At home both Nenevi and Nevil were waiting for their daughter, feeling excited about their daughter’s first day at the institute. Nevil, although busy with Council work, took a break just so she could welcome her daughter home from her first day.

“Do you think she’ll manage to make friends?” asked Nevil.

“I think so.” answered Nenevi.

“Well, it’s just that she never really bothered to make friends before so, you know, I’m a bit worried.” said Nevil.

“Don’t worry dear, our daughter has no problem talking to strangers so she will be fine.” comforted Nenevi.

“Y...yeah, you’re right.” said Nevil.

“Ah, would you look at that; she’s right there.” said Nenevi.

Hearing her wife, Nevil looked forward and saw his daughter coming towards their home.

On her way back home, Merlin thought to herself, “Alice looks familiar. Where have I met her before?”.

She slowly walked towards the Council Property with three meat buns in a paper bag. As she reached the property, she walked towards her home and on her way saw both her parents standing in the front porch seemingly waiting for her. Seeing this, she fastened her pace and reached the home gate.

Reaching the gate, both her parents were waving at her yelling, “Merlin!! Welcome home.”. She felt happy seeing them, saying “I’m home.” as she went up the front porch.

As their daughter came up the front porch, both Nevil and Nenevi put their hands on her shoulder and guided her in.

“So, how was your first day?” asked Nenevi.

“Good, I guess.” replied Merlin.

“Did you make any friends?” asked Nevil.

“Friends? I...I guess. I am not sure.” replied Merlin.

“What do you mean, honey?” asked Nenevi.

“Well you see mom, I did talk to some of my fellow students.” said Merlin.

“And?” asked Nenevi.

“I also came home till the City Centre with some of them.” continued Merlin.

“You see Merlin, if those you came home with are the ones who you talked with in the institute; they likely want to be friends with you. So you too can consider them as your friends.” said Nenevi.

Merlin nodded when her mother told her this, as it was information she never really knew about.

“So how many are those likely friends of yours?” asked Nevil.

(Now the three of them are sitting in their living room)

“Four.” replied Merlin.

“Ooh! That’s great. My daughter is finally going to have friends.” said Nevil in joy.

“Now then Merlin, go change yourself while I prepare lunch since your father has to go back to his Council duties.” said Nenevi.

“Okay.” replied Merlin.

“Sorry Merlin, it’s just that there is a lot of work nowadays with the reopening of the institute.” said Nevil.

“No worries dad.” said Merlin as she went up the stairs.

“So, need any help my dear?” asked Nevil.

“If you have the time, sure.” replied Nenevi.

Meanwhile, in another house located inside the Council Property, a father was busy going to and fro inside worried about his daughter who had gone to the institute. His daughter was his one and only child and since she was pampered during her childhood by both him and his wife, she grew up to be really shy towards others besides the two of them. Especially in crowds where her anxiety would trouble her.

“I hope she’s fine, I hope she’s fine.” said the father as he bit his thumb walking to and fro inside their living room.

“Don’t worry Martin, she’ll be fine…..I hope.” said his wife, who although trying to comfort her husband was also worried about the well-being of their daughter.

While the two of them were busy worrying about their daughter, Alice, the center of their concern was coming home on a different road then usual. The reason for this being that she saw Merlin go on her usual road and she was too shy to go home with her.

However, her emotions were that of joy as in her mind the four others she went with till the City Centre were her new friends. As such she was smiling happily while strolling her way to her home.

A few minutes later, she reached her home where both her parents, on seeing her hugged her and asked her multiple questions; of which the news that she made new friends on the first day made them cry out in delight.

With most of the students reaching their home, the day ended with almost all of the new students excited for their second day in the institute.

The next day;

“Good bye, honey.” said Nenevi, as her daughter went outside for her classes.

“Good bye, mom.” replied Merlin, putting on her hood as she exited the house.

Reaching her classroom, she went to the place where she sat the previous day. Already sitting there as Alice who was happy to see Merlin arrive.

“G..good morning.” greeted Alice as Merlin reached their seat.

“Good morning.” replied Merlin.

“S..so are you i..interested in what we’re going to l..learn today?” asked Alice.

“I guess so.” answered Merlin.

“Oh.” smiled Alice.

