Return of the Runebound Professor

Chapter 386: Revin problems

Chapter 386: Revin problems

Revin slung his scythe back over his shoulder and sank into the shadow of the rock he stood beside, disappearing and leaving the grassy plain silent. Renewal struggled to keep a laugh from bursting out from her mouth.

Decras?

What? Decras asked irritably.

Your Apostle kind of sucks. That was pathetic.

Dont pretend like anyone from your church would be any better, Decras said with a grunt. He stole a chocolate from the bowl before Renewal could stop him. Damn it. I cant tell if I like watching Revin or get fed up with his constant interference.

Dont you think we should be at least a little bit concerned that our experiments have found each other? Renewal asked, the smile fading from her face.

Experiments? Dont group that little thief in with Revin, Decras said with a scoff. Hes not an experiment. He just stole some Runes.

Right, Renewal said dryly. Well, whatever he is, hes working together with Revin.

Doubt it. Revin doesnt work together with anyone. Not anymore. The thief just managed to catch his attention for a little while. I wouldnt concern yourself about it because thats not going to last long.

You sound really certain of that, Renewal observed, waving her hand and dismissing the image as she turned to face Decras. What if it does?

Bah. Itll be fine. What are you worried about? Decras asked, leaning forward and bracing his arms against his knees. Do you think theyre going to form a union or something?

Renewal blinked. A union? You think theyll get married? They better not. Noah and Moxie go together too perfectly.

What? No. Decras let out an exasperated sigh. The mortals of some other planets have unions where they all get together to try and get more rights for themselves against their masters. Forget it. Either way, Revin is just mildly interested. Even if it was more, theyre mortals. We dont have anything to fear.

Im not sure fear would even be the right word, Renewal said. Im not scared of Noah. Even if he managed to ascend to godhood, I dont think hed actually be a threat. More like an ally. His goals will align with ours.

Hold on, Decras said, his eyes widening as he matched Renewals posture. You think that hes going to make it to godhood? Someone from that shitty little planet? They understand absolutely nothing, and there are millions of people with more potential than average.

He has our Runes.

The Apostles have had my runes for centuries. Fat load of good its done most of them.

Thats because you gave it, Renewal said. Noah took his, and hes changed them. Hes changed yours too.

Just like Revin, Decras muttered, his eyes narrowing. Fine. Perhaps he makes it to godhood. Do you really think the first thing he did wouldnt be to come after the rest of the power hes taken? I say we kill him the instant he ascends.

Renewal tilted her head to the side. Its hard to say. Hes certainly power hungry when the time comes, but his concern is more about his friends than it is about himself. I dont think hed go picking fights that they wont all survive. A new god isnt going to be able to defeat us.

Youre only saying that because youre attached.

If you truly wanted to kill him, youd have already done it yourself, Renewal pointed out. She crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow. Youve always skirted the rules, Decras. This wouldnt have been any different. You were secretly happy when Revin showed up, werent you? Youre having just as much fun with this as I am, even if youre too cocky to admit it.

Your head is full of delusion and pink fluff.

And yours wishes it was. Better to be honest and have fun than to keep being stuffy, Renewal said. Why do you think the other gods dont even so much as say hi to you? Theyd be friendlier if you stopped being such a dick.

I have no need for worthless people. The majority of the other gods in our area of the universe barely scraped their ways to godhood and care for nothing but telling each other how great they are.

Renewal cleared her throat. Decras wasnt exactly wrong. It was hard to believe how much more enjoyable his company was than that of the other gods, especially given how much of a prick he was.

Okay, Ill give you that, Renewal said. But I still think that you could stay true to yourself without using fighting as your main excuse to see people.

Fighting is what makes us grow.

So is deep conversation.

Whatever helps you sleep at night, Decras said through a yawn. Turn the spell back on. Do you think Noah is doing anything interesting?

Renewal flicked her hand and the image bloomed, shifting to Moxies room. Her eyes widened and she hurriedly waved it away, banishing the spell before it could even fully take form.

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Maybe we can look at other people for now, Renewal suggested, coughing into her fist.

That might be a wise idea, Decras said. What about some of his students?

His students? Renewal tilted her head to the side and raised an eyebrow as the embarrassment faded from her cheeks. Thats the first time youve shown even the slightest amount of interest in them. Which one?

The crippled one, Decras said. Shes taken to the fundamentals of Runes better than most. In any normal circumstances, it wouldnt even matter. Shed have no chance of making it past Rank 3 because of those Body Runes but Noah changes things.

Aha! You used his name again!

Make up your mind on what you want me to do, Decras snapped.

I ah. Well, I suppose thats a fair request, Renewal said with a frown. Fine. Sorry. Lets take a look at Alexandra, then. Shes got some spirit to her. Im personally looking forward to how she deals with the members of that little club Noahs group joined. There are some decent mages in there for their Rank, at least.

I hope she kills them.

The solution to everything does not have to be killing.

I still hope she kills them.

