“Whew, finally we no longer need to spend the night inside.” said Martin.

“Yeah, we can finally spend some time at home.” replied Nevil.

“Oh yeah, both of our daughters are studying in the institute right?” said Martin.

“Yes, Alice right? If I remember correctly she’s even more shy than Merlin.” said Nevil.

“Yep, but she did say that she made several friends.” said Martin.

“Yeah, Merlin said that too. But I guess you’re even more happier than I am about it.” said Nevil.

“You're goddamn right I am. In fact, this is probably the happiest time of my life, my dear daughter finally making friends. You know what, it would be great if Alice and Merlin got to know each other.” said Martin.

“You're right, I feel like they’re quite similar.” said Nevil.

“Do you know which group she’s in?” asked Martin.

“I think she said she was in Group 3.” said Nevil.

“Really? That’s my Alice’s group as well.” exclaimed Martin.

“Ooooh, even more chance that they end up as friends.” replied Nevil.

The two friends continued chatting as they walked down the hallway of the Magic Block central building.

“Ah look, I guess we won’t have to worry about them after all.” said Martin, as both Merlin and Alice were walking towards them from a distance.

“Where?” said Nevil. “Ah, guess they haven't seen us.” he continued as he too saw them.

As the two duos got closer and closer, Alice finally saw his father in front of them.

“Ah! Merlin look, look that’s my dad.” said Alice excitedly.

“Next to mine.” replied Merlin.

“Dad!” said Alice as she ran towards her father, hugging him.

“Haha, Alice did you miss me?” said Martin.

“Yes, dad.” replied Alice.

“Is that the close friend you were talking about?” asked Martin.

“Yes, that’s Merlin.” said Alice.

“Hi dad.” said Merlin.

“Hello Merlin, you should’ve said you were friends with your uncle Martin’s daughter.” jested Nevil.

“Oh, I didn't know at the time.” replied Merlin.

“Hah, I’m just joking with you. But hey my best friend’s daughter and my own daughter are also good friends which is really nice right?” said Nevil.

“Yeah, you’re right.” replied Merlin.

“So, why not properly introduce her this time.” said Nevil, smiling.

“Ah yes, so dad this is Alice, a friend of mine.” said Merlin.

“H..hello uncle Nevil.” said Alice.

“Ah! You’ve got a cute daughter too Martin.” said Nevil.

“Haha, I know. Anyways hello again Merlin. It’s been 2 years? Since we last met right.” said Martin.

“Hello uncle Martin, yes it’s been 2 years.” replied Merlin.

“Ah, same as ever.” said Martin.

“So dad, when will you finish your work?” asked Merlin.

“Well, we no longer have to stay the whole day anymore from today. So both of us will be back home before dinner.” said Nevil.

“Really daddy?” asked Alice.

“Yes, my dear.” replied Martin.

“Well now, I’m sure both of your mother’s are waiting for you at home so it’s best you both return home first.” said Nevil.

“Yeah, let’s go Alice.” said Merlin.

“Bye bye. Don’t forget to tell your mother that I will be coming home for dinner.” said Nevil waving his hands.

“You too Alice.” said Martin, waving his hands.

And just like that the conversation between the two father and daughter group finished.

Reaching home, Merlin saw her mother sitting on the veranda reading a book.

“Ah Merlin, welcome home.” said Nenevi.

“Mom, dad said he will be home for dinner.” told Merlin.

“Oh, that’s great. Now why don’t you clean yourself first and help me prepare the food.” said Nenevi, as she got up from her chair and went inside with Merlin.

At the same time, Alice too reached her home where upon entering, her mother immediately welcomed her back home.

“Welcome home dear, how was today?” said Levy.

“It was fun mom. Oh, daddy said he will be back home for dinner today.” said Alice.

“Oh, so he’s finally free from work. Well that’s good. Don’t forget to clean yourself okay? While I go work some more.” said Levy.

The sun falls down and both the families of Merlin and Alice await their fathers, both of whom reached their homes at the same time.

