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Seraphiel was getting fitted for her new uniform in one of the fancier clothing stores surrounding the academy when someone she recognized walked into the store and into the fitting room where the tailor was making adjustments to her black and gold uniform. Those really were her colours. The android subsequently turned into a real girl with a soul, stared at her for a couple of seconds before speaking. "Hello, Seraphiel." The android's voice was still rather emotionless despite everything.

“Chachamaru.” She saw no reason to hide her identity. “Didn’t take long for you to find me.”

“You weren’t exactly hiding.” The tall woman pointed out. Chachamaru had always been very tall, and that hadn’t changed, while Seraphiel was quite a bit smaller now. “I mean, Seraphia?” There was finally some emotion in her voice, slight incredulity being the most obvious one. Also, was that sass she was hearing?

“I wasn’t. Then again, I didn’t know someone was looking. And I don’t exactly look like I used to.” She retorted, not at all bothered by the tailor hearing everything. This place was expensive enough to value their client’s privacy.

“Master’s fangs started itching as soon as you set foot in the same room as her.” This time Chachamaru showed a faint smile.

“Ah, that would explain it.” Seraphiel nodded. It also explained Evangeline’s odd expression during the speech. “I see you finally got your ears upgraded. They look nice.”

Chachamaru actually blushed a little at the compliment. She touched her perfectly normal-looking ears with her fingers. Previously she'd had obviously mechanical-looking flaps in place of ears. "This new universe has some benefits." She admitted shyly.

“Good for you.” Seraphiel was genuine in saying that. She’d gotten along well with Chachamaru before. The young android, at least back then, had been one of the most genuine and gentle people she’d known. “So, what does the Dark Evangel want with me?”

“She wants to know why you’re here.” Chachamaru turned serious as well.

“Your guess is as good as mine.” Seraphiel shrugged. “Actually, your guess will likely be a lot better than mine, seeing as you’re more familiar with this universe than me.”

“You don’t know?” Chachamaru seemed surprised.

“I rarely do. Sometimes I get some vague feelings or directions in the form of hunches, but this time I’ve got nothing. Apparently, I was summoned.” She would’ve shrugged again, but the tailor made a threatening gesture with a needle to force her to stay in place.

“Summoned? That shouldn’t be possible. It would take a major god to summon someone like you, and all of them already have a Champion.” Chachamaru speculated. “Well, all that I’m aware of.”

“Well, I couldn’t really speak to that, but I wasn’t summoned with my own body and powers, so maybe that’s the difference?” She suggested.

“Even so…” Chachamaru seemed hesitant before shaking her head. “Well, I’ll relay that information to Master.”

“Is she going to kick me out?” Seraphiel asked, not really concerned. She and Evangeline had a past, but it wasn’t necessarily a bad one.

“Oh no! She might be annoyed with you, but she knows your presence here will be hugely beneficial, even if you don’t have your powers. Just having another Champion will be a huge boon.” The word Champion finally broke the tailor’s façade just for a moment, but she kept working. Chachamaru also noticed. “That’s also why our tailor friend here will not say anything. She too knows the benefits that can be gained.”

“Uh-huh. What exactly did you have in mind?” Seraphiel asked, suspicions rising.

"Well, you know that the academies compete against each other in various ways, yes? At the most simple level, we have inter-academy tournaments. The academies also get bragging rights according to how well their alumni perform in the future, as well as countless other minor benefits that come from the prestige of training and/or having a Champion. I assume Master will want you to compete, which will in turn secure us resources and various other benefits.” Chachamaru explained rather openly. “Fame also attracts more and better applicants.”

“I can live with that arrangement, as long as you don’t expect any wonders right from the start. My System Day was only a few months ago. I’m not going to be fighting dragons anytime soon.” She tempered expectations.

"I'm sure Master will take that into account." Chachamaru's tone didn’t imply the same level of confidence as her words.

