Lee Narae was practically vibrating with excitement as she donned her brand new academy uniform. The self-repairing, self-cleaning, enchanted robes were almost the same as the ones her big sister had worn during her time at the academy. Students were allowed to choose the color of their robes, but Narae wanted to wear the same green that Jia and Eui had worn. She’d even asked if she could wear Jia’s old uniform, but for some reason her sister had been horrified by the request and insisted that there was no way it would fit.

She didn’t get it. What was the problem? Narae had grown in the last few years and now that she was almost eleven, she was sure that Jia’s old uniform would fit her.

Oh well. The uniform was only one of the reasons she was so excited. Once she was dressed, she flitted out of her room—her own room!—and twirled around to show off for her new roommates.

“Haeun look! How is it?”

Seong Haeun was Narae’s best friend, her sister-in-craft, and a fellow princess to boot! She looked up from the scroll she was studying and smiled.

“It suits you well, senior sister Narae.”

Narae scratched her cheek and smiled awkwardly.

“I already said you don’t have to keep calling me that. I’m less than a year older than you, and we’re best friends, right?”

“You insist on formality with senior sister Jiaying, don’t you?”

“W-well, that’s different...”

Narae only did that because it was fun lording her seniority over an adult—especially when she kept winning in spars. Although lately Pan Jiaying had figured out this nasty gravity technique that messed up Narae’s flight—it was so unfair!

Hyeong Aecha, still dressed in the same palace servant’s robes, walked over from her place behind Haeun and began adjusting Narae’s uniform.

“Formality is important, Miss Lee. The little mistress is your junior as Lady Yoshika’s disciple, and your master was quite clear that neither you, as her sister, nor Mistress Haeun, as a princess, would receive special treatment.”

Narae squirmed as their dorm guardian fussed with her clothes. Apparently they were too young for total independence—though Narae was pretty sure that was just an excuse to let Haeun keep her maid.

“I don’t think big sis cares all that much, and I definitely don’t. We’re friends first, and fellow disciples second, right Haeun?”

Haeun blushed and looked away, but nodded.

“I suppose it’s fine if it’s just us, but I have to maintain my public image as a princess of Goryeo.”

Narae sighed. Haeun had changed a little bit since they’d first met. She was stuffier, and cared a lot about her image. Narae could tell that it was an act, but it was hard to get past that act, especially with Aecha always scolding her.

Speaking of whom, Aecha finished adjusting Narae’s clothing and stepped back with a tight nod.

“There. Remember, Miss Lee, that the left fold must go on top.”

“I did! I used the mirror and everything!”

Haeun giggled.

“Narae, mirrors show everything backwards.”

“Bleh! How was I supposed to know that? Whatever, it’s a dumb rule anyway—who cares how I fold my robes?”

“Didn’t Master teach you basic education?”

Narae crossed her arms and pouted.

“Eui makes me learn about math and reading and stuff sometimes, but it’s so boring. Now that we’re in the academy, I get to focus on cultivating all I want!”

Haeun’s brows furrowed.

“Uh...have you not reviewed the curriculum?”

“The what?”

She held up the scroll she’d been reading and began listing off subjects.

“General education track, year one—mathematics, calligraphy, history, civics, essence theory. Compulsory.”

“What...what does that mean?”

Haeun sighed and shook her head.

“It means you have to take those classes to graduate, Narae. Some cultivation tracks aren’t available until you’ve posted a passing grade in general education, either.”

Narae held her head in her hands.

“What?! That’s so unfair! Big sis never said anything about that when she was in the academy!”

“I think it’s new. Probably to make things more accessible.”

“How does forcing us to learn a bunch of stupid boring stuff make it more accessible?!”

Haeun cocked her head.

“You can’t draw a talisman if you don’t know how to write, and most people can’t talk to essence, so understanding how it behaves normally is important. I’m not so sure about math and history...I think they’re boring too.”

Oh, thank the ancestors—at least they could agree on that much.

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“What was that about talking to essence?”

Haeun blinked.

“Can you not? I thought...didn’t we used to play with Heian back in Songdo? I remember you talking to her too.”

Narae frowned. Of course she could talk to Heian, she just spoke to her normally like... She trailed off, searching her memory. The three of them had often played together whenever they got the chance, but Narae couldn’t remember a single time when Heian or Haeun had spoken to each other.

“I don’t think we’re talking about the same thing.”

Aecha clapped her hands once for attention.

“Girls, you’ll have ample time to discuss the little mistress’ unique spellcasting later. If you don’t get moving, you’ll be late for your first day. I’ve prepared portable lunches for each of you, so you need not return home during the day, if you’re busy. Dinner will be ready by sundown.”

Narae bit down a comment about the fact that they didn’t need to eat. Aecha was nice, if a little bit strict, and she appreciated the snack anyway.

“Thanks Aecha! Let’s go, Haeun!”

Narae’s first day at Jiaguo’s Grand Academy awaited! More importantly, she got to spend it with her best friend! She could hardly wait.

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The turnout for the academy’s grand opening was...unexpected. Out of the four hundred visitors to Jiaguo, almost all of them opted to settle at least temporarily. Despite the misgivings Yoshika had felt from the crowd during her speech, most of them had decided to give the academy a chance.

Altogether, there were about three hundred students—half again the original academy’s numbers. It was joyous and stressful all at once. The turnout far exceeded their expectations, which was a good portent for things to come, but it also made for an administrative nightmare.

