Astrid fought to ease her breath, her yellow eyes clouded by terror. I held the bloody towel against her forearm, but the ominous rune on the desk caught my attention. It wasn’t like anything I had seen so far: a circle with protrusions of variable lengths inside and outside its perimeter. The shape of a rune had little to do with its effect, so I couldn’t know its meaning.
At least it was harmless. It took an Enchanter or a Runeweaver to power up runes, and a simple drawing wouldn’t activate any effect. If Astrid had the power to enchant the rune, we would have already known its effect, but instead, it remained inert.
Elincia pushed the bloody towel out of the way and poured half the vial on Astrid’s arm. The wounds sizzled, making her wince. Then, Elincia put the vial against Astrid’s lips and forced her to swallow. The wounds closed, leaving pale scar tissue behind. I knew Elincia disliked Astrid, but I thought that, at least, she could’ve used a mid-rank potion to avoid leaving marks.
Not that it mattered. We had more pressing matters than a slightly scarred forearm.
I stuck my head out the door to see if the uproar had awakened the kids. The corridor was empty, and save for the sound of the storm outside, there was complete silence. No one seemed awake other than us three. That was a good sign. I closed the door and focused on Astrid. Other than the paleness of her face and the scars on her forearm, she seemed okay.
“What happened?” I asked, anticipating the answer.
“System Quest,” Astrid gasped for air. Her forehead was beaded with sweat, and her sunken eyes revealed the excruciating pain she had been subjected to. “I-I’ve never felt a drive so violent. My brain was burning, and I knew I needed to put that thing on paper,” she added, pointing at the desk.
Before I could start asking more questions, Elincia stood between me and the pantless wolf-girl and signaled me to turn around.
As if I could focus on Astrid’s assets with all the fuss going on.
I turned around, facing the corner, and waited for her to supply Astrid with a change of clothes. The night was cold, and we couldn’t afford to lose a fit combatant to sickness. I waited patiently as Astrid and Elincia argued about the clothing. Elincia’s pants weren’t adequate for Astrid’s anatomy, and the dresses ‘felt uncomfortable on the tail’.
Like cats and dogs.
“You can turn around,” Elincia said a minute later.
Astrid wore Elincia’s breeches just low enough for her tail to pop out, and I wondered if it would’ve been better to send her to get dressed in her room. It reminded me of the low-rise pants girls used to wear over a decade ago.
“Tell me what happened, Astrid. From the beginning,” I asked.
“Same as always. I was about to get to bed when I felt a quest was coming, so I started dressing in case someone wanted to harm you,” Astrid said. “I felt like the System burned my eyes from behind, and I knew I had to complete it outright. Then I ran here as fast as I could and wrote the damn thing on the desk.”
I gave Astrid an apologetic look. If she had resorted to cutting her own arm instead of waiting twenty seconds for a piece of paper, then the pain must’ve been unbearable. Even worse, the System probably had a reason to exercise such punishment. Somehow, I needed to know that rune.
“I didn’t know the Zealot Urge could be this painful,” she added with a tired voice despite our rooms being only a few meters away.
“Did you have any visions?” Elincia asked.
“No. Damn, I really wanted to speak with the Man in Yellow,” Astrid replied, saddened as only a little kid who ‘missed’ Santa could.
“I’m sure you’ll have the opportunity eventually,” I replied, patting her shoulder.
“At least we have one clue. The rune has something to do with your Runeweaving ability,” Astrid replied, accepting sympathy. “What do you think it does?”
I glanced at the rune.
“We can always test it with [Runeweaver] debugger,” Elincia said, dragging a seat to the desk.
Other than a few elemental runes and a handful of instructions, I knew very little about runes and the extent of their power. The existence of Light and Fire runes made me think there were other elements available; however, that didn’t disavow the existence of more dangerous runes like Blindness. My reasoning was simple; if the System could give me night vision, it could also blind me.
“If this is a Quest from the part of the System that wants you out, then it might be dangerous,” Astrid said, scratching her ears. “But I think it’s not. This has something to do with the Man in Yellow.”
“If we are ‘behind schedule’, it’s only logical that he would try to help us,” I said, wondering if the System Avatar had also bothered to put the rune's effect in my Rune Encyclopedia.
I summoned the old book with a thought, but to my dismay, there were no new entries. Of course, things had to be complicated. Figuring out the effects of runes was too complex to do without a frame of reference.
“Alright, let’s give it a try,” I said.
I took a deep breath and channeled my mana. Before me, the blue holographic testing area appeared. Astrid and Elincia exchanged a quizzical expression as they peeked over my shoulders. They couldn’t see the skill. I ignored them and placed a small pebble from my stash inside the demarcated area. I engraved the rune on the pebble, and a moment later, the blue box turned yellow. The rune didn’t work independently, but it wasn’t dangerous.