“Uh-huh. And I do expect some compensation.” She wasn’t going to be doing all this for free. She would take part because competition was a good way to gain experience and level her Skills through adversity. She also wanted to test herself against what this universe had to offer in a controlled environment to get a better idea of her own limits. She didn’t need to tell Chachamaru that part of course.

"We can make sure your stay here will be fruitful and pleasant," Chachamaru promised.

The two were quiet for a moment as the tailor worked. “So, how’s Negi? And how did Eva end up becoming the headmaster?” She remembered that one of the reasons Chachamaru had become so human was her feelings towards the boy. Well, a man nowadays most likely.

“Negi is busy performing his duties as the Champion. He’s gone most of the time.” Chachamaru said a little sadly. “Evangeline became the headmaster due to her sheer power, and because she still can’t leave campus without rather sizeable efforts from the vice-headmaster.” The android looked at her watch. “I’d love to stay and chat, but I’m afraid the start of the semester is keeping everyone quite busy. I hope we can spend some time together later?”

“Sure. Would be nice to hear how everyone is doing.” She nodded, and the android left her alone with the tailor.

“So. A Champion?” The tailor asked carefully after a few moments.

“Perhaps. Why?” She asked, not sure where this was going.

“Well…it would be quite good advertisement for me for a Champion to be seen wearing our work. Or if that Champion isn’t planning on advertising her position, even a very successful student doing the same would be beneficial.” The tailor suggested.

“Free clothing and adjustments in exchange?” She bargained.

“Sounds fair.” The tailor agreed, knowing the store was getting a good deal.

[You’ve gained the new Skill Haggling! Negotiate down prices, both selling and buying! Heavily influenced by Social Stats of both you and the one you’re haggling with. Would you like to accept the Skill? Y/N]

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

Sure. Why not. She was a little surprised she hadn’t gotten it earlier. Likely because she wasn’t really trying to get the Skill. She had free Social Skill slots still, and she could always replace it if she didn’t want it anymore, so she’d take it for now. She also hadn't had much need to haggle prices as she didn't buy too many things. No point in haggling over the price of an ice cream or something.

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“Welcome to your first real lesson everyone! I’m so happy you’re all here.” A red-haired Human-looking woman with sky-blue clothing greeted them all eagerly.

They hadn’t been divided into classes yet, and all the new students were present in the large lecture room. The students were rather equally divided between the three main tracks, magic, knightly, and general, and the uniformed students had almost automatically sorted themselves into the three groups in the large auditorium divided into three sections. Only a few students stood out sitting among the students from the other main tracks, their uniforms giving them away to everyone.

“As you may know, or you should if you listened to the headmaster’s speech, we value teamwork very highly at Mahora Academy. Especially at lower levels when we all have a single or only two Classes, our abilities and Skills do not allow us to do everything. Or at least we won’t be good at everything, even if we can perform the task. A merchant won’t be able to defeat a knight in physical combat, and a knight usually can’t make and maintain their own equipment. That’s why it’s important to have allies that can cover for our shortcomings. As the ultimate expression of this, our academy performs the Pactio ritual, which ties a knight and a mage to a mutually beneficial partnership, but long before that you all need to learn to work in a team." The gentle voice of the teacher was quite pleasant to listen to, and she had everyone's attention. Clearly someone with high Charisma.

“To effectively work in a team, you need to understand your position in the team. We will be testing all of you regularly when it comes to your suitability for different roles, but first, you need to understand what those roles are. As you might have already guessed, you've already been divided into three of those roles, knights, mages, and support for the general students. But those three roles can be divided further. As the range of Classes is so wide, so is the possible variations of roles, so all of you will likely fall between some of the roles or can fulfil multiple roles." The teacher explained cheerily.

“Let’s start with knights. The main two groups you can be put into are strikers and guardians. Guardians are the ones that can take a hit and more importantly, can protect others. Usually, that means Skills that improve your defences, and Skills that allow you to prevent your allies from being hurt. Strikers are the ones that are more geared towards taking down the enemy. Usually, that means Skills that improve the power of your attacks, accuracy with weapons, or a myriad of other things that make you more effective at attacking." The teacher paced in front of the students while using emotive gestures to emphasise her words, like pretending to hold a shield when talking about protectors.

