Damien stepped out of the house with Kastra on his shoulder, holding up a hand to shade his eyes. The sun hung near its peak in the sky, a little on the decline. Nine days had gone by since they'd moved in and today was finally the day of the new year, signifying it was time for orientation.
His uniform had been delivered the day after Alexa's communion and fit just fine, but he'd decided not to wear it and tossed it in the closet almost immediately after getting it. He had no plans to ever pull it back out, either.
"Thanks for the replica, Kastra."
"Don't forget to supply it with Mana, unless we go to Gallion's party later," Kastra responded with a nod.
He was wearing the same uniform as they'd delivered, a white long sleeve with a maroon vest over the top of it that extended down the back of his black jean-styled pants, but he'd added a black coat over the top of the ensemble for the cold.
Unlike the other students though, he'd had a certain Fae make his clothes.
She'd been making his and Alexa's clothes for a few years at this point, and he was too spoiled by the luxury to even consider switching back to regular linen if he didn't have to. The years Kastra had been with Alexa were decidedly the worst.
"We won't," Alexa replied for him, stepping out of their home and closing the door behind.
Damien glanced at her and took in her new appearance. She wore the same color scheme as he did, but instead of a button-down white collared shirt with a red vest, she wore a white t-shirt covered by a maroon cardigan. Her jeans were more form-fitting as well, as they were for all the female uniforms. Besides the color scheme, the only other thing about their uniforms that was identical was the armband present on her outer layer and t-shirt, signifying she was in her sixth year with checkmarks.
Kastra had also crafted Alexa's clothes, spoiling them both as she usually did.
"Why did you choose the cardigan over the jacket?" Damien asked, turning to Alexa as they moved along to try and make conversation.
"The jacket was too stiff. This is probably going to get in the way as well, but at least they let us take it off during combat training," she stated, lifting her arms and looking at the excess fabric that hung below.
Damien nodded. It made sense; the jacket was a bit stiff when he'd tried it on. Kastra's version of their uniform allowed for much more movement than the original but was still around half as restricting. She could only manipulate the mana-born clothes so much, needing to make it appear identical to the original. Otherwise, she could have formed them clothing that was almost like a cloud resting on their bodies, stretching and conforming however they needed it to, whenever they needed it to.
The three took the back entrance out of the Diamond residential district and headed around the far, northern side of the small lake, Alexa leading and Damien following along at a smooth pace. After a couple of minutes of walking, they began to hear a din of sorts, sounding as if a few hundred people were speaking at once.
"What is that?" he asked Alexa.
"You'll see."
Damien mentally shrugged and soon they came upon his answer: A large amphitheater covered in students and teachers alike.
The outdoor theater had steps and seats made from stone and seemed able to fit up to ten thousand people, but currently, only about five hundred of those seats were occupied. Orientation was not mandatory for students that were returning to the academy, thus a little more than the current classes size would probably show up.
Still, the noise created by the scant five hundred students was echoing about intensely, making it seem as if there were a few thousand more present in the theater. In the center of it all a large stage, looking like the perfect place for a play, sat without a single person on it. It was the only spot in the nearby area not dotted with several groups of students.
Damien was surprised this school even had a stage like this for acting. He didn't believe there would be any electives like theater or acting, but perhaps he'd been wrong.
The three found a spot near the front and settled in for a wait. They'd arrived a bit earlier than the time specified by Alexa and the letter they'd received in the mail a few days back.
Damien searched around the crowd for Gallion briefly but didn't find him, thankfully, though one of his followers winked at him when they made eye contact. It was Gallion's last year, so he was probably already wasted in celebration while covered in... well, Damien didn't want to think about it.
'Please don't make too big a mess,' he begged in his mind.
Their house in the Platinum district was having a party of sorts to start his final few months here, along with something else. Damien had asked some of Gallion's merry men why they'd chosen not to do that at the end of the year instead, and they'd replied that they did. After that, they proceeded to hand him a pamphlet titled 'Gallion's send-off' that detailed over fifty parties they'd planned to have throughout the entire year, complete with alcohol required to get in and costume theme for each weekend. Today was the first one, scheduled for the same time as orientation.
