It was quiet in the library. Also it was very dark there, even darker than in the tunnels at night hours. Reading in these conditions is a direct way to lose sight. And what else could you do in a library where nothing but books?

  So, once inside, Naar-Tam decided not to wait for his vision to adapt at least a little, again resorting to the help of the fireball. Directly in front of them was a green cloth-covered library counter, and behind it were rows of stone shelves. There were hundreds if not thousands of manuscripts on them: ancient, iron-bound, with pages darkened by time; maybe wisdom of all worlds inhabited by sentient beings had been collected here. Legends, myths, tales about the greatest rulers, invincible commanders, famous heroes of the past, whose deeds and exploits the chroniclers worthy of preserving for posterity - Tim was fascinated with all of this almost from the cradle. Maybe that's why he was invited to study at the school of magic. Although millions of children on Earth read fantasy stories, there is nothing special about it.

  "Have you come for knowledge?" a voice full of wisdom and sadness distracted him from his thoughts.

  Somewhere to the side, a flying carpet emerged from the darkness and stopped behind the counter, hovering half a meter from the floor. An old man sitting on it looked as if he had come from the pages of 'The Arabian Nights': with a turban on his head, a long white beard, a long-skirted oriental robe and pointed morocco slippers on his feet. However, this is where the similarities ended: the old man’s skin had steel hue and the eyes were emerald green.

  "Well, why else would we have come here?" said Tiis-Mir with a laugh. "Not to have lunch, of course!"

  "We had the class on Light Magic today," Naar-Tam added.

  "You don't have to go on," the old man smiled. "Frexg, 'Magic of Light is my favorite magic', am I right? Master Aerg is surprisingly consistent and always recommends just this textbook, though there are other tutorials, not worse. All right, I'll give everyone a copy. But first I should register you, that's the order."

  From a box on the edge of the counter the librarian got a pile of notebooks resembling their grimoirs but several times smaller in size. There are service lists, Tim guessed; just in them their names and taken books will be recorded. And then a funny small octopus, pink with black shiny eyes, leapt out of the box.

  "Oh, how lovely!" Chilajt was admired. "Who is this?"

  "This is Luguk. It was created by Migraim, the greatest wizard of his time, and it was serving faithfully to its masters for nearly two thousand years. I inherited it from the previous librarian, and when I am ready to retire, I will pass it on to my successor."

  "Created? You mean it's... not alive??"

  "It depends on what you mean by 'life'. Trees can't move, but they're alive, right? The ghost guards, on the other hand, though they can move and talk, they're certainly not alive. Luguk is a magical elemental. Have you heard of such?"

  "We know about the existence of the Elementals," Naar-Tam said, and Tiis-Mir nodded in agreement. "In our land a lot of people can summon elementals of Fire, its animated incarnations."

  "That's right," the librarian confirmed. "The Elementals are intelligent and with patience can be tamed and even become your companions. Many sorcerers of the past used them as bodyguards; very effective bodyguards, by the way. Magical elementals have a number of their own characteristics, but better let the Masters tell you about them."

  The little 'octopus' meanwhile raised itself up on its hind tentacles, looking attentively at its owner - what orders will there be?

  "A long-liver, indeed! And what does it eat? Or does it not need anything?"

  "Well, why not? From time to time, it needs food. It finds colorful balls here in the library, and that is what it eats.'

  "Something like this?" smiling, Tiis-Mir stretched out her palm, on which lay the ball she had found.

  Taking this as an offer to have a snack, the 'octopus' approached her in a few jumps and, grabbing the ball with its front tentacles, sent it inside itself. A second later its color became brighter, and it started to jump about joyfully.

  Such a show worth a crystal, Tim thought. A similar thought, apparently, came to Ri-Bo, who offered Luguk yhe black tetrahedron. But after sniffing around, the 'octopus' didn’t take it.

  "He must have eaten his fill," Naar-Tam commented cheerfully.

  "It doesn't like the black crystals," the old man shook his head. "Don't you know that their color isn’t random?"

  "No, we were simply told that their energy can be used to improve magical abilities."

  And for some reason the kobold didn't enlighten them on the matter. Maybe any crystal is suitable for him.

  "In the world of magic each sorcery has its own color," the old man said solemnly, "For Light magic it is, as you can easily guess, white. For Mind magic it is yellow, and for Elemental magic it is red, the color of Fire, though Fire is only one of the Elements."

  "Then Nature magic must have it as green as grass," Tim suggested.

  "Quite true! Blue is the color of Transformation magic, which allows you to turn one thing into another."

  "Will they teach us that?" Chilajt inspired.