"The supporters are roughly divided into in-battle and outside-battle support. In-battle support might mean Skills that buff others or hinder enemies, healing, or a million other things. Outside-battle support can be equipment maintenance, procurement, logistics, assistance when traveling, mapping, trap finding, and countless other benefits." The teacher chuckled a little. “Logistics and support aren’t as exciting as swinging a sword or blasting spells perhaps, but battles and even wars are won with such things.”

“Thirdly we have mages. They come in three rough varieties. We have artillery mages, controller mages, and then we have fighter mages that use magic to enhance their close combat prowess, effectively becoming magical knights of sorts.” The teacher’s expression turned understanding. “Now of course, most of you have only recently gained your first Class, so it is unreasonable to expect you to decide or know the exact roles you can fulfil at this point. Nor will you be divided into such roles quite yet. Instead, we will be monitoring and evaluating your performance during your first year here at Mahora to help you determine your most suitable path. And once you have made a choice, we can advise you on picking a second Class that can best complement your chosen Role."

She clapped her hands, and three groups of instructors entered the auditorium from the back. The instructors wore the same colours as the students to help distinguish them. “You will divide into groups based on your chosen track at Mahora and follow the instructors behind you, who will take you to the main training areas dedicated to your track. I wish you all luck!” The teacher told them, prompting the students to start separating.

The black and gold-clad instructors kept a brisk pace that had the young students jogging to keep up. Seraphiel also noted that the instructors took the long way around to lead them to an area that was strictly divided into sections according to their very logical purposes. The sections were all situated around a large central courtyard with a simple fountain at the centre that also held a statue that depicted a knight holding a shield, while another one was drawing a bow. She also noted that the dorms were on the opposite side of the campus, forcing the knight students into a bit of a morning jog if they had to gather here every morning.

“Welcome to the Knight’s Quarters. Most of your lessons will be held here." A slightly darker-skinned blond-haired Human woman declared. The woman also had a very cheery disposition, and her hard training was obvious from her very trained and athletic form. She was also someone Seraphiel barely recognized from her previous visit to Mahora. "I'm instructor Kū Fei and I will be in charge of your martial arts training while at the academy.”

Another woman, this time with black hair tied to a long ponytail on one side of her head stepped forward. Unlike Kū Fei, Seraphiel knew this woman wasn’t completely Human. She was also a lot more serious. “And you can call me Instructor Sakurazaki. I will be in charge of weapons training.” Both of them were standing on a slightly raised wooden platform and the latter woman gestured around her. “You will find almost all necessary training facilities in the Knight’s Quarter.”

She gestured towards one side to what seemed like blacksmiths and shops. “There you can get outfitted with suitable weapons and armor.” Another gesture to the opposite side. “There you will find various training facilities from simple training dummies to extremely potent and dangerous arrays created by our best mages that can pit you against all sorts of foes in simulated battle. Do note that the arrays work on a reservation and priority system. First level students will not gain access to any of them until you’ve proven yourself capable of handling them.”

Her firm tone was once again contrasted by the other cheery instructor Kū Fei "Now for something fun, we also have magically created obstacle courses that change on every run, designed to help you train your mobility and athletic Skills. We also have shooting ranges for those of you that prefer longer-ranged weaponry. Instructor Tatsumiya will be able to help you master any ranged weaponry, and she will show up in the future when she has time. We also have arenas for sparring with various terrains for variety, and then there’s the big colosseum for official duels. Just in case you feel the need to work out your differences in a more formal setting.”

“We would of course prefer things not get to that point, especially when you’re so young, but we do recognize the necessity and it is good entertainment for the rest.” The more serious instructor pointed towards the large looming form of the round colosseum towards the centre of the academy, before turning towards a row of more normal buildings. “Of course, just because you’re training to become knights, that doesn’t mean you can forget normal learning. Most of you have completed at least a certain level of education just to get into the academy, but you’re going to have lessons on tactics, System theory, Champions, other races and societies, and a hundred other topics. So don’t think you’ll get rid of book learning.”

