Episode 12 – Sign-ups (1/2)

A racefully However, the ground they landed back on was not the same land from which they jumped

They were standing on a large circular podium made out of black jade Countless sy ink

The podiuh to fit several houses It nificant

Froes of the podium, spread a sea of purple crystals Layers upon layers of crystal forrew around the podium

It was a gorgeous sight, full of flickering and reflecting lights Each tis on the floor would light up briefly as if welco the travelers back home

Elaru was quick to put her beacon back into her bag before she tugged on Kiel's hand and led hih no one would be brazen enough to try robbing her in the presence of Peacekeepers, letting people see her Eternal Beacon would be asking for future trouble

For Kiel, this was the first ti around with interest He didn't even question Elaru's usage of Acceleration before they teleported, nor did he notice that they were still holding hands

Kiel looked at the few dozen Peacekeepers guarding the Gate They were spread around the gate in a circle, standing watch like statues Their uniforolden eold, which seemed to be more decorative than practical

Kiel looked up at the clear sky He could clearly feel an invisible, restrictive barrier enveloping the Gate like a do the Gate as they pleased Everyone needed to follow a set path when entering or exiting so that they could be inspected and charged fees

Kiel looked back at the gateway in front of theate, 10 m in circumference, was the only way in and out of the barrier As Kiel looked out of the gate, he noticed the world beyond the gates was a bit blurry, and it glittered His mana sense told hiates, but that shouldn't have caused his vision to blur

No one stopped them as they made their exit Only those ished to enter needed to pay the fee

As they passed through the gateway, Kiel felt a strange sensation, like he passed through the surface of a soap bubble What was that?

Kiel was confused These gateere the only places where there were holes in the restrictive barrier, so what he felt wasn't the barrier Even if the restrictive barrier didn't have holes, he wouldn't have physically felt it unless it repelled him

Kiel turned his head back to look at the gate

”They spread a thin veil between the gates, made out of mana wyrht through it” Elaru noticed his interest and explained

Ah! So that's why the world he saw through the gates flickered and felt blurry He was viewing it through a veil

”Mana wyre use them to test whether someone is Tainted”

Suddenly, everything fell into place, and Kiel understood Anyone at any point could teleport to this gate if they had an appropriate Beacon That erous forbidden zone, could also cois However, who is to say that they weren't carrying a deadly plague back with them – the Ink?

If they had been Tainted by the Ink, then they would have to be quarantined immediately and not allowed to spread it That's why everyone needed to pass through the Ink detecting veil when exiting the gate

The clear view of rows upon rows of light yellow houses greeted theate

Elaru tugged on Kiel's hand harder, telling hihtsee! We have to hurry”

She pulled him down the street She seeo

The streets were bustling with people, round e ”Rent-a-dragon” wooden sign ahead of the it, she suddenly stopped and Accelerated upwards, pulling hi

They landed on the roof of a building, their landing scaring a flock of yelloi resting on the roof, s

Tiere small round birds that looked like cotton balls They had ss that create a soft buzzing sound when they flap them They also have a few tail feathers that are several ti out of their behind

The skies were clear, with no clouds in sight The only things that could be seen in the sky were flocks of gugoo and silhouettes of flying dragons and htly, but it didn't feel hot

Kiel looked at the horizon Countless rows of houses of all shapes and sizes greeted him, as far as the eye could see Their walls in all shades of yellow, personalized by different engravings, h most houses were made of similar materials in a similar style, each one seeh s on the walls, drapes, and carpets hanging fro the houses

The warm colors of the houses ave Ashar a war was only enhanced by the background noises Kiel could hear soft cooing of gugoo, the pleasant chirping of tiwi followed by the quiet buzzing of their wings, and even strong swishi+ng of dragon wings The chatter and laughter of men and women alike, spread from all sides

Ashar was bursting with life, one could tell iest cities in Halnea

This wasn't Kiel's first ti to Beyd

He didn't dislike Ashar, he wouldn't ain Kiel's mouth twitched into a small smile

Elaru pointed at a cos were situated on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by empty plains on one side, and a forest on the other

Ashar University of Magic

Kiel's eyes glittered That was his destination That was his future home

Elaru turned to hirinned ”Let's fly!”