“Welcome home dear, now do you prefer to eat first or a bath?” asked Nenevi.

“Hmm, what do you think Merlin? Should I clean myself first or should we eat first?” Nevil shifted the question to his daughter.

“Dad.” said Merlin, staring at her father; “Dinner first since the food might go cold.” she continued.

“Well then, let us all go eat then shall we.” said Nenevi, as the three of them went to dine.

“So Merlin, how did you get to know each other? I mean with Martin’s daughter.” asked Nevil.

“Oh, so you’re friends with Mr.Martin’s daughter. Isn’t that great?” said Nenevi.

And just like that the centre of tonight's dinner was how Merlin came to get acquainted with Alice.

Meanwhile in the Aifeala household, things took place just like in the Lindwell household.

Welcoming home her husband, Levy immediately prepared the dining table for dinner.

“Martin, I heard from our daughter that you no longer have to stay the night. Is that true?” asked Levy.

“Yes, you know now there really isn’t a thing we can do but wait.” answered Martin. “Oh, by the way did you know that Nenevi’s daughter is friends with ours.” he continued.

“Really? Isn’t that great then? I mean we both live close to each other and all.” said Levy.

‘Yeah, now our daughter will finally have someone to go with.” said Martin.

However when all of them dined at the table, Alice asked an unexpected question.

“Daddy, Mommy, I…..Can I stay in the Student’s Dormitory?” asked Alice.

“B...but why?” said Martin, flabbergasted.

“Exactly, why my dear?” said Levy, she too was surprised.

“W..well you see, staying there will make me more mature.” said Alice.

“What about Merlin? Me and your mother thought it would be good if both of you went together everyday.” said Martin.

“Y..yes, I also want that. But, I....I really want to try and stay in the dormitory.” said Alice, trying her best to speak aloud.

Seeing their daughter make a surprising request, both Martin and Levy at first wanted to talk her down into staying in the house. But at the same time, seeing their daughter trying to stand up for herself also made them really happy.

“Hmm, you know dear. Daddy and I will think about it, so let’s first finish eating and we will discuss it tomorrow okay?” said Levy.

“Okay.” said Alice.

Later that night,

“Martin, now that Alice is asleep let us talk about her proposal.” said Levy, both of them standing on their balcony.

“Yes, what do you think? Should we accept it or not?” said Martin.

“Well, this is the first time she’s requested something like this. I feel like our decision has some sort of significance for her future.” said Levy.

“Another one of your intuitions?” asked Martin, with a slight smile on his face.

“Yes, although I must say I don’t know whether this is a good or bad one.” replied Levy.

Sighing, Martin said, “Thinking about it, you could say this is an opportunity for her to mature; like she said during dinner. I mean, we can’t spoil her forever.”

“Y….you’re right. So it seems like we have come to a decision?” said Levy.

“Yes, you’re right. Now let us also sleep.” said Martin.

“When was the last time we slept together anyway?” said Levy, as the two went inside.

The next morning,

“Alice, wake up Alice.” said Levy calmly, sitting on the edge of her daughter’s bed.

“M..mommy?” mumbled Alice.

“Ah Alice, it’s nearly time for breakfast, dear. Come down, me and your dad have something to tell you.” said Levy, leaving the room right after.

Hearing her mother’s words, Alice immediately woke up nervous. In fact she did not follow her daily routine and instead went down immediately after getting up.

Waiting for her, sitting at the dining table were her parents.

“Come here, Alice.” said Martin, with a hand gesture.

Alice slowly walked upto the table and sat down.

“Now both me and your mother have thought about what you said last night; and after much consideration we’ve decided to accept your request.” said Martin.

“R..really? Thank you so much.” said Alice, happy and excited.

“Well, let’s finish breakfast and we will help you pack your luggage.” said Levy.

“Yes, oh and did you give your name to the class teacher? Even if you didn’t I can still help you.” said Martin.

