Multiple ships were coming and going in the past days, arriving at the airfield established next to the newest city on Meriath. Those who were familiar with how the city looked on the floating island found that many buildings and streets were back, recreated once again as if they were never gone in the first place.
"Are you going to come and observe tomorrow?" Albert asked while his wife, in her human form, was walking around her shop, placing old books on shelves and looking over a list of inventory in the meantime.
"No. I need to unpack many things... when my collection was teleported off the island, it was scattered across the land into different safehouses... I am still waiting for two shipments to arrive anytime now."
"But it will be Lia's first big appearance as the Headmaster!"
"And? She already graded some students before; she can do it."
"Heartless!"
"She is a capable woman. She can deal with it."
"Haaah... I thought you would want to record it for future generations... it is an important milestone, no?"
"..."
"Cici?" Albert asked after a bit of pause, looking at her pleadingly.
"Maybe I will inspect the start."
"Hehe, see? It isn't that hard!"
While Albert and Cici were relaxed and happily looking forward to the public entrance exam, this couldn't be said about the two other factions. The first was the arriving students, who were coming from all over the continent. The fact that they would all face a test simultaneously made them extremely nervous as many of them barely could cast any spells while some were already a Magi. Yet, maybe the most nervous of them all was none other than Lia.
"You should relax!" Lucian chuckled, visiting her at the top of the little mountain where the primary training ground had been set up. "You have been pushing yourself too hard!"
"Believe it or not... it didn't tire me out. Not yet." Lia answered by dropping her shoulders, wearing a simple training robe, tying its top part around her waist, and wearing only a sports bra.
"Are you sure?" Lucian asked, looking at her sweaty face and her blonde hair sticking to her bare shoulders.
"Yep! It is strange..."
"Tell me about it! I am standing here, watching you manipulate all eight elements! What the hell happened to you on the other side?"
"I became super talented!" She joked while grinning triumphantly.
"Maybe I should have died too? OWIE!" Lucian couldn't help but scream out the same way as Lia used to because the young woman was right next to him, biting his hand like an angry puppy.
"Don't say something like that again! It's not funny!" She said it through gritted teeth, looking up into his eyes with genuine anger. "Dying is not good! Not permitted!"
"Okay, okay... got it... can you let my arm go? It hurts..."
"Hmph! Silly Fox!"
"I got the message!" He moaned while rubbing his arm, marked by Lia's little teeth, "But I am honestly asking here, what happened? I know you were talented, backed up by what you achieved, but now you can cast spells from all eight elements! Do you know how long that took for the other teachers? And how hard it is for them to change the attribute of their mana?"
"No, I don't. I mean, I don't know any answers to your question as I have only guesses! I already told you that Erias helped remake my body... I am now someone who was born from the energies that made up our Realm... so it is energy from the Cosmos." She explained to the best of her knowledge, looking down at her breasts, measuring them with two hands, satisfied with how bouncy they were. "Hehehe! I am not complaining, you see!"
"Yeah. I see." Lucian nodded, watching her without a change in his expression.
"Tsk... No fun..."
"I am more experienced than you... but please, continue."
"Ooookaaaay! Bouncy-bouncy~!" She giggled, starting to deliberately jiggle her boobs, "Do you like them, Grandpa Fox? OWIE!"
"Careful, I can still knock some sense into you, Headmaster Lia."
"Uuuu... Bully!" She moaned, holding the top of her head with both of her hands, swaying her hips left and right as if she were trying to shake off the pain. "Be careful; what if you smack the knowledge out of my head?!"
"You are too thickheaded for that, girl! So? Continue? Pleaseeee?"
"At least you know how to ask nicely... Khm! When we were traveling the Soulbound Sect, I noticed that their different layers used different elements to exist. My body simply... felt it... and I could harmonize with all of them with a bit of focus... I... I just understood them. I can't really explain it; it came naturally."
"Hmmm... so your new body brought some unique abilities with it? Sensing the energy around us better, eh? I wonder why they didn't all do that..."
"My guess is they didn't know about it."
"I am tempted now..." Lucian whispered, but seeing the change in Lia's eyes, he quickly smiled, reassuring her, "Watching you cast those spells, you seem to have a fairly good grasp on the eight elements. What are your honest feelings about their power?"
