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Karna luxuriated in her soft surroundings as she stretched out on her rather impressive hoard of pillows. This was the feeling that she sought out, as she flexed her toes and allowed her fingers to sink into a pair of fluffy masses of fabric and feathers. She had no idea why most dragons insisted on lying on piles of coins when there were clearly superior options available. Coins were hard and cold and much better spent on buying something more comfortable to sprawl on. Most of the room was covered in a range of soft and fluffy objects, and there was actually no need for her to use the bed that was buried somewhere under the pile.
Her luxuriating was interrupted by a very familiar knock at her door. With a small sound of resignation, she got up from her ever-growing pile of fluff and made it towards the door of her bedroom. A single thought opened the outer door that her visitors had knocked on, and the three usual people met her in the kitchen. “Happy late birthday!” Miralen called out before any other greetings could be exchanged. The brown-skinned elven girl shoved a small present into her hands and gave her a quick one-handed hug.
“Why, thank you Miralen. I didn’t expect you to bring me a present when we talked about birthdays yesterday. You got this quite fast.” Karna said with a grateful voice. Getting presents was fun, even if she didn’t really need them. The old adage about the thought counting was not just a platitude.
“Nonsense. You gave me a present as well when it was my birthday, so it was only natural to return the favor. You should’ve told us when your birthday actually happened. We could’ve celebrated! Now we’re almost six months late. Still, I think you’re going to like it. Also you could've mentioned that you turned eleven only weeks after our first year began. I kept thinking you were ten for months.” Miralen had a sneaky expression on her face, which made Karna quite sure the present was some kind of pillow. The elven girl was the only one aware of her hoard, as she had managed to keep others away from her bedroom. Well, the elven girl and the Changeling that had broken into her room. And anyone that the Changeling had blabbed to. So maybe quite a few people knew actually?
With a slight bit of trepidation, she opened the small box enough to peek inside, and found her suspicions confirmed. Inside was a bright pink pillow with humorous pictures of stylized dragons prancing around. She could sense the pillow was actually enchanted to make it extra soft and fluffy. "You know me too well," Karna said with a genuine grin spreading on her face. Miralen had good taste. Pink wasn’t her favorite color, but she didn’t dislike it either, and the rest of the pillow definitely made up for it. Besides, the color was an obvious joke.
The smile caught the others a bit by surprise, as they were still getting used to seeing Karna without her veil. They all agreed it was a good idea for her to still keep the veil on while in public. Otherwise, she'd draw too much attention, different from the kind of attention that she was already getting. She only took the veil off while they were in private, or while she was taking her artisan classes, as there the veil just got in the way.
“What did you get her?” Shaheera asked curiously, as was his nature. He and Rein had also brought a present, but the two weren’t all that confident in their choice of a book on different forms of magic. They need not have worried. Books were among Karna’s favorite things as well; even if the subject was something she could’ve written a book on herself.
“Girls have to have their secrets.” Miralen simply replied mysteriously. Incidentally, Karna had created protective amulets for all three of them during the last few months. Fortunately, the three all had their birthdays relatively close together, though that was less due to luck and more due to the proximity of the night during which the pathway to the Spirit World opened. There were always more births near that time, and several festivals dedicated to love had been strategically placed so that the children that resulted from the festivals would be born around the same time. Of course, that mostly applied to humans as the majority species of the Magocracy, as the other species had varying gestation periods, but the same principle still applied.
“It’s the thought that counts.” Karna waved their concerns away. It wasn’t like she couldn’t get anything they would be able to get their hands on by herself if she really wanted to.
“Have you all considered what to do for your end of the year test?” Rein suddenly changed the subject with his usual tact and grace. The test was still several months away, but this time there was a need to prepare.
“Well, I’ve got a fairly easy opportunity available to me in that I can just craft something suitably impressive, but I'm keeping my options open. Why? Did you have something in mind?" Karna asked, noticing the other two were not surprised by the question. Clearly, the subject had come up before. They had discussed the topic without her.
While the test at the end of the first five months was mostly theoretical with a dash of practical mixed in, the test you had to take to be promoted to the second year was the other way around. The test had a theoretical component, and they’d be scored in everything they’d been learning the entire year, but the theoretical portion was given a lot less weight this time. The students had to show what they had learned in practice, and the most common way to do so was to undertake some missions or jobs that allowed your skills to shine. Each task would grant the students points, and if you managed enough points you would be promoted to the next year.
