“What? You both seemed shocked. Emil, you’re the student of my student, which technically makes me your teacher already.” Seth laughed boisterously. “But seriously. The standard classes will do nothing for you if you’ve already reached this point. That’s a waste of talent. You’ll enter the special program that those personally approved by me attend.” Seth’s expression grew serious. “Damien, you may have noticed, but Ilya and Brienne have been especially active lately. I can’t let a talent like Emil be exposed to them, so I’ll take him under my wing.”

“Teacher,” the Night Sage began. “I don’t think Emil’s ready to join--”

“Ah! Hush! I’m not going to make him pledge loyalty. Since he hasn’t been tainted by them, he doesn’t need the Goddess’ purification,” Seth said.

Emil felt his stomach twitch.

But if he knows that I’ve met them already, then he would have… What is the purification, exactly? Emil felt grateful that the Night Sage had opted to go this route instead. Emil was sure that formally joining the Church of the Silver Order would have its benefits, but he felt violently ill at the thought of praising the Goddess or any other God.

He knew that he’d have to be careful with how he spoke to Seth, in case he indicated that he had already been seen by Ilya. From the Night Sage’s explanation, Seth acted lighthearted, but he was a pious man with a deep sense of justice. Meaning that he despised liars. Especially those who lied to him.

The Night Sage was willing to go along with it for Emil’s sake, so the youth had no intention of messing it up.

“Now, Emil, you understand what this means?” Seth turned his gaze back to Emil. “I’m sure Damien has told you some things.”

He nodded. “Yes. I am grateful for the opportunity.”

“Your ID has changed to reflect your status. This allows you access to higher levels on the library as well as other facilities. When you receive your monthly stipend, you also need to show this ID. It also lets you enter my tower at any time where you’ll have your own private lab for training and experimentation. There’s a protective spell on it now as well. Again, don’t lose it.”

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“I understand.” Emil stared at the small item in his hand, feeling that it became vastly more important. There was a golden icon on it of a sword and balance underneath the string of numbers now that hadn’t been before.

Seth rubbed his chin contently. “Good. Damien, you remember where the dorms were for my students? Take him there. Room five is empty. There’s currently only… four others. Be sure to greet them, Emil. They’re your classmates.”

The Night Sage nodded.

“Good! Dismissed.” With a wave of his hand, the two vanished from their spots and reappeared outside of the tower.

Emil clutched his head and resisted the urge to curse. He looked at the Night Sage and wanted to share his excitement that they had succeeded, but he knew that he couldn’t speak about it. He had already been warned that Seth was watching. Always.

The Night Sage didn’t bat a lash and started walking down the cobblestone road. “Come on.”

“Coming, Teacher.” Emil hurried after the fast walker.

“I’m not your teacher anymore. Call me Damien,” the Night Sage reminded Emil.

“Damien,” Emil said, the name not sounding right coming from him.

This made the man laugh. “We’ll work on it.”

The two of them stopped in front of a two-story manor that was just on the other side of the courtyard containing the Headmaster’s Tower. Emil hadn’t noticed it before. It was a short walk and made Emil feel a bit odd considering there was a Demigod a stone’s throw away from where he would be living.

“The rooms are all on the second floor,” the Night Sage explained as he opened the front door and guided Emil inside.

Emil looked around. They entered a spacious foyer that had stairs parallel to the front door leading up. On the east and west side, there was a hallway. There wasn’t any furniture either, just an empty room. With the sparkling floors and cleanliness, it felt like no one lived here.

“Well. Have fun. Come visit me on the break.” The Night Sage turned and smirked at Emil. With a wink, he said, “Good luck.”

“Wait--”

The Night Sage vanished from his spot and Emil resisted the urge to stomp with frustration.

Just like that? He was alone and no concept of what he was supposed to do now or where to go!

Emil spun a few times in confusion then was going to head up the stairs to find his room when the door opened behind him, causing Emil to whip back around.

A teenage boy had entered, dressed in the same uniform as Emil. He was around Emil’s height but a little taller with glossy, golden hair that reached down to his waist. His eyes were blue and had a sheen of indolence and mischievousness to them. Emil also noticed his long, pointed ears had multiple piercings. He was an elf. Emil thought of the fairytales his mother read to him about elven princes and how glorious their lives were, and how they were such noble beings

Thinking that the person in front of him embodied this, Emil immediately disliked him.