Philip panted as he leapt over the half-wall separating the garden from the rest of the courtyard. He had a good head start from the rest of the mob but that advantage was quickly disappearing as word spread of his escape.

He charged across the open lawn to get to the nearby buildings. The garden was a decent hiding spot but it was far too small to keep him safe. No matter how good he was at hiding, he would eventually be smoked out by sheer numbers of people searching for him. Philip’s best bet was to use the alleys of the campus buildings to slowly make his way to find someone who could vouch for him.

He noticed a pair of guards lounging by the alley he was aiming for so Philip quickly turned toward the next one with a curse. Every second spent running over the open courtyard made him feel like an open target just waiting for a spitfire spell or ice lance to pierce him in the back.

His fears were realized as a shout resounded behind him. Philip glanced back to see two students calling for backup. One of them was charging a spell, but since the student was wearing a gray robe Philip was not sure which element he would have to defend against.

He dived to the side as the ground started to rumble and rolled away. He got back to his feet and continued to run for the buildings as the ground he just avoided snapped together like a bear trap. He would easily have lost a leg if he failed to avoid the attack. Philip gulped and weaved sporadically across the remainder of the field. He neared the nearest building as a few more sections of the earth snapped shut, as well as a couple of spitfires streaked past his shoulders.

Philip finally made it to the building. The alleyway was about ten feet to the right but the attacks surrounding him made him reconsider his plan. Switching his target he pulled out two strings of mana with the wind attunement and weaved a shell around himself. He leapt and crashed through the windows, glass shattering. He quickly flipped the shell around him to catch as much of the glass as possible and threw it behind him to stop any pursuers.

Cups and pitchers broke beneath him as he slammed onto the table, cutting into his flesh as he slid across. He landed with a thump against something soft and fell to the floor. The ground also was not as hard as he expected, but when he looked beneath him as he stopped he noticed he was lying on some beautiful blue cloth, being lovingly worn by a comely girl with unusual blue hair. Her eyes were unfocused, seemingly glazed over with confusion.

Not waiting for her to understand exactly what had happened, Philip pushed himself off her, then he turned around to see three other girls staring at him.

“Sorry for disturbing your lunch, ladies,” he wheezed with a slight bow. Philip dismissed himself and rushed further into the now silent cafeteria, praying that the girl was not from some prominent noble family.

Then again, he was already wanted by most of the campus leadership, so what is another enemy or two.

Philip snorted at his personal joke as he weaved between the tables, aiming for the kitchen.

Doors slammed open behind him. Philip dared a glance only to see Charles and his goons rushing in, their hands glowing with pre-prepared spells.

“Catch that deviant!” Charles roared. “Everyone vacate the premises or be caught in the crossfire.”

“I’m sure we can all get along if we just talk this out,” Philip offered.

Charles’ face seemed to twist in disgust. “Subdue the mutt. I don’t care how, just don’t outright kill him.”

Philip shrugged as a couple of the servers who just left the kitchen, holding plates of steaming food, retreated back where they came. Chairs around Philip quickly began to scoot as their occupants tried to move away from him, but Philip dived onto the floor and started to use the tables as cover. He prayed a small thanks that they were close together; the hanging tablecloths acting as a barrier to avoid the sight of his hunters.

This deception would not work for long, so Philip decided to change the game. With a strand of mana Philip weaved an earthen spell which clamped around the tips of the chair legs to keep them from moving. Shouts of confusion and panic resounded around him as the students who heard Charles’ announcement discovered that their chairs were stuck, and a few of them were also pushed a little closer to the table to pin the occupant from being able to stand up.

As the earth moved around him, Philip aimed part of the spell toward the closest kitchen door.

Nodding in satisfaction, Philip used his newfound opportunity to roll and leap between each table, not toward the kitchen door but toward the door on the opposite end of the room which led into the rest of the building.

“He is moving toward the kitchen,” one of the goons announced. “That scum is using other students as a hostage.”

“Damn that mutt!” Charles bellowed. “You two break his spell. The rest of you flip these tables and watch the door. If it opens, blast anything that moves near it.”

