The Chronicles of Eli walker, Volume one : Chapter one

As I sat at my desk I could hear the soft crackling of the wood that was being burnt up in the fireplace. When I looked up I could see the last remaining rays of sunlight pass trough the window. Gosh, is it that late already I murmured to myself. I had been grading exam papers all afternoon so the time must have slipped away from me. A deep sigh escaped my mouth as I tried to stand up.

It now had been fifteen years since I started teaching at the Arcane institute. In the world of magic the Arcane institute was the leading authority considering the research into the arcane and anything related to magic and spellcasting. In the one thousand years since its founding many great scholars have worked at the institute whom still have influence on how magic is perceived in the present. The institute has a special wing dedicated to each of the academic classes that exist within the world of magic. As of the current consensus these include: philology & History, biology, spell crafting, alchemy and thaumaturgy. Each of these faculties housed its own equipment and labs that were necessary to conduct research and teach the students who were enrolled at the school.

Before I became a teacher I myself was also a student here, and trough the work I had done over the years I was eventually appointed a teaching position next to still conducting my own research. This office was one of the perks that came with being a professor at the institute. It was neither small or big, but that did not really matter to me. Everything that I needed on a semi-regular basis could comfortably fit in this room, and whatever other needs I had could be found elsewhere on campus. If you had enough renown and prestige nothing was unobtainable here, since results were the only thing that mattered. However, my position was not that remarkable. Since my graduation all those years ago I mainly dabbled in literary research and the evolution of the arcane arts over the course of history. The theses that I had provided were not regarded as ground-breaking work and thus did not pick up much attention.

Academics in this age were mainly focused on the inception of new spells and alchemy, as this field was only conjured relatively recently, just shy of one hundred years ago. As a teacher I taught the class History of the Arcane to first year students. This class was a basic introductory module that gave a brief overview of all the different sorts of magic and the scholarly fields. All first years were obliged to follow this course as only in the second year and onwards would they be allowed to choose a specialization at one of the faculties.

And thus that is how I found myself having to grade all these test sheets. I opened one of the drawers of my desk and pulled out a small cigar box and opened it up. I withdrew one of the cigars and lit it up, a reward for an afternoon of hard work. I plunged myself in the armchair that was standing next to the fireplace.

After having a couple of puffs and closing my eyes for a bit, thinking of tomorrows class I was rudely interrupted my the dull sound of knocking on wood. ''Come in''. after I said these words the door slowly opened and I saw a petite girl with light brown hair standing in the doorframe. '' Sorry to bother you professor Walker, but can I come in?'' '' Ah, miss Alicia, yes please come in. Can I help you with anything? Oh, and drop the formalities you can just call me Eli.'' The young girl cracked a small smile and then stepped into the room, closing the door behind her.

The girl, Alicia, was one of the first years that attended my class this year, amongst fifty or so others. This may not seem like a lot but the Institute was notoriously difficult to get into. After requesting an application potential students were invited to take an entrance exam which only roughly five percent passed. This was to ensure that only the top prospects were admitted to the school and thus the institute would retain its prestigious status.

''Professor Eli I came here to talk to you about our class from the other day.'' '' You mean the class about magic literacy and writing?'' I replied. The girl nodded her head in confirmation and followed up with ''Yes, you mentioned that everything related to magic is described and annotated in a special writing system. But I did not quite understand why this is done, would It not be a lot more efficient to just write in the common tongue?'' as she spoke Alicia questioningly tilted her head to the side. I took a couple of seconds to think about her question. ''Miss Alicia why don't you sit down for a bit and have a cup of tea with me'' while saying this I gestured over to the other chair that located before the fireplace. I could see she was a little perplexed but she did not take long to accept my invitation. As she said down I put on a kettle with water and poured both of us a cup of the hot brew.

''the tea is still quite hot so be careful not to burn yourself'' I said as I placed her cup on the little coffee table before her, after which I sat back into my own chair. ''To come back to your question, the short answer is, yes it would indeed be way easier if we would use the common language to write about magic. However, it is simply not possible to do so.'' Alicia looked at me sceptically but I continued none the less. '' You see all magic is connected to runes which hold a form or arcane energy within them, and by combining these runes it is possible to create magic formulae which can be applied in spells and other magic such as thaumaturgy and alchemy. This runic energy synergizes with our own magical energy to create the desired outcome. In essence, it is no different from a mathematical equation. If you take one part of the equation and alter it, or remove it completely the outcome will differ entirely. This is why, even after all this time we still use the runic script when we note down spells, incantations or any magical sequence.''

