Nefertalis, inside the Witch of the Storm's office in the Magic Academy.
A few seconds of astonishment passed as the adventurers Jorael and Cyn'Thia realized that the old woman in front of them was nonetheless the only Sage in the Human Empire.
"Alas, I understand that you two are mesmerized by this woman's transcendent beauty, but would you please stop standing there like fools and sit on chairs?" Monica ordered, abruptly awakening the adventurers from their daze.
"S-sure ..." Jorael whispered a little intimidated, as he approached the chair in front of the desk to sit down.
"Elf, you might have a place too..." the principal said because Cyn'Thia wasn't following her master.
"T-thank you, lady..." the Elf replied shyly, as now she too reached a chair and sat down.
Both adventurers sat down and were ready to hear the secret mission content they had been summoned. The headmaster wasted no more time explaining the situation:
"I have asked your Guild for help with this urgent matter because something troubling is happening within the old walls of this academy.
Bright students from renowned Houses are losing interest in studies and performing poorly in practice. Some students are even dropping out of school.
As this may seem trivial to outsiders, it is not a matter to be underestimated.
Students hold the reins of the future of our Empire. If no Mages are forged under my anvil and my hammer, who will protect our Empire?
When our Wall will collapse, who will fight that war?"
"Yes. I understand your point perfectly.
But… Why will the Wall collapse in your opinion?" Jorael said immediately after hearing the headmaster's explanation.
"That's sweet my dear.
As for the part of the Wall, it is rumored that four new Generals should be appointed soon in the Demon Kingdom.
We can hope that nothing will happen, but we must be prepared." Monica said smiling at first, and then she changed her expression in apprehension.
"Interesting... then we have to resolve this delicate matter.
Can I ask a question? "The traveler asked politely.
"Sure dear." the headmaster nodded.
"If you're a Sage, how did you not determine the cause of all this?" Jorael asked.
Monica started walking around her desk and replied:
"Oh... I've already tried.
Don't think of us Sages as omnipotent and omniscient beings. We also have our flaws and limitations."
She was walking around the desk, behind the adventurers as she spoke, then when she was closing the circle around them, her back was completely exposed by the slit of her flashy purple dress. It was there that the unmistakable truth was found by Jorael and Cyn'Thia. The burned scar on the woman's bare back was the undeniable proof of her being a Sage.
"Therefore, I searched, overheard, interrogated, checked the behavior of many students, including the victims...
Nothing was found, no clues or hints." Monica explained to her as she sat back in her chair, where she took a deep breath and sighed. Then, she asked:
"That's why dear ones I need some insight from the students. If they don't tell me, let's see if a fellow student can find something worthy of investigation.
Would you mind being that student?"
"So be it.
What do victim students have in common?" Asked Jorael.
"They were students with excellent grades both in theory and in practice. There is nothing else that connects them, other than that they come from the same class." Monica replied.
"Got it. And my assistant Cyn'Thia?" Jorael asked.
"Such a non-issue, I'll allow her to attend the lessons." the headmaster replied nonchalantly.
"T-thanks, Madam!" whispered the Elf.
"But beware! Slaves are not allowed in this school, so a special permit will be issued just for you.
There will certainly be some annoyances coming from the noble students.
You will need to explain that she is here not to take care of you, but to study Magic with you." Monica explained, warning them. She then asked one question to the Traveler:
"Besides, the Elf will surely know White Magic, but what about you?"
"Er... I know a spell or two..." Jorael lied.
"That's really great, my dear, considering your age and not being a student of mine.
You may say that you are the perfect person for the mission.
I look forward to the practical lesson then..." the principal commented with interest.
"Good. Where should we go to start our first day of school?" asked the Traveler.
"You will be enrolled in the victims' class, they should be about your age considering it's the fifth-year class.
But first of all, you will have to wear school uniforms..." the principal finished explaining, but then, suddenly, she shouted:
"WARDEN! BRING THE UNIFORMS HERE!"
