[@ERode]

[b][h3]IRIS RECORD[/h3][/b]

The Leuvalt heir's crimson stare remained that of a dignified, if distant, lord. His brow did not so much as twitch as Otis fired off questions, allowing the boy to complete his queries while side-glancing towards him upon reaching equal ground. One beat, two, and three would fill the air in silence as Valen stared, awaiting the conclusion of Otis' curiosities, thumbing the left side of his crimson cape's collar thoughtlessly.

"If you wish to know more of how I fight or how I defend myself, perhaps you would challenge me to a duel some day? It would be most invigorating; of this I am certain. Though I know little of Otis Tan Arillo, I know you are above the common rabble."

A smile, a hint of sparking heat in those eyes, and an adjusting of his cape such that the left half billowed in the wind for that brief pause, before continuing. "I would simply be curious to know how far below me an above average combatant still is - how trivial it would be to fell even one who rose above the commoners. How wide is the gap? How far the immeasurable distance in which one cannot compensate for on study or effort alone, in the presence of a chosen? Perhaps you would enlighten me, some day, Strigidae."

His steps, like a militant march, continued towards the Iris Record tower, glancing back one last time with that self-assured smirk still coating his face as if it were painted on. "You may not enter here, not even as a guest, not yet. Prove that you are worthy of darkening the doorstep of the chosen, and you may find a brighter future ahead of you than you ever imagined. Accomplish great things, and you may enter the realm of the greatest."

The orc and dwarf would move aside as he approached, bowing deeply with their eyes closed, their posture suddenly far more professional than moments prior, remaining as silent as the dead.

"Though rest assured, none within the halls of this tower are as great as I. I do not even speak exclusively of students, as even Principal Raja would be brought to heel before my glory."

With that, Valen would disappear within the double doors beyond. As he passed, a blue flicker overtook his silhouette a moment, and then quickly faded as the doors closed behind him. The moment he was out of sight, and presumably out of earshot, the two guards out front dropped their uptight posture and exhaled in relief.

"Always gots to be on me toes 'round lordlings like them, y'hear? If 'e puts in a word to his daddy, it's just all over for me time here, laddie," the dwarf would exclaim towards Otis, his more relaxed posture seeming to also put the orc further at ease.

"Would not recommend taking him up on his offer, though. He does not seem the type to show mercy, even in a non-lethal and supervised sparring match," the orc would chime in, wiping sweat from her brow that she had done an immaculate job of concealing until that very second.

[hr]

[@AThousandCurses]

[b][h3]LIBRARY[/h3][/b]

Upon cracking open a dustier tome on alchemy, Chunji would be greeted to a guide that covered the basics of alchemy for aspiring novices. It would begin with the origin of alchemy, as rituals carried out from both the occult and primal disciplines of magic. In the beginning, when mortalkind was still young, those who could naturally draw essence out from existing natural elements such as wood, plants or stones bestowed these gifts upon mortals. On one hand, fey and other nature spirits would use their knowledge on extraction from the forests and plains to assist the less gifted races in the creation of restoratives and remedies; in return, these spirits would receive trinkets, essence or favors, as an alliance of sorts between all-consuming nature and ever-growing society. 

On the other hand, those wishing to use nature's gifts for more sinister means might turn to occult spirits, such as vengeful ghosts or sentient bundles of negative and malicious essence known as malforms. Similar to how nature spirits would assist in the utilization of essence from natural phenomena, occult spirits would assist mortals in the twisting of nature's wrath into potent poisons and explosives.

Eventually, primal and occult spirits alike grew tired of the constant and growing need for the alchemical process, and decided in the early 600's to teach the concepts of extraction and imbuement to the mortal races. Alchemy, ever since, has been a process divorced from fey and malforms entirely. While still ritualistic in nature, chalk lines and words of casting are substituted for cauldrons and precise directions and measurements. The process is a mentally demanding one, requiring an alchemist's full attention as they draw out specific conceptual essence such as "restorative" from one herb to enhance its healing efficiency, "sweet" from another to allow the medicine to be consumed easier, "numbing" from yet another to allow the pain to subside while the brew does its work, and so on. This does not apply to just herbs, either - a potion of endurance is often crafted by combining the essence of many stones and taking in their conceptual essence of "sturdy" and combining it with various other conceptual essences drawn from other objects to allow one to consume and temporarily gain a rock's sturdiness essence without the pain of partially transforming one's essence into a rock.

