TheHangedMan

Magic Apprentices -Private-

The glow Solomon felt from casting magic died out, and the tired smile on his face was replaced with one of abject horror. He swallowed deeply, and eventually let out a dejected sigh.

Of course they had to go jogging. Despite his body's anguished protest, the boy took one step forward and began jogging. He was never the most athletic person around. Oh, he wasn't unfit, and he did do sports occasionally, but right now he was just tired - casting those fireballs took more out of him than he thought.

Barely 1 kilometer later, and Solomon was already struggling to walk. At the end of two kilometers, he looked like dehydrated grape. A dehydrated, damp, and frozen grape.

"Whyyyyy was I born~!" he wailed exaggeratedly as he collapsed in a heap, at the end of his jog.

Breakfast University Of Magic

Hoping the new update was okay. I kinda rushed through it because I got impatient :P

Magic Apprentices -Private-

Solomon smiled slightly at the praise. Okay, so maybe he wasn't doing as badly as he imagined. With newfound confidence, he resumed practicing his fireball.

This time, the image came easier. Of course, he got careless initially, and the first few fireballs were so weak, they didn't even reach the target before evaporating into the air. He spent a few minutes focusing on the image, and trying to measure what amount of magic was just right. He realized, that for something like this, it was all about pacing. His earlier blunders taught him that when it came to magic, he had to be aware of his limits, first and foremost.

So after every fireball, he paused, and took note of the feeling. He increased and decreased the power, sometimes he'd try changing the image he had of making a fireball - which resulted in some spectacular failures - and at one point became to overconfident and accidentally burned himself. None of his shots hit the target where he aimed. Some of them missed completely. Eventually, he hit something of an equilibrium.

His limits known, he Solomon stared straight at his target. He formed the image in his head, and broke it, creating a fireball and hurtling it towards his target. For the first time, it hit exactly where he wanted it to. Then he made another, and another, and another.

All of them hit roughly the same area. By the end, Solomon was perspiring and wheezing for breath, and he was well aware he was had hit his limit of casting spells for the day. Still, he looked at what was left of his target and grinned. Not bad, he told himself, not bad at all.

Breakfast University Of Magic

@GamerXZ Hidden from the world at large. The total number of magic practitioners globally is somewhere around 3 million.

Breakfast University Of Magic

I CAN BREATH EASY NOW. I had to cut that post by half

Breakfast University Of Magic

Prologue

. . .

Gold smirked, and flicked a strand of her strawberry-blonde hair backwards. So far, there were no complications. If the Headmaster had noticed something off about her background, he didn't do anything about it. It was the one and only flaw in the school's security system. Background checks of different students were thorough, so thorough that it was, in fact, impossible to fake or alter them. Which is why it was hers wasn't.

The abandoned castle where she lived in belonged to a disciple of Archemage Miltiades, but the man himself was just a cover for the fact that the Archemage himself was residing in there. For the entirety of her life, the Archemage lived in the castle only, never leaving, in order to fool the university into thinking that he had almost nothing to do with her.

The University accepted everyone from all walks of life. Stray practitioners, masterless and desperate would-be mages, and there were even a startling amount of students that were similar to her - orphans, raised their entire life in the shadow of the University; she pitied them most of all. To be in the pocket of a man like Archemage Niccolo, it was likely he was influencing them into becoming his tools, more arms with which he could work with, and they wouldn't even know it. They'd keep an illusory belief that they were free men, free to make their own decisions and shape their lives as they saw fit, when all along Niccolo was in their shadow, telling them what to do.

Given the amount of students with unusual circumstances here, her own would hardly stand out. She'd be another case, in a long file of them. It was the perfect cover to work from, and it seemed to be proving its worth right away.

The first thing she had to do was gather information. Potential allies to her cause, and of course, potential hindrances. Most notably, she needed to do a threat assessment of the most infamous mages.

Licking her lips, her eyes began morphing from their usual blue hue, to a brilliant gold.

