I’d read the beginning before, and I understood the fundamentals. Enchanters had the ability to permanently infuse objects with power.
To do this, I’d have to start by finding the runes that corresponded to the effects I wanted on the item. After that, I’d inscribe the object with the runes. That was the easy part.
The hard part was finding a power source for each rune. Since I only had an Enchanter attunement, the only mana I had access to was “raw” mana — basic, unfiltered stuff. Most enchantments required specialized types of mana, like fire mana to empower a rune to make a flaming weapon.
There were two main ways of getting the mana I needed to enchant something: either I could find a person who had the right kind of mana and transfer it from them, or I could transfer the mana from an object that contained mana. Like, for example, the crystals sitting in my bag.
I wasn’t reading through the book to figure out what I could do with my crystals. I’d already done that, and come to the conclusion that the few crystals I had weren’t all that useful on their own. Slimes were the weakest monsters in existence and the mana crystals they left behind were raw, the same type I could generate on my own. The barghensi’s crystal was earth mana, which was more useful, but not something I had any use for at the moment.
No, for now, I wasn’t going to make anything. I needed to learn about what I already had.
I unsheathed the sword the Voice of the Tower had given me about half way, examining the shimmering blade and the four runes on the surface. I was careful not to touch my skin to the aura of frost — I didn’t know if it would hurt the wielder or not. That was one of the first things I’d need to figure out.
I found my quill and ink and one of the pieces of orientation paperwork I didn’t care about, drawing the four runes that I’d seen on the surface of the blade. After another moment of thought, I flipped the sword over and checked the other side to see if the etchings matched.
They did. Just four runes, then.
Then, having copied the runes, I searched through the enchanting book to find them. I only found two of the four.
The first was a pretty simple rune, one I’d seen elsewhere: a Rune of Resilience, useful for making an object harder to break.
The second was definitely some kind of Rune of Ice, but it differed from the basic one presented in the book. The shape was similar enough to be clearly related, but the one on the weapon was surrounded by an octagon of intersecting lines, one of which connected with the rune.
I spent some more time searching the book for the other runes, but they were nowhere to be found. The book’s notes on the basic Rune of Ice indicated that items enchanted with it were dangerous to the wielder, so I decided it was best to keep my hands as far away from the aura as possible, at least until I could discern what the more advanced rune meant.
With that established I sheathed the weapon and lay down on my bed, closing my eyes.
I wasn’t going to sleep, not immediately. I needed a few moments just to process my situation.
I didn’t get them, of course. A knock sounded on my door mere instants after my eyes shut.
The knocking paused for a moment, then repeated a few moments later. It was quick, insistent. I sighed, pushing myself from the bed, and opened the door.
A black-clad student was standing outside, his almond-shaped eyes narrowed in scrutiny. He had amber skin, which meant his family was probably from East Edria or Dalenos.
He stared directly at me for a moment, then asked a single question.
“Are you a Spider?”
I blinked. “Uh... no?”
He nodded curtly, took the door handle, and shut my door.
I continued to stare at the closed door for the next few seconds.
Well, that was interesting.
Contemplating the encounter, I came to the conclusion that the student was testing for my reaction. I heard another similar knock several moments later... but it wasn’t at the next door down. It was too distant for that. He wasn’t going to every door in sequence — either he had a list of specific people he wanted to check, or he wasn’t going in order because he didn’t want people hearing the conversations at adjacent rooms and taking the time to prepare.
Oh, I like this guy.
He hadn’t given his name, but I’d find it.
***
I kicked off my boots and spent the next few hours reading through runes atop my new bed. The threadbare sheets and single pillow weren’t particularly comfortable, but I was glad just to have a private room.
While I studied the runes, I contemplated what I could potentially build. My few crystals wouldn’t get me very far, but I did have a small discretionary stipend to spend on things outside of what the academy provided. Basic food in the mess hall, lodgings, and uniforms were already covered.
I assumed most of the other students who were lucky enough to have a stipend spent it on the much better food that could be found in the assorted restaurants on the campus, or on things like more books or added conveniences.
My four silver sigils per week were going toward an enchanting fund.
One of my first priorities would be to figure out the local rates on buying various types of enchanting materials. My reading indicated that there were a lot more types of mana crystals than I had initially realized, and that there were some alternatives to using crystals or getting help from other attuned, but that they tended to be harder to come by.