Chapter 07: Forgive Me, I'm Late

The sun sank low on the horizon, signalling the end of playtime, but I didn’t even notice, completely absorbed in solving the Puzzle Cube once and for all.

I was on Layer IX now, after solving all the word, number, and maths puzzles that had come before the final problem. It had taken me two whole seasons, close to half a year. Regrettably, the seasons weren’t autumn or winter, when I would have spent long days within the confines of our house, molested by the ashen dust or snowstorms.

The brat had called it an excuse the last time we went on a picnic together. It was untrue... The reason was that I simply didn’t want to spend all day solving a puzzle. Only the blighted tempests could force me to it.

However, after receiving a letter from my aunt a couple of weeks ago, I became desperate to solve it. Apparently, the brat had solved hers, and I was still unable to, when mine was the dumb variation of her Spell Template in her opinion.

I implored Mum to push the date forward, before she sent the reply, hoping to solve the puzzle by then. I couldn’t let the little goblin gloat for too long...

Thankfully, I was on the right track.

There were thirty-six unique letters engraved on all six surfaces of the cube, while double that number could be revealed by spinning the edges and centre. I spun the edges swiftly, cross-checking if the chains of runic letters were in the right order every once in a while.

Almost... Almost! I clenched my jaw, gingerly manoeuvring one side to avoid any mistake that might undo all my progress. Each of the runic letters was like a clockwork cog—any of them could fit with another, even when they didn’t make sense.

My task was to make them make sense.

“Come on!” I muttered, pressing my lips together. The runes seemed to line up correctly... but then... I narrowed my eyes, examining all sides of the cube, when the engravings beamed with golden light.

“Yes!” I jumped to my feet, punching the air. My eyes returned to the cube and found thin strands of smoke wafting out of it, accompanied by a mechanical hum.

The cube’s shape readjusted on its own; the metal of its surface shifted, shrinking to match Rosalyn’s Spell Template. The letters compressed, shifting into something different once more. Under my blazing gaze, new layers appeared on the cube—there weren’t as many spiralling weaves as there were runes. They looked to be the solved form of all the prior layers I had completed.

My eyes widened like saucers as a groan escaped me. I had just finished examining it when the familiar voice of the Spell chimed in my mind.

[+1 Focus]

Woooh! Thanks!

This was one of the few times I had received a reward for accomplishments outside of the Ways. Mum once mentioned that the Spell did not create the rewards, but merely distributed them. Obviously, she wasn’t telling me all of it, fearing I wouldn’t understand. As far as she was concerned, the Spell was like the Custodian of Rewards.

“Hey, Spell,” I called to the air, without peering at the mark on my left palm. “Please show me my full [Profile].”

A second passed, and the familiar green script manifested in my mind’s eye, looking fuller than ever.

___________________

[Status]

Arylin O’Leon

* Path: U/A

* Honours: U/A

Attributes: (Unallocated Points: 6)

* Arcane Aquity (Advanced): +4

* Cognition (Elementary): +23

* Focus (Elementary): +36

* Alacrity (Elementary): +6

* Body Coordination (Elementary): +3

* Agility (Elementary): +2

Gift:

* Fractal Soul

Ways:

* In progress:

* Meditations IX (2556/5000) | Essence Sense VII (689/1000) | Balance II (839/1000) | Running II (266/1000) | Swimming I (37/100) | Perseverance I (8/10) | Words III (9433/10000) | Education III (5904/10000) | Sneak I (85/100) | Evasion II (958/1000) | Music I (44/100) | Painting I (98/100) | Self Mastery (1/10) | Fractal Sight I (1/10)

* Completed:

* Words II | Meditation VII | | Education II | Evasion I | Balance I | Mobility | Motor Skills | . . .

________________

Two whole seasons had passed, and I hadn’t been wasting much of it. I still might not be as tough as an Awakened, but I had eliminated many of the weaknesses of my early days.

As my active hours rose along with my agency, I divided my time between all the activities depicted in the Ways. There wasn't a definitive schedule per se, but a few of them had become permanent habits. I used to meditate for three hours easily when I was younger, but gradually, I reduced it to an hour to devote more time to studying.

Meditation was crucial. Even Mum did it regularly for half an hour or more, even after she completed the whole Way. I deemed an hour more than enough to make gradual progress in the Way.

I fit in two two-hour study sessions in the morning and evening. Then there was my playing time, which lasted between two to three hours. Some days I played alone with the cube, other puzzles, or simply ran around to complete a Way like today. On other days, my friends pulled me into their games and usual mischief.

[Way of Education] was where I had made the most progress in the last two years... and I was rewarded with six unallocated points. Two for Layer I, and four more for Layer II.

The only thing stopping me from allocating all six points into Arcane Acuity was my Mum. Her reasoning was that uninvested points were hard to come by, so it was best to leave them unallocated until I hit a block.

