Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Epilogue

Afterword

Copyright © 2022 Nathan Gregg

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

To my mother, who told me to do whatever I

wanted, so long as it was my passion.

Chapter 1

Aldric suspected that he’d been set up.

If he’d looked, all the signs would have been there. Zasia was getting invited to a professorship at a prestigious magic academy suddenly, one that was run by their old friend Kedrin. She also ended up convincing Aldric that he needed to pack up and come with her to the city of Nevis, the academy’s location, since he was almost totally reliant upon her. The very sudden and surprise nature of their move gave Aldric little opportunity to refuse. And of course, being summoned to a meeting with Headmaster Kedrin Elmaris the moment they made it to the front gates of the academy was the cherry on top.

The real giveaway, though, was the messenger Kedrin had sent. He’d addressed both of them as “Professor”.

Aldric had felt something like a noose slowly tightening around his neck as he was led further into the immaculate and prestigious magic academy. Long, expansive marble hallways were filled to the brim with students and teachers alike. The school year must have just started for it to be this busy. They all had looked at Zasia with curious interest and Aldric with barely suppressed skepticism. He couldn’t blame them. He didn’t think he belonged in a place full of noble brats and snooty “experts” either.

Aldric had kept his head down and done his best not to stand out. Did his friends forget how important it was that he not be recognized?

After being dragged into the depths of the campus and escorted to the headmaster’s office, Aldric was now seated across from the two perpetrators of this plot. They were both positioned behind Kedrin’s rather large desk, like they were using it as a barricade against him. Kedrin pushed his oversized glasses further up his nose, brushing his dark brown bangs out of his eyes as he adjusted his seat nervously. Aldric’s longtime friend had aged since he’d last seen him, but still kept the air of boyish youth he remembered him for. He couldn’t be any older than Aldric himself, early thirties at most, but his headmaster’s robes seemed to suit him well despite that. His ever-present smile was firmly in place, though it looked forced today.

Speaking of aging well, Zasia was still the second most gorgeous woman Aldric had ever laid eyes on, even after all the years he’d known her. Luxurious blonde hair and radiant green eyes framed a flawless face that would have been perfect if she didn’t frown so much. Well, she often frowned at him, anyway. She was messing with Kedrin’s bookshelves while pointedly not looking at Aldric, toying with her ponytail and running an absent hand over her fine red dress in a show of bored innocence.

Apparently, Aldric’s two oldest and closest friends thought he was an idiot. Maybe he was, since they’d already tricked him into coming all the way here, but it was Kedrin’s most recent proposition that convinced Aldric that his two friends had lost their minds.

“...you want me to teach here?” Aldric asked. He didn’t bother to hide his disbelieving tone. His two friends flicked a glance toward each other and conducted some sort of unspoken conversation, then both turned to him and nodded.

Yeah, they’d planned this.

Aldric could understand Zasia getting a job here. She was one of the preeminent conjurers of their time, being ludicrously talented and gifted with control of all four unique elements of conjuration magic. Kedrin’s friendship was the only thing that kept her from being snatched up by some other institution. She certainly had the wealth to match her prestige, and that didn’t even count the wealth her noble family possessed.

Kedrin was no slouch either, being one of the leading experts in both the theory and practice of the healing magic arts, and headmaster of one of the largest and most prestigious academies on the continent. Both of them had glowing resumes longer than they were tall. Potential employers would give an arm and a leg to have either of these two on their staff. Why wouldn’t they have prominent positions at this academy?

And then there was Aldric. In stark contrast to his friends, he was a washed up has been, almost perpetually drunk, and lived only by the good graces of Zasia for the nearly seven years she had housed and fed him. Not exactly a shining example of academic excellence.

“There would be benefits as well, of course!” Kedrin suddenly blurted into the awkward silence, as if a lack of job perks was what had confused Aldric. “We provide room and board for all of our professors, and bonuses depending on student performance.”

“What about the fact that I have zero experience?” Aldric asked, still not quite believing these two were being serious.

“We’ve set up a much smaller general studies class for you, just to ease you into the position,” Zasia added, coming to Kedrin’s rescue but still facing his shelves. “It will be entirely up to you what you teach, and you will only be beholden to Kedrin and myself about how you conduct your lessons. We will also periodically check in on your students’ progress and offer help as needed.”

Aldric sat in dumbfounded silence, not sure how to feel or respond. Zasia peeked to the side at Aldric to gauge his reaction, but snapped her gaze to Kedrin’s desk when she saw that he’d noticed her. She busied herself fiddling with random papers and putting on a show of being productive.

“And it’s not like we expect you to just dive in and get everything from the beginning!” Kedrin added, his nerves growing more obvious as he rambled. “We have a very large teaching staff that is more than willing to assist with questions! All academy resources are at your disposal! I’m sure our library has books that even you haven’t--”

Kedrin was still rambling about job benefits when Aldric cut him off. “You really thought I’d go for this?”

The question came out sharper than he’d intended, and Kedrin’s mouth snapped shut at the anger in his voice. Zasia finally looked Aldric in the eye, wearing a glare to match his own.

“It’s not like we’re interrupting a busy time in your life, Aldric,” she answered curtly. “You can’t just spend the rest of you days wallowing in regret and self-pity. It’s time to grow up and actually live for once. This will be good for you and give you something to work towards.”

Aldric didn’t like the haughty and domineering tone she was using, like this was all already decided for him and he just needed to get with the program. “Since when has it been up to the two of you how I should live my life?”

“Since you became entirely reliant on me for finances.” Zasia’s facade of a polite noblewoman was slipping in the wake of her obvious frustration. “Aldric, I’ve been remarkably patient with you, but you’ve become little better than a vagrant. I’ve given you seven years to pull yourself together, doing absolutely everything in my power to help you get there, and yet you still refuse to change for the better. Now I’m going to make you. Either you can take a job here at the academy as a professor, or you can find someone else to coddle you. Good luck finding someone more patient than I am!”

“Zasia, maybe that’s a bit--” Kedrin began, but Zasia talked over him, finally losing her composure. This had obviously been building up in her for a long time.

“No, Kedrin, I’m done making excuses for him! Aldric, every night you come home stumbling drunk or covered in bruises from some stupid brawl you got into, and that’s on the nights that you come home at all! If I had a gold piece for every night I spent up late, waiting and worrying and wondering if you had died in a ditch somewhere, I’d own the entire Rhagian empire! Do you really expect me to just watch you wither away into nothing? Do you think I took care of you all this time just to let you become a degenerate with no future?”

Zasia had fully lost her cool now, ignoring Kedrin’s attempts to get her to calm down. Aldric felt his own anger spiking in response. “Like I said, that’s not up to you, Zasia! If I want to piss my life down the drain, that’s for me to decide!”

“Are you so selfish that you think your life doesn’t have any effect on anyone else? Gods above know that you have no problem roping others into your misery as well! Need I remind you what happened with the blacksmith’s daughter?”

“Oh, of course, this again!”

“Yes, because you never seem to hear me when--!”

“ENOUGH!”

Both of them flinched at Kedrin’s shout, like someone had doused them with cold water. Shouting wasn’t something their placid and good-natured friend often did.

“Yelling at each other accomplishes nothing,” he said tiredly, rubbing his temples in exasperation. “Both of you, calm down and take a breath. I believe it’s my turn to talk, yes?”

Zasia let out a noise that was somewhere between a huff and a growl as she stormed to the other end of the room. She prepared herself a cup of tea from an expensive-looking tea set, albeit with more clangs and clinks than was strictly necessary. Aldric just crossed his arms and stared out the large window behind Kedrin’s desk, a scowl set firmly on his face. It was the same argument they’d been having for years now. They’d argue, both of them would get worked up, and Aldric would run out to burn off some steam, only to be yelled at once again in the morning for being late. Rinse and repeat.

Kedrin looked back at Aldric and smiled sadly. “While she may be harsh, she has a point. It has been a very long time since I’ve last seen you, my friend, and I can tell that you are not the same man I knew all those years ago. Or if you are, I have a hard time seeing him now. The two of you butted heads constantly before, but you were never furious with each other like you are now.”

Zasia mirrored Aldric’s snort of derision at almost the same time. Kedrin just sighed again.

“I remember a young man who possessed an excitement for magic and learning that rivaled even those who claimed to be experts in their field.” Kedrin continued. “A young man who never ceased to amaze me with the things he could come up with, and the delight he took in shattering the preconceptions of what mages thought was possible. Which is why it tears our hearts to pieces to see what has become of him. Ever since--”

“Don’t.”

He didn’t speak loudly or angrily, but Aldric’s single stern word stopped the conversation dead. Silence again filled the room while Aldric did his best to shove his past demons back into the pit he’d buried them in.

After the silence continued for what could have been hours or seconds, Zasia paused in her task long enough to peek at Aldric. The look of pity in her eyes hurt more than anything she could have said. He hated that look.

After letting the quiet linger for a moment longer, Kedrin continued in a soft voice. “... since then. I miss that young man. He was like a brother to me and Zasia. There is very little I wouldn’t try to get him back. You may think us crazy for trying such a thing as making you a teacher, but I am still the headmaster of this academy. As much as I care for you, if I did not think you would excel as an educator, I would never offer you the position. I genuinely believe that you will be an immeasurable source of knowledge for these students, as much as they will be an excellent influence on you. Maybe you’re right, maybe it won’t work, but it won’t be because we didn’t try our best for you.”

Kedrin let that sink in for a moment, then continued in a quieter voice. “There’s also the matter of your... well, your past circumstances. It's getting harder to hide you effectively. We had thought curiosity around you had abated somewhat, but it seems we were wrong.”

Aldric’s earlier anger was forgotten in the wake of his sudden spike of fear. “What do you mean?” he asked quickly.

“Zasia and I have been repeatedly approached regarding anything remaining of you,” Kedrin answered. “We were the closest to you before your ‘death’, so they assume you left something for us. It started out as only polite inquiry, but it has gotten more forceful. We went from politely dismissing messengers to fending off full blown nobility knocking on our doors. I don’t think they ever believed us, and it’s only a matter of time before they try to force our hands.”

Aldric was trying not to show how panicked he felt or how fast his heart was beating. Based on Kedrin’s sympathetic expression, he’d failed.

“We believe that bringing you into the academy as a professor will take attention away from you. Lady Zasia Glory housing an unknown stranger has already drawn attention. With any luck, bringing you into a large academy with abundant staff will help you blend in more.”

Aldric was annoyed that he didn’t have a good argument against that. Zasia had finished preparing her tea and had taken a seat next to Aldric in front of Kedrin’s desk. She slowly turned her face to Aldric, and he could tell that all her anger had bled out already. In its place was regret, fear, despair, sympathy, and the beginnings of hope. Aldric looked away and stared at Kedrin’s desk, unable to meet either of their eyes.

“So that is what I am going to ask you to do, Aldric. To try. All I ask is that you try just one class session. I really think that the best thing for you now is simply something to work towards. You might teach these students even more than I or Zasia could.”

Aldric opened his mouth to argue, but Kedrin beat him to it.

“I do not expect you to teach them everything you know, of course,” he added quickly. “And I agree it is probably best you keep those things to yourself for now.” Seeing Aldric close his mouth and resume his brooding, Kedrin continued. “But I certainly have no intention of making you do something that you don’t want to do. As nosy as you may think we are being, we are your friends, and will always be your friends.”

He leaned forward and steepled his fingers under his chin, giving Aldric an uncomfortable amount of eye contact.

“But this must be your choice, Aldric. If you can look me in the eye and honestly swear to me that all you need to have a fulfilled life is to get drunk, get into fights and pass out, only to do it all again the next day, then I will leave you to it.”

Aldric had nothing he could immediately say. He was usually better at coming up with witty responses than this, but their genuine concern gnawed at Aldric’s insides. Kedrin had always been the voice of reason, and that hadn’t changed in the almost decade they’d been apart. Zasia sipped her tea and waited with a rare look of nervousness on her face. As much as she could annoy him sometimes, he hated being the reason for the normally confident and self-assured woman to be so agitated.

Aldric slowly looked back and forth between his two best friends, careful to control his expression.

“Room and board?” Aldric asked quietly.

“Of course.”

“Salary included?”

“Naturally.”

“And if this fails horribly?”

“Then we try something else. We wouldn’t push for this if we didn’t think this was best for you. If it’s not, we find something else. You can live here at the academy for as long as you need to until we find you something better.”

“You really shouldn’t try this hard for me,” Aldric said, almost pleadingly. Why did he always drag them into his mess?

Kedrin’s gentle face gave way to a look of total resolve, one that was mirrored by Zasia. “There is nothing you could do to me or Zasia that would make us not look out for you, Aldric. Please, if not for yourself, do it for us?”

Well, how the hell was he supposed to say no when he put it like that with such a genuine face? Damn it all. Aldric could already tell he’d lost this fight. They were going to “fix” him, and he couldn’t stop them.

It made him feel strangely warm inside.

Aldric heaved a great sigh before he replied, “So? When do I start?”

Chapter 2

Nadrina was trying, and failing, to hide the nervousness wracking her body from the girl sitting next to her.

She had known that this academy was a prestigious one and was likely filled with noble children. She was even ready to be the only commoner that attended this school, even if the academy espoused educating all social classes. What she wasn’t ready for, however, was the sheer aura that these other kids gave off. Even just passing them in the halls or in the dorms, every one of them walked and talked with confidence and poise. They couldn’t have been any older than her, late teens at most, but she felt like a child playing at being an adult around them.

Nadrina had wisely opted to take a carriage ride to the school, since the city of Nevis was an unknowable maze of people, wagons, merchant stalls, and richly adorned buildings. The usual shacks and simple brick houses of her home village, complete with rolling fields of farmland, were far behind her now. It was the first time Nadrina’s overflowing excitement had been replaced by uncertain dread.

The sheer size and opulence of the Nevis Academy hadn't helped her anxiety. Nadrina had assumed it was a castle right up until the carriage driver had dropped her off by the front gate. The tightly clustered marble buildings gleamed in the sunlight as they all towered over the rest of the city. Nadrina’s neck started to hurt after staring at them all in wonder. Her dazzlement must have made her look new, because a member of the school staff had quickly found her and ushered her through the gate and into the massive complex.

After the series of confusing paperwork and being told her things would be dropped off for her in her dorm room, Nadrina had hoped that she would have a better time blending in once she got to class. Even that comfort wasn’t to be found, however. For whatever insane reason, they had singled her out to be part of a much smaller “experimental” class.

Only three other students were with her in the classroom right now. Maybe they were putting all the commoners into one class? The dark-haired boy resembled a commoner, wearing simple clothes under the yellow school robes of an enforcer class mage. The other boy dashed her hopes a bit, with finer features and neatly kempt blonde hair. His red robes marked him as a conjurer class mage, a class most nobles desired to fall into. Nadrina had still stubbornly held onto the hope that he was just an exceptionally well-dressed merchant’s son.

The beautiful girl that had sat next to her shattered her hopes like glass. If she wasn’t a noble, Nadrina would eat her shoes. Blonde hair so pale it looked white, electric blue eyes, and a perfect smile framed by an even more perfect face showed this girl had won the genetic lottery. The result of “noble breeding”, Nadrina guessed. She was wearing the red school robes of a conjurer class mage and was making the plain outfit look somehow amazing.

In contrast to what Nadrina expected from nobles, she had been friendly and polite. She inquired if the seat next to Nadrina was taken with a radiant smile, and Nadrina couldn’t bring herself to lie. As a result, not only did she have to deal with this new overwhelming presence, but the two boys were now gazing at the girl. Obviously, she was well known, and Nadrina was too much of a backwater village girl to know better.

The boys were also leveling puzzled looks at her, obviously wondering where she fit in with everything. Nadrina didn’t think herself ugly, but plain long black hair, brown eyes, and a normal face didn’t help her blend in among these inordinately beautiful people. Was there a spell to turn someone invisible? Maybe there was a class for that here. Nadrina could see herself needing it soon.

“Do you know when the lecture will start?”

The soft whisper startled Nadrina out of her brooding. She turned to see that the noble girl was actually addressing her, a concerned look on her face. “You were told about being in the focus class as well, right?”

Nadrina mutely nodded, still not quite believing this girl would talk to her, of all people.

“Hm...” The girl frowned prettily, looking at the front of the classroom. “Do you think that woman is our professor?”

Nadrina had wondered about that as well. The woman had been there the whole time, but she was sitting in a chair in the corner and didn’t look to be leaving it soon. Long, elegant blonde hair, perfect features, and startlingly green eyes made up the perfect image of a noble woman, even more so than the girl Nadrina was next to. Over an elaborate dress, she wore red robes with the gold trim of a professor.

Of course. Even the professors were physically immaculate.

The woman maintained an air of quiet dignity befitting her station, but it was obvious to Nadrina that something annoyed her. Her perfectly styled eyebrows were creased in a frown, while her foot tapped out a rapid, irritated pace.

“The staff told me we would only have the one class. I thought it rather odd, since we would normally rotate classrooms, and to only have four students...” the girl said, more to herself than Nadrina.

“N-Not sure,” Nadrina muttered, trying to take the nervous energy out of her voice. “I’m new here, so I don’t know what to expect, really.” She was hoping the girl would just find her boring and move on.

“Oh, you are?” the girl asked, flashing Nadrina her smile of a million suns again. “I am as well! Shortly after tutoring with my family's lecturers, I came here to start my first school year. I’m more than a little excited to finally begin a real, in-depth education, free from family politics and expectations.”

“Noble children go to school before actually going to school? That’s so weird.” Nadrina’s words had come flying out of her mouth before her brain caught up. Her usual curiosity had flared up again at the worst of times, and now it sounded like she was insulting this noble girl. This very well known, probably powerful noble girl.

To Nadrina’s surprise, the girl only laughed. It was an honest, girlish giggle. “I know, right? To be honest, I’ve been looking forward to striking out on my own. I was growing increasingly tired of being told the same things over and over, ad nauseam! It was like they had run out of things to teach me.”

She theatrically rolled her eyes, an expression Nadrina never thought she’d see someone of the peerage make.

“Oh! My apologies,” she blurted, looking embarrassed. “I completely neglected to introduce myself. I am Lilianna Asimov, of House Asimov.”

Nadrina had been slowly loosening up as they talked, but her whole body locked up when she heard this girl’s family name. Even someone as out of her element as her knew of the Four Great Houses of Rhagia.

“My apologies for going on about myself, but I never asked for your name?” Lilianna continued, oblivious to Nadrina’s sudden panic.

“I-I’m N-Nadrina Flemming,” she stuttered out, then hurriedly added, “Nice to m-meet you, ma’am.”

“Flemming? I am not familiar with that noble house. Are they in Rhagia?” the girl asked curiously.

“U-Um,” Nadrina’s voice faltered, realizing that she was going to be dealing with this sooner rather than later. “I’m from Genosa village at the southern tip of the continent. I’m n-not a noble...”

Nadrina saw the moment Lilianna realized it, her brows raising and her mouth forming a perfect ‘oh’ shape. Her reaction summed up Nadrina’s worst fears.

“A-Ah, I... see,” the girl answered, clearly taken aback.

Silence took hold of them both, and Nadrina inwardly winced. It snuffed the conversation out like a candle in a rainstorm. She’d only been in this school for a few hours, and already she’d made a fool of herself. That was a record, even for her. She’d doomed herself to sit next to this heir to a Great House for the rest of the year and desperately hoped that she would just ignore Nadrina’s presence.

The sound of the entrance to the classroom being thrown wide open saved her from further embarrassing herself.

As the man at the entrance made his way into the classroom, Nadrina assumed he was lost. He had shoulder length black hair, a scraggly beard, and a general air that reminded Nadrina of when the field hands in her village were nursing a killer hangover. What looked more out of place than anything, however, were his gold trimmed robes. They were also the blue of a sorcerer, just like Nadrina. She had the awful realization that this was probably their absentee professor.

The man staggered to the front of the small classroom, acting as if none of the students were even there. With plodding steps, he eventually made it to the front of the room, turning while avoiding a glare from the blonde woman. He gave a blank look at the gathered students. The students just gazed right back. An uncomfortable silence enveloped the room, and Nadrina wondered if he expected them to say something.

“Uh... hi.” the man spoke, giving a half-hearted wave at the class. “I’m Aldric, and I’ll be your new professor, I guess. You can call me whatever you want, as long as it’s not an insult or ‘hey you’.”

With that out of the way, Professor Aldric dropped his gaze to the table in front of him and began leafing through the textbooks that were piled there, the entire class now forgotten.

Nadrina watched the three other students in the class and noted their bewildered expressions. She imagined her face looked similar. Even the other professor at the front currently had her head in her hands, shaking it back and forth in what looked like exasperation. Professor Aldric had just finished flipping through a textbook, snapping it closed with a dismissive huff. Without even looking, he chucked it across the room and into the trash bin all the way at the other end of the classroom. It was an impressive display of accuracy, if a somewhat confusing one. He picked up another, flipped through a few of the pages, snorted, and did the same thing again.

The woman seated in the corner was looking at the professor with a heated glare. She obviously wanted to say something, but either wouldn’t or couldn’t. By the time Professor Aldric had thrown away a third book, someone in the class finally spoke up.

“What do you think you’re doing?” It was the blonde boy who had shouted. He stood at his desk, posed almost imperiously, directing an accusing finger at the professor.

Professor Aldric had immediately grasped at his head in agony, wincing at the volume of the shout. “Let’s try to have a nice, quiet class today, alright?” he muttered through gritted teeth.

“Did you just throw the works of Drevin Caffaret in the garbage?” the boy demanded. His tone was just as loud as it had been before.

Professor Aldric looked at the noble boy with obvious irritation, but it melted into confusion as he took in the question. “Uh, yeah? Why? Where do you put your trash?” he asked. His tone implied complete and sincere puzzlement.

The noble boy was openly fuming by this point. “Drevin Caffaret was one of the most influential and proficient conjurers of his time! Every academy on this continent uses his books as reference material, across every school of focus! What right does a drunkard like you have to treat such works as trash?”

The professor pointed an accusatory finger at the boy. “Okay, first, I’m hungover, not drunk,” he said irritably. Nadrina wasn’t sure that was any better. “Second, Drevin was a charlatan and a hack with nothing but an influential family and a lack of moral belief systems, on top of being a crappy mage. Third, ‘everyone else said so’ is never a good reason. For anything. If any of the professors here try to tell you that jumping off bridges will improve your magic, you should probably be skeptical.”

The noble boy just stood there in shock, mouth moving but with no words coming out, looking a lot like a landed fish. Professor Aldric ignored him, instead turning his attention to the other students. “What, you want to yell at me, too?”

His question confused Nadrina until Liliana nudged her with an elbow to get her attention. Startled, Nadrina looked to her only for Liliana to point to Nadrina’s currently raised hand. When had that happened?

Mortified, Nadrina looked back at the professor with big, round eyes. She felt like a deer staring down a hunter’s arrow. Her unfortunate habit had once again come to the fore; anytime she was curious about anything, it was like she lost control of herself in pursuit of it. Her body had raised her hand without her brain’s permission.

Panicking at the expectant gazes of both the class and Professor Aldric, Nadrina stammered out the first thing that came to mind. “W-What makes you s-say he was a charlatan?”

The professor’s face changed from mildly annoyed to mildly impressed. “Huh. At least one of you knows how to ask questions,” he said, pointedly staring at the still dumbfounded noble boy. “To answer your question, Drevin Caffaret was a conjurer who studied all four general classifications of mages. Normally that would be fine, but the idiot did it solely from the perspective of how a conjurer would view and use magic. Most of his ‘research’ was wholesale copied from other, much more competent and unbiased mages, many of whom never made a name for themselves because of the influence of Drevin’s family. For those who don’t know, Caffaret is one of the Four Great Houses.”

The professor gave a heavy sigh, like he was telling the same sad story for the hundredth time. “That would also be why you can find these stupid books anywhere they teach magic. There’s enough information in them that people might not notice how shallow it is, but for anything other than a bare-bones overview of the basics, they’re rather useless.”

He paused for a moment, then added with a grin, “Also, he was a philanderer and sired several illegitimate children. That’s not really relevant, I just think it’s funny. It’s good to remember even your heroes are human.”

Nadrina was burning with further questions, but decided she had embarrassed herself enough for one day. Blessedly, Lilianna raised her hand as well. “But even if Drevin was just a conjurer, that wouldn’t mean that any research he did on the other three classes of mages is invalid, surely?”

“Even if you had the best chef in the world, would you trust him to cut you hair?” the professor asked, his expression and tone completely serious.

Lilianna, understandably, looked like she didn’t know how to respond to that. Seeing that she wasn’t getting it, Professor Aldric frowned and scratched at his beard. “Uh... alright, give me a second.”

He turned towards the large chalkboard that dominated most of the back wall of the classroom, grabbing some chalk and furiously scribbling some diagrams.

“Alright, let’s just do this the long way,” Professor Aldric continued as he turned back to the class. He pointed to the first of four diagrams he had written. “Let’s start with everyone’s favorite, the conjurer. Conjurers form a spell formation in their mind that they then bring into the real world. They imagine this formation as runes, which are then used to cast a spell. They are usually more attuned to a specific element or type of magic and have the largest mana pools and highest control over their mana. Many would say they are the ideal class because of that. Those people are wrong, but we can get into that later. Also, for simplicity’s sake, forget about variants like summoners and necromancers. We’re just talking about the four basic classes right now.”

Nadrina noticed the other students looking uncomfortable. The noble boy in particular looked ready to blow a blood vessel. Nobles had always touted the superiority of conjurers. To say otherwise was rather scandalous.

“Second, we have enforcers. If conjurers are all about external spell casting, enforcers are the exact opposite. They use their mana pools to fortify their bodies and perform extraordinary physical feats, but they don’t typically have long-range spells. People assume this makes them incapable of complex magics, and again, that’s wrong. But for now, just know that the first two are essentially opposites.”

He pointed to the next diagram. “Third, we have healers. Besides being rare, healers are also the weird ones. They can manipulate the mana of others, including those who aren’t even mages. They do that to alter the body’s natural healing processes and rapidly speed them up. There’re some other things about them, too, but that’s not important right now.”

“Lastly are sorcerers, like me. Sorcerers specialize in imbuing their mana into physical objects, either changing that object or giving it special properties, like as a talisman. They can use most other forms of magic in their enchanting, but they typically have the smallest mana pools, and their enchanting can take anywhere from a few minutes to a few days, depending on the spell. They also must physically draw out runes, unlike a conjurer’s mental constructs. This has given people the impression that they are the lowest class of mage and, once again, this is wrong.”

When he finished, he began drawing lines between the four diagrams. “So, conjurers and sorcerers use their mana outside their bodies, but do it in entirely different ways. Enforcers and healers both use it internally, but again, the direction they work in is very different. Conjurers and enforcers rely heavily on focus and control, while sorcerers and healers rely on precise imbuement of mana to whatever, or whoever, they’re working on.”

He put down his chalk and stepped back to address the class. “This is getting kind of long winded, but you can see my point. All four classes have similarities and could learn a lot from each other. But a single conjurer only observing what he sees in all the other classes, only understanding magic how he uses it, is going to lead to problems in any kind of research. You need to appreciate both similarities and differences before you can see the complete picture, something Drevin Caffaret never really did. This isn’t even touching upon common biases held about each class, something Drevin was certainly guilty of.”

Nadrina had already taken out her notebook and was furiously scribbling down everything she could as fast as possible. Based on the noises coming from Lilianna’s desk, she was doing the same. Nadrina had also been watching the other professor during the brief lecture. She was watching their teacher closely, almost analytically. Nadrina could have sworn she looked... proud?

The professor seemed as if he was coming out of a trance, like he’d lost himself in his explanation. “Uh, yeah, so... I don’t really have a plan for this class, so I guess we can just keep answering questions?” He looked at the other professor again, who simply gave an elegant shrug and nodded. Yes, that was definitely pride in her expression, with a small grin to go with it.

“This is ridiculous!”

Unfortunately, the blonde noble boy had finally found his voice again. “You really expect me to believe that a sorcerer is the equal of a conjurer? Conjurers have the highest mana capacity and finest control, and you want to compare them to a bunch of tinkering sorcerers? Is this not that ‘bias’ you were talking about?”

“Do I really need to point out the irony of calling me biased after calling me a ‘tinkerer’?” the professor asked dryly.

“It’s simply the way the world is. There is an obvious reason the leading noble families have all been conjurers of one sort or another. Even our reigning empress is a conjurer, and one of the most powerful summoners in the world.” The boy radiated smug confidence, as if the Empress’ accomplishments were his own.

“Oh great, a patriot,” the professor deadpanned. “Let me guess, yours is one of these esteemed noble houses?”

The boy puffed out his chest in obvious pride, as if he’d been waiting for this moment. “But of course! I am Codrin Caffaret, of the great Caffaret House, one of the four great families! You really think you can get away with defaming my ancestor right in front of me?”

The boy’s overwhelming confidence now made sense. Nadrina still didn’t like him very much, but it put him on the same political field as Lilianna. The professor had gone from disinterested to blank faced in a flash, like someone had flicked a switch on his emotions. Something about it made Nadrina... uncomfortable.

“Caffaret...” the professor muttered, almost to himself. His tone had plummeted an octave. “You’re the heir to House Caffaret?”

Nadrina didn’t think Codrin could look any more smug, but he somehow pulled it off, oblivious to the professor’s sudden change in mood. “Yes, I suppose even someone like you would have heard of my family. Once the old bastard finally keels over, I’ll be the reigning patriarch of the Caffaret family. Now, please rescind your blasphemous remarks--”

“And your father,” Professor Aldric suddenly interrupted. “He wouldn’t be Dylas Caffaret, would he?”

“Isn’t that obvious? Who else would I inherit the family seat from? He’s--”

Dark, maniacal laughter from the professor cut Codrin off. It was an awful, hollow noise that sounded anything but humorous. It was enough to send chills down Nadrina’s spine.

“You’re Dylas’ brat! Of course! Why didn’t I see the resemblance? You ooze the same arrogance and self-importance as your father.”

Codrin looked appalled. “I beg your pardon?” he asked furiously, but the professor wasn’t listening to him anymore.

“Is that what this all is? A joke? You and Kedrin thought this would be funny, then?” the professor asked, directing his comment to the woman seated in the corner. She gave him a stern look, but Nadrina could see the anxiety and slight panic in her eyes.

“Aldric, he is a student of this academy, and he is not his father,” the woman hissed. “You need to set aside whatever personal grievances you have and perform the duties given to you. He has just as much right to learn here as any other--”

“No need! I’m sure he already knows everything, doesn’t he?” Professor Aldric marched up to Codrin’s desk and slammed both hands down on top of it, his face inches from the boy’s.

“I’m guessing you’re a fire conjurer, just like dear old dad, right?” Without waiting for an answer, the professor pulled a small knife from nowhere. For one horrible moment, Nadrina thought he was going to stab the boy. Instead, he held the knife in an ice pick grip just over the desk and glared daggers at Caffaret.

“Welcome to my crash course in sorcery. What’s the most basic fire rune formation?”

“I-Igni,” Codrin answered, somehow looking both determined and nervous at the same time. It morphed completely into fear when the professor suddenly started carving into the desk with his knife.

“Correct!” the professor declared. In less than a second, much faster than should have been possible, a perfect igni rune was carved there. As the professor slapped his hand to the rune, a brief flash of blue was the only warning they got before the desk top spontaneously caught fire. It wasn’t a huge fire, but it was enough to cause Codrin and the dark-haired boy at the desk next to him to scuttle backwards in surprise. The professor grabbed Codrin by the collar and dragged him back, once again nose to nose with him over the smoldering desk.

“Aldric!” the other professor shouted, advancing on the two of them. Professor Aldric ignored her, taking out what looked like a simple talisman and dropping it to the floor. Within moments, a transparent bubble of blueish energy surrounded him and Codrin. The woman almost bounced off the energy like it was a solid sheet of glass. Nadrina’s meager magical senses could feel the woman pulling power from her mana well. The amount of it was almost overwhelming.

“Next question,” the professor continued, words sharp. “What happens to an igni fire rune when combined with a tera earth rune?”

“I-I don’t know!” Codrin cried out, looking thoroughly intimidated now.

“Incorrect!” the professor yelled. Carving into the desk again, apparently not feeling any of the flames, he traced out yet another rune even faster than the first time. He slapped his hand onto the desk, infusing his mana again almost instantly. The entire desk suddenly turned black, glowing with lines of angry red like a burning piece of charcoal. It started hissing and giving off a dark, acrid smoke as it burned. Codrin caught most of the smoke and fell into a coughing fit.

“Only one for two Caffaret, I’m not impressed. Last question!” Professor Aldric carved yet another rune formation into the ruined wood, this one much more complicated. “What happens when you take an igni rune, surround it with a tera rune to remove impurities, and add a venti wind rune to increase air flow?”

“Aldric, stop!” the woman cried out again, now sounding more frightened than angry. She looked ready to cast a spell, but hesitated as she took in how close the other students were to her.

Codrin just gaped at the professor, unbridled fear plain as day on his face. Everyone else in the class stared in fascination and horror at the spectacle before them. When it was obvious Codrin wouldn’t answer, Professor Aldric gave him a grim smile.

“Incorrect!”

“Aldri--!”

An intense white light dominated Nadrina’s world. It was so bright and overwhelming that it forced her to screw her eyes shut in pain. She could hear yelling from several people, chief among them Codrin. The light show continued for only a few seconds before it suddenly winked out, gone as if never there.

Blinking away stars from her vision, Nadrina slowly refocused on the scene in front of her. She fully expected to find a horror show. Instead, she saw the professor and Codrin standing rather awkwardly next to each other, Codrin’s shirt collar still gripped in the professor’s hands. Codrin had a rather wild-eyed look on his face, but other than that looked completely unharmed.

The desk and chair Codrin had been occupying were gone. Not even just burned to ash, but completely gone. The only evidence that anything had happened was the professor’s talisman still laying on the ground, only now it looked to be white hot and glowing. It sizzled angrily against the cold stone floor, its glow slowly dying out into nothing once more.

The entire classroom was horribly silent. Even the other professor was speechless. Professor Aldric was the one who finally broke it.

“Do you know what the scariest thing in this world is?” he asked Codrin. Contrary to his fiery performance earlier, he was deathly quiet and absent of all emotion. His light grey eyes shone with an intensity that screamed danger, and his voice was all the more intimidating for its lack of volume.

“Ignorance of ignorance,” the professor continued, not waiting for a response from the stupefied Codrin. “It’s one thing to not know. It’s a whole other thing to never realize that you don’t know. And coming to a place of learning thinking you have all the answers is the absolute pinnacle of ignorance. You nobles will never know how deep this world of magic really goes, for no other reason than because you don’t care to know.”

He was directing his words at Codrin, but Nadrina felt like he was really addressing all of them in the room. Professor Aldric pulled Codrin even closer, forehead to forehead.

“Heaven forbid this pretty glass castle you’ve built for yourselves should come crumbling down around you. Your father gave me hell, years ago, for showing him exactly that. I made sure he got scars to remember me by. Maybe his kid needs some, too...?”

A second silence, even more awful than the first, took hold of them all at the obvious threat in his voice. No one moved an inch or spoke a single word. Nadrina dimly realized she’d forgotten to breathe at some point.

Then the professor’s death glare sputtered out and died, his body slowly bleeding out tension as he released Codrin’s collar and took a step back. His face was a complex portrait of frustration, sadness, self-loathing, and guilt. He looked to have aged several decades right in front of them.

“Luckily for you, I’m not like your father,” he said, sounding utterly defeated. “No… no. I’m much worse.”

He turned to the woman as he left for a door in the back of the room. Nadrina assumed it was some sort of office. “I told you this was a mistake,” he muttered, before shutting the door closed behind him. The noise felt overly loud in the quiet room.

As if to snap them out of their trance, the belltower rang, signifying the end of class. The woman looked almost as shaken as the rest of them, but rallied quickly.

“Class, I dismiss you for today,” she announced, in a tone that brooked no argument. Not that she had to tell them twice; Codrin and the brown-haired boy were already heading for the doors, almost at a sprint. Without waiting for them to leave, the woman turned and hurried after Professor Aldric.

Nadrina stood at her desk, even as Lilianna asked her if she was alright. She was just as intimidated as the rest of them, of course, but she couldn’t get over the questions bouncing around in her head. Just what was that just now? As far as she knew, which honestly wasn’t that much, enchanting that quick and precise shouldn’t be possible. He may seem like a violent drunk of a man, but he was far from an average sorcerer. That Nadrina herself was a sorcerer only made her even more curious.

Just who was this Professor Aldric?

Chapter 3

“I know,” Aldric muttered irritably before his office door even shut for the second time. He was sitting on the desk they had provided him with his feet in his chair, but even with his back to the door, he could tell it was Zasia. “Can we just skip the screaming and yelling part this time? You can walk off all disappointed, and I’ll spend the rest of the day getting drunk. We each have our roles in this stupid play.”

He waved the rum bottle he was nursing for emphasis. A crate of similar bottles sat in the room's corner. It was one of the first things he’d blown his money on after moving in.

“Aldric, I...” Zasia began, then faded off in a rare moment of speechlessness. “I don’t even know where to begin, honestly. That was about the worst thing that could have possibly happened. You just threatened a student and probably terrified the rest of them!”

Aldric knew that, of course. Worse, he’d just threatened the heir apparent to one of the Four Great Houses of Rhagia. Kedrin carried a lot of influence as the headmaster of this school, but even he would have a hard time dealing with a pissed off noble house with that level of influence, “politically neutral” school or not.

Aldric knew he’d messed up, and he wasn’t in the mood to be told off for something he already knew. Hearing that damn name again, being reminded of that human shaped piece of shit, had just set him off. He could still feel his gut twisting in anger, even now.

“I wasn’t actually going to hurt him,” Aldric groused, ignoring the dark parts of him that told him that was a lie.

“That’s not the point, Aldric, and you know it!”

