"I didn't expect to see this place until the second year.", Seventeen remarked as he gazed at the huge mansion in the Lost Woods, the dorm of the second year students of Special class A as the moonlight illuminated it in an eerie way.
The first years of the Academy live in the dorms near the central square of Cardinal Town while the second and third years live together in these huge dorm buildings scattered throughout the campus.
The dorm of Special Class A was located in the eastern part of the Lost Woods and is a huge four-story building with big balconies and porches with different parts covered in ivy. The dorm looked like it was built a few decades ago but was well kept and the walls gleamed like it was recently washed and painted.
The dorm building lies in the middle of a huge compound in the Lost Woods, surrounded by trees, and a 4-meter high wall around the compound separated the building from the Lost Woods.
In addition to the wall, a strong barrier was also set up around the compound which can also help control the weather of the entire compound. This means that during summer, the barrier can block the sunlight to a certain degree to not make it too hot to step outside.
Since there are no third years for Special Class A, there are enough accommodations for the first years who don't have a dorm to stay in at the moment.
"I heard there is a training field behind the dorm along with a huge pool for water users.", Ruth said as they stood in front of the entrance to the building.
"Damn. That sounds exciting.", Seventeen remarked. He looked at Selene perched on his shoulder. The falcon had returned to him while they were talking with Zephyrus.
Selene nodded and gave a soft cry of excitement.
He looked back at his students. They were looking around in awe. "They are going to meet their upperclassmen. I hope they get along.", he said optimistically.
They all gathered at the doors of the dorm and they swung open.
"Welcome to House of Legends!", Jason greeted them in a loud and commanding voice, "Now kneel before your seniors with reveran- Ack!"
He was suddenly kicked from the balcony he was standing on and crashed in the middle of the main hall. Everyone winced at the huge thud.
"That must've hurt.", Minerva said as Jason lay groaning on the floor.
Seventeen dismissed her concerns, "Oh don't worry about him. You can throw him from the academy's tallest tower, and he will be fine."
Standing on the balcony was the one who kicked Jason. It was a tall young woman with short ash grey hair and piercing blue eyes. She had an athletic figure and was dressed casually in a black sweater and blue pants.
She was glaring at Jason whose face is planted on the floor, "That's not how you greet our juniors, you fool. Plus, the instructors are there. Do you want to be sent to the infirmary again?"
"Haha. That kick was impressive. Kat. I didn't notice you at all.", Jason lifted his head and looked at his classmate with a grin.
She frowned and jumped gracefully from the balcony and landed right on Jason's back. Seventeen winced when he heard a distinct crack, "Careful, Kate. He needs to walk."
The young woman smiled, "Don't worry, sir. I didn't do much damage."
She turned to the first years and introduced herself, "Hey there. I am Kate Phaes, a second-year student of Special Class A. I am looking forward to living under the same roof as you guys. The rest of the class had gone to Raveria for a training exercise so the only ones here right now are me and this idiot.", she prodded Jason with her foot.
"Oi. Get your ass up and greet them properly."
"Alright. Jeez. You are so brutal.", Jason got up and rubbed his back, "Hey guys. I am Jason Kain. Nice to meet you.", he said with a painful smile.
The first years nodded their heads. Damien looked like he was trying to hide behind Oliver's big frame but to no avail as Kate caught a glimpse of him.
"Damien? Wow. You really are in Special class A.", she sounded pleasantly surprised.
Damien looked flustered, "I was hoping you would be away for training."
"You know her?", Arthur asked. His curiosity peaked.
"Of course, he knows me.", Kate answered him with a smile, "After all. I was the one who defeated Damien in a duel last year."
"I didn't know she was powerful since she was in Special Class A.", Damien muttered in an attempt to defend his pride.
Kate chuckled, "Well. I have to restrain my power or I would go berserk with the uncontrollable magia flowing in me. So people make the mistake of underestimating me."
"Your magia goes berserk?", Arthur asked her. She nodded, "Yep. But I am getting better at it."
"In case you are wondering why it is like that, Our instructors can tell you about it.", she turned to Seventeen and Ruth with a meaningful look. "You sure about this?", he asked to which she nodded.
"Very well.", he turned to his class. "I believe you guys know about the Fairies, one of the lost races that got extinct along with the orcs?"
All of them nodded.
"Well, Kate's ancestor is a Fairy who lived during the time of the Founder. Even though the Fairies have now gone extinct, their descendants of the children they had with other races remain to this day.", Ruth explained.
"But the Fairy bloodline and power have long since become very faint in these descendants so they will not have any resemblance to the ancient race. But there are some exceptions, rare cases of these descendants awakening their bloodline."
"And Kate is one of them. She is the first one to awaken her bloodline in 500 years.", she said, glancing at the second year.
All of them looked at Kate with awe while the subject of the discussion herself was straightening Jason's back.