“Finally, did you finish playing with that thing?” Eran’s voice interrupted my thoughts as my Profile vanished. “Look what I found.”

Eran stood proudly, holding an old bow almost as tall as him, using a common stick in place of an arrow. He had a few more of those cobbled-together sticks in the quiver strapped to his back. He had grown as much as I had, but the bow and quiver remained comically oversized.

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“Where did you get that?” More importantly, why don’t you have arrows if you have a finely crafted bow and quiver? Maybe his mother didn’t let him take the real ones, fearing he’d hurt himself or others.

“My Da was cleaning the old attic today, and we found this,” Eran said. “Let’s go, we can take turns playing with it.”

Evidently, this had nothing to do with Priam showing off his bow and arrow set to the other kids the other day. Even if it did, Eran was too pure-hearted to show off.

“Where to?”

“To the institute,” Eran said, picking up his pace. “We can target practice there.”

I looked at the dulling orange sun creeping towards the horizon. It would be dark within an hour—half of that would be wasted going back and forth. The institute was at the foot of the mountain range, while both of our houses were further south. I didn’t believe we had enough time to get any decent practice in, especially since the institute was only open to the Awakened.

Still, I might get a chance to receive Way of Archery. I knew for a fact that such a Way existed and was rather easy to obtain.

It wasn’t like I would forget the way back. With that in mind, I dashed forward, running beside Eran, keeping up despite him being three seasons older.

After a brisk fifteen minutes, both of us were red-faced, wheezing, our breath heavy and erratic. Through heavy breathing, I collected myself.

Even if I did not get Way of Archery, this run had brought Way of Running a bit closer to its second completion.

The institute was rather modest, with two separate buildings divided by a large field to serve the newly Awakened students of Karmel and the neighbouring villages. The district of Dimir was at the very fringe of the Alberan Empire. By the time education funds were divided among various districts, little of it remained for us.

I would be admitted in two years, while Eran had only one year left. Four was the accepted age for the Awakening Ceremony, and also the typical age to start schooling.

The light continued to fade, but a bunch of Awakened kids still remained on the field, either playing or training. Only a few stood gawking at others.

“Where are you two kids running off to at this hour?” a voice called as we entered the grounds with agitated hearts.

“Good evening, Aleya,” Eran greeted first, followed by me.

I looked to find a familiar girl with sun-kissed hair. Boasting a couple of winters in age over us, Aleya cut a taller, lean figure, though her sweat-ridden face, unkempt braid, and clothes full of dirt and grime hardly matched her Equites upbringing.

“Sorry, I do recognise you both,” she said, narrowing her eyes at us, “but I cannot remember your names. You two are Priam’s friends, right?”

Maybe infantile amnesia had caught her faster than me, because I clearly remembered us playing together sometimes. Before Priam, she had been the one bossing the kids around.

Eran took the responsibility of introducing us, and Aleya nodded, repeating our names after us, in case she forgot them again.

Aleya was the elder sister of our friend Priam, and her father was the Lord Magistratus of Karmel. With the firstborn son set to take over his father’s position, she was likely putting her best effort into the academy. Her dishevelled appearance decidedly suggested so.

“That’s quite a hefty bow you have there.”

Only then did Eran become a little self-conscious, looking at me for direction.

“Would it be a problem if we target practised a little?” I asked.

She cocked her head at my question. “A little... won’t be a problem.” She led us to the archery course.

Two boys, a couple of years older than her, were already there, packing their stuff to call it a day.

“Hold on for a minute, boys,” Aleya said, causing them to perk up. “Let these two play around for a few minutes.”

“Forgive me, Aleya, I’m already late for home,” said the taller one, a rough, lanky figure with buzz-cut hair.

“What’s urgent at home anyway?” the other guy said with a snicker. “You left a young bride at home, Lys?”

Lys glared at his friend before turning to Aleya. “It will be dark in no time... and my classmates from my village will leave soon. I’ll have to travel alone in the dark.”

“It’ll only take a while,” Aleya paused. “It's only a matter of storing the equipment and targets, right? I can do it in your place.”

“We’ll also help,” Eran chimed in for both of us.

“Are you sure?” Lys examined her expression, probably wondering if he would get into trouble if we messed with the equipment.

“Yeah, it will only take a few minutes,” Aleya said. “You are free to leave with your friends.”

A couple of minutes later, Eran stood ten paces away from the target, the longbow set in his arms. He loaded an arrow and pulled the string tentatively.

“Your hands are shaky,” Aleya said. “Stand firmer, and raise your right shoulder a bit.”

I observed from the sidelines and nodded. Eran’s body language was far from controlled, and the bow, being almost his height, only made it worse. Sadly, Aleya’s advice barely did any good, so she moved to stand behind him and guided his posture.

Even after all the teaching, when Eran finally shot the arrow, it missed the wooden target completely—thankfully, by only a few inches.

