[25]

Spell class was unlike any of the others I had gone to so far. Don’t mistake me, it was every bit as tiring as the classes I had the day before; it was just that there was no actual instruction. An older human female, grey hair in a bun, dressed in a green instructor’s robe, simply walked into the room and said, “Begin.”

Our confusion did not last long, one bold soul who I did not know, stood up and said, “Begin what?”

“Begin casting detect magic,” the instructor said, then sat down in a chair to read a book she must have copied on her soul ledger.

I looked over to Raxx and Joy, and asked, “Do both of you have detect magic?” They confirmed it with a nod. Around the room, the ascendents of my class cast the spell, or continued to look around in confusion like I was. Joy deduced, before I did, everyone must get that spell.

Shrugging off my lingering hesitation, I did what I was told to do by the new nameless instructor.

Tedric, Reynolds' friend, spoke up before I finished casting my spell. “Now what?” he asked the instructor.

Without looking up, she said, “Cast it again.”

Raxx had to wait close to ten minutes each time he cast the spell. Joy could cast it twice before needing a ten-minute break. To my surprise, I could cast it four times every ten minutes. I was not sure if it was because I had a naturally high willpower, or because I had placed points in the attribute early on. Nonetheless, I felt good at something for the first time since arriving at Ashmere.

Our pacing did not last at those rates for long. Raxx could not cast at all by the third ten-minute cycle and had to wait close to twenty-five minutes before he could cast another spell. Joy and I fell off soon after that mark too. Just after the one hour mark, my head was splitting so bad from mental exhaustion that I could not cast at all.

Looking around the room, I confirmed that the rest of the class was in just as bad of shape as we were. No one could cast, and all were massaging their temples or holding their heads.

The instructor took notice, dismissing her book, then primly standing up to wipe off her robes. “Class dismissed,” she said, and left without another word.

Good thing I did not pay for this. Worst class ever, I thought.

Having nothing left to do for the day, Raxx and I went back to my place, and Joy went home. We agreed to meet up for dinner later that evening. So, Raxx finished getting settled in the guest room, and I crashed on the bed next to Ugz and began studying for my presentation on the monster Barghest.

That had been my plan, at any rate.

Spell casting took a much greater toll than I realized, and before long I collapsed in a heap on the bed.

Sunset was fast approaching when I woke.

Knowing I had to meet with Elaine after dinner, I took time to clean the slobber off my chin and fix my messy short hair. While I made myself more presentable, Ugz swam in lazy circles in the bathtub. Before I left, he sent me an empathetic message letting me know he was hungry.

“You want to go with me?” I asked, sending him a mental picture of the cafeteria, and all the countless pots of food. I had no way to tell him my plan was to carry him inside my backpack and feed him under the table. Ugz took a minute to respond, and I could tell I had his attention. Ultimately, he decided he did not want to leave the water though. The lazy cretin is lucky he saved my life.

“Fine, but don’t complain about whatever it is I bring you.” I told him.

Raxx was still asleep. I found him passed out on the floor next to his bed, snoring only as a beastman can.

Fearing an accidental swipe, I woke him up by calling his name. Which is not as easy as it sounds. Despite having extraordinary senses, the Harak could sleep like the dead. By the time he heard me, I was shouting at the top of my lungs, and seriously considering launching a wet Ugz at him.

Raxx said that his head was splitting like he had taken a ship's prow to the head and begged me to let him return to sleep.

Joy was apparently not up to getting out of bed either, and I ate at our usual table alone.

The absence of both of my companions made me wonder if Elaine would show. There was a notable enough group of black robes missing from the tables, that I wondered if my recovery from casting magic was not also above average.

Was it still a Willpower thing, or did Constitution play a role? Constitution was unlikely; I know Raxx had that in spades after our physical fitness class. Emotional resilience was a trait I grew strong at long before becoming an ascendent. I suspected it contributed to the development of my superior Willpower.

