Even with a medium Storage Ring, Gwen couldn't fit everything she owned.

Babulya had told them that they needn't pack so hastily, but Gwen felt scant desire to meet Percy and Guo in the morning and put on a charade of congeniality. She then proposed finding a motel for a short-term stay while they shopped for lodging—until Mina's passion persuaded her to take up one of her dad's vacant apartments.

"Mina, I think it's too much," Gwen replied out of politeness. It wasn't as though they would be homeless. She had enough HDMs to last herself and Richard for half a year, assuming no unforeseen expenses, and she had always hated the idea of charity.

"I don't mind taking you up on it," Richard answered in her stead, as straightforward as ever. "BUT you need to charge us the going rate. We're not broke, at least not yet. It'll make Gwen's pride easier to swallow."

Mina chortled as her cousin's complexion took on a pink glow.

Babulya tried again to convince Gwen and Richard to stay for a week longer, but Gwen politely refused, soothing Klavdiya by kissing her forehead.

"It's alright, Babulya. I am feeling fine. Moving out is something that has to be done. Rest assured, this changes nothing between us."

With the matter thus resolved, Tao called for housekeeping to clean the place while Gwen and Richard packed with the help of Mina and Tao's Storage Rings.

At the threshold of the Song estate, her grandmother once again grew worried.

"Gwen, promise me you'll come back," she pleaded with her. "Your Grandfather is a stubborn old mule, but he'll come around one day."

"I'll keep that in mind," Gwen replied enigmatically. "Don't forget, Babulya, we still have our shopping date, and I'll come and see you for checkups. We'll be spending time together again, but for now, I need some space."

"Dear, I am sorry for what happened." Her babulya shook her head.

"Take care of yourself, Gwen." Jun shook her hand, then shook Richard's. "Take care of her, Richard."

"I will," Richard answered affirmatively.

"Another one for the road?" Her father appeared intoxicated with the father-daughterly rapport he'd built on presumption. Gwen suspected it was because they were both giving Guo the finger.

"I suppose another one couldn't hurt." Gwen indulged herself again, finding the intimacy strange and unusual.

"I'll be around. Call if you need help." Her father gave her a wink.

Jun looked on with such envy that Gwen couldn't help but indulge her uncle as well, though his bushy beard stabbed her lips painfully and irritated her cheeks terribly.

"Heres my Glyph." Her uncle passed over a note.

Gwen embraced her uncle a little tighter, wondering if her life would have been different if Jun was her father.

As soon as they were inside the car, Mina stepped on the pedal—then suddenly, they were out of the Song's home and into Shanghai's fantastic mirage of lights.

Klavdiya, Jun and Morye watched as the dark vehicle pulled away from the compound.

Klavdiya sighed.

"They'll be fine, Mama." Morye habitually patted his pockets for a cigarette, then sighed with as much disappointment as his mother.

"I concur." Jun patted his brother's shoulders. "You got one heck of a daughter, Brother."

"Well, I did raise her myself," Morye boasted proudly.

Klavdiya turned to Morye with her amber eyes glowing with criticism. "Did you really, Hai?"

Hai swallowed his following words.

"So, no send-off from Percy, huh?" Jun remarked with a frown. "Not very brotherly, considering what Gwen gave up."

"That boy takes after his mother." Hai snickered.

"Is that all you have to say?" Their mother's tone was not happy.

Hai breathed out another long, drawn-out breath. "I suppose I am responsible as well. I was negligent in teaching him. Sorry, Ma."

The three of them stood listening to the sound of frog-song lifting from the rock garden just outside the compound.

"Hai," Jun asked at last. "You told Gwen to call you."

"Yeah."

"You don't have a Message Glyph. You don't even have a Message device right now."

Hai shrugged. "So?"

Klavdiya pinched her brows. "I am tired," their mother spoke into the night. "Good night, boys."

"Goodnight." Hai bowed slightly.

"Goodnight, mother. I'll be going back to the barracks." Jun shook his head at his brother, then comforted his mother by patting her arm.

The trio took one last look at the vehicle screeching past the main boulevard, paused in case anyone else wanted the last word, then went their separate ways into the flickering darkness.

"You sure you're alright?" Mina held Gwen's cold hands as the car cruised down the Second Orbital Ring Road. "Your fingers are like icicles."

"I am holding up," Gwen replied, one of her hands unconsciously moving toward her chest. "All the adrenaline is draining out of me, that's all."

"The Kirin Amulet…" Richard observed Gwen repeatedly feeling the space between her breasts. "You never did clarify what it did."

"It's a little hard to explain, but you've all seen it in action, so I'll try my best." Gwen anecdotally informed her companions of what she could discern, listing each instance in which the Kirin Amulet acted on her behalf. "...So the most important thing is that during the Mermen Crisis in Sydney, it drew power from a Mythic serpent's egg, then fended off a Faceless shapeshifter by releasing the serpent's essence."

"You're gonna have to tell us about that sometime," Mina remarked. "Mermen? Shapeshifters? Mythic beasts? Your life sounds like someone wrote a Vid-cast episode. Are you sure you're the same age as we are?"

"Who knows, what if I told you I was a wise old Changeling?"

"Ha!" Mina chortled. "As if!"

Gwen smiled weakly at her cousin. Telling the story of her time in Sydney had felt hard and unpleasant. To think that she once had a Geas planted in her by Henry that prevented her from speaking to anyone about Almudj, and now that restraint was gone. Invariably, she grew aware of a masochistic desire to feel the old Geas restraining her Astral Soul. Such an agony would act as proof that her Master was alive, that if she recounted of Almudj, her rare and kind mentor would at once know of her disloyalty.

But whatever her wishes, her Master was gone now, murdered barely a month ago.

A month? Gwen trembled at the thought. Had it only been a month? She suddenly felt at a loss, for losing the pendant was nothing when compared to the loss of her Master.

"Gwen," Petra spoke beside her. "Now that you don't have this amulet, I think my Master should give you a proper checkup. From the time we were together in Hengsha, I'd say it did more than absorb Essences from dead monsters. You might not think so, Gwen, but I think you're going to regret letting that thing go."

"I know, but it's just a thing, in the end." Gwen defended her decision.

"Gwen doesn't need it," Richard said besides the girls. "It was a ball and chain as much as it was useful. On the Frontier, we don't get to see many Magic Items, so we've learned not to rely on them overmuch. Most of us go into battle with a bandoleer of potions, that's it."

"Now that's God's Truth," Gwen castigated her humble origins. "We don't get no Magic Items out there in the Outback. Just Roos and Emus, and Aurochs. So many Aurochs. Which we wrangle with our bare hands."

"You joke, I hope." Petra wrapped an arm around Gwen's shoulders. "My only concern is that you continued to hit the coursework. Whatever the heck the amulet did for you, you can do better for yourself. I mean to make a Mage out of you, and I mean it!"

"Thanks, Pats." Gwen leaned on her cousin's broad shoulders. "You're worth ten Kirin amulets."

Her cousin turned away with a smile, her face made rosy by Gwen's earnest affection.

"Huuuuuu—ghnnnn—" A loud snore from the rear-most seat of the seven-seater SUV interrupted the conversation. Tao, as expected, was a man with a talent for disruption like no other.

Some thirty minutes later and closer to midnight, Mina's car arrived at a set of serviced apartments some fifteen minutes walk from the Bund.

Gwen sucked in the chilling night air as they exited the SUV. A vacant apartment?! She grimaced. Mina's gesture of charity turned out to be a two-bedder suite at the Shanghai-Bund Waldorf overlooking the Bund and the Huangpu River.

Within, the NoM servants had already refilled the toiletries and changed the sheets before the young Mages arrived. According to Mina, there was also a 24-hour kitchen, anytime room service, a masseuse, and laundry services, all prepaid by the strata.

"We'll start looking for a place tomorrow," Gwen informed them immediately, feeling her crystals becoming lighter with the passing of each moment.

"My recommendation is to stay on campus," Petra advised sagely, her eyes scanning the ultra-luxury interior. "Assuming there are vacancies, LCSS students should have no issues getting approval. Of course, the admin's slow as molasses, and you might have to be enrolled first, but I am sure they'll make an exception for scholarship recipients."

"Thanks, Pats. I'll swing by first thing in the morning."

"Why? You're always welcome to stay here," Mina reminded Gwen of her generosity. "It's a little far, I know, but it's cheap and clean."

Cheap doesn't begin to cover half of whatever this is; Gwen smiled with a grimace as she suppressed an urge to shout.

