“We should sit up front,” Marianne said as they approached their classroom. Emyr and Liliana immediately shook their heads at the suggestion in tandem.
“Never leave your back open,” Liliana said firmly.
“Oh please, Lili, they’re not enemies.” Marianne said with a sigh.
“Everyone is an enemy until proven otherwise,” Emyr insisted. Alistair kept quiet in the growing argument, finding extreme interest in the walls and floor. He’d learned long ago to not argue when Liliana and Emyr agreed.
“But if we’re in the back, we might not be able to see the board.” Marianne could sense she was being outvoted and switched tactics.
“Back of the room has a door, though,” Liliana said thoughtfully.
“Easy escape, but someone could come through,” Emyr agreed with a nod.
“The desks are arranged in two lines, with the door in the middle and a path between.” Liliana pointed out.
“We can sit so we can see the door and the room if we’re in the back, then.” Emyr said, Liliana nodding in agreement.
“Back it is.” Liliana finalized.
“Back it is.” Emyr echoed, Alistair shrugging when the decision was made, happy to go along with the choice.
“Mother would be disappointed in me to be outvoted.” Marianne grumbled.
“Your mother would be happy to see you assessing for risks and minimizing potential threats,” Liliana rationalized, earning a spiteful glare from the princess that morphed into a pout.
Liliana grinned impishly at her friend and slipped her arm through the other girl’s as they entered the room. Marianne looked wistfully towards the front of the room but allowed herself to be guided to seats that would give them a view of the entire room and doors.
Marianne was sat closest to the wall, Liliana next to her. Emyr and Alistair took the seats in front of them. Liliana noted that, across from her, with an empty seat between them, was Koth’talan. Liliana didn’t recall seeing him in the common room at the dorm or in the cafeteria. He must’ve gotten up far earlier than the rest of the class. Liliana idly wondered if he’d spent the morning in the forest.
A few more of their classmates had arrived before them, but there were still ten minutes before their entire class was expected to be here. Several students had taken some of the seats closer to the front, but the rest were scattered. Liliana noted there were exactly twenty seats, just enough for their class. She’d have preferred a larger room, with more seats and therefore fewer chances of others being too close to them all.
“If I fail my classes because I can’t see the board, I’ll make your life hell,” Marianne muttered to Liliana, who rolled her eyes.
“You can see the board just fine from here, the room isn’t even that big.” Liliana told her friend as she rested her chin in her palm and looked around. Her [Identify] came back with information as she fixed it on each student. She skimmed over everything but the names. She’d have ample time to analyze her classmates, her potential rivals. As more students filtered in, more names appeared for her and Liliana summoned a notebook and fountain pen to begin noting them down, each name getting its own page for findings.
Anya Chadbourne, Nor Dawn, Leo Dunstan, Edward Coppercolt, Diana Ravenswood, Lucienne Allencourt, Basil Zindru, Brinley Eaglebow, Gwladys Remrence, Jasper Rathwater. She already had notes down for Diana and Zir’elon and had marked down Koth’talan before today. Some other names she’d already noted earlier and had filled them in before the students came into the classroom. Marianne noticed her marking down the names and her eyes slid to Emyr, who was doing much the same.
“Are you sure that you and Emyr aren’t the real siblings here?” Marianne asked.
“I ask myself that often,” Alistair sighed as he looked over at his friend’s notes.
“Information is power.” Emyr said simply as he tapped a finger on his notes, already filling it out further. Liliana didn’t look up, but pointed her free hand at Emyr in silent agreement. He got it.
Liliana tilted her head and mentally reminded herself to ask Emyr what he’d found out already. Liliana’s head rose when she saw Zir’elon enter the room. His eyes slid over the room, settling for a long moment on her group before he proceeded on and chose a seat several desks ahead. Liliana noted he chose a seat next to Leo Dunstan and struck up an easy conversation with the other boy, the two girls seated ahead of him being drawn in. Lucienne Allencourt and Gwladys Remrence.