"All the new ones are at the level of Magi... at best." She replied after thinking about it. "They will become more powerful if I start combining them."
"How hard will it be in your estimation?"
"Mmmm..." There was no quick answer to Lucian's question this time. Lia couldn't help but cross her hands and walk up and down a little while her aura changed multiple times, embodying a different element at every juncture. "I can't tell because I feel like it is easy to make them work together... but the closer and closer I pull them, trying to truly mix them, they began pushing back."
"Like magnets?"
"Kinda... Anyway, for now, I am not looking to blend them into my two main powers! It is too early for that, but I can already see how to do it. Or... feel it, to be exact."
"Feelings are hard to teach, you know!" Lucian shrugged because if Lia couldn't put it into words, he couldn't either.
"Not really!"
Her sudden, playful answer surprised Lucian. He raised his eyebrows and watched Lia with a curious glance. With a deep breath, she closed her eyes, and a moment later, the old fox could feel an energy wave wash through him, originating from within Lia's body. The feeling that overcame him was strange... alien. For a moment, he saw the flashing image of the Cosmos.
"What was that?"
"You saw it?" Lia asked, looking excited, bouncing up and down before the still-dazed Lucian.
"I... I don't know what I saw... but it was... weird?"
"It's the energy of the Cosmos! I expelled it from my body! I tried it on others, too; only a select few people responded to it. You did, which means your soul is perceptive enough!"
"Perception..." He murmured, and somehow, he felt as if he, for a brief moment, glimpsed into the origin of his own spells.
"Um! Everybody is unique, and I can't teach them a step-by-step formula for combining magic... it is up to them to grasp it! My fire is not the same as Keily's, for example! What works for me doesn't work for others! The Golden Claw was teaching principles and laws for each element to their disciples. Their method was to make their followers understand how each worked and, from that knowledge, gain understanding, leading to enlightenment. That was their method."
"And yours?"
"A mix!" She explained with a proud smile, "In school, I will teach them that! The principles that govern and are present in each of the elements! But I will also let them experience the feeling of something that already has all eight! It is our biggest gift right now!" Lia sighed, turning her head upwards and watching the clouded skies. "We are covered with a layer of cosmic energy... the fallout from the battle. Sooner or later, this will dissipate, assimilate into our Realm, breaking down into the eight elements, and then the sun will return. Just look at it when it rains! It is the pure essence of water and nature, mixing together, coming down... that is why the plants grow so rapidly, and that is why there are reports of record-breaking harvests!"
"So this is the time to learn it the fastest..." Lucian nodded, understanding her quickly.
"Um! And it will be the easiest period to teach! Every time we meditate, we now bring that energy into our bodies! Those who have a soul that is perceptive enough will have no problems mixing them! You will see!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Everything depends on it... and I am confident in my theory because I learned that the Undead always chose people based on their souls. They came back not because it was random... but because their souls were perfect for learning their methods!"
...
....
......
The following day, Lia smilingly welcomed a thousand youngsters who would soon go through the entrance test to the new Institute of Eight Elements. She only held a short speech, encouraging them and thanking the others who came to spectate for rebuilding the Academy this quickly. What she was missing the most were her friends, as not every Misfit could be present. Or... that is what she thought at first. She was just about to turn around to lead them to the top when her eyes noticed Sion... then Aurora, standing right next to Raufon, Keily, and Koadriana, who had a pretty big belly by then. She wanted to shout and wave at them but held back at the last moment, grinning, nodding towards the group, watching as the others, Rinzen, Ceiline, and Simbad, also returned the gesture.
With the knowledge that they all had come, it was much easier to go to the top and usher everyone into the primary training ground. She was visibly beaming from the happiness that soon spread amongst the students, too. The moment it swallowed up a pupil, they entered a different world altogether. This time, they were standing in a place that looked precisely how the Cosmos did, stunning them into complete silence.
"The test is simple and easy." Echoed Lia's kind yet strict voice, "Sit down and meditate. If you never did it before, don't worry... just let your mind relax and... let the world disappear around you."
As the hopeful masses followed her instructions, many of them fell into a kind of trance, something that was partially thanks to Lia, who was now acting as a conductor. She was drawing energy down from the sky and using herself as an amplifier, probing their souls, nudging them ever so gently.
