The library at Ernst Institute was a magnificent circular building with a spacious interior and row upon row of bookshelves. The books were arranged by category, including schools of magic, warrior techniques, continental history, and illustrated guides to magical beasts. It was a sea of knowledge, and one of the places students visited most often besides their classrooms and training grounds.
Lin Qin could occasionally be seen there, too. He wasn't there to study profound magical theories; more often, he looked for books on the basics. For example, Basic Mineral Identification, Common Magical Beast Bone Structures and Strength Analysis, and Overview of Low-Level Magic Array Energy Flow. His reading had a clear focus: how to train more effectively, understand the nature of power, and make use of the resources at hand.
That afternoon, instead of going to the training grounds, he went to the Warrior Basic Theory section of the library, hoping to find more detailed descriptions of "force" or the control of strength. His path lay in practice, but the right theoretical references could help him avoid taking unnecessary detours.
He walked between the shelves, scanning the titles. At a corner, he ran into Aileen again. She was standing on tiptoe, trying to reach a copy of Intermediate Morphological Changes of Water Magic on the top shelf.
Lin Qin walked over, easily took the book down, and handed it to her.
"Thank you." Aileen accepted the book, her cheeks faintly flushed. "Are you looking for something, too?"
"Yeah, something about controlling strength." Lin Qin answered, continuing to scan the shelves.
"Over there," Aileen said, pointing to a shelf farther inside. "Most of the books on 'Weight as Lightness' and basic force application techniques are over there."
Lin Qin looked at her, a little surprised.
Aileen explained, "I have a cousin who's a warrior. I've heard him talk about some of this before." She paused, her voice gentle. "I thought... you might be interested."
"Thank you." Lin Qin thanked her and walked over to the shelf she'd indicated. Sure enough, it held a few related notes and basic treatises. He pulled out a plain-looking book titled Essentials of Basic Force Application and began to read.
Aileen didn't leave, either. She sat at a nearby table and quietly read her book on Water Magic. Sunlight streamed through the library's tall windows, casting patches of light between them. The only sounds were the rustle of turning pages and faint footsteps in the distance.
Lin Qin was engrossed in the book. Some of its descriptions confirmed what he'd felt through countless sword swings, giving him a clearer understanding of concepts that had once been vague. For instance, the book mentioned that "power begins at the heels, is governed by the waist, and travels through the fingers." This matched the chain of force he'd worked out through practice.
Time slipped by. When Lin Qin closed the book and prepared to leave, he noticed that Aileen was still there. She seemed to have just finished organizing a complicated set of magical notes.
They left the library together. The evening breeze was cool, stirring the ends of Aileen's pale blue hair.
"Did you find the book you needed?" Aileen asked softly.
"Yeah, it helped." Lin Qin nodded.
"Good." Aileen smiled. "I'm heading back to the dormitory. See you."
"See you."
After watching Aileen head toward the women's dormitory, Lin Qin turned and made his way to the dining hall. The chance encounter at the library had led him to a useful book, and it had also made him think that Aileen was a thoughtful and friendly classmate.
At dinnertime, Luo De announced loudly in the dormitory, "Brothers! To celebrate Lin Qin's breakthrough to level four, and to reward ourselves for all our hard studying these past few days—I've decided we're having a little get-together in the dorm tonight! Barbecue! My treat!"
Keane and Carl immediately cheered. Lin Qin looked at Luo De, who was brimming with enthusiasm, and nodded rather than dampening the mood.
Before long, Luo De had somehow gotten hold of a small portable grill powered by a Fire Element Magic Crystal Core, along with several large plates of sliced meat and vegetables. The four of them gathered in the middle of the dormitory, moved the table aside, and began their barbecue feast.
Fat dripped onto the sizzling grill with a hiss, and the rich aroma of meat filled the dormitory.
"Here, Lin Qin, you get the biggest piece! You've just reached level four, so you need to build up your strength!" Luo De said warmly, placing meat on Lin Qin's plate.
"Thanks."
"Carl, stop just eating and flip the meat! It's going to burn!"
"Keane, give me some more of that Secret Sauce!"
The dormitory was filled with laughter and the aroma of food. Lin Qin ate the perfectly grilled meat, listening to Luo De brag about how cleverly he'd "borrowed" the grill from an upperclassman, hearing Carl complain about the absurd homework assigned by the Magic Array Teacher, and watching Keane carefully keep the sauce from dripping onto his magical notes.
The lively, down-to-earth atmosphere was something he couldn't experience when training alone in the back mountains. It wasn't profound or grand, but it was real and warm, and it helped his taut nerves relax a little.
"Lin Qin," Luo De asked between bites, "I heard you were reading with Aileen at the library today?"
Keane and Carl immediately looked at him with interest.
Lin Qin's expression didn't change. "We happened to run into each other. She pointed me toward the right shelf."
"Oh—" Luo De drew out the word, waggling his eyebrows. "She just pointed you toward a shelf?"
"Yeah." Lin Qin nodded firmly and kept eating.
Seeing how little reaction he got, Luo De lost interest in teasing him and changed the subject to possible topics for the final assessment.
Lin Qin ate quietly and listened. He didn't mind these simple pleasures or the teasing between companions. He knew they were little touches in his long years of cultivation, a welcome change that kept him from becoming a machine that did nothing but train.
After the meal, the dormitory still smelled faintly of barbecue. Lin Qin helped clean up, then picked up his greatsword as usual.
"You're going to train again?" Luo De asked in surprise.
"Yeah, I haven't finished for today."
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