Mr. Grey stood as I took several ragged breaths. I understood Midnight's plan for that lesson, teaching me skills that would be useful inside the palace: Mr. Grey first taught me a basic barrier-piercing spell, then a low-power translating spell. My teacher hesitated on this particular spell, saying how he wouldn't blame Feste if he couldn't pull it off. However, I managed to pull it off, although I could only hold the intensive spell for a minute or two at a maximum before my body forced itself to deactivate it. Even Mr. Grey seemed impressed by this escalation in skill.
"That'll be all," Mr. Grey said in a tone that hid a shred of concern for me. I felt my teacher speed time up to its usual pace once more as he started walking toward the rest of my class. "I sincerely hope that you excel with Midnight's teachings."
Before I could respond, Mr. Grey was already outside of earshot. I shook my head and got my bearings as I entered the school once more, grabbing the bags that I left on its front steps.
Walking to my next class, I happened upon the school bulletin board. For convenience, it was situated just before the busiest intersection, with several ways to turn to get to the school's countless rooms quickly. The bulletin had a wide assortment of postings, including ones from small clubs or people that wanted to attract attention to their services. Most of them would fit into these two categories, but there was the occasional announcement posted by a teacher or other staff official.
Looking through the postcards for stimulation, I burned through my time quickly. However, I did see one posting that caught my attention, one which had the headline "Sukath Beginner Magic Lessons". I decided to read further, taking a step towards the posting to better decode its text.
"Quite a few weeks ago, the beginners' club was disbanded due to a rather mean instructor. Seeing the immense reception of this club, however, I decided, in conjunction with my brother Antus, to set up one of our own. We are both in our final year and want to hand out knowledge down to those students that just enrolled here.
"With us, you will receive tips to help with certain spells that we struggled on previously, as well as in-depth teachings that we guarantee are beneficial as you become absorbed into the popular magical culture."
Below this text was the leader's, Sukath's, contact information. It revealed both his dormitory room, where the "meetings" would be held, along with a small monetary fee. However, the text continued below this: "If you don't get a good grade on your next magic test, we will give you a refund!"
I found myself smiling by the time I finished reading. I was finally relieved that I was going to enroll in something that didn't have any consequences. Before finalizing my decision for attending their next meeting, however, something in my mind prevented me from doing so. I looked over the portrait of Sukath, thinking of all the ways I could potentially be cheated out of my money or bound like the situation Malus had us in. An inner conflict began inside of me until I finally shook my head, deciding to join the club the next opportunity I had. After all, if anything went wrong then it was useful that I had relations with the school's principal.