For many, it was not even a test but more like a ceremony. One by one, they began to feel that a deep, fundamental understanding started budding within them while those who missed it emerged back into reality, realizing they were not good enough. Lucian, Cici, Opparu, and Albert were already there, waiting patiently, leading them away, encouraging the crestfallen youngsters not to give up and, when the next year comes, not be afraid of applying once again. Three hours later, the examination finally ended, and only 700 people remained, ejecting from the training ground at the same time.
"Welcome to the Institute of Eight Elements!" Lia laughed, emerging before them, gracefully standing in the sky. "You have been selected to be the first students of the reformed Academy! Congratulations! Of course, talent is not everything... you will have to put in hard work, or you won't get any further than this! At the end of every year, we will evaluate you, and if you can't show adequate progress... multiple things can happen. Those who are here on full scholarship will be demoted and have to pay for their tuition! Those who show ample improvements can replace you at any time! Failure is not accepted here! The Undead may be gone forever, but that does not mean peril won't befall us once again! You all saw what happened, how our Realm's Gate was opened! The outside world is dangerous. If we can't defend ourselves, then worse things than the Undead can come through and kill us all! We must be vigilant, and we must be ready! So, those who think lazing around is accepted here... Expulsion is not something I am afraid of meting out! But... those who work hard, I can promise that you will look back to these Eight Years as the best years of your life!" With a gentle smile and a wave of her hand, bracelets appeared around everyone's wrists, beeping, and Hajna's voice echoed from within.
"Please follow my instructions to your dormitories."
"How are you?" Lucian sent over a message while helping the excited youngsters head down to the city.
"A bit tired... but I'll be fine! These kids all have the potential in them... I think we will do well here! I am even a bit jealous!"
"Oh? Of what?"
"That these kids will have eight years to spend here... a year per element... heh... I couldn't even stay my full four years!"
"You are now the Headmaster... You did keep your promise... So I wouldn't get jealous in your shoes! You will have ample years to spend in here!"
"Ahaha, true, true! I am not complaining!"
With a laugh, she landed, watching as her closest friends emerged from the disappearing crowd, and under the purple sky, the Misfits met up once again, but possibly for the last time.
Multiple ships were coming and going in the past days, arriving at the airfield established next to the newest city on Meriath. Those who were familiar with how the city looked on the floating island found that many buildings and streets were back, recreated once again as if they were never gone in the first place.
"Are you going to come and observe tomorrow?" Albert asked while his wife, in her human form, was walking around her shop, placing old books on shelves and looking over a list of inventory in the meantime.
"No. I need to unpack many things... when my collection was teleported off the island, it was scattered across the land into different safehouses... I am still waiting for two shipments to arrive anytime now."
"But it will be Lia's first big appearance as the Headmaster!"
"And? She already graded some students before; she can do it."
"Heartless!"
"She is a capable woman. She can deal with it."
"Haaah... I thought you would want to record it for future generations... it is an important milestone, no?"
"..."
"Cici?" Albert asked after a bit of pause, looking at her pleadingly.
"Maybe I will inspect the start."
"Hehe, see? It isn't that hard!"
While Albert and Cici were relaxed and happily looking forward to the public entrance exam, this couldn't be said about the two other factions. The first was the arriving students, who were coming from all over the continent. The fact that they would all face a test simultaneously made them extremely nervous as many of them barely could cast any spells while some were already a Magi. Yet, maybe the most nervous of them all was none other than Lia.
"You should relax!" Lucian chuckled, visiting her at the top of the little mountain where the primary training ground had been set up. "You have been pushing yourself too hard!"
"Believe it or not... it didn't tire me out. Not yet." Lia answered by dropping her shoulders, wearing a simple training robe, tying its top part around her waist, and wearing only a sports bra.
"Are you sure?" Lucian asked, looking at her sweaty face and her blonde hair sticking to her bare shoulders.
"Yep! It is strange..."
"Tell me about it! I am standing here, watching you manipulate all eight elements! What the hell happened to you on the other side?"
"I became super talented!" She joked while grinning triumphantly.
"Maybe I should have died too? OWIE!" Lucian couldn't help but scream out the same way as Lia used to because the young woman was right next to him, biting his hand like an angry puppy.
"Don't say something like that again! It's not funny!" She said it through gritted teeth, looking up into his eyes with genuine anger. "Dying is not good! Not permitted!"
