When Nero entered the classroom again, the air felt colder than normal. A very tall, slender and pale white man was already inside, waiting for his students.

He had black hair which looked oddly shiny, his eyes were just as black, and the bags under them didn't fall too far behind, either. His brown clothes looked old, dusty, and a little too big for his skinny complexion.

"Good morning, everyone.", he said in a gloomy tone.

"Good morning, professor.", said the class, not more enthusiastically. His attitude was rather contagious.

The man grabbed a white chalk -he had erased the board during the class' recess- and wrote his name.

Mortimer Grimes

"This is my name. You may call me professor. I'll be in charge of teaching you theory on the physics of magic. Professor Yuni will be instructing you regarding its practice, you'll have that class after mine."

"What's theory on physics mean?", Nero murmured to Araven.

"Magic physics refers to the nature of arcana and how to nurture and grow it. As to practice, I can only assume it's gonna be learning how to be a spell caster in real-life scenarios.", he replied.

"That's correct.", said Mortimer.

Nero jolted.

The pale man turned around and looked straight at Nero.

"If you have any more questions in the future, I would like to remind you that you have a professor right here."

Grimes' eyes then moved behind Nero and found a sorcerer staring at him intensely.

So, that's the one Headmaster Arlana wants me to keep an eye on. Very interesting.

He returned back the gaze in expressionless silence for a few seconds before turning back to the blackboard to write on it again.

"With me, you will be learning the nature of arcana, how to tap unto it and how to manipulate it effective and efficiently. Arcana manipulation is what is commonly known by folks as spell casting. Now, can anybody tell me how many types of arcana there are?", he asked, turning back to the class.

Nero raised his hand immediately.

"Yes?"

"There are two types of arcana: dark and light."

The professor nodded.

"That's correct. Does anybody know the difference between them?"

Again, Nero raised his hand.

"...anyone else?"

A tanned hand raised up in the air, a little far from Nero.

"Go ahead."

"Dark arcana is far more unstable than light arcana.", said Khina. It appeared that she had remembered Sharmon's little lesson back in the forest.

"Good. Everyone is capable of manipulating arcana; however, most mortal beings -and this includes people- manipulate exclusively light arcana. Creatures involved with dark arcana have a tendency of being erratic and aggressive, due to the fluctuations in the flux of arcana through their bodies. For this reason, they are often referred to as corrupted. You don't have to write this down; it's not gonna be on the test."

"Professor.", asked a girl that Nero didn't know.

"Yes?"

"What would happen to a human if they tried to manipulate dark arcana?"

"...they would likely die."

Everyone in class started murmuring.

"Why?", she pressed.

"The human body functions in a state of homeostasis... meaning balance, or equilibrium. Whenever there's an alteration in our homeostasis, we are under the effects of what we call an illness. For our homeostasis, or health, we require to be in a perpetual state of equilibrium. Dark magics are volatile and such fluctuations may cause either an overload or a shortage of arcana. Either one is potentially deadly. This is why mages don't do it. Speaking of which, do you kids know what arcana is?"

"Are there mages who have tried to?", asked another guy, ignoring his question.

The professor sighed.

"In the past, there was a time where it was a lot more common. People were learning and trying to understand the things that we know today. I believe they were called Dark Wizards."

"And...?", asked the girl again.

"They're all dead, as far as I'm aware. So, now. What is arcana?"

Again, Nero raised his hand.

The professor looked at him with bored eyes before moving on to Araven.

"What about the blonde next to him? Do you know the answer?"

"Arcana is a resource that flows through the cosmos and our world as well. Mages tap unto it to cast magic.", said Araven.

Many turned to look at him. Mostly the girls.

"Very good. I have no idea why you didn't raise your hand given how well you articulated the answer.", said the professor.

"I'm rather shy.", he smiled.

The girls giggled, except for Rina, who looked displeased, and Luna, who was simply looking at the board as if she was completely lost in her own thoughts.

Nero rested his head on his hand, waiting for the reminder that he was not as popular to pass.

