“Ami, how long does this process end?” Maria who got surrounded in magic circles was currently floating under Ami’s observation.

“Patience Maria, it is for your safety and mine as well.”

Ami responded while adding another magic cycle on top of the numerous existing magic cycles currently surrounding Maria. Then with a snap of a finger, all of them contracted and disappeared inside Maria’s body. With the magic circle gone, Maria dropped down with a thud.

“All done. Sorry for the rough landing, it is hard to do this with only one person.” Ami helped Maria sit up.

“Ouch… I think my back is broken.” Maria whined.

“I guess this confirmed that you only get amazing physique when the “Curse” is active, huh.”

Ami giggled as if she enjoyed Maria’s ragged appearance.

“This is not FUNNY.”

Maria stood up angrily. Ami turned around and fly just far enough outside of Maria’s reach. Maria tried to catch Ami but no matter how hard she tried, she always ended up just a little bit out of reach to grab Ami’s ankles. This situation continued for around fifteen minutes before Maria feel exhausted and sit down to breathe. Seeing Maria's ragged breath, Ami used her magic power to lift Maria up. Ami then continued flying forward with Maria closely floating behind.

“Although I have cast a lot of protection spell on you, it is best if you don’t rely on it too much. There are a lot of things in this world that are very dangerous after all.”

Ami turned around and continue to fly backward.

“Anyway, while we travel, I have a few questions to ask you. Have you check your magic affinity before?”

Maria shook her head. Ami looked at Maria with empathy.

“I see, in that case, let me check it for you.”

Ami took one of the gem accessories on her hair and gave it to Maria.

“Hold this in your hand. When it changes color, I will be able to tell you your magic attribute.”

Maria held the gem in her clutch. It took only seconds for the gem to start shined brightly, then dimmed down inside Maria’s hand.

“Now, open your hand please.”

Ami looked at the gem in Maria’s hand. The gem didn’t change into any color, it retained the original crystal clear just as before Ami gave it to Maria.

“So, what is my magic affinity?” Maria asked with anticipation.

Ami awkwardly announced the result

“Erm…well… You don’t have any magic affinity Maria.”

Sensed Maria disappointment, Ami pat her head tried to cheer her up

“Don’t worry though, you don’t need magic to live. Besides, you have me. Anyway, we have arrived at our destination.”

When Ami finished her sentence, Maria realized that they had reached the end of the forest. In her field of vision, she saw a humongous floating castle and many, many buildings surrounding it.

“This is the largest Academy standing in the middle of Human territory. We will be staying here to gather information about the curse.”

Ami turned around and put Maria down

“I will need your help on this one, Maria. I will transform into an object and you will carry me with you.”

Ami then turned into a small pink pendant and fell on Maria’s hand.

“Here, wear me around your neck.” The pendant spoke.

Maria obediently put the necklace around her neck and hide it inside her clothes. She then heard Ami's voice talking inside her head.

“To reduce suspicion, I will talk to you telepathically.”

“Whoa, this is weird” Maria couldn't help but wonder what happens if both Advisor and Ami talk to her in this way.

“What is?” Ami's voice rang inside Maria's head again.

“Nothing.” Maria quickly responds, snap back to reality.

“Anyway, let’s take that road over there to come downhill and find a way inside the Academy.” Ami called Maria's attention to a small dirt road between the grass.

Maria followed Ami's instructions and took the road that led downhill. While traveling, Ami, who still resides within the pendant, helped Maria harvest any fruits on the side road to eat. It was peaceful until Maria spotted a body while searching for food. It was a body of young beautiful women around the age of 18. If it wasn’t for the fact that Maria checked for the pulse, she wasn’t sure if she was just sleeping.

“She died from a blow at the back of her head”

Maria confirmed the body

“Whoa, you are awfully calm about this.” Ami voice rang again, with a hint of surprise.

“Err…well…My father conducted a lot of dead body experiments, so I get used to it.” Maria quickly announced the reason.

“I… I… see. Judging from her clothing, she must be a royalty or someone close to the noble family. Too bad, there isn’t anything valuable from her body to sell. We could feed you a lot of food with it.” Ami gave a quick evaluation of the body.

“Couldn’t we strip her? Her clothes worth a lot, right?” Maria asked.

“No, there is an insignia on her clothes, if you tried to sell it, you will be arrest immediately. Besides, it is kinda disrespectful of the dead, don't you think?” Ami rejected the suggestion immediately.

Suddenly, the Advisor's voice rang within Maria's head

“Please put your hand on her head, I can help you make use of this body.”

Confused by the sudden appearance of the Advisor's suggestion, Maria put her hand on the head of the body, within the next second, Maria's body and clothes transformed into an exact replica as the body lay on the ground. Ami’s voice rang within Maria's head immediately after.

“Whoa, how did you do that?”

“It.. it was the result of my father's experiment. He used to experiment with a lot of weird stuff on my body.” Maria quickly thought of an excuse.

“Ugh, your father is a disgusting human being but I can't help but admit that he is a genius. Well, this will help us blend in all right, but disguise can only help us so far. Without any information about her, you will get exposed very quickly. It is worth mentioning that the killer is still out there, and he would be surprised to see you walk among the living." Ami stopped as she noticed Maria's dead eyes "Hey, what wrong?” Ami asked.

Maria didn’t answer as she was quite dizzy and sat down. The Advisor's voice once again blocked out Ami’s voice.

“Please stay put while I transfer the memories of the target to you.”

Maria closed her eyes and she saw many strange memories play around her. These memories belong to a girl named Elisa, she belongs to the house of the duke. She was engaged to a prince name Carlos. She loved him dearly, however, her love was one-sided and the prince came to hate her for various reasons. Despite the prince's hatred, she thought that it was fine, and he will accept her once they are husband and wife. However, that dream didn’t last for long. A girl name Leila appeared out of nowhere and destroyed everything. She was recognized as the wielder of the most powerful magic, the “Holy light”. The prince and many other popular boys in the academy were captivated by her radiant beauty. Elisa was bitter, not only Leila beat Elisa in power and fame, but Leila also snatched away her lover. Elisa tried to compete against Leila to proved her superior but whenever she tried, another of her love interests interfered just at the right moment. Not only did these competitions affect her status, they also created many rumors that hurt her pride deeply. The only saving grace she had left is the engagement to the prince at age 18. Then the day came when the prince announced the annul of her engagement with the prince in front of the entire academy. With a broken heart, she left the academy alone… The chain of memories ended there and Maria woke up.

“Ugh…” Maria woke up from slumber. “How long have I been out?”

“Around an hour” Ami responded. “are you ok?”

“Yea, I am fine. It was a side effect. The good news is I have her memories inside me now.” Maria stood up.

“That’s amazing. I have never known that this is possible without the use of magic. You gotta tell me more about the ti...uh... never mind.” Ami quickly dispatched the idea in her head.

“I couldn’t see the face of the killer, but it is likely from a student of this academy. Can you handle them?” Maria looked down at the Academy from afar.

“Hah, I may not be as strong as a dragon or a certain someone but if it is just a couple of humans, no problem.” Ami proudly announced.

“Then it settled, we will infiltrate the academy with this disguise. Let’s hurry, I can feel my stomach grumbling.” Maria quickly tried to set off toward the newly designated home.

“Hold on.” A spark of flame came out of the pendant and burn Elisa's body until she returned to ash. “This is the least I could do for her since we don’t have time for a proper burial. May your soul be free from your earthly suffering… Alright, let’s go.”

Maria turned around and run toward the Academy in her newly acquired body. Her entire thought process had replaced with a warm meal and a soft bed not caring for the storm that had yet to come.