Minutes feel like entire hours while I wait for GalaxyTaco to return, and my anxiety is just mounting up like crazy! So instead of becoming a victim of my own fear, I decide to take a moment to explore the forum and see what I can find that's interesting!

The Sleeper section is by far the most active, with people commenting on their daily lives, talking about media, food and experiences in general. It’s so casual it almost makes me feel nostalgic for the good ol’ days!

I am… surprised. Mages watch anime too? I guess that makes sense, as magic is usually viewed as an intellectual endeavor, and it is not rare for intellectuals to have this sorta hobby.

“They even have an old timer section, for old timers like you.”

What? Old timer!? I am 21!

“Alright then, youngster. What anime is popular right now?”

Chlorine is pretty popular!

“That’s one of the Big Three and won’t stop being popular for a while, not to mention it’s all filler these days, that’s cheating.”

Alright then, big baby. How about Soul Devourer?

“That ended three years ago.”

What!? No it didn’t!

What about Ouran??

“Five years ago.”

Higurashi?

“Six.”

Lucky Channel?!

“Five.”

MEDUKA MEGUKA??

“Oh that one’s pretty new actually. That one was last year.”

Alright then smart guy, what is airing right now then!?

“Destiny/Zero, Girls and Tanks, Kitty Tale Black, Moon Brothers…”

What in the hell are any of those!?

“If you don’t know, I know even less! Idiot!”

I guess I am a bit of an old fashioned weeb.

“We are getting distracted. Remember what we are here for.”

Right! The Translation section! It’s rather unused, compared to the Sleeper side of it all. There are a few active translation topics but all of them seem to be focused on actual, current languages. Sure, there are a few in old Helenian and Latin but the others are surprisingly modern. Thereare some in Wohlian that immediately get my attention, but they seem like finished works.

Mostly directed by that ‘souseiseki’ bitch.

“Don’t waste time thinking of her. Focus on what you can learn from the books themselves!”

That is a good point. Once they are fully translated, the material is left available for anyone to take it! So I immediately go for the ones in Wohlian and Dobrand.

There are only five texts available, biographies all of them… except for what looks like a flier.

‘El Arte del Contrahechizo’ it read in Hesperian, ‘The Art of Counterspell’ in Dobrand. It apparently was an advertisement for a short lived ‘Combat Spell Course’ in Hesperia? Closed by the ‘Brotherhood’ for ‘breaking the sanctity of the secret’. Maybe this ‘Brotherhood’ is somewhat related to the cloaks.

Nevertheless, there is something in the flier that interests me: a Symbol!

image [https://i.ibb.co/7p8mhkQ/Screenshot-3.png]

I immediately start looking for it in the book… and what I find was overwhelming. This has to be the single most used symbol I’ve seen so far! It is in a lot of combined words, almost never on its own… but after keeping my eyes narrowed for a while, I find it.

Jo

As in “Hoh” or as in “Yo”? Bah, I guess I’ll find that out later, when I can actually start experimenting on my own.

Ah, damn it that’s right! I do need to go investigate the library! It’s huge too…

Hmm… What if I made a trip out of it?

The library closes at 12 for students, but if you stay inside you can spend the night working there! I could spend all night surrounded by books, coffee and the sandwiches some people sell there…

“That could mess with your sleeping schedule a bit…”

“Not to mention how useless the whole endeavor can be. What if you don’t find the damn golden symbol, huh?”

Won’t know if I try. This will be my last night staying up, I promise!

“Hmmmn… well, if you are sure about it.”

Yes!

Feeling energy surging through my body again, I immediately get up again and look for clothes, fishing for some cash and then trotting out of my room… only to be stopped by that Saints damned door again.

I swear, every time I see it’s worse. It becomes more and more ominous with each attempt to pass through it. I really, really have been going out too much these days, huh…?

If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

“...I better talk with GalaxyTaco first, then I can go to the library.”

“Coward.”

“I can’t talk to them without the TER anyways.”

Walking back to the computer, I internally beg for GalaxyTaco to not have appeared on my contact list yet… but alas, fate is always working against me. There he is, right there. Well, at least I can solve this quickly and still get out in time… Maybe.

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx has begun messaging GalaxyTaco to your rescue!

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: H-Hey!

I immediately cringe at myself for that written hesitation. Damn it, keep the emotions inside! Why must I be like this!?

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: This is Tav, you know, from the forum? n.ñ

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: oh hey dude! nice, I was wondering who the hell was this lol

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: ok, now we can talk proper.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: so… you just found the link somewhere, didn’t you?

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: unless I’m totally wrong and you were just referred by some cold mf

Alright. This is it… where do I go from here? I can’t exactly lie my way out of this without knowing much of the magical world. But that doesn’t mean I have to say all of the truth, right?

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: …yeah u.u

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: I haven’t been Awake for a long time to be honest, and I found this link on a book I read at the local library.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: ahhhh shit.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: ok, that’s trouble

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: do you have a teacher?