“What do you want me to do about it, then?” He was opting for his usual tactic during their fights; pig-headed obstinance. “I think we’re well past apologies. Should I buy the kid some candy? Shower his daddy in gifts as I prostrate myself before him?”

“I... I genuinely don’t know,” Zasia answered, sounding more worked up than he’d ever seen her before. “This is so far beyond what I thought you were capable of. I knew it was risky, but to think it would turn out like this...”

“Gee, if only someone had told you that something like that might happen,” Aldric answered, voice thick with sarcasm. He finally got down from the desk and turned to face her, speaking only after he’d taken another swig from his bottle. “Now that we’ve established that I’m a failure and I hate myself, can I please go back to drinking? I’m certain I’m good at that, at least.”

He expected more harsh rebukes and fiery condemnation. What he got instead was a look of surprised distress, like Aldric had just admitted to never being hugged as a child.

He wished she would just yell at him more. It was easier to deal with.

“Aldric, what is wrong with you?” she asked, completely sincere in her confusion.

“That’s a broad question. How much time you got?”

“I’m serious, Aldric! Are you simply incapable of caring at this point? I have half a mind to believe you did this on purpose.” She ran her hands over wet eyes in a rare show of weakness. “At least at the beginning, you stayed out of trouble. You would just sit there like a corpse the whole time, but I could monitor you, mostly. I was so terrified that you were going to stay that way. When you started acting up, I hoped it was better than what you had been, but looking at what you’ve become...” Zasia trailed off as she gave him a look of profound disappointment. It was the same look that tore at his insides every time he saw it. It had the effect of spiking his mood to sudden, angry heights.

“By all the gods above, Zasia, I’m not him!” he screamed. “I’m not the Aldric you want me to be. You know it, I know it, Kedrin knows it. Hell, those stupid brats out there know it, and they’ve only just met me!”

“I don’t believe that!” Zasia countered, shouting along with him now. “I saw how you lit up when you were talking about magic today. How you had a life to you I haven’t seen in almost a decade. Don’t tell me you felt nothing at all! Aldric, you are so ludicrously talented, and those kids could learn so much from you. It hurts so much that you won’t just--”

“SO WHAT!” The words exploded from Aldric, with enough pain and anguish that it surprised even himself. He caught Zasia mid-sentence, her eyes wide. “If I could bundle up my talent and throw it in the nearest river, I would. Look where it got me, Zasia,” He gestured wildly to the spartan and dusty room around him, filled with boxes of memories from a life he couldn’t have anymore. “I’m nothing! I have nothing! If you want your Aldric back, you’re going to have to go find his grave and dig him up, ‘cause he’s NOT HERE!”

“Aldric...” Zasia choked out, but he didn’t let her finish, couldn’t let her finish. Anything to make that damn look of hers leave him alone.

“You get it now? I’m not your family, so you can give up now. Leave me the hell alone! I know you’ve been wanting to kick me out for years, so here’s your chance. Stop acting like you give a shit anymore and just f---!”

The resounding crack of Zasia’s open palm on his face snuffed out Aldric’s rage like a torch dunked in water. He wasn’t even totally sure of what had happened until the hot, stinging sensation started growing in his cheek and neck. She’d really put everything she had into that.

Zasia had lectured him, nagged him, and screamed at him countless times over the years. He’d strained her patience nearly to its breaking point frequently, almost daily. He was ashamed to admit he’d made her cry before, too.

But in the lifetime that he’d known her, she had never once hit him in anger.

Zasia stood tall, a fiery glare leveled at him through her tears. She only whispered, but with a fierce venom in her voice. “She was my friend too, Aldric. You’re not the only one who lost someone. But since you seem to think the world, and everyone in it, only exists to make you miserable, fine. Just... fine.”

An inner struggle played out in her eyes for several moments, before her gaze finally cooled and grew determined. “If you want to wallow in a puddle of misery for the rest of your life, then on your head be it. I tried. I really tried. And clearly failed. Gods forbid I give you even more reason to hate your life, so... good luck to you. Whoever you are.”

Ever the proper lady, she gathered herself, turned gracefully on her heel, and left without another word. The complete silence that followed made Aldric’s ears ring as he stood there, stupidly staring at the closed door.

He had trouble breathing as his emotions fought a war in his chest. Anger won out, just like it always did. He turned sharply and whipped the rum bottle across the room, shattering it against the stone wall, before he kicked the desk hard enough to splinter it.

Breathing erratically, he dug his rum crate out of the stack of his belongings. He still had unpacked nothing; why put down roots when he knew that this would never work out? Finding exactly what he was looking for, he ripped another bottle out of the crate and uncorked it, guzzling the contents.

As usual, the taste was absent, just like when he tried to eat or drink anything nowadays. It churned in his guts something awful, but he kept at it. Whatever made him forget, whatever made the dreams stop, he didn’t care. If he could still feel, then he hadn’t drunk enough yet.

So, there he sat, in his dingy palace of silence and broken memories, drinking until that merciful darkness could take him once more.

~~~

Nadrina only just now realized that she had no plan.

It was the end of the first school day, but she had spent most of it in her dorm room. Since their odd class schedule meant their one lecture was supposed to take up the whole school day, she’d been left with virtually nothing to do except ponder what had happened. The questions Professor Aldric’s actions had left her with had tumbled through her brain throughout the day. She knew what she wanted to do, but wasn’t sure if it was a good idea.

Focus, Nadrina! You promised yourself you would do whatever it took to learn as much about magic as you could! Don’t wimp out now!

Despite her internal pep-talk, Nadrina still took several deep breaths to calm herself. She’d never been good at being bold or dealing with conflict, and now she was inviting the worst-case scenario on herself. Going back to her room and being alone with her questions, however, just wasn’t an option for her.

Shutting her eyes tight, as if being blind would somehow help, she tentatively reached out her hand and gently knocked on the door to Professor Aldric’s office.

She half expected to hear a gruff “go away” shouted at her. Maybe he would answer the door, but he’d just slam it in her face. Worse, what if he laughed at her for asking such stupid questions? He seemed furious this morning. Maybe he’d just set her on fire like Codrin’s desk?

Faced with the unexpected silence, Nadrina’s mind conjured all sorts of horrid scenarios. She stood there, looking like an idiot, hand raised in front of herself and a confused look on her face. Why hadn’t anyone answered? Was he out?

Maybe he was just ignoring her? Fine then, she’d just be a nuisance. She knocked again.

Nothing.

She knocked three more times.

Still nothing.

She started beating on the door repeatedly until her hand hurt.

Dead silence.

Her frustration mounting, Nadrina lashed out at the offending door with a foot, hard. To her surprise and horror, the door whipped inward so hard that it rattled as it swung around and collided with the wall. She winced, bracing against the tongue lashing she was sure to receive.

Nothing but the sound of her own thudding heartbeat greeted her.

Now thoroughly bewildered, she slowly peeked into the room, only to find no one there. In fact, the room almost looked abandoned. If she hadn’t watched him walk in here this morning, she would’ve assumed she’d accidentally opened a storage closet.

A single window provided light from the late afternoon sun, and the expected desk and chair essential to any office were present at the far end of the room, though the side of the desk looked cracked. Other than that, all Nadrina saw were crates and boxes, most likely the professor’s belongings.

Wandering into the room, Nadrina realized that she still hadn’t found the professor. Maybe he’d gone home after all? Had all this been for nothing? Unwilling to just leave it at that, she began searching around the room for clues.

Not that there was much to search. The room was oddly small, even with only two pieces of furniture in it. Nadrina was tempted to check the boxes, but realized how rude that would be. Her original nerves had given way to annoyance. Where was he? She had questions, damn it!

Nadrina mentally berated her absent professor until her eyes fell on the entrance again. With a startled gasp, she ran over to inspect the long dent that was now in the center of the door. She groaned as she realized she must have damaged it when it hit the wall earlier.

There was a long wooden box positioned just behind the door, likely the culprit for the dent. She checked it for damage as well, but it looked pristine. That was odd. What kind of wooden box was sturdy enough to dent a solid oak door without leaving marks?

Feeling her curiosity rise once again, she moved closer and inspected it for any potential damage. The more she looked, however, the stranger it became. It almost looked seamless, like someone hadn’t designed it to open. Wasn’t it rather pointless to have a box like that?

She knocked on it slightly, and she thought it sounded like it held something inside. She ran her hands along the edges, looking for a latch or finger hold, then yelped and leapt back when a blue line lit up lengthwise along the side. Nadrina froze up like a startled deer, but the box did nothing else. The blue line of light eventually faded, leaving a nondescript, yet apparently lidless box once again.

Once Nadrina had control of her heartbeat back, she quickly learned she could make the line appear again just by running a finger along the rim. After enough studying, she had an idea of what its purpose was.

Nadrina had lived in a rather small village, but they still had traders that would pass through from time to time. Her favorite wares to look at had always been the magic trinkets and talismans. None of them would be that impressive to the average mage; a charm for keeping you dry in a light rain, or a simple talisman that could start small fires. Every single one of them had fascinated Nadrina, however. Even with no one to teach her, she had always tried to memorize the patterns of the runes that were intricately carved into the devices.

The rune formation on the box in front of her made those runes look like chicken scratch. Countless runes, forming a complex linear pattern, ran along the entire length of the box’s front rim. Nadrina recognized a handful of them, but most were far more intricate than any she had ever seen before. They almost appeared to be one endless rune with no breaks...no, that was only half right. There were multiple layers of runes running on top of each other! Nadrina didn’t even know that was possible, but someone had carved them in such a way that one line flowed effortlessly into another, spiraling around the circumference of the box in a continuous braid of magical symbols.

Nadrina spent what could have been forever just studying the workmanship, tracing the line of runes with her finger over and over. Eventually, she could see what looked like a pattern to her. She couldn’t quite grasp it wholly, and every time she got distracted by more runes, she would lose it entirely, but she could swear there was a missing piece to the pattern. She stared at the blank piece, absently tracing what she thought should go there.

Suddenly, the blue line was back and brighter than ever, causing Nadrina to gasp and fall back painfully onto her butt. The entire front of the box detached itself from the back like a coffin, and the lid fell forward onto the hard ground with an earsplitting clatter. Nadrina’s ears were ringing and her rear end was throbbing in pain, but she paid them no mind. The contents of the box already had her spellbound.

Nadrina had never described something as both beautiful and terrifying before, but the wooden staff she now saw couldn’t be described any other way. At least, she thought it was wood. It had a grain like wood did, but the top half was a pearly white, while the bottom half was a midnight black. The white seemed to glow with its own inner light, while the black seemed to absorb all the surrounding light. Black and white combined in the very middle in a beautiful gradient. Excluding its unusual coloring, however, it was simple and unadorned. To the layperson, it might simply appear to be a tall, oddly colored walking stick. However, even a novice like Nadrina could feel the vibrations of magic spilling off it in waves.

Swept up in the intoxicating mana coming from the staff, Nadrina dreamily got to her feet and started toward it. Part of her knew this was probably a bad idea. Breaking an artifact of this quality would get her more than just expelled. Her feet refused to listen, however. The staff beckoned to her with an undeniable allure, and she wanted to hold it more than anything she’d ever wanted before.

So distracted was Nadrina by the sight before her that she had forgotten just where she was. She was just inches from grasping it in her hands when another hand shot out and gripped her wrist with enough force to grind bone. She cried out in pain and alarm, but all sound died in her throat as she looked up into two cold, grey eyes.

“The hell are you doing in here?” Professor Aldric snarled.

Chapter 4

One of the alarm arrays going off in his office interrupted Aldric’s boozing and brooding.

He’d enchanted them in such a way that the mana used to make them would maintain a small level of connection with his mana pool. If anything tripped them, he would immediately feel it, provided he was still close enough. Someone had just opened his office door while he was still in his staff dorm trying to pass out drunk.

His first hopeful thought was that Zasia had come back, but his mood soured again as he dismissed the idea. There was no way he was out of the doghouse yet. Even he’d never seen her that angry before. More likely, it was Kedrin coming to kick his worthless hide out of the academy.

Not eager to face the music, but realizing it was inevitable, Aldric got to his feet and started making his way back to his office. Maybe he’d get lucky, and it was just some thief breaking in. The more he thought about it, the more the idea of beating the daylights out of some petty criminal with an obvious lack of common sense appealed to him. At least he’d have someone to work out his frustrations on--

Aldric had only just made it back inside the classroom building when a second alarm tripped. Someone had just opened Miraea’s case.

Aldric set off at a dead sprint for his office, cursing his current inebriated state as he stumbled on the way there. He burst into the classroom, blew through his office door, and grabbed the perpetrator by the arm before they could do anything further. He growled out a question to the thief, one of his daggers already at the ready, before his brain caught up to the situation.

It was a girl, a student even. Specifically, one from his class that morning. The girl’s hand was outstretched and reaching for Miraea’s staff, the case for which was somehow open. Despite her obvious guilt and terror, Aldric had forgotten her almost immediately, instead focusing on the heavy wooden lid on the floor. How the hell did it get opened?

Aldric was at least relieved he’d caught her before she touched it. If he’d been just moments too late, she would have activated the various other defensive runes he had placed on the staff. He didn’t feel like sweeping this girl’s ashes out of his office.

He looked around the room, expecting to see someone else, but found only the girl. “Who opened this? Where did they go? Answer me!”

“I-I’m so sorry,” the girl whimpered, her eyes wide and wet. “I-I-I’m the one w-who opened it... I-It was an a-accident... I-I-I’m s-sorry....” She continued her sniveling, but Aldric wasn’t buying it. There was no way she could open a multilayered rune script that he himself had created.

That being said, when he looked at the case again, he saw that the key structure was indeed completed, albeit a bit sloppily. The rune array had apparently decided it was close enough and unlocked itself. Aldric was more than a little embarrassed at such a stupid oversight, but it was still a one in a million chance that she would have guessed it correctly. Was it talent, or blind luck?

Resolving to rework the enchantment later, he hastily picked up the lid and refastened it to the box, double checking to make sure the rune array was still in place and locked completely. He noted this girl was wearing the blue trimmed robes of a sorcerer, so it was technically possible she could have done it. But for a novice to identify and fill in such a complex rune structure, without even carving? If she was lying, she was a wonderful actress. The look of panicked terror on her face was awfully convincing.

Aldric suddenly realized that he still had a vice-like grip on the girl’s arm. A crying and scared girl was alone, at night, in a professor’s office, when said professor was obviously holding her against her will. He also still had a dagger in his hands.

Yeah, not a good look.

Aldric had already ruined his public image enough today. He quickly sheathed his dagger again. Then, feeling obligated, he dug into one of his many pockets for a moment, pulled out a thin tab of spell paper, and touched it to her wrist while infusing mana. The runes written out on it glowed green before the paper wrapped itself around her wrist, causing the girl to jump a bit. It wasn’t as good as a real healer, but it would help.

The girl cradled her arm for a moment, then seemed to realize it didn’t hurt anymore. She stared at the slip of spell paper in fascination before she looked timidly back at him. “Th-Thank you, Professor.”

Several moments passed in silence, both of them standing awkwardly in front of each other. Aldric had a bit of a dilemma now. He was torn between finding out what she knew and not making any more trouble for himself. He was still concerned that she’d opened the case, but decided he was too tired to deal with this. She could leave or she could stand there for eternity. He didn’t care anymore.

He trudged over to his desk and sat down heavily, picking up another bottle from his crate and taking a quick swig. Still no taste. Wonderful.

Aldric looked around at the barren room and sighed. He almost wished he’d unpacked, even if he’d be putting it all back away soon. It would give him something to do, maybe even take his mind off what an idiot he was. He briefly considered going to Kedrin and pleading his case, but then realized he didn’t really have one. He’d screwed up, plain and simple. Not even Kedrin was that understanding, and Zasia wasn’t coming to his aid this time. If she ever did again. Aldric just hoped he hadn’t made problems with the Caffarets for his friends.

“U-Um...” came a tiny voice. Aldric looked back up, confused and slightly annoyed that the girl hadn’t bolted from the room yet.

“What?” he asked, wincing as his irritation came out in his tone.

“I was, um, wondering... if y-you, um... I j-just wanted to...”

Aldric could barely hear the girl, but she seemed to be working herself up into something. Geez, did he really scare her that badly?

“Look, don’t worry about it. I’m not mad. And sorry about grabbing you. You can just go back to your dorm. I won’t report you or anything. Nothing’s damaged or stolen, and I kind of overreacted, so we can just--”

“Tell me how you did it! Those white flames! The heat of them was incredible! Did you use conjuration magic? No, that’s not possible. It looked just like it, though. Maybe it’s because you can carve runes and imbue them so fast? Is that something you learned, or is it some family inherited trait or something? Did you also make that talisman that made the barrier thing? And what was that pattern on the case? Can you show me how you made runes run in a continuous loop like that? How could you--?”

“Whoa, hold on,” Aldric protested, his hands held up in front of himself. The girl’s eyes sparkled like stars as she rattled off one question after another in a never-ending river of curiosity. The previously timid and soft-spoken teenager was nowhere to be found. “You can’t just... look, just forget about what happened today, alright? Whoever your next professor is will probably do a better job--”

“NO!” the girl screamed, her desperately excited face now inches from Aldric’s. “Please, just tell me how you did it. I spent my whole life wanting to learn magic, and now I finally have the chance of a lifetime. You did things I never even dreamed of being possible. You can’t just leave and never tell me. I’ve worked so hard to come here, left behind my whole life and family for this opportunity. I’m going to learn anything and everything I can before I graduate! No matter how hard I have to work, I just want to learn all that I can. Please...”

Aldric just stared stupidly, not knowing what to say. When he’d seen her in his class today, he’d never imagined the scared girl from earlier could be this excited or passionate. As she stared him down from mere inches away, she compelled Aldric to ask, “Why is this so important to you?”

“Because... because...” Aldric watched as several answers tried to come out of her mouth at once, like horse carts piling up on a crowded street, all of them trying to be the first one out. Then the dam finally burst, her words thick with honesty and hope.

“Because I love magic more than anything else!”

Her resounding shout echoed off the walls of his office in the ensuing quiet. It made his ears ring a bit, but Aldric paid it no mind. He felt like a memory had just punched him in the gut. He could imagine an image of his own younger face superimposed on this girl’s, giving almost the exact same answer to a very similar question.

Unsure of what to do, Aldric did the first thing that came to mind. He laughed. A genuine laugh, the kind he hadn’t done in a very long time. As soon as he started, he found it hard to stop. He had to turn his head away for fear of spittle flying all over the poor girl’s face.

He saw her cock her head to the side, obviously perplexed by his sudden attitude change. Then she looked down at herself, seeming to only just now realize how close she was.

“I-I’m so sorry!” she said as she hurriedly backed away. “I-I didn’t realize what I was doing, I just got so excited and I—oh, please forgive me...” She stared at the ground, shame faced and beet red with embarrassment.

“Hah, n-no, I’m not... heh, sorry,” Aldric tried to say, struggling to get his laughing fit under control. “You just, heh... you just reminded me of someone, that’s all.” He took a moment to gather himself, then asked, “What was your name, anyway?”

“N-Nadrina Flemming,” the girl stuttered.

“Of what house?”

Nadrina’s face fell even further, if that was possible. “I-I’m not a noble. I’m sorry.”

Now that had Aldric’s attention. When she had said she’d worked hard to get here, she probably wasn’t kidding. Kedrin had founded this school on the idea of education for all, but there were many obstacles on the way to such an idealistic goal. Many commoners simply didn’t have the means to make it to the academy. Money was no object to someone as successful as Kedrin, but Aldric was sure that several potential mages in the world simply lived in places too remote to consider making the effort. Not to mention, many families in that situation needed all the family members they had to get by. The fact she’d made it here at all was impressive on its own, and leaving her entire life behind was testament to her determination.

Again, Aldric was reminded of a younger version of himself, being forced to strike out on his own. The parallels made him wonder if Kedrin had put this girl in his class on purpose.

“Well then, Nadrina, as for that demonstration from class today... how do you think I did it?”

He’d obviously surprised her with the question. She opened her mouth to respond, probably to say she didn’t know, but then paused and considered it. Aldric was pleased to see she could think before speaking.

“I’ll assume that you’re just that fast at carving and imbuing,” Nadrina muttered, talking more to herself than Aldric. That spark was back in her eyes again. “You had mentioned you were combining elemental runes; fire, earth, and air. Fire would obviously burn the desk, and earth would... what would earth do? What about the earth rune would change the desk the way it did...?”

She wouldn’t guess right here and now, but Aldric wanted to see how her thought process worked. She was on the right track, but he wasn’t going to just tell her the answer. It turned out not to be necessary, however.

“Maybe... maybe earth is related to wood. Would the wooden desk react to an earth rune like that and change its physical properties? In one of our village elder’s book collections, there was something about trees dying and returning to the earth. Why would that make it burn more, though? Is it like charcoal? And what does the wind rune have to do with anything?”

Well, that was a lot more insight than Aldric had expected. He could practically see the smoke coming out of the girl’s ears as she contemplated the answer. Deciding to cut her off here before she set her brain aflame, he said, “Consider that your homework. I want to see if you can figure it out on your own.” At her crestfallen expression, he added, “We can go over it later if you still have questions.”

“If I’m even still here tomorrow,” he thought bitterly.

“Yes, Professor. Thank you!” Nadrina beamed brightly at him before bolting from the room, no doubt to do exactly as he said. He imagined she’d keep herself up all night, pondering.

Aldric once again found himself alone in his office, left with only his thoughts. That had been... kind of nice, actually. He’d assumed, perhaps unfairly, that this school would be full of stuck-up nobles, like that Caffaret brat. He was sure there would be more just like him, but seeing someone so excited to learn something new was refreshing.

The memories her earlier declaration had dredged up were still floating around in his head, not as bitter or painful to recall as they had been previously. Aldric looked at the staff case still in the room's corner. Even with the case closed, the image of the staff he’d slaved over for months would forever be burned into his mind’s eye. Almost as much as its owner’s visage was.

Even now, he could imagine those bright violet eyes peering at him, seeming to reach right into his soul. He could also see her quiet and delicate frown. It always did more to tell him he was being an ass than any combination of words ever could. He could never ignore her. As long as she was the one asking, he’d always do it. Right now, he felt she was asking him to be a better person.

Stupidly, his first instinct was to ask Zasia for advice. She had a way of cutting through his bullshit to get to the core problem. Of course, the one person he could count on most was nowhere to be found, and it was his own dumb fault. Kedrin would still listen, but even his understanding had limits. He wasn’t counting on too much support from the two of them this time.

Why did these moments of clarity always come after he’d screwed everything up? Avoiding it until it blew over was tempting, but he knew that wouldn’t work this time. He didn’t really want to, either. He was really, really sick of being a mess. Ironically, losing Zasia, the one person who’d tried her best to make him better, was finally the one thing that encouraged him to try. How pathetic.

Aldric sighed as he rubbed his face with his hands in exhaustion. He already knew what Miraea would say. To be the change he wanted to see. That these kids still had a chance, and he could be the one that showed them a better way. He had an awful feeling in his gut that he was just going to be beating his head against the wall. Maybe all of his efforts would prove fruitless. It wouldn’t be the first time that good intentions failed him.

But meeting Nadrina had made him weirdly hopeful. Maybe she was what he needed. She was a commoner, and more than enthusiastic to learn. She didn’t have any of the nonsense that nobles and other mages had polluting her thoughts and actions. Aldric realized that a professor probably shouldn’t single out students like that, but he’d never claimed to be a good professor. If he could at least get one kid to see magic like he had once, maybe that would be enough for him.

And who better than the girl who’d given him almost the same answer he’d given to Miraea all those years ago?

Aldric smiled despite himself. “Fine. You’ll get your way, as always.”

The empty room didn’t answer him, of course, no matter how much he longed to hear her voice again. However, he could imagine the familiar frown replaced by that lovely, quiet smile.

Chapter 5

Aldric faced down the enemy in front of him, feeling sweat drip down his neck as his nerves got the better of him. Thrice now he’d gone to make his move, but his foe still stood, mocking him with its presence. Aldric had faced down some horrible things in the past. Impossible odds were commonplace to him. There shouldn’t be an enemy that could cause him to hesitate or doubt himself.

And yet, a stupid office door had him at a standstill.

“Um, professor? You can just go on in--”

“I know, just... give me a second.” Aldric shushed the secretary, Brianna, before turning back to Kedrin’s office. His hand hovered a few inches in front of the door, but he hadn’t knocked yet. He’d spent all last night trying his best to come up with some argument, some case to plead with Kedrin. Anything that would get him one more chance to make things right. Annoyingly, all of his arguments had blown away with the wind as soon as he was just outside Kedrin’s door.

Just as he was about to make his fourth attempt at knocking, Aldric heard yelling through the door.

“I cannot begin to fathom what you see in that man!” an angry voice Aldric didn’t recognize was shouting. “To put the Asimov heir in his class, not even mentioning the Caffaret heir as well, is ludicrous. Even an experienced and tenured professor would be hard pressed to provide them with the necessary knowledge and skills.”

“And I am telling you,” came Kedrin’s uncharacteristically angry voice, “that I did not assign them just any professor. Professor Aldric is more than qualified to teach, noble heirs or no. You haven’t even met the man, yet you would cast doubts on my recommendation?”

“Oh, is he meeting with someone?” Brianna asked, sounding surprised. She got up from her desk and walked over to the door to knock on it, but Aldric caught her hand. When she looked at him in confusion, he put a finger over his lips for silence. She looked uncomfortable, but Aldric stopped paying her any mind.

“Perhaps you can explain to me, then, what makes you so confident? You yourself admitted he has no prior experience. I have been teaching here for years and am part of the Rainer household. I am more than qualified for the task. At least allow the young Lady Asimov to--!”

“You have been here for years due to a personal favor I owe to your father,” Kedrin interrupted, his voice dark. “Do not push my patience further, Professor Rainer. This is the final time I will hear any complaints from you. If you are unsatisfied with the class you have been assigned, you are welcome to hand your resignation letter over to me. Until then, you have a job to do. The next time you wish to speak with me, you may make an appointment like everyone else.”

There was the sound of a chair being roughly shoved backwards, and Aldric quickly let go of Brianna and stepped back from the door. Unfortunately, Brianna wasn’t as fast as him. When the door was violently yanked open, a man walked out and ran right into the poor woman. She toppled with a yelp, but Aldric thankfully caught her before she could spill onto the floor.

The man who Aldric guessed was Professor Rainer was a short, stubby man. He was probably handsome at one point, but a lavish and wealthy lifestyle seemed to have rounded out his features poorly. His expensive and opulent clothing helped hide some of his paunch, even if it drowned out the existence of his simpler professor’s robes.

He looked to Brianna still in Aldric’s arms and sniffed disdainfully, then seemed to notice the man holding her up. His eyes narrowed in curiosity. Aldric briefly considered dropping Brianna and running. He couldn’t afford to be recognized.

“Aldric?”

Kedrin was at the doorway now, looking surprised. He took in the scene before him and seemed to immediately put it all together, his eyebrows slamming down over eyes in a frown.

“Please apologize to my receptionist, Professor Rainer.”

Professor Rainer turned to him, realization dawning in his eyes. “This man is the--?”

“Now, please,” Kedrin interrupted, his tone clipped.

The two men had a staring contest for several more seconds before Rainer conceded. He mumbled a terse apology to Brianna, who fled like a startled deer back to her desk, then shot Aldric a measuring look before spinning on his heel and leaving.

Kedrin sighed, taking off his glasses to run his hand over his face in exasperation. “Apologies Brianna, Aldric. I didn’t expect him today. What are you doing here, Aldric? Don’t you have class today?”

“I... what?” Aldric said intelligently. He’d been thrown off by the earlier scene and now had no idea what to say. “But... yesterday...?”

“Ah yes, yesterday,” Kedrin interrupted, replacing his glasses and resuming his usual smile. “Try to keep the dramatic demonstrations to a minimum, please? I had a nice and long chat with young Mr. Caffaret, and assured him he was never in any real danger. Honestly, I think he took this as a challenge from you. I imagine he isn’t used to being put in his place, and he strikes me as the type who hates losing. Congrats, you have a new rival, and he’s half your age.”

Aldric flapped his mouth open and closed, but words didn’t come. Kedrin just gave him a patient smile.

“I expect an exceptional thank you gift from you, by the way. I had to pull out every trick in the book to smooth things over. Lots of practice dealing with overbearing noble parents helped. Luckily, Mr. Caffaret seems at odds with his father, so he hasn’t told him anything. I’m assuming, based on that miserable look on your face, that you learned your lesson and came to apologize, yes?”

Aldric wanted to say a lot of things right then. That he was sorry he was such a screw up. That he’d do everything he could from now on to make it right again. To thank Kedrin for, once again, sticking his neck out for Aldric and smoothing things over almost immediately.

Instead, he could only stare at his longtime friend, shamefaced and abashed at his kindness.

“Oh, and make sure you make up with Zasia, please?” He let out a disappointed sigh. “I long ago resigned myself to being the mediator when you two went at it, but I think you may have been particularly harsh this time. She seemed quite hurt yesterday.”

Mention of Zasia gave way to more feelings of failure and embarrassment. That was not a conversation Aldric was looking forward to.

“Give her some time to cool down. Knowing her, she’s planning on shunning you to give you enough time to stew in her anger. I’ll do what I can, but most of it will need to come from you.”

Aldric’s mouth moved to reply, but all that came out was, “Why?”

Kedrin looked at him in confusion, as if he’d asked the most obvious question in the world. “Because I believe in you, obviously.”

With a pat on the shoulder and a parting smile. Kedrin went back into his office and shut the door behind him, leaving Aldric staring stupidly at nothing.

“Sorry, professor, the headmaster is awfully busy. He’s like that when he’s distracted,” the secretary Brianna whispered apologetically, misinterpreting Aldric’s stunned expression. “People say he just catches everyone up in the whirlwind of what he’s doing. Despite how nice he is, he’s like a force of nature sometimes.”

“Yeah... yeah, I know.” Aldric muttered. Kedrin had always been like that. He swooped in, fixed everyone’s problem, and never expected to be thanked for it. It was just the guy he was. Even for a frequent screw up like Aldric. What the hell did Aldric ever do to deserve a friend like that?

“What time is it?” he abruptly asked Brianna.

“Um, about a quarter before first bell?”

If Kedrin wouldn’t let Aldric thank him, then the best he could do was live up to his expectations. Old doubts held for years were still trying to claw their way out, but Kedrin’s faith made it easier to bury them again this time. Determined not to squander this precious chance his friend had given him, Aldric marched off to his classroom. He was actually on time, for once.

~~~

Lilianna had come to class early this morning. She had hoped to meet with that girl Nadrina, and hopefully strike up another conversation with her. At the very least, she wanted to apologize for making her uncomfortable.

She’d noticed on the first day that their dorm rooms were right next to each other, and then later realized they had some special sort of class together. She’d hoped to establish a friendship, a real one this time, without the constant oversight of her family getting in the way. Her plan, however, had gone horribly awry.

Lilianna knew she’d led a sheltered life. From childhood until just recently, every waking moment was filled with tutoring, lecturing, training, coaching, and more than a little nagging. Anyone who interacted with her was carefully vetted by her family beforehand.

And yet, despite her noble upbringing and countless hours of lessons in proper communication, she was absolutely terrified to strike up casual conversation with a total stranger. She could hold her own in any court or ballroom, could talk circles around any fellow noble, but out in the real world? She felt like a baby bird that had just learned how truly small it was in this big world.

Her heart had soared when her talk with Nadrina had started rather well. Even if Lilianna was carrying most of the conversation, it was an actual conversation. No politics, no ulterior motives, nothing. Just honest communication that had her feeling positively giddy.

Then she’d botched it. She’d made the poor girl admit she was a commoner.

Lilianna honestly found that fascinating. She’d never really interacted with commoners before, except for her family’s servants, and was curious how one could make it into a school as prestigious as this one. But as soon as the Asimov family name had come up, Nadrina had put on the same look Lilianna had seen all her life. A look that said she was overwhelmed and intimidated, hoping that Lilianna’s attention would pass over her with no trouble.

Luckily, those annoying family lessons had taught her not to simply lay down and accept defeat. Lilianna had made sure to get to class early today, just so she could be there to greet Nadrina. With any luck, they could move past their awkward beginning and start fresh.

To her surprise, she found all three of her classmates already there. Nadrina was sitting at her desk and already prepared for the day, looking quite pleased to be there. Lilianna’s hope that today would be better died when Nadrina caught sight of her. The innocent smile she’d been wearing went flat, like she’d glued it to her face.

Right, okay. We can do this, Lilianna! We’ve done it a million times before! Establish eye contact, smile, reassure, and show familiarity! Just like they taught us!

“Good morning, Nadrina,” Lilianna greeted, giving the girl her best reassuring smile. “Have I arrived late today?”

“Um, g-good morning, ma’am,” Nadrina replied, speaking more to her notebook than Lilianna. “I don’t think you’re late. We were all just early this morning.”

“Oh, good.” Lilianna noticed that even Caffaret had shown up early. He had a look on his face like he was about to go to war. She hoped he wouldn’t antagonize their professor again today.

“Please, Nadrina, call me Lilianna. There is no need for formalities. I hope you don’t mind me using your name as well?”

“Ok, L-Lilianna.” Nadrina said Lilianna’s name like she was afraid this was a trap.

“She probably thinks I’m testing her or something. Drat! Was that too forward?”

Lilianna smiled to cover her embarrassment, mentally regrouping and grasping for another topic.

“I wonder what we’ll learn today?” Lilianna asked, blatantly changing the subject. She realized it was a lame question, but couldn’t come up with anything better. All of her previous training was failing her.

“We never got an assignment, so...” Nadrina trailed off, looking embarrassed at not having a better answer. Lilianna cursed her own stupidity. Why would Nadrina know? She was a first year, just like Lilianna.

“I certainly hope there will be less pyrotechnics today,” Lilianna babbled, reaching for the most obvious topic not even a full minute into the conversation. “Yesterday was a bit much, though I’m fascinated by how Professor Aldric pulled it off. Did you have any ideas?”

Damn it, Lilianna! Why would she know anything? Did you really just ask her--?

“Oh yes, several!” The awkward and stammering girl Lilianna had expected disappeared suddenly. “I have a few working theories, but there’s so many unknowns that I’m still working it out.” Nadrina reached into the bag under her desk and pulled out a massive notebook, opening it and flipping through pages rapidly. It was an impressive thing, complete with page tabs, annotations to source materials, and obvious wear and tear from frequent use.

“I know for a fact that it was common runes he used, nothing unique,” Nadrina was already saying, turning her notebook to Lilianna and showing her some mock up rune diagrams. “It’s the combination that must have been special, though I’m still having trouble filling in all the blanks. The part that baffles me the most is the color of the flames. I’ve only ever heard of lady Zasia Glory being able to do that, and she’s not a sorcerer. I have a working theory, but it will have to wait until the professor arrives.”

Nadrina paused for a quick gasp of air before somehow growing even more excited. “Oh, you’re a conjurer, Lilianna. Do you have any theories?”

Lilianna was looking at Nadrina a little wide eyed, feeling like she was now the one on the back foot.

“I... can’t say that I do, no,” she answered carefully. “As far as I’m aware, Lady Glory is the only conjurer alive who can pull off such a thing. It is apparently a family secret or some such. I’ve certainly never heard of a sorcerer doing such a thing. Perhaps Professor Aldric will explain, if you ask?”

Nadrina waved away the question, like it was a pointless thought. “Already tried that. He wanted me to find out on my own. As soon as he arrives, I’ll be running my theories by him.” She turned away from her notes long enough to give Lilianna a radiant smile. It was such a stark contrast to her meekness from earlier that Lilianna didn’t know what to say.

“I’m so happy I got to come here! The professors, the library, the facilities. All of it is just so fantastical. This is the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me!”

Lilianna couldn’t help but return her smile of total joy and sincerity. Gods above, she was adorable!

Just as the conversation was getting good, the doors to the back of the room burst open. In walked Professor Aldric, looking like he’d jogged all the way here.

Under Lilianna’s critical noblewoman's eye, she noticed he appeared to have gotten a haircut and a shave. He still looked frumpy, but Lilianna figured he could be handsome if he really put his mind to it. He also looked much more alert and present than he had yesterday.

He was oddly hovering around the entrance, looking like he’d been in a hurry, but now didn’t know what to do with himself.

That was when Codrin Caffaret came marching towards him. When he was just a few feet away, he pointed imperiously at the professor. Why was he always doing that?

“You! Show me!”

“... what?” the professor asked, looking completely lost. Lilianna shared his confusion.

“How did you do it? That white fire! Show me! I must know!”

Nadrina and Lilianna were watching the two of them carefully, ready for the professor to burst out in anger again. What actually happened was almost disappointing.

“Sure,” he answered simply, walking past Caffaret to the front of the classroom.

“If you can’t tell me, I’ll just assume you’re a—wait, what?” The professor left Caffaret with his finger pointed at nothing and the wind taken entirely out of his sails.

“Not like I had a lesson planned anyway,” Aldric called over his shoulder. “Pick your jaw up off the floor, then hurry and sit down. Class has already started.”

Caffaret recovered from his shock and took his seat, red faced but still keeping his chin up high. Professor Aldric made it to the front of the class and turned to face them. Lilianna noticed Nadrina was poised to learn, pen in hand. She also noticed that their fourth classmate looked like he was trying to sleep at his desk without making it look obvious. She’d completely forgotten that he was there.

“So... where would I start...?” the professor mumbled to himself. He then pointed to the brown-haired boy. “You, how many elemental runes do you know?”

Shock and panic flashed on the boy’s face before he blanked his expression. “Um, I dunno any. Why would a beginner enforcer need to know elemental runes?” he answered carefully, looking like he thought this was a trick question.

As much as she didn’t like his attitude, Lilianna couldn’t help but agree. While some enforcers could imbue attacks or even their bodies with elemental mana, only the most skilled in the world could accomplish that after many years of practice.

