Transitioning between buildings, she entered a wider corridor with tall windows that let in the amber light of the afternoon. The echoes of conversations multiplied as she ascended a broad quartz staircase. Some students ran nervously with their satchels, worried about being late, while others chatted animatedly near the columns.
"Class 1-C," Lucy repeated to herself, scanning for a wooden plaque marking her classroom. A cold sweat beaded on her forehead—not from heat, but from nerves. At last, she spotted the door, elegant in its simplicity, with a bronze sign indicating her class.
Upon entering, she was greeted by a symphony of voices. Groups of students were forming early friendships, exchanging laughter and speculations about the teachers. Lucy felt a pang of envy, watching how easily some people connected on the first day. Her eyes roamed the room, searching for a seat far from everyone else, somewhere she could avoid as much attention as possible. She managed to slip through the still-unoccupied desks, and as she glanced at the crowd, she noticed an obvious center of attention: several girls had formed a tight circle. Their questions and exclamations bubbled around someone.
"What's your guardian's affinity?"
"Is it true you're a year older than us?"
Lucy lifted her head and recognized Alan, now surrounded by a swarm of classmates. A bead of sweat ran down the boy's face as he tried to process the sudden barrage of questions. His guardian lay lazily on the desk, seemingly indifferent, even as the girls petted him.
Alan sighed, and amidst the crowd, his eyes met Lucy's. Upon seeing her, he raised a nearly imperceptible hand in greeting. Lucy's stomach churned, and heat crept up her neck like a venomous serpent. She held his gaze for a moment, returned the gesture with a slight nod, and moved determinedly to avoid the cluster of girls. She chose a seat at the back of the room, where the noise began to fade.
The girls surrounding Alan noticed Lucy slipping away and exchanged whispers among themselves. Some giggled softly, while others observed her with distant curiosity. Lucy paid them little mind.
"Just my luck," she thought.
She sat down, setting Pico on the desk. She focused on her breathing, her fingers brushing against the rough surface of the notebook in her bag. She needed the familiar texture to ground herself. Lines she had written earlier that day fluttered in her mind.
The class was about to begin, and the teacher could enter at any moment. Lost in her thoughts, Lucy was startled by a voice at her side.
"Is this seat taken?"
Lucy turned from her notebook to meet the gaze of a girl with long chestnut hair framing purple eyes that glimmered with a hint of mischief. The girl wore the same dark uniform as the other students, but a red jacket draped over it set her apart. Lucy recognized her as one of the girls who had been around Alan. Before Lucy could react, those purple eyes locked onto hers, unflinching, and the girl raised an eyebrow.
"Hey…" Lucy's hair stood on end, as if sensing danger. "Your eyes…" Lucy braced herself for the comment she feared, the one that always came. "They're beautiful!"
The surprise left Lucy speechless. She opened her mouth but couldn't form any words. Finally, she turned her head slowly to confirm she hadn't misheard.
"What did you say?"
"I said your eyes are beautiful," the girl repeated. "I've never met anyone with two different-colored irises. And one of them is red. I didn't even know that was possible. Is it because of your magic?"
"No…" Lucy's voice dropped. "I was born like this."
"Really? That's the first time I've met someone like you," the girl said, her tone filled with genuine fascination, bordering on childlike excitement. "Oh, that's right. Silly me. I haven't even introduced myself." The girl settled into the empty seat beside Lucy and extended a friendly hand. "My name's Chloe Sirva. Nice to meet you."
"Lucy… Bright," Lucy replied, shaking her hand. Pico peeked out curiously to inspect the newcomer. "Oh, and this is Pico. My guardian."
"Pico? That's adorable."
Lucy remained bewildered by the situation. Normally, her eyes provoked rejection at first sight, but since arriving at the academy, this hadn't been as frequent. In just one day, three people hadn't flinched at meeting her gaze. Maybe… maybe attending the academy wasn't such a bad idea after all.
Suddenly, Chloe stopped petting Pico, her pupils darting around the room as if searching for someone. She wrinkled her nose impatiently.
"Where did she go now?"
