"Books on ancient runes?" Mrs. Pince took the note, read its contents aloud, and then looked Albert up and down with a suspicious gaze. "Professor Broad has recently borrowed a large number of books related to ancient runes from the library."
"Yes, Professor Brod is conducting research in this area," Albert nodded.
Mrs. Pince held the note up to the light to check if it was a forgery, and of course, it passed the test without incident.
"There aren't many books left on ancient magical script in the forbidden book section. Which one do you plan to borrow?" Mrs. Pins asked, putting away the note.
"I'm not sure yet. I need to read them all to know which one I need." Albert wasn't quite sure what he needed either, but he knew he had accomplished one of the tasks in the "Magic Forbidden Zone."
"Professor Brod asked you to borrow books?" Izabel walked over, frowning slightly as she asked. Most of the time, she was the one who came to borrow books for Professor Brod.
"No, I'm here to find some information." Albert didn't hide anything, his gaze shifting to the books in Izabel's hands, his brows furrowing slightly. "I feel like I'm lacking something in ancient runes, so I hope to find the answers in the forbidden book section."
"Come with me, Mr. Anderson. But I must warn you, most of the books in the restricted section related to ancient runes have been borrowed by Miss Isabel," Mrs. Pines reminded her. She could tell that Albert and Isabel knew each other, and that they were both working for Professor Brod.
When Albert was led by Mrs. Pince to a corner of the forbidden book section, he discovered that there were indeed very few books left related to ancient magic script.
"May I look around here?" Albert asked Mrs. Pince.
"Yes, but don't stay too long, and don't touch any other books," Mrs. Pince warned. "I'll be watching you."
Albert ignored Mrs. Pince's warning and prepared to peruse the remaining books, looking for records he might need. However, he had to admit that these ancient books were indeed annoying—complex, tedious, and difficult to understand. In modern terms, much of what he read was described in a very confusing way.
Albert flipped through several books, but felt that only one book describing the use of ancient spells might be able to help him. Those spells were written in ancient magic script and were accompanied by descriptions. Some were black magic and some were not.
However, it really is a ghost story. If one is not proficient in ancient magical script, one would not even be able to understand what is written in the book.
This is a rare copy, and it looks dirty, as if it's about to get moldy.
In fact, all the books in the restricted section are in this terrible state.
Albert didn't intend to borrow the book; he simply copied down the spells he found useful onto the parchment. Perhaps he should have asked Mr. McDougall instead of trying them himself, which was clearly not a wise choice.
After an unknown amount of time, Albert gradually wrote more and more on the parchment, but he still hadn't found what he was looking for.
"You don't seem to have found what you're looking for?" Isabel said, sitting down beside Albert at some point, as he closed his book. The girl's gaze fell on Albert's parchment, her eyes gleaming with an unusual light.
"No." Albert knew it wasn't that simple, unless he wanted to use the skill panel, but doing so would make him feel like he was losing the fun of exploring magic.
"What are you looking for?" Isabel was actually very curious about what Albert was looking for. In her opinion, Albert's mastery of ancient runes was already very high.
Runes are a magical script; their essence may be a form of incantation. Using them to cast spells, record magic, or carve them onto natural materials such as stone and wood can endow them with unparalleled magical power.
"Are you looking for ways to use ancient runes?" Isabel already understood what Albert was looking for, although it seemed quite absurd to her. If runes were truly a magical script, why had almost no one mentioned it?
"Mr. McDougal should already know how to use it," Albert said, shaking the wooden bracelet on his wrist. "Unlike me, who can only use runes as meaningless ornaments."
Izebel fell into a brief silence before asking, "Could I take a look?"
"Here you go." Albert took off the wooden bracelet and handed it to Izebel.
After observing it carefully, the latter asked softly, "What spell did you cast on it?"
"Iron Armor Spell".
"You want to use runes to enhance the effect of the Ironclad Curse?" Izabel frowned, carefully examining the runes on the wooden bracelet, only to find that he couldn't understand them.
"Did you design this yourself?" she asked curiously.
"Hmm," Albert said, "as you can see, these runes are merely decorative."
"It looks complicated." Isabel handed the wooden bracelet back to Albert. "What do you feel you're missing?"
"Mr. McDougall said that to master the power of ancient runes, one needs to be proficient in using runes, secondly, to have a strong foundation of magical power, and thirdly, to be proficient in using ancient spells."
"You are already satisfied with your proficiency in runes," Izabel said after a moment of thought. "But your age means your magical powers will need more time to develop, and it will be difficult to master ancient spells."
"I think so too, but it's not too bad." Albert pointed to the parchment. "I found some spells that use ancient runes, but without exception they are probably very powerful, but also very crude."
"What do you think you're still lacking?" Isabel wanted to hear Albert's personal opinion, after all, the other party was also a genius and couldn't possibly be without his own thoughts.
"Spells, or ways to channel the power of runes," Albert said honestly, "but I still haven't found the right method."
"Perhaps there's a book that might suit you," Isabel said, pointing to the book he had brought back.
"The Complete Guide to Magic." Albert glanced at the title and raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, The Complete Book of Magic is said to be a book that introduces the ancient wizards' understanding of magic. Unfortunately, it is all recorded in runes, and I can't understand it."
The book was returned to Isabel by Uncle McDougal after she returned to Professor Brod's office; she felt it was a hint for Albert.
However, Isabel didn't understand why Uncle McDougal was giving Albert hints indirectly. Wouldn't it have been better for him to just tell Albert directly?
"That's strange." Albert flipped through a few pages and nodded. "I feel like it might be useful to me. Thank you."
"You're welcome," Izebel said. "If you learn anything, please be sure to share it with me."
"Okay," Albert said, putting the parchment into his pocket and walking out of the forbidden book section with Izabel, carrying the book in his hand.
"Isabel?" Katrina, who was registering her borrowing information, looked at her sister, who was walking out of the restricted section, with surprise. Her gaze then fell on Albert, and she raised an eyebrow slightly, saying, "Professor Brod sent you to borrow books?"
Katrina knew a little about McDougal's affairs and that Isabel had been helping Professor Brod borrow books from the library. Frankly, Katrina envied the two lucky guys, knowing that Uncle McDougal was always very generous.