“...wow, okay. We’ll come back to that, alright?” Professor Aldric directed his attention elsewhere before the boy could respond. The boy looked torn between being relieved and being offended by the quick dismissal. “Caffaret, how about you?”

Codrin puffed himself up at the attention. “I’ve already mastered eleven fire runes, and am learning a twelfth even now!” he declared proudly.

The professor looked at Codrin as if he was waiting for him to continue. “... yeah, and?”

Codrin’s cocky smile fell a bit. “W-Well, I’ll probably master that one as well! It’s only a matter of time. My father wouldn’t show me any more until I’ve finished the ones I’m working on.”

Professor Aldric stared nonplussed at Codrin. Then he seemed to come to some sort of epiphany. “Right, that’s just your fire runes. How about earth? Wind?”

Codrin looked just as confused as the professor, now. “What? Why would I bother? I’m a fire elementalist.”

“Yeah, I get why you would know the standard fire runes, but don’t tell me you haven’t even bothered to study any others?”

At Codrin’s look of utter confusion, the professor had a slowly dawning look of horror on his face as he addressed the entire class. “Does anyone here know more than ten runes?”

“Oh, I do!” Nadrina called out excitedly. “They’re all general runes, though, not elemental. I haven’t mastered them yet, but I can recall them well enough.”

No one else volunteered any more rune knowledge, and the professor face-palmed. “The heir to a Great House is behind a commoner. What are they teaching these kids...?”

Nadrina started pouting in disappointment, something that caused Lilianna to immediately dislike the professor. That was actually very impressive. How dare he?

“I’m not putting you down, Nadrina. That’s really quite impressive without any formal training. It’s just... ok, forget it then. Let’s try a different angle. Please tell me at least one of you has a dual affinity? You know, two elements?”

Reassured that Nadrina wasn’t being made fun of, Lilianna decided she could cooperate. Checking a sigh, she resigned herself to the inevitable stares and slowly raised her hand.

Professor Aldric seized the opportunity immediately. “Oh, thank gods. Wasn’t sure what I was going to do if that didn’t work. Name?”

“Lilianna Asimov,” she answered quietly. Having seen how the professor had reacted to Codrin’s family name, she expected at least some kind of reaction.

“Well, come on. Hop to,” he said, waving her closer.

Surprised at his lack of reaction, Lilianna gracefully rose from her seat and moved to stand by the professor. She tried not to notice the look of awe on the other faces, including Nadrina’s. She wouldn’t find her dual affinity intimidating, would she?

“Affinities?” the professor asked.

“Wind and water,” Lilianna answered. “Six runes in wind and--”

“Yeah, great.” He cut her off before she could give him the details. “Hit the chalkboard with some wind. Use whatever you want.”

Lilianna blinked and looked at him for confirmation, but he just made a “hurry up” gesture at her.

Confused, but still wanting to follow instructions, Lilianna visualized her wind rune in her mind. Using her mana pool, she brought the rune into being as a spell, shouting, “Venti!”

A near solid slug of air flew forward and slammed against the chalkboard hard enough to shake the wall behind it. Bits of chalk and dust flew up in a flurry before settling back down again. Coughing slightly and waving in front of himself, Professor Aldric nodded in approval.

“Good casting time, I’ll give you that, but try to control that giant mana pool of yours, alright? I said to hit the wall, not put a hole in it.”

Impressed mutterings came from the rest of the class. The brown-haired boy actually looked to be paying full attention, for once. Nadrina had a sparkly look to her eyes, and Codrin looked mildly jealous.

Lilianna, however, was oddly annoyed. Why wouldn’t she use her full power? Her tutors had always just let her dictate whatever force she desired in her spells. Not to brag, but her mana pool was huge. Holding back was pointless. Wasn’t it?

“Alright, water next.” the professor said, pointing to the chalkboard again.

Again, Lilianna looked at him in confusion.

“It’s fine. I’ll get in trouble, not you, now chop-chop.”

Lilianna did as he asked, albeit reluctantly. Once again, she formed a rune in her head, brought it to life, and spoke the incantation. “Durna.”

The ball of liquid that shot forth was considerably less violent than the ball of air. Lilianna’s mastery over water was much less than her wind. However, it was still enough to render the chalkboard and wall behind it soaking wet. It washed away the diagrams the professor had written the other day, leaving puddles of chalky water on the floor.

“Much better, Lilly,” Professor Aldric praised, giving Lilianna a hearty slap on the back.

... Lilly? No one called her that, not even her parents. His casual attitude towards her was something she wasn’t used to, but he continued before she could think further.

“Alright, now put ‘em together.”

Lilianna waited for more instruction, but the professor only stared at her with obvious expectation.

“Um, do you want me to do both at the same time?” she asked. Her tutors had asked her to do this before, a different rune in each hand. They typically gave her a pool of water as a source for her water magic, since that was easier than pulling it from the air, but she could usually pull it off when asked.

Dual casting was terribly impractical to do, other than for masters. It effectively divided her attention in two and made both spells weaker. Envisioning two separate and unrelated runes was extremely difficult, even for advanced conjurers of a dual affinity.

The professor, however, just shook his head. “No, together. As in, combine them,” he clarified, bringing his hands together in a meaningful gesture.

“How is that even possible?” Lilianna asked, her surprise outweighing her manners. Combining elements could be done, of course, but only by the most experienced of conjurers. Lilianna suspected he was just trying to embarrass her in front of the class. Was this because of her family, just like Codrin?

Professor Aldric raised an eyebrow at her. “What, you’ve never played with magic before?”

Playing? With magic?

The concept was so foreign to Lilianna that she couldn’t even understand what he meant. Magic was just magic. It was a tool, as much as her hands and feet were tools. It was a responsibility to society and to one’s family. It was an obligation to use it for good and to punish evil. Magic wasn’t a toy, and anyone foolish enough to think so quickly learned how badly they could mess it up.

“Heh, yeah, I know that look,” the professor chuckled. He gave Lilianna a surprisingly sincere smile. “Zasia gave me the same look when I told her this. Just try. Your family wasn’t right about everything they told you. Let go of all that cautionary upbringing and just cut loose for once. If you hate it, I won’t ask you to do it again.”

Zasia? As in Zasia Glory? Lilianna was still very dubious, and could practically hear the condemnations from her tutors, but the expectant gazes from the other three students were burning holes into her skull. Sighing quietly, she closed her eyes and did her best to concentrate.

The first step was easy; visualizing a wind rune. Air was constantly around her, and therefore easy to call on. In only a few moments, the rune took shape in her mind. As soon as she tried to add a water rune, however, the wind rune lost its shape and faded away. She’d expected that. She was about to try casting the wind rune before forming the water rune, but the professor interrupted.

“Nope. No cheating. Both at the same time. Try again.”

Lilianna spent what felt like hours trying to form both runes simultaneously, growing increasingly frustrated at each failed attempt. It was like trying to look backwards and forwards at the same time. It just made no sense. Lilianna could feel her brows furrowing in anger.

She’d never felt like this before. To be asked to perform magic and then fail was not something she’d ever experienced. Lilianna wasn’t so conceited as to think she was a perfect conjurer, but these things usually came easier to her.

This was ridiculous. This professor was ridiculous. What would a sorcerer know about conjuring, anyway? Even a master would have a hard time with this, and he just expected her to get it immediately?

“I can’t do it! This is impossible!” Lilianna snapped, the words coming out harsher than she meant them to. She sounded petulant even to her own ears, but she couldn’t help it. What was this awful feeling in her chest? And why did her stupid eyes sting?

Professor Aldric just sighed. “Fine, but you only get one hint.” He walked over to the chalkboard intending to write, but stopped as he realized it was still soaking wet. Shrugging to himself, he produced a knife from nowhere and carved into the chalkboard itself. Everyone else winced as the sound tore at their ears. “There you go. Next try is all on you, though.”

Normally Lilianna would have criticized his vandalism of academy property. She was too stunned to speak, however. As soon as she saw the rune diagram he’d carved, everything just clicked in her head, the way the runes fit into one another. Not as separate formulas, but as two pieces of a greater whole. Lilianna had seen nothing like it, and yet...it just made sense.

Excitement unlike any she’d known before filled her. She quickly closed her eyes and tried to mold the shape she had seen. The runes fit together better now, but there was still something wrong. It was as if they were fighting her intentions, like forcing two similar sides of a magnet together.

“Stop,” came the professor’s voice. He sounded like he was just behind her. “Mana isn’t something you can strong arm into place. Mana wants to change, to take the form of a spell. Think of it like a piece of paper with a lit candle beneath it, just before it lights up. You don’t need a lot of effort, but just enough to tip it over the edge. Don’t make it, tell it. Let it. Think about this; what would wind and water in harmony look like?”

Lilianna did as he said, letting go of her vice-like grip on the mana in her pool and instead just directing it into the form she wanted. Nothing appeared to happen, so she pushed ever so gently. She wasn’t forcing it, just giving the spell all the resources it would need, like putting more candles under that piece of paper.

What she was feeling floored her. She could feel the mana’s... nature? Character? What would one call it?

Water was constantly in motion, always wanting to take up as much space as it could, flowing around anything it couldn’t move on its own. It moved ever onward, never stopping. One could even say a stagnant pond was moving as it slipped and slid through its container with an easy but certain grace.

Wind was very similar, but it was more rambunctious, almost playful. Nothing could stop the wind. Nothing could grab it and tie it down. It was freedom personified, and would resist any attempt to control it. It called to her, asking her to let go and just fly with the wind.

Even as Lilianna reached these epiphanies about her elements, she somehow knew that she was only scratching the surface. Watching the two elements dance together in her mind’s eye, Lilianna was overwhelmed by the sensation of it. It was elation, anticipation, and joy all wrapped into one bundle of complex emotions in her heart.

Murmurs and gasps coming from the rest of the class interrupted her thoughts. Opening her eyes, Lilianna briefly panicked when she realized she couldn’t see. Everywhere she looked, there was a thick blanket of fog obstructing her view. She couldn’t even see the professor, who should have been right next to her.

“Alright, that’s enough. You’re going to freeze us all to death,” Professor Aldric called from somewhere in front of her. Lilianna suddenly realized that she had been passively feeding mana to a spell the entire time. As soon as she realized that, she felt the feed abruptly cut off as she lost her concentration. The fog slowly cleared, revealing the open-mouthed stares of her classmates.

Lilianna reflexively began to apologize for the scene, but the world started spinning around her, and her stomach felt like it had dropped out from under her.

“Whoops,” the professor said, catching her before she could topple over onto the floor. “Yeah, it’s a little tricky at first. Try not to put so much into it next time, alright? Control is going to be a big focus for you. That massive mana pool has spoiled you somewhat.”

Lilianna could only nod in a daze as the professor placed her in a nearby chair. At last thinking to look inward at her mana pool, she realized it was almost half empty after less than a minute. She couldn’t even recall when that had last happened to her.

Despite the wooziness it had caused, she was a bit tempted to do it again. That “oneness” she’d felt with her elements was unlike anything she’d ever experienced under the guidance of her tutors. There was a longing inside of her now to go back to that wonderful moment again. Lilianna had already decided she would do so the very moment she could.

“And that’s why learning multiple runes is important,” Professor Aldric continued. “This isn’t restricted to just conjurers, either. Enforcers imbuing their attacks with magic, sorcerers combining runes in tandem for different effects, healers incorporating different spells to target different ailments. All of it comes back to the runes you know and how you use them, regardless of affinities or class. Don’t let people tell you that you only need to stick to a handful of them that apply to you. There’s a lot you could learn from what other people practice.”

He pulled a scroll of vellum from somewhere in his robes, holding it up for everyone to see. It was a blank spell scroll, one that a sorcerer and another mage together would imbue. It would contain a spell until any class of mage unleashed it at a later time.

They still couldn’t be used by non-mages, and it was a laborious task for a sorcerer to make one even for a simple spell, but they were an invaluable asset, especially in times of war. Many considered it the most valuable skill sorcerers possessed. It was also why many believed sorcerers were only useful for stockpiling scrolls, and thus the lowest class of mage.

“For example,” the professor continued, placing the scroll on his desk so that the entire class would see it clearly. “This is igni, a basic fire rune. Caffaret, what would happen if I cast this scroll as is?”

Codrin frowned, like he expected a trick question. “It would burn, obviously.”

“Correct. Igni.” At the professor’s declaration, the scroll under his hand burst into flames. It quickly consumed itself before sputtering into nothingness. Lilianna couldn’t help but feel that it was a waste of such an expensive asset. Spell scrolls had to be specially prepared and required many ingredients.

Professor Aldric took out yet another spell scroll, the same igni rune inscribed on it. “Nadrina! Why do novice mages speak runes out loud when they cast?”

“Um... because it helps with concentration,” Nadrina answered haltingly. “I-It cements a clearer image in the caster’s mind, and it leads to less mana draw than silent casting. Advanced mages rarely need to speak runes aloud, unless the spell is complex.”

“Only partly true, but that’s the answer I wanted, anyway.”

Nadrina looked torn between being pleased and being disappointed, but the professor continued. “Focus is only half of the answer. The other half is completely different, and something most mages don’t learn until many, many years of practice.”

He looked down at the unused spell scroll on his desk, not even touching it. “Hey! Blow up or something.”

The scroll, to Liliana’s amazement, did just that. With a loud bang, the scroll burst into tiny fragments that fluttered all around the professor like confetti, some of them smoking slightly as they fell. The shouts of alarm and amazement mirrored Liliana’s own thoughts. Igni was only meant to heat something to the point of burning, not explode.

“Speaking the runes is not just for concentration, it conveys intent. You all heard what I said earlier, right? Mana wants to change. It just needs a direction to do so, and your intent provides that direction, even if that intent it not exactly what the spell was made to do. There’s a lot more wiggle room to runes than you would think.”

Every student, even Codrin and the other boy, were now paying rapt attention as the professor continued his lecture. “It’s not just limited to speaking, either. You just saw Lilianna cast double elemental magic without uttering a word, merely through what her intent conveyed. The sad truth is not enough people wonder what a spell is, and instead only ask what the spell is designed to do. This is why so many mages think that crafting your own spells is reserved for experts. Asking questions is always good, but asking the wrong ones can get you stuck in preconceived notions of how the world works.”

“That still doesn’t explain the white fire! How did you do it?” Codrin called from his desk.

“The white fire is a combination of three elements; Fire for the flame itself, wind to stoke the flame to a higher temperature, and earth to remove impurities from the air.” He moved to the chalkboard, probably to draw out the rune diagram, then stopped when he again remembered the chalk board was ruined. “Whatever,” he muttered irritably, again taking out his knife and carving a diagram directly onto the chalkboard.

“The principles are the same even if you don’t have the affinity for those elements, but this method won’t work without them. That’s why our resident Professor Glory is rather infamous for her use of white flames. She’s the only conjurer with the affinities and talent to pull it off.”

“But didn’t you use them yesterday?” Nadrina suddenly asked. Professor Aldric gave her a blank stare, like she'd just caught him in a lie and he didn’t know how to get out of it.

“That was... a bit different,” he hedged, clearly uncomfortable. “And beyond the scope of what we’re talking about.”

Before anyone could say anything else, he finished his diagrams and addressed the class. “We’ll save the heavy experimenting for later, however. I don’t need you setting fire to yourselves trying something you’re not ready for. And before you complain,” he said with a pointed look at Codrin, who had just opened his mouth, “another heir of one of the Four Great Houses just tried only two elements together and nearly passed out. What do you think attempting white flames with just one affinity would do to you?”

Codrin’s mouth snapped shut at the professor’s words. It was clear by the nervous look on his face that he was imagining the consequences. Mana was inherent in everyone, even in trace amounts for non-mages. Losing all of it meant you dropped dead where you stood, regardless of power. Trying a spell you weren’t ready for was a sure way to die young.

“So, for starters, let’s try this. We’re going to practice activating a spell with our intent, rather than our words.” Lilianna suspected the professor’s pockets were just bottomless pits, because he somehow pulled out two more spell scrolls and gave them to Codrin and Nadrina. From what Lilianna could glimpse, they were incredibly complex rune arrays.

“For starters, try activating these scrolls with the rune arrays I’ve already inscribed them with. Not you, shaggy. You get a different assignment, since enforcers don’t use runes starting out.”

The brown-haired boy looked at the professor in annoyance. “My name is Alek. Alek Carlisle.”

“Sure. So Alek, when you want to punch something really hard with enforcement, how do you do it?”

Alek looked back at the professor with confusion. “Um, I just fortify my body with mana...”

“Your whole body?”

“Well, yeah? How else would--?” Alek cut off as a light filled his eyes. He began glowing with mana as he augmented his whole body, then stared intensely at his right hand. The glow there brightened considerably, then suddenly cut off when Alek yelled, “Ow! Shit!”

Professor Aldric just laughed. “Yeah, hurts, doesn’t it? You’ve got the right idea, though. Why fortify your whole body when you only need your hand to hit something? It’s a bit more complicated than stuffing your fist full of mana, but we’ll go over human anatomy later. Keep practicing. Start with one of your arms. It’s easier.”

“Lilly!”

A very excited Nadrina grabbed Lilianna’s view. “That was amazing! I’ve never seen combining two elements before! And you didn’t even speak the incantation! Have you always been able to do that? What did it feel like? Can all nobles do that? How did you--?”

“Easy, kiddo. Let the girl breath.” The professor’s voice broke through the tumult of questions from Nadrina. He squatted down next to her chair until he was eye level with her. “How are you holding up, Lilly?”

Lilianna almost corrected him, but found she didn’t seem to mind the nickname. Besides, Nadrina seemed to like it. Should she give Nadrina one, too? Was that a commoner thing?

“I’m fine professor. Thank you.” She was still a little unsteady and was grateful to be sitting, but she was feeling a lot better.

“Looks like that massive mana pool of yours is a gift and a curse, huh?” The professor asked. When she gave him a perplexed look, he continued. “I’m willing to bet the people who taught you growing up just let you put whatever amount of strength into your casting that you wanted, right? Your mana is off or on, like Alek over there?”

Lilianna nodded, surprised that he would know that. Did he have the same upbringing? He certainly didn’t act like it.

“Yeah, figures. Think of your body as a funnel for your mana pool. The more mana backed up in the mana pool, the more pressure it puts on the funnel. They taught you to cast with whatever strength felt the easiest because it was easier than learning how to control the flow. Unfortunately, it’s also incredibly wasteful. You end up using way more mana than you actually need. It’s like trying to drive in a nail with a war hammer.”

Even as the many years of teaching she had been through warred against what the professor was saying, she had to admit that it made sense. The typical learning path was to learn spells first, then learn to control them later. One’s ability to control their mana was seen as a much higher art, one practiced by those who seriously studied the craft all their lives. What the professor said made so much sense, though. Enough to make Lilianna wonder why no one had tried differently.

He answered her question without her needing to ask it.

“It’s also why nobles assume large mana pools equal more power and talent. If a kid is born that has a massive mana pool, all of their spells are huge compared to their peers. It doesn’t mean they’re talented, it just means they have a better-than-average funnel. Worse, since nobles pick spouses with kids in mind, every generation gets a bigger mana pool and has a harder time later learning to control it. Some don’t even bother. They just accept that they can only cast a few spells before they’re tired. It’s led to people assuming that the potential you’re born with is all you’ll ever amount to.”

A strange thing to talk about, but it made sense. The problem progressively became wider spread until it was just accepted as the way it was. It wouldn’t be the first time nobles decided on a method for no other reason than tradition. Their professor was a very unconventional thinker, not to mention obviously experienced in magic. It sparked Lilianna’s curiosity.

“Professor... exactly who are you?” It was a rude way to ask it, but he seemed the type to appreciate direct questions.

Professor Aldric just shrugged and winked in response. “Me? I’m just a guy who asks a lot of questions. Sometimes I even get lucky and find an answer.”

If he was trying to curb her interest, it wasn’t working. Lilianna was certain that his response was the understatement of the century. If Aldric was his first name, what was his family name? The name Aldric was fairly common, so no hints there. Was he from some high standing noble family? Lilianna seriously doubted that, but him being a commoner made equally little sense.

As she watched Nadrina rattle off more questions at a bemused-looking Professor Aldric, Lilianna wondered if she might write home soon. Perhaps someone in her family would know more about their mysterious professor.

Chapter 6

A little over a month passed as Aldric continued teaching. As reluctant as he was to admit it, he was feeling a lot better. Having something to wake up to and do every day was a new feeling for him, but he was starting to realize he liked it. His doubts lingered still, but much more quietly. He’d even quit drinking cold turkey, though he wouldn’t have managed it without Kedrin treating his withdrawal symptoms.

Aldric also had long talks into the night with his friend about the myriad of things that were eating away at his nerves. Bouncing his worries off someone else had helped more than Aldric ever would have thought possible all on its own.

According to Kedrin, while he was still being asked about Aldric, no one had yet noticed who he really was. Several other professors had protested hiring someone without any experience off the street, but whether it was his own talent, the students’ talent, or just the fact that they were such a small class, the kids had made surprising progress in a remarkably short time. It was hard for anyone to argue his qualifications after that, though Aldric was sure plenty still didn’t like it. Rumors had started to make their way around the staff, and it made Aldric nervous. The center of attention was the last place he wanted to be.

Aldric coped with the anxiety by throwing himself into his work. Today, he was assisting Codrin with learning to compress his mana to control his fire. Codrin had asked for this training so he could use the white fire he had seen. Aldric just wanted to make sure the kid didn’t immolate himself. Control was imperative for conjurers, especially fire affinity ones. If Codrin’s own personality was anything to go by, self-control was going to be one of his biggest obstacles to overcome.

Codrin let out an angry growl when the candle on his desk melted into a puddle, his flame losing control. The flame flared up briefly before sputtering out, exhausting itself. The point of this exercise was for Codrin to light the candle in front of him with only the barest of sparks, just enough to light the candle without using unnecessary amounts of mana to do it.

It had only taken him a few days to pull it off at first, a fact that caused him to become insufferably smug, but Aldric had moved up to making him do it without using a spoken spell. If the ever-growing pile of mutilated candles was anything to go by, Codrin had finally met his match.

Aldric made a mental note to ask Kedrin to buy more candles. A lot more.

“Killed another one, did you?” Alek asked from his corner of the small classroom. He was currently doing one armed pushups from a handstand position, his arm glowing with the telltale signs of enforcement. He was practicing enforcing only one body part for extended periods of time.

Aldric had seen his fair share of rebellious young men, so it hadn’t been too hard to motivate the lazy Alek to work. It mainly involved embarrassing him for his lack of progress in front of two pretty girls and a condescending noble heir. Teenagers were simple that way.

“The great Codrin Caffaret, slayer of candles and other household goods,” Alek crowed, trying to get under Codrin’s skin. By the look on the young noble’s face, it was working. “Want me to find a bard to sing your praises?”

“If you’re that bored with your practice, Carlisle, maybe I’ll change Caffaret’s training a bit.” Aldric interrupted. “Think your speed has improved enough to dodge fire balls?”

Codrin looked like he was immediately in favor of this new idea. Alek scoffed and looked away, but shut his mouth.

Aldric returned his attention to Codrin. “Caffaret, we talked about this. Mana needs specific intent, especially when not using words. Stop seeing the candle as one uniform object and break it into parts. You only need to hit the wick.”

“But it’s such a small target!” Codrin whined. “That’s hard enough with words, much less silent casting. I wasn’t able to do any silent casting a few weeks ago. Isn’t it enough that I can do this much?”

“You can silent cast in a quiet, controlled environment with no outside pressures or distractions,” Aldric corrected. “Now you’re going to keep practicing until you can do it without even thinking about it.” He grabbed another candle and plopped it onto the desk. Codrin glared at the thing, like its existence offended him. “Keep going. I’ll check in on you later.”

Ignoring Codrin’s grumbling, Aldric made his way over to Lilianna and Nadrina. The former was busy manipulating water from a liquid to a gas, transferring it from one wooden bowl to another, while the latter was tinkering with a mana lock he’d given her.

Mana locks were devices used just like any regular lock, the only difference being they ran on rune scripts, not keys. They were more secure generally, unless you were trying to keep a sorcerer out of something. Aldric had given them to Nadrina to practice recognizing rune formations, then breaking or interrupting them.

Aldric had underestimated her. Again. He’d given her three to start off with, thinking it would take her a few days at least. She came back to him fifteen minutes later, asking for more. After several weeks of this, it basically became a game to work on in her spare time. Aldric kept designing them to be progressively more difficult, but he was fighting a losing battle against her insatiable desire to learn. He’d specifically designed this latest one to be one of the hardest he could make, just to spare him from making so many more. He had no doubts she’d get through it one day, though.

Blessedly, that day didn’t seem to be today. Nadrina was frowning at the small device in her hands with fierce concentration, and didn’t even bother to look up when he approached them. “How’s practice coming along?” he asked.

Lilianna looked up and gave him a tired smile, looking relieved to have an excuse to take a break. “Quite well, Professor. I can transfer the water between bowls a full five or six times before I tire myself out and have to rest.” She absently wiped a drop of sweat from her brow as she beamed with pride.

Aldric only nodded in approval. Internally, however, her progress genuinely surprised him. Lilianna had taken to learning and training almost as much as Nadrina. More than once, he’d reigned her in a bit before she hurt herself. She didn’t strike him as the type to be reckless, which made her attitude so surprising.

Aldric chalked it up to not being allowed to explore her limits when she was still being tutored by her family. He could certainly relate to the feeling of having one’s talents constrained by the expectations of others.

“Oh, and look what Drina made me!” Lilianna picked up both water bowls and displayed them proudly to Aldric, like she’d made them herself and wanted praise. Nadrina’s head shot up when she registered what her friend had just said.

“Wait! Lilly, they’re not--!” she started, but cut off when she saw Aldric’s sudden pointed interest in the bowls. “Um, they’re not really perfect just yet. I’m still trying to iron out the kinks. They’re more like prototypes. I’m sure you could do much better, Professor.”

Aldric ignored Nadrina’s nervous babbling as he examined the offered bowls. Now that he was looking closely, he could see runes inscribed around their rims, obviously engraved with great care and attention to detail. They were simple enough that he figured them out immediately. She’d enchanted one bowl to warm its contents, and the other to cool them. They were common enchantments used for food preservation and cooking, though they weren’t usually this meticulously crafted.

Then he realized what they were really for. The bowls heated and cooled the water, just enough to change the temperature without altering the form of the water. Doing so would force Lilianna to put more effort into controlling the transformation of the water.

Nadrina had made these to make Liliana’s training more difficult without altering the rules of the exercise, probably at Liliana’s request. It was a simple solution, but a clever one.

“Very well done, Nadrina,” Aldric said, and meant it. “Overall, there’s not much you could have done any better.” Despite how behind these kids had been at the beginning of the year, Aldric was getting worried about how he was going to reign in their expectations of themselves. Training rarely went this well.

“See? I told you. Have more faith in yourself, Drina.”

Nadrina was blushing scarlet from the top of her head to the bottom of her neck at the praise. She tried to hide her face behind her long hair, but he could still see her delighted smile. “T-Thank you, Professor,” she mumbled shyly.

“Aha!” Codrin cried from his desk. Aldric and the girls turned to see him smiling victoriously at his lit candle. The top was gooey, but the overall candle was still whole.

“Hahaha! How about that? Nothing to it. Just needed a few tries!” Codrin crowed, basking in everyone’s attention being on him.

“Yeah, a few thousand,” Alek muttered. He executed a one-handed hand spring and landed on his feet, wiping at his brow. “There, five sets of three hundred. That means I can move on from these stupid exercises now, right?”

“Actually, Professor,” Lilianna interrupted. “I think I’m ready to move on as well, with your permission? I’m not sure I can improve the technique anymore. All I need to work on is my mana conservation, since I tire out too quickly. Do you have any exercises for that?”

Aldric was about to answer when the sound of a metal catch releasing stopped him, followed by a giggle from Nadrina. He turned to find her already beaming at him in victory. She was holding up the opened mana lock like a puppy presenting a trophy to their owner. “Have you made any more yet, Professor?”

Not for the first time, Aldric felt more than a little overwhelmed by these kids. They were finishing exercises faster than he could think of them. He felt like he was working more now than he ever had in his life.

What happened to the small and easy class Kedrin had promised him? Aldric liked to think he knew more magic theory than most, but this rate of progress was ridiculous. Though, speaking of progress...

“Alright, how about this?” Aldric announced as he made his way to his office. “I’ve got a bit of a test for you.” Alek and Codrin both groaned in tandem, while Nadrina let out a cry of panic.

“Not that kind of test,” Aldric said, rolling his eyes. His students craned their necks to look through his office door as he went to one of his bags, pulled out the object he’d been looking for, and came back to the classroom and presented it to them. In his hands was a small, perfectly smooth and clear stone with no edges. It almost looked like glass when it caught the light just right.

“Is that a piece of Glycite?” Lilianna asked with a surprised gasp. “Aren’t those supposed to be extremely expensive?”

“Yep, made--,” Aldric started, then stopped himself. He was about to say he made it himself, but decided against that. “Borrowed it from the headmaster. Perks of being acquainted with him.”

“You’re friends with the headmaster?!” Nadrina asked in obvious awe. The other three looked just as surprised.

Crap.

Aldric plowed forward before they could ask any more questions. “Anyway, this mineral is most commonly used to measure mana potential, because of its unique reactive nature to mana. Someone probably tested you for mage talents when you first applied to the academy with something like this. Less commonly, it’s also used to monitor progress in a mage’s training.”

That got their attention. Codrin looked ready to leap up and grab the stone right then and there, but Aldric headed him off by tossing it to him. Codrin juggled it a bit, not ready for the throw, before he held it in front of himself. He had an almost reverent look on his face as he gazed at it.

“For those not familiar, imbuing some of your mana into that stone will reveal your overall mana pool size, affinities, mana control, and various other things. We’ll be using it from now on to measure your progress.” At the eager look from Codrin, Aldric hurried to continue. “And when I say some, I mean some. Dumping mana into it won’t make your results any better. It will screw your mana control measurement up if you try too hard.”

Codrin visibly reigned in his enthusiasm and concentrated on the Glycite. Within a few minutes, his mana filled the clear stone with a bright orange light. The light shifted to red as it swirled clockwise within the center of the stone, filling up about two-thirds of it.

“Conjurer, fire affinity, excellent sized mana pool, above average control,” Aldric said. Codrin looked like he didn’t know whether to be pleased or disappointed. “For your age group, that’s an excellent result. Keep it up.”

Satisfied that he was exceptional, Codrin grinned and passed the stone on to Alek, who was nearby. The young man looked at the Glycite with a put-upon expression, just before the stone went from crystal clear to an opaque brown. It filled the stone about halfway, but was consistently dark and impossible to see through.

“Enforcer, average mana pool, and well above average control,” Aldric said, rather surprised at the result. Enforcers usually had less control in general compared to conjurers. Alek threw a smirk towards Codrin, who just snorted in dismissal.

Lilianna was next. It took her barely any time at all before the Glycite burst with two toned lights. Blue and silver swirled around the center of the stone so brightly that it was hard for Aldric to get a good measurement. It was nearly filled to the brim, something Aldric hadn’t seen since Zasia’s assessment.

“Conjurer, water and wind affinities, exceptional mana pool, and exceptional mana control,” Aldric said, surprised yet not. Lilianna had already showed excellent magic skill, and he knew she came from a prestigious family that was particular about its good breeding.

Lilianna handed the Glycite off to a mesmerized Nadrina before anyone could comment. “Your turn,” she told her friend. She wore an oddly neutral smile.

She doesn’t want them to treat her any differently, Aldric realized. He imagined she got a lot of attention because of her abilities. Perhaps unwanted attention as well.

Nadrina looked surprised to suddenly be in the hot seat. She looked around at the expectant gazes and then at the stone, her nervousness obvious. Holding it the way one might a venomous snake, she closed her eyes and imbued it with her mana.

It seemed as if nothing had happened at first until tiny black specs started appearing throughout the Glycite. They coalesced into a single orb at the center that rapidly grew larger, until it took up the entire center of the stone with a roiling, undulating blackness.

“Sorcerer, above average mana pool, and excellent mana control,” Aldric said, smiling encouragingly at the girl. She looked shocked, but also rather pleased. She smiled at Lilianna, who returned her expression genuinely.

“Keep these in mind in the future. We’re going to measure your progress weekly this way.” Aldric said to all four of them.

“What about you, Professor?” Nadrina abruptly asked. The entire group turned to look at her in confusion. She seemed startled that she’d said anything at all.

“Sorry! I was just, um, curious I guess,” she said, embarrassed.

“Good point, Flemming,” Codrin added, looking to Aldric. “It’s only fair. There must be a reason they hired you to teach at such a prestigious academy. Show us what we can look forward to!”

No one else spoke, but the curiosity and excitement in their eyes was obvious. Well, that hadn’t gone the way he wanted it to. His expression must have given him away, because Nadrina looked guilty.

“You don’t have to, Professor. I was just wondering...” she muttered dejectedly.

Well... maybe it would be a teachable moment? To temper their expectations? Snagging the stone from a surprised Nadrina, Aldric walked to the front of the room and faced the class, holding the Glycite in his right hand for all of them to see.

Unlike Nadrina’s, Aldric’s stone filled nearly instantaneously, the black specs appearing and coalescing much faster. Then they stopped before it had even taken up a quarter of the crystal.

The class stared in silence at the barely filled stone. Several of them had to lean forward just to see the tiny black sphere. When it became obvious that it wasn’t going to do anything else, Codrin was the one to voice their thoughts.

“That’s it?” he asked, incredulous.

“That’s it,” Aldric answered, a lazy smirk on his lips.

“But it’s so small!” Nadrina exclaimed, then seemed to realize how rude that sounded. “Um, I mean, I just thought—”

“Yep, it is,” Aldric agreed, not upset in the least. This was the reaction he’d gotten for most of his life. “Let this be a lesson for all of you. What you were born with and what you end up with at the end of it all can be two very different things. I think it’s fair to say that I’m more skilled in magic than any of you, and yet my mana pool would only fill up a tiny fraction of yours.”

He pocketed the Glycite and gave them all a wolfish smile. “It also means none of you have an excuse for falling behind. If I can do it, so can you. If I’m going to be calling you my students, then I’ll be expecting nothing but excellence from all of you.”

“A lesson well taught, Professor,” came a familiar voice from the room’s entrance. Kedrin was standing there, a delighted smile on his face. “We at the academy are only here to give you the right direction, but all of that passion and determination will need to come from within. That being said, whatever any of your circumstances might be, every one of you can overcome them, perhaps even surpass them.”

The class seemed rather shell-shocked to be addressed by the headmaster himself, but Aldric had been expecting him today. This was part of his “special arrangement”. Kedrin would periodically check on his progress and make sure the kids were up to academy standards. Aldric was more than a little confident that Kedrin would be both surprised and pleased with how far they had come.

Aldric went to greet his friend, but locked up when he saw Zasia standing just behind Kedrin. When he caught her eye, her mask of impassivity slipped just enough to give him a micro glare. Then she turned her attention to the students in the room, his existence dismissed and forgotten.

They hadn’t spoken since their fight over a month ago. Not for lack of trying, at least on Aldric’s part. Anytime he’d tried to get a word in, she suddenly had something far more important to deal with. Other times she’d just ghosted him, walking away like he didn’t exist. Aldric had been in the doghouse with Zasia on more than one occasion, but never quite to this degree. Even Kedrin hadn’t seemed to make any headway in cooling her temper, which made her presence here confusing. Kedrin was still her boss, so she would have to go where he told her to if it was pertaining to the academy, but why would he bring her here?

“Apologies, Professor, but do you have a quick moment? I’m sure the students can occupy themselves while we discuss things in your office,” Kedrin asked. To the students, it sounded innocent enough. To Aldric, and probably Zasia, it wasn’t really a question. More of a very polite command.

“Just keep doing what you were doing,” Aldric said off handedly to his students, hoping his worry didn’t show in his tone. Indicating his office door, Aldric stepped through first. It was going to be cramped, but they would probably want privacy for this.

Kedrin stepped aside and politely indicated Zasia forward with a smile. Zasia looked like she wanted to object, but did as she was asked. Kedrin followed in behind her. Aldric sat behind his small desk facing the door, trying not to make it obvious that he was half hiding behind it. Zasia entered the office and took a simple chair in the corner, as far from Aldric as was possible.

“So, what did you want to--?” Aldric started, but was cut off by the door slamming shut. Aldric was about to tell Kedrin to take it easy on his door, but then realized that Kedrin wasn’t in the room with them.

“Excuse me, my dear, do you mind if I borrow that?” he heard his friend’s voice ask from the other side of the door.

“O-Of course not?” Nadrina’s voice answered, sounding equal parts confused and nervous. Aldric was already up and moving to the door, but the sound of a metal catch clicking shut on the other side told him it was too late.

“Now then, class,” Kedrin’s voice spoke up again. “I apologize for monopolizing your professor, but there was urgent business to be discussed. We’ll give them a few minutes to hash it out. In the meantime, would you mind showing me the progress you’ve made so far? My, Ms. Asimov, those are rather interesting bowls you have there. Do they have a specific purpose?”

Zasia shoved Aldric out of the way and began beating on the office door. “Kedrin, open this door this instant!”

“It’s no use,” Aldric sighed as he returned to his desk. He turned his chair around to place his elbows on the backrest, his chin in his hands. “He just put a mana lock on the door. Knowing him, he also put a muting talisman on it so they won’t hear us.”

Zasia ignored him, pounding on the door for almost a minute longer before it became obvious no one could hear her. With a huff, she marched back to her chair and sat down, crossing her arms and glaring daggers at everything in the room that wasn’t him.

“I swear, when I get out of here, whenever that is, there will be a strongly worded letter of resignation waiting for him on his desk!” She took out a nail file and started furiously buffing her already perfect nails, refusing to look at him.

“He’s probably going to keep us in here until we make up,” Aldric said, realizing a little late that those words might not calm her. They didn’t.

