243 Chapter 4 Maxi stiffened at the unexpected question. She was floundering for what to say when Dean chimed in. “The Lord of Anatol? The Dragon Slayer? What about him?” “I heard he has an adamantine sword and orichalcum-plated currencies in his possession,” Alec said, his nostrils flaring with excitement. “Can you believe it? They say his cellar is filled with divine ores! You know my lifelong dream is to be able to craft with orichalcum. If I became the Dragon Slayer’s mage, I could make that come true.” “What hogwash. Have you forgotten the deserter is in his service?” Anette’s grave voice made Maxi flinch. After wordlessly inspecting the steel wyvern model flapping its wings, she turned a stern gaze on Maxi and the twins. “Keep such thoughts to yourself if you don’t want to rankle the senior mages. It still very much grates at the Serbels whenever the topic arises.” Alec grew somber at the mention of the mage clan that dominated the upper echelons of Urd. Maxi surreptitiously gulped. As it turned out, Ruth Serbel’s notoriety within the Mage Tower was far worse than she had ever imagined. The high mages of Urd accosted her whenever they could with less than savory things to say about her friend, and even the exceedingly solemn Serbel clan were known to fling a damning insult or two whenever his name came up. Thankfully, none of the other novices knew where she was from. If they were to learn she had been taught by the traitor himself, she was certain they would never let her hear the end of it. Ruth’s desertion was the reason the Mage Tower had tightened its rules, and the majority of the novices loathed him for it. Maxi hastily changed the subject. “I-I think we should stop the idle chatter here! We have much to do… to prepare for the afternoon classes.” “I haven’t finished looking through your drafts yet. The reputation of Nome Hall is at stake!” “He’s right! Not to mention, you’re competing against Kabala’s Miriam. That girl is a nitpicking fiend! You’ll be thoroughly humiliated if you submit something slapdash.” Maxi swept a critical eye over the brothers. “Shouldn’t you be working on your own tasks… instead of worrying about mine? You’ll both fail the Advancement Exams if you don’t hand in your ancient text translations in time.” The Godric brothers looked as though they were going to be sick. Snatching the drafts out of Alec’s grip, Maxi rolled them up and shoved them in her bag. “As for these,” she continued, “Master Landon has agreed to review them for me, so you needn’t worry.” Anette, who had returned to looking at her creation with a pleased expression, jerked her head up. “Master Landon?” Master Landon of the Umri tribe was the head mage of Nome Hall, infamous for his fastidious and grouchy nature. Everyone knew he viewed novices as nothing more than minor annoyances. Anette raised an eyebrow. “What’s gotten into that mulish old man?” “He appeared to be… quite invested in the competition,” Maxi said, keeping her tone deliberately indifferent. In spite of her efforts to shake off the pressure, she still felt it weighing on her. Not only would she be representing the novices of Nome Hall, but the results of this competition decided whether or not she would receive her elemental rune next year. Novices were required to finish a four-year course of study before they were granted a rune. However, if they showed exceptional skill, a novice could receive one in just three years. Maxi spent her days and nights studying the theoretical courses required to become a high mage, and her exemplary grades were evidence of all her hard work. If she received a good evaluation in the upcoming competition, she would be able to leave Nornui by next spring. Then I can go home. Her heart pounded. Waves of sorrow and longing washed over her whenever she thought of Anatol. Struggling to keep from being swept up in her emotions, she pulled out the desk chair and sat down. The most important thing at this present moment was the competition. “I need to prepare for class, so I bid you return to your tasks as well.” “Just…” said Anette, eyeing Maxi’s dark circles, “don’t push yourself too hard.” Anette patted Maxi’s shoulder before returning to her table. The Godric brothers followed their sister. Maxi slipped her hand beneath the desk to stroke Roy’s chin, then flipped open her textbook. Thanks to Anette’s generous offer to create a device to trap Miriam’s fairy familiar, Maxi was able to leave Roy in her room the next day. She gave him a few farewell pats while he lounged on the window sill before she left. Descending the stairs, she was pulling out the notes for her debate class when a cheerful voice trilled behind her. “Max!” Turning around, Maxi saw a girl with lush brown hair skipping toward her, her long braid bouncing behind. She smiled warmly. “Good morning, Sidina.” “Good morning. Ready for the debate today?” “I think so.” The girl groaned. “No fair! You promised not to prepare in advance!” “I don’t recall doing anything of the sort,” Maxi said primly, then snapped her attention back to her notes. Sidina began howling like a wolf, trying to break Maxi’s concentration. Maxi gave her a disapproving, sideways glare. Blessed with natural eloquence, Sidina was usually at the top of the class with little to no study. Maxi, on the other hand, had to prepare at least three days in advance if she wanted to avoid public humiliation. Though two and a half years of effort had mostly corrected her speech impediment, her tongue still froze when she was flustered or nervous. Ignoring the racket her classmate was making, Maxi sank into her debate preparations by muttering the more difficult pronunciations under her breath. Having moved on to squealing an Osiriyan folk song, Sidina cried out, “Oh, you’re a right scholar, aren’t you?” “I’m… doing what I must to keep up.” “You’re doing more than just keeping up! Do go easy on the rest of us, Maximilian. I have to speak right after you, you know. My already subpar argument is going to sound all the more lackluster following yours. Do you not feel sorry for me?” Maxi snorted. “You are exaggerating. Everyone knows you have a silver tongue.” “I’m no good at improvising! Master Lorraine already gave me an earful about it the other day.” “Then you should have prepared.” Sidina pursed her lips. Maxi tuned out the girl’s whining as she leafed through her notes. Before she knew it, they were walking into the wide garden that led to Urd. Just outside the lecture hall, Maxi remembered that she had to return the books she had borrowed from the library. Changing course, she asked Sidina to save her a seat. The girl grumbled but gave a reluctant nod. Maxi began climbing the staircase adjacent to a massive arched entrance, dashing up the steps two at a time. It was unladylike behavior, but this island was the one place she did not have to keep up appearances. She made her way down a long corridor bathed in the bright sunlight of early fall and reached the nearly seven-kevette (approximately 210 centimeters) library door. An untold number of books filled her vision as soon as she stepped through. She wove through the neat rows of packed shelves and stopped in front of the librarian’s ancient desk. A petite old woman with a hooked nose blinked up at her. “May I help you?” “I’m here to return some books,” Maxi said in a small voice, pulling them out of her bag. The librarian frowned as she inspected them. “These are long overdue.” “Y-Yes, I forgot yesterday…” The librarian appeared not to hear her. She recorded the return and said in a monotonous voice, “You are hereby stripped of your borrowing privileges for two weeks. Any required reading may be done on the premises.” “B-But… I require numerous reference materials for the upcoming competition. If you would overlook my tardiness just this once, I’ll make sure to return—” “Rules are rules.” The librarian’s sharp interjection seemed to conclude the matter, and she buried her nose back in the book she had been reading. Maxi considered imploring her further, but meekly turned around when she remembered how uncompromising the old woman could be. Just then, a booming voice echoed behind her. “Maximilian!” Startled, Maxi turned to look in the direction of the speaker.