"Okay, okay... got it... can you let my arm go? It hurts..."
"Hmph! Silly Fox!"
"I got the message!" He moaned while rubbing his arm, marked by Lia's little teeth, "But I am honestly asking here, what happened? I know you were talented, backed up by what you achieved, but now you can cast spells from all eight elements! Do you know how long that took for the other teachers? And how hard it is for them to change the attribute of their mana?"
"No, I don't. I mean, I don't know any answers to your question as I have only guesses! I already told you that Erias helped remake my body... I am now someone who was born from the energies that made up our Realm... so it is energy from the Cosmos." She explained to the best of her knowledge, looking down at her breasts, measuring them with two hands, satisfied with how bouncy they were. "Hehehe! I am not complaining, you see!"
"Yeah. I see." Lucian nodded, watching her without a change in his expression.
"Tsk... No fun..."
"I am more experienced than you... but please, continue."
"Ooookaaaay! Bouncy-bouncy~!" She giggled, starting to deliberately jiggle her boobs, "Do you like them, Grandpa Fox? OWIE!"
"Careful, I can still knock some sense into you, Headmaster Lia."
"Uuuu... Bully!" She moaned, holding the top of her head with both of her hands, swaying her hips left and right as if she were trying to shake off the pain. "Be careful; what if you smack the knowledge out of my head?!"
"You are too thickheaded for that, girl! So? Continue? Pleaseeee?"
"At least you know how to ask nicely... Khm! When we were traveling the Soulbound Sect, I noticed that their different layers used different elements to exist. My body simply... felt it... and I could harmonize with all of them with a bit of focus... I... I just understood them. I can't really explain it; it came naturally."
"Hmmm... so your new body brought some unique abilities with it? Sensing the energy around us better, eh? I wonder why they didn't all do that..."
"My guess is they didn't know about it."
"I am tempted now..." Lucian whispered, but seeing the change in Lia's eyes, he quickly smiled, reassuring her, "Watching you cast those spells, you seem to have a fairly good grasp on the eight elements. What are your honest feelings about their power?"
"All the new ones are at the level of Magi... at best." She replied after thinking about it. "They will become more powerful if I start combining them."
"How hard will it be in your estimation?"
"Mmmm..." There was no quick answer to Lucian's question this time. Lia couldn't help but cross her hands and walk up and down a little while her aura changed multiple times, embodying a different element at every juncture. "I can't tell because I feel like it is easy to make them work together... but the closer and closer I pull them, trying to truly mix them, they began pushing back."
"Like magnets?"
"Kinda... Anyway, for now, I am not looking to blend them into my two main powers! It is too early for that, but I can already see how to do it. Or... feel it, to be exact."
"Feelings are hard to teach, you know!" Lucian shrugged because if Lia couldn't put it into words, he couldn't either.
"Not really!"
Her sudden, playful answer surprised Lucian. He raised his eyebrows and watched Lia with a curious glance. With a deep breath, she closed her eyes, and a moment later, the old fox could feel an energy wave wash through him, originating from within Lia's body. The feeling that overcame him was strange... alien. For a moment, he saw the flashing image of the Cosmos.
"What was that?"
"You saw it?" Lia asked, looking excited, bouncing up and down before the still-dazed Lucian.
"I... I don't know what I saw... but it was... weird?"
"It's the energy of the Cosmos! I expelled it from my body! I tried it on others, too; only a select few people responded to it. You did, which means your soul is perceptive enough!"
"Perception..." He murmured, and somehow, he felt as if he, for a brief moment, glimpsed into the origin of his own spells.
"Um! Everybody is unique, and I can't teach them a step-by-step formula for combining magic... it is up to them to grasp it! My fire is not the same as Keily's, for example! What works for me doesn't work for others! The Golden Claw was teaching principles and laws for each element to their disciples. Their method was to make their followers understand how each worked and, from that knowledge, gain understanding, leading to enlightenment. That was their method."
"And yours?"
