They finished just before nightfall. With an approving nod Rugud accepted the work and let them go.

  "Next time don't break the rules or at least don't get caught!"

  "Thank you very much!" Chilajt literally was on cloud nine. "You're true friends! I will not remain in debt!"

  "Let's not worry about it, we're friends!"

  And so they parted: the girls went to their rooms; Tim, Ri-Bo and Naar-Tam – to discuss plans for the upcoming expedition. They were tired after all their work in the kitchen, but no one would even think of postponing the walk to another night.

  "I wonder if Fingor is in his room or has he gone somewhere again?"

  "Let’s see."

  However, the door of room 26 was unexpectedly opened by the tattooed boy, the same one who had been on Tim's left when he arrived at the school.

  "And where is Fingor?" Naar-Tam was confused.

  "We swapped rooms."

  "But... is that possible?"

  "Yes. There were two other elves where I was settled and Fingor decided to move in with them. As for me, I didn't really care."

  "Okay, then sorry for bothering you."

  "No problem at all."

  "And he didn't say a word to us!" Ri-Bo was indignant when the door closed behind the tattooed boy. "And now we don't know where to find him."

  "Let's ask our new neighbor," Naar-Tam suggested.

  "Fingor would have informed us if he'd wanted to, or left a message," Tim decided to show his character. "Let's wait a while, and if he doesn't show up before Mez'A'Shib arrives, the four of us will go."

  On it the discussion ended.

  Being in his room Tim seized the occasion to browse the textbook on the magic of Light. Wow, how many things are in it! Only in section 'Healing' there are several dozens of spells, almost every of them had explanatory text and illustrations, sometimes too naturalistic and more relevant for the medical textbooks. Fortunately, they were done in the style of black-and-white medieval engravings. It seems the technique of color printing hasn't been invented yet here. Judging by the description, almost all ailments can be cured by magic, even resurrection from the dead. However, successful application of the spell was guaranteed only if the body wasn’t damaged too severely and not so much time had passed since the death. Otherwise the sorcerer risked raising a zombie.

  Not much less space was taken up by the section on protection against dark magic. Tim, who had expected to see images of various demons and monsters, was slightly disappointed: most of the section was occupied by descriptions of spells that dispel darkness, detect the presence of dark magic and erect protective barriers in its path. For the sake of curiosity Tim tried to reproduce the spell that Master Aerg had used to scare away the ghosts during the feast dinner. It didn't work - maybe his mana stock was too small for this.

  Tim skimmed through the third, smallest section without really reading it – there were no pictures, effects of the Super-Abilities application he already saw with his own eyes, and it was unlikely that they required less mana. Besides, even if he succeeds, how could he test the effectiveness of the action? In any case, he needs to start with meditation, and only then choose a spell to practice.

  Abalug’s brochure slightly resembled a tutorial for beginning yogis. Well, at least standing on the head wasn’t required: in the simplest version it was enough to lie on a rigid surface and pronounce certain word combinations. Tim wouldn’t want to lie on the floor, but on the bed he is risking to fall asleep. It would be nice to find a pose that would maximally combine effectiveness with comfort.

  A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. Mez'A'Shib, he thought, but it turned out to be Naar-Tam and Ri-Bo.

  "Our mysterious neighbor has left his room! Let's go get acquainted with him!"

  The three of them settled down next to the shower, from where the sound of running water could be heard. They had to wait for a while - it seemed their neighbor liked water procedures. But finally everything inside became quiet.

  "Hello, friend!" Naar-Tam exclaimed loudly as soon as the door opened. And then he stopped short because it was a girl.

  A yusme girl, for her skin was pale blue. Instinctively she jumped back, slamming the door.

  "Sorry, please, we thought you were a boy!" Ri-Bo shouted after her.

  "And we didn't mean to hurt your feelings, we just wanted to make an acquaintance!" Tim added.

  The door slowly opened again.

  "Probably, I shouldn’t lurk from the start," the girl said with a sigh. "But I lost courage when I realized: I am in a boys’ compartment. Maybe due to my short haircut the ghost thought that I belonged to the stronger sex."

  "But you could explain the situation and ask to resettle you in a girls' compartment!"

  "Is that possible?"

  "Why not? Everyone makes mistakes, including ghosts."

  "Of course, if our society is categorically unacceptable to you," Ri-Bo added slyly.

