-------
"I could go as a Human," Seraphiel suggested. Idly staring out of the window of a large flying vessel taking them towards Mahora Academy. The academy was still too distant from their home to use teleportation gates, but the enrolment day had arrived two months after her System Day, so they travelled by ship. The view outside was just a stream of magic passing by.
"Honey, we both know you wouldn't pass as a Human." Ophiel looked at her meaningfully. "Not just because of your stats either. You are roughly equal to an eleven-year-old Human developmentally, at least outwardly, but what about ten years from now? You should look over twenty, but you'll barely seem sixteen. You won't have that problem as a Draenei as they mature roughly at the same pace. Besides, what's your problem with being a Draenei? I thought you liked being one as you lived life as one. One I seem to recall you said you enjoyed."
“It’s the hooves. And unguligrade feet. It messes with my Hohō.” She complained a bit. “I’ve just about reached a tolerable place in my footwork, and now I have to retrain it again.” She stomped her hoof on the carpeted floor of the vehicle transporting over thirty students towards Mahora.
Those thirty students had been gathered from all over the country, as it seemed this year the selection had been especially stringent as there had been so many great applicants. Seraphiel had breezed through thanks to her grades and her Class. She'd only revealed her lower-ranked Class, but an A-ranked Class was still more than enough to secure her a spot when even B-ranked first Classes were rare and coveted. The academy didn't care about your current level, as they would quickly be able to help their students gain initial levels, though having a few levels under your belt certainly didn't hurt.
"You'll manage," Ophiel stated confidently. "You always do. And besides, it's only a couple of months of work you'll need to redo anyway. And you're not even redoing it completely anyway. The Skill levels still remain. You just have to adjust.”
“Levels aren’t everything.” She argued back, knowing that the information the Skill provided her was mostly useless anyway.
“True, but the mechanical benefits are still there, so they’re not useless either.” Her mother shot back reasonably.
She’d spent the last couple of months getting a handle on her Skills and raising them to usable levels. As she had two Classes, she basically had to do twice the work, but the fact that she was basically traveling down old paths made things easier in return. Each Skill was capped by the level of the Class they were associated with, so no Skill could go higher than the Class in levels. However, by the time you capped your Skills, you'd most likely level your Class anyway. In fact, it was a rather efficient way to level your Class in the absence of real combat. She'd managed to reach level 10 in both of her Classes in these two months, and she was really noticing the improvement in stats. Having two Classes also meant that she was quite a bit stronger than her level implied. Of course, she hadn't been able to level all her Skills equally. Some Skills were simply harder to practice than others.
Name: Seraphiel (Seraphia) Race: Celestial (XXX) Age: 20
[Path of the Seer – Acolyte – Rank A] Level 10 :
Psionic Affinity – 10
Telekinesis – 10
Electrokinesis - 9
Psionic infusion – 9
Fortify - 9
Destructor – 7
Danger Sense - 8
Pyrokinesis – 7
Bonesinging – 10
Psionic Shroud – 10
Resources:
Psi Power: 1900
Free Stats: 0
[Shinmei-ryū Kamigoroshi – Apprentice – Rank SS] Level 10 :
Hard-light creation - 7
Zanmaken - 10
Raimeiken – 7
Zantetsusen – 7
Shiten Kekkai – 6
Hohō – 10
Kidō - 8
Psionic Charge – 8
Combat Illusion - 7
Psionic Focus - 10
Physical Stats
Strength: 230
Vitality: 230
Agility: 230
Perception: 230
Social Stats:
Charisma: 170
Willpower: 170
Manipulation: 170
Acumen: 170
Psionic Stats
Power: 190
Control: 230
Tolerance: 190
Psi: 190
General Skills:
Weapon Arts – 10
Martial Arts - 10
Push Through – 10
Multitasking - 9
Winged Combat – 5
Magic Sense – 9
Cooking – 7
Graceful – 9
Identification & Evaluation – 4
Engineering – 4
Racial and Social Skills:
Gift of Knowledge - 8
Been There, Done That – 10
Gift of Permanence *Passive*
Go Out And Live Among The People - 4
On The Wings Of Angels – 4
Charm Of The Firstborn - 8
Her fondness for round numbers was easily visible from her stat distribution. She'd also maintained a very balanced approach.
