The lady in the reception area scurried, hands trembled ever so slightly. That said, Anasthasia turned to the side, giving them a long face.
"Do we have to stand here?" Anasthasia tapped her fingers on the polished sandalwood counter.
"With that letter of recommendation, I don't think we'll wait for long." Michael shifted, cloak fluttering with every stride he made. "I have to go now."
"Where are you going?"
"I'll just meet an old man, Tasha."
Anasthasia said nothing further, remaining her intense gaze as he witnessed his tall stature, with his black rayon cloak, slowly diminished from afar. She then peered at the twins, asking, "Will you guys be going with me?"
Liam shook his head. "We're here for a different reason, and it's related to Lucy. We can go there once they finally escorted you inside."
Anasthasia clasped her hands at the back, rocking her feet as she pondered, 'I guess I'll be all alone in there.'
It didn't take long for the lady to come back forefront. Her movement was hasty, looking agitated. Anasthasia's eyes glinted from the visible beads of sweat that formed on her forehead.
"So, how did it go?" Anasthasia probed unto her, which caused her to flinch in her stead. The receptionist looked directly at her bone-chilling gaze, and the pupils dilated quickly.
"It's all good, Ma'am. Allow me to take you to the Head of the Administration's Office." She bowed and formally trudged to the side, having Anasthasia to follow her tracks.
"It seems things turned out well, Ana."
"Thank you, Levi. I shall get going."
Levi responded, "We'll get going as well. May the odds be in your favor."
Anasthasia's lips quirked up. She batted her eyelashes one more time before she pivoted her heel, leaving them behind. She closely kept her tracks close to the receptionist as they walked towards the giant metal door, opening afore them.
"Dear esteemed guest, please pardon my insolence blatantly displayed earlier."
"Rest assured, everything turned fine." Anasthasia waved her hand as she casually spoke in her tone.
"That's quite a relief that you don't hold it that much against me." The receptionist heaved a deep sigh.
Inside, what welcomed her was the long hallway, of which the source of light was a portion of sunlight, beaming past the vast array of windows, carving its mark across the marble tile. Conversely, she could see the view behind the large windowpane, which had a rectangular frame made with caramelized oakwood.
Anasthasia, aside from her calm breathing, could only hear their synchronizing thuds as it continued to reverberate the hallway.
It took a couple of minutes until the lady halted. She looked around once more as she pondered, "A golden plated door by the end of the hallway? Is this it?"
"We have arrived." She asserted as she prompted her finger towards the unique magical device, revealing a blue light that scanned her from head to toe. By and by, the door opened that revealing mist so ghastly.
Soon as they entered, the bright light flashed their way, albeit not enough to blind their eyes. The orb, hanging by the center of the room, glimmered with a white glow—towering documents on the work desk, and an ashen wood coffee table surrounded by blue silk couches.
She cleared her throat. "Mr. Mariston, the esteemed guest, finally arrived."
Her vision darted unto the shelves filled with golden trophies and whatnot, of varying sizes, which everyone could see.
Soon as the man emerged from the piles of paperwork, Anasthasia's eyes glinted in surprise. 'This man, despite holding an important position in this place, looks incredibly young and pale.'
His disheveled silver-white fringes moved to the side with his hair loosely tied, reaching his shoulder level. A white robe—with golden linings around the loose turtleneck, flared sleeves, and hem—resembled so regal in her eyes.
'I can't wait to test him. We'll see about that.'
"Oh! Please have a seat." His voice chirped, and his chair creaked as he moved away.
The voice had left Anasthasia in bewilderment. 'He's younger than I thought!' She never dilly-dallied as she prompted herself towards the nearest couch.
Both of them sat comfortably, which had him initiate the conversation, "I'm pleased to meet you. I have received the letter of recommendation, and it's legitimate. I'm Brenov Mariston, the head administrator in this Royal Magician's Headquarters." He extended his hand, urging for a handshake.
Anasthasia took off her hood, reaching out to him in response. "Likewise, my name's Ana."