In addition to the increased number of students, Jiaguo’s academy had far more classes and a much stricter structure than the original. That already made it difficult to sort out the schedules, but on top of that, the student body came from a huge range of backgrounds.

There were immortals who couldn’t read, mortals who were more familiar with mana theory than some of the actual mages attending, and a number of special exceptions that were just impossible to categorize.

There simply wasn’t enough time or space to separate every single student into an ideal learning environment, so compromises had to be made when splitting them into classes.

Thanks to Dae, Ja Yun, Tae In-Su, and the newly hired Beishang, they had managed to pull off a miracle of coordination that still had Yoshika awestruck.

Each student was given an individual schedule that had them shuffling from class to class according to their own needs and the teachers available. That part was nothing special, and apparently taken wholesale from Goryeo’s colleges.

Where it got impressive—in Yoshika’s opinion—was the way they had handled the special exceptions.

A small handful of students simply could not be judged by any of the same standards as the others. Among them were Lee Narae, Seong Haeun, and Pan Jiaying—because they were already unified cultivators. According to the lesson plans Yoshika and the others had developed, that would make them second-years, but there was no second-year class yet, and even if there was, Narae and Jiaying still lacked some of the general education requirements.

Haeun, on the other hand, was perfect. Too perfect. She was already an exemplary student that met all of the qualifications for graduation to the second year. The only place where she lacked in the slightest was in martial techniques, but her magic had already started to incorporate elements of spiritual cultivation to form techniques that would crush just about any other student in a spar or duel.

She was a terrifying little princess.

It only got stranger from there. Ja Iseul was registered as a student, as was Lee Heian. Yoshika had been hesitant about that—the two of them weren’t human, and much of the curriculum just wasn’t designed with them in mind. Furthermore, as Ja Yun and Yoshika’s familiars, they were privy to information that gave them an unfair advantage over other students.

In their genius, Ja Yun and her team had turned those problems into boons.

The odd ones out were assigned to a ‘special’ class. But rather than isolate them from the other students, they were strategically placed for maximum benefit to the classes they were in. They were exemplars—there to provide an example for other students to strive towards, and provide aid to anyone who struggled with their classes.

Every single student shared at least one class with someone from the special class, but usually it was several. Aside from Iseul and Heian, the special class wasn’t made aware of their purpose—as far as they were concerned, their schedule was the same as everyone else’s.

Only time would tell if that system was sustainable, but Yoshika thought it had merit, and she didn’t hesitate to approve it as the de facto headmistress of the academy.

In theory, all of the teachers were supposed to be equal, but in practice, they all deferred to Yoshika. She was wistfully reminded of Elder Qin Zhao, the former dean of spiritual cultivation. In her time, he had held the same position, but he’d disappeared during the descent of the gods and she hadn’t heard from him since—apart from a cryptic message delivered through his uncle.

She wondered what he was up to.

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“Name and country of origin?”

Qin Zhao tried not to let himself stare at the demon before him. Her aura felt tired and anxious, and though he generally considered her kind to be a danger, he had to admit that this one in particular seemed rather harmless.

“Jin Hu, of Qin.”

The demon noted his name with a few tidy brushstrokes, displaying impressive dexterity despite her long, unkempt fingernails.

“Previous cultivation experience, sect affiliations?”

“Core forming—that is, third stage spiritual cultivation. No affiliations—I’m a rogue.”

He’d have preferred to pose as a first-stage cultivator, or even better, a mortal. Unfortunately, his former students made that impossible. Yoshika’s domain covered a vast range, even extending beyond Jiaguo’s shield formation.

That limited his options severely. Normally, a remote projection would be sufficient, but he couldn’t maintain such a construct through the formation. A self-sufficient construct was possible, but that would be a dangerously stupid way to infiltrate—Qin Zhao didn’t even bother considering it.

No, he had to be fully present while still avoiding detection. Qin Zhao’s qi suppression techniques were second to none, but even so it was impossible for him to limit his aura below that of a third stage cultivator without actually damaging his cultivation.

He’d suffered enough of that already to destroy his spiritual jade tablet, so it would have to suffice.

Ignorant of his inner musings, the demon woman finished taking note of his response before reciting the next part of her script.

“What’s the purpose of your visit?”

“Settling. I’d like to join the academy.”

“The academy is already in session, but it only just started, so it shouldn’t be hard to catch up. Take this—you’ll be contacted soon for further screening and accommodation, but for now feel free to explore the city as long as you stay out of trouble.”

Qin Zhao took the tiny jadestone she offered him. It was a simple speaking stone that had been modified to emit a traceable qi signature. Trivial to subvert, destroy, or even just discard to evade tracking.

Was that really the level of security his disciples could manage? They were either more naive or inept than he’d expected.

“Thank you, Miss.”

“Welcome to Jiaguo. Next!”

Qin Zhao left the administrative building, noting that there was nobody waiting in line behind him. A strange start, but he supposed it would be foolish to expect anything less of Yoshika.

He took in the sights as he made his way into Jiaguo City, the heart of the nation his cheeky little disciples had decided to build in his absence. The place was already a catastrophe waiting to happen, but Qin Zhao knew better than to judge too swiftly.

Nevertheless, he wasn’t impressed just yet. He only prayed he’d made it in time to avert whatever disaster those girls were headed for.