“It’s not an elemental rune. Otherwise, it could work as a standalone rune,” I announced, thinking about what to do next. Adding command runes was an idea, but I wasn’t sure it would work considering the lack of discernible effect. Maybe the rune was a command itself.
“The Man in Yellow wants you to learn Runeweaving fast,” Astrid said.
It wasn’t a question, but I nodded nonetheless. According to the System Avatar, we were ‘behind schedule’, so it was only logical that he wanted to help with the process.
“So wouldn’t this rune make you a better Runeweaver?” Astrid pointed out.
Elincia seemed to agree.
“Like a breakthrough? I remember a bump on my mana pool when I got the [Copper Alchemist] title. It helped me speed up the brewing process quite a lot,” she said. “A power-up rune, maybe?”
I wasn’t sure about Elincia’s theory. A boosting rune would only work on runes I already knew and wouldn’t help to broaden my Runeweaver knowledge. With access to enhanced runes, I could brute force most of my problems instead of developing the right combination. Fireball-pebbles sounded like an excellent addition to my arsenal, but I doubted the System Avatar wanted me to have such technology.
Stolen novel; please report.
I decided to give Elincia’s theory a try.
Light was the least dangerous of all my elemental runes, so I used that one. I focused on [Rune Debugger] and wrote a two-rune enchantment: Light plus Mystery Rune. It failed. I tried using the Light rune at the end, but the result was the same. It wasn’t a viable enchantment.
“Negative,” I said.
To clear up doubts, I tried most of the two-rune enchantments with the mysterious rune in different positions. I even added the mysterious rune to the beginning or end of known enchantments, but, as expected, the [Rune Debugger] only spat negative results. Despite my previous success, trial and error didn’t seem like the right approach. With the other runes, at least, I had a hint about their functionality. Now, I was completely blind.
Astrid nervously fiddled with her tail as I worked on the Rune Debugger. I felt terrible. She was the only one who had suffered the consequences of my slow learning pace. Still, cracking its meaning would take time if I didn’t get any other leads.
“I’m sorry, Astrid, but this might take a while to decipher,” I said.
“I understand,” she replied, her voice quivering slightly. “I will let you work in peace then. Good night.”
Astrid turned around and walked to the door, and I noticed a certain stiffness in her movements. She was scared. Having the almighty System administering pain directly to one’s brain couldn’t be a reassuring experience, but I didn’t know what to do to make it better. Elincia would refuse to share a room with her, and I wasn’t in a position to guard her sleep in case of another event.
“Astrid, wait,” I said, grabbing a stack of paper and a charcoal pencil. “Take this. If the System decides you must give me another rune, you will not have to cross the sleeping quarters looking for something to write on.”
Astrid nodded and pressed the paper against her chest. “Good idea,” she muttered before leaving.
The silence hung over our heads until I heard the distant creak of Astrid’s bedroom door. I dismissed the Rune Debugger and turned towards Elincia. There was the chance that Corruption was taking over the world as we spoke, but I also needed to address the relationship between Elincia and Astrid.
“You could’ve used a high-rank potion on her,” I said, baffled by her decision.
As much as she disliked Astrid, Elincia was the kind of person who went out of her way to help others, even with the slightest of difficulties. It seemed out of character to give Astrid a low-rank potion that would leave scars.
“I didn’t do it because I dislike her. Did you forget what happened when the Assassin stabbed you? The potion didn’t heal your wounds because you chugged Energy Potions as if there was no tomorrow and built up your potion toxicity to dangerous levels,” Elincia crossed her arms over her chest. “I used a low-rank potion in case she needed more. Idiot.”
That made a lot of sense. The toxicity buildup had almost cost me my life.
“I’m sorry I jumped to conclusions,” I replied.
For a moment, I felt like an idiot. Then I noted Elincia wasn’t really mad at me. “Now that I think about it, salve and bandages might have been enough,” she added with a playful smile. “We are figuring things out.”
“I knew you were the mature one in our relationship,” I replied, pulling my chair back and extending my arm. Elincia walked into my hug and cradled my head against her. I appreciated her attempt to ease the mood, but it seemed the overtime death loop wouldn’t free me any time soon.
“What do you think about the rune?” I asked.
Even if Elincia’s embrace was comforting, I felt lost. Deciphering runes was easier when I knew the effect of the enchanted item they were engraved in. Getting this one to work could take me weeks, if not months, and time I could be spending learning other runes.
“I guess it all comes down to what the System expects you to do, Spoon-ears.” Elincia pushed my head back and pulled the tips of my ears to mimic the pointy elf ears.