"Well, whatever. As long as you don't mess up your tests, I don't really care. Us teachers get a bonus if our class does well, you know. Oh, speaking of which, were you already told about the classes?"

"Yes. Professor Carla told us we're the worst class in the College.", said Silvy.

"She said that?"

"Yeah, like, literally!", said another guy.

"Hmm..."

Grimes looked up again, towards the sorcerer leaning against the opposite wall. Then, his eyes swept the desk in front of him from left to right. Rina, Araven, Nero, Luna. Then, away to the other students. Leah, the black-haired girl in red, Silvy, Owen, another summoner, Elanee, Khina, the magic warrior.

"Well, anyway. I've brought something here for you to try out."

Everyone looked as the professor took out a crystal ball and placed it on his desk.

"This thing will measure your powers. All you have to do is place your hand on it, and it will start glowing. The brighter the glow, the stronger your arcana reserves. Now, form a line..."

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

One by one, the students took their turns and compared themselves to the others.

Rina placed her hand first, and the sphere began to glow in a beautiful gold and white light.

"Very good. You have a more than average reserve.", said Grimes.

Then, it was Owen's turn.

"Pets first.", said the professor.

Owen had to call Maximus, who was resting on the floor under his desk, and made him place his paw on the sphere.

It shone moderately.

"And now, you.", said Grimes.

Owen placed his hand, and the sphere shone brighter.

"Okay, the other summoner, now."

Nero gulped and looked at Sharmon. The sorcerer gave the boy a quick glance before walking up to the desk.

Everyone was looking expectantly.

Sharmon extended his black glove but stopped mid way.

"Are you sure you want me to do this?", he asked the teacher.

Grimes raised an eyebrow.

"Should I be concerned?"

"That is for you to decide."

Tap.

As soon as Sharmon's glove touched the sphere, its color changed into a mixture of dark violet, pink and black.

Some students stepped back.

"It's...!"

"Dark magic!"

However, Grimes looked at the sphere with a blank stare.

"...that's enough. Now, the summoner."

Nero gulped, and everyone looked at him as he walked up to the sphere and placed his hand on it.

The sphere reverted back to its usual self.

That is, it's usual transparent self. The color it had when there was no magic to detect.

No, wait. If one squinted closely -very closely- one could see a faint, dim yellow flicker.

"...pfft.", laughed Owen.

"That's a pathetically low amount of reserve.", Said Silvy.

"It's like, even your pet has more power than you. And it wasn't even that much to begin with, it was just dark.", said someone else.

Mortimer Grimes raised his eyes and looked at the sorcerer in an inquisitive manner.

"Very intriguing indeed.", he agreed.

Nero gulped. Was he already on their trail?

The sorcerer crossed his arms.

"If we are done here, I shall return to my place."

He turned around and walked back to his spot on the wall.

Grimes stared at him as he walked away.

...naturally, these kids have no idea of what just happened. I seem to be the only one to have noticed the real issue with this pair.

He would have to report this to the headmaster later.

"Khina. Solid reserves. Silvina. Very high reserves. Luna. Very high reserves. Araven. Impressive, the highest so far."

"Nice, Araven.", said another girl.

Nero frowned. None of them cared about him and his badass pet, damn it.

Maybe he should have summoned Araven. That would have been hilarious.

He sighed.

"And finally... Selene. Moderate arcana reserves.", said Grimes.

The rest of the class had more or less mediocre results. Bottom line was, Nero had by far the lowest of the arcana reserves.

He felt a pat on his shoulder.

"Hey, don't sweat it. We're all here to learn."

It was Owen. His shoulder-long light brown hair fell in a cool way that Nero's never did.

There was giggling behind him.

The boy noticed some girls in his class were laughing at his comment.

"Yeah. You can learn how to summon a real familiar since we're in the same class.", said Nero, brushing his hand away.

Owen stared at him with a polite smile, visibly upset but unable to come up with a better comeback.