“Glad to see your brother after such a long time?” Ophiel probed with a smile, bringing her out of her thoughts.
“I’ll be happy to see him again, but let’s be realistic. You’re the one who has missed him more.” She smiled back at her mother fondly. Being separated from Raziel for so long had been hard on the woman. “I’m still surprised you managed to finagle a teaching position at the Academy.” They had all their luggage and even most of their furniture packed in a spatial ring that Ophiel carried.
Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
“I know I don’t seem like it most of the time, but I’m still a rather high-level Archmage. Even the academies respect knowledge and experience at that level. Levels in the high triple digits speak louder than any teaching experience.” Ophiel shrugged. They hadn’t talked about her level before, so it was a bit of a surprise to find out she was close to level thousand.
Not for the first time, Seraphiel realized that the story her mother had given about her past might have been quite abbreviated. "Well, remember that we'll have to use different names." With most angel names ending in -el, it was necessary to change them or their race would be quite obvious.
“Yes, yes Seraphia.” Ophiel, or Ophelia now, smiled with amusement. “Easy for you to go back to your old name. And looks, albeit younger.”
Her Draenei appearance ended up being a weird mix of her old Draenei appearances, close to her Light-forged looks, but not quite. Her skin was light grey, slightly purplish, and her hair was between white and light grey. She had two pairs of only slightly curving horns pointing almost backwards on her head. For some reason, her Draenei form seemed more athletic than her angelic form, with thicker legs and thighs, and a rather thick and long tail as well. As with all Draenei, her eyes seemed to glow with light, and in her case the light seemed to be clear white, almost hiding her irises entirely. For some reason, she also seemed a couple years older in her Draenei form, though that might have been just a speed of development thing.
“Wonder if Raziel will even recognize us? It’s been two years since he saw these forms after all. And mine is a little different than the one given to me by your magic.” She speculated.
-----
As Raziel watched the airship land on one of the platforms designed to receive such arrivals, he had no trouble at all picking out his family. Even if this was practically the first time he saw his sister like this, it was impossible to miss her.
Seraphiel had never been quite like other kids, and their time apart had only made it more obvious. While the other new students, practically children all of them despite being mentally a little more mature than maybe physically, all looked around with a mix of fear, excitement, apprehension, and curiosity, his sister just seemed like a calm island of power in the middle of a storm of emotion. Seraphiel just walked through the crowds like this was just another day for her and not a momentous and life-altering situation.
She also stood out in other ways. He’d gained an [Identification] Skill, something that the academy considered very important and necessary for most students to pick up, and Seraphiel just showed [lvl 10]. He could tell her power didn’t quite match the level for some reason. She wasn’t the highest leveled in the crowds, nor was she the lowest, but it was easy to tell with a glance that she was by far the most dangerous. Like a large predator prowling through a pack of house cats. That didn’t surprise him. She’d always seemed more powerful than she should’ve been. And she’d clearly been putting points into her Charisma.
His sister might deny it, or she might not as she was sometimes surprisingly frank with her flaws, but she could be quite vain sometimes. An Angel would usually have 60 or 70 points of Charisma at level 10, and it was easy to tell she had more than double that. She stood out quite clearly from the crowd, and others almost unconsciously gave her way as she walked through the gawking new students and families. “Sister.” He spread his arms wide for a hug, which Sephy quite naturally fell into, hugging him back warmly. “It’s been too long.” He whispered.
“It really has brother mine. Raz?” She asked, clearly probing for the name he was using.
“Got it in one.” He squeezed her a little harder for a second before letting go and turning to their mother. “Mother.” He embraced her as well. These last few years had been good to him when it came to working out his emotions concerning his family.
