In the end, the most important part of the visit to the Arcane Sanctum was the leyline. That much wasn’t surprising, as it was not only the cornerstone of the High Arcanist’s tower but also of the country. But otherwise, I found the rest of the tour rather underwhelming. The Arcane Sanctum was often referred to as a paradise for mages and the dream job for scholars was only a glorified city hall.

Sure, it was big and magical in every single meaning of the word and had a beam of pure unadulterated magic crossing through it. But that was it. I expected something more. The most boring part was the barracks, as we only looked at the garrison of the tower training.

Well, I’m lying.

The soldier’s training consisted of sparrings I would have difficulty performing myself. The actual worst part of the tour was the governmental offices. That made the Arcane Sanctum look less like a villain’s lair, and more like a town hall.

The next day after the outing, classes continued as normal. Now, that I wasn’t obsessed with learning spells beyond my capabilities as Perfect Recall was, my schedule had become healthier, though a bit crowded. One day I would be sparring with Marissa, then the next one I was taking swordsmanship classes with Adrian.

Monica had developed a fixation with imprinted spells and spellcraft, as of late. An interest I could get behind, though I preferred Xenoglossia. Both subjects were explained by professor Innit in one of his lessons about optimization. Imprinted spells were as they sounded, spell frameworks inscribed on a surface; perfect for making magic-based machinery. And spellcraft I had already explained as the act of making new spells.

And obviously, Monica wanted me to help her. I didn’t spend much time with her, so every time she asked me to revise an inscription of hers, I lent a hand.

What surprised me is that Alatea and Kirielle offered to tutor me from time to time, whenever they were available. Even if those lessons were few and far between as holidays had ended a long time ago and both were occupied and solicited healers, I took a great liking to the insights offered by professionals on their respective subjects.

I looked up at the sky, and an almost blue canvas filled my eyes. Today the dome was rather dim, though it didn’t mean it had weakened. I didn’t know if it was because of the reflection of the light or if it just cycled colors from time to time, but the blue sky cheered me up.

“Why are you smiling? That’s creepy.” A burlesque Marissa quipped at me.

I threw her a dead look and a shit-eating grin. “Nothing, nothing…”

“Wait, what?” She reacted in sudden confusion. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Nothing, I said.” I continued with my smile.

“What are you hiding?” Marissa asked in desperation. “Tell me!”

My psychological attack worked quite well, as even if I didn’t possess any information of relevance, the fact I had displayed such a visage put Marissa on the edge and unrest. This should be classified as some sort of psychological torture. Kirielle had instructed me that most neuromancers manipulated people’s thoughts without using magic, just by psychological tricks alone.

“I think he’s just playing with ya’.” Adrian laughed at the side, lying on the dark blue grass that was a bit dry.

“You think?” I now looked at him, intensifying my smile.

“Damn, how do ya’ even rise up the corners of ya’ mouth that high?” He avoided falling into my blunders.

“I like to smile.” I added with a chuckle.

“Wait.” A dead-eyed Marissa looked directly at my eyes, piercing through the gates of my soul. “Were you toying with me?”

“Yes, Marissa.” I told with a completely deadpan face.

“Argh!” She shouted. “You irritate me! How do you even change faces this fast!”

I unconsciously smiled as the desperation crept into Marissa’s facial expressions. They may talk about me, but Marissa was something else when it came to funny faces.

“Normally I would be alright with your games,” Monica commented with a tired voice, laying on her stomach, “but can’t we just enjoy this day?” She didn’t even move her head, just enjoying the rays of sunlight.

“Ya’,” Adrian nodded to her statement. “I can’t believe we go together for once, and ya’ pull this. Leave the lover’s fight for another time.”

“This isn’t a lover’s fight!” Marissa shot a fast air projectile toward Adrian, but as someone who knew both people pretty well, it didn’t faze me when Adrian dodged it absentmindedly. He may be the worst mage in the group, but his reflexes and battle instinct were nothing to scoff at.

Our conversation ended with a laugh. I didn’t know who started it, but we all ended up laughing together, forgetting about the exchange. Except for Monica. She just continued laying on the ground, adding a sigh of her own.

It seemed like I had infected another person with my chronic sighing.

“Damn, it’s hot.” Adrian said as he used an air cantrip to circulate air around his body.

“Yup,” I added. “You wouldn’t believe it’s almost Frost.”