I took a sip from my cup as I finished speaking. Alicia frowned her eyebrows as she was thinking about what I just explained to her. ''So you are saying that runic energy is key to unlocking all magic phenomena in this world?'' she said. ''Close, but not entirely correct. Runic energy is more like the keyhole whilst your own arcane energy is the key to unlock the lock.'' I replied. I could see in her eyes that she was grasping what I was saying. I took another sip from my tea, and took my time to enjoy the pleasant floral aroma that came with it. Alicia was also sipping away at her cup while she was lost in thought. We sat like that for a couple minutes, not saying anything but simply enjoying the warmth of the fire place and the tea we shared.

''By the way I finished marking your test papers earlier, the scores will be handed out tomorrow in class. But don't fret, almost everybody passed with a good margin.'' Alicia looked at me with relief in her eyes. I cracked a smile on my face and continued; ''If you keep it up like this I have strong faith everybody will easily pass the midterms, so, good job.'' ''thank you professor, it is thanks to your excellent teaching that everybody is able to achieve such results'' Alicia said, a slight blush appearing on her face. ''I appreciated the compliment but I am sure that it is due to your own dedication and fruits of your own labour that you are progressing at this pace. Do not be afraid to give yourself a pat on the shoulder every once in a while. The institute can be a harsh environment from time to time, speaking from experience.'' Alicia started to glow a little brighter as I praised her, it seems she has really been working extremely hard on her studies. A little encouragement could go a long way and I firmly believed that this was the correct way to push these kids to get the best out of their abilities.

Alicia and I continued to talk about some other trivial topics for a while longer until the sun was fully down, at which point she suddenly hit me with a question; ''Professor I have been wondering for quite a while at this point, but, how old you are actually. Compared to all our other teachers you seem so much younger.'' At first I was slightly baffled by this question that seemingly came out of nowhere, but I just laughed it off. '' I am thirty-five this year, I graduated fifteen years ago and have been appointed as a member of staff ever since.'' I did not think much of it, because in truth, I was indeed quite considerably younger than my colleagues that were responsible for teaching the other classes in the first years' curriculum. So it was only natural that at some point this question was brought up.

Alicia's eyes opened wide in disbelief. '' you have been teaching for fifteen years and are only thirty-five?!'' ''you really are amazing professor.'' She half shouted. ''it is really not that big of a deal I assure you. In that time they simply did not have enough personnel to fill the teaching vacancies so it was not uncommon that these would be occupied by fresh graduates, such as myself. Although I do admit that it was a good career choice thanks to which I own this lovely little office.''

''What about you Alicia?'' I decided to tease her a little as payback. ''I know what you are thinking, but even though I am short I turned sixteen not too long ago, I'll have you know.'' She proudly put her fists on her hips and puffed out her chest. There was not actually an age requirement to be enrolled in the institute, but generally speaking the first years were roughly between fourteen and seventeen years old, with the odd outlier here and there. In the past some genius kids had been admitted as early as age ten. Personally I am still not convinced that this is indeed the correct move, taking the wellbeing of the child into. At that age being in parental care was utmost important to the development of both their social and emotional state of mind. Being sent away to a foreign environment and living on campus with no peers their own age could be devastating and hamper their growth further in adolescence. Anyhow, my thoughts kind of deranged a little, but Alicia was still sitting their proudly. ''I will make sure to get you a treat then for when your birthday rolls around next time, if you keep up the good work that is'' I said half-jokingly. That comment caused for yet another blush to turn up on her cheeks. At this point both of us had finished our tea and I took a quick peak at the clock mounted on the wall. ''Alicia I think it is best that you do not leave too late as it is already 8 PM. The caretaker at the dorm will probably get angry at you if you turn up any later. Additionally I still have some preparing to do for tomorrows class.'' Alicia hurriedly got up. Apparently the time had also slipped her mind completely. '' Th..th..ank you professor I will be taking my leave then, the tea was delicious'' she said slightly stumbling over her words while also performing a quick bow. With that, she turned around and made for the exit, closing the door behind her.

The room grew quiet once again, the only sound being the crackling of the last remains of firewood that were still burning up in the fireplace. The cigar I had lit up had become naught but ashes in the time that Alicia and I had held conversation. I decided to pour myself another cup of tea before sinking myself back into my arm chair and going over the material that would be covered in tomorrows class. I sat like that for another hour or two, until the night had completely embraced everything in utter darkness and I started dozing off. 'oh dear, I should probably head off to bed shouldn't it'' I softly mumbled to myself. I got up once again and extinguished the candle lights that were now the sole source of light within the room. Closing up behind me I made way for a building that was located close the main academy building. Members of staff were granted lodging by the institute, yet another privilege that came with the position, I thought to myself. The hairs on my arm were starting to stand up due to the lowering temperatures and I could feel winter would soon be upon us. In turn this quickened my pace slightly and before I knew it I was home and turned myself in for the night.