The voice sound like chimes, almost like the whimsical sounds of Aethersii, or the Elvish Language. It was speaking in the Language of Magic, or Aetherzii, Old Elvish. Before I could respond, new pop-ups sprang to my attention.

SK Notice, Knowledge

Your studious pursuits have gained the very brief attention of Abelia, goddess of the Moon and Knowledge. She has given you a small stat boost, to encourage you and your pursuits.

You've gained: 50 Mana, 25 Health, 25 Stamina, 7% Speed, 5 Magic Str., 5 Magic Def., 3 SP

Skill Upgrade

Ice Resistance IV: Able to stand colder temperatures

SK Notice, Gods

It is possible to gain attention, gifts, and even blessings from Divine and Demon Gods by performing actions that please them. It is also possible to obtain curses, by directly insulting or angering them. Some gods are easier to please or insult than others.

Good thing the attention was brief, I do not want to deal with any responsibilities until I get a better understanding of the world I live in. Best to understand my situation before I get involved with anything. I say that, but I guess I did jump at the chance to join a magic college. A sizzling sound brought my attention to the Magic Circle.

I saw that the circle was starting to dissolve around the edges, I guess this is the timer for the temporary contract. I look into the eyes of the little girl once again.

“Yes, I am looking to Master a skill I have almost perfected, Mana Manipulation. I am having trouble with Mastering it as I need a teacher. Could you help me? But first lets make a contract, to lengthen our conversation.”

-Summons Contract-

The moment the Summoned party is summoned, the Summoner and Summoned form a temporary contract that uses this time to establish a more permanent, binding contract. Once the price is accept by the Summoned from the Summoner, both parties are bound to the contract. Should the Summoned be required to exert energy to complete an order by the Summoner, the Summoner will have to supply sufficient compensation. Should the Summoner not be able to provide proper compensation, this Summons Contract becomes null and void. Either party can terminate this contract.

“My price is Mana, I require a constant flow of mana, you know.” She said softly.

“It shall be done, with this our contract is sealed.” I pushed my mana out of my body and directed it to her, to which she appeared stunned.

“This must be your first summons. You do not need to manually send your mana to me, I can siphon your mana by being near you, you know.” She said as a matter of fact.

“I see. Take this as a gift then, as a token of our friendship.” I extended my hand out, to which she cautiously grabbed my index finger with both hands, I then direct my mana into her and into which she gave another surprised look before her face relaxed into a smile.

“Thank you. Not many see us now, even fewer can speak to us. I believe you are the first in a very long time.” She gave a lonely smile before she gazed at nothing as she was remembering something, “There used to be a lovely village that specialized in Spirit Manipulation long ago, they were very friendly to us. I believed they called themselves people of Sas'yun. They have been long wiped out. None remain, I believe, you know. You remind me of a little boy of that village. Enough about them, you had a problem? How can I help?” She snapped herself out of her nostalgia.

“As I said before, I need help mastering a skill, Mana Manipulation. Is there a way you can teach me how to master it?” I ask again.

She seem to be thinking for a while before giving me an answer, “It does appear you are ready to Master it as you have Expert level degree of moving your mana around you, but it is not something that I, a mere Ice Nymph, can grant you, you know. You will need to see a being more ancient than I. Since there are no Immortal Elves left, you will have to find the next best thing, an Ancient Dragon. Though there aren't too many left, I may be able to help find one, when this contract is released. Though you have to promise not to hurt them, as we Spirits will not tolerate anyone hurting an Ancient. We will curse you, you know.”

She made a puffy face that made me laugh for a bit, because of how cute it made her. I quickly recovered my composure with clearing my throat, “I promise, I, Jack Frost, will not harm an Ancient Dragon, unless they try to harm me without reason.”

Her face relaxed a bit before she spoke, “Careful with promises, they can be powerful, sometimes more powerful than a curse, you know.”

“This much is fine, but I will take your warning to heart. You should tell me your name, now that you know mine.”