Cycle Eyes

A spell unique to her branch of magic, and easily her most potent skill. While not primarily a combat tool, it was almost unparalleled in terms of information gathering - in fact, Archemage Miltiades himself claimed that at the current level of her ability, she was second only to Niccolo himself. The gap between first and second was as wide as that between heaven and earth, but it spoke volumes that the only one she was bested by was an Archemage.

When she used Cycle Eyes, she could take a single look at another mage, and with but a single glimpse of them, cycle through every spell and bit of magic they had used, going back to at most two hundred years - a limit that had only been tested when she tried her Eyes on Archemage Miltiades. She could see how they used their magic, how they cast their spells, and how potent they were. Of course that didn't mean that she could instantaneously copy them - even if she could, she would not. That was tantamount to spell-stealing, and even if she didn't kill the original user, the mere idea that she would act in any way similar to Niccolo repulsed her greatly.

Cycle Eyes was also utterly untraceable. No one would notice when it was being used on them - Archemage Miltiades stressed on this point. He had trained her in its use so thoroughly that the last time she used it against him, he hardly even noticed. It was the first time that she had honestly surprised him. From the look on his expression, she thought he would punish her for so brazenly using her magic on him, but in the end he rewarded her for her achievement with ice cream.

For a moment, Gold blanked out as she recalled the absolutely heavenly taste of the creamy dessert. Oh, that wonderful, sweet treat that just melted on her tongue in a frosty explosion of strawberry goodness . . .

"Buh!"

Snapping back to reality, she refocused on the task at hand.

As she walked through the crowds of students in the Mess Hall, she mentally categorized the students she passed through, going through them quickly and making note of the more interesting ones. So far there were a few notables, but none that would require her immediate attention.

And then, two she caught sight of two mages as they walked through an entrance of the Mess Hall at the same moment.

The first mage, a tall and - even for her - beautiful girl, with a powerful gait and confident air, had magic she had never seen before. In fact, it would be more accurate to say that she was not even seeing actual magic - rather than the usual spells and magic disciplines, all she saw was an endless body of water, mighty and angry as it was aggravated by the power of a storm that shook the heavens themselves. It was the wrath of nature unleashed, the rage of wind, water and lightning bound as one. The power of a storm. Whoever this mage was, she was the walking embodiment of the storm.

The second mage was no less notable. Her magic was as clear as water, as soft as paper, and more chaotic than anything she's ever seen. She could see her magic, she could see her spells, she could see her practice them, but for the life of her, she couldn't understand how she was doing any of it. Even when she looked at Archemage Miltiades, though she couldn't comprehend how he did any of his spells, she found that at the very least she could understand the basis behind it. The root behind his spells was something grounded in reality. Whatever this girl was doing was so twisted and vague that Gold was certain that she was absolutely insane.

These . . . these two. She had to keep a close eye on them. More than that, she needed to see what they were capable of.

Gold grinned. There was a new ability she was dying to try out. Time for a test run . . .

---

Charles & Leo

. . .

Sergei nodded. Though his face was still stern, it felt as though he approved of their decision.

"Very good, if that's the case, we had best be on our way. We have a lot of ground to cover, after all."

Just as he was about to get up and lead the both of them out, a chorus of angry yells echoed from nearby. Though the sheer number of them made whatever they were talking about incoherent, somethings could still be made out through the din.

". . . fake . . . !"

" . . . Archetype . . . !"

"Duel . . . !"

"Duel . . . !"

"Duel . . . !"

Sergei frowned, and looked at Charles and Leo. "Come, we'd best avoid this. It's none of our business, and I rather Charles not be exposed to something like this on his first day."

@olcharlieboi & @Letter Bee

Alexander & Phagora

. . .

Talk between the two was cut short as train stopped at its final destination at the Mess Hall. It was here, that the ceremony officially concluded and breakfast was laid out.

Eventually, their two respective handlers found them through the crowds of students.

Rose and Harold gave each other a curt nod of greeting, before turning to their respective wards. "Good to see you again/You had a pleasant trip, I hope?" said Rose and Harold respectively.