  "There isn't much to teach, basically just one formula plus imagination. You should distinctly realize the final goal of your transformation, otherwise the result may be not what you expected. Also the other complexity is there: transformation spells require enormous amounts of mana and only highly gifted students can cast it immediately after beginning of the education. But a couple years later, I think, you will be able to do simple transformations, too!"

  "And what kind of magic does the black color correspond to? Twilight one?" Ri-Bo asked, slightly disappointed that his crystal had been rejected.

  "Not really. Shadow magic and Occultism are just different shades of gray. True black color belongs to the magic of Destruction, its basics will be taught to you by Master Ven'A'Sash. I don't know if Necromancy is now included in the general education course, it corresponds to the brown color."

  "Necromancy - what kind of magic is it?" Naar-Tam asked.

  Tim knew the answer in principle - from his experience in computer games, of course, but decided not to intervene in the talking.

  "The science of reanimating the remains of living beings," the librarian readily explained. "With the help of appropriate spells you can revive a corpse and force it to execute your orders. Experienced necromancers can even cheat death itself by performing the Eternal Night ritual and becoming liches, powerful undead sorcerers."

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

  The expression of disgust appeared on the faces of Naar-Tam and Tiis-Mir.

  "Dead bodies are bad things! They must be incinerated!"

  "Therefore not every magician can become a necromancer. However I've been talking away instead of loaning the books," the old man became slightly worried. "The others may come too!"

  "We also were recommended to take something about meditation technique," Chilajt wrinkled her forehead.

  "Abalug’s brochure?"

  "Yes," Tim peeked into the grimoire.

  "Also one example for each? Well. While I am seeking the books, you, Luguk, please register the new readers and write down in their service lists: Frexg, 'Magic of Light is my favorite magic' and Abalug, 'Gaining Power'."

  And the flying carpet, together with its 'driver' disappeared into the darkness between the shelves. The 'octopus' grabbed one of the 'notebooks' and, amusingly moving its tentacles, approached Tiis-Mir with it. A questioning look, and her name appeared on the cover, and on the first page - the authors and titles of the books, quickly and neatly done with a tiny stylus. By the time the librarian returned, Luguk had already managed to cope with the task and was triumphantly pacing back and forth on the tabletop.

  "Did you register yet? Well done! Then you can go for a walk, I'll take care of the rest myself."

  'Octopus' did not need to be asked twice: he jumped down and disappeared under one of the shelves. In exchange for the books they had to put thumbs to each of the records in their service lists – something like a signature on Earth.

  Already leaving the library, Tim remembered - he was going to take some interesting reading! Okay, next time, no need to delay his friends, I'll come when there is no need to hurry anywhere, he decided.

  There was an unpleasant surprise waiting for them at the exit from the tunnel: Sir Pulsok, accompanied by Agyg and a couple of ghosts.

  "Student Chilajt," the goblin began solemnly, without any preamble, "you are charged with attacking your mate. In vain did you think you would escape punishment. Nothing can escape the Magic Eye! That's exactly what is written in the eighth paragraph of Code of Conduct of our school."

  "Only about it I was thinking all the time," Chilajt answered sarcastically. "And I don’t think that I did wrong."

  "Aha, so you admit your guilt?" The goblin almost jumped with joy. "And you don't even repent? In that case, the punishment is doubled. Ten hours of community service. After the Nature magic class you should come to the storekeeper and report him. He will determine what exactly you will do. In the case of failure to appear the punishment will be more stringent. Is that clear? Do you promise not to do it again?"

  Chilajt stubbornly remained silent.

  "She had no choice!" Tiis-Mir boldly stepped forward. The others followed her example, shielding the gorgon with themselves.

  "You don't know why she had to do it!"

  "Please don't punish her!"

  "Maybe I won't," the goblin grinned. "If she publicly and completely sincerely asks for forgiveness from the one she offended."

  "Oh, no! Never!"

  "Well," the goblin sighed dramatically. "After sixteen hours of community service, next time you'll think twice before using your charms."

  "And I don't advise interfering," he added, cutting off another round of objections. "You were all there together and didn't even try to stop her. For complicity there is a penalty too; it would be nice to prescribe a couple of hours for each of you. But I am kind today, therefore for the first time I forgive you. Or to prescribe it, huh?"

  No one dared object this time, not even the peirots, who were staring down at the floor.

  "That's right. And keep that in mind for the future: if you were there, but didn't interfere and stop it - that means you are guilty too. Don't worry: when the tournaments begin, there will be a place to vent your aggression. But for now, you should obey the Code!"

  And with that, he went away, taking his henchmen with him and leaving the students to clench their fists in powerless rage.

  "Take courage! Let's all go together and explain to Rugud how things were," Naar-Tam generously suggested.

  "That's right! Maybe he'll get an easier job or cancel the punishment at all," Ri-Bo supported the idea.