“The chubby man wants me to end the Corruption by editing the System’s code,” I muttered. “Hence, the rune should be able to speed up my learning somehow… unless it’s the opposite.”
My goal was to learn the runic language and improve my skills as a Runeweaver, but maybe the mysterious rune didn’t have anything to do with speeding up my learning of the runic language. Maybe the rune was meant to extend the time I got to learn.
“A weapon against corrupted monsters?” Elincia asked without hiding the excitement in her voice.
“That would certainly help us gain time,” I jumped to my feet and grabbed Elincia by the waist. Her enthusiasm was starting to infect me.
If we worked under the assumption we were ‘behind schedule’ because the Corruption process had accelerated, then a weapon to keep it at bay made a lot of sense—more so if it was a weapon I could share with others.
I felt a little more relaxed knowing that the System Avatar was working to prepare us before the problem exploded in our faces. However, distributing anti-corruption weapons among the warriors of Farcrest would blow up my cover as a Runeweaver. It was a better alternative to letting the city disappear, but I would also bury my plans of keeping a low profile.
I pulled Elincia next to me, the thin fabric of her nightgown barely separating my hands from her soft skin. Her eyes sent an electrifying sensation through my body. Whether I liked it or not, Farcrest was my home now, and I would protect it as best as possible.
“If the mysterious rune is a weapon, I want a Cooldown Bow with Anti-Corruption Arrows,” Elincia said.
I laughed. “I thought we were having a moment.”
“I just wanted to set the record straight,” Elincia replied.
We kissed, and I felt Elincia’s eagerness through her touch. She pressed her body against mine and buried her fingers in my hair. However, after a minute, she pulled back.
“Green Moss Tea?” She asked. “It’s going to be a long night.”
“I would love that,” I replied. It was going to be a long night indeed. We needed to figure out how to use the rune before the unknown deadline.
Elincia put on her wool shawl and gave me a playful slap on my ass on her way out of the room. I could see the relief in her eyes, and I felt it too. The chubby man’s warning was eerie at best, but at least we had something to work on.
I pulled out a stack of paper and wrote down my thoughts to gain a clearer perspective. The chubby man wanted me to fix the bugs in the System and eradicate the Corruption. The fact that we were behind schedule could only mean that the Corruption rate was increasing. The mysterious rune could only be a way to diminish or attenuate such Corruption. Assuming the rune worked as a weapon against Corruption might make decrypting it possible.
When Elincia opened the door, the smell of freshly made coffee filled the room. She put down the cups and sat across from the desk. I doubted the Green Moss Tea had any caffeine, but the familiar taste was enough to keep me awake.
“Do you think we should tell Captain Kiln?” Elincia asked as she sipped from her cup. “If the Man in Yellow decided it was urgent to give you the rune, then a Corrupted monster might be prowling nearby.”
I shook my head. Telling Captain Kiln would mean coming clean about my relationship with the System. She wouldn’t believe me without solid proof, and I wasn’t sure if I could trust her.
So far, I had been avoiding the part Captain Kiln played in Janus’ suspicion.
“Who do you think put the Silence Hex on Holst?” I asked.
Elincia gave me a confused look. “Whoever is behind the attacks on the orphanage?”
“Yes, but who has the resources to apply a Hex like that?”
Elincia’s expression changed from surprise to fear.
“The Marquis. He needed to fill his quota of recruits to the royal army. He used Holst to sabotage the orphanage and silenced him before sending him to the Imperial Library,” Elincia muttered.
“It’s just a theory. I don’t think the Marquis himself is sweeping the city searching for people to send to war, but it has to be one of his subordinates,” I said. “I don’t think that person is Captain Kiln, but she is loyal to the Marquis. She will see the Silence Hex and know the Marquis is involved.”
Elincia seemed saddened by the revelation. Captain Kiln had been the first adult to befriend Elincia other than me, and they were getting along just great. They even enjoyed time together when no official issue required her at the orphanage.
I had already tried to warn the Marquis about a Monster Surge when the chubby man spoke to Firana, but he told me the Farlands were being strictly monitored to keep the noble delegations safe. If a Monster Surge were indeed coming to the city, they would know before anyone. Besides, the strongest people in the kingdom, including several Prestige Classes, were gathered in Farcrest. The town was well prepared for an attack.
“Let’s not jump the gun,” I said. My heart told me Captain Kiln couldn’t harm the orphanage, even indirectly, but I would rather follow my mind in security matters. “And let the Sentinels do their surveillance work. They will know if a powerful corrupted monster is nearby.”
Elincia looked at me with emerald eyes, and I felt my heart skip.
“Then get your Runeweaver fingers moving. I want to be the one to kill the next Corrupted Monster,” she said with a grin.
That was the Elincia I had fallen in love with.