Chapter 17: Steam Era Higher Academy Specializations

After agreeing on a time to meet later, Dr. Schneider handed Shade a file folder containing the academy's information before hurriedly leaving the room, clearly with something important to attend to.

Once the doctor was gone, Shade didn't open the folder immediately. Instead, he leaned back on the couch and stared at the ceiling. Just as he had said, he couldn't make a decision right away. His mind was busy reviewing the events of the day, going over every detail stored in his memory.

"The worst-case scenario is that this is all a scam," Shade thought, "that the doctor is actually part of some cult trying to sacrifice me. But that seems unlikely..."

He shook his head and patted it lightly as if trying to clear his thoughts.

"What do you think?" he asked aloud.

[You can trust him.]

"But can I trust you?" Shade replied, his voice skeptical. "For instance, can you even tell me who you are?"

[I am you.]

Shade sighed, looking more exasperated than convinced. "You're definitely not some inner voice of mine," he muttered, "that much, I'm certain of."

He gazed thoughtfully at the ceiling, its design composed of colorful blocks and geometric patterns, before his eyes shifted to the ornate crystal chandelier hanging above. He idly wondered how much it must have cost Dr. Bill Schneider to afford such luxuries and marveled at the doctor's apparent wealth.

"Anyway, there's just too little information, or rather, no real way to get information, so I can only listen to what others tell me," Shade thought, his mind trying to work through the situation.

Deep down, Shade believed the doctor could be trusted. Everything he'd learned so far today had been consistent—no contradictions, no gaps in logic. And the doctor's reasoning made sense: encountering a force willing to guide ordinary people into the realm of the extraordinary and mysterious wasn't something that happened every day. Shade was beginning to grasp that in this era, the extraordinary and the mysterious lay hidden in the shadows of humanity's flourishing steam industry. The supernatural was but a small fraction of the vast progress of human civilization.

In that light, Shade almost felt grateful to the doctor. He hadn't asked for any money but had revealed valuable knowledge. That alone said something.

Shade acknowledged to himself that he was indeed interested in Saint Byrence's Academy, though he wouldn't admit it out loud. The three major academies and the five churches of the true gods were the only official pathways to becoming a ring warlock, and he wasn't considering any other alternatives.

There were pros and cons to both the academies and the churches, but for now, the academy had approached him first. Plus, Shade worried that his identity as a transmigrator might complicate things. Compared to the more lenient ring warlocks, the church would have a much higher chance of discovering his otherworldly origins—especially since the doctor had made it clear that the gods were real.

Shade didn't yet know the extent of the gods' power but couldn't rule out the possibility that they were omniscient.

"I could accept Saint Byrence Academy," Shade mused to himself, "but first, I need to see what information that so-called 'relic' can provide."

He had made up his mind. He knew it might not be the best choice, but Shade was determined not to regret it. This was his decision.

"Let's take a look at this," he thought, reaching for the folder.

But just as he was about to open it, the door suddenly swung open without warning. Shade assumed it was the doctor returning early, but instead, a young woman stepped into the room. She seemed just as surprised to see him sitting there.

"Sorry, I thought Dr. Schneider was here..." she began.

The woman appeared to be about twenty years old, and she was easily the most beautiful girl Shade had seen since arriving in this world. She had long blonde hair and striking green eyes—a true "blonde-haired, green-eyed beauty." Her demeanor was calm and quiet, and she looked like a student or a teacher. She was wearing a simple, deep blue dress, her only accessory a butterfly-shaped hairpin.

"Apologies," she said again, quickly realizing her mistake. She was about to close the door when she paused, her green eyes locking onto Shade with a hint of curiosity, making Shade feel a little awkward under her gaze.

"That light around you... Are you awakening as a gifted one?" she asked, her voice filled with mild astonishment.

Shade suddenly understood how the doctor had identified him so easily the previous day outside the newspaper office. Clearly, the vision of a ring warlock differed greatly from that of ordinary people.

