For several of the most embarrassing minutes of her life, Lilijoy walked slowly in pursuit of the round spiked back of her enraged mentor. She was careful to stay at least twenty feet away, which was not easy, as his walking pace was about half of what she preferred. No wonder Rosemallow doesn’t wait for me, she thought. Up stairs and down halls and up more stairs they went, until Lilijoy was beginning to wonder if he was taking the longest possible way to wherever they were going on purpose, perhaps so he could plan a fitting punishment for her.

After descending a long spiral staircase, they reached a short hall with three doors, one on each wall. He approached the door at the end of the hall, while Lilijoy hung back at the bottom of the stairs. She was far enough back that she couldn’t quite make out what he did, but with a mirage-like wave of light, a small round door appeared, set within the material of the larger door. He quickly opened the door and passed through it, slamming it shut and leaving Lilijoy alone in the hall as the new opening faded.

After waiting a minute to avoid further encroachment on her mentor, she approached the large door and knocked lightly, stepping back after she did. There was no response, so she repeated the action with a slightly firmer knock. After that didn’t elicit a response, she settled down in the middle of the hall.

He knows I’m here. I shouldn’t make things worse by banging on his door, she thought.

She sat cross-legged on the floor and began an exercise Rosemallow had shown her, holding Flash without moving, just learning to breath slowly. After some time had passed the large door creaked open by an inch. Taking this for an invitation to enter, she turned off Flash and approached with caution.

When she entered the room beyond, she found herself in a bare room that contained a series of stone platforms cut from the floor at various heights, arrayed almost as a spiral of steps. Her mentor stood on the tallest, looking down on her, four or five feet above her head.

“What do you have to say for yourself young human?” he asked from his lofty perch. His voice was high pitched and quavering.

“I’m so sorry!” Lilijoy bowed her head. “It will never happen again, I promise.” She wanted to say more to explain herself, but couldn’t think of any way to say, ‘You were just so adorable I couldn’t help myself,’ without making her situation worse.

“We shall see about that!” he exclaimed with a huff of breath. His quills rippled in a wave from head to foot, and he crossed his tiny arms, which could barely meet in front of his round form. Lilijoy felt a dangerous wave of cuteness wash over her and she quickly repressed it with thoughts of Betty and Sweetums.

“Very well,” he continued. “My name is Professor Anaskafius. You will address me as Professor Anaskafius and use one of my titles at all times. You may use your ‘Scan’ ability to see my titles now.” He emitted a little grunting snort.

Betty and Sweetums, Betty and Sweetums. Must not lose control… She focused on his round little body and squinted, hoping to activate Scan. She concentrated as hard as she could, but no titles or other information appeared. After several more attempts; closing one eye, looking over his head, and even rapidly blinking, she heard another snorting noise from her mentor.

“Oh, for goodness sake, you must say the word! Abilities you have not used require you to speak until you have sufficient familiarity.”

That made sense.

She looked up at him and said, “Scan.”

Professor Anaskafius

Destroyer of Skrrrbbllfmnt

Victor of the Battle of Mmmmmnmm

Teacher of Foolish Girls

Level: ?

She heard several more of his little snorts, but when she looked, he was glaring back at her.

“Go on then!” He barked. His quills were rippling again.

“Professor Anaskafius, Destroyer of…Skerererbubl…” she lost it somewhere in the middle of the stream of consonants. “Destroyer of Skerererbubelofminit?”

He sighed in exasperation. Made another snort. “Not even close. Just use the last one for now.”

“Professor Anaskafius, Teacher of Foolish Girls, I apologize for my…” at this point, she was interrupted by a stream of snorting grunts from the platform above her. She looked up to see that he had curled up into a ball and was rolling back and forth, snorting uncontrollably.

Oh my god, what have I done now? she thought. After another minute, he uncoiled and, wiping one eye with a little paw, sat down with his legs dangling over the edge his perch.

“Oh, if you could only see the look on your face!” he said, before losing his composure once again. “I got you so good! I have to say, this is one of my best introductions ever.” He looked down at her, a relaxed expression on his face. “Do you have any idea how hard it was not to laugh when you were trying to say that pile of consonants I put up for you?”

Lilijoy was uncertain what was happening.

“And I was like…” he resumed his imperious character, “Young lady, this is very serious, and you were like ‘oh no, my teacher hates me.” He chuckled. “This has been your first Charm lesson. My apologies, but certainly not regrets.”

