Brodel was meticulous in his approach to teaching, and as I listened to his lecture, I found myself taking notes diligently, carefully absorbing every word that left his lips. His words seemed to flow like a river, effortlessly carrying us along its ripples of knowledge. He commanded our attention so easily; it almost felt like a spell had been cast over us all.

"The most important thing to remember," he said, "is that the arrays must be layered correctly. Every array affects the subsequent one and builds upon it. To successfully construct a building, you must ensure that the foundation array is the first one constructed, and then build upon it."

He waved his hands in a fluid pattern, using his illusionary magic to construct an transmutation array in the air. We watched as the array glowed brightly, pulsing with energy. He then added more arrays to the structure, demonstrating how each was built upon the last until it formed a completed magical formation.

"Now who can tell me a flaw in this process?" he asked.

We all remained silent; no one seemed to understand what Brodel meant until finally we heard a timid voice from the back of the class.

"Where does the matter come from?" Roswyn asked, her eyes wide with curiosity. "If we pull the earth from the ground beneath the building, wont it destabilize the foundation?"

Brodel smiled. "Very good, Roswyn," he said. "Your question is a very important one to consider when constructing a building. The simplest method is to create a building with a basement level, using the earth from that area to form the walls and roof."

"What if digging down is not possible?" Another student asked.

"In that case," Brodel replied, "you must be creative. You can use transmuted materials from other sources or find a way to rearrange the existing ground in such a way that it forms the basis of your building."

As Brodel continued talking, I came to the understanding that my wall—which had been constructed and then demolished in Sēkrit—wouldn't have lasted very long. When building the structure, I hadn't taken into account any underlying foundations. It was an amateur mistake, but one I wouldn't make again.

With a grimace, I contemplated that if it had been me constructing the Sēkrit underground encampment instead of Trismegistus, we very well could have all perished trapped in a cave in. Even my first underground laboratory was created without taking into account fundamentals and proper building design- I was lucky it hadn't collapsed.

Excitement coursed through the disciples as Brodel guided us outdoors, and they began to murmur excitedly amongst themselves. Despite my own enthusiasm, I made a conscious effort to stay composed as I followed behind the group.

When we arrived outside the temple, Brodel gave me a brief glance and it dawned on me that I had failed to disclose where he should construct the house or grant him liberty to manipulate the claimed land.

Utilizing the mental connection between us, I instructed the priest to construct the house next to the stables and reached into the pocket of my robes, feeling around until my fingers found the secret pouch containing the land-management token tied to this plateau. After accessing the bag's interface, I withdrew the token and initiated access rights for Brodel and the disciples.

Arriving at a cleared section of land near the stables, Brodel confidently sauntered forward and, with a gesture for the disciples to stand back, firmly stomped one foot down on the ground. A collective gasp of astonishment emanated from those around me as I too struggled to contain my awe at the sight of a transmutation array slowly carving itself into the ground around him.

From the initial core points, complex twisting lines spread outward and into a finished array that was ready to be activated.

Previously I had confined myself to conventional methods of forming arrays, yet here Brodel was showing us how much faster it could be done. I was in awe of the simplicity and speed that this technique offered and wished that I had known about it sooner.

As I stared at the array, a thought occurred to me - if transmutation could work so well on the ground, why couldn't it be used on the wisp cores we were using for the undying fire array?

"Reckon we could do that with the fire wisp cores?" Kip asked under his breath as Roswyn's hand shot up into the air, the gnome bouncing on her toes as she tried to get Brodel's attention.

Spotting her, Brodel gave a knowing smile and nodded his head in her direction. "Yes, Roswyn?"

"Is it possible to imprint an array like that on other items such as mana cores or crystals?" she asked.

"It is," Brodel replied, "However you will find it much more difficult." As he said this, a wave of murmurs arose from the disciples around us. "We shall cover that in another lesson at a later date, but for now let us see the array in action."

He hefted his staff, slamming the end of it down onto the ground and sending reverberations echoing through the air. The sound was deafening in its intensity and everyone fell silent. He closed his eyes for a moment and when he opened them again the circles carved into the earth glowed with a luminous blue light, illuminating the surrounding area. Then, one by one, they began to sink down until what remained was a deep and dark subterranean chamber. Above it, the displaced dirt and rocks shifted and reshaped themselves, forming sturdy walls made of pale gray stone. Atop them rested a roof formed of the same gray stone.

The building had been conjured in mere moments, and it was a sight to behold. Though the exterior of the building may not have been ornate, there was something about it that spoke of power and potential.

The interior was hollow, with nothing more than an empty shell; the floors having yet to be built. That would soon be taken care of as well, when the guild carpenters arrived. For now I would be allowing the disciples to temporarily reside in the temple, as they would be working on the construction of the village.

"Now that everyone has seen how to construct a full-sized building, we are going to practice the array on a smaller scale. Using this array, you will be able to create model houses and form a miniature version of the village. This way, you gain an understanding for proper formation of the array before moving onto full-scale buildings." He paused as we all nodded in understanding. "This will also allow for us to get a better sense of the proposed layout of the village, before we reach a point where changes would be too difficult to make."

