Courtier: "We are trapped by our own gift. A simple denial or a clumsy lie will be detected, breaking her trust. We must present a plausible scenario.”
Conman: "Exactly! She wants a show? Give her a show! Just not the ‘whole’ show. Show her the Queen, but keep the Ace up your sleeve. Start with the scary story."
Ray nodded and invited his friends to sit, his expression unreadable.
“Please, sit. What I’m about to tell you doesn't leave this suite.”
Eliza and Cassian exchanged a worried glance and sat, their earlier excitement vanishing. Ray remained standing, his small frame projecting an unusual weight. His internal committee was already hard at work, scripting his next performance.
Ray let out a slow, deliberate breath.
“You remember my old acquaintance, Kaelen Thorne?”
Eliza nodded.
“The girl from the Arcanum College?
“Yes,”
Ray said, his voice low.
“During the break, she was found tortured and poisoned.”
“What?!”
Cassian gasped, leaning forward, Ray continued before he could ask another question.
“There was also another incident... A significant security breach.”
Cassian gasped, again.
“A breach? Here?”
“Yes,”
Ray said, his gaze fixed on Eliza, speaking directly to her perceptive skill.
“A shadowy figure breached the wards on this suite. It was... a professional.”
He let the implications of that sink in. Rina, who was standing by the kitchenette, visibly paled at the memory, an involuntary reaction that brilliantly sold the truth of Ray’s words.
“That’s why the Headmaster has increased security,”
Ray concluded, gesturing toward outside where a number of Silver Aegis stood guard.
“She takes the threat very seriously. The guards are the result.”
“Are you alright? Are you safe here? You weren’t hurt right?”
Eliza asked, her voice sharp with a worry that went beyond simple friendship. Her skill was telling her he was being truthful, the core facts were solid, she could feel the cold, sharp echo of fear and danger coming from Ray, confirming the attack was real. But she could also feel the immense, calculated weight of what he was not saying. He wasn't just omitting details; he was hiding an entirely different secret, something far bigger than a simple break-in.
“I’m fine,”
Ray reassured them.
“With the increase of Silver Aegis guards, I doubt anyone would be foolish enough to try anything now.”
Ray reassured them.
“But Kaelen was… she was badly injured in the process. She was recovering in the infirmary, but has been discharged already..”
The threat is from a high-level professional. A 'collector' from the Argent Hand that has plagued my family.”
“Ray,”
Eliza said, her voice soft but unyielding.
“I’m... I’m so sorry that happened. I’m glad you’re safe.”
She paused, her gaze locking with his.
“But that’s not everything, is it? You’re still hiding something.”
Ray’s mask of calm concern faltered, just for a fraction of a second, but Eliza caught it.
“You don’t have to worry about us Ray, we can handle it.”
she said, leaning forward.
Ray looked at her sharp, perceptive gaze, then at Cassian’s earnest, worried face. He let out a long breath, his performance of calm assurance finally dropping.
“You’re right,”
he said, his expression becoming serious. He stood.
“Come with me.”
He led them from the main living area to the magically enhanced training area, , and sealed the door and also used the system and activated the 'Static Loop' in the room for complete privacy.
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“The reforging in the Genesis Chamber,”
Ray said, turning to face them.
“It did more than just heal my Aetheric Leak. It unlocked… this.”
He held out his hand, palm up. He closed his eyes, concentrating. He didn't call on the ‘weak fluke’ he had shown Headmaster Andrade. He also didn't call on his true, secret, primordial affinity. He chose a third performance.
He reached out with his new, raw Mana Affinity and, with the guidance of the Crimson Weaver, he shaped it. A small, stable ball of bright orange fire flickered to life in his hand. It wasn't a weak spark; it was a sustained, controlled, cantrip Fire Bolt spell, burning with a steady, confident heat.
Eliza and Cassian both gasped, their eyes wide with utter shock. This was the truth she had been sensing. The ‘Heretic Mage’ wasn't a fluke. He was a real mage, and he had been hiding it from everyone.
Ray let the flame extinguish, the light fading from the room.
“Headmaster Andrade is convinced that while I can now use Mana, I am still very far from being proficient in using it,”
he explained, the final piece of his grand deception clicking into place.
“She's assigned me a new, private tutor for this term. Someone to 'fix' my 'weakness.' I will meet them tomorrow.”
Eliza and Cassian stared at the empty hand, then at Ray’s serious, waiting face. Cassian, a Fourth Circle Mage, was the first to find his voice, his academic curiosity completely overwhelming his shock.
“That was… that was a perfectly stable cantrip spell!”
he exclaimed, his eyes wide.
“But your form… the somatic actions were flawless! How long have you—?”
“I… well, I’ll be,”
Eliza cut in, her mind visibly racing. A slow, incredulous grin spread across her face.
“Congratulations, Ray.”
She shook her head, a small laugh escaping her.
“And here I was, remembering the announcement from the entrance exams. 'A genius, but magically inert.' You, Ray Croft, are a walking, talking paradox.”
“It... unlocked... when my body was reforged in the Genesis Chamber,”
Ray explained, using the curated truth he had prepared.
“I’ve been practicing over the break. My control is still new.”
“New?”
Cassian looked completely energized.
“Ray, that was better than 'new'! With that in your arsenal, you're more than ready for the ‘Promotion Trials.’”
