Chapter 11. Book

Alaric's group was the last to arrive. Many had arrived like three days before and they had started their classes. Classes which started at around nine and lasted two hours each. There were also practical classes which were often in the afternoon. Alaric came to know that those who had entered the Cryptic Plane were promoted to the next group of learning. Here, one was given missions and were allowed to go and hunt beasts. After killing a beast, depending on its level of cultivation one would get points. What one was required to bring were the cores.

There was a portion in the library on the second floor where missions were given and these cores were collected and points issued. Alaric wanted to start his day as soon as possible by doing his daily routine work out which hurt him to have missed the last whole week. He woke up early around five and walked out of his room dressed in the white shirt and black pants. He had put on rubber shoes. His face gleaming in excitement. He hurried down the stairs and hurried to an open field that was around a kilometer amay from the dorm. He had read the point where the school did not allow running in the compound.

He finally reached the field where games took place place. Apart from fights which were fun, there was one game which shook the martial world. Live chess. In a field spanning 200 meters length and 100 meters width, was created as a chess board. Alaric did not spend much time studying the field and he started running immediately. He realized that counting laps minimized him and he set his running time to be of one hour.

Time passed and after around one hour one could see a boy drenched by his own sweat early in the morning doing push ups. After doing around 300 he started situps and after doing the same number he stood up. He looked in the sky as his face shone golden in the rising sun. He walked out and got on his way back to the dorm. Alaric picked his towel and rushed to the bathroom. A while later he walked out wrapped in the white towel and though he had dried his hair it still glistened in moisture. He went back to his room and from the wardrobe he removed a white shirt and black pants. Moments later he walked out refreshed and ready for new life to begin.

Alaric followed the tablet that showed him the way to the classes. He had decided that he would be studying array theory and weapon forgery and refinery. For all those who had not yet entered the Cryptic Plane, they were required to choose from array theory, weapon forgery and refinery, alchemy and beast theory. There were common classes which taught about martial knowledge and cultivation methods. Since they were still not yet into the Cryptic Plane, they would learn of various way of opening and tampering one's meridians.

Once one entered the cryptic stage they took minimal classes since they were often on missions and had also studied most knowledge required in the first three years. Most classes they took were, if they chose to continue, weapon forgery and refinery or alchemy. Only these two and infinite knowledge until one reached the moon leval.

Of all the four, only array was looked down on. Array was deemed useless since it involved only drawing useless symbols of intricate patterns just to produce a short term effect. They even disdained it more for one could bypass your array if they had enough knowledge or exceeded yours. Arrays were useful in battle but since very few attempted to study and those who decided to usually dropped it at further stages where it became even more complex to study. Thus their use was less impactful. Those who became array master were feared since an array could be used in various way like sealing and even boosting ones battle prowess. Fighting a person who had enough array knowledge was troublesome since they could even alter the conditions of the environment to their favour.

The first class Alaric came to was About weapons. To his dismay, he was late. He found all the front seats occupied and in just few minutes the teacher would get in. Alaric took his seat at the back. He realized something, he was the only one who came in empty handed. Everyone carried a book! How was he supposed to know that one was required to write notes? He just lay his head on the table and sighed. 'What a bad start.' Just as he was feeling depressed, nature could only work out against his favour when the teacher arrived. He did not even seem to notice since even the noises had subsided. This was his major problem. Once he got lost in his mind even his vision and consciousness would blur.

"Ouch!" Everyone looked behind to find a boy scratching his head with an irritated look on his face. Everyone laughed. It had been around two minutes since the teacher walked in. Dressed in a brownish robe coat. The bearded teacher had introduced himself as Morgan. He had written his name on the green board using white chalk for those who were new. His eyes had scanned the room of hundreds and had spotted a guy at the back seat lying his head on the table.

He had tried to use indirect approach to wake him up but his efforts were futile. This angered him and he even had said "At the back," hoping to make the boy look at him. In his life, not once had he been ignored. His anger rose as he chipped the chalk and threw it at a the boy. He then gave his back to them as he wrote the topic "introduction." If one looked at his face they wouldn't miss the pleased smile. It even grew wider as he heard the words from his mouth. On another part of the room, Kate and Seth sat together. They had decided to stick together before they got to no anyone else. When they saw that it was Alaric, they could only shake their heads. Always getting the attention of everyone even when he did not try to. They had carried their books like everyone else unlike him.

