………………………………………………………………………………………………………

2 days before reincarnation

……………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Most academies on the city were small buildings that had short periods of time every day for actual teaching, Lucan's own school was no different but the excuse given was unique in the city. Every day before leaving every student is expected to spend some hours in contemplation in a church, library or other such places. In reality, most students waited outside the school talking and playing until it was time to go to their homes.

Today is one of such days were most students were playing in the plaza in front of the school waiting for the doors to open. Lucan however, wasn't there.

Every day before leaving, instead of going outside and speaking or playing, most of the group would remain inside the classroom talking or doing homework, not because they were responsible or anything, but because they were afraid of going outside with everyone else.

Most of the group being Lucan everyday, and the others sometimes.

''Why do you always speak like that in front of everyone?''Albert asked smiling.

Lucan responded in second's''I speak fine, they speak like idiots''

''Yeeeah right, well, im hungry so i'll get going, anyone else want's to join me?… Lucan is obviously going to say no so; anyone?''

The tone of the question was said like a smug judge giving a death sentence, everyone knew that the reason Lucan waited everyday is so he could leave school grounds when the professors of the day was leaving as well, that way, he could avoid any conversation or confrontation. And by confrontation, it means him being confronted to the ground like an idiot in front of everyone.

Sometimes it was better when his group of classmates left him alone, that meant he could daydream and imagine whatever he wanted instead of having to talk. Alas, today was not that day, especially because some of the professors actually lived on school grounds, and they always shooed the students in the building before quickly opening the gates and closing them as if the plague would enter.

So when his group left him alone he realized he had very few minutes until professor corrales came by and ordered him out. After watching carefully that he was alone he closed the door of the classroom and grabbed a small piece of paper he had carefully hidden in his bag inside a pocket no one knew about.

This was his biggest secret, he had stole this from Diane a long time ago, she had been furious, the servants had searched the house up and down, but of course, who would suspect him.

The piece of paper was taken hastily from a book that spoke about things that he shouldn't know about. He still remembered the day he ripped the page in a moment of fear and how heavy his heart felt when his sister came by his room asking him if he knew what had happened.

This piece of paper was his most valuable position, crumpled and dirty as it was. Because, it spoke of magic.

Not the faith in light magic and enormous prayers the priests and seraphs used to show in the congregations and churches no. This was arcane magic. Stolen and studied long ago by erudites of Lucien, this was a book that spoke of the power to make the elements bend to someones will.

And Lucan loved every single letter in it.

This were the secrets of his city his father used to say.

This should be taught only to those chosen by the city navy his sister used to say.

This was the reason the eldest son of the Graves family was the apple in their parent's eye

He had read the thing a thousand times, and oh, how he wished he had taken the whole book instead.

There were all manner of classes of warriors and knights and mages in this world. But, in the few words of the stolen page, was the secret to achieve the respect from his family, classmates and most importantly, himself.

It wasn't very detailed, in fact, it didn't have a single spell inside. The only words were about the most basic and the first steps to use it, basically to become a mage of the city state of Lucien, you needed three things. First: a magic conductor, to guide the magic from his body into a proper form, most common were wands; although he had heard of oath-bound paladins that used swords, maces and shields.

Second:A magic breaker, to make sure the torrent of magic was the correct amount for the spell used, and to avoid injuring oneself, commonly known as mana-shielders.

Third: Incantation, to bend the elements and forces of nature to the will of a mind, someone must speak the original language. What this language is,the page didn't say. But, it did speak for the most part about what makes a person magical.

Everyone in life has a class or a profession they choose to follow, Lucan right now was a student, and he had a professor. Every class came with skills people could learn after effort, hardship or time. What a mage does, it's using the power of those skills, mold it and give it form in the shape of a spell.

In truth, Lucan didn't understand anything of the explanation, after all, he had heard his father say that every city had a different way of describing mana and skills and such. And moreover, that wasn't the part he was interested in reading, because when he turned the paper around, at the bottom of the page, there was a small text with the first set of commands for a mage, with a spell so simple that a mana-shielder wasn't even necessary.

But how to conduct magic, hell, how to feel the mana inside to USE the magic. Well, to the former, he had no answer yet, but to the latter, from the folds of his uniform he grabbed a small wooden graphite pen. It wasn't a expensive pen, but in that page there was a drawing of a wand with several symbols and using that as a base Lucan had, with enormous effort(and the help of a witch), created a makeshift wand.

It was a horrible wand.

But it was his. And he would kill for that wand.

With a terrifying and genuine smile he pointed at a small piece of wood he always left in his desk and whispered.

''Levitatio''

He didn't knew if that was the correct frase, but he had heard Diane practicing once from his room, so he tried it. First, nothing happened, but then, suddenly, a usual pain enveloped one finger in the hand he was using to hold the makeshift wand. Not much pain, more like numbness.

