elra

Quick announcement

Hey everyone!

I have been sick with high fever during the whole weekend (Covid probably considering the fact I can't taste or smell anything) so I'm running a bit behind schedule. I'll be posting the next chapter early tomorrow.

Sorry for the inconveniences and have a nice day!

Elra.

September Bonus Chapter

The winning prompt for this month's bonus chapter was Mr. Clarke's [Culinary Mastery] with 43% of the votes. Enjoy!

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September’s Extra Chapter

“Are you ready to harness the power of spice?” I clapped my hands, and a cloud of flour covered the kitchen counter.

Ilya sighed and rolled up her sleeves, “First of all, I’m not a little kid that gets pumped up with such a simple task as...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 58

A knock on my door woke me up. The sun poured through the windows, casting glints of silver and gold over the coins scattered over the table. I rubbed my eyes, trying to shake off the last remnants of sleep, and for a moment I thought I was back in the Farlands. But there were no doors in the Farlands.

I pushed the blankets to my feet and jumped out of bed. I overslept. My class, as usual, was behind schedule and there wasn’t a single second to waste. In a rush, I put on my pants and ...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 57

I sat at the table in front of a steaming bowl of bean soup. Even though I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast, I wasn’t particularly hungry. The meal was just an excuse to postpone my visit to Elincia’s room.

I chewed slowly, savoring the plain flavors maybe for the last time. Now that we were swimming in money, I planned to fill the pantry with every possible ingredient and spice available in Farcrest. Spaghetti carbonara, paella, goulash, I made a mental list of all the dishe...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 56

Ginz locked the door of the workshop and hung a ‘closed’ sign. Despite being barely past noon, Farcrest was practically deserted. Other than guards patrolling the main streets, we barely saw a soul. An eerie silence hung over the city, as if thousands of people were holding their breaths at the same time.

There was also a second silence. The one between Ginz and me. Even after emptying a whole bottle of wine, the atmosphere between us was still awkward and the road towards the orpha...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 55

Despite the close ties between Nasiah and the orphanage, the shopkeeper seemed to hate Elincia. And Elincia seemed to fear Nasiah to the point she avoided the shop at all costs. I squeezed my brain trying to come up with a possible cause but the whole situation was too strange to even venture a guess.

It didn’t make sense. Why would Elincia, a non-combatant that liked to adventure into the dangerous Farlands, fear a simple shopkeeper? Nasiah had quite the presence but I doubted that w...

Quick announcement.

Hey everyont, Elra here.

I have been super busy with all this deal of the national/independence holidays, so I'll be posting the chapter tomorrow.

I apologize for the inconveniences. 

Elra.

September Bonus Chapter Poll

Hey everyone, Elra here!

Here's the community poll for September's exclusive chapter! The poll will be closed on Saturday 23, so be sure to vote by then.

You can also leave a suggestion in the comments with an idea for the next month's poll.

As always, thanks for your support and see y'all next chapter.

Elra out!

AN: If it ties, I'm doing both

An Otherworldly Scholar - 54

“Are you sure you can keep going? We have been doing it for hours now.” Elincia dried the sweat from her forehead and stretched her back with feline grace. An expression of delight drew on her face.

“The kids are distracted somewhere else. We are not going to have another chance like this one any time soon.” I replied, guzzling another stamina potion. At that point, I had started to get a liking of the bittersweet taste. “I could keep going all day long if it's with you.” 2023-09-15 22:07:10 +0000 UTC View Post

An Otherworldly Scholar - 53

The strange man attacked.

Firana jumped to the side and raised her sword. She moved so fast it was hard to follow with my eyes. The blades clashed with the sharp sound of iron against iron and, for a moment, I thought the man was going to overpower her. I was wrong. Firana disengaged just as the attacker weaved a diagonal slash into his attack.

“Good job, brat.” The man with the unkempt hair said and rested his sword on his shoulder.

