CHAPTER 30: THE ROYAL ACADEMY LIBRARY

As Noah stepped out of the arena’s archway, the roar of murmuring voices still echoing behind him. Arlo fell into step beside him with his usual grin.

"That was amazing!" Arlo said, practically bouncing as he walked. "You really hammered him. Did you see his face? I mean, obviously you did, you were the one punching it. But still!"

Noah didn’t respond.

Instead, he looked down at his arms, where Ben’s blood claws had torn through his sleeves and into skin.

The wounds throbbed with every heartbeat, blood drying against the cloth. His shoulder burned, and his ribs ached. His fists were sore from punching bone.

"How did you dodge the Blood Armament?" Arlo asked again, eyes hidden behind his blindfold but his voice filled with curiosity. "That skill should’ve turned you into minced meat."

Noah kept walking. His voice came quiet, flat. "Which way’s the infirmary?"

Arlo stopped mid-step. "Wait, what?"

"I forgot." Noah said. "My side hurts."

Arlo raised an eyebrow behind the cloth. Then he sighed and snapped his fingers.

Golden light shimmered in the air around Noah, spiraling in reverse.

Noah’s eyes widened as he felt the pain pull backward. His flesh mended as if the wounds were never there. The torn fabric didn’t fix, but the blood turned back into liquid, flowing back into his veins. Even the soreness in his limbs faded away, like breath melting into the wind.

It was the same skill Arlo had used to fix his room last night.

Noah stared at his arms. At his skin. Then at Arlo.

"What the hell kind of skill is that?"

Arlo waved it off with a shrug. "Nothing crazy. Little trick I got." He grinned. "You looked like you needed it."

Noah narrowed his eyes. "That wasn’t a low-level skill. That... that was time. You reversed my wounds."

Arlo laughed. "Details, details."

Noah let it go. For now.

Arlo was a puzzle for another day.

"So, where are we going now?" Arlo.asked, a big grin on his face.

Noah exhaled at the question. "I’m heading to the library. Time to redeem the token."

"Finally!" Arlo said, stretching his arms. "Smartest decision you’ve made all day."

Noah looked down at himself. His uniform was still ruined. Slashes ran across the sleeves and chest, and the whole front was crusted with the remnants of his blood. He could still feel the sticky dryness clinging to his back.

"I need to change first." He muttered. "Can’t walk into the library looking like I just crawled out of a battlefield."

Arlo nodded cheerfully. "Good call. I’ll walk you back. You might startle the librarians looking like that."

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Noah stood in front of his trunk, pulling a fresh set of uniforms from within. The black cloth was smooth and newly pressed, still holding the faint stiffness of something rarely worn.

The other students usually changed into their casual, or in the case of the nobles, formal dressings, but he had no change of clothes. He’d have to buy some when they were allowed to leave the academy on the seventh day of the week.

He tugged the shirt on, buttoned it, and fastened his belt. The jacket came last. It fit snugly, sitting comfortably around his shoulders.

The old uniform lay in a heap beside the trunk, stained and torn from the duel. He’d won, but it wasn’t without losing something.

Arlo lounged near the window, spinning one of his gold coins between his fingers. "You ready?" He asked.

Noah gave a curt nod.

Together, they stepped out of the dorm and made their way across the campus.

The sky was clear, the air carrying the faint sound of the students’ chatter and footsteps.

Word of the duel had already spread, but the path to the library remained calm. A few passing students glanced at them, some curious, some wide-eyed, but none spoke to them.

The Royal Academy Library stood like a silent tower of knowledge, gray stone walls stretching high, its front framed by tall glass windows.

The doors opened as they approached, letting in a soft rush of cool, filtered air.

Noah walked straight to the receptionist’s desk.

Behind it sat a woman in her early thirties, with a pair of thin-framed glasses perched on her nose and a ledger open before her. She glanced up as they stopped.

"I’m here to redeem a spell." Noah said, reaching into his pocket and placing the gleaming B-rank token on the polished counter.

The woman’s eyes widened slightly. She leaned forward, inspecting the token with care. With gloved fingers, she lifted it, holding it to the light.

When she was done, she nodded. "Please wait here."

Taking the token with her, she vanished through a back door.

Arlo leaned against the wall beside him. "Looks like they take it seriously."

A few minutes later, the woman returned, this time accompanied by another staff member. The woman had long dark hair bound into a tight bun and wore an elegant black official looking robe.

She stopped in front of Noah and offered a small smile.

"I’m Miss Leslie." She said. "I oversee all B-rank and above spell transactions for the school."

Noah nodded once. "Noah Webb."

"I’ve verified the token. You’ll need to come with me to complete the process." She said, gesturing toward a hallway behind her. "Spell redemptions are private."

Arlo shrugged and waved. "I’ve got a few errands to run anyway. Works out."

Noah said his goodbyes, before following Miss Leslie into the depths of the library.

Miss Leslie led Noah through a quiet hallway in the administrative parts of the library.

The deeper they went, the more quiet everything seemed. They walked for a few minutes before stopping in front of a heavy wooden door with a brass plaque that read "Authorized Access Only."

She opened it with a tap of her finger, magic rippling through the lock, and stepped aside to let him in.

Noah entered.

The office was modest but dignified. A tall arched window spilled soft daylight onto a wide desk at the far end, cluttered with parchments, quills, and glowing crystals stacked in neat piles.

Bookshelves covered the left wall, filled with leather-bound tomes. A pair of cushioned chairs faced the desk, and several framed certificates and what looked like unfinished spell matrices were hung behind it in careful arrangement.

"Have a seat," Leslie said, closing the door behind them.

Noah sat, and Leslie also took her seat.

"Let us begin."