CHAPTER 142: WE MEET AGAIN, MISS LESLIE

Noah stepped into the library, heading straight for the reception desk.

The receptionist looked up as he approached. Her eyes flickered to the gold trim on his uniform, then to his golden nameplate sitting on his chest, before rising back up to his face.

"How may I help you?" She smiled.

Noah smiled pleasantly, slipping his hand into his pocket. His hand closed around the familiar coolness that he’d come to expect in there.

He pulled out the diamond spell token, setting it on the counter.

The woman’s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out of her skull. "Err...," she stammered, "please wait a moment."

She stood, eyeing the token like it was something dangerous. Her eyes flickered around the library, checking for who had spotted the exchange. "You can keep the token."

Noah nodded in response, swiping the token off the counter and pocketing it.

Without another word, the receptionist left through the back door.

Noah stood there, whistling for almost a minute before she returned. This time, she was alone.

Noah raised his brows at that. He’d been expecting Miss Leslie, the same woman who’d attended to him when he’d come to redeem Devour, to come back with her.

Then, the woman spoke. "Miss Leslie is expecting you."

Noah blinked. "Oh."

Then he chuckled. Of course, she won’t come out here to welcome him all the time.

"Do you need an escort?" The receptionist asked.

"No, thank you." Noah smiled pleasantly. "I know the way myself."

And with a nod to her, he set off. He walked through the administrative parts of the library, retracing his steps from memory. It felt like a million years had passed since he’d last set foot in here.

Minutes later, he stood in front of a familiar door, its plaque reading, "Authorised Personnel Only."

He knocked.

"Come in." A voice floated from within.

Noah stood for half a second, staring at the door, wondering how he was going to open it. After all, it had no knob for him to push or pull.

Then, the door clicked, detaching itself from its frame. Noah smiled at the sight, pushing it open.

The door swung open to reveal Miss Leslie’s office. It was familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.

The unfinished spell matrices and certificates still hung on the walls. There was still a bookshelf along the left wall, and a tall window, sending the light of the sun spilling into the room.

It looked the same, but at the same time, it looked different. Maybe because now, Noah could feel all the magic humming inside the room.

When he’d come here the first time, he hadn’t felt anything, but now, it seemed he was sensitive to it. The room was like a vault of magic.

Every wall had enchantments running through it, and some of the unfinished spell matrices in the walls were actually finished spell formations with some part hidden out of view, ready for whatever purpose they’d been made for.

His eyes flicked to the window, knowing in that instant that it was fake. His Void affinity hummed as he studied it, alerting him that he might very well be underground, instead of in an office with a view of the campus grounds.

Then, his gaze landed on Miss Leslie. The middle-aged woman had her hair wrapped up in a tight bun, just like the last time Noah had seen her. And just like that time, she had on a black official looking robe.

"Mr. Webb." She smiled at him from behind her desk, and motioned to the single chair opposite her. "Do have your seat. I have been expecting you."

"Miss Leslie." Noah smiled, taking a seat. "It is a pleasure to see you again."

"Likewise, Mr. Webb." Miss Leslie smiled. "It isn’t everyday in which the entire spell vault is open to a student."

Noah smiled, saying nothing.

"May I see the token?" Miss Leslie tilted her head. "Each spell token has its own restrictions, and the spell vault will only open based on the parameters in its token."

"Is that so?" Noah hummed, fishing out the token from his pocket. He handed it to her. "I wonder what restrictions this one has."

Miss Leslie collected the token and held it up to the light, studying it intently. Whatever she was looking for, Noah had no idea.

"Hmmmm." She nodded to herself, before placing the token back on the table. "I’m afraid that this is an affinity based token."

Noah raised a brow. "And what does that mean?"

"It means that while the entire vault is open to you, it is restricted only to your affinities. This means you can take any spell, as long as it’s within your affinities."

"I see." Noah nodded. "I don’t mind."

"Good." Miss Leslie smiled at that. "We may proceed."

She leaned back, and quickly rummaged through one of the drawers on her desk, retrieving a small metallic cube.

She placed it on the table, and with a tap, it unravelled into a thin glass-like sheet that flowed with blue lines of words. She picked up the token from the table and placed it on the surface of the screen.

The moment the token touched the screen, it lit up in an array of colors, the colors streaming through the diamond, which glowed a bright white.

A few seconds later, the glow dimmed into a dull gold. The letters on the screen had also changed from blue to gold.

Miss Leslie nodded at something, before handing the token back to Noah.

Noah accepted it, pocketing it again.

Miss Leslie fiddled with the screen, configuring a few things. "Before we begin, I would like to know what affinities you possess."

Noah frowned. "Don’t you already know that?"

Miss Leslie looked up from the screen, a smile appearing on her face. "Yes, we do." She smiled. "But we also like to hear the students repeat it for themselves. It’s a... security feature. Everything from your voice, body language, and cadence would be recorded by the cube to confirm that it is in fact, Noah Webb who is in this room."

"I see." Noah nodded, taking a look around the room again. The room truly was not normal. "My affinities are Fire, Darkness, Void, Decay, and Hunger."

Miss Leslie stared at the screen for a second before the smile returned to her face. "Perfect. Let’s begin."