Today we found ourselves in the Kris’in district, a neighboring district of Thal’mer and Nas’tor. Also known as the glasswork district. The main feature of this district, as every single one had one, was technically the Glass Galleries, an avenue full of workshops and studios related to glassworking, but as it happened with Thal’mer, it was more commonly known for its beaches rather than the actual intended main feature.

We were enjoying ourselves in a little outing to the beach, on an insanely hot day of Decay, as our holidays had started a day ago. But Edrie, you ask, what about the end of your first year? And I must answer you: not much really.

We had our exams a few weeks ago and succeeded with more than passing grades. And after that, there wasn’t much more. It was the end of the first year, not our graduation day, and no one said anything to us or even gave us a congratulatory speech. We were expected to be present at the beginning of the next year and that was it. And truth be told, it wouldn’t be much of a wait as the next year would begin in two weeks.

Yeah, I hated the ellari work calendar.

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“Can’t you point at me with your fan?” I told the small tornado that had become Adrian.

“Sure, enjoy.” Then I was greeted by a warm yet refreshing breeze.

“Truth be told,” Marissa said as she sat next to me, “I didn’t expect the beach to be this boring.”

“Yeah, that’s what having a colossal wall of pure arcane energies a few hundred meters away does to your mood.” I told with the same exhaustion as Monica.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Marissa replied. “Isn’t the beach supposed to be exciting and full of life?”

“I don’t know where ya’ got that impression.” Adrian stepped into the conversation. “Back at San’ner we had a small enclave touching the sea, and that was the worst place in the whole district. The only place where life didn’t grow!”

“I’m not the crazy one here, am I? Monica?” Marissa asked her friend for support.

“Yeah, yeah.” As her dead beat tone indicated, Monica couldn’t care less about the situation. “Whatever you say, Marissa.”

If you wondered about Monica's strange behavior, everything traced back to yesterday night. As a way to celebrate the end of our first year of the academy, Adrian shared with us a special wine back from his home.

And a little thing we discovered that night was that Monica had little to no tolerance for alcohol. Like none at all. Unluckily for her, my Cleanse spell didn’t fully remove hangovers. Maybe if I had prioritized the Arcane eight-star instead of the Soul one, I would have learned the Purify spell by now. But that wasn’t the case.

It was a miracle we convinced Monica to come down to the beach with her abnormal hangover. We could have visited Alatea for help, sure, but for some reason, I kept my mouth shut. Who could know why? I also didn’t possess a soul healing spell powerful enough to solve what Purify couldn’t.

According to her sour mood, Monica didn’t wear clothes for the situation. She was lightly clothed yes —today was a hot day after all— but she didn’t bag swimming wear. Monica decided to only wear a shawl and an open dress, perfect for this temperature.

“What are you looking at?” Marissa gave me a dirty look as it would seem I had spent too much time looking at Monica’s naked fuchsia back.

“Nothing, nothing.” I dismissed her worries in the same way I did before.

Now, I took a look at Marissa. Unlike Monica, she had come to the beach prepared. Besides a dress she had already removed, she wore a two-piece white bikini, made of a special ellari silk that was waterproof. Whilst revealing, Marissa’s outfit appeared so common and overused that I didn’t give it a second look.

“Hey!” She shouted at me. “Why are you looking away?” Really? Was that why you were offended?

“Nothing, nothing,” I repeated like a broken…. Like a broken what? The expression fled from my grasp, as I forgot the words. “Shouldn’t we get in the water?” I got up from the pearly white sand and approached the shore.

“Finally!” An excited Adrian jumped from his seat, spraying sand all around. Though it was almost imperceptible, I swore I heard Monica groan.

“Come back here!” Marissa shouted. “You won’t get away.”

I, in fact, already got away.

Adrian was fast to catch me up and ended up entering the water before me. A wave of jealousy assaulted me as I looked at my fellow roommate. Adrian was not only the most athletic person in our group but probably of our whole promotion. And he showed it.

He was ripped from feet to shoulders. Ellari were slim and overall feeble by nature, but Adrian singlehandedly defied every stereotype by being built like a rock. Not a single part of his body lacked toned muscles. His biceps and six-pack were the most remarkable parts. Hells, I didn't even know ellari could have a six-pack until now.

I had seen Adrian partially naked from time to time, as I was his roommate, but never had I had such a clear picture, and it astonished me.

As for his clothing, he wore a simple pair of swimming trunks and nothing else. Actually, I wore the same as we had gone together to buy clothing for this outing together. And to be honest, I was overclothed compared to him, even if by a bit. I had tied my hair with several laces, which may or may not be a bit too long (certainly more than the girls), and also wore the choker Marissa chose for me.