"It's okay, I'll need to see Pats almost daily, and I'd like to try out the campus life." Gwen met her cousin's imploring eyes with tenderness. She felt a little dirty for euphemistically omitting the fact that there was no way she and Richard could afford a place like this long-term. "Thanks, Mina, I appreciate your offer, and I won't forget your kindness."

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"Don't mention it." Mina appeared well-pleased with her boundless generosity.

"Yeah, it's our Dad's anyway, he said to—Ow!" Tao hissed at his sister.

"Peaches, shut up." Mina withdrew her pincer-like fingers.

Gwen maintained a sweet mien and said nothing.

"Yo! You guys wanna have some Xiao-ye?" Tao spoke up suddenly. "There's five of us, and we're five minutes walk from Huahai Road, perfect for some Hot-pot!"

"Hot-pot?" Gwen's ears perked up. She had heard of the famous steamboat dish before and seen her colleagues enjoy it in Sydney, though she had never personally participated.

"Ya! Bitch'n peppers that melt your asshole! Order the red soup, then dunk in some prime cuts of lamb and auroch, Wildland vegetables and mushrooms; it's the SHIT dawg!"

"I am game." Petra's anticipation suggested she was an old hand at the spice game.

"Count me in. I love spicy food," Richard added. "I've had it a few times in Australia as well, though I doubt it was authentic."

"Great, I'll take morning class off tomorrow." Mina twirled her hair. "Gwen?"

Gwen pictured a mountain of ingredients sitting next to a famously steaming pot, eaten at two AM.

"Alright!" her stomach growled. "Let's do it!"

"I KANT FEEL MY MOUTH."

Gwen moaned as she sipped her warm beer.

"MY TUNG ISH NUMB."

Initially, the reddish, peppery soup had been savoury and zesty. Then, an hour into the meal, the soup became lava, teaching her that what her Asian companions considered a medium level of spice was for her, suicide by Fireball.

As she lay in a food daze, she was shocked to realise that the clock was ticking toward four AM. Yet, she didn't feel sleepy at all. Was it the overstimulating spice? Gwen wondered, or the boisterous company?

Tao was on his sixth beer but remained entirely lucid, loudly speaking as he recounted stories with his gang of wannabe Rappers.

Mina appeared demure and petite, her coiled hair framing her small face as she sat primly, her slim thighs tucked across the low stool, a princess eating at a street eatery.

Richard was a carnivore through and through, seemingly unaffected by the river of the molten pepper oil. He clinked beers with Tao often, surprising Gwen with his ability to make fast friends.

The boss, a hard-boiled veteran waging war against health inspectors, was so impressed with the young Mages that he couldn't help but provide supply them with an endless train of beer.

Eventually, Gwen grew drunk enough on beery emotions to speak of her life in Australia, her high school, and her meeting with Alesia, with Henry and Gunther.

"Wow, Henry Kilroy…" Mina made a face. "I've read that name in one of my textbooks. To think he was still around."

"And Elizabeth Sobel… that bitch is COLD, dawg." Tao was enthralled when Gwen regaled the events at Rosebay, redacting her narrative where necessary.

"I want to meet this Elvia of yours," Mina noted after Gwen's story concluded. "I think we would get along."

"I wanna meet dis Yue—" Tao was fascinated by Gwen's mention of Yue's unparalleled bust.

"And that Debora—what a poor girl." Mina chewed absent-mindedly on some noodles. "Can't believe she was skin-changed for so long, and no one noticed."

"We have Skin-Changers as well." Petra gave her two Rubles. "Naturally, magical impersonation is illegal. The maximum penalty for identity theft under the PLA is summary execution or permanent stasis."

"They do summary executions here?" Gwen reached for another beer, though Richard passed her a glass of water instead.

"Oh yes, there's Vid-Casts even." Her cousin shrugged.

Gwen acknowledged the fact, a little too drunk to comment even as she shivered at the prospect of dying for a non-violent crime.

"Anyway, now you know my story—and why I need this Scholarship, as well as the Inter-University Competition." Gwen sipped her warm water. The chilli was SO GOOD, but it was SO SPICY. Her guts felt Vulcan had opened a Dwarven forge in her intestines.

"Well—" Petra wrapped another piece of lamb around her chopsticks expertly, swishing it back and forth in the hellish soup of floating garlic and Sichuan peppers. "—It's a good plan, I think It'll work, but you've got quite a bit of balancing to do."

"I can b a good juggler," Gwen replied.

"If you want the Pudong Tower to recognise you, getting your Magus' accreditation is essential," Mina informed her helpfully. "That and participate in Tower Quests from Fudan T2. Once you're recognised by one of the Towers, the title is valid the world over."

"I can confirm that," Petra agreed. "My Master, Magister Wen, worked for a while for Pudong too, though she's well-received in the PLA Tower as well."

"Speaking of work, I'll be doing some part-time work over the next few weeks. At least until university starts," Richard suddenly informed them, turning toward Gwen. "I was going to tell you earlier. But you know, stuff happened, we got kicked out and became vagrants."

"What kind of work?" Mina asked curiously.

"Light Utility-stuff, mostly construction and guard duty. It's close, just up the Yangtze. Babulya set me up with a few of her old colleagues who needed a good Water Mage."

"Pays well?" Gwen asked.

"Well enough." Richard grinned. "Enough to keep myself lodged and fed, with spare left over for training."

"Alright." Gwen didn't pursue the matter. Richard had his pride as well. It wasn't as though he was going to mooch off her the entire time they studied together. "Congrats on getting a job."

"Cheers." Richard raised a beer. "I'll leave finding our new home to you. If you can afford it, so can I."

Tao met Richard halfway and swigged his sixth stout, after which the group continued to talk until Mina accidentally fell asleep on Richard's shoulder, triggering a round of laughter from her extended family.

"We better pack it up." Richard finished off the last of his bottle. Tao agreed heartily and slammed his seventh.

Petra Messaged for a cab then told Gwen to come to the Lab after 2 PM. Together, they would go and see the Campus Administration, get their student card pre-registered, and see if the university is willing to fast-track her dorm application.

Half an hour later, Gwen melted under the luxurious multi-headed shower system back at the borrowed apartment before retiring to the temporary luxury of silken sheets. Pushing herself against the window, she hugged a pillow closer to her chest as she sat city-gazing near the panoramic windowsill, her legs pale against the colourful panes and their prism of light. Her hair rested damply across her shoulders, slowly drying as the cool, conditioned air chilled her exposed shoulder. Below, the shimmering mirage of the Bund beckoned, promising a future fraught only with uncertainty.

Gwen woke around 11 AM.

Her cousin was gone, though Richard had left a note reminding her to wear her Message device. Additionally, he had left her two hard-boiled eggs.

Gwen hefted the eggs in one hand. They felt more like billiard balls in weight and shape, informing her that either these were magical eggs or the hen was the size of a goat.

She cracked one, and a sweet aroma of creamy egg-yolk filled the room. After last night's flaming turmoils, her stomach lining could use some fortifying.

Lacking access to her whole wardrobe, Gwen found an easy-Sunday dress and her favourite sandals, then called it a day.

Today was her first day in Shanghai as a free woman, and she would prefer that it was as uncomplicated as her attire.

Drawing a recalled Glyph on the lock, she locked the apartment after washing the dishes and setting the bed, then ventured toward Fudan via the No. 10 subway.

Now out in the open, she found it easy enough to orientate herself once she was out in the vicinity of suburbs surrounding Fudan. To her right, she could see the enormous superstructure of the PLA Second Army Experimental Hospital just looming on the horizon. To her left, she could see the top of the two mock-Towers atop the Guanghua building peeking over the numberless apartments.

Seeing as it was only noon, Gwen figured she should explore the area and find her bearings. The university district was a modern area, well possessed by manicured greens on well kept median strips, escaping the muddy potholes and choking construction of the older neighbourhoods.

As she passed a block zoned for reconstruction, she marvelled at the transformation of the old Hutongs, buildings that had existed since the Ming Dynasty, into rapidly gentrifying shopping streets.

"Spare some change, Miss?" a voice croaked out just below her field of vision.

Gwen almost jumped at the sight of a tramp who'd suddenly emerged from the darkness between two alleyways marked for demolition.

The man was an NoM, for she would have felt a Mage's approach from their ambient mana. Usually, she would have ignored folk such as these, as she had always done in her old life, but this was her first day out in Shanghai as a woman of means, and she fancied herself in a generous mood.

"I could spare some, sure." Gwen stopped beside the construction site. Above, in red writing, a slogan read something to the effect of, "Peaceful Removal of Old Structure for Safety - Welcome the Birth of Civil District."

The NoM seemed just as surprised as Gwen when she took note of his existence.

