Chapter 3: Old Academy

The dormitory room was sufficiently spacious. It was a rectangular room which had two pairs of two double-decked bunks, placed at opposite sides against the walls; two closets, right next to the bunks; a long study desk, at the edge, near the only window the room had; and chairs that can be stacked on top of each other.

Usually there would only be four students in the room,. However, due to the increase in the number of first years, there were five people in their room. Hence, one had to sleep with the mattress on the floor.

The five boys were of the same year level but different classes. This was one of the academy’s efforts to give the students an opportunity to make relationships outside from their classmates.

As the other kids were determined to get the upper deck when they were deciding during the first week, Damian chose the lower deck. He knew too well how tiring it gets to climb down the bed in the morning.

At this time, it was still early Staturday morning. Damian just woke up and was still laying down in his bunk when . . .

“Yo, Damian! Want to come with us?” Josef, one of his roommates, asked.

Josef, a dark-skinned boy, was from the middle area

The middle area was a desert. It divides the continent almost equally into the northern regions and southern regions.

“And where are you going?” Damian replied.

“To explore the old academy. Leo and Lanz are probably heading there.”

“How about Bryce?” Damian pointed with his chin at the lower deck of the other bunk.

“It’s best not to wake him up, you know how he is.”

Damian agreed in silence as he jumped out of the bed. “Ok, just let me get dressed.”

* * *

The old academy building — mostly made out of wood with concrete foundations — was two-stories high. It was last used for class over 15 years ago. In the present time, it was used as a storage area.

Despite being aged, the building remained sturdy and clean. The academy preserved the building as it held historical and sentimental value. It was always open for anyone who wanted to explore it.

“Man, this building’s condition is better than my family’s house,” Lanz said in amazement as they got inside. “And this is supposed to be way older.”

“I can’t believe they’re just using this as storage,” Josef shook his head. “What a waste.”

It was warm and bright naturally inside the building as a sufficient amount of light could enter through its large windows. In front of the entrance, was a wide and grand-looking staircase that led to the second floor. Right now, they were in the lobby. To their left and right, there were hallways with a row of windows on one side and a row of doors on the opposite.

Leo brought out a big and thick, old scroll from his interspatial ring. He unfolded it as gently as he could and scrutinized it. He then gazed at the map and interior of the building back and forth. His lips were slowly arching up. 

Damian, Leo, and Lanz glanced at the map over his shoulders with a curious look.

Damian frowned as he tried to compare the map with the building. “Is that a map of this building? How do you have this?”

“This is my grandpa’s," Leoreplied. "He was not only the architect but also one of the  people who lead on the construction this building,” he answered Damian’s previous question. 

“So, what are we here for exactly?” Damian queried. He did not further prodded how he got that map from his grandpa. He felt it was a bit personal. Or it was just him being sensitive.

“We’re going to look for a secret passageway.”  After he carefully placed the map in the ground, Leo brought out a stone stored in his bag's right pocket. The stone glowed and illuminated the map when he channeled his mana into it.

The map then revealed more to its audience.

Damian's eyes widened at the sight. He could not help but be amazed. After all, it was his first time seeing something like this. Since the others already knew, they did not have the same reaction as he did.

Leo pointed at the passageway in the map. “What we’re looking at is an underground passageway.” He looked at some parts of the building  before turning back to the map. "The passageway leads to some kind of room. There might be treasures or some ancient relics there. And, I think the door is right over there,” he pointed. 

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“Even if we take those, won’t that be school property?” Damian asked.

“Not if they don’t know about it,” Lanz smiled.

Damian was bewildered. He then raised his brows at Lanz.

“Since you were asleep already when we had a discussion yesterday about this, I’ll explain it for you,” Leo told Damian.  The underground passageway we’re looking for was already there way before this building was established." He scrolled the map and walked to a place besides the stairs. "They didn’t destroy it, they just built on top of it. How do I know that? I found out through his journal how he always uses a special ink for structures that were already there. That special ink only appears when illuminated by a special luminous stone, which I’m holding right here.”

“What makes you think the school or your grandpa and his colleagues haven’t taken all of them?” Damian asked.

