Chapter Three : The Royal Ball

"Shae! Come on hurry! They published the results!" Clara excitedly exclaims as she drags a blonde-haired girl.

Clara is one of the students studying at the academy.

She possesses long curly caramel brown hair, clear round brown eyes, and some freckles on her cheeks. The uniform they are wearing is a modest simple white dress with a deep blue belt wrapped around their waist.

"Calm down! It's not like the result is going to disappear. It was just posted a moment ago. Besides, there are still students there. You know I don't like crowded places," Shaelyn stated as she allow her friend to drag her.

She can't be bothered to fight back against her energetic friend. And with the time she got to know Clara, she fully knows that she will just continue to bother her.

"But Shae!! We waited for a long time for this moment! I mean, we both trained and study earnestly to be part of the top class! The TOP class! Can't you believe that!" Clara exclaims excitedly.

It has been two years since Shaelyn became a student here at the Academy for Mages. Ever since she managed to summon her magic properly, she became thrilled about learning how to use them.

Shaelyn can't forget the incredible rush she felt and the beauty of her mana. It's as shiny as her blonde hair, as light as a feather, and as warm as the sun.

It was a different sight and feeling than the first time she saw them. It was only like a tiny flame when she first discovers it. But now, it felt different, she felt much more connected to it. Like it was always been there by her side, sheltering and observing her from afar.

They both finally reached the bulletin board where all the students' names who passed the test are all written. The test for the Top class that they have participated in is a special test held only once a year.

As Shaelyn said earlier, there's a crowd of students browsing and chattering in front.

"See?" Shaelyn pointed to Clara.

Clara rolls her eyes at the scene in front of her before letting out a sigh.

"Fine! I'll go and look for our names then. Just stay here and wait for me," she answers as she pushes her way to get to the front.

A few students that she pushed aside are grumbling about her actions, yet she ignores them.

Shaelyn, on the other hand, leans on the wall near her as she watches Clara continue to fight her way to the board. A faint smile made its way to her lips from the way Clara acts.

"Looks like Clara is still energetic as before," she flinches in surprise upon hearing a familiar voice beside her.

"Luther? When did you come back?" She asks the moment she recognized the man.

Luther Simon is a knight mage.

He graduated at an early rate than everyone else. He is recognized as a genius knight who became part of the imperial guard at such a young age.

With his short auburn locks and keen dark brown eyes, he is popular with the female students of the academy.

His power can boost the stamina of his allies. Which is a great help during battles and hunting for monsters.

"Just now... I have something to report to headmaster Asha," Luther replies as he directs his attention to her.

The two became acquaintances a year before Luther graduated. He saw Shaelyn practicing with a sword one evening.

He became intrigued in helping her when he identify great potential in her movements. Though she was adamant about avoiding him at first.

"Ah! I see," She answers as she shifts her attention back to Clara who is now arguing with another student.

"What's the occasion? Did I miss something?" Luther asks while pointing to the crowd of students.

They can clearly observe how Clara won the argument and now is searching for their names on the board.

"The faculty posted the test results for students who will be part of the top class," Shaelyn explains sounding uninterested.

Luther turns to her as he raised his eyebrow. He fully knows that there are times when she doesn't want to appear interested in something, especially in events well-known to students.

"You know for someone who sounds uninterested in this. I am certain you are also looking forward to the results, right? Since after all, you also participated in the test, am I right?" he spoke which made Shaelyn turn to face him again, with her eyebrow raised.

"How did you know? You were in the capital when the test happened," she asks as she fixes her posture.

A smirk formed on his lips as he stroked the handle of his sword. Shaelyn glances down at the sword attached to the leather belt on his hips.

'I wonder when I could get my own sword?' She thought to herself as she eyes the sword with jealousy.

"I have my ways. Anyway, I'll talk to you later," he pats her head before walking away.

She watches as he walks away from her before turning to the corner at the end of the hall.

'Why does he always mess up my hair every time he was about to leave?' She thought in confusion before she raises her hand to fix the mess he made.