"Nice to see you made a friend, if you wish to continue the tour with her, you may do so," Rose said to Alexander. Harold, with Phagora, nodded in agreement. The both of them both turned and frowned as a chorus of angry echoes reached their ears. It was quite far away, so nothing was audible, but it was still an unusual sound here, in the Mess Hall of all places. Most arguments were settled quickly, especially with the number of Enforcers flitting about.

@KiritoAsuna & @shagranoz

Luna, Lee & Viola w/ Viktor

. . .

Xinhua watched as Polyanna revived Viktor using her rather infamous sweets. Seeing the woman always put on her on guard. She wondered if the others were aware . . . no, they were probably aware, it was just that her awareness was more acute. Among all the girls gathered, she was the only one among them that was a pure "combat-type" mage. Calling her a mage was stretching it, even - she was more like a brawler that could use magic. As a consequence, it made her all the more aware of how terrifyingly strong the candy-themed Head Enforcer was. Being around her was nerve-wracking.

She recalled when she first arrived here, that she wished to join the Enforcers. It was a good group to find rivals her age, and perhaps someone that could best her. Enforcers such as Descartes Olton came to mind, and in her eagerness, she had perhaps been a tad arrogant.

Then she arrived, looking even younger and childish than she did now. Despite that, despite the fact that their first meeting hand been with her hair tangled, and with a lollipop in her mouth and a chocolate bar in hand, one glance from her instantly caused her to step back in fear.

Her! The Disciple of the Dragon God, to step back in fear, from an opponent she who's name she did not even know! The disgrace was so unbearable that she decided to forgo joining the Enforcers. She didn't need anymore reminders, not while Polyanna Saccharine walked around as a living one.

She had never completely gotten over it. As a result, she was always tense around Polyanna, despite her wishes. It aggravated her to no end, and perhaps the reason she accepted so many duels from different students, no matter their background or reason, was so that she could purge this steadily growing bubble of insecurity inside of her. Everyday, however, she was growing more and more certain that the only way to fix this issue was by facing the woman herself.

Lost in her own thoughts, Xinhua nearly jumped back as she was offered a lollipop. Seeing no reason to turn it down without looking suspicious, she accepted it, albeit reluctantly. Eating it was more of an automatic response on her part. She barely tasted the treat, which was a shame - it probably would have tasted like extra-spicy shezuan shrimp platter, her favorite.

"How, how would I do, should we actually fight?" she thought to herself. "No, a foolish question. I would be utterly demolished . . . but at the very least, would I put up a struggle worthy of myself?"

Such were the girls thoughts at the moment. If allowed to continue, she would have brooded all day long, perhaps not even moving from the same spot she stood on for hours on end. As it was, she was broken out of her stupor by the feeling a tongue sliding across her chee-

"Wai?!" she yelped in an unusually high pitch (It was not a squeak!) "Lee, that is undignified!"

---

In the background, Karen stayed silent. She didn't have much to add in terms of discussion anyhow. Besides the candy was good . . .

Until Lee opened her mouth, and then, despite still tasting like mangoes, it turned very, very bitter. "Oh yeah, totally forgot you were there-" could she be any more blunt? She knew she was just a plain, no good, talent-less bystander that no one would even spare a second glance at, but to hear a statement that all but confirmed it from someone who she considered practically a friend was-!

"No, I'm good, thanks though," she said, hiding the hurt behind a practiced smile. She'd know it for years now, so why was she feeling so surprised? No, she really should have seen it coming. So, she would act like usual. Nothings's changed, after all.

"Anyway, Luna's right. Shouldn't we be heading for the Mess Hall?" she said, casually tossing aside her lollipop into a nearby garbage bin. She wasn't in the mood anymore.

Xinhua nodded, quickly regaining her composure. "Yes, can we please get a move on, before we encounter even more distractions. I will carry Viktor, if he requires assistance."

And so the group made way for the train station closest to the Dorms. Despite his protests, Viktor was heaved over Xinhua's shoulders, who lifted him as effortlessly as would lift a paper bag. "No need for your thanks, you are rather light, despite your tall frame," she said, innocently deflecting any protest.

