Magic is, among many things, as wonderfully complicated as it is profound.
Unlike knights, mages are able to begin their practice from the time they are young lambs.
Similar to how knights build cores, mages build what they refer to as 'circles' to make the flow of their magic more efficient and help manage the more uncontrollable aspects of magical power.
Different races, of course, do not have the same method for utilizing magic that humanity does. It is the reason why a well-trained fae mage is vastly superior to any human one.
This difference in natural ability was thought to be a matter of genetics, or maybe even a unique cultural method of advancing their magic.
It was a barrier they could not hope to overcome, no matter how much money their parents could throw around.
This was, until a few moments ago, an absolute law of reality within the minds of these young students.
And Yari had just taken that reality into her hands and shattered it in front of them.
"First things first…"
Yari opened her desk drawer, and a cyclone of blue scrolls came floating out.
Solomon's eyes widened as the parchment came floating up to him of it's own volition, and unfurled itself right before his eyes.
"This is a soul contract, stating that, if you survive the process today, you will not divulge the method, practices, or any details about myself to anyone outside of this class."
Solomon was baffled.
Soul contracts were rare because only a very knowledgeable enchanter was able to draw them up; they were expensive because those enchanters usually knew their worth, and they were frowned upon because, unless the initiator of the contract dispelled it themselves, they were permanent.
Never in his life had Solomon even seen a contact before—much less so many of them in one place.
One of the students tentatively raised their hand.
"Excuse me... it occurred to me just now that you said we might die during this process."
Yari's gaze hardened into something cold and viper-like. "I did. Is that a problem?"
The young man swallowed.
When he didn't respond, Yari rolled her eyes and went back to her desk.
"Volkova Academy's secrets of greatness will not just be shared with anyone at no cost. If you're not even willing to sacrifice your lives to achieve glory and nobility for the sake of your houses, then why bother coming?
I'm sure you heard the rumors beforehand. You could have attended any other magical institution in Komen and gone on to be as mediocre as you liked. But you are here. You made the choice. Don't start winging like a babe now that you're here."
The boy's eyes were filled with terror. As were a number of other students.
Solomon listened to everything Yari said with his chin resting in his palm.
He doubted that even a third of the students in this class had ever been talked to this way in their entire lives. Knight students, on the other hand, are fully aware of the fact that they can die as soon as they are old enough to switch from wooden swords to real ones.
Solomon, for the very first time, thought of noble mages as children with terrific power. Unaccustomed to risk. Unfamiliar with hardship.
They had likely been told they were geniuses from the very moment that they first began practicing magic.
But how does genius measure up in the face of someone with calloused determination to match their wit?
Solomon didn't have much of an opinion about Yari as of now. But he was beginning to liken her to Emmanuel based on her tougher teaching style.
That alone made him think that one day, he might come to like her.
"Now, if there are no more silly questions... sign the documents, please, so that we can begin the real work."
Solomon read over the contract while Yari was talking and signed it before she'd even finished speaking.
When the contract returned to her, she seemed slightly surprised to see it come back so quickly.
Her eyes met Solomon's and, much to the shock of everyone present, she smiled at him innocently.
"An eager student. This, I can work with."
Solomon noticed a door behind his teacher that wasn't there before.
"Please, step down here." She gestured.
Solomon stood up and walked towards her as she requested.
As he moved towards the stage, more of the students signed their contracts and began to follow in his tracks.
However, Yari held up her hand to stop them.
When Solomon reached the bottom, Yari sized him up silently before turning towards the large crystal in the room.
"It is my understanding that you are quite a novel swordsman. And yet, am I correct in assuming that you have never practiced magic before?"
Solomon felt his back become warm from all the stares drilling into him. "I am… not as practiced as I would like, instructor. I do have some experience, but it is limited."
Yari snapped her fingers, and a piece of paper appeared in front of her face.
"Your intake form says you have no circle. Don't tell me you've been practicing magic without one? It may be a flawed system, but there's no reason to make a task harder on yourself than it needs to be."
Solomon heard snickers coming from behind him. He became visibly irrate.
Before he knew what was happening, Solomon whirled around and pointed at his heckler.
He felt something inside his mind snap, and his vision became fuzzy and star-filled.
At the tip of his finger, water was pulled in from the surrounding atmosphere and formed a compressed ball around a centimeter wide.
As quick as a flash of lightning, the ball was fired across the room and struck the shoulder of a young man.
His body looked like it had been eaten through by a hole puncher.
As blood soaked the pews and a few screams of shock filled the room, Solomon slowly put his hand down, staring at his finger.
He slowly turned to Yari with an expression as if he'd just shit an egg.
"...I swear I didn't know I could do that."