Seventeen intervened, "But there is a problem with awakening the bloodline of an ancient and lost race in this current age."
He started to explain, "A recent study has found out that magia changes with time. The magia of this age is not the same as the magia that existed during the time of the Founder. It could be any change. The amount, purity, or any other factor can change over time."
"So an ancient power like that of the Fairies is not accustomed to the present magia conditions. This causes a reaction, in Kate's case, she will go berserk. It will take time for it to adjust and until then most of her power is sealed."
"Wait a minute.", Ray looked at Damien, "You are telling me you got beaten by someone whose power was sealed?"
Damien turned red while Kate laughed, "It's not like that. I can release the seal to a certain extent. It's just that my powers are sealed at times like this. In battle, an additional seal will activate if I start to go berserk.", she explained.
"My victory against Damien was hard-fought. After all, he was a student of Class S.", she said with a smile.
"Damn.", Ray whistled and looked at Damien, "This doesn't mean that I will stop annoying you. I think I should ramp up my performance."
Damien scowled, "You better not."
Seventeen smiled. They can't get enough of Ray's witty remarks. "Alright girl. There is a lot for you to explore.", he told Selene and the falcon flew from his shoulder to explore the area.
He looked at Ruth and they nodded at each other.
"Before we enter our new home.", Ruth said as she stood at the front steps of the dorm and turned to face them, "I have an announcement about a certain event."
Kate's eyes lit up, "Oh? Is it that time of the year?'
Ruth nodded with a smile, "In three weeks, the Academy will be hosting The Grand Battle Festival.", she announced.
Everyone in the class became excited and talked among themselves. It is such an important event on the continent and people from every nation would come to Crystalia to watch or take part in the Festival.
Seventeen only knew about it much recently. The Grand Battle Festival is a huge event hosted by Cardinal Academy. In it, students of Cardinal Academy, The Adventurer's Academy, and Ascalon Warlock Academy gather to showcase their skills in tournaments.
The tournaments are not only restricted to students but any warlock who is confident in their abilities can participate in the Battle Festival. The winners will be rewarded generously by the Cardinals and Heads of the Arken Families attending the Festival.
It is also a place where the Cardinals, Squad Captains, Adventurers Guild, noble families, and Arken Families scout for promising warlocks, providing them with benefits in the hopes of recruiting them.
Zephyrus had hinted that the Festival will provide a chance for not only their payback but to show the capability of Special Class A, the 'dysfunctional class' to people.
Seventeen and Ruth agreed with the idea and planned to secure a victory for Special Class A in the Festival.
But that is only half the story. According to Zephyrus, there is a special part of the Festival, called the Teachers Tournament, where the instructors battle not only the ones from their academies but also the other academies.
To Seventeen, this would provide a chance to beat up Marvin Ravis without any worry about the consequences. Also, the reward for the winning instructor will be a 50 percent increase in salary and a cash prize of 100 crystals, about 1 million gold.
Seventeen is about to go broke and he needs the money for the strong enchanted items and the apple wine imported from Raveria which is available in the market of Cardinal Town.
He looked at his students who were talking excitedly among themselves. He knows that they are strong but he also knows that the ones participating are also strong or perhaps, stronger.
Time to smooth the rough diamonds.
"As the ice queen said.", he glanced at Ruth as he spoke. Everyone stopped to listen to him. "The Battle Festival is in three weeks and you guys will have to face tough opponents or each other. So in that time. You will have the most intense training of your lives.", he said with a sinister smile.
Ruth nodded, "Indeed. We even have a name for it.", she said with the same smile. The students suddenly looked nervous.
"The three weeks of hell.", the two instructors said in unison.
"Three"
"Weeks"
"Of hell?"
Ray, Robin, and Flare spoke the words one after the other. A feeling of dread hung in the air as the first years realized what they got themselves into. Jason and Kate just smiled in sympathy.
"I feel sorry for you guys.", Jason patted a nervous Arthur on the back. "By the end of three weeks, you guys will be on the level of A or S class."
Arthur looked at his upperclassman, "You guys don't have to train?"
Jason laughed, "Of course not. We are strong enough to face any opponent thrown at us. Not to brag, but I am said to be on par with Aaron Cadis, the strongest student in the Academy and Kate is pretty strong."
"So there is no need for us to take part in this training course right?", laughing, he asked the instructors. Seventeen and Ruth wore the same sinister smiles as they looked at him.
"Right?", Jason stopped laughing and asked with a nervous smile.
"Of course Jason. you are indeed powerful.", Seventeen, still smiling, "But you need to have some control over the execution of your strength. That's why I and ice queen will personally train you second years along with your lower classmen."
Jason and Kate became nervous like the first years.
Seventeen clapped his hands, "Alright. We have already asked the Headmaster's permission to take a break from classes. Everyone please have a nice rest and prepare yourselves mentally for the next three weeks.", he said in a delighted voice.