"Toho Isei," Gohan's voice cut through the air.
The tension shifted immediately. Some students looked confused, others curious. I caught him giving me a quick thumbs-up before he jogged forward, an easy grin plastered across his face.
He placed his hand on the evaluation crystal. For a moment, nothing happened.
Then the glyphs ignited. The crystal pulsed, sending a thrum of power through the ground. The display blinked into life:
Essence Pool: Excellent
Control: High
Affinity: Fire / Lightning
Potential: A-Rank Candidate
I heard Lucian mutter a curse under his breath.
Gohan's expression sharpened into a slight, almost hidden nod of approval.
Toho pulled his hand back, looking slightly surprised himself.
"Guess I'm pretty decent too, huh?"
***
As the last few evaluations wrapped up, Gohan raised his hand for silence.
"Now that your evaluations are complete," he said, voice cutting through the lingering excitement, "it's time for class placements."
He gestured, and a holographic display formed behind him — a glowing, shifting tree of names and numbers.
"Celestia Academy separates students in each classroom based on initial aptitude. Your evaluation results, along with your entrance exam scores, determine your Class placement."
The tree split into three major branches: Class A, Class B, and Class C.
Class A — Top percentile. Elite training. Direct pathway to the official Sorcerer Corps.
Class B — Advanced studies. Strong support roles and specialized paths.
Class C — General studies. Basic sorcerer curriculum with room to rise or fall.
Gohan's gaze swept across the room. "Class A will be few. Only those with the highest potential and demonstrated ability. B and C will be larger, but all classes have opportunities to climb."
Students exchanged nervous glances. Some looked almost sick.
"And let me make this clear," Gohan continued. "Placement today is not permanent. Slack off, and you fall. Prove yourself, and you rise. Nothing is handed here."
I folded my arms, studying the display. None of this was surprising. If anything, it felt expected.
Gohan waved his hand again, and a new list appeared — names starting to slot into branches automatically.
The first names to appear under Class A:
-Zero Langham
-Toho Isei
-Lucian Wraith
-Terra Solis
-Caelan Rook
Others trickled in afterward — only about fifteen names in total in our class.
Toho and I whooped, punching the air. "Hell yeah! Class A, baby!"
Some students in the hallway looked dejected, while others were enjoying their potential and power.
"Dismissed," Gohan barked. "Class lists and dormitory assignments will be sent to your devices. Tomorrow, your real training begins."
The hallway erupted into motion, with almost everyone celebrating.
Toho caught up to me as we walked out, clapping a hand on my shoulder.
"Yo, I still can't believe it! Class A!"
I gave him a wide smile.
"It was never a question."
He laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, guess you're right. Still... feels good."
As we moved through the crowd, I noticed Lucian leaning against a far wall, watching us with that same, unreadable smirk. His arms were crossed casually.
***
The walk back to the dorms was quieter than I expected. Toho had that usual grin, but even he seemed a little lost in his own head.
Once inside our room, he collapsed onto his bed with a groan. "Man... today was insane. I feel like I aged five years."
I dropped onto my bed across from him, pulling out my Academy-issued tablet. Sure enough, our schedules had already been uploaded.
"Looks like we start actual combat training tomorrow," I said, scrolling through. "Instructor's name... Professor Rael. It'll be a walk in the park."
"Guess they're serious about pushing us fast," Toho said, running a hand through his hair. "Not that I'm complaining. After today, I wanna get stronger. Fast." He glanced at me, "...You think anyone else in our classroom or school can match us? Terra and Lucian made it into Class A, too. Plus, we don't know the other Class A students in other classes."
I leaned back against the wall, letting the cool wall steady my mind.
"Perhaps a couple, maybe. I haven't paid much attention," I said quietly. "Either way, don't underestimate anyone." Toho sighs. I interrupt him to speak again, "But don't focus too much on others; focus on yourself and your growth."
***
The room was quiet, the buzz of the day finally giving way to a heavy silence.
Toho was lying on his bed, tossing a ball of essence energy between his hands out of boredom. I scrolled through my tablet absentmindedly, but my mind was elsewhere, focused.
I sat up.
"You ready?" I asked.
Toho grinned, instantly catching on. "Finally."
