Inside the Academy

[Doctor, I've performed a topographic mapping of the area and found an extensive series of underground passages and installations right under our feet. The actual academy.] -Out of her own initiative, the A.I. informed her Master in a serious tone.

"The Abyssal Bone Forest Magi sure have a satirical sense of humor; what with building their academy below a graveyard." -Leylin was feeling rather comfortable at the moment. The pores on his body were all open and absorbed the air of the surroundings here.

'This area is not unlike the rest of the forest... Aralis, what do your environmental scans show?' -Leylin asked with a slightly raised brow.

[Acquiring sample of the environment... Analysis in progress...]

Leylin blinked once, and Aralis had finished her work.

[There has been a significant increase in a type of energy particle that faintly resonates with your body as you moved closer to this graveyard. I've also noticed an almost neglectable increase in your brainwave activity. I conjecture these particles to be Dark energies, given where we are...] -The A.I.'s voice traveled over.

'No wonder they built here. It is not surprising that wise and powerful beings such as Magi study every aspect of a region when choosing to set up a place to study the arcane arts. The high concentration of these so-called energy particles is likely what drives an exponential improvement in the cultivation and strengthening of the soul, allowing those who take residence in here to make the most out of their Darkness aptitude...' -Leylin gained a slight understanding of the academy's choices.

[Which means that in turn, you'll benefit from it.]

At this moment, Dorotte had already brought the group to the centermost area in the graveyard. There, a masterfully ornated mausoleum stood proudly, despite the hanging moss all over it. Black marble stones were piled up one by one, on each side of the door, making it look like an entrance to a castle.

Beside the reinforced metallic door, there were two black marble statues. On the left, there was a two-headed dog with spikes growing on its body. On the right, there was an earthworm with a pair of wings and razor-sharp fangs protruding out, exuding a cruel aura.

These two statues were lifelike. They had black jewels for eyes and looked as if they were alive.

"The password!"

When Dorotte walked in front of the statues, the earthworm on the right side of the door spoke in a parched voice. With each opening and closing of its mouth, moist dirt continuously fell onto the ground from the statue.

[I would love to be able to tell you their strength, but they are also screened by an interfering mana radiation field.] -Aralis said in mild shame.

'Nothing new there, regrettably. These look to be some kind of golem creations; I wonder what their capabilities are. They must be proficient in wielding high-level spells, no doubt. Judging by their having been posted as sentinels for the academy, perhaps each one is even above Professor Bones on their own. However, I am sure that their combined strength should definitely be more than enough to break his white bones into dust.' -Lelyin surmised.

"Jumal, don't you recognize me? Just let us in already." -Dorotte let out in clear annoyance at the situation.

Right after Dorotte spoke both of the statues seemed to have come alive at that moment. The earthworm and huge dog both chuckled. Their voices brought about a huge wind, which flipped the clothes of the nearest acolytes.

"Dorotte. Although we are quite familiar with each other, rules are rules." -The huge dog licked its paws, and let out a female voice.

"Or what? Do you want to play with us?" -The earthworm lifted its claw and made a human-like gesture, beckoning with the claw: "Then come! I feel itchy all over my body, hehehe."

"Alright, alright. Let me think." -Dorotte figuratively rolled his non-existent eyes.

"I should really take the head of the pig who set up this defensive spell formation and shove it up to their ass..." -Dorotte suddenly murmured.

[Did you catch that?]

'Yes, I did. So this means the guardians are part of a spell themselves... Hmm... Take note of everything you can gather from their composition, personalities, etc. And then make a hazard classification report. I will go over it later. I may need it in the future, should I decide to betray the academy at some point.' -Leylin ordered.

[Already done. The entry is ready for whenever you need, Doctor.]

'Good job, Aralis.'

"You're wasting our time. Hurry up and say it! What is the password?!" -The huge dog roared and sparks were coming out from its mouth.

"The password is: I hate smelly bones..." -Dorotte spoke softly.

Leylin's mouth twisted, and only by using his strong willpower did he manage to suppress his scoff. Although Dorotte wore a skull, the Farlier heir was certain that he was frowning.

"Haha! The password is correct!" -The earthworm and huge dog laughed loudly and immediately let them pass.

"I bet the overseer keeping watch with the crystal ball is laughing to death right now." -The huge dog snickered, then returned to his original stone platform and changed into its former statue state.

'Overseer; crystal ball... Thanks for providing me with that valuable intel in such an ungainly manner, canine artifice.' -Leylin smirked.

Just then, an acolyte finally found it hard to bear and let out a chuckle.

"Hng!" -Green flames suddenly ignited within Dorotte's sockets: "It seems like we must educate the new acolytes on how to respect their professors!"

The skeletal Magus snapped his fingers.

"Aaah! What is this, don't come over here, don't come over!" -The acolyte who laughed out loud earlier retreated several steps and fell onto the floor, wailing loudly.

"Rousey! What's wrong?!" -An acolyte beside her walked forward.

"No... Don't come over! Stay away from me, monster!" -Rousey screamed, and her face gradually twisted in horror.