She can already tell Clara will reprimand her once she saw that the braid she made for her is now a mess.

"What a bother," she mumbles as her face reddened in embarrassment.

Shaelyn has always looked up to him as a brother figure. She will never tell anyone how she missed him badly when he left the academy.

"Shae!!! Shae!!!" Clara's loud and energetic voice startle her before she heard her footsteps hopping closer to her.

"What --?" She didn't manage to finish what she was going to say when she felt a body collide with hers.

If there wasn't a wall behind her, she is sure that they have already fallen down the floor. Letting out a sigh of relief, she can feel Clara's arm make its way to her back as she hugs her tight. The sound of her giggling made her glare at Clara as she steadied their footing.

"W-What? Stop giggling and just tell me what's wrong?" she spoke as she tries to push Clara away from her.

However, she merely stares at her with a beaming smile on her lips.

"Hehe~. Guess what?" Clara asks in a sing-song voice.

Shaelyn felt her body shudders, as she finally manages to push Clara away.

"Just spit it out!" she yells despite the attention they are gaining.

She has already gotten used to the stares and whispers of the other students ever since the 'accident' they made last year.

"We. Both. Passed!!! We did it!!!" Clara exclaims as she jumps around, excitedly.

Shaelyn's eyes widen in surprise as she glances at Clara and the board.

She can clearly see the weird gazes they are receiving from the students, yet she doesn't care about it. What she cares about, is the result of the exam. After all, both of them push their limits just to be qualified to enter the exam.

"What? Are— Are you sure???" Shaelyn grabs Clara and starts swaying her. She cannot believe what Clara has informed her.

"Yes!!! Come see it!! — Excuse me! Make way!" Clara grabs Shaelyn's hand and pushes the other student away.

"Hey! Watch it!" students protested as Clara pushed them.

Some are just letting out a tired sigh. They have already gotten used to dealing with the two ever since the 'accident'.

"Here!!" Clara ignores the glares of the students and points her finger at the bulletin board.

Placed at numbers 5 & 6 are their names... Shaelyn Silvers & Clara Silvers.

They have gotten their surname from their Headmaster, Asha. They were adopted by her a year after Shaelyn enters the academy. Clara was recruited by the academy when she was ten.

They found her wandering around in the alleys.

Shaelyn can't believe her eyes... not only have they both passed, but they also rank higher than the others. She was merely hoping for them to get past the top 20 so that they can enter the Top class. Yet here they are, achieving the top five and six ranks.

"Is this real? We both passed? Pinch me quick!" she said as she shakes Clara's shoulder.

"Stooopp!! I'm getting dizzy!" Clara protested as she pushes Shaelyn away.

"You meanie!" Clara pinches Shaelyn's arm after she recovers from her dizziness and after fixing her uniform.

"Ouch! Why did you do that?!" Shaelyn whacks Clara's hand away from her.

"You asked me!" Clara reply while caressing her hand.

"Girls!" a voice from behind, them made them stop bantering.

They both slowly look to see who it is and see the face of the headmaster staring at them. The two gulp, they lower their head as they greet her.

"Good morning headmaster," The students around them also greet her.

"Ladies... Please follow me. I have something to talk to both of you about," Headmaster Asha spoke with a calm tone that made the two flinch.

"Ooh... they are in big trouble!" someone whispers from the crowd.

Clara glares at them before she took a deep breath. Once they fix their hair and uniform, they both followed the Headmaster towards her office.

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With a click, the door of the office opens making Luther, stand up from his chair. He was waiting for the Headmaster to arrive.

"I apologize for the wait, Luther," he heard the familiar voice of the Headmaster greets him.

"It's alright, Headmaster," he replies as he lowers his head in respect.

"Brother Luther!" upon hearing the cheerful voice of Clara, Luther looks up in confusion as he watches both Clara and Shaelyn enter the room.

"Clara? Shae? Are you both here for a punishment?" he asks making the two glare at him.