Liliana also noted that the two seats ahead of Alistair and Emyr were inhabited by Anya Chadbourne and Edward Coppercolt, though neither had turned to speak to Emyr and Alistair. Across from Liliana were Jasper Rathwater and Koth’talan, and Liliana wondered if the reason his brother hadn’t chosen a closer seat to her group was because of the proximity to the bastard prince.
Possible shield from his brother? Liliana noted in clean script under Koth’talan’s name in her notebook. She’d have to weigh if the animosity she’d undoubtedly receive from Zir’elon would be worth the distance Zir’elon evidently strove to place between him and his brother.
Elspeth Mildenhall, Simon Chiverton, and Hywel Goldstein all came in close to the bell, slipping into some of the few remaining seats. Liliana added their names and looked around. There was one remaining seat open, the one across from Zir’elon. Diana Baker had yet to show up and Liliana tapped her pen against her notebook as she wondered if perhaps the girl had run away, an unlikely outcome but a desirable one.
Liliana’s attention was drawn from her musing at the opening of the door next to the board. A man stepped out. He was tall and skinny, almost unhealthily so. His impeccably tailored uniform, much like the students, only served to show off his thin frame all the more. His hair was neatly kept, black with specs of gray strewn through it and Liliana could see he had cold blue-green eyes that looked almost purple in some lights as they shifted to look over the students. He stared at the class with a frosty glare as the students slowly quieted, intimidated by his glower. Liliana used [Identify] on him as the room went deathly silent.
Akorian Vereign
Age: 96
Rank: 2
Liliana sucked her teeth quietly at the little information she was given. He had some kind of [Deception] skill then. She was satisfied to know that their homeroom teacher was such a high Rank though. From her observations the past few days, she hadn’t seen a single staff member under Rank 3. The Academy seemed to only employ the best. She wondered if the upper year class S had Rank 1 teachers. Rank 1 was rare, but she thought if any place was likely to have such people, it would be the Academy.
“I see you’ve all finally finished with your pointless chit-chat,” Vereign said, his voice dripping with derision. Several students flinched as his eyes landed heavily on them, the worst of the talkers.
“It seems we’re missing a student,” Vereign said as he noted the empty seat. As if on cue, the door to the classroom burst open and Diana Baker came rushing in.
“I’m so sorry! I woke up late and got lost!” Diana babbled as she froze at the door, the entire weight of the class and teacher’s attention on her.
“Punctuality isn’t simply a virtue, it is an essential in my classroom Ms. Baker. As it’s your first day, I will let it slide, however in the future I will not permit such flimsy excuses as being ‘lost’. You have a map of the school. Use it.” Vereign chastised the girl, who nodded but smiled shyly at the professor before moving to her seat. Liliana watched her carefully, smothering the disappointment she’d felt when the girl had entered the classroom. She had really hoped the girl had fled the Academy.
“Now that all theatrics are finished,” Vereign was looking pointedly at Diana, who flushed and dropped her head.
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“I wish to lay some ground rules. You shall refer to me as Professor Vereign. Not ‘Prof’, ‘Mr. V’, or ‘Teach’ and under no circumstances will you ever refer to me by my first name. I expect students to be sitting at their desks, their materials out, and to be quiet at the sound of the bell. From today onwards, the doors will be locked at the bell. If you are late, you will not be permitted inside the room. I will respect your time by being here every day, on time, and you shall respect me similarly. If you do not respect my time, do not expect me to respect yours. You can, however, expect detentions, demerits, and the removal of privileges if you foolishly choose to disrespect me.” Professor Vereign informed them, his voice severe as he looked around the room, meeting the eyes of each student.
Liliana held his gaze though her hands fisted on her desk as she did. The man was terrifying, and she could feel his power in his gaze, even if he hadn’t let his aura slip even slightly the entire time he’d been in the room.
“If you have questions you need answered, my office hours will be given to you in your syllabus, as will all your other teachers’. Any emergencies in the dorms can also be brought to me, as I will be staying there. However, I expect my class to behave themselves, and as such, I don’t expect the door to my private residence to be knocked on often.” Professor Vereign’s eyebrows raised, and the class nodded in agreement to him.