He hopped down from one platform to another until he was on the ground with her. A wave of his hand and another small door appeared.

“Join me in my den, oh Emily of the correct size,” he said ushering her through the round entrance.

His den was snug, with a low ceiling, thick rugs and tapestries and a small stove tucked at one end. There were several low, curvy wooden chairs, and a plush couch. Everything was in shades of brown, with little bursts of red here and there. He offered her the couch and she sat, marveling at a piece of furniture that allowed her feet to reach the ground.

“I keep the couch for my non-spiky friends,” he said as he puttered over to the stove, his quills waving around his back in a pleasing swirling pattern. “Would you like some tea?”

This sudden change of attitude had caught Lilijoy off guard, but she had just enough mental capacity to say. “Yes, please.” She had never had tea before, but the characters in several of the books she had read seemed to like it and she was looking forward to seeing what all the fuss was about.

While he was making tea, he said, “I suppose you’ve been feeling pretty confused by all this, being an Outie and all, and not an educated Outie at that. If I know Rosemallow, your esteemed trainer has focused more on beating you to a pulp than actually educating. Not that I am arguing with her techniques; she is legendary for her uniquely effective methodology. But it falls to me, and the others you will learn from, to fill in any gaps. If you would be so kind, it would be most helpful to see your character sheet – if you focus on the mode, you can send me a stripped-down version, omitting anything sensitive. I would suggest doing that with other teachers, even me, if you have something you don’t wish me to know. Of course, at the moment, I believe I already know much of the juicy stuff.”

She pulled up her sheet, found the mode he suggested and sent it to him.

Name: Emily Level: 9

Defender of the Young

Dark Lady of the Thorns

Blessed of Nandi

Free Points: 110*

Natural Traits

STR: 20

END: 56

SPD: 57

KA: 152

Magical Traits

POW: 11

INV: 34

VIT: 13

FLASH: 35

Abilities

Scan II

Echolocation IV

Infrared Vision III

Low Light Vision II

Two Minds One Self

She noted with pleasure her great leap forward in Strength, and even a point in Endurance. Scanning down, she saw that Echolocation had moved up a tier, and made a note to ask about that. He took a minute to look over the sheet, before rendering his opinion.

“Very good. Truly an excellent trial Emily. I note that you left off all the descriptions, which I think is an excellent idea. If someone needs to know more, they can always ask. If I were you, I would consider leaving off Two Minds One Self altogether. I already knew about it; indeed, it is one of the reasons I agreed to teach you.” He looked over the sheet once more.

“Do you have any questions so far?”

“How do I see what my titles do? Oh, and why did my Echolocation go up a tier? I didn’t put any points in it.”

“The titles are simple enough. Now that you understand some of your traits, you can focus on the title itself for a full explanation. That is omitted in tutorial mode, as it is assumed you don’t have the context to understand the bonuses yet.”

She focused on her titles and achievements and now it said:

Defender of the Young (Very Rare)

You saved 18 children from certain death in a no-win scenario. This is a unique achievement.

+1 to INV per child saved / +18 INV total

Dark Lady of the Thorns (Unique)

You have become a legendary figure to the Goblin race. The stories will only grow.

+25 to Charm: Plant

Feared/Awed Reputation with Goblin Race +1200 RP

Blessed of Nandi (Unique)

You have received a boon from Nandi the Gatekeeper

Soulbound Artifact

Reality Bender (Legendary)

The Inside will never be the same. You have invented a unique ability: Two Minds, One Self

+20 Direct Free Points to any single Trait, Skill or Ability

Understanding the rewards gave her a sense of accomplishment, but now she had even more questions. She started to ask Professor Anaskafius, but he cut her off with a gentle hand gesture.

“Before we add more questions to the list, let me finish your previous question and give you today’s lesson. I suspect it will answer at least one of your other inquiries. Now, as to your Echolocation ability: Typically, abilities can only be raised by free points, unlike base skills and natural attributes. However, when an ability is shared between the Inside and Outside, you will sometimes see it rise through practice. Make sense?” He raised a tiny eyebrow to her.

She nodded happily.

“Good! Now I have three more magic traits to share with you.” He handed her a paper.