Philip shrugged and tied off the small weave feeling a pulse slither towards the kitchen door. The tables he just reached were already vacated of occupants so, at that moment, he was hidden. He just needed to get a few moments of breathing room to make a rush for the door and he would be able to use the twists and turns of the hallway to keep out of range of most spells.

Philip smiled and pulled a single strand of attuned wind and threw it away toward another table. He took in a breath and chuckled as the spell solidified.

“Are you sure we can’t just settle this over a drink?” Philip’s voice resounded away from him a few tables closer to the Kitchen. Cries of rage from the pursuing students followed along with the splintering of wood. “I guess that is a no?” Philip replied after moving his spell to another table. Another crash and splintering of wood sounded along with a few cries of fear. Philip guessed some students were still sitting at that one.

Tables and dinnerware crashed and shattered as the hunters barged their way through the cafeteria. A few of the servers in the room looked like they were about to faint from the havoc but they held themselves in front of a number of the students, acting as a shield for when the spells were going to be unleashed.

It took only a few moments before Philip’s spell arrived at the doors. A small bump rose up by the door and slid forward into the kitchen, pushing the door slowly open. A cry of triumph sounded as more than half of the hunters released their spells toward the kitchen.

An explosion of magic as every element collided into each other resounded and the door, as well as part of the wall, shattered into pieces. Philip gulped thinking that they were prepared to bombard him with all of that, and even Charles seemed to be taken aback by the sheer power of it. As the spells vanished a cook with a long white hat looked as if he was thrown against one of the counters. His body was riddled with shards of wood from the door, spots of red beginning to run down his body.

Philip leapt forward and slipped through the far door while everyone’s attention focused on the now destroyed door. Another quick spell lifted the stone on his side to stop the doors from being able to open. Inside the room erupted into chaos. Philip could hear the head cook’s deep voice bellowing, the stone walls seeming to shake under it. More cries of fear as well as the clattering of what he guessed was pans being used as weapons.

Knowing it was long past time for him to be gone, Philip used some earth mana to pull up a nice pedestal in the center of the hallway. Taking a couple seconds to sculpt it he then fled, leaving a nice rendition of an arm sticking out of the ground, proudly displaying a middle finger aimed at the door for when Charles finally got wise to break through.

Philip chuckled as he charged through the halls, taking turns almost at random. They were empty since it was lunchtime and most students enjoyed eating outside during the warm spring weather so he was not impeded by anyone.

The cries of rage slowly quieted down the further he got from the cafeteria and he soon arrived at a familiar intersection. Three hallways converged together, with a stairwell which rose up to end at a small rise. An enormous painting of some past noble filled the wall at the top of the rise, with the staircase continuing to rise up the wall on both sides, curving up into the next floor.

Looking down each hallway Philip did not see anyone but a couple of guards lazily strolling away from his direction, so he rushed up the stairwell toward the painting. He lifted the edge of it to see a small tunnel hidden behind it. Not wasting any time Philip crawled into one of his most used childhood getaways and scrambled into the cramped tunnel.

Soon he arrived at a decline which dipped down into darkness. When he was little he was able to turn around and go down it feet first, but due to his now almost adult body he just pushed forward and let gravity pull him down. Luckily, whoever made this path enchanted a small amount of wind magic so Philip’s robes did not catch and rip on the stone. Instead he hovered slightly above any rough patches of stonework, avoiding any feeling of drag or friction as he started down.

Unfortunately, because he was not touching the stone he started to gain speed, moving faster and faster. The incline soon curved and started upwards again. Knowing what was quickly coming Philip closed his eyes and braced himself for impact.

Feeling a slight brush against his head, a fake wall swung open and Philip felt his body become weightless as he was launched into the air. Philip opened his eyes to see a beautiful grotto which had crystal chandeliers hanging down from the cave ceiling. Carvings of angels and demons circled the room, with streaks of gold and some unknown blue metal extending down into the water. The gold and metal formed intricate runes from ages past, their meanings lost to Philip.

Philip took in the chamber that he and Lily found during a daring kitchen raid when they were first brought to the University. A small sanctuary to hide away from the servants and nitpicking instructors. A small smile spread across his face as he was briefly overcome by nostalgia, abruptly ended when he landed face first into the water.

