"Cleia, are you by any chance blind in one eye?" Astrid asked.
Cleia had never really thought about it: she did have a white pupil in one of her eyes… so was she blind?
"Were you born like that or was it an accident?" Astrid asked again.
"Ah… I was born like this," Cleia replied, a little panicked.
"I see. It's very beautiful."
"Thank you."
Despite the compliment, Astrid's expression remained completely serious. Does she have trouble with facial expressions? Cleia wondered.
"So you're my roommate. It'll be a pleasure!" Cleia said.
"Likewise," Astrid replied.
A bell rang: it meant it was time for class. The two girls walked there together. Once they arrived, Astrid opened the door. The room was a huge auditorium, large enough to hold at least a hundred students. The person on the podium introduced himself:
"I am the headmaster of this school, Glenn Marx."
The headmaster began his welcome speech to all first-year students. When he finished, he dismissed them, leaving everyone free to do as they wished. Cleia decided to go to the library: she wanted to study this new world she knew nothing about. To her surprise, she discovered that magic existed here — something unimaginable in her previous world.
There was a hierarchy of magic based on its mana cost: at the bottom were elementary spells, then intermediate, advanced, and finally primordial magic.
Primordial magic was divided into three branches: Celestial Magic, Veil Magic, and Forbidden Magic.
— Celestial Magic included: Celestial III, Celestial II, and Celestial I.
— Veil Magic included: Veil III, Veil II, and Veil I.
— No information existed about Forbidden Magic, precisely because it was forbidden.
There was also a personal power called a "singularity." The singularity wasn't exactly magic, even if it resembled it. Still, it was referred to as such to avoid confusion. Every person had a unique singularity, different for each individual. It usually manifested at age 17 — which was why school started at that age and lasted three years.
Another special power was Aptarchia: only 13 people in the world possessed it, and it was so powerful it could destroy entire planets. Because of that, they were monitored 24/7. No one knew anything else: none of them had ever used their power openly nor accepted to be studied.
"Hey Cleia, what are you studying?" Astrid asked.
"Nothing, I was just browsing through some books. And you?"
"I was reading this book about dragons."
Cleia's eyes widened. Dragons were creatures she had always dreamed about when she was little.
"Could you lend it to me when you're done? It looks interesting."
"Fine by me."
With the same unmoving expression as always, Astrid walked away. Cleia did the same.
---
"Apparently tomorrow they'll make us unlock our singularity," Astrid said as they walked back to their room.
"Aren't you excited?"
"Well… I'm a bit nervous. You?"
"I can't wait!" Astrid answered, though keeping her usual unreadable expression. Cleia wondered if she had trouble expressing herself, but avoided asking.
Once in their room, Astrid took something out.
"Earlier, when we passed by the shop, I bought this eye patch for you. Maybe it bothers you to walk around like that… and I overheard people talking badly about you. If you don't want to wear it, that's fine. It's your choice."
People were talking badly about her? Cleia didn't care too much, but the fact that Astrid had worried touched her.
"Thank you so much."
"And this is the book about dragons you wanted to read. I can finish it tomorrow."
Despite her serious demeanor, Astrid was actually very thoughtful.
Cleia began reading. Dragons could grow to the size of a city, had scales resistant to both magic and physical attacks, and their breath could melt buildings. They weren't aggressive creatures, though: they used strength only to defend themselves and were intelligent beings. They lived on mountains over ten thousand meters high, were solitary, and thus reproduced rarely, which was why they were close to extinction. The strongest among them could even take human form and communicate using their language.
"We have to go to the canteen for dinner," Astrid said.
"Sure, coming."
Cleia put on the eye patch and together they headed to the canteen. The menu consisted of meat with a delicious sauce and a side of vegetables, which reminded Cleia of curry chicken from her old world.
While they were eating, Cleia's brother appeared with a group of friends.
"Hey Cleia, how are you?"
"Good, thanks. You?"
"I'm doing alright. Tomorrow you guys have the singularity test, huh? Good luck!"
Cleia was curious about her brother's singularity, but avoided asking. One of the boys called him:
"Crynn, hurry up or the food will get cold!"
And that's how Cleia learned her brother's name.
"Why are you wearing that eye patch? Trying to hide your eye?"
"Well… it was a gift from Astrid."
Crynn looked at Astrid.
"Ah, so you must be the one sharing a room with my sister! Nice to meet you, I'm Crynn Veyl. If you ever need help, feel free to ask."
"Alright, thank you," Astrid replied with her usual expression. Crynn wasn't sure how to interpret it, but assumed she was simply one of those people who always looked serious even against their own will.
"Okay then, I'll leave you two. Bye!"
Shortly after, a group of four girls sat in front of them.
"Hey, I heard you have a blind eye under that patch! Can you show us?" said a blonde girl with gray eyes.
"If you insist…" Cleia said, lifting the patch.
"Eww, that's disgusting!" the girl exclaimed.
Even though it wasn't her original body, Cleia felt hurt.
"If you came here just to make fun of me, you can leave."
The group walked off, laughing. After dinner, Cleia went back to her room. The insult, even if it came from strangers, stuck with her. She couldn't sleep: the more she thought about it, the more it turned into a trauma. She decided she would never remove the patch again.
---
"Cleia, we have class in an hour," Astrid said.
"Good… then I can sleep a little longer."
"I know, but I want to talk to you. Yesterday, after the cafeteria, you ran to the room and locked yourself inside. When I came back, you were asleep… I didn't want to wake you. But we need to talk."
In reality Cleia hadn't slept at all.
"What do you want to talk about?"
"About what happened yesterday at dinner. Those girls insulted you. I don't want you shutting yourself away: you have to talk to someone."
"What am I supposed to talk about? You were there too."
"You need to tell me how you feel. That way we can face it together."
"I don't want to talk about it."
"You have to."
There was a long silence. Then Cleia began to speak. Much of the weight on her chest faded, but the trauma remained — and so did the eye patch. She no longer wanted to show her eye.
In class, after everyone took their seats, the teacher introduced herself:
"Good morning, first-year students. I will be your instructor for the next three years, for your entire school course. I hope we'll get along. My name is Professor Thyra Johnson."
Thyra… the teacher Crynn was so afraid of? Lucky me, Cleia thought sarcastically.
"Today, as you know, each of you will awaken your singularity. Follow me to the Awakening Room."
The room was right next door. Inside, an instructor waited beside a decorative pillar resembling marble.
"Section H?" he asked.
"They're all here," the professor replied.
The instructor called the students in alphabetical order.
"Astrid Argon."
Astrid stepped forward. She had to focus on the water placed on the pillar. Moments later, a wave of energy burst from her entire body — meaning she had awakened her singularity.
After several other students, it was Cleia's turn.
"Cleia Veyl."
Cleia approached. When she fixed her gaze on the water, her eyes began to shine and a massive surge of energy erupted from her body. She too had awakened her singularity.
Every student awakened theirs without any problems.
The class moved to the garden to test their singularities. Supervising them was one of the "13 Original Knights," figures who wore armor or masks to hide their identities.
A man wearing a white mask awaited them. The mask had a disturbing smile, a wide-open mouth full of teeth, and eyes outlined in black with white pupils. Cleia shuddered: it reminded her of horror movies from her old life.
It was Mikey, Knight Number 9 of the 13.
"Show me what you can do," he said.