The Oddity: The One That Does Not Belong

Called For Battle

<Prologue boy>

I wonder to myself, why didn't my master put me into a class for learning the sword and magic? At Renard Academy, classes are available for swordsmanship and magic. I don't understand why he wouldn't put me in the swords class, I get to learn both there. Those who become magic swordsmen lose out a bit on magic but get to practice their close combat skills. Before I learned magic, I trained my body, and worked hard under my master to be able to fight without magic.

Renard Academy does specialize in raising mages though. Created after the empire's court mage brought it up as another way to get talented recruits for the empire, it's been raising the future magicians ever since. My master tells me that the original purpose was intended to have magicians on standby that the empire could use anytime war broke out. During that time, the empire still lacked magicians compared to say, the elven race, so the academy was built to cover that need. Of course, the school itself has never sent a non graduated student to war.

And, as it turns out, the empire has quite a good relationship with one of the eleven kingdoms.

Nobles send their children here, instead of hiring personal teachers at home, though, some still prefer that their kids get educated in their own homes. After growing so much in size, the academy expanded, allowing enough room for around two thousand people. My master sometimes gawks at the size of the empire, I've heard that humans, before they awakened their magic, were able to, uh, reproduce much more quickly.

Continuing on from before, the academy only started allowing other races this year. That's because there's not enough students. Many peasants can't get in either because they don't have the money or their affinity with magic isn't high enough. To accommodate for their new size, other non human races were allowed in.

My master thinks that they made the renovations because they wanted to let other races in. From what I've heard from him, he says that some nobles wouldn't let the school permit non humans without a good reason, even though the school's directly under the empire's control.

I think that my master was always planning on sending me here, I had that suspicion when he told me about it last year. Most of the time, I can't read the man, his body language might as well be alien. But, ever since the incident around two years ago, he's been getting more obvious. He's rushed daily routines and has been tiptoeing around the subject of the incident for a long time. Sometimes, while he thinks I'm not looking, I can catch him staring at me, his confident face full of concern.

I don't like causing him so much trouble.

Currently, I'm walking to the school after meeting with him. I feel the gaze of adults and children beating down on my back as if it were the summer sun. I imagine it's because of the uniform, sadly, unlike what they might be thinking of me, I only got in because my master knew the headmaster. Can't say that I'm proud, but I can't say that I'm not glad in a sense. I wouldn't have been able to get in with the level of magic I have right now.

I approach the school gate which is guarded by two fully armor plated guards, it's unusual for anyone other than a knight to be wearing that much.

Both of them shake their heads when they spot me. A groan escapes the smaller man's lips.