Earthling in Uncharted Dimensions

Chapter 151: Library of the Alaqvier academy

Lee added his circumstances and the bounty on his head. The mention of gold coins urged them to capture Lee and hand over to the Cultivator's Guild, but the adventurers, who were despised by the cultivators, decided to lend him a hand. Lee politely declined, saying-

"I have some other matters to take care of."

Lee gave a slight bow, signifying that he had conveyed his final decision. Erikko glanced at Ganga, and turned to see the faces of students and Drake. He turned to Lee, after taking their facial expressions into consideration.

"So be it. Fourth day from today, Lee shall fight Ganga Equis to prove his worthiness to be a part of the academy."

Erikko was so determined to add him to the academy that he passively promoted the duel, and did not even ask his opinion about it. Lee was able to sense the principal's concealed desire and did not find a reason to argue. He took the demoted condition and relatively lesser status of the academy into account.

Drake quickly stepped near Lee and offered to show him around the academy. With the permission of the principal, the professor walked towards the main block with Lee in tow. The crowd of students were dispersed before Drake took initiative. The students showed reluctance to disperse as they clustered together here and there murmuring and chatting, while a few ran at the main block to spread the wildfire.

---

"Ganga Equis is a troublesome opponent. Try to end the duel as soon as possible, because more the duration, more her fighting spirit will show dominance. She tends to go wild if she finds someone as a worthy opponent."

Drake whispered to Lee after he made sure that they had made an adequate distance from the ground. They had not entered the building, and the audio was inaudible to someone over 5 metres away. Lee gave a nod as his eyes were scanning the architecture of the building, and the professor saw the response through the corner of his eyes.

He followed the head of the Spell department and walked through the corridors and observed the surroundings. Students along the way greeted Drake and were curious about the stranger behind him. Some faces recognised him, and Lee registered a boy from before, when he was at the outdoor training ground. He gave a slight nod with a smile, and the boy nodded in return. As soon as they passed him, those standing around came near him enquiring, and came to know about the demonstration and the duel.

The matter of duel four days from that day, spread like wildfire. Students began to hold debates on who would win. Many supported Ganga Equis as they are familiar with her peculiarities and fighting spirit. But there was a considerable amount of brains which gave emphasis on Lee over the dwarven elf. The narration about the pulsating bright threat that lit up the sky over the academy, and the one behind it, was a news all over the campus. From this single incident, many evaluated that the person named Lee, could be more than a simple Rookie. Him mentioning a Veteran adventurer as a familiar person, also increased students' favor to Lee's side.

As Lee finished walking all around the ground floor, Drake asked him to follow to the first floor. While walking towards the stairs, he gave an introduction about the academy's library. He did not forget to mention the massive array of books it housed.

Climbing the stairs, the signature smell of old books welcomed Lee. The wide wooden stairs decorated with varieties of carving conjointly conveyed the story of the great warrior who was the first adventurer of the Piscerent city. His legacy of hunting and conquering the land was all over the railing supports and the dark wood of acacia projected the untold stories with elegance.

The flight of stairs ended on the first floor, and a large reading hall was the first thing Lee saw. More than 25 circular tables of a metre radius were arranged in the reading area, which was 43 metres long and 15 metres wide. Four chairs with individual carvings and decorated armrests, shared each table equally. The distinguishing colour of Bronze Teak wood was visually relaxing, and the entire furniture was fashioned out of it.

Several students were scattered throughout the reading hall, and were so absorbed in their activities, that they did not sense a head of department's presence. It is not that they couldn't sense, but the Silent Birch wood with which the flooring and interiors were decorated, had an inherent ability to silence any being's presence, so as to maintain a natural tranquility. Some animals find Silent Birch trees as abominations due to their overbearing muteness, while some predators take these trees as nap spots after meal.

The muffled footsteps were barely audible at close range, and the students only recognised Drake when he walked past them. Since the library approves anyone to sit and continue their activity, regardless of the position of the people around them, the students did not stand up. The noise cancellation of Silent Birch wood was of the top quality and it cut off the narration of Drake from reaching anyone other than Lee.

The entire library was about magic. The detailed and picturised history of Mana was divided into 10 volumes, and Lee took a brief moment to appreciate the hard work behind recording it. He was yet to venture three more floors, but Lee had already felt a good impression about the tall stacks of books, organised in shells, and numbered appropriately.

The books regarding introduction to Mana were available in varying sizes and styles. It ranged from picturised children's books, to pinnacle of Utopian literature. The records were also written in the native language of dwarf, elf and other races. Such race specific records also have the distinct features of the races clearly observed and recorded. The first floor was about introduction, but the sheer amount of data embedded in those pages was hardly possible to complete in a lifetime.

Extraordinary optic sense of Lee picked up each and every name of the books arranged throughout the stacks and shelves. His processing prowess recognised the names and assumed the content of them, and simultaneously sorted them as new and known. After thorough surfing, Lee couldn't come across anything interesting. So he decided to step into the second floor.

"Follow me."

Drake led Lee to the stairs to the second floor. He also added that the second floor is the maximum level to which Lee could be admitted. Lee nodded and followed him, and placed his foot over the first step.

*boom*