Author’s notes: I wanted to get this out two days ago but things came up. I might have made mistakes in the story, so if you find something that doesn’t match with what I wrote previously, let me know. I will edit out any spelling mistakes I find later. And I know that I have just been doing the story scene-by-scene but I will make the next chapter more active. Meaning, it wont just be the characters talking about stuff.

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One thing Roland really disliked was teleportation. It always left you a bit disoriented…among other things. Now, the summoning was just traveling through universes really, really fast. He could live with that. However, a god’s teleportation was instantaneous. A completely different concept.

Not to mention, you could wind up halfway between a wall, if done incorrectly. Well, Roland could still survive that, though. He supposed what he really hated was when Loki decides to teleport him without warning or permission.

Roland had been put into very troubling situations when teleportation was involved, so he made a few tricks to stop them from happening around him. But he had to be on guard and wary of his surrounding, which he usually was, for those tricks to work.  Loki, one of Roland’s good friends, didn’t cause him to be on alert….which was why he didn’t see this coming. It really annoyed him. Though, to be fair, Loki is a god of mischief. Maybe it would be best to remember this in the future.

Anyway, Loki brought him to a large office-like space with an impressive dark wooden desk set in front of a very sizeable window that overlooked a wide training field. Quite some ways past that, was a tranquil pond beside which was a group of people lounging around. To the far distance was a series of mountains that looked quite beautiful to behold.

Looking around, aside from the desk,  there was a table with glass bottles that were filled with amber liquid and a container that was full with ice, used to keep wine nice and cold without having to put the ice inside the actually drink and therefore ruining the taste.  He also noticed a fridge in the corner that most likely held some less than healthy snacks. Loki has always been quite the glutton.

Loki was not a heavy drinker like other gods, but he did have a knack for acquiring a fine bottle or two.

Dionysus once raised a fuss about Loki stealing from his treasure vaults—which is quite a feat. Unlike other gods, Dionysus actually kept a near impregnable vault in which he stored all of his best drinks. Wine, mead, whiskey, scotch. You name it, it's there. Not a few gods or other beings have tried and failed to even find its location, much less break into It.—at some point in time. He was quite pissed off about it.

Roland forgot what Dionysus did in retaliation, but he quickly stopped after he found his precious vault half empty.

Thinking that, he turned to find Loki sitting on a comfy-looking chair in the middle of the room, hands holding two glasses of a reddish gold substance.

“So, this is your Academy I take it? Or, more precisely, your office?”

“yup. I like it here. Has everything I need. A good stock of delicious food, some fine beverages, a nice view. Though, I don’t come here often. Which, I suppose, will change with you in town. Let’s wait here for a bit. I have someone coming to meet us soon. . .She’ll be awhile.” Holding a glass out towards him, he gestured for him to take a seat on another chair in front of his own. Separating the two was a glass table.

“Here, try this. It’s something that I sto—I mean, acquired, from one of my father’s private collections. Personally brewed by Aegir himself and aged at least a thousand years, just right.” He made a big grin as he said it and drank the small bottle’s contents in one go.  Roland did the same.

It had a hard to describe earthly taste, spicy and yet not, that burned pleasantly on the way down. A dull warmness quickly spread through him. Whether it be wine, whiskey, or any other type of drink, when it’s made by gods, you don’t taste it so much as . . .feel it.

It was not something that was easily acquired.

And right now, Roland felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

For a while, the two simply relaxed and talked for a bit. Then a thought came to him, causing him to frown.

“ Loki, what did you do to the others?”

After catching up with Loki since their last meeting and enjoying a fine drink. Roland had nearly forgotten about them. Odd. That was happening more often as of late. Perhaps Roland didnt have as much time as he thought.

“Hm? Oh. I teleported them to a different location. Don’t worry they're resting in the nurse’s office. Wont wake up for at least another hour.” He said languidly.

“Alright. I suppose when they wake I will explain the situation. The other three passed out before I got there. Only that black haired girl should know of me. They probably expected to die, so It will likely come as a surprise to wake up in a strange room. Ah, before I forget, when you read that girl’s mind, did you find out who they were?”

“ Yup. Well, kinda. It seems that the girls were born to some high ranking noble family or whatever. Born of different mothers, actually.  That red hair? The younger sister. She, being the second daughter, was really not that important to the family. She wasn’t abused, just ignored. Or was at first.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well apparently her family only recognizes the first born children as part the main branch. The others are only given a basic education, but as long as the first child lives, they are not needed. Usually they are married off for the sake of establishing ties with other powerful families.  

She lacked the talent of either a mage or a warrior. See, if you have talent in either, you can gain a bit of status within the family. If you are really outstanding, you get a lot of help and support from the main branch so that the power and prestige of the family can grow. Meaning you can avoid being practically sold off. All the other children in her generation were immensely talented in at least one of the areas.

When it was found out she was pretty much unable to become either one, she was ridiculed pretty harshly by the other kids. Hair pulling, incessant teasing, along with various other, crueler, treatment. Well, she was also a natural crybaby. She still seems a bit meek. Anyway, after a few years, for some reason I couldn’t pinpoint, they ended up with another family who actually cared for them. That red haired girl’s name is…what was it again? Ah, Reina, that's it. Her curse is probably related to her lack of talent. I would say her sister’s is of a different nature."

