The Runic Alchemist

Classes were back to normal—or as normal as they could get. Eyes followed Damian as he moved through the hallways, Toph walking confidently beside him. The little elephant now carried himself with an air of dignity, refusing to be carried around anymore. He considered himself all grown up—or at least that's what his smooth, tiny brain seemed to believe.

Inside their room, however, Toph was the same as always. Still, he now had the stamina to keep up with Damian's pace while walking. Damian was just happy that the attention in the hallways was shared between the colorful elephant and himself.
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Aside from the occasional head-turns, Damian didn't receive much attention. It seemed that a week was all it took for most teenagers to forget significant events. After all, aggressive duels weren't uncommon here. The community challenges and friendly duels didn't draw much attention—it was the intensity of the fights that stuck out and people lashing out and challenging others.

The professors conducted their classes as usual. Bloodedge checked on Damian when they were alone, to which Damian responded positively. He also thanked him for his advice and for arranging a week's leave for his friends. Bloodedge simply nodded and moved on. There were very few people in this world Damian could say he respected, Bloodedge was one such man. Not because of his strength, No, there were plenty of third rankers. But as a teacher, and an experienced warrior, Bloodedge was high on his list.

Later that day, after classes, Damian was summoned to Bloodedge's office along with Sylian, who had fully recovered by now. When Sylian entered and saw Damian, he immediately tensed up, moving defensively away. His body language screamed unease and fear. Damian sighed as he followed Bloodedge's instructions and sat down. Eventually, Sylian also took a seat, though he did so hesitantly.

"Maximus here won the duel. The honor points belong to him," Bloodedge declared, cutting to the reason for their meeting in one sentence.

Sylian gritted his teeth but nodded. Reluctantly, he opened his badge status to transfer the points. The academy term had only just started, and most students barely had enough honor points to access the library or obtain low ranked items. Sam, in fifth-year, ranked first, with Einar and Lucian occupying the second and third spots, respectively. Fourth was tied with Evrin and some pugilist boy. Fifth was also a tie between three people Alex, Maelor and Kamisen. Each recieving far more honor points than Damian's modest 25—the base allotment gifted to all new students.

Damian had seen the honor poing exchange tab in his badge window and there were some interesting things, but not enough for him to actively work for them. Reize had gotten her hands on most of them, when he found something interesting he would just ask her how it worked and she would explain or show him if she still had the item.

Most of these, however, were crafted by other Highsword runesmiths and apprentices rather than Runefather himself. Items from Runefather were highly coveted and only became available during specific times of the academic year, commanding massive amounts of points from the wealthiest or most powerful students.

With Sylian's points added, Damian's total reached 276—not enough for the more advanced tools but enough to significantly improve any student's living standards at the academy. Honor points could be exchanged for better meals, private training facilities, laundry services, letter delivery, and even plain monetary exchange. However, once converted to gold, the process couldn't be reversed.

The system was designed to fairly reward hardworking students, but with inter-student transfers in play, the divide between the wealthy and the less fortunate often persisted. Still, a few determined and honest individuals managed to rise above their circumstances—an outcome that seemed the best achievable without imposing overly strict regulations.

As Damian stood up to leave, however, offered Sylian an apology before doing so. "Sorry for losing control… You're kind of a piece of shit, but that was still uncalled for. It wasn't personal."

Sylian stared in stunned silence, his eyes wide and mouth slightly agape at the baffling apology. He said nothing, while Bloodedge merely smiled and gave Damian a nod of approval.

Damian returned to his routine—scouring the library, crafting runic designs, and jotting down ideas for spell modifications. His two squires, Lumi and Elias, joined him and Reize in the library after classes. He paid their entrance fees with his own honor points, which thrilled them both as Lumi eagerly explored the forbidden section. Elias, understanding the privilege, also wasted no time, diving into enchantment and rune-related texts.

As Damian's squires, they worked diligently to help him - which was their first duty, increasing the pace and efficiency of their research. They were still permitted to take one book of their choice to their rooms, which motivated them to work diligently. Unlike Damian, they required significantly more time to master spells.

Hours into the library, Damian was summoned again—this time by Worldscribe herself. Leaving his squires with Reize, he followed a knight escort to her office.

Worldscribe gestured for him to sit. She got straight to the point. "I've arranged for a monster. However…"

"However?" Damian prompted.

"Are you ready for it? I've heard you're having control issues," she said, her professional mask betraying faint traces of concern.

"Yeah, I get cursed from time to time," Damian replied simply.

Worldscribe studied him carefully but refrained from asking further questions. Damian had no clue what conclusions she might have drawn from that.

"It's a Scorched Stone Titan. Emperor rank. Will that suffice?" she asked.

'Woah, scary.' A Scorched Stone Titan? An Emperor-rank monster? Damian was impressed. Capturing such a creature and bringing it back required a monumental effort—unless they had one conveniently nearby for some reason.

"Yes, that's sufficient," he answered calmly.

"Let's proceed, then. Or do you need time to prepare?" she asked.

"No, I'm ready. The sooner we deal with this, the better."

No matter how powerful the Highswords were, keeping an Emperor-rank monster contained was no trivial matter. Best to address it without delay.