"But sir, won't it be better for us to practice drawing the full scale array rather than a different one?" one of the students asked, his brows furrowed in confusion.

Brodel smiled and shook his head. "It is important to understand the basics first before trying to build something larger. It is better for us to start small and perfect our technique before attempting a full-scale project," he said calmly. "The only difference in the array is the dimensions, matter and mana input. The base structure remains the same."

"Will we be learning to alter the array to create different types of buildings?" another student asked, this time with a hint of excitement in her voice.

"Yes, that is exactly what we will be doing," Brodel replied. "By the end of these next months you should have a better understanding of how to form an array for various purposes and make adjustments as needed."

Nods of understanding went around the group as everyone began to talk excitedly amongst themselves. The prospect of learning how to construct buildings from nothing more than a few symbols was certainly an exciting one.

"Even earth mages can't build a house that fast," someone mumbled in awe.

"We could build entire strongholds in seconds," another disciple exclaimed.

Brodel chuckled, his gaze meeting mine and I hid my smile. Despite making it appear easy, I knew that it was anything but. I had felt just how much mana he used during the construction, and it made my head spin. It would be a long time before any of these disciples could achieve a feat like building strongholds; at most, they would be able to form one of the model buildings that Brodel would be starting them off on.

"Now, now," Brodel said, waving his hands to quiet everyone down. "Let us go inside. It will be best for us to continue our discussion indoors where it is warm."

The disciples nodded and made their way inside, excited chatter filling the air as they left. As I trailed behind the group with a smile, my gaze fell on Darius as he walked across the plateau in our direction.

Meeting his gaze, I knew instantly that something was wrong. His face was drawn, his posture tight and rigid. He jerked his chin towards the stables, a silent request for me to join him there.

As I stepped into the stable, a wave of comforting heat from the furnace washed over me. Making my way to Arion's stall, I tenderly ran my fingers along his muzzle and greeted him with a soft smile.

"So," I probed, "how did your snake hunt go?"

Darius shook his head in frustration and released a deep sigh. He leaned wearily against the stall next to Arion's, arms crossed as he frowned with an unreadable expression. "Not well," he uttered as he ran a hand across his face.

When I saw Darius leaning against Victoria's mare, I almost reminded him that the mare, which was amusingly named Horse, was known to be aggressive. But I decided against it, if he was stupid enough to put himself in range of her, he deserved what he got.

"How many deaths?" I asked, my voice low and soft.

"Two," he replied somberly.

A quick check of my team ring assured me it wasn't a member of my team, as I knew Pia, Victoria, and Rainy had all taken part in the hunt, with Kip opting out in favor of listening to Brodel's lesson. That only left Victoria's brothers or Roswyn's teammates.

"The snake was killed, though, right?" I clarified, getting a head shake in response.

"Retreated into the water," Darius grumbled. "Nothing we did brought it back up, so we need another plan."

I nodded in agreement, my gaze wandering past the guild leader and onto the gray mare. She had noticed the unwary human leaning against her stall and lifted her head from her hay feeder long enough to take note of him. Nostrils flaring, she charged towards him with an enraged force, crashing into the gate with a thunderous noise.

Darius sprang out of harm's way just in time; his instincts sensed imminent danger and he flung himself away from the mare, unsheathing a dagger as he did so. Inside her stall, Horse reared back with a loud whinny, her eyes blazing in anger as her hooves battered the wooden door.

Trying my hardest to stifle my giggles, I watched as the guild leader tucked away his dagger and stood upright, brushing off dirt from his trousers. His face was contorted into a scowl as he glanced at Horse who was pawing at the ground.

"She almost had you," I teased, my eyes twinkling with mirth. "The famed guild leader of Eternia, sent cowering by a mere horse."

"Very funny," Darius muttered, though a smirk was tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"I thought so," I chuckled, my tails swishing happily as I turned away from the mare's stall. "When are you going to make another attempt against the snake?"

Darius sighed. "After I return from Rivera," he replied, folding his arms over his chest. "I want to wait until Yuki arrives with the guild members from the coast. Her skills as a tamer might give us the edge we need; plus the additional manpower will help too."

I nodded in agreement. "That's a good plan," I said.

"I want you to keep the cavern sealed until then, alright?" he requested, his gaze sharpening as it met mine.

"Alright," I agreed. "I'll keep the caverns off limits."

"Good," he said, a note of satisfaction in his voice. "I also wanted to ask if you would allow us to use your wagons for the trip to Rivera.”

I thought for a moment before nodding. "I am not opposed to allowing the guild to use my wagons," I said, a smile curling over my lips as I spoke the next part, "for a fee."

Darius chuckled, his tone teasing as he spoke. "We're going to Rivera to get the things you need without charging you for them, so how about you waive the fee this once? We can discuss further usage later."