Charm: (Cost to Raise)

Sentients: 28 (5)

Animals: 62 (2)

Plants: 41 (1)

“These are your current Charm attributes. Charm represents the ability to affect another being through thoughts and actions. As a magical trait, it allows certain kinds of influence that would be impossible otherwise, up to the ability to utterly dominate another creature permanently. It is one of the most subtle and dangerous powers, and not to be used lightly, particularly where sentient beings are concerned.” He watched her carefully as he spoke, and she felt compelled to nod vigorously at this point.

“Don’t mind control people for fun,” she said. “Got it.”

He chuckled. “Well, maybe for a little good-natured fun? You see, I used charm on you when we first met. While I am undoubtedly one of the most attractive beings you will have the pleasure to encounter...” he gave a little bow, causing Lilijoy to giggle. “It would be very unlikely for you to behave as you did without a little nudge.”

He took on a serious expression again. “However, it was just a demonstration. In our training together, I will often charm you, so that you might learn how to resist, and also emulate my methods. But henceforth it will always be with your consent, which I will ask at the beginning of each session. When you are out of the Academy, charm is easily the most perilous ability you will face. Can you think why that might be?”

“Because they could learn all my secrets?” she said. “And make me do things to get me in trouble.”

“Oh yes, a charm master in the Garden is dangerous indeed. For example, you could be convinced to leave the Garden for Purgatory, where your vulnerability would be quite extreme. Luckily, most charm masters take great care to keep a low profile, and masters of sentient charm are rare indeed. If you look back at the figures I gave you, you will see that it takes five free points to raise a single point of sentient charm. It requires a certain single-mindedness to spend all your points on that attribute, and sentient charm masters are usually very weak in other areas.”

He looked at her, giving an opportunity for questions.

“So how does it work?”

“Exactly the issue! There is more to charming or beguiling then just one simple trait. You also need to acquire certain skills to go with it. Sentient beings have been charming, tricking and swindling each other without any need for magic for as long as there have been people. If you rely only on your charm trait and not skills of manipulation or deception, your efforts would be weak indeed. As for animals and plants, they are guided by their own instincts and natural intelligence; in order to charm those, you must understand their desires, their needs and inclinations. This also requires certain skills, such as animal taming, or herbalism.”

He took off his little round gasses and wiped them on his tattered vest, then jumped up off his seat.

“Oh dear, I have over-steeped our tea!”

He poured it into two tiny cups and handed one to Lilijoy. She rejoiced in a cup she could comfortably hold in one hand, despite the odd handle shaped for his paws.

“With your permission, I would like to give you another demonstration, explaining as we go. Is that acceptable to you? There will never be any consequence to refusing. In fact, as my master did before me, I will offer you a small ruby worth five gold pieces for refusing. You would get the gem, and we would move on to other studies.”

He pulled a small red gem from a pocket in his vest and placed it next to Lilijoy.

“Is that a lot?” she asked.

He looked taken aback for a moment. “Has no one explained currency and economics on the Inside to you? Well, suffice to say that this would represent a good six months of work to a common laborer, while to a successful adventurer of average level, it would represent several weeks of risky endeavor. I am sure you can find a good explanation from the mystic library, or even from sources available to you Outsiders. Anyway, the choice is yours: charm or gem?

This was not a difficult decision. “Charm.”

“Great! I will be using a skill called Manipulation along with my Charm trait. You have this skill as well, and I have just unlocked it for you.”

Skill Unlocked: Augmented(3) Apprentice(3) of Manipulation (VP = 9)

“As you can see, there are two parts to a skill, which multiply together to produce the ‘Value Points’. You can learn more about the system later. I will start by using an amount of skill exactly similar to yours, though I will use more as we go along. My Sentient Charm trait is forty-six, due to some poor decisions in a misspent youth.”

Lilijoy tried and failed to imagine Professor Anaskafius as a juvenile delinquent.

“Now my dear, I think you will find that this tea in your hand is in fact the most pleasing beverage you have ever come across. Won’t you please take a sip?”

Her nose warned her, long before the cup reached her lips. The liquid was dark and extremely bitter, the feel in her mouth was astringent, and created a lingering sense of puckering in all the soft tissues of her tongue and gums. She made a face and shuddered.

Nope, nope, nope. Working her lips and scraping her tongue with her teeth she looked at the little hedgehog with reproach.

“That’s the worst thing I’ve ever tasted!” she spat.

