Books! Everywhere the eye could see lay shelves and shelves of books, some thick leather-bound tomes, others thin enough to be mistaken for magazines. At last I’d managed to find time to hit up the academy’s library, if only after sufficient prodding from both Suds and Advisor Flithus.

It was without a doubt the largest repository of knowledge I’d come across since I’d become a Protagonist, on par with your standard university library, and as I stepped further into the room, I was struck by how similar it all looked to its Earthen analogs. Various stressed-out students sat around scattered tables, hunched over books. More than anything, the sight gave me flashbacks to my own days both in college and then in grad school after that.

Of course, my current studies weren’t quite as book-heavy as my old ones, but I still berated myself for not coming here sooner. Markus had been indispensable in terms of getting me up to speed on general knowledge, but there was still so much I just didn’t know.

Chief amongst those things: Skills. Signs detailing book genres and topics sat atop the shelves, and without too much trouble, I soon found myself standing in front of the shelf housing the book I was looking for.

Or rather, books, plural. In fact, very plural. I scanned the spine of one of them, immediately taken aback by what I saw.

Bellin and Lanner’s Sixth Edition Skill Compendium, Abridged, Volume 8

Hesitantly, I pulled it from the shelf and began leafing through the entries, discovering them to be alphabetized, akin to the old-school encyclopedias I’d seen as a kid before everything had been digitized. Even with the compendium being the abridged version, I spotted an entire 14 volumes. On top of that, a look through the rest of the shelf revealed a series of similar books, but organized by a multitude of different dimensions instead of the simple alphabetizing.

In the very center of the shelf, a few books had been removed to make room for a placard: Note, the library also contains magical copies of the skill repositories which allow the reader to directly query skills by name, as well as filter by level, stat requirements, stat-sheet category, and more. Please see a librarian to discuss rental rates or library membership fees.

I idly wondered if the magic involved was some class function of a Librarian or if anyone with the right skills could do such a thing. Everything I’d read thus far -- minus spell books -- had been entirely standard and mundane. Given how many skills there must have been on file based on the entire shelf in front of me, though, it certainly made sense to put extra effort into making everything more manageable for people.

Briefly, I considered finding a librarian and seeing how much the rental fee was, but I figured I might as well start with the physical versions just to get a sense of what I was looking at. Largely at random, I pulled out a book that focused strictly on Perception skills, grabbing a seat at a nearby table before randomly opening the book and eyeing one of the entries.

Hawkeye

Activating this skill allows the user to focus their sight on far-off objects, temporarily enhancing their Perception past its normal limits. While using Hawkeye, all long-range skills are more likely to hit their targets, ignoring a portion of any deflection or evasion skills. For more information on exact numerical effects, see the chart at page 382.

Prerequisites

20 Perception

At least one skill or spell at the Intermediate rank or above which has a range of over 50 meters.

Unlock conditions

Successfully use a skill or spell on targets at least 50 meters away 100 times.

Successfully use a skill or spell on a moving target at least 50 meters away 20 times.

Once the above conditions have been met, heavily focus on a single target which is too far away to see fully clearly. Hitting said target will grant this skill.

Note, this is a skill variant of the Farsight skill! Modified variants can be gained based on slightly different prerequisites and unlock conditions. In most cases, the user can only hold one such skill at a time. For a list of all “Farsight” category skills, see appendix at page 431.

This skill has 4 confirmed evolutions and 72 confirmed augments. See below for a full listing along with their unlock conditions…

My eyes glazed over as I was hit with a frighteningly dense list of augments, and for my own sanity, I opted not to read through all 72. Still, the fact that someone had taken the time to interview everyone with the skill, confirm the various augments, and write it all down was fairly impressive to me. Considering my notable lack of long-range skills, though, I wasn’t as interested in Hawkeye as I might have been otherwise.

Out of curiosity, I went to the appendix in the back of the book, searching for my own Perception skills. God’s Eye wasn’t listed, but my more standard detection skills were, and I flipped to the page for Detect Secret. As perhaps shouldn’t have been too shocking, I quickly found my own dungeon-based augment on the list of possible augments, along with an entire 130 other options. Evidently, the skill was popular and fairly well mapped out. I read through a few, wondering if I’d done myself a disservice by leveling the skill to 10 before I’d come here.

Sleuth's Augment (Novice Augment)

Nothing can hide from you in your hunt to discover the culprit. Increases the effects of Detect Secret when used on any secrets relating to criminal investigations or detective work. Additionally, grants minor truth-sensing when witnesses or suspects attempt to lie or hide secrets.

Prerequisites

Be involved with solving at least 5 criminal investigations.

