A new year at Nine Petal Academy means a new crop of students, including a boy who can't control his magic, a thief, an angel, and even a suit of armor? Adela, Lei, and their friends are tasked with welcoming the new class of first years and helping...
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"This place is huge!" Carter said as he and Robert joined us. His strawberry eyes shifted around the red-carpeted lobby lit with the white light from golden chandeliers.
I smiled. Seemed that he had cheered up. He'd been looking down on the way here despite saying that he would still aim for his dream back at the testing site.
"I thought you were a nobleman," Ling said as she crossed her arms. "Why are you acting like a country bumpkin?"
"I sort of am one. My sister, brother-in-law, and niece live in the countryside now. Hey, Nate, can I borrow your phone?"
Nate took out his phone and handed it over to him. "Sure, here you go."
"Thanks."
"Can I talk to them too?" Robert asked.
Carter nodded. "Sure. I bet sis will be surprised to hear that we met each other here."
"Before you call, we need to announce your teams," Koukyuu said, staring at a white tablet.
"Teams?" Kanja asked.
"Oh, yeah, Adela mentioned those to Ling and me! She said that usually the class is split into groups of four," Carter said.
"True, but this year it'll be a little different. There's only going to be one group of four and two groups of three. You'll be using these teams for future exams, such as the Novus Magus Secundus exam you'll be taking later this year."
Carter's eyes sparkled. "That's great! So, what are the teams?"
"Wait, why are you so happy? You failed, remember?" Ling said, tilting her head at him.
"About that," Robert said, stepping forward. "I gave my spot to Carter."
"You did what?" Kanja said, eyes wide.
Carter lowered his head. "It's true. He did give it to me." Our gazes fell on the golden ticket in his hands.
Ling crossed her arms and sighed. "Well, this is certainly a strange situation. Do you really think you'll make it in Nine Petal when you couldn't even pass its entrance exam? You'll be eaten alive."
"I'll prove my worth by defeating all of you!" His strawberry eyes flared as he lifted his head.
The Xianian touched her chin and smiled. "That so? You did manage to defeat Kanja, but she's the second weakest among us after Huo."
Huo grumbled. "I'm a newbie!"
"True. That puts Kanja in a worse position."
Kanja glared at her but quickly turned away. Seemed she still hadn't regained her confidence despite having passed.
"I said I will, so it'll happen," Carter said, glaring at Ling.
Ling shrugged. "That's not how things go, boy. Proclaiming something while lacking the power to back it up simply leaves one looking like a fool. You saw what happened at the exam."
