"Ava, what did I say about being hard on Devon?"
A firm voice cut through the murmurs of the crowd. A girl in a yellow training outfit stepped forward. She was petite but carried herself with confidence, her long blonde hair tied into a ponytail to keep it out of the way during training.
Ava scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Look, sis, I don't know why you still treat that guy well—especially after all the crap he's pulled." She crossed her arms, irritation flickering across her face.
Her sister sighed, shaking her head. "It doesn't matter what you think. I told you to keep your mouth shut around him or at least be reasonable."
Ava's scoff deepened into a bitter chuckle. "Reasonable? Are you kidding me? The guy just insulted your boyfriend, and you're still defending him?" She threw her hands up, frustration bleeding into her voice. "I don't get you."
Her sister met her gaze, calm but unwavering. "Devon's not perfect, but you don't have to make things worse by provoking him."
"As if he wasn't already doing that himself." Ava turned on her heel. "Whatever. Screw this—I'm heading out."
Without another word, she strode off into town, her movements sharp with annoyance.
Noah, watching it all unfold, couldn't help but think he was trapped in some kind of reality TV show—one of those trashy, over-the-top ones where every conversation turned into a dramatic confrontation.
'Are we training for survival or filming an episode of Galactic Love & War?'
"Ridiculous." Noah mutters.
"I know right."
Behind Noah a girl a just a bit shorter then him with brown hair in a braid with green eyes sitting down resting.
"If you have problems, deal with them in private." She adds making a fact that quite literally everyone now knows that Ava's sister dated Devon and that he got a supposed small…you know.
"Honestly, I don't get why they bring that baggage into the tutorial," Noah said, shaking his head. "We're in another world—full of magic and everything. You'd think they could put that stuff on hold until later."
The girl gave a small shrug, unfazed. "Some people wrap their whole lives in drama—that's all they know." She paused, her tone softening slightly. "Besides… I don't blame them too much. This is still confusing."
Her voice trailed off toward the end, her gaze drifting downward.
Noah's own expression darkened at the thought. Trillions of miles from home, trapped in some so-called 'tutorial' with only a vague promise that they'd return once it was all over.
As if anyone really knew when that would happen.
Shaking off the sadness, Noah cleared his thoughts. "Enough sulking. It doesn't do us any good right now. Might as well try to stay strong and move one step at a time."
"Yeah, you're right." The girl stood up, stretching slightly before brushing the dust off her pants.
Noah glanced at her as she stepped closer. Pretty. The thought flickered in his mind before he quickly shoved it aside. Now wasn't the time for that.
"Hey, I don't think I got your name," she said, walking toward him. "I'm Amanda."
His eyes briefly flicked to her sweat-soaked shirt, clinging slightly to her frame. He forced himself to keep his gaze level.
'Focus Noah she going to think you like the other guys.'
Noah," he replied, offering a nod. "Noah Voss."
Amanda gave a small, approving nod in return. "Well, Noah, let's see if we can make it through this mess without losing our minds."
Noah let out a short breath. "Sounds like a plan."
Before Noah or Amanda could say anything else, a sharp voice cut through the air.
"Are you all done standing around like idiots?"
Noah turned to see the instructor standing at the center of the field, arms crossed, his glare sweeping over the group. The casual murmurs and lingering conversations died instantly under the weight of his presence.
"If you've got time to gossip, you've got time to move."
The instructor's sharp voice cut through the lingering murmurs, silencing them instantly. Arms crossed; his glare swept over the group like a blade.
"Unless, of course, you'd rather stay here with me for some extra training instead of finding out what kind of affinity you have." The instructor grins madly, daring someone to take the offer.
Immediately upon hearing the instructor's words, everyone—whether sitting, standing, or still catching their breath—scrambled to their feet and made their way back to town. The urgency in the air was palpable; no one wanted to test the instructor's patience any further.
'Shit, I almost forgot about that,' Noah thought, snapping out of his daze. His gaze flicked toward Amanda, who was already several steps ahead, moving with a steady, unhurried pace.
She turned slightly, glancing back at him. "Hurry up. We don't need to be last." Her voice was calm.
Noah kept pace with Amanda as they walked deeper into town, the subtle hum of magic woven into every structure making the place feel both ancient and alive.
The grand rune-lines etched into the wooden frames pulsed faintly, tracing elegant patterns reminiscent of Roman architecture.
Even the cobblestone streets seemed to be magical as the stone shift ever so slightly, adjusting underfoot as if responding to the movement of people.
Amanda's gaze drifted toward a nearby stall, where a merchant waved his hand over a bundle of herbs, activating the glowing script on their bindings. A faint ember-like glow flickered along the leaves, a soft crackle of heat escaping into the air.
"Fresh Fireleaf! Picked just yesterday! Keeps you warm and sharpens the mind!" the merchant called, his voice carrying over the hum of the bustling street.
Noah watched the transaction unfold, a flicker of familiarity settling in. "Feels a little like a farmer's market back home," he mused, eyeing the neatly stacked bundles of herbs and powders.
