It Started with Slime - Part 1

Chapter 128 - Academy's Sanctum

The duo of Aarav and Boren now stood in front of the yawning entrance of the Academy, suitably intimidated. Aarav because he was still in awe of the size of this place. Boren was not entirely sure this was the best idea when he was on the run from the palace authorities. "Are you ready to step into the beast's mouth?" Aarav asked his young companion.

"Umm...maybe this isn't the best idea." Boren recanted his earlier excitement when confronted by the colossus in front of them.

"You want to back out now?" Aarav asked incredulously. They had come all this way. After all, this was the final three per cent. "Come on." He encouraged the suddenly shy prince.

"Umm, how are we supposed to get in without any identification? We aren't even Academy students." Boren said.

"We'll think of something. Let's just get to the entrance." Aarav said, suiting his words by striding forward on his stubby legs.

The stairs posed the first challenge with how wide they were, designed for adult-sized people as they were. Still, with a bit of struggle, they both made it up. People around them turned to look at the odd sight. A child and an overly large fairy making their way up a set of stairs that any fairy would fly over, and any child would enter from the Academy side. This was the public entrance.

Ignoring the voyeurs, they continued on to the Grand Entrance of the Library. Aarav could see old men and a few women plodding inside, most with books in their arms coming and going through the main entrance. Clothes braced against the wind. Aarav wondered if the old people here got cold as well. But then skill and stats probably removed those problems quite effectively.

One old man walked past Aarav moving further down the stairs before starting and spinning back. "Fascinating! Have you always been this size? Or are you the only one of your kids who has reached a full foot's esteemed height?" The man peered closely at Aarav to the point where the Slime could smell his old breath, like parchment on his face, before backing away.

"Umm. I have always been this size, and I know others of my kind who are the same size. I promise! Please, I need to go." Aarav said, continuing to back away, and the man relentlessly pursued. What on earth what this guy about? I need to get away from crazy!

Meanwhile, Boren was silently chuckling at Aarav's distress, trying and failing to hide it behind a closed hand. The old man, failing to catch up to Aarav, rounded on him instead. "Child, have you been friends with this fairy long? How did you meet him? What is his origin? Do you know?" The questions were flying thick and fast, and Boren had no time to answer them. His laughter had redoubled upon hearing the intense questioning.

Thank god his hand is covering his face. He might have been recognised otherwise! Still, he didn't need to laugh quite that hard. Seeing that Aarav had stopped moving, the old man switched gears and came back for him. Who is this guy? Aarav thought.

Boren and Aarav were dashing into the library, yelling apologies over their shoulders a few seconds later.

"Sorry, best be on our way!"

"I apologise. We do need to be off!"

There was no helping it. But as Boren and Aarav skidded to a halt in front of the barrier to entry, Boren's nervousness returned, the joy bleeding from his eyes like ink in water.

Aarav stared at the blue barrier in front of them. It looked like a forcefield if Aarav had to guess, and it had been invisible until the boys were almost through it. "What is that?" Aarav quickly asked.

"That's the thing I was worried about," Boren said hesitantly, glancing over his shoulder at the old man trundling up behind them. He was annoyingly persistent. "When we go through, it will identify us, then record our passing and check if we have the passes to get in or not."

Aarav just stared between the barrier and the boy with him. "And you telling me this now? Obviously, we can't go in. We don't have the authorisation for one, not being students of the academy. Also, they will know you as soon as you make it through." Aarav's supposed positive luck stat was doing nothing to help him. Did he seem more prone to misfortune with this boy around? No, it was simply par for the course with his life. Thanks a lot, Luck! He sneered at his supposed good fortune. "Well? What now?" the resignation on Boren's face was all the answer he needed. "Don't give up. We can look at the library another time, once we are a part of the Academy. Haemish said I would be able to join if I can take on the semblance of a sentient creature; clearly, I have done it." Aarav gestured to his personage.

"Not very convincing, but we need to get out of here now if we don't want to be recognised," Boren said, shifting from his normal voice to a whisper halfway through the sentence.

"Yeah! Let's go." Aarav said quickly and suited his words by whirling around and bursting past the old man who had made it up to them. He seemed oblivious to their attempts to get away from him. Hmm, scholars! Aarav thought. He had met a few, but none as oblivious to the real world as this old guy.

"Prince Boren!?" the croaky old man had glanced over to the boy with him as they rushed past, and without his hand hiding half his face, the old man had identified Boren without a problem. Aww, crap! This day just keeps getting better!

"See you, Toril!" Boren grinned as he went past, leaving Toril in the dust behind them.

"You knew him?" Aarav asked incredulously. "And you basically admitted that it was you. Why? WHY?" They might have been able to play it off if he hadn't. No, who am I kidding? No way people don't recognise the Prince.

Both Aarav and Boren continued to rush down the stairs and out onto the square. People were starting to whisper as they saw what looked like two children running away from the library and whispers of the Prince. Toril hadn't been quiet in his surprise at seeing Boren.

"Quick, into one of the alleys!" Aarav said in a stage whisper. "We need to get out of sight for a bit!"

Boren quickly agreed, a grin on his face. This idiot loves this! Aarav would give the boy a strong talking to once this was done.

Two minutes later, they were panting and cowering in an alley away from prying eyes. Aarav, reflexively trying to catch his non-existent breath, quickly made his feelings known. "That was stupid and reckless! If I had known about the barrier beforehand, I would have said, let's go somewhere else! How could you not tell me about it!"

"Everybody knows about the barrier! I thought you had a way to get past it. Otherwise, why would you suggest we go to the library first?" Boren looked confused and a little hurt. Probably because of the accusations I am throwing his way.

"You're right, but please, can you just assume that I know NOTHING about the kingdom? I am new here, this is my first time in Darf unsupervised, and I need to know what we can and can't do yet."

"I will try, but assuming you know nothing is as easy as it sounds. I take many things for granted, and I will likely forget about them until it's too late. For example, do you know how to breathe? That is straightforward, but if you say you know nothing, do I need to remind you to do that?" Aarav blinked. That was a surprisingly mature thing for Boren to say, he would not have expected that level of reasoning from a child, but he also couldn't fault it.

"I get it. I will ask more questions." Aarav replied with the same resigned expression Boren had on earlier.

Boren smiled and nodded before settling down next to him again. He had been gesticulating to make his point, and Aarav had slumped to the alley floor.

"Well, well, well! What have we here?" an annoying nasally voice spoke.

"It looks like a little Princeling and his little pet, boss!" this one a dull and droning sound no less irritating.

"So it does, so it does, maybe we can find something useful for them to do, can't we?" the first voice replied.