Have at least three other skills related to detective or law-enforcement work (see p.399 for applicable skills).

Have at least 20% of Detect Secret experience be from noticing sleuth-related secrets.

…

Augment of Nosiness (Novice Augment)

Become the city’s best gossip, gleaning the most scandalous secrets from a mere glance. Massively increases the effects of Detect Secret on all secrets related to people’s private lives. Massively decreases the effects of Detect Secret for all other uses.

Prerequisites

Gossip at the Intermediate level

Have at least 30% of Detect Secret experience be from noticing personal secrets.

The list went on for a good while more, and while I noticed some interesting and occasionally downright peculiar options, ultimately I felt pretty happy with what I’d grabbed. I was, after all, not planning to go into law enforcement or become a gossip. On the other hand, I was planning to occasionally run dungeons for the foreseeable future.

Having gotten the general lay of the land, I spent the next hour looking through the book and its siblings, partly scoping out potential new skills, partly trying to figure out what augments I wanted to shoot for with all of my existing skills.

Reading has reached level 8!

With the sheer bulk of information I had at my disposal, I found myself getting lost in the various texts, drowning out the rest of the world. Especially considering that my ears had progressed to the point of being able to hear next to every whisper, sniffle, and grumble in the entire library, it was a necessary skill to have if I wanted to get anything done. Focused as I was, I could have kept on for hours in that state.

Surprisingly, however, I found myself ripped from my concentration in a somewhat unexpected manner. While I had no issue filtering out most noises, there were a few sounds that could cut through those filters. For instance, even if they were entirely across the room from me, if someone were to say my name, my head would have snapped towards them.

In this case, however, it wasn’t my name that caught my attention: It was a voice, soft but somewhat rushed. My ears perked up, registering the voice’s familiarity.

“... so you see, even the preliminary results of the last round of research have been incredibly promising from both an efficacy and economic standpoint. If you’ll look here, you can see the exact figures, and I’m sure you’ll agree that the project is worth further funding in and of itself, with or without any side projects. Additionally-”

I chuckled as I recognized not only the voice but the topic as well. On second thought, I probably shouldn’t have been surprised at all: If I was expecting to bump into anyone in the library, of course it would have been Emin.

Knowing that I’d find it hard to go back to my reading as long as my ears forced me to eavesdrop on his conversation, I figured it was a good time for a break. If his conversation wasn’t anything too important, I’d go and say hi.

Feel like he’s definitely the kind of person to stay at the library so long that he forgets to eat. Maybe I can convince him to take a break with me and grab a bite. I followed the direction of his voice, easily picking it out despite the hushed volume and the distance, walking until only a single row of shelves separated me from him.

Right as I was about to round the bend and spot my quarry, however, Emin’s breathless rant ended, leaving room for another voice to chime in.

“Yes. The research elements are all very fascinating; however, I believe it’s best we talk about the exact details and monetary figures for your work in private, don’t you?”

I froze. The voice was official and monotone, but much more importantly, much like its partner, it was instantly recognizable to me.

Warram.

“Oh! Right. Sorry about that. Why don’t we discuss this somewhere else, then. After you.” Twin pairs of footsteps followed the sound of a chair pulling out from a table, the entirely mundane sound of it all managing to stun me. As the noise grew more distant, however, I broke free from my temporary inaction.

I rounded the bend of the shelf I’d been standing behind, instantly spotting the duo and rushing after them. Well before I reached them, I called out, a few drops of anger beginning to condense within me.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Now that I was off limits, was Warram really stooping so low as to go after my friends? Sure, coincidences happened, but for what other reason would he have possibly sought out Emin?

The pair spun about, Emin looking naturally guilty before realizing he wasn’t the one who’d done anything wrong. Rapidly, his expression changed to a cheery smile on seeing me, only for it to flicker towards confusion as he parsed my words. It was a far cry from the dour scowl from the guardsman beside him.

“Lady Astorius. A pleasure as always.” As if he’d just rubbed his mouth out with a handful of stevia packets, his words oozed and dripped with false saccharine. “I was not aware my doings were of any concern to you, but if you must know, I was discussing a funding opportunity with the gentleman here. While I attend the academy, Mother has tasked me with reviewing the projects of any promising students I come across. I trust you have no issue with the Chamber of Peace funding research on health potions?”

As always, he had a sensible excuse at the ready, only, I was far past the point of putting any stock into his words. Just because our resistance training class allowed us to vent a bit of our mutual distaste for the other didn’t mean he wasn’t still a bastard through and through.

