The seemingly endless range of snow mountains cleared up to reveal an entire city that had been hidden from the outside world.
Or at least, the place was as large as a city.
From the skies, it was clear that the Westwater Institute of Magic was multiple times the size of Westwater Town, with the surrounding mountain range acting as a natural barrier against outsiders.
Multiple streams branched down from the various peaks, converging to form a beautiful blue lake in the western region. Lush greeneries lined the banks of this water body that glistened under the sunlight, with small animals could be seen darting in and out of the vegetation without a care in the world.
This pristine water body that existed west of the institute was none other than what gave Westwater its name.
As for the main building, it comprised numerous stone towers that reached towards the skies, with the tallest of them peeking straight into the clouds.
Surrounding the lake and the towers were dense forests known to be inhabited by countless creatures of varying species, adding to the varied ecology of the area.
In the skies, myriad lights formed a mystical hemisphere that shrouded the entire Westwater Institute of Magic, encompassing everything from the blue lake all the way to the stone towers.
This alluring hemisphere of light was not to be mistaken as a simple light show.
It was part of Westwater's active defence system that, luckily or not, had not been tested many times since the beginning of its existence.
Even so, few had any doubts about its effectiveness.
As though recognising the approach of the Westwater Shuttle, the surface of this hemisphere of light opened up slightly to form a small gap, allowing the Westwater Shuttle to fly through without a hitch.
The Westwater Shuttle started its gradual descent after entering the hemisphere, eventually landing upon a wide clearing.
Under the instructions of Xyton, Cyrus and the rest of the students quickly alighted, setting their foot upon a floor that was paved with clean white stones.
The air was fresh and carried the clear smell of vegetation. A passing breeze gently embraced them, rustling their hair and easing the glare of the late afternoon sun.
It was as though even the weathers were putting on their best behaviours, welcoming these children to their new home.
Xyton and Frey led the way along the stone-paved path, heading into the nearest tower.
Numerous illumination crystals lit up the inside of the tower as the children were herded into a large chamber with two rows of long benches, all of them facing towards the front where a huge bronze statue stood in a domineering manner.
The statue was over ten metres tall, taking the form of a bearded man who was dressed in loose mage robes. His right hand held onto a long staff that was even taller than himself, and his left hand was placed firmly against his chest.
However, what truly drew everyone's attention was the light in his eyes.
Even someone like Cyrus who had yet to undergo any proper magic training could tell that this light was not produced by mere illumination crystals, but by a more mysterious energy that tapped into a separate source of power with the statue itself.
Before they could examine the statue further, a loud clap forcefully pulled everyone's gaze from the eyes of the statue to its feet, where Xyton and Frey were now standing in front of.
"All right, kids, quickly take a seat," Xyton gestured to the long benches.
The newly admitted students did as they were told, and it was only after everyone had randomly filled up the benches that Xyton continued speaking.
"Welcome to Westwater Institute of Magic! Unless any of you have any strong objections, you will all be official students of the institute starting today!"
Xyton's words might not seem like much, but they still resulted in excited grins forming upon the faces of many of these children.
In their young and immature minds, they were already eagerly anticipating the day that they, too, would freely wield the power of official mages, gaining glory beyond compare!
"Now then, let me formally introduce myself once more," Xyton's voice turned solemn. "In case you do not already know, my name is Xyton, and this is Frey. Together, we are the ones in charge of you freshmen. However, if you have any problems or if there are any issues that you need to raise, you will be going through your mentors for it, and they will be the ones to solve it for you. If they can't, you can approach your homeroom teacher. Only if you still have queries after that do you come to us, and we will address your issues then."
Mentors?
Cyrus blinked blankly.
Since when did he have a mentor?
As though answering his question, a large group of people suddenly entered the chamber, all of them dressed in the identical mage robes. They walked with their heads held high, exuding an unmistakable air of confidence.
Judging from their looks, they were just a few years older than him, probably around the age of fifteen.