"A mix!" She explained with a proud smile, "In school, I will teach them that! The principles that govern and are present in each of the elements! But I will also let them experience the feeling of something that already has all eight! It is our biggest gift right now!" Lia sighed, turning her head upwards and watching the clouded skies. "We are covered with a layer of cosmic energy... the fallout from the battle. Sooner or later, this will dissipate, assimilate into our Realm, breaking down into the eight elements, and then the sun will return. Just look at it when it rains! It is the pure essence of water and nature, mixing together, coming down... that is why the plants grow so rapidly, and that is why there are reports of record-breaking harvests!"
"So this is the time to learn it the fastest..." Lucian nodded, understanding her quickly.
"Um! And it will be the easiest period to teach! Every time we meditate, we now bring that energy into our bodies! Those who have a soul that is perceptive enough will have no problems mixing them! You will see!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Everything depends on it... and I am confident in my theory because I learned that the Undead always chose people based on their souls. They came back not because it was random... but because their souls were perfect for learning their methods!"
...
....
......
The following day, Lia smilingly welcomed a thousand youngsters who would soon go through the entrance test to the new Institute of Eight Elements. She only held a short speech, encouraging them and thanking the others who came to spectate for rebuilding the Academy this quickly. What she was missing the most were her friends, as not every Misfit could be present. Or... that is what she thought at first. She was just about to turn around to lead them to the top when her eyes noticed Sion... then Aurora, standing right next to Raufon, Keily, and Koadriana, who had a pretty big belly by then. She wanted to shout and wave at them but held back at the last moment, grinning, nodding towards the group, watching as the others, Rinzen, Ceiline, and Simbad, also returned the gesture.
With the knowledge that they all had come, it was much easier to go to the top and usher everyone into the primary training ground. She was visibly beaming from the happiness that soon spread amongst the students, too. The moment it swallowed up a pupil, they entered a different world altogether. This time, they were standing in a place that looked precisely how the Cosmos did, stunning them into complete silence.
"The test is simple and easy." Echoed Lia's kind yet strict voice, "Sit down and meditate. If you never did it before, don't worry... just let your mind relax and... let the world disappear around you."
As the hopeful masses followed her instructions, many of them fell into a kind of trance, something that was partially thanks to Lia, who was now acting as a conductor. She was drawing energy down from the sky and using herself as an amplifier, probing their souls, nudging them ever so gently.
For many, it was not even a test but more like a ceremony. One by one, they began to feel that a deep, fundamental understanding started budding within them while those who missed it emerged back into reality, realizing they were not good enough. Lucian, Cici, Opparu, and Albert were already there, waiting patiently, leading them away, encouraging the crestfallen youngsters not to give up and, when the next year comes, not be afraid of applying once again. Three hours later, the examination finally ended, and only 700 people remained, ejecting from the training ground at the same time.
"Welcome to the Institute of Eight Elements!" Lia laughed, emerging before them, gracefully standing in the sky. "You have been selected to be the first students of the reformed Academy! Congratulations! Of course, talent is not everything... you will have to put in hard work, or you won't get any further than this! At the end of every year, we will evaluate you, and if you can't show adequate progress... multiple things can happen. Those who are here on full scholarship will be demoted and have to pay for their tuition! Those who show ample improvements can replace you at any time! Failure is not accepted here! The Undead may be gone forever, but that does not mean peril won't befall us once again! You all saw what happened, how our Realm's Gate was opened! The outside world is dangerous. If we can't defend ourselves, then worse things than the Undead can come through and kill us all! We must be vigilant, and we must be ready! So, those who think lazing around is accepted here... Expulsion is not something I am afraid of meting out! But... those who work hard, I can promise that you will look back to these Eight Years as the best years of your life!" With a gentle smile and a wave of her hand, bracelets appeared around everyone's wrists, beeping, and Hajna's voice echoed from within.
"Please follow my instructions to your dormitories."
"How are you?" Lucian sent over a message while helping the excited youngsters head down to the city.
"A bit tired... but I'll be fine! These kids all have the potential in them... I think we will do well here! I am even a bit jealous!"
"Oh? Of what?"
"That these kids will have eight years to spend here... a year per element... heh... I couldn't even stay my full four years!"
"You are now the Headmaster... You did keep your promise... So I wouldn't get jealous in your shoes! You will have ample years to spend in here!"
"Ahaha, true, true! I am not complaining!"
With a laugh, she landed, watching as her closest friends emerged from the disappearing crowd, and under the purple sky, the Misfits met up once again, but possibly for the last time.