Since the points would also take in the scores of the theoretical tests and their performance during the year, the better you had done before the test itself, the less you had to do during the testing period to actually get promoted to the second year. As a result, a student with already good scores could go for something flashy and get all the necessary points in a single swoop, while those with worse scores and those that had not shown improvement during the year had their work cut out for them. Those students would have to do a lot more to gain the necessary scores.
The test to get to the second year was mostly one to weed out those that had not shown enough improvement and willingness to work hard, which is why most first years managed to get through the test if they had made it this far in the first place. Those that didn’t have the ability or the work ethics had already given up during the year. The tests for later years would be much more difficult. “Well, seeing as we’re the top students of the year, we don’t actually have to do too much to get promoted. That said, I think we all agree that our goal is not to just get by. Our scores will give us the opportunity to challenge the remaining second years for the top spots, and I think I’m speaking for all of us in saying that I’d rather keep my spot in the second year as well.”
As students of the Academy went up in years, the portion of older students that had not yet been promoted would naturally increase. The Academy had in place methods that allowed the newly promoted gifted students to challenge the old students for the top spots of the new year. It was a relatively fair system, and it wasn’t necessarily about challenging students to a duel. That was certainly one method, but not the most widely used one. The final result was a combination of the students’ scores, learning, and the estimates of the teachers.
Sometimes the newly promoted students failed in their challenge, and that was only fair as the older students had studied at the Academy longer and simply knew more and had more experience. On the other hand, seeing as they failed to get promoted to the next year, they weren’t exactly the top students of the year either. Exceptional students like the four of them could usually manage to reach the top of the new year, while more mediocre students would struggle, as students like Karna and Shaheera usually had skills and knowledge beyond just their lessons.
“Of course not. We're aiming for the top. Was there even a point to the question?" Miralen was rather firm in her opinion. "We've been beating second-year students in our tactics class for months now, and that includes some of their top students as well. The ones expected to gain their promotion I mean. It would be embarrassing to be placed below them in the rankings after that.”
“Which brings me to what I had in mind. We have a few months until the tests so we can hash out the details as we go along, but I think we should take a three-pronged approach to this. First of all, I think we should challenge the number one group of the second year during the tactics lessons. If we beat them, it's going to send a clear signal about our combat abilities. We've so far avoided the best second-year groups because they're much better equipped and have much more experience, but I think it's time we take the plunge.
“That brings me to the second part of my plan. I think Karna can earn some nice extra points if she manages to personally take care of the gear difference, and we all use items she creates to gain victory. While she manages the gear, the three of us will have to pick up our own training. We could allow ourselves to be carried by Karna, but that’s not going to be great for our own scores, and it would be a rather crummy thing to do as a friend. I want the three of us to try and close the gap between us, if only just a bit. To that end, I want us to do most of the fighting during the actual challenges.” Shaheera purposefully goaded Rein and Miralen. Karna had not intentionally shown off the difference in strength and skill between them, but it had become rather clear anyway.
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“I agree. It would be even better if the three of us handled the fights for the next few months entirely and Karna stepped in only if absolutely necessary. All the teachers are already aware of her skill, so it won’t hurt her to hold back. Besides, it’s annoying to be losing to someone younger.” Miralen softened her words with a playful smile, but there was truth to her words.
“The three of you have plenty of talent. You just need some experience.” Karna reassured them, and she wasn’t just being polite. For non-reincarnators Miralen and Shaheera had great potential. Even Rein had quite a bit, even if a bit less than the other two. Miralen and Shaheera could become real powerhouses if given the chance to hone themselves. Even Rein could be a strong fighter, although he would not reach the heights of his father or brother without some serious help. Sometimes the talent gap was simply too large to bridge with effort alone, and while Rein wasn’t lacking in talent, Sieg and their father were just in a different category. With the right kind of teaching and enough effort, Rein would be able to bridge some of that gap, but the gap would still always exist and would always hinder Rein.
"You said a three-part plan?" Rein prompted, as Shaheera had only mentioned two.
“I think we should try to complete a mission that is usually considered beyond first years. That would be suitably flashy, and it would be just the kind of display of practical skill that the teachers seem to be looking for.” Shaheera explained. “This is the part that needs the most work as we’ll need to find a suitable mission. We might have to do several to have the right type of impact, but the idea should be workable.”
