Naso, the largest commercial city of Naeron and the third largest on the continent, is home to many travelers, adventurers, businessmen, scientists, people looking for work and in need of money. It is here, in the south-west part of the city, that the Aurelia Magical University is located.
The university is home to over 13 thousand students and 650 professors; one of them is Saelwen. It is divided into six sections, each specializing in different fields of magic: Elemental Arts, Summoning and Conjuration, Alchemical Sciences, Enchantment and Warding, Divination and Prophecy and Ancient Runes and Glyphs.
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After a long day of work, Saelwen and her friend are resting in the staff room.
"And how were today's lectures?" asked Ceana, a brown-haired woman with blue eyes and a tiny mole under her left eye as she leaned against one of the walls, sipping her dark coffee.
"Ugh... I've had enough..." Saelwen sighs, resting on the couch. "Those students are wearing me out; they keep fighting each other in the courtyard... and what is more, Veste isn't replying to my letters."
Saelwen looked out the window, gazing at the walls surrounding the building and vast streets outside of them, filled with inhabitants of various species, as well as shops and stalls. Her face visibly saddened, still thinking about Vestele and her children.
"I hope she's okay..." she said, her voice gloomy.
Ceana set down her coffee on the table and slowly approached Saelwen, then grasped her arm.
"Don't worry, I'm sure they're all right... in three weeks, there are the festivals in honor of the goddess Rosmerta," she mentioned with her a bit shaky voice. "You can go back to your loved ones then, and next time, bring them here with you," she said with a soft smile on her face and sat next to Saelwen.
Saelwen glanced at her. "You can also send someone to check on them," she continued, looking through the window. "Or we could go toge—"
Saelwen interrupted her, shouting in delight. "You're right! I can ask someone if they could check on them!" A wide smile appeared on her face; she stood up and took Ceana's coffee. "I'll be going then, bye!" she exclaimed happily before leaving the room.
"Wait!" Ceana's voice was cut in by the sound of closing door. The woman lied down on the couch then gently muttered with a deep blush on her face.
"Shit..."
Saelwen walks through the corridors, sipping Ceana's coffee. "So bitter..." she said with a grimace on her face, but still drinking all of it. She walks through one of the back doors and slowly makes her way across the courtyard, where Professor Artair's class for the first-year students on magical creatures is currently taking place.
Professor Artair is a black-haired, feline-type demi-human with black eyes, who constantly carries a wooden cane in his hand.
"My dear students!" his voice is soft and cheerful, together with a slight northern accent, adding charm to his voice. "In today's class, we will be studying the beautiful creatures known as..." he spoke in a rapid-fire manner, barely pausing for breath then opened a magic circle beside him. "...Kitsune!"
Saelwen, leaning against one of the square-designed pillars, watched as a fox-like creature emerged from the circle opened by Artair. It had white-blue fur, yellow eyes, and three tails. It stretched slightly and then looked at the man.
"Kitsune are creatures that strikingly resemble foxes, but they differ greatly from them... for example, they can transform into humans! And the number of their tails indicates their age," Professor Artair explained to the students with great enthusiasm for the next few minutes.
Saelwen watches with a mixed expression as the man enjoys his work of telling everything to the students. "That he's willing to..." is the only thing that comes to her mind.
Suddenly, the Kitsune released by the professor transformed into a young man, with his hair the same color as his fur, reaching his shoulders.
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"Good morning, my name is Colla, and I am Mr. Artair's assistant," his voice is smooth and velvety.
Saelwen continued watching the class conducted by the professor, and his students seemed to be very interested in the lesson, unlike hers. After a long while, Artair announced a short break and quickly walked towards Saelwen, who was leaning against one of the pillars.
"Sael! My dear, how are you?" the professor, with a big smile, leaned on his cane, waiting for a response. "How's your family?" The sun is shining bright on his dark hair and ears.
Saelwen walked up closer to him. "I actually need to talk to you about that... Could you send someone to Valentia? I'm afraid something might have happened because Veste isn't replying to my letters," she whispered so quietly that he could barely hear her.
All of a sudden, Colla walked up to them, glancing at the woman.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Saelwen," he said with a courteous and respectful voice.
