Death, Devotion, Dissonance

A brief silence ensued before Evin felt the need to fill up the awkwardness.

"So, how did you get your new name, Konanne? You were just Kon when we last spoke, right?"

"Oh, master Evin, you can just call me Kona. In full, I'm now Konanne Lenyda. And as for my name, my previous owner gave it to me. When he learned that I had become a mage, he gave a name to everyone in my family, actually. Not just me."

"Oh, he seems like a nice person," Evin asked.

"He is. Very. He's an aging scholar that goes by the name, Shinfra. Have you ever heard of him?" Kona said with excitement.

The name sounded quite distinctly Northern, but it didn't really ring any bells in Evin's head. Well, Evin really wasn't well-versed in the scholarly figures, so this wasn't anything

"No, I haven't heard of him, sorry."

"No-no, I don't mean to demean you. I'm terribly sorry," Konanne hurriedly replied.

Evin didn't find the girl's subservient attitude to be annoying, as he would face the same problem if he talked to any other 4th grade in the country. He would even argue that Kona was one of the better ones among the slaves.

"You were talking about your previous owner," Evin reminded.

"Oh, yes. After he learned about my abilities as a mage, he offered to make my entire family a vassal family of his own after we became a family of 2nd grades. Naturally, our family was happy to do so. So I'm now of the Lenyda family," Kona giggled, "Master is currently busy with getting everyone up to date with etiquette and education, though he's been especially focused on me."

"So your owner's a noble? Your previous owner, I mean," Evin asked.

To have a family of commoners become a vassal family for themselves, one had to be a noble. A very well-respected one at that. The vassal family would need to offer their loyalty to their head family, but at the same time, they'd be able to enjoy some of the privileges of being a noble.

Evin also heard that to obtain the rights to create a vassal family, one needed to either contribute a lot to the country, or donate a lot to the country. He found it very impressive that this scholar managed to obtain these rights despite being a Northerner.

"He is. But he prefers to be referred as just a small-time baron," Kona chuckled again.

As Evin listened to the girl talk about her family and her previous owner, for whatever reason, he felt terribly wronged. A baron was willing to pull a family of slaves to such heights when he learned that one of them was a mage. Compared to that, his father demanded he refuse the life of a mage and to ensure that, he locked Evin inside his home and beat him up.

But these thoughts weren't allowed to fester for much longer, as a cleanly dressed man in his late twenties entered the room with hurried steps. Everyone in the room stood up to greet the teacher and, of course, Evin followed suit.

"Sit, sit," the man waved the kids down and stood behind a podium.

He looked around the room for a few moments, seemingly counting them. While he was doing this, his eyes seemed to linger on Evin for a split second longer than others before moving on to Kona. Nodding, he cleared his voice and assumed a more proper pose.

"Welcome, children… new young mages of the kingdom, to your first class of Magics. My name is Alvert Nuln, and I'll be teaching you two classes about the Applications of Magic and one class about Mage Specializations. So, two different classes today and one more class about the Applications in two months. If you happen to possess a World Shard of Lumiaris and willing to learn more about it, I might be teaching you about that as well."

Evin's eyes gleamed, excited to learn about the wonders of magic.

"But of course, for now, we'll only talk about what you can do with these new magical powers you've obtained," Alvert smiled and looked around the room, "Please divide into four groups: those who use Pleading Chants, those who use Demanding Chants, and those who prefer Gestures or Dances," he said as he designated spots in the classroom for the different groups.

Very quickly, the 17 kids divided into their respective groups. Seven in Pleading (in which Kona fell into), seven in Demanding, and two for Gestures. Arza, even though he cast magic by Chants, walked towards the group for Gestures with another tall girl who had a very curvaceous body.

"What about me?" Evin asked, feeling a bit left out, as he was the only one who could Imagination Cast.

"You will stay on your seat and listen," Alvert replied with a smile before facing the other groups, "Now, everyone except the Pleading group and Evin, please vacate the classroom for a few dozen minutes. You'll find some vacant seats right outside, and please, keep silent."

Half a minute later, the two groups left and a few timid looking children were left inside.

"Alright. What do you think magic is?" Alvert began, though no one in the room seemed very willing to answer. The fact didn't stop the teacher as he continued on.

"Is it a miracle? A force of nature so inexplicable and mysterious that you simply don't dare to try and understand it and make sense of it? Or is it a tool for you to use? To give yourself an advantage, or some random convenience to enjoy?"