Meanwhile in the house of Merlin, the three family members ate breakfast together. This was the first time in a few days, and although a normal occurrence in their household it was still a joyous occasion.

“So Merlin, now that you have a close friend are you even more excited to go to school than before?” asked Nevil.

“A little, yes.” said Merlin.

“Well, now you will have someone to go and come home with till this area.” said Nenevi.

“About that, I think Alice will stay in the Student’s Dormitory.” said Merlin.

“Oh my, is that so?” asked Nenevi, surprised a little.

“Really? Are you sure?” asked Nevil, surprised as well.

“Not really. Just a thought.” replied Merlin.

“Even if she really decides to stay inside, it’s still great to see that you have a relatable friend.” said Nenevi.

“Yeah, although this is your first time I want you to learn friendship okay?” said Nevil.

“Sure, dad.” said Merlin.

A few Moro later, Alice came to Merlin’s house inviting her.

“Ah, Alice welcome. Are you here to invite Merlin?” asked Nevil, who was outside in the gardens.

“Y..yes.” replied Alice.

“Come in, she’s nearly ready.” said Martin. “Oh by the way, are you planning to stay in the Student’s Dormitory?” asked Nevil, seeing as how Alice was carrying 2 bags.

“Y..yes.” replied Alice as she walked inside the apartment.

“So Martin agreed to it? Hah, that’s unlike him.” said Nevil.

“Merlin! Alice is here.” said Nevil.

From upstairs, came down Merlin who was also fully ready.

“Let’s go.” said Merlin.

“Okay.” said Alice.

“Bye bye, have fun.” said Nevil, waving his arm.

Walking towards the City Centre, Merlin asked -

“So, you are planning to stay in the dormitory?”.

“Y..yes.” replied Alice.

“Can I ask why?” said Merlin.

“S..sure. I want to grow; I want to be more mature.” said Alice.

“Hmm, that’s good. So what about your condition?” asked Merlin.

“What condition?” asked Alice.

“Well, the Spell Infusion one.” replied Merlin.

“Ah, d..daddy said he would take care of it.” said Alice.

Soon after, they reached the institute and entered their classroom.

As they entered, they saw that some of the students were also accompanied with multiple baggage just like Alice, including Xavier and Remidus. And yes, they were the last to reach the room from their circle.

“Ah good morning.” greeted Remidus, seeing the two girls arriving.

“Good morning.” replied Merlin and Alice.

“So you’re also going to stay?” asked Remidus.

“Y..yes.” replied.

“What?..Oh, so you’re also staying. That’s good, you can be roommates. '' said Xavier, referring to Remidus.

“Y..yeah, if possible.” said Alice.

“Well, I don’t mind. Let’s get to know each other better if we manage to be roommates.” said Remidus.

“Well, why don’t you people sit now. See, Sir.Lucas is just about to enter.” said Melos, a bit jealous of their chat.

Entering the room, Sir.Lucas greeted the students first and started his lecture.

“Today, we will be talking about the different lands of this world; and to better understand what I say, I’ve brought with me a map of the world.” said Sir.Lucas.

Reaching into his dimension bag, he pulled out a large map and placed it onto the board behind him.

(https://imgur.com/fKLSOjZ - link for the image if it can't show)

(Am no map drawer, so hope this will suffice for now.)

“And done. Now that I’ve placed our main topic of lecture today on the board, let us begin. First of all, as you can see here there are five land masses on Gaia. The biggest land mass is this one, in the centre called Nevaria. And then there’s Magrova on the South-West, Ilfas on the South-East, Arsol on the North-East and Deva on the North-West. Also, this map does not contain the multiple islands located in the vast body of water. Before all these lands were formed, there was one giant landmass where everyone lived. *looking at his timepiece* Well, we still have a lot of time so I will tell you a shorter version of how this one giant piece of land broke up into five smaller parts.