“Emin, I’m sure I’ve complained to you about the guard who keeps trying to get me in trouble, right? This is him. I can pretty much guarantee he’s trying to take advantage of you.” After being the victim of one too many of Warram’s stunts on top of hearing the wide variety of awful takes he had in our ethics class, I viewed myself as somewhat of an expert on his behavior at this point.

I expected some drawn-out verbal battle and some snide remarks, but Warram merely raised his brows a fraction of a centimeter.

“I didn’t realize you were acquainted with the gentleman here. That’s my mistake, Lady Astorius. Especially with our resistance training already stretching the bounds of my agreement with the archmage, I would hardly wish to give the appearance of meddling in you or your friends’ affairs.” He nodded my way before slightly swiveling his head towards Emin. “Researcher Emin, it was a pleasure discussing your research with you. Should your acquaintance ever lose her apprenticeship with the archmage, or should you fall out of touch with her, feel free to reach out.”

Without another word, Warram turned and walked away, leaving me there with Emin.

That was… weirdly easy? I’d expected more pushback, or at least a few more snotty comments. Lucky that I just happened to be here, though. Can’t imagine what sorts of nonsense he’d have filled Emin’s head with if he had more time. It was a sentiment I opted to voice.

“You okay, Emin? Glad I got a chance to nip that in the bud, although I kind of wonder what he was hoping to accomplish. Maybe he was just fishing for more info on me? Doesn’t really matter, but it’s good you didn’t go off with him.” Emin, kind as he was, was a bit of a pushover at times, nor did he have the political backing that someone like me or Alara had. If Warram had asked him about me and pushed hard enough, I was fairly certain he’d have folded.

My question was met only with silence, and as I turned from watching Warram’s departure towards Emin, I found him completely frozen, as if his brain had just crashed and was undergoing a reboot. For a single, awful moment, I thought that Warram might have used his Law’s Embrace on Emin just out of pettiness. That thought was shattered, however, when the reedy researcher finally responded, whispering so softly, it was almost as if he didn’t intend for me to hear him.

“... funding opportunity.” With those two words uttered, he receded back into his dormancy.

“Sorry, what?” Was I supposed to understand that?

As if making up for its period of inaction, Emin’s body sprung into motion. Both arms rocketed towards me, clamping onto my shoulders before shaking me back and forth.

“Tess, that was a FUNDING opportunity. A FUNDING OPPORTUNITY!” His volume shot up to a level I’d occasionally come to expect from Alara, but certainly not from Emin. “Do you understand how- Of course you don’t. Of course you don’t!” He removed his hands from me, instead sending them to his head, his usual head scratching morphing into a full-on hair pulling.

“I’m not like you or Alara or Verin, Tess! Do you know how much time it takes someone like me to get enough to pay for tuition? Do you understand how hard it is to get any sort of grant money or salary for the research that I do? Tess, that was a full Chamber of Peace sponsorship grant you just blew up! I- I- Gods!” All at once, he seemed to deflate, flopping into a nearby chair and staring forward with empty, glassy eyes.

It was… not quite the response I’d been expecting.

Taking a step back, the reaction was understandable. Emin had likely been elated only a few moments ago, thinking he was about to get funding for his research, only to have me show up and dash his hopes. In hindsight, it was no wonder that Warram left without a fight -- he’d likely understood how this would look to a third party.

Only, I was fairly certain Warram had no interest in Emin’s research to begin with. By this point, I had little doubt that the Chamber of Peace had done their homework on me. Warram undoubtedly knew who my friends were, and no matter how much he feigned ignorance, I wasn’t buying it.

All in all, it only made it more despicable for Warram to give Emin all that false hope.

“You’re right, Emin. I’m sorry. That was a little dumb on my part to not think how you’d take that. Despite what he said, though, I’m pretty much 100% sure that Warram was here to take advantage of you. This is the exact sort of thing he does, and I’m really sorry you got roped up into my issues. Getting your hopes up like that was cruel, and I’ll make sure he knows not to try something again.” I somehow doubted the archmage would be too thrilled if I came to him saying “Warram talked to one of my friends, so you need to go retaliate for me,” but I could at least instill the fear of god in the guardsman the next time I saw him.

Far from perking Emin up, my reassurances only elicited a muffled grumble from him.

“Of course. Right. Getting ‘roped up into your issues’...” He let his words trail off before standing from his seat in something of a daze. His limbs hung to his side like a zombie’s. “Because that’s what just happened, naturally. You’re saying that it couldn’t possibly be the case that someone actually valued my research, right? It’s just impossible that the Chamber of Peace -- the largest consumer of health potions in the city, even ahead of adventurers -- might have had a smidgen of interest in what I do.”

