Do ratmen dream of the sacred tree of spirits?

Chapter 21 Teaching

Dear Dad and Mom:

I've been at the grammar school for over two weeks now, and everything is going well. I haven't encountered any problems.

The food here is free, and you can eat meat at every meal. When I come back from my vacation, I'll pack some to bring back for you to try.

Mr. Victor took good care of me, and I am very grateful to him.

He taught me bookkeeping, and he told me that I had a good aptitude for spirituality and would be able to learn magic relatively smoothly. I successfully learned meditation, clairvoyance, and fireball magic...

The library is very large, with three floors. I often go there to read. Sister Fanning, the librarian, is very interesting...

Martha and Allen are doing well too; they take good care of me. Now, when I have free time, I teach them to write the common language of the Western Continent…

Wishing you a peaceful and healthy season

Fafner Beckett

……

Work, classes, meals, practicing magic... the ordinary yet enjoyable days passed by one by one...

Yesterday, Fafner had already mopped the teaching building once, and then he mopped the student dormitory building once, quickly finishing today's workload. He then hung the mop to dry at the entrance of the logistics department.

Martha went to the laundry room to wash two sheets in the morning. Allen hadn't started his work for the day yet, since the cafeteria didn't provide breakfast and they didn't eat it either.

At this moment, the three gathered in Fafnir's dormitory.

Fafnir watched as they each wrote words with their pens on scraps of paper—papers that Sister Fanning had permitted them to take from the library to use as word writing practice books.

"Yes...very good, Allen, Martha, you've made great progress in just two weeks! Well then, that concludes the morning session. Allen, you're going to help out in the cafeteria now."

Fafnir felt pleased. Only three weeks into the semester, aside from a week spent in the hospital, he had only managed to teach them the common language of the Western Continent for two weeks.

Martha and Allen have already been able to write over four hundred words of the Western Continent Common Language.

Of course, this is also because the school doesn't have a course on the common language of the Western Continent. There are courses on literature appreciation, but no literacy courses.

"Thank you, Fafnir." Allen smiled at Fafnir.

"Fafner, want to go eat together later?" Martha hesitated for a moment, "Where are you going after dinner?"

"Hmm... I'll go to the library this afternoon to borrow that 'Illustrated Guide to First-Order Spells'."

"Oh, you're really something, Fafnir. Alan and I don't understand any of this."

I reviewed the words you taught me yesterday in the laundry room this morning, and they flowed much better when I wrote them today.

"Go for it, Martha! You and Alan will succeed. Let's go to the cafeteria together later."

……

The library doors were open; now that school has started, there were significantly more people than before.

Sister Fanning sat behind the reception desk, a thick book open in front of her, and a steaming drink beside her.

"Hello, Sister Fanning."

She glanced up at Fafnir, hummed in agreement, and then lowered her head to continue reading.

Fafnir went straight up to the third floor and came to the spell bookshelf. The "First-Order Spell Compendium" was still in its usual place, so he pulled it out.

The book is quite thick, with a high-quality hardcover, and at least two hundred pages.

Opening the book, the first chapter is about the Fireball spell, with over ten pages dedicated to explaining the principles, accompanied by several illustrations, including a breakdown of the spiritual runes.

Fafnir skimmed through the book and found basic first-tier spells such as Water Ball, Wind Blade, and Earth Wall, each accompanied by spell incantations and instructions on how to construct spiritual runes.

Carrying the book, I went downstairs to the reception desk. Sister Fanning was still reading.

"Greetings, nun. I've come to borrow this 'Illustrated Compendium of First-Order Spells'."

Fafner placed the book on the reception desk, along with his library card.

"The loan period is one month. If it is overdue, a fine of one copper coin will be imposed for each day."

She took the library card, stamped it with her seal, and wrote two lines in the register: "Take it."

Fafner took the book, hesitated for a moment, and didn't leave.

"Is there anything else?"

"Sister Fanning, I would like to ask if the library has any books on spiritual training? I mean... how to increase one's total spirituality."

Sister Fanning looked up at him and said, "Isn't that the book on the third floor, 'The Spiritual Training Manual'?"

"Sorry, I glanced at that book, but it was too thick and I couldn't understand it very well."

"That's normal, you don't understand it very well. That book is for fourth and fifth graders' exams. You're only seven, what's the rush?"

She picked up her cup and took a sip: "You should thoroughly understand the 'Introduction to Spirituality' and that illustrated book first. Don't try to do too much at once."

"I understand, thank you."

Fafnir nodded, and just as he was about to turn around, Sister Fanning asked again, "How's your fireball spell coming along?"

Fafnir paused for a moment; he hadn't mentioned the fireball spell to Sister Fanning.

“Victor told me this last time,” Sister Fanning said. “He had you demonstrate in class that day, and the next day he kept nagging me about it, haha.”

"Still practicing."

"Hmm, don't train too hard. At your age, too much training will give you a headache." She opened her book, indicating that the topic was over.

……

Fafnir returned to his dormitory with the "Illustrated Guide to First-Order Spells," placed the book on the table, and flipped to the chapter on Fireball to reread it.

What he read in the book was basically the same as what he learned from Mr. Victor, and some details were also basically the same: for example, the temperature and speed of the flame depended on the rhythm of the spiritual infusion; if it was too fast, it would explode in his hand, and if it was too slow, it would not reach the target.

Water polo,

The principle is similar to the Fireball spell, but the structure of the spiritual runes is reversed, and the incantation is also in the language of the spirits, but the syllables are shorter and the rhythm is faster.

Fafnir tried to construct the runes for the Water Ball spell in his mind, but the spiritual threads unraveled after only two wraps.

Not yet.

He wasn't in a hurry; he closed the book and placed it next to his pillow.

The afternoon sunlight streamed in through the window, cutting a bright line across the edge of the bed.

Fafnir sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the dust floating in the beam of light, and suddenly remembered the day of the opening ceremony.

The old knight's eyes, the dull thud of being struck in the chest, the thud of the back of his head hitting the stone wall... blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, dripping onto his old robe.

Fafnir touched his chest; the pain was gone, and not even a scar remained. The priest's healing spell was thorough; his bones, muscles, and skin were all restored to their original state.

But that image remains.

He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

Silently recite the commandments, and a meditative state descends. Spiritual threads emerge in the mind, thicker than they were two weeks ago, and their silvery-white luster is more stable.

He began constructing the runes of vision, this time very quickly, almost in the blink of an eye.

Psychic vision activated.

He looked down at his hands; the pale gray glow was thicker than before, though still faint, but at least it was no longer intermittent.

The black holes beneath the gray glow remain; those void areas untouched by spiritual light are hollows embedded within the body.