She remained silent. I was about to tell her that she didn't have to tell me, but then she quietly whispered, “Aya, my name is Aya. You can summon me with my name. I trust you, because you remind me of that little boy, you know.”

“Thank you, I will make sure you do not feel that you have misplaced you trust. By the way, can you tell me more about Ancient Dragons?”

She nodded her small head, before she began, “Long ago, the Ancient Dragons were many, but that changed after eight out of the nineteen deities gave up their power and became the first of the Immortal Elves. They lost their deity status with the loss of their power when they created the Mortal Plane and Aezorish around 75,000 years ago, you know. The Immortal Elves were all but completely infertile. They had long lives, but almost no children. They tried to remedy this to advance their civilization, they hunted down the Ancient Dragons, so that their numbers could be on par with the new Humans, who had less power, short lives but very fertile.

Humans, caught wind of what the Immortal Elves were doing and soon joined the hunt. The hunts were almost never successful, but Ancient Dragons never bore children, so their numbers can only shrink, you know. Eventually the Elves made a deal with Vuzmes, Demon God of Illusions and Wishes, creating the Common Elves. Though it wasn't until later that the remaining eleven gods were defined with Divine and Demon Gods. All forget about hunting the Ancient Dragons until about 40,000 years ago when the four of the five Demon gods sacrifice the other Demon god to make the Cursed Continent, where they make a home for their own creations, the Xernurochs. These new beings, go on hunts, for every kind of being, including Ancient Dragons. Over the eons since, new beings are made, gone extinct, but the Ancients remain, though very few, you know.”

“Thank you for this knowledge. Perhaps we may be able to find one. I promise not to hurt it, I only seek knowledge. I dismiss you now, as I still have work to do, and I hope you give me good news as soon as possible.” I extend my hand again toward Aya, to which she graciously accepts as I send her more mana.

SK Notice, Contract

Contract has been terminated.

She then gave me curt nod before flying off, out through the window. I lost track of her, as her tiny figure got smaller in the ever brightening sky. Oh, is it dawn? The sun looks as though it is about to break through the horizon. That must mean, I am facing West. I look at the books at the table and then back at the maze of bookshelves, this might take awhile. Just as I thought this, I noticed faint shimmers in the air around me, and all around the library. The more I focused, the clearer each image got. It got easier each time I did it as well.

Their were different colored girls, in different attire. Though most were light violet or a soft brown. Though I did see one appear to be on fire that hung around the boy that was snoring softly at one of the tables. His robes were red with neither embroidery nor intricate designs. Hmm, he must be a Basic Fire Mage.

My thoughts return to the Spirits that I could see if I focused hard enough. I decided to try an experiment with sending my mana out and willing a few of the Spirits I could see to move in away from the bookshelves.

At first nothing happened, but as I but more effort into wanting them to move away, they slowly began to drift away from the bookshelves. I began practicing this for awhile, until I got a pop-up.

Skill Upgrade

Spirit Manipulation II: Able to see spirits more clearly, easier to assert you will onto the Spirits.

I spent some time putting up books, and trying to move spirits about.

It was then that the snoring from the boy at the table got louder then abruptly stopped as he jerked up, he then glared at me. Did I do something to offend him? Can he sense my mana? Just as I thought this, he bark, “Hey you, time!” In a slightly annoying voice.

I was perplexed at what he was demanding, “Pardon?” It took me a moment to understand that he was demanding that I tell him the time, “Oh, I do not have a watch, I do not know.”

He then stood up and staggered toward the window in an obviously groggy state, as reached the window, he stared at the now blinding, golden ray of the morning sun. He stood there, and from what I could tell, it looked like he was counting, before he shook himself of his stupor and dashed toward the library exit while yelling, “We are late!” Whoa, I need a better grasp on time, I hardly noticed the last few hours flying by. I hurriedly ran after the boy and easily caught up to him. I would have overtaken him, but I did not know where we were headed so I let him lead, as we flew down the corridors.

When reached a set of Iron Doors leading outside, we could hear loud cheering coming from far away, at this point, the boy in red knew I was following him and yelled back to me, “They are already starting, we need to hurry!” as he opened both the Iron doors to allow himself through.