“My little boy.” His mother whispered emotionally. She wasn’t that hard to recognize despite her Draenei form either. “You’ve grown a lot.”
She wasn’t just talking about his size, though that too was true. Draenei tended to have larger frames than Angels, especially the males. He wasn’t even close to being fully grown, but his hard work was clearly visible even through his black school uniform. His level had also increased by leaps and bounds in these four years, having reached the second Class evolution at level 100 not too long ago. He’d also unlocked his second Class at the same time.
“I’ve worked hard.” He stated proudly. And he had. He wanted to make his family proud.
“Any problems we should be aware of?” Sephy asked straight away shrewdly.
“Nothing beyond petty rivalries. Nothing serious.” He reassured them. And he was even mostly honest. He tried to avoid lying to his family, as Sephy in particular was too shrewd for it.
“Attention new students!” One of the teachers, one that was unfamiliar to Raziel announced. “I know many of you are saying goodbyes to your families, but your transport was the last to arrive and we don’t want to keep everyone waiting. The starting ceremony will start as soon as we arrive so let’s move things along.”
“Starting ceremony?” Sephy asked.
“You’ll see. I think you’ll like the way they do things here.” He promised as he started leading them towards the auditorium. Not all students were attending of course, only new students and their families.
-----
[You’ve gained the new Skill Identity Protection! Every Champion is given a Skill that hides most of the details from their Class or Classes. Only basic information is shown when someone uses an [Identify] type of Skill on you, and you can determine what and how much to show when dealing with different situations where your Status is being tested or scanned. Would you like to accept the Skill? Y/N]
Huh. Raziel had tried to identify her. And he was likely not the only one. This new Skill would become handy, and she had free Social Skill slots, so of course yes.
She was mostly lost in thought as they entered the enormous auditorium, filling seats from the front first until the trio sat down almost in the middle. They were among the last to arrive, which showed just how much space the room had. It also had spatial extension charms applied, as the space inside was much, much larger than the building itself. Magic showing its usefulness once again. She really would have to pick up a magic Class at some point.
They didn’t have to wait long before one of the teachers came to the podium and called for a round of applause for the principal. The polite applause got a bit hesitant as a girl that looked like she couldn’t have been more than ten walked up to the podium. The girl had long blond hair that came all the way down to her knees, and the slightly crooked smile on her face showed that she too had noted the shift in tone.
“They made Evangeline the principal?” Seraphiel laughed in her mind. She knew the girl had been much older than she looked even before coming to this universe, but she couldn't age because she was a Shinso Vampire that had her bloodline activated at the age she looked like. She was somewhat surprised the Vampire had not bothered to use an illusion, as Evangeline had liked teasing others with a rather buxom illusionary form of hers back when Seraphiel had visited their universe.
"Welcome to all the new students! Mahora Academy is one of the finest establishments of education in the entire universe, and we've been that even before being brought here. Here you will all learn to get the best out of your Classes, and how to become strong, but that's not all you will learn. At Mahora Academy, we value teamwork and helping the Classes work together. We are famous for our Pactio system, but even beyond that, you will all learn the benefits of working as a part of a team." The tiny Vampire gave her speech.
To Seraphiel, it was more than a little amusing to hear Evangeline of all people talking about the importance of working together, but she didn’t show any of that. As the speech carried on, small hints started to show that not everything was fine with the principal. Only someone paying attention would’ve noticed though, as Evangeline’s fangs lengthened, and she seemed to shake her head a bit as if trying to dismiss something. She also seemed a little distracted.
As the speech wound down, the teachers all divided into groups, and most family members were sent home. As Ophiel was a new teacher, she had to go with the rest of the faculty to get familiarized with her job, while Raziel went back to his lessons. Seraphiel on the other hand got to participate in the new student orientation as they were shown around campus and finally to their dorms.
