The days after zipped by for Garry quicker than he thought they would.
His life turned into a loop, waking up super early, going to classes, training till his body ached, eating with Acarme, and then crashing into bed, tired enough to pass out. As time went on, the academy went from feeling scary to just… normal.
During that time, Garry had seven more fights.
He won five of them.
He lost two.
Each loss bugged him way more than he wanted to admit, but each win made him better. Little by little, his points went up.
One night, he checked his palm and saw the number glowing back at him.
4,620 points.
Then, one morning, boom! Everything changed.
All the first-year students were told to go to the main hall.
No reason was given.
They had to go right away.
When Garry got there, the huge hall was already getting full. Students stood close together, chatting and wondering what was going on.
"What's going on?"
"Did someone screw up?"
"Another test already?"
Garry looked around, seeing people he knew from classes, fights, and training. He felt excited and a bit nervous.
Then—
"Quiet."
One word cut through the hall like a knife.
The noise didn't just quiet down.
It stopped completely.
Students stood up straight without even thinking. Conversations stopped in the middle of sentences. Even breathing seemed too loud.
Lulious was standing at the front.
Just seeing the student council president made everyone feel small. She looked across the hall, calm and serious, like she was checking out every single person.
"It's been three months since the first-year classes started," she said in a steady voice.
"Most of you didn't even notice."
Her words hung in the air.
Three months.
Time had flown by.
"So," Lulious went on, "it's time for your first task."
The hall exploded with noise.
"What?!"
"Already?!"
"A task?!"
"Quiet," Lulious said.
She didn't yell.
But the hall went silent again.
"Yeah," she said. "A task. Every year, first-year students get three tasks."
She paused to let what she was about to say sink in.
"You have to finish at least two of them.
If you don't, you won't go to the second year—even if you get the ten thousand points you need."
This time, people whispered louder and were more worried.
"That's crazy—"
"What kind of tasks—?"
"Is that fair—?"
Lulious didn't even blink.
" This task," she said, "you'll form a team of four to seven first-year students, with one second-year student guiding you."
Everyone in the hall got confused.
Students looked at each other, trying to figure things out. Some people nodded like they knew what was coming.
"You can pick your own teammates," Lulious kept going.
"But each team has to have students from at least three different elements."
She looked around a bit.
"Then you'll pick one thing to do from the task list."
Lorrance Cali stepped up when she signaled him.
"There are 187 tasks you can pick from," Lorrance said.
"Only two teams can pick each task. Once two teams have picked it, no one else can."
People got tense right away.
Lorrance stayed calm and said, "You should get your teams together fast and go to the student council board. They'll give you your second-year leader and sign you up for your task."
He stepped back.
Lulious spoke again.
"Don't think about working with other teams. Only the team that does what they need to do will pass. Everyone else fails."
Silence.
Then—
The hall went nuts.
Students ran to their friends. Arguments started right away. People were yelling names. Some people just stood there frozen, not knowing what to do.
After a bit, they were allowed to leave.
Garry's heart was pounding.
A task… a real one.
Something outside the academy.
The first person he thought of was Acarme.
Garry started looking for him in the crowd right away.
He didn't get far.
Acarme saw him first.
"Want to be on my team?" Acarme asked like it was no big deal.
Garry said right away. "Sure, why not?"
"Cool."
Another voice butted in. "So that's two air and one earth."
Garry turned around.
A tall, skinny boy with black hair and dark eyes was standing next to Acarme.
Garry looked at Acarme. "Who's he?"
The boy laughed. "Oh yeah, introductions. I'm Carkhat Labh. I'm a first-year. I'm in the same class as this guy."
Garry laughed a bit. "I'm Garry."
Carkhat nodded. "Acarme talks about you a lot. He says you learn fast."
Acarme coughed. "Don't say too much."
"Anyway," Acarme said quickly, "we still need more people. At least one more element."
They started asking around.
Some students listened, and then said no.