In an orderly and well-practiced manner, they streamed into the spaces between each row of benches, until each of them was standing directly before one of the newly admitted students.
"Look closely at the person standing in front of you right now," Xyton instructed. "This will be your mentor, responsible for guiding you through the basics and answering any questions you have. Of course, this is only a privilege given to first year students. After the year has passed, do not expect them to readily offer their help to you any longer. Now, we shall take our leave and hand the time over to your mentors."
With that, Xyton and Frey left the chamber without hesitation.
Cyrus could have sworn that he saw a look of relief flash across their faces, as though they were glad to be finally done with some troublesome chore.
"Hi there," a gentle voice brought his attention back to the person who was now standing in front of him.
It was a tall young man with curly red hair, fair skin, thick spectacles, and a skinny build. He was not exactly handsome, but he was at least pleasant looking.
"My name is Paul, and I will be your mentor from today onwards. What is your name?" the young man smiled in a frigid manner. It was obvious that he was feeling slightly unaccustomed to this.
"Cyrus."
"All right, Cyrus. For starters, there are a few administrative matters that we need to settle. So come with me for now."
Cyrus did not decline, obediently following Paul out of the chamber.
This was the case for most of the other freshmen as well.
There were also those who decided to remain and chat a little more. But the majority of mentors started leading their new mentees away, all of them headed in the same direction as they streamed out of the huge chamber.
A huge spiral staircase led to the higher floors. If not for the multiple illumination crystals positioned at regular intervals, the occasional windows would have been far from enough to chase away the darkness within.
After they arrived at the top of these stone steps, they neatly formed into a single row that stretched along the corridor, taking their turns to enter a small room.
"We are now waiting to select your class," Paul explained dutifully. "You will see a crystall ball once you enter the room. Simply place your hand on the crystal ball and wait for a while. You will receive your class number then."
"Understood," Cyrus nodded.
Even though the instructions sounded simple enough, each person before him still took almost a minute, far longer than what he had expected.
Cyrus just happened to be one of those at the back of the queue. By the time it was his turn, more than an hour had already passed.
He was to enter alone.
After pushing open the door that was made of light pine wood, Cyrus' eyes immediately widened in amazement.
This room might not be considered humongous, spanning only around five metres on each side. However, seated right in the middle of the room was a crystal ball so huge that it almost took up the entire space.
Even back at the Skyhelm Clan, Cyrus had never seen a crystal ball as big as this!
Within the crystal ball, streams of light mixed together in an elegant manner, giving birth to beautiful rainbows that lit up the otherwise dark room.
Just looking at it was mesmerising to the eyes and therapeutic to the mind, and Cyrus felt like he could stand here watching it for hours on end without getting bored.
Nevertheless, Cyrus broke out of his daze after a few moments.
He did not forget his reason for being here. Recalling the instructions that Paul had given him earlier, Cyrus placed his hands against the huge crystal ball.
Immediately upon doing so, the beautiful lights started to whirl around within the crystal ball, forming a whirlpool of myriad colours.
This whirlpool spun faster and faster, until everything within had turned into a complete blur.
At that moment, a gap suddenly opened on the surface of the crystal ball, and from within the depths of the whirlpool, a small token floated out towards Cyrus.
After which, the gap closed, and the lights within the crystal ball returned to their original calmness.
As for the small token, it found its way straight onto Cyrus' right wrist.
Upon contact with his skin, the token immediately let out a burst of light that completely drowned out the beautiful streams within the crystal ball. Under the cover of this intense light, the token quickly transformed into a wristband, safely securing itself around Cyrus' right wrist.
With that, the flood of light receded directly into the wristband, searing the number 4 onto its surface.
Everything happened within mere moments, leaving Cyrus standing there in a daze as the light rescinded, his vision still half blinded by the bright flash.
Even so, he understood that he was done here.
Class 4, eh?
Well, not that it mattered which class he entered.
All Cyrus hoped for was to pass his life here without any problems, maintaining a low profile before finally returning to the Skyhelm Clan!