IZONE WIZ ACADEMY: Will You Love Me Again?

5: exploring

"Did you guys get your timetables yet?" Sakura asked.

"Nope, I think we're getting it tomorrow. We have different combinations of classes right?" Hitomi asked.

"Yep. Our lessons depend on our powers. It's like how you don't have combat lessons while we do." Hyewon said.

"You seem awfully well informed about everything. Are you a nerd or something?"

"No. My dad is a combat professor here. I've been hearing so much about the school for years." Hyewon explained.

"Woah! That's cool. Does that mean you can get away with breaking rules?" Yena asked mischievously. Hyewon could literally see the cogs turning in her head, devising a plan.

"Not really. My dad isn't the kind to let me off easily if I do something wrong. He will probably treat me like any other student." Hyewon shrugged. "I don't expect preferential treatment from him, it's unfair to everyone else and we all know how annoying it is when people take advantage of their influence. I'm not gonna become one of those people."

They were currently walking along the corridors, heading towards the arena. Wiz Academy was famous for its combat training, producing some of the most powerful guardians in the world and they all wanted to see where it took place. There were two types of combat training. One was on self-defence skills where they were taught hand-to-hand combat. This class was compulsory for all students as the school thought it was an important life skill to acquire. The other type of combat training involved magic. Only students whose powers could be used for attacks could attend this lesson. The students with elemental powers usually had an advantage in this class because of how strong their powers were and how suited they were for battle. If they so chose, some would become guardians and join the order that helped to protect the world against evil.

It was Hyewon's dream to become a guardian. Many in her family had the honour of joining the order as guardians, protector of the universe. This included her father. His powers were over water and had been one of the best guardians they had. Now that there was a new generation of guardians to take over, he had retired to teaching at Wiz Academy but he still joined them whenever they needed more manpower.

"Hey, I have a question." Chaeyeon said suddenly. "Does anything happen when elementals with powers on the opposite end of the spectrum interact?"

"You mean like fire and water or fire and ice?" Hyewon asked.

"Yeah."

Hyewon nodded. "It depends on how powerful they are though. We don't have a pyro in the school at the moment but there would be a huge clash if a pyro was in the same room as Eunbi. Her powers are so strong that the air around her is freezing cold even if she isn't actively using her powers and if the pyro is equally powerful, their magic is bound to clash. Eunbi would be at a higher disadvantage though because fire melts ice. Putting her in close proximity with a pyro would put her life at risk because unlike a normal fire, she can't put it out with her powers and our magic is entwined with our life force."

"Woah, you're so knowledgeable on magic, I don't think you need to attend lessons anymore Hyewon ah." Sakura said in awe.

"Whenever I was bored as a child I would read all the magic books my dad had in his study." Hyewon shrugged. "I've read all of them from cover to cover at least three times."

Just then, all of them sensed a powerful presence approaching. Everyone in their world had an aura. The more powerful they were, the stronger their aura and they could sense other magical beings.

"Halabeoji." Wonyoung greeted, bowing slightly as he walked past them.

"The headmaster is your grandfather?" Yena asked in shock, her jaw dropping.

"Yep."

Seeing the confused expression on her face, Wonyoung explained. "The reason why I'm not insanely powerful like him is probably because my family is huge."

It was a known fact that magic kinda got diluted down the family tree. The more kids you had, the less powerful they would be when their powers fully matured. The theory was that magic flowed through the different generations of the family, hence the more it branched out, the more distributed it would be instead of being concentrated on one person. It was the reason why many powerful and influential families refrained from having more than two children in order to keep the magic strong in the family. One example was Eunbi's family, she was the only child of her parents.

"Woah that's so cool though! You must be very familiar with the school too." Chaewon said.

"Of course! Halabeoji let me and my cousins run around the school during semester break because we love to explore. There are so many hidden spots here, I'll make sure to show them to you guys on day. It's exclusive information you know, you guys will be insiders with me." Wonyoung grinned, flipping her hair proudly.

"You shall be our tour guide then. Are there any interesting places that we should visit?" Chaeyeon asked.

"Oh there's the ice skating rink!" Wonyoung exclaimed.

"An ice skating rink? Why is there one in the school?"

Wonyoung shrugged. "I guess it's for us to relax and have fun. Sometimes our combat lessons are held there so that we can experience being in different terrains. The environment is maintained by magic which makes it snow indoors to keep the ice frozen. You can make snowmen if you want to."

"Why cast a spell to make it snow when you can just build it above Kwon Eunbi's room?" Yena snickered.

"Yeah! They would get free ice all year round!" Yujin laughed.

Hyewon felt a tiny bit bad for Eunbi since they were making fun of her behind her back, but at the same time, she deserved it for being so mean to them.

"Are pyros banned from the ice rink?" Hitomi asked curiously.

"Nope. They're allowed to come here, but they're required to request for a magic muffler from a professor. It kinda mutes their magic temporarily and makes them less powerful so that they don't cause a disaster here on accident." Wonyoung replied. "Don't worry, you'll learn all of this in our magic lessons. It's covered in theory."

"Ugh, magic theory sounds like a bore. I would rather be actually using my powers." Yena groaned.

"Don't look down on magic theory like that, it's really important if you want to master your powers properly. Magic isn't all about the special effects." Hitomi said.

"As a matter of fact, my uncle is a magic theory teacher here." Minju spoke up suddenly.

"Why do so many of your relatives work in this school?" Yena asked, her jaw dropping.

At this point, there was Wonyoung and her grandfather, Hyewon and her dad, and Chaewon and her uncle. That was one fourth of their group. She wouldn't be surprised if they were labelled as teachers' pets in the future.

"Come on, let's go get dinner. I heard that there's a feast today." Hyewon urged.

"Yep, the headmaster always gets food from the best chefs in town. It's an amazing way to welcome the new students and start of the year on a good note." Yuri said.

"All of you are so knowledgeable about the school, I guess I have a lot to learn." Nako sighed.

"Don't worry, you have all of us to help you." Hyewon slug her arm around her shoulder, walking in pace with her as they made their way to the dining hall.