Chapter 15 - Exploration Of Life

My eyes fluttered open to the sight of Justus Amin, The Vice-Principal Keeper, sitting on a bench reading a book in the hospital room. As I sat upright in my bed and stretched my arms, he looked up from his book and closed it with a soft thud. 

“I am glad to see you are well rested,” he said to me as he watched me get up from my hospital bed.

“Like the doctor said, take it easy for the rest of the night and the entirety of tomorrow. The reason is that the day after tomorrow starts your first official day of noble classes. I suggest you go hang out with a friend tomorrow. You can even leave the campus with my permission with that friend after you are done with the campus.”, Justus said as he got up and followed me out the door.

“Before you start your classes officially, I want you to learn more about the world around you, as it will be extremely important later down the road. There is a bigger world out there besides the academy. The world is even larger beyond Tarondar and the entire continent of Glozaria."

"This will all make sense shortly. If you trust Ivy enough tomorrow, then the next day when I send you back to your parent’s house, you can bring her along.”, Justus said to me with determination. 

Before I could give back a proper reply, he was already gone.

So much for that, I said to myself. It was nighttime already since I slept in a good bunch. Thankfully, though, my headache is gone. I walked back to my dorm and jumped into my bed. I couldn’t sleep right away since I just took a nap, so instead I stayed up binge-reading Magic and Emotions until I fell asleep. 

The warm breeze felt nice as I woke up the next morning. The sun shined brightly outside my window as if greeting me to start the day right. I have been so focused on my goals that sometimes I forget to appreciate the outside world. Keeper Academy was a special place to be floating in the sky, making us closer to the sun and the birds. I got up from bed to brush my teeth and throw on some good clothes. 

I was extra happy today because while I was in the middle of reading Magic and Emotions I got the courage to close my book, find her at her dorm, and ask her out to hangout with me tomorrow. Not as a date, of course, just as a friend. Though I wouldn’t have minded the first part if it was one. 

I checked myself in the mirror and headed out the door. Ivy was going to meet me at one building called Sky Point. Sky Point was the building primarily used to teach wind magic users. It towered above many other buildings. When it wasn’t being used for training, people could go up the tower to take in a beautiful view of Tarondar down below.

The only con was that it did not have an elevator. Why does this school insist on being old school about their technology beats me, I thought to myself as I climbed the steps two at a time. Before I knew it, I arrived at the viewing platform level.

The building, though it looked old school, still was majestic in its own right. Classically made giant columns lined the platform all around with intricate patterns on them.

If you looked up at the ceiling of the platform, there was illusion light magic cast on it to make it look like birds were flying around the clouds. It honestly was beautiful. 

However, it wasn’t as beautiful as what I saw next. As I was staring at the ceiling like a freak, I felt a tap on my shoulder.

“Huh?”, I turned around quickly.

There, standing before me, was none other than Ivy Mckinley. The girl who brought some light into my life from the very first day. Is what I feel about her romantic? Who knows? One, I hardly know who I am, which makes it harder to understand exactly what I am feeling. 

“Hey, Nico! Over here, come on!”, Ivy laughed and said to me as she ran toward the balcony viewpoint. I was confused by all the excitement for a moment. My legs picked up speed, and I rushed over to the balcony.

Now, the view I saw was more beautiful than just any simple words could do justice.

Keeper Academy floats above in the sky in the Kingdom of Tarondar. The exact location of Keeper Academy is quite near the royal palace down below. That is another reason the Keeper Academy is so prestigious. I mean, the King of Tarondar is called “Keeper King” for a reason.

Beyond the royal walls of the Tarondar Royal Palace is a city called Stonelight. Stonelight is the city belonging to the House of Grey. The city was going to be given to another noble household, but because Ignis rose to the top, the Grey family could keep managing the city. 

Down below from our fortress in the sky, we noticed many small dots moving around the city at a quick pace. If you squinted, you could make out children playing together or people shopping at the farmer’s market.

Many smiles, and many laughs. Some were crying, and some were sad. Down below, our bubble of supreme magic was a whole other life of struggling and surviving.

If it wasn’t for Keeper Academy inviting me or, more like forcing me to attend, my life would be so different. Even though I hate being here, some part of me can’t change the fact that some things here aren’t so bad. For example, making friends with Leena and Ivy has been a great start to the year. I haven’t even begun classes officially, so hopefully, I will make more friends there. 

As the cool breeze ruffled our hair, I glanced at Ivy.

Her hair flew beautifully in the wind. Her eyes sparkled against the sunlight and her smile lifted some weight off my back. If being here meant anything, I am just happy I could witness happiness on someone’s face like that. Ivy turned toward me, startling me.

“This is such a beautiful view! It was fun looking at it. Let’s check another place out on campus I want to show you.”, Ivy said to me, smiling as she started skipping down the steps. My footsteps echoed on the steps of the stairs as I followed her out of the Sky Point tower. 

The next stop was not a building but a beautiful garden with several magic water fountains in the center of it all. The water fountains were magical because dolphins made of water were jumping in and out of the fountains. If you threw a coin into the water fountain, the dolphins would perform a “dance” which is pretty cool.

The Garden of Watersia was graciously donated by the Frost noble family. The Frost family of nobles is the exact opposite of the Grey family in the sense they gained prestigious power by going along with the Keeper King’s policies. Whether they agree with the Keeper King is another thing entirely. 

Ivy tossed a bronze coin into the water fountain. 

Splash!

The water fountain came to life with dolphins and birds made of water, jumping in and out of the various water fountains in rhythm like a dance. Ivy laughed as the water fountain dance ended. The dance even made me giggle a little bit.

Being here with Ivy distracted me from the entire world, the entire illusion the Keepers have been lying to everyone about. This fake paradise can become a real one once I unmask the Keepers as Eradicators and exterminate them. 

“Hey Ivy, are you ready to explore Stonelight and see my town that’s further out in the woods? I am from Mistfall, if that helps at all.”, I said to her, hoping she knew where that village was located.

Mistfall is a small remote village in Stonelight’s surrounding Forest. The village and forest are always almost in constant mist because of waterfalls and nearby rivers, so few travel there unless you are local. Not even the Keepers care about being there, mostly. 

“Yeah, I heard of Mistfall! Many water magic users live there from what I remember. I can’t wait to visit.”, Ivy said gleefully. With that, Ivy and I started walking toward the main building to go to Justus’s office. Funnily enough, though, he beat us to it by approaching us in the garden. 

I hope he lets us explore Stonelight and our hometown.