For the first time since he had met her, Amelia hung out with Ethan and Barry after the class had ended. They were extremely successful at getting each of the students to produce mana in their palms. Since the assignment was loose, it didn't matter how much mana they produced. Everybody who stayed after class passed that week's assignment immediately. They headed to the dining hall, intending to have an early dinner and discuss topics of a magical nature.

  Ethan unfurled the small piece of parchment that had his schedule on it. It was creased and wrinkled in places, but the words were still legible. He read over each one, landing on the last item and cocking his head to the side in confusion. "Does anybody know where this building is?"

  [Class Schedule]

  Monday:

  Ritual Foundations 1, Professor Eggs, Gale House, Oak Building 18, 10:00am

  Tuesday:

  Array Foundations 1, Professor Marsh, Gale House, Bantari Building 1, 8:30am

  Wednesday:

  Mana Control Foundations 1, UNLISTED, Gale House, Opaque Pearl Building 2, 12:00pm

  Thursday:

  Anomalous Materials, UNLISTED, Pel’Vengar, Spire 1 Floor 10 Room 8, 7:00am

  "Let me see that." Amelia took the paper from Ethan, and her brows rose. "You have a class in Silver City? How is that even possible?"

  "I don't even know what that means." Ethan shrugged, taking the paper back and reading it again. It said, Pel’vengar, Spire One. But he had absolutely no idea where that was or what it meant.

  "You know how we're in Gale House City and the other class archetypes have their own cities? Well, we're still in the Tariat Academy, but this is not an academy. This is the central city. The seat of power for our benefactors… What did you get yourself into?”

  Ethan frowned as he looked over the small sheet of paper. He had no idea what the implications were. He was given the class by one of the benefactors. He knew that much. But what exactly did it mean? Also, the class did not have a listed professor teaching it, which made it even more confusing. Although he was looking forward to his three-day weekend, a flash of fear spread through his chest.

  "Should I be worried?"

  "Not necessarily. This could be a very good thing for you. I would imagine any classes taught there would be very challenging, but I have never heard of any class being taught in the Silver City."

  "Look at Mr. Fancy Pants over here," Barry said, slapping Ethan on the back, and laughed. "Already rubbing elbows with silver people and everything. Meanwhile, I still don't have my system."

  Amelia laughed, shaking her head. “Well, whatever it is, I'm sure it will be interesting. Meanwhile, I've got some absolutely stupid history class to attend tomorrow. Can't wait to bury my face in a book for the entire weekend.” She sagged, pushing her plate away and placing her head on the table.

  "Hey, I'm taking that class too." Barry reached across the table and patted Amelia on the back. "At least you'll have a friendly face there."

  Amelia looked up, giving the man a withering gaze. "Ah, perhaps some of your unending optimism will magically rub off on me."

  "There's only one way to find out!" Barry shouted, drawing attention from other students gathered for dinner.

  Ethan coughed into his hand. “So, how do I even get there?”

  “If someone placed you in the class, your badge will work on the Gates,” Amelia said. “You can just teleport there instantly. Which is good, since Pel’Vengar is about 5000 miles away.”

  Barry tapped his chin. “Wait, does that mean the time you have on that sheet is our time or local time?”

  “Should be our time,” Amelia said. “I think.”

  Although that added a layer of complication to Ethan’s life, he could deal with this. The last time he traveled through the portal-thing, it wasn’t so bad. If he was lucky, he might even make progress on unlocking features in his system. While the group continued their meal, the scribe fell into his thoughts and practiced his circles.

  “See? He’s miles away,” Barry said, returning to the table with another plate of meat. “You could say anything and he wouldn’t hear it.”

  “Huh?”

  “I asked what you thought of Gale House.” Amelia shook her head, looking up to Barry. “About five minutes ago when he went for more food.”

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  “I think I feel very weird about it.” Ethan was man enough to admit he didn’t understand how he was feeling. “There’s that dam they put in my mind. I think that’s helping, but there’s something else. The chance to figure out this system no one knows anything about is exciting.”

  “Right?” Barry laughed as he tore into a piece of steak. “Feels a lot like the work I did back home. And they’re filling us with grand visions of defending the sector or whatever… Kinda makes me feel like I have a higher calling.”

  “It might sound like indoctrination, but they truly have the interest of the sector in mind.” Amelia drummed her fingers on the table, her eyes going unfocused as though recalling something far in the past. “They helped my world.”

  That was good enough for Ethan. He had no plans to touch the politics of this place until he understood his own powers. The conversation rolled on as he practiced his rings. He wondered why Amelia hadn’t found other friends before now, but dropped the subject in his mind. She could keep her reasons to herself. What he understood was how exceptional she was, and wasting that resource would be foolish… Especially with so much riding on his understanding of the primordial techniques.

  “I need to get to bed soon,” Ethan said. “If I leave late for the Silver City, I’m afraid I’ll get lost.”

