."
He pulled at the glove strongly, and his fingers clawed inward, almost threatening to fuse with the cloth itself. Bertund took a good look at the small lizard in the muddy cage and paid careful attention to its tail and underside.
Be: "This newt... Smells of the moss in the Langstrade river, healthy scales, no injuries... Yes, yes, this is good. Not quite an adult yet, but it will be one very soon."
Bertund nodded slowly in approval at the offering presented before him.
Be: "So, you wanted to learn an advanced spell?"
Katachi placed the cage on the desk and sat on the chair opposite the principal's seat.
K: "A-and I'd like to learn one that can accustom to me and my needs properly."
Be: "Mister Kotsuba, I've watched your performance today from the observation deck. But are you sure you want an advanced spell? It might not be of great use to you in the tournament."
It almost made him cry. All that effort of setting up a sun bowl and waiting for a newt to stop by before trapping it in the cage... The amount of work invested in it, unrewarded.
K: "It... It won't?"
Be: "Not in the slightest. The Young Magus tournament has rather specific limitations where you are only allowed the wooden weapon you have with you as well as any magic you are able to cast with your tools or by yourself. Even if I do teach you one that does not use any additional materials it would require a rather large magic circle made entirely from sand, for example."
But that was a scenario only applicable should the foe give him the liberty to.
Be: "You would have to draw the circle in the sand while avoiding the attacks from the other magi and stopping the opponent from disrupting the circle. That's unless, of course, the spell requires your opponent to be in a specific position where you activate a spell while they try to move in and disrupt you. That's not an easy maneuver to perform neither, especially without practice."
Bertund's advice was disheartening but enlightening at the same time.
Be: "Not to mention, pulling tricks like that are often to force the opponent to move and counter before you can pull it off or to lure them into a bigger trap. It's not out of the question but if you'd like to learn a bigger trap to go along with it that would require another newt."
K: "..."
Katachi's head drooped a little at the news.
Be: (Well, that's only true if his capacity for Image is weak. But for someone like him, saying that is like calling a sloth the most active thing anyone has ever seen. If I were to teach him anything serious he could easily strangle and overpower everyone. Best to put him in check.) "Don't worry. You've presented me a newt anyway, so I shall teach magic of value equivalent to this offer. How about a couple of useful fast-casting basic spells and some advice?"
K: (The greatest of magi make the most of the least.) "... I guess that's not too bad."
Be: "Very well. Let's begin with the advice then – Every little bit helps, does it not?"
He began scribbling a familiar yet foreign character on a piece of papyrus as he continued to convince the child. He raised the papyrus to reveal two characters: 锁定.
Be: "Did you know that your 定 is actually capable of a term known as 锁定, which means 'to lock'?"
The abrupt and random trivia was uncalled for.
K: (It can mean 'Lock'?) "... I thought we were learning water magic!"
Be: "Ahh, but I said 'some advice', did I not? I did not specify what advice I would give. Besides, an advice on your own Word of Power is far greater than any advice I can give on magic you don't even know yet."
K: (That makes sense, kind of. 锁定, huh... That sounds really good.) "That is nice to know, but how would I use it? Does it directly mean 'lock' or does it prevent opening?"
Be: "It's as simple as it suggests. 定 in this sense means to 'secure' and 锁 is the Anikan word directly responsible for locking it. You can use it to lock other objects, like chests, doors, gates... Well, that's a hint big enough for you. You can figure out what you want to do with that knowledge."
K: (That's really good to know. Locking, huh... So basically, by using 定 in that way I can lock anything that is below the word's raw precedence level.) "So, can we touch on water magic now?"
Be: "Yes. Relax, Mister Kotsuba. To be at peace, to reach a tranquillity the same as water is an important facet of using water magic."
Katachi leaned back against the chair's backrest comfortably.
Be: "Just one last thing before we begin. Let's review your strategy for battling – You like to head in for close-range combat and clash against the magi in that uncomfortable zone. That's a good strategy against them, if I may say so myself. Did you learn that somewhere beforehand?"
K: "Yes. There were these bamboo books laying outside one of the Mielfeud townsfolk's house, so I picked them up and carried them to the library to read. One of these... One of these books was about how people have generic fighting styles and how each could be countered by exploiting their shortcomings. Like how warriors have a habit of using their dominant arm as their sword arm and striking them from that side forces them into a defensive to protect their means of retaliation."
