章節 55: The Key

"Where?!", Hanz hurriedly shouted.

Hearing that Beta had a clear idea of where the key to his prison could be, excited him greatly. His jail kept draining his soulpower without any pause, not giving him any chance of recovery at all, thus, it was understandable why he'd lose his usual composure in front of the young ones. Sitting inside the rune prison for days greatly exhausted Hanz, not just bodily, but also mentally. It was quite evident with how lifeless his eyes were when they all met him, stranded and feeling helpless in a prison.

"Inside this room.", Beta said with a smile.

"Are you serious?!", Hanz asked, slightly disappointed.

He couldn't possibly feel hopeful anymore. Before entering the room he was imprisoned in, he had obviously checked everything in the previous one. On the surface, he might've seemed like he aged due to disappointment, but deep inside there was still a sliver of hope. Maybe, just maybe, there was something he had overlooked. So, he looked up at Beta and stared questioningly, wondering if he has more to add to his assumption.

"Yes, I'm serious. You didn't notice the prison, so there could also be a key hidden here somewhere, right? Why would the runemaster make any effort if no one would find it even in the same room anyway?", Beta answered laughingly.

Hanz felt awkward being reminded of his faux pas, but he also thought that it made sense. Hiding something from him would be quite easy considering that it had worked before. That fact also applies to anybody who doesn't have any knowledge about runes. So, he was basically that unlucky to be the first one to get trapped in such rune prison. Or maybe, the only one who had people that care compared to others which might've been left behind to die.

"And how are you going to find it? Even I couldn't find it, and I am much stronger.", Hanz said confusedly.

" Why state the obvious? Of course, you are stronger. But you don't know anything about runes. Runes might seem weak compared to pure soulpower, but due to its utility, it is possible to overpower someone like you.", Beta said with a grin.

Chugum had told him before that knowledge about runes is essential if you want to survive in this world. Now, he clearly knew why. Hanz, the headmaster of his school, was much stronger than him, but still couldn't do anything about his situation. Beta, on the other hand, was able to think of something because of his knowledge. This situation confirmed for him once again that knowledge is power.

Beta quickly started inspecting the walls and finally started drawing the rune "Pakita", which function was to reveal what could not be seen before. He didn't exactly expect to be able to completely see the hiding spot with it, but if it even worked slightly, he would notice a difference that he could exploit. Thus, he tried the simplest way he thought of, no matter how ridiculous it may seem. He believed that once they knew the approximate position of the key, everything would be much easier.

His swift movements in drawing the runes on the walls, the ground, and the ceiling, stunned everyone there. Brian and Domian were no exception for this. They knew that Beta was someone who would train all day, so they didn't even think of the possibility of him studying about runes at night. A slight blush surfaced on their cheeks once they thought of how people called him lazy for waking up a bit later than others. Just how many hours and devotion does one need to achieve such a result? How long has he been researching for? Even if he started cultivating at a young age, Beta was still impressive for reaching this skill level.

The runes were infused with his soulpower and embedded themselves quickly. Most runes didn't have any effect in the end. But Beta didn't stop and kept on repeating the same process to ensure that he will cover searching the whole area. After countless trial and error, there was one that finally changed its area slightly. It was barely noticeable and if Beta hadn't inspected the place carefully, he surely would not have noticed it. Luck was on his side even with a little bit of pressure from the crowd behind him with mouths still gaping open. Right below one of the runes, he noticed that a small indentation appeared. Beta's eyes started shining as he closed in on the rune. But then he stopped a few meters in front of it.

"It can't be that easy, right?", Beta thought, scrunching his eyebrows as he looked at the spot. Then suddenly, an idea surfaced in his mind.

"Headmaster, may I have some of your soulpower?", Beta asked with an apologetic look.

Hanz was completely dumbfounded by his request. He was already shocked with Beta's skill on how swiftly he drew the runes effortlessly, not to mention the area of coverage he did to ensure that he won't miss a spot. When he suddenly paused and looked at a certain spot, he knew what Beta wanted to do. But it was still hard to make the decision and agree to his request. His very life depended on the little amount of soulpower he had left right now, so giving away even a tiny bit of it was like giving away his chance of living longer.

When he looked at Beta's young stature and the runes he made, he somehow felt different. If the key really was there, then this might be his only chance. After some time of contemplating on his own, he finally gave in to the gamble and betted on trusting Beta. As a headmaster, if he can't even believe in his own academy's young genius then he would be a disgrace compared to others. Thus, Hanz, without hesitation, pulled out a small bottle and filled it with a bit of soulpower. In the process, three-fourths of it were taken away by the prison, completely exhausting him. He then called in the vice-headmaster who was made to use up most of his strength to pry open a hole the size of a finger on the rune prison, which the headmaster used to push the bottle through. Beta caught it and the vice-headmaster was sent away again to guard the entrance, at the same time, to recuperate from soul power exhaustion. Guarding the place was, after all, of utmost importance when it was unknown what kind of hidden agendas others might have.