A few minutes later, Melos arrived;

“H..hi.” she greeted the two, still a little nervous; as she sat down near them.

“Where’s the boy you came with yesterday?” asked Merlin.

“I don’t know.” replied Melos.

“Oh, I thought you two were close friends.” said Merlin.

“W..what? No no no, we just met during the entrance tests that’s all.” replied Melos.

“Oh, ok then. It’s nearly time for the instructor to come so I just wanted to know.” said Merlin.

With just 1 Amal left, Xavier rushed in with another boy in a hurry. The two also came towards Merlin’s seat and sat down.

“Sorry we’re late.” said Xavier as he sat besides Melos.

“Hmm, you seem like you will always be late.” remarked Melos.

“Hehe, my bad. It’s easier than I thought to oversleep.” said Xavier.

“Anyways who’s that guy near you?” asked Melos.

“Ah hello, my name is Rigur.” said the guy next to Xavier.

“You see, we both came running from the City Centre and since we were in the same boat, we decided to be friends.” said Xavier.

“Hmm, friends.” busied Merlin’s thoughts.

As they were conversing, instructor Lucas came in and the door rang, alerting the students of his arrival.

Hearing the ringing sound, the students looked forward and seeing their instructor all remained silent.

“Good morning to you all. Before I start teaching you, I would like to tell you that everytime you enter the classroom your attendance is marked.” said Sir.Lucas.

“What? How?” said the students.

“Ehem! Now, I’m sure some of you have seen it but to those who haven't, if you look at the top of the door you will see a magic circle. That magic circle reacts to the symbols you have input in your body and will mark you down as present in class. Some of you might be wondering ‘how does it recognize our names?’. Well each of the symbols you have are special, in that they all are different from one another. As such, with the help of the Grand Magus’ analysis magic, we can know who enters the class.” said Sir.Lucas.

“Sir.” said one of the students, with a hand raised up.

“Yes, what is it?” asked Sir.Lucas.

“Isn’t this more or less similar to slave marks?” asked the student.

“Hmm, good question. However before I answer, can you tell me your name, young lady.” said Sir.Lucas.

“Remidus, Remidus Ironbaek.” replied the student.

“Ah,so you're the princess from Ironbark city.” said Sir.Lucas.

“Ooh, we have a princess in our class?” mumbled the students in surprise.

“Well, we don’t really care about positions in society inside this city anyways. So regarding your question, no the two are completely different magic. In fact, this city strictly prohibits slavery within its walls. You see, while slavery magic is a modification of summoning and sealing magic the marks you have is made with the help of analysis magic. It does not restrict your freedom like slave magic, it does not threaten your life like slave magic. It just lets the Grand Magus know where in the world you are, in case you get into trouble and helps register your attendance. Does that answer your question?” stated Sir.Lucas.

“Yes, thank you sir.” said Remidus.

“Good, now let’s start with today’s topic, that is the basic background of this city or institute. Before that, what day and month is today?” asked Sir.Lucas.

“The second day of Tesseratos.” answered some of the students.

“Good, one should never forget the time. So let’s start with Mavis herself. I’m sure most of you know of her since not only is she the first Grand Magus and founder of this city, she is also the first ever mortal to be turned into a god, not just a god but an elder god. The only thing we know of her early days is that she was an outcast of her birthplace because the people back then thought her tremendous amounts of mana was a curse. So, she started travelling around the world at an early age of 12 in ancient years, which in the present system is 6 years old. And it was only 3 years later on her journey that she met the Grand Magus himself.” said Sir.Lucas.

“Wait Sir, did you just say the Grand Magus?” asked Xavier as he stood up.

“Yes, the Grand Magus is the only living associate of Mavis today which makes him around 3500 years old. And with the Grand Magus they travelled together around the world gaining more friends along the way, and advancing her magic in their journeys. When she founded this city, she had already become famous on her journeys as the ‘Wandering Teacher” despite her young age. And when she reached the age of 13 years she founded this institute, which became the foundation of advanced magic. One important thing to know is that she wasn’t the one who created the Council of Magic as it was the Grand Magus who created it after Mavis’ death. Now to Mavis’ death; as she got older, her mana kept increasing to the point where her body could no longer endure it and as a result she died at the early age of 18. During her time as the Grand Magus, she led to the creation of magic circles which led to her being named the ‘Godmother of Advanced Magic.’ After her death, her body turned into pure mana and this also led to the first ever appearance of the Creator God himself. The sky opened up as he made his appearance congratulating Mavis for her works which would lead to a new age in magic as he declared that he would make her the newest Elder god in his pantheon. And that, boys and girls is the basic history of Mavis.” stated Sir.Lucas.