Running after him, I noticed that down the stone path we were on, was a giant coliseum, that reminded me of the Flavian Amphitheater. As we got closer a new pop-up occurred.

SK Notice, Life-aid

You are entering a Life-Aid Area. You will not die in this area with exception of illness, or injuries that you have received outside of the area. All would be fatal injuries will make you lose consciousness instead.

As we entered the stadium, we heard the last of the announcements, “We are now holding mock death battles for new enrollments. These battles will determine, which curriculum who will be studying in. Basic, Advanced, Elite or Remedial. Later this week, we will have a contest for the seat of Archmage's Apprentice! All Basic Battles be done today and tomorrow, Advanced and Elite Battles will be done on the Day of the Mage. Should you win a round, you can go onto the next one today should you feel up to the challenge, or you can wait another day, no need to feel ashamed for waiting. Alright good luck to you all.” Seemed like a rather charismatic voice for the announcer as it should be.

“Ah, there you are! I was worried you would miss it. Sleeping in were you? You look well rested.” I heard the voice of Sola behind me.

I turned to find those chocolate brown eyes studying me again, “Actually, I stayed awake all night, I was reading up on magic.” I corrected.

“Wow, you don't even look tired at all.” She raised her small eyebrows in surprise. She then directed my attention to the field, where two figures could be seen approaching each other. “I guessing you know about how the fighting gets paired up, yes?”

“Admittedly, I do not. I got a general idea about the results, but that is all.” I shrugged.

She looks down for a moment before explaining, “For the first fight, you face off against a Basic Mage, that of which you are elementally superior. If you lose the battle, you get placed in remedial studies for a trimester. If you win, you can join the Basic Course, or move on to try your luck with the second round, against an Advanced Mage of elemental equivalence, usually the same element. Should you lose, you will be placed in the Basic Course, a win is a spot in the Advanced Course. Should you choose to go a third round, you will face off against an Elite Mage, of which they elementally superior. A win means you join the ranks of the Elite, a lose is to stay with the advanced. Later this week, there will be a contest for the seat of Archmage's Apprentice, of which the current holder gets to decide the contest. I hope you are ready.”

“No worries, I am more than ready, I redirect my attention to the field where the fighting just started. It was a fight between a girl in adventurer garb, and a man in a plain blue robe. As I recall, his blue robe meant he was a Water mage, and that girl... there is no doubt about it, she is the one from the Library. If she held the advantage, it probably meant she was a Wood Mage.

The girl summoned a tree, and as it grew beneath her feet, she hid in the leaves. The Water Mage tried calling forth water, only for the ground to soak it up before more than a puddle could form. After a minute or two of this useless effort, the ground beneath the Water mage opened up and roots tangled around the mage's feet. Soon he was completely ensnared in the trap, becoming immobilized. Leaping from a branch of her tree, she landed gracefully on the ground with her french braid bouncing about. She struck a peace sign pose as she was declared the victor. This girl. This girl is probably another player. The Announcer said her name was Ashley Smith, this furthered my suspicion.

She then left the field and two more were called to the ring, then another two after them, then another two after them. It was a total of eight rounds before I was called with a guy named Sahida Nadareum. As I entered the Arena, I saw a thin, starved looking kid in a Yellow Robe. Wait this can't be right, I am supposed to be up against an Earth Mage, isn't yellow for a Sand Mage?

With a sleepy voice, he looked at me and said, “You are probably wondering 'why a Sand Mage and not an Earth Mage,' right? Well I am equally versed in Earth and Sand Magic, not that you should care. Normally, I would throw the match, but my superiors have ordered me to not do that do that.” He sounded really unmotivated. “I will not go down easily, and if it weren't for this special area, I'd would say you might die as well. Are you prepared?”

Wow, it sounded like he was willing to lie down and sleep at a moments notice, was he okay? “Yeah, I'm ready. Come at me when you feel like it.” I coaxed.