"So you really are gifted?" the woman continued, though she managed to keep her composure. She examined Shade with those captivating eyes, a slight smile curving her lips.

"Bill actually found a gifted one? When did he get so lucky? Did he use some strange relic to borrow luck from the future?" she joked.

"I..."

Shade tried to respond, but the woman shook her head gently at him.

"Sorry, in our group, only fifth-year members like Dr. Schneider are allowed to recruit new students. So, until you officially enroll, I can't reveal anything to you. It's part of the academy's contract, and we have to abide by the rules."

She took a step back, her hand on the door handle, a kind smile still on her face.

"But the conditions at Saint Byrence Academy are very good. You're lucky to have met Dr. Schneider within 72 hours of your awakening. Take your time to think it over carefully. Oh, and if you do join, just remember one thing: don't choose the chemistry department."

With that, she nodded politely, said her farewells, and gently closed the door behind her.

Shade leaned back, his mind spinning. "One of the four members of Bill Schneider's correspondence ring warlock group... Did I really just happen to run into her, or is this some kind of elaborate act?"

Shade sometimes thought he was too paranoid, but in a completely foreign world, he believed that this mentality might actually keep him alive.

"Still, a school that teaches mysticism has a chemistry department?" Shade mused.

He untied the string on the file folder and started going through the academy materials. The first page was the promotional flyer the doctor had shown him earlier, but what followed were the real enrollment documents.

As Shade flipped through the thick stack of papers, he began to understand. Saint Byrence Comprehensive Academy consisted of 11 different specialized colleges, each focusing on different subjects and methods of study:

 The College of Chemistry, specializing in herbology and potion-making;

 The College of Mechanics, focusing on psychic abilities and the cultivation of alchemy skills;

 The College of Astronomy, training seers and stargazers;

 The College of Ancient Literature, specializing in rune interpretation and the preservation of ancient languages;

 The College of Mathematics, dedicated to rituals, incantations, and arcane arts;

 The College of Folklore, studying pre-Sixth Era history and specializing in the element of Inspiration;

 The College of History, training investigators and time manipulators, specializing in the element of Desecration;

 The College of Library Sciences, training keepers and guardians who are responsible for containing relics. This was the academy's strongest discipline and specialized in the element of Whispers;

 The College of Theology, teaching about the gods and studying the history of the Old Gods. It also handled collaborations with the true-god churches and specialized in the element of Miracles;

 The College of Political Economy, which did not accept correspondence ring warlocks and thus had no relevant information.

The academy used these ordinary academic titles to name its departments rather than straightforward labels like "Containment College" or "Arcane College." This was done to allow correspondence warlocks to easily blend into the world of ordinary people by giving them plausible answers about their studies, thereby reducing the chance of exposing the academy to the public.

As Shade read through the materials, he realized that the doctor had left out some key details about the ring warlock system.

For instance, once a ring warlock fully awakened, they would manifest a soul rune unique to their soul, also known as the "core rune." The core rune would be inscribed in the hollow center of the wheel of fate, not on the ring itself. This was important for a warlock's progression, and the core rune's properties would influence which department the academy recommended for further study.

Shade guessed that Dr. Schneider's core rune was likely related to mind, which probably meant the doctor belonged to the College of Mechanics.

"So, I won't be able to choose what I'll study until I fully awaken as a ring warlock. But you can travel through time?" Shade shook his head, finding it hard to believe.

Still, reading through the academy's documents made him feel the cultural and institutional depth of this steam-driven era. He carefully noted the important details and then put the documents back into the folder. As he rose to place it on the desk in the room, he noticed the desk was littered with papers. Dr. Schneider had likely been too busy to tidy up and wasn't worried about Shade snooping through the documents. Most of them seemed to pertain to the clinic's operations, and a few were written in a language Shade didn't recognize.

Oddly enough, though, Shade found that he could understand these strange, unfamiliar characters. It seemed he had some kind of special ability to comprehend languages—a gift, perhaps, from his unique circumstances.