Be: "From your description, I'm guessing the book's name was Gnote's Guide to Paganism Survival?"
As expected of a literary man, Bertund was quick to catch onto the topic discussed.
K: "Yes, that's the one."
Be: "So you already know that much. But the book isn't dedicated to magi or champions or anybody besides travelers and pagans like Gnote himself. Adversaries who specialize themselves open up new options that Gnote did not have access to. It won't help a whole lot, but it certainly did improve your strategic thinking. Hmm..."
Katachi took a piece of charcoal and papyrus out of his sandy blazer and set it down on the table.
Be: "Very well! I'll start teaching you water magic now. You're going to be thankful you learned these – I guarantee it."
*** ***
A long day of competitions finally simmered down into a peaceful night. Katachi put down the chalk and charcoal in his hands. He folded the two maps and placed them neatly on the side of the small desk.
K: (There we go. I'm finally finished.)
As he gazed upon the night sky, a half-moon shone across the scenery outside his window.
K: (Tomorrow's a big day, huh... The semi-finals and the finals together on the same day. I pray I don't have to fight him at all.)
He immersed himself in his own thoughts, entranced by the dark blanket of stars.
K: (If all else fails I'll rely on the Word of Power then, but that should only be a last resort. If I can, I want to settle the matches with the rest of them as soon as possible with these new spells. But what will they think? If they truly believe that I am using Child of Sun, won't it be strange to diverge and suddenly use Image spells?)
Or perhaps it was not as unusual as he believed.
K: (Then again, over-using a spell brings a big risk as well. The weaknesses and limitations are exposed and counter-plays become possible, just as how so many students try to find ways to circumvent the Gatherer's Golem. Changing to a new angle of attack they're not prepared for has its merits.)
The smell of sand, soil and the uncomfortable itch and stickiness across his body broke him out of his trance – He had yet bathed. Earlier that day he ran around rolling, tumbling and fighting on the sandy dunes of Cosmatral Tlod, dug around Cosmatral Neud and hunted for a newt, skipped his dinner so he could finish the map... By the time he noticed the dirty uniform he was still wearing, twilight had long past.
K: (It's almost nine... The curfew begins in a short while. I should use this time to bathe quickly.)
Katachi grabbed a towel and headed towards the bathroom.
*** ***
The huge bathing space was eerily empty and quiet.
K: (I'm surprised how nobody's here at this hour! Maybe it was because there are no actual lessons today that the students can bathe at their own time, so they chose to do it early?... Huh. I guess not all students want to bathe late in the night.)
Or it could be the unbearable heat during the day which strongly encouraged baths early on to wash off their sweat. Katachi didn't sit at the atrium area for long enough to tell so he couldn't judge impartially. He undressed his uniform, neatly unfolded his towel and hung them on the racks.
K: (For the uniform, well... I'll probably have to wash it another day because I won't have enough time to bathe if I don't. Or I could simply use the cleaning spell, but it's costly.)
Katachi leered at his immediate surroundings and focused on his hearing for any footsteps or human activities.
K: (There's no one around... I guess I'll use magic to clean it this time.)
Katachi took advantage of the fact that he was the only one in the bathing space.
K: (恒定! Constant status – Gold!)
A tiny 定 was placed over a small piece of gold. Katachi placed that piece of gold in the center of the magic circle and the shirt began to move on its own. Though the gold piece was unaffected still, the magic circle gleamed with a gold brilliance and the sand and stains were all expunged outward forcefully, cleansing it in an instant. He repeated the process for all of his other garments while scrubbing his body thoroughly. When it was all done he removed the Word of Power on the gold and placed it into his pouch.
K: (That should save on some of the gold... Excellent. Nobody's around to see it.)
Katachi was suddenly forced to walk out of the bathroom with all of his items. He barely managed to pull his undergarments up in time before he exited the bathing area. It was good practice to place his items near the entrance of the bathing space so he could simply collect them on his way out.
K: (It must be time for curfew now... Well, at least I got the clothes clean.)
Katachi walked back to his own room obediently and grabbed the mug by the side for a sip. He folded the clean clothes properly before placing them aside. After the apparel was put away neatly he prepared the bed for the night.
K: (Mother Rin... I don't know what will happen tomorrow, so I don't think I can keep the promise of visiting you every few lunar cycles. Please stay safe.)
The exhaustion finally caught on and the young child dozed off to sleep.