“And regarding the history of this place, well although it was already popular during Mavis’ time, it was the Grand Magus who turned it into the powerhouse it is today. With his creation of the Council of Magic, he started showcasing his power to the world so that he could protect this city against the hungry kings and nobles who wanted to take over this city after Mavis’ death, ultimately leading to Magna city being called the ‘Truly Neutral City’ as it didn’t involve itself into the wars and political struggles outside its walls only acting as it pleases.” he continued.

A couple of minutes later, Sir.Lucas finally finished his lecture with the students earnestly listening to him.

“Although I said a lot today, for those of you who want to know more the Bibliotheca has all the books necessary to know more. Now if you look at your timepieces it is approximately 10 Moro, you will have a 30 Amal break from classes where you can do whatever you want inside the institute after which your practical classes will take place. You just have to return to this room where another instructor will come to guide you. I personally would recommend you to go to the Bibliotheca and read the books there. And...I’ll be taking my leave.” said Sir.Lucas, leaving the room.

“Phew, that was an interesting class. So what are you guys going to do?” said Xavier.

“I’ll be going to the Bibliotheca.” said Merlin.

“I..I’ll follow Merlin.” said Alice.

“As for me, I’ll go meet up with my brother first.” said Melos.

“Well, what about you Rigur?” asked Xavier.

“Hmm, give myself a tour.” replied Rigur.

“Well, I’ll be following Rigur then, since I want to look around as well.” said Xavier.

As such they split up and went to do whatever they said they were going to do.

On their way to the Bibliotheca,

“D..do you like reading?” asked Alice.

“I guess.” answered Merlin.

“M..me too.” said Alice.

“Oh, really? What books do you read?” asked Merlin not knowing that this question would spark a long conversation between the two.

Even when they reached the Bibliotheca, the two girls were still conversing about books as they wandered around looking at the different bookshelves. This deepened their bond with Alice no longer feeling shy towards Merlin and Merlin perceiving Alice as her first friend.

At the same time, Xavier and Rigur were wandering around the institute, visiting the various buildings and viewing the greenery encompassing the various buildings.

“So Rigur, you’re a beastkin?” asked Xavier.

“Yes, from Wolfkin clan.” replied Rigur.

“Oooh, so can you, like transform?” asked Xavier.

“Yes, but only partial.” answered Rigur.

“Aah, that’s cool. So, I’m a Cleric and what about you?” asked Xavier who was full of questions.

“M..me? M….mage.” said Rigur, a bit nervous since the people from his clan looked down on him for following the magical path.

“Wow, so you’re a wolfkin mage. Can’t wait to see you use magic in your beast form.” said Xavier with his eyes shining with anticipation.

Seeing his eyes, Rigur said,”No worries, for I’ll show you when possible.” confidently.

And just like that, unknowingly Xavier had made a friend who admired him.

A few minutes later, the bell rang and the students started returning to their rooms.

“S..so, you don’t understand what the sister was thinking?” asked Alice.

“Yes, why did she go back?” asked Merlin.

“T..that’s because she did not want her brother to die.” said Alice.

“But she ended up dying.” said Merlin.

“Ah…...w.w..well I guess she wanted to d..die for her brother.” said Alice.

“Hmmm, I still don’t understand.” said Merlin.

As the two were conversing about a book they read inside the library, Melos and the others also arrived.

“So did you meet up with Areti?” asked Xavier.

“Yes, he already made some friends there as well.” said Melos.

“Nice, even you already have 2 girl friends here.” said Xavier.

“Y..yeah.” replied Melos.

As the group was conversing, the door rang and a new instructor came in. This time it was one of the judges during the second part of the test, Elfilna who came in.

“Everyone, I want all of you to follow me.” said Elfilna as she went outside the room.

The students sitting inside all stood up and followed her.

