Heir of the Sword

02 | Canticum

Canticum {A song}

After dinner in the dining hall, Arya headed towards the library. As much as she loved to read, the library was far from her favourite place. It wasn't that the library was hideous. No, in fact, the library was one of the most gorgeous places in the Academy. It had been built as a circular structure with shelves hosting massive volumes. The librarian, Madame Haylee, was kind as well. The only issue Arya had with the library was that it usually had large amount of other girls in it, either finishing their work or simply chatting.

It was the chatting that got to her the most. Every time she heard someone giggling, Arya would have to clench her fist in order not to shout at them to keep their trap shut, or better yet hold them under the tip of her sword. The library was a sacred place and these girls didn't have the right amount of respect for such a powerful place.

As Arya had expected, when she entered the library she was met with all kinds of noises. She winced at the impact as it affected her more than any mere person. Her hearing was sharpened do to her intensive training. She would sit on the same rock for hours listening to the sound of nature. It had taken a while but Arya's hearing became sharper each time. At first she could only here the birds chirping and the crickets in the distance, but pretty soon she was able to hear the song of the wind, the rustling of the grass, and the speeches of the trees.

It was breathtaking but it had its downfall in moments where there was a big crowd, the noises simply got to her. She quickened her pace and approached Madame Haylee's desk. She had a quill in her hand and seemed to be scribbling words down on a parchment.

"Good evening Madame," Arya greeted her politely.

Madame Haylee looked up from her writing to pierce her gaze at the girl that stood before her. "Nice to see you again Arya, what may I do for you this fine evening?"

"It's an urgent matter. I am looking for a book or anything pertaining to the Heres Gladii."

I twinkling look made its way into Madame Haylee's eyes. "Ah, the Heres Gladii, let me guess. Madame Mina?"

Arya nodded surprised at her reaction. It seemed that Madame Haylee did have some knowledge about the matter. "Yes, she assigned me an essay due tomorrow."

"That crafty witch Mina, only she would dare to do something daunting as that." Madame Haylee muttered under her breathe.

She came out from behind the desk and started walking brusquely without saying a word. Arya assumed that she expected to follow, so she did. She climbed the stairs to a secluded section of the library. Here there were no giggling girls. The books were bound in thick leather and many of them even contained dust. Blowing the dust off, Madame Haylee presented Arya with three leather bound scriptures.

"You might find something in here that could be useful. But I highly doubt that. If you don't find any more information I would suggest making an appointment with Lady Zelie. There is nothing wrong with that, and she will have the most knowledge about the Heres Gladii." she said before turning on her heels and leaving Arya to her own thoughts.

Arya opened the first book and immediately coughed. Dust exploded into her face. It seemed that this book hadn't been opened in years. She wiped the dust from the page to come across the text. She read through it quickly. It was about the history of Kalvaria and about the heroics of Sir Lancelot. There were occasional mentions of King Edward but nothing about what she was looking for.

As the evening progressed Arya found that she was more anxious and restless. She had found no information she could actually use. Most of what was in the books she already knew. After she retrieved the information, she would still need to write her essay. She was certain that Madame Mina would not let her enter the class without the essay.