“Good. Now we’ll start. Have you ever heard of an acquired taste? It might be worth trying it once more, just to see if it’s any better.”

“I don’t think so.” She didn’t feel even the smallest inclination to revisit the foul fluid.

He held up two fingers. “Of course, I understand. Just focus on the smell for a moment. Can you find the undercurrent of blackberry and current? It should hit your nose after a second or so.”

She tried to smell anything past the bitter flavor her tongue remembered. Maybe there was the tiniest hint of something fruity, just for a moment?

He held up three fingers. “This particular beverage is favored by the Monks of Amitny; while it starts bitter and astringent, with each sip you you will feel your strength grow. Wouldn’t it be nice to surprise Master Rosemallow? Just try one more and you’ll see.”

If she hadn’t known this was all a test, she might have given in. As it was, she just smiled and shook her head. Still, the idea of showing Rosemallow that she wasn’t a weakling sounded awfully good. She caught herself moving the tea to her lips, almost without thought, and forced her hand down.

Four fingers. “Emily.” He looked into her eyes earnestly. “You are an amazing girl. Now I feel bad for using this tea to test you. I meant to make it well, but our conversation was so interesting, I just lost track of time. Please forgive me?” He ducked his head in apology. “Could you please just take one more little sip for this old urchin to see if it has improved? What I said about the monks is absolutely true you know.”

That seemed reasonable. He looked so pitiful and such a tiny gesture would make him feel better and help her get one over on Rosemallow. A win-win. Before she knew it, the nasty tea filled her mouth again. Just for a second, she had the strong impression of blackberry. Maybe it is an acquired taste. He looked at her approvingly.

“See! It does get better. Are you feeling the strength in your body now? It will only increase as you have more.”

Before she knew it, she had finished the cup. Her stomach gave an unpleasant gurgle, and abruptly she felt ill.

“Professor, I think I’m going to...”

He had a bucket in front of her just as her body rejected the ‘tea’ with vigor. Guess the Inside felt it needed to keep that kind of realism, she thought.

“I’m so sorry!” She was mortified to lose control of herself in front of the magic mentor she had just met.

“Please don’t apologize! It’s nothing I didn’t expect; why do you think I had the bucket here? If anything, I should apologize to you. The method is a bit harsh, but I have found Outsiders learn best when the consequences are... dramatic."

He put the bucket to the side. “Each time I raised more fingers, I was increasing the amount of total charm magic I was using, combining the trait, magic, and a little bit of not-so-subtle verbal manipulation. The fact that you were aware of my efforts gave you a much higher resistance, which worked in your favor. The fact that you wanted to please me and impress Rosemallow worked in my favor. In the end, I used nearly my entire power to get you do something you really didn’t want to do.”

“But I didn’t feel anything magic happening. It really seemed to me like I changed my mind on my own.”

“Yes, that is what makes Charm so dangerous to the unwary. You must have really tricked quite a few sentients in your trial to receive a trait of twenty-eight, as well as a very respectable skill level.”

She thought over the spider, who seemed at least part sentient, as well as the goblins. She had almost gotten the goblin leader to dance with her after all. “I guess I was pretty manipulative,” she said.

“And deceptive as well,” he chimed in. “There is a related skill of Deception...”

Skill Unlocked: Upgraded(2) Apprentice(3) of Deception (VP = 6)

“… which is what I used to change my titles for you. With a little training, you will be able to falsify aspects of your character sheet and public information, such as your name and level. Of course, anyone with a higher charm and deception skill will see right through you. Higher Scan ability can help too, when detecting deception. It is always a game of cat and mouse, trying to pass as someone, or something you are not.”

She remembered her brief stint pretending to be a goblin. “Can I pretend to be a different race? Would they just see a goblin, if that’s what I wanted?”

“The Inside is always about mixing magic and reality. If you use disguise skill…”

Skill Unlocked: Natural(1) Novice(1) of Disguise (VP = 1)

“… particularly if you get it just a bit better, it will multiply your other efforts. If you went out on the street and acted like a goblin, using just your Charm trait and Deception, you might be able to fool the gullible for a few seconds, or frighten small children quite severely. If you did the same in a dark forest, even a seasoned adventurer might be taken in. If you brought your disguise skill up to match your deception skill, you could hold a short conversation with someone with lower levels in these skills, and they would never think you were anything other than a stray goblin they met in the woods.”

