The early spring breeze blew through the open gates of the gardens and whistled through the branches of the flowering trees. Delicate blossoms drifted and danced in the morning wind, some getting carried up and over the roof of the grand manor, settling down upon the grey tiles in a blanket of pink.

Spring had come early this year, and the blossoms had already started to fall before the last of the contracts came in.

One petal flew with the wind, up over the rooftops, down between the paddocks, and through the open window of the apprentice’s dormitory. The petal fluttered in the rays of the morning sun, wobbling and twisting as it gently landed on top of Idris’s nose.

Idris slowly opened his eyes and picked up the petal which had roused him from his sleep. He wasn’t sure if this was a sign of good fortune or bad fortune, but he still smiled, because today would be the start of a new contract year. Being one of the most experienced among the apprentices, this year could be his chance to graduate and become a master apprentice.

He sat up in his bed, looking around at his fellow apprentices, all still snoozing away soundly, lost in their sweet dreams. It’s the same scene he’s been seeing for almost six years, and he’s yet to get tired of it.

“Hey Idris, up already?” Andrei, his close friend and an experienced apprentice, whispered from the bed next to his.

“Yeah,” Idris muttered, rubbing his eyes with his hand and ruffling his short, bushy hair, driving away the last hint of sleepiness.

“You should get some more rest,” Andrei said. “Today is gonna be busy.”

“It’s fine, the bell’s probably gonna ring soon anyways,” Idris said with a yawn.

Then, as if on cue, the piercing ringing of the wakeup bell echoed through the halls of the manor.

“Oh! Let’s get up!” Andrei shouted at the top of his lungs as he clapped his hands together and bolted off his bed. He ran from bed to bed, slapping and tickling the occupants to wake them up from their slumber. “Up! Up! Up! Get up!” Shouted Andrei every time he found someone who was still trying to sneak in an extra bit of sleep.

Idris couldn’t help but chuckle at Andrei’s own unique way of making sure everyone was on time. The younger apprentices jokingly call him “dad” because of the way he treats them, his strong jawline and rough skin only added to that image. He isn't usually like this, but he likes to put on an act to cheer the younger ones up.

The room soon began to fill with activity, the apprentices rolling off of their beds, folding their blankets, and waddling out of the door towards the dining hall for breakfast.

Kaen, a mage from the east, was playing around with his fire magic across the room, the group of younger apprentices watching him cheered every time he shot off sparks or little bursts of flame from the tip of his finger. He often likes to joke that they won't be able to tell if he singed his own hair since his hair is black anyway.

“Kaen!” Idris shouted. “Let the young ones tidy their beds and go for breakfast!”

“Okay okay!” Kaen shouted back, shooting off a final large burst of sparks before shooing away the youngsters with a warm smile.

Idris turned to the window, drawing the curtains fully open and pushing the glass pane as far out as it would go. Then he stuck his head out into the morning sun, breathing in the early spring breeze. Located in the middle of a spacious meadow, green forest surrounds the grand manor and its grounds.

“Come on Idris!” Andrei shouted from the door. “Breakfast is being served, the line’s already getting long.”

“Okay okay, coming,” replied Idris, turning away from the window and jogging to the door.

They joined the hundred or so students all heading to the large dining hall, lining up behind the others for food.

A flurry of gold caught Idris’ eye as someone slammed into his side, but the lightness of their body barely even moved him.

“Kaleb!” Idris yelped in shock. “Watch it!”

“Morning!” The little golden-haired Kaleb shouted. The youngest member of Rose, born and raised here, he still had several years before his training as an apprentice could begin.

“Morning,” echoed Idris, ruffling the little boy’s golden hair before he ran off to frighten someone else with a surprise hug.

Not a moment had passed after Kaleb ran off when someone else came running towards them.

“Idris, Andrei!” A cheerful voice called out from behind. “Morning!”

“Morning Saya,” said Idris, turning around to greet their energetic friend.

A large red bowtie peeked out from behind her head, bouncing up and down with every skip of her step, her light-brown hair collected by it into a puffy brush.

