And once again, Emilio found himself facing chaos.

Everyone was talking over each other. Some of them were pointing at him and murmuring. Some were questioning loudly. He could hear some of the words, even though he was still looking at the Archmaster in askance, silently demanding answers.

“In the middle of the year?”

“Late bloomer? What the heck? What does that mean? How do you bloom so late?”

“Maybe he has a problem?”

“He can’t be a first year. He looks older than 15!”

“Who knows? The Archmaster said he’s different?”

“How different?”

And then … amongst the voice, a loud voice - a familiar voice - boomed over the others.

“He’s a Laik!”

Emilio’s head snapped back towards the crowd.

Ah. There she was.

Clara Preises. A beautiful girl, with jet black hair, an oval face and a pair of sapphire blue eyes. She looked like someone who would grow to possess beauty, grace and strength. The only thing ugly about her was the abhorrence reflected on her face.

Clara Preises, the daughter of Count Preises, under whose County his father’s Barony existed. The girl who hated his guts for being born into the prosperous Florian Family as a useless Laik. They had met frequently when they were children. She had been his playmate. They had been good friends … there had even been talks of betrothing the two of them. That was before the time for him to form his core and then deviate passed and he still showed no signs of doing either.

Clara had always been strong spirited, compared to the softer Emilio. She believed in strength and ability. So when she realised that the friend she adored so much was a Laik, adoration turned into hatred. That was around the time when Jeremiah came into their lives. It hurt to lose his friend but he soon got busy with Jeremiah and whatever wounds he had felt at the time healed soon enough.

But it seemed like Clara still held onto her hatred, from the disdainful look she was giving him.

“I’m sure, you have all heard about him. The son of Baron Florian, Emilio Florian, who - despite being born into a family of strong Earth and Fire cores - was born a Laik. What is he doing here?”

Immediately, the curious and excited tones of the crowd changed into an angry and agitated one.

“A Laik?!”

“Those useless things? They can’t even feel magic!”

“Yeah. Such a waste of space.”

“Why is he here, Archmaster?

“His father probably pulled some strings to send him because he threw a tantrum.”

“What a spoiled brat!

“Whose brilliant idea was it to bring him to the Academy? You should send him back!”

“Yeah! He doesn’t belong here!”

How easy it was for people to assume, to speak things, to change their tone, to put a label on someone because they thought they knew everything there was to know based on the one thing they knew about them. These people … had never seen him. They didn’t know him. And yet they decided that he was useless, a waste of space, and a spoiled brat.

He clenched his fist, nails digging into his palm. The pain distracted him from the fact that it felt like something was pressing in his chest, clogging and burning his throat. He breathed through his nose, shoving all those unsavory things down.

His eyes met Clara’s, and he saw that almost indiscernible smug smirk on her face. She always had a tendency to play particularly cruel pranks on those she disliked. Emilio was pretty sure this was beyond a prank, however. This girl, no matter how much she hated him, knew what kind of person he was … no, perhaps, she didn’t. It’s been almost five years since they saw each other. And she had “accidentally” touched him with a bolt of lightning in her hand.

Emilio didn’t back away. He continued to stare at her. He was pretty sure he would have to deal with these people on the daily now. If he gave up at the very beginning … he wouldn’t be a Florian.

The sound of the crowd was getting louder and louder and everyone was talking so fast and loud that it had become unintelligible at this point.

“Silence!” The Archmaster’s voice echoed throughout the entire hall, over everyone else’s.

It took a few moments, but the hall went silent.

“Good,” he nodded. “Now, to answer your questions. I am the one whose brilliant idea it was to bring him here. He is identified as a Laik, yes. But I wouldn’t bring him here if I thought he was useless, As I said, he’s a special person and he’s helping the Research Department. And Mister Evan, I am the one who decides who belongs here and who doesn’t. That’s why you are here.”

Emilio followed the Archmaster’s gaze to see a tan boy of around his age, with a mop of dirty blonde hair and reddish brown eyes. He was broad and had the look of someone who seemed to have done a fair amount of physical labor in their life. The boy clenched his teeth and sat back.

“Now, if you have any further questions, you can ask. I will answer. I am afraid this is all a bit sudden for Emilio, so keep your questions for him for later. Sounds fair?”

There was an uneasy silence for a few moments, during which the students glanced at each other, probably wondering who would go first.

“No questions?” The Archmaster asked.

And then a hand wrapped in an intricate, bejeweled sleeve, rose in the air, from among a similarly dressed group of people.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

“Yes, Hans?”

“You said he is special. How is he special?”

“I am glad you asked,” the Archmaster said cheerfully. “He can talk to animals.”

Silence. Wide eyes. Murmurs. Disdain turned into fascination.

How easy they were to change.

Someone else got the courage to ask, “How did he get those powers?”

“Well, that’s what we are here to find out! It’s a new type of ability, a job for the Research Department!”

“Then, why is he taking classes with us?” Another spoke up.

“Because I said so.” The Archmaster grinned. There was an awkward silence before he chuckled. “Joking, joking. Even if he can’t use mana like the rest of you, I am sure he can learn a lot from the classes. His ability doesn’t just need to be researched, it needs to be trained. And our rigorous classes are the best for that!”

Even Emilio thought it was a flimsy excuse, let alone the students.

“Now,” the man wrapped his arm around his back and grasped his arm gently. His voice turned firm… a bit cold. “He is here under my invitation and protection. He is here to learn, and I have decided to grant him the opportunity to do so. If anyone has any problem with that, they can take it up with me.”

