After the more prominent figures had passed through the open door, Tatiana strode in too. Xavier, Isabella, and Saffra followed, having co to a silent consensus they would stick together. Xavier found relief in that. With this event apparently much more important than he’d expected, he was happy to be around familiar faces—and to have the shadow of his sister to take shelter in, embarrassing as the thought was.
The lecture hall wasn’t especially large; it was a tad more spacious than most classrooms, with about sixty seats. The size gave him an upper limit for how many people had been invited. The lesson wasn’t scheduled to begin for another half hour, so a few more attendees would filter in over ti.
Near the front right, a handful of seats were unclaid. He wouldn’t have taken them himself—there didn’t appear to be assigned seating, but yielding the front spots to the Grand Magi seed like common sense—yet Tatiana shalessly slipped in and waved them over. Saffra and Isabella didn’t hesitate to do so, so Xavier joined, though he glanced around nervously to see if any of the Instructors cared. They didn’t.
Probably overthinking things, like usual.
“Feel free to discuss amongst yourselves, you’re all quite early,” the Grand Magus supposedly in charge said. Xavier recognized his face but couldn’t pull up a na. “Of course, when our honored guest arrives, the Institute expects your finest conduct. But this goes without saying.” Oddly, the words didn’t sound like a warning as they usually would be, but an idle remark. Sothing that really did go without saying.
Soone very respected, then, but that was obvious from the start.
With his curiosity over the guest speaker’s identity renewed, he turned to try to pester an answer out of Tatiana, but his efforts died before they could begin, because she had leaned forward in her seat to address Saffra and Isabella instead.
“So. Either of you signing up for the tournant?”
Xavier straightened in interest. He didn’t mind being preemptively sidetracked if that was the topic. Three days ago, Vanguard had announced its return. And as a source of arguably even more buzz, unveiled the Tournant of the Second Age.
He wasn’t sure whether the na referenced Vanguard’s second age, or the world’s. Moving from the Age of Chaos into the Age of Peace. And that’s probably the intention, he thought. The two were intertwined, and the na reminded everybody of that fact.
Saffra replied, “Yeah. Not that I’ll qualify. But I need more practice fighting against people instead of monsters, and seeing how there aren’t many better opportunities…” She shrugged.
“You don’t think you’ll qualify?” Tatiana asked. “You’re in the thirteen-and-under group, right on the cut-off. I think you’re overestimating how many prodigies your age are running around.”
“I’m not a prodigy,” Saffra said with a huff. “Don’t get the wrong idea just because of who my master is. Everyone’s been doing that, recently.”
Tatiana gave the beastkin a dubious look, but Xavier’s eyebrows had risen. “Soone took you as an apprentice?” he asked. And the implication seed to be sobody pretty strong. He felt better hearing that. Things really did work out for her, didn’t they?
Saffra shifted uncomfortably. “Yeah. It’s… a long story.” She made no effort to disguise the redirection as she turned to Tatiana. “You’re also entering, then?”
Tatiana snorted. “Most of the Institute will. Three-quarters at least. Like you said, it’s a gold mine of an opportunity, even if you’re just there to learn.” She laughed. “And co on, it’s the Institute we’re talking about. We have a reputation to uphold. I think the Headmaster would convene a war council if our Grand Magi don’t take at least a few of the finalist spots.”
It was true: the Institute cared quite a lot about its reputation. Xavier didn’t see that as a bad thing. It would be rather embarrassing if a bunch of mages not affiliated with them were the ones who ca out on top. What would be the point of an elite training institution if they failed to do better than random adventurers?
“There’s gonna be people from other schools too though,” Xavier said. “From the Spire, and even the Sylvan Conclave. Gonna be tough competition. I wonder how good they are, really?”
He’d heard stories about the demonic and elven academies, but he had no idea how they worked. Since elves and demons had such extended lifespans, did their standard education last five tis as long? Were they schooled for decades before being acknowledged as full mbers of their academy? And how strong were their students on average?
“Not good enough to beat Master Aeris,” Tatiana said matter-of-factly.
“Even the Greywarden?”