  The girl looked at each of them searchingly before answering.

  "If you promise to behave yourself..."

  "It goes without saying!"

  "Then I'll think about it," the yusme promised, smiling at the corners of her lips. "It seems you are speaking sincerely…"

  "What doubts can there be!?"

  "Are you an empath?" Tim guessed.

  "Something like that. Although I'm still far from being a real empath. Guessing of names is not yet in my sphere."

  The hint was understood correctly, and the boys introduced themselves.

  "Nice to meet you, and my name is Selkise. However, let's talk about the rest later. After all, it's night outside, and I want to sleep, especially as there is a class on Elemental magic tomorrow in the morning. Don't you? Do you want to go on an adventure?"

  "No!" all three of them declared in one voice.

  "Then be careful: ghosts are dangerous. I don't know why exactly, I just have a feeling."

  "We'll definitely take that into account," Ri-Bo nodded with a serious look. They didn't tell her about the magic of subjugation mentioned by Kruda, just in case. And after saying goodbye Selkise went to her room.

  A minute later Mez’A’Shib appeared.

  "Waited too long? My apologies, two ghosts blocked my way, I had to wait a bit. But now all is clear there. Are you ready?"

  "We are always ready. For sure the kobold already got tired of waiting for us."

  "Not us, but our crystals. What does it matter to him who will bring them?"

  "Is Fingor going with us?"

  "I guess not. Especially since our neighbor now is the boy with pictures on his body."

  "Gaarsh? No, it's not his name, it's just the name of his people. They're distantly related to the dragons, by the way! Long ago they had a common ancestor who lived in the ocean, and then made it to land. Some of his descendants learned to fly and gradually became winged lizards, the others learned to walk on two legs and talk, that's how the Gaarshes appeared."

  "But are the dragons not able to talk?"

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  "No, they communicate mentally. How exactly - let your new neighbor tell you more."

  "How did you know all this?"

  "I accidentally overheard what my countrywomen were chatting about. They were not shy in their expressions, fortunately no one else heard them except me. Some of them called the Gaarshes painted monkeys."

  "Are your girls so intolerant of others?"

  "My advice: don't mess with them at all. Especially with Shin'Ye'Het, the girl with gold earrings with rubies. She despises everyone around her, even her own girlfriends. She is the First Daughter of the Fifth House, in the future the Mother of the House and one of the masters of our people's fate. The Mothers of the first seven Houses rule Merzeran, the capital of the Drowes, and in fact our entire community."

  "So, she is a princess?" Tim grinned.

  "Who is the princess? A king's daughter? Well, something like that. She's used to living on everything ready and looking at people around her as her servants."

  "We don't have servants, everyone's equal," Naar-Tam shrugged.

  "Who rules then?"

  "Once every thousand yekvoks (a period of time roughly equivalent to one and a half Earth days) we all gather together, even the children, and decide who is the most worthy for it."

  "It's called democracy," Tim explained.

  "We also have a city where equality reigns. That's what it's called: Free Town. After the Time of Troubles it was inhabited by those who disliked the power of the Mothers. The legends say that only those who wish to be neither lord nor servant can find their way there. When I graduate, I will certainly try to find it. I'm tired of curtsying to the children from more noble houses!"

  "You certainly will succeed!" Naar-Tam encouraged him.

  "But don't you, Drowes, have any friends at all?"

  "It happens, but rarely. And even then you still have to be curtsy in public. Otherwise you risk getting a slap on the neck. My elder sister, the Second Daughter of the House, thinks men only understand the language of the whip. That's why she doesn't hesitate to use it."

  And with the top of his uniform off, Mez'A'Shib showed the scars on his back.

  "Wow! But why do drow men put up with it?"

  "To fight back, we need to unite, and everyone is afraid betrayal. Alas, the Light Elves are right: our people are full of treachery. That's why those who don't like it leave."

  "Do you have to curtsy to Shin'Ye'Het, too?" Ri-Bo asked, smiling slyly.

  "No way!" Mez'A'Shib's eyes flared furiously. "This isn't Merzeran, and I don't have to bow and force a smile on my face. Of course, she can try to punish me for what she considers bad behavior, but it's unlikely to be easy."

  "If anything happens, call us for help!"