It was nude themed.
"I still don't understand why they just let Gallion do what he pleases," Damien mumbled to himself.
"That was a little random," Alexa responded, glancing at him.
"I was just looking for him, but he's most likely partying already... Why do they let him have such free reign, anyway? Aren't alcohol and drugs... I don't know, looked down on?"
"Why would they be?" Alexa shot back with a head tilt.
"What?" he asked, surprised.
"Why would they be?" she repeated.
"Really? They aren't outlawed at all here?" he asked incredulously.
"Still no," she responded. "If you can't manage your own time here well enough to pass the end of the year tests, you'll be kicked out. They don't care if you do drugs, drink, or lounge around naked all day long. As long as you aren't bothering anyone, paying for any damages you cause, and passing your tests, you can stay."
Damien's brow furrowed in thought. The concept of a school here seemed radically different than back on Earth.
'I mean, technically it's college since everyone here is a young adult, but drugs and... actually, no, this fits,' he thought.
Unlike on Earth, Eleria had healing magic and people with superb constitutions. Overdoses would require an insane amount of drugs to be ingested already and could be fixed by whoever had overdosed if they weren't too far gone. There was no need to make things like that illegal on a world like this, when people who didn't pull their weight were seen of as unfit to be a part of society already. If someone couldn't handle themselves, they'd be cast to the side.
Eleram was a gathering of the most dedicated, talented, and determined people on the continent. They traveled hundreds of miles just to get the chance to come here, why not let them do whatever they wanted? Hallucinogens were probably used as some form of inspiration.
"Ralium is outlawed, though," she said, interrupting his thoughts.
"Ralium?" he asked.
She nodded, "Yeah. It's a highly addictive drug that expands your mana veins unnaturally and intensely focuses your brain. Power boost for an hour, gives you the ability to create more than usual and faster... But when it wears off, it hits like a Grask charging into your chest. Your pathways shrink further than they started at for another hour and your body is left craving the drug to offset the feeling. People often take one, then another, and another until eventually, they can't live without it. It stops enlarging their veins after a month of constant use and if you stop taking it, it could take years for them to rebound. Eventually, it kills you, stripping your body of its ability to create or live under the effects of mana at all."
"Jesus, why do people even take it to start with then?" Damien asked, eyes wide.
"What about that religious man?" Kastra said randomly, jumping into the conversation.
"What?"
"You said Jesus. He was the son of a god right? Why did you bring him up?" she said with interest in her tone.
"I want to know too," Alexa said curiously.
"It... no it's just an exclamation of sorts," he replied, trying to get back on topic.
"Seems like a weird name to exclaim," Alexa said as Kastra nodded along.
"Focus, please."
"I mean, what else is there to say? People take it because it works. It's outlawed, sure, but in other schools across the continent, students still use it for an edge in duels. They tell themselves they'll just take it once, win a duel, get another and need it again, then end up trapped before they know it. I think... about seven out of ten people don't take it a second time, then three out of ten don't take it a third... after that, the numbers dwindle largely unless you have someone to stop you."
"Here at Eleram, if you get caught taking it even over vacation, you'll be expelled immediately. I wouldn't even consider taking it," Alexa said.
"...it seems stupid," Damien responded after a few moments.
"Would you take it if I was about to die?" Kastra cut in.
"If it would help me save you, I'd do it in a heartbeat," Damien replied.
"Well, you have your answer then," she said in a rare moment of perfect logic.
Damien nodded. There were some cases even he could be forced to use something like that, it seemed. But he had a supporting family, one that would stop him from overdoing it. If someone didn't...
"Are we allowed to research and talk about it?" Damien queried.
"Yeah, that's fine," Alexa replied. "In fact, the only reason I knew those numbers earlier was that the non-combatants have been studying it lately. They use volunteers from outside the country and with the school's permission, sometimes even combatants and mages, to test-"
Alexa's words were cut short when a loud slapping sound reverberated throughout the amphitheater, seemingly coming from all directions at once and silencing the small conversations taking place in it.
