3 bar menu

Chapter 163

The next morning, it was time for me to head to the Academy. The Capala household wasn’t willing to waste any more time when it came to me. I didn’t get to work in the shop like I had hoped, but would instead end up at school. Since I was still aiming for information, this suited me as well. I wondered what kind of information would be available at the Academy. From what I understood, any information that had any value was usually a closely guarded secret of the individual families, so what was the open stuff?

“You!” I had just left the gate entrance of the Capala household and I was already called out by someone.

“Me?” I blinked.

A familiar girl popped up in front of me, her hands on her hips as she looked her nose down at me. “It’s about time you showed up. Were you planning on being late on your first day in the academy?”

This girl was none other than Fate Lou, the girl I had battled in the martial tournament.

“Huh? I still have time. The wagon ride is only-” I checked my wrist instinctively, realizing I didn’t have a watch in this world.

Perhaps, I could use biology to make some approximation of a watch.

“Wagon…” Fate looked insulted by the word. “You cannot approach the Academy on a wagon. All people who enter the academy must arrive on foot!”

I blinked. “Is that so? I didn’t seem to read that in my welcome letter.”

After Abigail announced that I was joining the Academy, she handed me a letter. The Young Lord had asked to put me in the Academy, so it was all handled very efficiently. However, the letter had only said I was to report to the front gate in the morning. It was a bit of a walk. The Academy was located on the foot of a mountain a short distance outside of the city. Supposedly, it was a large complex of many buildings, so it couldn’t fit within the city limits, but the road heading to it was also heavily guarded, so it was nearly as safe as walking down the streets within the city.

“Don’t tell me you don’t know how to walk,” Fate said.

“Of course, I know how to walk. That’s how I got here, right?” I replied.

Fate sighed. “Well, if we hurry, you might not be late. You are a commoner, so I guess you can’t help being a little clueless.”

“I’m sorry, we?” I blinked.

“Abigail asked me to escort you for your first day. Although Abigail doesn’t have the time to attend the academy since she’s busy running her family’s Stormberg branch, you are going to represent your family at the academy. It’s an important role and you can’t afford to mess this up!”

I tilted my head. “I understand.”

She frowned slightly as if she didn’t quite trust me, but when she noticed how close we were standing together, she took a step back.

“It’s good that you understand your place. I won’t hold you accountable for what happened during the martial tournament. I’m not someone who holds grudges. However, if you think your reckless behavior will work well in the Academy, you’ll quickly find yourself being expelled. Mistress Domini will not accept troublemakers.”

“I’m sorry, who?”

The name Domini immediately triggered my attention. That was one of the three great families. They were the most likely to be involved in the death of Mara’s parents and as well as the destruction of the Lyn family. I couldn’t help but be curious.

Fate smiled in triumph. “Mistress Amelia Domini is not someone even you can afford to offend. She’s the personal disciple of the Provost and sister to the current master of the Domini family.”

“The Provost… I’ve heard that name a few times. He’s the ruler of the entire Academy?”

“That’s right, his position is only second to that of Lord Nikola. You must learn to behave.” Fate nodded her head. “Although the academy is an independent organization from the nobility, many of their students come straight from the paragon families. All power flows through the Academy. Be careful, or you might just end up a pawn of others.”

“A pawn, huh.” I thought about it, and I realized that her advice was trying to protect me. “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“See that you do.” She huffed, no longer speaking as we continued our walk in silence.

Although fate’s beauty drew some eyes, no one thought twice about bothering us. Her status was apparantly well known and no one dared to cross her. Whether it was because of her martial talent or her background, I didn’t know. When we left town, there were guards at the gate. They merely nodded us on as we headed down a paved path.

Rather than the pavement quality decreasing with time, it grew higher quality until it was a decorative brick. Every few blocks guards were protecting the roadway. We also weren’t the only ones walking down this path. There were other young masters and mistresses of various ages. Some of the younger ones were being escorted by the family’s servants. A few looked our way with curiosity, but most minded their own business. It appeared that Fate hadn’t lied though. They were all on foot.

With a large mountain in the background, we finally came to a large gate with a half dozen more guards. Most of the people who approached showed some kind of ID around their necks and then they were immediately let in. As soon as I approached, the guards blocked my path. Fate stepped forward.

“He’s a new student starting today.” Fate showed her ID and explained.

The guards looked me over, but before they could respond, there was another voice. ” Let them in. I’ll take care of this.”

The guards immediately backed away. I didn’t see where the voice had come from, but Fate looked a bit surprised. The pair of us entered the gate and started walking up the path, but we hadn’t gotten more than a few steps away from the gateway when a woman came walking toward us. She had black hair tied back in a bun and thick glasses.

“Headmistress.” Fate lowered her head in reverence.

“I’ll handle the new student. You can go about your business.” The woman responded shortly.

“Ah!” Fate looked over at me worriedly. “But…”

The headmistress glanced between Fate and me, and a small smile formed on her face, causing Fate to blush slightly. “You don’t need to worry. I’ll release him when we’re done speaking. You can talk to him when he returns.”

“W-who wants to talk to him!” She responded, glaring at me like it was my fault she understood before giving the headmistress one more nod and leaving.

The headmistress watched her leave before turning to me. “So, you’re the new Capala master, hmm?”

“At least, I’m the Capala mistress’s fiance,” I responded.

She smiled. “It’s good to understand that difference. Come with me.”

She led the way to a large building not too far away from the entrance. There was a small entryway that led to a large courtyard. The grounds were covered in green grass and various flowers. In the center was a table and chairs where a tea party seemed to be set up. As the headmistress sat, she crossed her legs deliberately. I remained standing. We remained like that for several moments as she took a cup and took a long sip.

“They say your name is Spirit?” She asked after putting her cup back down.

“Yes, I am.” I nodded.

“You’ve already heard that I’m the headmistress.” She continued “Although I am from the Domini family, my loyalty lies with the Academy, not with any paragon family. So, you don’t need to feel worried about coming to me with any issues you might have within the academy. I will not show favoritism in disputes between paragon families.”

I didn’t think that was true, but there wasn’t any reason for me to disagree. I just wanted to go along with whatever she wanted, so that she would be more willing to give me the information I needed.

“I’m grateful for the headmistress,” I replied.

“First off, here, take this.” She pulled out a strange plate from I couldn’t guess where, and then put it on the table in front of me.

“This is?”

“It detects your level of magic and bone age.”

“If you insist.” I picked it up without hesitation.

I felt the little bit of mana I had pulled into it, and then some symbols shone. She watched them appear and then sighed.

“So, the rumors are true. You do have a nonsense mutation in mana. Even for a twenty-two-year-old mortal, your mana level would be considered low.”

“So I’ve heard…”

Her smile softened. “You don’t need to feel too concerned. Mana can be both a gift and a curse.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I responded. “Is that why you brought me here?”

“Of course not. We had a few more things to talk about. And since you are the student of a paragon family, and generally an unknown strength in Stormberg, I wanted to meet you for myself. Do you have any questions for me?”

“There is.”

“I’m listening.” She took another sip from her teacup.

“Where is your library?”

“So, it’s information you seek?”

“Something like that.”

“I will make sure to set permission through your ID.” She nodded. “You will only have access to the first floor. This is non-negotiable. The Academy has a ranking system, and only those from the Academy are allowed to access our most important documents.”

So, it seemed like the Academy wasn’t much different than the Paragon families, except they were a power separate from the families, one where someone could succeed not based on background, but on talent!