She stopped her manicure long enough to shoot him a glare so fierce that he was surprised it didn’t strike him dead. “Fat chance of that. You made yourself thoroughly clear on where we stand. Per your wishes, I have nothing to do with you any longer!”

She continued to glare at him while he said nothing, just stared back. The silence hung uncomfortably for what felt like ages, and Aldric hoped she didn’t notice how his brow was tingling with sweat under her gaze. Then she resumed her nail care, once again ignoring him.

Aldric was racking his brain for the right way to approach this. Kedrin had effectively locked him in a room with a wild, pissed off animal and asked him to make friends with it. Ideas and arguments came to him and were just as quickly discarded. He caught sight of the staff case next to Zasia’s chair, and realized he knew the answer. He knew what Miraea would tell him to do.

“Zasia, I’m sorry.”

Blunt, simple honesty was the only thing he had, and he tried to infuse the words with as much sincerity as he could muster. He noticed Zasia’s buffing slowed for just a moment at his words, and she looked up at him with a measuring stare before looking down and resuming again.

What could have been a few seconds or a few hours passed. Finally, she asked, “... for?”

Having thought she was just ignoring him again, Aldric wasn’t ready for the question. “... for being an ass?” he replied, sounding more like he was asking than answering.

Zasia’s only reply was a very unladylike snort of derision. Aldric tried again, putting up a valiant effort not to roll his eyes. “Fine, for being more of an ass than usual?”

“Use your big boy words, Aldric,” Zasia said sardonically, still not looking at him. Aldric had to bite back his immediate comeback. Taking a deep breath, holding it, then letting it out, he tried again.

“I shouldn’t have said what I did. And I didn’t mean any of it, either.” Still not getting a reaction from her, he continued. “I know that you’re the only reason I’ve made it for this long. I’d be a mess without you. Well, more of a mess.”

“More likely, you’d be drunk or dead in a ditch somewhere,” Zasia replied coolly, though her tone was ever so slightly less biting than it had been so far.

“... probably,” Aldric admitted honestly, annoyed that he had to agree with her. “I just... I don’t know. I was always ready for everything to just go to hell in a handbasket at the slightest provocation. It was like I had an axe named Luck hovering just above my neck and was constantly expecting it to drop. And if I’m being totally honest, that feeling hasn’t really gone away, at least not completely. I’m terrified of getting caught off guard and failing again, so I just sort of... failed on my own terms. It kept up the illusion of control over my life, I guess.”

Aldric wasn’t really sure where all of this was suddenly coming from, but his mouth kept spouting words his brain hadn’t approved yet. He was about to just shut himself up when Zasia stopped what she was doing and looked at him fully for the first time. She had her practiced mask of nothingness in place, but she was really looking at him now.

Aldric decided to just let his mouth take the reins for now. “For what it’s worth, you were, once again, correct. I won’t say I’m totally up to snuff yet, but being here is... well, it’s a reason to wake up in the morning. Haven’t had one of those in a long time.”

He stared down at the desk in front of himself. “I know it wasn’t easy to deal with me. And I know you had to be ashamed of me. I’m the worst for not realizing it until now, but I never actually thanked you, did I? For not throwing me out on my ass like you probably should have. It’s overdue, but... thank you.”

His mouth apparently running out of free words, he went silent again. He cursed himself mentally for not having the balls to look her in the eyes right now. Once again, the room plunged into silence. An endless moment passed before Zasia spoke.

“I believe that is the most you have ever opened up to me in the entire time I’ve known you, Aldric. I imagine that took a lot for you to say.” More silence followed, then she sighed loudly and spoke again.

“With as long as I’ve known you, I’d be surprised if you were ever anything but difficult. It is both your greatest failing and greatest strength. Your stubbornness enabled you to accomplish things that even I did not think you could. It has also allowed you to get under my skin more times than I can count. I expect you to be difficult, Aldric. I’ve dealt with that almost my whole life. But I did not expect you to be hurtful. And the things you said were deeply hurtful.”

Aldric felt like he’d been stabbed. No, that wasn’t right. He’d been stabbed before. This was much worse than that. An awful, twisting pain in his gut that only got worse the more she quietly stared at him. He’d hurt his best friend. On purpose, even. He’d never been more ashamed of himself than in that moment.

“Almost everything you said was correct,” Zasia mercifully continued after a long pause. “You were a complete and utter terror. A number does not exist to catalog the number of times you aggravated me nearly to the point of screaming. That goes for before you lived with me and after as well. You were a proper mess, and don’t even get me started on how expensive it was...!”

She seemed to be working herself up, to where her tone was growing more annoyed with every sentence. Aldric prepared himself for the explosion of anger that was incoming.

Instead, Zasia’s tone dropped. She was quiet, almost gentle, as she said, “You were wrong in one aspect, however. I have never once been ashamed of you, my dear. Nor will I. I know too well what a good man you truly are. That is why it hurt me so much, to see you wallow in grief and self-destruction. If there was something I could do, something I could give to you, something I could fight to save you, I would. I just couldn’t find out what it was.”

Aldric finally looked at her now, his face filled with open shock and disbelief. She was smiling at him with a genuine and caring smile. A smile he had missed dearly.

“You do not know how happy I am to hear that you are doing better here. It makes all those years worth it.”

Aldric desperately fought against the stinging sensation in his eyes. Nope, he would not cry. Not in front of her. Not when he had to go out and face his class again, damn it!

“That being said,” Zasia continued, her tone taking on an imperious note once again, “You are still most certainly on thin ice. There will be much bowing and scraping required before you are fully in my good graces again. I expect this year’s birthday present to be exceptionally sincere and heartfelt, as well.”

Aldric couldn’t help it. He burst out laughing. Zasia tried to look cross with him, but she failed to hide her smirk.

“And you ruined it,” Aldric said after he’d gotten himself under control again. “You were this close to looking gentle-hearted and sweet. That’ll teach me to underestimate you.”

“And don’t you forget it,” Zasia quipped. “Remember that next time you’re doing something stupid. Again. Also, don’t sit in your chair backwards. You look like a delinquent.”

Aldric rolled his eyes, but did as she asked. When he was seated “properly” again, he realized she had gotten up and moved behind him. Thin arms wrapped around him from behind and pulled him close as he heard her whisper in his ear.

“Love you, dummy.”

She gently flicked his nose before she let him go, resuming her proper noblewoman stance. “Now, how exactly are we supposed to let Kedrin know we’re done? It’s not like he can hear us.”

Before Aldric could answer, his office door swung open, admitting Kedrin and one other person Aldric didn’t know. Kedrin had a thin smile painted on his face, his annoyance obvious in his posture. Aldric’s earlier mood immediately soured when he noticed the trademark smugness and domineering presence. A noble. All of Aldric’s fear of discovery came surging to the surface again.

“Apologies, professors. One of your colleagues insisted on meeting our newest hire in person. Allow me to introduce Professor Felix Rainer.”

Chapter 7

The look on Kedrin’s face alone was enough to show something was very wrong. Rainer looked much the same as he had when they’d inadvertently met in Kedrin’s office at the beginning of the year, but his attitude now was completely different. He looked extremely pleased as he eyed Aldric. Aldric preferred when the man was grumpy.

“A pleasure to finally meet you properly, Professor Aldric. I apologize for suddenly intruding, but I found myself curious how our newest professor was coming along, and I asked a personal favor of the headmaster to introduce us.” He held out his hand, and Aldric reflexively shook it.

“Morning,” Aldric answered, then said nothing further. It was something Zasia had taught him, to force the other person to lead in the conversation when you didn’t have enough information on them. People got nervous in the silence and often offered more info than they should.  Rainer wasn’t a family name he recognized, though a lot had probably changed in the years he’d lived with Zasia. The man was certainly wealthy enough to seem powerful and therefore warrant caution.

“It rather surprised me to hear that a sorcerer would teach general studies, much less such a small group setting. I only wanted to offer any advice or help that a less experienced colleague may need. I also must admit some curiosity about what would qualify you to teach with no prior experience. You’ve heard the rumors, I presume?”

He was fishing for information, rather blatantly, but Aldric wasn’t sure how to dodge the question. He raged internally at how stupid politics were. Thankfully, Kedrin stepped in to save him.

“Aldric is a very accomplished sorcerer, one of the finest I know. I can personally assure his exceptional talent in magic. He will start with a general magic studies class for the time being, to ease him into the position, but I have seen today that their excellent progress is more than enough evidence of his professional ability.”

“Ah, yes, of course, headmaster. I did not mean to sound as if I had a lack of faith in your personal recommendation,” Rainer hastily assured Kedrin. “My curiosity simply got the better of me. Anyone who is a close associate of yourself and Lady Glory are certainly exceptional individuals, regardless of experience.”

“You may address me as Professor Glory within the academy, Professor Rainer,” Zasia interrupted, the polite smile on her face not reaching her eyes.

“Of course, Professor, old habits,” Rainer replied with an equally insincere smile. “I must ask, Professor Aldric, just how have you been accommodating these students? What with their... personal issues?”

Aldric’s brows crashed down into a thunderous frown at the man’s tone. “And what does that mean, exactly?”

“Oh, nothing awful,” Rainer answered, all innocent curiosity. “I apologize. I assumed you already knew about the special circumstances for your students?”

Aldric sent a glance to Kedrin, who looked thoroughly displeased. “We have not yet discussed that, Professor Rainer, though I suppose now is as good a time as any.”

“My apologies, headmaster. I should not have brought it up without your say so,” Rainer said, looking not the least bit apologetic.

“Your students have particular circumstances that I believe make you uniquely qualified to teach them,” Kedrin began, ignoring Rainer. “I founded this school with the belief that all willing to learn are worth teaching, including commoners. Ms. Flemming and Mr. Carlisle are among the first of such commoners. We are delighted to have them here, but the school board agreed that a slow process of introducing them to the rest of the student body would probably be best.”

Kedrin was being very diplomatic in saying that the noble students and their families would throw a hissy fit if the school started mass admitting commoners. Aldric didn’t like the idea, and he was sure Kedrin and Zasia didn’t either, but it was important to keep the families of other students willing to stay at the academy. Academic clout and an excellent figurehead only got you so much in terms of funding and public goodwill. Trying to upend the status quo was a good way to lose all of that.

“Lord Caffaret charged us with seeing after his son, Codrin,” Kedrin continued. “He has had concerns over his son’s behavior and... spirited nature. He has previously proven to be a handful for his family’s tutors and for most of the staff here at the academy. It was his father’s hope that we would both educate and be a beneficial influence on him. He made it clear that this was Codrin’s last opportunity to prove himself.”

“And of course,” Rainer interrupted, earning a frown from Kedrin, “the young Lady Asimov is in your class. The Asimov family has a peculiar tradition of cutting off resources from their most promising heirs. They believe the strongest inheritors should be able to make their own way in the world, without the backing of a powerful family, and actively work to make their lives more difficult than necessary. Lady Lilianna is here because of her own personal connections, not her family’s. Being in a class with an untested professor further makes it appear as if she is being handicapped.”

“Which she is very much not,” Zasia said, her tone now sharp.

“Forgive me. I did not mean to imply such. I only wish to express my personal investment in the young lady’s growth. The Rainer family is a branch family of the Asimov house. It wouldn’t do for me to allow her potential to be stunted. The Asimov family does not allow direct assistance, but any resources Lady Lilianna can secure herself are fair game. I only wished to offer my help to her.”

Suddenly, everything clicked together in Aldric’s head. This toad was trying to snag his student away to curry favor with a powerful head family, and maybe even the heir herself. No wonder he’d wanted to meet Aldric in person. He'd already tried to coax Kedrin into giving him Lilianna, then asked to meet with Aldric directly when that had failed. Even if it was just a branch family, Kedrin would have a hard time turning down a personal request of a distant relative of the Asimov house. He was effectively going over Kedrin’s head while framing it as if he was doing Aldric and Lilianna a favor.

“I implore you, Professor Aldric, for the sake of the young lady’s education, please consider allowing her to transfer to my class. It is nothing against you or your teaching abilities. I simply desire to provide her with the best resources available to her. Of course, it would have to be her decision in order to abide by the rules of her family, but I’m confident I can be very persuasive.” He gave them all the confident grin of a man who did not like to take no for an answer.

Kedrin and Zasia both looked deeply displeased by this turn of events. Neither of them had the position to turn down a personal request that wasn’t directed at them, much as they clearly wanted to. Kedrin had authority as headmaster, but if Rainer couched his request as being in the interest of Lilianna’s education, Kedrin’s bias towards Aldric would be obvious.

Aldric could simply refuse this request. Rainer was being pushy, and it wouldn’t be that odd to reject him, even if others would frown upon it.

Then Aldric remembered that this man was a noble. Based on the wicked gleam in his eye, this man fully expected and wanted him to reject his offer. He would spin it however he liked, frame it as though Aldric’s pride was impeding Lilianna’s future, that it proved he was unworthy of being here. It would be empirical evidence that Rainer could weigh against Zasia’s and Kedrin’s recommendations of Aldric. Hell, he might angle to get rid of Aldric altogether and take over his entire class. Having two Great Houses owe you favors was certainly better than one.

Dealing with these sorts of people was always a never-ending ordeal of putting out fires and sleeping with one eye open. Aldric now had suspicions over just who it was that had started all those rumors about him. He had dealt with more than his fair share of such people in his time, and was not eager to play this game again. No, the only way to deal with folk like this was to uproot them entirely.

“How about I make you a counteroffer?” Aldric asked, grinning wolfishly.

Whatever Rainer had expected him to say, that wasn’t it. He merely blinked at Aldric for several moments, then recovered. “Certainly. What did you have in my mind?” he asked, a voice full of understanding and conciliation.

“Three representatives from my class, three from yours. Excluding Lilianna, of course. We have the six of them compete in a series of contests decided by these two.” He indicated Kedrin and Zasia, both of whom looked equal parts shocked and trepidatious. “If my class wins, you leave Lilianna alone. Completely. If we lose, you get Lilianna.”

Rainer’s eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly. “Isn’t that rather gauche? Competing over the girl like some sort of trophy?”

“If your concern is that she is not being properly educated, then surely you could show your superior teaching ability in a contest such as this?” Aldric countered. “We’ll have judges made up of staff from the academy, ones impartial to either you or myself.”

“Surely this isn’t very fair to you? I have been teaching my class at least a month or two longer than you’ve even had yours, to say nothing of my many years of experience.”

“Take it as confidence that we’ll win. Now, if you stall any longer, I’ll have to think you a coward. Do we have a deal?”

A predatory smile broke out across Rainer’s face. “If I might make a slight adjustment? Should my students prevail, I will also gain young Lord Caffaret as well.”

Aldric felt the jaws of his trap slam shut as he shook Rainer’s hand. “Deal.”

~~~

Nadrina wondered if anyone else could hear how hard her heart was pounding. It was certainly the only thing she could hear at the moment.

Her class and Professor Rainer’s were all gathered outside in the training yard, a large stretch of grass and dirt where physical training classes were typically held. Both professors were joined by headmaster Kedrin and Professor Glory in the middle of a marked off area to be used as an arena for today. The rest of Professor Rainer’s class, and a mildly dejected Lilianna, were currently sitting on bleachers that had been set up on the sidelines, and it was Nadrina’s deepest wish at this moment to just join them.

There had to be some kind of mistake. When Professor Aldric had announced that there was going to be a competition between classes, Nadrina had actually been quite excited. It would be a splendid opportunity to see different spells and styles of magic that she hadn’t been able to witness yet. She’d been looking forward to taking notes on the sidelines and reviewing them later at her leisure, one of her favorite hobbies.

But Nadrina, for some reason beyond her comprehension, was not told to sit in the bleachers. Instead, Professor Aldric instructed her to join the group of competition participants as their sorcerer representative, and Lilianna was to be on the bench.

Madness. Complete and utter madness.

Lilianna had been a good sport when Professor Aldric had announced Codrin would be their representative, but Nadrina could tell her friend had wanted to show off what she’d learned so far. She constantly talked about how she had a chance at this academy to make a name for herself instead of borrowing her family’s. She didn’t doubt Codrin’s skill as a conjurer, but Nadrina was still confused by the professor’s choice.

“Relax, Flemming,” Codrin said next to her. “None of our competition looks particularly skilled. I’m sure we’ll have this done before lunchtime.”

Nadrina flinched a bit when addressed. She still wasn’t used to nobles referring to her as if they were equals, Lilianna excluded, but for all of Codrin’s pride and arrogance, he at least didn’t seem to look down on her.

He’d insisted she not call him Lord Caffaret, saying, “You can call me that once I’ve wrestled away my father’s seat and title. Old bastard can’t live forever.” Nadrina wasn’t really sure how to take that.

“I really don’t know where that optimism of yours comes from, Codrin,” replied Alek. Being the only enforcer in the class, he’d been forced, just like Nadrina, to take part. He’d taken every opportunity he got to complain about it.

“Come on, Carlisle, you’re an enforcer, the spear of the Empire’s army! Have some confidence.”

“Um, what makes you think I’d ever join the—?”

“Think of all the legends of enforcers,” Codrin continued, talking over Alek, “Leveling entire battlefields single-handedly, laying waste to the enemies of the crown. When you later become a lieutenant or captain, such a lack of faith will only lead to inevitable defeat. A man must always look towards victory, else those under you will fear the worst.”

“... my time would be better spent arguing with that wall over there,” Alek whispered to Nadrina, while Codrin prattled on about the qualities of a true man of the nobility. Nadrina gave him a pained smile of agreement. Alek wasn’t exactly a shining example of social grace, but Codrin seemed incapable of not talking, particularly about himself. At least it was distracting Nadrina from her anxiety.

“If I may have your attention, please?” Headmaster Elmaris shouted, once again reigniting Nadrina’s dread. “If both classes’ representatives would come to the center of the field, we will soon begin. Judges, you may take your seats at the table over there.” Three other professors that Nadrina didn’t recognize did as the headmaster asked. Nadrina dragged her lead-filled feet behind Codrin and Alek as they all made their way forward. She noticed Lilianna in the stands, giving her an encouraging wave. Nadrina just hoped her friend wouldn’t be too disappointed.

“This competition will comprise three rounds with three different representatives for each school of magic,” the headmaster said. “Each student will show their mastery of their specific magic type, and will be judged by the department heads behind me. Whichever of the two representatives who wins the bout for their magic school will earn a single point for their class. The class with the most points will be the winner. These matches are simply a demonstration, not a fight. Anyone unable to abide by the rules, or are found interfering in this competition in any way, will have themselves and their team disqualified.”

Turning to the two professors, Headmaster Elmaris said, “Since Professor Aldric’s class has been challenged, he may decide who--”

“Second,” Professor Aldric stated simply, cutting the headmaster off.

“Very well,” the headmaster replied, seeming to have expected that. “Professor Rainer, you may choose your starting candidate.”

Professor Rainer pointed to one of his students, a short girl with light brown hair tied back into a severe knot that drew attention to her fierce looking brown eyes. “Cira Barclay, go. Make sure not to disappoint.”

“Yes, professor,” the girl said, stepping into the arena while her classmates cheered her on. Two staff members wheeled in a large training dummy made of a hemp sack filled with hay to the center of the arena. The girl named Cira fixed the dummy with a scowl. Nadrina thought her face looked as if scowling was something she did often.

“When I give you the signal, you are to attack and destroy the dummy before you in whatever manner you deem best,” the headmaster said. “Are you ready?”

Cira simply nodded, her eyes never leaving the dummy.

“Begin.”

Cira’s hand shot out as she cried “Durna Raga!” Two long whips made of water, one in each of her hands, lashed out at the dummy, striking it crosswise from shoulders to hips. The force of the attack caused a crack to resonate across the training field, the stomach of the hemp dummy splitting open in a cloud of hay.

Despite the ferocity of the first attack, the girl kept going, yanking her whips back in and flinging them out in a barrage of devastating attacks. Every crack made Nadrina flinch as the girl eviscerated the dummy from every angle. Cira finished her mad flurry of attacks by neatly decapitating the training dummy with her last strike, her water whips disintegrating as she released the spell. She turned back to look squarely at Codrin, a challenging smirk firmly on her lips. “Done.”

The entire field was silent after the violent display before Cira’s class broke it, cheering for her. Nadrina had to admit, her skill was superb. According to Lilianna, Water Whip was an advanced spell, one that required a lot of fine mana control to maintain. To do it so easily as a student, and two at once no less, was impressive indeed. It made Nadrina further feel like she shouldn’t be part of this contest today.

“Very good,” Headmaster Elmaris said finally. “Al—Professor Aldric, your conjuring representative is up next.”

“You heard him, Caffaret,” the professor said, still looking bored despite the performance.

Caffaret nodded mutely, staring intently at Cira, who continued to smile tauntingly at him as she rejoined her classmates. His face settled on a stern look of determination before he marched onto the field, ignoring the lonely clapping of Lilianna, Nadrina, and Alek. Staff members had already replaced the mutilated training dummy.

“Are you ready?” the headmaster asked Codrin.

“Yes, headmaster!” Codrin replied, readying his stance.

“Begin.”

Unlike his opponent, Codrin didn’t immediately do anything. In fact, he seemed to just stare intently at the training dummy while the crowd and professors simply watched in confused silence. Codrin’s focus was faceted to his target, a single bead of sweat dripping down his forehead as he continued to not move an inch. Nadrina was getting worried that he was having a stroke or something, right until Codrin shouted “Igni conflagus!”

Nadrina was suddenly and painfully blinded. A bright flash of searing light was followed by a wave of intense heat as the dummy violently combusted on the spot. Based on the cries of surprise and pain from the crowd, the pyrotechnics had caught them off guard as well. When Nadrina had finally stopped blinking away stars, she looked to the training dummy only to find the bottom half of it charred black and smoldering with blue fire. The top half was nowhere to be seen, and the ground all around it was singed and smoking in a five-meter radius.

Codrin was panting laboriously, though his exhausted state didn’t take away from his elated expression. He turned a winning smile towards the rest of his classmates, throwing them a confident thumbs up.

It was a far cry from the white flames Codrin had declared as his goal, but it was an overwhelming and impressive show of force, regardless. To immolate a target in a matter of seconds would take a massive amount of mana to pull off. The judges all looked rather impressed, but Professor Glory looked dumbfounded. Her shocked look shifted between the dummy and Professor Aldric, who seemed to be purposely not looking her way.

“Very well done, Mr. Caffaret,” the headmaster said. “Judges, you may take a moment to confer.”

Codrin limped back to the sidelines, Alek meeting him halfway to help. “Ha! How about that? Like I said, this whole thing’s no big deal.” His brilliant smile beat out the exhaustion in his voice.

Nadrina and Alek both congratulated Codrin, who seemed to absorb the praise like a sponge, even as he kept his hands on his hips and took heaving breaths. The only one who wasn’t excited was Cira, who just glared menacingly at Codrin with her arms crossed. Nadrina looked at Professor Aldric, only to find him looking rather irritated as he glanced over at the judge’s table.

The headmaster walked back to the center of the field, calling for everyone’s attention. “After conferring with the judges, they have decided the winner of the first round...is Cira Barclay.”

Professor Rainer’s class cheered while Nadrina, Alek, and especially Codrin, looked on in stunned shock.

“What the hell is this?” Codrin shouted, clearly furious. “I’ll admit a water whip might be impressive, but my target disappeared in an instant! This is ridic—!”

“They’re right,” Professor Aldric said simply, cutting off Codrin’s tirade. “I told you at the beginning of this, Caffaret. This is a competition of skill, not raw talent. That Cira girl showed fine mana control over a higher-level spell. All you did was pump an absurd amount of mana into a basic incinerate spell for the sake of showing off. I’ll concede the blue flames weren’t bad, but it only showed what an oversized mana pool you have, not your skill as a mage.”

Codrin’s mouth moved rapidly, but nothing comprehensible came out. “That’s not... I wasn’t... but she...!”

Professor Aldric reached out and pushed on Codrin’s shoulder with a single finger. Despite the weak effort, Codrin toppled over onto the ground like the professor had punched him. He glared daggers at the professor, but didn’t seem able to get back up.

“You even exhausted yourself finishing a single enemy. You do that in real life, you deserve to get killed. Just lay there and rest. Ked—the headmaster can fix you up later.” He sent an ominous look towards Codrin. “And expect remedial lessons in your future.”

Codrin started muttering something about unreasonable professors and arrogant girls, but looked too tired to keep trying to stand and instead just laid there. Nadrina noticed that despite the win, Cira looked wholly unsatisfied with the outcome. She frowned at Codrin and the judges before stalking off towards her class’s bleachers in a huff, ignoring their congratulations.

“Our next contest will be between our enforcer representatives,” the headmaster declared, bringing silence to the arena once again. “Professor Rainer, if you would?”

Professor Rainer had a smug grin planted on his face as he pointed to another student. “Volmar Merton, finish this quickly, please. One more win and we can end this farce.”

Nadrina’s eyes bugged out as she stared in awe at the student that stepped forward. She’d thought he was just one of the standby staff members, but she now saw his yellow robes of a student enforcer.

The age range for most students in the academy varied from sixteen to eighteen, depending on their year. This student looked to be in his early twenties and stood almost a foot taller than his own professor. The most noteworthy aspect of him, however, was his ridiculous build. Nadrina suspected a bear had to be somewhere in his ancestry. He had a huge barrel chest and rippling muscles that strained his robes to near bursting. His handsome smile and sandy blonde hair reminded her of Codrin, but without the pompous attitude.

“With pleasure!” the man... student named Volmar declared, his voice deep and carrying across the field. “I’m always up for a friendly contest.” Nadrina had to admit, he looked genuinely excited to be a part of this competition. For someone so imposing, there wasn’t an ounce of hostility to him, just good-hearted cheer and competitiveness.

Volmar made his way to the center of the field as his class started cheering for him, which only got louder when he took off his shirt and began flexing and posing in front of them. Nadrina wasn’t sure why he felt the need to do that. Maybe because of how ill-fitting his clothes were?

“If you’re quite done, Mr. Merton, we can get started,” Headmaster Kedrin sighed, pointing to one of the staff nearby, a conjurer from the looks of him. A murmured spell later, and a large boulder, even bigger than Volmar, simply rose out of the ground as the earth shook. When the spell was complete, the headmaster turned to address the contestants again.

“The object of this challenge is to transport this boulder from here to the other end of the field. You may do so in whatever fashion you deem best, but you will be graded for both technique and time taken to do so. Your time starts when you touch the boulder. You may begin when ready.”

Volmar stood before the massive boulder, going through a stretching routine to get ready. Nadrina wasn’t sure if he wanted to warm up or if he just wanted to flex some more, but thankfully, he finished quickly. Spitting in both hands before rubbing them together, Volmar opened his arms wide as he gave the boulder a brawny bear hug.

His body glowed as he exerted his magic, and with a bellow of effort, hoisted the boulder just high enough to clear the ground. His class picked up their cheering again as Volmar waddled forward, every muscle in his back and arms spasming from the effort. Nadrina couldn’t help but be impressed. She’d seen some of the practice Alek had been working on, but never a display like this.

She wished she’d brought her notebook, but Professor Aldric had said she’d need to focus. He’d then confiscated it when she’d tried to sneak it past him.

Volmar continued his laborious trek to the end of the field, clearly putting in effort but never losing his confident grin the whole trip. When he finally arrived after several minutes, he simply dropped the boulder where he stood, the earth shaking slightly as he did so. He turned and bowed dramatically to his cheering class, throwing in a few flexes and poses for good measure.

“Enforcers,” Codrin muttered bitterly from his place on the ground. “Bunch of overgrown meatheads.”

“Try not to sound too jealous, Caffaret,” Alek chuckled.

“Very well done, Mr. Merton. Judges, the time was one minute and twenty-four seconds. Your class is up next, Al-... Professor Aldric.”

Nadrina wondered why the headmaster kept stumbling over the professor’s name, but Alek’s sigh interrupted her. “Do I really have to do this?” he asked Professor Aldric with a put-upon expression.

“Yep. Get your butt out there.” the professor replied simply. “The more you whine, the longer this takes.”

Just barely restraining an eye roll, Alek walked towards the middle of the arena, where another boulder had already been erected. He didn’t even seem to notice as the others cheered him on, staring at the boulder before him as if it was personally responsible for his suffering.

Nadrina had noticed over the last few months that Alek seemed to have a very low work ethic, and was the exact opposite of Codrin. He didn’t strike her as overconfident or arrogant, he just seemed to view most tasks as boring and not worth doing. Every assignment he was given was done to the barest of minimums, and he complained every chance he got. Nadrina wondered why he was even here, if all of this was just a bother to him.

“Mr Carlisle, you may begin when ready. Time starts when you touch the boulder,” the headmaster instructed, and the spectators hushed as they all focused on Alek. He simply stared at the boulder, probably thinking of ways to get out of doing this.

“Carlisle!” Professor Aldric abruptly called out, getting the young man’s attention. “If you win this round for us, I’ll let you skip tomorrow’s class!”

Alek’s expression went through a variety of changes, from surprise, to excitement, to determination. There was clearly a fire in his eyes that hadn’t been there before as he sized up the boulder again.

Nadrina mused if motivating students by excusing them from class was ethical or not. She could have sworn she heard Headmaster Elmaris and Professor Glory sigh in unison.

Alek nodded to himself, seeming to have come to some sort of conclusion, before he placed both hands flat against the boulder. He braced his feet behind him as he leaned into the boulder, but nothing seemed to happen.

His time had already started. Surely, he wasn’t planning on just shoving it all the way there? There was no way that would beat Volmar’s score.

Nadrina was only half right.

Alek’s body lit up just like Volmar’s had, but instead of a universal glow, only his arms and legs seemed to be powered up. His muscles tensed suddenly, before everything happened at once.

Soil and debris flew out from behind Alek, creating two small craters below both of his feet. The boulder dimpled ever so slightly before being launched forward at an alarming speed, careening towards the finish line while it whistled through the air. Alek’s boulder came in contact with Volmar’s, and both shattered in a shower of rocks and dirt.

When the dust had finally settled, Nadrina dimly noticed that everyone in the practice field was dead silent. All, save for Professor Aldric, who just chuckled quietly to himself.

“I swear, if that kid actually applied himself, he’d be one of the most talented enforcers in the world,” he mumbled.

Alek was dusting his hands off as he exited the field, his direction taking him in the direction of the school dorms. Apparently, he was done for today.

“Carlisle, I said you could skip tomorrow, not today! Get your butt to the bleachers!”

Grumbling, Alek turned to the bleachers, obviously taking his sweet time to do so.

“Well... I suppose that’s time,” the headmaster said, being the first to recover. “Judges, please just note that the time was faster than Mr. Merton’s. I admit, I wasn’t quite able to time that one...”

“He should be disqualified!” Professor Rainer shouted. “He destroyed his boulder in the process. Surely that shows poor mana control?”

“Oh, shut up,” Professor Aldric argued back. The rest of the staff gave off scandalized gasps at his word choice and tone. “If your student’s boulder hadn’t been there, it would have been fine. I didn’t start complaining when my student lost, and you shouldn’t either.”

“The judges will consider every variable when making their choices,” the headmaster stated with finality. “And it will be irrespective of the opinions of the participants and their professors.” Professor Rainer looked ready to burst a blood vessel, but said nothing further.

After deliberating for a while longer, the judges informed the headmaster of their decision. He turned to the crowd to announce the results. “After deliberation, the judges have decided that Alek Carlisle is the winner of the second round.”

Nadrina and Lilianna cheered Alek on, even as he pretended not to hear. Professor Aldric just chuckled to himself. “I only said he could skip class time. Nadrina, do your best to help him when he still has to do the assignment for tomorrow.“

“Y-Yes, professor,” Nadrina muttered, trying not to think how this sounded like it was a punishment for her as well.

“With that, both classes are currently tied. The next bout will decide the contest. Professors, both of your sorcery candidates may come forward together. Their task will be a bit different.”

The sudden feeling of dread that filled her shattered Nadrina’s annoyed thoughts. She’d been so engrossed in the different types of magic on display that she’d momentarily forgotten she was actually a contestant. The enthusiastic cheering that came from Lilianna when she walked forward didn’t help calm her.

“While perhaps not quite as flashy, this next challenge is no less difficult,” the headmaster was saying. He pulled from his robes two pieces of parchment, each containing complex magical diagrams.

“You will each have a series of rune arrays to put together and solve. Part of the arrays have already been filled in for you, but it is up to you to deduce the rest. You must correctly do all twenty of them in sequence with each other. After you have finished the rune arrays, you will imbue and cast them. The result of the casting will show whether you have filled in the missing runes correctly or not.”

Magic diagrams? Nadrina did these in her spare time when she was bored or waiting for class to start. Was this really supposed to be the finale? Surely, they would have prepared some sort of devious trick to make her look like a fool.

Maybe it was a joke, because Professor Aldric started laughing out loud. The headmaster raised an eyebrow at the sudden outburst, but the professor just waved his hand dismissively as he tried to suppress his mirth.

“Don’t mind me, Kedrin,” he chuckled, “I just realized we’ll still make it for normal lunch time today. Go on, Nadrina, don’t overthink it. Just do what you do.”

Nadrina nodded, albeit hesitantly. At least one of them was confident.

“If everyone is done?” the headmaster asked, looking pointedly at Professor Aldric, who just smiled smugly. Professor Rainer seemed put off by his confidence.

“Very well. You both have twenty minutes.” The headmaster had to pause again when Professor Aldric suppressed a snort, but didn’t deign to respond. “The first to finish will be the winner.”

He handed the both of them the spell scrolls and engraving tools. Nadrina did a double take at the sight of the boy she was competing with, realizing she’d only now noticed him. Never had a human being been more encapsulated by the word “plain”. Brown hair, brown eyes, average stature, and a lack of any notable qualities. He wasn’t exactly ugly, but nothing about him left a lasting impression. You’d forget he was there if he stayed quiet long enough.

“We will begin in three, two, one...”

When the countdown ended, the boy frantically started skimming through the parchment he’d been given, looking like his life depended on him solving these diagrams. Nadrina had already figured out the first two just by glancing at them. They mirrored some she’d gotten out of a book from the library.

Deciding to just go along with it for now, Nadrina began filling in the diagrams with the appropriate runes to finish them. About halfway through, she had a sudden realization. If her assumptions were correct, this rune array was for an incredibly basic spell. The array itself was uselessly complex, while the spell it fueled barely did much of anything. There was a tremendous amount of wasted effort. It was like trying to build a bridge out of toothpicks across a great chasm to nowhere. It was time-consuming and ultimately pointless.

Nadrina almost felt offended. Who would do such an amateurish thing? It further reinforced her belief that there was some sort of trick to this. She was already towards the end of the array, and only five minutes had passed. Realizing she must have missed something, Nadrina began systematically going over every diagram. When she made it all the way back to the last, she started panicking. What was she not seeing?

Another five minutes passed before Nadrina finally admitted it. She didn’t know what was missing. She’d been focusing so hard that she was getting a headache from all the squinting. Her competition didn’t look much better, still far behind her progress. Maybe he’d seen something she hadn’t? She briefly considered copying him, but she didn’t want to win by cheating.

Thoroughly discouraged, Nadrina hung her head dejectedly. Her entire class was counting on her for this. How could she do this to them? She glumly held out her completed spell scroll to the headmaster, who had been keeping a close eye on both participants. The headmaster turned to her, shaking his head firmly.

“If you have a question, Ms. Flemming, I’m afraid I cannot answer. You must complete this challenge on your own.”

“I... I’m done.” Nadrina said resignedly.

The headmaster looked surprised. “You’re forfeiting?”

Nadrina felt her cheeks flush. “No, I’m... I’m done,” she repeated lamely, shaking the sheets for emphasis. She wanted him to just take the damn scroll and leave her be.

Still looking confused and uncertain, the headmaster took the offered diagrams and began reviewing them. When he was done looking them over, he looked back up with a carefully blank expression on his face.

Wow. That bad, huh?

Another five minutes passed before her opponent finally gave over his scroll, while they forced Nadrina to just stand there and wait to fail. Their scrolls were returned to them after a quick inspection from Headmaster Elmaris.

“Very well. You may imbue and cast your scrolls when ready.”

Both Nadrina and the plain boy took several more minutes to imbue and cast while the crowd watched on with anticipation. Nadrina wished she had the professor’s freakish ability to imbue and cast almost instantly. She wanted this torture to just end already.

Nadrina finished a fraction of a second before the boy did. It shocked her when her scroll just vanished in a flash of light. The boy’s scroll did something similar, but it was much more drawn out and dramatic. When the light show finally ended, the scroll was still laying on the ground in front of him.

“Well, I suppose that decides it,” the headmaster declared. Nadrina waited for the axe to fall as every student leaned forward for the results.

“I can say with certainty that Nadrina Flemming has not only won, but has set a new school record for the fastest completion of the first year’s sorcery exam, at only ten minutes and twenty-three seconds.”

... wait. The what?

Nadrina’s brain finally caught up to her when she felt someone hugging her. Lilianna was there, beaming at her, as Codrin yelled in victory. Even Alek had come up to congratulate her. Professor Rainer’s class looked dismayed.

“Drina, you did it! You won this for the entire class!” Lilianna exclaimed. Professor Aldric stood just behind them, a smile on his face that said he wasn’t the least bit surprised.

“Nicely done, all of you,” he said. “Get on back to the bleachers for now. The headmaster will make the formal declaration soon. All of you get dinner on me tonight.”

Alek and Codrin cheered in unison before hurrying off to the bleachers. Lilianna made to drag Nadrina off with her, but the professor stopped her.

“One moment. I’ll give her back to you soon.” Lilianna looked confused but nodded, hurrying after her classmates.

“You did really well, Flemming, but I need to tell you my ulterior motive for all of this.”

Nadrina was still a bit dazed, so she could only tilt her head in confusion. Wasn’t this a just another weird assignment from their eccentric professor?

“Ok, so maybe part of it was a bet with Rainer. That’s not important. My secondary reason was for you.” He looked at her levelly. “I know you second guessed yourself back there. You do that entirely too often. Doubting your own knowledge can be just as dangerous for a sorcerer as knowing nothing at all. It’s an important lesson we all have to learn, and I needed you to learn it sooner rather than later.”

Nadrina hung her head. She knew she had always been like that, always getting into her own head and ruining things for herself. She thought being here might have improved that, but being surrounded by so many talented people brought those old feelings back again.

“It’s why I needed you to compete today,” the professor continued. “You needed to see how far you’ve come, and being the only sorcerer in our weird little class means you have nothing to compare yourself to. I asked the headmaster to use the first year’s sorcery exam for a reason. You are head and shoulders above most of the other sorcerers in this school. Since you wouldn’t believe me if I just told you that, I had to show you.”

He ruffled her hair playfully and gave her a genuine, encouraging smile. “You’re a fantastic mage, Nadrina. I’m proud of you.”

Nadrina could feel her eyes well up with tears against her wishes. She hadn’t known how badly she needed to hear that. She opened her mouth to speak, but all she could get out was, “... thank you.”

“Useless!” a voice snapped out, ruining the lovely moment in an instant. “You useless imbecile! I should have known sending a failure like you would cost me! How could you screw up that badly?!”

Nadrina turned to see Professor Rainer berating the boy she’d just been going up against. He looked nearly on the verge of tears as he hung his head in shame, but Professor Rainer didn’t let up.

“Useless, idiotic, pointless! All of you!” he screamed, now addressing the rest of his silently shocked class. “You were under my tutelage! My tutelage! You dare mock me with this farce?!”

“Professor Rainer. That is enough.”

The headmaster wore the deepest frown Nadrina had ever seen on his face. His quiet words somehow made him more intimidating. Professor Rainer took one look at his expression and decided to turn his attention elsewhere. Unfortunately, that meant he spotted Nadrina.

“You!” he seethed, stomping towards her. Lilianna had been hanging back and waiting for Nadrina, but now moved protectively next to her. The professor only had eyes for Nadrina, however.

“You filthy little commoner! People like you are the reason this world is going to madness! Little sheep who don’t know their place, trying to be more than what they are! You’re nothing but a silly little girl who yearns for things out of her reach!”

An awful, dark part of Nadrina agreed with him. Even after the professor’s words, she still had to admit how out of her depth she was.

“Professor Rainer, enough!” the headmaster yelled, finally sounding genuinely angry. Rainer ignored him and continued his tirade, his face inches from Nadrina’s.

“Don’t get too ahead of yourself, peasant! Do you really think this stupid competition means anything? You are a commoner and always will be! Nothing you do here will ever change—”

A flying boot suddenly interrupted him.

It made a hollow thunk as it struck Rainer broadside in the face, the man toppling over more from shock than any serious injury. He quickly righted himself and swiveled his head around, trying to find the offending boot owner. His face paled a bit when his eyes landed on someone behind Nadrina.

Turning, she saw Professor Aldric standing on a single booted foot with his other socked one dangling in the air.

“I didn’t have a glove, so I had to improvise. Sorry,” he said in a tone that was anything but apologetic, his steel-grey eyes boring into Rainer. The carefree, lackadaisical professor they knew and loved was nowhere to be seen. This unfamiliar man looked like him, but had none of the passion or humor. Nadrina didn’t like this.

“How does that stupid phrase go again? Oh yeah. Felix Rainer, of house Rainer. You have offended the honor of myself, the young lady, and of this academy. By my right and my house, I demand compensation for your words. The time and place shall be now, and the trial shall be by combat. Let all who stand here bear witness to our duel.”

Chapter 8

Nadrina was busy being dumbfounded, but the headmaster immediately tried to stop everything. “Aldric, this is not the time or place for this!”

“Sorry, Kedrin. An official duel of honor has been declared in front of witnesses,” Aldric replied. “Isn’t that right, Zasia?”

The headmaster looked to Professor Glory for help, but seemed to realize he wouldn’t get any. Looking extremely torn, she warily nodded her head. “He’s right, Kedrin. As heir to house Glory, I stand witness to this duel.” She sounded like she was talking through gritted teeth, but Nadrina didn’t think she was going to budge on this.

“Preposterous!” shouted Professor Rainer, finding his voice again. “We reserve duels of honor for noble born! This vagrant does not have any right to challenge me!”

“Aldric has... peculiar circumstances that are his own to disclose,” Professor Glory hedged. “On the honor of my house, I guarantee he has every right to challenge you.”

“No noble house would claim this... this creature as family,” Rainer shot back, incredulous.

Professor Aldric was already walking to the arena. “The challenged picks the rules of the bout. Hurry, unless you’re already giving up?” He turned to the rest of the class, who had gathered at the sudden commotion. “Make sure you’re watching. This is your impromptu lesson for the day.”

Professor Rainer quickly looked at all the staff members present and apparently found no help for himself. Face going red with fury and indignation, he screamed, “Fine! Duel to first blood! If I win, you will leave this school and never show your face before me again!”

“Agreed. I propose the same terms.”

“Agreed,” Rainer growled. The two of them faced off in the middle of the arena. Professor Glory went to join them, an anxious look on her face.

Nadrina felt like she was in a nightmare. Her professor was going to fight on her behalf against a conjurer? For him to be a professor here at all, Rainer had to be an exceptional mage. For a sorcerer to fight such a person...

Nadrina was already sprinting forward before she realized it. “Professor! Please don’t do this!” she cried, grabbing his arm. “I’m fine. There’s no need to do this. They’re just words. Really, it’s alright!”

He gave her a lopsided grin, but still gently pushed her back. “I know. But I’m being selfish here. Have a little a faith, yeah? And make sure you take mental notes. Today, you learn how a sorcerer fights.”

“I’m afraid I must agree with her, Aldric,” the headmaster suddenly said from behind Nadrina. “This is going to be a mess, no matter what. I understand why you’re upset, but is it necessary to take it this far? Why does it need to be done this way?”

Professor Aldric looked Headmaster Elmaris square in the eye for several moments, before he simply said, “Because I believe in them, obviously.”

The headmaster looked like he’d been struck with a hammer. He could only stand and stare, stupefied, as the professor continued toward the center of the field.

“Headmaster?” Nadrina asked, almost pleading.

Seeming to come out of a trance, the headmaster looked at her and smiled ruefully. “I’m sorry, my dear. My own words have been used against me. It appears I have no leg to stand on.” He patted her shoulder reassuringly. “Have no fear. I suspect this will be over quickly. We will watch the whole thing from right here.”

Lilianna had stepped up next to Nadrina to take hold of her hand and squeeze it, conveying her own worries to her. Codrin and Alek were close by, as well. Rainer’s class wasn’t showing nearly the same support, but they were obviously eager for a spectacle as they sat in their stands.

“Will you be able to provide healing if we need it, Headmaster Elmaris?” Lilianna asked.

The headmaster looked surprised that she would even ask such a thing. “Certainly, but I doubt we’ll need it. Ald—Your professor has a habit of going overboard sometimes, but I don’t think he’d do anything that serious to Rainer.”

Lilianna looked at him in confusion. “What?”

“What?” he parroted.

“The duel will be to first blood,” Professor Glory was saying, capturing everyone’s attention. “We have forbidden nothing for this bout, but I stipulate that there will be nothing lethal. I will step in myself if I even suspect such a thing of happening.” The steel in her voice forced both men to nod in acknowledgment. “Before we begin, I must ask if either party wishes to end things here?”

A resounding silence was their only reply.

Still looking nervous but sighing in resignation, she simply said, “In the light of the day, before the gods and your ancestors, be honorable and brave. Begin!”

Rainer immediately began gathering his mana, forcing it to coalesce into a physical existence in the shape of a perfect circle, with not a single word of incantation spoken. The circle grew brighter and brighter, forcing most of the onlookers to shield their eyes.

“Nice, a summoner!” Professor Aldric exclaimed. He still hadn’t moved from his starting position, hands in his pockets. “I was wondering how we were going to touch on variants in class. Now’s as good a time as any, I suppose. Alright class, listen up! Summoners 101 is about to start!”

He bent down to the ground, seeming to look around in the dirt for something. “First rule; don’t let a summoner summon. I know that sounds kind of obvious, but it’s the easiest way to fight them. I mean, just look at him. A gigantic target, and he thinks I won’t do anything while he charges up just for honor’s sake.”

Seeming to find what he was looking for, he stood up and started fiddling with whatever he found. “For now, we’ll just let him be. Can’t end the lesson too early, right?”

Was he really trying to teach right now? A sorcerer was facing down an expert summoner in single combat, and yet the sorcerer was the calmest of everyone here? Before Nadrina could voice her frustration, the entire field lit up with a bright light.

When her vision finally cleared, she and the rest of the audience gasped. Flanking professor Rainer on either side were two beautiful women. Or at least, they resembled women. Porcelain skin, platinum hair, and otherworldly grace that could only be described as angelic. But their lack of facial features, golden swords, and aura of pure power made it obvious they were much more than mortal women.

“Ah, celestial summoning,” Professor Aldric commented, with the tone one might use to comment on the weather. “Quite rare, indeed. At least we know your over inflated ego isn’t completely baseless.” He turned to address his class again, completely ignoring the danger in front of him. “Summoners might call upon servants from several planes of existence: celestial, demonic, and elemental. Elemental is universal for all summoners, but demonic and celestial are rarer, and are exclusive of each other.”

“I encourage you to take this seriously, you fool!” Rainer shouted. “It would look rather bad if I ended up murdering you through sheer incompetence.”

“Have no fear, Rainer. Your incompetence doesn’t concern me in the least,” the professor replied, deliberately misunderstanding. Before Rainer could bark out a retort, Professor Aldric suddenly cried out, “Lilly! What are the two most common tactics for summoners?”

Lilianna just stared for a moment before realizing he was waiting for an answer. “Um, to fight in large groups and remain in the rear, or to attack solo with overwhelming force.”

“Exactly. Since our friend here is alone, he’s decided on the latter. There’s one massive problem with that, however, as I will demonstrate.”

With that, he wound up and threw whatever he’d been working on. Rainer flinched at the sudden move, his summons moving in front of him protectively. Then he stared, nonplussed, as a simple mud ball hit the ground and rolled harmlessly towards him, stopping when it bumped against his boot. He looked back up in a mix of confusion and indignation, but Professor Aldric just looked like he’d scored a major point.

“If you’re done being an idiot,” Professor Rainer snapped, “then I suggest you do your best to block this, sorcerer.” He flung his hand forward. “Attack, but do not kill him! No sense in ending the fun too quickly.”

Both of his summons abruptly unfurled wings made of light from their backs, rocketing forwards toward Professor Aldric, their golden swords poised to cleave the man in half. Nadrina’s heart leapt into her throat as she watched their rapid approach, convinced their professor was about to be seriously injured, or worse.

Professor Aldric’s only reaction, however, was to plug his ears and smile.

A deafening CRACK shattered the air around the arena, leaving Nadrina’s ears ringing. Both angels suddenly dispersed into motes of golden light just before they reached professor Aldric. He simply stood there, a lazy smile on his face, as the golden clouds crashed into him and blew apart like dust particles, sparkling faintly before fading into nothing.

While Professor Aldric was the picture of smug calm, however, Professor Rainer was clutching his hands to his ears, face scrunched up in furious pain. A small pillar of smoke billowed up from the ground at his feet, and his face and robes looked flaked with dirt.

“Drina! Once you get your wits together, you can tell me how I did that.” Professor Aldric called out.

Nadrina could barely think right now, but she mastered herself just long enough to figure out the answer. “You... you enchanted that mud ball from earlier to heat over time and probably reinforced the outer shell of mud. The moisture in the mud slowly evaporated and expanded until the container burst.” The deceptively simple yet brilliant enchantment floored Nadrina. Sorcerers had more utility for combat than she’d first assumed.

“Got it in one. Summoning your most powerful avatar is a common tactic of summoners who are outnumbered,” Professor Aldric was saying, having to speak louder so the slightly deafened class could hear. “Unfortunately for the summoner, such an incantation takes incredible amounts of mana and focus to maintain the connection to their summon. All it takes is a minor surprise to disrupt the spell and render them helpless. A tired summoner going through magical whiplash isn’t much of a threat. Isn’t that right, Rainer?”

Professor Rainer was stumbling to his feet, obviously still dazed, but glaring daggers at Professor Aldric. “Typical of a sorcerer. Nothing but party favors and cheap tricks.” He again began gathering mana, though Nadrina noticed that this time it was much more subdued. Once again, Professor Aldric allowed him to finish, and as the summoning ritual ended, the ground beneath Professor Rainer shifted unnaturally.

The earth took on a life of its own, shifting and turning until it was vaguely human shaped. The resulting earth golem was at least the height of a one-story building and just as wide. It turned its featureless face towards Professor Aldric, staring blankly while it waited for orders.

“Attack without killing!” Rainer commanded, but before his earth construct could even move, he dug his hand into a coat pocket and brought out a silver amulet. Holding the amulet aloft, he laughed as a transparent barrier rose around him in a hemisphere.

“Poor form!” Codrin cried out from the sidelines. “You hide behind magical tools like a coward!”

“Where in the rules of the bout does it say I cannot?” Rainer sneered back.

“The rules of the bout did not exclude the use of enchanted items,” Professor Glory said. “The bout will continue.” Codrin looked unhappy, but said nothing further.

The golem had still been advancing. It slowly lumbered its way towards Professor Aldric, shaking the earth with each heavy step. The professor only sighed in exasperation.

“Cornered summoners will typically go completely on the defensive, either to buy time for allies to arrive or to tire out the enemy. This still has its weaknesses, however.”

As soon as it was in range, the golem made a surprisingly fast swing at the professor. Nadrina felt her heart stutter in her chest as he barely danced out of the way, hair-raisingly close to the stone fist. Despite the sudden attack, however, he looked completely calm.

The golem seemed confused, unable to understand why its target wasn’t sent flying. It lined up another heavy swing, and again the professor dodged just enough to avoid it. The golem changed tactics and slammed both fists into the ground right where the professor was standing. A brief flash of a barrier intercepted the golem before it could make contact, its fists bouncing off harmlessly. Then it was gone again, just as quickly.

Professor Aldric gave the golem a cheeky grin. “Yeah. I’ve got one of those, too.”

Enraged, the golem charged forward yet again. What followed was a rather impressive display of agility as the golem chased the professor around the arena. Nadrina felt her anxiety give way to astonishment as the professor cheated death over and over. He made every dodge with the barest room for error, and yet he never got hit. Her tension slowly bled out of her. This wasn’t a fight anymore. It was practically a circus act.

It was easy to see that Rainer was getting more and more impatient. “Is running away the only thing you’re good at, sorcerer? Unfortunately for you, I can keep this up all day!” He briefly channeled yet more mana, and the golem’s swings started coming in faster and wilder. Professor Aldric was still dodging, but the golem was getting closer and closer with each swing.

Finally, the professor stumbled a step. Taking advantage, the golem leveled a heavy strike at the professor’s side. The same barrier flashed again, but Professor Aldric was sent flying. Nadrina could only watch in horror as he crashed into Rainer’s barrier, impacting hard and tumbling into the dirt. As Rainer grinned victoriously, Professor Aldric only just got his feet under him, using Rainer’s barrier for support. He looked around blearily, obviously dazed by the hit.

“Professor!” Nadrina and her classmates cried out in unison as the golem slowly approached its opponent. Rainer began laughing maniacally.

“I’ll admit, it was an entertaining show, sorcerer. Now, allow me to bring this to a close!”

The golem looked ready to tackle Professor Aldric, poised for a body slam. The murderous intent in Rainer’s eyes was obvious.

“Rainer! Stop!” Professor Glory demanded, but it was too late. The hulking construct of unyielding stone leapt high into the air before plummeting to the earth. Nadrina was certain that their professor was about to be killed.

Then, Professor Aldric grinned, just before he made a leaping dive to the side at the last possible moment

Apparently, Rainer hadn’t been paying attention to where his golem was jumping. Professor Aldric had left him with a multi ton behemoth hovering over his barrier, about to crash down with the force of a meteor. With the golem already midair, there was nothing Rainer could do but scream in rage and terror as his own summon impacted his shield.

An earth-shattering BOOM, followed shortly by a sound like glass shattering, split the air around the training yard. The golem exploded into chunks as it made impact, dust and debris flying in all directions. Lilianna had to throw up a wind barrier to shield their classmates and the headmaster from the sandstorm that swept through the panicking crowd.

After almost a full minute, the dust settled enough to show Professor Aldric, completely unharmed and with a huge grin on his face, standing over a prone and screaming Rainer. Nadrina’s stomach churned when she saw Rainer’s legs turned in opposing directions to his knees.

While Headmaster Elmaris and Professor Glory dashed forward to attend to Rainer’s injury, Professor Aldric turned to their class again. “Final lesson. Carlisle, what is the gravest mistake one can make on a battlefield?”

Alek was busy looking bug eyed at the scene, at a loss for words. By the time Rainer’s screams had died down into pained moans, Alek found his voice again. “Uh... don’t lose your temper?”

“Exactly. Be you sorcerer, conjurer, enforcer or even healer, losing sight of the battlefield is akin to losing the battle itself.” Their professor walked their way with a carefree gait that was completely unaffected by the surrounding devastation.

Sorcerers did not challenge conjurers to a duel. They certainly did not win said duel. Yet this man had made it seem almost effortless. As far as Nadrina could tell, he’d only used one spell and an enchanted item during the entire fight. To say this was unprecedented was beyond an understatement. One look at the faces of her classmates was enough to confirm their belief of the same.

He stopped just short of the four of them, still grinning boyishly. “So, what have we learned, class?”

“To never underestimate you ever again,” Nadrina thought. They were interrupted before anyone could answer, however.

“YOU!” Rainer screamed, struggling to stand while the headmaster tried to stop him. His robes were a mess, and his face was covered with scratches and blood. “It was all so perfect! Everything was in place! Nothing would have stood in my way! They were going to give me everything! All of it! And now it’s all gone! BECAUSE OF YOU!”

Professor Aldric looked at the man with disdain and pity. “That’s a bit dramatic don’t you--?”

With a look of madness in his eyes, Rainer suddenly reached into his robes and withdrew another amulet. This one was far more intricate, depicting a snake eating its own tail. Nadrina immediately didn’t like the look of it. Professor Aldric was shoving her to the ground before Nadrina could think further.

“All of you, DOWN!”

Nadrina could just barely make out Professor Glory swooping in on wind magic to grab the headmaster before all hell broke loose.

Invisible hands ripped asunder the air where Rainer had been standing. The void that was formed instantly sucked up anything nearby, Rainer included. The man screamed in horror until it abruptly silenced him.

It looked like a portal, similar to what Nadrina had seen the summoner use previously. This one, however, gave off a sense of... wrongness. Like the world was reacting badly to this thing’s existence. The surrounding air seemed to warp and shift unnaturally, and it oozed an odd, luminescent light around its edges.

That was all the time Nadrina had to observe it before creatures straight out of a nightmare started pouring out of the gate. They were only a few feet tall, with thin limbs and bulbous heads without eyes. Their heads were split down the middle from top to bottom, revealing a vertical mouth filled with row upon row of finely pointed and honed teeth. They made a horrible shrieking noise as they crawled out of the nothingness, radiating hatred and violence. The sound alone triggered some primitive part of Nadrina’s psyche, demanding that she run as fast and as far away as possible.

Rainer’s former students were screaming and running in every direction. Even the rest of the school staff and the judges were panicking, trying to control the students and get them to safety. Nadrina finally noticed that she and her classmates were underneath a translucent barrier. She saw the familiar shield amulet in Lilianna’s hands, probably given to her by the professor.

She also saw the professor. He wasn’t in the barrier with them.

“Stay put!” he yelled over the awful screeching, then turned and sprinted for the center of the field.