Looking around, Damien noticed the theater seemed four times more packed than it had been. When his eyes finally wandered to the center stage, he saw a Human male in the latter half of his years wearing a black and dark red suit while standing behind a podium that hadn't been there before. He had dark hair and a short, white beard while standing taller than most of the other faculty members joining him. All held a black staff and wore the same black and red suit, women included.
"That's Lemshire, the dean," Alexa whispered to him.
The dean had his arms held up on either side of himself, seemingly asking for everyone's undivided attention.
"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to Eleram. I am Tresil Lemshire, the current dean of this academy and King of this country. Many of you are wondering why and how a Human is in charge of the most prestigious country in the world, and many of you will lose your privilege to attend this academy for that mindset."
The King's voice dropped an octave and became sharp, while an aura of intensity descended on the crowd. Damien felt his heartbeat quicken and wondered whether it was magic causing this, or the man's presence alone.
"Not because we particularly mind you or your families views of the many different Races, but because such ignorance will only hold you back in the pursuit of magic. We here," he said, gesturing around him to the Kreel, Werewolf, Human, Elven, Dwarven, Celestial, Halfling, and many other races behind him, "ask you cast aside those outdated philosophies and make bonds with one another, learn from each other, and help your fellow students in their pursuits."
The King took a moment to pause, take a sip of water, and seemingly allow his words to sink in before continuing.
"That being said, if you cannot, I suggest you keep your opinions to yourself. While harming each other is punishable by excommunication from our country, during a duel it is perfectly normal for harm to befall you, so long as it does not end in dismembering or death. You'll never know who your opinions will cause to dislike you, and duels are not something that can always be turned down. Making friends is surely the better way to go about your lives here."
"Much is expected of you all. This is a place to make bonds for life, a place to set your foundation, and a place that will mold you into that which many of your families need with the world as volatile as it is. Or maybe, it is just a place of solace for many of you who are here to make your own mark on the world. Regardless, it is home now."
Tresil Lemshire paused again, then began speaking animatedly as he moved around the stage, lifting his arms to enunciate his words.
"Do your best to make it up the ranks, ladies and gentlemen. Whether you belong where you are, got lucky, or held yourself back, these next few years will not be ones that allow you time to slack off. Understand that even on days you do not have classes or expectations placed upon you, it is in your best interest to continue the pursuit of magic lest you drown in the wake your comrades create. Everyone around you is your competition! The best Mages of the world are not born but built with blood, sweat, and tears. Show me what majesty you will build with our resources. Show me what you will become! Reach out and grasp the strength that belongs to you! Or, begone from our premises," he finished in a dark tone, a manic grin on his face.
The faculty behind him all slammed their staffs into the stage's floor in unison when his words finished, the loud bass of thunder rolling out from the stage across those present while impressing upon them the importance of his last statement.
The noise caused Damien to jump slightly as Alexa snickered beside him.
Seconds later, someone began to clap and the entire theater broke into applause, students rising to their feet all around them. The King stood on the stage behind his podium and leaning on it, smiling at the effect his speech had.
"That gets someone every year," Alexa laughed out, leaning into him to speak over the deafening cheers.
"Oh shu-"
"Now then!" Lemshire yelled out, lifting his arms up as his voice boomed out above the applause and silenced the surroundings once again, "Testing starts immediately. You have been placed in tiers, yes, but we need to see where you belong for your first year. All of you will be taking classes that cover the full range of elements, but you will need to know what you should focus on based on talents you might not know you hold. We will be having you take a test for that purpose, along with a second to determine your current ranking within your tier. That one will be strictly based on how much mana you can produce and how far away you can manipulate it, so it won't by any means be a great representation of where you truly lie, but we have to start somewhere."
"We will be breaking into your tiers now to go about it. My faculty here will answer any questions you may have, so long as they are sensible ones. Now, Bronze tier, gather to this side of the stage!" he yelled, motioning to his right and Damien's left as about three-quarters of the teachers behind the Dean moved in that direction.
The students in that tier slowly began to file down the stairs in that direction, being the majority of those watching. The others looked around questioningly, unsure of what they should be doing.