The chilly liquid shocked him from his past thoughts and he waved his arms to push himself to the surface. With effort he managed to break the surface and take in a deep breath of air. He tread water from a few moments to regain his senses before making toward the far shore. His now wet robes dragged him down, trying to push him under the water, but Philip was used to the feeling.

Soon he arrived at a dock carved from stone. He grabbed a hold and pulled himself up. The heavy robes now felt like claws of cold trying to hold him in the chilly depths. With a mighty heave he broke out of the water completely and flopped against the stone, a few moments of respite in his hidden sanctuary.

“Well… that could have been worse,” he muttered, gasping for breath. He felt more tired than usual. Perhaps Mel was right and he had been spending too much time in his studies and not enough keeping up with his physical needs. Philip looked down to see his robe clinging to his body, a small pudge starting to grow on his stomach which used to be nothing but muscle.

Yeah, perhaps Mel was right.

Not like it mattered at the moment. This sanctuary had been compromised years ago by his own stupidity. He brought a few older students with him to try and impress them, but instead he learned how others would steal credit. Those students revealed the secret to some instructors and were rewarded for discovering a hidden chamber which was thought to have been lost a century ago. Since it was now a well documented location, he would not be able to stay for long without a hunting party arriving during their search. But its remote location did give him a short time to plan.

Philip decided to start with what he knew and work up from there.

Lily set all this up, meaning she was up to something. Whatever benefit she would get by making him the most wanted person on campus was lost to him, but she would not intentionally do anything which would cause too much risk to his life. Perhaps enough danger to cause him bodily harm, but Priestess Emily could heal back most injuries so she would have considered that. It wouldn’t be the first limb he would have had to regrow, recalling an unfortunate time where Lily tried to raise a wild beast in secret. Ever since then Philip has had a very strong dislike of large cats.

Philip still shivered remembering the power shot at him in the kitchn. Philip was not strong in magic, but the raw power of most of the students attending the University definitely was a danger to watch for. He would have to watch his every step or he would be taken out.

This brings up the most threatening person, Charles. The President of the Student Council was after his hide, so anywhere with lots of students was not a safe zone. He would have to find someone more powerful than him to use as a shield. Which means Philip needed to find a faculty member, someone who could even dissuade Charles.

Not as easy as Philip first though as he reflected on the status of the man. First son of a duke, so faculty who are of low status are out. They would sell him out just to get a favor from the duke’s son. Which means he needed to find someone more influential, the lowest ranked person would have to be an Earl at minimum.

Charles is also part of the student council, so most faculty by default will avoid Philip, dismissing it as a student matter. So someone who works directly with the students and deals with them on a constant basis is a must. That removes all the researchers, guests, and upper staff from the list.

So somebody who is high ranked but low in the staff… Philip wracked his brain to place the perfect person. The entire situation was out of control and Philip wished he could just go to the guards, but they would be after his head as well because he was wanted for…

Wait? Was he wanted by the guards or just by the student council?

Philip sat up and pondered. The two guards by the alleyway he originally aimed for were not alert. They were acting like today was just another day on the job, not a day to catch a wanted criminal. The guard in the hallway was also leisurely strolling, not searching like everyone else. So that means whatever was happening was all under the control of the student council, not under purview of the law.

Which means Philip was not a criminal, just a person now on the wrong end of every social circle in the University. How lucky…

So Philip’s best bet was to find the Guard Captain and seek protection from an angry mob of students. Lily would never testify that Philip kidnapped her; that was not her way of doing things. Giving challenges to overcome was her method, as it was more ‘fun’ for her to watch and join in the struggle. So Philip should be fine against the law unless Charles was able to convince his father to seek retribution.

Luckly, the University was officially politically neutral, so such an action would never happen. Not in the open, at least. But those problems were for future Philip to worry about. He had a more immediate problem to deal with.

Knowing his goal, Philip stood up and pulled out three strings of mana, attuning two with wind mana and one fire, weaving them together around him like a cloak. The warmth dried his now torn robe with the wind blowing the vapor away with a slight breeze. Once his robes felt comfortable enough he dispelled the spell and carefully moved toward the entrance of the grotto. A wall of vines covered the opening of the cave. Philip peered outside, moving as few of them as possible, and looked around.