"Donation for… the poor?" the old man repeated. He had the look of someone wracking his brain for something intelligible to say but was too shocked that a Mage, a gweilo at that, was speaking to him. "They took my home."

A few feet from her spotless sandals, the NoM looked to be in bad shape. The old battler had bruises on his face, and he sat, half crouching, on what looked like a dolly, like the ones used for furniture removal.

Gwen materialised a few LDMs, as well as the comically large egg she had saved from breakfast.

"Here, Sir," she said kindly, kneeling to give the man her offer of charity. The hobo's eyes widened when he realised that she was giving him not mundane currency but mana crystals.

"This is too much," the hobo croaked, looking suddenly afraid.

At that moment, Gwen felt the presence of Mages turning the corner.

"Hey! What do are you doing!" a voice barked across the dilapidated space of the deconstruction zone. Gwen quickly recovered herself. She cursed herself for her random charity, for the tone of the incoming voice sounded far from friendly. Whatever happens, she had better not be late for Petra.

The emerging trio were construction Mages, though Gwen was surprised to find the leader wearing a Naval Officer's cap embossed with Shanghai's skyline. The leading officer was short and middle-aged, while his two companions looked like cadets. These, Gwen realised, were the City Guard, more colloquially known as the Chengguan.

Gwen stiffened as they approached.

"Hao! I told you not to return here!" the middle-aged officer howled at the hobo, then stepped between the man and Gwen.

"We're sorry if you were harassed, Miss!" the two young men bowed. "If you would like to make a report on this incident, we are happy to be of service!"

"Oh no, it's quite alright." Gwen put up her hands and back-peddled, confronted by the Chengguan's eagerness to be model guardians of the city's civility.

While two younger men charmed her with diplomacy, the officer continued to admonish the NoM beggar for violating a string of the city's rules Gwen had never heard off before, everything from 'No soliciting money,' to 'No Loitering around Construction Zones.'

"But… here is my home!" The man wailed. "I lived here for thirty years!"

"You HAVE A NEW HOME!" the officer shouted at him, sending a string of spittle flying toward the man like dandruff. "GO HOME, HAO!"

"Was he lying?" Gwen asked out of curiosity. "The man said he was homeless."

"The NoMs 'are' provided new homes, Miss," one of the young men answered her with eyes aglow with earnestness. "The residents here are moved to the more rural areas where the city has built a whole new apartment-city for them."

"Oh, that's nice," Gwen replied, unsure of who to believe.

"Are you a student, Miss?"

"From Fudan, yes."

"How wonderful!"

"Hao! I am warning you. Move it!" the sergeant barked, finally out of patience.

"No! Please. LI! My home is here! We grew up in the same Hutong! You can't just demolish the place! My father and his father lived here! Your Grandmother too!"

"Yuu! Lee! With me!" Officer Li sighed. "Get this eyesore out of the way."

The two officers apologised profusely to Gwen and requested that she leave the premises.

Gwen complied and walked some distance away before she heard the sound of painful grunting and the noise of something scribbling and struggling, pressed against the pavement.

"Miss!" a voice called out behind her.

Gwen turned to see one of the cadets running toward her. The young Chengguan bowed again before opening his hands, revealing four LDM crystal chips.

"These are yours, I believe." The young man met Gwen's eyes expectantly. "Once again, allow me to apologise for the harassment you had to endure."

With a sinking feeling, Gwen took the LDMs and thanked the young officer.

The young man saluted before turning and running back to assist what Gwen could only assume was the forced removal of the beggar from his old home.

Still feeling the sting, she hefted the weight of the LDMs in her hand for a moment before stowing them away in her Storage Ring. It took her another block before her mind wandered back toward Petra's appointment, motivating her to hasted her pace.

Nearer the middle of University Road, the already furnished glass and concrete apartments began. Above her, multi-storey apartments loomed over the sycamore trees lining the boulevard, while all around her, a riot of students and staff shifted through the innumerable choices available for lunch.

At lunch, University Boulevard was packed to the rafters with diners. Even casually, Gwen noticed a French bakery, a Texan smokehouse, a Japanese sushi train, all geographically aligned with infinite Chinese restaurants with just as many milk-tea outlets. Tempted by the delicate scent of butter and eggs, Gwen ended up wasting another ten or so minutes purchasing two boxes of Lembas before she had to run for the Administration building, hoping that Petra liked her shortcakes.


The administration building, named after the Transmuter-Meister Chen Yeyao, was recently refurbished with a fresh coat of cream and cherry, which seemed to be a popular colour motif for most of Fudan's historical architecture. Concurrently, as if to mask the unsavoury palate, a thirty-meter high sheet of vines had taken residence across half the building, gifting the faux-Georgian architecture an incidental air of antiquity.

Gwen and Petra entered through the foyer and found their way to the campus residences department, bypassing streams of administrative staff, mostly NoMs with the occasional Mage. Behind the chest-height counter, three NoMs sat hammering away into tablets, working through stacks of paper. Taking a ticket, the girls took a seat to await their turn. A sign indicated that the stall closed at 1600.

'203' their ticket read. The current counter was 188.

With nothing else to do, Gwen retold some of her life in Sydney with Hai Song, only for Petra to reveal that she knew more about Gwen's father than Gwen herself.

"He was famous before he uprooted himself and left Shanghai. Even my Master speaks of him. By the age of sixteen, Hai was already shortlisted for the PLA's new generation of committee officials."

"Power to him then, but I don't think Dad would have made a good leader," Gwen complained of what she knew of Hai. Petra's face took on a frosty expression when she elaborated on her father's infamous exploits with women.

"That explains... a lot."

"Oh no." Gwen grimaced. Holy shit, did her dad try to hit on Petra, his niece?

"No, no!" Petra grimaced back. "Gwen! I mean, my Master and your dad, I suppose they were once acquainted, in a way."

Gwen felt her cheeks twitch. Petra's Master was only five years younger than her babulya.

"Now Serving 189..."

Twenty minutes later, the counter ticked over.

"Bloody St Augustine..." Petra cursed under her breath. "The bureaucracy! It's 1435, and they close at 1600! Gwen, wait here."

She pulled herself from the visitor chair and made straight for the counter.

A woman behind the counter looked up toward Petra. She had the appearance of incumbent admin anywhere, which was a bored, soulless, middle-distance gaze.

Petra glared at the NoM woman, menacing her with steely Siberian husky-eyes until the NoM stammered a response.

"We're inundated." The poor woman quaked beneath Petra's presence, swallowing in rapid succession. Gwen wondered at her cousin's act, then realised that Petra was likely exerting some of that Moscow menace she had learned while training to be a Tower agent.

Behind the quaking woman, a staff member took a gander at Petra, made an abrupt turn, then executed an Expeditious Retreat.

"I-I'll serve you now!" the woman stammered, unable to take the pressure from her cousin's presence.

"No! You do your job!" Petra stated coldly. She turned to the crowd. "189! Where are you?! Get over here!"

The young man who'd just stood up a moment ago held his ticket as though he was wrangling a snake. "Er… you can go first."

"Are you sure?" Petra walked over to the stunned young man and waved her '203'.

"Y-yeah, please."

"Here's mine in exchange, thanks. If there's anything I hate, it's queue jumping."

When her cousin broke her icy exterior to flash a pleasant smile at the young man, his entire face turned scarlet. Gwen could have sworn the poor man's knees knocked loud enough to make a sound.

"Gwen, with me." Petra turned to her. Gwen lifted herself from the couch with an immense sense of pride in her Russian cousin.

"This is my cousin, Gwen Song. She's the current holder of the mid-year LCSS. She and her companion, Richard Huang, also a member of the LCSS, require lodging at the Student's Quarters. What are your current vacancies? We're looking for long-term and single dwellings only."

The woman pulled up a stack of files and sifted through the list as if her life depended on it.

"Starting second-semester, though any vacancies now would be good." Petra urged in a tone that possessed a jagged edge.

"Please." Gwen smiled at the woman politely, flashing her a sympathetic smile.

"Let's see…we have a shared room in the upper campus." The woman pulled out a file and placed it in front of them.

"A single, if you will, or rather, two singles." Gwen clarified her request. "Privacy for both myself and my fellow LCSS member is paramount. Or we can double up."

"You and Richard can't co-habit, by the way," Petra pointed out. "The dorms have mixed gender, but the rooms are single-sex."

Under Petra's watchful supervision, the poor woman produced a dozen or so vacancies currently available, none of which matched Gwen's needs.

"When do you expect to have more clearance?" Petra tapped the forms. "Anyone leaving when the current semester ends?"

The woman produced a few more potential vacancies, though none would suffice.