The Dean waited until all were in place before calling out a second time, waving his arm in the other direction, "Silver on the left!"
Once again, he waited until the students and the rest of the teachers got into place.
"Come on, did you guys not hear him?" a young Human woman with blonde hair asked him, nudging his armband as she moved down the steps.
"Ah, I can't go yet," he responded.
"Sure... Just don't wait too long, you'll get in trouble," she said, rolling her eyes at him.
Damien, Alexa, and Kastra stood among the throngs of returning students who hadn't joined the others. Looking around, it was clear he was the youngest Human in the area and more than a couple eyes were directed at him and his single checkmark questioningly.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
"And for the one who tested into Gold, meet me center stage," the King finished, staring directly at where Damien, Kastra, and Alexa were seated.
Damien cringed at the direct call out that hadn't been subtle at all.
"Come on," Alexa said, nudging him toward the aisle.
"This is weird," he stated, standing slowly and receiving a nod in return.
"He doesn't usually do this when someone tests into Gold, but maybe because we know each other he wants to meet you personally," Alexa guessed, still nudging him from his side.
Damien sighed and complied, stepping down the steps toward the stage as every pair of eyes in what sounded like an abandoned arena were locked on him. Each of his footfalls seemed to echo for miles, setting his nerves on end as he tried to be as silent as possible.
"Do I have to kneel or anything when I get up there?" he asked in a whisper.
"No, he doesn't typically care about that type of stuff," Alexa responded in a normal tone, causing Damien to cringe more as her voice echoed out.
The stage was about five feet off the ground and would require one to take the stairs off to either side to climb up to it. Damien moved down to the stairs before turning right and climbing up them slowly, still on edge as Alexa followed him. The three approached the widely smiling man with slight trepidation as his smile only seemed to become more disconcerting the closer they got. Finally, they were staring eye to eye, Damien probably a half-inch taller than the King himself, and Lemshire lifted his arms once again while looking away.
"Look around!" the man called out, voice once again booming around the amphitheater yet not louder than it had been when they were hundreds of feet apart. "This is where you were placed and these are the people who were placed there with you! And this right here," he said, pointing directly at Damien's chest, "is the Human who beat you all. Every single one of you; Celestials, Elves, Dwarves, Tieflings, Werewolves, Kreels, Felis, and the many other Demi-Humans here, were beaten by the race that learns to manipulate mana the latest. You all stand beneath him, as does everyone in Gold. He is rank 1."
The King paused again, leaving Damien wanting to disappear as his words sunk into everyone's minds.
"Does that upset you? Do you admire him? Do you think you can beat him? None of that matters to him, though. He worked to get here, harder than any of you. He stands above you and does not care how you feel, nor should he, only looking forward at his goals, whatever they may be. Let him be a goal, whether out of spite or admiration, for each and every one of you. Challenge him, fight for his spot, ask him for advice, mentoring... do whatever you must to get to where he stands now and maybe, just maybe, next time he won't hold back during our placements," Lemshire finished, an evil grin plastered across his face.
'Fuck.'
Damien sighed and glanced at Alexa before looking down, rubbing his forehead with his hand. If this was how the King handled situations like these... It was almost worse in a way than someone who silently plotted, in Damien's opinion. The man had just made him public enemy number one to all the students in his year. Alexa had even looked as surprised as he was, if not more so.
"Best of luck to all of you! With that, turn your attention to my faculty," Lemshire finished, glancing back down to the three of them. "Hello Alexa, Kastra, wonderful to see you both again. Made a decision on my offer yet?"
"Still a no, sir," Alexa responded, face adopting a neutral expression.
"Unfortunate. I wish you Celestials cared less about your families... What about you Kastra dear?" he asked, turning toward Damien's shoulder.
"I go where my man does," she said, poking Damien in the cheek as he sighed, once again reminding himself to ask Gallion to stop teaching her weird phrases.
"Oh? Your man? I thought it was interesting you both lived with him, but it's even juicier than that, is it? And those eyes... It seems if I win him over, I win you both, too" he said with a grin.
