NOVPUBThe rising sun bathed the stone brick houses that lined the streets in a gentle tint of amber.
The aroma of breakfast wafted out from the mansion on one side of the street, mingling with the fresh chill in the air.
This was the Protoss Royal Magic Academy.
Lanci sat on a swing in the garden, holding in his hand a small portion of raw cobs and feeding them to the little birds that had gathered around him. His eyes remained half-shut, showing his residual sleepiness.
Since coming here, many small creatures from the campus had also found their way to him.
Inside a distant mansion, Zestira stood silently by the window, watching the scene of small creatures gathering out in the courtyard. They seemed to yearn for his presence.
"Is the teacher really human?"
Zestira mumbled this to herself, her confusion apparent.
Not only her but even the creatures could sense his unadulterated kindness.
Starting from last Sunday, her teacher, Rocky McCarthy, had temporarily moved from the inn to the academy.
The residences consisted of communal dorms and private dorms, each resembling apartments and small villas respectively.
Ordinary students stayed in apartment-style dorms.
Noble students, on the other hand, had their separate small mansions. The type of dormitory one lived in was usually indicative of their social standing.
Furthermore, each mansion of the noble children came with its own courtyard, including an extra fully-equipped flat for servants.
The private dorm Viscount Francis had reserved for Zestira had already been paid for, along with the tuition fees.
And so it was.
Not until Lanci had all but finished feeding the birds did Zestira finally came out the door and approached him in the garden.
At her approach, the birds flew away in fear.
Perhaps they were intimidated by her presence as a Demon Dragon.
"I’m sorry, I tend to scare them away."
Zestira, in her usual emotionless tone.
"But you don’t hold any malice towards them; they just don’t understand you yet, right?"
Lanci raised his head and smiled as he responded.
"..."
Zestira hesitated for a while,
"Perhaps."
Her teacher always had a unique perspective.
Even though nothing changed and her days were still surrounded by malign intentions, the burden on her seemed to lighten every time she conversed with her teacher.
Zestira initially wanted to remind Lanci to be careful inside the school’s safe boundaries, especially around the senior noble students.
After a second thought, she decided against it, trusting that Lanci was always steady and didn’t need her reminders.
Freshmen and first-year students are required to attend monthly assessments.
Second and third-year students can choose to attend, with access limited to Difficulty Level Two classrooms or higher.
However, in each monthly assessment, top students from the second and third years, like the professors, are allowed to witness the trials from behind the scenes.
They have numerous of authorities to influence or interfere with the ongoing trials or sponsor promising junior students using their points.
The ones trusted with these powers were like judges, and subsequently, if their chosen student ended up being the leader, they would receive a hefty dividend in return.
Hence, it, in essence, was a game of backdoor politics.
Or to put it this way, the contest of manipulation and control was the primary essence of the monthly assessments.
These monthly assessments are held every Wednesday.
Today was Monday, a relatively relaxed day.
"Then, Professor, see you in the afternoon."
Zestira remarked, her gaze fixed on Lanci.
She saw Lanci standing up in the garden, dusting off his hands, signaling that he was preparing to head to the classroom area.
When Lanci wanted to fill his time, he would often sit in on any interesting higher-grade classes.
"Sure, there’s Associate Professor Xido’s history class this morning, that I plan on attending."
Lanci replied with a side-smile and dismissed his morning drowsiness.
…
Half an hour later.
The Protoss Royal Magic Academy’s History Department was nestled in a wide-open green space. Like an ancient castle in the forest, the teaching building was surrounded by stone walls entwined with vines and flowers. The building’s towering pinnacles reached up into the clouds, engraved with the official emblem of the empire.
A young man with his brown hair tips fluttering slightly in the breeze walked into the building. He was dressed in a white shirt, a brown vest, and black pants.
After entering the enormous door, the ancient and solemn interior of the teaching building greeted him. The marble floor reflected the light from the tall glass windows, the long corridors on both sides were adorned with ancient portraits and books.
Lanci followed the corridor, passing several closed classroom doors until he found the classroom for history class.
He scanned the room and found a well-lit rear seat. Clutching an ancient book borrowed from the library, Lanci walked over, placed his book on the desk and sat down.
Zestira had chosen a basic history class intended for freshmen, it was a typical course people took to earn credits.
However, the history class Lanci decided to audit was designed for second and third-year students.
Although he hadn’t seen Sikder since coming to the academy and didn’t know what grade she was in or where to find her.
Lost in thought, Lan looked around to see unfamiliar faces, students unknown to him, pouring into the classroom. He quietly leaned back in his seat, reading his book while waiting for the class to begin.
Feeling the seat beside him taken, Lanci still didn’t look up.
He knew it wasn’t Sikder, even without looking.
Because Sikder always had a subtle scent of rum about her, which Lanci could detect whenever he was in her protective bubble.
But it was only a while later that. 𝓃𝓸𝓋𝓅𝓾𝒷.𝒸ℴ𝓂
The person who had taken the neighboring seat was looking over at Lanci, whether intentionally or unintentionally.
It just started to make Lanci feel a little uncomfortable, so he put down his book.
From their uniform, they seemed to be a third-year student with a combat profession level not lower than Frey’s, an aura that put them amongst the top students of the academy.
Considering that within the limits of the students, sixth-order is the peak.
"Do we know each other?"
Lanci asked in confusion.
He was certain he’d never met this strong, poised, and haughty senior before. Even "Gloria," the name on her badge, was new to him.
"Why would Miss Sikder select you…"
Gloria kept her brow furrowed while observing Lanci. Her mumbling, though quiet, was filled with resentment and confusion.
She admitted she was not as powerful as the previous Saintess of Hegemony, and she never expected that Sikder one day pick her as the new Saintess of Hegemony.
But she never anticipated that Sikder, when choosing her next disciple, would opt for a Saint Heir, which she’d explicitly mentioned she wouldn’t consider!
At first, she thought the exception made for a Saint Heir must be a being with immense power, someone with a sense of aggression shining through their cold, passionate eyes, wearing their audacity and arrogance like a second skin–only such a man would be worthy of being a descendant of Bishop of Hegemony.
But—who would have thought—
How on earth did Sikder miss something so evident, choosing such a seemingly weak Saint Heir, who had absolutely nothing in common with them from the Hegemony Branch!
