The students were spread out in the arena. They had been on the platform multiple times before, most of the time practical lessons took place outside, as certain spells were being shown to the students, the basics of the basics.
However, practical lessons like the one they were currently taking were a little different compared to normal. Every mage was a bit different, specializing in different attributes, and there were set professors that would specialize in one or two attributes.
Students at the start of the school year would then need to sign up for the classes they wished to attend and would be on rotation with those teachers that they had selected. So many of the students that were currently together now hardly saw each other as they would be off with their own individual tutors.
Once a month, though, the regular class would gather together for a lesson, and when this happened, they would do so in the arena room because there was only one reason as to why they would gather.
"Alright, everyone!" The teacher clapped his hands, and a magnified clapping sound was heard that blew wind out, fluttering the hair strands of the others.
The professor stood there with his short, light green-colored hair. Another professor that Raze knew well, a man that went by the name Professor Trin. He had to be in his sixties by now, yet he had the appearance of someone in his thirties.
There was no doubt in Raze's mind that he had to be using some off-market products, which would be considered illegal. It was one of those things that were accepted by the world of Pagna as many did it, but it was still the abuse of illegal substances, since there would be some side effects from using such items.
'Well, I guess this would make sense,' Raze thought. 'I saw one professor that I used to get along with, and now one that I completely dislike; it's only natural, especially since there are more that I don't like than like.'
Raze couldn't put his finger as to why he didn't like Professor Trin too much; the only thing he could think of was the fact that they were both mainly Wind Magic users originally, so they saw each other as rivals. What was noticeable about Trin was the large scar that went up across his face.
'Ah right… and I was the one that did that to him as well when I attacked the academy,' Raze shook his head inwardly. 'It's best I don't stick out in this class as well.'
"Today's lesson is, as you might have guessed, a sparring session!" Trin proclaimed with a happy smile on his face. "What better way to show your strength as a mage than through sparring with each other. Show what you've learned and the future potential that you have within each other.
"For now, I will set the ground rules for you all. I don't believe there is a student under the second star level here. So the rules will be as follows: you are allowed to use any magical attributes as you wish. No one is permitted to use above 2-star level magic when fighting."
"This should be fine, as all your uniforms are enchanted anyway. So they will be able to protect you even if you are hit by a few direct spells. If things look dangerous or one-sided, I will stop the fight."
"We also have a Light mage on standby in case one of you gets wounded a little too much, but you're all friends here, so I doubt that will happen."
The rules were set, and the family members were just as nervous as the students were. This spar put a lot of pressure on them for a number of reasons. For one, their parents were watching, and a loss would mean that the future generation of one family was weaker compared to another.
The family members felt this way as well, so they were nervous watching and hoping for the best. There were those that just knew the place and strength of their students and didn't care though, but judging by the look on the faces of the family members, that was a very few.
"Alright, let's see, Amy!" Trin asked. "Why don't you go ahead and pick an opponent for yourself."
Amy was a little nervous as she rubbed her arm up and down, but as she looked around the room, she had eventually chosen her opponent. "I choose Gary."
She had picked someone who she believed would be at a similar strength to her. For one, she didn't want it to seem like she was weak, selecting an opponent that was far worse than herself.
At the same time, she wanted to win her match, so she had chosen someone who she thought she could do well against.
The two of them stood in the center of the platform, while the rest of the students stood out on the sand part. They had picked an area where they weren't blocking the few adults' view.
Inside the platform itself was Trin acting as a ref like that in a boxing match. With his wind magic, he was quite confident in himself that he could act before anything serious happened.
"Begin!" Trin called.
Immediately, the two students pulled out their hands, and both of them at the same time had cast out a wind spell swipe. A sharp energy of wind collided with each other, breaking and hitting one another.
The two of them continued to use spells, and it was a spectacular show. What came to the realization for both of them was due to their strength being equal and them being limited to 2-star spells, they needed to get creative in their thinking.
In the end, Amy had set a trap on the ground, and had forced Gary back with wind attacks. When Gary was in a certain position, she used an ice spell to freeze his foot, and threw out another wind attack.
Before the wind attack had hit, Trin had stepped in, swinging his hand, breaking the attack before it hit.
"Looks like we have our winner; what a great performance." Trin clapped, and so did the adults watching.
They were happy with what they had seen from both ends. They realized that the rules had been set up in a way that didn't prove that one was stronger than the other in the real world due to limitations and more so showed how good their quick thinking was.
"Alright, shall we move on? Don't worry; we will give a chance for every student to show what they have today," Trin commented.
Hearing these words didn't instill confidence in them all. Especially for Kelly; ever since she had started to learn Dark Magic, magic in her other attributes was more so lacking. She had been fascinated with learning and improving her strength in this department, especially after learning its destructive power. There was a time she knew she would have to use it, which was why it was her focus.
"Alright, let's see how one of our talented students fares; Aurora, would you like to pick your opponent?" Trin asked.
Hearing her name, Kelly's heart gave a loud thump as words from the other day rang in her head.
"Of course, and I have the perfect student in mind; I select Kelly," Aurora answered.