Still, Nero was kind of pissed that nearly every single girl he met would either ignore or flat-out make fun of him. The boy walked back to his seat while keeping his eyes on Sharmon, who was leaning in silence.

"It doesn't matter what they say, your pet is by far the coolest.", said Araven after they took their seats.

"Yeah, I totally agree.", said Rina.

"Much better than a boring dog.", added Luna.

"Thanks. Hear that, Sharmon? You got fans here."

"It is only natural that they would come to that conclusion.", said the sorcerer rather loudly. Most students looked at him; the sorcerer was now staring at Owen, "that brat could never hope to invoke someone such as myself."

"Hey everyone, listen. I could never hope to invoke someone such as himself.", said Owen.

Most of the class laughed loudly.

Nero clenched his teeth.

"Leave it, Nero.", said Araven.

Ahem.

Professor Grimes cleared his throat, regaining everyone's attention.

"If you children are done being immature, let's return to the lesson. Now, can anybody tell me what cultivation is?"

Owen raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"It refers to training yourself to increase your arcana reserves."

"That is correct. This is done usually through meditation. We will study how to do that starting next week. You'll need it in order to progress with your practical lessons, so be ready to pay attention to those classes when we get to such topics."

"Yeah, some will need it more than others.", said Silvy.

There was more giggling and murmuring.

Nero frowned. What was their deal? They weren't like that to him before.

Professor Grimes stared at her in silence.

For a moment it looked like he was about to say something, but he decided against it at the last second, and turned back to the board instead.

"For now, all you need to know is that arcana manifests itself in two major forms, and we'll see how it can be nurtured during this week. Now, for the next question..."

The rest of the class was more or less uneventful. Nero paid close attention, and tried to remember as much of the lesson as possible, even though Grimes had said that it wasn't necessary to take notes just yet.

He didn't want to fall behind.

The end of the lesson marked the beginning of lunch time, and the professor escorted them through the yard towards the old dormitory, where their food was being served.

"Stay here after you're done eating. Don't go anywhere. You will spend the entire afternoon with your Practice teacher and she will pick you up here in an hour. She will take attendance. If anyone plans to be clever and skip it, or is late for whatever reason, just save yourselves some time, pack your things and go home. Anyway, bon appetit."

He closed the door to the lunch room and headed back towards the main building, where the professors were having their own lunch.

"...and off he goes.", said Nero.

"Let's sit down. I'm starving.", said Araven.

"Again, we're being separated from the rest of the classes... thank you.", said Rina to the staff that brought her her plate.

"Fine by me. I don't want to be bothered.", said Luna, waiting patiently for her plate.

"Where do you think you are going?", said Sharmon, who was leaning nearby.

Nero looked at him.

"What're you talking about? We're all sitting here."

"I mean her."

A camouflaged figure materialized in front of everyone. It was short, and had long, unkempt brown hair.

"Ugh... busted."

"Selene!?", said Nero in surprise.

"Why are you hiding? Come sit.", said Luna.

"Um... okay."

"I haven't heard from you in weeks. I don't even know where you sit in the classroom. How was your third exam?", Nero asked.

"It was okay, I guess. I was with Khina."

"That's good. She's really competent."

Araven crossed his arms, as his plate was being served.

"She fights with a runic blade, right?"

"Yeah. It's pretty cool."

Nero looked around the room, where the other students were sitting. He found Khina at another table, and waved at her. She waved back with a smile, then returned to her conversation with another student.

"You have a stupid grin on your face.", said Luna.

"Wha-!? No, I don't!", said Nero; the rest of the table chuckling in amusement.

Lunchtime went by way faster than Nero would have liked it to, but he was hyped for the next lesson -finally, some practice!- and when the doors opened again, Nero was eager to greet his new...

...professor?

"Good afternoon, class!", said a loud and lively voice.

A loud, lively, and rather child-like voice.

An extremely short little girl had made an appearance at about the same time Grimes had mentioned their professor would pick them up.

