DA here, um, yeah, life's been busy and stuff. That's why I haven't been active. However, I plan to release during Winter Break so ^.^', bear w/ my schedule. Anyways, if you couldn't tell, I plan for the first book to be a build up for the second one. Build up, as in Characters, Factions, World-Building, etc. As I am a novice writer I would appreciate tips on how to make my writing better from all of you, as well. Even to me, my writing seems a bit bland, at times

-.-'. But, thank you all for the support that you have shown for me so far; the little thank yous at the end of each part means quite a bit, and also motivates me to continue. (Now, I actually need to do the last part, myself, haha xD). Well anyways, this chapter sort of lacks action, but the arcs with fighting (And not OP dominance) will start soon, so please bear with me here :D

Website: dawnv2.wordpress.com

Thank you all & Enjoy your Thanksgiving,

DA~

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Book 1, Chapter 3 - Crimson Premonition (Pt. 3.2/3.3)

"Synth... was that truly how your [Adv. Light-Element Class] went? You blew up part of the classroom?"

"It wasn't my fault! I just wanted to test out the strength of an offensive light-element magic!"

Two youths, one wearing a white uniform interlaced with gold and the other wearing a black uniform interlaced with scarlet were walking down the hallway, casually chatting. This sight was something common to behold, as one walked down the various hallways of the buildings on the Magecroft Institute Campus. These two youths were none other than Synth and Verain. Normally, when one saw a sight like this, they would give a friendly smile and just walk right past them, not bothering to look back again.

However, there was something particularly striking about this particular duo - their uniforms. Synth's uniform showed that he was part of the [Light-Element Class], while Verain's showed that he was part of the [Darkness-Element Class].

Normally, students that trained in elements that countered each other would normally be similar to oil and fire; they did not mix well together. But seeing how Verain and Synth were amicably chatting with no trace of open hostility between them made many people turn their heads to observe, mildly shocked.

"Damn! I didn't know that offensive light-based magics were so strong! I thought that light based spells were mainly used defensively!"

"Hahaha..."

Synth was currently trying to explain to Verain what had happened during his Elemental Class, to try to get him to understand his woes. However, Verain was laughing uncontrollably upon hearing this, and paid Synth's complaints no mind.

"Are you serious...? I didn't think that you'd be that idiotic."

"What? What do you mean by that?"

Ignoring Verain's snide remark, Synth confusedly asked about the intricacies of Light-Based Magics.

Verain grinned wryly, before saying, "Listen up. Just because an element is called weak doesn't mean that you should think of it as weak before testing it out. Underestimating something can be the difference between a win or defeat, and in the most extreme cases, life and death."

"The reason why Light-Based magics are considered weak are because of the fact that many of the Grand Invokers of the Court use defensive light spells only, to protect the King. They rarely use Light-Magic when it comes to offensive firepower, because many other elements outstrip the burst power of Light Magic. However, that isn't to say that Light-Magic, offensively, is something to be taken as a joke. Who knows; maybe you'll regret that you've looked down on Light-Magic after spells such as [Lightsword Photon] slice your neck off, due to your underestimation of that form of magic."

Synth: "..."

"Anyways, realistically speaking however, the Light-Based Magics taught at this academy are mainly defensive spells. The only offensive ones that are covered in the curriculum are [Judgement] and [Light Ray]."

Hearing all of this, Synth shot an exasperated look at Verain.

"How the hell do you know all this?"

Verain chuckled. "Research. What, you're telling me that you don't even look up the school that you're going to?"

"Uh..." Synth stood dumbstruck, not knowing what to say.

"Well, whatever. Since we're roommates, I'll try to help out as best as I can. Anyways, later." With a casual wave of his hand, Verain parted ways with Synth and walked out of the building.

Synth sighed. "Damn, only spent two days at the Academy and I'm already a problem child."

Come to think of it, I still have quite a while before my [Adv. Fire-Element Class] starts. I might as well explore this campus a bit, and familiarize myself with the surroundings. Come to think of it, I believe that there's a library here...

After making up his mind, the first place that Synth decided to visit was the library. It was relatively easy to find, as he asked a fellow student for instructions on the way there. The library was in the middle of the campus, and was truly hard to miss.

Greeting the librarian at the counter, Synth grabbed a book outlining the structure and buildings within the Magecroft Academy campus, and began to read.

"The Magecroft Academy, home of the finest minds of magic and spellcraft that the world has ever seen, prides itself on the fact that it produces so many elite Invokers that serve the Human Army..."

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In a secluded woods, near the academy campus, two students of the Magecroft Academy were facing each other. One was holding a glimmering silver spear, while the other was wielding a pair of obsidian daggers.

"So, let me get down to the chase, kid. I'd like you to disappear from the Academy, so that I can do my thing here. With your existence, my goals are compromised." The hooded youth wielding the daggers snicked, his words carrying a hint of arrogance.

"Hmmh. You dare to challenge me, Venis Arkwold, of the Arkwold House? Impudent!" The golden-haired youth wielding a spear replied, obviously angry at the provocative tone of his opponent's words. "Don't you know who you're offending?"

The dagger wielding youth smiled, his grin deeply making Venis's body feel cold. "Hey, I'm giving you a chance, you know. To remain alive, that is. Of course, I'm going to need to put a spell on you, to make sure that you won't speak of the events that transpired between us here today."

With the way that the dagger wielding youth was talking to the spear wielding son of the Arkwold House, many would assume that he was insane.