"Sir, no offense but... could we talk about my placement?" Damien asked, trying to get the conversation back on track while trying not to be angry at a king.
The man seemed nice enough, if a little eccentric, but it was clear he enjoyed meddling in other people's business. It was also clear that he wanted both Alexa and Kastra to stick around after Alexa graduated.
"Right, right. Damien, is it? I suppose I'll come right out with it, then. I'd like you to accept a challenge for Platinum since you were not able to during your placement testing," he said, motioning to the side where a Celestial student stood.
Damien shook his head in response immediately.
"No, I won't be doing that."
"And why not?" Lemshire asked, eyes narrowing.
"Because I don't need my expectations to rise here yet again," Damien responded simply, holding his palms out.
"I'm the King. It would be wise to do what I suggest," came the response.
Damien paused his impulse answer to study the man before him. Light brown skin, full but short white beard, bushy eyebrows accenting his face, about the same height as he was, and with a glare adorning his face. Damien felt Alexa's hand grab his sleeve.
"I'll be here for seven years most likely, but I don't have to be. The things I need to learn I can other places. I know you want to know how I got so strong so quickly, but do you really think it's best to start our relationship off this way?" Damien asked, calling the man's bluff.
Sure, the school would be important for all of the intricate things Damien wanted to learn but couldn't on his own. It would even be a boon with regards to strong connections later on and learning from the best was always the best option. But ultimately, this place was unnecessary with where Damien planned to go in life and he'd proven that already. He could increase his strength on his own and research everything he needed to elsewhere; being here was a luxury. If the man was going to try and strong-arm him everywhere for his stay, Damien had no problem leaving.
As it stood, he was the one with the cards to play. Here was a school that had never seen a Human Mage do so well when placing into their academy, and here was a man who had done just that. On top of that, he had an abnormal, respectable Fae with him; a great way to learn about an otherwise enigma of a race. Building a positive relationship with Damien would be important, to say the least.
Lemshire stared back at Damien for a few moments before chuckling lightly, causing unknown tension to disperse from his shoulders. The King then waved away the Celestial he'd brought for the challenge, showing he'd caved.
"I'd thought it might be like this, but hoped it wouldn't be. Fine, boy, have it your way. Do what you want. You'll have the same expectations as everyone else. Eventually, you'll show us what you're capable of, one way or another," Lemshire said. "But let's get the testing on with, shall we?"
"I have a question first, if you don't mind?" Damien asked, getting a nod in return. "How exactly do duels work, since now I'll be having plenty directed at me?"
The King grinned.
"It's simple, really. You may only challenge those within a hundred ranks above you in the same tier, and within ten ranks above you if they're outside your tier. You can issue any challenges down, but if you lose, your positions will be swapped, rather than them taking your rank and you being shoved down one. You may only issue a challenge once a week and must spend some of your monthly allowance to do so. If you win, you get to keep it. If you lose, you give it to the challenged. The first five ranks are Diamond, the next forty are Platinum, and the rest is split up between Gold, Silver, and Bronze. The amounts change based on the size of the new class and since yours was around two thousand souls... I imagine Gold will end up with around one thousand spots in it by your graduation. Anyway, you only have to accept one duel per week, but the more you win, the more spending allowance you earn. If you receive multiple challenges in a week, you must accept the highest ranked one. Questions?" he asked, finishing his explanation as Damien shook his head in the negative. "Excellent. Now then, shall we begin your testing?"
Damien nodded as Lemshire conjured a parchment out of thin air, holding it out to him.
"It's simple. Insert your mana into this parchment until you can't any longer. Once words begin to appear, you're done and we'll have your results for both tests."
Damien looked at the nearby students, verifying they were doing the same method of testing, then at Alexa. When she nodded at him, he grabbed the paper and pushed his mana into it. The parchment surprised him, greedily sucking up every bit of mana he gave. After what felt like just one minute, his breathing began to turn ragged as his veins began to feel strained. He cut the expenditure off a few seconds later, before it began to hurt badly, and bent his body forward to lean on his knees.
"I haven't... done that... in a while," Damien panted out.