A few seconds passed and the man who accompanied the adventurers to the principal entered the office carrying the male and female uniforms.
"You can both change here; the manager and I will go out. Would you like to dress in shifts or...?" Monica asked as she approached the office door to leave with the Warden.
"Don't worry, we won't waste time and we will change immediately!" Jorael exclaimed as he took the clothes from the Warden.
"Oh... the passion of youth...
I tolerate this behavior only because you are not officially students of mine..." the headmaster said with a wink as she went out with the Warden and closed the door.
"M-master... W-what you want to see?" Cyn'Thia asked embarrassed.
"What do you mean?
I want to wear the uniform and go as soon as possible to the class!" the Traveler replied in excitement.
"Yes, of course..." Cyn'Thia commented whilst taking her uniform.
...
Later on the first floor of the Nefertalis Magic Academy.
Morning classes were about to begin and students crowded into the foyer and white marble corridor, gathering to chat before going to class. Chatter, laughter, and gossip were background noises echoing through the school, but suddenly a commotion took hold from the stairs.
The background noises at first faded into silence, then the whispers slowly began to fill the atmosphere:
"W-who are those two?!"
"P-Principal is here... with those two following her?!"
"T-that hottie... which House is he from?!"
"I don't care about him... that slave. Why is she here?"
"I don't know why she's here, but she's so hot!"
All the students were staring at the adventurers Jorael and Cyn'Thia, showing off their new attire as they walked down the hall.
The Traveler wore a purple shirt, covered with a white jacket and white trousers with small purple decorations and patterns. Oddly enough, the color of the uniform matched perfectly his eyes that he always tried to hide.
The Elf wore as her owner a purple shirt covered with a white jacket, but instead of the pants she had a white skirt with purple decorations, showing her long, smooth-skinned legs. Her platinum blonde hair lay softly on her chest, enhancing the colors of her uniform and her well-endowed shapes.
The headmaster was leading them through the whispering corridors as she raised an eyebrow and suddenly yelled vigorously:
"Students, don't you have to attend classes?
Thus, proceed immediately to your classroom!"
All panicked left the scene, immediately rushing into their classrooms in a thunderous echo of footsteps.
"Oh-oh… Now we can walk freely." Monica whispered with satisfaction.
"It was a little scary, Master..." Cyn'Thia whispered in Jorael's ear.
"You shouldn't be afraid, Elf.
That's because you are not my student." The principal stressed smiling.
"She can hear you... and yes, she is a little scary..." Jorael said.
"Oh, dear ones, wouldn't you imagine this fragile woman to be evil?" Monica exclaimed jokingly.
"I'll pretend I haven't heard anything ...
So, have we arrived? "The Traveler asked checking the door that the headmaster stopped.
"Yes, this is the place.
Embrace yourselves, now the show begins!" Monica responded as she proceeded to open the door to the classroom. She walked into the room, leaving the adventurers in the corridor and she said:
"Excuse me, Professor Trevor, I'm sorry to disturb your lecture."
The man sitting at the desk was surprised to see the principal and asked:
"Madam Tramonte, you are not. Our lesson has not yet begun and we are honored to have you here with us this morning, but I have to ask, how can we help you?"
"I know it could be sudden...
but we have two transfer students joining your class!
Dear ones, you can enter the classroom..." Monica exclaimed as she motioned for the new students to enter.
As soon as Jorael and Cyn'Thia entered, screams of amazement and excitement permeated the classroom. The walls echoed and the floor trembled, but Professor Trevor did not stand there and watch without words:
"STUDENTS STOP!
Please... to show such rude behavior in front of your principal... "
"Oh-oh, don't worry my dear, I fully understand the excitement of young people..." the Storm Witch commented as she laughed while the rest of the students became silent.
"Principal!" suddenly shouted a student sitting in the middle of the class as he raised his hand.
"What is it, my dear?" Monica asked.