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Loki pondered for a bit

"But it’s strange, I could not find anything about when they realized they bore curse marks, met the two boys, or anything related to the gods that are after them. They must have tried what they could before doing the summoning. They have to have tried various methods to get rid of the curses, got acquainted with the two boys at some point, and separated from the family that adopted them.

Yet somehow the memories up to a certain point are blank. I doubt the four suddenly woke up in that hall, noticed they had deadly curses stuck to them, and decided that a suicidal summoning was the only answer to their problem. And another thing. Assuming that I’m right and Reina’s curse is somehow related to her inability to perform magic or learn martial techniques, then how could she learn to perform the Grand Summoning to call for you?

The others merely supplied mana, it was she who actually formed the spell, yet she should not have been able to in the first place. Even if she did learn the spell, she herself should not have been able to perform it. Very strange.”

Roland was getting more and more curious about exactly what kind of situation he found himself in. If Loki could not find anything….

Well, that meant they would just have to ask them directly.

“So when they wake we just have to ask them what happened between now and when they learned the Curse was placed upon them.” Roland said. He was worried about something though.

Usually, a curse that is imprinted onto the soul needs to have the ability to do so. No matter how long you are cursed, if the curse was not meant to become attached to your soul, it couldn’t be. And only powerful beings could create curses with that ability, not just gods, though they are the most likely.

Still, most gods would not go through the trouble of creating a curse like that for any mortal. Something like this would have to involve some kind of deep grudge for a god to resort to this. Sure, they were sometimes petty, but not to this extent. And there is really nothing a mortal could do to a god that would cause them to act with such ruthlessness.

So there must be a reason that the curse was placed on them, and not one stemming from boredom or hate.

“ Nn, your right. I'll get in contact the two girls’ adoptive parents, see what they know and assure them of their safety. I didn’t read the boys’ minds, since I kinda don’t want to invade another’s privacy more than I have to, so I will wait until we question them before I do anything on their side.”

Just as he finished saying that, I felt another person’s gaze behind me. Sure enough, when I turned to the door, a young woman in her early twenties was staring at me with a strange look. She was, by all accounts, a very beautiful woman.

She wore a midnight blue blouse and a black skirt, her long auburn hair flowing down in lush waves down to her back and looked so soft that it made a person want to reach out and run their hands through it.

“Loki, this is . . .?”

“Hmm? Oh, she’s here already? In that case, meet Abigail Sommers, my. . .Assistant? No, that’s not quite right. Uh, secretary? Hmm, still doesn’t sound right. . . I guess I never really gave her an official position. Anyway, she’s the one keeping this place together.” He finished.

“Wait, if she runs this place, what does that make you? A mascot?”

Ignoring my question completely, he continued the introductions.

“Ms. Sommers, this is Roland. I believe you already know about him from that person though.”

Hm? That person?

Somehow, Roland he had a bad feeling creeping up on him.

“Indeed I have. Hello, Roland, it’s nice to finally meet you. Also, even Headmaster Loki always mentions you, you know? I remember this one time he was complaining that he wanted to bring you here so that—“

Loki hastily cut in. “ I really don’t think that speaking about things that happened ages ago is worth bringing up, right?" He smiled. " Also, remember why I called you here. Just hurry up and show him around the campus, and give him the student roster for his classes. Oh, and prepare his room.”

“ Wait, my classes? Since when do I have cla—“

“What, you think my help comes free? Well, sorry, but I'm simply not that kind, you know? As of now you are our new combat instructor" He declared. " And don’t give me that look, I could have had you teaching Physics or Biology, but because I am an oh-so-caring friend, I gave you preferential treatment and let you teach something you’re good at. Aren’t I kind? And, really, it’s the least you could do, since I’m giving you a place to stay, three square meals a day, and even willing to help you with those kids’ problems. This much is only fair, right?”

. . .Well, when he put it that way. . .

"Why do you need them to be able to fight anyway?"

"Do you forget how dangerous the Higher Planes are? If they dont learn how to defend themselves, they'll die~ And sadly I havent done much to prepare them. I mean they were strong enough when they got here, but i havent exactly tried improving their strength. That sounded like too much trouble."

"Higher planes, huh. . . Yeah, not many would last long in that place. Well, i suppose i have some time to kill anyway."

" So you'll do it? Good. I wouldnt know what to do if you refused~ Haha. well, i'll let you deal with them them."

Hm? Wait, wasnt this like he pushed all the responsibility onto me?, Roland thought

Well, that's fine.

Although it’s a bit troublesome, it isn’t unreasonable.

Who knows, it might be fun. And isn’t that why Roland decided to come here?

Having finished what he wanted to say, Loki took back the glass, dragged Roland out of the chair and rushed him to the entrance. With a small grin, he closed the door, leaving both Roland and Abigail standing it a long hallway.

Looking at me reassuringly, Abigail spoke, “Don’t worry, im sure the students will be thrilled to finally meet you. You’ll have a great time here”

Roland shrugged.

He wasn't all that worried but he appreciated the concern.

“. . .Right. Lead on, then.”