~~~

Aldric dashed towards the portal that vomited forth creatures that shouldn’t walk this plane. Both of his friends had just barely made it out in time, and Zasia was fighting with the void beasts to protect Kedrin. Kedrin looked like he was about to help, but Aldric reached him first.

“You need to help the kids!” Thankfully, Rainer’s class and the other staff members had been far enough away to get out safely, so Aldric pointed towards his own students cowering behind Lilianna’s shielding amulet. “That amulet won’t hold forever! Give Lilianna whatever you can spare!”

“What about you?” Kedrin asked, and Aldric could barely hear him over the screeching of the creatures swarming the training yard.

“I’m busy!” Aldric replied shortly, then dashed off towards Zasia.

He tried to review what he knew about runaway portals as he ran. A portal became unstable when it became too “hungry”, such as when idiot summoners overtaxed their mana pool and opened a gate far bigger than they should. If a gate became too big, it would devour the ambient magic around it, and that sudden influx of power would attract... things that didn’t belong on this side.

Closing a gate that was out of control was theoretically simple. Take away the mana, and the gate would starve itself out. Of course, trying to yank away the meal of an angry, violent and gigantic hole in the void was easier said than done.

Aldric saw Kedrin had corralled his students, providing extra mana for Lilianna to keep the barrier going. Lilianna probably had an even bigger mana well than Kedrin did, but she could use the help to maintain it. The void creatures were doing their best to batter away the shield, but the most they could leave were claw marks that would instantly reform. That wouldn’t last forever, though. Keeping a barrier over several people cost a lot of mana upkeep, and they couldn’t move while it was still up.

Zasia, gods bless her, was already working her stuff on any void beasts she could reach. Brilliant white fireballs too bright to look at were flying around the field. Any void beast caught by one didn’t just burn; it outright disappeared from existence in a flash of super-heated air. As impressive as it was, however, Aldric knew Zasia couldn’t go all out with other people surrounding her. Her place was as a solo fighter on the front lines.

Her frustration was obvious on her face as he approached her. “Hey!” she shouted at him, while simultaneously vaporizing a group of void beasts. “Feel free to jump in and help!”

Aldric already had two daggers out. “I’m thinking! You’re welcome, by the way.”

“Well, think and fight!”

Zasia was fending off a small horde of void beasts with a gout of fire while erecting an earth wall behind herself to cover her flank. One particularly smart one vaulted off its friends’ heads to clear the wall. It poised itself to attack Zasia, but caught Aldric’s thrown dagger in its torso. It screeched in agony as it tumbled backwards into the mob.

Apparently, wallowing in self-pity for years didn’t do Aldric’s old skills any favors. He’d been aiming for its head.

He drew his remaining blade across the face of one beast to force it back before driving it through the head of another. The black blood scalded his skin and forced him to relinquish his weapon, but two more daggers were already in his hands as he went back-to-back with Zasia.

“Just like old times, huh?” Aldric couldn’t stop himself from saying.

“Less reminiscing, more ideas!” Zasia snapped. She cut two beasts cleanly in half with a wind blade before turning the ground to mud beneath another that had tried to sneak up on Aldric. The creature shrieked in outrage as it was stuck fast, along with several of its friends. The sudden surge of creatures behind them mercilessly trampled them to death.

“I’ve got several,” Aldric replied. He took out a scrap of spell paper coated with adhesive, smacked it to the face of a nearby beast before imbuing it, then kicked it over to the oncoming flood of monsters. The spell scroll erupted in a burst of air, obliterating the face of Aldric’s first target while catapulting a good chunk of the mob in all directions. “None of them are ideal, though.”

Zasia sprayed a cone of fire, turning in place as she did so. Aldric instinctively ducked under it as he knifed another creature that had made for Zasia’s legs. “I’ll take anything at this point!” she shouted. She didn’t even flinch as Aldric threw another dagger just barely past her head and over her shoulder. The blade snatched another beast out of the air before it could land on her.

They were standing their ground, but it was a war of attrition, and these creatures vastly outnumbered them. Aldric knew Zasia’s mana pool was massive, but it wasn’t bottomless. He was already getting tired, himself. It was probably time to do something drastic, regardless of witnesses.

“There’s really only one way I can think of,” Aldric said, coming to terms with his plan. “We starve the portal. Deprive it of mana until it naturally recedes while finishing off the things that already got through.”

“And how are we supposed to do that? I’m already down to about half mana!”

“Half empty or half full?”

“Shut up and take this seriously! Just tell me the plan! What do we do?” Aldric ducked another cone of fire from Zasia, feeling the onset of a sunburn on his neck and back. She did that on purpose, didn’t she?

“We don’t. I do.”

Aldric saw the moment Zasia realized what he meant, her face going ashen. “Aldric, you can’t!”

“If you have a better idea, I’m listening!” Aldric shouted back, weaving his blades back and forth as he kept the beasts at bay. He quickly ran one of his blades through another scrap of imbued spell paper, a patina of ice now coating the blade. He tossed it at the ground several meters away and watched as the earth rapidly froze over. Ice suddenly engulfed any void beast unlucky enough to be close by.

“Unless you want me to showcase a bunch of other stuff people really shouldn’t see, this is our best option!” he shouted when Zasia still hadn’t responded.

“Fine!” she snarled back at him. She channeled her frustration into a wall of wind blades that tore through the frozen mob with gory abandon. “I’ll buy you time!”

Aldric didn’t need to be told twice. Once Zasia had cleared him some space, he drew his remaining blade across the palm of his hand, wincing as hot pain raced up his arm. He took a moment to hurl the dagger through another creature’s eye socket before beginning his bloody work. Thankfully, the mana permeating the air from the slain void beasts provided the fuel source he would need.

Kneeling in the dirt, Aldric began using the blood from his hand to draw runes on the ground in a circle around himself, trying to balance speed versus getting every rune exactly right. He knew he was about to do something that would bring him all kinds of unwanted attention, and his self-preservation instinct was screaming at him to stop. This was one of the many reasons Aldric had been forced to go into hiding, and now he was going to do it in broad daylight.

Then he looked over to where his students were huddled under the shield barrier, clearly terrified out of their minds. He also saw the horde of monsters trying to get at them, to take away the tiny spark of hope he had finally found for himself. Aldric’s will finally solidified in that moment.

