After four on Friday, I stood again in the prefect office on the third floor of the main building. It was a room ordinary students might not see even once in four years, but I somehow kept on coming back.

  The formerly vacant rectangle of tables and chairs was now occupied all around, mostly by older students. Their silent, critical stares were fixed on me as I stood before them by the president's desk, waiting for the song and dance to begin. But I was used to being stared at by worse things and wore my face clean.

  As she’d promised, Vanille D'Arnos had proposed my recruitment to the Cabinet and I was subsequently called in for an evaluation. A mere formality, she’d said, but now that I was there, I had to doubt if it was going to be so simple. Not everyone looked as easygoing as she was, if any, and seemed to harbor unspoken doubts about the nomination.

  Understandably.

  We were not two months into the term, and I was a nobody from nowhere.

  To be honest, not even I had a very clear idea why I was being recruited. There was no reasoning that endured scrutiny. The computer by itself was a fairly flimsy excuse, considering there was a whole course dedicated to teaching about it, and magitech in general, and the course was limited to older students.

  “Alright!” said the president, standing next to me. “Let me introduce everybody quick. There are a couple of members not present today, and we also have a bunch of assistants who don’t participate in meetings, but this is the core group in charge of the prefect activities at the academy. There's Tom, you already know him. Sword course, second year, the same as me, but different class. He’s our general handyman.”

  From his seat, Thomas Harding waved his hand and grinned.

  “Howdy!”

  Ah, the gofer.

  “You may have heard about the gentleman next to him too,” Vanille continued, “that's Leander, the third Prince of the Kingdom of Calidea. Sword course, second year, class A. The same as me. He’s the vice president of the Cabinet, so if I’m not around, you can ask him what to do. Don’t worry, he doesn’t bite!”

  “Hello. Just call me Leander,” said the third prince with a friendly smile. I nodded.

  Every student was supposed to be treated the same, but after being repeatedly told for all my life we weren't even in the same category as humans, I didn’t think I could ever be casual friends with royalty.

  “Next up is Anette Harlow, our treasurer and a second-year mage student from class B. Our Annie studies healing techniques, so she's very handy to have around, if you get paper cuts.”

  That much I could heal with a bit of spit.

  Harlow stared at me from under her cleanly lined bangs, sunken in her seat, her look dour, and made only the faintest hint of a nod. I had the feeling we wouldn’t be best buddies soon either.

  The round moved over the far side of the table formation.

  “Over there in the corner, we have your fellow freshman, lady Rosslyn Graves. Sword course, Class A. A very, very talented young fencer, who comes with a teacher's recommendation. She's also the Cabinet’s new head of campus security! You don’t wanna mess with her!”

  One of the rising stars Emily had named on the exam day.

  Rosslyn made a slow, silent nod, not any quicker to smile than Harlow. It was easy to confuse her for a pretty boy at a glance, with her dark red hair cut short and cleanly combed along the scalp. The grim, steely sharpness of her look told me this girl had seen violence in her life. Unsurprising, if she really was from a clan of fencers.

  Vanille continued,

  “And then there's Alex, Mister Alexander Lycan, Magic course, second year, class A. Our arcane counselor. The stuff he studies goes so far over my head. Something about enchanting? I won’t even try to tell you about it, but maybe you’ll understand each other better?”

  The round concluded at a slender, graceful young man with an effeminately sleek, shoulder-length hairdo. He'd dyed his locks deep blue and wore gaudy rings with gemstones on his fingers, and silvery chains around his neck, and on his earlobe was a glittering diamond piercing. Most of the accessories bore light enchantments, clearly his own make and not terribly potent. Flaunting your craftsmanship so openly was careless and kind of in poor taste.

  “Good evening!” he said, smiling widely.

  I had to doubt I was going to understand this guy at all.

  “And then there's me,” Vanille finished, pointing at herself. “You still remember who I am, right?”

  I took it as a joke and said nothing, but then noticed a flash of genuine concern in her eyes.

  “Your name is safely engraved in my heart, Vanille,” I assured her.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  “Ah.”

  Vanille froze for a beat. She then quickly looked away and lightly slapped my shoulder.

  “What a poet. Anyway, everyone, this is Hope, the girl I was telling you about. She's great with gadgets and a gifted mage. It was Hope's aunt whom we have to thank for this magic thingamajig, so I want to bring her into the team as our dedicated tech support. What do you guys think?”

  I couldn't recall ever showing my magic to her and hadn't done anything so impressive in class either. Did she hear about my duel with Silla, or was she deliberately exaggerating my worth? But why?

  “I'm all for it, aye,” said Harding, briefly raising his hand. “The more, the merrier!”

