Roommates & Introductions.

Approaching their dormitory, the two boys heard voices within. Inside, four boys in various uniforms—two maroon, one blue, and one white—sat talking. Surprised by the newcomers, the boys smiled, and everyone stood up.

"Are you two new here?" inquired one of the boys in a maroon uniform.

"Yes, we joined the academy today. Hello, I'm Williams, and I'm Alan," both boys introduced themselves.

"Getting into the academy mid-way, you're really lucky, I guess," mused the maroon-uniformed boy.

"It's all thanks to that old stickler for rules, Zain, that we were permitted to enter this late," Williams scowled.

"You mean our basic combat instructor, Master Zain?" The four boys were momentarily shocked, then burst into laughter. "We totally agree with you there. He is very strict."

"I'm Benjamin, you can call me Ben," the first speaker introduced himself.

"I'm Bobby, you can call me Bob," another maroon-uniformed boy said.

"I'm David, you can call me Dave," the one in the blue uniform shook their hands.

"I'm Christopher, you can call me Chris," the fourth in the white uniform introduced himself.

"You can call me Wil, and him Al," William said, smiling along their new roommates.

"Did you guys get your uniforms? Which branch are you in?" Ben inquired.

"Yes, we got our uniforms, and we both want to become adventurers," Alan truthfully replied.

"Did you both have your dinner?" Chris asked.

"Yes, we had our dinner early tonight," Alan informed him.

"Well then, you two get comfortable; we'll have our dinner and come back. We'll talk later," the four boys took their leave.

"Getting along with them will not be a problem by the looks of it," Williams observed, and Alan nodded in agreement.

After chatting for a while, both boys retrieved their belongings from their cabinets and began arranging them neatly. Their roommate entered while they were still organizing.

"Need any help arranging?" Bob offered.

"No thanks, it's almost done," Alan smiled. They still had their uniforms in packages, so they started removing the paper covers. The sight of black uniforms left all four boys, including Alan and Williams, puzzled.

"You got black uniforms?!" Chris asked in disbelief, with the others also staring in awe.

"Shouldn't we be getting maroon uniforms? We are from the Adventurer's branch, after all," Williams questioned Ben.

"True, but... are you new students like us, Wil, Al?" Ben asked skeptically.

"Of course, we are, Ben," Alan replied. Dave chimed in, "Only personal disciples and students who take subjects in multiple branches get the black uniforms."

"That explains it then. We are attending multiple branches, actually," Williams said with relief. Ben whistled low and sat on the bed. The others stared at Alan and Williams in wonder.

"Wow, its awesome, let's take things slowly; let's introduce ourselves. I'll start first," Bob suggested. "I'm from Swan Lake town, and my father is a B-Class Adventurer there. My dream is to become a great Adventurer and travel the whole kingdom."

"I'm from Emberfall town; my father was an A-class adventurer, now retired and opened a small inn there. I also dream of traveling the whole kingdom," Ben shared.

"I'm from Solaris town, part of a merchant family. Despite that, I love painting. After a year of training at the merchant's guild, I came here to join the academy of arts. I want to be good at what I love to do, and eventually, I am planning to start my own trading company," Dave explained.

"I'm from Winden city itself, from the outer region. Both my parents were adventurers and passed away saving many children from human smuggling. Despite wanting to be an adventurer like them, I decided to be a healer. I witnessed my parents die in front of me due to a lack of proper healers. Even a magic healer couldn't save them. I want to be a powerful magic healer to save as many people as I can," Chris shared, tears in his eyes. Dave, sitting beside him, comforted him with a pat on the back.

Chris wiped his eyes, "It's been six years; and I am leaving a life of an orphan wondering around the city, working at various healing halls, learing about healing as much as I can.

I want to be a powerful magic healer. I must continue my healing, where others might give up. But my question is, can I really invoke that ability. What if I am not able to? Then what's the meaning of me working so hard? I really don't know."

His story and determination touched the hearts of the other boys.

Alan had infact started feeling the same tugging sensation from each of these boys the moment he entered the room. He was sure that they will all invoke their abilities in the future.

Don't worry Chris, you will be able to use the Mana in the future. Alan said to him consoling. Skeptical but still happy to get someone supporting his decision, Chris smiled.

What about you two guys? Dave asked.

" Well we are both from Green Town and we are brothers. You can say our family consists members who are Adventurers, merchants, artists and healer. So we were lucky enough to gain basic insight in all of these areas." Williams concluded simply, getting nods from other boys.

Alan looked at Williams fondly, feeling touched from his introduction of them as brothers.