"Inscriptions? I wonder what they'll be teaching in that class."
Terran had been given his schedule without getting the chance to pick his classes after joining the school year late. With so much on his mind, he had never given his classes much thought. That is, at least until the last minute before they started.
Terran found his way into the classroom without knowing what to expect. Immediately though, his eyes jumped to an old fashion chalkboard. Without warning, his heart began to pound rapidly after laying eyes on it.
"Do I actually have a guardian angel watching over me? No, scratch that. Definitely not an angel! I guess I can just thank Gaia for my luck!"
Although they looked slightly different, written all over the board were runes. Terran had witnessed runes used to imprison him in a barrier, create powerful weapons, and most importantly, empower his insignia. At this point, they were one of his biggest interests, only second to his missing memories.
Contrary to all his other classes, this classroom was small. So small that it could probably only fit, at most, 20 students. There were 10 minutes until the class started, and the back few rows were already filled. On the contrary, the first two rows looked like a desert. Only one girl sat at the front of the classroom.
Meanwhile, one person in particular lounging in the back caught Terran's attention. It was the hooligan that tried roping him into joining his little group on his first day on campus. Only, it appeared he was not the leader in this larger pack as his body posture appeared somewhat submissive.
As the group was extremely loud, parts of their conversation were easy to hear.
"Benny, come check out the spot I was telling you about!"
"Really man? It's only 11 AM! You can't wait until tonight?"
"You got something against mornings? Come on, this class is a drag. It's not like you'll ever use any of this useless crap anyway!"
The student who seemed to be in charge was not too happy as his face soured after having his offers rejected.
"Ha-ha, sorry man, I gotta keep my grades up."
"Fine! Stay here pussy, I guess you don't need the cash!"
Just like that, at least half the students in the back got up and left. All following the lead of one student. Surprisingly, Benny, who Terran hadn't looked favorably upon before, didn't follow.
Noticing Terran staring at him from the front of the classroom, the student who walked with an entourage only gave Terran a quick look down. A second later, he clicked his tongue and spat at Terran's feet.
"Keep those eyes on the floor! Someone that's too scared to show their ID doesn't deserve to look at me."
Terran was very tempted to smirk and stare down the kid waving around his overgrown pair of testicles, but he decided against it. This student was not so simple. His clothes were fancy and embroidered with a family crest depicting a shoe with fluttering wings. But that was not all, because hanging around his neck for all to see was his ID with a large boldened A.
There was a time and place for everything and starting something here would be one of the stupidest decisions he could make. He very much wanted to stay in this class and not miss any more days than he already had. Not to mention, with his current strength, the best he could do was make this student run, and even that was a big maybe. However, if he caused this student from an influential family to flee with his tail behind his legs, he would only find more trouble down the road.
With Terran turning away, the cocky student left, quickly followed by his personal marry parade.
Terran decided to sit near the front after directing his attention to the classroom. Most of the students in the backed showed zero interest in the class. Not to mention Benny was still back there, and he didn't exactly want a gnat to buzz in his ear while he was trying to pay attention.
With his mind made, Terran sat next to the girl at the front of the class. He had noticed it before. Something about this girl was different than all the other girls he had come across.
"Why can't my life be like the main character in that novel?" On his second night in the Oasis, Terran had started a novel he had found online in the pursuit of completing his daily challenges. The MC was always running into world-class beauties. At the time, Terran had considered what he was reading as trash, but looking at the girl next to him, he was starting to really wish he was that main character. Contrary to the novel, the girl he was sitting next to could only be described as a world-class ugly.
Although it certainly seemed so, Terran was not just being mean; she had truly landed the low roll in every genetic facial category imaginable. Her face was nearing the shape of a square. With her forehead spanning an alarming 7 inches above the brow line, speaking of which was in fact one solid line of hair, fuller than many man's beards. Her skin was brimming with sores, which was an enigma in itself as it was utterly and cheaply treatable with modern technology. She even had quite the prominent mustache. If it weren't for her well-endowed chest and slender figure, Terran would have believed he was looking at a guy.
Terran took in a deep breath as he turned away. "Come on man, you got this! You're not a misogynist, and it's what's on the inside that counts! You can't be judging people for these things; you don't know her situation! Besides, she probably knows more about what you've missed than anyone else in this class, and you really need to catch up!"
After giving himself a short pep talk, Terran turned to initiate a conversation. Only, upon seeing her again, his voice got caught in his throat. It was as if he had been turned to stone.
"Could it be possible this girl is blessed by Medusa? No-no, this would have to be a curse!" Terran had read about the mythical hag while reading Sophie's book on Artemis.
He only snapped out of his trance when a deep, yet obviously female voice entered his ear. "Could you please stop staring at me like that?"
"How do you look so ugly?"
Terran broke out into a fit of dramatic coughs as he had not expected his thoughts to abruptly flow out of his mouth.
"Shit-shit-shit, I actually said that out loud!"
Caught off guard by Terran's tasteless question, the gaps between the red bumps covering her face filled in bright pink.
Realizing the thought he let slip, Terran quickly tried to backtrack. "Were you cursed? That must suck! Could you have been blessed by Medusa? You must have some pretty strong abilities! Actually, you're pretty cute. No. Average. That's a lie. No. I mean--"
Unfortunately, Terran's backtracking skills were only digging a deeper hole as he could only say the things that were on his mind. But surprisingly, he received an answer, and with it, a rope to escape his grave. "I suppose you are half right if you cut out the part about Medusa. My appearance is caused by my blessing.
A moment of awkward silence followed.
Taking a deep breath, Terran wanted to forget the last minute of his life ever happened. So, that's exactly what he did. Thankfully, it seemed he was not the only one.
"Ha-ha, sorry about that. I'm new to this class and I wanted to ask you about the things I've missed."
"Oh, this is your first day, and you actually are going to pay attention in this class?" The girl questioned while raising her singular huge eyebrow that could only belong to a cyclops.
Seeing her non-existent eyebrow raise, Terran felt something extremely acidic jump up from his throat. Quickly, he swallowed down whatever had dared to arise from his stomach as he couldn't afford to be any ruder than he already had been.
It took a good minute, but Terran slowly adjusted to her appearance. With this adjustment, his rude awkwardness faded, and with it, he conquered his greatest trial since arriving in the Oasis.
Terran quickly learned that runes worked similarly to a particular language on earth known as Mandarin. Of course, he did not have this as an analogy. The premise was that each rune was a character rather than a letter. Every rune held a unique pronunciation in addition to a particular meaning.
On another note, Terran also learned that his desk neighbor's name was Mya.
"So, you guys have only learned how to read them? What about engraving them?"
"You mean inscribing?"
"Yea-yea same difference. Have you been taught how to inscribe runes?
"Sadly, that cannot be taught. You are either born with the ability, or you're not. Only a very small number of people are born with this gift. It is the reason this class is so small, and no one pays attention. The only thing you can learn here is how to be an appraiser."
Hearing Mia's answer. Terran's heart fell, and his thoughts stirred. "Does this mean I can't make my own weapons and tools?"
Unfortunately, before he could fit in any more questions, a man in his thirties entered the classroom. Obviously, this middle-aged man was the teacher. It didn't take long after for Terran to realize this would be an incredibly dull class. However, despite his eyelids weighing more than the weight placed on his back during the planks, he forced himself to power through. Of course, it did not help that he was tired from the extensive early morning exercise.
Even if he couldn't inscribe, Terran was keen on learning everything there was to know about the foreign-looking runes. His mind told him that he would be thankful down the road if he managed to master them.