In the beginning there was only one land, created by the Creator God, Jehovah himself. At first only the Jormunds inhabited the land, but as time went by more and more creatures started to appear and eventually us, the eleven other major races appeared. Still primitive and there being only one God at the time, we worshipped the Jormunds. However, due to a low amount of worshippers the Dragons had a civil war which involved the other Jormunds resulting in the splitting up of lands.

Okay, so that’s the short story of how the land separated. Now we will start talking about the five land masses starting from Deva, the land of the Giants. As you can see, Deva is the somewhat circle shaped land on the upper left side of Nevaria. The dot inside the inner circle is a mountain called Galantis mountain, the highest mountain in Gaia. So in Deva, there is the snowy mountainous region where the Nivedils live. The Nivedils are the most populous of the Giant sub-races and are at an average around 12-15 ft high. They are most well known for their Berserk state and their highly combative nature. There are also the Galasias who live in the dry barren wastelands. They are the tallest of the Giants averaging 40-50 ft in height. They are the least populous and are the most passive of the bunch. Lastly, occupying the forested areas are the Dianes, an all female race whose average height is around 10-12 ft. One well known individual from the Dianes is Herma, the first emperor of the Giants, and might as well be the last since after her death they’re all split up again.

The next land mass we will be talking about is Magrova, where both the Demons and Undeath live. It is located near the lower left end of Nevaria, the northern side of the land is occupied by the Undeath who are further classified as Shadowmere, Vampire and Grahuls. Like the Giants, they don’t really have or attend institutions like ours and instead are family educated. The Shadowmeres are natural-borne assassins; they are usually thin and small and most of them are born with the same inborn ability with different traits called Shadow Body which gives them the ability to hide inside shadows. Then there are the Vampires who are the main users of Blood Magic. While there is a common belief that they cannot live without sucking blood from other creatures, that is false and they can eat any type of food just fine. They are particularly weak against fire magic and not holy magic. And lastly are the grahuls; they are basically humans but more dead. As such they have really high resistance to most magic and can’t feel pain besides from their only weakness holy magic. While the Undeath are thought to be vile people, that is completely false and is misinformation spread by the rulers of Svarga for their religious propaganda. Also, they are currently ruled by multiple leaders. The lower half or Southern part of Magrova is occupied by the Demons. They are the most populous of all the races alongside us, the Humans. They are divided into the - Frostmears, elf-like people with light blue skin and masters of Ice magic; Succubus, all-female group with extraordinary beauty which assists them in seducing and tricking people of all gender; Gallu, the genderless sub-race who reproduce by creating babies with Mana. They are grey-skinned with sharp facial features and three horns on their head; Devils who are the least populous in the whole of Gaia but are the strongest race due to their natural ability to use chaos magic. Daemons who make up for most of the Demon population and look closely similar to Humans. And finally, the Redsen who are bright red skinned with sharp pointy tails, who have high fire resistance and high compatibility with fire. All these sub-races are ruled by the Devils, which consists of only 1 family with their current ruler being the Demon King of Trickery, Mephisto.

The next land mass we will be talking about is Ilfas, the land of the Orcs and Beastkins located on the lower right side or South East side of the map. The Beastkins live on this area of the land while the Orcs live on this smaller area. Now the Beastkins are of 6 different sub-races such as - the Wolfkin, Rabbitkin, Beakin, Boreakin, Dragonkin and Diegakin. They all have an ability called Beastification aside from their Inborn skills which transform them into their Beast or I guess you could say true form. Each sub-race has a chieftain which make up the Council of Chiefs with their current leader being Korvus Monedu, the chieftain of the Diegakin. Of all of these sub-races, the Dragonkin is the youngest as they are the race that emerged from the blood of Ouroboros’ corpse. While some people think that the Dragons despise these Dragonkin, that is not true as they have a ‘mutual’ relationship. As for the Orcs, in terms of population they are dominated by the Beastkins but they are in no way threatened by it. There are two sub-races of Orcs; one of them is the Marisha who are red-skinned and mainly worshippers of the God of War, Mars. Then there are the Spirithralls, the green skinned orcs who make up 100% of the Shaman specialization. In terms of raw strength, the Orcs are considered to be the only ones capable of fighting against the Nivedils in direct combat.