***

Alexandra lowered her sword and opened her eyes, letting the outside world slip back into awareness. The sun had traced through the sky overhead it had been hours since shed started practicing for the day.

Not enough. I feel like Im so close, but Im still not there. When I was fighting with Gero, I think I had it for a moment. But, no matter what I do while training, I just cant recapture whatever it was that I did there.

Maybe I should go find Isabel and see if she wants to spar.

Alexandra sheathed her sword and headed out of the small dirt circle that had been serving as her training area. It was just a short walk back to her dormitory, where she quickly rinsed off before setting off to Isabel and Todds room.

She only made it down a single turn in the corridor before having to jump back, having nearly walked straight into Todd.

Whoa, Todd said. Sorry. Didnt see you there, Alexandra. I was just going to try and find you.

We must have had the same idea. Is Isabel busy? I was hoping to do some sparring with her.

Shes out training somewhere, actually, Todd said. She just headed out thirty minutes or so ago, so I dont think shes going to be back anytime soon.

Ah, damn it, Alexandra said with a frown. Maybe I should ask Vermil, then. Ive been stuck on this for too long. I need to advance already.

Thats actually why I came looking for you, Todd said. Youve been working on your pattern a lot, right?

Yeah, Alexandra said with a nod. I was making great progress at first, but it feels like Ive hit a wall. No matter what I do, I dont get better. It feels like I understand the pattern perfectly, but I logically know I dont. Im missing something and I dont know what it is. What about you? Have you been having any luck with your pattern?

Some, Todd said. Im honestly not sure if Im headed down the right path with it. Thats why I was going to look for you. Id ask the professor, but I dont want to wait until next class.

I suppose it cant hurt. Maybe Ill find whats wrong if I have to explain it to someone else.

I can try, Alexandra said.

Awesome! Thank you, Todd said, turning and heading back down the hall toward his rooms with Alexandra at his side. He pulled a bracelet out of his pocket as they walked, running a thumb along the runes carved into its surface. Ive been trying to figure out exactly what my pattern is, you know?

Wait, you dont know? Alexandra asked, blinking in surprise as they reached the door and Todd pushed it open. How can you practice if you dont know your pattern?

Well, thats the problem. Todd waved Alexandra over to Isabels chair, then sat down in his own and rocked onto its back legs. Your pattern is like a single thing, right?

Im trying to embody the changing nature of wind.

Right. A single thing. Im trying to improve my imbuing, Todd said, nodding to the band in his hands. But that cant just be embody fire or whatever. It needs to be a conceptual understanding. But how do you summarize understanding imbuements as a whole? I dont want to just figure out how to make better fire imbuements or the like I want to improve my imbuing overall but I cant just make my pattern being better.

That is a problem, Alexandra admitted. I didnt really think about trying to expand a pattern to such a large concept. Are you certain its even possible?

Im not sure. Vermil said it was promising, and he obviously knows what hes talking about. The problem is that he doesnt know imbuing that well. Of the group, Im the one that knows it the best.

Todds tone made it clear that he wasnt bragging. He was just being completely honest. It felt a bit odd for a student to claim they were better than their teacher at anything, but everything about Vermils class was strange.

Is it possible youre too deep? Alexandra asked after thinking for a few moments.

Deep? What do you mean?

Well, the more you know about a subject, the further you enter it, Alexandra said. She tapped the sword at her side. Like swordsmanship, for example. Its much more than just swinging a blade around. Its the mindset, the footwork, everything around you.

Right, that makes sense. But what does that have to do with patterns or imbuing?

Have you ever focused so hard on a problem that youve been stuck on for ages, but then someone who knows absolutely nothing about it walks over and gives you the answer almost by accident?

Todds brow furrowed and he gave her a slow nod. Yeah. All the time, actually.

Maybe its that. You could be trying to get so deep into imbuements that youre focusing on them instead of the pattern. Have you considered toning it back instead of pushing farther?

Todd tapped his foot on the ground, chewing his lower lip. Huh. Thats a really good idea, actually. Easier said than done, but it gives me something to work with. Damn. Now I feel stupid.

Having an outside perspective can help.

True, Todd agreed. Is that why you were looking for Isabel? Maybe I can help in her place.

I was going to try to spar with her.

Ah. Well, I can do that.

Alexandra gave Todd a doubtful look. You can use a sword?

Barely. Im worse than she is. But why are you only fighting someone with a sword? Didnt you say your pattern was wind? That has nothing to do with your sword. Youre just using it as the way to express the wind.

Alexandra blinked. Then her eye twitched. Todd burst into laughter.

You did the same shit you just told me about, didnt you?

Yes, Alexandra muttered, but she couldnt stay distracted for long with the building excitement. Todd was right, and now that she knew, it was so obvious that it was painful. Shed figured out how to embody wind with her sword, but her pattern had to be far more than just swordplay. In that case, Ill take you up on your offer. Can we spar hand to hand?

With pleasure, Todd said with a grin. Lets go.