The halls of Bright Sail Academy were just as luxurious as the wonderful white-bricked town that housed it; some might even say it was more luxurious. But Sen thought that would be unnecessary praise. The halls were lined with portraits of famous former students and faculty members, awards they’d received for rendering aid to various kingdoms, and even some trophies from some kind of competition between different schools. Most students wore the traditional uniform of Bright Sail Academy: gray blazers and pants or a skirt with ties of varying colors. At least they were allowed to accessorize somewhat.

  Sen, Mori and Ilm were no exceptions. They walked down the hall in their new uniforms.

  After leaving the entrance exam, they found Zeke waiting outside to see how things went. He’d led them to an inn nearby and offered to pay with the coin Sen gave him, but Sen refused. Sen rented a suite large enough for all of them and paid for several extra weeks for Zeke’s benefit. Sen and his friends would stay on campus, but Zeke was just getting back on his feet. He could use a nice place to live for a while. Before they’d left, he’d had Mori leave wards on Zeke’s clothes and the inn room they’d rented. He didn’t want anyone coming after the poor man for the gold in his possession now. Sen would feel responsible for something like that.

  “I feel a bit out of place here,” Mori said, looking around at the much younger students.

  Ilm giggled. “You look like you should be teaching here instead of learning,” she said.

  Mori sighed. “That was uncalled for.”

  Sen flagged down a student running around taking requests for dorm rooms. “Excuse me,” he said.

  The student stopped and stared at him expectantly. “How can I help?”

  “The three of us would like to share a room. Can you arrange that, or do I need to speak to someone else?”

  The student paused. He looked between them, first at Sen and Mori, and then to Ilm. “Sorry, we don’t typically allow co-ed rooms. You can have whoever you’d like over, but…on paper, you know?”

  “We’re all family,” Mori explained.

  Their matching features, pure white hair, and blood-red eyes really sold the story, not that it wasn’t kind of true. Biologically, they could get away with a sibling label.

  The man thought about it for a moment. “Alright, but you’ll have to pay for the—”

  Sen threw him a coin purse. “Use that. We’d like a double room, four beds, and the nicest furniture you can manage. Impress me, and you can keep the change as a tip.”

  The attendant’s eyes lit up when he felt the weight of the pouch. He nodded and hurried off to prepare everything.

  “Master, you’re throwing around a lot of gold. More than most people seem used to seeing, we may not be able to replenish our funds as fast as we once could. Perhaps we should watch our spending a bit?”

  [Sen’s used to having Ragmár bankroll everything.]

  Mori had a point. Until they found a new source of income, he should probably cut back on spending. At the very least, he should get some lower-value currency for spending money.

  “Why can’t we just make our own?” Ilm asked.

  Mori gasped. “Ilm! I’m surprised at you! Do you know what happens when magicians artificially inflate the amount of currency in the world? Economic downfall! We mustn’t take part in such things.”

  When the attendant finally came to retrieve them and take them to their room, Sen found himself impressed enough to allow the young man and those he gathered to help keep the excess coins as a tip. Despite the frown that left on Mori’s face. They’d be okay; he still had plenty of money for now. They’d received a corner room on the first floor. It was spacious, and they’d used magic to remove the wall of the room next door so they could have the extra room. Four beds were lined up perfectly, and they had a nice couch, a few decorative plants, and even a personal bathroom, complete with a toilet and shower. First-years usually had to use the communal bathrooms, but his new attendant friends had taken extra time to make the necessary adjustments. They must specialize in magic that manipulates buildings. They were good friends to have indeed. At least while they were here. Of course, they could make adjustments as well, but it was better not to reveal everything they were capable of.

  “So what now?” Ilm asked. She sat on the bed and kicked her legs back and forth.

  Mori slipped his hand under his cloak to a pocket somewhere around his chest. He pulled out a monocle to inspect the pamphlet they’d been given. “It says here we wait for our class placements. We’ll find out more information soon, and should wait in our dorms in the meantime.”

  Sen nodded. “That gives us time to prepare. Until we get our temporal world back up and running, this will be our base of operations while we’re at the school. Mori, you’re in charge of wards. As for you, Ilm, I think it’s time I passed on some of my knowledge personally. Come, sit with me.” He sat on one end of the bed with his legs crossed. She hurried over and mirrored his position. It was time for a little upgrade.

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  “How do you feel, Ilm?” he asked.

  Her head wobbled in circles in front of him. “Di…dizzy. Is that always how memory transfers feel?” she asked.

  Sen chuckled. He uncrossed his legs and scooted over to lean against the wall and relax. “No, but I gave you a lot of information very quickly. Your brain is similar enough to mine, so you’ll be able to handle it. It’ll take you a few days to sort through all the information I gave you, but your arsenal of spells has grown tenfold, easily.”

  Mori sighed, looking up from the wards he was casting on the door of the room. “By days, he means months, and by tenfold he means a hundred. But look on the bright side, you’ll be able to stand on your own here at the academy now!”

  That perked Ilm up. She’d been a little nervous about how she’d perform when to put the test for real. Now, she’d be just fine. A knock on the door got their attention, and Mori hurried over to answer it.

  “Hello? How can we help?” he asked.

  The attendant squinted before leaning in the doorway and looking around. “Uh, I’m looking for someone with white hair and red eyes…but that’s all of you. Did…did one of you perform really well in the entrance exam?” he asked.