As the list reached the last card, Gwen felt immense gratitude for Petra's help, who had saved her from wasting two whole hours.

"There's n-nothing left…" the woman groaned.

"That's alright," Gwen said sweetly to the woman, tugging on Petra's sleeves to urge her to leave. "Thank you for your time."

As the girls' silhouettes faded from sight, the tension in the room visibly dissolved.

"190!"

"191!"

And somehow, work efficiency seemed to reach a new peak as well.

"What now?" Gwen asked.

"We'll try the more expensive Dorms; these are privately owned and rented out to students."

The girls cleared the administration section and approached the lower part of the Campus near Guoding Road.

"Which one's yours?" Gwen asked out of curiosity. "Don't you live near here?"

"I do. About fifteen minutes walk from here. Master set me up in one of the dorms just outside of the square."

"There wasn't room on campus, even for you?" Gwen inquired curiously. Petra had been here for almost two years now, technically longer, considering she came when she was fifteen and started under Wen as a research member when she was sixteen.

"There was, but..." Petra explained patiently. "I am not fond of the rowdiness of the campus dorms. I think if Babulya puts a word in with the Dean, you might even rent for free. Although, I doubt the Bursary can kick people out on your behalf. That would invite trouble from the ethics committee."

"Right." Gwen followed Petra through the gardens at the Qinyun building, a marvel of curved glass and soaring steel wings. As an eye-catching pair, the girls meandered dashingly across the square, brightening many a Fudan students' day.

Their destination was a real estate office with 'WMR Properties and Conveyancers' as its title. They were greeted by an elaborate model of the surrounding district stretching for a dozen blocks in the foyer.

"Is Manager Xie in?" Petra asked the fresh-faced NoM receptionist. "We're looking to rent two single rooms. As close to campus as possible."

"Miss… Kuznetsova?" The reception quickly glanced down before looking up with a smile like the blooming of a rare flower. "Of course! I'll get Manager Xie right away. One moment."

Petra found a couch and sat, crossing her legs and reminding Gwen of halcyon days hanging with her high rolling girlfriends in Sydney.

Manager Xie, a short, balding man with a face like a pudgy Buddha, came to greet them a few minutes later. His eyes formed two narrow slits when he saw the two girls lounging comfortably in the company's crimson tub chairs.

"Milly! No tea?!" he scolded the receptionist, who immediately ran to provide the beverage. "Miss Kuznetsova! Are you happy with your current lodgings? Looking to upgrade? Please pass on my most sincere greetings to Master Wen."

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"I am satisfied with my lodging, Manager Xie. Thanks for asking," Petra replied. Gwen couldn't help but note that Petra's voice had a natural coldness, not unlike her Affinity for Elemental Mineral. "This is my kinswoman, Gwen Song, a newly enrolled member under the LCSS program. We are looking for two rooms, singles, if possible, for herself and a family member, Richard Huang, also a young scholar of the LCSS program."

"I am in rare company." The Manager bowed. "Please to make your acquaintance, Miss Song. May I ask what Clan or House you hail from?"

Gwen shook the Manager's hand. "Gwen Song. I am... an independent, for now. I'll be in your care."

"Of course. May I inquire as to your budget range? As Miss Kuznetsov would know, our rooms ranged from single to shared, service or unserviced, self-contained or shared facility. All of course, with a range of rates to suit your needs."

"Give me a list of the single options under 100."

To Gwen's surprise, the NoM manager possessed a small Storage Ring from which he retrieved a data slate. A few simple somatic gestures on the screen later, the man turned to show Gwen the displayed vacancies on the E-ink slate, etched upon an off-white parchment.

B17-111 :: 35 HDM / M

B22-1114 :: 30 HDM / M

B24- 404 :: 25 HDM / M

The prices were acceptable to Gwen, but turning to the map, she noted that B17 was already six blocks from Fudan. It would mean an extra twenty-minute walk in a town where students packed buses like sardines. Unhappily, Gwen had also crunched the numbers and now knew that her monthly expenses, including lodging, food, textbooks, socials, and training, were likely in the hundreds.

"Can Richard and I share a privately-owned double?" Gwen turned to Petra, who shook her head. "I am afraid not; the real-estate cannot register cohabitation for unmarried Mages. It's a rule to prevent incidents."

"Not even with family members?"

"The Sect-Clans would love that." Petra joked.

Manage Xie chuckled nervously beside them.

"Is there anything closer?" Gwen pointed to the buildings within fifteen to twenty minutes away from the centre of the campus, where the Henglong Building and the Towers stood.

Manager Xie tapped the screen again.

B1 P2201-P:: 520 HDM / M

Gwen almost spat out the tea that Milly had just served them.

"Where is that?" Petra asked out of curiosity. "I didn't know B1 had vacancies."

"The penthouse suite," Manager Xie said with reverence. "It has four bedrooms, each self-contained, with a common lower mezzanine living with open kitchen and shared dining; the upper storey has a common entertainment-living room."

"I don't think I can afford that." Gwen shook her head, thinking that she probably could afford such a place in her old world if she so desired.

"I know, but I always offer," the Manager said jovially. "One day, maybe, who knows? There are many wealthy students in Shanghai."

"So there's nothing?"

"I am afraid B17 and beyond is all we have at the moment. There may be a few openings at the end of the year, I am more than happy to reserve what's available."

"Can I make a reservation now?"

"With a deposit, yes."

"Then please put me down for one closest to campus."

Manager Xie instructed his receptionist to bring a deposit slip and a reservation form, which Gwen signed and paid, handing over a sum of 50 HDMS per reservation, one for herself and another for Richard.

The closest vacancy that seemed to be available in January was B13, still some months away, but if that was the best Xie could offer, then that was what she must take while living on borrowed generosity from the Wangs.

"How about you bunk with me?"

Frustrated with the lack of space mid-semester, Petra advised staying at her studio. She was confident she could squeeze another mattress into her single room if she had to. With the tone of a mother hen, Petra advised that though Shanghai was a safe and lawful city, it still wasn't so safe for a girl-Mage like Gwen to gallivant through its districts without care.

"That's where I live, B3-703." Petra pointed to one of the buildings a block away from the university campus. "Well lit paths, regular patrols by the Chengguan, not too far from the convenience mart on the Boulevard."

As it was late, the girl found supper at a local Sushi Train, with Gwen ordering enough for two, attracted a small group of spectators who marvelled at the foreigner's ability to pack away a stack of plates taller than herself.

After their early supper, Gwen followed Petra back to Magister Wen's laboratory, where she withstood three hours of Goulding's Primer before tottering home half-drunk with knowledge.

Inside Mina's apartment, she found Richard making ramen.

"Oh shit, sorry, Dick, I should have doggy-bagged some sushi!" Gwen apologised as Richard combined two packets into a bowl.

"No worries. Not a fan of raw fish. Besides, I haven't tried this flavour before, 'Black bean beef'. It looks interesting." Richard shrugged at Gwen's neglect. "You want some? It comes in a six-pack."

Gwen hesitated. Was she currently capable of getting fat, she wondered? Couldn't just fire a few Void Bolts into the air to burn off calories? Unconsciously, her hand moved to her abdomen, where she could feel her skin taut against the musculature. Maybe, she thought, just a taste?

Gwen drank the last of the salty soup.

The instant ramen was better than she thought.

The word instant was also a bit of a misnomer since whatever arcane method which preserved the ramen allowed it to retain the chewiness of its texture and the richness of the bone broth.

"... So, unfortunately, no luck," she explained their plight to Richard.

"We could live further away. Or, at worst, I can live far away, and you can stay with Petra. I'll come if you need me, anytime, anywhere."

"Aww, thanks, Richard. Okay, enough about that. How was work?"

Her cousin happily explained that he worked with a construction crew as a specialist consultant. With Lea's guidance, he could part the Huangpu, or more precisely, a three-by-three meter portion of it so that foundations could be laid by the Transmuters working by his side. Thanks to his high-tier Affinity, he could predict changes in currents and work within a high-depth environment, all the while conserving mana.

"Had to save a guy as well," Richard described with nonchalance. "Some fish-lizard that's mostly mouth and stomach got past the barrier and attacked one of the Transmuters, dragged him into the river. That was a close one."

"A Monster got into the city?!" Gwen raised a brow in surprise. "I thought the Capitals are free of Magical Creatures."

"Our site was about fifty kilometres out; you can't even see the city from where we were." Richard orientated Gwen as to the geographic bearing of his story.

"According to Reese, my foreman, it happens every other week. The further away from the city, the more frequent it happens. That's why there are Purge-quests on the regular. We can do some if when you're free."

"But NoMs are living there, right? Upstream from the river?"

