On the other side of the campus, Dorothy and Tianxia were making their way into the Institute of Magic at Jadecrest Academy.
Despite Tianxia’s lavish outfit drawing quite a bit of attention, thanks to the enhancement spell Dorothy had cast to suppress their presence, the scene didn’t turn into a chaotic mob like before.
This was, in fact, one of the reasons Dorothy was reluctant to leave the academy.
With the way the academy had built up her image—and the constant promotion from her legion of fangirls—Dorothy had practically become a living legend in Jadecrest.
Beautiful, kind-hearted, a genius magician—some had even taken to calling her a saint.
The more exaggerated the rumors became, the more reluctant she was to step outside and face crazed fans who had never even seen her in person.
Ironically, the more she hid away, the more fanatical those admirers became.
It was a vicious cycle.
“This is the Institute of Magic,” Dorothy said as she walked ahead, leading Tianxia down a long, shadowed corridor.
Her tone was bright and enthusiastic, like a tour guide full of school pride.
“Here at Jadecrest Academy, this is where we study conventional magic and take both foundational and advanced theory courses.”
“Conventional magic, huh? Then what if someone wants to learn higher-level spells?”
“Then you’d have to find a personal mentor,” Dorothy replied.
“A mentor?”
Tianxia turned her head curiously, as though hearing the term for the first time.
“Yep. Generally, it only takes about two years to complete the foundational and intermediate studies in magic and combat techniques,” Dorothy began, clearly pleased to explain.
“But if you want to officially graduate from Jadecrest Academy, it’s not enough to just finish those two years of magic classes and five years of general education.”
“In your final three years, you need to submit one magical thesis per year to earn enough credits.
And before graduating, you’re required to independently create a third-tier or higher spell as your final project. Only then can you be called a true graduate of Jadecrest.”
“Those final three years are when students need to seek out mentors who specialize in the type of magic or combat techniques they want to explore.”
“It can be a professor at the academy, or a senior student who’s made a name in the field—it doesn’t matter. But you’ll have to choose a direction to focus on and find a mentor to guide you.”
“I see. Thank you, Miss Dorothy,” Tianxia said with a small, graceful bow, her voice full of polite gratitude.
Dorothy didn’t respond immediately.
When Tianxia lifted her head, she found Dorothy staring at her in surprise.
“Is something wrong, Miss Dorothy?”
“Ah—no, not really,” Dorothy snapped out of her thoughts and laughed awkwardly.
“It’s just… you really are different from us Oberians, especially in terms of manners. I suppose it’s a cultural thing, being from Akasha.”
“Is that so?”
Tianxia chuckled softly.
“You’re quite the interesting one, Miss Dorothy.”
“Ah—stop teasing me!”
Dorothy whined, scratching her head in mock frustration.
But deep down, Dorothy’s instincts were sounding loud alarms.
The girl in front of her wasn’t simple—not at all.
Dorothy, the legendary flirt, the self-styled queen of charm, had never been toyed with so easily by a girl who looked her age—or younger.
So this is what girls from Akasha are like?
Completely different from the ones here in Ober.
From experience, Dorothy could already tell—if a girl like Tianxia decided to “tie you down,” escape would be nearly impossible.
Forget trying to date other girls—just building a connection with someone else would probably be met with intense consequences.
Terrifying.
And yet, Dorothy found herself excited by the challenge.
She remembered what Sheffil once told her—that she was the type to fall in love at first sight.
That their close bond, despite being childhood friends, was just a happy accident.
But that wasn’t exactly true.
Dorothy didn’t believe in love at first sight.
What she loved was the pursuit of the unknown.
The rarer something was, the more fascinated she became.
Magic or people—it made no difference.
So maybe she and her childhood friend were doomed to clash by nature.
Oh well. Sheffil was a special case anyway.
Besides, Dorothy liked having her own little secrets.
Sheffil, for all his “childhood friend” status, didn’t need to know everything.
For now, her sights were set on Miss Tianxia.
Time to make a move.
She’d long since mastered the art of pretending to be a straight girl while flirting with others.
As the two chatted idly along the corridor, they reached the end of the hallway.
A grand, antique door stood before them—luxurious and dignified, yet without any visible nameplate.
Still, any student at Jadecrest Academy would know exactly whose room lay beyond this door.
“There doesn’t seem to be any way to open it,” Tianxia said, inspecting the heavy door.
It was perfectly seamless—more like a wall than an actual entrance.
“This guy… really has too much time on his hands,” Dorothy muttered through clenched teeth.
She sighed, then reluctantly spoke a single word:
“Key”
Magic pulsed from her voice, and a glowing rune appeared beside her.
It flew to the door and attached itself.
Moments later, a cascade of runes bloomed from that single symbol, spreading rapidly to cover the entire door.
Click.
The stone-like door split down the middle and slowly creaked open.
Dim light filtered in from a lone window near the ceiling, falling on piles of books scattered across the dusty floor.
Aside from the ceiling and floor, the walls were entirely made of bookshelves, stuffed with volumes and tomes of all kinds.
It looked like no one had lived there in ages.
The only furniture in sight was a desk and a chair directly opposite the entrance.
The desk was buried under stacks of magical texts and messy papers.
Seated behind it was a man.
As the door opened, he slowly lifted his head from his reading.
Beneath a towering wizard’s hat, a pair of serpentine, crimson-gold eyes glinted dangerously.
Once he recognized his visitors, he let out a dry, eerie chuckle and greeted them.
“Hehehe… Welcome, Daughter of the Heavens—and my beloved disciple.”
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