Lucas sat on the shuttle to Arcanum Academy.
As he boarded the bus, he saw the approaching Imperial agents, the timing was perfect.
Ela's appearance had already caused enough chaos in Storm City. Whatever covert operations the administration had planned for the Seawall District would have to be called off to support Arcanum Academy.
Outside the window, city buildings twisted and blurred as they sped past due to the spatial transition.
At a certain point, the darkness of night was instantly replaced by the brightness of day, and the academy shuttle was traveling through a picturesque field.
At the end of the road stood a castle reminiscent of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
This was Arcanum Academy.
Arcanum Academy had a history spanning over a thousand years. Originally located within Storm City, it was called Arcanum Magic Academy.
Later, the Arcanum mages discovered a stable subspace within Storm City and moved the academy there.
Storm City, being an open port city, influenced the educational style of Arcanum Magic Academy.
Arcanum Magic Academy was the first in the Argent Empire to establish non-magical disciplines, eventually changing its name to "Arcanum Academy."
In fields such as magic, alchemy, steam technology, mechanics, and extraordinary research, Arcanum Academy was a world leader.
Its excellence and inclusivity attracted renowned scholars from all over the world and the best students from the empire.
As the academy shuttle traveled along the field road, other shuttles picking up students also appeared on the road.
The subspace's day and night cycle was opposite to that of the main space, and today was the first day of the new week.
Therefore, Lucas encountered many students returning to school after spending the weekend at home.
The academy shuttles uniformly stopped at the square outside the academy gates, soon filling the square with students in uniform.
As they disembarked, Mark Wilson called out to the girl who had sat next to Lucas, "Lydia, wasn't Professor Ela sitting with you? Where is she now?"
Lydia looked around, puzzled. "Professor Ela? She got off the bus with me just a moment ago, but now she's gone."
Their companions jumped to look through the crowd but couldn't find the elven professor who had accompanied them.
"Stop looking. Since Professor Ela is here to complete her hiring process, we'll definitely see her again in the academy."
"All right…" Mark said, slightly disappointed.
By this time, Lucas was already walking down the main avenue inside Arcanum Academy.
In reality, if it weren't for the need to attract the attention of the Imperial agents, Lucas had many ways to enter the subspace where Arcanum Academy was located.
After all, this was a place where players collected recipes and learned skills, and it also had many interesting academy-style plots.
As a very old academy, it also contained many mysterious artifacts.
Lucas naturally greeted students and staff along the way, acting like a friendly elven adjunct professor, and then entered the academy library.
The Arcanum Academy Library was a four-story building in the style of a centuries-old fortress.
It was one of the oldest educational buildings still in use and hid many secrets, making it the site of numerous paranormal plotlines.
Being Monday morning, the library was almost empty.
Lucas walked up the spiral staircase in the hall to the basement level and found Reading Room 36.
A dim light bulb illuminated the small, ten-square-meter room, with bookshelves lining the walls, filled with books.
However, these books were covered in dust, indicating that the librarian didn't prioritize cleaning this area.
Lucas pulled a book from the shelf and brushed off the dust.
"The Relationship Between Curses and Mysticism"
Author: Lowell Felix.
He opened the front page:
Is curse magic a branch of mysticism? Is mysticism a branch of curse magic? These are two very interesting questions!
In its early years, after reaping the benefits of opening up its curriculum, Arcanum Academy had a period where it accepted any academic pursuit without hesitation. Various ideas erupted like wild horses.
Mysticism, being one of the oldest academic disciplines, was highly valued at Arcanum Academy during that time.
The self-assured mages tried to find the fundamental principles of mysticism and establish a comprehensible and usable academic structure, ending its reliance on experiential knowledge.
If they succeeded, mysticism could have become a great discipline comparable to magic and alchemy.
However, despite their progress in all other academic fields, the mages of Arcanum Academy encountered significant setbacks in mysticism.
Several mystical disasters and a group of mages who went mad from their obsession with mysticism nearly led to the academy's downfall.
After that catastrophe, Arcanum Academy removed mysticism from its curriculum and imposed heavy restrictions on its research.
Many books and materials related to mysticism were destroyed. The remaining ones were mostly historical accounts and analyses of mysticism, with none on practical application.
These books were concentrated in this small Reading Room 36, a remnant of mysticism's once glorious past.
Lucas, engrossed in "The Relationship Between Curses and Mysticism," lost track of time.
Outside Arcanum Academy, a large convoy of cars carrying Imperial agents and sheriffs arrived.
But they were all stopped at the academy gates by the mages of Arcanum.
"I am Senator Kipling Virgil," announced the senator as he stepped forward, surrounded by agents and sheriffs, addressing the mages blocking the gate.
"We have received credible information that a very dangerous individual has entered Arcanum Academy. For the safety of the children, please allow us to search the premises."
"Good day, Senator," greeted the mage blocking the gate, bowing before speaking confidently,
"Arcanum Academy has a comprehensive defense system. If a dangerous individual has entered the academy, we will handle it ourselves. It might even be a good practical exercise for our students."
Virgil responded sternly, "You have no idea how dangerous this individual is. She has killed over a hundred people in the Seawall District and likely possesses the 'Heart of the Red Dragon Nielcolone.' She purchased all the summoning materials last night.
Now she has entered your academy!
If you don't want the students' practical exercise to involve facing a raging red dragon, let us in!"
Hearing the possibility of a red dragon being summoned inside the academy, the mage's confidence in the academy's defenses wavered.
However, he still did not immediately grant access.
"Please wait, Senator Virgil. I will report this matter to our headmaster immediately."
"Hurry up!" Virgil urged the mage, then called Boner over, "Arcanum Academy holds a very special status. Let me ask you again, are you sure that female elf named Ela entered the academy?"
Boner replied, "Yes, my men and I saw her board the Arcanum Academy shuttle with our own eyes. The license plate number was Arcanum 24. You can confirm with the mage who was on the shuttle."