The cave was partway up a cliffside, overlooking the Lower City of the University. Red tiled roofs littered the island like a sea of clay. A few towers broke through to stretch upwards into the sky, the bleached white walls almost shining under the clear sky. Near the edge of the island, enormous clouds flowed out as far as the eye could see, like an ocean. A few skyships were flying to and from the lower port, trading with the servants and staff who served the numerous nobility who breathed life into the University.

A small trail stretched from the cave across the cliffside upwards to the Upper City, where the nobility and faculty lived. Philip, not seeing anybody walking toward him, smiled and pushed his way out of the cave. Taking a breath, Philip pulled out four strings of mana and weaved another slow-fall spell and stepped over the cliff edge and glided down toward the Lower City.

He held his hand out and used the vegetation of the cliff to guide himself toward the roofs. Small trees which jutted out from the cliffside were perfect handles to angle himself to a nice alleyway. Philip was only a third of the way down before he heard shouting. He looked below him, but bystanders in the streets seemed ignorant of him. With a glance above he noticed a small line of students lined up across a wall, pointing toward him.

“Looks like hide and seek ended a little earlier than expected,” he muttered into the wind. A few of the mob’s hands were glowing, but Philip was confident he was out of--

A gust of wind hit him and he felt his stability on his feather waver for a moment. Another gust hit him right afterward, followed by a spear of ice which missed him by a few meters.

“Nice aim,” Philip called out as he kicked the cliff to turn himself around and coast further away from the mob.

It seemed he was still within range of attacks from the students. He grabbed hold of a vine and released his slow-fall spell. Gravity took hold of him, but the vine held as he swung downward toward the roofs. Now that his threads of magic were free, Philip wove two air together with water and fire.

The water was the main element used for this spell, and was surrounded by an inverted fire strand. Heat was pulled from the water and into the two air threads which were woven like a blanket around Philip. Once the spell was complete, a cool mist formed around him to hide him from further attacks.

Wind struck against him again, trying to blow the mist away, but Philip pulled more magic into the threads to expand the range of the spell. The attacking gust spell broke apart, the weaving sloppy and rushed, so the mist spread without contest.

Once Philip’s spell was complete he tightened the weave as tight as he could. Soon it looked almost like a solid tapestry and he knew it would not be erased by a lazy attack from one of the mob. Philip grabbed another vine and started to climb down the cliffside. The crunching of stone notified him that some earth spells were trying to cut the vines, but these were grown over the centuries by mages studying vegetation. Simple spells cast by novices were never going to damage them enough for them to not hold his weight.

Philip’s arms burned as he slowly made his way down into the city. He winced when his mist was hit by a gust spell but the fabric held strong. At least to start with. He soon started to feel his weave weaken and small tears begin to form. By the time he reached the roof he was panting in exhaustion and his chest was beginning to hurt from pushing his mana to cover the holes forming in his spell. With one final push he shoved himself off the cliff and slammed onto the roof, catching the center tile to keep himself from sliding down.

His arms shook as he pushed himself up and balanced on the angled surface. His arms felt like jelly and his breathing came only in gasps. But now was not the time to rest since he could feel his magic begin to rip apart. His weave was strong, but the constant attacks have finally weakened it to the breaking point.

Philip started to run as quickly as he could across the roof, clutching his chest as his magic struggled for more power. He could feel the mana strain setting in letting him know that he had cast far more magic than he should have today, and his core trembled at the pressure. With a sigh, he released his mist spell as he arrived at the edge of the roof and leapt down onto a lower portion of the building.

The surface was much flatter than the top of the roof, but still he slid partway down when he did not land properly. Luckily the ledge he just leapt off of blocked his view of the cliff, giving him another temporary reprieve. Philip looked around at where he was as the mist slowly blew off into the breeze.

Low City had a straightforward design to the placement of buildings. They circled around a market which connected to the port, so the building he was lying on was part of the outer ring. Most likely a housing unit used for a high ranking member of the servant staff.