Aldric began mumbling the beginnings of a spell. No silent casting for this one. He’d need all the help he could get if he didn’t want to keel over.

~~~

Lilianna did her best to keep feeding the shield amulet mana, but she was having difficulty. This thing was a mana hog, and even the headmaster’s help would only keep it going for so long. The shield was already dimming the more damage it took and repaired. Lilianna racked her brain for something to get them out of this, but kept coming up empty. The most she could do was make sure her classmates were safe.

She assumed Nadrina was already in shock. The girl was blankly staring at nothing, eyes wide and dilated with fear. Then Lilianna realized that her friend’s eyes were fixed on two figures in the thick of it. Professors Glory and Aldric were busy fighting for their lives. By themselves!

Professor Glory was throwing out spells that made Lilianna balk at how casually she could spend her mana pool. Professor Aldric, meanwhile, seemed to be getting up close and personal with a never-ending supply of daggers. He clearly knew how to use them and even threw in some enchantments here and there for good measure.

Lilianna’s heart leapt into her throat each time one of those creatures got too close to one of them, but then the other would step in and cover them. Over and over, they kept covering for each other and slaying monsters left and right, looking like they’d been doing this their whole lives.

She’d seen her family’s guards practice coordinated tactics before in their drills. They were mainly ceremony, however, meant to impress guests. These two made her family guards look like amateur street performers.

Lilianna briefly panicked when she realized her focus on the shield amulet had lessened with the distraction. One creature had gotten its head through a hole it had torn in the dome. Several of its fellows piled on as soon as they noticed the gap in defense. The force of them crowding in behind popped the first creature like a cork through the hole, allowing several more to follow before the hole sealed itself.

Lilianna was stuck maintaining the barrier, the headmaster assisting. There was nothing she could do as she watched four of those awful things eye her classmates and snarl in chorus. She felt shivers down her spine and her hair stand on end. It was the snarl of violent beasts that only desired to rend and kill.

Suddenly, one of the beast’s heads caught fire. Then another as well, joining its twin in a chorus of pained shrieking.

“Carlisle, you take those two!”

Codrin stepped between the rest of the class and the two panicking monsters, already pulling mana for a third spell. In a frenzied rage, one of the still flaming creatures bull rushed Codrin, but it only met the flying corpse of its twin halfway. Both slammed into the inside of the barrier with a disgusting splat, painting the dome with tar-black blood.

Alek had joined the fray, jumping at the last unburned creature and wrestling it to the ground. Alek was a talented enforcer, but these creatures must have been stronger than they looked. It gnashed its horrid teeth and lashed out at him, trying to climb his shoulders and claw at his face. Codrin was still busy dealing with his own opponent, somehow no longer on fire, and it was obvious from his heaving breaths he hadn’t yet recovered from his display during the competition. Lilianna was worried he was going to overdraw his mana pool and kill himself.

Then, out of nowhere, Nadrina was there, a glowing piece of spell paper ready to go. She smacked it to the bulbous head of the creature, retreating just in time to miss its snapping jaws by mere inches. The bite was the only thing the monster had time for, however. Much to its confusion and fury, the creature started floating in midair, uselessly trying to claw at the students. It kept floating until it hit the top of the dome, where it continued to flail and screech angrily.

Alek had finally gotten his opponent pinned on the ground. With a grunt of effort, he pulled hard on both of its arms until they both popped completely free, black blood spraying everywhere. The thing had time for one more agonized screech before Alek planted his fist into its face, silencing it for good.

“Took you long enough, Carlisle,” Codrin wheezed from his position on the floor. It was clear he was well and truly spent.

“Shut up. You had Nadrina to help,” Alek shot back, though he looked tired as well. “You looked really heroic for a second there, till you fell on your face and needed saving.”

Codrin opened his mouth to retort back, but Headmaster Elmaris interrupted the by-play. “Caffaret, no more heroics from you. You’ve exhausted your mana pool. Carlisle, you will need to keep watch for any more void beasts breaching the barrier, and see what you can do about that thing on the ceiling. Flemming, I don’t know where you got spell paper from, but I hope you have more of it. I still need to assist with the barrier’s mana cost. Asimov, keep up the good work.”

Lilianna could only nod mutely in reply. She was nearing her limit.

“Professor Aldric gave them to me,” Nadrina answered, looking at the still floating and snarling monster with wild and fearful eyes. “He told me to experiment with them, that they probably weren’t dangerous, so I should be adventurous.”

“Of course he did,” the headmaster sighed, rolling his eyes. “He was kidding, dear. Use them as you see fit until those two out there can—”

An ominous rumbling, followed by a massive shift in the ambient mana around them, made all of them turn to the two people still outside. Professor Glory was still fighting, but Professor Aldric was on the ground, scribbling in the dirt with what looked like blood. He appeared to be chanting while completely drenched in sweat, taking gasping breaths.

Lilianna stared, transfixed, at the absurd amount of mana coalescing around the professor. There was so much of it that Lilianna could actually see it. It cast a purple and black haze that slowly thickened as the professor continued his chant, moving slowly but surely towards the still open portal.

Even as she watched, the portal was slowly shrinking as the cloud grew heavier. She took in the mana cloud, the professor, the dwindling portal, and the circle of blood. Despite everything her family had ever taught her, Lilianna immediately knew what the professor was trying to do.

This was a summoning ritual. A very mana hungry ritual. The kind that would take several summoners to cast.

Never mind the ridiculous amount of mana that one would need to cast such a thing, or that one man channeled that much power through his body without exploding. What Lilianna wanted to know was how a sorcerer, of all things, was using summoning magic.

Professor Glory was still fighting. Lilianna was more than impressed that she was hanging on by herself, but she was slowing considerably. Lilianna’s own reserves were just about gone, as well. Whatever their professor was doing, she hoped it would start moving faster.

Professor Aldric was still staring at the ground and muttering when another monster broke free from the pack and made a beeline for him. Professor Glory was already swarmed and didn’t see the attacker, and Professor Aldric wasn’t paying attention. The beast came within a few feet of the professor, jaws extended to bite his head off, but caught a boot to the face before it could.

Volmar Merton, from Rainer’s class, stood protectively next to the professor. He roared a challenge at the rest of the incoming horde, just before he dove in and started punching and kicking anything stupid enough to come near him. Cira Barclay was there as well, water whips flailing and cutting through monsters by the dozen. Apparently, they’d thrown in their lot with Professor Aldric. He noticed and gave them both a grateful nod.

As if spurred on by the reinforcements, the slow pull of ambient mana suddenly became a fierce tug. It violently sucked the cloud of mana towards the center of the bloody circle. It formed into a writhing, seething ball of darkness before slowly dropping to the ground in front of the professor, seeping into the earth and disappearing. The haywire gate gradually shrank and finally collapsed in on itself. Just before it closed, however, Professor Rainer’s body tumbled out in a heap, covered in black liquid. He blearily looked around himself, then passed out on the spot. Lilianna couldn’t tell if he was dead or not, and honestly didn’t care. He’d need to fend for himself.

She was glad the core problem was solved, but blood-thirsty beasts that were hell bent on killing them all still surrounded them. Then Professor Aldric shouted, “Necras Kishir Lagan Tera Manas!”

Lilianna’s felt true terror claw up her spine as stony hands formed themselves from the ground itself, thin arms slowly emerging from the earth behind them. There must have been hundreds of them, all grasping blindly at anything that was nearby. Both Cira and Volmar yelped and leaped back out of range. The only place they didn’t emerge was in the barrier or near the professors.

Howls of pain rang out, only a few at first, but soon many more. Panicked shrieks filled the air as the hands grasped each monster in a bone crunching grip. Slowly, inexorably, the hands sank into the earth once more, their prizes being dragged along with them.

The creatures began resisting fiercely. They beat against the stone arms, clawed at them, bit them, but nothing stopped their inevitable doom. Lilianna watched with sick fascination as some monsters tore their own limbs off to escape, only to be grasped by yet another hand once again.

The merciless arms dragged their victims into the depths of the earth, the creatures shrieking madly as they were slowly, but unrelentingly, buried alive. They struggled like drowning men before their cries abruptly cut off beneath the ground.

Lilianna was almost certain she was going to have nightmares about this tonight. And not just because of the monsters.

The horror show had finally ended as the hands dragged the last creature screaming into the depths. The only living things left in the training field were Lilianna’s class, Volmar and Cira, the headmaster, and the three professors. Miraculously, no one appeared to be seriously injured besides Rainer, albeit covered in black monster blood. With the threat gone, the battered shield flickered to nothing.

Lilianna jolted when Nadrina suddenly sprinted forward, making for Professor Aldric as she leaped over torn limbs and pools of monster guts. Lilianna reflexively chased after her. When Nadrina stopped in front of the kneeling professor, Lilianna saw he looked absolutely awful. His face was ghostly white through his sweat, and she could see the veins underneath his face.

Nadrina crouched down and grabbed the professor by both of his arms, staring into his face. Lilianna thought she would ask if he was alright, but she blurted, “Tell me how you did that!”

Even through his exhausted appearance, the professor chuckled. “Of all the things, that’s what you ask me? I’m fine, by the way.”

Nadrina blushed scarlet, obviously embarrassed, but stubbornly pushed on. “W-Well, of course you’re alright. You can do anything. Now explain!”

“Oh, Nadrina,” Aldric said, smiling ruefully. “You remind me a little too much of myself sometimes. Tell you what, I’ll tell the both of you if you do me a favor.” He pointed towards the incoming class, the headmaster, and Professor Glory. “Go get Kedrin for me. I’m going to... I’m going to need... need some...”

He didn’t get any farther. His eyes rolled up into his head as his body slumped forward into Nadrina’s arms.

Chapter 9

Aldric woke up to a plain white room full of beds. Well, “woke up” wasn’t really the right phrase. More like “stumbled his way into consciousness”. It had been a long time since he’d overtaxed his mana pool, and he was now remembering just why it was such a terrible idea. Every inch of his body ached something fierce. He tried to sit up, decided that was the worst idea he’d ever had, let out a pitiful whimper, and lay still again.

Moving his eyes to a nearby window, he noticed it was probably early morning. It had not been morning when he’d passed out, so either he’d been out for a while, or he was well and truly dead this time. Honestly, what did he expect? You cheat death too many times, and death will eventually catch up. He dimly noted through bleary eyes that there appeared to be a woman next to his bed. A gorgeous blonde woman. Well, if he was dead, at least he got a pretty angel, right?

“About time you woke up. Did you expect me to cover your class forever?”

Right, of course. No way Aldric was that lucky.

The angel in figure but not in spirit, Zasia, was peering into his face with a severe frown. This was usually the part where she went into great detail about the stupid, hare-brained things he had done and why he should never do them again. Not really ready for the incoming tongue lashing but also unable to run away, Aldric braced himself for the inevitable.

“How are you feeling? Kedrin did what he could, but only said you would need rest to heal your body’s mana channels and restore your pool. You’ve been asleep for a whole day.”

He’d expected more yelling. He didn’t know what to do when she handed him genuine concern and affection. Any argument he’d hastily planned had died in his brain.

“I’ll live,” Aldric replied, deciding that he could probably stop being an ass for a day. “What about the kids?”

“They’re fine. A bit shaken, but relatively unharmed. They must take after their professor. I heard from Kedrin that they were surprisingly calm and able to defend themselves. Even that young sorcerer, Ms. Flemming, chipped in. Did you really just casually give her spell paper?”

“Wait, she could actually imbue it while in combat?” Aldric asked, incredulous. That girl needed to stop learning things faster than he could teach them.

“Apparently. Honestly, Aldric, you’re an accountant’s worst nightmare. Just casually handing out valuables to students with no thought of budgeting.”

Aldric waved a dismissive hand, then remembered that his whole body was racked with pain. Through a wince, he said, “Whatever, it’s my supply. You guys wanted me to take this seriously, so I am. Besides, I can just make Kedrin whatever he wants so he can sell it later. It’s basically the same as printing money.”

Zasia opened her mouth to reply, closed it, then gave him a worried look. She gently touched his shoulder while gazing at him imploringly.

“I know you’re only joking, but I’m pretty sure you could, couldn’t you? Please don’t break the economy. We need it.”

Aldric only snorted in response, deliberately not promising anything. “So, I have you to thank for covering for me?”

Obviously noting the subject change but choosing not to pursue the topic further, Zasia reluctantly nodded. “Indeed. I’d say you’ve been doing an excellent job with them so far. It really is quite astounding the progress they’re making. By the way, a few students from Rainer’s former class desired to transfer over to yours. Kedrin has already approved it.”

“Wait, what?” Aldric cried out, wincing as he instinctively tried to rise from his bed. “Why?!”

“We determined you were ready for the next step. You didn’t really think you’d be able to get away with such a small class forever, did you? Besides, there’s only two of them. The ones that were in the competition, and then later protected you. Their bravery is certainly not in question. You still have the smallest class in the entire academy, so I won’t hear any complaints from you.”

A small smirk made its way onto her face as she continued. “Your class has been pestering me non-stop on how you’ve been. Don’t be surprised when some of them come to visit later. A few of them already have while you were still asleep.”

Aldric ignored the warm feeling that suddenly came over him at her words and rubbed at his face. Now he had six students. Six. With his luck, they’d be just as infuriatingly talented as the others.

“So, what about Rainer?” he asked, dreading the topic but needing to know.

Zasia actually sneered at the mention of the man’s name. “He will live, for now. We’ve sent him off to the capital under guard for a trial. His crimes are rather obvious, and there were dozens of witnesses. His family is obviously unhappy. They're losing a very talented summoner, after all. The Asimov family, thankfully, has taken a hands-off approach to everything. They are apparently taking their... training of young Lilianna seriously. They view the incident as beneficial for her development.”

“Think it’ll stay that way?” Aldric asked, already knowing the answer.

“I don’t know, but we’ll be ready for anything. Kedrin already has his people keeping an ear to the ground for any unfortunate rumors about you. So far, there’s been nothing, but we’ll be cautious.”

“Kedrin has people? Since when?”

“You underestimate how influential our friend has become. Why wouldn’t he have spies? How do you think the headmaster of one of the most prestigious academies in the empire keeps mostly politically neutral? He needs to play the political game just as much as any other.”

While Aldric was mulling over that piece of news, Zasia continued. “As for whatever that amulet was the Rainer used, it must have been destroyed when he activated it. As such, we have no idea what it was or how it was made. They’ll be interrogating him about it and many other things once he reaches the capital, but he made it sound like people were backing him. Perhaps they gave it to him? Since you’re the best sorcerer we know, you wouldn’t happen to have any insights into that, would you?”

Aldric was quiet. He did, actually. He just wasn’t sure he should voice them. The enchantment Rainer had used was uncomfortably familiar. Aldric was surprised Zasia hadn’t thought of it.

“I’m guessing,” Aldric began carefully, “that it did something to the latent mana in the air. Assumed control of it and forced it to open a portal. If Rainer had tried to make something that big and bottomless after using so much mana during our duel, he would have killed himself.”

Zasia was nodding along as he spoke, but her face suddenly went white as realization hit her. She quickly turned back to Aldric in a panic. “That’s just like--!”

“Like the incident at Vultath,” Aldric finished quietly, not looking her in the eye. It was the incident that had ruined Aldric’s life.

Zasia slowly digested that, still looking worried but managing to master herself after a few deep breaths. “I will speak to Kedrin about it,” was all she said. Both of them sat in silence for several minutes after that. Finally, Aldric broke it.

“I’m sorry Zasia. I messed up.”

Zasia gave him a serious look before speaking gravely. “Aldric, what you did... none of the students are aware of what it really was, and any staff who saw it are sworn to secrecy by Kedrin, but that still isn’t something you should do lightly. I know,” she interrupted Aldric before he could protest, “You didn’t have any better alternatives and it was Rainer’s fault the incident happened at all. But you deciding to duel drove him to that. Personally, I was happy to see the toad put in his place, but it wasn’t strictly necessary. You let your emotions dictate your actions, and the result led to the students being put in danger, as well as your own secrets. You are not solely responsible, but you bear some of that burden.”

Aldric could only agree with her. Rainer going off on Nadrina had ignited an older part of him he’d thought buried. He was by no means sorry, but he probably could have gone about it better. At the very least, as Zasia had said, he put his students at risk because of it.

“Fine. I’m sorry that Rainer was such an insufferable prick that he made me fight him.”

Zasia raised a delicate eyebrow at that. Aldric squirmed under her gaze for a bit before he simply said, “Sorry. I’ll do better.”

Zasia nodded, satisfied. “Kedrin has it under control for now, but please be careful. I believe most are crediting me with what you did, but if word ever got out about you still being alive, there would only be so much myself and Kedrin could do to protect you.”

“I’m aware of my precarious life, thank you,” Aldric snapped. After a few moments of silence, he sighed and amended his tone. “That wasn’t fair. Sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Zasia said, rubbing his shoulder affectionately. “I understand. I’ll spare you more lectures while you’re still recovering, but my point remains.”

“Fine,” Aldric grumped, annoyed at how much he sounded like a petulant child. “Not like I want the attention. People just won’t leave me alone.”

“Must be your winning personality,” Zasia quipped almost immediately.

“... did you just make a joke?” Aldric asked, stunned.

Zasia rolled her eyes. “You’re a joke, Aldric.”

“... did you just make two jokes? Seriously, who are you? What did you do with Zasia?”

Zasia let out a full, honest laugh. It was a delightful sound. He’d missed her laugh. It did a lot to ease his mounting fears for a moment.

“Hurry and get better. I have my own classes to teach, you know. We also have a guest instructor visiting in a few weeks. We figured you could use some help expanding your teaching repertoire with two new students. You’ll want to be fully healed by the time they get here. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by who it is.”

Aldric was about to quiz her on that when she suddenly stood up and walked towards the door. “No, I won’t tell you, so don’t bother trying. Besides, you have visitors.”

She abruptly swung the door open, and in spilled Lilianna and Nadrina. They collapsed into a pile on the floor in front of Zasia, their faces the very picture of guilty.

“How much did you hear?” she asked, her tone sharp. The girls lowered their heads before Nadrina answered, “We only just got here, the door’s too thick so we didn’t hear anything clearly.”

Zasia turned back to Aldric, nodding minutely. She must have felt their mana fluctuations when they’d arrived. She would have mentioned it if they’d been there during the more serious talk. If she believed them, so would he. Besides, Nadrina wouldn’t lie. She was terrible at it. Aldric was able to let out the breath he’d been holding in.

“Make it brief, ladies, then get back to class. Afterwards, you can meet me in my office for a discussion on the meaning of ‘privacy’.”

“Yes, professor...” the girls chorused in dejected unison.

With that, Zasia tossed a final smile to Aldric, then turned and left the room in a swirl of fine skirts.

Both girls did their best to gather themselves with as much dignity as possible, which wasn’t very much. Uncomfortable silence followed after murmured apologies and the brushing of robes. Deciding it was up to him to break the awkward moment, Aldric asked, “You two doing alright?”

“We’re fine, thank you,” Lilianna answered, being the first to recover. “We volunteered to come see you on behalf of everyone else. I assumed you wouldn’t want the entire class pestering you while you’re recovering. You are clearly doing much better. You’re even conscious this time.”

“Just woke up,” Aldric answered. “And yes, I’ll be fine. Not the first time Kedrin has had to patch me back up. Just follow Zas—Professor Glory’s lessons for now. I’ll think up what we should do in the future later.”

“Also,” Lilianna continued, “two of the participants from Rainer’s class asked to join ours. It seems they wish to learn from the person who so easily bested their professor. They were very brave during the chaos. I think they’ll be a good fit.”

Easily, huh? Aldric decided not to point out that he was currently hospitalized after being in a three-day coma. Then again, Rainer was dead. “Exactly what I needed. More responsibility.”

Lilianna looked amused. “For what it’s worth, they seem to get along fine. That girl and Codrin appear to be butting heads quite a bit, but I think it’s more rivalry than hostility.”

“Yeah, they would. Just make sure they don’t destroy the classroom while I’m—”

“Professor, you used summoning magic,” Nadrina interrupted, almost accusingly. The room plunged into awkward silence.

“... I see,” he said carefully. “And what makes you say that?”

“Are you saying you didn’t?” Nadrina challenged, looking him directly in the eye. She usually got uncharacteristically pushy when she got carried away with learning something new, but this was different. She sounded like she was daring him to lie to her. Lilianna looked shocked and worried, but had said nothing to stop her.

Great, so they both knew. And for the umpteenth time, Zasia was right.

Aldric simply nodded. “Yeah, I did.”

His own honesty surprised him. Maybe it was the fact that these were two very smart girls who knew what they saw. Maybe he just didn’t feel like balancing lies with truths for the entire school year. Or maybe he was just tired of keeping everything to himself.

Both girls just blinked at him, like they’d expected more of a fight than that. “Um,” Nadrina started, looking less sure of herself, “How is that possible? You’re not a summoner. Using magic outside of your magic class should be impossible.”

Aldric scratched his head as he debated how much to tell them. “Anyone else know about this?”

“As far as we can tell, no,” Lilianna answered. “At the very least, we haven’t mentioned it to students or staff.” She paused for a beat, then seemed to come to a decision. “Professor... just who are you really? A sorcerer, an extremely well-learned sorcerer, with a talent for enchanting that I’ve never even heard of before, who can also perform magic not of his own mage class, and is acquainted with Lady Glory and Headmaster Elmaris. I asked some contacts in my family if they were familiar with you, but—”

“You did WHAT?” Aldric shouted. He’d been getting more and more nervous the longer she talked, but now he was full-blown panicking.

Both girls took an involuntary step back. “I-It was before the incident with Rainer! Several months ago, around when class first started! I mentioned nothing to them other than a talented sorcerer with the name Aldric! All they told me was that I would need to rely on my resources while at school, then dismissed me. I-I’m not sure they even looked into you at all!”

Okay... okay. So, it wasn’t as bad as he’d feared. More than likely, they had looked into her questions, just to be sure, but had found nothing worth noting. If they had, they would most likely be angling Lilianna to get in his good graces, maybe introduce him to her family.

Aldric briefly wondered if this was all a ploy by Lilianna and the Asimov family, but decided against it. He’d gone on long enough, being paranoid about everyone’s intentions. She was just a teenage girl. That, and the Asimov family didn’t really have any issues with him personally. More likely, they wanted to stick him in a room forever, where they wouldn’t be forced to share him.

Aldric had been quiet for too long. Both girls looked stricken, faces guilty and fearful. He let out an explosive breath, then gathered himself.

“I’m sorry, that was uncalled for. You’re not in trouble. You wouldn’t have known any better. Besides, I guess it’s a fair question, isn’t it?”

Aldric looked at both of them for a long moment. None of them said a word in the silence. Lilianna looked unsure, but hopeful. Nadrina was anxiously glancing between the both of them, clearly waiting to see how much he would tell them.

“Who I am is best left unsaid. To you, I should only be your graceless and brutish professor. The less said, the better. And before you argue,” he interrupted as they both opened their mouths to protest, “I’m not trying to be evasive or mysterious or any of that crap. It is genuinely dangerous for you to know, both for myself and for you two. What I did in the arena resulted from years of research from when I was much younger and dumber. Well, dumber than I am now, anyway. Many would want to know what I did and how, but you’ll remember it also hospitalized me and unleashed a dangerous amount of power. I’m pretty sure Drina has already figured out a good chunk of how I did it anyway, yes?”

Nadrina looked a little guilty, but nodded in confirmation. “You used the latent mana left over from the dead creatures and converted it into something you could use to perform a summon. I don’t really know how you did that exactly, but I assume it had something to do with the runes you were writing. The fact you had to use such an extensive amount of your own blood is also probably important, maybe related to how blood is the most powerful medium a sorcerer can enchant with?”

“Regardless,” Aldric continued, deciding to not think about how close she got to it. “All of this stays between us. I’ll do my best to teach you what I know, and there are many things I’d be willing to show you that you probably wouldn’t learn from anyone else. In exchange, you two won’t ask any more from me than that. Deal?”

“Do those teachings extend to our class or just us?” Lilianna asked, sounding like she was bartering for a good deal at market.

Aldric sighed and shook his head. “I don’t know yet. At the very least, I can show the two of you. That good enough for now?”

“Perhaps... perhaps, after a set period, we can discuss the possibility? That would give you time to decide if you had already shared too much. It seems rather unfair to exclude them, and they’ll eventually catch on if we get too far ahead of them.”

Aldric scratched his head in thought. “Fine. Give me three months to decide.”

“One month.”

“Two months,” Aldric countered, pointing a finger at her. “Don’t push it.”

Both girls looked at each other, some invisible conversation taking place that Aldric couldn’t follow. Then they nodded to each other and to Aldric.

“Deal,” they answered together, looking awfully pleased with themselves. Aldric let loose the breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding.

“Good. You two should get back to class. Codrin and that girl will end up burning the place down if you’re not there, I’m sure.”

Lilianna smiled at that. “Probably. We’ll be going then. Please get well soon, Professor.” With that, Lilianna turned and left the room.

Nadrina, curiously, didn’t follow behind her. Instead, she stood in place and awkwardly fidgeted. Recognizing that she was building courage for something, Aldric waited.

Several moments passed before she seemed to decide as she nodded to herself, then looked up to stare him in the eyes. Suddenly, she was hugging him. She was a bit awkward at first, taking care not to squeeze him too hard with his injuries, but the sincerity behind the gesture was pure and honest.

“I don’t... I know I’m timid and let people walk all over me. People tell me all the time I should speak up and defend myself. Everything he said felt so true, and I was too scared to deny it. But it really meant a lot to me that you would fight someone on my behalf. I know you already didn’t like that man, so it probably had nothing to do with me, really, but I’m grateful, regardless. So... thank you, Professor. Thank you for believing in me.”

She released him after several more seconds. Then, with her face blushing bright red, Nadrina fled the room like a scared rabbit.

Aldric was left alone again, blankly staring at the door as it swung shut behind her.

~~~

A week had passed before Aldric was notified that the new guest instructor would finally make their appearance. Despite his best efforts, neither Zasia nor Kedrin had yet to spill the beans on their identity. Aldric was honestly getting nervous. The last time his friends had tried to surprise him, they’d saddled him with a whole new career.

He and his class were waiting in the courtyard that had recently been repaired after the incident with the rogue gate. Apparently, they were to be this guest instructor’s first class. Aldric was feeling more than a little impatient, but thought he was doing a relatively good job keeping a lid on it. His class, however, was having a harder time.

“It is already fifteen minutes past the class bell!” Codrin blurted out. “Where is this new instructor of ours? Being late on the first day is beyond shameful. For that matter, why do I even need to be here? Our instructor is supposed to be an enforcer. What does a meathead have to teach me?”

“Can it, Caffaret,” Cira Barclay, one of their newest additions to the class, barked back. “People don’t have to bend over backwards just because your noble ass is feeling impatient. Sometimes people are late. Get over it.”

“Is it really so much to ask that a professional be on time?” Codrin shot back, getting louder as he got more irritated. “Not that I would expect the likes of you to know anything about decorum! Did the pack of wolves that raised you not teach you any manners?”

“My family is just as much nobility as your den of con artists and backstabbers! At least my upbringing was better than being raised into a pampered little snot who whines whenever he doesn’t get his way!”

Aldric rolled his eyes up to the heavens in protest. What did he ever do to deserve two Codrins? Every time these two went at it, which was always, he could swear there was an invisible hammer trying to drive a nail through the center of his forehead. Now he knew how Kedrin felt playing referee for Aldric and Zasia all those years.

“Come on, you two. Lighten up!  If the academy went to all the trouble of inviting them here, they have to be one of the strongest enforcers alive. How can you not be excited?”

Volmar Merton was the other addition to the class, but was annoying for entirely different reasons. His constant optimism and good cheer were honestly grating sometimes. He was currently doing pushups in the grass, apparently just as bored as the rest of them, and had somehow talked Alek into sitting on his back while he did so. The kindly brute had been going at it for several minutes now and didn’t even look tired.

Alek just sat with his chin in his hands while Volmar continued his workout, looking like he was already daydreaming again. Ever since Alek’s demonstration during the competition, Volmar had apparently decided that he and Alek were going to be best friends, much to Alek’s annoyance. The dynamic between the overachiever and the lazy bum was a comical one.

Nadrina was busy going over her notes from class, with Lilianna, the two girls having an animated discussion. Aldric tried not to notice how they kept throwing him glances. They did it all the time now; in class, in the dining hall, during his office hours. He knew what they wanted from him, yet he was still reluctant to give it. He hadn’t even thought up how he was going to start those new lessons of theirs.

All talk ceased when Kedrin appeared with a richly dressed knight in tow. They were tall, broad shouldered, and kitted out in layer upon layer of the finest steel plate armor, something fit for a royal court. Aldric couldn’t see through their visored helmet, but apparently, he was supposed to recognize this person. So far, he was coming up empty. Aldric could count the number of nobles he would actually associate with on one hand.

The knight towered head and shoulders over Kedrin, but the man didn’t seem bothered by the intimidating presence in the least. In fact, he had a massive, knowing grin on his face. Both of them made their way to a small stage that had been set up for today, allowing them to address an entire class.

“Good morning, class! I have the utmost pleasure of introducing our new guest instructor. He has come all the way from the Kingdom of Verona to be here today. He is an old friend of mine, so I do hope you show him the proper respect.” Gesturing for them to step forward, the knight did so. He reached up and removed his helmet, revealing a man in his early thirties.

Aldric would have described his face as unfairly handsome. Perfect sandy blonde hair, perfect green eyes, and perfect teeth in his perfect smile. He practically screamed fine breeding and wealth, but seemed to carry himself with a confident air that didn’t appear overbearing or superior. Normally, Aldric would dislike someone like this on sight. Instead, he was busy studying the man’s face.

Something about him was achingly familiar. The man opened his mouth to introduce himself in a rich baritone voice, and Aldric’s memories of the man slammed to the front of his brain.

“Good morning, class. You may call me Sir Balrus, or just Instructor Balrus, if you’re feeling informal. No need for stuffy titles here.”

He spoke with a mix of polite charm and natural authority, all with a dazzling smile on his face. Aldric could practically feel the girls in his class swooning.

“Sir Balrus? THE Sir Balrus Atticas? The Royal Knight of Verona’s king?” Volmar cried out excitedly.

“Ah, I see my reputation precedes me,” Balrus said easily, smiling ruefully. All throughout the class, whispers had already started. Aldric remembered this was the reaction Balrus got wherever he went. No, scratch that; this was the reaction he got nearly ten years ago. How much had his reputation spread since then? Him being King Thagrius’ royal knight was definitely new.

“Is it true that you’re the youngest knight in history to ever be named the king’s knight?” Codrin asked. For someone who thought all enforcers were thick headed brutes, he looked pretty damn excited himself. “And that you and Professor Glory took down the Hundred Handed Demon during the fall of Vultath?”

Aldric, Kedrin, and Balrus all winced simultaneously at the mention of Vultath. Thankfully, Balrus did a good job of hiding his reaction. Aldric certainly didn’t.

“Well, yes and no,” Balrus hedged, “I wasn’t actually there for most of it, and those stories have been exaggerated, I assure you--”

“I bet you know the headmaster as well! Weren’t you both part of the Golden Workshop?” Nadrina asked, that light of curiosity once again filling her eyes. Lilianna was trying to reign in her over enthusiastic friend, but Cira chipped in and made it worse.

“Golden Workshop? Wasn’t that some famous guild?”

“Yes!” Nadrina answered. “Only the most famous adventurer’s guild in Verona’s history! Every one of their members has become a legend in their own right, the headmaster and Professor Glory included! It’s said their mages were the most talented of their generation!”

That started a whole new round of excited interrogations. How did he and the headmaster know each other? Was he still part of the guild? What had happened to the other members? Did he have a new guild in Verona? Could they join? That last one, predictably, was Volmar.

Balrus was doing his best, but as one question after another was launched at him, he lost control of the situation. Aldric knew Balrus was too nice to get firm with them, so he helped. Letting out a piercing whistle, Aldric brought the class to silence.

“That’s enough! Do you always bombard people you just met with questions? This man is your instructor, now act like it!”

Most of the class were shamefaced, though most still looked like they were boiling with questions. Nadrina was chief among them. Balrus looked to see who had just spoken, seeming to notice Aldric for the first time. He squinted his eyes in careful study just before they went as wide as saucers.

“Aldric? Is that really you? It is, isn’t it?” he shouted, dashing forward and making a beeline for Aldric.

“Nonononono--!”

Before he could run for his life, Balrus had already swept Aldric up in a bear hug strong enough to lift him off his feet. Aldric’s face screwed up in agony as he felt his ribs grinding together from the force of it.

“Gods above, it must have been a decade, at least, since I last saw you! Kedrin and Zasia told me there was a surprise waiting for me, but I had no idea you’d be here! This is wonderful! All four of us, reunited once again!”

Most of the class was staring at the two of them in shocked confusion. Nadrina and Lilianna seemed like they had just discovered something important. Perfect, score yet another point for the teenage detectives. As dear a friend as Balrus may have been, he often epitomized the dumb blonde trope.

Frantically tapping at Balrus’s armor, Aldric squeaked out, “Yeah, nice to see you too, buddy. Mind letting me breathe for a bit?”

Noticing Aldric’s distress, Balrus blessedly released him. Aldric tried not to make a show of gasping for air while he leaned against his mountainous friend. Balrus still had his stupid grin firmly in place.

“Did you perhaps forget that you’re in the middle of a lecture?” Aldric asked in a hoarse voice.

Balrus looked back to the shocked class and a beaming Kedrin, then back to Aldric with a sheepish grin. “Ah, yes. Apologies, class. Please excuse my earlier outburst. If all of you could pair off and take places around the arena, we will begin some basic drills to warm up.”

Reluctantly, the class did as he said, though they still cast glances at the two men as they scattered across the field.

“Surprised you could get off work long enough to be here,” Aldric commented once they were out of earshot. “How hard did Kedrin have to twist your arm to get you here?”

“I’m rather overjoyed to be here, honestly,” Balrus replied, obviously extremely happy. “It has been too long since the four of us have been together, not since... well, you know.”

“Since I threw a giant tantrum, nearly got myself killed, and then became comatose shortly after?”

Balrus looked at Aldric in shock. “Well... I’m glad to see you moving past it, then. I certainly prefer this version of you over the one that barely even spoke to me.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m over it, exactly,” Aldric said. He looked over at his students, most of whom were still staring at the two of them. “I’m... learning to deal with it. I have a coping mechanism now.”

Balrus gave him one of his trademark radiant smiles, one of true happiness. “Then I am overjoyed beyond words, old friend.” Then his demeanor became suddenly serious. “Though, to be honest, it was not Kedrin’s request that brought me here. Not fully, anyway.”

Aldric raised a brow at that. “What did?”

“His majesty, King Thagrius, has sent me with a two-pronged motive. On paper, this is a political move to secure relations with Kedrin and his associates,” Balrus started. Predictable, but it didn’t answer Aldric’s question.

Then Balrus looked meaningfully at Aldric and said the last thing he wanted to hear. “In reality, I have been tasked with the recovery of the legacy of Rhagia’s Guardian Demon.”

Chapter 10

It was loud, as always, in the guildhall. Aldric preferred it that way. The hustle and bustle of his fellow guildmates was as familiar to him as the sound of his own heartbeat. Nowhere else felt like home more than here.

His closest friends sat around their meeting table, situated right in the middle of the guildhall. None of them, Aldric included, had ever cared much for hierarchy or division of members, and it was unanimously decided that all major guild businesses would be decided at this very table, out in the open for everyone to observe. Even if the other members trusted them and ignored them entirely in favor of their own projects, transparency was important.

Kedrin was trying to conduct the meeting while simultaneously not make it obvious he was trying to read the latest medical text he’d found. To everyone else in the guild, he was the sort-of guild leader, if only because the real one never claimed authority unless strictly necessary. Only his friends knew that his greatest desire was to lock himself away in his library for the rest of the day.

Balrus was always the least active during these meetings, leaving everything to his friends unless they needed a tie breaker. He was serving the latest tea he’d bought in the city, claiming that Aldric would for sure like it this time. Aldric had his doubts based on smell alone, but the honest enthusiasm his friend showed would always break him down in the end.

Zasia was attempting to pester him about something or other, probably something boring. She had elected herself to be the mother figure for everyone here, and that came with all the nagging and prodding one would expect. Only known to their inner circle, however, was that making it into Zasia’s circle of close friends was one of the hardest things one could do. She was fiercely dedicated to caring for all of them, shielding her adopted family from others, and occasionally, themselves. It was a lot to put on a young woman barely into her twenties, but she shouldered it willingly.

As persistent as Zasia was, however, Aldric only had eyes for the woman seated directly across from him. Based on her return gaze, the feeling was mutual.

Shocking violet eyes, platinum white hair, and a painfully lovely face that put even Zasia to shame; all worked together to snare his attention, as always. She looked simultaneously annoyed and pleased that he was staring at her. She gestured to the others with a “pay attention” gesture, but couldn’t hide her trademark elegant smile. It only made him stare more.

Her ever present staff leaned against her chair, its black and white wood glowing faintly and causing her hair to shine in intricate shades. He’d always wondered how such a lovely creature could exist without putting any noticeable effort into it. If it was up to him, he’d stare all day.

Some inner part of him suddenly screamed at him, demanded that he do so. It ordered him to stay in this moment forever, uncaring about the rest of the world. The powerful yearning grew until Aldric couldn’t stand it anymore. What was going on with him?

Zasia’s pestering was getting more and more insistent. Aldric finally turned to her in exasperation. “What?”

“Are you feeling alright?” a suddenly older version of Zasia asked him. Blinking, Aldric looked around himself. Balrus and Kedrin, also older, were looking at him in concern. The guild hall was gone, replaced by an office. Kedrin’s office, some part of Aldric’s brain supplied. They were at the academy in Rhagia, where he worked as a professor. They were all meeting together again for the first time in ages. Apparently, it had been enough to bring back old memories against his wishes.

They were missing someone, however.

A decade of grief and regret came bubbling up to the surface, and he scrambled to stuff it all back down again. Aldric had been sober for months now, but at that moment, he wanted a drink more than he ever had in his life. To forget again.

“Kedrin, take another look at him. I think he’s still experiencing mana withdrawal,” Zasia insisted, ignoring Aldric’s attempts to wave her off.

“I have a tea I just recently acquired in Nevis that is supposed to be good for that sort of thing,” Balrus said excitedly. “Give me just a moment. I’ll prepare a set.”

“Stop!” Aldric yelled, his voice sounding more distressed than he’d wanted.

He was angry with himself. All things considered, being in this place had been good for him over all. He’d actually been able to sleep relatively soundly, at least compared to the years he barely slept at all. He kept himself busy enough that he didn’t have time to mope all day.

Despite all of that, all it took was one memory of Miraea to bring his psyche crashing back down again. Sorrow, rage, indignation, guilt, and loneliness all tried to claw their way out of his stomach.

His friends were silent, worry plain on all of their faces while they waited for him to speak. It only made Aldric feel like more of a mess.

“I’m fine. Just... It’s just been a while. Since we were all together like this. Brought back memories,” he mumbled.

Looks of realization crossed each of their faces as they regarded each other, followed by looks of melancholy and nostalgia.

“You’re right,” Balrus said. “Goodness, has it really been over seven years since all of us were in the same place? It really takes me back. Is this what it’s like to feel old?”

“Oh, please,” Zasia replied. “You can’t be any older than thirty, Balrus. You’re still drawing in eyes everywhere you go. Age hardly changes that, I’m sure.”

“Nice to meet you, Pot,” Kedrin quipped to Zasia, pointing to Balrus. “Meet my friend, Kettle.” Zasia scoffed in mock outrage, while Kedrin grinned and Balrus laughed.

Aldric wanted to join in with them, even a little, but his spirit wasn’t up to it. Some dark part of him believed the happy, carefree part of his life had already come and gone.

“Balrus, wasn’t there something important to talk about?”

Thankfully, his friends didn’t address the blatant attempt to change the subject. Balrus gave him a sad smile before speaking to the group.

“Like I had already mentioned,” Balrus said, bringing the discussion back on subject, “His majesty sent me here in order to gain anything I could that remained of your legacy, Aldric. It is his belief, and many others as well, that you left whatever you had been working on up to Zasia or Kedrin before you...er... ‘died’. They believe these two, besides myself, are the only ones you would leave such a thing with. I’m sure they’ve pestered you two in all manner of ways up till now.”

“Indeed. And he hasn’t left us anything,” Kedrin affirmed. “Nor does he wish to. As curious as I am about some things you’ve created, Aldric, I’m sure that knowing such things would only make us a target.”

“Looks like it didn’t matter,” Aldric grumbled. “I distinctly recall mentioning several months ago that something like this could happen.”

“And I recall we said it wouldn’t matter,” Zasia countered. “That there wasn’t anything out there that would scare us away from helping you.”

Kedrin and Balrus nodded sagely in agreement. Balrus hadn’t said as much, but Aldric would bet anything that he would have dropped everything to help if the other two had asked him to. Oaths and honor were something Aldric’s friend took extremely seriously. By disclosing his king’s plans in the first place, he was effectively betraying the trust of his sovereign, one of the most powerful people alive, just for Aldric’s sake.

The dedication these three showed him was equal parts humbling and terrifying. Aldric had long lived in fear that his friends would pay the price for his problems. It seemed that was becoming more and more likely with each passing day.

“Enough with that face, Aldric.” Zasia grabbed his hand and put it between her own, settling them in her lap. “We are, as always, with you all the way. Say whatever you like, but you’re stuck with us. Permanently.”

“We have always been stronger together than apart,” Kedrin added. “We knew it would probably come to this one day, and have been preparing accordingly. There are now more resources at our disposal than ever before, and we will not be easily bested.”

“I had sworn many years ago to protect all of you,” Balrus said. “Any oaths that came after that place second in my eyes. Merely say the word, and I will do all I am able.”

Aldric scanned each of their faces and found nothing but determination. He swallowed past the lump in his throat before finally saying, “Right, if you’re all done with the mushy nonsense, what are we actually going to do?”

His tone didn’t match the snark of his words. He tried to ignore how hot his face felt as all three of them chuckled together.

“We have an important question to answer, though,” Kedrin said, bringing them all back on topic. “What should we do for now? I imagine trying to move Aldric again would only bring more attention down on us. This school may officially be politically neutral, but we still have to rub shoulders with important people just to keep it that way.”

“In all likelihood, there are spies within the academy, as there would be in any influential organization,” Zasia added ominously. “Even if we were to do our best to stamp out all rumors, so many nobles being in the same place means we’re going to miss information leaks occasionally. I believe our approach should be less reactive and more proactive.”

“I’m inclined to agree, but moving Aldric would look suspicious all on its own,” Kedrin countered. “I could sell the staff on it, but that would leave his students wondering. They would start asking questions, and it would eventually get out. Not to mention their education would suffer in his absence.”

“About that...” Aldric started, causing everyone to look his way. “I haven’t told them everything, but Nadrina and Lilianna are on to me. I curbed their curiosity by promising some extra lessons, but if the others find out, it might become a problem in the future.”

No one liked that. Zasia looked torn between being angry with him and being concerned. Kedrin and Balrus traded looks.

“This Lilianna you speak of,” Balrus asked carefully, “would that be the same Lilianna who is heir apparent to the Asimov family?”

“Yes,” Kedrin answered irritably. “I honestly thought Aldric would be good for her and Codrin. Besides, Lilianna’s family has almost completely cut her out as per their traditions, and Codrin openly despises his father. I thought the risk was slight enough that we could risk it.”

“Lilianna briefly attempted to look into me when she first met me,” Aldric interjected. “She didn’t get anywhere. Her family has totally shut her out. Honestly, I don’t think she’d dig any deeper if I asked her not to.”

“I know you’ve grown fond of your students, Aldric, but that seems rather naïve--.”

“I agree with Aldric,” Zasia abruptly said, all eyes turning to her. “Call it a woman’s intuition if you must, but I don’t believe young Lilianna has any malicious intentions. I will reserve judgement for Codrin, but I believe we are fine for now.”

Kedrin didn’t look entirely convinced, but Balrus thankfully brought them back on the topic.

“We can table this part of the discussion for now. We were discussing what to do with Aldric, not his students. If it is not possible to permanently move Aldric, could we perhaps do it temporarily? All he really needs is to be somewhere that I am not. It makes it easier to lie if I genuinely do not know what he is up to.”

Kedrin pondered that for a moment before his eyes lit up suddenly. “Perhaps... yes, that could work, actually.” He gave Aldric a crafty smile, very different from his usual cheery one.

“How would you feel about taking a field trip, of sorts?”

~~~

Lilianna was doing her best to appear unaffected, but the further they went into the forest, the more nervous she became. She and her class were delving deep into the Vildim wilds, located just off the outskirts of Nevis. Professor Aldric, in typical fashion for him, had told them all to pack a week’s worth of clothing, then explained absolutely nothing further than that.

Lilianna had, of course, heard the rumors. She knew that some lesser beasts dwelled deeper in the forest, the kind most mages would have nothing to fear from, but the stories of giant monsters, child stealing elves, and cultists performing dark rituals were rampant among the common city folk. Lilianna didn’t believe any of it. At least, she hadn’t, until she’d stepped foot into the forest itself. The stories made a lot more sense now, especially this late in the evening. The trees seemed to exert an odd pressure as they walked deeper and deeper.

As unsettled as Lilianna was, Nadrina was far worse off. She was practically clinging to Lilianna, her eyes darting around furtively. Lilianna had thought her friend too intelligent to believe such stories, but then remembered that Nadrina was from a small and remote village. She’d probably grown up believing these stories after hearing them almost every night.

The rest of the class had varying looks of nervousness and worry. Codrin and Volmar seemed to be the only exceptions; Volmar had the same dopey smile he always wore, no matter the situation. Codrin looked like he was daring the forest dwellers to attack him, directing a challenging frown at their surroundings. Lilianna wondered if it was bravery or stupidity. Maybe both.

Professor Aldric was leading the way as casually as could be, like he was going for a stroll through the park. If anything, he looked cheerier than usual. Lilianna did her best to take some sort of comfort from that.

“Alright! This should be far enough for tonight,” the professor called out, causing everyone to flinch at the loud noise. “Feel free to drop your packs. We’ll be setting up camp here.”

“What?” Nadrina squeaked out. Lilianna shared the sentiment.

“Now you guys get to figure out why we’re all out here!” Professor Aldric exclaimed with far too much cheer. “The headmaster has decided we’ll be testing out a new curriculum. Congratulations, you’re the guinea pig class... again.”

He gestured expansively to the trees surrounding them. “For the first part of your assignment, you’ll be making camp, complete with lodging and firepit. I’ll be nice this time and provide rations, but firewood and building supplies will be limited to whatever you can find and gather. Anyone who can’t complete their part, besides having a pretty chilly night to look forward to, will take a zero for today.”

The entire class stared, dumbfounded. Lilianna was having a hard time keeping up. He expected them to actually sleep out here?

“Oh, right, I forgot the best part!” the professor leaned forward conspiratorially, his smile looking absolutely evil in the fading daylight. “You can’t use any magic. Get to it! You have less than two hours and counting until sundown.”

Saying nothing further, he walked casually over to a nearby tree, sat down against it, and put his hands behind his head while looking at the class expectantly.

“Professor!” Predictably, Codrin was the first one to voice his objection. Cira, Volmar, and Alec followed close behind. “Your nonsense is getting a bit out of hand, don’t you think? Surely you don’t expect us to actually spend the night out here?”

Professor Aldric just smiled smugly. “What’s wrong, Caffaret? Don’t think you can do it?”

“T—that is not what I said! I am only questioning the--”

“Barclay, make sure Caffaret doesn’t kill himself trying to make a campfire, alright?”

“Why the hell do I have to babysit him?” Cira protested. “If the brat wants to sit under a tree and cry, he can do it himself!”

“What makes you think I would?” Codrin shouted back. “Merton, Carlisle, let’s go. We’ll have our camps built while the she-devil sleeps out in the cold!”

“Alright! That’s the spirit, Codrin!” Volmar boomed out, already making for the tree line.

“Yeah, no,” Alek muttered. “I’ll just stay here and... uh... supervise.”

“I should probably clarify,” Professor Aldric interjected, getting everyone’s attention again. “When I said you’d fail, I meant all of you would fail. You’re being tested on teamwork as well, which means you will all fail as a team if you aren’t done by sundown.”

Everyone began voicing their objections to that idea. Codrin and Cira both let out twin squawks of indignation in exactly the same tone. It would have been funny if Lilianna’s grade wasn’t now dependent on them working together.

That was when the rain started. It was only a drizzle, but it was still insulting.

“And it’s raining!” Codrin shouted up at the heavens.”

“Right then!” Nadrina yelled, all eyes on her now. At the mention that she might fail class, the girl had suddenly become hyper focused. “Those dark clouds mean heavier rain to come. The lumberjack in my village taught me that standing dead wood is supposed to be the best for fire, so we’ll have to chop some down. How do we do that without proper tools?”

“Sounds like our cue,” Volmar said, wrapping a massive arm around Alek and dragging him off. “Maybe we can’t use magic, but I’m pretty sure I can take down a tree just by punching it. How much you want to bet I can do it faster than you?”

Alek’s protests were ignored as Volmar continued to drag him further into the tree line and out of sight.

“Better hurry, you two,” the professor directed towards Codrin and Cira. “The muscle heads are about to make you look bad.”

“As if!” both replied in unison. They both looked at each other, glared, then marched off into the woods after the enforcers.

Professor Aldric chuckled to himself. “I swear, those two are just too easy.”

“Professor, this seems like an odd assignment,” Lilianna said as she shielded her face from the misting rain. “I know our curriculum has been rather customized, but is there any reason for our class to do this?”

“Kedrin has been working on ways to give students experiences outside of the typical occupations taken up by mages,” the professor answered. “Instead of teaching you to be scholars, warriors, politicians, or whatever other frilly positions mages usually take, you’re learning how to be members of an adventuring guild.”

Lilianna blinked in surprise. Adventuring guilds were typically composed of skilled individuals, and some of them were mages, but the vast majority of members were non magical folk with certain skills. That mages were rarer, and often nobility, made this stranger.

Adventurers usually employed or took on contracts to do jobs that would not be doable by the average person. Monster hunting, dangerous labor, scouting and reconnaissance, and other various tasks made up their typical applications. Knowing all of this only confused Lilianna even more.

“I know, it’s weird,” the professor continued, “But don’t knock it until you try it. The academy is only asking you to expand your horizons, not actually commit to the idea.”

“But if an adventuring guild has a mage in their party, why would said mage need to do any of this without magic? Wouldn’t it be rather irresponsible to not use magic for your party members?”

“True, you could use magic,” the professor conceded. “However, what if your party has been exploring for weeks, is deprived of resources, exhausted, and you have long since depleted your mana pool? Worse, what if you find yourself alone with all of those problems, and with no one to do the tasks for you? And before you say you would plan for it,” he interrupted, catching Lilianna with her hand raised in argument, “you can’t plan for everything. Things can go to hell a lot faster than you think they can. Be prepared for the worst, and you’ll never be surprised.”

Lilianna had to admit he had a point. Mages suffering from mana exhaustion could barely walk, much less build a camp. This whole exercise had her wondering what it would really be like, working as an adventurer, going wherever the wind and contracts took her. Her family certainly wouldn’t like that idea, but the very thought of that made it somewhat appealing.

“Professor, were you an adventurer?” Nadrina asked abruptly.

He sighed dramatically. “I thought we agreed you two wouldn’t ask me about things like that?”

Nadrina looked ready to argue, but Lilianna shook her head discreetly. They had indeed made a deal, and arguing might risk that. More than likely, Nadrina wanted to ask if the professor had been in the Golden Workshop guild with Instructor Balrus, but Lilianna wasn’t too sure about that theory. Nearly every member of that guild had gone on to prestigious positions of power or fame. Why wouldn’t they have heard of such a talented sorcerer by now?

“By the way, if you two don’t contribute soon, I’ll have no choice but to fail you,” the professor said lightly, looking at the setting sun meaningfully. Before Lilianna had time to process that, Nadrina dashed over to her, grabbed her by the wrist, and hauled her off to find their classmates.

