In the time it had taken to examine my skills, all the other wards had disappeared. Save for the previously mentioned ominously pulsating orb, which had turned a swirling mix of black and crimson. Hmm. Likely not a good sign. I noticed the "staff" making their way toward it, forming a circle. I took a quick look at my peers.

Most were sitting, likely Communing as I'd just been. Each bore a symbol as I did, in the form of various accessories. Necklaces, bracelets, an earring or two. The afore-noticed Leonid was adorned with a rather interesting arm bracer that wrapped his forearm in what looked to be sandstone? How comfortable could that be? And how heavy? Oh, he's noticed me staring. Awkward nod, go. That was uncomfortable. Anyway, after giving everyone a few minutes, presumably for the Skills, Vessilia spoke.

"If you would, please enter the Gates-" I could feel the capitalization of the word. Odd. "They open to the top of the cliff." At her word, shimmering rainbow arches appeared on the cliff wall. "From there, please make your way toward the facilities." She waved in the general direction of the imposing castle. “The grounds are enchanted, you will quickly arrive at your dorm. Please make yourself comfortable. Classes will begin tomorrow. That," She pointed emphatically at the singular remaining dome, "will be dealt with."

I made my way to one of the 'gates.' After a moment of hesitation, I stepped in, leaving my stomach behind. There was an immediate, plummeting sensation in my gut that seemed to go on for entirely too long. Though all things indicated it was in truth rather instant. I stumbled as my front foot impacted the grassy ground atop the cliff, the edge of which a respectable distance away. I took a moment to catch my breath, and also to check my fall susceptible features. Coat, check, hair, impeccable. I began to set off toward the castle -which seemed all the bigger from so much closer- when I was thrown to the ground by an earth-shaking boom, accompanied by a roar the likes of which may be produced by an inordinately sized reptile. It was like the sound of wind rushing through a tunnel, yet discordant and atonal. It vibrated through my feet and shook my bones, persisting for much more of a time than it in all logic should have.

With absolutely no interest whatsoever in remaing at this location, I quickly set off to my destination, which was dramatically framed by the lowest sun. I quite immediately noticed the promised enchantment. It was very intriguing, actually. The movement of everything off my path seemed to slow, quickly reaching a stop and blurring as colors stretched and blended into each other. At about the midway point, they grew darker, as if shifting to a less lit location. After about two minutes in total of walking, they began to un-mix, contracting and untwisting to assemble a clear picture.

I reached a stone corridor, constructed of the same bleak grey material as the buildings outside. Every short distance along the hall, an arch was set into the walls and ceiling, complete with a purple orb supplying the only present light. Between each arch was a discouloured rectangle of stone in the rough outline of a door. Each door was flat, with no handle, and bearing a plaque of silver with an initial and surname. The one I had reached, predictable, read 'A. Rose.' How terribly clichéd sounding.

I touched the door and... nothing. Sigh. Closing my eyes, i concentrated deeply, and reached for my mana. A rather useful skill (not that kind) that I had practiced during the Hao between the Awakening and remembering the... oh. That was certainly different. Much less empty now, at least. And slightly concerning.

The inner space in which my mana could be found had changed. Which I honestly should have expected. The System had even informed me I'd 'gained access' to Mana, which really should have been questioned, at least.

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What had previously been a small blue pool in the midst of an empty black void was now a roiling pit of violet smoke, feathery, feeler like tendrils stretching up from the surface. The void around filled with shifting, changing black sillhouttes which swam through the dark, some miniscule, others impossibly large. Faint, unintelligible whispers emanated from the pool.

Experimentally, I mentally seized one of those feathery tendrils. I drew it up out of the pool, opening my eyes and drawing the invisible, cold energy down my arm. I pressed it through my palm and into the door. It rumbled, and slid into the wall with surprisingly little sound.

I breathed a minor whistle of appreciation. The room housed a large, plushly cushioned grey bed and a screen set into the wall. It had a lush black carpet, and there was a door on the other side of the room, a plaque above reading simply 'Practice Room.' As I entered, the annoying door to the hall smoothly slid closed behind me, and the one on the opposite side of the room opened.

The screen flashed white, and opened up to a selection screen with multiple different television channels. How comveniet. At the same time, I noticed a remote on a circular nightstand by the head of the bed, which i was pretty sure hadn't been present previously. Deciding to check out the other room, I entered. This room had no carpet or furniture. It was a plain, stone box. On one side, there was a door out to a balcony. I began to wonder where the funds for all of this came from. A mystery for later.

Checking the balcony, I found that I was about midway up on the northernmost tower. The one closest to the cliff I had arrived near. It was strange, because I hadn’t seen anything on this tower from the outside, aside from a window at the very top. Looking up and down now, I figured there were probably other balconies hidden by magic. The view was quite nice, overlooking a large area of green grass that dropped away at the edge, becoming beautiful red mesas. Somewhere to the south of the continent then.

As I reentered the bedroom area, a window popped into my vision.

Welcome, Warlock, to Greystone!

As a Sytem Recognized Institution, you will receive System Assistance for certain organizational matters

You will now need to select your schedule:

1st period evocation

1st period summoning

1st period ritual magic

……more

Consult your Patron for information on what subjects are available and optimal for you.

Selecting the “more” button, I nearly got dizzy from the sheer amount of options available. It just kept scrolling… and scrolling… and scrolling…

------

After about an hour of frustratingly Communing with The Whispering Dark, I pressed confirm on the menu. My schedule was set so that my classes started at eight, with Black Magic 101. After that were Dungeon 101, and then Combat 101. Such creative naming. Fourth period was my one free hour. I then had Shadow-Based Magic, Mental Magic, and First Level Evocation. Speaking of which…

I opened up the description for Evocation, which I had put off earlier.

Evocation

Mana cost: 1-10/1 second

Description:

Ability possessed by all Warlocks. Allows the caster to summon a manifestation of their Patron’s power. At low levels, this may only include limbs, effects or minor phenomena, while at higher levels, could include such things as bodily alterations, major phenomena or full manifestation.

Interesting. With that finished, I checked a clock present on the television in the wall. Four in the afternoon. How had the time flown so fast? With no plans or obvious obligations i could think of at the moment, i collapsed onto the sole piece of furniture. It was incredìbly comfortable, like laying on a cloud. I spent five hours scrolling social media. Some celebrity or other had become involved in a scandal of some kind involving a sports player and a homunculus. I reacted in a way that could be described as an expulsion of air from the nose.

I went to bed at precisely nine thirty. I had the the strangest feeling tomorrow would be quite eventful.