Once they arrived on the train, Karen suddenly looked up, and a grimace crossed her face, and stayed. Just as the group was about to take a seat, Karen whispered, loud enough for her to be heard by them, but not enough to be hear by others.

"Uh, guys, if you don't mind, can we sit somewhere not in front of her?"

By her, she was referring to the impressively short dark-haired girl seated across them. With a book on her lap and a blank expression on her face, her grey-green eyes danced with life as they practically devoured the information presented to her. The girl was Meruin Hazy, and she seemed wholly unaware of the world around her.

Karen really, really disliked being around Meruin. They had entered the University at around the same time, and where everyone else was quickly forming acquaintances and new friends, Meruin was doing the exact opposite and making herself unilaterally disliked by the student body. The "why" behind it, became quickly apparent to Karen.

All she wanted was to talk with her. Just one conversation, because she thought that perhaps the rumors were not so bad, and were merely exaggerations.

She seemed amicable enough, at first, if a little distant. Karen attributed that to her being an introvert - she knew the feeling, at least. Now though, she was sure that Meruin simply did not want to talk to her.

The conversation between them quickly turned to one of magic. It was when Karen demonstrated hers, that the tone of the conversation went down hill quickly. Meruin, in simple terms, ripped her a new one.

Every flaw, every minor imprecision, every inefficiency, in her spell-casting was pointed out and viciously brought to light. Meruin, by her own admission, never encountered a Plague Mage, and yet she had the sheer audacity to offer to correct her mistakes.

She remembered being embarrassed at what amounted to a public execution of her skills as mage, only to look around and find that everyone else was ignoring her, and glaring angrily at Meruin. She wasn't the first one she'd done it to, and from what she'd heard later on, neither was she the last.

So yes, for once, she insisted on something. She was not sitting near Meruin Hazy.

Xinhua, not seeing a problem, agreed, though she was slightly curious as to why. As for the others, they could sit here if they wanted to, but Karen wouldn't.

The train ride passed on in silence, until they reached the Mess Hall. Annoyingly enough, Meruin went down with them. Of course she would - even someone like her couldn't help but appreciate the breakfast the school served on a frankly massive scale.

Staying silent Karen resolved to ignore her. The moment they stepped into the canteen, however, she found herself growing increasingly aggravated by her presence. She sought a release. A way to vent against the small, arrogant mage. Then, a single glance at Xinhua, blissfully unaware that she was walking beside a spiteful demon, and something clicked within her.

She muttered, not silently, but loud enough to be heard by students around her . . .

"I wonder what would happen if a Dragon God fought an Archetype?"

And then all hell broke loose.

@13org, @Rune_Alchemist & @SlashInfinite w/ @Leoven

---

"I wonder what would happen if a Dragon God fought an Archetype . . . ?"

A simple sentence, muttered in private, and yet audible enough for a few to hear. It was enough. The question spread like wildfire, unquenchable and tantalizing. The strongest kind of god, against the strongest kind of mage - the very idea was enough to send the imagination flying!

People wondered at the outcome. Who would triumph? Which was superior? All they could do was wondered - for neither Dragon God nor Archetype were beings that could easily be seen, and even rarer would these beings come to blows - even more rare than that was for any creature between them surviving and retelling the clash.

But as always, when not able to grasp the real thing, humans were easily satisfied by substitutes, and there were two convenient ones standing right beside each other.

"Xinhua versus Meruin?"

"Yeah! The Dragon God's Disciple versus the Apprentice of an Archetype!"

"Is she even really the Apprentice of one though? No one's really confirmed it . . ."

"Then wouldn't this be the best chance?!"

More and more the gossip spread, until a literal mob had been formed. Something about the prospect of those two fighting had inflamed their hearts beyond the understanding of rationality.

In the midst of the storm, Meruin stood, her expression going from her usual blank one, to one of surprise, and then, steadily growing horror. Beside her, Xinhua looked nothing but confused at the pointlessness going on around her.

"Why don't you two fight then?" one of the crowd bravely called out to the two.

Xinhua glared at the boy. "I will not issue a challenge to someone who does not wish to!"

Meruin sighed with relief, until another one of the crowd spoke.

