Chapter 359. Dalzrin.

  I thought about my options as I left town and returned to the academy. My first task was trying to get Melody to join me. It hit me then, if Professor Dalzrin was working for Gary, did I want to risk bringing someone innocent into a potential deadly situation. No. As much as I could use her help to dissuade Dalzrin from acting, I couldn’t throw an innocent person in the line of fire like she was one of my minions.

  I would face Dalzrin on my own, and the more I thought about it, the less likely his involvement seemed. If I had been killed by Zerallia and never showed back up for tasks at the academy, it wouldn’t be too hard for the administration to figure out that the professor was the last person that I’d interacted with. Would the academy even care that much about an adjunct professor that went missing?

  Passing by my room, I didn’t stop and instead made my way to Professor Dalzrin’s classroom. His door was open and when I peeked inside, I could see him at his desk, reviewing a large text and writing notes. It looked like he was just preparing for class tomorrow, not like there had been some big plot of his that had just unraveled. Stepping back into the hallway, I summoned my minions, casting duplicate on the drone.

  My armor and weapons were equipped, though my javelin was still on cooldown from the earlier fight. Instead, I held the Chains of Bal’sharuk in one hand, and my most powerful figurine, the Knight of the Eternal Vigil, in the other. I had the duplicate drone enter first, then I followed behind with the rest of my minions placing themselves between me and the professor.

  “Rico, what happened out there? I received a notice that the terms of the contract had been breached. Then, I get another notice that I have rewards to deliver to you. To top things off, my normal means of communication with Zerallia has been severed. I’ve been here, working, hoping that you’d return and explain things,” Professor Dalzrin said, looking as confused as I felt.

  “Zerallia never had a problem with her minion. In fact, that minion and Zerallia just tried to kill me. I suppose you know nothing about that?” I asked sharply, my temper and anger over the situation getting the better of me.

  “What? If that was the case, how did the contract ever get approved by the system. Her intent would have been known, and we would never have been able to forge an agreement on her behalf. Wait, you don’t think I had anything to do with this, do you?” Dalzrin asked.

  “I don’t know, let’s see. You’re the one that set up this whole contract, you’re the one that offered me the rewards, and you’re the one that’s a friend of Zerallia. That seems like you would be a prime suspect. Not to mention that you’re an Infernal, the same as the person who is trying to kill me,” I accused hotly.

  “Professor Kline!” Dalzrin said forcefully as he stood from his desk. The dark claws on the tips of his fingers burrowed into the desktop, causing flickers of flame to begin burning at the wood there. I could feel power building around me, a darkness creeping in from the corner of my vision as glowing red portals began to flicker into existence. A pressure exerted itself over my entire body, almost causing me to fall to my knees.

  “Do not lump me in with my kin. My life is different. My life is my own. It’s a life I wanted, a life I’ve created despite what most think of my people. I will not have someone accuse me of being in league with the one that is threatening you. Can you feel it, Rico, can you feel the power that I have at my disposal,” Professor Dalzrin said with a heaping portion of what my military trainers would have called command presence in his voice.

  The glowing portals around me brightened as clawed hands grasped the edges, as if the professor was barely keeping what was in there restrained. I didn’t need any identify ability to tell me that these creatures were far beyond what I and my minions could handle. If Dalzrin wanted me dead, I would be. He could have handed me to Gary on a platter if he had wanted to.

  This fumbled attempt by Zerallia wasn’t the means that he would have used to trap and kill me. He had no need for such subterfuge. The professor could have just snaped his fingers and I would have been dragged into whatever hell his minions resided in. Instead, Professor Dalzrin was very forcefully claiming his innocence in this matter. I was beginning to see the truth. The professor had no hand in this, other than being duped by his concern for a former student.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  “I’m sorry, Professor Dalzrin, I realize you didn’t orchestrate this deliberately. You’re as much a victim as I am,” I conceded, unsummoning my minions and putting away the consumables that I had been holding. The heat in Dalzrin’s eyes diminished and the portals shrank into nothingness. It felt like a heavy weight had been lifted off me as Dalzrin relaxed his power.

