Return of the Runebound Professor Chapter 861: Pondering

Noah, Lee, and Brayden trailed their badges for another ten minutes or so until the path ahead grew crystal clear. Eager chatter echoed loudly, pinpointing their goal long before it appeared in sight. After weaving through several more turns along Aqua Terra’s twisting paths, they emerged into a vast open square.

Streams of hovering water arced across the sky above, casting shimmering lights that played across the pavement below and spotlighting a grand multi-level marble structure right in the plaza's heart. Crowds snaked out from the building's entrances, and one quick look confirmed they were all adventurers. Numerous folks gripped black badges, turning the arrow on Noah’s badge toward the massive edifice rather pointless.

The trio joined the tail end of the queue as Noah steeled his nerves inwardly. Visions of a particular spot back in Arbalest haunted him. Among all the pure souls erased by Father’s schemes, one chow-hound desk jockey sprang to mind—Noah doubted anyone would shed tears over that loss.

“You look ill,” Brayden observed. “Everything okay?”

“It’s fine,” Noah said with a laugh and a shake of his head. He’d already slipped his mask back on. Moving forward, no strangers would glimpse his true features. “I just have a thing with lines. Particularly long, annoying ones.”

“We could make it shorter,” Lee offered.

“I don’t think that would be a good idea,” Noah replied dryly. Even as the city jumbled his domain-sensing skills, he had zero interest in dashing about to slay fellow contestants before the event kicked off. It struck him as downright poor form.

To his astonishment, the queue was already inching ahead. Long though it seemed, they’d already shuffled several paces closer to the marble edifice.

“It’s not too slow,” Brayden observed. “I figure we won’t be waiting too long. That’s good. There’s so much shit I want to ask, but I can’t do it here. I think I’m going to split open if I have to wait too much longer.”

Noah chuckled. “Yeah. Me too, man. It’s been too damn long. And some of what I have to share… well, it definitely can’t be done in line.”

Luckily for the group, that initial progress wasn’t a fluke. They advanced at an impressively consistent clip. In merely half an hour, they crossed the wide-open doors into the towering marble structure.

Inside, the line forked into multiple streams. Rows of desks filled the space, each crewed by bustling clerks. Atop every desk sat a hefty glass sphere, secured by a bizarre rune-encrusted metal holder.

A handful of clerks roamed the queue’s head, diverting folks to desks at what looked like random. Mere minutes passed before Noah stood before one. Without waiting for a word, the clerk jabbed a finger toward a station to the right.

“A5,” the man said sharply. “Hustle!”

Noah hurried in the pointed direction. It quickly dawned why the pace had been so brisk. By the moment he noticed he’d separated from Brayden and Lee, who’d gone elsewhere, he’d reached his assigned spot.

“Badge,” the female clerk at the desk said, adjusting her glasses and holding a hand out expectantly. Her tone made it crystal clear that delays wouldn’t fly.

Noah could respect that attitude. He fished the badge from its makeshift sheath and dropped it into her palm. The clerk ignored his quirky storage entirely. She examined it briefly, then nodded toward the large glass orb beside her on the desk.

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Her intent was plain as day.

Noah put his hand on the orb.

Nothing happened.

“Now what?” Noah asked. “Do I just sit here and ponder?”

The clerk’s brow furrowed, but she held her composure. “Draw on your Runes. The extractor will sense your magical energy. Do not attempt to resist it. We will need to gauge the max level of your Runes. Restricting your power via soul shaping is strictly prohibited. We will know. Do not attempt it.”

“Extractor?” Noah asked. “Hold on. Is it—”

“No,” the clerk replied tersely. “It will not hurt, injure, or otherwise steal any significant portion of your strength. Their only purpose of this item is to emulate a magical spell to determine your strength. It is no more dangerous than if you had drawn on your runes normally. Now please — use it. We are on a schedule.”

