After finishing their delicious lunch, Arthur and Morgan's had one hour off. No one had approached their table, and that made them very happy.
They were very fond of their personal space, not to mention that they had no desire to waste time making small talk with a bunch of kids.
Despite their physical appearance, Arthur and Morgan's mind was that of an adult who had lived for almost forty years between their three lives.
Except for being hormonal due to their teenage body, and being addicted to oxygen, there was nothing they had in common with their classmates.
From that perspective, isolation was a blessing in disguise. If they spoke to no one, it was impossible for anyone to notice how different they were from their peers.
Arthur and Morgan's had spent the time during their meal discussing the temporary lack of academy's class books. Both of them complained about the fact that the academy would only release the books after the first day of class, considering it unfair.
"It's such a pity," they thought. "If we had them, we could already put them into a reference system, getting light-years ahead of the other students. Instant knowledge!"
"Yeah, but I can understand the importance of this rule. Specializations are exclusive classes of the six big academies.
"If they just delivered them to the students' homes before the beginning of the year, their contents would be accessible to all the family members. This kind of knowledge can't be released without supervision," Arthur reasoned.
"And what about once the students get the opportunity to go back home, at the end of the trimester?" Morgan asked.
Arthur mentally shrugged and then stood up from the chair, walking toward their room.
"By that time, they already have gained the status of students. According to what Linjos told us in his office, they are both protected and kept under surveillance. My guess is that books can't leave the academy's premises.
"The only things one can take out, are what they have learned or copied in their grimoire. If you love your family, you will not put them in danger by disclosing state secrets that could cost them their and your life.
"If you hate them, instead, the moment they try to coerce you, you just need to rat them out to get rid of them for good. It's a win-win situation."
Once back in their room, Arthur called their parents. They had left home only seven hours ago, yet the enthusiasm they were greeted with made it seem as if they had disappeared for years.
"My little baby!" Elina was on the verge of tears. "Are they treating you all right? Are you eating properly?"
"Yes, mom. Everything is fine," they lied through their teeth. "The professors I met today were all amazing. My classmates are kinda stuck-up, but so far so good. Not to mention the food. I wish I could bring you some, it's just wonderful."
Contrary to their expectations, time flew by, and they were forced to leave Tista in a hurry after giving her a consult about a patient of hers.
All the activities related to each year took place on their own floor. The problem was that each floor was so big that getting lost or taking a long detour was pretty easy. In Arthur's case, they had miscalculated the time needed to reach the classroom.
Only when they heard the resounding gong that announced the beginning of the lessons did they realize how long they had spent chatting.
"Damn! The first thing I'm going to re-invent as soon as I become a Forgemaster is a damn wristwatch. How the heck do people keep track of the time?" they muttered.
Despite their best efforts, they were the last one to arrive. Luckily, the professor in charge had yet to show up. According to the schedule, Arthur would have met Professor Marth, the very same Marth that had created Blood Resonance magic.
It was a great opportunity for Arthur to get his attention, and maybe, if the opportunity arose, to share some of their knowledge with Marth. Having one of the Light department's top experts as their backer, or even better as a mentor, could be a real game-changer.
"Be cool, and try not to sound desperate," they thought.
"We have a full year ahead together, maybe even two. I need to play my cards right and keep my admission's score while improving my status. I don't give a damn about friends, and the other students are useless.
"Allies, on the contrary, can help me keep my family safe from the likes of Duke Hestia and provide me with the resources I'll need to equip my own Forgemaster laboratory. I can't waste years grinding away for gold; I need time to travel and find the answer to my resurrection problem."
The classroom was much smaller than the one for the mandatory lessons. It was a square room, with each side twelve meters (39 feet). In front of the chalkboard, there were three rows of desks, separated by small corridors.
It could comfortably accommodate up to fifty students, yet according to their calculations, there were only twenty-six students attending, Arthur included. They occupied the closest spot to the chalkboard, sitting near the other students.
When they threw a mean glare at them, they just took out the Ballot, forcing them to shut up and mind their own business. After what had happened that morning, they didn't dare move away from them.
Also, because doing that would mean getting even farther from the chalkboard and the professor. The floor was flat, making it hard to see through all the heads in front of them already.