“Hey, isn’t she one of the three judges?” asked Xavier.

“Yes, she is also a Council member.” answered Merlin.

“Wait, really?” said Xavier.

Hearing their conversation, Elfilna immediately realized it was Nevil’s daughter due to the fact that she knew who she was.

“Now, from tomorrow onwards, when the bell rings you should immediately head for the area we are currently going to. All the first year students will have this class at the same time and will be instructed by me, Elfilna, the head of the Magic Block.” said Elfilna.

A few minutes later, they reached the place. All of the groups arrived at the same time, all guided by the same person which surprised the students.

With all of them gathered inside the Testing Grounds, Elfilna absorbed her clones and started explaining -

“First of all, I’m sure that all of you know where this place is since this is the place where you did the second test. To remind you, this place is called the Testing Grounds where all the students have practical classes until they reach the level of a mage or its equal from which they can start using the larger Arcanium for spell practices. Now, more will be told to you in future classes. For now I would like 5 of you to step up inside these circles on the ground and cast a basic tier 1 or 2 spell towards the targets up front, after which you will go back and 5 more will come forward and we’ll repeat that. You can use the practice weapons over there.” advised Elfilna.

As such, the students started to step up and cast their spells - some would cast Firebolt, Spark, Waterball while physical based students would use their tier 1 or 2 moves like Fire Punch, Torch Kick and the like.

Like how most groups are, even among the first year students some of them stood out, the first one being a young boy with dark brown hair, and a rather muscular build for someone so young, who picked up a wooden sword.

“Aura Slash!” shouted the boy, letting out a projectile out from his wooden sword, shocking the instructor.

“Oh, tell me your name, boy.” said Elfilna, surprised by the kid.

“Hmph, I am Eric Manhuff, son of Richard Manhuff.” he said proudly with his right hand on his waist.

“No wonder you can use Aura at such a young age. I’m sure Hermond would love to have you as his disciple.” remarked Elfilna.

“That was my plan from the start.” replied Eric.

“Hmm good, now the next group come up.” said Elfilna.

As Eric went back with a proud face, the next group came up with Hermes and Areti part of that group.

“Oh, I remember you. You’re Hermes right?” said Areti.

“Yes, do I know you?” asked Hermes.

“Oh, sorry about that. I am Areti, a fighter like you. Seeing your fight with Merlin made me want to be friends with you.” said Areti.

“Sure, then let’s compete to see who deals more damage to the target.” suggested Hermes, as he smiled.

“Sure.” answered Areti with a smile.

With a signal from Elfilna the two boys attacked the target.

“Lightning Essence, Flash Step : Knee Strike.” said Hermes as he got engulfed in short lightning sparks, jumping forward striking the target with his knee.

On his side, Areti too decided to use a strong move to the target.

Taking his breath, Areti used “Fist of Courage.” sending out a big fist made out of Force to hit the target.

Even though Elfilna told them “ Hey now, I said only tier 1 and 2 spells.”, it fell on deaf ears.

Both of their strikes destroyed the target, and even though they didn’t listen to Elfilna’s advice, she let them off with a warning.

With a new group coming up, the two of them talked with each other.

“Since we both destroyed the target, I guess we’re equals.” said Areti.

“Sure, in fact let’s be more than friends. What do you think of being my rival?” asked Hermes.

“Hmm, okay. I’ve never had a rival before so let’s shake our hands on it.” said Areti as they shook their hands and each considered the other their rival.

As 2 more groups of students went up to participate, Xavier and Rigur joined the next group.

“Hmm, Holy Bolt.” casted Xavier after a short moment of questioning himself.

Rigur too, wondered what spell he should use. Especially since he wasn’t taught any in his hometown. Thinking Spark would be too simple of a spell, he decided to combine it with a claw attack.

“Spark.” casted Rigur but instead of shooting it out, he accumulated the spell onto his hands which he had turned into beast form attacking the target with his claws.

As they went back,

“That was really cool.” said Xavier to Rigur.

“Ah…. t..thanks.” said Rigur.

“But did your hands hurt? I mean letting a spell remain in it must hurt right?” asked Xavier.

“N..no. Beast hand is strong.” replied Rigur.

Within the next group of students to go up were Merlin, Melos, Remidus, Alice and one other female student.