The parchment slowly changed as a plethora of words began to surface under different categories. Damien watched on with interest while Lemshire made his own share of noises and movements, grunting or shrugging his shoulders as the words came up. Finally, they stopped appearing, and Damien stared down at a parchment that ultimately didn't make any sense to him. It seemed to be written in a different language.
"Well then... This... is a bit disappointing to be honest, but that just makes me more curious than I was before about you. A mana capacity on the higher end of a Celestial two years above your age is confounding in and of itself, but not a defining factor. The fact that you don't have any outstanding compatibilities is a bit depressing... In fact, you seem to be below average when it comes to that. Lower than average compatibility with spacial, fire, lightning, and nature magic, while average in about every other area and slightly above average in air. I don't understand how you managed to get Gold with this, especially considering air is mostly useless at this stage."
Damien took a few more seconds to collect himself, holding up a finger while inwardly sighing at hearing he had low compatibility with lightning. Once his breathing was stable, he stood back up straight and continued the conversation.
"What does compatibility even do?"
"It helps with how much of a strain it is to create that specific element or magic while also assisting with control," Lemshire stated. "Whereas your capacity determines the quantity you'll be able to control, it will take longer to make as much as you want to with lower compatibility. If you were to compare someone with a high compatibility to someone with below average, they'd probably be able to make just about twice as much and move it around twice as easy," he explained. "Which is why I'm surprised you are so strong. Your capacity is one thing, but how you are able to so finely manipulate the ground element at your age without a high compatibility is... confusing to say the least. You definitely should not have been able to test above bronze if you were any other Human. You're not a demi, you come from a small town, your parents are average adventurers, you're not even of age yet... Just what did you do to accomplish this?"
The man finished his question, looking up from the parchment and staring at Damien with genuine curiosity on his expression.
'Advantages of knowing things I suppose,' Damien thought, trying not to be bothered by all the information the King already had on him.
If he didn't know what he did, none of what he'd accomplished so far would have been feasible. He'd worked for years to get lightning to a place where it wouldn't slip from his control and ground out on him anymore, and it seemed this is where his trouble had mostly stemmed from.
'Talent is bullshit.'
As far as the other elements went, he was no child when he had begun practice with them. He knew what he wanted to do and could visualize it. He had nothing but time to train for years and years, working steadily forward on his control. If not for all these factors combined with the slight advantage he held with his past experience... He'd be sickeningly average at best. Even the thing he was supposedly good at had been negative for him growing up. If air weren't slightly above average, maybe he wouldn't have almost killed himself as a child. If he'd been forced to take more time to work with his pressure bomb, perhaps he wouldn't have blown himself through a wall.
"Guess I have just have talent when it comes to gathering quantity then, don't I?" Damien said, avoiding the man's other question.
Easier to claim he was only better at manipulation, explaining it off as being a prodigy in that than to go down a line of questioning that might make Lemshire more suspicious. He was Dean of the academy and leader of the most powerful country in the world. It would be stupid to assume he wasn't paying attention to every aspect of this conversation.
"To a degree we've never seen before," Lemshire responded. "Lucky for you, that's the most important talent. The others can be overcome with years of dedicated practice whereas not even the most talented can overcome having no ability to gather mana. What age did you start, by the way?"
"Six," Damien responded immediately, having already expected this question and deciding on an age that might be believable, while not going too low.
It was obvious something was special about him. He might as well try to make that uniqueness the age he started.
"S-six?! That... Is it true?" Lemshire asked, turning to Alexa who nodded. "That's just... well then. I suppose I am no longer the record holder, am I?" he asked, getting a surprised look from Alexa and Damien. "Yes, I was the boy who started when he was eight that Human's all tell their children about. I tested into this academy in the higher rungs of silver, with multiple high compatibilities across the four main elements. I studied hard, coming from the Empire as the third, forgotten son in my family and now I sit here a complete success story, having outlived my entire family! This country has been my home since the first day I showed up, and hasn't stopped," he said with a nostalgic look, seeming to drone on and on.