The man who walked into the room was outstanding in his own way. He was quite short, barely over 1.55 meters (5'1") tall, and at least sixty years old.
The top of his head was completely bald, the hair he had left on the sides was snow-white, and so was his waxed handlebar mustache. His belly was so big that it made it hard to guess if he was larger than he was high.
That, together with his pure white robe, made him resemble a real-life Humpty Dumpty.
The black-haired girl was simply outraged. She belonged to one of the ancient noble families, admired and respected throughout the Griffon Kingdom. She had always been treated like a princess of royal blood; no one had ever dared disrespect her.
Now, not only did she have to endure all those harsh words, but she also had no way to bite back at Professor Vastor. Threatening a mage belonging to an academy was like spitting towards the sky—it would always backfire.
All they had to do to put an end to her career as a healer was to give her a bad evaluation. Having five siblings and being at the bottom of the line of succession, magic was her only redeeming feature.
She could only swallow her pride and answer:
"The lower tiers of light magic have two insurmountable limits. The first being that light magic can only enhance the recovery of the patient. If they suffered from an excessive blood loss or are already on the verge of death, healing magic is useless.
"The second limit…"
"Okay, enough. Your turn, edgy face," Vastor cut her short, pointing his finger at Arthur and Morgan's.
"The second limit is that it cannot regrow lost body parts, be it organs or limbs. Clean-cut fingers or extremities can be reattached, but only if well-preserved and within an hour from the amputation."
"Correct and correct!" Vastor almost sounded disappointed.
"Now, who can tell me how, hypothetically, the first issue could be solved?"
Everyone raised their hand, once again.
"You, with the pauper face," he said to a petite girl with long brown hair, sitting a few desks away from Arthur and Morgan's. Because of her small and scrawny build, it was hard to imagine her being twelve years old; she barely looked like she was a day past eight.
Clearly, she had suffered from malnutrition for a long time. Arthur and Morgan's sixth sense told them that the academy's uniform was probably the first pretty clothes she had ever had.
With all the stress from her first day of academy, the threats and insults from Professor Vastor had been the last straw for her. When she tried to answer, only hiccups came out as she fought back her tears.
'What a d*ck,' Arthur and Morgan's thought.
Their hand instinctively played with the Ballot, but they didn't activate it. It was her problem, not theirs. She had done nothing for them when they had been bullied twice that morning, so they had no reason to bother helping her.
Their movements, though, didn't escape Professor Vastor's eyes.
'Oh, for fck's sake! I had almost forgotten about the bum with the Ballot. If that thing is recording and they bother reporting me to the Headmaster, I will be in deep sht.
'Linjos has made it crystal clear that professors' tough love is now considered bullying, and has tried more than once to fire me. He's just waiting for an excuse to replace me with one of his angry lackeys. Dammit, I'm too old to lose such a good job.'
"I'm so sorry, young miss. I didn't mean to offend you. There, there. Take your time before answering," his voice was suddenly all milk and honey, offering her a handkerchief from his chest pocket.
Despite her frail looks, she needed but a second to compose herself.
"The only way to do it…" she replied, sniffing from time to time,
"…would be to somehow infuse the patient with an external source of life force. But that's impossible. I worked as a healer since I was six years old; I've tried countless spells and always failed.
"Light magic cannot create or pass energy, only nourish what is already there."
The whole class nodded.
'Heck if I know,' Arthur and Morgan's thought. 'The only patients I have ever failed were those that arrived too late to be saved. Not even my true magic could transfuse life force.'
"Correct, young miss!" This time Vastor sounded genuinely happy. The class was starting to think he suffered from severe mood swings.
"And don't worry, here at the light department we will fix your growth problem in a snap, you have my word." After making sure that he was out of the hole he had dug for himself, he resumed using his snarky tone.
"The little one is right; light magic cannot do it. No matter how talented the mage or how complex the spell, it's impossible. Yet tier four light magic can. Anyone want to take an educated guess?"
The classroom fell silent; no hand was raised.
Professor Vastor sneered at their ignorance, puffing out his chest.
"Oh, oh, oh! Seems you still have much to learn. But you have come to the right place. The answer is: it's only possible by mixing it with darkness magic."