He took a sip of his tea, not seeming to mind the taste at all, and continued.

“Now a true master of deception and disguise could easily fool even me at my most vigilant, and that is no easy task, I assure you.”

His eyes glazed for just a second, and then snapped back to her. “Well, will you look at the time!” he said. “I’m afraid you had better run to your next appointment. Rosemallow does not take tardiness lightly, I’m afraid.”

Lilijoy could only imagine.

“We will meet again tomorrow, I hope.” He handed her a small wooden token, round with an elegant calligraphy ‘A’ emblazoned on both sides. “Use this to contact me when you are free.”

After saying their goodbyes, Lilijoy ran as fast as she could to the pond. Rosemallow was nowhere to be seen, and she heaved a sigh of relief, only to double-take when she saw her, standing quietly under a willow with her arms outstretched.

“Master Rosemallow?”

“Damn it!” her trainer swore. “You caught me. Looks like your lesson with Ani taught you something after all. Not that my Charm and Deception are anything special.”

She came striding out of the trees and lowered her face to Lilijoy’s.

“YOU ARE LATE!” She bellowed. “Flash down to the arenas and back five times. NOW!”

Wiping Rosemallow’s encouragement off her face, Lilijoy turned and began to run.

Flash!

Before she could adapt, her limbs took off on her and carried her over the side of the switch-backed trail, down a rocky, brambled hill side that was, at least, a close cousin to a cliff. Her run turned into a controlled fall, and then devolved further into an uncontrolled tumble that carried her across several more hairpins and landed her as a pile of scrapes and bruises at the bottom of the hill.

Still in Flash, she carefully minimized her efforts as she got to her feet. Without the water to resist her movements she lurched and stumbled but was finally able to draw herself upright and look back up the hillside. The distant form of her trainer was much less imposing from far away, until she saw Rosemallow crouch down and fling herself over the slope of the hill on a diagonal trajectory plummeting straight for Lilijoy like an angry blue-green meteor.

In a fit of common sense, Lilijoy decided that she should be as far away from the impact zone as possible. She leaned forward and eased into an odd stutter-step that kept her center of gravity over her feet, giving forward movement a higher priority than grace or speed.

Just a moment later a huge wave of force nearly threw her off her feet, pushing her into a more active stumble. Through some miracle, she was able to keep her balance, and began to almost fall forward on the gentle downward slope to the arenas, thankful for the low grass and even terrain of the field. With each stride her feet moved just fast enough to catch her before a faceplant and her arms flailed wildly to the sides to keep her motion from twisting her over, but after a minute she found a better rhythm and began to push off with her feet. A stiff wind grew and roared around her ears, pushing back at her like a storm gale. Before she knew it, she was at the first arena.

She made a wide loop around the structure, taking in its rough dirt surface and multiple wooden bleachers, enjoying the force pushing her body to tilt as she curved around. She headed back up the gentle slope, this time staying on the path. Ascending was more strenuous, but also easier to maintain stability; she could lean into the hill and drive off her back leg, almost leaping now. Her breath was coming faster but she still wasn’t approaching the limits of her Endurance and Vitality.

A feeling of joy in her speed and power began to rise in her chest, just in time for her to encounter a smashing blow to her face that sent her to respawn.

She reappeared in the same place, directly in front of a grinning Rosemallow. For about the thousandth time, she thanked her system's ability to block pain. I wonder what someone with a Rank One system would do? Or would they not feel pain Inside in the first place?

“Pay attention, Three Bites! You ran into a rock with your face. Best keep an eye out in case any more decide to come flying your way. Go!”

The rock in question sat innocently on the edge of the path, as Lilijoy raced by. She activated her all her senses, listening especially carefully to her trainer’s movements as she ran up the switchbacks. It was much too slow taking all the curves and hairpins, so she started to leap directly up the hill, weaving in her Power to boost jumps that could take her thirty feet up the slope at a go. Even when she wiped out she was able to keep scrambling up the hill until her balance returned. By the time she reached the top she was dirty and sweaty, scratched from head to toe, and utterly exhilarated.

Back down, dodging rocks, both stationary and thrown by her trainer. Swinging around the arena. Back up, leaping and scrambling. Repeat. Repeat. By the last circuit, her legs were burning, her chest heaving and sweat was pouring down her tiny frame.