  "It seemed to me he isn’t in a good relationship with the goblin, maybe he would agree," Tim added.

  "Thanks, friends," Chilajt was able to say only that. Her eyes filled with tears.

  "And don’t believe the story about the Magic Eye. For sure the golden-haired guys complained," wishing to comfort her Tiis-Mir gave her a hug.

  "Almost certainly," the tilfing confirmed. "When Anzimars encounter equals in strength, they don't engage in a fair fight, they run for help."

  Probably so, although it would be unwise to completely exclude the presence of invisible creatures nearby, Tim thought. If the opportunity arises, he will need to inquire about what spells can be used to identify an invisible being lurking nearby.

  "Hey, are you going to class?" an elf girl called out to them from afar. "Hurry up, it will start soon!"

  "Where?" Naar-Tam shouted back.

  "Go to the exit and you will see!"

  And she ran off in the direction indicated, without adding another word. There was nothing left to do but follow her. This time the stone boulder blocking the way was rolled aside, and the monsters dozed peacefully on their pedestals, not reacting in any way to those passing by. The first thing that caught the eye was the abundance of light and greenery. The landscape was almost no different from the earthly one, except that the flowers growing in numerous flowerbeds looked very unusual. The path, starting right at the exit of the tunnel, led to a fountain, the water splashes of which sparkled in the sun. Further on, the forest began, at first a sparse forest, gradually turning into a real wilds, stretching almost to the horizon. To the right and left of the huge mountain, inside which their school was located, were the rocky ledges, encircling the plateau where they were now.

  The cliffs were almost vertical, even an experienced climber would have difficulty getting over them and down the other side. Looking up, Tim noticed a huge circle of eyes at a height of about fifty meters - it would probably be visible even from the most remote corners of the forest. Quite reasonable for a world where wristwatches had not yet been invented. Some superstructures and small towers were disposed higher; and at the very top – a strange structure resembling the Stonehenge. Their balconies were obviously located on the other side, otherwise he would have been able to see the plateau yesterday.

  Everyone's mood immediately improved, even Chilajt stopped frowning, temporarily forgetting about what had happened.

  Almost all of their classmates were already here - some were looking at strange plants, some were chasing butterflies, some, not particularly hiding their intentions, were busily searching the surroundings for crystals. The Peirots exposed their faces to the sun and blissfully squinted, and some of the elves were happy enough to stretch out on the grass, not even afraid of getting their uniforms dirty.

  However, not everyone was happy with the opportunity to get out into the fresh air - the Drowes, covering their eyes with their palms, were looking for places where the shade was thicker; the blue-skinned Yusmes also tried not to linger in the sun. Tim also noticed that the Anzimars, gathered in a group under a large spreading tree with long forked leaves, were whispering about something. They were probably plotting some kind of nastiness.

  Two girls ran up to them at once. Both were Ri-Bo's countrywomen, which was easy to guess by the small, graceful horns peeking out from under their curled hair. One had silver-plated horns, the other had pink bows tied around her horns.

  "Hey, why are you ignoring us? We noticed you yesterday! And you saw us, but you didn't even come up to meet us! Shy, huh? Come on, prepare your forehead!"

  Ri-Bo obediently bowed his head, and the owner of the silver-plated horns butted him so hard that sparks flew out of his eyes.

  "Sakes alive!" was all he could say.

  "And you thought! In our tribe, I have the strongest forehead among my peers! Even stronger than some adults!"

  "And what tribe are you from?"

  "Senhu."

  "And I'm from Unagu."

  "I know Vi-Si from your tribe."

  "She's my cousin," Ri-Bo boasted.

  "Oh yeah? Cool girl, we had a lot of fun together at the Dululu festival last year! By the way, my name is Za-Zu. Well, Zhu-Fi will introduce herself."

  Ri-Bo had to bow his head again. This time he prepared to take the blow better, but Zhu-Fi only gently rubbed her forehead against his.

  "How beautiful it is here!" Tiis-Mir continued to admire. "So much greenery we don't have even in the border territories!"

  "What a pity, I can’t see all this magnificence," Chilajt sighed.

  "Perhaps one of the locals could help you with your grief," Tim tried to comfort her. "In my homeland, those who have poor vision or cannot see at all, wear a special device called glasses, on the bridge of their nose. And if there are really strong magicians here, it won't be difficult for them to design glasses through which you could see the world in color."

  Chilajt looked at him with admiration.

  "You've come up with a great idea again! You're so smart!"

  And, not embarrassed by those present, she kissed him on the cheek.

  Tim blushed - it seemed to him that all eyes turned in his direction and someone even showed a thumbs up as a sign of approval.

  He was saved from friendly teasing by a melodic voice that sounded behind him.

  "Follow me, students, it's time for us to start class."