"Oi! Watch it."

"Sorry!"

Hannah had bumped into someone. Again. She couldn't believe her eyes. An underground city? She expected some tunnels or a few rooms. She didn't expect this gang to have thousands of members. There were people of all ages, and she even saw kids running around. She wondered how this whole place worked, and how it was kept hidden for so long. Greg had told them they began digging and building around six years ago. Plenty of time to build something like this, back in her world, but this one was so backward... but it had magic.

She saw glowing wooden beams rising from the ground all the way to the ceiling. The ground was also made of wood in some parts, dirt in other places. There were multiple entrances all over the city. This was their home. She saw food being distributed to people standing in multiple lines. Underground small one-room houses spread throughout. The first flaw that Hannah noticed was the heat. So many people in this enclosed space obviously created heat, and she was already starting to sweat and missed the fresh air outside. Would she have to live here? She hoped it wasn't permanent.

Greg pointed to a few interesting spots while they walked through the town. They saw a play going on, though Hannah wasn't really interested. Esme seemed to want to get a closer look. He also pointed to a larger building, that broke the monotony. Hannah looked over curiously.

"What's that building?"

"That one? That's a school. Pretty rare around these parts. School's off today though. For the speech thing."

"Woah."

This was the first time Hannah saw a school after coming here. She started to like this place just a bit more. It hadn't really hit her until now, but she remembered Winsor had no school.

"Hey. Why does Winsor have no schools."

"Blergh. I've been asking myself the same question for a long time, girl–"

"Hannah."

"Hannah. Most schools and magical academies are in the big cities. [Mayors] here only care about money."

Her interest piqued at the mention of magical schools.

"Magical academies?"

"Yeah. Y'know, Draemary, Nulose, Avras. The big shots. And that's only in the Empire. Other continents have their own. The Lizardfolk always produces the best mages."

Hannah's eyes widened. She wished she could be there. Wouldn't it be like Hogwarts? She was a big Harry Potter fan during her teenagehood.

"Tell me more about them. What's the best one? What are they like?"

"Best one in Draele? That's Draemary. Notice the name. It's in the capital. Produces best [Mages] and [Mage Generals] in the Empire. I'll tell you more later. We're here."

Hannah snapped her head forward. She almost walked into a wall. Magical school... Maybe she'd go there one day. It was a good dream to have. Greg opened their door for them and they went in. It looked as small as it did from the outside. It was a single room with two beds, and a small bedside table in the middle with a candle. Esme sat down in the bed, and Hannah did the same.

"Meeting's in three hours. At the school actually. It's the biggest building down there. We're having some space problems."

Esme nodded.

"Right. Thank you. Sorry about earlier."

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Gregory smiled.

"No problem kid."

He closed the door and left. Esme and Hannah looked at each other.

"Well, that was something."

"Yeah. This... this is insane. An underground city? Magical schools? They sound so interesting, I want to go there!"

"I noticed the sparkle in your eyes when he talked about them. Bet you thought about Hogwarts."

"I totally did not!"

"Sure."

Hannah handed the bag over to Esme, and she put it under her bed. She looked back at Hannah.

"So. Want to hang out?"

"Um, I mean, there's not much to see here, but sure."

They got up and left their house– which was a single room, and walked around the town. It was a silent walk, without many things to say. Hannah was thinking about magic and Esme was thinking about god knows what. Whenever she glanced at Esme, she saw her quickly turn her head away from her. Was she looking at her? They came across a crowd– well, a bigger crowd than usual, grouped up around someone. Hannah tried to get a good look on her tiptoes, but she couldn't.

"Hey. What do you think this is about?"

"I don't know. Maybe someone famous?"

They couldn't hear anything because of the noise, but they saw a flash of light and saw a woman fly up. Hannah gasped. People could fly in this world. She squinted and recognized her as the [Mage] who cast the [Detect Lie] spell on her. Greg had told Hannah about her earlier, but she clearly was powerful. What level could you learn this flying spell anyways? It looked like a level 40 spell at least. The crowd cheered for the powerful display of magic. The woman reciprocated, twirling and doing a few tricks in the air. Hannah clapped and smiled. This was beautiful. This was magic.

She blinked and one second later, the flying woman was on the ground. Right next to her. Esme protectively got in front of her and pushed her back.

"Calm down. I won't hurt you."

Hannah and Esme breathed a sigh of relief.

"I remember you two. Boss recruited you, huh? Glad you came around."

Hannah nodded and held out her hand. They shook hands. Esme did the same.

"What are your names? My name's Edali. Nice to meet ya. Was showing some magic to our folk. It gets boring down here."

"The [Mage]. Uh, hi. My name is Hannah. This is Esme. Nice to meet you too."

The crowd had largely dispersed now that the magic show stopped. But Hannah put her two hands together and asked a question.

"Hey. Could you show me some magic too, if it's not too much to ask? I know you're probably busy but-"

"I can show you a spell or two. Weakened versions though. Don't want to make the ceiling collapse on us."

"Right."

Hannah laughed nervously. Edali held out her hand and created a spell. She didn't name it, which surprised Hannah, but water rushed out from her palm onto her face. She squirmed away.

"What was that for!?"

"Just a little prank. Come on cheer up. It's just water."

Even Esme was chuckling. Hannah felt betrayed but started laughing soon afterward. After a few seconds, Esme asked a question.

"Hey. Why didn't you name the spell? I heard [Mages] did."

"Sharp, aren't you? The less powerful spells are, the less concentration they need. Eventually, after practicing a spell enough, you don't have to name it to manifest it into the world. Hardly a good thing if in battle you announce your spell before throwing it right? People used to do it all the time back in the academy."

"The academy? Do you mean a magical school? Which one were you in? I'd like to hear more about them."

"Draemary! The best school in the world. Or at least that's what our [Emperor] would say. But I'll tell you about it if we meet later. I have to get ready for the speech."

"Right. Thank you for your time."

She walked away slowly. She wasn't flying, which Hannah found strange. Why would you not fly everywhere if you could? She'd ask her later. The girls walked throughout the town for another hour and waited for the time to come into their room.

When the time had come, everyone gathered in and around the school. Hannah and Esme had secured a spot in front of a stage that was set up earlier in the day. People were all around them. Shivering in anticipation. What would be said? Hopefully some good news. Maybe an expansion project.

They all gasped when they saw a man appear on the wooden platform. Some people had never seen him in person. They had only heard rumors about him. Their leader. Skull. He talked with a booming voice.

"My people."

It was loud. Was there a skill that made your voice louder? Probably. Hannah looked and saw Edali at his side. Gregory was also there, and others that they didn't know. Smiling. Proud to be here.

"I will now let you know what this entire organization was created for. My goal. Our goal. We aren't just a petty gang. We are much grander than that. Tomorrow I will enact my plan to take over Winsor. And after Winsor..."

When Hannah heard what he said. Her eyes almost popped out of her sockets. She expected Winsor, but the rest?

This was going to be a long journey.