What type of existance was the Arkwold House? It was one of the Four Noble Aristocratic Houses! Offending the people who were part of this House would make many people cringe in fear, and fear for their lives. After all, aristocrats could ruin lives easily with the amount of influence that they had.

However, this youth... did not seem to care about the consequences of offending such an important House!

If he had the courage to do something such as this, then the dagger wielding youth must have quite a bit of influence or power to not fear the repercussions of angering one of the members of the Arkwold House.

Hearing this, the golden-haired youth stared coldly at the dagger-wielding youth, his face ablaze with anger.

"You dare to talk to me like that? Do you even think that you're able to match up to me in terms of ability? DIE!"

With a sudden lunge, Venis charged forwards at the dagger wielding youth, his spear tip pointing at his throat.

His body flashed, and it seemed as though his aura was hidden by the wind itself.

This was the Low-Calamity ranked spell, [Wind Haze]!

An auxiliary spell that allowed one's speed to triple, and also allowed the user to blend into the wind, making him hard to target!

Casting a Calamity Rank spell was quite an impressive feat, especially because Veris was a third-year student - being able to cast a spell like that, while he was only 17 was a truly awe-inspiring move.

His body faded out, then reappeared, the tip of his spear decreasing in distance in relation to the other youth's neck.

However, the dagger wielding youth was unfazed. "Heh, that's all you got? I expected something more... oh well."

Quickly, the dagger wielding youth sliced upwards with one dagger, and thrust sideways with the other.

A relatively basic form of daggerplay, meant to parry and then surprise attack, to catch the opponent off guard.

The dagger wielding youth managed to block the advance of the spear, but his upwards slash hit thin air.

Seeing how his opponent didn't even use magic to block his attack, Venis sneered, before accelerating to the limit.

"DIE!"

Once more, the spear was thrust towards the dagger wielding youth's neck.

"So predictable... this is why it's no fun, playing with you guys. Well, time to end things."

The pair of daggers that he was holding began to glow with an obsidian light, as if storing up energy for something. His body slowly fazed away, into the darkness as well.

"Wind's not the only element that can utilize stealth advantages, you know. Darkness can, as well."

Suddenly, a brilliant burst of purple light shot out of the dagger, and pierced straight north. A miserable scream could be heard shortly afterwards.

"You thought that you could hide from me, eh? Guess not. Your spearplay was also horrible. Please, don't pick up a melee weapon unless you've had some experience as a Chevalier, otherwise it's no fun to sweep the floor with you guys."

"Sigh... this wasn't even a real battle. Although it's impressive that he was able to display that output of power at his age, my power vastly outstrips his."

Walking to the corpse that had a bloody hole blasted into the forehead, he began to strip all the valuables it contained. When he was done, the dagger wielding youth tapped something shaped like a vial on his waist.

Strangely enough, the body began melting into a pool of flesh and blood, and suddenly turned into a black liquid when it was done dissolving.

"Well, guess my job is done here. After all, I'm only in this for that reason... the R&D Department of the Arkwold House doesn't need to ruin our plans. To be honest, I wanted to get this job done quickly and do a sneak attack on him, but I felt the need to oppress someone, and overpower them... you understand, right, Verain? I promise that nobody will find out the perpetrators of this crime, though. Haven't we already committed quite a few, over the years?"

Tapping a glowing talisman and leaving behind those parting words, the figure disappeared in the distance.

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Magecroft Academy. Library.

Synth suddenly woke up with a start, his head jerking up from the books that they were buried in.

"Oh, did I fall asleep? Well, couldn't help it. These books were relatively boring, after all."

Quickly piling his books up in a neat order, Synth returned them to the original bookshelves, and quietly left the library.

Although it seemed as though this lazy youth wasted his time, Synth still had managed to learn where everything was around campus during this time, and only fell asleep after reading for a few hours.

"Come to think of it, I haven't even eaten lunch yet, and it's 2:00. Well, I guess I still have some time to go grab a bite to eat."

Walking back to his dorm room, Synth knocked on the door once, to see if his roommate was in there.

"Verain? You there?"

Hearing no response, Synth shrugged and opened the door. Grabbing a few Xena, Synth locked the door behind him and went to the cafeteria to grab a bite to eat before his next class of the day. While eating, he had run into Ceno, who jokingly told him to try not to blow anything else up.

"I seriously didn't mean to do that! I just wanted to test out the attack power of the Light-Magic!"

Hearing this, Ceno grinned. "Don't worry; there are only three people in our class anyways, and Yun and I don't really care about it. The teacher doesn't care much about that mishap, either. But you better watch your step in the other classes; something like that could get you kicked out for good of that class."

"Thanks for telling me. I'll try to be careful."

After thanking Ceno, Synth made his way towards the classroom for the [Adv. Fire-Magic Class].

Unbeknownst to him, a certain person was stalking him, watching his moves from the shadows.

"Hmn... with the way things are going, Synth really isn't doing anything to increase his power yet... I need to imbue him with some cultivation methods, along with some magics, as well. After all, the stronger he gets, the better when he's turned into a puppet, carrying out my whims. In three year's time, I can turn him into my prototype for that project..."

"Heh. I'm guessing that the others weren't expecting this to happen, were they? Well, they'll be pleasantly surprised, soon enough."

"Right. These types of people, with no personality, and a cliched view of the world, are easy trick, and even easier to 'break' down mentally."

"Well. It's about time I head back, and give a report to the Elders of the Clan. I'm sure that they'll be happy upon hearing this..."