“Presuming you can all manage to retain your spots in the class, you will be with me through all four years. So it’s best you get used to the rules I’ve set. You’re the best of the best at this school and I will accept nothing less than exemplary behavior from you all. Do not assume for any preferential treatment from me, either because of your family’s name or because of your ranking here at the school. Any questions?” Professor Vereign waited for any of them to raise their hands. It was obvious his latest comment had birthed curiosity in the students, but many were too intimidated by the commanding teacher to risk drawing his attention. Liliana was debating raising her own hand, if only for confirmation, when Marianne beat her to it and raised her own.
“Ms. Summerwarden.“ Professor Vereign acknowledged her.
“You said presuming we can retain our spots, sir. Does that mean we can lose them?” Marianne asked, her eyes darting to Liliana for a moment.
“Good ear, Ms. Summerwarden. Yes, I did say presuming you can keep them. This has not yet been explained to you, as it is the task of the teachers to address it if any of the students are intelligent enough to question it. Your spots in class S are not guaranteed and can be lost to those below you.” Professor Vereign said with a small smile. There were gasps around the classroom at that confirmation.
Should’ve asked about it. Liliana thought with a small pout, a bit put out she hadn’t been the one to be praised for noticing or suspecting what had just been confirmed. She raised her hand next quickly.
“Ms. Rosengarde.” Professor Vereign nodded at her.
“Thank you, sir. How can we lose our spots? Can we get them back if we lose them? Is it a single event that can cause us to lose them or are there multiple factors that can attribute to the loss? Will we lose our privileges with the loss of our spots? What class are we sent to if we lose our spots?” Liliana fired out her questions quickly, but kept her voice even and respectful. Professor Vereign’s eyebrow raised, and she saw his smile widen slightly at her questions.
“Very good, Ms. Rosengarde. I see we have some this year who are more observant than most.” Professor Vereign nodded at her and Liliana smiled happily at the praise.
“Losing your seats is a rather simple affair. As you all should know, students in each year are ranked. These ranks are determined by your grades, your assignment completions, and by the tournaments held at the end of each semester. Your rank at the end of each semester is what determines your placement in which class. The top twenty students are placed in class S. Students ranked 21 through 45 are in class A, students 46 through 75 are in class B, 76 through 115 are class C, 116 through 165 are class D, and 166 through 220 are class E.” Professor Vereign informed them all.
The tension was clear in the room as the students shifted nervously. This was the first time many of them were being confronted with the fact that all those privileges they’d been told of could be taken away from them. Liliana wasn’t immune to the tension, but she pushed it aside as her hand flew across her notebook, noting down the information. It would be vital to know where each rank placed her, especially as it would be directly effecting her quality of life during her time here.
“If you are ranked below the top twenty at the end of the semester, you’ll be placed with the class suited to your ranking at the beginning of the next semester or term. You will have the privileges afforded to that class, and will not be able to access any of the privileges associated with your previous class. This will also mean a move of dorms.” Professor Vereign finished answering her questions, and he looked around, his gaze hard.
“Look around you, because by the end of the year, more than half of this class will not be here. That’s how it is every year. Do not get complacent. I can guarantee the other classes are being told of this if not today, then soon. And there will be many gunning for the very seats you’re in now. Your rank and class are never guaranteed. Remember that.” Professor Vereign’s dire warning hit the class, but Liliana could see there were those who did not take it seriously, those who didn’t believe they could be ousted and Liliana thought they would perhaps be the ones who would be gone at the end of the semester.
Liliana vowed to not be among those to lose their spots. She was not a stranger to fighting, for recognition, for power. Liliana was well versed in pushing herself to be ever stronger and to refuse to admit defeat. But she noted what Professor Vereign said. Their positions weren’t guaranteed. Even if they lost them, they could get them back.
“You were right.” Marianne murmured quietly, her voice shocked.
“She usually is.” Emyr whispered in front of them.
“It’s usually better to just do what she says and don’t ask questions,” Alistair murmured from his spot with a shoulder shrug.
Liliana thought he, more than most in this class, was familiar with the possibility of losing something important if he wasn’t strong enough, impressive enough. She knew he would fight for his spot as viciously as she did hers. She raised her hand.