"Isn't it a slave Elf wearing our uniform?" the boy asked.
"And?" the headmaster replied irritably.
"Slaves are forbidden in the Academy!
Not even to mention the Elves...
If the slaves had been admitted, my mother would have already sent mine here..." the student said arrogantly.
"Um... Son of the House Vizier, if I remember correctly, isn't it?" the headmaster asked. As soon after the student nodded his head, Monica burst out shouting:
"FOOL OF A VIZIER!
Wouldn't you think that maybe I'm the principal of this Academy?
If I allow her to stay, she will stay."
The classroom fell silent as the walls nearly shook with the Storm Witch's demonstration of power.
"The pressure she emitted..." Jorael whispered to his aide.
"Now it is settled.
Professor Trevor, I leave the new students in your care.
Have a good lesson! "Monica said as she walked out of the classroom smiling, and then she loudly closed the door.
"Uh-um, now...
Would you introduce yourself to the class?" The professor asked looking at his new pupils.
"Master, what is this overwhelming feeling?!" Cyn'Thia whispered.
"Thia it's okay, it's just first-day anxiety...
I'll speak first." Jorael replied comforting his aide, and then he started introducing himself:
"Hello, I'm Jorael from The Gift and I enrolled in school late due to ... family problems.
She is my slave and I wish her to study at school.
Take care of us! "
"No family name? ... Another commoner..." the Vizier guy whispered with contempt.
"SILENCE!" the professor yelled, then resumed speaking:
"Wonderful... and you... er... Elf?"
A few seconds of silence passed, while Cyn'Thia was gaining some courage to speak:
"Er... Hello?!
I'm Cyn'Thia from Vas'Cyn of the Elven Realm...
Now I am a slave, but I want to study...
and... and... um...
MASTER IS NICE AND KIND!"
The class burst out laughing loudly as the Elf covered her flushed face with her hands. The laughing students began to whisper:
"She's so cute!"
"She was forced to say it..."
"I wonder what her naughty master makes her do..."
"SILENCE!" the professor shouted again, then calmly said to the new students:
"Well done, well done. Nice to meet you both.
You can sit down whenever you want... "
The adventurers left standing in front of the whole class and approached the first row of inexplicably empty seats, save for a beautiful blonde girl sitting alone in the center.
Jorael thought naively that the seats next to the girl were empty, which technically they were, but after he and Cyn'Thia sat there, suddenly another commotion started among students:
"How rude of him sitting there!"
"Is he dumb or what?"
As Jorael and Cyn'Thia both looked confused, the blonde girl just smiled in response and the professor yelled again:
"ENOUGH!
Enough of this nonsense!
If it suits her, as she has stated several times, they can sit there.
Now silence!
Let's start with the history lesson:
Then, as previously reported in the Sage memories of the Third Age..."
Therefore, the lesson finally began among almost all the bewildered students, the wonder of Cyn'Thia and Jorael lost in her thoughts.
"What did they mean by this?!
Why shouldn't we sit here?!
I'm a little confused here...
Nevertheless, Cyn'Thia did well... I'm not sure she's ever experienced the first day of school, most importantly as a transfer student. She was quite anxious, but she managed to get over it.
This brings me back to my old world... such memories of when I met Miranda in high school...
Oh... how much I miss you... and my son... Elijah…"
"JORAEL!" cried Professor Trevor, waking the Traveler from daydreams.
"Psss... Master! You were lost in your thoughts!" Cyn'Thia whispered anxiously.
"I understand that you are new here and it is your first day, but don't get distracted and follow my lesson!
Could you summarize what I explained about the Great Dragon?" Asked the man, convinced he was screwing his careless new student.
"Great Dragon or Dragons?" Jorael asked.
"What are you saying?!
There is no more than a Great Drag..." said the shocked Professor, only to be interrupted by a knowledge of the Sage:
"Then you must be addressing to Irk'dvan'llach, and not to his twin Irk'dvin'thum or younger brother Fafnir.
