As soon as the senior mages of the Magic Academy heard about the new Grand Mage recruiting, they immediately clamored out of the classroom. The fact that it was guards that delivered the news gave even more credence to the rumor that it was on behalf of the King's order. Even the teachers of the senior classes were not indignant because of the summons.

When a Grand Mage decides to recruit, it is a joyous occasion for the whole school.

If a teacher can get the notice of a Grand Mage, they would receive endless benefits in regards to gathering their own strengths. In fact most of the Grand Mages alive today had walked along this route, showing promise and borrowing the power of their predecessors to become Grand Mages themselves.

This was the preferred method to cultivating Grand Mages, and was largely why magical power was monitored both within the Magic Academy and in the Bastion of Hope. If this was not the case, Willem would never have even met Grand Mage Archus, let alone survived his encounter with the Golden Dragon family.

Even though the summons would only begin in an hour, many had never even seen a Grand Mage before, as they often would stay within their own Private Sanctums. To them, such an existence was the pinnacle of strength and was like an old god touching down on the world.

So naturally they all had to rush to the auditorium just to catch a glimpse of the new Grand Mage of Darkness.

"There seems to be something going on outside, please give me a moment to see what is going on." The teacher halted her lecture and placed the vial she was holding back in its place.

Willem decided not to say anything and watched as it played out.

As she walked toward the auditorium doors, her hips swung wildly from left to right. For a woman of such small stature, she knew how to throw her weight around effectively. The closer she got to the door, the louder the noises became, until it was almost unbearable.

To ensure there was no issue, she casted an advanced sound dampening support type spell with a range of roughly twenty feet around her body. She believed this would be enough to combat the excess sounds outside the room.

Outside, hundreds of senior mages were bustling around exchanging rumors and whispers about the situation. Some spoke of the Grand Mage gathering a harem for himself, and others spoke about it being a King's summons for a combat unit. Of course no one knew for sure exactly what it was about, which made them incredibly nervous.

The teacher firmly grasped the handle of the door and began to turn it slowly. A hushed silence fell over the outside crowd as the door slowly opened. A small woman no taller than 4 feet appeared in front of hundreds of mages.

"What is going on out here?" The teacher sullenly questioned.

"Does teacher Su not know? The new Grand Mage is recruiting and this is where we are to meet him in forty five minutes." A student near the entrance to the auditorium spoke out.

"A Grand Mage is recruiting?" She quickly looked at the auditorium schedule and indeed saw the Grand Mage's signature written below her own. Her heart palpitated quickly, as she peered inside the room once more.

The noise had previously caught the attention of the students, and they eagerly watched as the teacher had opened the door. The crowd outside was enormous, even from the narrow viewpoint of the students within.

Teacher Su watched the figure of the boy who had initially entered her class late. She knew her own strength could not measure up to his, but was it really on the level of a Grand Mage? Since she could not tell, she did not put it in her heart. Yet now she was given proof of his identity on the contrary, and was unsure of herself.

"Students, I am currently teaching a class inside, if you can sit quietly and not talk then you can watch. Otherwise, remain outside and do not disrupt the current class until it is done." Teacher Su arrogantly tried to corral the students.

The students nodded hurriedly and flowed into the auditorium as if under a death sentence. Not a single person spoke out or even whispered as they entered the room. Though the auditorium was large, it could not accommodate all the students and many of them had to stand in the paths leading out the other doors.

Teacher Su began teaching once more, though her gaze would often wander over to Willem as she did. She attempted multiple times with magical perception to gauge his strength, but each time she tried she found herself being pulled into his power.

Like watching a deep and terrible void slowly swallowing you.

Though Willem valued his privacy and space, the students had no choice but to get close to him just to have enough room for all of them to fit in the auditorium. To their benefit, they did not interrupt the lecture and obediently sat to listen. They had no way of knowing that they sat beside one of the strongest existences in the Bastion of Hope.

When the class had ended, all students waited with bated breath as Teacher Su packed up her divination set to leave. As she was preparing to go, a small crow holding a letter glided down from the darkness of the ceiling and perched on her shoulder. It dropped the letter into the teacher's hand and disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

The contents of the letter read:

Teacher Su, if you wish it, I grant you permission to introduce me to the senior mages gathered in the auditorium.

My Regards,

Grand Mage of Darkness, Grandia

Teacher Su held her breath as she read the astoundingly well written words. It was as if they flew off the paper and directly into her mind, and she could not help but feel incredibly proud of herself at this moment.

"To all the students gathered, you have waited patiently and I commend you for it. The Grand Mage of Darkness, Grandia, will now grace us with his presence." Teacher Su gave an overly excessive bow, bending forward so much that she almost fell on her face.

A roiling black mist churned from the middle of the stage as it gathered to a height of roughly five feet. Nothing inside could be seen, save for two small coin sized emissions of light from deep within the darkness.