Brenov's blood-red eyes widened, he coughed and replied, "... That's quite an introduction, anything else you want to add?"
"I'd like to keep it that way, please." Anasthasia sat, with prim and proper stance, and stared at him with intensity.
He pressed his pale lips for a hot minute. "Do you want to get into business right away?"
"I thought you'd never ask." Anasthasia crossed her legs, propping her hands underside her chin. Brenov drew in a long breath.
"Fine. To become a full-fledged magician, you'll have to take two parts of the exam: Theory and Application." Brenov glanced his way to the lady, who remained in her stead. "Please arrange a schedule for the training grounds today."
"Yes, Mr. Mariston."
Brenov snapped his fingers. The pen and several sheets of paper set aglow and hovered towards her. Anasthasia received and read the contents, word by word.
"After filling that up, there's a test sheet beneath it. I hope you can answer it within an hour."
"I got it." Anasthasia scribbled in an instant, Brenov could only scratch his nape and avert his gaze.
It didn't take long for her to finish the application; she slammed the sheet on the coffee table. He blinked, in response to her rush movements, and grabbed the sheet. His eyes rattled by the ambiguity of her answers.
"I hope you don't take these things too lightly, Miss Ana."
Anasthasia stopped her scribbles and arched her neck, gaping at his furrowed brows. "I'm not; which part of it did you not understand?"
"Out of 10 primordial magics listed here, general and specific, you have all of them—?"
"I have more than that, to tell you frankly," Anasthasia said a matter-of-factly.
"I beg your pardon, but this doesn't make sense at all."
Anasthasia's eyes flickered. "I can show you the—"
"No!" He shoved his hand, attempting to stop her utterance. "Please, play with the most confident magic you can ever use."
"Well, I can do them all just fine—"
"For the sake of our conveniences."
Brenov's actions had cast her several doubts in her head as she considered, 'Why is he so adamant? I'm here to show what I'm capable of doing such—'
"Listen, Miss Ana. Whether all of the things you've written here are true or not, I hope you'll take in mind that your actions will bring more than harm than good."
Anasthasia crossed her arms, huffing. "I'm offended. How dare you question my—"
"Lucy is a childhood friend of mine. Since the Crown Prince had recommended this letter to you, I'm sure you will bear this in mind. You're playing a dangerous game."
"Not all of them." Anasthasia hummed. "What about seven types of magic?"
"No!" Brenov shook his head.
"Will five types of magic suffice?"
"Not a good choice!"
"What about four types of magic?"
"...Fine, we'll see about that." Brenov slapped his forehead, unable to continue with her absurd response.
Anasthasia pressed her lips as she considered things in her mind, 'I was testing the waters. How far have the magicians devolved themselves in this era? Four seemed to be far-fetched? That said, it isn't good news at all.'
"What about the weapon of your choice here? Why are these left blank?"
"I can cast without any of those."
"Barehanded?!" Brenov had his eyes popped off, leaning closer to her. Anasthasia gulped and asserted.
"On top of that, I can also silently cast spells."
"Silent Chanting?!" He slammed the coffee table, which caused it to tremble so subtly, and stood up with rage in his eyes. "This is insane!"
Anasthasia sat in frozen solid as his reactions deemed genuine, which could only mean something that erupted a foreboding chill in her heart.
"Miss Ana, are you for real?"
"In the flesh."
Brenov slumped back to the couch with a face drained out of life, hand kneading the forehead's temples. "Take it as you will."
"Do you have any questions? Shall I answer these now?" Anasthasia tilted her head.
He flicked his hand, scoffing at her, "Please go on; I don't want to die so early."
"You said that. I shall work on these."
'Oh! These questions seemed primitive to me! Is he for real? Not my problem, though. I'll answer this with haste!'
A few minutes from the round, she arched her eyebrow as she glanced at the paper's words.
Anasthasia wrote with a big smile on her face.
'Now, this one is challenging. Difficult but not impossible to answer.'