Return of the Legendary Runesmith-Chapter 61 - 60- Reputation

Next was Dextor’s turn.

He was the Professor of Blackthorn and the loudest Professor among the four.

Someone who landed in the second position last year was embarrassed to be disqualified this year in the second round.

So, by performing here, he would at least prevent his school’s name from getting tainted. When people talk about this event, they will surely mention how the Professor of the Blackthorn Academy showcased his exceptional talent.

"Today, I am going to show you all how to inscribe the runes for a dual-awakened." Those words surprised many, naturally, not those who come from Blackthorn Academy since they already knew about it.

Dextor continued, "This student here, Caleb, has an affinity with two elements. And, in the modern world there still isn’t any tool to ease the work for a Runesmith when dealing with such a subject. So, I will demonstrate how you deal with special cases like this one."

He picked his runic pencil and a sword made of Mithril. To add build up he even lit up a calming candle on the side and tied his hair to show how serious he was getting.

’If he had been a part of the third round, an hour would have passed in all the preparation for him.’ Adrian mused to himself.

The man finally began with his work, resting the crystal ball in the hand of the student who goes by the name Caleb.

Students from Blackthorn and Etherveil started taking notes—much to boost the pride of the man.

The sphere showed two glaring shades—Brown and Red.

"As you all can see, without using any fancy ancient technique one could find the affinity of a person using the crystal ball too."

Adrian chuckled inwardly. Was it a jab at him?

Dextor took away the crystal ball and started writing the runes, "Here, we have to use Surge runes since Caleb has a strong and slightly imbalanced affinity with both Earth and Flames." His fingers traced on the blade and he wrote the runes in bold letters for everyone to see it.

If one could detect dualaffinity using the crystal then why Adrian’s method was so special in the eyes of the Tower members?

It was because of the precision.

The crystal ball couldn’t track and differ between the submissive and dominant elements. If someone doesn’t have a strong affinity with an element, it won’t appear on the crystal. Just like with Norma or Allen.

However, nothing was hidden from Adrian.

Although several idiots thought that the crystal ball was still superior to the ancient technique, the Tower members knew better.

Dextor was soon done with his lecture and Runesmithing before he urged Caleb to perform a spell.

The big guy swung his sword toward the target before a molten lava orb flew toward the dummy and,

**BOOOOOM**

Flames were controlled by the officers who instantly used water and their armaments to extinguish the flames.

Dextor gave a brief bow, "I hope that helps you students to learn a few things."

He stepped back, leaving the rest to the rest of the Professors.

This time, the senior most and the man with a reputation, Erwin Grimhold, stepped forward.

This time, every single student, including those from Runebound, opened their notebooks.

Only Sylvie didn’t move, and those who were not involved with this field remained unmoving.

It shows the reputation the man holds.

He didn’t give any long speech and just handed the crystal ball to Carter.

Just as the magic ball got in contact with Carter’s hand and he fed his mana into it, the brown shade appeared, not too vibrant but comfortable to see.

"The shade is not too bright. It’s well-balanced, peaceful and that explains we need to go with Core Runes." He moved his fingers as if he were brushing a sketch, and the runes started forming—finely aligned and well-written.

He added, "Remember, if it’s well-balanced, it won’t matter which dialect you choose since a well-balanced affinity shows how well a subject controls his mana."

"Ah..."

"....I didn’t know."

"...it’s not recorded in the books." Many students were astounded by that information as they hurriedly noted it down.

The Professor further added a few points that highlighted his knowledge and experience in the field.

Adrian, too, was quite amazed.

However, the series of surprises doesn’t end there.

"Now, let’s move on to the next Thread."

"Eh?!"

"Huh?"

"Professor....?"

Many gasped and many showed surprise. Those who were aware of his capabilities seemed surprised, and those who were seeing Second Thread being engraved for the first time were quite shocked.

Second-thread was quite a difficult rune to draw, considering one has to carefully analyze the subject’s mana points before drawing runes with enough focus to not affect the rune or the subject.

Under normal circumstances, Erwin wouldn’t have chosen to undertake such a risky job where failure means embarrassment for life, but he was forced.

He was told by the man he works for that Aegis Academy should be on everyone’s mind once this is over. And for that, Erwin had to show something that no one else could.

"Okay, Professor." Carter agreed without a word of objection and rolled up his sleeves after removing the coat.

Grave silence descended on the room since every single person, including Sylvie, focused on the man who was about to engrave a rune that makes a Runesmith special.

He took a deep breath and calmed his nerves before he finally looked at his student and picked up the sword.

The rune nods were on his wrist and neck, that much Erwin knew. And he was going to draw the runes for them only.

"As you all know, the second Thread helps the subject to use their armaments with better efficiency by preventing wastage of mana. So here, I would draw the runes to connect student Carter’s mana points, giving him better control of the weapon."

Their eyes were focused on the man, and their hands were moving in sync as they noted every word that came out of his mouth.

For many, it was the first time to witness the second Thread getting engraved, so this was a whole new experience.

Adrian also closely monitored...and as he thought, the man used separate runes for the two mana points...filling almost the width of the blade with the collective runes.

’Well, if not for the books, I might have done a worse job than him.’

The process went on for ten minutes before he finally stepped away and gave a satisfactory nod.

"Student Carter, can you show us what you can do?"

Carter nodded before getting up.

He swung his sword without warning, making a few officials alert, but then, the rocks didn’t touch a single student and crashed into the walls across from the hall.

Erwin stepped in, "As you can see, he manipulated the stone bullets on his will without wasting much mana."

Yes, there was waste, but it was much less than the previous two students.

*Clap* *Clap*

The students started clapping without being told.

Everyone appreciated Erwin’s skills and talent.

"Over to you, Professor Adrian." Erwin relayed.

Now, it was time for Adrian to show his Runesmithing.

Adrian took a deep breath and stepped forward...but then, he froze in shock

Not only every single student in the hall, but even the Tower Members were taking notes now.

He scratched his brow as a thought crossed his mind, ’Is this how popular people feel like?’

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A/N:- Thanks for reading.