Next we will be talking about Arsol, which is located in the North-East. This particular piece of land is completely different from the others. It has unique architecture, and a different class progression system; basically meaning that they are rather isolated from the rest of the world. It was founded by an unknown individual who we only know is a man with immense power and strength as the land of Arsol was once thought to be uninhabitable due to its dangerous habitants. So this one, powerful man went to this land thought to be uninhabitable by the majority and decided to build an entire empire on it. How he started was quite simple really, as given in the Akashic Records he basically selected a spot for a castle and cleared the surrounding area of monsters. Next he brought multiple women to the land and the rest is history. And that is why he is also known as the Harem Emperor. Anyways, the Land of Arsol does not really belong to any particular race and is inhabited by different races since it didn't belong to any race in the first place. The current emperor of Arsol is a Dragonkin known as Sekirin Naruhito.

Finally we will be talking about the biggest and centre landmass of Gaia, Nevaria. As you can see, there live the Humans, the Aedras, the Dwarves, the Elves and the Faeries. They all have their own empires and then there’s the Neutral lands, ruled by none. Firstly, we will be talking about the Aedras who are divided into two sub-races; the Aedria and the Daedra. Before talking about their sub-races though, I would like to tell you that the Aedra’s are also known as demi-angels, meaning that they are the youngest of all the races. However they are also the most intellectual and one of the most advanced races as well. While they faced discrimination at first for being the children of the angels who waged war against the Creator, with the help of Mavis they managed to redeem themselves and separate themselves from their ancestors. So firstly, the Aedrias are the white-winged Aedras who are naturally gifted with Mana Analyzation. While the Daedras are the black-winged Aedras who are gifted with the ability known as Mana Deformation. One way of knowing which Aedra is stronger than the others is by the number of wings they have on their back; while the average Aedra has 2 wings, the strongest have 6 wings.

Then we have the Dwarfs who are divided into 3 subraces known as the Gurenham, Ironbark and Igrenham. The Gurenham are the masters of defensive item crafting. As such their current kingdom’s capital is also known as the Thorns Fortress for the simple reason that attacking it would lead to more harm done on the enemies side. Then we have the Ironbarks who are masters of offensive item crafting. The weapons they craft are said to be legendary and cost a fortune. Their current king is Rignar Ironbaek, who is the father of Remidus Ironbaek, your classmate. Lastly are the Igrenhams, who unlike the other two dwarven races are behind when it comes to smithing and crafting but are known for their militaristic might. They do trades with the other races and work as mercenaries. Their king, King Ragnar is well known for his title the “King Slayer” since he has recently started waging war among his fellow races.

Next we will be talking about the Elves who due to their close relationship with the Faeries and Eathra are known as protectors of nature. They are divided into three sub-races, the first of them being the High Elves who are capable of living for thousands of years. They have snow-white skin which distinguishes them from the other elves. Then there are the Wood Elves who can live for around one to two thousand years. Like their name suggests, they live in houses built in trees and occupy the main population of the Elves. Finally, we have the Night Elves who have purple-like skin; unlike the other elves whose racial skill is Friends with Nature, the Night Elves racial skill is known as Night’s Concealment, making them perfect assassins during the night. Their lifespan is also similar to that of the Wood Elves.

Then we have the Faeries, who are small flying creatures with the closest relationship to Gaia. Along with the Eathra they are called spirits or elementals. While the Eathra are entities who personify a particular force of magic, the Faeries can be considered as gatekeepers of such entities. Every Faerie is connected to an Eathra and one must first be approved by one to sign a contract with an Eathra. As such, the Faeries are divided into two sub-races; they are the Luminarie and the Noxous. The Luminarie are Faeries who take care of the stable and safe Eathras while the Noxous are the ones who take care of the risky and dangerous Eathras. Now some of you might be thinking why one of the major races is being taken care of by another race and the reason for this is that both the Faeries and Eathra are in a mutualistic relationship meaning that they both benefit in working together. While the Faeries live in their own land right here, the Eathra are present everywhere around the world.