Noah gave a casual shrug and lightly tapped into his runes. Antagonizing the clerk, who was simply carrying out her duties, hardly seemed smart. It would be a pathetic way to get disqualified from the tournament. As the power of Unraveling Disruption coursed through his veins, a subtle pull tugged at his palm.

Magical energy stripped away from his body, pouring into the glass orb. Swirls of gold and red danced within its depths. The pressure and force fluctuated, making Noah's other runes tremble in reaction.

Much to his astonishment, Unraveling Disruption slipped from his control. Astral Ruin surged forward to replace it, trailed by Concentrated Singularity, World Tremor, and Volcanic Cataclysm. Every one of his runes ignited on their own, directed by the orb's influence.

Additional hues flickered through the glass until it ceased pulling from him—and Noah observed that none of his Master Runes had even been detected. Evidently, the orb lacked the ability to sense them. That seemed logical, since its purpose was solely to measure his Rank.

Master Runes held power only against runes capable of matching them, so there was little point in scanning for them, assuming that was feasible at all.

“Rank 5,” the clerk announced. She eyed Noah. “You haven’t ranked up since receiving the badge.”

“Was I meant to?”

“Some people try to trick the system,” the clerk replied with a small shrug. She returned Noah’s badge to him. “You’re registered. Ranks 5-6. If you Rank up before or during the tournament, don’t worry about reporting it. It won’t matter. However, you are not allowed to reach Rank 7. If you do, immediately report to a tournament official. Do not step into the ring at Rank 7. The penalty for breaking this rule is immediate death.”

“Noted,” Noah said. “What about the other rules?”

“The tournament’s rules will be announced again during the opening ceremony. That is not what we are here for. Just ensure you do not reach Rank 7 at any point during the tournament’s duration,” the clerk said. “What name will you register under? Please be aware that your name will be announced should you make it sufficiently far in the tournament.”

“Spider, please,” Noah said.

“Just Spider? Or Spider, please? The full phrase?”

“Spider,” Noah said. “Just Spider. Does that actually—”

“Yes,” the clerk said. “It comes up. Better to be safe than wrong. That will be all. You’ve been registered as Spider, Rank 5. Please ensure to arrive at least 2 hours before the tournament begins in order to be sorted into your starting group.”

“Thank you,” Noah said. “Is there anything else I need to be aware of? Or is this it?”

“Your registration is complete,” the clerk confirmed with a sharp nod. “You may make your way out of the hall and do as you see fit until the beginning of the tournament. Please enjoy your time in Aqua Terra.”

She then turned back to the queue. Their exchange was clearly over. Noah made his way to the exit without lingering, stepping out of the hall before pausing to wait for Lee and Brayden to complete their registrations. Lingering at the doorway proved much simpler than searching for them amid the massive throng inside.

Noah's wait didn't drag on. Lee and Brayden emerged to join him moments later.

“That was convenient,” Brayden said. “Quite—”

Noah seized his arm and hurried toward the side streets.

“What’s going on?” Brayden asked, looking from Noah to Lee. “Did something happen?”

“No,” Noah replied, avoiding even a backward glance at the bustling crowd trailing them. “I’m just eager to leave this place quickly. Side quests have dogged me nonstop since landing in Obsidia. I refuse to get sidetracked before we can catch up.”

“Seriously?” Brayden asked, stifling a chuckle.

“No, it’s bad,” Lee confirmed. “We’ve killed like twenty people already.”

“Since arriving in Obsidia?”

“No,” Lee said. “Since arriving here.”

Brayden’s eyes widened. “What?”

“Lee’s grouping me in with her,” Noah grumbled. “I did not kill anywhere near that many people. I just got a few.”

Brayden suppressed a cough. “Right. You two might be cursed. Let’s get out of here, then. I don’t want to risk things getting delayed until the tournament by some freak twist of fate. I’m sure you’ve got a lot to fill me in on.”

A faint smile tugged at the corners of Noah’s lips beneath his mask.

“You have no idea.”