“Fifth-Circle Frost Master Mage, Professor Cynthia Vex, Head of the Department of Magical Warfare. Date of Death: Janviere 21st, 534. Suspected cause of death: Died in the defense of the Imperial Academy of the Combat Arts and the City of Thesali, being credited for the slaughter of eleven Specialist Black Mages that belonged to the Cynrdrian Empire’s Draugr Legion, named after a Dungeon Beast that was known for its vast mana reserves and the ability to recover fatal damage from all types of mana besides the esoteric light-attunement. Eventually slain by Krasiz Mahan, Fifth-Circle Black Master Mage and the butcher responsible for the complete destruction of Thesali. Known most for the Vex line of Spells that comprised only three spells in total, with each one being a Fifth-Circle Frost Spell and nicknamed the Ice Lady for becoming the youngest living master mage in the empire at the age of thirty one.”

  The boisterous voice made its presence known in Lucan’s mind and he froze, his steps coming to a grinding halt as he processed the contents of Silvas’ words.

  It didn’t surprise him that Cynthia, who was a valedictorian of the second year and a student with plenty of fire in her belly, would go on to become a Master Mage— maybe because he couldn’t understand or appreciate the significance of such an accomplishment yet, but that ultimately didn’t matter.

  It didn’t matter because once again, Silvas Anderle’s shadow had seen fit to remind him of the fact that everyone and everything in Nostura would die, including the fairly amiable senior he had just met, if Lucan Velmoria of all people didn’t try to change that outcome.

  “You have your Imperial Token on you, right?” Cynthia asked him as they walked along the cobblestone road that led to the Belvedere, except in the opposite direction.

  “Yeah,” Lucan absentmindedly replied. “I was worried that it would get stolen if I left it in my room.”

  “Who would steal from a—- ah,” Cynthia caught herself before she finished her sentence. “Well, you made a wise decision, because as long as you stay within the Thesali, your Imperial Token is your primary identification and access pass to any and all facilities in the academy.”

  “Right, I guess I would’ve gotten locked out if I forgot my Imperial Token,” Lucan muttered under his breath.

  “Happens all the time, your head butler can unlock the room for you,” Cynthia explained, having overheard Lucan. “So, where was I? Right, the academy’s facilities. That includes the training hall, which we are heading towards.”

  “Am I finally going to get to see what’s inside that tower?” Lucan asked, his attention forcibly brought back to the conversation at the mention of a training hall.

  “Eager, are we?” Cynthia teased. “I don’t blame you, but no. Most of the multi-disciplinary facilities are scattered on campus grounds, while the towers focus on specialist infrastructure.”

  “Like?” Lucan asked.

  “The Sanctum of Creation, where mages can cast inherited, learned or newly formed attempts at spells without fear of injuring themselves or those around them up to the fourth-circle in complexity and intensity. Sixteenth Floor of the Tower of Foundation, if you’re curious. The training hall we’re heading to is pretty lame in comparison, it just casts a Third-Circle Generalist Mana Shield on you through the formation spell that’s guarding the city if the attack isn’t intercepted before entering your kill radius.”

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  “A Third-Circle shield?” Lucan repeated after her, sounding completely out of his depth. “Isn’t that pretty impressive.”

  Cynthia, who had been taking brisk steps that took her across the campus, abruptly came to a halt.

  “Ugh, first years,” She muttered under her breath, before returning to her pace. “Well, you have a lot to learn, but that’s alright,” She nodded to herself, sounding satisfied. “Because I’m getting paid by the hour for this.”

  “That’s not what you said earlier,” Lucan pointed out.

  “Hey, your shadow mana is interesting. Really interesting. I’ll have you practice with it to see and figure out if I can learn something useful from you,” Cynthia energetically explained.

  As for the political stuff, well, as long as I just stick to my job, I’ll be fine. So don’t expect anything extra from me, I’m not trying to embroil myself in a succession dispute. But hey, you see that blue armband I’m wearing? Slackers don’t get those. I’ll do my best at getting you to the academy’s standard for a first year, on that you have my word.”

  A smile naturally creeped up on Lucan’s face. Cynthia Vex was competent, straightforward and had perfect clarity on what she wanted from life. She wasn’t just steering her ship in the direction she wished to go, she also knew where she was headed—- the exact opposite of Lucan Velmoria. And instead of being arrogant or obnoxious about it, so far she seemed earnest and friendly.

  He couldn’t help but admire her.

  The cobblestone road they were walking down had widened, approaching an avenue, being flanked by a row of trees on either side, whose leaves glittered in a vibrant gemstone green on either side. Flowerbeds had been strategically placed between the gaps in trees, revealing a vibrant range of hues from light pink to near incandescent orange and the undeveloped land in the campus seemed to be encompassed by a perfectly maintained lawn.

  “Outside of the towers, the academy is divided into four quadrants. The residential quadrant is where both noble and commoner students live, with a few administration buildings in between them. The training hall we’re heading to is in the activity quadrant, where you’ve got everything from heated swimming pools to gymnaseums that carry weights that are fit for trainee aura knights, though don’t worry, they have all enough range for us weaklings too. Then there’s the academic quadrant, where you’ve got the staff housing, the general library, study rooms and a bunch of other nerdy stuff,” Cynthia explained.

  “What about the fourth quadrant?” Lucan asked, as his curiosity got the better of him.

  “That’s the research quadrant. There’s everything there, from a bestiary that studies dungeon monsters and mana beasts to alchemic labs for making medicine and poisons. Best to stay away unless you know what you’re walking into, but don’t let me stop you,” Cynthia explained in an amused tone.

  “And you’ve got the towers in the center,” Lucan mumbled.

  “That you do. It’s been a year somehow and yet the towers still remain as mysterious as the day I stepped into the academy,” Cynthia said.

  “So, er, what am I going to learn today?”

  “Well,” Cynthia said as she arrived at a junction where the avenue met another cobblestone road. She took a left instead of continuing on straight and Lucan followed, before replying, “I need to assess your abilities before deciding how to train you. But we do have a semester together and things would go easier if I had your respect— so how about I give you a show first?”

  “A show?”

  Cynthia glanced back at him, before saying, “Would you like to see a Journeyman shattering that third-circle mana shield you were speaking so highly of?”

  She winked at him.

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