"I think it's a miracle," one of the children responded after a brief pause.

Albert smiled at the answer and nodded firmly.

"It is a miracle. A force of nature so powerful that just by being able to access it, you become someone special and unique. For you all, magic is your trump card. It is the grand finale of a show. It is the culmination of a story," Alvert said, as he gestured towards Evin.

"You've all seen Evin's display of magic on the arena. Remember the grand explosion that he created, remember the fear and confusion you felt when its boom filled your head, remember the shivers of your body when the shockwaves reached your bodies," Alvert paused, "That, is what magic is all about. Magnificent and Glorious."

The seven children seemed awestruck at the teacher's passionate speech, as Evin caught some of them stealing a glance towards him.

"But, you can't think that you can just up and do the same things he did. Have you seen the aftermath of his spell? All his skin burnt beyond recognition, fragments of his bones shattered all around his limbs. You could see his face contorting in pain even when he was unconscious," Alvert reminded.

Evin's head wasn't so clear about these details, so when he heard about the details of what happened to him, it gave him a shiver.

"If the Chairman wasn't one of the most talented Healers of the West, Evin wouldn't be walking around here all fine and dandy. From him we can learn to fear the miracles of Magic. Remember that your spells can very easily go out of your control. If you don't act carefully around them, then don't be surprised if you hurt yourself with it."

The children nodded heavily, to which Alvert offered a smile.

"Now, who among you can cast a spell without fail?" Alvert asked.

Two children raised their hands, one of them being Kona and the other being a thin boy with a rather unhealthy complexion.

"Alright. In turn, please cast a random spell… Though, please make sure to not blow away the classroom like Evin here would," the teacher joked.

The first to go was the boy, who started with a rather drearily sung chant..

"I wish the agents of Seyethe to bless this room with a zephyr of solace."

Evin felt the air stir inside the room, before swirling around room a few times. Weirdly, Evin felt very creeped out by this gust of wind that visited the room. Instead of bringing solace, like the boy asked it to, it felt more like it was trying to bring misfortune.

"Very impressive. What's your name again?"

"Dunne… Sir."

"Alright," Alvert said and nodded towards Kona, "You are?"

"Konanne Lenyda, sir... But I usually go by Kona."

"Alright, Kona, please demonstrate your spell."

Kona's chant was much more lighthearted, though it contained a name that Evin was not quite aware of.

"I pray to the Paramour of Liberty, Ethez Serlant, to grant this room a waft of rejuvenation."

Just like the previous spell, a waft of air danced around the room before disappearing into nothingness. But compared to the last one, it really did make one feel rejuvenated and refreshed.

<But Paramour of Liberty? That's quite a spicy name,> the voice chuckled.

"Where have you heard that name?" the teacher asked Kona.

"I learned it from my previous owner, Baron Shinfra," Kona replied swiftly, "He told me about him when I was struggling a bit to make the spells work."

"Ah, Master Shinfra… Makes sense," Alvert said and stroked his chin, "Though, try not to chant that name in the presence of nobles, alright?"

Kona nodded timidly, to which Alvert smiled gently.

"In any case, Applications of magic. Dunne and Kona's spells were a great demonstration for what Magic is. Although they weren't anything flashy, like Evin's explosion, we could all feel that there was something magical about them. Something personal. Something beyond just the breeze that appeared in the room… Why do you think that is?"

Again, Alvert was met with the blank stares of the children. Quite a tough audience. But that didn't really discourage the man as he continued on, as if nothing was wrong.

"That is because they both made sure to fill their chants with their emotions. Dunne's Chant held a hint of somberness to it, while Kona's chant was much livelier. And of course, we could all sense the differences. So if you're having trouble casting magic, try and fill your chants with your emotions, alright?"

Some of the children nodded a few times.

"Alright… So, Dunne and Kona, how were you able to determine the size and strength of the breeze?"

"I imagined it inside my head," Kona replied.

"That is correct. Although the Chant didn't really specify these details, you can kind of have the World energies create what you want, by imagining the effects as you're casting the spell. But like I told you, do make sure to imagine something magical. Make sure to respect the Worlds and its energies and be grateful for the miracles they grant you."

Alvert then went on to talk some more about the topic, but of course, his message was clear.

After making sure that everyone understood the magnificence of magic, the teacher disbanded the group and let the Demanders inside.

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