"Oh yes, millions. Tens of millions. Maybe even a hundred. Shanghai itself is about 20 mils if I recall. Up to 50 million if you include Suzhou to the west, Nantong up north, and Hangzhou toward the extreme south. A day out, and it's the Frontier, and then it is the Wildlands until you hit Tianjin."

"The Frontier's closer than I thought," Gwen noted, trying to picture a map of China from her memory of the old world.

"Was Sydney better? We used to get swarms of Tiger Sharks up the Parramatta River while ferries were in the water! In Shanghai, it'd take 3 hours of Flight before human settlements fade out."

"Do you reckon Sydney will recover?" Gwen asked, thinking of the city she used to call home. The Parramatta river must be two kilometres wide by now, courtesy of a Leviathan. The once tranquil river could probably now serve as Sydney's premier deep-sea port.

"Sure, Gunther has it well in hand. He's got big plans, you know."

"Any ideas?"

"Nothing specific." Richard laughed. "I do know that he's planning to rezone the whole city. Maybe you can ask him when your LR Communication Caster is set up."

Gwen couldn't help but be impressed by the news. Could Gunther achieve what was necessary to make Sydney a Tier 1 city? What plan did Gunther have in beating back the Mermen? How could he tap into the ley-lines of the land? Could the Morning Star cow the Mermen by setting the seas to boil?

For a student like herself, the prospect of a Tower Master forging a Frontier into a first-tier city was something more akin to a strange and magnificent dream.

* * *

Gwen arrived at the Lab early next morning, ready to face the first of her tests requested by Magister Wen. When she entered the laboratory, she was met by Petra and Magister Wen, both in white coats and looking very much like scientific researchers from her old world.

"Gwen, you're here. Wonderful." Wen motioned for her to come closer. "We're going to start testing your Elements today. Petra tells me you can manifest some form of Vitae-Fruit mana congelation?"

"I can." Gwen nodded. "Would you like a demonstration?"

"I would like a sample." Wen pointed to three Spell-Cubes Petra had prepared on a stainless steel desk.

"One Elemental Lightning, one Void and one of the vitae-essence, if you will."

"I'll do my best."

Gwen approached the table and placed her hand on the first cube. She tapped into her Sigils and allowed the free-flowing energies of the Quasi-Elemental Plane of Lighting to fill her mana channels, feeling their hysterical caress as the torrent of electricity fed into the vessel.

The next one was Void, and Gwen grimaced as the ice-cold energies of the Quasi-Elemental Plane shot ramrod through her body, seeking an escape into the material. Her volatile excretion cascaded like viscous ink within the cube's interior, hungrily consuming the space within until the entire cube was darker than black.

"Good God…" Magister Wen sucked in a chilling breath. "I can feel it from here. So this is Elemental Void. Amazing."

Gwen then closed her eyes and focused inwardly upon her mind's eyes, picturing Almudj's energy as the green motes of life flowing through the dark expanse of her Astral Form. Almudj's primordial manifestation slowly condensed around her hand, dripping drop by drop into the vessel below as though filtered through layers of fabric.

"Fascinating." Her cousin placed a hand above the cube. "So much vitality! What do you think it is, Master?"

"I would hazard an educated guess that it is an alter-form of life-force, the kind usually found in ancient beings. Do you recall Magister Salinger's lecture during that conference in Beijing? He had invited a Druid from Tryfan, the Grove in Wales, England. Do you remember what it was like when they demonstrated Essence Magic?"

"I do." Her cousin retracted her hand and continued to observe Gwen's endeavour. Inches away from the crystalline contraption, Petra's Master likewise watched the growing intensity of the emerald cube with burning anticipation.

Gwen felt the last of her vital energy drop into the cube.

Then immediately acknowledged that something was wrong. A breathlessness of the soul suddenly claimed her body, as though she had sprinted up a hill, and now the air was too thin to sustain the oxygen she required to catch her breath.

Feeling a mild panic, she refocused her mind's eye.

Slowly, very slowly, the emerald motes inside her Astral Body restored themselves. However, through the trained synaesthesia of her mind's eye, Gwen could sense that the emerald motes were dimmer, weaker. Their recovery seemed almost a trickle where prior the specks had pulsed to the rhythm of her heart.

Her body felt cold.

Yet, her mind felt flushed.

Acutely, between her breasts, she felt an absence.

It was the Kirin Token.

A piece of her flesh.

An organ.

Could it be? Her mind revolted with agitation. Had she made a mistake? Should she have acted more selfishly?

"Gwen!" Petra grabbed her shoulders. "What's wrong? You're turning as white as a ghost! Is it the Void Cube? Did you put too much vitality into filling it?"

"Give her a potion," Magister Wen drew a potion injector from a hidden drawer.

"No, no, I am fine." Gwen looked past Petra, once again taking in her bearings.

Her body felt weak.

She felt weak.

"Gwen, what's wrong?" Petra asked worriedly. "You don't look fine at all."

"Pats…" Gwen swallowed, forcing her quickened breath to return to a controlled cadence. "I think I might have made a big mistake."


"Stop moping over spilt Milk." Petra's criticism was merciless. "Your amulet is gone. Full stop."

"I know, I know," Gwen answered miserably. "I would have given it up anyway, I suppose. It caught me by surprise, that's all. The whole interaction with the Vitae-Mana was passive. It's my fault that I never noticed."

"Any chance I could convince Klavdiya to bring it in for some tests?" Magister Wen asked hopefully, her voice full of academic curiosity.

"I don't think Grandfather will consent to that," Gwen remarked wryly.

"Shame. Shame. The good news, I suppose—" Magister Wen sighed. "— is that you found out now and not while you're in a Dungeon or carrying out a quest. Now that would have been a disaster. At any rate, you shouldn't rely too much on items."

"So, can you still cast Void spells safely?" Petra continued, asking the crucial questions. "You're gonna need it for what you've planned for the next eighteen months."

"Yes, though recuperation is going to take much longer," Gwen hypothesised. "From my experience, there's a hard threshold as to how much Void matter I can channel before it begins to take a toll."

"Interesting. Can you clarify?" Wen asked from the other side of the bench. "What's the toll?"

"Drowsiness, nausea, fainting spells, crippling fatigue, anorexia." Gwen recounted the symptoms from her memory.

"Sounds like symptoms of Negative Energy Drain."

"How did you deal with this in the past?"

"I had a healer top me up while we fought," Gwen replied. "My friend Elvia had that position; then it was Mina, my cousin who's currently studying to be a Cleric."

"Godo grief!" Magister Wen winced

sympathetically. "The impact of elemental Affinity on the physical body is hardly mixing hot and cold water! The abuse you must have endured!"

"I seem to do alright," Gwen protested. "My late mentor, Magister Kilroy, had assured me as such."

"Magister Kilroy..." Magister Wen changed the tone of her voice. "He was an absolute master of the craft! Even so, that is no long-term solution."

"Grandmother healed my injuries when I came to Shanghai as well."

"I don't think high-tier Restorations, consuming hundreds of HDMs worth of materials, available only from military hospitals in capital cities—are going to help you in the Wildlands, on the Frontier, or during a six-month siege against the Undead!" The Magister shook her head. "My dear, we need to find a way to make sure you stay in one piece!"

"I won't say no to that." Gwen smiled weakly.

"Right, that settles it then. Petra, let's start."

"Yes, Master."

Gwen watched as Magister We set up the three crystalline cubes in a contraption that arrested the captive elements midair. The constructed device looked as though the Magister had erected a holographic projection, within which were her three energised cubes of distinctly different mana.

"Petra, get Gwen a coat."

Obediently, Petra dressed Gwen in a lab coat enchanted with Shielding, Elemental Absorption, and Sterilisation glyphs.

Coming closer, Gwen could see the suspended Spell-Cubes hovering over a triplicate of pins in a pattern she couldn't discern.

"This is an Allenberg-Erwin Elemental Spectrometer," Magister Wen helpfully informed their novice research partner. "It'll visualise motes of Elements injected into a suspension field simulating the Astral Plane. I am going to test a few interactions. This way, we can get a better understanding of how your elements interact in an isolated plane."

Wen incanted an arcane command, allowing the Almudj-Cube and Lightning-Cube to each release several motes of mana.

Unbidden, the primordial mana from the emerald-cube met a mote of lightning-element midair in volatile conjunction, then emitted a brilliant blast of emerald-green.

"Barbanginy!" Gwen recognised the energy right away. "That's Almudj's lightning!"

"B-ba-Barga… sorry…" Magister Wen sprang her tongue on the first attempt. "The fabled, mythical serpent of Australis, no? A fascinating existence, to be sure. Extinct, in fact, anywhere humanity has made their domain. Your report was an equally fascinating read. For our interests, are you able to incant or summon this admixtured lightning? What did you call it?"