We pulled on darker jackets over our Academy uniforms and slipped out into the night.
Weeks before coming to Celestia Academy, we made a pact: we'd keep honing our skills outside the system. Missions. Real ones. Tracking criminals and Marks too small for the Supreme Council to bother with, but dangerous enough to be a real test for us.
The Supreme Council was the head of the World Council. The World Council governs our planet, Elor. The World Council consists of many ranks: Councilman at the bottom, then Judges, Governors, and the Supremes at the top. They have the final say and most power.
The World Council doesn't bother to deal with petty criminals, like tonight's target: a rogue sorcerer, a Mark. This guy appeared in the daily paper once or twice, for minor crimes, but still not caught.
Marks are sorcerers who turned evil, who go against the moral code of what it means to be a sorcerer. This guy was a perfect example, and a warm-up.
We moved silently through the empty courtyards, the moon hanging low and sharp above us. We were finally off Celestia Academy's property. We jumped from rooftop to rooftop, the streets still bustling with crowds despite the time of day. I surfed over and up the bright orange tiles. We scoured around for an hour with no leads.
We rechecked the street vendors he previously hit, but nothing. We make our way to the quieter streets, checking the closed shops. I look up to the sky, taking a breather. Our large town spans as far as the eye can see. Beautiful concrete houses, orange tiled roofs, windows open, people running around. Children playing in the night.
Toho catches up, admiring the view. We continue the search, checking the closed vendors. Finally, we found him — a shadow slipping between houses, carrying something wrapped in cloth.
"There," I whispered. We followed him, inconspicuously, to the children's park. A long street running through, and across was the park. The man made his way there, stopping for a moment to check his surroundings.
Toho nodded. "I'll flank him."
Toho and I had to stick to martial arts or low-essence attacks to take down opponents without causing a stir or unnecessary attention.
The rogue spotted me immediately, tossing aside the stolen goods and drawing a jagged dagger coated in dark energy. His grin was all teeth.
"Another little brat thinking they're a hero," he sneered.
I didn't answer.
The rogue charged. Fast. Sloppy. I sidestepped, and I suppressed all the essence within my body. Essence can boost your physical prowess, your strength, and speed.
I don't need any essence to take this guy down. I've trained in martial arts for years, since I was a kid. Martial arts take many forms, and each is useful, so I learned multiple. I leaped forward, using my right foot to brake, and threw a punch using my open palm, landing directly into his chest.
The Mark flew backwards, barely landing on his feet. He stood up and immediately started coughing up blood. He grabbed his chest tightly while gritting his teeth. He desperately tried harder to breathe, but he couldn't.
Before he could recover, Toho darted in from the side, landing a clean, heavy punch that blasted him again.
The rogue, on his knees, snarled and unleashed a pulse of dark energy, trying to overwhelm us. The dark energy enveloped the area like a small domain.
For a second, the air cracked with power, but it wasn't anything that I couldn't handle.
Together, Toho and I countered; our attacks were fluid and precise. A single strike from me to his gut, a sweep of Toho's leg to knock him down, and the rogue was pinned, groaning.
I jumped into the air, spinning once before falling and landing a nasty kick to his shoulder. Toho and I, despite the distance from him, both heard the loud crack of his bone. He let out a scream of pain, cursing me.
Toho grinned down at him. "Maybe next time, don't underestimate."
The rogue muttered something under his breath before collapsing unconscious.
I exhaled, letting the tension seep out of my body. "Bag him and tag him?"
Toho pulled out a binding charm, tossing it casually onto the rogue's chest. Golden threads wrapped him up instantly.
"We'll drop him off at the night patrol station," Toho said, brushing off his hands. "No one has to know we were even out here."
I nodded.
***
After dropping the Mark in front of the night patrol station, Toho and I swiftly leaped onto the buildings.
I whisper the words, "Rift,"
I grab hold of Toho and wave my hand, covered in spatial essence, and we instantly get transmitted into our dorm room back in Celestia Academy.
We take a deep sigh of relief.
"I'll never get used to that spell," Toho says as he jumps into bed, looking like he's about to puke.
I let out a light chuckle, "It's just a simple spatial spell, effective and useful."
Toho eventually heads to sleep. I lay in bed, wondering about tomorrow: our first class, combat training.