  "Thanks, but the Drow are used to sorting things out amongst themselves. Don't worry, I know all the tricks of our girls, and I won't give in to provocations. But you ought to be careful when speaking with them."

  "Ri-Bo and I already were witnesses of such a talking yesterday," and Tim spoke briefly of the quarrel between the twin elves and one of the drow girls.

  "Quite in their spirit. Our girls can not only whip; when necessary, they can also charm. Eliavin should keep an ear open, otherwise it won't take long to fall into a trap."

  "But what exactly threatens him?"

  "To fall into submission. He will stare at her with loving eyes and dance to her tune. And at the same time give her all his finds."

  "We've been chatting for so long, and time is running out!" the tilfing was alarmed.

  "That's right. We'll have time to have a heart-to-heart talk during the day. Whoever's got crystals, grab them and let's go!"

  They had to hide under the stairs in the hall of the first tier once more as several ghosts were escorting a crowd of their classmates.

  "What a catch!" Ri-Bo admired. "I wonder where they were caught."

  "Almost certainly in the forest. Some of the elves, and not only them, really didn't want to go back to the mountain. It seems that this was what the administration was counting on. I had a premonition of this, so after wandering around the area for a bit, I returned. By the way, I didn't see any of you after the druidism class. Did you go somewhere else or did you sit at home?"

  "Believe it or not, but were washing dishes."

  "What dishes? Left over from the festive dinner? But why? Did someone make you?"

  It had to tell the whole story from beginning to end.

  "Cool!" Mez'A'Shib looked at his friends with respect. "We drow are more likely to blame someone else than help ease his punishment. Okay, as long as the ghosts haven't returned, I think we can slip through unhindered."

  On the lower level they had to hide under the stairs again. This time, the reason for the delay was the dwarves, who were dragging some bales and packages from the utility rooms to the storehouse.

  "They work like ants, even at night," Tim noted ironically.

  "Ants?" Ri-Bo asked in surprise.

  "Yes, but what’s so surprising here? In my world ants are insects that are working from dawn till nightfall hunting for food and arranging their dwellings well."

  "Nothing, simply we have a similar word for fat and lazy animals."

  The friends laughed.

  "These are the dwarves of the Festrok clan; they're very hardworking indeed," Mez'A'Shib explained. "And perhaps the friendliest inhabitants of the dungeons where the drow found refuge. The other dwarves are not so welcoming, grabbing their axes at the sight of a dark elf. Partly, we ourselves are to blame for this, not fulfilling the agreements that we once made."

  "What is the essence of your conflict with the Light Elves?" Naar-Tam became interested.

  "A very long time ago, we were one people. In the Age of Great Wars, one of the elven detachments was sent to attack the dwarves from behind. Their path lay through mountain tunnels, but due to an earthquake that blocked many passages, they were unable to reach their destination or return back. They wandered for many days, tormented by despair, hunger and thirst, not all were able to withstand the hardships of the journey. Finally, having wandered into the very depths, they came across the altar of the goddess of Darkness Ulirrim. The goddess agreed to come to the aid of the exhausted warriors, demanding in return that they renounce the old gods and unquestioning obedience only to her. A temple was erected around the altar, and a settlement grew around the temple, which later became Merzeran. Whether due to the lack of sunlight or the effects of Ulirrim's magic, our hair turned black, our skin turned white, and we turned into dark elves."

  "Wait, but where did you get the women from? And why did they seize power?"

  "Elves consider women not the weaker sex, but equal fighters with men. That's why it's not surprising that almost half of that detachment consisted of them. When at the very beginning of the expedition Viltaar, the commander of the detachment, was mortally wounded in one of the skirmishes with cave goblins, it was led by Tiliel, who later became Til’O’Mugh, the Mother of the First House. Ulirrim, for some reason unknown to me personally, does not like men, considering them second-rate creatures. And she literally hammered this simple idea into the heads of women, who from that time took the reins of power into their own hands."

  "I see. But why did you become enemies with the elves who remained to live on the surface?"

  "It is believed that they betrayed us, sending us to certain death. Viltaar did not hesitate to express his own opinion regardless of persons, which made him many enemies. And his campaign could have been doomed to failure from the start. Unfortunately, I found very few mentions of him in our books - mostly they praise the beauty of Tiliel and wisdom of Ulirrim. Perhaps it is here that I can find the tomes that will shed light on that whole story."