After leaving the stable, we paused at the newly erected structure where Darius gave it a quick survey before we hurried towards the temple, keen to get out of the frigid air. The wind was picking up and a chill had settled over the mountain, with signs of an oncoming snowstorm.

As I separated from Darius, I briefly considered rejoining Brodel’s lesson before heading up to my office. There were things I needed to get done.

The hall of origin was sparsely populated, with only a few disciples milling around as I walked towards the stairs which led to my office. Entering the room, I grabbed the book about core augmentation from the drawer in my desk before heading up to my alchemy lab on the third floor.

As I went to take my seat at the workbench, I heard a familiar tapping on the glass window accompanied by a soft croaking caw. Opening the window, I watched as my faithful companion flew in. His feathers slightly damp from a recent flight, Zosimos hopped onto his perch with a flutter of his wings.

"Hey, Zos," I said, rubbing his head feathers. Then, I returned to my workbench and opened the book, turning to where I had left off.

The Forbidden Art of Mana Core Augmentation, I sighed leaning back in my chair. In this book lay the secrets of how to modify a living creature's mana core, allowing it to grow and develop its power beyond the limits of nature. The main use appeared to be increasing one's own power, but Haiden had said that it could be useful for my mimic research.

"Where did I put that book?" I mumbled, pushing to my feet and began searching through my shelves. I smiled as I finally unearthed it, the worn leather cover of "Mimic's Boon or Bane" peeking out at me from the shelf.

Pursing my lips I skimmed over the faded and damaged pages to the next sections, finding the last entry where only a handful of words could be read.

"After many failed attempts… successfully… mimic… merge the mana… slime... nature of…" I read aloud, pausing as I looked for any answers hidden between the lines.

My thoughts were interrupted by a sudden loud croaking from Zosimos, who had perched himself on the edge of my workbench, one foot resting on the book about core augmentation.

"After many failed attempts, they successfully created a mimic by merging the mana core of a slime?" I asked him, getting a loud caw back in response.

"Caw."

I smiled, shaking my head as I looked down at the book again. It seemed like I had finally found the answer I was looking for. Now, all that remained was to try and replicate it. "The question is, what did they merge the slime core with?" I said thoughtfully, stroking my fingers over the worn pages.

"Caw," with a flutter of his wings Zosimos hopped off the workbench and over to a shelf, tapping his beak on a jar filled with dark crystals.

Moving over to the shelf, I picked up the jar. "The dark crystals from the mummified creatures in the Sēkrit dungeon?" I asked Zosimos, who nodded his head in response. "Hmmm," I said, studying the crystals.

"Haiden said the crystals are formed when the undead absorb mana," I murmured, tapping my nails against the glass jar. "The undead cannot incorporate mana into their corrupted cores in order to grow stronger, so the mana crystallized within the body. It is from the crystals that the necromantic taint is created."

After a few moments of quiet contemplation, I set the jar down and turned to Zosimos. "Do you think the mimic is a product of merging these crystals with a slime core?" I asked him.

Zosimos cawed, hopping onto my shoulder and rubbing his beak against my cheek before flying off to perch in the corner of the room.

"I don't even have any slime core to experiment with," I sighed.

Did I have any other cores to work with? I furrowed my brow in thought, before the answer suddenly hit me. Wisp cores. Those were the only thing I had that was close enough and it was also the recommended core for a dark mage's first augmentation.

"Fire or ice," I said to myself, turning my attention to the book about core augmentation. I flipped through the pages rereading the information pertaining to the process.

"Obviously I won't be augmenting my own core, but perhaps, I can use the same process to merge two wisp cores," I mused softly, my gaze drifting to the furnace. Should I? Could I?

I shook my head, no. It was too risky to try without more information or a better understanding of what I was trying to accomplish. I'd have to research more and experiment with other wisps first before attempting such a dangerous procedure.

With one final glance at the wisp in the furnace, I closed the book and set it aside. For now, I would just have to be content with-

"Caw!"

I looked up, catching sight of Zosimos who was ruffling his feathers, his gaze darting back and forth between me and the furnace.

"No." I said firmly, shaking my head.

"Caw!" He cawed again.

"It's too risky!" I said a bit more sternly. "I need to do more research before I can try something like this."

Zosimos stared at me for a moment, before turning his attention to preening his feathers.

I sighed, rubbing my temples as I looked around in frustration. "Sometimes I wonder about you, Zos," I muttered. "Sometimes I wonder."

With a final glance at the wisp in the furnace, I moved away from the workbench. I needed to clear my mind, and get some rest before I could really analyze the situation. That's what I needed right now; a little rest and relaxation to set my mind straight. I was still feeling unsettled after my encounter with Haiden, and the throbbing pain in my head wouldn't relent.

I walked out of the lab, and made my way to my bedroom. Maybe if I could get a few hours of shut-eye, the pain in my head would abate, and the answers I sought could appear.

But even as I crawled into bed and closed my eyes, I knew that the headache would still be there when I woke up; it always was.