"You guys didn't pass last year, right?"
"…I don't know if you'll pass this year."
"Sorry, I'm already on a team."
Each time someone said no, they felt worse.
After asking for hours, they started to get bummed out.
They stopped near the edge of the hall to take a break.
Then—
Two girls walked up to them.
One was tall, with long black hair, standing up straight. The other was shorter, with short black hair, looking at them like they were judging them.
"I'm Cael," the taller girl said. "I'm a fire element."
She pointed to the girl next to her. "This is Dary. She has a water element."
She looked at them.
"Do you have room for two more?"
No one said anything for a second.
Carkhat blinked.
Acarme cleared his throat.
Garry just stared.
Dary frowned. "Let's go, Cael. These weirdos don't look like they'll do well."
"Don't be rude," Cael said.
"Who are you calling weirdos?" Carkhat snapped back. "We wanted fire or water people anyway. You can join."
Cael smiled a little. Dary sighed. "Fine."
They all introduced themselves.
Cael said she was a first-year student, but she was repeating the year.
Dary was new this year.
They decided to meet back at the hall at five in the evening to sign up their team.
When they left, Garry felt something in his chest.
Excitement.
Nervousness.
Hopeful.
This…
This feels like things are really starting.
The student council room wasn't at all like the rest of the academy.
White stone walls went up high, polished and shiny. Light came in through big windows, reflecting off carvings in the stone. The floor was smooth marble, cool to walk on, with different shapes on it.
At the end of the room was a long table.
Seven people in student council uniforms were sitting behind it, standing up straight, looking serious. Around the room were other students in academy uniforms, some in comfy clothes.
Second-years.
Leaders.
Lulious wasn't there.
Instead, Lorrance Cali was standing in the middle, holding a huge piece of paper that almost touched the floor.
"Okay," he said calmly, "pick your task."
He unrolled the paper.
Rows and rows of tasks were on the page.
"Tasks with one line under them have already been picked by one team," Lorrance said.
"Tasks with two lines are closed. If there's no line, that task is still open. "
Acarme and Dary stepped forward first.
Garry leaned in, looking at the list.
Some tasks stood out right away.
Clean the Moss-Tunnels of Lower Virewood
Take Supplies to Red Hollow
Draw a Map of the Outer Chamber of Brokenspire Ruins
Carkhat frowned. "All the easy ones are gone."
Cael nodded a little. "Figures."
Some tasks seemed… not so fun.
Collect Poison from Mirefang Toads
Get Bone-Pieces from Sunken Grave Pit
Watch Nocturnal Howlers — Don't Fight Them
Dary made a face. "Who picks those?"
After talking about it for almost ten minutes, they saw one task—that no one had picked yet.
Get at least three dead eggs of a Gravecoil Serpent.
Where: Depths of Xane Cave
"No one's picked that one," Garry said.
Acarme nodded. "We'll take it."
Lorrance put one line under the task.
"Signed up."
He looked up. "Don't think it'll be easy. Gravecoil Serpents lay hundreds of eggs, but most of them die. But—"
He stopped.
"You'll find them in the depths of Xane Cave, where there are lots of low-level monsters. They're not strong on their own, but there are a lot of them."
"Also," Lorrance added calmly, "the Gravecoil Serpent protects its dead eggs."
Don't fight unless you have to," he said. "Try not to fight if you can."
He looked around.
"As for your leader—"
He pointed to a girl standing near the wall.
Blonde hair. Brown eyes. Calm face.
"I'm Clara," she said, stepping forward. "I'm a second-year. I control the fire and earth elements."
She nodded at them. "I'll be leading your team."
They all introduced themselves quick.
Before they could talk more, another team walked into the room behind them.
"Seven in the morning," Acarme said as they walked outside. "Main gate."
Sunday.
They all agreed.
As they left for the night, Garry felt like things were getting real.
A real task.
Outside the academy.
And for the first time—
He was looking forward to it.