~~~

After an hour had passed and more than a few panicked arguments, everyone had gathered materials for shelter and fires. Professor Aldric finally took pity on them and taught them how to build a makeshift shelter and gave them flint and steel to start a fire, though he still forbade the use of magic. Nadrina had volunteered to get the fire started, but Codrin kept insisting that he could do it. The others had figured out making shelters before he could even get a good spark going.

“Come on, put more force into it. You won’t get anywhere if you just gently caress it like that,” Volmar commented.

“Don’t do that! You’ll just break the flint,” Cira interrupted. She kept trying to grab at the tools, but Codrin would just bat her away.

“I’m hungry,” Alek added unhelpfully. He was lying in a makeshift bed of leaves, nursing his bruised knuckles after his and Volmar’s tree punching antics.

Nadrina just stood nearby, looking like she wanted to help but not knowing how to interject. To be fair, Lilianna wasn’t much more useful. She’d tried her best to learn and not hold anyone back, but she could tell that her upbringing had made tasks like this difficult for her.

Ever since joining this class, she’d been determined to learn whatever she could. It was rather petty of her, but being so inept at something frustrated her to no end. She found herself actually jealous of Nadrina’s simpler lifestyle sometimes.

Apparently, Codrin shared her frustration. “This is ridiculous!” he exclaimed, looking like he wanted to throw the tools in anger but knowing they only had the one set. “I understand the idea of an emergency, but is learning this really a necessary part of our curriculum? What if I don’t even want to be part of a guild?”

Professor Aldric was laying against a log they had dragged over to the campsite to serve as makeshift seating. He looked like he was a few minutes from dozing off. “You never know when new knowledge will come in handy, Caffaret,” he said, taking on a sarcastically sage-like tone of voice. “Just because you can’t see the use doesn’t mean there isn’t one.”

“What then? What is the point of doing any of this? Tell me, oh wise professor, what benefit do I get out of crawling around in the dirt and struggling to make a fire?”

“Besides building character?”

“I am not some peasant woodsman learning how to live off the land. I am a noble born heir to one of the most powerful families in this country. There is nothing that someone like myself can learn from an experience like this.”

The professor abruptly sat up, startling everyone. “Fine, you want a reason?”

Codrin flinched noticeably, seeming to recall the last time Professor Aldric taught him a harsh lesson. The professor seemed to notice Codrin’s reaction, because he paused for a moment before taking a deep breath. “Fine... why does flint and steel cause a fire?”

Codrin, and everyone else, looked nonplussed. That was the last question they had expected. Codrin floundered a bit before speaking again. “What? What do you mean?”

“I mean, why does that work? What causes flint and steel to make fire?”

“Because... because when you rub two things together, they get warm,” Codrin replied. He tried to sound confident, but clearly wasn’t sure of his answer, or why he was even being asked.

“So, if you rub your hands together, they’ll start throwing off sparks like flint does?”

“I... well... no,” Codrin answered, frowning.

“For that matter, why do logs burn at all? Why do they stop burning after a certain amount of time? Why are some logs better for firewood than others? Why do the logs burn but the dirt beneath it doesn’t?”

“I-I don’t know!” Codrin spluttered, overwhelmed. “Why would I know any of that?”

“Exactly,” the professor answered, smiling.

Silence reigned over their campsite, the only sounds being insects in the dark forest.

Codrin looked he was about to blow a blood vessel. He finally burst out, “Well? What’s the answer, then?”

“I don’t know,” Professor Aldric replied, his smile undiminished.

Codrin’s draw dropped open as he sat there, staring dumbfounded at the professor. Lilianna wasn’t sure, but she imagined her own face was similar, as was everyone else’s.

The professor’s voice suddenly lost its teasing tone, becoming much more serious. He gestured expansively around them. “Many people in this world simply accept things for what they are, without ever asking ‘why?’, just like you’re doing Codrin. You’ll find as you get older and notice the world around you that people don’t treat magic much differently. If anything, it’s worse.” He snorted in derision. “You wouldn’t believe how many well educated, ‘well-bred’ mages think that ‘because magic’ is a good enough answer.”

He leaned in, this time making sure he addressed everyone equally. “My point isn’t that you should have all the answers. Sometimes, it’s enough just to recognize that you don’t know. Maybe flint and steel could inform you about better fire magic. Maybe those storm clouds coming in could teach Lilly about water magic. Maybe Volmar and Alek actually learned something from all that tree punching. Who knows? When you’re ignorant and uncomfortable, you’re primed to learn what you never thought you could.”

He looked back to Codrin, pointed to the flint, then tilted his head meaningfully to Nadrina. “Or maybe you can learn to recognize when you just need to ask for help.”

Lilianna expected the arrogant young noble to argue or march off in a huff again. Instead, Codrin simply stared in silence, his brow drawn down in thought. After a few moments, his shoulders sagged with a defeated sigh. He turned to Nadrina and held out his tools pitifully. “Flemm—um, Nadrina. Could you perhaps... assist me?”

Nadrina looked just as surprised as Lilianna felt, but quickly beamed at him and nodded. “Happily!”

It only took a few more minutes, with Nadrina’s coaching, for Codrin to get the fire going. Everyone started preparing their rations, but each did so in contemplative silence, thinking over what the professor had said.

“Make sure you all get some rest,” the professor continued, once they’d all gotten settled around the fire with their rations. He took up position again on his log and closed his eyes. “Tomorrow, I just might teach you even more things you never thought you should know.”

Chapter 11

Aldric had forgotten how much spying from a tree could make your butt hurt.

After several days of rousing all the kids at the crack of dawn, much to their collective displeasure, he’d assigned them chores for each day. Codrin and his team would go out to hunt, Lilianna’s group would go out foraging for wild greens and more wood, and Volmar would watch over the camp. The jobs rotated every day. He let them use magic again, since he’d made his point yesterday. Because of that, they’d been mostly on their own, but he was still keeping watch, just in case. He only had to make sure they didn’t know they were being looked after.

Aldric hadn’t had to do this much unseen movement since his military days. He felt a certain smug satisfaction that he could still pull it off. Not that it was hard to sneak around these kids. Some of them wouldn’t see danger until it had already taken a bite out of their ass. Maybe they would work on that later. This was his field trip, after all. It could be about whatever he wanted.

The kids still thought this was a weird assignment, but if Aldric was going to go into hiding against his wishes, then he was going to make it fun for himself. It felt good to be out in the wilderness, and there was a certain satisfaction in teaching things he was great at that his students had probably never experienced. Besides, it was good for them to rough it for a few days. It certainly had been good for him when he was their age.

He was repositioning himself to give his poor posterior a break when he saw movement in the tree line. Going stock still, Aldric watched as a wild deerkin stepped into view. The animal resembled its namesake, with four legs and large antlers, but instead of antlers, there was only a wickedly sharp horn right in the middle of its forehead. Deerkin weren’t too much to deal with for a mage, even students, but they could be nasty when cornered, and were not to be underestimated. They were also incredibly fast, with sensitive hearing to boot.

The deerkin tiptoed closer to the base of Aldric’s lookout tree, scanning its surroundings as it sniffed the breeze for predators. It cautiously made its way over to a berry bush nearby, one that contained a deerkin’s favorite fruit. Once it had decided nothing untoward was going to happen, the deerkin stepped into a muddy puddle to settle in for a midday meal.

Before the poor thing could get even one bite, the muddy puddle sprouted tentacles of water that wrapped tightly around the deerkin’s legs. The beast immediately tried to run, but found itself unable to move. It thrashed wildly, kicking up muddy water everywhere in its attempts to free itself.

From the nearby tree line, a whip made entirely of pure fire snapped out at the deerkin, wrapping around the base of the creature’s horn. The fire whip suddenly flared even hotter before cutting clean through the hardened bone like a hot wire through wax. The horn fell to the ground, leaving the deerkin without its best means of defense.

Before the beast could react, Alek popped out of the bush he’d been hiding in, sprinted over to the very panicked and very confused deerkin, and straight up punched the poor thing right in its head with a magic infused arm. The creature’s head whipped violently to the side, an awful cracking noise echoing throughout the clearing as its neck snapped in two. The now corpse crumpled in a heap, as the water tentacles receded back into puddle form.

“I have to say, Caffaret, I didn’t think you’d pick up the concept of my water whip and apply it to fire so quickly,” Cira said lightly, emerging with Codrin from their hiding place. “You going to copy all of my spells from now on? Maybe I should start charging you.”

“As if. Your little water trick isn’t that impressive. It just happened to be the most efficient,” Codrin answered, nose in the air. “I still don’t understand why I couldn’t just kill it, though...”

“We don’t need you immolating the meat, idiot. You really think the professor’s just going to give us more rations if we screw this up?”

Codrin had a sour look on his face, but didn’t disagree. Aldric thought it was a bit unfair to assume he’d let them starve. He’d probably have to come up with a creative punishment, though. Maybe teach them about all the edible bugs in the forest.

They’d mildly impressed Aldric. They worked well together, even Codrin and Cira. That fire whip had been interesting as well. Seeing Codrin not defaulting to just brute forcing everything, mana costs be damned, was refreshing.

Cira was already kneeling next to the deerkin, skinning knife in hand. That was interesting. Aldric hadn’t given her one.

“What are you doing, Barclay?” Codrin asked. “I swear, if you ruin it somehow...”

“Shut your trap, Caffaret. I’ve been doing this since I was five. My family owns the forest next to our home, so we hunt there all the time. It’s how I knew that berry bush would bring in deerkin.” Cira skillfully and efficiently dressed and skinned their kill while the boys watched in morbid fascination. “Alek, you’ve done nothing like this? Don’t most villagers hunt for sustenance?”

“Not really. My village is up near the mountains, so not too much game up there. I mostly did labor and odd jobs for food or supplies. Me and my family didn’t learn about me being a mage till a few months ago, but I was always weirdly strong compared to most in the village.”

“I have to admit, the idea of you being a hard-working family man is... an odd one,” Codrin said, looking dubious. “You barely ever put forth effort here at the academy. Where did that work ethic of yours wander off to?”

Alek just shook his head, for once not getting into an argument with Codrin. “You do what you have to do in a small village like mine. Da’s gone and Ma’s too sick to work. Siblings are all too young, so it’s just what needs to be done. The only reason I agreed to come here at all was because the headmaster offered to pay my family a stipend every month.”

“I thought most commoners would jump at the opportunity to come to an academy like ours. Didn’t you ever want to do something else? Surely you didn’t want to just do odd jobs for the rest of your life?” Codrin asked, sounding genuinely confused.

“Me being here means that my family loses their primary income,” Alek answered. “And what else am I going to do in a village of less than fifty people? Become an artist? Travel the world? In our village, if your job doesn’t contribute to the rest of the community, it’s not a job. It’s a waste of time.”

“Makes sense, I guess,” Cira said, brows furrowed as she finished her work. “Never really thought about it before. I’ve never had only one option in life. I enjoy hunting, but if I had to do it every day, and my family counted on it just to survive... I don’t know how I’d feel about it then.”

“Life deals us all different cards,” Alek said simply, shrugging. “Just got to play the game with what you get.” He reached down and hauled up the skinned and gutted carcass with one arm, throwing it over his shoulder without concern for the blood still streaming from it. “We’re going to need another one of these, probably. Volmar eats the same as four men. Maybe we should just get him his own deerkin?” He walked back the way they’d come with their prize in tow. The two nobles followed him, pensive looks on their faces as they stared at the young man’s back in silence.

This was another reason Aldric had wanted all of them to come out here together. Something about being out in the wilderness, with only yourself and each other to rely on, put everybody on the same playing field. Kedrin had wanted commoners in this school to provide them with an education, of course, but he also wanted conversations like this to happen. Too many nobles didn’t know, and would probably never know, what those beneath them on the social ladder put up with daily.

A sky shattering BOOM cut through Aldric’s musings. Every bird within a mile took flight in a cacophony of shrill cries.

“What in blazes was that?” Codrin cried out, all three of them ducking and looking around frantically. They all shrieked in fear and surprise when Aldric abruptly leaped down from the tree right in front of them.

“All of you, get back to camp and stay there with Volmar!” Without another word, he sprinted into the trees before the kids could ask questions. All prior plans for the day had been thrown out the window. Time and speed were essential now. Out of sight of his students, he started moving much faster than he should have been able to.

That explosion had come from where Lilianna and Nadrina had been foraging.

~~~

Nadrina was trying to remember how they got themselves in this situation. Everything had happened so fast.

They had been out gathering supplies like normal when the yelling had started. The sounds of what could only be a large group of people fighting followed soon after, inter-cut by the screams of horses. Hoofbeats followed soon after, and they both heard something crashing through the foliage towards them.

She and Lilianna had gone to ground and hidden as soon as they heard the chaos start, everything they’d gathered forgotten on the forest floor. Unfortunately, the chaos had come to them. A horse-drawn carriage had come barreling out of the tree line, nearly toppling over from the speed it was moving. Dozens of arrows were buried into the wood, and one wheel appeared to be broken beyond repair.

At least a dozen riders followed the carriage, their horses all in various states of injured or dying. They all dismounted and circled up around the carriage protectively. The carriage driver climbed down from the driver’s seat and entered the carriage, and Nadrina noticed with horror the copious amount of blood drenching his clothes. The other riders, who were dressed like knights, looked little better, but they had weapons out and looks of fiery determination.

“Matley, raise a barrier. Donavan, help me punch a hole in their ranks for the carriage to escape. Everyone else, circle and defend for as long as you can. For duty!”

“For duty!” the rest of the men chorused, their voices steely and determined.

More sounds of horses, many more this time, were coming from the tree line these men had just escaped from. It was enough to make the ground vibrate. From their hiding spot in some nearby bushes, Nadrina’s mind conjured images of an entire mounted army coming to kill them all.

“We need to get out of here,” Lilianna spoke into Nadrina’s ear, causing her to nearly leap up in fright. “Several of them are wounded, and that carriage looks like it could belong to a noble or rich merchant. This looks like a bandit attack.”

As if speaking of them aloud had summoned them, dozens of loud, dirty, and violent looking men and women came screaming out of the trees, some on horses and some on foot. The riders charged the carriage with war cries that sent Nadrina’s whole body shivering in terror. The knights answered with battle shouts of their own, mana stirring among them as they readied spells.

The bandit riders were riding full tilt towards the carriage, but they weren’t prepared for the almost invisible barrier of wind. One rider’s horse crumpled with a horrible cry against the transparent wall, sending its occupant face first into the wall with a crack. Others bailed off their mounts just before their horses met a similar fate as the first. The bandits still in the rear began raining down arrows as their fellows began charging forward again. Most of the arrows skittered off the wind barrier, but some punched through and embedded themselves in the wooden carriage. The conjurer who was keeping the barrier going collapsed to his knees, looking beyond spent.

The lead knight and one other stepped forward, their bodies flaring with light as they activated their enforcer magic. The leader burst forward with incredible speed, his sword arcing in a deadly slash aimed to decapitate two bandits charging him from the front. One noticed in time and ducked, but the other’s head went flying in a bloody arc. The second knight dashed in with a spear thrust, taking the other bandit through the neck.

The two of them continued to dash about, taking down one bandit after another in an impressive display of combat prowess. Nadrina saw that the conjurer making the wind barrier was steadily letting bandits through it a few at a time to conserve mana and divide their numbers. The rest of the knights quickly met any bandits that made it past the first two. Whoever these knights were, they had to be serving someone of great importance or wealth.

It was obvious, however, that the odds were against them. If they weren’t mages, they would already be dead. Every downed bandit was replaced by two more.

Nadrina felt herself shivering. She knew violence was commonplace in some parts of the world, but this was just... overwhelming. The screaming, the blood, the moans of the dead and dying, and that awful smell that churned her stomach were just too much for her. She couldn’t decide whether to shut her eyes tight or stare in horror.

Nadrina suddenly realized that Lilianna was pulling on her sleeve. “Drina, we need to go!” she whispered frantically, pulling at her even harder. Nadrina nodded dully, allowing herself to be led away but unable to avert her eyes. Nobody even noticed them in all the chaos.

They had almost made it to the far tree line when Nadrina saw the lead knight go down from a stab to his lower thigh. He whipped his sword around, mortally wounding his attacker, but they had reduced him to kneeling on one knee. His partner was trying to get to him, but was being kept on the defensive by a trio that had surrounded him. The other knights looked torn between assisting their leader and defending the carriage.

Nadrina saw one bandit raise his bow and take aim at the downed leader, a cruel smile on his lips as he sighted and drew. The knight noticed him, too. He seemed resigned to his fate, his shoulders slumping and head drooping down in defeat.

It occurred to Nadrina that she was about to watch this man die in front of her. Before she could form any cohesive thoughts, and despite her overwhelming terror, Nadrina yanked her hand out of Lilianna’s grasp and sprinted towards the dying man. Lilianna screamed for her to come back, but Nadrina’s feet had already overruled her common sense.

She was only a few paces away when she realized she hadn’t a damn clue what she was going to do. She was too far away from the guard to protect him, and even further away from the bandit with the bow. With a speed and strength born out of desperation and fear, she grabbed at the first thing she found in her bag and hurled it at the archer with all her might.

Nadrina had taken to crafting magical items to practice her magic theory, little things that normally didn’t take too much time or mana to make. Lately, she’d been trying to replicate what she’d seen the professor make in his duel, the exploding ball of mud that had deafened everyone. The solution she’d come up with had involved a magic crystal that acted as both fuse and mana source inside of a pressurized glass vial. She didn’t think she’d ever figure out how he’d made a timer just out of runes or made the whole device so quickly, but hers theoretically did the same thing. Maybe. Hopefully.

As she watched the glass vial tumble through space, she hoped with every fiber of her being that she hadn’t just made a horrible mistake.

Nadrina had planned for a loud popping noise, something that would distract the archer long enough for the captain to get away. What she got was an earth-shattering explosion, followed by a shock wave that slammed so hard into her it felt like someone had punched her. If an angry god had ripped the heavens apart, it would have been slightly quieter than this.

The force of the explosion sent a burst of air out in all directions, enough to kick up an enormous cloud of dirt and debris. Everyone in the clearing, including Nadrina, immediately dropped to their knees and gripped their ears in agony. The only thing Nadrina was conscious of was an incessant ringing in her ears that took up her entire world right now.

Nadrina had a moment to be horrified that such a dangerous thing had been casually sitting in her bag this whole time, before several of the bandits looked her way.

One of the closer ones to Nadrina let go of her ears long enough to draw a wicked-looking knife from her boot. She was obviously still disoriented, but she stumbled towards Nadrina on unsteady feet, snarling. Nadrina scrambled for something, anything she had that could help her, but she had only made the one vial. If she lived through this, she was going to demand the professor teach her his uncanny ability to make enchantments on the fly.

The knight captain had seen her plight and was trying to get up and assist, but was still having a hard time with his injured leg. He shouted orders to some of his men while pointing frantically at her, but even the ones that still had their hearing intact were far too busy.

The bandit was now close enough to Nadrina that she could see the awful look of glee in the woman’s eye. She could even make out the stained teeth and scars running down her body. The bandit stood over Nadrina like a god, her knife held up. Nadrina knew with dreadful certainty that she was about to die.

And yet she didn’t move. Her whole body shook with fear, but that was all it did. It refused to budge, no matter how much she begged it to. She was going to die now, and all because her stupid legs wouldn’t obey her. All because she wanted to be a hero and jumped into a fight she had no chance of winning.

Just as Nadrina had given up all hope, a ball of air thick enough to see and as big as Nadrina’s head slammed into the bandit. It sent her tumbling ass over teakettle into a nearby tree with a weighty thump, where she collapsed and stopped moving. Lilianna was suddenly in front of her, taking up a protective stance and radiating mana. Recognizing the new threat, the bandits banded together this time.

Six of them aimed an arrow volley at their position, clearly determined to put an end to this annoyance.

“Lilly, run!” Nadrina screamed, but her friend ignored her. She could feel the mana twisting around Lilianna, but whatever spell she was forming would take too long. Nadrina felt her whole body go cold as the archers let their arrows fly, six deadly points aimed at the two of them. Damn it! She would have been fine dying on her own, but not Lilly! All Nadrina could do was cling to her friend from behind and close her eyes tight.

Except nothing happened. The piercing sensation of arrows she’d braced for never came. Slowly opening her eyes, she gawked at the arrows floating only a few feet in front of them. The arrows hung in the air as if time had stopped, cracks spider webbing out around the points like they’d penetrated the air.

Nadrina eventually realized the cold she felt wasn’t just from fear. She was literally cold enough to see her breath in front of her. In a temperate, humid forest. In late summer.

Nadrina finally saw the protective wall of translucent ice several feet thick in front of them. Somehow, Liliana had combined her elements again. Nadrina didn’t know she could do that so quickly and precisely. Apparently, neither did Liliana. She was gawking at the ice right along with her.

The bandits were also surprised, halting their reckless charge and instead spreading out to flank them. One particularly brave bandit tried to dash around the wall, only to find an icicle sprouting from the ground and into his groin. He let out an agonized screech as it suspended him six feet in the air. He struggled madly until he came free, then fell down hard onto his face.

One of the remaining bandits, apparently the smart one, took out a short wooden rod with intricate carvings. Nadrina felt her heart stutter in panic. It was mage wand, one that would be preloaded with a powerful one-use spell. The things were exorbitantly expensive, but they could be used by non-mages, unlike spell paper. How in blazes did a ragtag group of bandits have such a thing?

He thrust the wand forward, and instantly a cone of fire erupted from the tip to bathe the ice wall in flames. Lilianna cried out as she used all her remaining mana to keep the ice frozen. “Drina, please tell me you have another one of those exploding things?” Lilianna cried out. “I can’t do this for much longer!”

Before Nadrina could say she had nothing left, three identical daggers abruptly sprouted from three bandit throats in a spray of crimson. The wand user dropped his weapon from suddenly numb fingers, and the flow of fire cut off abruptly. The remaining bandits looked around wildly, trying to find their attacker, when a fourth dagger landed right in the middle of the group.

Nadrina could see what looked like glowing spell paper tied to the pommel of the dagger. The rune array on the paper was incredibly complex, but before Nadrina could decipher it, the earth started rumbling. A mass of tree roots, all as thick around as her thigh, broke through the ground and rapidly bound the rest of the bandits tight. They didn’t even have time to scream before the roots squeezed the life out of them, bones cracking and eyes bulging.

“Stay here,” came a stern but familiar voice. Nadrina had a shielding amulet shoved into her hands by Professor Aldric. He gave both girls a once over, nodded, then sprinted off towards the carriage. Nadrina’s brain finally caught up enough to trigger the amulet, causing a protective bubble of magic to surround them both.

The amulet was honestly unneeded at this point. Every bandit nearby was now focused on the man single-handedly tearing through their ranks. The professor moved with surprising speed, blades never ceasing their deadly dance, as he cut down one enemy after another. When he’d cut a path to the knights, he grabbed the knight captain by his collar, hoisted him to his feet, slapped a piece of spell paper to his leg, and started barking orders at the rest of them.

“You, you and you, grab some of their bows and get to the top of the carriage. Provide covering fire. You four stay with them and make sure no one gets too close. The rest of you are with me. Anyone I don’t immediately kill you finish. GO!”

His shout rang with the whip-crack of unquestioned authority. As Professor Aldric charged forward, six knights were right on his heels. Three more knights scrambled to secure bows and arrows from the dead, then climbed to the top of the carriage for a better shot. The remaining four took up positions around them, their leader joining them on his now healed leg.

The bandits weren’t ready for the suddenly organized resistance. A ragged group of six knights and one academy professor tore into a group of two dozen bandits like a hurricane of death. Professor Aldric focused on mortally wounding and crippling rather than killing, slicing at faces and cutting hamstrings as he flew through the group. True to his instructions, the knights behind him moved in and finished anyone not yet dead. Incoming arrow fire from the carriage only added to the enemy's wounded, and soon the bandits were breaking up and panicking.

The professor really was a sight to behold. Nadrina never would have imagined a sorcerer capable of frontline combat like this. She had assumed after seeing his blade work at the botched competition that he had military training of some sort, but Professor Glory wasn’t helping him this time. Among a group of well-equipped and veteran mage knights, a sorcerer was out-shining all of them.

Nadrina and Lilianna both watched with awe as the professor threw more of his endless daggers, some with spell paper fastened to them again. Explosions, quicksand, and small tornadoes of wind blades sowed chaos through the bandit ranks as they wavered. Seeing their chance, the knights let out a fierce battle cry and attacked their ambushers with a new fervor.

“Throwing spell paper like that,” Lilianna muttered, seemingly to herself. “He looks like a conjurer doing that. And he fights better than the enforcer knights. Seriously, what the hell is he?”

Nadrina shared her wonder, but had no answer for her. She was going to do her absolute best to find out more, though. Their first school year wasn’t over just yet.

In what couldn’t have been any longer than ten minutes, over twenty bandits lay dead or dying on the forest floor, while the rest fled for their lives into the trees. Several knights broke off to pursue while others went to check on the carriage, but the professor turned his attention back to Lilianna and Nadrina. As he drew closer, Nadrina unconsciously drew back.

It was their professor, no doubt about it, but something about him was... off. His face was blank and expressionless, like he hadn’t just slaughtered twenty men. His cold eyes seemed to penetrate right through her with a dead stare. He still had two daggers in his hands. Combined with his bloody robes, he looked like death incarnate to Nadrina.

“So, looks like Lilianna’s been practicing without supervision again. How long have you been able to use ice magic? Do we need to have another talk about pacing ourselves?”

Then, without warning, the reaper was gone. Back was their easygoing, sarcastic professor in an eye blink. Both of his daggers disappeared into his robes as he crouched down in front of the two huddled girls. “You two alright?”

It was so... normal. Compared to the nightmare that Nadrina and Lilianna had found themselves in, this almost didn’t feel real. Neither of them said anything for a long moment, simply staring at the man until he started to look a bit worried.

Then both of them simultaneously leapt forward and gave him bone crushing hugs. The professor locked up at the sudden embrace, looking bewildered. Nadrina could feel Lilianna shivering slightly as they both pressed close, heedless of his stained clothes. Or maybe that was just her own shaking body.

Professor Aldric eventually relaxed, putting a stiff hand on both of their heads and patting both of them hesitantly. “There, there. You’re both fine. Nothing to worry about.” He let them have their moment for several minutes before finally gently pushing them back, looking incredibly uncomfortable.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough. People are going to get weird thoughts if you keep that up.” He coughed awkwardly while she and Lilianna wiped away tears, then purposely changed the subject. “So, where did that giant explosion I heard come from?”

It was a question for both of them, but he looked pointedly at Nadrina while he asked it.

Nadrina felt suddenly defensive. “I was trying to replicate what you made during your duel. You wouldn’t tell me how you did everything and said you weren’t going to just give me all the answers. I had to figure it out on my own, so I made a prototype. It even worked... sort of... mostly.”

Professor Aldric went from exasperated to embarrassed. “Uh, yeah, I did say that, didn’t I? Okay, new rule. Anytime you feel like making experimental weapons, please run it by me first, alright?”

Nadrina and Lilianna both giggled, despite their frayed nerves. “Yes, professor,” they chorused.

“Good. By the way, who are your new friends?” he asked, looking over the bustling crowd of knights all gathered around the ruined carriage. They seemed to be taking stock of their people and cleaning up the dead.

“We don’t know,” Lilianna answered. “They just suddenly showed up with bandits chasing them. We couldn’t—”

“Oh shit,” Professor Aldric interrupted, his voice a little panicked. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“Professor? What’s wrong—?” Nadrina started to ask, but squeaked when the professor suddenly grabbed her and Lilianna by their robes and hauled them to their feet. He immediately spun them around and started marching them off into the forest.

“Never mind. We’re leaving. Now,” Professor Aldric barked, in a tone that brooked no argument.

“Excuse me!” one knight behind them called out. Professor Aldric just picked up his pace, not bothering to reply.

“Sir, please! My lady would like to speak to you! She surely wishes to reward you for your bravery!” the knight said, and Nadrina realized it was the captain speaking as he jogged after them.

“No thanks, we’re a little busy,” the professor called back shortly, upgrading their pace to a bounding speed walk.

“... Aldric?”

The professor came to a sudden and jarring stop when a woman’s voice spoke up from behind them. Nadrina turned and saw a richly dressed elderly woman exiting the carriage. Despite her age, everything about her appearance was luxurious and immaculate, from her extensively braided gray hair to her lavish and intricate dress emblazoned with a depiction of a snake wrapped around a tower. The insignia seemed strangely familiar, and it was replicated on the regalia of all the guards.

All the knights around her immediately sank to their knees in genuflection, but she paid none of them any mind. She was busy staring in shock at the back of the professor’s head. She walked towards him as if in a trance, her light brown eyes large and watery.

“Please turn around,” she said, her voice quiet but filled with hope.

Nadrina could feel the professor’s tension in his hand on her shoulder, probably debating if he could still run away. He seemed to think better of it, however. All at once, the tension drained out of him in a world-weary sigh as he slowly turned around.

“... hey Gran,” was all he said, talking more to the ground in front of her instead of the lady herself.

The woman stopped just short of him, her tears freely falling now. She reached out a slow, aged hand to the side of his face, as if verifying he was actually real.

Then she smacked him over the head. Hard.

“Foolish child!” she screamed, causing Nadrina and Lilianna to take an involuntary step back from the suddenly fierce woman. “You knew better! You are better! Miraea would be ashamed of you! And after a decade of silence, all you have to say is ‘hey’!”

It surprised Nadrina when the professor simply bowed his head, saying nothing. He rubbed absently at the sore spot, but did nothing else. The woman looked like she wanted to hit him again, and moved on him as if she was about to, but instead hugged him fiercely.

“But you are still alive. And that awful look on your face is gone. That is more than I could have dared hope for. For that, I forgive you.”

Professor Aldric looked stunned, like he couldn’t believe she would say such a thing. Nadrina suspected that she and Lilianna were intruding on something important. She was deciding whether to leave when the woman’s sharp gaze turned to her and Lilianna, making her freeze.

“They are with you?”

Professor Aldric merely nodded.

“Then they will come, too. Hurry now, into the carriage,” she said, with the air of someone who was used to being obeyed.

“Um, we have more classmates waiting for us...” Nadrina tried to say, but Aldric gently grabbed her shoulder and moved her towards the carriage.

“It’s alright, I'll tell them where to go. It’s not safe to stay out here or travel by ourselves.” He looked back at the elderly woman stepping into the carriage, clearly not looking forward to the ride. “And it’s best to just do as she says when she gets like that.”

Chapter 12

Lilianna had been raised in nobility. Maneuvering in court with people of power was something she’d been taught how to do since birth. Being the heir to her house, her family expected her to conduct herself as a proper lady in any circumstance.

The familiar older woman on the carriage bench across from her had thrown all that training out the window.

The woman had insisted that they be given a ride back to their camp, and that they would all accompany her inside. The team of knights had only taken a few minutes to replace the damaged wheel, but the carriage still looked a sorry sight. Lilianna did her best to ignore the shafts of light streaming in from arrow holes all around the cabin.

Professor Aldric hadn’t been of any help so far. He’d been uncharacteristically quiet, stubbornly staring out the carriage window at nothing in particular. Nadrina looked like a dam ready to burst. She kept shifting her gaze between the woman and the professor.

Lilianna was worried her friend was about to demonstrate her most admirable yet most untimely of qualities. She saw the moment Nadrina worked up the nerve, watched as she opened her mouth to speak to someone she really shouldn’t. Lilianna was too late to stop her when she suddenly blurted out, “Are you really his grandmother?”

The old woman stared and blinked in surprise. Professor Aldric finally looked away from his window long enough to give Nadrina a stupefied expression. Lilianna nervously looked at the woman, waiting for all hell to break loose.

To Lilianna’s great surprise and confusion, the woman started laughing. Rather hysterically. The sound was loud and genuine, bouncing off the walls of the cabin. Several knights outside providing escort looked through the carriage window, confusion and surprise obvious on their faces.

“Goodness, child, you can’t do that to an old woman! If you make me laugh that hard, I might keel over!” The woman visibly mastered herself, though not without some additional chuckling.

“No dear, we are not related by blood, though I’m probably the closest thing he has to family. He used to call me that when I was being particularly overbearing to him in an attempt to mock me. Clearly, it backfired.”

She leaned close to both girls, almost conspiratorially. “Between you and me, I think he secretly wishes I really were his grandmother.”

“As if,” the professor muttered irritably. It floored Lilianna to see him actually blushing. The brazen, reckless, and shameless professor was actually blushing?

“We know nothing about our professor’s family,” Nadrina continued, the filter to her flood of questions already long gone. “Did you raise him? Where is he from? Who was his real grandmother? How does he know you?”

“I’m right here, you know?” the professor commented dryly.

“Oh hush, you,” the woman snapped. “She was asking me. Besides, she’s an adorable little thing, so filled to the brim with curiosity. Much like a certain someone I used to know.”

He didn’t respond, instead kicking his feet up on the opposite bench, folding his arms across his chest, and staring firmly out the window again. He looked remarkably like a sulking child in that moment.

“Now, I suppose I should stop being rude and introduce myself, shouldn’t I?” the woman continued. Lilianna felt herself tense up again, her breath catching in her throat. “I am Minerva Rhagia, Empress of the Rhagian Empire.”

Nadrina’s eager face locked up entirely. Lilianna had been correct, it seemed. The woman who was the single longest reigning monarch in the world was a hard person to forget. Lilianna had only doubted her identity because she couldn’t fathom what someone like this was doing out in the wilderness.

“I-I-I am so s-s-sorry, your majesty!” Nadrina stammered out, doing to her best to bow formally while sitting in a cramped carriage. She failed.

“Now, now, none of that, dear,” the empress said, patting Nadrina affectionately on the head and startling her. “Just ma’am will suffice to be polite, or you can just call me Gran. Now, did you say this churlish young man is actually a professor?”

“It was Kedrin and Zasia’s idea,” the professor commented, still refusing to look at them.

“Of course it was their idea. I’m amazed you can sit still long enough to teach anyone anything,” the empress commented airily. “Though you girls are rather fortunate. Your professor is one of the preeminent experts on sorcery in the world, even if his attention span is that of a wild rabbit.”

“Speaking of wild rabbits,” the professor suddenly interrupted, “What is the Empress doing out in the middle of the woods?”

“See what I mean?” the empress asked both girls, winking at them before turning the Professor Aldric. “To answer your blatant attempt to be evasive, certain things have been set in motion that required me to evacuate the capital. Evidently, we were not covert enough, as they seem to have followed us all the way out here.”

“They seemed oddly well equipped and coordinated for bandits,” the professor mused. “If there were any reports of a bandit camp that large, Kedrin would have heard of it already. I’m assuming this has to do with Verona?”

“You made it quite clear to me you wanted nothing to do with politics for the rest of your life when you left my service, yet you want to dive right back in?” the empress asked archly. “It is of no actual concern. I thank you for your assistance today, but you need not involve yourself any further.”

“Gran—”

“Don’t you ‘Gran’ me, young man. Recognize when I’m trying to protect you and stay out of it.”

Professor Aldric looked at her for a long moment before he sighed. “Just stay safe. Please?”

The empress’s stern expression softened as she smiled warmly. “My dear, I am never truly safe, as you well know. But if you are the one asking, then I will do my best. I’m sure I have plenty more years of fire left in these old bones. If that stubborn fool wants a war, he’ll get one. Maybe he’ll even win, but it will cost him dearly in the end.”

She suddenly turned to Nadrina. “Speaking of those ruffians, I believe I have you to thank as well. Captain Dahvid made it quite clear who he believes he owes his life to. I see your professor’s heroics have rubbed off on his students. If I wasn’t incognito at present, I would have rewarded you quite handsomely. My personal thanks and favor will have to do for now.”

Nadrina’s face was ruby red at the sincere praise from the most powerful woman in the country, but something she’d said made Lilianna speak without thinking. “Our professor’s heroics?”

“But of course,” the empress answered, amused. “I wouldn’t take just anyone as my personal bodyguard, of course.”

Both Lilianna and Nadrina’s jaws nearly dropped into their laps. As one, they turned to look at the professor, who looked like he was desperately trying to blend in to the carriage walls.

“Bodyguard?” Lilianna exclaimed, her shock overcoming her years of etiquette. “You were the bodyguard for the Empress? A sorcerer?”

“Wait,” Nadrina interrupted, her eyes somehow going wider. “Wouldn’t that make you the Demon of Rhagia?”

“Now you did it, Gran,” the professor sighed, looking resigned now. The older woman merely smiled wolfishly. “Yep, that was the... cheery name they gave me back then. For the record, I didn’t call myself that, and you’re definitely not allowed to, either.”

Lilianna had only heard stories of the Demon. Most of them seemed so fantastical that she had assumed that they were exaggerated or made up. The Claw of the Empress, her dark shadow, the one who was sent to slay her enemies, to punish evildoers and drag them to hell. Legends had formed around the figure, ranging from starting wars to sabotage to all out slaughter. Children were told to behave, or else the Demon would come and punish them.

The rumors seemed more prominent than any actual official records or evidence, which was oddly suspicious. Why would such a legendary figure be born from someone who didn’t exist? And why would he be their lackadaisical professor?

“Are the stories true, then?” Nadrina asked, practically climbing over Lilianna in her haste to get to the professor. “Did you really stave off an entire invasion force in the mountains by yourself? Or fight off assassins every night outside of the Empress’ bed chambers while she slept? What about the collapse of House Ducard? Did you really rob their entire treasury in one night?”

She progressively leaned closer and closer with each question until Professor Aldric was pressed against the carriage wall. Her nose was mere inches from his.

“Boundaries, Drina,” he chided, grabbing her face and pushing gently until she was seated again.

The empress merely chuckled. “It’s alright dear. Your professor is a rather fascinating man, isn’t he? Even more so when he’s not very forthcoming about himself.” She looked at Professor Aldric with a frown. “Have you truly told them nothing? Are you really that paranoid?”

“As we just saw, Nadrina is a bit too curious for her own good,” the professor said, making the girl blush. “And Lilianna is the heir to one of the four Great Houses. The less both of them know, the better it is for everyone.”

Lilianna looked sharply to their professor, a little hurt by the insinuation. She regretted trying to get her family involved previously, but hadn’t she already apologized for that? He must have noticed her expression, because he looked apologetic.

“I know you wouldn’t knowingly do that, Lilly. But your family might not give you a choice in the matter.”

Before she could ask what he meant by that, he had already continued. “Most of what you’ve heard of me is exaggerated, but yes, I was the empress’ bodyguard for several years before I retired to become an adventurer.”

“That seems... odd,” Nadrina commented. Lilianna agreed. Going from royal bodyguard to common adventurer was quite the step down on the social ladder.

“Not especially,” the empress said lightly. “Particularly when you consider what a boorish hooligan he can be. He was never very suited for life in court.” Her words were harsh, but her voice had a teasing tone. “Besides, the things he accomplished as an adventurer were far—”

A sudden coughing fit from the professor cut her off. She gave him a flat look before sighing. “Very well. I suppose that’s not my story to tell. However, you may rest assured that your professor is rather brilliant, if unconventional.”

“Wait, if you were the Demon, then you must have known the Empress’s Angel, right?” Nadrina asked.

Lilianna could have sworn she felt the temperature in the carriage drop by several degrees. Both Professor Aldric and the empress went stock still at Nadrina’s question. The empress had a pained expression as she looked at the professor, his long hair hiding his face. He said nothing, but Lilianna could see his fingers going bone white from gripping his folded arms.

Nadrina noticed the change too, as her usually bubbling curiosity dwindled to nothing in a matter of moments. “I-I’m sorry,” she stammered quietly, clearly knowing that she’d said something she shouldn’t have but not knowing what. The empress gave her a kind but sad smile.

“It’s alright, dear. To answer your question, yes, we knew her. She was a wonderful mage and friend. The rumors you have heard about her probably pale in comparison to the actual thing, but she was always difficult to truly describe, much less understand. She deserved far more than to... leave the way she did.”

She looked at the professor with a mournful expression. “I owe you an apology, Aldric. What I said earlier was needlessly harsh.”

An eternal moment passed before he responded. “Don’t be. You were right, Gran. She’d hate me.”

“No.”

The empress’ one word was not especially loud, but rang with an absolute authority and certainty, enough to snap even the professor out of his mood long enough to look at her. With but a word, she demanded attention and belief in equal measure. Lilianna had almost forgotten who this affable and mischievous old woman really was.

“She adored you, deeply. More than I think even you knew. There is not a single thing you could do in this life to cause Miraea to not love you. I would know, for I feel the same, as do Kedrin and Zasia.” She gave him a gentle and motherly smile. “Whatever great sins you believe yourself guilty of, she would have forgiven you the moment you asked for it. I pray you will one day grant that same forgiveness to yourself.”

The professor still wouldn’t look at her, opting to stare out of his window instead. “Angels can forgive anyone, Gran. Even undeserving demons.”

There was so much pain and self-loathing in that one statement that, despite knowing nothing of what they were talking about, it tore at Lilianna’s heart. She was already speaking before she realized it.

“I’ve learned more from our professor in a few months than I ever did with my family’s tutors. I would still be woefully ignorant of so many things if I had never come to the academy. Not to mention, he’s saved our lives twice now, while expecting nothing in return from either myself or my family. If anyone were to call him a demon, I would call them a fool or a liar.”

“The professor doesn’t judge me on where I’m from,” Nadrina added, apparently feeling the same urge as Lilianna. “Professor Aldric has always treated me fairly. He teases me and acts melodramatic whenever I ask a lot of questions, but he always answers them. A commoner like me would never a get a chance like this anywhere else. I’ve learned so much in this class! I don’t want to go anywhere else, or have any other teacher!”

In only a brief moment, the heavy atmosphere had been replaced with outright astonishment from both adults. Both of them stared at the girls while Lilianna and Nadrina both stared defiantly back.

The empress’ face parted into a broad grin as she looked at Professor Aldric. “Out of the mouth of babes, wouldn’t you say ‘Professor’?”

“I swear, these kids...” he mumbled as he scratched at his neck, refusing to look at any of them. The empress only laughed at him, and the girls couldn’t help but join her.

The carriage coming to a stop saved him from further embarrassment. A knock on the carriage door was followed by the knight captain opening the door. “Your Majesty, the campsite you requested travel to is within sight. I would recommend we let our passengers out here while still maintaining cover.”

“Alas, we must cut our time short.” The empress nodded to each of them with a smile, saving the professor for last. “Do make sure you keep in better contact this time, dear. I’d hate to send someone after you and drag you back.”

“Yes, Gran,” Professor Aldric drawled, sounding like a lectured child. The empress simply ignored him. “It was a pleasure meeting the both of you,” she directed to Lilianna and Nadrina, taking their hands in hers with a grandmotherly fondness in her eyes. “Please keep an eye on him. He’s a handful, but he means well.”

“Gran!” the professor protested, having already evacuated the carriage as fast as he could. She only cackled in response.