  I won't help you get closer to my aunt, no matter how you butter me up.

  “I see no reason to turn down a willing hand either,” said the third prince with a smile. “Lots of work for everyone around here.”

  “If everyone else is fine with it, then so am I,” said Harlow.

  I was a bit surprised. It didn’t seem she liked me at all.

  —“I object,” Rosslyn Graves then declared, causing everyone to turn her way.

  Vanille masked her thoughts with care. As outgoing as she normally seemed, she wasn't like Emily, who wore her heart on her sleeve everywhere, all the time.

  “May I ask why?”

  In a hard voice matching her grim looks, Rosslyn gave her reasoning,

  “As you know, our primary duty is upholding order and security on campus. Beyond that, we assist with events and exercises that sometimes necessitate going into the Wood, where the chance of encountering hellions is high. Every prefect must have the necessary skills to defend themselves in life-threatening situations. Normally, members are appointed by staff members who take past experience and class performance into account in their evaluation. However, in Ms Ruthford's case, we don’t have any such reference. My personal assessment is that the risks involved are too high for a novice mage. I do agree it would be helpful to have a magitech expert on board, now that we have that machine, but it wouldn't be right to accept someone who cannot fulfill all the other associated duties. There could be an older student who is more qualified overall.”

  It was a sound argument. I could respect her professionalism.

  “Hm, well said,” Alexander Lycan made a thoughtful sound, smiling. “I may have to side with Rosy on this. My apologies, but the young lady doesn't look very tough to me. This work takes some degree of mental fortitude, on top of real skill. You can’t be too easily shaken, or you’ll have a hard time with the rowdier students, never mind any emergency situations.”

  “So it's four in favor and two against?” Vanille confirmed.

  “Hold on, president,” Harlow said and raised a hand. “I said I agree if everyone else agrees. But as far as I can see, Rosslyn is right.”

  “Come on, guys,” Harding spoke to his companions. “Couldn't we just give her a chance? Not everyone can be a fighter, and that’s fine. It’s not like we ever have to patrol alone. Why don’t we just see how it goes?”

  “Will you take responsibility if she ends up injured or dead?” Rosslyn retorted. “Being a prefect isn't some children's game. Especially for a mage. Hellions aside, half the student body specializes in melee. You’ll always be at a disadvantage when conflicts emerge. This office is effectively advance training for working life, with the expectations to match.”

  The third prince kept quiet, even when his stance was disregarded. Was he actually related to the royal family at all? The King would already have declared war on all their families.

  “It would be nice to have everyone agree…” Vanille murmured, troubled.

  “…”

  A mere formality, she'd said.

  When was it ever simple?

  Any controversy and more people arguing about me wasn't what I really needed. Maybe it was better to bow out without making more waves?

  On the other hand, with the Locust unit’s existence now confirmed beyond doubt, the need for information had also become more urgent. It could be worth a bit more noise. And more unpaid work for me.

  My mind made up, I took a step forward.

  “The problem seems to be whether I can pull my weight. I may be a first-year student, but that doesn't mean I have no experience whatsoever. I can do a bit more than plug cables, if necessary. If you’re willing to give me an opportunity to prove it, I’ll let you choose the method.”

  An uncomfortable silence took over the office at my proposal.

  It seemed no one had considered going the extra mile and just wished I’d give up quietly. But they couldn't turn me down solely for being a freshman, since there were precedents. Neither were there so many practical ways to see if I could hold my own in a fight. Which meant that someone was going to have to step up and get creative.

  Finally, it was Rosslyn herself who stood, maybe out of a sense of responsibility.

  “Very well. Have a mock fight with me. Since I'm a first-year recognized by Instructor Howard, you should be considered more than qualified if you can match me.”

  “Is that a good idea, Ms Graves?” I asked. “As you said yourself, a fencer has a significant advantage over a mage in melee. Will you beating me up actually prove anything?”

  “I'm not saying you have to defeat me to pass,” she replied. “Simply demonstrate that you can survive and have the courage to stand for yourself. Of course, this is an unofficial match; nothing will be wagered, and you are free to decline. But that also settles the matter of you joining the Cabinet. We shall simply pretend this conversation never happened.”

  How spirited.

  I wasn't asking for better terms, though. I only wanted to make sure everyone present understood that the conditions were against me before getting started. The play wouldn't be half as impressive unless it was about an underdog overcoming bad odds.

  Even though that premise was false.

  With my traits, subduing fencers was actually quite a bit easier for me than dealing with proper mages, even with a handicap or two.

  So, feigning fatalistic humility, I closed my eyes and nodded,

  “I will take your test, then.”