"What's the matter Meruin, are you scared?"

"Of course she is. The whole story about her being the Apprentice of an Archetype is total BS. I told you!"

The short mage, with each word that came out of their lips, looked more and more livid. If anyone was aware of her rapidly growing anger, they ignored it.

"That makes sense. No wonder she never participated in any duels."

"Maybe she really sucks at using magic? You know, she's one of those really book smart girls that knows all the theories but can't cast for shit."

"I'm telling you she's not really an Archetype's Apprentice!"

SNAP!

"SHUT. UP."

She didn't shout. She barely raised her voice. But the absolute loathing that seeped out of every syllable was enough to silence the crowd, at least temporarily.

The short girl raised her eyes to glare at the mob that had inexplicably formed around her and Xinhua.

"I. Am. The. Apprentice of the one and only Archetype, The Witch of Creation, The Silver Brush herself!" she said through ground teeth. Something in her pride stung, something that had never managed to touch her before now, despite the prevalence of rumors. Only now did the accusations whispered behind her back truly reach her.

There was silence as her words were processed. Faced with this anger, this sheer loathing, they could no longer deny to her face that she was the Apprentice of an Archetype.

Things seemed to calm down, until, one girl with strawberry-blond curls and blue eyes said:

"The maybe that means that her Master isn't to impressive . . . ?"

Once again, silence dominated as her words were processed. No one said anything at first - such was how, quite frankly, blasphemous, the statement was. Her words implied that an Archetype was a failure as a Master, that not even one as almighty as they were exempt from such flaws. It also implied something far more sinister - that beside the Disciple of the Dragon God, the Apprentice of an Archetype meant nothing.

Once again, chaos spread through the mob of students, more subdued, silent, but no less destructive.

"So I guess an Archetype really isn't much, huh?"

SNAP

"Well, if the apprentice is anything to go by . . ."

SNAP SNAP

"Guess that answers that question. If an Archetype and a Dragon God fought . . ."

SNAP SNAP SNAP

"Looks like the Archetype would lose pretty badly."

"If an Archetype and Dragon God fought, the Dragon God would disappear from the very face of existence," snapped Meruin. "A Dragon God is nothing more than a lizard in the face of an Archetype!"

For the third time, the crowd was hushed into silence from sheer shock. Now, no one made any attempt to say anything, any attempt to weigh in on the "discussion" - no, instead, they took the smartest course of action, and backed away slowly.

Electricity shot out in small sparks from her skin, and the storm that was ever-present in her eyes had intensified greatly, the full weight of which was thrown directly towards Meruin Hazy.

"What was that, little girl?"

To the surprise of everyone involved, Meruin did not back down. Staring directly back at the storm, grey-green eyes flashed a brilliant emerald, matching it's gaze and strength.

"If a Dragon, and an Archetype fought, the Dragon would lose."

"That's a big assumption, from a mage who can't fight."

They glared at one another, daring the other to prove them wrong. A tense silence formed between them as it seemed imminent that a fight would break out at anytime.

The one to break the silence would be Xinhua.

"A duel in my Patrons honor. Meruin Hazy, was it? In a week, we face each other representing our respective teachers."

Meruin blanched in surprise. The small girl stared at the tall beauty in silence, pursing her lips.

"What, don't tell me you're afraid? Not after your ridiculous claims."

"A week, then," replied Meruin through grit teeth. "A week, and we Duel."

Xinhua smiled. Feral, predatory, and vindicated, as though that was exactly what she wanted to hear.

"Agreed."

And pandemonium erupted across the Mess Hall.

Breakfast University Of Magic

Okay fuck me, this is a really long post and I'm wondering how to cut it shorter . . .

Breakfast University Of Magic

Brace yourselves boys, this next one's going to be looooooong.

Breakfast University Of Magic

@KiritoAsuna Can't. My phone is shite and I'm still at school without a laptop. I'll be free in approx., 2 hours.

Breakfast University Of Magic

@Letter Bee I don't mind having a Co-GM or two for some RP's but in all honesty it's a pretty pointless position for this RP. Like, asides accepting new players what would they even do?