"Look, he did not even carry a book!" Laughter broke out the entire room. Even the teacher shook his head. Who knew maybe his inside was roaring too... This was the first time Alaric was in the midst of people his age. They had the same thinking process and found everything funny. He did not hide his face like many expected him to. But one thing he would not take laying down was been made fun off. He decided that he was going to embarass the teacher in one way or the other. For the guy who spoke, he was going to regret his actions by the end of the class.

Silence reigned and only the teachers voice could be heard. Calm as he dictated notes and bragged of his mid Master Grade. Alaric just stared at him. His long beards that reached his chest. His bald head and his eyes that sunk deep in their sockets. If not for that he was speakin,one could think that he was mouthless. Everyone was busy taking notes but Alaric was just staring at the teacher trying to discern every curve in his body. Even as an adult that would make you feel uncomfortable. The teacher kept glancing at him now and then but Alaric seemed to not meet his eyes. The teacher could not take it anymore and blurted out.

"Is there something on my face young man that you keep staring at me?!" Morgan asked. He had asked them to just call him Morgan. Everyone stared back to Alaric. Those who had been here the past three days knew about his calm nature. One of the students had reminded him that they were already past introduction but he had not erased it. Now to hear him angered twice was something shocking. But everyone stopped their thoughts when they heard Alaric reply. He had the guts to reply?

"Your mouth disappears when you stop talking," Alaric said after he had carefully observed him. Silenced reigned. It was one thing to reply but to make fun in his reply? Guts alone could not help one to do that. Did he have a loose screw? The reply was supposed to be funny but who had the guts to laugh? Morgan's head turned red like a tomato. When last had he been made fun of? Who even dared. But that was not the end. In a corner in the last row on the right, someone laughed. Its fair to say you can never miss a mad man or two in a market. Here there were two.

Everyone turned their eyes and looked at the guy who laughed and was still laughing. His hair was reddish black and his eyes brownish . He even had his hands on the stomach laughing his ass out. With the safety pin out, the whole class broke into another fit of laughter. By the time the laughter died down, Morgan was all red. Had he just been laughed at? To make matters worse, by twelve year olds? Kids without even the slightest of cultivation coursing through them?

"You two out of my class!" He roared as the whole class shuddered. Alaric stood up and started walking to the front. Alaric had taken a seat at the left corner of the room and the guy who laughed first at the right. Alaric reached Morgan and took the duster erasing the word introduction. This did not help in lowering Morgan's anger. This was further fueled by the guy who laughed again. Alaric placed the duster back and walked outside the door. Even Morgan was surprised. Did the two just leave? Weren't they supposed to beg him to let them stay? Did they not care about points? He was sure that the two had never met before but when they did he heard a laugh coming from both. If the two became friends, teaching this class was going to be hell.

There was a saying Alaric had created 'mad men befit mad men' and as soon as the two each said their first words, they knew that they could be friends. Not could but they immediately became friends.

"You know that dwarf deserves that. He is too arrogant and brags every time about his master grade," the guy who had introduced himself as Reynolds said. He was also a First Grade like Alaric with both fire and darkness affinity.

"I just had to teach him a lesson. I hate those who try to make fun of me or test me. Too bad I did not have the chance to make that first guy a laughing stock," Alaric said. Reynolds laughed and told Alaric that he too during his first class had not carried a book. The guy had made fun of him together with Morgan.

"So where should we go? I dont feel like taking anymore classes today," Reynolds said after a moment of silence.

"I wanted to check out the library first," Alaric replied as they walked through the verandahs. Making sure that they were noisy enough to the ongoing classes they passed through. Reynolds at one point walked in and waved at the class.

"What about this, we check out the library first then checkout the city. Its fun, I bet," Reynolds said. Alaric thought for a while and nodded.

The duo walked into the library. The scent of books filled their nostrils as they walked past the attendants. One might have thought that they were here to look for books but they were on a stroll. The books were arranged in order such that the first floor only contained the basics. The two walked around and spoke at low tones but they kept receiving angry glances from those who were studying.

The two pair of eyes landed on the stairs and the same thought came to them. It was written in the instructions that the library was also divided by cultivation. Those in the Foundation Plane would never dream of reading books in the first floor. This was because of the pressure that came with every step that one took on the stairs. Those of the cryptic Plane could only take it to the first floor. Those of the Foundation Plane could not even manage to climb to the second step. This was one of the ways the academy tried to motivate the students to work hard and improve their cultivation plane.