I winced, eager to interject and clarify, but Emin barreled on, any trace of his usual nervousness absent.

“Gods, I enjoy spending time with you. I do! Call me mad, but I do! But would it kill you or Alara or Verin or even those two nobles we just teamed up with to stop thinking you’re all the main character of life? You’re not some gods’ blessed Protagonist, Tess! The world doesn’t revolve around you!”

Well, good to know my cover was solid, and I was hardly going to correct him on that one, but that really wasn’t the point. “Emin, I-”

“No! Don’t talk. Listen. I know I’m just some lowly Chamber of Knowledge grunt to you all, but I’m here! I exist! And unless you’ve suddenly gained the ability to advance my research and my class more than a full government backing would, then please spare me whatever you’re about to say. Because otherwise, I’ll tell you what I’m going to do -- I’m going to run after the guardsman immediately and pray that enough groveling can salvage the fact that you just blew up the best career opportunity I’ve ever been offered in my entire life!”

By the end of his speech, Emin had devolved into full-on yelling, and by this point, we’d more than attracted a few stares from students at other tables. I even spotted a librarian headed our way, likely to make us quiet down or remove us from the library, but before they could arrive, Emin was already long gone. He took off, not bothering to give me another thought.

For my part, I froze.

I’d done… the right thing. Right?

Sure, it wasn’t that far-fetched that the military would fund research on potions. Yes, it wasn’t that wild that they might scout out promising students and look into their work. Still, though, it was Warram.

What were the genuine odds that Warram would be in charge of anything related to funding? And that he just happened to look into one of my friends’ research, and that he just happened to not know Emin was a friend of mine, and that he just happened to invite said friend with him to a private, one-on-one area?

Sorry to say it to Emin, but yes, despite what he’d just said about me thinking I was the center of the universe, I was just about certain that this was some sort of plot. Warram could likely care less about Emin’s research. I’d just saved the guy a lot of grief and kept Warram from getting his hooks into one of my friends.

And yet.

Man, it still had to suck for Emin.

And it was kind of my fault, in a way.

It was even entirely possible that Warram had meant what he said, even if just out of spite. If Emin stopped associating with me, maybe Warram actually would carry through on his promise and fund him.

Far from what Emin seemed to believe, as someone who’d been enjoying the ramen-noodle diet not too long ago, I understood how much of a big fucking deal that was to him. Doubly so when it could level his class up in the process -- if I kept him from a deal like this, I might literally be shaving years off of his life. What kind of person did that to a friend?

I mean. Maybe he actually should go after Warram. I know that’s wild, but Emin’s right. It’s not like I can help him even nearly as much as-

My brain stopped mid-thought, right as my body restarted. I dashed after Emin, paying no heed to the squawking of the librarian who’d been closing in on me.

Even with the library’s size, the bookish researcher had already managed to clear the building in his haste, but thankfully, his Dexterity left something to be desired. In a flash, I was outside, and spotting him descending the stairs leading up to the library, I closed in.

The sound of my hurried footsteps against the stairs caused him to turn his head, and even before I could catch up to him, he stopped, throwing his hands into the air.

“What! After all that I just said, what could possibly make you think it was a good idea to run after me? What!”

His tone hit me hard, exasperation and frustration starting to give way to genuine fury. Still, I pressed on.

“You said you didn’t want to hear what I had to say unless I could help you more than Warram could, right?” Even as I spoke, I nearly chickened out, rethinking what I was about to do. The time for waffling, however, had already passed. “Well. What if I could?”

Before he could question me, I reached into my pouch and pulled out a lustrous black stone, holding it up between us. It was one of the many pieces of obsidian I’d mined from a dungeon boss I’d fought back in Emer’Thalis.

“Last time I showed you this, I’m pretty sure you said you’d give me your life savings and the life of your firstborn to see where it came from, right?”

Of course, at the time, I’d said no. All of the dark mana back in Emer’Thalis would do wonders for Emin and his class, but it had been way too big a risk to bring someone from Sylum back with me.

But that was then, wasn’t it?

I knew Emin. I’d explored the city with him, talked with him more than just about anyone else, gone dancing with him, gotten drunk with him, celebrated a birthday with him. More than that, he was one of my party members now. If I trusted him to have my back in a life or death situation, how could I not trust him with something like this? He was a friend, and it was only right for me to treat him like one.

I returned the obsidian to my pouch, instead pulling out an entirely different gem.

Recall Gem (Emer’Thalis)

Having steeled myself and made up my mind, I clenched it firmly, bringing it up to eye level between us before making my offer.

“So? How would you like to take a little vacation with me?”