The teacher who had previously been bowing, slowly backed away from the black mist in submission. To assure herself, she peered once more into the crowd and saw that the boy she had been probing at for the last hour no longer was there.

The black mist reached its maximum potential density and exploded outward in a brilliant blast of black and white. The seat that Willem previously occupied in the crowd was empty as he appeared on stage. The outward blast did no physical harm, and instead refreshed everyone who gazed upon it, like a silent charm.

Though typically such parlor tricks were beneath him, a strong show of magical ability that was not dangerous could inspire those with second thoughts of his mission into joining him. Though Willem did not fear finding fifty mages who wished to participate in combat, he still made his entrance flashy so they understood a modicum of his power.

This particular method of recruitment was taught to him by Archus himself, when he originally came for Willem. A strong show of force will lead to many flocking under your banner.

Many of the students, upon seeing this magnificent scene, began clapping fervently.

"Thank you all for joining me this day." Willem removed his black shawl and showed his young face to the crowd.

While the clapping died down, many whispers and sounds of swooning from the crowd distracted Willem momentarily before he continued speaking.

"I have come on behalf of the King, to build a combat unit to repel the magical beings. I require fifty volunteers to aid me in removing this threat that lingers at our front door. Whoever joins me must understand, there is a chance you may not return from this war. However for all those who join me, your family will be moved to my Private Sanctum until the war is over." Willem spoke quietly, but his voice reverberated against the walls of the auditorium through sound amplification magic.

Everyone collectively held their breath upon hearing what he was actually here for. Those who spoke rumors of him gathering a harem felt stupid, while those among them whom were spreading rumors about building a combat unit were elated in being correct.

"I only require fifty of the best among you to join me. If you wish to be a part of something bigger than yourself, stand on this stage by my side and tell me your family name." Willem moved away from the middle of the stage and stepped forward to receive his allies.

One by one, students began to stand up and head toward the stage. Each one was known as a genius among their peers, but they paled in comparison to Willem. However their individual talents could not easily be dismissed by anyone else in the room. When they arrived on the stage, they spoke their names to Willem and stood to the side in wait.

Among the fifty that approached the stage, seven of them held a position akin to the top ten ranking within the Magic Academy. The only ones missing were the famed top three senior mages within the school.

This did not bother Willem in any way. He had his fifty volunteers, and they clearly understood what was required of them. More over, they had been warned of possible death, and they still felt obliged to do their duty, whether for their family or their home was irrelevant.

"I have my fifty volunteers, the rest of you are dismissed and may return to your classes. To the teachers of these fifty students, they will be under my care for now." Willem whipped his black cloak around and whispered among the students on stage.

The students nodded and held hands with the person next to them. Before anyone had enough time to blink twice, the fifty students and the Grand Mage disappeared into the darkness of the stage.

Bitterly, the students had no choice but to return to their mundane lives of practice and studying. If they had a little bit more power, or courage, or luck, they may have been able to justify standing on that stage.

For some, this was an eye opener and they would begin to try harder to consolidate their own magical power.

To others, it was a debilitating blow to their psyche and they would slowly withdraw from the world.

Willem brought the class through the void, warning them to close their eyes and keep them closed until they arrived at their destination. When they reached the Private Sanctum, Willem notified them.

"You may open your eyes now, we have arrived." Willem nodded his head.

When the students opened their eyes, they saw a large foyer decorated in tapestries and semi rare gems of varying kinds.

To those who studied as a senior mage and had the potential to become a Grand Mage, they understood just how amazing this Private Sanctum was. Though the Private Sanctum could be warped and changed as the creator desired, all the materials must be present to create what was desired. Therefore if he did not already own these exquisite gems and tapestries, he could not decorate them within his Sanctum.

To create something from nothing was only a fairy tale told to children.

"We are only making a stop in here for lunch, this is not our destination. Also I must clear a path through the void before we leave, so feel free to look around. When I am done, I will return and we will eat." Willem spoke aloud to the group and disappeared into the shadow of a rug.

The students looked around, bewildered, and could not help but touch some of the statues and suits of armor that adorned the halls. The armor sets were complete and flawless, as well they emitted a strong magical power. Something beyond the quality of the senior inscriptionists within the Magic Academy appeared before them, and caused their hearts to stir unreasonably.

Willem drifted through the void, avoiding the large twisting horrors and clearing the path of the small wraiths and feral spirits.

A wild purple apparition the size of several wagons drifted close to Willem, and forced him to retract his magical power deep within his body to avoid it's detection. Soon after he retracted his magical essence, the apparition drifted away and swallowed a smaller mindless entity that it came into contact with. Willem breathed a sigh of relief and began to clear the path to the Army Training Grounds once more.

Compared to the fed wraith within the Queen, these wraiths within the void did not even need to be mentioned.

After finishing, Willem headed back to the Private Sanctum and ushered the students to the dining hall for lunch.