"Barb-an-gin-ni." Gwen allowed the word to roll off her tongue. "I don't think I can, to be honest. I can move the mana around in my Astral form, congealing it for expulsion, but I can't work it into spells."

"Yet, you've cast this Barbanginy before?"

"Once or twice before, yes, with Almudj's help." Gwen's voice grew low. Where was Almudj now? Asleep somewhere, maybe in Uluru, mayhap coiled up deep underground, perhaps resting upon a rainbow.

"Interesting, maybe we can work towards that." Magister Wen jotted down a few notes onto a data slate.

Wen materialised a seed and floated it toward the centre of the Spectrometer's suspension field.

She guided it under the Almudj-Cube.

One incantation later, the seed took on a few motes of the emerald mana and sprouted, bursting into a small, inch-long vine.

"Master, that?" Petra held her hand to her lips.

"Oh yes." Wen grinned. "That's a Bolivian Stone Pear sprout."

"A dead seed."

Magister Wen looked upon Gwen with the eyes of a woman in love.

"Indeed, the seed was a sterilised specimen." Wen looked over at Gwen. "The Agricultural department would be over the moon. How much of this mana do you think you're able to synthesise?"

"About… a single tier-2 spells worth, per day?" Gwen tried to estimate the volume she had injected into the Cube. "At my current rate of recovery, likely less."

"A shame. It's not every day that we see Druidic Essence manifest in a human. Oh well, no use for agriculture then. Shame."

"Druidic Essence." Gwen mouthed to herself, finally finding a name for the phenomena.

With a word, Wen coaxed a few motes of Void-matter and Life-matter into suspended motion. A second invocation brought out more specks of the emerald-mana. Interestingly, the mana did not cancel each other out. Instead, they glided around one another as though two immiscible liquids were repelling at an undetectable molecular level.

"Wonderful, no?" Magister Wen spoke with great reverence. "This serpent mana of yours, it is not a raw, elemental force. It is an arcane compound, spell shaped by a mythic beings' will and intent, capable of restoration and growth."

Magister then produced another cube and injected a Positive Energy cloud, colouring with a bright pink pigmentation, into the controlled platform.

"This is Positive mana from one of our Healers. "

Like some ravening beast, the cloud of Void-matter moved across the air. It struck the diffuse pinkness, feeding hungrily upon the energies of life until both elements faded into nothingness.

"Oh, dear." Gwen watched the spectacle with ominous comprehension.

"Indeed," the Magister stated with sagacity. "Gwen, your serpent's energy never did negate the damage done to your body by the Void—it was a Shield first, a restorative second. For this reason, if you wish to maximise your Void output, heal after the fact, not during the channel."

"But I could feel myself draining the vitality provided by healers when I cast Evocation and Conjuration." Gwen tried her best to recollect working with Mina and Elvia. "Surely, that would have neutralised my spells if the elements were mutually consumptive."

"As for that, we must turn to further experimentation." Wen then introduced a new medium to the mix.

A creature core floated into the midst of the levitation field.

"I've known items similar to the Kirin amulet." Wen pointed to a floor to ceiling whiteboard where dozens of arcane formulas made their presence known. "I hypothesise that this is the answer."

Wen introduced a mote of the Amuldj-mana toward the thumbnail-sized creature core, where it immediately entered the Magical Creature's remains, affecting an inner glow to the sphere. Then, the Magister applied an Evocation glyph, a simple Bolt. The resulting energy was a blue-green arc of electricity that sizzled the air magnificently.

"That's Barbanginy!" Gwen uttered, impressed by the ease of the manifest.

But it was the next demonstration that astounded her.

The core took within itself a mote of Void-matter, then manifested a bolt of midnight-black lightning which whipped through the air and struck the protective pane of the Shield behind the testing station, gouging a Lichtenberg-figure shaped scar across the force-panes.

"That's…" Gwen watched the demonstration. "That's my Void bolt!"

"Now watch."

Magister Wen set off half a dozen bolts in quick succession.

Crack!

Suddenly the barrage of bolts ceased. The core shattered.

The trio watched the nucleus crumble.

"That's you." Magister Wen allowed the dust to settle around the Spectrometer. "One can assume that before your Awakening in the Void, the amulet likely protected you somehow. After you acquired the serpent's Druidic essence, it became less useful but remained a bulwark against ignorant abuses."

"So, I've lost... a crutch?" Gwen tried to think of an apt analogy. "I've lost my emergency breaks?"

"A strange way to put it, but sure." Magister Wen gave herself several moments to gather her thoughts. "Gwen, describe your Void manifests before you obtained the serpent's energy."

"It was before the Field Trip, long before I knew the serpent existed..." Gwen began. "The Awakening test was that day..."

She told them of the first time she had manifested the Void. She was in a park, feeling not very nice about life. There was a moment of darkness when she got a little too emotional; then she woke up a few hours later sans handbag and wallet.

The second significant event was when she'd manifested it was against Edgar. Her outburst had taken the Dust Mage's arm and leg, as well as half his face, but also took enough out of her to make her lose consciousness.

"What advice did the late Lord Kilroy give you?"

"To always have someone who could tap into the healing energies of the Positive Plane on hand and to feed off the vitality returned by spells." Gwen annotated her Master's recommendations. "When Caliban consumes enemies, I can feel it returning vitality to me. Sometimes, when I use Evocation spells, I can also feel something akin to it, but it was never as distinct as using my Familiar."

Magister Wen jotted down notes as Gwen spoke.

"Tell me about the Dungeon again," Magister Wen proposed. "Describe in detail what it was like."

Gwen tried to put into words the ethereal hunger that came with Void magic. When they had taken down the blue Gilas and the reds, she had felt Caliban's pleasure and shared in the bounty of life it provided. When they had assailed the Elder Gila, Caliban could not only restore itself but keep Gwen's reserves fed as it wormed its way through the massive Salamander's body. The only time she ever felt satiated was when Caliban used Consume.

Magister Wen cross-examined Gwen's recount with great patience, nitpicking at minor details.

"Good. Now we know generally how your Void magic functions in a practical sense." Magister Wen recorded her findings enthusiastically. "I will make an appointment to peruse the University's Greater Cognisance Chamber right away, as well as order a few disposable Magical beasts from the Conjuration department. I believe that it would be in the interest of all of us to get to the bottom of this."

"Yes. Thank you so much." Gwen sat back in her seat dazedly, gazing at the set of suspended Spell-Cubes holding her mana captive.

"It'll take a few hours to arrange. Go with Petra and arrange your lodgings. I would highly recommend trying to find something very close to campus. With your difficult condition and the amount of work you will be putting in, I would not be surprised if one of the students found you unconscious on the lawn."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"We're trying." Petra sighed. "There's nothing within thirty minutes or so with reasonable prices or facilities. I am going to take Gwen to the lower campus today, see if they have anything available there."

"I could always share with someone; there were a few of those available," Gwen said.

"Not safe, not with the number of secrets and talent that you're holding. I'd imagine it wouldn't do your roommate any service either." Petra pointed out.

"Agreed." Wen nodded as well. "Should I intervene? You're going to get a lot of visitors once news of Fudan's Void Mage spreads around campus—and not all of them for kind reasons."

"We'll come to you if we're truly desperate, Master," Petra agreed with her Master.

Wen considered the matter.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Good. Why don't you girls get some fresh air? Take Gwen through the gardens to see if that helps her recovery." Magister Wen showed them the door. "Don't take up space if you're not here to work. Gwen, maybe it is best if you stay with Petra for now."

"There's also Richard," Gwen reminded the Magister politely.

"He's a young man in a Tier 1 city. He would prefer you not looking over his shoulder, trust me." Magister Wen seemed to misread Gwen's concern. "I'll Message you when the Chamber is ready. Meet me at the Yifu Spellcraft Building, expect 1400 or so."

"Umm... We're not like that," Gwen noted with dismay, but the Magister wasn't listening; she was already in the midst of a Message with the Yifu administration staff.

"Let's go," Petra urged Gwen to follow, helping Gwen out of her coat, promising a lovely luncheon to restock Gwen's spent reserves.

"Miss Kuznetsov!"

To their amazement, a pudgy NoM in a tailored suit was waiting for them downstairs at the entrance of Henglong laboratory.

"Manager Xie?" Petra wasn't at all expecting to see the balding NoM outside of his office. Xie looked as though he had run the whole distance from the eastern end of the campus as well; even with the cooling glyph on his blazer, the man was sweltering from head to toe.

