Phantom Hunters | Saphir Casters Academy

21 | The Cloaked Enigma

XXI | THE CLOAKED ENIGMA

    "So, what did I miss?" Kael plopped down next to Wynt, letting his bag drop to the ground.

    Wynt shrugged, biting a pencil in boredom. "Nothing much, really. Caster Novaro has just been going over some basic Bijouan history. How Saphir Island became the training ground for casters, stuff like that. Though I'm sure you're already familiar with that."

    "Oh." Kael rested his cheek on his palm and watched Kita Novaro read out from a historical book.

    "There were six founders of the Saphir Casters Academy," she said, putting the book down. "Normally, the history of an academy aren't important enough to teach in world history, but the founders changed the course of the world's system by setting up an academy for people of all countries. Of course, the building of the academy was delayed during the Jornac Invasion which eventually turned out into a near-global war. It is important to understand the history behind the academy to know the true purpose of the casters you all aspire to be."

    Kael drowned out her voice, already bored with the history of the world. He had failed the class in his school back in Paraiba, and he wasn't interested in trying to keep up with it here.

    Instead, he let his gaze wander. He watched the girl at the front play with her hair, the boy with bright blond hair dutifully taking down notes, Garun in his usual position with his head buried in his arms. Rita had her legs on the table, yawning. Tyra seemed to be one of the only ones paying attention, her golden hair falling down her straight back. Fadhia nodded off, jerking awake and slapping her cheeks before repeating the process.

    Still bored, Kael watched the window looking through the hall. He had zoned out when something snagged his attention. He blinked and rubbed his eyes, wondering if the light reflecting on the window had caused the sudden movement behind it.

    With more focused vision, Kael bore his eyes into the hallway. There it was again. It was quick, but Kael spotted a brief movement at the corner of the window. For some reason, he thought of the figure he's seen in the woods when he'd gone outside during the Silver Wolf welcome party.

    Was someone following him and his classmates? He continued to stare, but no more movement caught his eye.

    Shrugging, he relaxed his tense muscles and settled down on the chair. Eventually, Kita switched gears and produced a large world map. She used a stick to point out the different countries and explaining the importance of studying a country's terrain before jumping in to find a phantom.

    Soon enough, the class finished, and Kael was more than ready to leave. He hadn't even bothered to take anything out of his bag, so he swung it over his shoulder and waited for his friends to pack theirs.

    As he stood waiting, Kael felt an impact on the back of his head. A spurt of annoyance fired his gut as he spun around to see who had hit him. One of Roder's friend — a tall Arridian boy with black curls and a broken nose — had his arms crossed, glaring down at Kael from the higher step.

    "Well, look who I have class with," he said with a sneer. "I've heard plenty of things about you, lowlife. I can't believe I have to sit in the same room as you." He glanced behind Kael. "You and the rest of these lowlives."

    Kael didn't back down. Instead, he returned a glare more fierce than the boy's. "I don't care what Roder said about me, and I don't care what you think of me, but I won't let you insult my friends. Bugger off before I lose my temper."

    "Ooh, scary." The boy rolled his eyes. "What do you think you can do to me, huh? The moment you touch a hair on my head, my father can —"

    "I don't care who your father is or what he can do," Kael cut in. "I had to deal with Roder since I was five, so I know how to deal with folks like you. Now, don't let me repeat it again. Bugger off." He muttered under his breath, "Spoiled papa's boy."