~~~

As the three of them watched the carriage pull away, the professor turned to the two of them. “This goes without saying, but all that needs to stay between just us, alright?” Both girls nodded in agreement, and the professor made his way towards the camp. Then he stopped.

He turned to look at them again, and Lilianna watched as he opened his mouth, closed it, then studied the both of them intently, like he was trying to figure them out. Finally, he shook his head and grinned, patting them both on the heads and ruffling their hair. “You’re good kids. Come on, the others are no doubt freaking out that they haven’t heard from us by now.”

Lilianna was momentarily taken aback as the professor left. She felt oddly happy, even as she fixed her mussed hair. Nadrina looked like a rewarded puppy as she trotted off after him.

When they arrived a few minutes later0, they found everyone else already there waiting for them, their faces obviously relieved. They also found a nearly blown horse, complete with a very anxious rider wearing academy robes.

Said rider immediately ran up to the professor, not even offering an introduction. The words were already out of his mouth before the professor could properly respond.

“You must return to the academy immediately! There’s been an attack!”

Chapter 13

Early morning the same day...

Remus did his best to wipe the blood off himself, but knew it was futile. It caked every inch of his shirt, and wiping it only spread the mess further. He’d been doing this for years now and learned killing was messy work. Especially when you were Remus’s incompetent partner.

His partner, whose name he still didn’t know, was doing his best to get his sword out of the corpse still seated at the desk. Mages were tricky targets, not something you could face up front. Sneaking behind with a surprise attack was really their only weakness, as evidenced by the dead mage who still had a glassy look of surprise forever imprinted on his rictus face. His partner was trying and failing to get the sword back from the corpse, which had been slammed in so deeply that the body was practically nailed to the desk in front of it.

“Amateur,” Remus muttered to himself, too quietly for the other man to hear. Regardless of the man’s boasting, he had to be new to this. Only fresh recruits got so nervous that they drove their blade home too hard. Partners for missions like this were strangers. That way, if anyone got caught, there’d be less for them to reveal. It also had moments like this where Remus got stuck with an idiot. Again.

Remus took this moment offered to him to take in his surroundings. Must be nice to be one of the most famous magic academies in the world. It certainly paid well, if the furnishings in the headmaster’s office were anything to go by. Sophisticated pieces of magic and art littered the room from floor to ceiling, lit by the moonlight streaming in from the large window behind the desk. These things looked far too exotic for Remus to know what they were, but that only made him think they were valuable.

He eyed the corpse again, taking in the fine robes that demonstrated high rank. Good thing the headmaster had just been a healer. Any other type of mage of that caliber would have been impossible to kill so simply.

“Hey, you going to be done soon?” Remus drawled to his idiot partner. Huffing indignantly, the man finally gave up on his weapon and threw his hands in the air. We’ll need to come back for that later, moron, Remus thought.

“Whatever. I’ll get a new one,” he muttered darkly. “What the hell are we looking for again?”

“Anything that would point to info on the Demon. Anything that he might have left for this guy,” Remus answered, probably for the fourth or fifth time. “Start checking the desk. I’ll look over here.”

“Yeah, whatever. I swear, what’s so important to that guy that he’d pay this much just to get his hands on some pieces of paper?” his partner grumbled. “Not that I’m complaining, mind you. Don’t mind taking some rich fool’s coin, but isn’t this a little high profile? Ain’t this place famous? They even sent guys after that one lady, the famous blonde?”

Remus shuddered at the thought. The team sent to take her down was armed to the teeth, and if the rumors were true, it was for good reason. He’d been in this business long enough to recognize when someone was a true, merciless killing machine. Every one of those masked bastards had fit the bill perfectly. The further away he stayed from that bloodbath, the better.

“Damn, what I wouldn’t give to be on that team,” his inept partner prattled on. “I only got a glimpse of her, and I’m already in love. Just because we have to kill her doesn’t mean we can’t play with her first, right?”

If this idiot couldn’t recognize death when he was looking right at it, he’d be dead within the week in this line of work. That was fine by Remus. Then he wouldn’t have to deal with him anymore.

“I’m not paid enough to worry about that, and neither are you,” Remus answered shortly. “And watch the casual comments about our employer. You never know who’s listening.”

“What? You worried our friend here might tell on me?” His partner smacked the corpse on the back jovially, making its head roll back and forth on the desk. “Pretty sure his lips are sealed, friend. Just because we’re on some shady businesses doesn’t mean we have to be so jumpy all the time. Besides, all that Empress’ Demon stuff is just bullshit, anyway. This is just another eccentric man with more money than sense in search of things that don’t exist.”

Based on the grunts and thuds coming from behind him, Remus assumed his partner was trying to break into the desk drawers. The idiot had clearly never dealt with mages before. If they weren’t booby trapped, then they were enchanted to only open when the owner wished it. Torn between letting the idiot be and not wanting to get blown up by a mage’s trap, he sighed dramatically as he turned back around.

“Hey, dumbass. If you want to get yourself killed, leave me out—”

Remus was left staring at nothing. His partner was nowhere to be seen. Had he just wandered off? If he was dumb enough to go after that devil woman by himself, Remus was just going to leave the fool to die.

Walking around the desk, he was about to resume his partner’s search, more carefully this time, when he slipped and almost lost his balance. He caught himself with his hands before he could tumble to the floor. Carefully, he climbed to his feet and dusted off his hands on his pants, only to find them smeared with blood. Damn it, this guy was bleeding like a fountain, wasn’t he?

Then he saw what he’d tripped on.

His partner’s lifeless eyes stared up at him, a look of horror permanently painted on the one half of his face. The other half was face down behind the headmaster’s chair. Something had bisected him down the middle, from head to crotch, at a perfectly straight angle. Both his and the headmaster’s blood were forming into a lake of gore around the desk.

Remus instinctively turned to run for his life, but ran smack into what felt like a boulder and tumbled onto his butt. Looking up, he saw a man dressed in fancy, full plate armor towering over him. His good looks and amiable smile were completely out of place in this horrific situation. Remus’ mouth tried to work out a scream, but only a pitiful squeak came out.

“Hello there. You’re lucky I need at least one of you alive. I react poorly when my friends are stabbed, though I guess you’d know that already.” The man looked at the corpse sitting at the desk with a frown. “You can stop pretending now, Kedrin. It’s rather morbid, seeing you like that.”

“Damn it all, Balrus!” the corpse at the desk exclaimed. This time, Remus really did scream. Rather shrilly.

The once dead man’s head raised from the desk as he glared at the knight. “They were this close to revealing who sent them. You couldn’t wait just a bit longer? It’s not like they could kill me with this mana-less hunk of metal.” He gestured to the sword that was still lodged in his torso.

“Sorry,” the knight named Balrus apologized. Some idle part of Remus’s brain thought the name sounded familiar. “I got over eager. You can’t really expect me to sit idle when assassins are rooting around in your office over your corpse, can you?”

The headmaster rolled his eyes as he attempted to get up from his chair, then was forced to sit down again as the sword kept him fastened in place. He looked at the knight with a put-upon expression. “Do you mind?”

The knight walked over and pinched the sword’s hilt between two fingers, yanking it free of both desk and man with no noticeable effort. There was something indescribably horrifying about watching a man get a sword ripped out of his body without so much as a wince of pain. Nausea replaced horror as Remus watched the hole in the man’s abdomen slowly closing itself, radiating the green glow of healing magic. Just who were these monsters? He definitely hadn’t been paid enough.

“Now then,” the headmaster said, wearing a friendly smile that didn’t seem to reach his eyes. “I believe you mentioned one of our colleagues was also a target of yours? Would you kindly inform us where that might be taking place? I should mention, failure to do so will result in me leaving you to whatever tender mercies my friend here has.”

“None whatsoever,” the knight answered cheerfully, looking entirely too eager.

Before Remus spilled his guts, a loud boom came from somewhere outside. All three of them turned as one to the large window. A massive pillar of white flame was shooting up higher than the headmaster’s tower, lighting up the night sky and forcing Remus to blink away sudden tears.

The headmaster sighed dramatically. “Never mind, I found her. Balrus, would you be so kind as to go assist Zasia before she burns my entire academy to the ground?”

The knight moved to the door and left at a brisk walk, looking mildly panicked. The headmaster leveled his gaze back to Remus, who was suddenly aware that this healer had left himself unguarded, yet didn’t look the least bit worried. Remus really wished he’d stop smiling like that.

“Now, where were we? Ah, yes! You were just about to tell me everything you know.” The headmaster’s hands started growing an emerald green, lighting up his face in a way that was probably meant to be intimidating. It was.

“I’m afraid I must echo Balrus’ sentiments,” he continued, taking slow steps towards a frozen Remus. “I become a bit... forceful when my friends are attacked. Not to mention, I’m also rather annoyed about being skewered, as I’m sure you can imagine. I’m afraid those two things are working together to bring out the worst in me. Truly, I apologize. This isn’t my favorite method, but I’m pressed for time and in quite the foul mood tonight.”

Remus’s useless mouth was still incapable of forming words past his terror. The headmaster crouched down until he was at eye level, his glasses glinting in the moonlight as he did. It reminded Remus of a drawn blade.

“Did you know that too much of what heals can also hurt?” the headmaster asked, his glowing hands reaching ever closer.

~~~

Zasia stared down at the remaining three assassins before her. Or rather, two assassins, as the third was distracted by his incinerated leg. The other five that had come here were either roasted corpses or ashes on the wind. She sighed internally when she viewed the mess arrayed around her. She would need to make sure she cleaned this up before classes started tomorrow.

Thankfully, they were in a courtyard on the outer border of the academy grounds, so it was unlikely that any students would bear witness to this. Zasia often came here to enjoy the quiet at night. Unfortunately, tonight had been ruined by eight masked men ready to ambush her.

They’d demanded she hand over the Demon’s legacy. Deciding that was enough to mark these people as enemies, she’d immediately taken the offensive. The result was several dead, one wounded, and the utter decimation of one of her favorite spots on the campus.

To their credit, the remaining men didn’t seem to panic. Well, the legless one was, but that made sense. The other two had immediately jumped her in response to her surprise attack. They were obviously well trained, and either very loyal or very well paid.

Both assassins dashed toward her, trying to flank her from either side. Two separate walls of earth shot up from the ground to block their approach. Mana gathered into Zasia’s arms as she thrust her hands out to both walls, twin storms of slicing wind carving straight through the rock and anything unlucky enough to be behind them.

Unfortunately, they weren’t that easy. They had already retreated several meters away and had already thrown daggers her way. Zasia used the leftover rubble of the earth walls like floating targets, catching the blades in midair.

She was about to counterattack when she felt mana fluctuations around the embedded daggers and reacted instinctively. She forced the rubble away while simultaneously creating a gust of wind beneath her feet to drag her backwards.

The rubble exploded, detonated by the enchanted daggers and spraying shrapnel in every direction. A few pieces of debris pelted Zasia before she got a wind barrier up. She imagined her dress and hair were a mess now.

Assassins with enchanted weaponry? Well, that complicated things.

The two assassins didn’t give her time to think any further as they capitalized on her surprise. One had produced a shield while the other carried a mace. Both glowed with mana as the runes inscribed in them activated. Something was vaguely familiar about them, but Zasia couldn’t place why.

Shaking off her doubts, she converted her wind barrier into an orb of solid air that she launched at the shield bearer. He raised his shield to meet it, and the orb simply vanished like it had never been there. Irritated, Zasia conjured water from a nearby garden pond and molded it into a whip, striking out at both of the charging men. The one with the mace struck the whip with his weapon, causing it to disintegrate and splat uselessly on the ground.

Running out of space, she conjured a pillar of earth directly beneath her, raising her ten meters straight up into the air. As the assassins gazed up at her in confusion, she pulled hard on her mana pool. A torrent or brilliant white flame roared forth from her hands, slamming into the earth and flooding the area around her pillar. She tried to limit the flames to her immediate area to save the rest of the courtyard, but Kedrin was still probably going to be cross with her.

Even after she cut off her spell, the area was awash in a sea of white flame. She let out a long breath as she waited for the flames to burn themselves out. These two had been far more dangerous than the other assassins sent after her. She assumed they were the leaders, since they had been given what were likely priceless pieces of magical equipment. That brought up many questions about who could be backing them.

The thing that had her most worried, however, was this mention of the “Demon’s Legacy”. Balrus had apparently been right. She would need to talk to the others about this as soon as Aldric got back.

The white fire was suddenly and violently funneled to a single point, like water circling a drain. At the center of it all was the assassin with the shield. The shield sucked in all the flames, leaving the courtyard empty within moments. It glowed white hot for several moments before fading back to normal again. The runes etched into it seemed to glow brighter than before.

Despite her alarm, Zasia had a sudden realization. Of course these weapons were familiar. She’d known their creator for most of her life. She’d even been there when they were crafted nearly fifteen years ago.

Where in the world did these people get a hold of Aldric’s old experiments?

The remaining assassin dashed over to the now charred corpse of his less lucky comrade. Scooping up the mace with his free hand, he swung it towards and then through the earth pillar Zasia was still balanced on. The mace passed through as if the pillar was made of sand. She barely had time to use wind magic to help her land safely on the ground before she was already gliding backwards, dodging the assassin as he came in with his mace again.

He swung at her without technique or grace, but it would only take being grazed by the weapon for Zasia to be seriously injured. If she remembered correctly, this mace did something to mana that made it dangerous to mages, but she didn’t have time to dig through her memories.

That shield was going to be the actual issue. It absorbed spells and converted them back into raw mana, then dispersed it into the air. It had a fatal flaw, and Zasia was kicking herself for not remembering what that was. If Aldric didn’t go on long-winded tangents in his explanations, then maybe she would—

The mace whistling mere inches from her nose brought her back to the fight. She conjured an earth wall to gain space, but the assassin simply bashed through these just like they had the pillar, and trying to conjure the earth around the attacker didn’t seem to work. She tried buffeting them with wind, but that damned shield kept absorbing all of it. Setting fire to the ground resulted in the same thing, and creating a sheet of ice on the ground was only bashed to pieces by the mace.

Zasia was a conjurer, a long-range fighter by nature. Most of her spells kept attackers at bay long enough for her to incinerate them. Any normal fighter would have been dead long before they ever drew a weapon, much less attacked her with it. Enchanted weapons, however, were a sorcerer’s answer to a conjurer’s range.

No matter what she tried, the assassin was getting closer and closer with their attacks. Zasia briefly mused that wearing a pretty dress and professor’s robes was not conducive to combat. Her outfit was in tatters, and her hair hung loosely about her face as she dashed back and forth. She couldn’t keep this up forever.

Pulling deep on her mana well, she started throwing out any and every spell she could think of, trying to overwhelm her attacker with sheer force. While they were busy absorbing fire with their shield, a chunk of earth bigger than Zasia herself flew towards them like a bull. Even as the earth disintegrated into sand against the shield, the force was still enough to knock her attacker back several steps.

Of course! Even if the rock disintegrated, the inertia was still preserved. Zasia began throwing stone after stone at the assassin. All of them fell to dust against the shield, but were enough to force her opponent to plant themselves in place and block her spells. She’d solved her immediate problem of gaining space, but she couldn’t take him down this way.

It was then that she noticed the shield was continuously glowing. In fact, it looked to be getting steadily brighter the more she hit it with magically conjured rocks. All at once, she suddenly remembered its critical flaw.

Zasia channeled mana through the ground, tearing up the surrounding earth to buy a little more time. She couldn’t afford to make any more boulders. This was going to take everything she had.

While her opponent was busy hacking through the jagged rocks with their mace, Zasia reached in deep and yanked hard on her mana pool. Doing her best to ignore the vertigo the strain caused her, she called on the secret fifth element even she had difficulty controlling.

She hated using this element. Not only was it dangerous, but it usually wiped out her mana supply in one go. She also hated that it had originally been Aldric’s idea to try it. A damned sorcerer had designed the envy of conjurers everywhere. He would never let her live that down.

Wind stirred up to blinding speeds, fire to super-heat the air, earth to control the polarity, and water to stop herself from being fried. With a skill and power that only a quadra elemental conjurer could muster, Zasia screamed in exertion as she cast the biggest spell she could.

A raging, screeching torrent of lightning shot out of Zasia’s body and made a beeline for the assassin. Just the sound alone tore at the air with the roar of a dragon, threatening to rupture her ears. The assassin instinctively raised his shield again, but it absorbed only a trickle of lightning before the shield’s runes lit up like the sun and started smoking. With the rune array overwhelmed, the only thing left for the runes to do was to fail completely.

And fail they did. Rather spectacularly. The shield broke out into a spiderweb of cracks before detonating with enough force to throw Zasia clean off her feet. She barely had time to realize she had no mana left to escape before her vision was completely whited out.

~~~

When Zasia came to, she was staring at the starry sky above the academy. She tried to sit up, then immediately decided against it. The incessant ringing in her ears and the instant feeling of nausea told her the explosion had done more than just addle her.

“Well, glad to see you’re awake,” came a muffled but familiar voice. Balrus’s grinning face came into view, blocking her view of the stars. He looked the same as ever, though his ever-present armor looked uncharacteristically dirty and somewhat scorched.

“How did I survive that?” Zasia asked, not liking how slurred her words sounded.

“Technically, you didn’t. Or wouldn’t have. Not without losing some limbs. You’re welcome, by the way.” He gave her a concerned frown. “I know you have a reputation for overkill when you’re angry, but was an explosion like that really necessary?”

Frowning in annoyance and confusion, Zasia tilted her head just enough to give her a view of their surroundings. She spotted the courtyard immediately, since it was rather hard to miss.

Well, it was a courtyard, once. Now it was a crater, stretching for several hundred meters in every direction. The only things left of the garden were dust and ashes. The corpses of the assassins were nowhere to be seen. So much for gathering intelligence from them.

Zasia had a moment of realization about what would have happened to her if she’d been in the middle of all that. Then she quickly decided she didn’t want to think about it. She also wouldn’t think about how her dress barely covered her modesty at this point.

“It appears I once more owe you my life, Balrus,” Zasia said, the words still garbled to her own damaged ears. Hopefully Kedrin could fix that.

“Think nothing of it,” Balrus replied easily, grinning in delight. “I swore long ago I would protect all four of you. Even from yourselves.” He wiggled his shoulder back and forth, the pauldron that was supposed to be there dangling from a singed leather strap. “I might ask you for new armor, though.”

“Deal,” Zasia grunted as she slowly tried to rise. It was less her standing and more Balrus hauling her to her feet and balancing her there. “Is everyone else alright?”

“A team was sent after Kedrin as well, but that’s been handled already. He’s annoyed, but alive,” Balrus answered. “That is not the important part right now, however. My fears appear to have been realized.”

“The Demon’s Legacy,” Zasia answered, nodding weakly. “Take me to Kedrin. We need to get Aldric back to the academy. Immediately.”

Epilogue

Aldric, Kedrin, Zasia, and Balrus were all in Kedrin’s office several days later, with the door locked and the curtains drawn. Given what had happened a few nights ago, Kedrin had mandated a holiday for the students while the cleanup of the ruined courtyard proceeded. It was rather hard to hide what had happened, and the brief break was to keep the students from getting too worried or curious.

Aldric doubted they were that upset about the sudden relief from studies, though Nadrina and Lilianna had looked rather put out when he’d told his own class about it. Only academy staff remained, and Kedrin had left strict instructions for them to not disturb him for anything less than an emergency.

“Did you really have to blow them up?” Aldric asked mournfully, looking down at the remnants of his old creations lying on the desk. They’d recovered the mace, or rather, the melted hunk of metal that roughly resembled a mace. Only fragments of the shield were left, not even enough to tell what it had once been.

Zasia scoffed indignantly from the seat next to him. “It’s your own fault for leaving your forgotten toys lying about. And I’m fine, thank you for asking.”

“Yeah, yeah. You’re a badass. I wasn’t worried,” Aldric answered, waving away her complaint. “But come on! I thought I’d never see these things again, and now look at them!”

Kedrin leaned over his desk and interrupted them before they could get to arguing again. “So, these are definitely the ones you made, then?” he asked, staring at the pieces like they might come to life and attack again.

“Yeah, no doubt about it,” Aldric said, feeling just a touch self-satisfied. “I’d recognize the Bang Mace and the Sucker Shield anywhere.”

Zasia groaned wordlessly, and Aldric rounded on her. “What? I named them when I was fourteen! I had a weird sense of humor!”

“Had? As in, you no longer do?”

Aldric’s witty comeback was broken off when Balrus interrupted. “What exactly is it that these things do? I get the basic idea, but the actual enchantments are a mystery to me.”

“The mace repulses mana, while the shield absorbs it,” Aldric explained, his tone taking on a note of pride. “It’s basically the process by which mages take in mana from the environment, but given form through runes and reversed for the Bang Mace. The shield converts spells back into ambient mana while the mace dispels mana completely.”

Balrus had a gleam in his eyes as he looked over the broken pieces with renewed interest. “And you made them yourself? Is there any way you could make more? Or enchant existing weapons to do the same?” His hand unconsciously gripped at the hilt of his sword.

“Don’t get too excited,” Aldric said, holding up his hands in a “stop” gesture. “Mages can’t use them, or at least, not very well. They affect any form of mana around them, which would include your own. You’d be sucked dry in a few minutes.”

“Oh.” Balrus looked rather disappointed at that.

“Besides, if a certain demon of a conjurer,” Aldric continued, ignoring Zasia’s kick to his shin, “possesses more mana than there is water in the oceans, they either fail to get rid of all the mana or fall apart catastrophically. I couldn’t find a way around it, so I ultimately gave up on them. Honestly, I haven’t seen them since I left for the military. More than likely, they were sold off as part of my father’s estate to go towards his debts. There’s no telling how many hands they would have passed through after that. It would be nearly impossible to track.”

“Did you learn anything from the leftover?” Zasia asked Kedrin. He sighed in obvious irritation.

“Only enough to know that our ‘guest’ was told next to nothing about why they were told to come here. The only common point we’ve found is this legacy.”

Kedrin turned to Balrus at that, but the knight was already shaking his head.

“It is similar to why his majesty originally sent me here, but he wouldn’t have sent these men,” he stated, his voice firm with certainty. “It is not something he would do. Even if he was desperate enough to try, he wouldn’t do it so soon after having sent me here. There would be no point.”

“Is he getting impatient about your lack of progress?” Aldric asked. “I imagine you haven’t been very forthcoming with new information.” Balrus just looked at him, the first inkling of doubt appearing on his face.

“It is mostly rumors and speculation I am sending him, some of it completely fabricated,” Balrus said. “As much as I dislike lying to my king, it is obvious why he is looking for anything relating to you. His war with Rhagia and Osakar is all he ever thinks about lately. I shudder to think what he could create if he actually obtained what he seeks.”

“It would look a lot like several nights ago, I’m sure,” Kedrin commented, gesturing to the broken devices ominously. “Actually, no, I take it back. It would look far worse than that.”

Aldric felt a micro wince take over his facial features before he could school them again. All three of his friends caught it, but he barreled forward before they could comment.

“Probably the only reason they wouldn’t have gone after Balrus as well is because they wouldn’t know he was here. That would further confirm the king isn’t behind this.”

“There must be more than one group at work trying to track down any trace of Aldric,” Zasia muttered. “The real question is not just who the other players in this game are, but how many of them are playing. Aldric certainly made enough enemies over the years that would be interested in figuring out his secrets, and they appear to have grown much bolder.”

“What can I say? I’m just that charming,” Aldric added. It annoyed him when everyone seemed to ignore him.

There was sudden knock at the door, and everyone went immediately silent. Kedrin angrily got to his feet, no doubt about to tell off whoever had just interrupted them against his explicit instructions. When he opened the door, Aldric could see his secretary, Brianna, standing on the other side with a note in her hand, looking regretful but also flustered. She and Kedrin exchanged heated whispers before Brianna handed Kedrin the note, insisting he read it. When Kedrin did, he went deathly quiet for a long time.

“Thank you, Brianna,” he eventually said, closing the door without waiting for her answer. When he turned back to them, Kedrin’s face looked ashen.

“The guard caravan we sent to the capital has been attacked,” he said hollowly. “The assumption is a bandit attack. Everyone on the guard detail is dead, but Rainer’s corpse is missing.”

~~~

Aldric sighed as he collapsed into the chair in his office. With the holiday in effect, he didn’t have to worry about his students pestering him. That was good. He wasn’t in the best of moods right now.

No one had really known how to take the news of Rainer’s sudden disappearance. “Bandits” was a very convenient and coincidental excuse for the incident. Now that Aldric thought about it, that “bandit” attack on the empress almost seemed too well timed with both the attack on the academy and this latest development. Aldric couldn’t figure out who could be behind all of it, but some deeper part of him was convinced there was far more to this than they’d feared.

He knew he could be paranoid, but it didn’t count as paranoia if everyone really was out to get you. Aldric had kept his head stuck up his own ass for a decade, and only after he finally found a place for himself were his ghosts catching up with him. Typical.  Still, this attack on home bothered Aldric deeply.

Aldric caught himself mid thought. When did this place start being “home”? Hell, when was the last time he even had one of those? Zasia’s home had been exactly that: Zasia’s. He’d just been squatting there like a parasite. The last home Aldric could think of having would be his guild. It was also the last time he had family around. Well, proper family. Most of them were with him here now, even if Balrus was only here temporarily.

Thoughts of his students bubbled to the surface, unbidden. Okay, maybe it was a stretch to call them family as well. They were more like something for him to work towards, to invest his time in. There was no denying they were important to him, even if it still felt weird. In fact, everything that Aldric felt was important was here at this academy, so yeah... maybe this place was home.

And now someone had attacked it. Attacked it with the sole purpose of getting to him. Making this mostly his fault.

Aldric had put on an act for the sake of his friends, but he’d been far more rattled by this than he wanted to admit. He’d lost far too many things in his life. Losing his family, too, was unacceptable. They’d made it through this time, but what would have happened if students had gotten involved? Hell, Lilianna and Nadrina had almost gotten offed while he was only a few minutes away from them.

Zasia and Kedrin could more than take care of themselves, but they weren’t invincible, and Aldric was only one man who couldn’t be everywhere at once. He could plan for every eventuality he could think of, but he wasn’t infallible. Miraea had learned that the hard way.

Aldric instinctively started practicing one of the breathing techniques Kedrin had shown him for dealing with sudden stress. Deciding he didn’t want to dive down that spiral of depression right now, he stood up and stared through the simple window next to his desk. After several minutes, his sour thoughts were interrupted by gentle fingers combing through his hair. Had someone actually sneaked up on him in a quiet room with only one door? Damn, he really was losing it.

“I figured you’d be here,” Zasia’s quiet voice said from beside him. He saw her staring out the window with him in the corner of his vision.

“How’s that?” Aldric asked, knowing the answer already.

“Aldric, I’ve known you most of my life, even longer than Kedrin and Balrus have. I also lived with you for nearly a decade and have seen you at your best and your worst. I could practically write a book on you at this point.”

“Oh? Better not. I’ve seen your handwriting. Looks like a whole new alphabet. I feel bad for your tutors.”

Zasia flicked him in the back of the head, but otherwise ignored his comment while she continued her petting of him. “I also know you well enough to recognize when you’re deflecting with humor. You have this awful habit of trying to carry the entire world on your shoulders, just to spare your friends the trouble.”

“I’m a big boy. I can handle it.”

“So are Balrus and Kedrin. They can handle it too, and I’m basically worth ten of them in terms of maturity.” Her sarcasm was as biting as always, but he could hear the smile in her voice. “Even if you do it to protect us, we won’t thank you for your suffering. We’d rather suffer with you.”

Aldric had a hard time swallowing the lump in his throat after she said that. He really didn’t deserve the friends he had. It was precisely because they wouldn’t leave him to fend for himself that made him anxious for their safety.

“I don’t know what to do, Zee,” he admitted miserably. He hadn’t called her that since they were children, but it had just sort of slipped out. She looked surprised, but still smiled delightedly at him.

“You will,” was her instant answer, surprising him with the certainty in her voice. “You always figure something out. Our job is to pick you up, brush you off, and face you towards the goal. Then we just set you loose to do whatever you decide is best.” She smirked. “Then we clean up whatever mess you made. Rinse and repeat.”

Aldric snorted a laugh despite himself. “Mess” was a polite word for the trouble he could cause, but she was right. It had always been that way. Even if he was scared for them, he felt infinitely better facing the world with these three at his back.

Unsure what to do, he decided to try something he probably should do more often. Aldric consulted his moral compass, even though she was technically absent. He looked at the case containing the staff, the only thing he had left of Miraea. What would she tell him to do?

What a stupid question. He already knew. He’d already taken the first step months ago. Question was, would he be brave enough to take a second, or even a third?

“Ah, I see you’ve put your head back on straight. The look in your eyes is much better now,” Zasia said lightly, knowing that Aldric wasn’t really listening to her anymore. She retracted her hand from Aldric’s hair as he moved to a nearby closet, pulling out a large trunk. It was stained and dusty with age, but Aldric had made it to be sturdier than a castle wall.

Aldric took a deep breath as he laid hands on his trunk. Each one of these dents and dings had a story to it, and he was momentarily flooded with memories of a time long passed. Even if they were never perfect days, they were definitely better. Then he shook the feeling away.

Hauling it next to his chair, he reached into his coat and pulled out a deceptively simple key, adorned in one of the finest rune arrays he had ever made. He’d never planned on using it again and yet had never brought himself to get rid of it. Good thing, too, because he’d probably never be able to replicate such a masterwork again.

Aldric shoved the key into the lock and turned, wincing slightly as the mechanism screeched from lack of use. The myriad of latches around the lid all popped free simultaneously, and Aldric felt the presence of stale, unused mana finally being released from the mechanism.

Then he stopped. HIs hand was on the lid, poised to open it, but unmoving. He cursed his own cowardice, but try as he might, his hand wouldn’t budge.

Then Zasia’s own slender hand wrapped around his on the trunk lid, and he could feel her warmth through it. She gave him one of her rare smiles; the kind filled with a caring that had kept him going longer than he ever thought possible.

“It’s time to get back to work, Guildmaster,” was all she said.

Aldric took a long breath, then nodded. Together, they threw the trunk lid wide open. It was filled with notes, books, tools, reagents for sorcery, old diagrams, partly constructed prototypes, and all the things of Aldric’s past he had unsuccessfully tried to bury. Gently picking up a random spell diagram, Aldric felt like something in his chest had clicked back on after being dormant for far too long. It was just a little spark for now, but it was warm and hopeful.

If this was his home, he would do all he could to keep it. If these people were his family, they would be under his unwavering protection.

And if these were his students, they were going to become the most accomplished mages this world had seen in generations.

Afterword

Awww! It’s over?

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-Nathan