“Arrogance will get you no where.” He removed a glass jar that appeared to be filled with sand from his cloak and dropped it. When it hit the ground, the jar shattered, scattering sand everywhere. The sand then multiplied in quantity and had become a large pile near his feet, of which half flew to his body and circled around him to act as a shield, I suppose. The other half went into the ground. It seems he is showing off his skill with the chant-less incantations.

Unlike before, I could see the spirits now with a little effort. I could see more and more beige and brown spirits, that I am guessing are Earth Bones, gathering around the ground at his feet. With an educated guess, I call out his strategy, “Sending sand underground to create more sand?”

He showed a hint of surprise on his face, “You figured it out? Hmm, then you must know that I am going to turn this Arena into a desert shortly.”

“Ah I see, that is fine by me.” I say nonchalantly as I walk about twenty paces farther away, I then send my mana out to the Earth Bones and direct them away from the Sand Mage. I then raise my right hand and make a hand gun pointed at him and create a small, super condensed Ice Bullet spinning at the tip of finger, accelerating at Supersonic speeds.

The Sand Mage looks up at me pointing at him and smirks, “Times up, behold my power.” He flicks his hands up and a wall of sand that separates him and I, erupts from the ground. “Tidal Sand Wave!” The mountain of sand then rushes toward me.

I do not hesitate to pull the trigger of my imaginary gun and witness the Ice Bullet fly toward the ever approaching mountain. The Ice Bullet, easily passed through it, without much resistance, and continued past my sight. It was when the sand collapsed all at once that I saw the fruit of my endeavor. Upon impact, the Ice Bullet caused his head to temporarily cave in, before his head sprang back out into its previous shape. His body then collapsed, as if someone had pulled the cord on his consciousness.

“Battle Victor, Jack Frost!” The announcer scrambled to say.

As I exited the field, I noticed a rather familiar snake like woman entering. The next battle didn't last very long, as the Basic Mage was blinded and then hit over the head with a rock found in the Arena, compliments of Seraphine-sii.

A few hours had gone by with most fights being quick, and some fights lasting for about twenty minutes. The announcer made another announcement, “Basic Battles for Arena E are finished for today. The results are 42 new enrollments won, and eight are sent to Remedial Course. Of the winners today, those ready to an Advanced Battle today enter the field, those who would like to do an Advanced Battle tomorrow, stay seated.”

I re-entered the field with nine others. We all stood in a line as we gave our names to a small woman in greatly intricate Purple robes, she then told us to wait in a waiting area. I assumed she is giving our names to the announcer.

I found Seraphine-sii right beside me, it looked as though she was about to start a conversation, but she was cut off by the announcer, “Alright, we have ten contestants ready to test their limits with going straight into another battle today. We will see more advanced battles tomorrow, but as of now, can I get Seraphine-sii and Gehzi to the field.

Gehzi wore a Deep Violet robe, that seemed to constrict his muscles. He was a mountain of a man with dark skin and a mean look in his eyes. His violet robe with a simple embroidery marks him as an Advanced Curse Mage. When the fight began, she tried to close the distance as quick as she could, but he was just a little faster than her. She needed to get close, as her venom was mid-range, and her fighting required her to be in close quarters. It seemed, however that Gehzi knew all too well her strategy and kept afar, while also throwing needles. Seraphine-sii knocked most of them from the air with her tail, but a few of the needles found themselves embedded within her scales. Slowly her movements got slower as her face started to contort in pain. I believe the needles are covered in a mild neurotoxin. Eventually, Seraphine-sii was unable to move at all, and was even in tears as she silently cried in agony. She quickly forfeited the match, leaving Gehzi as the victor.

The next two battles were fairly quick, one of them had the Wood Mage from earlier, eh, Ashley Smith. She barely won, as she was almost caught in the Advanced Wood Mages trap, but she pulled through by knocking him out with a flower that spewed noxious fumes.

