I lingered on her gaze for a moment. She was confident, for sure. The way she walked and presented herself was like that of true nobility. It—it was a little off-putting. People didn’t really carry themselves like that in my world, maybe only a few.

“Uh—I’m Ezra. Nice to meet you.”

Rae continued to stare at me in silence.

‘Why is she just staring at me?’

“And your family name?”

I coughed.

“Oh! It’s Cyprus. Ezra Cyprus.”

She giggled, then smiled brightly. It was almost blinding how white her teeth were.

“You’re not from around here, are you?”

My heart skipped a beat.

‘Crap! Why didn’t Bel help me come up with a backstory?’

Trying to maintain eye contact, I put my hands in my pockets.

“I’m—uh—from a small village. It’s very isolated, you couldn’t even find it on a map.”

She frowned slightly.

“Really?! Then how did you manage to make it all the way here to the academy?”

‘God, does this girl have to ask so many questions?’

She took a step closer, getting uncomfortably close to my face—more than I liked. I took a step back and exhaled.

“It just kinda happened. I had a friend who had some influence and got me in.”

I wasn’t exactly lying to her; she just wasn’t getting all the details. Like that friend being the prince of the kingdom she lives in. Or that I’m from another world, and coming here is partly to create some distance from said prince—and maybe get some real answers on how to get back home.

She relaxed her posture a little, putting her hands behind her back and tilting her head.

“You’re a strange one.”

I couldn’t help but look bewildered.

‘Me? I’m the strange one?’

Clearing my throat, I said, “Uh—thanks, I guess. I’m gonna head out now. Thanks for earlier.”

I turned, more than ready to stop talking to this girl. However, the moment I turned, she was in front of me again.

I did a double take, my brows furrowed.

“How—how did you do that?”

She smiled.

“Let me show you around!”

She turned and started walking down the cobblestone path, her back facing me, her shiny indigo hair swaying as she walked.

‘She’s not gonna tell me, is she?’

Shaking my head, I sighed and caught up to her. I walked shoulder to shoulder with her. There was a certain grace in the way she moved—it was both unhurried and purposeful, each of her long strides exuding confidence and power.

‘She’s powerful.’

I was starting to realize that I could sense the power of others, in a way. Zeris usually felt like he had no power to speak of—until, of course, he showed it. Same with Sylvie. I think it has to do with their experience and connection to mana. That higher relationship they had with it must have allowed them to hide their power.

Stolen story; please report.

‘Thinking about it now, what Threshold is Sylv on? She must be on the third, right?’

Sylvie was definitely misleading. To the eye, she was just a pretty, petite young woman, but she turned out to be a seasoned fighter—a rank A adventurer, at that.

“So, this is the main courtyard! Students tend to lounge around here, or cause a ruckus. Sometimes duels happen here, though we try to stop those before they begin.”

Rae and I continued to walk around the campus. The outside wasn’t too impressive, apart from its beauty. It was what was inside the academy that truly blew me away.

Entering the main hall, I looked up. The sectioned ceilings reached high into the sky. Small murals covered each section, and intricate sculptures lined the ceiling. Pillars of black marble fell to the floor, smooth and glossy. The floor was made of white granite.

The entire main hall was well-lit, though the source of the light seemed hidden. Near the floor, large stained glass windows with the academy’s insignia allowed natural light to spill through. The scale of it all was absurd—it was breathtaking.

I stood still, wide-eyed. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rae staring at me. Shifting my gaze to hers, I asked, “Is there something on my face?”

She coughed, shifting a little.

“No! It’s just—your eyes. They’re—they’re beautiful.”

My face started to feel warm.

‘Who—who just says that with a straight face like that?’

Breaking eye contact, I started walking down the hall, with Rae following.

The rest of the academy wasn’t nearly as breathtaking compared to the main hall. There was one thing, though, that I couldn’t quite understand: how they built it. Rae led me to an elevator, which surprised me. This world seemed to be more developed in some areas than others.

Underneath the academy was a gargantuan colosseum, made from the same polished black marble and red wood as the academy itself. Thousands of seats circled the deep crimson floor. It stretched at least fifteen stories high, with plenty of room above if they wanted to build higher.

My jaw practically remained on the floor until Rae showed me to the dorms.

“Hey, Ezra. Can you tell me who that friend of yours is? And how they got you a noble suite?”

Still in a bit of a daze, I didn’t respond right away.

“What? Oh, just a guy with a name that can pretty much get him whatever he wants.”

Rae stared at me with narrowed eyes.

“Right...”

She shifted, then placed a hand on her hip.

“Well, anyway, that concludes our unofficial orientation. It’s been nice meeting you, Ezra. I hope to see you around!”

She smiled before turning around and walking off.

My eyes lingered on her back as she walked away. Shaking my head, I opened the brown wooden door. The room wasn’t anything too extravagant: plain red walls, a small living area, and off to the right, a kitchen. Next to it was a door leading to a bedroom, and opposite that was the other bedroom.

Sylvie was in the kitchen brewing some tea. She had changed into more comfortable clothes—white silk loungewear.

She turned her head.

“Welcome. How did you like the campus?”

Giving her a slight smile, I walked over to the black leather couch and fell into it, sinking into its soft cushions.

“It’s incredible! The Student Council President showed me around.”

Leaning my head back, I stared at the ceiling, which was red with gold patterns weaving in and out of each other.

“It really drained me, though. I’m ready for bed.”

A loud whistle rang through the room. I took a glance at the stove Sylv was using. It didn’t seem to be running on electricity or gas. Perhaps it was powered by mana?

Sylvie calmly walked over, pouring cups of fragrant tea. She sat down on the other end of the couch, bringing her feet up onto the cushions as if to hug them, but instead she just held her cup with both hands on top of her knees.

Drinking our tea in silence, I glanced at the box my uniform came in—it also had my class schedule. My first class tomorrow was going to be Practical Combat.

From what I learned from Sylvie on our way here, this academy, and others like it, foster future military soldiers, scholars, adventurers, and enchanters. So these academies offer a wide range of classes. I opted to focus more on the scholar side, hoping it would help me learn—or find where to learn—about Ancient Magic.

But I also took some Magical Skill and Battle Tactics classes.

“Are you nervous for tomorrow?” Sylvie asked.

I took a sip of the warm tea, lifting my legs and resting them on the wooden coffee table.

“A little, yeah. I have no clue what to expect, so I’m just going to play it by ear.”

Sylvie stayed quiet for a moment before responding.

“What does ‘play it by ear’ mean?”

The ceramic cup lingered on my lips for a moment.

“It, uh, means... like going with the flow or taking things as they come, you know?”

She took another sip of her tea and nodded deeply.

“I see. I think I understand.”

A small laugh escaped me.

‘I’m really going to have to watch what I say tomorrow—or every day, really, if I don’t want to make myself out to be some kind of weirdo.’

Finishing my tea, I stood and walked over to the sink, rinsing out my cup. Then, heading to the door opposite the kitchen, I turned and smiled at Sylvie.

“Goodnight, Sylv. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She hesitated for a moment before saying, “Good—goodnight, Ezra.”

Closing the door behind me, I fell onto the soft bed, sinking into it like quicksand. The soft fabric of the sheets and pillowcases caressed my skin. Pale moonlight shone through the simple window.

Yawning, I closed my eyes.

‘I have a feeling my time here is definitely going to be eventful.’

That final thought slurred in my mind as I fell into the embrace of sleep.