Kynos was relocated from the primary school male dorms to the university researcher apartments. He had taken over a recently departed mage's living space, free due to his scholarship. That particular mage was off in Ailize, warring with the pirate confederation.

His new home came with several amenities, including a modest kitchenette and an extra room which the previous owner stocked with books and had been using for research. He also gained access to the public baths, magic practice arenas, and other facilities as part of the deal.

As he had skipped secondary school, which taught advanced subjects and honed magic control, he was now part of the college, which taught specializations and functioned as the apparatus that carried out the will of the mage's council. Kynos dropped off his meager belongings and headed off to meet his new mentor.

Her name was Eliza, titled the Root of Life, and she held sway over the growth and decay of all living things. One of the more powerful casters in the world, she took the eighth seat of the nine-person council and is one of the leaders of Incanta. She was a few years the senior of Roland and Charlotte, fellow mages she met at university, but looked like a younggirl, no older than Kynos.

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She greeted Kynos as he walked into her study.

“Well hey there, you must be Kynos?”

Kynos nodded, giving a quick dip of his head in courtesy as Mith had taught him.

“A quiet one? We'll see what I can do about that.”

Kynos, in a burst of effort, gave a quick, “Pleased to meet you.” Eliza motioned for him to take a seat, and continued.

“You're lucky. I'm so damn busy these days, but I owe Mithandra and that underclassman. He used to be so cute, but now he's just a pompous dick.

Well, I can't do shadow magic, but trust me, I can teach you plenty. Also...”

Kynos tensed up out of habit as he sensed the door opening behind him.

“...you will be training along with my daughter~~ have a seat and introduce yourself honey!”

A slightly-gloomy looking young girl, with light green hair and her mother's dark green eyes, looking around the same age as Kynos, walked in and sat shyly in the chair next to him.

“P..pp...pleased to meet you,” she stammered in a quiet voice, “I'm Elise, a life mage like mother.”