Two hours and some change later, Jack was finally finished with his homework. He even had time to skim the first chapter of the Fire primer. In that time, he had learned three new sigils. They were Temper, Torch, and Spark. Though not powerful, these were apparently good sigils for later stages of a Magi’s development. Atleast, according to the book it was. Since he wasn’t a Magi, he had no idea how to apply this knowledge. He simply resolved to learn it all and ask his master how to assimilate it later.

Overall, he liked the library. The knowledge was practical and immediately useful. Reading had never held any attraction to him back home. What good was reading when you were too busy scavenging for essentials. You can’t eat books, enough said.

Virtus had already picked him up and now they were heading to professor Fabians lecture hall. As they walked, Virtus grew more stern, as if he was mentally putting on armor, bit by bit as they walked. By the time they had reached their destination, he was back to the same old guardian that Jack had met in the orphan ward. One who didn’t blink even when assaulted by a flaming chicken.

They stepped into the lecture hall to find it empty. The only sign of habitation was a light coming from under the office door. Virtus waved Jack away from the door. “The professor's experiments have been known to explode at random times. Please step back until the coast is clear.” He said in his ‘I am made of bricks and eat nails for breakfast’ voice. Then he proceeded to knock on the door.

On the other side, there was a bang, soon followed by a screech and wail. If that wasn’t enough, the sound of gears grinding to a screeching halt overpowered everything. The door opened to reveal the smoking professor Fabian. The man quickly shut the door behind him and leaned against it. Jack thought that it was supposed to look casual but it was clear he was setting for a charge.

“If anyone asks, you both saw nothing!” Fabian ordered. Then he actually looked at them. “What are you doing here boy? Class isn’t till tomorrow morning.”

Wait, did he forget that he strong-armed me into this meeting? His eyes narrowed and he straightened to his full height. “You told me to be back here at five. Did you forget about our appointment?”

Fabian had a glassy look on his eyes, then realization shone through. He snapped his fingers in comprehension. “Yes, you are the boy… Jake?”

Virtus stepped into the professor's face and spoke in a way that promised immediate violence. “You will refer to him by his name, Jack Hearth. Or you will call him by title, the Adjudicator. I have the authority from the Imperial princess herself to punish anyone that dares disrespect him, am I clear.”

Fabian was stunned. His eyes went back and forth between the two young men. After a bit, he was able to calm down. When he spoke this time, it was with dignified formality. “Jack Hearth, will you do me the honor of casting that spell from this morning at that target?” Then he grabbed a board with glowing runes and slotted it into his door. This seemed to happen a lot.

Well, he said please. Jack started to construct the spell form to his new spell. He decided to cast it the exact same way as this morning. When the ball hit the dummy, it fell to charred pieces once more.

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Fabian clapped his hands together in applause. His excitement was shining through again. “Would you do me the honor of transcribing the spell form on the chalkboard?”

Jack scratched his head in embarrassment. “No, I don’t think I can, professor. I don’t know how to draw compound runes yet. We have only gone over a few runes in class…” He broke off when he saw the incredulous look on the other's faces. “Did I say something wrong?”

“You use compound runes for a first tier Fire spell? Are you insane?” both of them spouted at the time.

Fabian collected himself first. “Who taught you such a wasteful spell? The power and concentration required, boggle the mind. At your level, just forming a single compound rune should be beyond you.”

Jack was incensed. His master had taught him that spell. In fact, it was the very first spell he had learned. He was very insistent on that. “My master taught me that spell.”

Virtus sensed the danger first and whispered in Fabian's ear. Color drained out of the man’s face as he listened. He cleared his throat and spoke again. “Well, this explains why you were able to substitute a new sigil into the spell form. I suspect that you could use any Fire sigil if you wanted to.” He paused for a second. “Can I test your mana? Just a preliminary test, mind you.”

“What does that involve?” Jack asked after calming down. He did step out of reach though, just in case.

“It isn’t complicated. Just form your foundation sigil in your hand and hold it. Can you do that?” he asked excitedly.

Jack thought it over before deciding that exposing his sigil had the risk of allowing others to use it against him. So he decided to compromise between knowledge and security. “No, I cannot show you my foundation sigil.” He raised a hand to stop Fabian from drooping in disappointment. “I can make another sigil though.” He formed a basic Fire sigil in his hands and charged it. The sigil became visible to the naked eye.

Fabian stepped within arm's reach and started chanting under his breath. When the chant ended, he stuck his hand into Jack’s simple spell formation. His eyes bugged out as the Fire latched on and snaked into his veins.

From Jack’s perspective, this felt like a lesser version of his Laying Down Burdens spell. Only, it was less focused. It only had enough power to cover the professor's hand.

Fabian cradled his hand in wonder. Then he made Mist come out of it briefly. “This is amazing! I feel a two percent increase in efficiency when casting from this hand now… How is such a thing even possible?”

Virtus spoke next. “Did you just cast the spell you used on Aster this morning?”

“A lesser version of it, I think. It is just part of my path. All mana I come into contact with is immediately purified.” His body has so much mana pollution that the spell only affected his hand. Even then, It barely cleansed a fraction of the grime in that one limb.”

Fabian pulled himself together. “I have been seeking the path to become a Sage for more than ten years now. Never would I have believed one would just appear in front of me.” He spoke to himself quietly. He looked Jack in the eye. “I would like the chance to have another session like today. Will you come by tomorrow at the same time. That will give me time to prepare.” He said.

“Only if you agree to answer any of my questions in turn professor. You seem to know a lot about magic and I don’t quite… fit the curriculum.” Jack replied diplomatically.

He cleared his throat. “Those terms are more than acceptable. I tutor my favorite students all the time, so this is no burden to me. Now, I believe that I promised you a spatial bag.” Reluctance covered his features as he turned back towards his office. He opened the door and all kinds of noise escaped.

After a moment, Fabian returned. He looked like he had wrestled with a wood chipper. No one asked him what had gone down in there. A small canvas bag dropped into Jack's outstretched hand. “This bag will hold up to twenty cubic feet of space and reduce the weight to a fraction. There are some other resources included in there, including mana crystals, books, metals and more. If you need anything else, just ask me. I only humbly request that you, in turn, help me in my quest for enlightenment.” He bowed deeply.

“Now, if you do not mind. I have a problem to deal with.” He said before turning back to his office.

Jack put his heavy books and notes in the bag. Then he bid the professor goodbye. He had one more meeting to go to tonight and he didn’t want to be late.