The statement, meant as a compliment, landed with a thud of confusion.
“Promotion Trials?”
Eliza asked, her brow furrowing.
“What do you mean? I was top 5 overall, shouldn't promotion be automatic?”
She paused, a look of realization dawning on her.
“Wait... we never even had final exams last term.”
Ray simply looked blank.
“I’m not familiar with them,”
he said honestly.
“I was exempt from the standard curriculum last term.”
Cassian sighed, running a hand through his perpetually messy hair as he took on the role of the exasperated senior student.
“Ah, right. You two haven’t been through a normal cycle. This is the 'Solhaven Philosophy' in action,”
he began, ticking points off on his fingers.
“The academy is all about student agency. They let you control your own path, what classes you take, what research you pursue, what tasks you do... and if, or when, you want to get promoted. They don't use standard exams to push you forward. You have to apply for it. The Promotion Trials are that application. They're held at the start of every year for all students who feel they're ready to graduate at their current level.”
“Graduate?”
Eliza pressed, now deeply invested.
“To officially graduate from an 'Initiate' to a 'First Level' student,”
Cassian clarified.
“A First Circle Mage for the College of Arcanum, Tier 1 for you two from the College of Statecraft, or a First Rank from the college of Valor student.”
He leaned forward, his voice dropping as he got to the most important part.
“It’s not just about a title, Eliza. It’s about everything. First and most important, if you get ranked: the stipend.”
Ray’s focus sharpened instantly at the word.
“The moment you’re a ranked student, the academy starts paying you a monthly stipend,”
Cassian explained.
“And it’s ranked. The top 20 performers in the trials, the ones who achieve 1st Rank status, get 2,000 Academic Marks a month.”
Eliza’s eyes widened. That was a significant, steady income.
“Second: access,”
Cassian continued.
“You must be a promoted student to officially enroll in any advanced courses.”
He looked at both of them, his expression serious.
“And finally: legitimacy. This is the only path to official status in the academy. Until you pass the trials, no matter how brilliant you are, in the eyes of the faculty and the Arcane Council... you’re still just an Initiate.”
The information from Cassian landed, and the entire dynamic in the room shifted.
"That's the real prize,"
Cassian confirmed, leaning in.
"Think about it. The reward we got from the Headmaster gave us was incredible, but it was a one-time payment. It's 'hush money.' Now a stipend,"
He tapped his own medallion,
"is a salary. It's reliable. It's what allows you to actually live here, to buy reagents, to commission work, to not starve. That one-time windfall will get used up."
Eliza's sharp, pragmatic mind seized on the logic instantly. Her 20,000 Marks were a finite resource, although her family has the resources to exchange for more marks the exchange rate is so high, it is still a considerable expense for her family and she hated the idea of her future being limited. A competitive fire lit in her eyes.
"Senior Cassian is right,"
she said, her voice firm.
"I'm not just aiming to pass."
She looked from Cassian to Ray.
"I'm aiming for First Rank. That 2,000 Marks a month... that's real freedom."
Cassian beamed, delighted by their enthusiasm.
"That's the spirit! And you've got time. The trials don't start for another month. As a 4th-Circle Mage, I can officially sponsor you both. We'll drill on theory, I'll help you with the practicals... we'll get you both prepared."
Ray listened, a small, quiet smile on his face. But inside, he felt a sharp twinge of guilt. He already had a 2,000-Mark monthly stipend. He already had full access to any class he wanted via the Custodian's Crest. He was a secret fellow, living a lie.
His internal committee immediately began a loud, chaotic debate in his Ambient Presence.
Conman: "Who cares?! Guilt? Guilt doesn't pay for alchemical supplies! We can get another 2,000! That's 4,000 Marks a month! We'll be kings! We can buy this whole dusty spire!"
Weaver: "More money! More resources! More high-calorie food to fuel my genius! I LOVE this plan! Do it! Do it now!"
Courtier: "Silence, you fools! This isn't about the money, this is about legitimacy. The Headmaster's deal makes us a secret. A ‘puppet.’ Passing the trials publicly makes us an ‘official’ prodigy. It validates our access. It normalizes our power. We'll no longer be an anomaly; we'll be the standard. This is the most important political move we can make."
Ray's focus sharpened. The Courtier was right. This was also the perfect way to recover the lost income from Master Elias, but that was just a bonus. The real prize was political. His secret deal with Headmaster Andrade made him her ‘Special Research Fellow,’ a ghost with no official standing. A public victory in the trials, however, would make him from ‘Initiate Croft,’ to 1st-Circle, 1st Rank or Tier 1" a public and official prodigy. It would build an unassailable public identity that the Headmaster could never hide or silence. It was the perfect counter-move.
He looked up at his two friends, the quiet, bookish boy vanishing. In his place was a competitor. A new, competitive fire burned in his golden-flecked eyes.
"Alright,"
Ray said, a small, confident smile touching his lips.
"Let's do it. Let's show them what we can do."
Thanks for reading!
The goal is set: First Rank or bust. But to pass the trials, Ray needs a teacher.
Next Time: Ray waits for his new, elite private tutor... and gets a guy in a straw hat who seems more interested in eating Ray's breakfast than teaching magic. But when Ray uses his department head level authority to check the stranger's file, he realizes the Headmaster didn't send him a fool, she sent him a legend who gave up.
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89B93
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Dec 31st