"Wait, so you have multiple classes with different teachers?" Elianna asked, looking at Celine curiously.

Riding in the carriage and heading toward the shopping center, Elianna sat beside Nicholas, and Celine sat across from them. When they first began their carriage ride, they casually conversed, asking each other how their day had been so far. The conversation had soon drifted to the Tri-Union Academy, and Elianna had excitedly been picking Celine's brain on how it worked.

Celine nodded, "Yeah. In my first year, I had a few classes, including enchanting, potions, history, and magical manipulation and combat. Each class has its own teacher, who is a specialist in their own field. The magical combat and manipulation class has two teachers, though, one for augmentors and one for mages."

"Are the mages and augmenters split?" Elianna asked.

"Sometimes," Celine shrugged. "They'll have them split if they are training them on something specific to their specification, for example, if the mages are training on a specific spell or if the augmenters are training on a technique. But, most of the time, we are taught together so that we can fight as a unit and learn to rely on each other."

"But what about the other classes?" Nicholas asked. "Are the mages and augmenters split for the other classes as well?"

Elianna looked at Nicholas, seeing him sitting beside her. She noticed how his blonde hair seemed to glow in the sunlight streaming through the window, and his deep sea-green eyes glimmered more than usual. Elianna felt her face heat up and her stomach flutter as she thought about how handsome he looked. Her eyes flicked down, seeing his right hand resting on the cushion between them. Part of her wanted to reach out and take his hand, and her face grew hotter at the idea.

"That's cool," Nicholas said, and Elianna started slightly as she was knocked out of her thoughts. Nicholas looked at her, and she swore her heart skipped a beat when his beautiful eyes met hers. Nicholas looked at her cheerfully, "Don't you think so?"

Elianna blinked, confused, as she had no idea what he was talking about, "W-What?"

Nicholas chuckled, thinking Elianna had been daydreaming again. He noticed she would sometimes not hear what he was saying, even if she was looking directly at him. He asked her about it once, and she said she would sometimes just be lost in thought, as she liked to daydream. Nicholas gestured to Celine, "About what Celine said, don't you think that's cool?"

Elianna's eyes flicked to Celine, and she smiled remorsefully, "Sorry, I didn't hear what you said. I was lost in thought."

Celine grinned slightly as she had caught Elianna staring at Nicholas with a small blush. She wasn't going to point that out, though, since she didn't want to embarrass Elianna. Celine chuckled, "Nicholas asked if the mages and augmenters are split for the other classes, like potions or enchanting. I told him that the mages and augmenters have classes together; they aren't split. One, because the school wants to help build a rapport between augmenters and mages, and two, because there are a lot more augmenters than mages at the academy. In fact, they encourage augmenters and mages to work together and pair up for assignments."

"And I was saying that was cool," Nicholas pointed out cheerfully, and Elianna's eyes flicked to him. Nicholas smiled, "You and I could be partners in the academy."

Elianna felt her face heat up again at Nicholas' words and loved the idea. She smiled, hoping Nicholas didn't notice her blush, "That would be great." She laughed a little, "We would need to get into the academy first, though."

"The test is simple," Celine said, and Elianna and Nicholas looked at her. "All you do is demonstrate your magical abilities and take a reading and writing test. They're trying to determine your magical skills and your basic knowledge."

"Can you fail the test?" Nicholas curiously asked.

Celine nodded, "Yeah, there are some who fail it for different reasons. Either because they don't score high enough on the reading or writing exam, or because they don't have enough of an aptitude for magic." Celine smiled, "You two have nothing to worry about, though. I know you well enough to know you'll pass the tests easily."

Nicholas' eyes flicked to Elianna, and he smiled as he playfully elbowed her in the side, "Especially Lia."

Elianna looked at Nicholas curiously, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're amazing," Nicholas began, and Elianna's brows raised, and her cheeks reddened. "You're fifteen, with a mana core already at the fourth level, and you have two elemental cores. A feat some adults haven't even accomplished. Plus, your swordsmanship is outstanding, and you're incredibly skilled with magic."

Elianna felt her blush deepen, her stomach fluttered, and her breath hitched a little. She mentally cursed her cheeks as she felt them grow hot, and she quickly looked away, staring out the window, hoping Nicholas didn't notice. Her lips curved into a small blissful smile from Nicholas' compliments, "T-Thanks."

Celine grinned as she noticed Elianna's reaction. When she looked at Nicholas, she could see he was looking at Elianna, a little confused, probably wondering if something was wrong. Celine mentally sighed and rolled her eyes. She loved her cousin dearly, who she saw more like a little brother, but she swore he was the densest person that she knew.

The carriage jerked slightly, and Celine, Elianna, and Nicholas sat straight, feeling the carriage beginning to slow down. Looking out the window, they observed as the carriage veered to the side of the cobblestone road and stopped beside the sidewalk. The carriage jostled a little as they felt the carriage driver dismount the driver's seat.

The three of them looked out the window, seeing their driver come into view before he opened the door. The driver bowed slightly as he said, "We have arrived, My Lord and Ladies."

