Last experiment chapter; see authors thoughts.

Leo stopped kissing his fire shard and made eye contact with Alphonse.

-"Why do you want to go to the library now?" Leo asked intrigued.

Alphonse, still mad at Leo's attitude, took his time to answer his question but couldn't do it because he was outpaced by Calvin who looked disconnected until now.

'I have to become stronger or wiser if I ever need to prove I'm not just a Grey tier. Good thing we don't have classes this afternoon, this will let me use [Avid learner] on whatever subject I read on. The library will become my gold mine!' he thought to himself before explaining why they needed to go to the library.

-" As you know already, we all have visualized our traits, or at least some of them, and to better understand how to use them we thought doing a bit of research wouldn't be so bad. You could also go check out your shards' utility."

-" Ok, fine with me, but do you know where it is because I don't!" Leo was hooked on the idea of finding out how useful his shards were but, if memory served him right, he had never seen the library on the maps on campus or the one in their phones.

-" Now that I think about it, I don't either. Do you think we have to do something special to access it?" Calvin couldn't remember seeing the library on a map either, which left them both looking at Alphonse, waiting for an answer to their problem.

Alphonse contemplated the two idiots he called friends in front of him and said in frustration:

-" Why do you both think I have the answer to something like that! That's ridiculous!"

Calvin and Leo exchanged a nod before turning back toward Alphonse and asking at the same time:

-" But do you know where it is?" with the most naïve look they could muster.

Alphonse in turn, glared at them and replied in desperation:

- "Yes, I do. But you should not count on me next time to tell you. Do your own research sometimes. It was written in the introduction booklet they gave us at the beginning."

-" An introduction booklet? I think you're the only one who got it because I can't remember ever having or seeing one." blurted out Leo.

-" If you had paid attention, you would have known how to get it, but it doesn't matter now. In the booklet they said we could get access to the library through the cafeteria by asking the lunch lady."

A silence ensued, before being broken by Calvin.

-" That's kind of weird, but we don't have much to lose anyway so let's get going!"

On that, they all made their way to the cafeteria. Since all classes had been cancelled for the afternoon and they were around lunch time, the cafeteria was fully packed to the brim. All the tables were being used and the line of people waiting to get served had almost reached the exit door.

'Dang it! There are too many people waiting in line. There's no way we'll get to talk with the lunch lady before an hour as passed.'

Calvin thought a bit about it and made the same realization as his mates and made a proposition.

-" Ok, there's definitely too many people in line and we won't be able to talk to the lady easily and to add to that we aren't even sure she will let us in, so I propose we just ask some second or third years how to get to it." Calvin gave his piece and when they expressed their approval, they all went in different directions, asking the older kids if they knew how to get to it.

In Falheim, on top of the color and metal outline of the crest, the students' uniforms had three distinct colors depending on which years they were. The first year wore an azure blue colored uniform, the second year a garnet dyed uniform, and the third year wore a uniform shaded with a deep emerald green. Knowing this, the three of them ignored all the blue uniforms and only went after the green and red ones.

Leo had the worst luck of the trio. He had spotted a table with three second years eating today's special, the chef's soup, and has he made his way toward them, slipped on some trash left behind on the floor, hurling himself directly on their table and splashing the soup everywhere. He apologized quickly and started to run away immediately after activating his trait because one of the students started to look at him with red eyes. He did not want to find out if he was just a little bit angry or "I'm going to make you pay for that" angry.

On the other hand, Alphonse had tried a more diplomatic approach. He went to the side of the cafeteria, where a group of third year students were talking by the staircase and meekly asked if they knew about the library. At first, no one turned to see who asked, thinking it was just some guy walking by but right after he reenacted his question and was met with laughter from the group. He asked his question again but each time he did, they looked at him as if he was joking.

Meanwhile, Calvin hadn't started directly by asking random people but by searching and looking around. The cafeteria had only one place where they served food but was actually a two-story high building, baring a second story filled only with tables.

'Alright, guess I'll go upstairs, see if anyone looks like they know where it is.'

As he thought about this, he quickly assessed that the second floor was mostly first years like him, and they probably didn't know any better. He went back to the stairs and as he made his way down, he realized that behind the upward staircase was another one going downward and went into it.

When he finally reached the bottom of it, he met a nice, dark wood door with a gem as a handle. Over the door was a little plaque, with the seven letters he was trying to find. 'L-I-B-R-A-R-Y'. Calvin wasn't bursting out of joy, but he was sure proud of himself for finding it and he also had to ask Alphonse what weird booklet he read his info from.

Not wanting to leave his friends behind and explore by himself, Calvin went back to the ground floor. As he climbed up, he saw Alphonse still being laughed at.