"We haven't done anything yet!" the two both exclaim which made Luther smirk at them as the Headmaster shakes her head in response.

"Ladies have a seat. You too, Luther," Asha cut off their banter before it will turn into a lengthy argument, as she takes a seat on her chair.

"Pardon me for asking, but... is there a reason why they are here?" Luther asks as he takes a seat on the opposite chair from Clara and Shaelyn.

"First... let's hear why you're here Luther," Asha simply replies with a knowing smile on her lips.

Luther flinches slightly before he lets out a sigh.

Glancing at the two who are eagerly listening to their conversation... he grabs the letter from his pouch. He places it above the desk as he watches the Headmaster pick it up.

"His Highness... the Crown Prince has ordered me to give this letter to you headmaster."

Shaelyn and Clara both glance at one another after overhearing the word 'Crown Prince'. They barely know anything regarding the royal family of the Kingdom. Nevertheless, they occasionally heard the news about the Crown Prince.

"Brother Luther... are you working directly for the crown prince?" Clara asks, her eyes twinkling with curiosity.

"Why?"

"Come on tell us! I want to know what he looks like. Is he as attractive as what the rumors declare? Or is he really scary?" Clara asks again, her feet tapping excitedly on the floor.

"Clara! Shush!" Shaelyn says as she pushes Clara's face to look at the headmaster who is busy reading the letter.

She too is intrigued about what royalty looks like, but she needs to remind Clara that the Headmaster is still inside the room.

"What? I just want to know~," she whines, as she purses her lips to pout at Shaelyn.

Shaelyn only rolls her eyes as she let out a giggle.

"I see..." they flinch in surprise after hearing Asha's voice.

"I'm sorry..." Clara whispers as she lowers her head. She doesn't know whether the Headmaster is talking about her or the letter but still...

An amused smile forms on Asha's lips at how Clara behaves before she directs her attention to Luther.

"I guess that event is already around the corner," she mentions.

"Yes. Everyone is already busy preparing for it," Luther simply answers. He had already guessed that the letter will mention the ball that the Royal family is preparing.

"Preparing for what, headmaster?" Shaelyn can't help but ask. This will be the first time they will get to hear more about the events outside the academy.

"The headmaster is talking about the royal ball," Luther is the one who answers.

"Ball? What kind of ball? Do they also play ball like the ones we played here?" they both ask as they tilt their head in curiosity.

Asha and Luther both chuckle at their response.

The two girls look at one another clearly embarrassed.

"It's a dance ball, my children. It's a yearly three-day party the royal family organized," Headmaster Asha explains.

"A party?! When is it, Headmaster? Can we also attend?!" Clara asks excitedly.

"No, you can't," Luther replied firmly.

"And why?" Shaelyn asks while raising an eyebrow.

"That's because only nobles are allowed to attend," Luther explains.

"Not only nobles Luther," Headmaster Asha added.

"What do you mean headmaster?" the two girls ask at the same time.

"Headmaster, you are not thinking of adding these two? Are you?" Luther looks at the headmaster as he points at Clara and Shaelyn.

"Hey! It's impolite to point!" Clara swats his finger as he glares at him.

"It's only fair to add them. After all, they ranked five and six this year," Asha spoke as she wears a proud smile on her lips. She still cannot believe that her two daughters manage to achieve the top then ranks on their first try.

"They do?! Are you sure it's not a mistake, headmaster?" Luther asks, he cannot believe that those before him have managed to achieve such ranks.

"How low is your standard of us?! Brother Luther!" Shaelyn and Clara both protested as they glare at Luther.

"Why? I thought you are not interested, Shae?" Luther asks as he smirks.

"Now, now... the three of you calm down. Luther, you know our tradition here. Any students who have managed to achieve the top ten ranks are all welcome to attend the royal ball," Asha spoke in a calm tone.

"Wait-- what? We are going to attend the royal ball?!" Clara exclaims as she stands up from her seat in excitement.

"Yes, now please sit down —," Clara cuts off the headmaster as she starts shaking Shaelyn's shoulder.

