The Buried Symbol (The Ruins of Issalia Book 1) (48 page)

Brock realized the boy was a bit odder than he had thought.

“
Just relax, and I
’
ll take a turn,
”
Brock said to him.

Placing his palm on Hamish
’
s forehead, Brock closed his eyes and dropped into meditation. The cool blue calmness of
Order
was soothing. He reached toward Hamish, and a rune filled his mind
’
s eye. It was the rune of
Order
. Behind it, he found
Cognitio
, the rune of knowledge. Even further back, he could make out the rune of
Mercator
. Not giving up, he pushed harder, sensing an additional three runes hidden in the depths of Hamish. He opened his eyes to look at Hamish.

“
Did you see anything?
”
Hamish asked.
“
I really hope you saw something interesting.
”

“
I definitely saw something,
”
Brock replied. He scribbled down the symbols he had seen on a sheet of paper. Once finished, he showed it to Hamish.

“
Oh my! I knew I had potential for knowledge!
”
he exclaimed.
“
I don
’
t care about these other things, but the knowledge symbol is so exciting!
”

Brock was a little overwhelmed by the odd boy
’
s reaction.
“
That
’
s nice. I
’
m happy for you, Hamish.
”

Hamish leaned forward, hugging him. Brock looked toward Ashland for help, but she just giggled at his dilemma. Thankfully, the bell rang.

CHAPTER 76

The sheer amount of snow brought by the blizzard swayed things in winter
’
s favor, giving it a firm grip on the valley. Brock knew that spring would come eventually, but the initial thrill he had felt from seeing snow was long forgotten. Like the other students, he now remained in the warmth and shelter of the Academy rather than venturing outside.

Due to their busy schedules, he and Ashland had to steal what moments they could to spend time together. Being trapped in the Academy, those moments were rarely private. Brock cherished every meeting, meal, and conversation, but he found himself longing for the time they had spent at The Quiet Woman.

Like any other student, his classes and studies consumed most of his time.

In Lore, they studied the history and details of each of the major Empire provinces. As always, the timeline started after the Empire had been formed. It seemed as if the kingdoms that had existed prior to the Empire were forgotten.

In Hierarchist class, they had begun operating as an imaginary city court. Each student was assigned a position found within city government. Unfortunately, Corbin had the privilege of being the city prelate while Brock was relegated the role of a clerk. Corbin relished his position of power, running their government with practiced precision while assigning impossible tasks to Brock, berating him publicly at any misstep.

Frustrated with the situation, Brock approached Pretencia with his complaint. The master hierarchist told him that Corbin was within his rights as prelate and that Brock needed to adapt if he were to survive within the Empire Hierarchy. In hindsight, Brock realized that he should
’
ve expected such a response. Pretencia seemed to hate him almost as much as Corbin did.

Thankfully, things proceeded far better in his other classes.

Paladin class continued on course, further honing Brock
’
s speed, strength, and flexibility with a vigorous training program augmented by the mental and physical precision required to perfect weapon combat forms. The most intense day of the week was always sparring day. Brock was faring better of late, rarely requiring healing.

In Ecclesiastics, divining had proven to be far easier than healing. In fact, Brock could easily discern five or more runes in every subject he read. Unfortunately, he had to continually manipulate the situation to prevent being discovered as Unchosen. He did what he could to be paired with someone who hadn
’
t displayed any skill with
Order
. When that didn
’
t work, he made sure the other person never had the chance to perform divining on him. He was thankful to escape the situation on the days he had healing duty. Not only did it allow him to be close to Ashland, he found that he felt stronger whenever they were together.

Engineering class had transitioned to new concepts. As usual, Nindlerod started with theory in the classroom, presenting the basic principles involved. As usual, most of the class failed to grasp the instruction. When they moved into the Foundry, he used demonstrations that helped them better understand the concept. As always, Benny embraced every new subject with excitement and enthusiasm.

When Nindlerod announced another competition coming in the spring, Benny was thrilled. This contest was wide open, allowing any student interested to present an invention of his or her choosing. Each creation would be judged for its potential uses and ingenuity. Like the previous contest, gold was awarded for the winning design.

At dinner that evening, Benny proclaimed that he was working on an invention that would help him win and make him famous. When Brock asked for details, Benny stated that he needed to finish his design before he revealed anything.

Brock and Benny later met in the boys
’
lounge to discuss the progress they had made in their research. Each with a cup of caffe in hand, the two boys sat alone at a table away from the other students in the lounge. Benny brought the notes from his research on the Wailing War. Brock did the same on his translation of the book on
Chaos
.