"Thank you," Celine said with a smile and got up from her seat. She exited out of the carriage and looked up, seeing they had stopped in front of the commercial livery stables. When she turned around, she noticed as Nicholas descended from the carriage, and Elianna was preparing to exit. Celine stepped up to Nicholas and subtly whispered, "Help Elianna out of the carriage."

Nicholas looked confused and whispered back, "Huh, why?"

Celine narrowed her eyes and subtly hissed, "Just do it."

Nicholas looked at Celine, surprised, before he raised his hands in playful surrender. "Alright, fine."

Nicholas turned around, his eyes falling on Elianna as she was about to descend the carriage steps. Elianna's gaze flicked to Nicholas, and her brows raised as she watched him step up to her and extend his hand.

Elianna's lips curved a little, and she blushed slightly as she took his hand, "T-Thanks."

"You're welcome," Nicholas said, returning her smile as he assisted her in descending the steps.

Celine smiled at Nicholas' and Elianna's interaction. She looked toward the carriage driver, and her smile faded, seeing that he was gone. She looked around, wondering where he had gone, when she noticed him walking toward her from the stables.

"My Lady," The carriage driver began and handed her a wooden tile. "I've already secured a parking spot for the carriage."

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

"Thank you," Celine thanked and turned toward Nicholas and Elianna. Her lips curved, seeing Elianna had a small blush as she looked at her hand, while Nicholas was standing beside her, casually looking around. "Nick, Elle!" Nicholas and Elianna looked toward Celine. Celine jerked her chin, "Come on!"

Nicholas and Elianna nodded and walked toward Celine. As Nicholas and Elianna approached her, Celine turned and began to walk down the sidewalk, with Nicholas and Elianna following them. They entered the shopping district, with several individuals walking up and down the sidewalk, and some were crossing the street, making sure to avoid the occasional carriage going by. The three of them looked through the windows of the brick buildings, seeing the different items the stores were selling.

As they were walking, a delectable smell filled the air, and Elianna's head snapped to the left across the street. Her eyes fell on a gray brick building with a few chairs and tables outside, with a sign hanging above the store, signifying it was a pastry shop.

"That store smells so good," Elianna pointed out.

Nicholas and Celine stopped and looked at Elianna before following her gaze. Seeing the pastry shop, Nicholas smiled and nodded in agreement, "It does."

Celine curiously pulled her pocket watch out of her spatial ring, and she hummed, "We still have some time before the illusionaire starts." Celine stored her pocket watch and looked at Nicholas and Elianna, "Do you want to get a small snack first?"

Nicholas nodded, "Sure." He looked at Eianna, "What about you?"

Elianna smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I would."

"Come on," Celine said and began to walk across the road.

Nicholas and Elianna followed Celine across the road, and the sweet aroma from the store got stronger the more they neared it. Celine walked up and opened the door, stepping inside first.

Nicholas grabbed the door, stepped to the side, and smiled at Elianna, "After you."

Elianna returned his smile, "Thanks."

Elianna walked into the store, and Nicholas followed her, with their brows raising and their nostrils flaring at the delectable smell.

The store was relatively small, with a few tables and chairs, which were currently empty, set up in the main area of the shop for people to sit and eat. Across from the front door was a glass counter that had several different pastries on display, and a young human girl with green hair and dark eyes stood behind the counter, looking at a book she had laid out.

Hearing the door chimes, the young girl looked up and smiled, seeing the store had customers, "Welcome." She stood straight and gestured to the display, "Have a look at what we have, and let me know what you would like."

Celine smiled and nodded, "Thanks."

Celine walked up to the counter, with Nicholas and Elianna following her. The three of them looked into the display, seeing they had several options to choose from, including cinnamon rolls, donuts, and cookies.

"These look delicious," Elianna complimented and looked at the young girl. "Who makes these?"

The girl smiled, "My mom and dad. They're in the back currently. They make the pastries, and I sell them."

"Do you make them too?" Celine asked.

The girl shook her head, "No, not these ones, at least."

"She will soon enough, though," A male voice said. Celine, Nicholas, and Elianna looked up as a male in his early forties walked out from the double doors behind the counter. He had green hair like the girl and blue eyes. The male smiled, "Anything you see that catches your eye?"

Celine hummed and pointed toward the counter, "Can I have a banana muffin top?"

The man smiled, "Sure can." The man walked toward the counter and used tongs to put the muffin into a box. He looked at Elianna and Nicholas, "What about you two?"

"Um," Elianna said, her eyes darting between the options. She looked at the male, "I'll do a chocolate chip cookie."

The man nodded, "You got it." He looked at Nicholas, "And you?"

"I'll do the cinnamon roll," Nicholas said.

The man smiled and nodded, "Cinnamon roll it is." He used the tongs to grab the cookie and the cinnamon roll and placed them both into the box. The man closed the box and walked toward his daughter, placing the box on the counter beside her.

"Let's see here," The girl said and started scribbling in the ledger on the counter. Once she was done, she looked up and smiled, "That'll be nine credits."