“What’s up with the hair tie?” Asked Andrei.

“This?” She pointed to the top of her head with both hands. “Otto brought it in yesterday! I thought it was pretty so I asked for it, and he gave it to me! Doesn't it fit my eye color quite well?” She asked, leaning her face forward and blinking her big amber eyes repeatedly.

“You…”

“I just think what he does is cool, okay!” Saya shouted.

Otto, Lilian’s older brother, had finally come back to visit yesterday. Liked by all, he turned down the opportunity to become a senior, and instead became a traveling trader, searching the lands for goods that can help boost Rose’s power.

Though she refuses to admit it, Saya might have a slight crush on Otto. To be fair, many at Rose do. His friendly personality, combat prowess, and the romance of being a traveling merchant led many to look up to him.

He had brought along many gifts and goods for everyone, including lots and lots of regional delicacies. It had taken a fair while to get everything properly inventoried in the warehouse. As soon as all the stuff was offloaded, he bid them farewell and quickly went on his way.

Today’s breakfast was a selection of sausages, mashed potatoes, fried eggs, and lettuce salad. Idris tasted a strange but inviting flavor in the sausages, which Saya explained was from edible flowers Otto brought from the highlands of the Sun Empire.

“I heard that there’ll be new arrivals today,” Andrei said as he swallowed the last of his eggs.

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“New students?”

“Yep.”

Rose scouts talented orphans from across the Kingdom of Eidolon every year, who are then brought here to train as assassins. Most arrive here at a young age and stay here until their death or retirement.

“It’ll be our turn to be their guides for the first few days then,” mumbled Saya through a mouthful of food.

“Probably,” Idris replied. “The seniors haven’t said anything about it though.”

“We’ll they’re probably gonna do it now,” said Andrei, gesturing to the front to the dining hall, where the Seniors were making their entrance. “Time for the new year speech.”

The six seniors, Julius, Yelena, Juno, Leo, Sandra, and Izzy, lined up in front of the hall. Julius, the eldest of the six, held out a script before him, looking around the room, waiting for silence. His powerful features and piercing eyes commanded respect from all who set eyes upon him.

Without needing to say anything the room quickly went quiet, the students having noticed the Seniors’ presence.

“Good morning,” Julius began in his commanding voice. “Today marks the beginning of a new contract year. We congratulate all of you for your effort and part in last year’s success, and here is to another year without failure.”

They applauded and cheered and whistled.

Once the commotion had died down, Julius continued. “This year, as usual, we have six new contracts. We will now split you into six task groups, each under the command of a Senior. In Task Group One, we have Lena, Nicolas…”

As usual, Idris, Andrei, and Saya were put into the same task group, this time under the command of Izzy. The same people usually get put in the same task group because their abilities and specialties work well together, though sometimes it could get changed around depending on the requirements of each contract.

“Task groups one, two, and three will focus on the first contract, scheduled to be completed in May. Four and five will be assigned to the second contract, and six the third,” Julius continued once everyone had found their group. “As each contract is completed the groups will be reassigned. Any questions?”

There was silence.

“Very well. Please head to your assigned group’s office where your senior will give you the details of the contract,” Julius flipped through his notes. “But before that. There is something more pressing.”

“It’s the newcomers,” Andrei whispered to Idris.

“Today, a group of new recruits will be arriving. They are young, inexperienced, and not fully accustomed to the effects of the perception magic, just like you when you first arrived here. Please be nice to them, and treat them like family,” he paused for a moment. “May the following please meet me at the front yard after breakfast, Andrei, Idris, and Saya. And for the last time, have a good contract year.”

They applauded as Julius folded up his notes and led the seniors out of the dining hall. The seniors were always busy, always having something to attend to.

“Well, guess that’s our day then,” Andrei mumbled, picking up his empty plate and standing up.

“Also the days afterwards too,” added Idris. “Don’t forget we have to help them throughout their first month here.”

“Oh yeah that’s right,” nodded Andrei as he walked off with his empty plate to drop it off in the kitchen, whistling to himself the whole way.