Beta, whose eyes were clearly pasted on the soulpower bottle, couldn't help but be amazed by how pure the soulpower was contained. Though it was only a little amount, he could tell that with that much of an energy source, it'd be possible for him to create a very ludicrous rune. The temptation to just run with it was in his mind but then he shook it off and finally used the half of the soulpower to fill a detection rune which was made to see if there were any traps ahead. Since the headmaster's soulpower is much stronger, he needed the energy to sustain the rune so that he won't make any mistake on his way to the spot where he noticed that the clue.

His mother once told him, "You can't be too complacent just because what you want is in front of you. To reach the best result, you must be careful and be thorough with the process." That was when he was being impatient on trying to harvest a plant, while his mother was guiding him on. The plant released a poisonous gas because he wasn't careful enough which, in the end, caused his death. Everything isn't as simple as it seems in the surface after all, thus, when he saw how easy it was for him to spot the area, he made sure that he won't be caught in any mishap and also didn't hesitate to ask for assistance.

Only after he was sure that there were definitely no traps, did he fill the reveal rune, which he quickly made earlier, with the headmaster's soulpower. The strong soulpower of a Sorcerer entered the rune, letting it shine brightly. Moments later, a handle that was seamlessly embedded into the ground was revealed. Everyone was very excited about the whole process, especially the headmaster who was almost tearful when he realized that he wasn't wrong with his decision to trust Beta. It was almost as if he could already feel freedom at the tip of his fingers. Beta ignored everyone's gasp as he used a knife to get the handle into a position where he can grab it and pulled. There wasn't anything spectacular about it as expected. A trapdoor opened and a small place with a key in it was clearly visible. Beta happily took the key and ran up towards the headmaster without saying anything.

At first, the headmaster was wondering if there was possibly a trap within the trapdoor, but once he saw the key in Beta's hands, he was completely euphoric. Looking at Beta rushing towards him, his heart got warmer and he swore to himself that he would definitely give this smart fella an extra reward.

"Eh?"

Suddenly, Beta stopped in his steps, much to the surprise of everyone. The door was right in front of him, but he didn't move the hand that held the key at all.

"What are you doing? Why aren't you using the key?", Hanz asked anxiously.

"I-I'm sorry, headmaster... this is truly an unexpected outcome...", Beta answered, shaking his head with a slight self-ridiculing smile plastered on his face.

"What are you even talking about? Just open the door already!", Hanz said, getting angrier and impatient.

"The key... is not for your prison...", Beta said getting quieter as he spoke.

"Not for my prison?! What is it for then?" This time, Hanz' voice was completely disbelieving.

"I'm not sure what it's for, but it's somewhere up north. Rune keys are always connected to one certain door, so they can't be used for any other. It looks like the key to your prison wasn't hidden here after all and my whole hypothesis didn't work out in the end...", Beta said sadly, while scratching his head.

It was clear that Beta didn't expect that kind of outcome which made him obviously look depressed not only due to not being able to free the headmaster, but also to be wrong with his assumption. What he mentioned might be mistaken as him only caring about his hypothesis, but it still didn't change his intention of wanting to save his headmaster. He had a good impression of him and truly wished to save him. If there were rewards that came with it, of course, he would gladly take them.

Hanz slumped together, his hope diminishing to rock bottom. He let out a sigh and looked at Beta who looked similarly sad and a smile resurfaced on his face.

"Just go and find the door for the key. Maybe you'll be able to find the key to this prison there.", Hanz said, encouraging Beta.

Though he wasn't feeling any better, as the older one and the headmaster at that, he couldn't possibly let the young one's effort go to waste. So, he gathered up his leftover willpower to be more convincing. Beta, who was distracted from thinking of other ways, heard Hanz' encouragement and looked deep into his eyes. Even though he could tell that Hanz was obviously in a much worse situation now, he threw away his worries and agreed. This might be the only way as he had no other clue. He nodded and signaled for his squad to leave with him immediately. On his way out, Beta looked at his team.

"We're going to get the key.", Beta said as if deciding something definite.

"Of course! Who do you think we are? Class 2-S will not fail!", his squad said in unison. They, too, wanted to save their headmaster.

Beta was touched hearing what they said. He was happy to have a squad like this that he could rely on. But he also didn't forget about their conditions either. If he lost his whole squad just for trying to save one person, it wouldn't be worth it. The rewards can't compensate for the relationships and experience he had built up with them together for two years after all. They proceeded forward, not knowing that in Beta's mind, he placed all of them in a higher position compared to their headmaster. He clearly wanted to have his priorities set in case things went south. After leaving the area that the vice-headmaster guarded, Beta stopped.

"We'll camp here for tonight and head out tomorrow.", Beta said decisively.

There were some squabbles due to their eagerness of finishing the mission, but they too realized that they needed rest after all the walking they did, not to mention the countless fights they encountered. They then quickly set up their camp in a house next to the escape route they made earlier that day.

"I wonder if we'll even be able to sleep properly tonight...", Beta mumbled as he looked at the sky outside that turned darker and darker.