Chapter 24: Not A Party Type
Reynold slide his nameplate on his door immediately he got to his room and then he kicked it open and entered before kicking it shut.
He had only took few steps inside the room when his legs almost almost wanted to give out. Dammit! He was so tired.
He quickly pull the torn academy uniform and tossed it into the laundry basket before walking over to the small basin in the bathroom. He dipped a neat clean cloth into the cool water and pressed it to the left side of his face that had the cut.
He winced.
By the flames! Those are not even a real life battle golems sbd their Iron-knockes is so sharp that it had left a scrape that had bled more than Reynold realized. He wiped the dried blood away, before having a good bath.
Just as he was about to fall on his bed for a nap, he heard voices in the common area outside his door (the parlor he shared with his three roommates.)
"Is Reynold Starweaver back?"
Reynold froze because he recognised the c
Voice and the owner. It was Gwyn.
He sighed, running a hand through his hair. The nap would have to wait apparently.
He walked to the door and pulled it open.
Gwyn was standing there, her expression was lace with something that looks like rejection.
That is new. Reynold had never seen her this dejected.
She was dressed in blue uniform of the Magic-User cadets, though this uniform was different from the well-known blue robe. It was a blue tunic and trousers that is allowed for field practical training for magic users.
"Ah, here you are," she said, her shoulders relaxing as she saw Reynold.
Reynold opened the door wider. "Gwyn. I... did not know you knew my dorm. Come in." He stepped aside, with a look of confusion forming in his face.
Why was she here, and why did she look like someone who had just lost her precious stuff?
Gwyn stepped inside, avoiding his eyes. Reynold was about to ask how she found the place. But she beat him to it.
"Look, I’m sorry. I should not have just shown up unannounced. It is a bad habit."
Reynold leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms. "It is fine.. But you look like you just lost something precious to you. What happened? Training?"
Gwyn let out a loud, frustrated hiss as she collapsed onto the edge of Reynold’s bed. "Yeah training. The Quadrant group’s first official training and I messed up. I messed up so badly." She threw her hands up in exasperation. "The other Magic Users? They shielded their Riders perfectly and their runes were solid, and they were quick and very alert. And me? The only thing I could manage to do so well was healing forty Warg Hares all at once. And they were not even hurt badly. Then, when a mock arrow was fired at my Rider... I let it through because i was not fast enough. It skimmed the poor boy’s arm."
Reynold pushed off the door and walked to the window, folding his hands across his chest as he stared at her.
"Whoa, slow down," he said. "That was... a lot." He paused, looking at her frustrated look. "But listen to yourself. You saved forty Warg Hares all at once. Forty lives. I’m pretty sure most of the veteran healers could not do that all at once without collapsing. You should be proud of that, Gwyn."
𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢
"No, it’s not something to be proud of!" she snapped, the frustration still visible in her voice. "If I can not shield my Rider in a combat practice, then I am useless in a real battle! Maybe Silas was right after all."
Reynold expression softening.
"Hold on. Don’t let that garbage get to you. Professor Galen told us today in practice that we are all here because we passed the academy trial, not everyone passed that. Just know that you unique, and you are powerful in your own way. You just have to find your way around the problem.’ We are still learning, Gwyn. Don’t let some stupid boy opinion become your inner voice."
Gwyn groaned, rubbing her temples. "Easy for you to say. You’re Reynold Starweaver. You already have everything figured out. You just took down five golems that made veterans sweat."
Reynold shook his head. " Guess words travels so faster here But trust me when I say I am still learning, and I definitely don’t have everything figured out. I just focus on the next step and try not to let the outside talk get to me. That’s why I don’t care about what others think.."
"Well, good for you," Gwyn muttered. "I seem to care a lot about what people say."
"And that’s the problem," Reynold said gently. "You care too much about the wrong things. Stop comparing yourself to others and focus on why you are here. You healed those forty Hares. That’s a win that is worth celebrating. Celebrate it."
Gwyn sighed. "I guess you are right." She paused, then offered a small, sincere apology. "Sorry for bothering you with all this, Reynold."
"I do not mind, actually," he replied, a small smile touching his lips.
Gwyn stood up, smoothing the front of her tunic. "I have to go now. My cousin would probably be looking for me now. I promised to eat with him today."
Reynold nodded. He watched her walk to the door.
She stopped with her hand on the brass knob and turned back. "Hey, are you going to the first-year Welcome Party tomorrow? After class, around 7 PM?"
Reynold scoffed. "Nah, I will pass. I’m not a...."
"Be ready by 7 PM tomorrow," Gwyn cut him off, with a grin in her eyes. "I will be here. And do not you dare to keep me waiting, or let me down."
Before Reynold could say anything, she was gone, the door closing behind her.
Reynold shook his head with a bewildered look on his face. He walked away from the window and fell onto his bed.
A party? He was not a party type.
He eyes suddenly landed on the wall clock as he started to count the hours in his head, waiting patiently for the time to reach six o’clock so he could go get his dinner.
.....
After Reynold finished his dinner, he went back to his room dorm as he fell asleep the moment his head touch the pillow.
Next morning arrived too quickly.
Reynold was already up and ready for his first class of today which was Draconic language.
When he arrived at the hall, the medium-sized hall was almost filled up with future riders.
Draconic language was not his strong suit. The calligraphy of the Draconic script alway made his head spin, and the words were difficult for his mouth to pronounce
He slid into a seat just as the Professor, who is a slim entered the hall.
"Good morning, candidates," the professor said. "I am Professor Daryn. The course title, as you know, is DRC-101: Draconic Fundamentals. Our topic today is the Seven Sacred Scales of the Old Tongue."
It has not even been twenty minutes and Professor Daryn was already droning about the different tonal shifts needed to avoid accidentally summoning an Elder Wyrm instead of just asking for a drink of water.
Yeah, that was when Reynold lost it.. His eyelids started to get heavy and he was already nodding, then before his head hit his arm on the desk and he was off to the dream land.
Professor Daryn paused mid-sentence, his eyew landing directly on the sleeping Reynold.
"Cadet next to Starweaver," the professor said. "Kindly tap him to wake up."
The student next to Reynold gave him a small poke. Reynold jolted immediately with a low groan leaving his lips as he realized the entire class was staring.
"Starweaver. Stand up."
Reynold dragged himself to his feet.
"Do you find my lecture on the draconic language boring that you decided to sleep?" The professor asked, folding his arms. "Perhaps you can offer the class a sample. Recite the simplest oath a Rider takes before their first flight. In Draconic."
Reynold’s mind immediately went blank.
Recite the simple oath?
He remembered a phrase from a book he had skimmed in the library. He decided to take a wild guess with his tongue twisting around the sounds.
"Aet-kruhn nish-tahl," his pronunciation were very terrible.
The lecture hall immediately erupted in laughter, more like they were mocking him.
"What the fuck is that? An incantation?" A male cadet with a short spray hair murmured from the back.
"Dude where did you get those word from?"
Then, a loud, clear voice sounded through the noise from the back.
"Well, at least there’s something the Starweaver boy is not good at!" It was Kael the rich kid.
Reynold’s fist clenched tightly at his side hearing Kael say those words. He wanted to rip him apart.