Gust climbed out of bed to the chorus of a chiming bell. The morning bell only tolled a few times, so when the sound continued, Gust rushed to get ready and headed for the school.

He wasn’t alone. In fact, the paths were packed with students looking their best. Gust noticed earrings, make up, broaches, hair pins, and more that confused him. The Masters often wore such accessories, but not students.

When he realized the school wasn’t under attack, Gust knew there was only one other possibility.

The Matriarch of the school of Fallen Leaves had returned. She’d been gone for months, hoping to form a mana star and step into the Star Formation stage.

As Gust jogged through the northern gate, he saw more green flags lining the paths than ever. The cathedral’s bell kept sounding off as countless students rushed inside and found a seat among the rows of wooden benches. Gust followed along with the rest, but someone put a hand on his shoulder. It was an older student whose name he didn’t know.

The young man had two tassels on his purple belt, so Gust knew to take him seriously. He jabbed a thumb toward the courtyard. “Green belts wait outside. Kneel with the rest of them, Demon,” he added with a tone of disgust before heading inside.

Gust scowled at the mage’s back. He was among the first students to reach the cathedral, and the courtyard had been empty. Now that he turned around, he noticed a few of the other lower students he recognized. Jonas, Alice, and Locke were among the kneeling students lining the courtyard.

As Gust joined Locke, he saw Theo speaking angrily with Oba. The purple-belted mage put a hand on his friend’s shoulder and shook his head while muttering something, then headed into the cathedral. Theo watched his friend leave him behind with gritted teeth, then found a place to kneel alone.

“Exciting day, isn’t it? Do you think she’ll take me as an apprentice when she noticed my Thousand Insect Mastery path?” Locke grinned as Gust took a seat beside him. They were in the center of the courtyard, just in front of the cathedral to get the best view. Students in purple belts continued to flow past them.

“I have no idea,” Gust responded idly as he watched the bustling crowd. “How’s your ant doing?”

“See for yourself!”

Gust nodded, barely listening. He was slightly overwhelmed by the scene before him. When he felt something tapping his shoulder, Gust reached up to brush Locke’s hand away.

Instead, he found Locke’s queen ant. She latched onto Gust’s hand, rather than be pushed aside, and clung to it.

“Easy now!” Locke said to her. “No biting! She’s grown a little since you last saw her… Gust?”

The Demon was carefully keeping his eyes away from the giant insect on his outstretched hand. “Please just take her. That’s really great. I’m proud of you. I just… don’t like bugs.”

Locke made a slightly disappointed expression as he held his hand out and the ant crawled up his sleeve. Gust tried not to gag as he imagined the little black thing crawling all over Locke’s body beneath those robes.

“Sorry,” Gust added. “It’s gonna take some time for me to get used to that. Have you, uh, added any bugs to the collection lately?”

The blond mage nodded as if he got that reaction a lot. Then he sighed. “A few of my ant colonies keep fighting each other and I can’t get the beetles to stop eating the ants. How are a thousand different species supposed to get along?” Gust sympathized with his friend, but all he could do was shrug.

That was when Gust noticed something he’d never seen before. A tall, muscular mage with caramel skin who looked to be in his late twenties walked calmly by. His cold brown eyes didn’t even glance at the kneeling students in the courtyard and even the purple belts made way for him. A black belt with two tassels tied his purple robes together at the waist.

This young man’s mana sense brushed over the students he ignored, and it sent an uncomfortable, sickly feeling down Gust’s spine. The mage suddenly paused. He turned and met Gust’s eye, then tilted his head. His gaze fell to the pocket Gust kept his father’s coin.

A hand landed on Gust’s shoulder and pulled him. Gust croaked, “What the-“ and met Locke’s frantic blue eyes.

“Don’t stare! That’s Nathaniel. Remember what I said about him? Terrifying? He’s a step away from becoming a Master.”

“Why have I never seen him before? Or anyone with a black belt, for that matter?” By the time he looked back toward the cathedral, the black belted mage was gone.