Tatiana gave him a sour look. “Even if that old monster ca out to play, yeah.” She poked him. “Have so school pride.”
Xavier wasn’t so sure. Archmage Aeris was undoubtedly the strongest human spellcaster, but there were elves who had lived for thousands of years, with war legends to match even the Guardian Sage’s. Living for so long was a massive advantage in the field of magic, where accrued knowledge could qualitatively affect one’s casting ability in a way divorced from raw power or talent.
That said, humans had the benefit of numbers and collaboration. The elves had ancient knowledge squirreled away, no doubt, but where they could have ten mages working on cracking the secrets of the arcane, humans could have a hundred. Or two hundred.
Plus, in a way, short lives weren’t a downside. The way he'd heard it, knowing you had a re hundred years to live made a person a whole lot bolder. And you had to take risks to advance to Titled. Even demons, for all their famous bloodlust, had a healthier sense of caution than humans did when it ca to risking their lives, else almost none would be surviving through to their first century, much less their fifth or tenth.
“I wonder who’s going to take the whole thing?” Xavier mused.
There had been important tournants before, but on this scale? And more importantly, one with a prize that would draw Titled from across the world? Such high-level people normally wouldn’t bother, but the Sorceress had promised a grand reward—whatever they wanted, within reason. A genie’s wish.
He sighed dreamily. Everyone grew up hearing stories about the various legends throughout the world, both ho heroes and foreign, and argunts over which Titled would win in a fight against which Titled had been a mainstay of heated playground bickering since the dawn of ti. The idea that he would be seeing such fights play out, right in front of his eyes? There was a reason the tournant was being talked about almost more than the Sorceress’s reergence.
“Though it’s possible Master Aeris will sit it out,” Tatiana said. “The Headmaster is trying to convince him otherwise.”
Xavier choked. “What? He can’t! He’s the strongest mage we have!”
And how else would the question of ‘Would the Gale of Blades or the Guardian Sage win in a duel?’ be put to rest? Not to ntion other pressing, imnsely important debates?
“That’s the Headmaster’s argunt,” Tatiana agreed wryly. “Don’t worry though. Between us, there’s not a candle’s chance in a rainstorm that Master Aeris doesn’t participate.” She smirked. “He keeps grumbling about having ‘dealt with enough tournants for one lifeti,’ but he’s an old monster at heart, like the rest of them. His eyes get a glint in them even when he’s griping about it. That man won’t turn down a good fight, mark my words: He’ll be there.”
“Will I, now?” ca a dry, papery voice from near the doorway. “It appears my apprentice knows better than I do myself.”
A horrified expression dawned on Tatiana’s face, and she slowly turned in her seat. “M-master Aeris. I didn’t know you would be here.”
“That has been made apparent.” The old man chuckled as he limped forward on his cane. “An apprentice is prone to gossip, hardly a revelation in my old age. What disappoints is the lack of awareness. Always stay vigilant, Tatiana. One should never let their guard down.” He wagged a finger admonishingly at her before hobbling off to take a seat near Archmage Theophania.
Their group of four stayed silent and wide-eyed for a mont, all of them wearing flushes. Though truthfully only Tatiana had a reason to be embarrassed. And besides, Aeris clearly hadn’t been bothered by his apprentice’s idle chatter.
Eventually, Tatiana cleared her throat. “Anyway,” she said, subdued. “It’ll be interesting. Even getting top sixteen will be brutal when the whole world is invited.”
“You have good odds in your bracket, don’t you?” Isabella asked. The blonde had been quiet up to this point, but mostly because Tatiana had dominated the conversation.
“To get top sixteen? Doubt it. But I’ll probably get high enough I’ll fight in the main arena. Top sixty-four. Don’t think it’s bragging or optimistic to say that.” Tatiana shivered. “But don’t remind . Duels are one thing, but with who-knows-how-many thousands of people watching?”
“That does sound uncomfortable,” Saffra said. Her nose wrinkled. “There’s one upside for not getting that far, I guess.”
It was a bit humbling, with a dash of depressing, being reminded that his older sister would progress that deep. He was proud of her too, of course. Just, it was difficult to live in her shadow. Tatiana was the most talented student of her year, and still seventeen, putting her in an ideal position for winning the age-restricted bracket. She was a real contender for a high-placed finish.