Amanda chuckled, tilting her head slightly. "Yeah, I get what you're saying. Even though we're… here—so far from home—a lot of the customs are still the same. Bartering, selling herbs, gathering in markets." She gestured toward the street around them. "It's like stepping back into the medieval ages… just with magic."
Noah smirked. "I dunno. If medieval Europe had this kind of magic, I think history would've gone a whole lot differently."
Amanda let out another laugh, shaking her head. "No kidding."
They continued walking, the glow of rune-etched buildings casting soft golden light over the streets, the town alive with both trade and enchantment.
Making their way past the bustling market, Noah and Amanda arrived at the heart of the town—the town square.
At its center stood a massive circular platform, its dark stone surface covered in intricate etchings. The carvings followed a precise, ordered pattern, flowing seamlessly across the stone like veins of power embedded into its very foundation. Each rune pulsed faintly, their glow shifting between deep gold and soft blue, as if alive with the mana coursing through them.
Rising from the very center of the platform was a striking white marble pedestal, tall and slender like an ancient column. Golden lines ran vertically along its surface, glowing with an almost divine radiance, as if tracing the flow of condensed mana within. Even from a distance, Noah could feel the weight of its presence—a pressure in the air, subtle yet undeniable, like standing too close to a storm just before it unleashed its full force.
'Heavy.'
Noah couldn't help but think it, feeling the sheer weight of the pedestal's presence pressing against him. The air around it was thick, dense with something unseen yet undeniably powerful. Even Amanda, usually composed, seemed affected—her posture stiff, eyes locked onto the glowing structure.
"Wow… that's something," Noah muttered, slightly bewildered by the pressure pressing against his skin.
Amanda exhaled slowly; her gaze unwavering. "Nothing on Earth compares."
Noah and Amanda didn't have long to dwell on the weight of the pedestal's presence. The low murmur of voices ahead drew their attention toward a growing crowd at the far end of the square.
The rest of the students had gathered, their uncertain faces illuminated by the golden glow of the rune-lined structures. Some whispered among themselves, others stood in silence, watching as figures in flowing robes emerged from one of the larger buildings—clearly a place of importance
A man stepped forward, taller than the rest, his presence quiet yet absolute. His silver hair caught the light of the rune-lined buildings, the embroidered symbols on his robes shifting subtly with each step. When he stopped at the base of the pedestal, the air itself seemed to still.
A hush fell over the square.
"Welcome, newcomers."
His voice carried effortlessly, neither loud nor forceful, yet it settled deep in the chest, as if the earth itself was listening.
"You stand upon sacred ground, a place that has long been the heart of our people—the foundation upon which our understanding of mana is built."
A pulse ran through the platform. The golden runes lining its surface brightened, stretching outward in slow, deliberate waves, like ripples in still water.
Amanda shifted beside him, her head tilting slightly. Not a word left her lips.
"For countless generations, we have lived in harmony with the force that sustains our world." The chief lifted a hand, palm facing the sky. The pedestal responded. Golden light bled from its engraved lines, winding upward like a living thing. "Mana is not merely power. It is not simply a tool to be used, nor a weapon to be wielded."
A breeze stirred through the square—not the cold bite of wind, but something heavier, something felt more than heard. The kind of movement that brushed against the skin without shifting a single strand of hair.
"Mana is life itself."
The air thickened. The pressure was subtle, like the weight of deep water, just enough to make breathing feel more deliberate.
Noah clenched his jaw.
'Can stop with the pressure we get it mana is awesome and shit but like its getting hard to breathe.'
Across the square, students stiffened, shoulders rising with slow, uneasy breaths. Some faltered, shifting their weight as if struggling to plant their feet firmly against an invisible tide. Others clenched their hands, stubborn in their silence.
Amanda exhaled through her nose, slow and measured, her gaze locked on the pedestal.
"Those who learn to listen to mana, to understand its flow, walk the path of wisdom. Those who force it to their will without understanding, without respect…" The chief's eyes swept over the students, the flickering glow of the pedestal reflecting in his irises.
"…will find themselves consumed."
The runes on the stone pulsed. The light swirled outward in steady rings beneath their feet, forming intricate patterns across the square.
Noah's fingers twitched.
A whisper passed through the students—some barely audible gasps, a few sharp inhales. The ground beneath them didn't move, yet the space they stood in felt… shifted. As if something unseen had peeled back, revealing something much larger beneath.
Amanda's arms remained loose at her sides; her weight evenly distributed. Not stiff, not relaxed—simply ready.
The chief lowered his hand. The light receded, curling back into the pedestal's engravings, but the presence of it remained, lingering in the air like static before a storm.
"This is your first step—the moment you begin to shed your past and step toward something greater," he said. "Here, you will not only survive; you will learn."
A pause.
The finality in his voice settled over them like stone.
The chief lifted his chin, his expression unreadable. Then, he spread his hands, palms facing outward.
The golden runes beneath their feet brightened.
"Now," he said, his voice as steady as before.
"You will be tested."