"Shae!! Shae!! Did you hear that?! We are going to attend the royal ball!!"

"I know! Calm down!" Shaelyn pushes off Clara and forces her to sit down.

Clara sits down reluctantly, as the headmaster clears her throat.

"As I was saying, the top ten students are all going to attend the royal ball. That also includes the two of you, Clara and Shaelyn," the headmaster continues.

—

"What are you going to wear to the ball? Wait— where are we going to buy our dress? Are we allowed to go out?" Clara babbles on as Shaelyn just listens in.

She is already used to how talkative Clara can get once she finds a fascinating topic to discuss.

After the headmaster announces that the two will attend the royal ball. Clara has been talking about it nonstop.

"Clara... will you please be quiet for a second?" Shaelyn remarks as she glares at her. Her head is now throbbing from how many times Clara repeated her words.

Clara only pouts in response, but she closes her mouth. They are currently walking back to their dorms after attending their first day in class.

The class only lasts until the afternoon since they are allowing their students to prepare for the upcoming ball. But of course, it was only their class that have that excuse.

The other classes are still continuing their schedule for the day.

"Shaelyn! Clara! Wait up!" a voice shouted from behind them.

They stop walking and waited for the student to catch up to them.

"What is it?" Shaelyn asks, she recognizes the man to be one of their former classmates. He possesses short dark blue hair and light brown eyes.

"The headmaster is calling for both of you!" Shiro said as he try to catch up his breath. He ended up running all the way from inside the main building to catch up to the two in front of him.

"Why?" Clara asks him.

"How should I know? I'm just a messenger here," he shrugs.

"Thanks for telling anyway," Shaelyn responds as they start walking away toward the main building.

"No problem! See ya later!" Shiro shouts as he jogs away.

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"Headmaster!! We're here!" Clara announces after opening the door to her office.

"You should have knocked first, before opening the door," Shaelyn commented as she peek inside.

"Eh, it's fine. Come on," Clara just shrugs as they enter the room.

"What do you mean it's fine Clara?" they both flinch in surprise the moment they heard the voice coming from behind them.

"Hehe... nothing headmaster," Clara responds while hiding behind Shaelyn.

Asha only shakes her head before entering the room and sitting down on her chair.

"Come sit down," she motions to them.

"Why did you call us headmaster?" Shaelyn asks once they are seated.

"I want to talk about the dresses the two of you are going to wear," the headmaster said with a smile.

"Are we allowed to go out?!" Clara asks excitedly.

"Unfortunately not, due to safety reasons. But don't worry, I have already sought a designer to make dresses for everyone to select from. And also suits for our boys," the headmaster explains.

"Can we choose first?!" Clara asks once again.

"Usually I wouldn't allow such unfairness but... since this is the first time you of two will attend. I might have chosen a few dresses I'm certain you two will like. Come, follow me," the headmaster stated as she motions for them to follow her.

She opens a tall cabinet door before chanting a spell. The inside of the cabinet glows for a bit before revealing a pathway.

They went inside it, next thing they know they are inside a modest room.

"Where is this? Headmaster?" Shaelyn asks as she and Clara look around the room. The room is similar to a private living room, with a couch, two small chairs, and a mahogany table in the middle.

"It's my private room. I use this place to rest whenever I want to. Keep this a secret, will you?" Asha explains.

The two nod their head, still amazed at the secret room. The headmaster, motions for them to sit down on the sofa. With a flick of her finger, dresses of various designs and colors appear in front of them.

"Wow! Look at that one! And that one!" Clara excitedly points at the dresses.

"Come here Clara, let's choose what dress will fit you," Asha spoke softly as Clara excitedly giggled.

Shaelyn, on the other hand, wordlessly stares at all the dresses. This is her first time examining such gorgeous clothes. But at the same time, there is a lingering familiar feeling as she stares at them.

She felt like she has done something similar to this. Yet, no matter how she tries to remember, nothing comes out. In the end, she just shakes it off and tries to focus on watching Clara try different dresses.