They were sparring but the alarms ins...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 52

When I opened my eyes, Elincia was still sleeping by my side. Technically, by Loki’s side. The Changeling was comfortably curled between us, still in its dog form. I stretched my back. At some point in the night, I had been banished from the warmth of the enchanted blanket, probably by the joint efforts of Elincia and Loki. My lower back was cold.

I rolled onto my back and raised my body. Dassyra was sitting silently by the brazier, observing the contents of a black kettle. She gave m...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 51

I regretted my choice of words even before I finished the sentence.

To say Elincia was pale, was an understatement, she looked like she had seen a literal ghost. She was lying down on a cozy pile of pelts, however, she didn’t look comfortable at all. Her leg had been tended to, but her hair was a mess and eyes were swollen and reddened.

I have never seen her looking so miserable.

A moment later, I was kneeling on the floor, hugging Elincia. Damned be everything else. I clo...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 50

I woke up with my head resting on Elincia’s lap, which was strange considering the last thing I remembered was the dark tunnel collapsing over my head.

“Damn beast!” Elincia said and I realized it was just the Changeling.

Begrudgingly, I rolled over my stomach and sat down. As much as I enjoyed Elincia’s thighs –they were a top quality pillow–, it felt wrong for me to put my head on them if it wasn’t really her.

“You are a damn beast.” I replied as I massag...

Quick announcement

I'll be posting today's chapter tomorrow. The chapter needs more polishing and I want to add a bit more of content (also a better cliffhanger).

Sorry for the inconveniences.

Have a nice weekend!

Elra out

End of month announcement - August

Hey everyone, Elra here. 

During September I will be posting two chapter per week instead of the usual three. There's a couple reasons for that. First of all, I want to ensure both the quality and the amount of content of each chapter. To achieve that, I need a bit more time to work on each one of them. Second, I want to increase my backlog (which is currently zero) in case something interrupts my writing schedule (like it happened during the heavy rain last week).

If you hav...

August Bonus Chapter

The winning prompt for this month's bonus chapter was The Legendary Potato Knight with 60% of the votes (Shout out to u/yertosaurus for suggesting the prompt) Enjoy!

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I woke up with the first light of the day. The kids didn't have class on Sunday so I didn’t try to get up. Instead, I stretched my back and looked at the now familiar ceiling of my room. The water stain invading the upper right corner...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 49

The undead monster’s presence was overwhelming. Despite the fact it was just a black cloak cut against the entrance of the cave, my whole body was paralyzed and even the constant murmuring of [Awareness] stopped. The creature’s gelid eyes penetrated my body and my soul. As strange as it sounded, I knew it could see through me, into my character sheet and perhaps even my memories. It was not the diluted presence behind the rotten flesh puppet I had faced previously. This creature was no re...

Artwork Poll #2

Hey Sages, Elra here!

You know the drill.

• The first place will be commissioned.
• The runner up will have a place reserved in the next poll.

That's it. Choose wisely.

Elra out!

An Otherworldly Scholar - 48

Dassyra pulled a round piece of red dyed glass from her bag and brought it to her eye, examining the mountains. Currents of mana swirled inside the piece of glass just like the strands of fire mana embedded into Elincia’s blanket. The glass lens had to be an enchanted item of some sort.

Dassyra remained silent for a moment, glancing at the mountains.

“It's an area spell.”

I focused on my surroundings, letting my mana sense run wild. The colors faded just to be replaced...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 47

My mind had trouble processing everything Dassyra had just told me. Not only had Mr. Byrne, the old and eccentric millionaire, actually traveled to Farcrest, he had also contacted Dassyra’s tribe, and revealed his otherworldly nature to them. On top of that, he had also sired a half-orc child that turned out to be one of my pupils.

“Let's gather those pesky herbs of yours and call it a day. I can see in your face that you are exhausted.” Dassyra said in a humorous tone. 2023-08-25 23:22:05 +0000 UTC View Post

Important Announcement.

Hey everyone, Elra here.

Due to the intense rains and the risk of landslides in my area, I will have to evacuate my home in the next three hours. This means, I'll be offline and the next chapters will be delayed. 