“
I
’
m over halfway through the book now,
”
Benny said.
“
I
’
ve found a few interesting things of note about the Horde. First, they attack almost exclusively at night. In fact, fighting during the day seems to be a weakness of some sort. Thus far, they still have crushed every city and kingdom force they faced, so that weakness hasn
’
t come into play. In a matter of months, they had completely overrun the eastern kingdoms. I
’
m now at the part where the kingdoms of the west have acknowledged that they have to do something. However, they refused the first overture to band together under the Ministry
’
s leadership. It seems they were fearful and distrustful of the others.
”

Brock nodded.
“
That pretty much aligns with the stories we
’
ve been told. Only the note about the Horde attacking at night seems to be something new. I wonder what it means.
”

Benny shrugged again.
“
I
’
ve no idea.
”

As Brock reflected on the information, Benny slipped his notes into his thick book. He then turned to Brock with an eyebrow raised.

“
Did you hear about Salina?
”

“
Salina? The girl in our Engineering class?
”
Brock asked.

Benny nodded.
“
Yeah. She disappeared during winter break and hasn
’
t been seen since.
”

Brock
’
s brow furrowed.
“
Disappeared?
”

“
Yeah. I thought it was odd too, but I was told that one or two students disappear every year,
”
Benny said.
“
I guess they give up and go home or something. Still seems weird to me.
”

Brock nodded. He couldn
’
t imagine quitting on his dream.

Benny poked Brock.
“
Okay. It
’
s your turn. What have you found?
”

Brock pulled his notes out, glancing at them before he spoke.
“
Well, I can tell you that it
’
s slow going. Translating one word at a time and only having the key for one word in four is difficult, as you know.
”

Brock tapped on the thick book with one finger.
“
I
’
ve made some progress, though. It appears that this book was intended to help others understand
Chaos
and instruct them on how to use it.
”

Benny nodded.
“
Good. I
’
d hoped as much.
”

“
Many of the sentences contain nothing of note. They only frame the subject or provide unnecessary details. Of course, there are many words that I can
’
t translate at all. More importantly, as I progress, I
’
ve been able to use deduction to fill in some gaps. The list of translated words and symbols is now twice what it was when we started.
”

Benny grew excited.
“
That
’
s great, Brock. It
’
ll take a while, but we should eventually be able to translate most of the words.
”

Brock nodded.
“
Yes, but we
’
re still many days from reaching that point.
”
He tapped on the book.
“
We still have a few hours before we need to sleep. You get to reading, and I
’
ll see if I can get another page or two translated.
”

Benny nodded.
“
Good idea.
”

The two boys ended up working late into the night, far later than they had planned.

CHAPTER 77

Master Budakis nodded.
“
Good! Very good.
”
He walked the floor, watching students going through their forms.
“
Okay, now stop and assemble at attention.
”

The students formed a line stretching across the Arena floor. Budakis examined the stance of each student, nodding in satisfaction as he paced down the line.

“
We
’
re now well past the mid-point of the school year. I
’
ve watched you transform since your first day.
”
He stood before them with his hands clasped behind his back and his barrel-like chest thrust out.
“
From a pathetic beginning, you
’
ve grown fit and strong. While some will always be better than others in combat, you can at least defend yourself against an unskilled opponent. A few of you might even present a challenge to a master paladin.
”

Budakis continued as he again paced along the line.
“
Thus far, you
’
ve only sparred against the students in this group. You have a feel for how your skills compare against those who stand beside you. I
’
m happy to tell you that will soon change.
”

He smiled before continuing.

“
In three weeks, we will hold a three-day tournament, marking the end of the winter season. In this competition, some of you will get to measure your skills against the best the Academy has to offer. The winner of the tournament will be crowned this year
’
s Arena Champion.
”

He paused again, letting these words sink in.
“
However, we cannot let everyone into this tournament. Your weekly sparring matches have helped me determine which of you have the skills to compete. When I call your name, please step forward.
”

Reaching into his waistband, he pulled out a sheet of paper. Unfolding it, he began reading names off. As Brock expected, Cameron and Lars were both among those listed. As he feared, his own name was also on the list. When Budakis was finished, only eight of the sixty students had been called.

He folded the paper and addressed the class.
“
Everyone who hasn
’
t been called is excused.
”

Budakis watched the students shuffle toward the changing rooms. Brock and the others who were selected, six boys and two girls, stood at attention as they waited for what came next. Once the floor cleared, Budakis addressed them.

“
Congratulations. You
’
ve been selected to participate in this year
’
s Arena Championship. This is your chance to prove your skills to the whole school.
”
His arms spread wide, his body rotating as he spoke.
“
These stands will be filled with fellow students and masters, cheering you on. You
’
ll feel an energy in this building like never before. When you stand victorious over an opponent, backed by the roar of the crowd, it
’
s a high like no other.
”