Fun Fact: Unsurprisingly, some Magi jobs are more lucrative than others, and the population of these jobs are skewed to certain classes.
Sorcerers and Clerics have the biggest chance of landing a high-paying job, while Necromancers and Shamans are limited to niche and unsought fields of expertise.
Most, if not all Metas can only work in physically demanding jobs due to their lack of magic.
~ ~ ~
The next morning arrived swiftly, although it slowed to a crawling pace right after that.
A cooling breeze blew through the lecture auditorium, bringing along the heavenly smell of roses with it. Like most parts of the university, this auditorium was an open-air one, and it sat snugly in the middle of a courtyard. It was designed with nature in mind; Grimioria College thought it a good idea for nature to refresh the students during lessons.
Unfortunately, the peaceful atmosphere had a rather opposite effect instead.
Heads nodded as though in constant agreement with the man droning on at the front, while others remained permanently bowed, as though in respect for his ‘engaging lecture’. It would have been a solemn sight, if not for the slight rumbling of snores droning in the air. Apparently, it wasn’t exactly the best idea to schedule a lecture at eight in the morning.
Except for him.
Sorcerer Gaius Deusdedit scribbled away furiously in his notebook, fully intent on copying down as much as possible before the professor saw fit to remove the words on the blackboard that no one else seemed to care about.
“—This part is important,” the old Shaman said in a tone that only suggested that it was anything but. “It’s going to be on your midterms. See you next week.”
Movement shuffled around the sophomore college student as his coursemates miraculously woke up right on cue, as though their professor’s closing words were some sort of alarm. Gaius hurriedly swept his lecture notes into his bag, eager to head back to his dormitory for a quick nap before his next lesson.
The latent magic energy in his body was sufficient to keep him energised for now, but he was still human. One who had spent the previous night tinkering with his combat gear and was in desperate need of some good sleep right about now.
“Excuse me!”
Gaius stopped in his tracks, turning around to the source of hurried footsteps behind him.
“May I help you?” he asked the daintily dressed girl.
Her sleek, purple hair was braided to the side, and it brushed against her tanned shoulders ever so slightly in the wind. She looked at him with a slightly shocked expression, as though surprised that he actually stopped for her.
“I… Uh…” The girl blinked her strikingly red eyes as she tucked a stray fringe behind her ear. “Hey, I… I’ve been noticing you in class a few times, but I never got to speak to you. D— Do you… want to be friends… with me?”
That’s… random.
“I’m not interested in buying anything,” Gaius said bluntly.
“No, no! It’s nothing like that!” The girl shook her head vigorously as her face started to match the colour of her eyes. “I mean, do you want to… study with me sometime? I don’t really know anybody here, and you’re the only one who seemed interested in this module, so…”
“Oh, uh… Yeah… Sure thing,” Gaius mumbled awkwardly, taken aback by her forwardness.
“Really? Oh, thank you so much!” the girl piped, stretching out her hand. “My name’s Parthena Mors, and I’m a Soothsayer. I’m studying to be a Bard.”
“I’m Gaius Deusdedit, and I’m a Sorcerer. I’m from the Dark Magic course.” Gaius shook her hand. “Interesting module choice for a Bard, though. I can’t fathom why you’d want to take up an elective about higher beings.”
“Oh, this module isn’t part of my course requirements,” Parthena replied shyly. “I only took up this elective because of my personal interests.”
“Well, it’s nice meeting you, Parthena.” Gaius stretched lazily. “See you next week in class?”
“How about tomorrow?” the girl said with a surprising amount of enthusiasm. “I’m free for the whole of tomorrow! Are you up for a study session?”
“T— Tomorrow?” Gaius widened his eyes in surprise. “I— Well, I suppose I can be free tomorrow as well. Alright, let’s meet up tomorrow then.”
“Brilliant!” Parthena practically shouted. “I’ll see you at the central library!”
Gaius watched her bound away with an amused look on his face.
That girl sure is interesting.
~ ~ ~
Gaius woke up to the rays of moonlight intruding into his single dormitory room. He groaned and stretched lazily, glancing over to the rectangular alarm clock that hung on the wall opposite his narrow bed.
It was nine. Nine in the evening. Time sure flew when one was fast asleep.
The boy got up groggily and yawned again, staring blankly at nothing while his body took its time to wake up. After a few more moments of daydreaming, he turned to a blue holographic calendar on his desk.
Orange light coated his fingertips as he made a striking motion with them. A red mark struck through another date labelled ‘Guardian night training’ on his arcane calendar.
Another training missed. Not like that was anything new by now.
Gaius trudged to a dark brown desk at the other corner of the room. His table was neat, despite being filled to the brim with books and grimoires. They sat comfortably in their own snug corners, making way for the monitor positioned right in the middle.
“Hydrus City National College: Hero Course Specialisation,” it read.
He scrolled the crystal ball, hovering the pointer over the huge ‘APPLY’ button. His certificates, his resume detailing his Guardian Council activities, the entrance essay that he spent a week writing, all stared back at him, as though urging him to simply click the button and get it over with.
But he pushed away the ball instead. There would be plenty of time later to think about his postgraduate courses. He still had work to do for now.