The dorms were rather simple with two people to a room. The room had a bunkbed, a relic from the past of the academy, as she knew they had used such beds in the previous universe as well. The dorm rooms were small but did come with their own bathroom and even a small kitchen, so while space was at a premium, amenities were not.
“Hello there!” A cheery Draenei girl with almost pink skin greeted her as she entered. It seemed that the colour had become more common since she’d been a Draenei in the past.
She knew from the orientation that the academy liked to mix younger and older students, which meant the Draenei wasn’t a student starting this year, and the number two on her blue and gold uniform confirmed that. That didn’t mean the girl had started a year earlier. As different races aged differently, your advancement in the academy was about passing exams and not about time spent. Also, the rooms were shuffled every year, so you didn’t have to stick with one roommate for more than a year, though you could apply to keep your current one if you got along especially well.
“Hello. You’re my roommate, correct?” Seraphiel set down her bag and extended her hand, which the bubbly Draenei took.
“Yes! I’m Jelii! A second-year general student! I specialize in support Skills!” The girl happily shook hands.
“Seraphia, a first-year knight track.” She returned the greeting with a bit more stoicism.
The academy had three major tracks. One for warrior types, called the knight track, one for mage types, and one for general students. The uniform colour signified what track you belonged to. Everyone had some gold in their uniform, while the general students had blue, the knights black, and the mages white. It seemed the uniform itself had some room for customization, but generally, the girls were expected to use the correct colour skirt and blazer.
“I hope we’ll get along great this year!” The bubbly girl gushed, which made Seraphiel think that might be a bit unlikely, but not impossible. She had an irrational dislike for overly positive people. They had too much energy and tended to see things through rose-coloured glasses.
Both her Manipulation and Charisma stats practically screamed at her that her first instinct of not answering would be a bad idea. “I hope so as well. I’m assuming you’ve already got the bottom bunk?” She asked, shifting the topic.
“Yes!” The girl responded cheerily. “Traditionally the older student gets the bottom bunk.”
“Fine by me.” She easily jumped all the way up to the top bunk, balancing on the edge without any trouble due to her increased Agility. The hooves made it a bit more challenging, but not by much. “When can we get our uniforms, do you know?”
“Tomorrow’s your first official day, right? The first day is all about just those kinds of things. Though, that said, if you want something aside from the very basic uniform, you’ll need to go to one of the stores that offer them. I wouldn’t want to suggest anything, but the basic uniform isn’t exactly the height of fashion or comfort, so I’d suggest at least getting it customized and custom fitted if you can’t get a better uniform on your own.” Jelii explained.
That brought up an interesting conundrum. Her mother paid for the academy itself, but if she wanted some spending money for things like uniforms and other sundries, she would need a job. A job would eat into her training time. She had some money saved up, enough to be fine on the uniform front at least and plenty left over, but that money would eventually run out, and the stay in the academy would take years.
--------
Evangeline almost growled as she walked back towards her office. “You seem on edge.” Her perennial companion Chachamaru pointed out. The android turned into a real girl retained a firm servile relationship with her old master.
"My fangs haven't itched like this in a long time," Evangeline complained. "Not since…"
“The old world?” Chachamaru suggested, realizing right away.
“Yes. That damn Seraphiel always made my fangs itch like this.” She complained. Their world wasn’t a new addition to this universe, but they’d only been here for a couple hundred years. Still, Negi had managed to establish them quite well as a Champion, and some of her old classmates had also done very well for themselves in this new reality.
“You don’t think she’s here, do you? We would’ve noticed, surely.” Chachamaru asked.
“I hope not!” She exclaimed. Deep down, she was not sure if she really meant it though. “Disaster walks in her wake. I’ve heard stories from others. Ours was not the only universe she visited.”
“To be fair, it might be that she pops in and solves trouble instead of creating it.” Chachamaru was at least able to argue and form her own opinions, something that had not been possible before she’d gained a soul.
Evangeline hissed. “Still makes my fangs itch. Look through the list of new students. If she is here, I want to know. She shouldn’t be too hard to spot.”