"Magi are equal among themselves, so they can afford to play jokes on each other. However, acolytes must always maintain their humility before their betters!" -Exclaimed Dorotte with a superior tone.

Seeing this scene, the acolytes in the group all felt a chill down their spines. Except for one.

'For a supposedly tight-lipped society, those Magi I have met so far have been exceedingly prone to revealing key elements of their techniques and inner structures in this kind of irresponsible way.' -Leylin inwardly told his assistant, as he conjectured that Dorotte had used some kind of illusion spell.

[You were right, Doctor. They are too arrogant to see their mistake.]

'That, or Professor Bones is so powerful that exposing this kind of spell to a bunch of students is meaningless to him... Even so, I thank him for this brief lesson in the dangers of illusionary magics.'

Jayden and Kaliweir also seemed to be deep in thought, watching the scene unfold. One other acolyte, however, was monitoring every reaction and act in his surroundings. Including theirs.

'I'm glad to see they're not so shallow. Maybe they will provide me with some additional form of entertainment down the way. Hell, they may even be smart enough to be used for specific purposes... We'll see what service they shall provide me with, in due time...'

"Carry her up and let us go in!" -Dorotte pointed at Rousey, who was still screaming.

Both of his servants walked over and carried Rousey in one move, one on each side.

Seeing how the two servants subdued the afflicted Rousey so effortlessly, Leylin's eyes flashed with cognizance remembering the first time he had seen them, flanking Professor Dorotte when they boarded the dirigible. Aralis had informed him of their B-Class threat ranking, or in other words, their status as Grand Knights. At that moment, Leylin had verified that even the greatest Knights were nothing for a consolidated Magus.

The door to the mausoleum had finished opening itself, and the group was presented with a grey stone staircase that spiraled downwards into the unknown. This flight of stairs which had no railing to speak of, descended all the way to the depths of darkness until they could not be seen anymore. Nonetheless, Leylin was not disquieted by this apparently endless void.

Moreover, Aralis had provided him with a rough layout of the main galleries of the academy in that very instant. She couldn't tell him anything else than that, however. The place was filled to the brim with mana radiation, effectively blocking her sensors.

Dorotte used his staff and knocked on the floor. Blue flames started to light up one by one, illuminating the ground within. Lastly, a blue semi-transparent barrier that acted as railing materialized out of nowhere. Acolytes could now safely walk over each step without the risk of falling to their deaths by a miscalculation or treasonous footwear.

Forthwith, the student and professor began to tread down the stairs of the Abyssal Bone Forest Academy entrance.

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Leylin did not know how long exactly he walked for under the illumination of the blue flames, but it was definitely over 20 minutes. However, thanks to his preparatory Knight physique and despite all the traveling on foot he had been doing for the past hours, he barely felt tired.

'That temporary outline you produced does no justice to the sheer size of this place. This might as well be a small underground kingdom. One of my first tasks here will be to explore as much of it as possible so that you can give me a comprehensive map of the important areas.' -Leylin said to his assistant.

[Certainly.]

"Our Abyssal Bone Forest Academy was constructed in the Gregorian Year 324, and it has been almost one thousand years since then... As for our academy founder, it is Merlin Falek Driwilc..." -Dorotte led at the forefront of the group, and occasionally gave them a few sentences of commentary about some of the most notable places and historical facts.

"The door from which we entered is obviously the main access to our institute. Yet in addition to it, many hidden doorways also lead into the academy. As long as you have become a proper Magus by graduating, you can apply for an empty tomb to be your very own personal passage." -Dorotte explained.

'Could be useful to have one of those. I suppose Bones did not use his earlier since he basically wanted to keep it and its contents a secret. Probably serves as a storage for a fraction of his treasures as well...' -Leylin silently assessed.

[It's just a personal entrance. How do you know he uses it as storage?] -Inquired the A.I.

'Why wouldn't he? Any of those graves outside has enough space to deposit a few small trinkets. Bone's passage is surely protected by an uncountable number of defensive formations and traps. Plus, it is secret, so not just anyone would know where to look if they wanted to steal from him. Yes, they could shadow him to find out which one it is, but that would be equal to suicide. Magi have definitely ways of detecting auras, presences, mana radiation, or whatever. And as if that wasn't enough, you heard the canine guardian; there is an overseer with a crystal ball watching everyone's movements. Coincidentally, that's the leading figure I'll have to be wary of during my stay in Abyssal Bone Forest...' -Leylin detailed his analysis.

[I see... It truly does make sense. I'll do my best to aid you however I can, Doctor.] -Aralis conceded sincerely.

'See to it that you do.' -Leylin said harshly. He wouldn't beat around the bush on this subject.

"Our Abyssal Bone Forest Academy is divided into several large sections. Dormitories, classrooms, laboratories, gardening areas, trading post, quest hall, and various others. As for their exact locations and purposes, I will bring someone to give you a full tour later. For now, you must follow me to the Administration office to wrap up the specifics of your enrollment as students of our academy. Thereafter, you'll commence the selection of your professors."

Dorotte soon came to the front of a slightly larger room and pointed at the words on the steel door: "We're here. Although, I believe none of you will be wanting to come here again in the future..."