And then the piece of wood went up. Not much, just a few centimeters, and that was enough.

Enough for Lucan to feel glory.

The spell was simple. One command. up. And that was it. He didn't knew how to make it float higher, nor how to make it spin or shine or grow.

But it floated.

The piece of wood floated upwards.

The piece of wood, floated, never mind his hand now was sort of hot, in that piece of wood Lucan could see his father smiling, his mother proud and the people around him happy for him.

He did this exercise every moment he could, it was his moment, sometimes in the dead of night covered in bed sheets, and sometimes away from the city in the forest nearby, under the shadow of a tree.

Every day he tried his best to learn more all for the sake of moving that small piece of wood. It was a small cube he could fit in the palm of his hand, it was light, it even had a name.

And he could make it float. In a world were he had seen seraphs create light from nothing and aetolians trow spears like lightning.

It floats.

''IF ANYONE IS IN THE CLASSROOMS, GET OUT, WE ARE CLOSING''

The shout woke Lucan up like a flash from his small magical reverie, And after hastily picking up his things, he massaged his hand and left the classroom in the direction of the shout.

At the end of the hallway stood professor Corrales waiting for Lucan who was obviously the only one left, and without a word he sort of shuffled past him and kept his head down, so he could avoid looking into his eyes. He had learned a while ago not to look at any professor in the eyes because they looked at him the same way his mother did.

Immediately he started to make his way outside following the lines of students leaving the school grounds and making sure he was the last. As always after he used the pen and read the piece of paper, now safely guarded in their usual hidespots, he was feeling sort of tired, and his hand numb.

He slowed down to a walk and that is when he remembered that today was going to be a bad day.

With a shove to his back he immediately went tumbling to the ground, when he turned around he found a small group of people from his classroom looking at him with innocent smiles.

''Oh…Sorry about that, didn't see you there''

''Here, let me help you get up''

What stung about the situation wasn't the fact that in the group he didn't saw the stooges. It was the fact that Albert and Daniel were there at the sides looking without a care.

''C'mon get up, can you stand up?''

Knowing what was coming he tried to stand up, but the moment he was about half way another push sent him to the ground, then everyone started talking.

''Are you ok?…Do you know how to get up?''

''Here let me help you''

''You are an idiot, you only need to stand up''

Trying again, Lucan decided to stand up while getting away from there at the same time with a jump but realized his mistake when he saw his bag in the hands of one of them.

''Here, you forgot your bag''Said one of them, before trowing it in his face.

The impact sent Lucan down on his butt with a shower of books and utensils that fell around him when the bag opened up on the way down.

''Don't you know how to walk?…Or did you forgot how to learn that in navy school?'' That one stung, he had, of course, lied about being chosen for the navy to try and look good in front of some of his group of classmates; which means that Daniel or Albert told everyone about that.

''Do you need help getting up?''

''Get up''

''Wimp''

''Coward''

''Actually…Stay down''

In unison, several started to chant softly ''stay down, stay down, stay down''

Lucan tried to get up again, only for a shove to send him crashing to the ground. Then, alone, what else is there to do, he simply sat down and waited for the group to leave.

When they realized he wasn't going to continue trying to get up nor say anything, the interest sort of faded and the group started to disperse between laughs and forceful taps to the back of Lucan's head. In his silence, he saw Daniel and Albert leave him in the ground and walking in the opposite direction in an animated conversation without a single spare glance his way.

Finally alone, he sneakily checked his precious piece of paper was in his place and began to grab all his books and utensils when in the distance.

''Hey Diane…isn't that your baby brother?''

Suddenly looking ahead to the distance, he realized some five or six faces were looking his way, all of them with a blue scarf decorating their necks, except for one; one was blue and purple.

The color of of pride, the color of the best and brightest for the future of the navy, and the color of the most powerful and respected students of every school in the city.

The color of the scarf of Diane Graves du Lac.

She had seen the entire thing, and done, absolutely nothing.

Without hesitation, without mercy,''I have no idea who he is'' she turned around, and left with the rest following her in a street with a clear view to the port.

and worst of all.

Even farther, waiting for the small group of Cadets, in full navy uniform, stood Leonel Graves, but unlike his daughter, he didn't even looked his way.

Not. a. glance

That hurt more than he would ever admit in his life.

Lucan finished grabbing his things from the ground, turned around, and started walking in the direction oposite his family, to the plaza, clutching his bag protectively with all his might, leaving the castle town outside the walls towards someone he knew would listen in a place called The Woolwell inside a plaza next to the gate.