-" Haha! You're either the dumbest person I've ever seen or fucking with us, but no matter which one it is, you're a class act!" One of the third years said.

-" How much do you bet he took the booklet and thought that the lunch lady would magically transport him to the library!" Another one added, still cranked up from the initial question.

Alphonse was red, he was furious and embarrassed at the same time, making it difficult for him to keep his calm.

-" Alphonse, we were supposed to search for the library not make a one man show."

-" You! I was asking them, and they started laughing at my face, it's not fair!"

-" Want to know why? It's because we don't have to ask the lunch lady, we just have to go downstairs."

Alphonse stared at Calvin with dejection and was even redder now.

-" Let's just go get Leo and not talk about this, okay?"

Calvin, now giggling at Alphonse, started to look around for Leo before finding him near the exit door. When they arrived next to him, Calvin declared his findings and then mentioned the bad attempt at comedy that Alphonse made. Leo then briefly explained why he was near the door while they were making their way over to the library and when they finally opened the door, many new sensations overflowed them.

A refreshing gust of wind enveloped them, making them more relaxed and giving them a heightened sense of concentration, which made it so that every detail of the room they were in felt more vivid and clear.

The library was a huge room filled to the brim with four-walled cubicles, each containing a round table with four benches cushioned with a comfortable leather coat wide enough to fit two people at the same time. Most of the library was painted in a nice shade of creamy white, which made it look neutral and had a calming effect. On each table, at their center, was a mana crystal carved with runes with a screen displayed atop of it.

Apart from that, in the far-left corner of the library was a rounded desk with a floppy side way door to enter the worker zone. In said zone, a young clerk was busy scrolling and rearranging folders and documents on a screen triple the size of the ones at the tables. It almost filled the curving desk she had, and she looked really indulged in her work, but from the corner of her eye she saw three young lads standing in front of her desk.

At first, when entering the room, the trio froze in place, getting a couple of weird looks from the other students who were walking in-between cubicles. They looked around, taking in the sight of the library before starting to walk around.

-" Do you think we can enter the cubicles, or do we need permission?" Alphonse asked in a faint voice since they were in a library.

-" I don't know, maybe we could go ask the lady over there." Calvin pointed at the cornered desk.

Leo looked at where Calvin was pointing and confidently said" Great idea!" before starting to walk toward the desk.

Calvin quickly put an arm before Leo, taking the lead, thinking that letting him go first would probably get them thrown out of the library.

As he approached the desk, his neck started to sweat a bit, too little to notice. The desk was elevated from the rest of the floor, giving it a look of grandeur and reminding him of his father's desk, which he always saw as a kid. The same desk he had looked up to his entire life, the desk with the voice that told him to work harder and not think about anything else, the voice that instilled fear inside of him.

When the clerk finally noticed them, she swiped her fingers to the left side, making the screen crumple in a small window, leaving enough space for her to get a glimpse of the new batch of first year students.

-" What can I help you with?" she said gently, with a smile on her lips.

She looked at Calvin who was in turn staring at the floor.

-" I-I, w-we, I, sorry!" he had stuttered his whole sentence and couldn't lift his eyes higher than the desk bar. His face was red from shame.

'What are you doing? She's not him! It's been three years since I last saw him, but I still can't control myself in these situations. What do I do now?'

-" We were wondering how and where we had to go to use the library and do some research?"

Calvin couldn't let out a word but fortunately Alphonse was quick and knew his friend well enough to know when to step in.

-" Oh! I see! If you want to use the library, you first need to find some place in one of the cubicles. When you're in there, take a seat and put your hand, palm opened, on top of the crystal at its center. This should open a screen kind of like the one I am using right now." she pointed at her screen while also moving stuff around to show them how to use it.

-" It's the same way you would use a computer normally, but it also can help you on a deeper level by scanning your thoughts." she took a pause, absorbing in the sight of disbelief she loved to see when she explained this to the new ones.

-" When you put your hand on top of the crystal it will link itself to you for the time you spend in the cubicle and stop when you leave, so you must re-do that step when you leave a cubicle, understood?"

They nodded.

-" So, the easiest way to do your research is by thinking about your topic and focus on it and the best results will pop-up."

She still looked amused to see their reactions but didn't forget to ask if there were any more questions.

Through the conversation, Calvin zoned out a couple of times, trying to find the strength to look up to the clerk and when she asked if there were any more questions, he mustered all the courage he could find and lifted his head.

-" I, hum, wanted to know why this room felt so different than the cafeteria or the classrooms?"

'You did it!' Calvin was mentally cheering himself up. His young years were troubling, always needing to meet his parents' expectations and also having to work hard to not make them look bad in front of other people. The high society meetings they would go to were his own nightmares, that he tried to fight in the last three years, having some time off from them.