He looked around. “Any takers?”

Everyone was silent.

“No?” He grinned, going back to his eccentric attitude. “Then that’s all for today. I still have to talk to the young Florian about some things. Continue your lunch.”

The man gently led him out of the room. The moment he stepped outside, he could here the students exploding into loud murmurs and curses behind him. But he didn’t really register what was being said before he was out of earshot.

The next few moments were a blur. The man kept leading him and he kept following but he wasn’t really focusing on where he was going… or anything else really. His mind was buzzing, and his heart was racing in his chest. He felt anxiety clawing up his throat, and he started to have trouble breathing.

“Calm down,” someone whispered beside his ear, hands on his shoulders. “You are alright. Breathe.”

“Hah!” he finally exhaled properly, panting softly as air finally entered his lungs.

“Good!” That was the Archmaster. “Asma! Bring a calming tea for our guest.”

It was then that Emilio realized he was sitting on a chair, on the opposite of a large seat that resembled his father’s. He looked around, realizing that he was in a big chamber. He looked back, wondering where he had come from. All he could see was another room outside and two desks sitting opposite to each other.

He then looked around the room. It was a circular one, with beautiful wall carpets with intricate embroidery and designs. There were shelves upon shelves of collections of showpieces, one more beautiful and expensive than the other. And yet, none of it looked gaudy or ugly. In fact, all of it put together exuded a sense of magnificence and elegance. His father had told him that man was shallow, liked all things beautiful, and was interested in things out of the norm. So, it was true.

“You like it?” The Archmaster’s voice made him look back and the man grinned. “It’s from Valmor, one of the Shwadheeni cities.”

Of course, the man managed to bring carpets from a wild group of cities across the desert nation. Usually, only the Royalty and the Duchy had enough money to afford that luxury.

Okay, Emilio, don’t get distracted.

He looked back at the man. “Why do I need to take classes?”

“Do you expect to develop your powers in the Research Department?” He scoffed. “Research Department is all well and good if you want to learn about your power. But if you want to learn your power, classes are the best way to do it. Rigorous and knowledgeable teachers, a competitive environment, rival students pushing you to better yourself, and in a school of magic, there are always surprises abound. If you want to truly progress, getting down there and working and competing is the best way.”

Emilio couldn’t really deny that. But he had a feeling his progression was not the only reason the man was doing this. “I am not sure those students will want to push me to be better. They’d rather push me off a cliff.” He scoffed, slumping a bit.

“Well, isn’t that even better?” The man smiled when Emilio looked up at him like he was mad. “Adversity makes you stronger! I look forward to seeing how strong you can get.”

This man was so … insufferable.

Now, he understood the tired tone his father always adopted when talking about the man.

“Thank you,” Emilio said softly, before turning to the man.

“Okay, but why did you tell them I was a Laik?” He asked, leaning forward.

“Oh well, you can’t expect to hide it forever. It was quite a topic of discussion when you turned out to be a Laik. People would have eventually found out about it eventually. Probably almost immediately, thanks to one Lady Preises.”

Emilio groaned. The man was right. Clara Preises would have declared it to the world the moment she saw him. She actually did so.

At that moment, the door opened and a young woman who was probably in her late teens or early twenties stepped inside with a tray. She walked to the table and started to set two cups of tea for them.

“Besides,” Emilio looked up to see the man grinning at him. “It was fun to see your reaction. And theirs.”

Could he kill this guy?

“You cannot kill him,” the woman spoke up from beside him. “Many have tried but they failed.”

Emilio looked at her in surprise. She smiled dryly. “As one of his assistants, I feel that very urge at least a hundred times. Daily.”

The man chuckled. “Oh. Assistant Coden. No need to be so dramatic. I am not that bad!”

“Yes, you are.” She deadpanned immediately.

“Alright, alright,” he smiled and then gestured at the tea. “Have your tea, young man. It ought to calm you down.”

Emilio sighed and took the cup, taking a sip. “Chamomile,” he said softly, relaxing. Chamomile was a natural relaxant. He sometimes took it if he had trouble sleeping. “Thank you,” he told the woman again. She nodded in answer before walking out of the room, leaving the two of them alone.

He looked at the man. “Fine. I will take the classes.” He couldn’t just leave after coming here to learn about his powers. He couldn’t just tuck his tail and run at the first hint of trouble. “Where do I stay?”

“Why, the student dorms, of course!”

He opened his mouth to protest but the man raised a hand to stop him. “I know what you are going to say. But the one you are to be roomed with is quite different than others. Isolated too. He’s alone because his dormmate asked to be moved out.”

Emilio frowned. How bad was this person in the eyes of others? Surely, it couldn’t be worse than him.

“He won’t try to push you off a cliff, at the very least.”

Emilio sighed, looking at him. “Do I have a choice?”

“Oh no, you don’t.” The man kept that infuriating smile on his face.

“Very well,” he sighed.

“Fantastic!” The man clapped and brought out a card from his drawer. It was similar in size to the Portal Card but light brown in color. “Here is your Student Card. Your dorm number is 406. Press the rune at the bottom and say “map”, it will lead you there.”

Emilio took the Card and looked at it. “You had this prepared?”

“Yes,” the Archmaster replied truthfully, shamelessly.

This man … he had planned all this beforehand. Probably the moment he saw him.

“I hate you,” he couldn’t help but say, though he didn’t really mean it.

“You’ll thank me,” the man replied.

Emilio scoffed and stood, striding out of the room.