As I was distracted with my pondering, I wasn’t able to process the splash of seawater that Marissa shot at me.

“You are looking pretty distracted today.” Marissa repeated my own thoughts with a smug plastered on her face.

I knew I should have spellcasted waterproof barriers. But it kinda defeated the purpose of going to the beach in the first place.

“I’m just uneasy.” I told her, ignoring the fact she had splashed me.

“How’s so?” Marissa stood on the sea, water touching up too little more than her ankles. She tied her arms in an embrace around her torso, trying to highlight her breast. A task she miserably failed. I wasn’t degrading her, ellari women tended to have little to no cleavage. That was one of the reasons why Kashar, the leyline elemental, thought I was a woman.

It was a weird feeling seeing Marissa in a bikini. Not only had I known her since she was a child, but I still thought she was one, from time to time. I knew that wasn’t true, she was already twenty-four. For ellari standards, she may as well be a child, as ellari peak physical and mental age was at thirty. But still, the slender and tall figure, the white icy long hair swaying around with the wind, it was a mystical sight worthy of a painting.

Then I noticed, I distracted myself once again.

Huh.

I blinked.

Not a lot of time had happened. Like not at all. I had thought all of that in what seemed to be an instant. Was this what Kirielle said about accelerated thoughts or was it something else? I looked on upon my soul, to see that it was whiter than usual.

Today was certainly a weird day. Everything just felt off. Even though there were only eight more days until Frost, this day was hotter than most of the Scorch holidays.

Then there was also my soul. Why was this white? My arcane corruption should’ve expanded, not receded. Especially after the insane inputs of arcane mana I got from the main leyline.

I knew seasons were magical in this world. In Bloom, nature mages got their magic amped up, and flowers and fruits were more lovely. In Scorch, pyromancers’ flames burn brighter, and the days were hotter. In Frost, cryomancers’ ice grew colder and denser, and the days become more frigid than they should be.

Then in Decay… in Decay souls became more powerful.

This didn’t just affect mystics, but everyone, no matter their age or if they were mages or not. It just so happened that soul practitioners had more of a chance to exploit it.

Having said so, it wouldn’t be strange to assume that days could also be magical, as seasons could be. My soul shone white, my thoughts wandered off, and the sun burned brightly. What could that mean?

“I don’t really know,” I responded Marissa, after what appeared to be an eternity. “I just got an uneasy feeling. Maybe it’s because I felt like this year has been too easy. Not a single challenge present, or any difficulties. Or maybe it’s just a gut feeling.” Those were my true thoughts, though the current wrongness of the day bothered my mind more.

“The stoic and pragmatic Edrie being led by a gut feeling, huh? Certainly, something weird is happening.” As Marissa talked, a bored Adrian splashed her with some water, but a barrier of fast wind currents not only stopped the attack but also deflected it back to him.

“Ah!” Adrian yelped in surprise as he didn’t expect to be hit by his own attack.

I skipped a breath as I looked at the surrounding mana movements. Marissa hadn’t had that barrier pre-conjured. She had spellcasted it the instant Adrian had thrown the water at her, and without having a direct line of sight, or even a considerable amount of time to answer it, she had managed all of that. The most surprising part, though? Marissa wasn’t even fazed.

A confident smug appeared on her visage as she now noticed what she did. Did she actively counter the splash, or was it something unconscious, automatically made by her battle-honed senses?

That confident look, the posture, the eyes… Yes, Marissa wasn’t the kid I had known for so long. It took me time to internalize it, to really internalize it. But I think I could finally consider Marissa an adult.

“Suck it.” Marissa told Adrian without even giving him a look.

I mentally sighed. Marissa put things difficult. Couldn’t have she just stay with her dignified aura? As it would seem there were no adults present here except me, I did the most logical next step.

I splashed Marissa.

“Really?” Marissa commented nonchalantly, as the deflecting barrier returned the water back to me.

Yet that didn’t happen.

“Ah!” It was now time for Marissa to yelp as she got soaked by the water she thought she was protected against.

“What did you expect?” I told her with a deadpan, yet victorious look. “Did you forget I’m a manaweaver? Did you think that a five-star spell could hold against me?”

I was actually amazed Marissa had used a considerably advanced spell like a five-star was to do something so ordinary as to avoid being splashed.

“Ah!” Marissa jumped in surprise as more water drenched her from behind. “Really, Adrian?” She added with a deadpan.

“What ya’ mean?” He laughed aloud. “Ya’ were the one who started it.” And he was right.