The morning bell echoed across the academy grounds, marking the official start of Kalem's second year. The academy felt different now—not just because he was no longer a first-year struggling to scrape by, but because his reputation had changed. The tournament had elevated his status, and his work with resonance crystals had placed him on the radar of professors and sponsors alike.
Yet, routine was routine. Kalem woke early, ran through a mental checklist, and made his way toward the first class of the day.
Magical Metallurgy I
The forge roared with heat, filling the workshop with the scent of molten metal and arcane-infused embers. Professor Helbrecht, an old dwarf with a thick, fire-scorched beard, stomped into the center of the room, surveying the students with a critical gaze.
"Right, listen up!" the professor barked. "Magical Metallurgy ain't about swinging hammers mindlessly. It's about precision—knowing how much heat, how much mana, how much force is needed to craft something that doesn't explode in your bloody hands."
Kalem paid close attention, even if most of the fundamentals were already second nature to him. This class was about infusion—imbuing metal with magic in a controlled manner. While he had worked with resonance crystals to enhance weapons, the methodology for integrating magic into an alloy itself was different.
The professor assigned them their first task: forging a simple iron blade with an embedded fire rune. Kalem's hands moved on instinct, shaping the metal with ease, but the real challenge came with the infusion process. Fire runes needed mana attunement, or else they'd burn out or overheat the weapon.
A student next to him cursed as their blade ignited uncontrollably, forcing them to douse it with water.
Helbrecht snorted. "And that's why we control the infusion process, you louts."
Kalem, however, kept his approach precise. He used a minimal amount of mana, allowing the rune to slowly attune to the blade. By the time he finished, he had a well-balanced weapon—nothing extravagant, but stable and functional.
The professor raised an eyebrow as he inspected Kalem's work. "You've done this before."
"Not quite like this, but similar principles," Kalem admitted.
Helbrecht grunted, setting the blade down. "Good. But don't get complacent, lad. This is child's play compared to what's ahead."
Gemcrafting & Crystallography
This class was supposed to be one of the more advanced courses, covering the study of gems and crystals as magical conduits. Kalem took his seat, scanning the neatly arranged rows of gemstone samples placed at each workstation.
The professor, an older elf named Master Alstein, wasted no time in starting.
"Crystals are the most stable magic conductors," he explained, gesturing toward a floating mana shard. "Unlike runes, which rely on patterns, or enchanted metals, which require forging, crystals serve as natural reservoirs of mana. But handling them properly requires both knowledge and finesse."
Kalem listened attentively as the lesson covered attunement, resonance frequencies, and the durability of different gems.
Then came the practical assessment. Students were asked to synchronize a mana stream through a gemstone to create a stable feedback loop—a basic but essential skill for enchantments.
Kalem barely needed to focus. He held the gemstone between his fingers, pulsed his mana through it, and immediately created a stable resonance cycle.
Master Alstein paused, glancing at him.
Kalem remained still as the professor inspected his work.
Finally, Alstein sighed. "Kalem, your grasp of crystallography is well beyond this course."
Some students turned to stare.
"Should I… slow down?" Kalem asked, though he already suspected the answer.
"No. You should leave," the professor said bluntly. "There's no point in you staying here."
Kalem blinked. "I need the credits for—"
"I'll give you the credits," Alstein cut in. "If you stay, you'll only get bored, and that leads to complacency. Find something else to do with your time."
With that, Kalem found himself effectively kicked out of the class—not out of failure, but because he was too far ahead.
Structural Magic & Material Properties II
The rest of his classes were more engaging.
Structural Magic focused on modifying and reinforcing materials without physical alterations—a field that blended alchemy, runecrafting, and metallurgy.
In one experiment, Kalem was tasked with strengthening glass without changing its flexibility. He tried different mana applications, reinforcing the internal structure instead of layering protective enchantments. The result? A glass sheet that could bend but wouldn't break under direct force.
The professor nodded in approval. "Interesting approach. Most students just increase density, but you optimized the structural lattice instead."
Kalem took mental notes. There was potential here—if he could apply this to armor, he might find a way to compensate for the defensive weakness of his resonance blade.
Material Properties II was another challenge. It delved into rare and magical materials, such as Mithril, Adamantine, and Void Glass. Each had unique properties, from mithril's lightweight durability to void glass's ability to absorb magic.
Kalem found himself particularly intrigued by Void Glass—a rare, obsidian-like substance that nullified magic on contact. If he could get his hands on some, it could be useful against enemies reliant on magic-based defenses.
Practical Lab II
Technically, Kalem was exempt from this class. His work with resonance crystals and his newly forged blade had already earned him top marks.
Still, he chose to attend occasionally, either to help others or test new theories. One day, a student struggled with an experimental enchantment, their blade cracking under unstable mana fluctuations.
Kalem stepped in, adjusting the rune pattern to stabilize the energy flow. The moment the enchantment settled, the student gawked.
"You just—How did you do that?"
"Simple correction. You were overloading one side," Kalem said, handing the weapon back.
Wordlessly, the student nodded, as if filing that away for later.
By the time Kalem left the forge that evening, he could feel the weight of his second-year expectations settling on him. He was ahead in some areas, challenged in others, but one thing was clear—his skillset made him stand out.
His teachers noticed. His peers noticed.
And outside the academy? Others were noticing too.
As he walked back toward his quarters, he considered Master Alstein's words.
"You'll only get bored."
Kalem exhaled.
"Then I'll have to find something else to keep me busy."
He didn't realize how soon that "something" would find him instead.