The Tournant of the Second Age might turn her into a genuine local celebrity, and she might rake in serious rewards depending on her performance. He didn’t know what kind of prizes Vanguard, the High King, and the other kingdoms and organizations chipping in would bestow for climbing high up the tournant’s ladder, but he doubted any would be stingy. Least of all Vanguard, the Sorceress herself.
“Never mind , though,” Tatiana said. “None of you answered earlier. Who do you think’s gonna take the whole thing?”
That sparked the expected discussion—again, the ‘who would win against who’ argunt was evergreen. The conversation was interesting enough that twenty minutes passed in the blink of an eye. With the debate still raging, Saffra and Isabella bickering between themselves in classic fashion, Xavier’s attention drifted sideways to the doorway.
Since he was sitting in the front right of the lecture hall, he had line of sight out into the corridor, where the Headmaster had arrived. The man was accompanied by a short demon in black robes, and they were speaking.
Blinking, Xavier couldn’t help but strain his hearing to try to pick up what they were saying. Stupid in retrospect, eavesdropping on the Headmaster, but not sothing he made a conscious decision to do.
“—take as long as you see fit, of course. I don’t believe—”
The snippet he could make out left him confused. It implied the demon was the one who would be running the lecture? He leaned over to Tatiana and whispered, “The guest speaker is a student from the demon lands? She looks my age.”
Tatiana paused, then looked into the hallway to see the sa thing Xavier had. She turned to him with her face first going blank, then a grin growing that could only be described as devious.
“Is that so? You should share what you’ve learned.” She pointed her eyes at Saffra and Isabella and smirked.
Xavier wasn’t stupid. He knew he’d said sothing wrong, so he had no intention of doing what his sister suggested. Unfortunately, she seed to realize that herself and leaned over to get Saffra and Isabella’s attention.
“Xavier figured out who our teacher will be this morning,” she said, expression mischievous. “Go ahead, tell them.” She nudged him with an elbow.
Caught by two confused girls suddenly staring at him, he tried to decide what to say that wouldn’t make him look ridiculous. He couldn’t quite co up with sothing. Reluctantly, he said, “…she’s a student from the Spire, maybe?”
“Looks like a third-year, he says,” Tatiana added helpfully.
Both girls stared at him. He felt his cheeks going hot. “Well, she’s short enough for it. Basically impossible to tell with demons.” The pale-skinned race had the sa angled, elegant, and ageless features that elves did.
The staring continued for a second longer, then Saffra sighed and wiped a hand down her face. “What, am I supposed to defend her honor?” she asked Tatiana sarcastically.
Isabella was wincing, and even seed to be giving him a sympathetic look, which was almost worse.
He gathered that he’d made a bad assumption, but he had no idea what was happening in the larger context. Tatiana was snickering at him. Everyone complained about older siblings, but his really was the worst.
The conversation outside between the Headmaster and the girl—very short woman?—had wrapped up. The older man strode inside with all his usual precise and confident movents, gray eyes scrutinizing the room and bringing an imdiate silence to the crowd.
Headmaster Lysander commanded attention by default, but Xavier got the impression that it wasn’t just his presence that so instantly erased the idle chatter in the hall. But because his arrival ant the guest speaker was here too. A hush lingered for a mont, and then Lysander said in his customary terse tone, “Please stand out of respect.”
The room rose, with Xavier hurrying to do so as well. anwhile, his stomach was dropping toward his feet.
Just how important was this person?
His brain started to pull together all the context clues, but didn’t have quite enough ti to finish tying things up before the revelation was forcibly thrust on him.
Because outside, the woman casually flicked her wrist, and an illusion that had apparently been covering her face dissolved. Two stark red trails appeared on her cheeks. By chance or providence, her bored, disdainful crimson eyes locked on him for the briefest mont, and he froze. Then the woman’s attention passed, and she was stepping inside.
His already sinking gut finished plumting into the core of the planet.
I just called the Sorceress a third-year student, he thought weakly. Straight to Tatiana’s face.
His life was officially over.
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