Gaius waved his hands elegantly, dematerialising his computer to make way for a pair of silver gauntlets. They hummed quietly, and faint traces of Arcani could be seen pulsing through their energy core. Orange sparks crackled as he brought his hands closer to them.
Good. They were still attuned to his magic.
The boy pulled out the strings that were drawing magic from the wall and conjured his toolbox, plugging the strings into it instead. These devices should be combat-ready by now, although it wouldn’t hurt to do some minor calibrations. Gaius picked up a screwdriver, eager to continue his work—
A knock on his door interrupted him rudely.
His eyes flashed orange as he peered briefly into the future, seeing if whoever was behind the door was worth getting up for. Exasperation crossed his face. There was no avoiding this person. It was her.
And he knew exactly what she was here for.
“What’s up, Kleo? It’s late.” Gaius did not bother to hide the irritation in his voice as the door closed behind him.
The girl was dressed smartly in a bright green jumper which had ‘Grimioria College: School of Arcani Studies’ plastered obnoxiously across her chest. Gaius resisted turning up his nose at the horrendous colour choices; their school should really consider adding fashion design classes to their curriculum.
“Just wanted to see how you’ve been doing.” Kleopatra gave him an uncharacteristically sweet smile. “Here, have a healing potion. I know you can regenerate, but it’s always nice to have some. You’ll never know when you need a boost.”
Gaius received the small bottle of swirling green liquid, although his expression soured.
“Did your sister call you here to make me go for Guardian training?” he asked, not bothering to hide his exasperation. “My midterms are coming up, so I’m gonna have to give tomorrow’s drill a miss as well.”
“No, no, she didn’t! And I understand; I’m obviously missing tonight’s training as well.” Kleopatra’s voice dropped. “Sorry, I haven’t been able to meet up with you ever since we enrolled. I’ve been too busy with Guardian Council activities.”
Gaius kept his arms folded, waiting impatiently for her to get to the point.
“I… I just haven’t seen you in a while, and it feels like we’ve all drifted apart. Felix is busy with his own activities, and you’re… Well—”
“Life goes on. All things must come to an end, Kleo.”
“But isn’t it a little too early for that?” Kleopatra replied with a surprising amount of passion. “I mean, I still want to get to know you more! Last week’s outing to the cinema was absolutely delightful! And I—”
Her face flushed red as she cut herself off abruptly.
“You can still see me in school if you wish.” Gaius tried his best to sound friendlier, but his voice dropped quickly. “Because very soon, you won’t be seeing me in the Guardian Council anymore.”
“W— What?”
“I’m sorry, but this isn’t a good time for me to be splitting my attention,” he said grimly. “I intend to resign from the Council so that I can focus on college and my future career.”
Kleopatra let out an audible gasp as she took a small step forward. Her eyes seemed to be shimmering all of a sudden, although Gaius was sure it was a mere trick of the light.
“Gaius… please. Please reconsider that decision,” she pleaded, almost desperately. “You have friends here. I— We need you. Please don’t leave us so soon. Take more time to think about this.”
“I already did,” Gaius sighed and looked away. “The Guardian Council doesn’t align with what I want. It never did. I just didn’t realise that until after I joined. It’s about time I woke up from this false dream and started facing reality. I want to help as many people as I can, not be a glorified mercenary.”
“But—”
“Good night, Kleopatra. It was nice speaking with you.”
The door closed behind the Sorcerer once again as he faced his empty dorm room. It felt smaller, more suffocating than ever. His heart was still hammering in his chest as emotions fought to break free from his body. He glared at his books; there was no way he was in the mood to tinker now.
Then so be it.
Human-shaped punching bags materialised around him at the snap of his fingers, and he began hammering at them. He closed his eyes in anguish as memories assaulted his mind. His fist cracked against the translucent projection.
This is all your fault, Gaius. I should have just killed you and taken the tome when I had the chance.
Gaius panted, throwing a volley of punches at the arcane mannequin.
Whatever you’re trying to push down inside you, get it out of the way before you begin your mission. Bottling everything up will do no one any good.
The mannequin disintegrated with a soft pop as Gaius delivered a powerful neck chop to it. His eyes flashed briefly as he moved on to the next target.
I’ll show them all that I’m more than competent enough to do what the Guardian Council cannot.
The boy’s blows were getting harder, more feral.
You joined the Guardian Council to help people, right? And how many have we helped so far? Have we ever lent aid to disaster victims? Or are we simply glorified mercenaries for the state, directed at whatever our government wants us to eliminate?
Energy coated his fist as Gaius dealt a devastating finishing blow with a roar, destroying the last target and punching straight through the brick wall.
Oops.
He covered his mouth in embarrassment and hurriedly muttered an incantation, patching up the hole in the wall before the school made him pay for damaging school property. The boy heaved a sigh of relief as he sat back down on his bed again.
His mind felt clearer now, although his heart felt heavier than ever. Gaius cursed himself for being so selfish, for willingly separating himself from his friends just so that he did not need to face the place that had brought him so much hurt.
But if he didn’t look out for himself, no one else would.
“They’ll understand,” Gaius muttered to himself, sitting himself back down at his desk. “They’re my friends. They have to understand.”
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