"Thank Mao I caught you both. I would hate to have intruded. Have you found a home?"

"Nope. Still homeless." Gwen replied, studying the man as he mopped his face with a handkerchief. "Did you have unexpected vacancies?"

"You're as good as a Diviner! And goodness, it was difficult to get a hold of you, Miss Kuznetsova." The NoM laughed.

"I am not fond of unsolicited Messages," Petra stated cooly. "But allow me to apologise. What's the matter?"

"I've got two apartments opened up just this morning! Both of the tenants have just terminated their lease. As a result, I've got vacancies at B1-2203 and 2204."

Petra knitted her exquisitely arched brows.

"Building 1- Level 22, Suite 03 and 04?" Gwen made a face. "They sound expensive."

Manager Xie's face split from ear to ear.

"Due to the emergency nature of the vacancy, the owner has requested that the rooms be occupied as soon as possible. As such, they are willing to accept rental well below the market value."

"How much?" Petra pushed the Manager.

"75 HDMs for the two bedrooms 2203, and 50 HDMs for the single."

"That's…"

"What's with those prices?" Gwen asked the Manager puzzlingly. According to her research last night, the prices drastically increased once they got closer to campus. The rooms should be fetching at least 140 to 200 HDMs.

"I am simply offering what the owner has requested." Manager Xie mopped the sweat from his brow with a handkerchief. "Would you like to inspect the rooms?"

"Right now?" Gwen asked, equally curious as to their strange turn of fortune. In her experience, there was bound to be something wrong with the property if the owners were so eager for tenants. Would she find the place infested with vermin? Or the previous tenants had left it in a mess or destroyed some of the vanities? Mayhap the owners were laundering money through the rental income and could not allow the cash flow to cease. Or, knowing this world, the apartment was haunted.

"Of course, if you'll follow me. It's only a kilometre or so across the campus. B1 is the first building in the new Student's quadrant. We should be able to see it as soon as we pass Guoshun Road."

"Petra?"

Petra's expression was sceptical as well.

"Let's see for ourselves then," her cousin affirmed the desire to see the place with their own eyes. "I've got a See Invisibility cubed. Let's see if we can run a Detect Magic through the place. Can you cast Detect Traps?"

As they arrived at Building 1, they saw a team of NoMs moving furniture from the lifts.

"03 and 04 should be undergoing a thorough cleaning," Manage Xie explained.

"Already?" Gwen felt impressed by Xie's zealous professionalism. Even in her world, such zealous regard for customer service was rare.

"The owner was very insistent," Xie said.

They entered the lobby of the luxury apartment block, where a dumbfounded looking young man was sitting on several suitcases. When Manager Xie came inside with the girls in tow, the young man's face abruptly turned a shade of beetroot.

He delivered the girls a look of pure loathing, but just as Gwen was ready to take on unsolicited abuse, the man left.

"What was all that about?" Gwen pursued the curious incident with Xie. "That was the old tenant, right?"

"He was," Xie replied.

"Why is he leaving?"

"Who knows?" Manager Xie smiled at the girls with his usual amiability, his face folding until his eyes were thin, happy lines. "Perhaps a family emergency?"

The levitation platform took the girls up toward the 22nd floor. When the door opened, they were met by a riot of activity between a dozen cleaning staff and removalists.

"Careful! careful!" A young woman was directing a piano out of what appeared to be 2203. She turned to regard the trio when their elevator pinged.

"I would say hello, neighbours, but I am leaving." The girl hummed mirthfully. "I hope you enjoy your stay here. It's a wonderful place to finish the years at Fudan, assuming you get to stay until you graduate."

Before Gwen could answer, the parallel levitation platform pinged.

"That would be our other ex-tenant," Xie noted with the same care as one having spotted a mildly interesting potplant. "Which apartment would you like to see first?"

"The two-bedder." Gwen pointed to 2203. For 75 HDMs, it was a steal. Whatever was happening, she felt inclined to take advantage of it. Furthermore, if the apartment turned out to be not haunted by the ghosts of restless indigenous spirits, she would entertain a bold proposal for Petra.

The trio passed the removalists and found themselves embroiled in NoMs scrubbing the carpet, dressing new drapes, and fervently scouring the kitchen.

"Maybe now wasn't the best time." Manager Xie looked around the controlled chaos of bodies busily at work, refitting the kitchen. "Forgive me for my blunder."

"It's fine." Gwen walked through the room and took in the breathtaking view of the skyline. At level 22, she could see the entirety of Fudan's campus. The only taller building within her immediate view was the Fudan Towers. When she turned to the right, she could see the Second PLA hospital at Wujianchang, followed by the urban sprawl of Building 2 to 25. To her left, the Second Orbital Highway shot into the heart of the city, where the PLA Tower's superstructure loomed like a perched spider across the webwork of crisscrossing highways.

The apartment was not ultra-modern like Mina's Waldorf suite. It was what one expected from a property developed for profit over style. The living room was a rectangular extension of about twenty-odd square meters, just enough to fit a three-person couch and a Vid-caster. There was an independent bathroom next to a laundry renovated with wood-patterned tiles. The open kitchenette was a modest assemblage beside the entrance, possessing just enough space to cook meals for one or two, with a built-in refrigerator fitted into the gloss-white polyurethane panelling. Its two bedrooms were spacious and clean, with deep built-in wardrobes and enough room for a queen-sized bed, a single sideboard, and an ergonomic desk.

"It's perfect." Gwen found that beyond all expectations, they had arrived at the Goldilocks Zone. The apartment was not overly luxurious, it was close to campus, and it was within a price range she and Richard could afford.

"Excellent. Shall I prepare the contract?" Manager Xie implored them hastily, as though he had expected her affirmation. "Your option is for annual or quarterly leases, though the annual contract has a smaller fee for breaking your rental agreement."

"You don't need to perform a credit-rating check?" Gwen asked the eager-faced Manager suspiciously.

"I am sure we can trust LCSS candidates not to flee the City, ha!"

"Gwen." Her cousin tugged on Gwen's sleeve.

"Yeah, Pats?" Gwen turned to her cousin.

Petra took Gwen to one side with a look of secrecy.

"I am going to run some Detection spells while you check the contract. Do you know how to read a rental agreement?"

"Of course." Gwen flipped back a few strands of loose hair. "I've rented before."

Petra nodded and produced Divination based spell-cubes, convinced that something had to be wrong with the apartment. Her cousin allowed an array of Detection spells to manifest and went about examining every nook and cranny.

She turned to Manager Xie.

"Manager Xie, may I inquire as to the possibility of subletting to Miss Kuznetsova, or perhaps taking out the rental on a twin-share?"

Xie hesitated only for a moment.

"The Wess-M-Rutherford Property Group welcomes Miss Kuznetsova. If she so wishes to join you in leasing the apartment, I shall further terminate her existing B3-703 contract without penalty."

"That's very kind of you." Gwen raised an attractively tapered brow. "Why Manager Xie, I had thought you the kind to preserve every penny in the Company's cache."

"I am but a humble purveyor of residential space." Manager Xie stepped back and bowed gingerly. "The customer's word, contractually obliged, is Mao's dictum. Besides, who would refute austere customers such as yourself, Mr Huang, and Miss Kuznetsova?"

Gwen cocked her head at the smiling Manager.

"I spoke to a few colleagues and became well informed of your noble bearing," Xie confessed humbly. "I ask for generosity and forgiveness if you are offended."

"Not at all. Let's see this contract then. Strike while the iron is hot," Gwen pushed. She wasn't sure why the owner of the property was so breathlessly eager to have the property rented out so quickly, but if her old life had taught her anything about renting, it was that there were no second chances to snap up a bargain.

Once Petra returned, Xie materialised a short novella titled the "WMR Property Group Tenancy Agreement." Gwen flipped through the Tenancy Agreement like an old hand at shuffling poker, observing the usual Clauses and by-Clauses.

"Please take your time."

Except for the prohibition of Magic usage that would affect the property in any way, the rest of the agreement was distinctly similar to what one would have expected in her old world. The Rent of 75 HDMs per month included mana conduit, heating, and water. There was even the option of taking out a parking spot, though neither Gwen nor Petra drove.

Petra leaned in with a face full of puzzlement.

"It's clean." Petra met Gwen's imploring eyes with a nod of assurance. She then looked out the expansive bedroom window thoughtfully. "What a pleasant view."

"Pats." Gwen pulled her closer, then explained that if her cousin should desire, they could take up a co-rental agreement and share the apartment.

"That's... wonderful!" Petra was surprised and delighted by Gwen's offer. Her rental costs were almost 70 HDMs a month and ate up a significant chunk of her grant. "Are you sure?"