Her eyes were big and reddish, her blonde mane was very long and elegant, and for some reason she was wearing a rather warm attire, more befitting of autumn than the current beautiful spring. A big pair of silver glasses adorned her cute face, probably making her eyes look even bigger than they already were, but more notably than even her stature were her ears: a pair of fluffy, triangle-shaped ears stood proudly atop her head, revealing her true nature.

A demi-human.

Despite her delicate face and overall appearance, there was something low-key wild about her and the marks on her cheeks, which resembled freckles in some places, and animal patterns in others.

Nero's table was near the entrance, and his seat in particular was the closest one to it. The girl that had walked in was so short that her head was barely above Nero's... and he was sitting down.

"Who's that...?", asked Silvy.

"Great question!", the little girl said firmly, pointing her index at her, "my name is Yuni, and I'll be your spell casting professor!"

For a second, there was quiet. Then, a few students started to laugh.

Nero looked at Sharmon, who nodded at him, and got up, obeying the instructor.

It was a good thing that he did, because apparently professor Yuni was not amused by the class' reaction.

Silvina approached her and rested her hands on her legs, bending over like she was a small child.

"You're our professor? You're so cute and pretty!"

Yuni crossed her arms and glared at her. Nero thought that she was kind of reacting like Sharmon would, only that her pouting was adorable and a stark contrast to the sorcerer's dark, brooding nature.

Yuni raised her index, and a loud spark of arcana began to crack like electricity, in a manner not too dissimilar to Sharmon's black lightning.

Then, she increased the arcana rapidly, making it grow bigger, much brighter, and much louder.

Everyone froze in place.

"CLASS-D!", she shouted authoritatively, "I SAID, ASSEMBLE!!!"

Everyone got up immediately and walked up to her.

"Hm. Looks like you brats are in need of some good old discipline.", she commented.

That was it. She was definitely a cuter, pocket-sized version of Sharmon, down to her language.

"Not you, though.", she smiled at Nero and his group, "you kids are alright."

The fact that she was calling them kids was amusing, to say the least.

How old was she, anyway? Nero was dying to know, but there was no way he could ask her without making himself look bad.

"Alright. If you're all ready, then follow me."

She led the way, followed closely by Nero's group and everyone else behind them.

"Professor. Where are we going?", asked Nero, noticing they were going in the direction opposite of the open space where the first test had taken place -which he had assumed would be their practice grounds.

"We're heading to the gymnasium today. We'll get an outdoors space later this week.", she said, "you're Nero, right?"

"Ah. Yes. Nice to meet you."

"I remember your first exam. Everyone freaked out badly during your summoning."

"So-Sorry about that...", Nero scratched the back of his head apologetically.

"What in the hells did you do, anyway? That wasn't a normal summoning."

"Ah, well... it's just something I learned from a book."

Professor Yuni frowned.

"What book?"

Nero bit his lip, and looked at Sharmon.

The sorcerer gave him the slightest shake of his head along with a warning glare.

"...I don't really know. It was some old book that had no name or signature. I'm not sure where it is right now.", the first half of that sentence was true, but the rest was bullshit. He kept it well hidden under the loose wooden plank of his room, back at the bookstore.

"I don't believe you."

Shit.

"But I won't pressure you to show it to me if you don't want to.", she added.

Nero let out a sigh of relief.

The professor opened both doors of the gym with her tiny hands, and the class walked into the enclosure looking around curiously.

"Last one closes the door!", she said, "good, now, I want everyone to form a horizontal line in front of me."

Everyone complied.

"Alright, listen up. Today's format will be the one you will experience throughout your student life here. You will learn history and theory in the mornings, and will spend your afternoons practicing with me. You will be tested regularly by all three teachers, and will be expected to perform and show progress each single time. We're not here to play silly games, we're here to learn magic, and magic can be a very dangerous tool."

Again, she lifted her finger and a small lightning started to crack at its tip; the edges of her mouth curving into an intimidatingly playful smile.

"And my first test for you... begins today."