Fly? Kiel looked around theet around the city, Kiel noticed thatroof to roof via Acceleration, and even ic Their presence on the roof didn't make them stand out at all In fact, upon further inspection of the roofs, it looked like they were specially made to be walked on

They were not roofs in the traditional sense, they were orange stone platfor person crash into it full force The buildings also had wooden pillars around the from the roof

At first, Kiel had thought that their purpose was to shi+eld people froht have also served to soften the fall if so and fall off the roof

Even though he used to live in Ashar, he had seldo city was not soe Even though Beyd was an argel town, and argel often used ic to fly and accelerate, there weren't many people in Beyd that flew around It was rare to see so from roof to roof because it was considered i and could collapse easily

”Fly? Why don't we just rent a dragon?” Kiel raised an eyebrow at Elaru There was a ”Rent-a-dragon” office just ahead of them

”Renting a dragon is for people who can't fly! Besides, those dragons aren't racing dragons, they can't hope to keep up in speed to two excellentear to ear

When her feet left the roof and she floated upwards, Kiel realized that they had been holding hands the entire ti for him to join her

He frowned and let go of her hand It was inappropriate to hold hands with a female unless they were ro him

He pretended that the sudden loss of comfortable heat in his hand didn't bother him

”There is a long way to the university You just gained the ability to cast Acceleration ic Are you sure you can sustain it the entire way?”

There were ic Fro every few seconds, which looked like the person was juround, to the ravity Elaru was skipping the entire learning curve onto the last stages of flight Kiel felt inferior for being unable to cast any Transmutation spells Not that he had tried He just didn't know any

”It'll be fine I've seen Acceleration ic so many times that I can cast it in my sleep”

Acceleration was an impulse spell, it had i an impulse spell into a sustained spell, a spell whose effects persist over time, was not as simple as one would be led to believe

Kiel didn't bother to argue with her Instead, he concentrated on overco his own reluctance to fly He wasn't sure if it was because he was afraid that he'd run out of mana, or because he was afraid to finally set out to the skies, after all this time

Certainly, he wasn't afraid that he couldn't keep up with her ic since he was born It wouldn't be a challenge to beat so it for the first time a few minutes prior

Kiel looked back to the university,the distance skeptically

Elaru laughed, dis his unvoiced concerns easily ”Kiel, you worry too much!”

”And you worry too little” He glared at her halfheartedly

”It's fine! It doesn'tIf I fall, you'll catch me!”

Kiel's soft glare turned into a real one ”As if I would catch you! You can go and die for all I care! That would free me from this mess”

She flashed hihtly,him upwards into the skies

Kiel bit down on his lips to not curse Whenever she reached for his hand, it was always so quick that he didn't have the tie it

”You'll either catch hed The as blowing her hair around her like a mane

She was happy She was really happy to finally be able to fly

And Kiel felt her happiness spread onto him Whether it was because of her powerful, expressive aura, or an aftereffect of their bond that she claimed didn't exist, it didn't ious And, after all, he had alanted to fly as well

He pulled up the goggles hanging around his neck onto his eyes so that the ouldn't bother him Elaru followed his suit and took out her own that were hidden under her scarf

Elaru took the lead and accelerated quickly forwards, faster and faster, pulling Kiel along high into the sky He struggled, Accelerated away frorip on his hand didn't lessen at all

The attele free caused a weird dance to occur

”Let go of me, woman!” Kiel frowned in displeasure No rip on his hand

”Nevah!” She laughed Kiel even saw her flick her tongue to him briefly How bloody childish!+

”Let go or I'll kick you!” Kiel threatened

”Go ahead and try!” Elaru grinned, easily dodging his leg It looked like she was a leaf drifting on the wind Kiel frowned, he would indeed have trouble hitting her like this

”Stop pulling me doith you!”

”Can't you just fly us back up, ht-A-student'?”

”Fly on your own, darn it!”

”But flying with you is so much more fun!”

”I don't care if you're having fun! I a fun!” Kiel yelled over the loud sound of wind hitting their faces

”Did you forget I can tell when you are lying?” Elaru laughed merrily Kiel tried to divert the conversation He did, in fact, forget that she could tell his lies apart

”Stop it! We are attracting attention People are looking at us!” Kiel felt his cheeks heating up, he tried his best to keep his emotions off his face This is just too ridiculous! When was the last ti of a noble?!

”So?”

”What do you ritted teeth

”Yes, I am shameless”

”Learn some shame then!!”

”Teach me then”

Kiel glared at her, corin never left Elaru's face She responded to hi hi him to try and shake her off

”Are you deliberately going in the opposite direction?!” Kiel hissed

”Of course not, I am just a bad flier”

”I can tell you are lying! Is our i deeration

”Dra and have some fun!”

”How could trying not to fall to death be fun?! I a fun!”