That caused some groans from the gathered students. “As knights, we have to keep our energy up, so while the quickest of you already noticed that we’re far from the dorms, we are close to the cafeterias catered specifically for our needs. We burn more energy than the mages so a ready source of energy is important.” Kū Fei pulled out a banana, which she used to point at the cafeterias that most of them had already visited. Seraphiel knew there were also general mess halls that the entire student body would use. “At the centre of the island, you can find the World Tree that provides the nice aura you’ve no doubt already noticed, which helps in learning and even stops aging after reaching adulthood. You can also find the library near the World Tree. To the south, you'll find Mage's Quarters, and to the North the Supporter's Quarters."

"Now then. Since we are knights, physical training will form a large part of our curriculum, and we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to start out with a relaxing jog around the Mahora Island. The entire island. It should only take us three hours with your general level of stats. It's also going to give us an idea about where your current fitness level is, so get to it." Sakurazaka declared with a slightly cruel smile.

The instructors started leading the way and were going to run with them, ushering the groaning throng of new students into running as a group. They could also see the commiserating and somewhat gloating expressions of the older students looking over their misery before they too were forced back to what they were doing.

As the group started the run, it quickly became clear to Seraphiel that the entire island was a hive of activity. Nowhere was quiet as students and residents could be found everywhere. The older students were already in the middle of their own training and lessons, while the residents were either working or just going about their own business.

Another thing also became clear rather quickly. The other new students, even those with a couple of extra levels over her, clearly didn’t have her stamina or speed. At first, she'd kept with the pack, but soon enough she and a few others had left the majority behind, and she'd left even the fast group behind afterwards. Only a single Elf was still keeping up with her, and even the Elf boy was showing signs of not being able to keep up for much longer. Then again, she did have a rather sizeable Vitality and Agility stats, and the Skill Push Through to help her, while the Elf was most likely working off just a high racial Agility stat. Maybe a running Skill of some sort.

The Elf was also left in the dust when she started to use Hohō to keep things interesting, her hooves hitting the ground only every ten meters or so. She could go longer, but she was still getting used to using the technique with these Draenei legs and hooves. This was a good opportunity to familiarize herself. The technique when used at this level consumed barely any psionic power, something that only changed when she could cross hundreds of meters in a single step. Her current limitation was mechanical set by the System and not due to her power.

“You seem to be doing well.” The voice of Instructor Kū Fei suddenly came from beside her. The instructor wasn't running any slower than her, crossing distances at great speeds, keeping right at her side while easily holding a conversation.

"It would seem that I might have a bit of an advantage over my age group," Seraphiel replied modestly.

“That would seem to be the case. Interesting movement technique. Not quite Shundō, but yet very similar.” Kū Fei tilted her head. “You’re not using Qi, are you? Is your Class magical? No, that doesn’t feel right either. Psionic?”

“Correct.” She confirmed. As expected from an instructor.

“Interesting. We don’t get very many psionic Classers in general at Mahora. Even fewer knights. This should be interesting indeed. It's going to be a pleasure working with you." Kū Fei stated before simply vanishing in a burst of speed.

She gave a bit of a sigh. “It seems I have much further to go than I realized.” As she hadn’t even seen her old acquaintance, who had obviously not recognized her, disappear.

Back when they’d first met, when this academy was still part of its original universe, their positions had been reversed. Kū Fei had been a young but talented martial artist, but she’d also been limited by her mortal nature. She had no Qi or magic to help her, and when Seraphiel had arrived, she’d only begun to touch on the fringes of more supernatural abilities. Back then, Kū Fei had been wholly insignificant power-wise, even if she was a pleasant person and nice company. Yet because back then she’d had no power, she wouldn’t have even been able to scratch Seraphiel’s true body. Now their positions were reversed.

It was a humbling experience and a reminder that she would have to exercise at least some caution. Something she wasn’t used to as most of the time she could just brute-force things.