The following morning, Theo did not hesitate. As soon as he woke up, he went looking for his class mentor, Paul Ilamarada, since the other mentor, Amiah, was unavailable that day. Paul's teaching tower stood to the north, within the Wispells academic complex.
It was a circular structure, supported by Greco-Roman pillars that rose along the walls and formed a dome at the top. The main classroom followed the same domed shape, with a few interior elevations and the professor's stage.
As soon as he entered the classroom, Theo found four students and Professor Paul already present.
Paul Ilamarada, with blond hair parted down the middle, dark brown eyes hidden behind round prescription glasses, pale skin, and a nose slightly crooked to the left, lit a cigarette as he noticed Theo's arrival and sat down in his chair.
Theo couldn't help but think, 'Great, a smoker…' as he watched Paul light it.
The boy took a better look around the room. The students were seated far apart from one another, with the exception of the two girls. Theo immediately noticed it—the boy and the girl from the designation the day before were in his class.
"Very well!" Paul announced in a firm voice. "Those who are sleeping, wake up. Those who are still drowsy, snap out of it. To begin with, I want you to forget those mediocre, content-poor books. They'll be useless here. I'm here to teach you to be people of honor, conduct, and above all, strength. I won't overwhelm you with a million topics and expect you to know everything and more."
Paul turned to the blackboard and wrote "Ειδικός." When he finished, he tossed the chalk back onto its holder and scanned the room carefully, looking for someone to start a conversation with.
"Hey, you, blondie!" Paul called out to Theo. "Do you know why you're in the special class?"
"No," Theo replied honestly.
Paul exhaled cigarette smoke and stubbed it out in an ashtray.
"Each of you has a condition, whether physical or mental. Like blondie here—Theo. We identified in you a rare mental condition called 'genium,' which allows you to learn and understand anything on first contact. As for the boy with the light-blue streak over there, Ivan, he has a physical condition that makes him resistant to both low and high temperatures, and he doesn't feel thirst caused by heat."
Ivan grumbled,
"We get it already. You're a fan and have our biographies memorized."
"Good that you've noticed. That saves me time from summarizing your lives. Now, all five of you, come here and try to attack me."
"What? No!" protested a girl in the corner of the room. "We can't—"
She looked like the most fragile among them. Her voice grew quieter when she noticed the other three boys getting up from their seats and approaching Paul.
"It's useless," the black-haired girl replied, standing up.
"I said all of you," Paul reinforced, looking at the two girls.
They walked toward the professor on the stage. The five of them formed a sort of pentagram, surrounding Paul and trying to corner him.
"Theo de Lawrence, wind attribute. Antony Windsor, metal attribute. Ivan, ice attribute. Rebecca Lans, barriers. And lastly, Aryna Sabbac, water attribute. You know what you can do together, so begin."
Paul pointed at each student as he called out their names.
Antony had brown hair with a faint reddish tint, perhaps due to the lighting. His face was slightly wide, but his body was far beyond merely athletic—his muscles were perfectly defined. It made Ivan and Theo feel weak by comparison, since their bodies were nothing so exaggerated.
Rebecca, like Aryna, was short compared to the boys. She constantly kept herself hunched, hidden behind her long, straight dark-brown hair. Her brown eyes were sunken and trembling.
Without wasting time, they began Paul's small test.
Antony advanced, forging a sharp steel sword and hurling it toward Paul. The blade cut through the air, grazing past the professor, who dodged easily. The sword nearly struck Rebecca's face, but an invisible barrier, skillfully created by her, blocked the blow.
In a swift, almost premeditated motion, Aryna leapt behind Rebecca, mimicking a firing gesture with her fingers. A projectile of water shot forward, hitting the cigarette squarely in Paul's lips.
"Bold…"
Paul turned toward the girl, but Antony intervened.
Using a knuckle-duster, Antony tried to attack again, but Paul dodged deftly, causing Antony to strike the ground and crack the wooden floor. The mentor then brought his hands together, performing synchronized gestures, and pressed them downward.
Instantly, the three students were slammed against the ground by dense vapor.
"You're rushing things," Paul commented, lighting another cigarette. "You still have much to learn."
Ivan began forming hail in the air, concentrating it in the palm of his hand. Just as he was about to launch his attack, the hailstones were repelled by a sudden gust of wind. One of the ice pellets grazed Paul's lips.
Ivan froze, worried about the possible damage to the mentor. At the same time, Paul noticed Ivan's surprise, and both of them searched for the last member of the room: Theo.