“That’s not a bad first shot,” Aleya said, patting his shoulder.

Eran blushed. This was not his first shot.

I turned to the other boy, who had been watching everything in silence since his friend left. “Can you show me how it’s done?”

He met my gaze and peeked at Aleya before saying, “Well, I don’t see why I can’t show you a couple of tricks.”

Then instead of mentoring me like Aleya, he took position twenty paces away—double the distance of where Eran had stood before—and held his bow. It was two-thirds the length of Eran’s, though not inferior by any means. A full-metal piece, which could be folded to make it easier to carry when not in use.

As the boy loaded an arrow, my attention shifted from the design of the bow to his body language. I watched him in complete concentration. The little sparkling light in his eyes didn’t go unnoticed, nor did the way his breathing slowed just before he released the string.

The arrow cut through the air and landed at the very centre of the target chart.

“At least you didn’t mess up in front of them, Tehn,” Aleya laughed.

“An unmoving target is hardly a challenge for me,” Tehn boasted.

He raised the bow again and shot a couple more arrows in quick succession. The second pierced a finger’s width away from the first, while the third landed a few more inches off but still at a respectable spot on the chart.

“Ten points for you,” Aleya clapped.

Tehn’s face flushed completely. “It’s only a matter of time before I complete the third layer of Archery.”

He was probably not going to stop until someone acknowledged his mastery.

“Thank you for showing me,” I said, then stared at the bow in his hand.

A less self-obsessed person would have caught on and handed me their bow, but Tehn was obviously not that guy.

“Give him the bow, Tehn,” Aleya said, being the observant one.

“Umm, right...”

“Don’t forget to dislodge the arrows you so impressively fired.”

Tehn quickly obeyed, handing me the bow and an arrow first. “Is it heavy for you?”

“A little,” I admitted. The bow was easily over two kilograms, but thankfully, its length was more manageable. I held it up, aligning the arrow.

“Archery requires steady hands as much as good eyesight,” Tehn instructed, freeing the three arrows from the target board. “Hmm, you’ve got steady hands...”

I set my target, slowed my breathing, and pulled the string. I held my aim for an extended moment—then released.

[A new Way is accessible: Archery I (1/100).]

“Yes!” I cheered. The arrow lodged itself right at the centre of the target. My shot was in no way inferior to Tehn’s, though I had shot from half the distance. My mental attribute points were likely too high for me to do badly at it.

“Nice going,” Aleya said. “Have you tried archery before?”

I shrugged like an adult. Taking another arrow, I prepared for a second shot. It missed my aim by a fair margin but still found purchase on the chart. The third missed the board completely.

We fired a dozen more arrows until the sun set and our fingertips swelled. Aleya told us we didn’t need to help with the cleanup, but we stayed to be of some use. After all, Eran had promised.

I’d be getting scolded the moment I got home, I thought anxiously, glancing in the direction of my house.

“It’s getting dark,” Aleya said. “Come on, I’ll drop you off.”

She didn’t listen to any of our protests, acting like a responsible adult. She only let us go when I could see my home in the distance, where Eran and I finally parted ways.

I bid my goodbyes and danced my way back.

Not only had I solved the cube, but I had also received a new Way. The first layer could even be completed in a day if I tried hard enough.

Way of Archery only required true shots. I wondered what rewards I’d receive from it.

My thoughts were soon interrupted when I spotted a very suspicious-looking man loitering around our home. My eyes widened upon noticing the large longsword strapped to his back. And he looked like a man who knew how to use it.

I faltered in my steps. The man turned around, his hawkish eyes narrowing at me.

Scary eyes!

I glanced back and saw Aleya’s figure fading into the darkness as she made her way home.

Should I call out to her?

I hesitated, deciding to give the man the benefit of the doubt. He could just be a guildsman, lost after spending many nights in the mountains. His wild appearance certainly supported that theory.

“Excuse me, mister?”

The man stepped towards me, the fierceness in his eyes dimming as he realised I was no threat.

“You, ahhm,” the man opened his mouth and cleared his throat.

“Who are you?” I asked. “What are you doing sneaking around our home?”

The bearded man, with a wild mane of hair, squinted. Then, before I could react in any way, he appeared right in front of me.

“What?!”

Rough hands clamped onto my shoulders, preventing me from struggling.

“What are you doing?” I demanded.

“Are you—”

“A child snatcher!”

“I’m not—” the man tried to silence me, but that only made me scream harder.

“Mum! Save me! I’m being abducted!”

A figure flew over the green hedgerow fence, fiery golden strings of essence warping around her as she cast her sight on the child snatcher.

“Ashlyn,” the bearded man froze, his grip on my shoulders finally loosening.

Mum faltered mid-step; the look in her eyes sharpened. “Jinn?”

“Ashlyn, forgive me. I’m late.”