Within another large room, inside a desolate mansion, stood a proud man who had also taken an interest in the developments. Troubled, he paced back and forth and spoke to a formless, smoky figure.

“There’s no doubt. This is definitely the boy from that night. Everything fits. With his strength, it shouldn’t have been hard to defeat Charles and James.”

The dark and sinister figure covered the room with a thick air of malice, its presence amplified by the lack of light. It quietly watched the Minister continue his soliloquy.

“There shouldn’t be anyone of his strength from that village!” The more he reasoned, the more he realized that things were amiss. “I don’t understand why he approached the girl… And why did he even agree to become her familiar? It’s already strange for someone in some insignificant village to have such a rich bloodline. Could it be that her existence isn’t a coincidence?”

The series of questions didn’t stop there. The Minister dawned on another problematic realization. “If he was assigned to watch over her, then who is he reporting to? And why stay low key for so long? Is there a point to revealing his strength now? If it were me, I would use this show of might to hide an even greater trump card… or if I were making some sort of statement.”

“And what reason would he have to do that?” The smoky figure hissed, “Do not over analyse matters. The boy is no different from ordinary brats. At that age, children are far too arrogant to think things through.”

“Perhaps.” The Minister replied with doubt still apparent in his eyes.

“What do you intend to do?” The figure shook its near non-existent head as it cut to the chase, “We're so close now. If something were to happen at this stage, I can't guarantee -”

“I know!” The Minister bellowed. The action was unusual for a man of his temperament. He sighed and repeated, “I know.”

“Let me deal with this.” The Minister added with his mana surging, “You worry about what you have to do. Fail me and you won’t like the consequences.”

Chuckling, the smoky figure disappeared, its voice ominously echoing in the room. “Of course.”

“I would never have thought that the name that created a storm of grief eight years ago would once again foreshadow turbulence.” The Minister held his head, sighing as he sank into his couch. “I’ve already come this far. Threat or not, I can’t afford to take any chances.”

***

Two months after the Induction, the clamour surrounding Max’s performance finally faded away. Max’s newly discovered levels of strength had earned him a swift upgrade in his training regime. A personally designed routine involving more spars, tougher body training, all to improve his intake of mana. But lessons aside, what Max found more annoying was the sudden surge in his popularity. Small talk with random students was a source of headaches, but the façade that came in the form of a pleasant smile hid his annoyance.

“Well, aren't you popular?” Lewis snickered, “I heard Linda from our class confessed to you recently. Are the two of you going out now?”

Max scowled. “You’re really enjoying this, huh? I rejected her. Stop laughing!”

“Why? She’s cute and was plenty friendly even before the Induction.” Lewis wondered out loud before a mischievous smile surfaced. Playfully elbowing Max, he said, “Oh! I get it. I was right, wasn’t I? You guys might not be engaged, but you have a thing for Liliana, don’t you? Woah! Hey! That was close!”

After speedily dodging Max’s sloppy attack, Lewis couldn’t help burst out into more laughter. “If you were more upfront about your annoyance in class, you wouldn’t be in this mess!”

“Can you cut it out?” Max pleaded. “I already have to deal with August and those other idiots. I don’t need this right now.”

Lewis sighed and sympathetically patted Max, stifling another smile. “Right… There was that.”

Over the past few weeks, Max was a subject of harassment. More than a few seniors had remained unconvinced despite the results. The continued provocations, the barrage of spar requests, it was up to Max alone to constantly find new ways to circumvent them at every turn. And when that stopped, his moment of peace and quiet had been wrecked by August’s arrival.

After challenging and beating every member of the hoard, August had proudly arrived at Max’s doorstep with hopes of a rematch. Refusing to take no for an answer, he would find time daily to stop by and pester Max with the same demand.

“Ugh! This is so annoying!”

Two weeks later, the freshmen were finally delegated their first practical assignment. Placing great emphasis on practical experience, these assignments gave the students a better understanding of real life situations and were necessary to improve their perspicacity. Using its connections, the Academy would randomly assign its students under various agencies and noble households.

“Walker!” Crawford called out to Max at the end of his training session.

Exhausted from the brassbound professor’s training methods, the freshmen had not a drop of energy to spare. Simply drinking a bottle of water had become a task on its own. Bodies riddled with pain, they winced with every breath they took. Max was no different. His legs complained and threatened to fall off as he dragged his feet towards the ex-military man.

“Tomorrow, you will report to Mage class 1-B.”

“And why is that?”

“You will be accompanying your contracted mage in her first assignment.”

“Oh?” Max momentarily flinched as he felt his calf cramp up. “That’s rather convenient. So where are we being assigned?”

“I am not aware of the particulars. Your tasks will be assigned tomorrow morning.”

“I see.”

“That will be all.”

The walk back was a nightmare. Max collapsed next to Lewis. His back on the ground, he aimlessly stared at the blue sky, the fatigue overwhelming him.

“Everyone!” Crawford sternly announced, “One more set of drills after fifteen minutes before we wrap up for the day.”

The proclamation created a stir, destroying serenity and eliciting a series of painful groans from the students. “Are you trying to kill us?!” They got up with trembling feet, but not one truly voiced a complaint. The students were traumatized from their continued dealings with the man. And since they could actually feel the improvements from these grossly taxing workouts, they could say nothing in their defence. But that didn’t stop them cursing at this daily dose of hell.

Max met Liliana, Amy and Rachael the next morning, packed and ready to set out. While the four occasionally made conversation, Max remained the least talkative of the group, somnolent and often yawning.

The lack of enthusiasm earned him Liliana’s ire while Rachael sent occasional glances his way, still trying to wrap her head around the revelation of his relationship with Liliana.

As Rachael split off to head towards her own classroom, the trio arrived at their own. An empty desk was the target destination for some shut eye, but Max found himself surrounded as soon as he took a seat. The curious group of mages tried to indulge him with small talk until the professor walked in.

The man had a weird sense of fashion. A loose set of robes that resembled pajamas was what he wore. After tersely acknowledging Max’s presence, he addressed the rest of the class. “Alright, settle down and listen up.”

Every class had been delegated to different organizations. This class was assigned to work under the police force spread across the Empire. Students would be randomly paired for the assignment, with their stay and travel expenses paid for.

“This is your letter of introduction.” Bernard held up a sealed envelope. “Don't lose it!”

As the letters were passed along, Liliana and Amy were surprised to find that they were grouped together. The ‘coincidental’ arrangement left Max sceptical. He snuck a casual glance at Bernard only to fail to notice anything amiss.

“Alright, that's enough talking, you lot.” Bernard put a stop to the fervent chatter with a loud announcement. “Gather outside in an hour at the teleportation array.”

“And don't cause any trouble when you get there.” He added with a sigh. Drooping his shoulders, he forced a smile and emphasized, “I’m the guy who has to deal with the aftermath. So, please spare me the effort!” The lax manner of his warning caused the class to erupt into laughter. Chuckling, the man left the class to its shenanigans.

Outside, the students spoke in hushed tones as they bid their friends goodbye while the ones ahead disappeared under domes of pure white light. The trio quickly positioned themselves inside the teleportation array, bracing for that familiar feeling of weightlessness. Triggered into action, the etched engravings slowly lit up and sent them on their way.