Year 1345 of the Starlight Calendar, Month of Flowing Fire (July).
The Starlight Academy's teleportation plaza was bustling with activity.
At the center of the plaza, over a dozen teleportation arrays were arranged in a circular formation. Every moment, people arrived through the arrays, while others stepped into them to depart.
On the edge of the plaza, Donohan stood watching the arrays, occasionally glancing at his pocket watch.
After a few minutes, his eyes lit up, and he waved toward someone stepping out of a teleportation array.
"Fleming, over here!"
Several students nearby, drawn by Donohan's voice, turned to look. Their gazes immediately fixed on the gray-robed figure with a badge marking him as a Third-Level Wizard Apprentice, their expressions turning serious.
"That's a Third-Level Wizard Apprentice. Is he one of the Academy's instructors?"
"Not necessarily. He could be a Star Alliance officer."
"Wait, he looks familiar… Oh! I remember! That's Fleming, the one who was the fastest to advance to Third-Level Apprentice after Shaman and Corey!"
"Ah, so it's him!"
Under the admiring gazes of the students, Fleming crossed the plaza and joined Donohan.
"You're quite the celebrity in the Academy now," Donohan teased.
Fleming chuckled. "If we're talking fame, Senior Shaman and Senior Corey are the real big names. Nobody remembers the third-place guy."
"Yeah, right. Third place isn't impressive enough, huh? I didn't even make it onto the ranking," Donohan retorted with mock annoyance.
Fleming laughed and asked, "You should be close to advancing, right?"
"Almost there. Another two or three years, I think."
"Have you decided where you'll go afterward?"
"I don't have much choice—I'll have to join the Star Alliance."
As the number of Third-Level Wizard Apprentices grew, the Academy's teaching positions began to exceed demand. The qualifications for becoming an instructor were raised, requiring apprentices to either construct at least twelve Stellar Rings or demonstrate achievements in one of four specialized fields—Potion Making, Puppet Crafting, Magical Item Creation, or Biological Modification—and pass an assessment.
Those who didn't meet the criteria had two options: remain as students or join the Star Alliance.
While the latter required fulfilling certain obligations, it came with generous monthly subsidies, making it the preferred choice for most apprentices who didn't qualify as instructors.
Fleming was no exception. However, he was set to complete his twelfth Stellar Ring next year, at which point he could apply for the instructor assessment.
The benefits of being an instructor at the Academy far exceeded those of a Star Alliance officer.
After chatting for a while, the two decided to head to the cafeteria for a meal.
With the growing number of students, the Academy had added several new cafeterias over the years.
Fleming and Donohan opted to eat at the second cafeteria, where they'd dined during their first year.
The dishes, which once seemed exorbitantly priced, were now trivial expenses for Fleming.
They ordered a few dishes, and the water sprites quickly delivered the food.
Seeing Fleming ignore the water sprites, Donohan teased, "Judging by your indifference, you must've spent plenty of time playing with those water sprites hidden in your manor, huh?"
Fleming rolled his eyes. "I've been busy opening up a subgrade mana stone vein for months. I haven't even set foot in my city manor this whole time."
Donohan's curiosity was piqued. "I heard this time it's a large subgrade mana stone vein?"
"That's right, and Senior Artiel led the team."
"Senior Artiel, huh." Donohan's face showed open envy. "She's so lucky to be Lord Starfall's assistant. I hear even Carolina and the Red Widow treat her with great respect now."
Fleming smiled. "Senior Artiel is one of the teacher's truly recognized students. Even without her position as an assistant, those two wouldn't dare disrespect her."
"That's different. How many people in the entire Alliance outrank Senior Artiel now?"
Donohan took a bite of fish and swallowed before continuing. "I still don't get it, though. With so many people participating in the assessment, why did Lord Starfall specifically choose Senior Artiel as her assistant? Even if you exclude the rest, Senior Shaman and Senior Ethan were in the running too."
Fleming hesitated briefly before lowering his voice. "I heard it's because Lord Starfall is female, so she chose Senior Artiel."
Donohan's eyes widened. "Seriously?"
"It's just a rumor. I'm not sure if it's true," Fleming shrugged. "After all, only the highest-ranking individuals have ever seen Lord Starfall in person."
"And where did this rumor come from?"
"Supposedly from Lord Amy."
Donohan immediately understood. Among the Star Alliance's ranks, few individuals wielded no official power yet held unassailable status, but Lord Amy was one of them.
Her origins were a mystery, and her movements were unpredictable. She wasn't Lord Su Nan's familiar, yet she enjoyed his unwavering favor and protection. Her position was unshakable.
Amy was also reputedly knowledgeable about the wizarding world, often teaching even the instructors. If she claimed something, it was likely true.
After some gossip, their conversation shifted to Academy matters.
"Anything interesting happening at the Academy lately?" Fleming asked casually.
"Not much, though…" Donohan trailed off, then his expression brightened. "Actually, there is one thing."
"What's that?"
"The Academy recently installed a magical device called the Eye of the Star. It came from the Star Alliance and can monitor the Academy's energy particle fluctuations. Anyone casting spells outside designated areas like training or experiment zones is detected immediately and given a warning."
"Last month, two students dueled privately and got caught. Not only were they fined a hefty sum of contribution points, but they're also still serving detention."
Fleming was surprised. "A device like that exists?"
"Of course. It's in the monitoring hall right now. If you're curious, you should visit. This month, Instructor Innocent is on duty there, and I remember he thinks highly of you. You might get a chance to see it up close."
Fleming hesitated briefly before his curiosity won out. "Alright, let's go see Instructor Innocent."
The monitoring hall was a tall white building in the Academy's central district.
Outside, a squad of Elite Twin-Blade Spiders—each led by five legendary-tier spiders—stood ready to respond to any violations detected by the Eye of the Star.
Entering the hall, the first thing Fleming noticed was a massive crystalline orb in the center. Shaped like an elongated eye, its interior displayed a detailed, three-dimensional model of the Academy.
Tiny green, yellow, and blue dots moved across the model, numbering in the thousands.
Fleming was about to step closer for a better look when a staff member stopped him.
"Do you have authorization to use the Eye of the Star?"
Donohan quickly explained. "We're here to see Instructor Innocent."
Before the staff could respond, a voice interrupted, "It's fine. I'll handle them."
Turning, they saw Innocent approaching, and the staff immediately stepped aside respectfully.
Under Innocent's guidance, Fleming marveled at the device.
"Lord Starfall designed this as the first prototype, specifically for testing in the Academy," Innocent explained.
"It can detect all lifeforms within its range that emit energy particle fluctuations above a certain threshold. Once a target is recorded, it's monitored in real time until it leaves the range."
Innocent demonstrated how to zoom out to display the entire district, revealing even the distant Starlight Wizard Tower.
As Fleming and Donohan watched, a sudden alarm blared from the Eye of the Star.
They turned to see a red light flashing over the Starlight Wizard Tower.
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