“Ms. Rosengarde,” Professor Vereign nodded, eyebrow quirked again.
“Thank you, sir. What happens to the students who are ranked last at the end of the year?” Liliana asked next. It was a gamble, to reveal she suspected something most students would not, but she needed to know if the game over one faced in the game translated to real life. She had a feeling that information like this had to be specifically asked about, that the Academy wanted to test the student’s perceptiveness.
“What brings this question up, Ms. Rosengarde?” Professor Vereign asked, though he had that smile Liliana suspected came out whenever a student showed they were particularly intelligent or clever.
“I noticed there were fewer students in each year, sir.” The lie slid from her lips easily. It wasn’t even a full lie. She had noticed there were fewer students in each year, but that was a result of her looking for that.
“Very good observational skills, Ms. Rosengarde. Five merit points for that. Students who rank in the last five at the end of the year are expelled.” Professor Vereign let this newest bombshell hit his class while Liliana sat back and bit her lip, worrying it between her teeth.
She was a bit excited by the merit points. She knew what those were. They all did, that had been told to them in the information they were given by their acceptance letters. Merit points were gained by teachers’ designations, grades, and complete assignments and could be used to buy things from the school shops. They were essential as it was the only place except for dungeons students could get gear during their enrollment. Even admittance to a dungeon required a payment of merit points if it wasn’t part of a class trip.
What concerned her was the confirmation of expulsion. So that was the same too then. It would be game over for her if she was kicked out, because it would be so much harder for her to progress in power without the Academy. It would also make her political and social standing take a severe hit, and that was deadly. Her political power and social standing were what made her useful to her father and kept her on his good side until she could enact her revenge, and what kept the queen interested in her and gave her some measure of protection.
She saw other students looking around in concern. They all were far from the last five in ranking, but it wasn’t impossible to drop so far. Their intelligence hadn’t been what they were tested on when they were admitted to the Academy, they were tested based on their level and possibly their skill and spell levels. Their class was presumably all strong fighters, or at least would look like that under an evaluation. But their grades, their intelligence, not just their fighting prowess and raw power, would impact their ranking starting now. Liliana saw some students wide eyed in fear at the thought of being kicked out not for being too weak, but for being too bad at academics.
“Now that all questions have been answered, it’s time for us to go to the orientation. Follow after me, do not wander, do not cause a ruckus, do not give me a reason to call you out.” Professor Vereign spoke up after giving his class a few minutes to digest the information they’d been given. He crossed to the door at the back of the classroom swiftly. It took a moment but students filed out after him, Liliana’s group some of the first after him, though she held them back so they wouldn’t be directly behind the professor.
“We can be expelled?” Marianne whispered in horror as she huddled close to Liliana as they walked.
Their class was quiet, subdued, as they walked, but whispers still traveled amongst them. Professor Vereign didn’t seem to mind, as long as they weren’t overly loud.
“We just have to make sure we stay in the top twenty.” Liliana comforted her friend, who looked stressed by the information they’d been given.
“Easy for you to say,” Marianne grumbled.
“Easy to say, hard to do. But if we don’t slack off, we’ll be fine.” Liliana assured her friend, looking over at Emyr and Alistair, who both nodded.
“We’ll help each other. Once classes start, we can have regular study groups, so if anyone needs help with a subject, the others can pitch in. And we can practice together, so our skills stay sharp.” Alistair jumped in, Emyr nodding behind them. Marianne looked around, her eyes slightly wide before she gave a weak smile.
“Like an alliance?” Marianne asked hesitantly.
“No, like friends.” Liliana asserted, slinging an arm over the smaller girl’s shoulders and giving her a squeeze.
“Friends.” Marianne murmured quietly, but her smile was soft now, warm as she looked over at Emyr who nodded firmly, and Alistair who smiled brightly, utterly confident. Liliana was reminded that Marianne had grown up without any real friends before they met. Friendship would be a very dear thing to the princess.
“Friends.” Liliana confirmed, giving Marianne another hug as her heart twinged painfully. She knew too well how Marianne felt, and how precious a thing friendship truly was.