She decided to imitate Rosemallow’s mighty leap and took a running start, propelling herself as far out from the top of the hill as possible. She soared into the late afternoon air, feeling her body’s position in space as she flew, making tiny adjustments to keep herself stable in the air. She hit near the bottom of the slope, already pumping her legs as fast as she possibly could, allowing the angled ground to soften her landing.

This is amazing! she thought.

The power and speed of her movements was a burning bliss. She pushed her exhaustion to the side and tore through the grass of the open field, tempted to keep going forever, until she reached the end of the world and fell off. She had this, she owned this, and it was only going to get better.

Finally, she was standing in front of Rosemallow by the pond again, panting and grinning from ear to ear. Her trainer looked at her with a raised eyebrow, her third eye oscillating.

“Having a little too much fun there, Three Bites? Next time I’ll bring spears.” She took on a distant expression. “Or maybe I’ll break out my old bow. I haven’t used that in forever.” Snapping out of her reverie, she turned and began to walk back to the Academy building.

“We should think of a distance weapon for you,” she said. “You’re a little small for a bow, and thrown weapons just aren’t worth it past a certain level; too easy to dodge, not enough damage. Nope, you’re a slinger.”

She continued walking up the hill, talking to Lilijoy without bothering to make sure she was there, but now Lilijoy just put on a little Flash to stay next to her.

“Of course, that means I’ll have to find someone to show you the ropes. Ha!” She laughed at something that Lilijoy assumed was related to the weapon under discussion. A thought came to her out of the blue.

“Master Rosemallow, have you ever rescued someone?”

The Oni glanced down at her without breaking stride. “I’m rescuing you from a life of ignorance every time we speak.”

“No, I mean like from a prison, someone being held captive by bad guys. Only you don’t know where the prison is. Or anything else, really.”

She felt a familiar sense of despair wash over her; she was not the tiniest bit closer to rescuing Attaboy. She didn’t dare to involve Anda, not the way he was now. Marcus and the other exiles couldn’t help her much, even if they were willing, which she doubted.

Rosemallow stopped abruptly. “Tell.”

Lilijoy told her of her missing friend (or was it brother?), held captive by a powerful clan in an undisclosed location on the Outside.

“Outside problems.” With a sigh, Rosemallow began to walk up the hill again, with a bit more weight to her step.

“But that’s why I’m here!” Lilijoy protested. “I need to train to fight and learn other skills I can use to rescue him.”

“Clans are bad news, Three Bites. The Academy is one of the few places free from their politics and fighting.” She spat to the side. “We’re neutral ground, and the clans go along with it for their own reasons. Mostly. I quit teaching years back to get away from clan crap. Too many students ruined after graduating; the noble ones destroyed, the others corrupted.”

She stopped walking again. “I agreed to teach you, in part, because you have no clan allegiance. Outsiders and their clans have changed the Inside for the worse. Ask the Elves. Or the Orcs. But that means that you will be in constant danger once you finish your training. They will try to recruit you or destroy you, because a powerful, independent Outsider is a threat to the whole corrupt society the Corp of Clans has created Inside.”

I’m a problem wherever I go, Lilijoy thought. “But why…” she started.

“Enough clan talk.” Rosemallow said, still lost in her memories. “I guess a rescue is a rescue. I assume you need to infiltrate and extract?”

“I guess so. It looks like it’s just me by myself.”

“Alright. I’ll think about it. I know a couple people with no love for the clans who might be willing to train and advise you. Which clan holds your friend?”

“Sinaloa.”

Rosemallow’s body tightened. “Of course,” she said. “It had to be those bastards.” She shook her head. “They’re the worst of the worst. Even the other clans don’t like to deal with them. The Outies they bring in… well, they’re not right. Scared and twitchy. When I was still teaching, I could tell a Sinaloa serf in a glance. The actual clan kids were alright, entitled brats just like all the rest, maybe a bit more violent.”

She paused. “Dammit, you got me talking about clans again! Point is, that’ll make it easier to find some help for you.” She looked over. “Alright kid. I’m out. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She crouched and then leapt into the air.

Lilijoy tracked her enormous form up to the top edge of the of the Academy building before losing sight. That must be at least two hundred feet! Her teacher continued to amaze her.

After a moment’s pondering, she decided to find a good place in the Academy building to sit and cultivate.