The Great Dragon Irk'dvan'llach was a native of the islands south of the Elven Realm, wherein the First Age he built his lair, between fire and gold, as his greed drove him to steal all the precious treasures of the world.
Fire was his breath, and it was considered a natural disaster, as his flame could easily melt rock and metal.
But one day, in the Second Age, he suddenly disappeared, leaving almost no traces.
There are rumors of Elves who have seen him fly North..."
"W-wait! Where are you getting all of this?!
It is not written in the textbook! "The professor complained as the rest of the students barely held back their laughter.
"Master! Stop attracting attention!" Cyn'Thia whispered worriedly.
"Shit, you're right!" Jorael whispered realizing he was wrong.
The blonde girl next to the adventurers was smiling and laughing, very amused by the scene provoked by the new student as Professor Trevor panicked as he checked the textbook.
The lesson then continued without any excess of knowledge of a Sage.
...
After the history lesson, it was time for a hands-on magic lesson.
The class moved to the Academy's inner courtyard, where there was a large space built only for magical training, which students could charm and cast spells at the training dummies. From a window of the third floor facing the courtyard, it could be barely seen a shadowy figure observing the students.
"I know what you are waiting for!
Practical skills of new students!" Professor Trevor urged while the rest of the students whispered:
"That rude peasant knowing spells?!"
"Will we see the cute Elf's White Magic?"
"Now... Jorael. Do you know any spell?" asked the professor.
"Yes, just a few..." the Traveler replied nonchalantly.
"A few? At your age? Prove it!" the man was provoking him to make up for the wrong suffered during the previous lesson.
"Uhm... maybe Firebolt?" Jorael asked.
"Oh... the most basic one.
Someone, let him see how a student of mine launch a Firebolt!" ordered the Professor, asking for a volunteer.
The crowd of students opened up and the blonde girl who had previously sat next to the adventurers asked to be a volunteer. She prepared herself concentrating while aiming for one of the mannequins, and with her suave voice charmed:
"For the glory of Her who created everything, I enchant Firebolt!"
A heptagram of Red Magic formed in front of her hand and a fireball the size of her head was successfully thrown at the training dummy, exploding as soon as it collided with the fake head.
"Wonderful, no wonder she is the best!" some students commented.
"Now it's your turn, new student!" the professor said in a provocative tone.
"As you wish, Professor ..." Jorael said confidently as he approached the same spot where the blonde girl had enchanted the spell.
She took the position, breathed heavily to relax, and falsely enchanted:
"For the glory of Her who created everything, I enchant Firebolt!"
Like the girl before him, a bright seven-pointed star formed in front of his hand, but to everyone's amazement, a flaming sphere the size of 2 mels formed and was thrown at the training dummy, engulfing it in the fire.
"W-w-wh-aaat ?!" the Professor exclaimed aloud with immense disbelief, while the rest of the students exploded excitedly cheering for Jorael:
"New student is actually amazing?!"
"Aw... he's as hot as his Magic..."
Cyn'Thia started shaking her head in disappointment, and then whispered to her master worriedly:
"Master! Again?! Stop!"
"Oops... I got it all wrong... ha-ha..." Jorael laughed.
While everyone was celebrating the new student's success, the blonde girl from earlier approached the Traveler and started talking:
"You sure know how to pick everyone's attention, Jorael is it?"
"Er ... I guess it's the beginner's luck ... and your name is?" the Traveler asked naively, but in response, he only got a strange expression from the girl.
"Uhm... Should I know you?" asked Jorael confused.
"Sigh... I nearly figured that when you sat beside me...
I knew... it wasn't possible... "the girl whispered, raising more questions to the adventurers.
"Excuse me, but I don't get it...
Just who are you?" asked again the Traveler even more confused.
"I'm... Vanessa Fasted.
The only heir and Princess of the Human Empire."