Done eating, I went back to the front of the line and packaged up foods I thought would travel well. When Raxx got up, he would surely be every bit as hungry as I was. The dwarven cook, whose name I did not know, was as eager as ever to fatten me up, making it easy for me to pack a few plates.

That finished, I searched around for Elaine in the common area but could not find her. The night air was pleasant, so I sat out on a bench in front of the dining hall for a time to see if she would show.

Elaine did not leave me waiting long. Bleary eyes and wide mouthed yawning did nothing to subtract from her magnificence. As she approached me, I felt my cheeks heating. Thankfully, it was dark enough that she could not see it.

Or me, for that matter.

“Hey there,” I said to Elaine, startling her mid-walk. Her brain caught up to her senses fast, and I saw recognition flash in her eyes.

“Oh good! You are still here. I hope you haven’t been waiting long. Casting detect magic took way more out of me than I thought it would.” she said with a friendly smile, fighting back another yawn.

“I completely understand,” I said, suddenly wanting to yawn along with her. “Thank you for showing. I’m sure that you are tired and hungry, and I won’t take too much of your time. I would ask that we do this some other time, but my problem is one of a time sensitive nature.”

Elaine frowned in worry, making a cute dimple on her face.

“What is it, Harald? Is everything okay?” she asked.

Her shows of emotion affected my ability to think. I tried to fixate on her nose so that I could speak. It was an old trick my father taught me to use when talking to someone that was ugly. A lesson I found incredibly ironic at the time.

“So… t-the thing, with R-Reynold, you know.” I stammered. Nose staring was not working for me. I looked away from her. “Do you have a way to speak with Earl Snelling?” I finally spit out.

“Earl Snelling? Not exactly…” She said, looking confused. “Why do you need to contact him?”

“I want to ask him for--” staring away from her as I was, I noticed an odd black shape near a tree. Thus far, my ability to see in the dark had worked flawlessly, and my mind had already adapted well to its use. A greyish light was present when there was no light, making total darkness feel like gloomy daylight at the worst. I could still see that it was dark, it just did not hinder me.

However, my magic eyes could not penetrate the black that began expanding from behind that tree.

“Harald?” Elaine asked, concerned.

The black continued to expand until I saw something that looked familiar. It took another second before I realized what I was seeing. A figure holding a crossbow. Pointed at Elaine.

“Move!” I yelled, throwing myself in front of Elaine, merely a second before I heard a snapping motion.

Clang!

A pressure hit me from behind, but I felt no pain. I turned to look behind me, only to spot Elaine’s arm wrapped around my waist, holding a golden shield in the air around my back.

Without saying a word, Elaine slipped around me, tossing a glowing dagger at the charging shadowy figure.

The assassin deflected the projectile with a nasty looking black sword, sending golden sparks flying from the impact.

Not stopping to think, I swung my poleaxe around and threw the cover off.

Elaine had already engaged the assassin in melee by the time I was ready to assist. Sparks continued to fly as Elaine timed blocking the black sword with her translucent golden shield. Her empty hand would manifest the magic aegis, right before the sword would strike, leaving me in awe at her speed.

The assassin saw me coming and tried to dart left to place Elaine in my path. However, surprising me again, Elaine threw herself forward in the same direction, cutting off the assassin with a tumbling roll, and springing back to her feet with one hand. It was not just a showy move, either; I heard the Assassin hiss in pain and grab their leg.

Somehow, she had outmaneuvered and wounded her attacker!

From the assassins’ side, I tried to sweep my blade from behind and into the wounded leg, but the killer was too skilled for me, neatly jumping over my strike. When they landed, Elaine shot in again with her dagger, but got forced back from a wild sword strike.

Before I could bring my blade around again, the assassin threw up a cloud of black smoke from their offhand.

“Back up!” Elaine yelled at me, and the two of us retreated from the obscuring smoke, fearing it was poison.

When it cleared, the killer nowhere to be seen.