Chapter 1672 (2/2)
Even in the well-kept lawn area in which Randidly landed, there were a dozen students present, either intently reading books or dozing in the shade of nearby trees. Another group was engaging in a game of ultimate frisbee which would have put pre-System athletes to shame. Wide cobbled pathways led deeper into the mass of buildings in the center of the sky-island, branching off into a maze of classrooms, restaurants, student dorms, and workshops.
Randidly looked around, but didn’t see any signs; apparently, students were supposed to just have the area memorized…?
He released a pulse of Grim Intuition to orient himself and then began walking. Despite Tatiana’s earlier warnings, no one gave Randidly a second glance as he walked past the fields and deeper into the academy in leather pants and a cotton shirt. At one point a teenage girl with red pigtails did look curiously over at him and Randidly felt his heart drop when he thought he had been recognized, but then he realized that the girl's eyes were locked onto his tail, which had at some point unwound itself to flick behind him.
Why is it that I’m feeling oddly annoyed that Tatiana was wrong about anyone recognizing me…? Randidly rolled his eyes and moved behind a forge to take a large staircase deeper into the inner ground of Kharon Academy. Soon he descended into the shadowy depths of the sky island.
There, Randidly finally found what he was looking for: after a torchlit tunnel, Randidly arrived at two massive marble doors. Above the doors, written in gold, was the word Labyrinth.
How… direct. Randidly’s couldn’t help but grin.
However, after proceeding through the rumbling doors, Randidly was stumped by the first test of the Labyrinth, written in delicate letters upon an obsidian podium. Demonstrate the strength of your Scrawl Mark.
What’s Scrawl? Randidly instantly sent a message to Tatiana.
She responded quickly. Ah, I’m surprised you encountered it so quickly. Scrawl is the temporary style of Engraving invented by the children to create flying vehicles prior to Kharon Academy’s founding. Considering that it was a subject matter pioneered by the children, it has since become a huge part of Kharon’s curriculum. Plus… there are a lot of benefits to utilizing temporary Engravings. In terms of flexibility, it is unmatched.
Randidly scratched his chin as he wandered back out of the labyrinth and was greeted by the familiar sound of hammering from a nearby forge. Since he was interested in this new method of Engraving anyway, he walked back toward the areas were students were milling around. When he returned, Randidly’s gaze brightened immediately; a young man of around nine was crouching above a wooden board and quickly drawing out an Engraving on the wood that Randidly didn’t recognize.
Randidly walked over and crouched next to the boy. “Are you good at Scrawl?”
“Very good.” The boy grunted, continuing to work. Randidly carefully examined the lines of the boy’s creation. The finer details were a mystery to Randidly, but he could sense the clean flow of energy between the different shapes that he drew.
Randidly memorized the symbols and sent a message to Neveah, asking for her insight on the Nether issue, whether she knew Scrawl, and whether she wanted to come to Kharon in the next few days to meet him for dinner.
Meanwhile, the kid finished his Scrawl and the runes flashed to life. But after few seconds of trembling, the wooden board shattered to pieces. The kid clicked his tongue as though this was expected and then turned to regard Randidly suspiciously. The kid had messy hair and pushed his oversized glasses up his face. “I assume you want to learn Scrawl? How much are you willing to pay? You don’t seem like you've got much money on you.”
Randidly twisted his lips. “Well, not on me-”
The kid, very officious, raised his hand to silence Randidly. “You are in luck. I need a bodyguard for a particular event coming up. An auction. So flex your bicep for me and let me see how strong you are.”
Randidly blinked and stared at the kid for several seconds. Somewhat confused, Randidly extended his arm and made a muscle for the kid. The kid reached over and poked Randidly’s flexed bicep, nodding with satisfaction when he felt how solid Randidly’s arms were.
Randidly’s mouth twitched. Kid, if I flex like this while squeezing you, you’d pop like a balloon…
“You are a bit old, but it makes you seem tough,” The kid finally announced. Then he nodded again. “Alright, I’ll teach you Scrawl in exchange for protection tomorrow night. Just follow me until then and prevent anyone from interfering with my business, alright?”
Randidly was torn between agreeing and being unwilling to spend two days following this kid. But truly, he was here to take a break. And he couldn’t deny that the spirit of Kharon was particularly strong around this kid… “So you’re going to the Kharon Academy Auction?”
The kid looked at Randidly and snorted while adjusting his large glasses. “That amateur fest? No, of course not. The auction I’ll be going to is a prestigious, invite-only affair. And it’s already been happening for five years: the Kharon Academy Under-Auction.”
A glimmer appeared in Randidly’s eyes. “...and let me guess, completely hosted by ch- by students of the Academy.”
The kid grinned and nodded.