  “Go on. Have a little nap in our disgusting shack.” Barry’s face shifted to a forlorn expression. “Wish we at least had beds.”

  “I could give some suggestions on how to make some cash. If you two could get a few spells under your belt.”

  Ethan winced. “Unfortunately, I’m useless at forming spells.”

  “Teach me the money-making spell, please.” Barry rubbed his hands together, spreading the grease between them.

  The spell was a simple one, perhaps even more simplistic than the barrier spell they had been taught by Professor Marsh. Ethan couldn't form it. It was designed to transfer mana between a person and an object, and Amelia claimed it was easy to make money with it because, as long as you had a decent mana pool, you could recharge the batteries of nearby shops. Of course, she added the caveat that they would have to go pretty far to the east to find shops that hadn't been visited by students.

  Barry finished filling a random rock with some mana. He struck a pose and wiggled his eyebrows at Ethan. "You truly are horrible at that, aren't you?"

  "I just can't get my head around it. It's like my... what did you call them? Mana channels. They don't want anything but a buttload of mana at a time."

  "That's not the worst problem to have." Amelia siphoned the mana from the rock before it went unstable. That was apparently something they had to worry about. "Moving a massive amount of mana will be useful once you can figure out how your system works, if it has a similar spell. You'll be making far more money than this guy. Or you can get creative, you know? Run some dungeons or kill some monsters near the farms. They always have monsters and the upperclassmen don’t bother with them. Too weak.”

  Ethan wasn't about to think about slaying monsters when he couldn't produce any ability that would get the job done. He hadn't even mastered his attributes. How was he supposed to kill a gaggle of horned rabbits? For now, he was just trying to survive the week. Every chance he got, he avoided looking at the rankings. Both he and Barry were currently at the level where people would be expelled or forced into the special mentorship program. He just had to hold on until he could make some meaningful contributions to the house.

  "If you guys don't mind, I'm going to go do some practice in the park before bed." Ethan had a sheepish look on his face, as though he truly didn't want to leave the group. It was nice having friends, and Amelia was such a rich source of information.

  "No problem, buddy. Just don't get to bed too late. 7 a.m. is a horrible time to be awake for."

  Ethan found his way to the park closest to their shack. It wasn't as pleasant as the other one. It gave him a view of the bay, but it was nice enough. They had crystal lamps and a big clock he could keep his eye on. While he might be fine getting only five hours of sleep, he wanted to be well rested for tomorrow. It was impossible to know what the Silver City held for him, and navigating through it and finding a random spire without help would likely prove challenging.

  As expected, Ethan felt the deepest connection with the Affinity, Mind, and Endurance attributes. While his circles for the other ones were coming along, he knew those three would be finished first. How he knew that he was making progress toward the finish line was beyond him, but he wouldn't complain. It was nice to have something to mark as progress.

  Eventually, when the clock in the park read 10 p.m., the scribe decided it was time to turn in. Barry wasn't within the confines of the shack, but he paid little attention to that and crawled into his bedroll. His plan was to wake up as early as possible and head over to the city early. He only hoped Amelia’s statement about transport was true. When he drifted off to sleep, the only thing he could see in his mind's eye was seven rings representing seven attributes.

  ***

  The line for breakfast wasn't bad if a person were to arrive quite early. Ethan was at the head of the line when it first opened at 5 a.m. The sun hadn't even dared to poke its head over the horizon, but lingering shades of orange were glowing in the east. His stomach made a weird gurgling noise, and he selected the lightest things on the menu, including fruit and a milky porridge. After eating those, he headed directly for the nearest gate. It was the same one he had first arrived through.

  The massive archway was intimidating. Ethan approached the wooden pavilion, looking awkwardly between the sleepy attendant and the stone gate. "Excuse me, I need to get to Pel’Vengar."

  The attendant looked up with a hooded gaze, blinking away confusion. His eyes snapped between Ethan's face and the bronze badge on his chest. "Sorry, but I think it's unlikely you have any business in the big city."

  "I have a class there. I have the information as written by the administration if you want to see it."

  "No, I can just scan your badge. Hand it over." The attendant held his hand out, and Ethan handed over his badge. After swiping it over something out of view, the man's eyes went wide. "Why would you look at that! You've got authority to take the gate from here to the big city. Are you from one of those big important families?"

  "Not that I know of." Ethan accepted his badge back, pinning it against his chest once again.

  “Ah, rats. Anyway, I’ll get the gate activated. This note on your file says that you can come back, so don't worry about getting stuck. The city has directories if you get lost, or you can ask anyone dressed in some fancy, shining armor and they’ll point you in the right direction.”

  “Thanks,” Ethan said, looking up at the portal yet again. He watched as those lights formed on the edges. When he had first seen them, he mistook them for neon lights. Now he knew the truth. That was magic concentrating to create a portal. On the attendant’s word, he stepped through.