Morning haze drifted across Ebonveil's inner courtyard as students filed into the semicircular Lecture Hall of Glass—a vault of tiered stone seats and a domed ceiling veined with luminous runes. At its center floated a crystalline lectern. When Elder Rahim — today's instructor—tapped its surface, ripples of light blossomed overhead, forming a slowly turning mosaic of glyphs.
"Sit straight, open your codices," his calm baritone rolled across the chamber. "Today we classify engraving archetypes. Names differ from one academy to the next, but the principles do not."
Sunlight splintered through the Lecture Hall of Glass as Elder Rahim summoned five shimmering screens of glyph‑light overhead, each representing a core class of rune work. He began with a slow sweep of his hand.
"Engraving," Rahim began, voice as resonant as bronze, "is the language by which mortals converse with the fabric of reality. Intent is grammar; rune geometry the vocabulary; your spiritual sea the breath behind every word."
" You have already chosen your main engraving." He continued explaining So today, I'm going to give you an idea of the most popular engravings for your current level in the real world.
The reason for her fame is that she is able to grow with the Engraving Master as he advances in rank.
Offensive Engravings
"For distance combat," he said, "engravers favor three primary sigils. The Star‑Needle Conduit condenses pure light into needle‑fine lances that can pierce iron two hundred paces away, provided the caster's focus never wavers. The Thunder‑Hail Array unleashes a cone of sonic bursts capable of shattering shields, though its shockwaves will deafen your allies unless you layer muffling seals. Finally, the rare and essence‑hungry Void‑Spike Resonator tears space itself, flinging shards a hundred paces out—terribly effective, but it drinks six times the energy of ordinary artillery and leaves damage in the local leylines."
Rahim turned, eyes sweeping the room. "Offense is not merely power; it is delivery. Distance dictates rune geometry."
Physical Reinforcement
"Now, for those who turn themselves into weapons," Rahim continued, conjuring luminous silhouettes. "There is Mountain‑Root Plate, tripling one's weight to crush foes; Wind‑Stride Weave, granting four bursts of silent speed; and the crystalline Glass‑Dragon Vein, which hardens skin to reflect flames—though overuse ossifies your joints." He pointed to glowing meridian diagrams. "Align inscriptions with your heartbeat. Miss even one node and the backlash will snap tendons."
"Remember," Rahim warned, "reinforcement burns essence continuously. An empty sea means shattered bones."
Defensive Barriers
"Shields range from simple to legendary. The basic Ripple Ward diffuses kinetic force; step up to Iron‑Shell Net, which spreads magnetic lines to slow metal volleys; or, if fortune favours you, claim a master's Seven‑Fold Bastion, seven rotating planes that first slow, then nullify, anything short of Rank Four assaults. Remember: defences layer better than they stack—two modest screens can outlast a single monolith if positioned wisely."
He raised a hand and a dart hurled by an aide slowed mid‑air before clattering to the floor, proof of his words.
"For every spear, a shield was born," Rahim intoned. "Master both or perish to the one you neglected."
Support Techniques
"These sigils don't kill, yet wars are lost without them. Sigil of Silent Step erases group footfalls and is prized by scouts. Vital Flux Beacon pulses steady essence into nearby allies, sustaining them in long sieges, while Dusk‑Lens Marks cut glare to grant clear sight under the fog."
Rahim told of a reconnaissance unit saved by Dusk‑Lens.
"These do not kill," the elder said, "but wars hinge on them."
Therapeutic Inscriptions
Finally, he conjured soothing green runes that formed a lotus‑shaped array. "The Pulse‑Knit Matrix reseats shattered bones in minutes. Vessel‑Calm Seal constricts ruptured vessels to staunch bleeding. Rarest of all, Echo‑Mind Bloom repairs shallow wounds to the soul itself—only three healers alive can perform it, and all guard the method jealously."
"True healers," Rahim added, "must wield greater discipline than any duelist. A mis‑stroke kills faster than a blade."
Rahim moved to Q&A. Hands shot up.
Students peppered him with inquiries. One asked whether Seven‑Fold Bastion could pair with Wind‑Stride for mobile defence. "Possible," Rahim admitted, "yet the drain would hollow your sea in breaths—better combine Wind‑Stride with layered Ripple Wards for shorter engagements."
Seraphina sought guidance on balancing frost affinity with Vital Flux pulses; Rahim advised a dual‑element tuning glyph.
Ryn, quiet until now, inquired about combining Bone‑Shear with Mountain‑Root Plate for both weight and edge. Rahim's eyes twinkled. "Dangerous. The rebound might shear your own bones. Draft me a stabilizer sigil and perhaps we'll test."
A hand rose from the back row—a slender girl with ink-stained fingertips. "Elder Rahim," she asked, "what of the painters? Those who specialize in drawing the engravings themselves rather than refining or activating them?"
Elder Rahim's gaze sharpened with approval. "An insightful question. Painters—more formally known as Inscription Artisans—are foundational to our world. Their skill lies not in activation or combat, but in precision. It is they who etch the most complex patterns onto talismans, armor, and weapons. A single stroke out of alignment can mean the difference between a defensive shield and a self-detonating trap. Their hands bring to life what others wield."
He paused, his tone deepening. "Many underestimate them. Fools do. No great Ingraving Master exists without first respecting the artisan behind the lines they draw."
"Draft a hybrid formation," Rahim concluded, "one reinforcement rune with one defensive layer, include fail‑safes, and present by tomorrow's dusk. The sea is shifting. Storms won't ask if you're ready."
Quills scratched parchment as students murmured plans. Ryn's eyes glittered with curiosity; Seraphina already sketched frost‑laced sigils in tidy strokes. At the rear, Veyran watched without expression, lips tracing silent calculations that no one else quite grasped.
Outside, bells tolled the hour. Inside, the first seeds of new engravings took root—some destined to protect, others to destroy, all waiting for the hands bold enough to carve them into fate.
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Sorry for the delay