Bards in particular have their own schools, however Melos had decided to not enter them and instead follow her brother into Mavis’ Institute. As such there were no instruments suitable for her and she was allowed to use her instrument.

“Hmm, maybe I should just let Syphil do it.” thought Melos.

As such, she decided to just summon Syphil and let her cast Gust.

At the same time, Merlin, although a summoner, decided to cast Waterball infusing it with spark to hit the target; surprising Elfilna prompting her to ask who she was.

“Was that Infusion? What is your name?” asked Elfilna.

“Merlin.” answered Merlin.

“Merlin?..... Oh that makes sense.” simply answered Elfilna, recognizing she was Nevil’s daughter.

As for Remidus, she too did something unique; without casting a spell she controlled the earth beneath her, turning it into small wires and attacked the target.

“You must be Remidus Ironbaek, I’ve heard of you.” said Elfilna. “I thought the rumors of the Ironbark princess capable of bending the earth to her will were just, well rumors.” she thought to herself.

Next was Alice, who casted a simple Firebolt to the target hitting it.

And lastly was a female elf, with bright brown hair.

“Light Shield.” casted the elf, forcing it towards the target knocking it back a few distance.

“Hmm, are you perhaps a Defender.” asked Elfilna.

“Yes miss.” answered the elf.

“Can you tell me your name?” asked Elfilna.

“Okay, my name is Litigel Nierfroeza.” answered the female elf.

Marking her name down, Elfilna continued the procedure.

A few minutes later, all the first year students had finished displaying their spells.

Clapping her hands,

“Now that we’ve finished the practical class, you will again have a 20 Amal break after which instead of a sparring class, you will have an informative class. Class dismissed.” said Elfilna.

Going up to her brother, Melos asked -

“So brother, what are you going to do now?”

“Well, why don’t we go to the Cafeteria?” said Areti.

“Oh, yeah I forgot there was one.” replied Melos.

“The cafeteria? Let me come as well, I wanna try the food there.” said Xavier as he heard their conversation.

“Me too.” said Rigur.

At the same time, Remidus went to talk to Merlin as she saw her using Infusion.

“Hey, so you are Merlin right?” asked Remidus.

“Yes, and you must be Remidus.” said Merlin, as she too was slightly interested in her magic.

“Yes, yes. So tell me, from where did you learn how to use Infusion?” demanded Remidus.

“Well, my father taught me.” replied Merlin.

“Oh, interesting. So who is this father of yours?” asked Remidus.

“Nevil.” answered Merlin after a short pause.

“Nevil?......... wait a minute. You’re the daughter of ‘that’ Nevil? The Council member?” spluttered Remidus in a silent voice.

“Yes.” replied Merlin.

“ *cough cough* Sorry about my previous tone. So, Merlin let’s get to know each other better.” said Remidus putting her hand forward.

“Sure.” replied Merlin, shaking her hand.

Finishing their conversation, Merlin approached Alice.

“Alice, let’s go to the Bibliotheca.” said Merlin.

“Okay.” replied Alice.

“This time, let’s search for magic related books.” said Merlin, as the two went out of the arena.

Reaching the huge library, the two girls started looking around.

“It still l..looks amazing even after e..entering it twice.” said Alice.

“You’re not wrong.” said Merlin. “Come, towards the Magic Studies section.” she continued.

“Y..yes.” replied Alice, following Merlin.

Reaching the Magic Studies section, the two girls went down to the bottom of the room.

“So what books have you read regarding Magic studies?” asked Merlin.

“W..well I have read ‘Basics of Mana Circulation’, ‘Disguised Blessing of the Elements’, ‘Mana Control’ and a few others.” replied Alice.

“Oh, some of those I haven't read. So let’s search for the ‘Disguised Blessing of the Elements’.” said Merlin.

“Ah….we...we’ll can we search for s..s..something else?” said Alice, sounding a bit nervous.

“Why?” asked Merlin.

“W….well, w..we can r..read that l...later.” replied Alice.

“Okay, so let’s just search for a random book.” said Merlin.

“Yes.” replied Alice.

Meanwhile, Areti and his group had reached the Cafeteria. Going in they saw a great many students inside.

“Wow, so many people.” said Rigur.

“Yeah, they are probably our seniors as well.” said Areti.