The tome would go on to list more examples of such things, stating the importance of finding the right balance - stating that the essence of some objects is drowned out and diluted easier than others. Those more beneficial to a mortal would be easier to maintain efficiency such as an herb's "restorative" essence, while a careful balance must be struck for things such as fusing in the "sturdy" essence of minerals that would be more unnatural to the average body. Many have died in the pursuit of alchemical balance, and the book warns the dear reader not to stray from the formulas until one is a professional alchemist, doctor, apothecary or other licensed medical professional.

The next chapter, following that, would begin to detail the recipe for a basic, minor healing potion. It would read that this potion would often be used to treat minor scrapes or bruises, and under no circumstances could be trusted to treat life threatening injuries in any way other than to stabilize the patient temporarily. It would begin listing herbs such as Sunnyday Grass for restorative properties, lavender for a pleasant aroma, a drop of olive oil and a pinch of salt for flavor, and water to fill the brim of a standard issue cauldron. It would encourage the reader to extract unnecessary conceptual essence out of each ingredient, such as removing the "earthen" and "warm" essences from Sunnyday Grass, or the miniature dots of "sediment" essence from the water, to the best of the alchemist's ability to do so. 

[hr]

[@Estylwen][@Sifr][@Psyker Landshark]

[b][h3]GIRLS' DORM[/h3][/b]

"Nobody is dying today. This is not a school of bloodthirsty murderers, and I will not tolerate those that would threaten to make it so on [i]either[/i] side of this conversation."

[i]Snap.[/i]

The back left leg of Ciara's chair would audibly snap after the biting words of the Undermage, broken in two. Looking upon the broken chair leg, the fragment that fell off and the tip that remained attached to the chair would be coated in a thin layer of frost that slowly encroached upon itself, layering over and over. At the exact same time this happened, Hildegunde would feel an icy chill on her hand. If she were to inspect the source, she would see an icicle growing out of the hardwood floor, tip sharpened to a spearpoint as it gently and harmlessly nudged against her hand - formed in an instant, and halted just as quickly. An exhale drew out of Nicole from under her hood, visible cold mist leaving as if she were outside on a winter night. Her quill ceased to write as it hovered back over to her, the scroll following closely behind. The scroll, with a snap of the elf's fingers, rolled up and settled on her desk as she finally raised her face up to lock eyes with the girls across from her.

Pity. Pity stained her face, and perhaps even a hint of empathy. With it, though, as if a complex paint of many colors, was clearly visible frustration just barely held back by moral and legal obligations as she sat there. Most of these stronger emotions were shot towards Ciara and Iraleth, and she would first point towards the latter, a calm hand urging the knight to restrain herself. "Rebound takes you as we speak, girl. Cease your essence and still your heart, as death does not become one so young and promising. Not here, not in a place in which your studies should be guided with a safe and responsible hand. Please retract your essence, or I will act in your best interest as faculty of Wingram to end your rebound by force. Judging by how fast the cuts arrived, any further pushes and your prime essence will slowly but surely begin to permanently burn away. That is squandered potential that I will not allow."

Nicole would shoot out of her chair, and then shoot her eyes-closed gaze towards Ciara. It was towards the shadow mage that Nicole's colors shifted dramatically towards that underlying anger, pointing at her. "The same applies to you, Miss Ventura. There is nothing in this world that will move me to crush the potential of the future. If a firm spanking is what you require, I will not be the one to deliver it to you - I am not your mother, and if I were, a far harsher hand than you could imagine would be upon you. If you will not divulge the truth, then a duel it shall be."

Her gaze would once more be drawn towards Iraleth. She would reach into her desk, and withdraw from it a healing potion. She would slide it across her desk, gesturing towards it while looking at the bleeding knight. "Take it, drink it, and please get some rest. There will be no duel today, with the entrance ceremony still clearly fresh in the both of your minds and your essences."

Finally, Nicole would point towards Ciara, her resolve firm with an unflinching hand. "Your duel has been accepted for the date of March 2nd, 1526 SR at 6:00 PM inside the proving grounds of the Iris Record, and a champion selected on my behalf. Iraleth Kyrios will fight for Girls' Dormitory Head Advisor Nicole Malthruse, and Ciara Ventura will fight for herself. Upon Iraleth Kyrios' victory, Ciara Ventura will detail the full truth of any connections she may have to Umbralism. Should Ciara Ventura claim victory, the matter will not be pursued further by faculty, with the exception of Principal Raja who may override these conditions for her own personal investigation should she deem Ventura a threat to campus wellness."

Once more, the scroll would unravel and the quill would begin to rapidly write, putting even the fastest typists to shame. It was laid bare, as if an official document or a binding contract, as Nicole looked across the students opposite her.

"Are these terms acceptable?"