Damien looked away awkwardly and shifted his feet. Not that he minded hearing about the man's past, it was just a bit... depressing. Abandoning your family to stay in the country seemed sad, but perhaps it hadn't been for him. Maybe they'd visited.
"What classes will I be taking this year?" Damien asked, changing the subject.
"What do you want to take?" was the response, surprising Damien.
"Do I not have to take basic element manipulation?" he asked, skeptical.
"Usually the faculty would make you, but I don't see what the point would be at this point, and I am the Dean. Have you already looked at the list of classes offered to your tier?" Lemshire asked, prompting Damien to nod. "Then what do you want, knowing what you do now about your compatibilities?"
Damien had been through the list of courses available already and had a general idea of what he'd take next year, but hadn't planned to make a schedule for this year. It was supposed to be chosen for him. If he was being given the option to choose though...
"Well, if I get to choose, I'd like Basic Spells, Beast Handling, Intermediate Combat, and Advanced manipulation. Other than that, I don't really c-"
"Advanced combat," Alexa stated, jumping into the conversation.
"Advanced combat is for Platinum and above, Alexa," Lemshire replied offhandedly.
"Well, you should make an exception. He'll be able to keep up," she asserted.
"I don't think-"
"You want to see what he can really do, right?" she interrupted.
"Lexi, I d-"
"Excellent point! Done. Advanced combat it is," Lemshire interrupted with a grin, bringing up an orange panel from his ring. "I'd suggest you only take those four, though. Any more would be too difficult to schedule, what with class times and work."
Damien nodded with a sigh while Alexa smiled alongside him excitedly. She most likely had that class as well and wanted him to take it with her while he just hoped he'd be able to keep up.
"Well, I suppose that covers everything we had to take care of today," Lemshire said, orange panel disappearing back into his ring. "Class starts tomorrow at the times listed on your class list in your ring. Would you like to have the rest of the day to yourselves, or would you like a tour of the campus?" he asked, motioning with his hand in the direction of a few buildings nearby the Amphitheater.
"We'll go home."
"Tour would be nice," Damien responded at the same time as Alexa, "and an explanation of the ring?"
Alexa had taken him on an informal tour of the facilities the other day, but now that he had his class list and the Dean of the academy offering, he'd be a fool not to take up the offer. Not to mention, the man had simply let the earlier talk about his magic go without further prying, leaving Damien skeptical of his intentions.
Alexa seemed to deflate slightly at his response, but nodded and tagged along as they moved out of the amphitheater, headed west for deeper into the Academy grounds. The theater and fighting arenas were the first areas they'd come across when they'd headed north and then west around the lake. Any further north and they'd walk off a cliff into the roaring ocean waves below.
The first building they came across was the main building of the Academy. It was the largest building Damien had seen since coming to this academy and was set right on the edge of the cliff, flush with it. A side entrance led into the cafeteria, he was told, and they instead moved to the southern entrance to be shown the infirmary. Lemshire claimed this the most important part of the tour, and Damien couldn't agree more. Once done seeing the medical facility, Damien was dragged through a plethora of dizzying corridors to each of his classrooms, already forgetting the way he'd gone by the time they got to the next one on the list.
They finished the main building and moved south to visit beast pens, larger fields meant for battle royals, the courtroom... on and on. He'd recognized the first building he'd been inside, set at the southeastern corner of the school grounds as a sort of gate into the heart of Eleram.
The Dean was surprisingly pleasant throughout the trip and had yet to bring up any real demands of Damien's secrecy, questions for knowledge, or even anything about his past. It seemed as if he truly was just a school principal giving a new kid a tour of the grounds, causing Damien to become progressively more and more skeptical as it went on.
Eventually, the sun began to dip further and they were running out of things to see, leading to them all calling it a day and heading back toward the northern side of the lake.
"It's too bad we forgot the library... a tour for another day, I suppose," Lemshire lamented. "Oh, lastly, your ring. Consider it a town bulletin board, of sorts. It is run based on intent, so if you send mana into it and focus on what you want, it will interpret what is closest to what you need and that's what will come up. If you want directions somewhere, it'll guide you in a straight line to that place. If you need a map of the grounds, think map. We haven't figured out how to show where you are on that map yet, but sooner or later we should get it."
