elra

An Otherworldly Scholar - 245

It was early in the morning. I sat in front of an old desk at the abandoned library inside the branch office of Farcrest’s Alchemist Guild with a stack of paper and a quill in my hand. Traveling half the city each time I wanted to do proper runeweaving was a huge time sinkhole, but my world-saving endeavors required privacy, at least for the moment. People would have to know the truth about the Corruption cycle eventually. When? I wasn’t sure. If I told them too early, I would be taken as...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 244

The following months flew by. Nobody tried to kill me or my students, Evelisse barely showed signs of life, Astur treated me like royalty, and Byrne continued acting unaware of my Runeweaver Class. Once a week, I got a stack of letters from Elincia and the orphans. Lyra Jorn had made significant advances in the literacy of the youngest ones, so I got to see how things were going at the orphanage from the kids' perspective. Shu had strong complaints about the hygiene of the new orphans. Her wi...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 243

AN: Sorry for the delay, I was trapped in traffic :((

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I followed Talindra to the dueling platform, but instead of summoning her spider legs, she knelt in the center of the platform, her hands carefully resting on her lap. She closed her eyes and for a moment, I thought she would perform a Japanese apology prostration, but instead, she remained still like a faun-shaped statue.

My mind was elsewhere, trying to calculate whether my decision to open my teaching method t...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 242

I used a mana hand to drag the teacher’s chair across the room and sat by Evelisse’s side while the cadets performed sword drills. I crossed my arms and watched the class develop like my old P.E. teacher, Sitting Bull, used to do. I wondered who came up with the nickname; it was one of those things that came by default with the school. Sitting Bull was a huge man with a pinkish face who spent most of the class sitting in a chair, even though there was no problem with his knees. Maybe Sitt...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 241

Talindra threw daggers at me as the royal delegation entered the classroom. 

I added ‘bad friend’ to my List of Misdeeds just below murder, arson, and indecisiveness. The list continued, but those three plagued his mind the most lately. Maybe I should even push ‘indecisiveness’ a few positions higher. The Byrne Problem hung over my head like a sharp sword, but I couldn’t make it disappear without proof. I had nothing on Byrne other than a flawed plan to evacuate ...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 240

The success of Cabbage Class at the selection exam had consequences I hadn’t expected. Suddenly, our classroom had turned into something like a tourist attraction. Astur had been considerate enough to give me the heads-up a few days before the unexpected visitors arrived, and surprisingly enough, he had also apologized. Not about the blackmailing part, but it was a start. He told me he understood that spectators might undermine the students' performance, but his hands were tied. Our visitor...

Health Update

Hey, y'all.

Thanks for your words of encouragement, they meant a lot!

I feel much better now. The general drowsiness is almost completely gone, and after two weeks of mind fog, I finally have complex thoughts again (lol). Writing while being able to think coherently is a lot easier. I still have a few tests and doctor appointments, so I want to take things slowly.

• I will stop Patreon's billing cycle during July.

• For July, the new publishing schedule w...

  2025-06-30 03:19:34 +0000 UTC View Post

An Otherworldly Scholar - 239

“If you want to meet them, turn yourself into an asset they can’t ignore,” Ralgar said, turning towards the working desk and putting the flask of crimson fluid out of the fire with a long set of pliers.

Luciflorae Revelation Concoction. [Identify] Alchemical Brew. An alchemical reagent that glows upon touching plants from the Luciflorae family. Magical concentration: Low.

Ralgar poured a few drops of the Energy Boost Potion into the revelation concoction and...

Important Announcement

Hey everyone!

I'm sorry for the delays in the chapters this past week. I haven't been in great health. My thyroid seems to have gone on strike, and I have been dealing with extreme fatigue and problems staying focused on anything that requires real mental effort. I'm sorry if the past few chapters haven't been great. I really can't seem to weave two sound thoughts together.

For that reason, I will take this Tuesday 24th off to visit the doctor.

I hope it's nothing serious.<...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 238

“Do you want potions? Yes or no?”

“What do you have?” Firana asked, straightening in her seat.

The librarian sat across us, pulled an enchanted glass cup from his pocket, and put it face down on the table. Suddenly, an opaque bubble surrounded us. I examined the gadget. User. Direction. Cloak. Dark. Absorb. Field. I had to blink. The runes were brighter than I expected. Even those I knew only from Byrne’s documents were clear as day.

Firana kicked me under the tabl...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 237

“Do you want our robes?” Lip asked.

“Yes,” Firana replied. “And Jax’s glasses.”

“Okay.”

I was starting to see the outlines of Firana’s plan. She intended to trace the origins of the Energy Boost Potions from the Library. I couldn’t help but feel proud. After all, the Library housed far more commoners than the Knights Academy ever did.

To my surprise, Lip took off his robe and unceremoniously passed it to Firana. 

Hidden underneath the l...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 236

After reading Byrne’s note, I channeled [Minor Aerokinesis] and launched into the sky, over the outer wall, and down the cliff. Part of me refused to believe Vanira was dead, but the evidence was undeniable. When I reached the chambers of the Nature Circle at the Library, Byrne was having a heated discussion with a group of healers. 

As soon as I appeared, Byrne opened the door behind him and signaled me to enter. The naked walls greeted me with stark indifference, and the pungen...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 235

“W-we went into a rally in this shady place. I swear I didn’t want to go. They told us we could be as strong as nobles. Improve our classes. Get levels easily. T-they gave us those potions, but I swear, I told Vanira not to drink them,” the boy said.