The bad weather will continue until Wednesday so I'm not going back home at least until Thursday. However, depending on the conditions of the roads and bridges (and landslides, if any), the evac could extend until Saturday or Sunday. (I have a place to stay so every...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 46

Dassyra walked in front of me. Despite how chatty she had been at the tent, she had turned completely silent as soon as we left the outpost’s boundaries. Alert to any suspicious sound, we walked across unmarked trails and rugged terrain towards the waterfall. The proximity of the mountain didn’t make our journey easier, however, the sparser trees in the area proved to be an advantage. There were few places where a monster could hide.

Monsters weren’t my primary concern anymore. 2023-08-20 07:03:14 +0000 UTC View Post

An Otherworldly Scholar - 45

There was no time for introductions. After a quick glance at the rotten remains of the Undead Wolf, the party of orcs guided us across the valley towards the northern wall. I expected the orcs to trample over the forest. I was wrong. Despite their massive sizes, the orcs moved with the grace of great cats, avoiding brambles and finding paths with the ease of seasoned rangers.

The only set of steps disturbing the forest’s peace were mine, which made me wonder if orcs had racial traits ...

August Bonus Chapter Poll

Hello everyone, Elra here!

Here's the community poll for August's exclusive chapter! The poll will be closed on Tuesday 22.

You can leave a suggestion for the next month bonus story in the comments and your idea might be featured in the next poll.

As always, thanks for your support and see y'all tomorrow.

Elra out!

An Otherworldly Scholar - 44

The eerie voice echoed inside my mind like icicles falling into a frozen gorge despite no actual sounds disturbing the valley. Something was broadcasting orders to its undead minion, and I had accidentally caught the signal. The voice felt wrong, evil, and indescribably powerful.

Bring him. Alive.

The words sent a shiver down my spine and, before the Undead Wolf could make a move, I reached for my sword. In a well practiced movement, I channeled mana out of my body lighti...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 43

The constant flux of information provided by [Awareness] kept me awake, locked in a relentless battle against fatigue. Sleep had become an elusive dream as I wandered the valley gathering ingredients, illuminated only by a small mana flame. Shadows danced around me, mockingly gesturing at me as I dragged my feet across the forest bed. Hour after hour I harvested ingredients until the distant promise of dawn showed its first silvery gazes over the horizon.

The gray clouds far in the east...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 42

With the Ice Wraiths vanquished, the mist vanished leaving the lush vegetation untouched. I cleaned the blood from my hands with the trickle of water flowing under the frozen slime. My mind worked overtime as I scrubbed my hands. The wounded orc had said Byrne’s name. Mr. Byrne, the eccentric millionaire whose fortune was managed by the law firm I used to work in, and the owner of the cabin lost in the woods concealing a magic portal in the basement.

I energetically rubbed my hands to...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 41

The memory of the freezing area spell faded into the background of my mind as Elincia guided me into the lush valley. [Identify] bombarded me with a hundred names. Barrel Roots, Fairy King’s Brooch, Night Lilies, Dire Cress, Thorn Peppers. Mr. Lowell had struck metaphorical gold with this valley, a high level Alchemist could probably brew a whole catalog of potions with the ingredients in sight.

My hands were itching to start looting. My only regret was not bringing more hands to help...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 40

The ice spell froze the mountainside in a matter of moments. The rocks transformed into glassy ice spheres and the weeds were turned into thin frozen needles. Like the hands of a wraith, the frozen fingers crept down the valley faster than we could get away. As the Bernese Mountain Changeling entered the cave, I stopped on my tracks and turned around. Then, I summoned my mana and raised a barrier over the cave’s entrance.

I waited for the assault but instead, the frozen fingers lightl...

Important Announcement

Hey everyone, Elra here.

First of all, I want to apologize for the disruption of the usual schedule. Some familiar circumstances had came up to a boiling point I couldn't avoid. I still have things to sort today, so there will be no chapter today either. I can say with 100% certainty that on Friday I'll resume the usual schedule.

That's the important part (from now on it's just gossip about my personal problems).

I knew there were going to b...