"How does it guide you?" Damien asked, honing in on that part of the explanation.
It was a neat device, similar to a smartphone it seemed, but if that's the case then it also meant that it might be a bit invasive like a smartphone was.
"The ring tracks your location," Lemshire explained.
Damien squinted a bit.
"Is there a way to turn that feature off?"
"If you think I need the ring to track you, you're greatly mistaken," the King chuckled out as he stopped walking near a bench bordering the lake, spreading his arms out wide. "This land is my home. I can find out where anyone in my home is at any point in time."
Damien sighed but nodded. Perhaps they'd be better off not keeping these rings after graduating, no matter how useful they were.
"Now then, don't be late tomorrow. Advanced Combat is first thing in the morning and there is bound to be backlash due to your age and tier," Lemshire stated. "You remember where to go?"
"Yes, thank you for the tour again sir," Damien said after nodding in response.
"Good. Then, take care you three. Alexa, I look forward to a change in response. Kastra, keep them out of trouble."
"Relying on her isn't the best choice for that," Alexa said with a smirk as Kastra nodded in a self-aware manner.
Lemshire smiled and gave them a wave before turning around and walking away. Damien watched him go a few feet before glancing to the lake only to look back and see he was gone without a trace. No sign of mana, no sound... just gone.
"That's neat," he mumbled.
"It's something he does around everybody. No one can figure out how. You always seem to just look away right before it happens, like illusion magic almost," Alexa said. "It works on everyone too. Even if you want to watch, somehow you end up looking away..."
Damien looked to Kastra and the Fae shrugged her shoulders. It seemed this was past her ability to see through.
"Well, let's head back. That was a long day of walking around," Damien stated.
With his suggestion, the three moved back in the direction of their housing area. Not much had been accomplished throughout the day, yet at the same time, a lot had.
The trip back past the lake passed in the blink of an eye and soon they were standing outside their house-like-mansion, walking up to the door. Kastra hopped off his shoulder and grew to her full size as Alexa moved to open the front door, looking strangely at Damien who had hung back slightly. Usually, he'd insist on opening the door for her, but he wouldn't be opening this one.
"SURPRISE!!!!!!"
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"Surprise!!"
Over a hundred already drunk voices yelled into Alexa's face as she blanched and jumped backward into Damien and Kastra, her battle training telling her to start throwing magic while her rational sense held her back. Taking a moment to calm herself, she glanced behind her to see that Damien and Kastra were on either side of her grinning while holding her shoulders. Her face adopted an expression of confusion.
"You didn't think we'd forget your birthday, did you?" the Fae asked.
Alexa stared at her blankly before she began to tear up while smiling wide, shaking her head even though it was true. She had thought they'd forgotten. It had been five years since they'd celebrated it together, and they hadn't said a single word about it all day. She'd thought she'd salvaged it slightly by making Damien take one of her classes, but this was so much better.
She'd always felt lonely on her birthdays lately, with no one being around to celebrate whenever it happened except Gallion. Her birthday was on the start of the new year and ever since she'd been going to school, she'd not had the opportunity to spend it with them both. Sometimes, Kastra was here for it, but she wasn't exactly one to celebrate things. It seems this year though, Damien had changed her mind.
Alexa wouldn't exactly get to spend the night only with them, like she'd been hoping for when they'd finished their long tour, but this was more than alright.
"Happy birthday, Lex," Damien said with an overly warm smile, kissing her lightly.
"Thank you so much," she said back, probably looking like a maniac with tears streaming from her eyes as she grinned from ear to ear.
Damien put his arm around her back, causing a blush to surface as he moved inside while the reason he'd let her open the door dawned on her. He had started that annoying habit of his a couple years back and she eventually got used to it, but hadn't realized how normal it had become.
Pushing those thoughts aside, she allowed Damien to guide her forward and did her best to wipe her face. Regardless of how fun the party was, this had already become her favorite birthday since being born.
She just wished the rest of the people she was spending it with had clothes on.