"Good afternoon, Colla," Saelwen smiled slightly, looking at the young man.
Artair leaned over to Colla and whispered something to him; in a moment, Colla walked away. The professor turned to the woman.
"I'll do everything I can! But you'd better run to your classroom because it's probably time for your lecture," he said, pointing at the large, metal clock on the main wall of the building.
Saelwen's eyes widened in shock after seeing that it's already so late.
"You're right." Saelwen headed toward her classroom. "I'm counting on you, Artair!" she shouted, disappearing into the crowd of students.
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"...Alright then, in the next class, we'll focus on summoning familiars, but for today, that's the end," Saelwen concluded her class.
On the way to the exit, she met Ceana again in the hallway, who had also finished today's elemental magic class. Ceana's eyes widened in shock; her face turned slightly red.
"S-Saelwen, have you finished your class already?" she sounded excited, her voice bubbling with enthusiasm.
"Yes, although a bit earlier than I should have, but yes," she smiled slightly. "And I told you, you can call me Sael."
"Oh, yes... Would you like to go out to a café, since we both have the day off today?" Ceana asked, a slight blush on her face.
"Sure, why not." Saelwen walked up to her. "Do you have any particular place in mind?"
"Mhm," nodded Ceana. "There's a nice café not so far from here."
They both headed towards the city center to spend together some great time.
In the meantime, Artair and Colla set off towards Valentia at Saelwen's request, to check if her family was doing well.
"Mr. Artair... How long will it take us to go there?" asks Colla, brushing through his shoulder-length, smooth hair.
"Around two weeks, if not longer," the professor replied, his voice full of enthusiasm as he stared at the full moon above the horizon.
"I thought it was no longer than three days..." Colla walked closer to Artair as they both moved across a bridge connecting Naso with the nearby forest.
"Yes, but through a magic circle," the man says and then uses a spell to light up their way through a dark forest. "We're going there on foot."
They both walked for the next few hours, and as the sun slowly rose behind them, Colla sensed something unsettling.
"Mr. Artair..." he whispered, his ear pointed in the air.
"Yeah... I sense it too." The professor uses his cane to send a small fireball in every four directions.
In a matter of seconds, a massive creature rushed at them, screeching. Artair dodges its claws, and in the same moments, Colla goes back to his Kitsune form.
"Wyvern!" Artair shouts enthusiastically, a spark appearing in his eyes.
A colossal wyvern leaps into the air, roaring. Its emerald green scales shimmer in the sunlight, and its large, membranous wings and menacing gaze create an imposing sight that dominates the sky.
"Why is it here?!" screams Colla, his eyes wide with shock.
The creature charges at them, its enormous wings destroying trees in its path. Artair sends a volley of fireballs at it, but this only enrages the creature further, causing it to spit out green acid.
"Colla, let's seal it for now!" shouts Artair, dashing towards the wyvern.
"Are you out of your mind?!" Colla dodges the acid still falling from the sky.
"Maybe." Artair whispers to himself with a sinister smile and sends more fireballs at the wyvern.
The creature flutters its wings, sending off the fireballs, and attempts to spit acid at Artair. Suddenly, its left wing is struck by a bolt of white lightning, its roar of pain so loud it can be heard for kilometers.
"I'm covering you!" shouts Colla from afar, his form now bigger, reaching half the height of the trees. Colla then casts a spell, creating magic circles to protect them from the wyvern's acid.
The wyvern desperately tries to stay airborne, but its second wing is struck by more bolts of lightning. It eventually falls to the ground, roaring and standing on its hind legs, spitting out more acid. Artair continues to rush at it, now using his cane to deflect the acid and parry the wyvern's attacks.
"Got you!" Artair screams, his smile as wide and sinister as ever. Artair takes out a hidden scroll from the bottom of his cane and unrolls it. A large swirl of magical chains emerges, completely consuming the wyvern. The creature tries to resist, but the chains tighten, and the swirl becomes smaller, pulling the wyvern into the scroll. Artair rolls the scroll back up and puts it inside his cane.
"Finally got you!" Artair smiles and laughs with joy.
Colla watches from the back as he changes back to his human form. "Like a child... just like a child," Colla says with an annoyed look on his face as he rests on the ground.