The Grounds of Knowledge

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|| CHAPTER 5 | The Grounds of Knowledge ||

"Now that we've moved on to the next part of the tale, did you enjoy the last story we read, little one? Though the statues were nothing but decorations to your eyes, they were worth more than my own life for me.

"Worry not, for you will find out soon. How about now we start reading the next one? I'm sure you're dying to know who the young lavender-haired one is. Now, keep yourself warm and ready.

"This will be a long ride... To the grounds where the heroes of this tale would gain all their wisdom and knowledge–– the grounds that are used to mourn for a certain figure of the past."

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"Sorry I'm late, there's a slight problem on my way here, I hope you don't mind."

The newly arrived student had a wide smirk plastered on his face that displayed his sharp canine teeth to all. He looked confident enough, despite being late to the ceremony.

The lavender-headed student walked up to one of the teachers on the podium, ignoring all eyes. Even with the stares stabbing through his very soul, judging as to how tardy and late he's being, the newly-arrived adolescent kept his grin unfaltering.

He then whispered something that none other than the teacher could hear. With a palm covering his moving mouth, outsiders were unable to make out what he's uttering to the adult.

The teacher he had spoken to also whispered to the headmaster, earning a nod from the golden-blonde elf. The boy then lined up behind one of the classes, specifically the triplets' class, being told something from the previous teacher.

"Say, what happened to you, Kishi?" Shizuka asked the lavender-haired boy as she had known him for a long time. She was standing at the far back, thus, the new kid was behind her.

"Hmm? Oh, nothing. I just had a little accident with some random bandits." He shrugged and slid his hands into his pockets, pursing his lips for a moment.

"Huh? What could they possibly be doing in this time of day?"

"They were massacring some youkais in a secluded village by Assyre in broad daylight," Ichisaki Kishi, the boy, whispered back into her ears, earning an understanding nod from the girl.

"Again? They don't know when to give up, I see." She crooned and frowned a little. "The audacity they have could never be compared with even the most reckless of men."

"I know. Either they were just plain stupid or they were too desperate for that said fortune."

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Clearing his throat once again, the headmaster continued his speech. All students still looked at the boy with interest and confusion.

They then disregarded him as quickly as it came. All eyes were on the blonde elf now, waiting for him to continue his words.

"As I had said earlier–– you're not here to hear me speak now, are you?" Soleis repeated with a smile and continued, "Let us introduce the vice headmistress, shall we? We'll have a virtual tour of the school afterwards, to refresh your memories of the place."

An aged lady came up onto the stage, going behind the podium, introducing herself as Sirea Vellocyvea, the school's vice headmistress.

The lady's short and old, but she had that motherly look on her face that people seemingly forgot her long-lived age, which was ninety-eight years old.

Sirea had dark grey hair, with some white ones here and there, and dark-indigo eyes. Her face was full of wrinkles and her voice was soft and gentle.

Shizuka even had a part of her wondering if Sirea was perhaps the incarnation of her mother due to how similar the warmth in their voices was.

Though, she knew it wasn't possible.

They were all mostly shocked when Hallevir mentioned the woman to be much younger than he was. Being an elf, it was expected of him to live more than a hundred years.

"It was as expected, hohoho~!" the elderly woman chuckled merrily and waved the students off. "Soleis may just look young, but he's the oldest out of all of us!"

They didn't dare to miss the fondness in her voice. She was excited and kind at the same time that the students couldn't help but smile.

It was even more shocking that Soleis revealed his own age. His young appearances certainly fooled the whole school at first sight. Being a man that lived for a thousand years or so was surely hard.

They then started introducing all the teachers of the school, including the staff.

The variation of races didn't only spread out amongst the students, but teachers as well. Dark elves and other kinds of elves, even dwarves and half-beasts.

Some wondered if there might be a giant that worked as a teacher, perhaps a staff.

Or perhaps, would they be able to see fairies? Djinns? Even the elementals that were only written in legends?

Time went by and all the introductions were finished, along with the school rules, their uniform schedules, and other pieces of stuff.

They started "touring" the school once more through a virtual, translucent screen infused with magic, showing the students "real movements" through the said screen.

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From the tall gateway at the very front of the land, they could see the three main buildings; the Saint Xilverein Junior High School, Saint Xilverein High School, and the ever-so-famous university of theirs.

Flower beds with colourful flowers decorated the front doors of each building. Soothing tall trees and lots and lots of verdant greeneries.

Soleis found the time to slip in several facts that students and staff worked together to take care of the environment, letting both sides learn how to take care of nature and not exploit them.

It came to his mind that some forests in the world were set aflame by thoughtless beings and heartless individuals, may it be selfish humans or even the tainted ones.