“Sounds like a plan to me.” Karna agreed. “Just don’t forget to study the theoretical parts as well. Even if this is a more practical test, there’s still the theory portion and anything you learn can be a great boon as well.” She reminded them. The courses after the break had been less theory focused as a whole, but they still had a long way to go with simple theory as well. The Academy was doing an admirable job of teaching the basics, so she had little to add for now.
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Karna was somewhat surprised to see Tsumi already waiting in their usual meeting place. "Well you seem eager," Karna said as a way of greeting, while the Headmistress caught Gem out of the air as the traitorous spirit jumped into the older woman's lap to be pampered.
“Well, it just so happens that an opportunity has come up. How would you like to earn a whole lot of contribution points? Enough to make sure your position as the number one ranked student once your promotion to the second year is official. At the same time, you'd get the chance to check out one of those individuals you wanted me to look for." Tsumi suggested, seeming very pleased with herself.
“I’m listening. Seeing as you’re offering that many points, you must have something bothersome in mind, so what’s the catch?” Karna gestured for the older woman to continue.
“As it happens, there’s a tournament of sorts for younger students held on a particular world. Many of the best institutes of learning will be making an appearance from our plane. It’s a relatively sizeable and prestigious event but nothing too major as there won’t be any audience present. Only about a dozen of the highest-ranking worlds in our plane are attending, so it’s not something that involves the other Higher Planes. I call it a tournament, but the whole thing is much more about allowing each of the best institutes to show off their most promising students, and there’s a large non-combat portion, which is actually the part I want you to participate in. It’s also more about making connections and giving the young students some experience, and not about real duels. The whole thing starts in a few weeks, so we'd have to leave within a week to get there in time." Tsumi gave a brief summary.
“And why didn’t you mention this earlier?” Karna raised an eyebrow in question.
“Two reasons. Well, three in a way. First of all, I wasn’t sure if you were ready to participate in these sorts of things yet. Usually, we only take students from the fourth year and up. The age limit is actually thirteen, but with the way you look and act, no one can really complain if we don't tell anyone you're too young to attend." Tsumi gestured up and down Karna’s body, obviously hinting at the fact that just a few months ago she'd looked her age but didn't any longer. "I also wasn't sure if you had enough strength to attend, but your recent bouts with the second-year students have allowed me to see more of what you’ve been holding back, and now I’m confident in taking you along. Especially if we mostly have you stick to the non-combat portion of the event. Secondly, most of the students that we’re taking along are the crowned students of older years. I assumed your relations with them might be a little strained with you rejecting their offer to join their little club.”
“And the third reason?” Karna prompted. She had actually expected more trouble from her rejection, but it seemed the group was biding its time.
“Well, the tournament will take a while. During that time, you won’t be able to help your friends.” Tsumi simply shrugged. She knew Karna likely had plans for her little group and didn’t want to mess them up.
“Well, funny you should mention that. They just told me that they want to get stronger on their own so that I won’t be carrying them all the time, so now’s their chance. This timing seems a little too convenient to be a complete accident though.” Karna looked at Tsumi with obvious suspicion. Even a blind person would be able to see foul play involved in a ‘coincidence’ like this.
"I may have encouraged some teachers to gently plant the idea to your friends," Tsumi admitted shamelessly.
“Uh-huh. I don’t appreciate the manipulation, but I’ll let it slide this once. You mentioned that you found one of the targets I’m seeking? Which one? And I’m guessing they will be attending?” Karna didn’t mind the lost time as their plan didn’t call for her presence for a while as the others trained. Her friends needed some space to grow their skills without being overshadowed by her. They also needed to realize just how good they were when they weren’t comparing themselves to her. Kicking the asses of some older students should go a long way to accomplishing that.
As for the items she had promised the others, she could work on them when she returned, or even while she was gone. She didn’t actually require the Academy’s facilities to create the items. She would simply need to use some of her more advanced skills to compensate. The only things she needed were materials, and those were easy to come by and take along. The three would have to pay for the materials anyway, so they might as well do so upfront.
“One of my associates reported someone who might be pulling power from the Elemental Plane of Air. My friend can’t be certain, as the target is only a handful of years older than you, but I thought this was a good opportunity to confirm things. Besides, other Blessed Children will be attending as well, so this plays into our other plans quite well.” Tsumi had a good reason to be pleased with herself. Karna had to admit that she had not expected results this quickly.
