The sun filtered in through the tall arched windows of the Rune Department's main office, casting golden light over countless bookshelves, floating scrolls, and half-assembled rune constructs buzzing with mana.
At the center of the chaos stood Alex Dragonheart, arms crossed, eyes slightly narrowed, while a man with disheveled grey hair, a monocle strapped to one eye, and ink-stained gloves danced excitedly around a glowing chalkboard.
Rick Colesan—Rune Division Head, madman, and Alex's rune-crafting master—was in his element.
"Now, pay attention, boy!" Rick shouted, smacking the board with a mana-inscribed wand. "This here—this is the Binding Sigil, one of the foundations of containment runes! Combine this with a focus glyph and a channel rune, and you can trap the mana flow of a core without it imploding!"
'Why does he always act like he's defusing a bomb instead of teaching runes...' Alex thought, watching the old man vibrate with enthusiasm.