Idris turned to Saya, who was still chowing down on her big plate of food. Her slim physique would never suggest such a bottomless tummy.

“You almost done?” Asked Idris.

“Almosh…” Saya tried to speak through her mouthful of food.

Idris sighed and picked up his empty plate, but Saya grabbed his arm before he could stand up.

“What?” He asked her.

But she didn’t try speaking, instead, just glared angrily at him, telling him to not abandon her with just her eyes.

“Fine fine,” Idris sighed again as he sat back down. “Don’t choke.”

By the time Saya finally finished wolfing down her food the dining hall was mostly empty. All the apprentices had left to attend their meetings, with only a few of the master apprentices still drinking some coffee, discussing training routines and other important matters.

“Where’s Andrei?” Saya asked as they walked out of the dining hall.

“Waiting at the front gates, I assume,” answered Idris.

Sure enough, Andrei was stood waiting in the front yard, looking at the butterflies dancing over the grass.

“Took you long enough,” said Andrei as they walked up to him, kicking a few pebbles in their direction.

“Don’t blame me! Blame her appetite!” Idris exclaimed, pointing at Saya’s stomach. “You know how we have to carry double the amount of rations when we take her on assignments?”

“Oi!” Shouted Saya, grabbing Idris’ shoulders from behind and shaking him violently. “It’s because my magic takes a lot of energy okay! Also, that's not true!”

“They say the amount of food you consume is directly proportional to the size of your mana reserves,” continued Idris despite his head coming close to being dislodged from his shoulders. “Your mana reserves must be massive then. How much do you weigh now?”

“It kind of is but… Aaaah just stop!” Cried Saya, shaking Idris even harder. “You can’t say that to a girl! I'm pretty slim! I know my face is a little round but...”

“I’m sorry,” said Idris, trying to pry Saya’s hands off of his shoulder. Having telekinesis, Saya is by far the strongest of the three. “Could you please… stop the shaking… my head… is gonna... come off.”

“Sorry is not enough!” She shouted, continuing the shaking.

“I think it’s sort of... cute... to be honest.”

“It… what?” Mumbled Saya, stopping the violent shaking, her cheeks slightly red.

“Nothing…” Idris said as he lifted Saya’s hands off of his shoulder and stepped away from her to safety.

“Say it again!”

“No.”

“Say it!” Saya leaped at Idris, trying to grab him with her hands.

Their frolicking was interrupted by the sound of footsteps on gravel behind them, and the commanding voice of their senior.

“Good morning,” said Julius as he walked up to the three. “Thank you for taking your time to be here.”

“Good morning!” The three replied in unison, bowing to their senior.

“At ease, at ease,” Julius smiled. “The new arrivals will be here very shortly, and I want you three to be their guardians of sorts for the next few weeks. You’ll have to teach them the ways, how we do things here, how we conduct ourselves, all that stuff.”

“Understood.”

“Keep in mind that, because of the strong effect power field here, newcomers will generally feel varying amounts of discomfort before they get used to it.”

“What kind of discomfort?” Andrei asked.

“Well, headaches, nausea, maybe even throwing up,” Julius answered. "Just like when you first arrived."

“I see… that's right...” Andrei mumbled, thinking back to his own early days.

“Here they come,” said Julius, pointing into the distance.

Through the tall grass, Idris could faintly make out the silhouette of a horse-drawn carriage, rumbling down the dirt path towards them.

“I see you!” The coachman shouted as the carriage came up to the outer gates.

Slowly the gates swung open, and the carriage rattled up the tiled road, coming to a stop in the wide front yard.

“Julius,” the coachman greeted him as he leapt down from the carriage. “Good to see you.”

“Good to see you too, Adam.”

The passengers disembarked out of the back slowly, rubbing their eyes and supporting themselves against the side of the carriage. They’re all young, and all looked a little unsteady on their feet. There was confusion in their eyes, some fear even, but that soon faded once they saw Julius' welcoming expression.

“Hello,” Julius said to the young newcomers. “Welcome to Rose.”