Enough said, after that, both Aediva tread after Aerelle’s heels towards the rows of shops at the shopping district of the campus. Now, Aediva know it as the Pavilion - a place for student to hang out and buy things from simple necessity like clothing and toiletries to their school equipments which includes the wands and magic brooms.

“Are we there yet, Sleepy Boy?” Cath asked.

“We’re almost there. So anyway, how’s your body lately? Even though you're a student now, it has only been two days since you’ve discharged from the hospital” Aerelle asked, directed to Aediva who blinked at the young man who is her senior upperclassman.

“I’m fine!” Aediva chirped.

“I was defeated by the damn hand spool yesterday but this kind, absolute unit of a hunk helped me!” Aediva said, freezing Aerelle in his steps.

“A hunk?” he asked.

“Yeah! He kept calling me ‘strange girl’ too. I fell asleep while sitting at the bench beside him and the next thing I know, I wake up in my room with a note written by ‘N.I.A’. The other day, when I got nothing to wear for class, there’s a box with a note sent by ‘M.C.A’. Weird huh?” Aediva said with a smile.

As Aediva chirped her reports of the past two days, Aerelle simply pretended to not see the two white and golden figures shadowing after them. Can the two not be so damn obvious?

“I.. see… We’re here” Aerelle said, looking at both Aediva and Cath perked up like a cat hearing food wrapper.

“... The headmaster is going to be in trouble once we’re done here” Aerelle said under his breath as he pushed the door to the shop ‘Fllaraetica’.

“Oh~ Welcome~ Oh my! Oh my! Isn’t it Lord Adnednelleycielle~ How may I help you today~?” a chirpy red-haired woman asked. Aediva and Cath tilted their heads when hearing that long, odd name.

“Adneblughblughcielle?” both Aediva and Cath mumbled. Aerelle sighed.

“Please stop. It hurts my ears to hear you children trying to repeat my surname” the silver-haired Adonis said, reacted with a giggle by the shopkeeper in a gypsy outfit.

“Children?! How old are you to call us children?!” Aediva and Cath asked in unison.

“30” Aerelle deadpanned before turning to the counter to speak with the redhead shopkeeper whom he knew as Layla.

“YOU’RE WHAT?!?!” Aediva and Cath shrieked, suddenly turning their heads to the door when hearing the sound of snickering coming from behind the door. Aerelle grabbed Aediva’s back collar and dragged her away from the near vicinity of the door.

“Ms. Layla. Think you can get these two suitable wands? Wait, Cath doesn't even have a proper hand to handle a wand” Aerelle said, realizing Cath’s paws laid out to him. Absent-minded, he pressed those toe beans - startling Cath as he jumped to Aediva’s head and hissed at Aerelle.

“Sorry” the silver-haired male apologized.

“So! A young mage with the element of Frost! How exciting!” Layla said.

“Frost…” Aediva murmured.

“Not ‘Ice’?” she turned to Aerelle who stayed silent for a while before parting his lips.

“Ms. Layla, don’t forget the feline monster too. Just bring out magic stones that might match his wavelength” instead of explaining to Aediva, he directed to the redhead gypsy mage. Aediva pouted.

“Let’s sit while we wait” Aerelle suggested, pointing at the bench by the door that he sat on first before Aediva joined him. For a while, he was silent before letting out a sigh.

“So, have you learned about world history?” he asked Aediva. She ponders for a moment.

“About the ‘Frost’, I mean” Aerelle specified his question, The girl with silver eyes looked at Aerelle, enough to tell her that she had no idea what he was talking about. Aerelle rubbed his temple.

“Figures I guess. It’s not exactly written in a lot of books. It was more or less a general knowledge. You really are like a newborn” Aerelle said. Aediva, again, looked at him weirdly.

“It’s not an insult… It’s just. You’re a truly strange existence in this academy. I guess your two friends haven’t talked to you about it much, haven’t they?” he said. Aediva didn’t really know what to answer to that. This is honestly, the first she even heard about this.

“... I just never really paid that much attention to anything…” she said.

“I know” Aerelle simply replied.

“Simply said, the Frost is both Calamity and Curse. Before the ‘Golden Age of Magic’ began, every creature in this world feared the Frost…”

Never-ending snow, unending winters, the world was enveloped in white. Not a single life was able to live without the presence of ‘Flames’ and ‘Earth’. The ‘Wind’ became the least favoured after the ‘Frost’.

The Frost was the period of endless suffering, hunger, famine for everyone. It lasted for centuries until the Six Great Magus and the dreaded Dragon God Kazbel put an end to the Frost. After that, the ‘Frost’ was thought to have disappeared from the surface of the world with the coming ‘Age of Magic’.

It was a knowledge that every mage, no, every sentient being, carved deep into their hearts and minds - passed down to their children and their children’s children.

“It was not ‘Ice’ but ‘Frost’. And ‘Frost’, must be destroyed.”

“... Since the Frost, those of ‘Flames’, in other words, mages with the attributes of ‘Flames’ or ‘Fire’ have dwindled in numbers thus why it is rare even among dragons who are known as fire-breathers. For ‘Frost’, even more so. It has been over 500 years since the last mage of ‘Frost’ attribute was recorded in history” Aerelle explained - noticing the pale look on Aediva’s face.

“... Senior… I’ve never tried to ask this again to both Eden and Arthur but... Have I actually done anything unforgivable to anyone that day in the courtyard?” Aediva asked.

“...” Aerelle didn’t answer.

“The Council of Mages wanted to take you away and place you under their custody after your outburst. You don’t really have to worry about anything else right now but being a student” he said. Aediva frowned.

“There you go, treating me like a child again! I’m not a little toddler, you know!” Aediva growled. Aerelle merely crossed his arms, calmly despite feeling the faint drop of temperature around him.

“You’re basically a little chick that’s just hatched from an egg though” he said, his face impassive. The younger girl’s eyebrows furrowed deeper.

“I’m not a chick either!”

“A baby cockatrice then” Aerelle deadpanned, adding more to Aediva’s confusion.

“Why an egg?” she mumbled. Aerelle tapped on Aediva’s forehead.

“I’m saying here is, you don’t have to be scared of being terminated by anyone. People aren’t as stupid as they were before 500 years ago. You should be a little proud that you carry a rarer attribute than ‘Flames’. Neglectful as he is, the principal tried his best to keep you in a peaceful learning environment. Still doesn’t change the fact that he forgot to give you a wand for studying though” Aerelle’s voice turned dark at his last sentence, as he ruffled Aediva’s hair - to the annoyance of the smaller-bodied girl.

“Grrr…” she growled. They turned to look when they heard a loud sound of something being placed on the wooden counter - finding Layla returning with a few boxes stacked on each other and a pouch with clinking noise.

“Come now, both of you little cuties! Time to test out these tools!” Layla said, cheerfully.