The next race living inside Nevaria are the Humans who are the most populous race in the whole of Gaia. You could say that reproducing is our specialty(he says jokingly). Anyways there are multiple sub-races of Humans, the first one being the Duskers who are also known as the Desert People since that’s where they primarily live. Their main physical feature is their dark brown skin colour which helps them survive the harsh rays of the sun. Their racial skill is Sand Magic, which is a special part of the Earth Magic branch. Next we have the Humars, their skin colour ranges from normal to tan(image used for reference - https://medium.com/@jacksonmichelle24/what-google-fails-to-understand-about-the-beauty-of-brown-skin-f69761a58ad2). The Humars racial skill is Natural Selection which is one of the reasons why they are the most populous of all the sub-races and are also the most stable when it comes to living conditions. The third subrace are the Korpans who mostly live in the land of Arsol. Why I didn’t talk about them when talking about Arsol is because of the fact that they don’t constitute a separate race. The Korpans are rather special due to their racial skill called Amalgamation of Energy which combines both mana and aura inside them resulting in a new force of energy referred to as Ma. This is also why like I said previously they have a different class progression system. Unlike the rest of the world which has several branches, the Korpans have a single branch which they use to classify their powers. One more thing about the Korpans is that due to mixed-breeding, not just the Korpans but most of the current inhabitants of Arsol are born with Amalgamation of Energy no matter their race. Then we have the Illia sub-race, who mostly live in the Greco region which is a militaristic region. As such even the children there are always steeled for war. They are mostly loud and proud people. Their racial skill is Stand. Next we have the Sol sub-race whose low numbers constitute the Solis Clan. They are well known for their rivalry with the Lunar sub-race. Both these races are incredibly powerful during their respective racial skills. The Sol’s racial skill is known as Praise the Sun, which keeps on empowering them as long as the Sun is up reaching their peak at High Noon. On the other Hand, the Lunar’s racial skill is Night Owl, which empowers them as long as the Moon is visible, reaching their peak at midnight.

And that is all for the different races inhabiting the lands. Any questions?” asked Sir. Lucas as he finished the first part of his lecture.

“Yes. Sir, what about the Jormunds? Where do they live?” asked one student.

“Well, they each live in their respective domains. Like the Titans, they live on land. They are the largest of the bunch and as such some are lying dormant as mountains while some are sleeping underground. As for the Leviathans, well they live on Atlantia, the entire ocean. Unlike the Titans, you can still see them when venturing deep into the waters but only rarely will you witness them. Lastly are the Dragons, the most active of the Jormunds, they are living in the sky country called Avabel and rarely interact with us. The only times they do interact is when some stupid people offend them.”

“Thank you sir.” said the student as he sat down.

“Any more? Well if you’re too shy to ask, you can find more info about what I said in the library.” said Sir.Lucas.

“Now, onto the next part of today’s informative class which will be about the most prominent people in Gaia. And the first 4 people we will be talking about constitute the group known as the Four Great Rulers. The first of these four is King Gregory Heirdman, a ruler with the most territory among the Humans. He is the one who ended the reign of Emperor Dabi the Tyrant, thus ending the Human Empire reverting it back into a collection of independent kingdoms.The second is Korvus Monedu, a Diegakin who is the ruler of the Beastkin. He is well known for his charisma and political prowess capable of talking all the Beastkin Chiefs into a united committee. The Third is Emperor Sekirin Naruhito, who like I said before is a Dragonkin and the only female among the Four Great Rulers. She is both incredibly powerful and domineering and is well known for her alluring golden scales. The last of the Four Great Rulers is the Elven King Elgerion, who is one of the wisest in Gaia right now. Known for his knowledge and understanding, and his desire for further knowledge."