  Mori and Ilm pointed at Sen. Sen pointed at each of them in turn.

  The attendant’s shoulders sagged. “Well, I guess you could all come, but I was only sent for the one.”

  Mori and Ilm looked at Sen questioningly. “I’ll go. Finish up here, Mori. Ilm, keep a careful eye on his work; there’ll come a time when you'll need to place wards as well.” He hated leaving them, but if they were going to relax and rest in this room, those wards were the bare minimum. The door guardian could wait until tomorrow.

  He hopped off the bed and followed the attendant down a series of hallways until they reached a small library filled with students. He hadn’t expected this many people here. If everyone were here, why hadn’t the other two been invited?

  “Tutor, pay careful attention so we can relay this information to the others later.”

  [Affirmative.]

  A man wearing a short top hat walked onto a stage specially erected for whatever this event was. He looked around the audience and took long glances at some of them in particular. Sen was one of those he took notice of.

  “Good evening, my name is Dean Withershade. My job is to oversee the school and ensure each and everyone of you has the opportunity to grow to new heights. During the entrance exam, our examiners look for students who have especially bright potential, and this year we’ve decided to do something a little different. Normally class rankings don’t start until your second year. But this year, they’ll start on day one. Class rankings are essential to the academy; when you graduate, that ranking will dictate your future until a time comes when you can differentiate yourself and stand out on your own. Additionally, we will offer rare and unique opportunities to those of you who can rank highly.

  One guy toward the front of the room stood with crossed arms. He had spiky black hair, and the students around him gave him a wide berth. “What’s the point? A first-year wouldn’t be able to place anyway,” he said.

  The Dean turned to look at him. “Ah, Snake. While it’s true it might prove difficult, the ranking system pushes Bright Sail Academy students towards excellence; this year, we’ve simply extended that opportunity towards first years as well.”

  Snake tsked, but didn’t say anything else.

  “We can’t start official rankings until classes start, but for now, I’d like to go over some perks of ranking highly,” the Dean said.

  A woman came on stage, and Sen recognized her from the entrance exam. Professor Ladia. She carried an enormous banner with a list of prizes on it.

  Top 50: One on one tutoring with a professor of your choice

  Top 30: Access to the special library, select a spell tablet of your choice

  Top 20: Choose one item from the academy’s collection of minor artifacts

  Top 10: Choose one item from the academy’s collection of major artifacts.

  Number 1: A special prize awarded to the top-ranked student each year.

  Sen perked up at that. Rankings, it was like a game; he liked games. A sudden status update popped up.

  Quest: Reach Rank 1 in the School Rankings.

  Reward: Ability to upgrade a high-grade artifact.

  Sen had never even heard of a rank above high-grade. This might be a long-term quest, since it would be the end of the year before he could claim it, but…it was a good one. If his other quest were like this, he’d definitely made the right decision to change classes. He grinned. Bright Sail Academy was proving to be interesting.

  Professor Calabari

  At the head of the faculty table, Dean Withershade steepled his hands. “This is unprecedented. To pass not just one, but all three entrance exams simultaneously, and in record time at that.” The dean’s brow wrinkled. “Not only that,” he said, turning to look at Calabari. “But we admitted his friends without even seeing what they could do.”

  Calabari swallowed. “It’s clear they’re siblings. The others are likely on a comparable level!”

  Sikar drew their attention with upturned hands. “He may have gotten them into the school, but that doesn’t mean he can keep them in it. If they fall behind, we expel them. That much is simple. But where do we put him? He’s more advanced than most first-years.”

  “We can change his course load around a bit, put him in some of the more advanced classes?” Ladia suggested.

  Professor Crosp cut through the discussion. “The young genius aside, the real matter at hand is that a faculty member of the most prestigious academy in the world took a bribe. Not even to mention that the monster you put in the ring with him was not approved for first-year applicants. It was approved for third-year combat training and above. That is the issue that needs addressing.”

  Hatred for Crosp flared within Calabari, but he controlled himself. He needed to deflect attention from himself as soon as possible. “That’s preposterous! I took no bribes! All of those coins went into the school’s treasury!” That much was true; he couldn’t pocket the entrance fee once the little brat managed to pass. “As for the creature, I had no idea it was rated for third-year students and above! Can you fault me for a mistake?” He turned to the Dean. “My apologies, Dean, if I had realized I would’ve called the test off at once!”

  The dean sighed. “Really? You hadn’t realized? If you had told me you realized he was a prodigy and would be able to handle it, that might make me feel better. But for you to claim you didn’t double-check the ranking of the beast before putting it in the trial with a prospective student makes me wonder if you’ll get the next applicant killed.”

  Calabari’s eyes lit up. This was bad. “No! Of course not! I’ll be more vigilant than ever before now! You have my word, Dean Withershade.” He bowed.

  “Per the guidelines of Bright Sail Academy, I am putting you on a one-year probation, Calabari. If you fail to uphold the standards of the Academy in any way during that time, you will be suspended. My decision is final. As for the student, Ladia, make some adjustments to his courses as necessary, and investigate his siblings to find appropriate placements for them as well,” the Dean said. With that, he turned and left the room.

  The others grabbed their notes and slowly started filing out. Calabari waited until he alone remained, and then as the last professor left and the door shut behind him, Calabari ran his hands along the table, sending his papers scattering.

  He would make that boy pay for this.

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