-" Mhm, you're quite the good observer, aren't you? The whole library was the work of a titled rune carver who added many strong effects to help students focus on learning. Anything else I can help you with?"

-" Yes, one last thing. Can I have your number?" Leo asked charmingly.

The clerk made a muffled laugh and quickly dismissed the idea of giving him her personal contact but still told him he could contact her through the school's app and gave him her name. She then pointed them toward an empty cubicle and went back to her work, with a smile on her face while looking at the trio leaving.

When they arrived in the cubicle, a lone reddish-brown button was fixed on the wall with the word "privacy" inscribed on a plate under it. Alphonse pushed it and as expected, the cubicle closed on itself, and they couldn't hear a thing from outside. This sort of technology wasn't new to them, so they quickly realized this was a soundproof room in and out.

Calvin meekly took a place on one of the benches and stared at the ground, lost in his thoughts.

'Ok we're in the library for real now, let's just forget about earlier. I don't have to see him for at least another year so he won't know, he can't know!'

-" Hey, are you all right?" Leo asked while putting his hand on Calvin's shoulder.

-" It's going to be fine. This summer you'll probably be one of the best anyway, no need to panic." Alphonse added.

Calvin lifted his head up a bit, took in the sight of his friends, who had supported him for the last 9 years and without wasting too much time, gave them a bright smile and said:

-" Everything is fine, don't worry. Just lost my focus a bit." He laughed it out, not wanting to make them worry.

-" Anyway, I see you finally managed to get a girl's number, uh?" Calvin was looking at Leo with a smirk on his face.

Leo blushed a bit and waved his hand to sign that it was easy. They had a good laugh and then finally started to do what they came here to do.

They all took a separate seat and activated the crystal as instructed by the clerk.

'I should try to find out more information about [Avid learner] before the rest, since it'll be easier after to use it completely and learn faster.' was what Calvin thought.

The crystal could be seen by every one of them, but they all saw something different. For Calvin, who had activated it and was thinking about his research, some runes on the crystal started to glow up and falter a bit before settling for a tempered light. As the crystal read Calvin's mind, it immediately streamed across the vast database it had to find the best results for [Avid learner].

{[Avid learner]: what is it?}

{How to use [Avid learner].}

{Wikipedia: [Avid learner] trait.}

Those were the top three results he received from the system in less than 1 second. He clicked on the first one and skimmed through it. It was a basic definition of the trait but didn't have anything more to it, or more than what he already knew of. The second and third link, though, proved themselves to be really useful. The two of them combined described to the reader how to activate the trait to its full capacity without burning through your resources rapidly while also explaining how to multiply its effectiveness.

It wasn't simple to understand but these articles were made for people who had the trait and so explained themselves by themselves.

After a good 3 hours, Calvin felt like he had good control over this specific trait and couldn't wait to use it the next time he went to the library or had a textbook to read.

On the other side of the table was Alphonse, who had a deep frown and looked mildly annoyed at what he found. The articles he received were on point and explained everything perfectly but as stated in them, his trait [Terra modifica] was an elemental trait that was hard to use at the start. He needed practice and a good state of mind to fully exploit his powers. He also learned a couple of tips and tricks from his research, such as: this trait could be used offensively but also defensively, it could rapidly build simple stuff, such as a mud wall to slow down projectiles or an earth shield to protect oneself. The trait by itself was quite useful but it was also the starting point and the base of the stronger earth attribute traits, which meant that if he ever got lucky enough to find a crystalized earth trait, or if he was rich enough to buy them, he would already have the experience to use them to full power almost instantly.

For Leo though, it all went smoothly. His trait, the [Blitz stride], was a well-known trait that many used. Even though it wasn't highly graded it could easily compare to higher grade traits in usefulness if paired with good weapons and a skilled user.

[Blitz stride] was a trait that someone could activate to run faster but also at the will of the trait holder, create a shock line behind the user's movement. The articles Leo found mostly explained how to use the second part of the ability while also trying to teach the reader how to use less energy and run faster with it or create a stronger shock line.

He also found out the basic uses of his shards, who could be used to enhance or give the fire attribute to equipment and gears. He didn't really delve into it much though since he knew he would eventually find out about it in one of his classes.

Overall, the trio had found what they needed for the day, it being where the library was and the basics of their traits. They all chose to go back to their respective dorm and try in or near it their traits.

Leo could be seen running around, making little zaps appear behind him, until he was exhausted while Alphonse tried through sweat and pain to create something big, but after two hours of practice, he only managed to create a small earth orb, that decomposed itself in under a minute.

As for Calvin, he quietly read his textbooks for the upcoming classes, one of them being the follow up to the Gleichber's one. It was the: Basic Crafting Class.

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