“But don’t you think this place looks more like a guild hall?” said Xavier.

“You’re right, it does look like one.” replied Hermes, who decided to follow them as he was hungry.

“Let’s go ask the clerk over there.” said Areti.

Reaching the clerk, Areti asked -

“Hello sir. Can I ask whether this is the Cafeteria or not?”.

“Sure, this is in fact the Cafeteria. But I understand where you’re coming from; most new students get confused when they enter.” answered the clerk.

“Thank you. Also, can you tell me how this place functions?” asked Areti, as he saw a few wooden boards that look just like quest boards on the sides.

“Sure sure, telling you these things is our role anyway. This place although called the Cafeteria also functions like a guild hall. Once you reach the level of a mage and its equals, you can start coming here and select any quest you want from those wooden boards over there and you will be rewarded accordingly. And before you ask, yes it is compulsory for students to complete those quests to advance. Oh, and you can also get free meals by completing certain quests.” answered the clerk.

“Thank you, that was really informative.” replied Areti.

“No problem, now if you are here to eat then just go sit wherever you like, look at the menu and tell the wandering waiters what you want.” said the clerk.

“Okay.” replied Areti.

Selecting an available seat, the group decided to sit down and order food as they talked about what they had just heard from the clerk.

A few minutes later, the bell rang and all of the students started returning to their classrooms.

With all of the students of group 3 now in their room, Sir.Lucas again came in and started his lecture.

“Hello again, so there were a few things I forgot to talk about in the first class because I was too busy talking about our founder. So, I will try to cover them right now. Firstly I will cover the different areas inside the campus. Before I start, the garden surrounding the different areas is called the Garden of Mavis. Now, the first building you see when you enter the gate is the Magic Block, where we currently are and as the name suggests, it is the place where magical based students gather. However before the Magic Block, there are two areas on the left and right side when you enter; the area on the left is the Testing Grounds used for practical classes and the one on the right is the Cafeteria which functions as both a place to eat and guild hall. Behind the Magic Block and in the centre is the Tower of Grand Magus, where the Grand Magus and the Council of Magic gather. Now, on the left side of the tower is the Physical Block where the physical based students gather and on the right side of the tower is the Bibliotheca, the largest library throughout the whole of Gaia. By largest I mean the library with the most books. And on the far right, that is just right of the Bibliotheca is the Instructor’s Block where we, that is instructors, stay until every class is finished. Behind the tower is the Arcanium, a place for students on the level of mages and above to practice and experiment different moves and spells. The layout of the building is a bit complicated so it is advised to read the information board near the entrance before entering. And the building behind the Arcanium is the Showcase Arena, used every year for the past 68 years for the event known as the Memorial Tournament held in the month of Enneamo every year which we will talk about in later classes. And last but not least is the Student Dormitory which is just after the Physical Block. Now that does it for all the areas of the institute and the next and possible last topic I will tell you today is how this place functions, which is really important, well of course it is. All of you here are new students, also referred to as first year students. Every year you study in this institute, you will be referred to as second, third, fourth year students and so on. Now, currently you are all in the level of an Apprentice Mage, one thing you should know is that we use the Mage progression tree as reference or comparison. In order to advance, you will have to take the Advancement Test which is held in the month of Exios every year. If you pass that test, you will be acknowledged as a mage or similar and then you can start taking different quests from the Cafeteria where the number of quests you complete counts as marks and when you finish a certain amount of quests you will be able take the Advancement Test again to advance to the level of an Adept Mage. However you will still have classes like this where you will be taught more advanced spell theories. This however is different for the physical based students since we lack the necessary teachers to teach all of them. As such they will be given a choice to go to other institutes who are focused on the physical trait. Our institute is connected with many others so they are bound to see a place fit for them to study. After becoming an Adept Mage or its match, you will no longer be taught by us and instead it will be your job to self-learn and advance. Meaning that you will have to start going out and explore different places to gain needed experience. For the levels above the Adept Mage, you no longer need to take tests as the Voice of Gaia will tell you when you’ve reached such levels. And that will be all for today, any questions?” finished Sir.Lucas.

“I have a question.” said Remidus, raising her hand up.

“Yes, what is it?” replied Sir.Lucas.