It was exactly where he wanted to be. The Captain of the Guard was a noble, but the guards had many paths to go between each rung of the Island. So Philip just had to find a guard who will guide him to one of them and make his way into the barracks, where he will find the Captain to ask for protection..

Simple enough.

Philip slid down the roof and peered over the edge. There was nobody in sight so he weaved, hopefully, his last slow-fall spell. Each strand he pulled out made him wince in pain and they flickered under his grasp. Sweat formed on his head as a shimmering feather appeared below him and he carefully started to float down. Before he reached the bottom the entire weave flickered and dissipated dropping him the last few feet onto the dirt alleyway.

Philip panted, clutching his burning chest as he sat up. He was out of magic for the day, so he would have to make due with his wits only.

He stood up, his body now feeling like it was on fire. He stumbled forward toward the edge of the alleyway, each step getting slightly steadier until he was walking normally. As he exited he noticed three servants who were off duty sitting on a stairwell. They were holding a mug and laughing at whatever the one at the top of the stairs said.

As Philip started toward them the one at the top of the stairs nudged the one right next to him and pointed toward Philip. Concern and fear filled their eyes as they noticed the tears along Philip’s robe, but they sat there until Philp was at the foot of the stairwell.

“What can we do for you, M’lord?” The nearest one asked as he realized Philip would not just walk past them. His gaze seemed to shout to Philip that the man saw him like he was a beast ready to attack.

“Can any of you gentlemen point me toward the nearest guard station?” Philip replied, as calmly as his tired and pained self could manage. The two at the top of the stairs gave each other a glance, but the third coughed into his hand before replying.

“Of course M’lord. Just go out the alley and take a right. Guards should be patrolling close to the market street.” He paused before taking a breath. “It may be bold of me to ask, but what happened to--”

“Trevor,” the top servant hissed, slapping him on the head. “Don’t cause his Lordship anymore trouble.” He smiled and gave a small bow to Philip. “I’m sorry, M’lord. Please excuse his rudeness.”

Philip sighed and waved them thanks before heading out of the alleyway. As he passed he heard the servants muttering to each other.

“Why did you hit me?” the low servant growled.

“Are you daft?” The top servant growled. “Don’t get involved in nobles unless you want to be part of The Game.”

“You saying the boy getting attacked was--”

“Who else would be stupid enough to attack a noble but another--”

Their voices became too quiet to make out as Philip left the alleyway and entered the street. Philip heard of the game, and after learning of it he tried to distance himself from it as much as possible from the nobility. Staying low and out of sight of those who would want to use him for… whatever nobles wanted.

More wealth despite having vaults filled with jewels? More magic despite the nobility monopolizing every aspect of magical knowledge? More property even though every island in the nation is already owned by a member of the nobility?

Philip could not understand what else they could want. They already had everything he could imagine, so to avoid getting wrapped in a pointless game he did not put in any effort to learn magic. Which, in the end, seems to have bit him in the butt. He wanted freedom to do what he wanted, and he learned too late that ‘failures’ were sent to become soldiers. If anyone had the least amount of freedom in the nation, it was a soldier who is forced to be the hands and blade for whatever noble they serve.

A fate worse than death, in Philip’s eyes.

The street had more people wandering around. A few traders moved goods from the port to a storage facility. More off duty servants enjoying some well earned free time, and at the far end of the street the familiar armor with purple and gold tassels of a University guard. Philip pushed himself to quickly make his way toward them, weaving between the few other residents on the street. When the guards noticed him, they froze. Their calm demeanor disappearing and looking alarmed, their hands on their weapon. Philip also stopped, hesitating.

Did he get it wrong? Were the guards also working with the mob?

Before he was able to reconsider his actions a guard moved over to him and gave a respectful salute.

“Apprentice Mage,” his baritone voice washed over Philip. “What happened?”

Philip blinked and sighed in relief. His chest throbbed as he took in a breath, but he at least knew he was safe at the moment.

“Other students attacked me. I am seeking help and protection. Can you take me to Captain Nosp, she is an acquaintance of mine.”

The guards gave each other a look before they nodded.

“The Captain is currently at the Port. I will take you to her myself.” He stood up and gave the other guard a signal. The other guard rushed off as he turned back to Philip. “Are you injured? Do you require a healer?”

