Alethea is a kind-hearted girl carrying the weight of the Magic Dimension on her shoulders. Read as she tries to find her place in a world full of chaos, while she herself is anything but. Adjusting to a life filled with danger when all she wants is...
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⑅ ♥̩̥̩♥̩̩̥͙♥̩͙ˊˎ
Alethea's POV:
I rubbed my forehead, feeling the balmy rays of the sun caress my skin, turning my lungs to paper and my feet to lead. Shifting my weight, I stood among my classmates in the Black Mud Swamp for our Magic of Nature class, the thick air weighing down on me.
"Welcome, class, to Black Mud Swamp and to a—ACHOO!" Professor Palladium sneezed suddenly, his eyes watering. "Right, as you can sneeze, I mean as you can see, I'm slightly allergic to the sap. It's Igglethord vine. Now, this is your first field exercise for the Magic of Nature." His words spilled out in a hurried ramble, and I struggled to take him seriously as his clumsy actions made it hard to focus.
"Professor! I'm in the wrong class! I'm from an urban realm!" a student named Dahliah whined, prompting a chorus of grumbled agreements from my classmates.
"Alfea is known for its all-around education," Professor Palladium pointed out, looking at her with confusion, clearly baffled by her complaint.
"But a mosquito bit me!" she protested, pointing to a small lump on her leg.
The professor spluttered, taken aback. "A mosquito? Well, quicker we bit on with—uh, get on with the exomite, uh, exercise."
"For a nature professor, he seems rather squeamish," Bloom whispered to me, raising an eyebrow with obvious amusement.
"Shut up, Bloom, let him bite on with the exomite," I joked, unable to resist teasing, which sent Bloom into fits of laughter at my not-so-good quip.
Professor Palladium appeared to shake off his squeamishness and continued, "Now, for this field exercise, we're going to test your natural ability to listen to nature. Each group must navigate their way through the Black Mud Swamp and reach the clearing in Gloomy Wood Forest. Oh, and you can't use your magic! Remember to listen to the voice of nature and its advice."
"Let's get going!" Flora exclaimed, bursting with excitement, though I didn't share her enthusiasm. Wincing in disgust, I stepped into the stagnant water, looking around at the fallen trees that seemed to sing together as the vines twisted beautifully around the decaying trunks covered in moss.
"This is so disgusting," Stella complained, trying to push the sleeves of her pants up to avoid the filthy water.
"Didn't you say that 'mud does wonders for your skin?'" I teased, watching as she huffed in annoyance while others erupted into laughter, clearly enjoying my jab.
"Just so you know, these bubbles could indicate that we're standing on the back of a Subterranean, and let me tell you, they aren't friendly," Tecna warned us, her tone casual. I couldn't help but wonder what could possibly scare her. "But don't worry, I'll take care of this." She raised her hands, and her aura began to glow. A sudden panic blurred my vision as I quickly grabbed her hands, breaking her concentration and halting her from what could have been a disastrous decision.