“So after reaching the level of a Mage, I want to know whether we will get different instructors based on our specialities.” asked Remidus.

“Yes, after passing the Advancement Test, each of you will be passed on to different instructors who are in the same speciality tree as you.” answered Sir.Lucas.

“Oh, thank you.” said Remidus.

“So, anyone else?” said Sir.Lucas.

“Sir, for people like me who aren't actual citizens are we going to lose our mark of citizenship after reaching the level of an Adept Mage.” asked a male student.

“That depends on whether you want to remain under our protection or not. Totally up to the students.” answered Sir.Lucas.

“Thank you sir.” said the student.

“One question, is the Voice of Gaia the one that told us about our innate abilities?” asked Xavier.

“Yes, the Voice of Gaia or the voice of the world is a mysterious thing. Noone actually knows how it functions since all we know is that it notifies people of their achievements and improvements.” answered Sir.Lucas.

“So, any more?......Okay, we will end the class for today and see you all again tomorrow.” said Sir.Lucas, leaving the room.

“So, brother is going to have to go to another school later.” said Melos.

“Yeah, it seems like it is going to be necessary for him to get stronger.” replied Xavier.

“W..what, you were listening?” asked Melos.

Well yeah, I mean I’m right next to you.” replied Xavier.

“Ah yeah, you’re right so why don’t we wait for my brother outside?” suggested Melos.

“Sure, but I thought the instructor would talk more about the Student’s Dormitory.” said Xavier.

“Now that you said that, you’re right. Maybe they’re preparing the rooms.” said Remidus who was sitting in front of them.

“I hope so, since I’m planning to stay in one.” replied Xavier.

“Really?” asked Melos.

“Yeah, staying in a tavern throughout my time here is not really to my liking.” replied Xavier.

“Oh, me too. I plan to stay.” said Rigur.

“Nice, we can be roommates if that’s possible.” said Xavier.

“Yes.” replied Rigur.

“Me too, I plan to stay in the student housing.” said Remidus.

“I thought you were a princess. I mean don’t royalty and all have those luxurious buildings to stay in.” said Xavier.

“Haha, you’re right about that. But not me, I mean this city does not bow to anyone you see. Even if it did I would still prefer to stay inside the institute.” replied Remidus.

“Hmm, you don’t sound as bad as the one’s I know.” said Xavier.

“Well, I’ll take that as a compliment.” said Remidus.

“Let's go out now.” said Melos.

“Sure sure.” said Xavier.

While they were talking with one another, Merlin and Alice had already left the room and were on their way to the gate.

“A..are we not going to w..wait for them?” asked Alice.

“Oh, I forgot. You want to wait?” replied Merlin.

“I….I’m not sure. But they are our f..friends too right?” said Alice.

“Friends?.......I guess. Okay let us wait for them then.” said Merlin; the two of them standing near the entrance.

A few minutes later, Xavier, Melos, Areti, Hermes, Rigur and Remidus all were coming together in a group towards the gate.

“Were you waiting for us?” asked Areti.

“Yes, Alice said to wait for you so we did.” replied Merlin.

“Well, thank you for waiting for us.” said Areti to Alice.

“N...no p..problem.” said Alice.

“Now, why don’t we go together till the City Centre?” said Areti.

“Sure.” replied Merlin, as she along with Alice followed them.

On their way to the City Centre,

“So Merlin, I will beat you the next time we fight.” said Hermes.

“Sure.” replied Merlin.

“Oh, you two fought during the tests?” asked Remidus.

“Yes, and it was an interesting fight.” said Xavier.

“Hmm, was it on the first day?” asked Remidus.

“Yes.” answered Hermes.

“Oh, that’s why I didn't see it. I participated on the second day.” said Remidus.

“Me too.” said Rigur.

“Yeah, I saw your match. It was with another Beastkin, who was that anyway?” said Remidus.

“Ah, don’t know him.” replied Rigur.

“Really? But I thought I saw you two talk to one another.” said Remidus.

“We Beastkins are close, even if we are strangers we are family.” said Rigur.

“Oh okay. I understand.” said Remidus.

A few minutes later, they reached the City Centre.

“Well, let us all see each other again tomorrow.” said Areti.

“Sure.” said the others, as they went towards their respected directions.