Beware the Danger

For the second part of their classes, the first-year students had gathered in the main academy courtyard. The academy complex featured several courtyards, each with a different purpose.

The first was the entrance courtyard, located at the citadel gates, the academy's main entrance. It was the grandest courtyard, boasting a beautiful fountain and serving as a space for school assemblies and student breaks.

The second was the main courtyard, a large grass-covered field at the heart of the academy. Enclosed on all sides by arcades and galleries, this space allowed for easy surveillance and provided direct access to changing rooms. This courtyard was primarily used for the practical classes of freshmen and occasionally served as a game tournament arena.

Lastly, there were several smaller courtyards used for various purposes, some of which were off-limits and reserved for professors during their breaks. Besides these courtyards, the maze-like academy building also included exquisite back gardens with numerous pavilions and greenhouses for specialized classes.

Maya had learned all this information from her files and was excited for her first magic practice class. Students were required to change into robes given to them beforehand and walk barefoot. The grass was warm from the sunlight, prompting Maya to wonder about practice sessions during cold or rainy weather.

The training uniforms were similar to those she had seen students wear before. They consisted of off-white garments made from naturally processed linen, designed to fit various body types. The tops were meant to fit snugly, tightened around the waist with a band. On the other hand, the pants were loose, allowing for easy movement, but tightly secured at the waist.

"That reminds me of my judo uniform."

In the changing rooms, Maya was startled yet again.

"Leo!! This is the girls changing room!" she whisper-shouted at him

"Relax. I waited until you were dressed."

His confident remark left Maya blinking, thinking how would he even know.

"Anyway, that reminds me of the good old days. Did you know I was a black belt in judo?"

"Really? Then you know how to tie this sash?" she suggested the one she was struggling with.

"Um… You know ghosts can't tie anything."

Maya could only chuckle while she was left to struggle on her own.

His comment confirmed her suspicion that the outfit might be inspired by martial arts garments. However, since she wasn't versed in that field, she could only speculate.

'Black belt is for the highest level, right?' she thought to herself.

Well, their belts didn't adhere to standard martial arts colours. Instead, they were color-coded by element. Fire was salamander orange, Water was denim blue, Air was jade green, and Earth was light yellow. As a child of Air, Maya wore a green belt, which complemented her eyes, making them seem more green than brown.

As indicated by their attire, they were grouped by elements into small teams. Their supervisors briefly explained the training process and assigned them mentors. These mentors were junior-year students, each responsible for a few trainees. They were provided with plans and guidelines and left to manage independently while the supervisors observed from a distance.

'Hm, students teaching students…'

The uniforms made it easy to differentiate between mentors and supervisors. While similar in style to the freshmen's attire, the third-year students acting as mentors wore cinnamon brown outfits, and the supervisors wore black with more intricate fabric details.

There was a noticeable difference between the temporary uniforms worn for one year and the ones kept after graduation. Maya understood that not only were the freshmen being observed by the supervisors, but the mentors' performance in training their trainees was also being evaluated.

'A rather strange system…'

It seems that students in this school have a much bigger role in educating each other and responsibility in management than Maya was used to. Proven by how student council members were revered at the same level as teachers.

However, Maya found it suspicious that there were significantly fewer third-year students compared to first-year students. Each third-year student had multiple trainees, even after some senior students were recruited to help.

*'*Do some third-year students have different assignments?'

A dark-skinned girl in a black uniform, holding a clipboard, approached Maya and two strangers. They stood where they had previously been directed. Without looking at them, she read their names from the clipboard to confirm their presence. After each name was called, they responded, and the girl marked their attendance on the clipboard.

The group was made up of three girls. Burcu, a hot-headed Turkish girl, already seemed irritated. Samiya, an Arabian girl, had an expression Maya couldn't read.

"Alright. Everyone's present," said their mentor in the black uniform. She continued to jot down notes on the clipboard, fulfilling obligatory record-keeping tasks.

Maya found herself intently studying the double sash the girl wore. She sported both an orange and a green sash, each neatly wrapped around her waist.

It wouldn't make sense she would just grab whatever was at hand, but it wasn't impossible if one was worn out and she used an extra one to reinforce them. Maya tried hard to construct an explanation in her head.

However, this theory didn't explain two elemental pendants, or tassels. These served as an identification badge, a detail Maya had noted was common amongst all senior mages.

"My name is Tanya. I will be your mentor," she introduced herself while filling up the paperwork.

After she quickly finished up with it, she finally looked at them. Her gaze stopped at Maya, and she quickly glanced back at the clipboard, as if she wanted a confirmation for not mistaking her for someone else.

"Maya, right? Where are you from?"

"Massachusetts," Maya answered.

"Oh, never mind," she dismissed her earlier thought. "I thought I might have seen you somewhere before, but your name doesn't ring a bell. I suppose you have one of those faces…"

"A basic white bitch face?" Burcu interjected, earning a puzzled look from Tanya. Maya could imagine Tanya mentally noting Burcu as 'that' person. 'That' implying someone who might be challenging to work with.

Tanya explained the arrangement: third-year students mentor freshmen. However, due to a shortage of third-year students, she and a few other senior students stepped in as mentors. As a fourth-year student, she wore a black uniform, distinguishing her from the third years. This explanation piqued Maya's interest in why the seniors needed to intervene.

Before Maya could come to a conclusion, they moved on to that day's lesson.

"Let's begin with some basic moves," Tanya suggested before demonstrating a simple move that included waving arms side to side, elegant and graceful.

The girls repeated and they all kept repeating it until everyone got it right.

"Great. Now include your torso. Move your body with you. Imagine you're moving the air in front of you. But keep your feet grounded for now. You don't want to allow the air to take control of you. You need to control it."

They would amplify their moves and keep repeating until everyone succeeds. Or at least that was the formula.

"Alright, girls. You're doing great. Now keep repeating it until you make the air move. I need to check on those girls. I'll be right back."

Girls exchanged confused looks. The other group of girls have orange waistbands, meaning they're Children of Fire. They quickly quit repeating the moves as they feel silly doing it. Maya continued, determined to succeed.

"Why's she teaching fire-benders? Did she confuse us with another group?" Burcu complained.

"I think she's bipartite," Samiya said.

"What's that?" Maya was confused.

"It means she's chosen by two elements, and has bipartite affinity," Samiya explained.

"And that means she has to teach two groups? No one else has to teach two groups," Burcu continued complaining.

Tanya returned. "Sorry, girls. Their mentor's sick today. I promise I will devote all my attention when she gets better. But why have you stopped practicing?"

"It's stupid. Nothing's happening," Burcu grumbled.

"Nothing will happen if you just stand still. Typically, it takes about a week to succeed at any magic. Sometimes even longer. I know it's frustrating, but you need to be persistent to achieve your Awakening before the Initiation Ritual in two weeks."

"What's an Initiation Ritual?" Maya asked.

She was overwhelmed by all the new information. As everyone turned to look at her, she realized it was something she was supposed to already know.

"Sorry. I just arrived yesterday. I'm not up to speed with everything yet."

"Yesterday?! And they just threw you in like that," Tanya became suddenly frustrated. "Sorry," she calmed down to explain it to Maya. "If you hadn't had your first instance of using magic by then, you'd be sent to the Slums. But it's otherwise just a cute ceremony."

"Slums!?"

"We call it that. It is a town named Holoton, where they send failed mages. It offers education for those at the bottom of the food chain whose greatest achievement will be to clean the floors of Elador."

"Oh," Maya could feel the pressure now.

"So, you girls need to work hard. And no slacking. Your failure is my failure, and I would like very much to be offered a job here next year."