"If I say sit, you sit . You are a b*tch, so act like one . Otherwise I'll be forced to teach you how to play dead . " Thunderous laughter followed . Most of the class was truly enjoying the moment .
Tista was on the verge of tears, but instead of falling apart she stood up again . Then, she slapped her tormentor hard enough to make the blond girl spin 180° before falling on a desk .
"How dare you!" The blond girl was about to retaliate when something stopped her . Her body froze like time had stopped .
'All according to plan . ' Lith inwardly grinned . He had given Tista a Ballot beforehand and told her to not introduce herself with her family name but as a simple commoner instead .
He wanted her to experience the true academy, without the shield his presence would grant her .
'Tista needs to grow up, I can't protect her forever . That slap was a really good one . I'm proud of her . ' He thought .
"Good morning, my dear students . " He said with his best Nalear impression .
"I'm Assistant Professor Lith Verhen and I'll teach you Principles of Advanced Magic . "
At his appearance all the girls ran back to their desks, each trying to emphasize her own charms and draw his attention . From what they knew, Lith was the same age as them and, more importantly, single .
Many of them had planned in advance how to approach him to reap the most benefits both during and after the academy .
The boys could only hate Lith's guts . Compared to him they seemed like scrawny dwarves .
"Before starting the class, I'd like to share with you some bad news and some even worse news . " He said with an angelic smile while memorizing every face in the class .
"The bad news is that this girl's full name is actually Tista Verhen . She is my sister . "
Lith's smile disappeared and his eyes flared with mana . A single wave of his hand was enough to use gravity magic on every student but Tista . It made their heads slam against the hardwood desks with enough strength to make them bleed .
"The even worse news is that she had a Ballot all along . I'm sure Headmaster Marth will have many things to discuss with both you and your parents . " The lights in the classroom flickered . Lith's killing intent brought nightmares to life for each student every time the lights went off .
Some could have sworn they saw their own shadow stare back at them with glowing eyes and a smile entirely made of fangs .
"For those of you who will not be expelled, I can promise you this . We have a long, long year ahead of us . It will be full of blood, tears, and sweat . I'll make sure of it . In the meantime, minus 200 points to everyone but Tista . "
Even from their prone position, some managed to object at the insane punishment .
"I didn't do anything! Why I'm getting punished too?" Some asked .
"You just answered your own question . You did nothing, hence you deserve nothing . Minus 100 more points to everyone for questioning my judgment . " Lith cruelly smiled .
He sent the Ballot to the Headmaster before starting the actual lesson . One by one, those responsible for the hazing incident were summoned to Marth's office . Many never returned .
***
Months passed and it was finally time for the mock exam . Lith and Friya were watching the events unfold from the Surveillance Mirrors, ready to save the students in case something went wrong .
"How is Tista doing?" Friya asked . It was frustrating how despite living so close it was so hard for her to get in touch with Lith . He was always busy with either his magical research, helping Tista study, or chasing Manohar to force him doing his job .
Being the newbie, he had been entrusted with the worst job possible in the light magic department: being Manohar's assistant, warden, or nanny according to the circumstances .
"So far so good . " He replied while his eyes moved from one mirror to another .
"Her grades are good and she has no friends . All according to plan . "
"Plan? That's sick! How can you do that to your own sister?" Friya was outraged .
"I did nothing . Her classmates simply acted as I predicted and Tista makes her own decisions . " Lith explained . "Or did you expect her to forgive and forget just because of some lame a*s apologies?"
"Actually, no . " Friya suddenly felt stupid . She had watched the recording from Tista's Ballot . Every time she was teaching to the fourth year students, Friya treated them like the trash she believed they were .
"Me neither . " Lith replied . "That's why I made sure her group was picked at random and placed in one of the worst spots of the forest, just like what happened to me . It's only under situations of real stress that people reevaluate themselves and show their true colors .
"It's how Phloria found me . I hope Tista gets lucky as I did . " Friya could still hear a tinge of nostalgia in his voice when he said her name .
***
House Ernas, during the academy break after the first exam .
The family was reunited to celebrate Quylla's success . Despite having spent so long without practicing light magic, a few failures and a lot of effort was all it took for her to regain the ground she had lost .
During the fifth year, the nature of the first exam depended on the student's specialization .
In Quylla's case, she had to deal with the simulation of the outbreak of an unknown disease . The simulation involved the use of lab rats instead of humans . Each one was at a different stage of the infection and their death also meant the failure of the exam .
After everything she had gone through, the death of a few rats would leave her unfazed . While the others went into panic, she took control of the situation becoming the leader of her team .
She assigned a role to each member based on their strong points . The less talented healers were tasked with keeping the zone quarantined, preventing the infection from spreading to the healthy specimens .
Those with mediocre talent were to use their abilities to slow the progression of the disease while Quylla and the others studied the pathogen in search of a cure . Her team achieved the best score and Quylla had received many compliments for her presence of mind .
Aside from Phloria, the whole family was reunited for the event, even Guniyn and Tulion, Phloria's blood brothers . It was the first time in years that Orion had managed to bring his sons back home .
Not only had Quylla aced her exam, but she was also slowly regaining her health . She had friends again and even a boy she liked . Despite all that, Orion Ernas was so down that he spent most of the evening staring out of the window .
"What's wrong with you, dear?" Jirni was seriously worried about him . When Quylla had told them about the boy, Orion didn't grunt or object . He didn't even order a priority one background check on the little pest .
"I just miss my little Flower . " He sighed .
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