Theo, who had been beside Ivan moments earlier, had vanished from his field of vision. A gentle breeze brushed against the back of Paul's neck, making him turn quickly. At that moment, Theo emerged from Paul's shadow, holding the steel blade Antony had created.
It looked as though he was about to strike his mentor, but instead, he redirected the blade downward and used his own body as leverage.
Theo drove his left leg into Paul's trapezius and, bracing his right foot against the floor, pressed his heel against the mentor's neck, forcing him off balance. Paul weakened his legs, allowing Theo to bring him down, but grabbed the trainee's leg in the process.
Both fell to the ground, Theo locking his arms around Paul's neck as they struggled to break free. While Paul was occupied with Theo, Ivan launched a blast of ice that froze the mentor's left arm. With only one arm free, Paul managed to break away from Theo and pin him to the ground with his legs.
Exhaling deeply, Paul turned the air leaving his lungs into fire, melting the ice restraining his arm.
With his hand now free, he extended it toward Ivan and fired a weak burst of flames, hurling the boy against the wall.
"I understand now," Paul said, panting and sweating.
The mentor released Theo and stood up.
"You," he said, extending a hand to Theo and yanking him up roughly, "think too much during a fight. You invent too many unnecessary movements when you could have simply finished your opponent."
Theo grimaced in shoulder pain but said nothing.
"You two rely too much on each other. You only attack without thinking." He looked at Antony, then at Ivan. "And you—you're slow. Blondie practically had to sacrifice himself for you to attack. From today onward, you're going to start getting to know each other, because you'll be a squad in the future. So act like it."
Theo extended a hand to help Ivan up.
"You used wind to boost my spell?" Ivan asked, accepting the help.
"Yes. Then I used one of my specializations—a spell that lets me camouflage myself in the air to attack."
"Good casting speed. Are you a caster, or…?"
"I was trained as a hybrid."
"I see…"
"Great, you two are already talking," Paul said as he walked toward them. "Now go to the infirmary. You're dismissed until tomorrow."
"Wait, that's it? We came here to learn, and you beat us up and then leave?" Aryna protested.
"Yes, that's it," he replied, opening the classroom door. "I'm here to teach you how to be a squad and agents of Vagus. I can't teach you anything if you don't understand what you're doing wrong. Now, to the infirmary," he emphasized.
Paul left the room. Antony and Rebecca walked over to the others, while Aryna still gathered the courage to stand up from the floor.
"Man, your casting is on another level!" Antony commented.
"And yours is razor-sharp. That steel sword you created was durable, strong, and very light. That's why it was a bit hard to handle, but I think you're already used to it."
"Thanks, man. So… does anyone know where the infirmary is?"
The three shook their heads.
"I do," Aryna said from the back of the room. "Follow me."
☽✪☾
All the Wispells professors gathered around a rectangular wooden table. Paul carefully rubbed his finger across his lips as he looked over the list of students.
"What happened to your lips?" Beatrice couldn't hold back.
"Special class lesson."
"They did that?" Headmistress Wispells asked, her tone filled with curiosity.
"They? No. It was the blond one. He didn't even hesitate before going for a killing blow. I was lucky to be stronger than him and able to dodge."
A man with long black hair, red eyes, and serpent-like pupils watched Paul closely from the corner.
"You're a coward, Amiah," Paul said, noticing his gaze. "Why didn't you show up? We could've had a more productive day."
"If you need me to teach, then you're failing as a professor. The Lawrence kid did that? Is he worth the grade he has?"
"No. All of them should remain at Grade One. The blond only stays at Grade Two because of the imperial family's recommendation—and because he seems to have more experience."
"Well," another professor said, "since arriving at the academy, he's been amicably challenging agents. It doesn't surprise me that he knows how to fight."
"And he's also the son of a lieutenant. Ethan definitely taught him how to fight, just like Edward," Amiah added.
"I wish we'd brought Edward Lawrence to our academy, but the Lotus Order got him first…" the headmistress lamented.
"I have permission to take them anywhere, right?" Amiah asked.
"Yes. As long as you sign the liability form."
"Good."
"What are you planning to do?" Paul asked.
"Raise them to at least Grade Three within five months. The interscholastic tournament is coming—we can't present special-class students as weak. We'll push their abilities to the limit."
"You're going to do that by taking them to the Forest of Nymphs?"
"Yes. Where are they now?"
"In the infirmary. I already dismissed them for today."
"Then we'll do it tomorrow." Amiah looked at Paul's bruised lip and couldn't suppress a laugh. "Go take care of that injury."