“Where was that?! Who were these people?!” Evelisse barked.

The boy retreated, seemingly scared of Evelisse’s vines.

“Let me take care of this,” I said, standing between them. “What is your name, boy?”

...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 234

The System prompts piled before my eyes. Surprisingly enough, writing down rune strings was enough to trigger Class progress. It had been a while since I had sat down for a proper lesson, and I felt like I was cruising through the lesson. Byrne was right. [Foresight] made it a hundred times easier to grasp the quirks of the runes used in specific contexts. Even Runes and circuits I wasn’t familiar with instantly burned in my mind like I had been practicing them for a year. There was a reaso...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 233

I was walking down the avenue connecting the Academy with the Library when the sun fell behind the hills. Night in Cadria fell quickly, and service gnomes climbed the posts and ignited the lamp burners. Down the street, another gnome squad refilled the lamps with a black, tart-like liquid. Judging by their pace, they were behind schedule. The invisible outer wall blocked the sun long before it touched the horizon, although the mirage allowed the inhabitants of the inner city to see the sunset...

Announcement

Hey everyone. Hope you are doing well.

I have an important announcement regarding changes in the rewards of all the tiers. Starting in June, I will stop producing the monthly Patreon Exclusive Chapter and focus on working on a novel-length spin-off of An Otherworldly Scholar. The chapters of the new spin-off (that might, or might not have Firana as the protagonist) will be the new Patreon Exclusive Content until its completion. The 'Homesteading' miniseries will have three or four more...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 232

It took Cabbage Class nine hours and thirty minutes to finish the selection exam, and I couldn’t be prouder. A hundred cadets had exited the maze through the ‘winners’ side, but none looked like a winner. Those who managed to complete the maze looked like missing hikers found after a weekend lost in the woods. 

Young novice librarians with the green tunics of the Nature Circle welcomed the cadets and examined their wounds before assigning them to different groups. Those who w...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 231

Malkah’s team outwitted Astur’s cadets, but the moment of respite was short. After a few sharp turns and deceitfully similar corridors, they stumbled upon a swarm of Rustclaws led by a huge Alpha. The boys couldn’t turn back for fear of meeting the cadets, so their only way out was to fight. Odo and Harwin were drained, so Malkah took the lead. His lack of skills—and proper weapons—made the combat painfully slow, even with the Alpha Rustclaw waiting in the background for their prey ...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 230

“Mister Clarke’s Gloomstalker projection didn’t shoot spears from its tail!” Cedrinor shouted as he glanced at the stakes buried deep in the soil.

 The Gloomstalkers I had seen before, during the Lich’s Monster Surge, were above level twenty and were strong enough to fend off orc warriors. They were not made out of thorny vines and could not camouflage against the hedge like the one preying on the cadets. There was no way Astur would’ve put such a powerful monster in th...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 229

The selection exam started just as we had predicted. Low-level monsters blocked the paths to the maze's heart, with a few more threatening ones scattered around. Beasts, slimes, insectoids, arachnids, and many more monsters not native to Farcrest and its surroundings. Most cadets emerged victorious from the first encounters, but the exam wasn’t about winning a few fights. Slowly but surely, the encounters would drain the cadet’s energy, leaving them at the mercy of the bigger monsters nea...

Artwork - Izabeka

She's judging your sleeping schedule

An Otherworldly Scholar - 228

The Nychtys Queen floated gracefully in the air, looking at Leonie and Aeliana with predatory eyes. Her laughter was eerie, not completely human, like the distant sound of water mistaken for the crowd's chattering. The spring sun made her orange monarch butterfly wings shimmer. Each section of her wings was a bright piece of stained glass, casting reflections over her pure-white skin. However, the most unsettling part of her anatomy was her eyes—electric blue and filled with mana, just like...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 227

With a thousand totems hidden in the maze, only half of the cadets could meet the requirements to pass the exam. My greatest concern, however, was that the exam promoted deception, sabotage, and conflict among cadets. Although no cadet exceeded the low tens, skills were still dangerous in the right hands. 

I wondered what Astur was thinking when he came up with this idea. For someone who worked with kids and young adults, his lack of foresight was painfully obvious—unless he want...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 226

“Hypothetically speaking. How hard could it be to kill Archivist Byrne now that he knows we are coming for him?”

“Ilya, no.”

“He’s a Runeweaver, so we should assume he has a contingency plan.”

“Zaon!”

The boy gave me an apologetic smile.

“We are talking hypotheticals!” he said.

Ilya opened her mouth to say something, but stopped short when a group of first-year cadets passed by our side. The selection exam took place in the meadow, so ...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 225

Byrne stumbled upon magic in the 1970s after his first business venture went south. Before becoming a real estate tycoon, he was a gold smuggler moving bullion for those eager to evade government control: drug cartels, arms dealers, and paranoid wealthy individuals. Risks were high, but the money was good. Byrne knew the trick to survive was only to dip his toes into society's underbelly. He would never be blinded by the wealth, and he would never let them get a hold of him.<...

An Otherworldly Scholar - 224

WE’VE GOT A BOGEY AT 5 O’CLOCK, RANGE 45 METERS.

I turned towards the doors and pushed Ilya behind my back. My eyes scanned the entrance, but nothing stood out besides a group of Preceptors and Archivists, draped in the flowy black robes of the Imperial Library. 

“Librarians?” I asked, but the System Avatar didn’t answer.

The group casually greeted the nobles near the entrance and grabbed glasses of sp...