23:59
The hands of the grandfather clock almost aligned.
The worm station platform, the only truly operational section of Midnight's Central Station.
They were built after the surface beca too dangerous, designed to handle the sudden surge in passenger traffic around Midnight.
Several figures dressed like wizards in round, pointed hats and dark robes stood waiting quietly before platform 224. Amidst the bizarre contours of the Old Sewer, they didn't look strange or out of place at all.
A patient wait is always rewarded.
The worm at platform 224 suddenly stirred, ejecting a figure that landed on its feet.
He was immaculate. The white shirt beneath his black cloak was pristine, a stark contrast to the other passengers who, covered in sli, were scrambling toward the water sources.
— Mr. Lu Li.
Professor Sesar, the only one not wearing a wizard's hat and robes, greeted Lu Li with excitent. After the academy rger, he had kept his position as a linguistics professor, but he was no longer the sole one—just one of many.
Lu Li glanced at the figures in wizard robes standing behind the professor.
— They are the wizards assigned to protect you.
Professor Sesar answered Lu Li's unspoken question:
— It wouldn't be appropriate for the academy professors to greet you personally. It would draw unwanted attention.
As soone Lu Li had spoken with before, Professor Sesar began to fill him in on the situation at the academy. Though Lu Li had already been briefed on the Academy of Giant Trees, he didn't interrupt the ordinary professor's excited rambling.
— We should get going, before the local authorities find us.
One of the wizards interrupted, his voice low, as if he were afraid of being overheard.
Lu Li nodded and followed the group of "wizards," leaving the bustling station. They stepped into a swift elevator that looked like a stone pillar, ascending toward the surface.
...
— The surface no longer belongs to humanity, save for the Land of Light.
In a classroom that resembled an oddly shaped treehouse, a mysticism professor stood behind a desk of carambola wood, imparting knowledge that the students clearly found dull.
— Mr. Gupes?
The professor gave a doubtful look to the young, chestnut-haired man who had raised his hand.
— Professor Haig, you went over this two weeks ago, — the young man reminded him.
— I find it necessary to repeat it, because...
He was cut off again. A figure who had burst unceremoniously into the classroom gestured for him to co.
— Professor Haig, please step outside.
Professor Haig set down his book, instructing the class to "review yesterday's runic chains." He then followed the figure out of the classroom. The mont he was gone, a low buzz, like the hiss of a fire catching, filled the room.
— What's the matter? I'm teaching a class, Gatekeeper, — Professor Haig said, wondering why the man who patrolled the giant tree had co for him.
— The exorcist has arrived. He's in the dean's office.
— Oh, good heavens...
Professor Haig completely lost his composure. His lips trembled, and he began to walk, almost stumbling, down the uneven corridor paved with wood fibers.
He took the fastest passage for the junior courses, which led to the dean's office on the top floor. He knocked on the door, which was adorned with an ouroboros, and Professor Sesar, the linguistics professor, opened it.
And then he saw him—the slender figure that inspired such awe, excitent, and reverence.
— Esteed Mr. Lu Li...
Bowing low, Professor Haig nearly touched his forehead to Lu Li's shoes.
— Professor Spit Haig, professor of mysticism for the junior courses, — Professor Sesar introduced.
— You can call
Spit, Mr. Lu Li, — Professor Haig said humbly.
— Professor Haig.
Lu Li had no intention of doing so. He had co here to learn, and he respected those who passed on knowledge.
— Where is Ernie Hamilton Wayne? — Lu Li asked.
The mysticism professor, whom he had t in the alchemy tower, and Professor Kris, who had provided the mutation potion, were the only two faculty mbers from the Academy of Giant Trees that he knew.
— He's a mysticism professor for the senior courses. You won't see him for at least another two years... assuming any of you are still alive by then.
A charming, feminine laugh drifted from the now-open doorway, followed by the sight of a pleated, wine-red silk dress. The woman wearing it was extraordinarily tall—she had to duck to fit through the two-ter-high doorfra.
When she straightened up, she revealed a beautiful, maternal face that stirred a deep, possessive longing in the soul.
Professor Sesar turned his attention to a nearby birdcage, deliberately keeping her out of his line of sight.
— Vice-Dean Kris, you should show Mr. Lu Li the proper respect, — Professor Haig interjected, ever the loyal defender.
— Don't forget, Professor, that Mr. Lu Li will soon be one of our students, — she purred, her red lips parting. Like a miniature giantess, Professor Kris sank into a sofa that seed to swallow her whole.
Even while seated, Professor Kris was taller than Professor Sesar.
— Did the potion help?
— It was a great help.
— So, have you decided which departnt you'll be joining? — Professor Kris poured herself a glass of red wine. In her large hands, the bottle and glass looked comically small.
Lu Li had already chosen his primary course of study before arriving:
— The Departnt of Mysticism.
It was here that Lu Li could learn to master the power of the Cursed Title.
The Departnt of Mysticism had the largest enrollnt, followed by Professor Kris's own Departnt of Alchemy.
— I thought so.
Professor Kris took a sip of her wine, her eyes flicking toward the trembling, star-struck Professor Haig.
— I have fifteen minutes to spare. Is there anything you wish to ask?
— Um... where is Dean Asamons? — Professor Sesar asked.
Professor Kris explained that the dean was away on a trip, so she, as the vice-dean, would be handling Lu Li's intake as well as the day's enrollnt ceremony.
Students enrolled at the Academy of Giant Trees progress through three academic levels: junior, middle, and senior.
That was far too long for Lu Li:
— I hope to finish my studies as quickly as possible.
— Academic credits. If you earn enough credits, you can apply to test for advancent.
With the enrollnt questions clarified, Lu Li’s thoughts turned to the dark figure that had coalesced during the final stage of the "Door" anomaly:
— I cannot stay in one place for long. There is a curse that follows .
— A curse?
Professor Kris could detect no trace of a curse, so she told Lu Li to co see her on the lower level in three days. Exactly fifteen minutes after she'd arrived, she was gone.
She also sent Professor Haig off to prepare for his classes. That left Professor Sesar, who emotionally escorted Lu Li to a guest room to rest. Of all those from the University of Claire, he alone had been fortunate enough to be accepted into the Academy of Giant Trees.
Several hours later, Lu Li joined the dozens of students gathering in the corridor and made his way to the assembly hall at the very top of the tree.
Before entering the grand assembly hall, they were ushered into a small anteroom to wait for their nas to be called at the enrollnt ceremony.
— Vina Logan!
A freckled girl took a deep breath and was the first to walk out of the room.
— ...has been accepted into the Departnt of Mysticism!
Scattered applause drifted in from the hall.
— Zethun Pal...
As na after na was called, the new students filed out of the room one by one.
— The Departnt of Mysticism!
— The Departnt of Alchemy!
— The Departnt of Mysticism!
— The Departnt of Divination!
The number of new students in the room dwindled, until at last it was his turn—
— Lu Li!
The bustling assembly hall, which had been filled with a low murmur of whispers, suddenly fell so silent you could hear a pin drop.
The first-year professors all turned in their seats to look toward the entrance. Students in the back rows craned their necks, lifting off their benches in hopes of getting a glimpse of the new student nad Lu Li.
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