Philip shook his head. “I am fine, just a little mana fatigue.”

The guard nodded in confirmation and offered a supporting arm to Philip, which Philip politely declined. The guard grunted in acknowledgement, then they both moved deeper into the Low City.

It took less than ten minutes before they arrived. The crowds slowly grew thicker and thicker until the area was packed with bodies. Merchants selling goods, servants and the occasional mage roamed through the streets, as well as guards patrolling and keeping the peace. If the Upper City held the breath of the University, the Low City held the heartbeat. Philip felt more at home down here than he ever did above.

The soothing sounds of the busy market filled Philip with ease. He finally had his breath back and his throbbing chest returned to only being slightly painful. It would still take another day or two before the sensitive core returned to normal, but for now he was no longer in any immediate danger of damaging it.

They soon arrived in front of a cafe, the guard from earlier standing next to a guard who was sitting at one of the tables sipping on some tea. Her armor was much more elaborate compared to the other ones showing her status as the Captain. She smiled at Philip as he drew near and set down her cup.

“Hello Philip, what an expected pleasure,” she purred. “I’ve heard you were in trouble.”

She waved at the two guards to dismiss them. They both bowed and left, going back to their patrol duty. Philip took a seat with the Captain and sighed. He was exhausted, but he finally reached safety.

“I am,” he breathed. “Lets just say it has been a very tiring couple hours.”

“From my reports I’m sure it has,” Nosp chuckled. Philip tensed as he peered at her, making her laugh even more. “What are you surprised about? You put on quite a show during lunch. I was quite impressed with your shimmering flight as you flew out of the building.”

“You were there?” Philip gulped. He clutched the chairs ready to spring away, but the Captain lazily waved at him to calm down.

“Of course I was. Miss Lilith missing for almost a day and a half, every student Charles could get his hands on in a massive search, and then finding her seemingly unharmed with one of the other commoners. Miss Lilith even said that this was just practice in case she actually got kidnapped. Finding better ways to escape.” Nosp let out a light hearted chuckle. “That is very much like the two of you to cause trouble. Reminds me of the days you two were just small snots making my life difficult. It was a very interesting morning.” She took a sip of her tea.

“Then you know that I am innocent of this,” Philip prodded. “You can help calm down the Council and--”

“Oh, Philip, I can’t do that,” Captain Nosp tittered. “I’m sorry to say but things have gotten far too large for me to take action.”

“What…” Philip blurted. Captain Nosp could not help him? He was innocent. Lily herself said it was ‘practice’, curse her stupid idea of fun. How did this get too big?

“This is a matter which upset the entire University, Philip,” the Captain observed. “Every faction at the University has been notified. Every student is now watching for you, each wanting to gain a favor from that little Charles by selling you out. Even every faculty member has heard of your supposed kidnapping attempt. It was an amusing story, you know. A low rank apprentice kidnapping the up-and-coming prodigy. Almost romantic in a way, but I digress.

“It was a fun diversion from the day-to-day routines for most of them. But then you did something unexpected. You escaped. Quite a few even saw it happen, which again was very impressive. Superb mana control at an amazing speed. It was almost like there was no spell cast and the feather just appeared below you. Very, very impressive.

“No, I cannot help you, Philip. I wish I could but it is beyond me now. This is now an interest of everyone who is curious to see your hidden skills. To show us what you have kept hidden from all of us for all these years. Plus, if you don’t get caught before sundown, I win twenty five gold.”

Philip sat frozen in shock. His heart quickened as the overly calm voice of Captain Nosp flowed through him. It did not make sense. What hidden power? What interest? Wasn’t the faculty also trying to catch him?

Did he see one try to?

Before Philip could think further a shout sounded from the edge of the market. Philip flinched and slowly turned to see Charle’s standing at the edge of the market, flanked by the two guards who escorted him to Captain Nosp, and the mob of students right behind them.

Philip gave the Captain one more glance and saw her calm smile.

“I’d start running now. I’d hate to lose twenty five gold.”

Philip sprung out of the chair and dashed down the nearest alley as the students began to charge through the marketplace, causing mayhem in their wake.