The first day of mage school began. Tokino already gained a reputation with the other students. More stood in shock that the Bloodstained Lavender became a polite bud. As a result, her days became uncomfortable sometimes. Boys rarely gave her space. “Please marry me!” one bowed to her. “I’ll cook you miso soup every day.”

Her eyes widened upon realizing his reverse commitment. She bowed back. “Sorry… You’re not my type. I don’t have much time for friends, either.” Saying such words, some felt like they could not remove the knife from their heart.

The next day, she gained another reputation—a negative one. The school prohibited magic during lectures; she broke it several times and became a smart-aleck shortly.

The teacher slapped his ruler on the table. “Tokino! I thought we told you don’t use your innate ability.” He pointed. “Acting innocent won’t give you a medal in real combat, young lady. The enemy will get the pliers and pick your teeth one by one, and you’ll spit out state secrets. You got that!?” He walked closer.

Her heart sank, and she sweated bullets. For the first time, she knew shame and bowed. “I’m so sorry, sir… But you don’t have to be so cruel. I’ve done such things to people before—and it haunts me every night.” She sniffled.

He sighed and cleaned his glasses. “No need for sob stories, young lady. Your mom told us in secret about what you did.” He noticed the gaze of other students. “What do you fledglings want? Mind your business!”

Everyone went back to reading their textbooks. Tokino smiled and sighed in relief, even gratitude. However, her heart bounced. It felt good being let off the hook, so she smirked faintly at the others; they glared intently.

He realized they did not even pay attention to him. “Of all the things….” He let out an infernal shout, which startled. “Alright… You lot still have ears. Can anyone tell me how to cancel runic arrays cast by an enemy?” He pointed at Tokino again. “Don’t push your luck, young lady. Give others a chance.”

She lowered her hand, and a student beside her raised hers. “You cast runes of an exact shape over ones made by an enemy.”

“Excellent. Can you do it?” He looked at her.

“Uh… No.” She sat back down.

“Of course not. Not even I, an imperial mage, can do it. Speaking of which….” He changed the subject to the ladder system. “Remember. Mage titles are nothing more than that. I’m more powerful than Hiver’s archmage, my sister. But leadership is what we want here.

“Now, I know what you’re thinking. ‘But what about Coelestis’ archmages?’ Well, they’re the exception. The Pompilius family always handpicked the best. We don’t expect you to be legendary warriors. We need you to lead people—from danger. No matter how minuscule. So…” he slapped his ruler to his palm. “…class dismissed!”

Runic Art classes began. Luckily for Tokino, her mother had been the teacher for years. “Imagine it as drawing. But with your mind.” She placed her hand on a marble pillar. “Runic shapes are unique to one’s soul. Like fingerprints. It’s why it’s near impossible to copy.”

Many students gasped upon seeing the pillar transformed into fine powder. Even fourth years stood mesmerized by Aimi’s mastery.

“Please remember it’s not a contest. If you fail to crack these slightly, you’re always free to try again tomorrow.” She looked from afar. “Good luck, honey!” she smiled and waved with her eyes closed.

Tokino waved back with both arms. Even though no one gave her special treatment, others still believed so. It did not help that she broke the pillar into chunks alongside two others. Surprisingly, half of the students clapped for her. Aimi did it the loudest.

A girl chuckled, who achieved the same feat. “Damn… It took me forever to do what she did. So much for my fourth-year talents.” She shrugged.

“What a shame…” her friend said, stretching backward until she touched the floor. “It appears the Elfmann DNA is nothing but a mockery of mankind. Then again, you’re all walking trash.”

A nerve pooped within her. “Do you want me to put a literal sock on your throat, Aria!? I got roped in with your detention when you bit some hands for no reason.”

She stood too straight and pointed a sharp finger. “Silence, trash… I was merely curious how teachers tasted. Disgusting, but palatable.” Her words caused her friend to not talk to her for a week. Unexpectedly, they reconciled with a warm hug. After graduation, they settled in Novus.

The next class was history and literature. Tokino’s eyes glared at some students who quietly laughed at the wheelchair-bound professor. He lost his speech long ago, and everyone got startled when they heard voices in their head.

“Quiet down, everyone. Brains fail to develop when they dance forever.” He drove his chair in front. “Let us begin with a terrifying story. It is also history through and through.” He retold multiple sagas during the Divinity War. It lasted nearly two millennia. “Make no mistake, fledglings. The absurdly powerful magicless folk never lost such an atrocity.

“Eons ago, Pantaiyanilam reached an agreement with the hermit kingdom of Mikadzukihantō. It was a win/win solution. The nation wanted nothing from the other, so sent many of the fiery-eyed slaves in boats.”

A student raised his hand. “Excuse me, sir. My family and I visited the country a year ago. The only one we saw neared her hundredth birthday.”

Everyone heard the professor chuckle in their heads. “I’m no bootlicker for pseudoscience. But these humans have a Core different from us magical ones. Unfortunately, many concluded it was more recessive than the word itself.”