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: No u.u

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: ok, you’re a bastard

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: not to imply anything about your family dude, that’s just how we call mages without teachers.

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: Ok that’s kinda mean xD

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: tell me about it.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: anyways, shit, uh…

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: ok, do you know what an Elysium is?

I don’t. But can I just admit that? I mean… maybe I can tell him I know where to look for it?

“What are you, stupid!? He’s assuming you know jack shit! This is your chance to squeeze all the information! MILK IT!”

A-Ah! Right!

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: No idea. I hope you don’t mean the other world? O.o

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: nope.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: an Elysium is a safeground in a city, a place where mages can go and practice legally.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: shit, I hope you haven’t been doing magic around people right???

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: No no! O.o I swear!

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: ok good.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: that’d get you in trouble with the Brotherhood in no time.

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: The Brotherhood? o.o

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: The Brotherood of Black Pages.

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: Ominous… are they like, magic police? .-.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: sorta

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: you wanna avoid them as much as you can, them black cloaks.

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: I mean, you won’t be able to avoid them if you wanna get your license but, beyond that, avoid them.

Ok, that’s confirmation of a few suspicions. The Elysium is a place, I need to find that place, and the black cloaks/brotherhood were bad news, probably super strict or something like that. I am a ‘Bastard Mage’, still not very happy about the name, and I should look for instruction before I blow myself up!

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: Can’t you teach me things? ;w; the meaning of these runes and stuff?

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: sorry dude, I don’t have a teacher’s license

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: but tell you what. I’ll get you something that will help you for sure!

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: I just gotta talk to a few friends.

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: Oh okay! Good! n.n thank you so much for this, Gal

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: hah, it’s no problem

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: Imma be outside of the TER for a while so, don’t talk to me about magics until I return, okay?

GalaxyTaco to your rescue!: arite, thanks for the heads up! gives me time to talk to Aoi and Mort

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: Ok I assume those are your friends!

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx: I’ll be seeing you later!

xXxCallMeBigCookiexXx has disconnected.

Alright.

No more excuses. I close my computer, take a deep breath and walk to my door. I try my best to ignore the shaking of my hand as I grab the knob and open up. The air in the hallways outside was cold, making me go back in, pick up my long coat and then right out I went again!

The descent in the elevator had never felt this slow…I am excited and nervous at the same time.

“This will be fun!”

“This will be a disaster. You’ll stay up for nothing, you hear me? Nothing.”

Taking a deep breath, I walk out of the elevator as it arrives at the first floor and wave at the night guard, stepping right out and checking my phone.

It’s already a quarter past eleven. I have time… but I may need to call a taxi.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cities are completely different at night. I have never been an active resident of Party City or anything, but I have been in the streets at the high hours of night, at least back in my old town. I assumed stuff would be quiet here too in Saüle, but turns out I was completely wrong. There were people stumbling around the streets, ladies of the night smiling and parading themselves in some of the corners, a few college students clubbing and singing…

Only now I remember we are technically on vacation. Of course everyone is partying!

Drat, does that mean the library will be closed!?

“Too late to ask the cab to take you back home. No, you'll just have to freeze for a few hours.”

The taxi leaves me in front of the University’s main entrance. After paying and waving the guy away, I let out a deep sigh of relief when I see that the lights of the place are still on.

So either they leave the lights on all vacation or they are still open despite it all.

I try to jog along the dirt trail, straight for the library! But I quickly realize my body is simply not made for running. I still try to keep the pace, panting and gasping for air. Passing right by the Pharmaceutical Sciences building and the Biology building, feeling lucky that no one can see me fighting for my life like this.

The campus is gigantic, with many different buildings focused on the different sciences and disciplines taught at the University. The Library stands in the middle of it all, a perfectly square, five story building comfortably constructed on a plateau and looking over the entire campus. As cool and impressive as that is, it also meant a long climb a massive set of stairs…

“Saints damn it all…”

It’s a miserable jog, but eventually, I make it to the gates before the Librarian closes. An ancient lady of dark skin and thin white hair, eternally dressed in a black, long dress.

“Hmph. Right on time, night owl.” She says with a mix of annoyance and playfulness in her tone, turning her back on me as soon as she closed the door. “Do not run like that inside.”

Still recovering my breath, I just nod and walk towards the machines that scan your credentials. I fish my wallet out of my pockets, scan my old card, and then walk straight in, looking around the main hall with a tired smile. Ah yes… I've always felt more at ease in libraries and the like, especially when there are no crowds of people around. Right now I could see only a few furtive shadows sliding around, and no sandwich sellers at all! With some luck, the librarian will try to gain a few extra Empires by selling stuff, but that will have to wait.

Right now, we are back on the hunt for the Golden Symbol! I need to focus all of my strength on finding it this time, because if they really want it to be both private and easy to find, it has to be here.