Regarding the symbols on the door which seemed like both words and patterns at times, Leylin acknowledged that none of the characters was anything like what the previous Leylin had encountered in the past.

"Oh, I've forgotten that you guys don't know the ancient Byron language!" -Dorotte tapped his head: "No worries, though. This is one of the essentials of incantation; you guys should be learning it in the near future."

'Byron language... This is one of the ancient tongues employed by Magus in their incantations... I remember back during the fight between Jayden and Kaliweir, that I was able to grasp every single one of the inflections he performed to call forth that vine familiar from his magic artifact... Why? How? Those are questions I shall find the answer to during my first month in this academy. If I can do it in less than two weeks, even better. Aralis, your help will determine if I'll accomplish such an arduous goal.' -Leylin's expression turned rigid and a burning passion flickered in his eyes.

[Your wish is my command, Doctor]

'That's what I like to hear.'

"Dorotte, is that you? Come, come!" -An aged voice sounded from within, and the steel doors moved automatically. A steel hand opened the bolts on the door and even beckoned them in.

Leylin followed Dorotte inside and realized that this room was extremely large. An old man with a white beard and red eyebrows was seated behind the wide black office desk occupying half of the office. Encompassing the room, there were countless bookshelves over ten meters tall, and many books and scrolls were disorderly arranged on them. It looked just like a private library.

The old geezer was scribbling something with a feather pen, and next to him were a stack of parchments and a golden goblet presumably filled with some strange beverage. But what had caught the eye of one particular student was not the professedly important documents, or even the wizard himself, but the crystal ball unostentatiously lying on the corner of the desk.

'Unless I am somehow influenced by one of those pesky illusions once again, he is unquestionably the 'overseer' that guardian mentioned. Hmmm... but if he's not the headmaster, then who is? Maybe an obscure Magus cultivating in seclusion? Or...?' -Leylin's mind was on overdrive right now.

"By the way, you're late." -The old man put down the quill pen in his hand and his wrinkled face smiled gently, betraying his aggravated tone.

"We met with some trouble along the way; a wandering giant storm sprite. It damaged our airship a little, hence the delay in time." -Dorotte explained.

The old man said: "You're here now..."

And then he looked at the acolytes at the back and his bright eyes shone brilliantly. He scanned through the acolytes, before finally landing on Jayden: "It also looks like you've been well rewarded during this trip?"

"Indeed!" -Dorotte pointed: "Jayden, come over here!"

Pulling Jayden to his side, he eagerly stated: "I made a contract with the boy already. He is now my personal apprentice. If you would, please settle the procedures for him."

Dorotte took a stack of forms from a heavy black pouch and handed it over to the old man.

"Fifth-grade acolyte. Not too bad, Dorotte." -The old man took out an object resembling a pair of glasses with gold threads around its rim and fixed them on his nose.

"Melda, that piece of scum; he actually pushed such a troublesome thing to me on that occasion. Haha! Now I want to see him turn yellow in envy!" -Dorotte gloated loudly.

"So then, Jayden. Are you willing to become the personal apprentice of Professor Dorotte?" -The old man asked with a solemn tone.

"I accept, my Lord!" -Jayden looked at Dorotte and agreed in a low voice.

"Good to hear." -The old man took a sheet of parchment and wrote something, then pressed his ring on it creating a faint red glow, and finally handed Jayden a black sack: "This is yours; hold it well."

"Are the procedures done? I have taught him those meditation techniques, and right now I have to rush back to my experiments. It was difficult enough to find some inspiration along the way, and I did not even have any ingredients on hand..." -Dorotte let out a shrill voice and pulled Jayden along, leaving the room quickly.

"So, Mister Dorotte's task is completed. What's next is for me to read to you the things that you guys should be mindful of." -The old man knocked on the desk, drew the acolytes' attention, and then said in a satisfied manner: "Since all of you have already handed in the fees and met the criteria for the contract, you are all official acolytes of our Abyssal Bone Forest Academy from this moment on. And to complete your registration, you will begin with the selection of your professors."

"There are two methods to choose a professor. The first is to choose by placing your name inside this crystal ball, and a treasure of mine will pick a professor for you. This method is absolutely free of charge."

"Excuse me? What exactly is your treasure?" -An acolyte asked cowardly.

"Oh?" -The old man laughed, and suddenly a black python appeared on the table: "This is my magical pet, Spotty. It does not know any of you, so I think it's the fairest for it to choose. Any other questions?"

"No... No more!" -Seeing the large python, the acolyte quickly retreated backward.

"There is also another method, which is for the acolytes to choose their own professors. With me, I have a list containing short introductions of various professors and their distinct requirements. Each of them is there for your choosing. There's only one little catch. Should you prefer this latter method, you will need to hand over a magic crystal as a form of payment."

"In the end, it doesn't matter which method you chose. Nevertheless, do bear in mind that once you have decided on your professor, you can never change again. Failure to abide by this simple rule will get you expelled, or worse..." -The old man told grimly.

Then he declared: "With that said, I will now call your names, and you will come forward and tell me your choice."