As always, Lucan found the person he was looking for the moment he arrived. The witch. She stood out like a sore thumb in a sea of people, with a pointy hat and black robes, she made her living selling small vials of potions in the plaza and sailing in ships to adventure in the outside world.

Her name was Emma, and she was the kindest soul Lucan had ever met in his life besides his little sister.

When she picked him out from the crowd in front of her stand she gave him a smile and a wave to come forward, the moment he stood directly in front of her she spoke with an accent unique to her in the city as far as Lucan was concerned.

''Ey shortie, how's life?''

When Lucan didn't respond she sort of snorted and continued without shame

''Bad day innit? you Been 'aving many o'those these weeks lad…wanna 'elp little'ol me sell my stuff?''

The answer came quickly''I'd love to''

Few students would leave their free hours to work without pay in a stand in the middle of a dirty plaza with a, as his father said, disreputable sort. Lucan however loved every second, especially because when he took the stand, Emma would talk about life, and in some lucky days, she spoke of magic.

He remembered how he had meet her, he was in the plaza with a group from his school that came to see the rumors of the day. A witch. The priest in the school warned everyone in the classroom about her, and the parents claimed she was a bad influence in the city, so of course, a lot of the students went to see her the second they could, and the moment they saw her he could remember the disillusioned faces in the crowd.

In front of them stood a woman, not very tall nor ugly, in fact some even called her attractive, but no more unique to them than the other traders and merchants in the stands trying to sell everyone their wares. But for Lucan, she was different, she had a face that looked like a tale(undoubtedly a fascinating one)was waiting to be told. With tanned skin devoid of make up, round cheeks and a generously curved nose and mouth, what he loved the most about her was her eyes; almost hypnotizing, always in motion as if trying to find something to recall and tell a story. And oh, he loved her stories, no matter how crazy they sounded.

That day, the students, bored out of their minds had done what children are won't to do when they believe that their actions are justified by the words of their elders, that is; Playing cruel pranks. The plan that was concocted was simple, everyone walks in at once and start demanding and asking about everything, while at the same time the entire group touches all the wares and makes a mess.

And just like every badly played prank, it got out of control quickly.

The moment a dozen hands started touching and moving the fragile looking vials and other objects between the increasingly loud voices of everyone in the small space, a small blue lizard which Lucan would later know was a sea salamander appeared and began defending the stand from what he sensed (and rightly) was danger, and in the confusion, someone kicked one of the legs of the stand and all the objects went down.

It was at this moment that said lizard began attacking the hands nearest to him after which followed pandemonium, alas, Emma managed to calm the animal down only to find a couple of crying and lightly hurt teenagers surrounded by another whole bunch near them claiming that the whole problem had been her fault for having a dangerous animal on the loose.

Finally the city watch came around to put order and when every side said their part, of course, the watch took the side of the brats that belonged to the city instead of the newly arrived foreigner, so everyone left her in the middle of the plaza with a warning in the midst of her broken stand but before leaving one of the students muttered ''Half-whore'', and finally all the pieces came into place.

East of Lucien lies the home of a large city-state of half elves called Agrinion or forgotten light as is most commonly called, said city had allied with the rival city-state of Lunda, elevating the already high tension in the region and creating some animosity.

Lucan, instead of leaving with the rest, slowly, walked to were she was kneeling and received both a glare that promised trouble and a threat.

''Kid, imma going to curse ye to hell and back if you don't lea--''the words came short when she realized in terror that Lucan was holding another salamander in his arms, at first she thought he was going to hurt the animal like the other students that had tried their luck with the one that defended the stand, but instead what had happened was that the poor thing had escaped in terror of the noise and he had calmed it into his arms.

At first the lizard had tried to attack him, but when it bit Lucan, instead of recoiling, he started soothing the animal, and by the time the mess was over the salamander was hiding and whimpering inside the scarf Lucan had around his neck.

In silence he returned the pet and helped the witch reorganize her stand, she never apologized for her threat, and he never apologized for the actions of his classmates. Instead he had given her pointers about how to avoid trouble and the best places for her to sell her wares, in return, she had sprayed some beautiful dust over his wound and thanked him for his kindness.

He would have left her but he had to ask. ''Why didn't you use magic to defend yourself.''

''HA, that's a good one, ye think i should'a killed them pest's o your's…nah, they''ll get some trouble soon. But say. Why are ye not throwing insults and pretty pranks at me with yer friend's?''

''They are… not my friends.''

''Oh, what are they then?''

''nothing really…they are more like. well, nothing really.''

''Oh. ooh i see'' looking at Lucan as if for the first time, she realized he hadn't moved, and instead was looking at the dust in his hand with the same eyes a man that has starved reserves for food.

because for the first time, he, Lucan Graves du Lac had magic in his hand.

And it was beautiful.