“The greens and purples maintain the school, while the more accomplished students focus on themselves. Didn’t I already tell you this? I don’t know where he goes, but Nathaniel’s almost never here. He only ever visits to accept his pay, spend his merits, and go back out. There used to be a whole team to take on the Masters’ special missions, but now it’s just him.”

“Why?”

“Because Nathaniel was always the only one who came back.”

Gust felt cold hearing that. “So he’s like Isaac, then?”

Locke snorted and kept his voice low. “Worse. At least Isaac has friends, if you can even call them that. From what I’ve heard, Nathaniel won’t even speak to anyone who isn’t a Master anymore. We’re beneath him,” he sneered.

As Gust stared toward open cathedral, he heard a rush of movement around him. Suddenly, everyone else bent their backs and outstretched their arms. Locke cleared his throat and tugged at Gust’s robes until he did the same. Then he jabbed his head to the west.

There, a pair of gold belted Masters strolled toward the courtyard. Another flew in on a spear, which then flew into a pouch at his waist as he landed and joined them. Two wore green robes, while the third who flew in wore purple. They exchanged a respectful nod, but no words.

As they approached the cathedral, even the higher level students took a knee and bowed their heads. Only Gust and his green belted colleagues were fully prostrate.

When the three stepped inside, Gust started rising, but Locke pulled him back down. “The rest will be here soon, and the Matriarch should be last. Keep your head down.”

Begrudgingly, Gust did as he was told. He knelt there for what felt like an hour, but may have only been several minutes. Feet kept pounding the paved courtyard as students rushed inside. Traffic only slowed when a Master passed.

Gust suddenly cried out as someone stomped on his outstretched hand. “Fuck,” he muttered, pulling it toward his chest. Isaac looked back, chuckling as he made a sarcastic, piteous expression. Gust gritted his teeth and opened his dark eye wide as he stared the mage down and cycled mana into his hands.

Isaac’s jaw fell slightly as he stared into the inky abyss of Gust’s dark eye. He started reaching into his robes but stopped when Master Christos stepped outside and grabbed him by the shoulder. A few more students trickled inside as Gust seethed.

Then he heard someone clearing her throat.

As Gust turned, he noticed that even the nearby Masters were kneeling, though there was only a pair of them. A middle aged women in golden robes walked toward him with a curious expression as her mana sense measured him up. Gust felt his spine tingling and he thought of lowering himself to the ground, but the woman had already seen him. It was too late.

The Matriarch’s tan skin had slight red tones, and her face was covered in deep wrinkles. White hair held only a few strands of black. She looked like one of the oldest people Gust had ever seen, but she moved with the grace of a dancer. As she approached him, Gust noticed green insects embroidered around her sleeves, and running down her robes. Her dark brown eyes seemed to hold a weight that settled heavier on Gust’s chest the longer she watched him.

She clicked her tongue. “I suppose I should have expected the Swordsman’s replacement to be just as presumptuous as himself. You do not wield the blade yet, however.”

Gust lowered his head and clasped his hands. The one Isaac stomped on still ached. “Sorry Matriarch, I was distracted.”

The woman put a finger under Gust’s chin and direct his gaze upward again. “Open your eye. Let me speak to him.”

Gust’s eyebrows rose, but he did as he was asked. Apparently, she had already spoken with Ephraim.

The Matriarch blinked but showed no more reaction to the strange sight. “I know you value pride, but your disciple is a student at my school. Unless you find a way to leave that sword and form a body of your own, he will need to act appropriate to his station.” Her eyes flicked to Gust’s left eye. “I expect much from you, young Swordsman. You do not know the sacrifices we make for you. Your Master has our respect, but not everyone treats Renegades with such kindness. Do keep that in mind, and be sure that our resources are not wasted on you.”

She turned around without giving Gust a chance to respond, then he felt a force pushing him to the ground and outstretching his hands. When the Matriarch stepped inside, she let out a snort and the tall wooden doors slammed shut.