I was called next with some guy called Nikitaro. He was really pale, not as much as me, but you could tell he probably didn't see much of the sun. He was also built rather well, well defined muscles and tall stature, he was probably popular with the ladies. He donned a light blue robed with some intricate designs on the hems, marking as an Advanced Ice Mage.

When the fight begun, I noticed the ice Nymphs gather around his hand, to be honest, it kind of distracted me. I almost got hit with his Ice Totem, I just managed to dodge it by a hair width. While I regained my posture, I noticed that he had already cast Frozen Armor on himself. I cast the inferior version of it, Armor of Frost, on myself. This guy is a fast caster, huh?

His Frozen Armor made him look like a medieval knight, while my Armor of Frost just look like an extra thick shirt. We cast Ice Totem at the same time, he fired one at me, while I summoned one beneath my feet. I then stood on a thin pole of Ice, towering twice his height. It was then that I asserted my will toward the Ice Nymphs that had gathered around him, and had them drift my way.

He aimed an Ice Spike at me and hurled it my way. I braced for impact but I felt no force at all. At impact the Ice Spike simply shattered into dust. He threw one after another, it wasn't until his fifth one that he actually voiced the Aria, hoping to give it more strength, “Chunk of Ice, hurl, Ice Spike.”

He put a lot more effort into this one in particular. When he launched it at me, I waited again, except this time at impact, I turned to Mist. The bug-eyed look on his face was priceless. I slowly drifted toward him and he just stood there stunned, looking back at the totem where, I once stood. I re-materialized behind him and formed an Ice Bullet at my finger tip and pulled the trigger. His head caved in, seemingly wanting to burst, before was molded back to its proper shape by the Life-Aid Area effect.

“Ah, um... Battle Victor, Jack Frost.” Mr. Announcer, are you okay? He sounded a little shocked as well.

The six battles after me resulted in two wins and a four losses for the newly enrolled. The announcer came back with his speech, “There are now four new Advanced Mages and six new Basic Mages. Out of the four winners, can anyone have another match today?” I raise my hand slowly, and looking around I notice I am the only one to do so, as the others are looking a little worse for wear. “Well, it looks like we will have one last match for today ladies and gentleman. Can we have our new surprise student, Jack Frost, and our very own Princess of the Solaeum Kingdom, Litavia Solaeum, to the field please? Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a fight of Fire and Ice. Will Jack Frost, an inhabitant of the Plane of Creation, new to this world come out victorious against a future world leader and join their ranks of the Elite, find out here, at the Arena.” Mr. Announcer seemed to love his voice.

As the announcer finishes, I notice a girl with blonde hair in drills, with sparkling blue eyes approaching me with a haughty look in her eyes. The grace she walked with, and the posture she stood with just screamed royalty, I did not need the announcer to know this. When our eyes met, she puffed at her chest, “I see you one- shot the rookies, good on you. However, don't think you can get close to this princess, if you play with fire, you might get burned.” Oi, is this a comedy? Did she think she was doing something cool with her lines? She probably rehearsed it. I am just going to pretend she didn't say it, yep.

I took this time to look at her robes which had very intricate gold pattern on a scarlet background. It was very pleasing to look at, and it did look like the very robe itself was on fire.

Once the round started, she cast Fire Wall in front of herself. The heat was so intense, I could feel myself sweating some distance away. I tried dispersing the Flamenid Spirits that were flocking toward the huge flame, but to no avail. From behind the Fire Wall, she sent out several, slow moving Fireballs my way. I quickly moved out of the way, but what almost got me caught was the fact when the Fireball touched the ground they exploded. I quickly formed an Ice Bullet and sent it her way. Although, the flames kept her obscure from me, I know I hit her when the Ice Bullet passed through the Fire, because the of the intense scream. I probably hit her arm or leg. Suddenly the flames lashed out toward me. I activated Speed Runner, narrowly escaping the flames that would have made me extra crispy.

Running like a gale of wind, I shot another Ice Bullet toward her direction, more screaming. Just then she released her Flame wall, and gritted her teeth as she ran while shouting, “Flame Jettison!” Flames spewed from behind her and she accumulated more speed. She had a hole in her left Bicep and in her right forearm, I am amazed that she isn't still screaming. “Don't look down on The Solaeum Kingdom!” She shouted with her voice turning ragged.