He went on to talk about the historical significance of “Tightrope Duel” by Fangorn George. He theorized it to be a unification of two states that formed the present city of Lacus.

Every recess, boys still did not leave a discomforted Tokino alone. Their commitments now bordered on workaholism. On the other hand, girls walked on eggshells to ensure they never unleashed the Bloodstained Lavender.

Even then, she ignored and thought nothing of them. She only wanted to make her mother proud. However, she would soon find a dark culture within the school. One that eclipsed the earthly movies she watched at home.

Eight years had now passed. Aimi gave her the family heirloom: a rapier. “It never rusts, honey,” she explained. “My steel powers imprinted itself on the blade. So, it’ll never break even if a dinosaur stepped on it.”

She bowed her head with her eyes closed. “Thank you so much, Mama. I now hold your love and protection wherever I go.” She smiled calmly.

Aimi smiled back and hugged her with her eyes closed. “Oh, you… Don’t make me cry now. Your lavender crown is enough to move my heart.” She fixed the two long strands on her shoulders. “There you go. I’m so glad I gave you those. It shines your face brighter.”

It took Tokino months to overcome her anxiety over someone kissing her cheek. In the end, she let her mother do it anytime and anywhere. It always gave her solace.

She went for the door but heard her cough again. Aimi refused hospitals, insisting medicine and healing runes were enough.

She could not ignore it any longer. “Mama… You’re getting more ill as years go. Please tell me the cause. I won’t be sad.”

She coughed some more and nodded. “I know, honey. I’m sorry. You’re more than old enough to know. We’ll talk after school, okay?” She held her shoulders.

She nodded back with a smile and went inside the car. The chauffeur waited for an hour.

Swordplay was very rare at Protéger University. However, they encouraged students to use unique fighting styles.

Children of Athena rarely used weapons. Only Children of Hephaestus did, possessing no innate abilities. So, everyone stood curious about Tokino’s rapier skills.

She dodged every attack and countered effortlessly. Even against a student who could control his speed, her footwork kept up. Among the observers, Vetusian archmage Augustus caressed his chin. “Hmmm… This young lass shall be a fine successor indeed.”

Tokino’s opponent grunted in frustration. He went on the defensive the whole time. “End the fight already, you coward! Your fancy moves piss me off!” He threw a barrage of high-speed punches. None managed to hit, while she kept thrusting her blade by a hair. He grunted again. “Come on! Fight me for real!”

He concentrated his magic further. Shockwaves reverberated around the hall, making everyone shield their eyes.

Two minutes in, Tokino now had slight bruises. She sighed while dodging her opponent. “As you wish….” Within a split second, she thrust her sword near his cheek. The ground behind him caved into a long line.

With that, the duel ended, and she stood victorious. Everyone in the hall gave her thunderous applause. Her mother cried tears of joy.

She bowed to everyone and pointed her rapier at her opponent. “Be ashamed of how you view fights. Honour is not for everyone. But disrespect leads to ugly paths.” She sheathed her sword and walked away. “You belittled me solely because I wounded your ego. So, be better. I once took an ugly path myself.”

Her words only made the boy’s annoyance fester. He doubled down by shoving away his longtime friends.

During recess, Tokino witnessed a snippet of the school’s corrupt culture. Bullying was never anything like in 80s blockbusters. She saw two girls in a tree. One pulled out a smartphone-like device. “I got this from the shower.” She giggled. “By the Gods, what a slut. Any idea who she slept with?”

“Who cares. Just post it.” She grabbed the phone and clicked a paper plane icon. “And it’s done. Now, our hon will never leave us. She deserves only our protection.”

The next day, a girl became the laughing stock in school. Many threw paper cups and straws in the cafeteria. Nowhere in the building was safe. “Get outta here, you skank!”, “Yeah! Fuck off to an alleyway!”, “Sorry, gurl. Ain’t none of us wanna smell your red flags below. Go home.”, “Ew. Why you sittin’ here? Corner’s over there, bitch.” Such words came every fifteen minutes.

Twisting her agony further, the one boy she knew kept turning the other way. Just as she prepared scissors in the bathroom, her friends stopped her.

Tokino saw them hugging each other in the same tree. The girl declared eternal friendship with them. She even vowed never to leave their side. Little did they know that Tokino kept watching her friends’ antics from day one. At that moment, her heart matched a rabbit’s, and her blood boiled. She cursed at justice for becoming too blind.

She opened up her phone and did not take long to find heinous content. She realized the two had the gall to reply to each other’s posts in public. They boasted about shoplifting and stealing the cane of an eighty-year-old woman. No one cared who they were on the web, so private confessions meant nothing.

Tokino created a burner account and began more digging. Her heart danced with sheer excitement, and her smile widened with every post per minute in the bathroom.

“There… That should do it.” She posted to everyone about a homeless man incident.