  "Haven't been to the local library yet?"

  "I haven't had time. I'll drop there by tomorrow."

  "It's really cool there! Especially the librarian's assistant."

  "Who is he?"

  "You'll see!"

  The dwarves meanwhile had finished their work, and silence reigned on the tier. Having made sure that the path was clear, the friends hurried to reach the door of the laboratory.

  The kobold seemed to be expecting them – the laboratory smelled strongly of camphor, and a fire burned under a huge glass flask, half filled with a bubbling purple liquid. From time to time, observing the changes in the intensity of the color, he poured in the contents of a colorless flask standing nearby or threw in a yellowish-brown powder.

  "Aha! I was not mistaken in you! And you probably already managed to find something! But where did you put your fifth companion? There was an elf with you, wasn't he?"

  "He went somewhere else," Mez'A'Shib side with a smile.

  "Where drowes are absent, eh? For a long time I have been seeing the same thing: if in the company there is a light elf, there isn’t a dark elf in it, and vice versa. Therefore I was slightly surprised yesterday. But now everything fell into place! Well, it doesn’t really matter; let's talk about our business: did you find anything?"

  "Naturally, otherwise we wouldn't have come," Mez'A'Shib said triumphantly, laying out his loot on the surface of the table - the cube already familiar to Tim, two balls, and in addition - a whole bunch of various herbs from the list of alchemical ingredients.

  "Wow! Where did you manage to collect all this?" Naar-Tam was surprised.

  "In the bosom of nature, where else? While some were scrubbing dishes in the kitchen, others were working hard for the common good."

  "Next time, let's swap places!" Naar-Tam laughed, appreciating the joke. "Especially since crystals can be found in the kitchen too."

  Indeed, Tiis-Mir was lucky enough to find a ball behind one of the piles of unwashed dishes - as a replacement for the one eaten by Luguk.

  Tim, Ri-Bo and Naar-Tam added their own crystals to those already on the table. The kobold, however, was primarily interested in the herbs: he quickly sorted through them and pulled out a thin bluish stalk with teardrop-shaped leaves from the bunch.

  "Zilgima optis! The most valuable thing among those you have brought! Because it is a catalyst for many alchemical transmutations. Let's see how effective it will be this time!"

  And without thinking twice, he sent the stalk straight into the flask. The liquid inside began to seethe, changing its color to orange-red.

  "Aha! A little more, and the elixir will be ready. What do you think it's for? A hundred to one, you'll never guess! Transformation of lead into gold? Ha! That's not the sort of nonsense alchemists do anymore. This is the Salamander's Scale! All you have to do is splash it on the floor, and when it hardens (and it will harden quite fast), whoever steps on the scales will be in trouble! A fire will flare up under his feet and burn him badly!"

  "A very useful thing if you need to break away from pursuit," Mez'A'Shib commented.

  "Oh yes, in situations where drow for some reason find themselves more often than others," the kobold noted sarcastically.

  "But the red drops on the floor will be noticeable! Who would want to step on them?" Naar-Tam asked perplexedly.

  "Have you ever seen fire salamanders?"

  "No, I've only heard of their existence."

  "That's just it. Yes, their bodies are red, but the scales are black like graphite plates. You wouldn't notice them at all in the dark. However, I still don't recommend using the potion for friendly teasing. The consequences are sometimes..."

  Frozen for a second, the kobold rushed to the nearest cabinet, filled with bunches of dried herbs, and pressed a secret button on the side. The cabinet smoothly slid aside, revealing the insides of a small cave.

  "Go there quickly! And don’t talk!"

  The first to react was Mez'A'Shib, who pushed Naar-Tam in the right direction, followed by the others. As soon as the friends were inside, the cabinet fell into place.

  "What a pitch black place!"

  "Don't even think about lighting a fire!"

  "And don't make any noise, you were told!"

  Noticing a thin ray of light coming from a tiny round hole, Mez'A'Shib leaned against it. From there, one could see and hear everything that was happening in the lab, without being noticed. Such a hole was clearly made for a reason; in fact, it was a peephole, although why the kobold could need it was unclear.

  "Let me see too!" Ri-Bo jumped up.

  "Wait a bit. Wow, there is a whole delegation here! Looks like we almost got into a whole bunch of trouble."