This did put a little wrinkle in her plans though. She had not expected to run into one of her targets quite this soon. She didn’t mind horribly if people knew she was a “Blessed Child” or if the other reincarnators knew she was one. She had already reached a point where she wasn’t defenseless. It could be a little inconvenient and cause her family and friends to look at her differently, but that was more a nuisance than a real problem. No, the real problem was if the other reincarnators realized who she truly was. That could invite the sort of fury down on her that could consume the entire Magocracy. There were quite a few reincarnators that would stop at nothing to kill her. She could probably escape, but she wouldn’t be able to save those close to her just yet. She needed to be careful when it came to dealing with this issue.
In the meantime though, she could at least check the person out. If that person wasn’t one of her targets, then no harm done. On the other hand, if the person did end up being one the targets the spirits had asked her to deal with, then at least she’d know where to look when she was prepared. “Fine, I’ll do it.”
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Traveling between worlds was significantly harder than Shifting from one place to another on the same world. Luckily the whole thing was made easier by the presence of pre-made pathways that made the trip faster and easier. It also allowed trade between worlds and the existence of alliances and friendships that spanned across several worlds and even planes. As the nation of mages, it was not surprising that the Magocracy had created several of these dimensional highways, and the majority of their armed forces were usually stationed to defend them, both from internal and external threats. If another world wanted to invade then these pathways were an obvious target, which is why certain failsafes had been put in place.
The same naturally held true for other worlds. As soon as the airship they were riding on arrived in the snowy terrain of their destination world, Karna could sense that the portal they exited was rigged to collapse violently should it be necessary. Of course the failsafe wasn’t something that just anyone could trigger, which was just one way in which such systems were rather fragile and potentially exploitable. Complicated and important magic often came with such problems. Securing the pathways was almost as difficult as creating them.
Their ship wasn't the only one that had recently arrived. With this being the designated date of arrival, nine other airships had also already arrived, and two large flying creatures also added to the mix. Some of the airships had a similar sleek and practical design as the Academy's ship had, while others resembled seafaring sailing vessels, and one even looked like a rather futuristic battleship that had clearly been influenced by a reincarnator from some more scientifically advanced universe. One of the flying creatures looked like a giant eagle, while the other looked more like a flying whale.
The world they had arrived at was covered with snow and ice. Karna could already sense that this was a world with a much lower average temperature, and large parts of it were likely covered by huge glaciers. She could also sense that the inhabitants of the world were mostly those that enjoyed such conditions, such as Yuki-Onnas and Snow Elves, certain types of beastmen, and creatures such as Yetis and Frostwyrms. This was likely a world that wasn’t exactly filled with life, but the presence of abundant resources drew in races that preferred warmer climates as well. She could see a city below them where the weather and temperature was controlled by a magical dome that turned the area within similar to what could be found on other warmer worlds.
“Is that a Dire Penguin?” One of the other students asked. The being was clad in armor from head to toe, and Karna knew that the being within resembled a ghost more than a being of flesh and blood. The male Creuss also had a crown with the numbers VI-1 on his breastplate.
“I do believe you’re correct," Karna replied with a pleased expression that was covered with her veil. Shala, which was the armored man’s name, was one of the few on the ship that actually got along with her. He and Siegfried were the only ones aside from Tsumi and other teachers really, and Siegfried had not had much opportunity to spend time with her.
“Don’t lollygag and embarrass us in front of the other worlds.” The elven man with VIII-1 on his chest said angrily from a short distance. He was the type that took everything seriously. Or at least that’s the impression he gave off to most. Karna could sense darkness in the elf, and he likely had managed to gather quite a bit of negative karma somehow. Staying away from him seemed like a good idea. Karna suspected that there was much more to Menranel than met the eye. The elven man wasn’t among those that took the most hostile attitude towards her, but Karna suspected the elf had a lot of control behind the scenes. Control that he either chose not to exercise for Karna's benefit or chose to actively use to cause the others to create trouble for her.
The trip hadn’t been unpleasant in general. Mostly the others just chose to snub her. Karna didn’t really mind, as it wasn’t even close to the first time such things happened to her, and she didn’t really care about such minor things and petty people. As such, it wasn’t hard to ignore Menranel’s words. No, her attention was drawn by something else. She could sense two other reincarnators among the people present. Two reincarnators that either didn’t know how to hide their souls from someone like her, or didn’t care to. One of them seemed like someone who had likely not lived too many lives, as Karna could sense their soul wasn’t that out of the ordinary yet. That person also seemed to be an inhabitant of this world, judging by her location below them, in the city. The other one however…well, their soul was like a burning house compared to the candle that most non-reincarnators looked like to her. This trip might turn out at least a bit interesting.