Celine nodded and walked up to the counter, standing before the girl. Elianna watched as Celine pulled out a golden card with engraving on it. Elianna recognized the card as a credit keeper, an enchanted object used to transfer energy from one place to another. Her father explained that the credit keepers were the continent's way of currency. He said that coins used to be used for currency, but it was changed after several mages were caught creating coins, which was beginning to disrupt the currency market. So, credit keepers were invented as the new way of currency, as they were efficient, and mages were unable to manipulate the enchanted cards.

Her father explained how the credit keepers also came in different colors, which represented one's social status. The bronze cards indicated one was from the common class, while the silver indicated they came from the middle class. Then there was the gold card, which she and Celine had. Elianna's father told her that the noble and high-class members had gold cards.

Celine tapped her credit keeper against a black oval object, which Elianna recognized as a receiver, enchanted to receive the energy from the credit keeper. On the side of the receiver was writing that had a number, showing how many credits it contained. Elianna knew the credit keeper also had numbers on the back of it, showing how many credits it had. A white light flashed between the card and the receiver, and the numbers on the side of the receiver increased by nine.

Seeing the credits had been received, the girl pushed the box toward Celine and smiled, "Here you go." She placed some napkins on top of the box, "And here are some napkins."

Celine returned the girl's smile as she stored the credit keeper in her ring. "Thank you." She grabbed her box and jerked her chin toward the door while looking at Elianna and Nicholas, "Come on."

Nicholas and Elianna followed Celine as they walked toward the door and exited the store. Nicholas looked at the outside tables and gestured to them, "Should we eat here?"

Celine looked at the tables and nodded, "That's fine."

Celine placed the box on one of the tables, and she, Eianna, and Nicholas took their seats. Celine handed the napkins out to Elianna and Nicholas and opened the box.

"Dig in," Celine said and took her muffin out from the box.

Elianna took the cookie out from the box and smiled, "This smells so good."

"So does this," Nicholas commented, taking his cinnamon roll out from the box.

Elianna took a bite from her cookie, and her eyes widened in pleasant surprise. She tasted the warm doughiness of the cookie and noticed how the chocolate practically melted in her mouth. "Dis es swo guod," Elianna said, with her mouth full.

Nicholas chuckled as he took a bite of his cinnamon roll and hummed with bliss, tasting the delicious sweetness. "Sooo es dis," Nicholas commented, humming as he chewed his food.

Celine chuckled at the both of them, seeing how silly they both were. She took another bite of her muffin, enjoying how sweet and moist it was.

They ate their food in silence, with Celine finishing first. She looked at Elianna, watching as she took the last bite of her cookie and licked the chocolate off her fingers. When Celine looked at Nicholas, she couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh. Elianna followed her gaze, smiled, and giggled at Nicholas.

Nicholas took the last bite of his cinnamon roll and looked up with his brows raised and mouth full, "Wut?"

Nicholas looked at his hands, seeing they were covered in cinnamon frosting, and smacked his lips, feeling his lips were sticky with the frosting as well.

"You have frosting all over your mouth and chin," Celine jovially laughed.

"Oh," Nicholas said as he finished chewing and swallowed his food. He licked his fingers and lips before he grabbed a napkin to wipe off his hands, chin, and mouth. "There, fixed it."

Elianna smiled and pointed at his lips, where a glob of frosting remained, "You missed a spot in the corner."

Nicholas' brows furrowed, and he wiped his mouth, "Did I get it?"

Elianna shook her head, "No."

Nicholas grumbled and wiped his mouth again, "What about now?"

Elianna giggled and shook her head, "No." She picked up a napkin from the table, "Here."

Elianna shifted her chair closer to Nicholas and leaned toward him. Celine's brows raised slowly, and she smirked slightly, seeing Elianna reach up and begin to wipe the corner of Nicholas' mouth. Nicholas' and Elianna's cheeks both heated as she did this, with Nicholas' brows raised with surprise, and he could feel his heart begin to beat faster. His nostrils flared as Elianna's cinnamon fragrance reached him, which he thought smelled better than the pastries.

Elianna swallowed hard as she wiped Nicholas' mouth, her eyes flicking between his eyes and his lips. She could feel her cheeks burning, and her breathing was staggered as she fought to keep her composure. Once she cleaned the glob of frosting, she quickly pulled away.

Elianna placed the napkin into the empty box, cleared her throat, composed herself, and smiled, "There. I got it."

Nicholas sat there momentarily stunned with a deep blush before he shook his head, gathering himself. He returned Elianna's smile, "T-Thanks."

"Y-You're welcome," Elianna replied.

Nicholas and Elianna continued to sit there, staring at each other until their eyes widened as they heard someone lightly laugh. Their heads snapped to the side, seeing Celine sitting there, resting her head in her hand, with a massive grin on her face. Elianna and Nicholas blushed heavily as they forgot Celine was there.

"So," Celine snickered and sat straight. "You two ready to continue?"

"Uh, y-yeah," Elianna stuttered.

Elianna nodded, "Y-yes."

Celine chucked, seeing they were both a little embarrassed. She stood up and started to gather the trash into the empty box, "Good, then let's get going."