Lucy tilted her head, intrigued. Then, she heard a faint noise coming from her bag. Leaning down, she discovered a small opossum nibbling on some cookies she had packed for the day. The anima, nearly as small as Pico, had a mischievous glint in its eyes.
"There you are!" Chloe exclaimed, gently scooping up the creature before it could scurry away again. In the process, the half-eaten cookie fell from its grasp, prompting a small, disgruntled squeak. Chloe held the opossum closer, her expression stern. "How many times have I told you to stop wandering off? You're so tiny; I could lose you at any moment."
Lucy observed the little creature wriggling in Chloe's hands. It reminded her of how fortunate she was to have a calm guardian like Pico. She had heard that many guardians caused significant trouble for their binders. If that were true, Lucy considered herself lucky.
After scolding her guardian, Chloe bowed her head unexpectedly, surprising Lucy. She wasn't sure how to react.
"I'm really sorry," Chloe said, making her guardian bow as well. "Trina always does whatever she wants. I'm sorry she ate your cookies."
Before Lucy could assure her it wasn't a problem, confident footsteps echoed at the back of the classroom. A young man entered with a commanding stride, wearing a green tunic. An enormous moth-like creature with iridescent wings flitted behind him. Lucy assumed he might be another student, but his attire differed from the others'. Reaching the front, he struck the desk with the book he held, silencing the room before he began to speak.
"There are more of you than I expected. I thought that, being the first day of class, some of you would skip, assuming we wouldn't cover much. I'm glad to see that's not the case."
Lucy guessed he must be the teacher, though his youthful appearance surprised her. He couldn't be much older than twenty-four. His light brown hair was neatly combed, and his calm blue eyes surveyed the room. He was slender but by no means frail.
"Young lady," he murmured as his gaze swept over the class. "When you're ready, could you please take your seat?"
Lucy turned to see Chloe still standing after having retrieved her guardian. Feeling the weight of everyone's stares, Chloe's cheeks flushed, and she quickly sat down beside Lucy.
"Sorry…"
"Don't worry about it."
The teacher checked the clock on the wall one last time. It was 4:35. His eyes scanned the room, where the students now sat silently, waiting for him to begin.
"Looks like no one else is coming," he said, stepping away from the podium to stand in front of the chalkboard. Raising his voice once more, he continued, "My name is Zareth Carlonni. You can call me Professor Carlonni if you like. I also accept nicknames. This is my first time teaching first-years, so I hope we'll get along well. This year, I'll be teaching you Anima Weaving, as well as Fundamentals of Anima. We won't dive too deep this week, but I will assign you some simple exercises to work on in your free time."
At that, the class erupted into a synchronized groan, taking it as if it were homework.
"Come on, come on. Don't worry; the exercises will be easy," he said, turning to the chalkboard and picking up a worn piece of chalk. He wrote two words and underlined them: Anima and Mana. Turning back to the students, he addressed them again. "This is a practical class, but I think it's best if you understand the basics. I'll start with an easy question. What is anima?"
The question hung in the air. Even the students who had been chatting enthusiastically moments ago fell silent, as if afraid they might be called upon. Lucy wanted to raise her hand, but at the same time, she didn't want to draw the class's attention. The less they knew about her, the better. Carlonni surveyed the room before speaking again.
"No one?" A smile spread across his face. "I'll give one extra point to whoever answers."
Suddenly, almost every hand shot up. Even Chloe raised her hand, though Lucy refrained. Carlonni scanned the eager students with a satisfied grin. No one could resist extra points. His eyes roamed over the raised hands until they landed on Lucy's row.
"The girl at the back. What's your name?"
Lucy's stomach dropped, a tingling panic spreading through her chest. She stared at her unmoving fingers on the desk, dreading that she might have been chosen without raising her hand. A murmur swept through the rows as other students turned to see who had been called. Lucy's pulse pounded in her temples. Fortunately, Carlonni's gaze was fixed on the girl beside her.
"Chloe Sirva."
Hearing her name, Professor Carlonni raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised. Some students began murmuring, further confusing Lucy.
"So it's her," someone whispered. "The third daughter of the Sirva family?"
"I didn't expect to see her here," said another.
"She has a strong presence, but she's so beautiful."