  “Rico, take a moment to gather yourself, then tell me everything that happened during your summoning,” Professor Dalzrin demanded before sitting back at his desk and patting out the flames that still flickered atop it. He motioned for me to take the chair placed in front of the now-smoking desk.

  I did as he asked, recounting my summoning, the immediate attack by Zerallia, and the details of the battle that ensued. The professor stopped me a few times, having me give more detail on the creatures and spells that Zerallia used, as well as my own efforts. It didn’t seem prudent to hold anything back, and he seemed especially interested in the scroll of Elite Diminish Foe that I’d used to turn the tide of battle.

  When I’d finished, he leaned back in his chair looking up at the ceiling as he considered my words. A moment later he lifted a sack from behind his desk and slid it over to me. He didn’t speak, still deep in thought as he motioned for me to open the sack. Looking inside, it was filled with the rewards the system had promised me.

  First off, I added the coins to my inventory. The other reward that had been promised for the contract was there as well, the second Amulet of Lesser Infernal Protection. That also went into my inventory along with the equipment bead. The bead was exactly what it sounded like, a small, marble-sized ball of glass with a faint glow of mana coming off it.

  The last item was a small book with only a few pages in it that was bound in worn leather. It was small, only the size of my hand, and I could feel powerful mana infused into the text. There was a small pop as the item bound itself to me.

  This was the item that had been taken from Zerallia and given to me in partial payment for her breaking the contract. The book, and a rank of her power must have seemed a fair trade by the system. When the description of the book was given by the system, I was inclined to believe the compensation was fair.

  Analora’s Response. This text was created by the conjurer Analora after she faced several challenges that taxed both her mana, and her abilities. The text allows the wielder to save a different spell, ability, or copy of a consumable item on each page. The spells stored within the text can bypass normal restrictions as far as casting cooldowns or mana cost.

  Only one spell may be etched on each page, and it cannot be duplicated on another page. Some restrictions will bypass the magic of this device, and a warning will be given if you attempt to inscribe a spell, ability, or consumable that is incompatible. Each bearer of this text can only inscribe a maximum of 3 pages.

  This was a solid addition to my arsenal, a book that could mean an extra Duplicate without cooldown, or a second copy of my most powerful consumable figurine. I could also copy a charge from a device, or maybe even a scroll to this item. With only three pages at my disposal, there were several options I would have to consider before I made my decision.

  The book was thin, and when I opened it, I was surprised to see there were four pages left in it. Three of the pages were blank, presumably the ones I would inscribe later, but the last one was already filled out. Zerallia must have inscribed this one, and a system prompt appeared as I read her entry.

  Analora’s Response.

  Page 1. Redirect Blow. This spell makes the next physical melee or ranged attack on the target reflect back on the attacker, leaving the target with no damage. All effects, items, and abilities that enhance the attack will boost the redirected blow.

  Please note that this page was inscribed by a previous wielder of this item, and as such, it may be used by you in addition to the three blank pages remaining in the book.

  Nice, not only did I get the item from Zerallia, I also was able to steal her last page. Another interesting feature was that this spell could be cast on any target, so it wasn’t just a protection spell for me, it was one that I could use to save someone else, or even one of my critical minions in a tough fight.

  “Rico, I need some time to digest what has happened. I thought Zerallia was not only a former student, but also a friend. Seeing her corrupted and swayed so easily is disturbing. Please know that I do intend to make this up to you. Let me know when you want some training, I’d be glad to help you learn more about fighting someone like Zerallia, or this master she claims to serve,” Professor Dalzrin said.

  “Thank you, Professor. I apologize again for suspecting you. As I mentioned while recounting the summoning, I believe this was set up by the infernal I know as Gary. He must not like his odds in our coming fight, or he’s trying to hedge his bets by taking me out early,” I added.

  “I’ll take that into consideration. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to wrap up here before it gets too late. Despite what you’ve experienced here tonight, we still have an obligation to our students tomorrow,” Professor Dalzrin said, dismissing me. After the fight, and the confrontation with Dalzrin, I was exhausted, and more than happy to call it a night.