Elaru laughed without a care in the world ”You are repeating yourself Running out of curses already?”

Kiel glared at her icily He couldn't ad to steer while taking into account actions of each other, it was like a game of rock, paper and scissors

The ah he complained the entire way, it wasn't because he orried about dying He wouldn't die as long as he had enough mana to prevent it

He complained because he didn't want her this close to hilee to hihtly, and especially not to perrave her presence in his pleasant memories

He could feel his cold and apathetic ht, and he didn't like it Or did he?

As the clear sky beckoned theentle kisses, and as the wind ruffled their hair and clothes, Kiel forgot all his worries For that brief while, Kiel felt free

And for the first ti time, he felt content, nize that pleasant feeling because he was a stranger to happiness He didn't ponder and dissect 'why' and 'what' he was feeling, all he kneas that finally, after all this ti

For a ot that all of this was just teet used to this

And even though his mind knew that clearly, the heart was not the one to listen to reason

The huge courtyard, surrounding the Ashar University of Magic, was paved hite stone tiles and decorated with trees, flowers, and fountains,short of a royal palace

The white buildings were nue and each one of them was a peerless work of art Even Rroda main house manor paled in comparison

Standing in front of the large buildings, Kiel felt insignificant Like a bug looking up at a tall tree

He took a short while to catch his breath Kiel and Elaru's tug-war had ended with a slightly rough landing Kiel was ai for the road next to theates and falling onto a nearby tree

Usually, such a landing ht have left bruises and scratches, but they were still under the influence of flying h less, and with their fast reflexes, dexterity and agility, both of theh butter

When they were finally safely on the ground, Kiel glared and pointed his finger childishly, blay, she just laughed Seeing her laugh war out fro too She looked ridiculous, her hair looked like a bird's nest

Still, looking at her beautiful s even if she was bathed in s

Kiel was starting to like her sincere laugh It ame to her There was no place for sorrow and worry Just fun

He could like such a world

It see out a childish side to himself that he wasn't aware that he possessed

He shook his head helplessly, trying to return his mental facilities to that of a proper adult

Kiel and Elaru passed through the gates and entered the foyer of the university in a hurry In the middle of the foyer, there was a reception desk occupied by twoto be in their twenties They see to leave

One of the his ears that had several dark brown strands His eyes were chocolate brown and very warentle aura, reminded Kiel of a cute pechuh (S bushy tail Their fur usually comes in shades of brown or white Because of their adorable looks and docile nature they were very popular pets)

The other one was an elibu with shoulder length bluish gray hair tied at the back He had a scholarly air about hiray

Both of the their bodies that es

Kiel and Elaru accelerated towards the two ”Excuseentries for the exam?” Kiel called out to them

The two looked at Elaru and Kiel, noticing their ruffled appearance that looked as if they were in a catfight rolling through the bushes The lance

The ray hair hesitated a bit, his eyebrows furrohen he looked at Elaru

However, the argel with chocolate brown hair, didn't hesitate at all He shrugged and s down”

When he heard the warnation and took out some papers he had just packed He offered them to Kiel and Elaru ”Fill up these forms please”

Elaru refused thened up for the exams months before It's just Kiel that waited until the last second”

The soft, kind smile that was plastered on Kiel's face froze That little… ! It was you that waited until the last second to tell me about the deadline!

Kiel accepted the papers and waited for the lare

When Elaru saw his face which was half stuck in a soft sh into her hand to hter Kiel's distorted expression was just too funny

Kiel's glare disappeared in an instant when the brown-head turned to hinature pen

Signature pens were filled with a special ink that acted as a glue for mana, so the first mana that came in contact with it would be stuck to the ink This allowed the person using the pen to sign documents with their own mana The firstthe pen was thethe pen Since everyone's mana was unique, their mana could be used to verify the identity of the person rote the signature

Kiel thanked theup the forms

Unfortunately, Elaru didn't give hi the for with the two Apparently, they were assistant professors in the university, and because of the University policy, (”Important Muni stuff must be handled by Muni staff”) they had a draw to decide who gets the job of taking entry forms

They drew the short sticks

Kiel also picked up that the ter term used by students and teachers to refer to Ashar University of Magic After all, ”Ashar University of Magic” was a ic University”, but since that was also too long, eventually, even that got condensed into Muni

Kiel also caught their names, Rau Eryey and Ahon Tonrai Their last names were familiar to Kiel

Eryey family was one of the noble faic, and they owned a chain of hospitals and medicine shops