Zixin thought for a moment, deciding to go, he put his pen down. He slowly stood up and followed the maid.
The halls were tall, yet not overbearing. The walls were smooth, making Zixin feel calm while he touched them.
Zixin then thought about his sister, Xiu Ying of Longevity. I wonder what she'll say to me. I will probably get scolded. Sigh, what a pain. Well, I'm used to it, so it shouldn't be too annoying. It's not like she sounds that annoying.
While Zixin was in deep thought, a tall door came into his view. It was a wooden door with various carvings that depicted the life of a flower.
The maid slowly opened the door, revealing a large room with a long table and rows of chairs. At the front seat sat a young lady, her long white hair fell down her back, her porcelain white skin was soft like snow, her radiant grey eyes filled with life. She wore a long white dress filled with extremely attractive patterns. She was Xiu Ying of Longevity, Zixin's twin, and the Ruler of the Land, or as one might call it, the Queen.
Zixin then went to his seat, and the maid pulled it, allowing Zixin to sit on the chair left of Xiu Ying.
Seeing the meal before him, Zixin took a spoon and began to dig in. Xiu Ying chuckled at Zixin's eagerness to eat. She asked, appearing curious yet not displeased, "If I may have the right to ask, why did you pull such a ridiculous stunt today? Could it be that you are already sick of living?"
Zixin's facial muscles twitched, his gaze slowly turning to see a smiling Xiu Ying. The warmth of the smile made him utterly confused. He tried to calm himself down, answering, "I couldn't bother to wait for the rain to calm down. It would have probably taken a few hours, and I just didn't feel like doing it. So, I decided to just walk and get soaked. And as for your odd conclusion that I'm already sick of life, I am not, I haven't even entered the Hex Zone yet."
Xiu Ying pondered over Zixin's words for a few seconds before letting out an odd comment, "Maybe having guards would have helped."
Zixin explained, already annoyed, "I just don't like it when people get into my personal space. Isn't that why I don't join social gatherings?"
But Xiu Ying simply retorted, her gaze sharp, "But can't they simply hide themselves?"
Zixin shook his head. "A guard would be pointless. They exist to protect someone, and I don't need it. Harming me would just be stupid."
Xiu Ying, who knew better, didn't continue the topic. She looked down, thinking hard about something.
The atmosphere of the room became awkward, but after dinner, the night soon ended.
…
While waiting for the Professor, Zixin thought about what had happened last night. Dear sister and I had an argument. Well, a guard would just be a waste since no one would try to harm me. And… sigh, this is all so annoying.
He soon shook his muttering to himself, "I'll fix it once I get back home. I'll apologize."
Once Zixin snapped back to reality, the Professor entered the room. He had short gray hair and seemed to be in his late 30s. He wore a brown suit, a white linen shirt, a black tie, a pair of black pants, and black shoes. The man was named Ceylon, the Alchemy Professor of his class.
Ceylon spoke, his voice stern, "Today, I will be assigning pairs to everyone. This pairing will not change unless certain circumstances force it to."
Professor Ceylon then spoke, catching Zixin's attention with his first sentence, "Zixin of Longevity and Cael will be the first pair."
Hearing the verdict, Zixin's thoughts began to move, Cael? Who is that… hmm… Wait, isn't that the guy who was all excited during the class yesterday? What bad luck. Hmm… Cael, so he's not part of any Bloodline? So, he's a Nameless…
While Zixin was thinking to himself, Cael walked up to him and took his seat. He laughed awkwardly, introducing himself, "It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Cael, a Nameless. I'm currently sixteen years old. I heard the Lord is seventeen, so I suppose I should be a lot more respectful." He continued, "As for what I can be of help with… I suppose you can say I'm good at practical exams? I'm not really too confident about that."
Seeing how Cael introduced himself, Zixin decided to copy him. He spoke, appearing distant, "As you know, my name is Zixin, Zixin of Longevity. I am currently seventeen, as you have stated."
Zixin thought, becoming unperturbed, This is odd and annoying. Why bother asking for information that everyone basically knows? Is this called a 'friendly gesture'? Sigh, I've basically lost all my social skills after these three years.
Zixin was soon snapped back to reality as Professor Ceylon began his explanation. He spoke while writing down on the board, "As we discussed yesterday, Alchemy is like any other path. It exists to find the Truth regarding creation."
He continued as he faced the class, "Thus, the act of combining elements to learn is its nature."
He then walked towards one of the tables and took an ingredient. It was an unrefined white ore called lucrose. Professor Ceylon then tossed it inside a glass tube with nothing inside. He then poured water inside.
The ore reacted, shining brightly for a split second. He smiled, explaining, "For example, this lucrose ore reacted with water to create a brilliant flash of light. And why may that be? It's because once these two substances have contact, their true nature is revealed. All substances are like this, existing with a purpose, whether that be a strange one or not."
Everything exists with a purpose, huh? Zixin thought meaningfully, pondering over its significance in the grand scale of things.
…
After class, Zixin prepared to leave but was halted when Cael spoke, "Why not hang out together? Getting to know each other is good, you know?"
Zixin cast his gaze at him, politely speaking, "Unfortunately, I have other matters to attend to. If possible, I would have attended. My sincerest apologies."
He then left the Alchemy room and started walking down the hallway. While walking, he heard several students gossiping, "Hey, have you heard that the Head of the Purity Bloodline just visited the Academy today?"
"Oh, really? Maybe this is my chance to finally get promoted!"
"Look, there he is!"
When Zixin turned to look out of the window of the second floor, he was met with the appearance of the Purity Head at the ground below. He had short blue hair, sharp azure eyes, and porcelain white skin. He wore a black tuxedo, a white linen shirt, a black tie, black pants, and a pair of black shoes. He was Kiran of Purity, the current Head of the Purity Bloodline, one of the Seven Major Bloodlines.
What caught Zixin's interest was not the man, but the young lady he was talking to. She had long brown hair, snow white skin, and glimmering golden eyes. She wore a long golden dress engraved with several flower patterns. Her name was Jinhua, a Nameless, the Headmaster and founder of the Myriad Golden Flower Academy, and Zixin's childhood friend.
Zixin was bewildered by the current event but didn't take to heart thinking, This isn't my business to meddle with, so I'll just head to my next class and ponder over it later.
He took one final glance at Jinhua before leaving.