Going inside the main high school building they're in right now, they were met with a large locker area and a hallway following behind it.

To the right were the teachers' lounging area and some storage rooms. To the left were changing rooms–– both for the males and females, of course.

The system of the school made sure that no sides would be able to do anything inappropriate. If they did, there would surely be great consequences to deal with.

After the locker rooms, came a large archway that connected the cafeteria and the hallway.

The cafeteria was two stories tall, with a smaller library being on the second half-floor. The rows of white tables and floating books amazed the students more, wondering how on earth were those books able to fly without wings.

Was it magic? Was it a spell that was cast on them?

Nevertheless, they were astonished.

Shizuka actually figured that there wasn't any magic nor spell placed on those books. They were simply like that. What peculiar books.

The main library was in another building, behind the main high school building. The hallway had double doors at the end of it, leading to six different gyms.

Three on one end, and another three on the other.

The headmaster paused here to explain about the six gyms for a bit. "The gym we're in right now is the sixth gym," he spoke.

"There are five others that we had yet to show, but know that their interiors and exteriors will very much be the same."

The screen in front of them separated into six. One of them was in the sixth gym they're in right now, showing the mass whispered and murmured. The five others showed several empty spaces and two that were occupied by the seniors.

"These six gyms will be used by each class, regardless of their grades. May you remember to use them well and not thrash around. Now, shall we continue?"

Going upstairs from the stairs at the end of the hallway, they had reached the second floor. The second floor contained six classes of the first-years, along with some restrooms.

Each floor had two pairs of restrooms. Each generation was divided into six, including the second years and the third years.

The third floor consisted of the second-years' classes and the fourth floor had the third-years' classes.

The first class was usually filled with academic students, while the second class was filled with sporty ones. The third class was full of artists and the fourth class's always full of musicians. The fifth class was only those who were affiliated with business stuff.

Last but not least, the sixth class. That class was full of unique magic users, as most magic users usually had abstract and complicated personalities. They're what most people deemed...

'... eccentric.'

The same goes for the second year and third years.

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The building went up to the sixth floor, along with a small greenhouse on the rooftop. Those pair of floors were used for several clubrooms and indoor club activities. The student council's room was on the fifth floor while the headmaster's office was on the sixth.

The labs were also divided into six on the fifth floor, with the student council's room. The other clubrooms were all gathered in a wholly different building, separated from the main ones.

Complicated? Yes, very much.

One could get lost in this maze-like place.

Even the teachers themselves admitted that they went around the place with a mini-map to help. Walking alone in this large school was simply searching for death where no one would find them.

The greenhouse on the rooftop was stuffed with various herbs the students had planted and grown over the years.

They were used for lessons as well, according to Sirea.

On the back of the school, there was a huge library with three floors. It contained books and scrolls of knowledge from all around. Beside it was another five pairs of statues, similar to the ones in front of the gateway, only a bit smaller in comparison.

On the far side of the library, was the main greenhouse, being bigger than two classrooms combined.

A track field, a sports field, and another gate. The gate connected the school grounds with the dormitories.

Yes, dormitories.

This school had almost everything that they needed.

The dorms were for those who lived far from the school. Of course, each dorm had its own caretaker.

Boys and girls were not separated, but they have a unique magic system to prevent anything... distasteful, from happening.

The dorms worked like how a normal house would. Each room had its own bathroom, so no need to worry about getting late in the morning and waiting for a long queue, Soleis assured.

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The students were all amazed, leaving some of the teachers looking very proud, even if they don't own the place.

"Wow! I can't wait to start studying here!"

"Me, too!"

"This place sounds fun!"

"I'm glad I chose this school! Things will surely be a blast!"

The headmaster ended the tour and cleared his throat loudly in the mic, "Ah-hem."

The students' chatters and talks died down quickly, all of them frozen in place by the aura that the blonde elf was letting out.

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"I believe you're not here to have fun now, do you?" Soleis' sickeningly sweet voice sent shivers down their spines, earning him vigorous nods from the teens.

"In Saint Xilverein, you are expected to be on your best behaviour. The Saint, Himself, will be our exemplary role model. He will be the guide of your studies and lessons–– knowledge and courage. That is what the founders of this school wanted to convey when they named this school."

Tense silence loomed over them, stabbing their every bone and chilling their sweats, stopping them in time. One wouldn't know what would happen if they breathe even for a second.

However, instead of continuing to scare the children, the elf sighed heavily. His charisma and kind aura came back, relaxing the kids.

"Now, we will end the ceremony..."

|| CHAPTER 5 | The Grounds of Knowledge- To be continued... ||

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