I set foot on an adventure back home, and my quest is complete. For now, I have to wait. Perhaps, I should report back to my sire, Voltaire. I "texted" him a message that works like sending a message through a courier, except the courier is what Voltaire calls Artificial Intelligence. He has an operating system in the Underworld, where he made his own Internet Service. With such knowledge I could not comprehend, I wonder how he manages to do these all himself.
He texted me back with an encrypted message… I could not fathom what it all meant, as it said, "LOL OK, ONG! You did a good job, ISTG. This is going to be great! I sure hope whatever you did, illegal or legal, whatever your approach is, don't let people think it's SUS. BRB GTG, TTYL."
Whatever it means, I have to go there and tell him all about it and ask him what our next move is. Especially if all devices have already been stolen within the span of a full moon.
Still, it could probably take an entire winter for those devices to be stolen.
The Thieves' Guild knows what they're doing with the utmost respect. They are the greatest in bribery, persuasion, intimidation, pickpocketing, sneaking, etc. Especially their brawling styles have their own unmatched way of fighting. As I heard, they sent me a message by courier about how they transcribed an old book from the underground.
They hired a student from Academia to translate this "ancient tome" that teaches a style of fighting that is assumably from the ancient era. The ancient race of humans called it "Kung Fu", and they've been practising it quite a lot. Especially towards their friendly competitor faction that they've been distant lately, which was the Darkened Path.
They didn't have this competition because I went to join there after quitting the Thieves' Guild as they respected my decision. All because they understand open-minded people, unlike bandits and Norsemen from the North and the Indians from the south. They compete against each other on who gets the most gold because the assassins get it easy to get more gold because killing is a high price than robbing an entire king's Keep.
But since it was an old name, the Thieves' Guild renewed the 'now' former name of Kung Fu as Ashe Khik, which is their new way of saying "Ass Kicking". They just wanted to mock the Indians from the south for having weird names for everything they had, such as their swords. Curved swords!
Can you believe that?! I've never seen a curved sword, except for modern-day daggers, but a curved blade? How can you possibly thrust through that? What is the purpose of having it curved? It's pointless, instead but an aesthetic. But recently, I've been doing a lot of reading. I was bored, and my sire also mentioned Academia.
Told me to go there and study, as he paid for the tuition, and all I had to do was to mention his name, and they would let me study there as a scholar for free.
But everyone there feels a sense of impending doom as they start to shake in fear when I mention his name. I was never interested in magick, but I would do it because I'm a curious lad. I was just studying in my dormitory room by the cliff of the Academia itself.
The Academia are not too fond of bows and arrows, swords and daggers or whatnot. But they love to evoke swords by summoning them in their hand, saying they are more appropriate for sorcerers like themselves. You see, the thing about curved swords, it is noted in the "The Art of The Blade" by Moon Tzu, an anonymous author, says;
"Scimitars are curved, but not by what you think. Swords are meant for two reasons, thrusting and cleaving. But Scimitars are not meant for thrusting because thrusting can be easily parried if your blade is too big, unlike a dagger that is fast and agile enough to be thrust through the heart.
The dagger is just for 'parrying' and 'counter-attacking' purposes. The dagger was never meant to be a weapon. Rather than just to use as an alternative for shields that can be easily seen by the enemy. That is why some aristocrats fight with a dagger behind their backs. To hide their tactics for the next move. The point of a curved sword and the parrying dagger behind your back is hard to guess for your next attack. However, the curved sword, or Scimitar, have a significantly higher chance of a critical attack because the curviness gives it a faster and more potent attack to cleave down an enemy.
Such as, the ancient 'Katana' is way more ancient than the Underworld's technology even began.
Although some say… the more ancient times before the technology era began, their set was just like ours today in this modern era."
So, now I get it! A college for sorcerers they have books about everything, regardless of whether it is magick or not. As long as you're a student, all the books are free, but by all means, you have to put them back where they belong in the very library of the sanctum itself. Although, the west coast of Arcadia has its own school of magick.
Which are studying the magick of "Manifestation", "Hexing", and "Binding". They are Chaos Magicians. (Chaos magick is when you alter the universe's will and destiny as your own by manipulating time and space). Here they are called "Sorcerers" as magicians of elemental magick that aid us in the battle of the material world.
On the west coast of Arcadia's school, they call the Wiccan College. They study the arts of meditation and spirituality, doing rituals and offerings, and by doing so, they manifest what they desire into reality.
This is where the Celestial Priests come to study before they start spreading their religion around the entire continent.
They have a strict rule, but sorcerers here who also studied there say the rule itself was a myth. The thing is, chaos witches by the west have a law of their magick called "The Sevenfold Rule". Suppose you cast a spell on someone (having it be a Chaos Spell, not an elemental spell). Be it positive or negative, a good luck spell, a curse, a love spell, any spell that affects the life and destiny of the person, whether they deserve it or not. In that case, that spell will come back to you seven times.
The sorcerers here don't believe it, and they only do manifestation spells if they're desperate or as a hobby. The Norsemen here often discriminate against the mages on the east coast for practising magick. Think we're the same as the west coast magicians who study and practice the dark arts for our selfish desire in the cause of evil.
The Norsemen are dumb, just like I mentioned before. They are prideful and mostly hate elves for having the advantage of using magic because it is in their blood.
Most elves don't even bother with magick, even though they are prodigies of either witchcraft or sorcery, depending on what type of elf they are. Because most of them only want to be archers or soldiers, to be factual. High Elves are good with magick, and Sun Elves are good with nature, hunting, and animalism with their bow and arrow and short swords. At the same time, Night Elves are good with swords and fighting in combat.
Actually, half of the academy here isn't even elves. It's the most diverse of every race. Even the teachers! Inferno! Even the schoolmistress herself, that takes over not only the academy but the entire coast and region isn't even an elf. But most Norsemen believe so.
They are proud of their patriotism and supremacy because they once colonized the entire continent of Arcadia, calling it their land. The first to be here was the ancient humans, who were just trying to survive after the apocalypse.
No one believed that unless you discriminated against the Norsemen back with the controversial truth, they get mad over it.
The Norsemen even tried to ban the study of ancient technology from excusing "dark arts purposes". When they were the ones who first witnessed the ancient humans back then to use it. But the delusion of Norsemen thinking they own the entire continent isn't how it works.
Every region or coast is a country being taken over by different aristocrats by hierarchy. Sure, the Emperor himself is a Norseman because he was the leader that colonized the ancient humans. Because Voltaire told me they were weak enough to fight back because they were hungry and dying from radiation.
It is only a rumour that a cult is going on around the east coast. The cult practices the dark arts called "The Lovecraftian Magick".
It is a subgenre of using Chaos magick, but it takes a lot of sacrifices. Such as human sacrifice, offering your blood, using your semen, cutting yourself, mutilation, rape, and other morbid things just for their personal desire and power. At least, that's what they thought.
But I've been digging deep about the Lovecraftian Magick. They say the knowledge of the Great Old Ones is beyond comprehension.
You will become godlike. Perhaps fame, power, fortune, women even!
While studying elemental powers in the classroom, I was dismissed alone without the rest of the class this early dusk. With the shaky voice of the schoolmistress, Valena, for I knew who summoned me to be dismissed this early. Because… every time I even speak of my sire's name, especially when I first arrived, they were in shock and terror. Never wanting to hear that very word again, "Voltaire…".
I walked outside the classroom, as everyone was in terror and utter confusion. I was told to meet the man himself by the balcony.