She had a superior speed spell, however my natural speed made up the difference, so I still won out in terms of speed, though I do have to keep an eye on my stamina. I fired another Ice Bullet, but because I wasn't used to the speed, I tripped and hit her in the leg.

We both tumbled and fell at high velocities, I surprised we didn't break our necks as we got tangled up on the ground. By the time we got out bearings, we realized she was on top of me, at which she she tried to roast with Flame Armor. I managed to escape with Mist Form, but that was a little too close for comfort, I quickly canceled my Mist Form and pointed my finger at her and said, “I believe it is time to chill out.” and pulled the trigger.

As the bullet passed through her head, her entire body dissipated in flames. That is when I heard a clearing of ones throat, “I don't think so, things are just heating up. I would have been finished had that been me. Although two of you projectiles hit home,” she pointed toward arms, “I am not done yet!” There three more versions of herself, standing in front of me.

I straightened my back, and I winced in pain, from the tumble earlier but I push through. I send out my mana to attract Nymphs and Ice Nymphs to come to me, as I flood the field with water using Flood. I then use Water Booster to give me a small enhancement to all of my stats, while activating Speed Runner again to reach even higher speeds.

Running faster and faster, I cast Gentle Breeze to give me another stat increase, to run even faster. I run in circles around the field, easily avoiding the occasional Fire Whip, and Fireball. I throw mana creating small blizzards and snow storms. The lowering temperature causes the flooded field to freeze over, lowering the temperature of the surrounding area even more. The colder it gets, the harder it is for Litavia to cast her Fire Magic as her spells are starting to fizzle out now. She even trips on the ice and falls on her back, to which she slowly gets back up, while shivering violently. As more snow and blizzards interact with her futile attempt at retaliation, a cold fog is then created. I throw more mana, almost depleting my mana reserves entirely to lowering the temperature of the entire Arena to well below freezing.

Soon the entire Arena was covered in a snow storm, with only a blinking fire in the center as the only sign of warmth anywhere. I used Mist Form and surrounded myself in Icy Fog to blend in with fog that already blanketed the field. As I approach her, I noticed she is completely unaware of me coming near her, and that she was adamant about keeping a small bonfire she made lit instead of focusing on the fight. Are you that cold? Hmm, let's tease her a little.

In my Mist Form, I pass over the bonfire and it snuffed out, her eyes started shedding tears immediately, it caused my to laugh a little, to which she jumped and threw fire at my direction. “Where are you?!” She cried heavier.

“Right here,” I whispered in her ear. More flames, more crying. “Do you give up?” more flames.

She stood there with a fierce look in her eyes, but the fierceness lost intensity, when one noticed the whimpering, shattering teeth she had. I threw out a little more mana to drop the temperature in our immediate area even lower. “How m-m-much m-m-mana do-do you-ou have?!”

“Well, throwing my mana out makes it colder and colder, it gets easier the colder it gets, because the colder it gets the more powerful I become, so I am to send out more mana, making it even colder. You could have done the same with you fire, but it is a little late to start now. Anyway, it is time for you to cool down.” I teased.

“Muuu, ugh.” She mumbled as she pulled the edged of her robe closer to her body. She then crouched down to keep her midsection warm. To which I glided over her and watched as her body started to form ice on the surface as she froze solid.

I let the fog and the clouds subside so that way the spectators could see that I had won. I re-materialized myself, and almost fell from the light-headed feeling of using ones mana almost all the way up. It was then, I heard the announcer, “I can't believe it, I can't believe it, Jack Frost is the Battle Victor! The lake that Jack made has frozen over, it looks like a winter wonderland. Congratulations Jack Frost, you are an Elite Mage! You also have a chance at earning the spot of Archmage's Apprentice!” Mr. Announcer is spokesperson through and through, huh? Well, I might not participate in that event anyway. I think I have shown off enough.