“Good point. I’m just betting on the logic that they just took whatever was important at their time,” Leo shrugged. “You know how times change. What seemed trivial in the present can be important in the far future. For one, I’m sure the current academy board does not know anything about this place. So, whatever we’ll get there, they’ll never know.”

Leo then  then stumped on the concrete floor. After that, he kneeled with one leg and touched the floor with his palm. He channeled mana into it and a bright, white light appeared on the floor forming a square around him.

He suddenly jumped out of the square frantically releasing contact with the floor. He then again repeated what he did except he was now outside of the square.

The concrete slab within the shape then slowly opened down like a door on its hinges. There was a ladder down which led below.

The other three were astonished with what Leo was capable of.

“Woah, how’d you know how to do that?” Josef asked.

“Grandpa’s journal.”

“What spell did you use?” Lanz immediately followed.

“I thought there were disruption and spell detection wards in here ?” Damian also had his question.

“I didn’t use a spell . . . just channeled some mana into it,” Leo replied. “Disruption wards are made to disrupt a person’s mana control, and hence, prevent spell casting. Plus, the secret door didn’t have any complex mechanics. You just need to channel some mana into it. ”

“If that’s the case why hasn't anyone found out about this?” Lanz asked.

“As if anyone would just come and channel some mana into some random parts of the floor,” Leo huffed. Sometimes he gets annoyed when Lanz doesn’t use his brain.

* * *

The rectangular-underground tunnel they were in was wide enough for seven grown adults to stand side-by-side with gaps in-between them and about three meters high. The tunnel was made of large stone bricks and mortar.

There were cracks here and there. There were water was running down the walls. Each drop would produce an echo that resonated throughout the tunnel.

The smell was slightly pungent. However, it was endurable by covering the mouth and the nose. Fortunately,  air was not a problem despite closing the door. It seems that air could seep through the tunnel's pores.

It looked like the tunnel was hundreds, or even thousands of years old. Of course, they couldn’t really — they were just a bunch of kids. Who knows? It might be just some 50-year old tunnel.

“I’m getting goosebumps,” Josef’s upper body shivered for a second as he raised his flashlight.

Lanz, Damian, and Leo also felt the same.

On their way towards the room, there were stone statues of knights, wizards, angels, demons, gods, and of creatures such as a hydra, a dragon, a snake-haired woman besides the wall. They were lined up at opposite sides.

The statues were highly detailed and looked fiersome. Most of them were about two meters high. Due to their size and postuers, it was if they were looking down on them, waiting at the oppurtunity to take them out. The darkness didn't really help.

Among the four, Damian was especially anxious if something were to happen. He was always wary of trouble due to his parents.

When he was young, Damian's parents would always refuse him when he wanted to do something outside of their watch.Whenever he wanted to join his friends or cousins his age when they were going to some place else such as going into the nearby forest to catch some spiders, he was never permitted. One time he did, he got a scolding. He was also not allowed to be out of home when it was already past six. He was always envious of kids still playing at the plaza at night.

While he understood his parents intentions, he felt caged. Because of them, he lost his sense of adventure, curiosity, and boldness as a kid. This was also the time when he first got into comic books, and as he got addicted, he went out less and less from his house. As a result, he became timid and socially-less inclined.

But now as he was in the academy, far from his town and from his family. There was no one to restrict him in what he could do. It was also the same for the other students.

Without anyone to hold them off for the first time in their lives as students, the first-years were the most susceptible in getting into a mess. Drinking, smoking, shopping, partying, and many other indulgences — there are many things one can do in a city . . . especially in Almina City, where these boys study

To counter the problem, the academy became much stricter. For first year students, curfew was especially early. More importantly, students who are caught in activities against the school’s regulations were given their punishment as soon as possible in accordance with the gravity of the offense.

Right now, they were in a tunnel, in which the school most likely didn't know about.

There could be a monster here for God’s sake! Though they all agreed in the logic that no creature could’ve lived here without food. But still, if they were to get injured and the academy does find out? They surely wouldn’t be happy about this.

As each of them held their flashlight firmly, they continued to move forward step-by-step.

So far, nothing has happened for the past five minutes since they entered the tunnel.