"Of course! We can share the rental costs and have safety in numbers, right? I would feel so much safer with you and Dick here. Not to mention we can save on food costs, energy, the whole shebang!"

"Alright." Petra nodded in agreement. "I am in—I think Master would prefer it as well."

"Alright! Roomies!" Gwen held her cousin's hand a danced a quick jig before collecting herself. "I am still going through the contract, one moment."

Gwen returned her attention to the legal gobbledegook.

"13.13 and 13.14," she pointed out after a few minutes spent in silence. "Are we responsible for environmental damage resulting from self-defence?"

"If an Arbitrator deems yourself to have lawfully defended yourself, then no. The offender, in this case, will be responsible for all incurred costs."

"And if they are dead?" Gwen raised her brow.

"D-dead?" Xie seemed caught off-guard by Gwen's composure. "You would fight to the death?"

Gwen looked at Petra quizzically. Do Mages in the Tier 1 cities kiss and hug after they are defeated? Do one's assailants apologise and offer compensation? She could imagine a confrontation in the Frontier ending with the two parties shaking it off and reconvening for another go on a better day.

"Er... Fatalities are very rare in T1 cities," Petra explained. "Crimes are rarely violent. The entirety of Shanghai is within the Teleportation range of the Special Spells and Tactics Unit. Even if someone escapes, there's little chance they'll flee the tender attention of the MSS or the Diviners of the Major Crimes Unit."

Gwen blinked.

Cops? Calling the Police?

What a self-evident revelation! She had been so enamoured in the bloodsport of the Frontier that she had not at all considered that there was actual law enforcement in Shanghai. But then again, it was evident that a police force had to exist. How else was the city going to keep a lid on the boiling mass of egos that simmered beneath the facade of congeniality? For every Mage willing to contractually engage in a Lawful duel, there would be at least three who preferred ambush. As with all metropolises, only a greater force hammering down with the cold steel mallet of brute justice could offset man's natural tendency for flouting the social contract.

If she ran into trouble in Shanghai, all she had to do was call the cops.

"Everything seems in order," Gwen noted to Petra. "There's three months deposit as a bond paid upfront. I've got the amount on me right now."

"You can seriously read that elf-speak?" Petra gazed upon Gwen with renewed awe.

"I…" Gwen realised she couldn't possibly affect a conceivably believable excuse. "It's not a difficult read. The Ioun Stone takes care of the heavy lifting."

"Well, if you can read that and understand it, then we should be able to complete Goulding's Core Primer within three weeks."

"Er... Let me give Richard a call." Gwen activated the Message function on her device and dialled Richard's glyph.

"Gwen?"

"Rich, I found a place to stay 5 to 10 minutes from the campus. Single dwelling, high up, relatively new facilities. 50 HDMs a month, next door to Petra and me. What do you think?"

"Crickey, that's a good price. Sign me up. You and Petra, huh?"

"Ya. We're going to be roomies! I'll send you Manager Xie's contact and address. I'll put down your deposit now."

"No worries then, I'll go see him later. Fix you up later."

"Cheers. Oh yeah, I'll be with Master Wen and Pats in the arvo. So I'll be late."

"Yeah, alright. Give us a shout if you need help."

Gwen ended the Message.

"Here." Manager Xie passed over a gilded fountain pen. "I'll have it ready by the weekend, two days from now. Please inform the strata if you wish to have heavy furniture moved. You can call me anytime, and I mean anytime - if you have any enquiries."

Gwen placed her initials on each page before signing at the front and back. Petra cosigned beside her on a second column. A receipt glyph signalled Manager Xie's receivership of their deposits, then the matter concluded.

"There will be some noise as the top floor will be undergoing renovations," Manager Xie guiltily informed them after the fact. "There maybe be some noise for the first week or so, between 9 AM to 6 PM each day."

"That's fine. I don't have any furniture, at least not yet. Pats?"

"I can borrow a Storage Ring from Master."

"Alright." Gwen turned to Xie, and the trio shook hands. "A pleasure working with you, Manager Xie. I look forward to moving in very soon."

The girls returned to Magister Wen just before two, meeting the emerald-eyed Mineral Mage by the Yi-Fu Spellcraft Building, another renovated piece of ageing brutalist architecture that survived the aeons. Thanks to the L-shaped construction and the soaring foyer, the white-on-salmon palette loved by the university appeared slowly grew on Gwen.

Within the elongated section of the west wing were the Cognisance Chambers, ranging from the size of a studio to that of an auditorium. As a head researcher at Fudan, Wen had the privilege of perusing the Chambers at will.

To test her hypothesis, Wen commandeered a chamber approximately the size of an indoor soccer field.

"How serendipitous," Magister Wen delightfully replied when Petra told her of the development on their property hunt. "Take care of her, Petra. Gwen is very precious to us."

They were met in the Chamber by a woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties but had the bearing of someone much older.

"Magus Mai Kumiko, Assistant Professor, Department of Conjuration," The woman introduced herself.

It was the first time Gwen had seen a Japanese person in Shanghai. Both the city and the country had bad blood with the island nation thanks to the Sino Conflict in the 50s, not to mention the PLA had built its grass-roots around castigating the Japanese' threat', so it was quite a surprise to see a Dai-Nippon national in the flesh.

"It's nice to meet you."

The Conjurer had light brown eyes adoring a face blessed with a tender complexion, framed by a shoulder-length bob woven with auburn highlights. Her bearing and posture were posed and controlled, elegantly upheld by a hip-hugging skirt and a white blouse accessorised with a red ribbon tie.

"Mai's teaching the supplementary Conjuration class," Wen introduced Gwen to the Assistant Professor. "You'll likely see each other again very soon."

The three women exchanged greetings.

"I'll be in your care," Gwen stated.

"More like I'll be in yours, Miss Song," Mai confessed candidly. "I am very much interested in your Familiars. Especially the Caliban."

"I'll do my best not to disappoint," Gwen flashed the instructor a confident smile.

"Let's begin," Magister Wen said impatiently beside them. "Alright, Gwen, let's see what has the masterful Deathless Henry so enamoured!"

There was a thrum as Mana crystals clinked into place, then the room fell into darkness. A gradual light began to circulate until the floor became a mirror plane, reminding her of the lessons taught by her Master. Feeling stunned by the spectacle, Gwen fought back an onslaught of nostalgic melancholy and turned her attention toward the reflection underfoot.

There, captive beneath an illusory pane, her Astral Body glimmered.

Held intact within the glass sculpture of her anima was the hungering Void, the cracking lightning, and a little something else: specs and motes of emerald green, swimming freely through a sea of alternating light and dark.


"Well, that was an unfortunate slip of the tongue," Magister Wen apologised for her faux pas. Under most circumstances, referring to a deceased Master by their famed alias would be well received, but alas, Gwen's Master had held a peculiar title.

"Uwa~!" a strange exclamation issued from Mai, dispelling the awkwardness set up by Wen's lacklustre apology. "Dual-element! Oppositional too! Wh- what is that green mana? Triple-element?"

"Just some Druidic essence, dear." Magister Wen clarified the phenomenon. "Save your shock, Mai. Else we'll be here all day."

"Incredible!" Mai inspected Gwen's Astral projection in the likeness of a watchmaker probing a Patek Nautilus. "Beyond incredible. Usually, isn't this impossible?"

"Magus Kumiko!" Magister Wen snapped at the Conjurer.

"Forgive me!" Mai bowed politely and retreated behind Magister Wen, demurely assuming her place.

"Mai, proceed."

"Onibi!"

A vivid surge of ochre mana manifested around the Conjurer.

A glowing bushel of ghostly flame floated before Gwen's instructors, casting a ring of yellow-orange illumination around the trio. Gwen felt life-energy cascading from the summoned spirit like a fount opened into the Positive Elemental Plane.

A Positive Conjurer! And from the looks of it, a Creature Mage. Gwen wilfully stopped herself from reaching out to touch the hovering flame. To think she would see a Spirit from that exalted plane of Positive Energy, an existence too rare for her Frontier origins.

"Is… that a Lantern Sprite?"

"Yes, but not a Spirit, unfortunately." The Japanese Conjurer caught Gwen's starry-eyed worship. "Onibi is a form of spirit-lantern from my homeland. When I manifested my Familiar, it came to me."

"Amazing, what does it do?"

Magus Kumiko responded by activating her Spite's unique ability. "Healing Circle!"

In Gwen's astral reflection, she could see a stream of Positive energy issuing from her body, becoming tethered to the Lantern.

"A countermeasure," Magister Wen noted dutifully beside them. "I would be lying if I said our experimentation wouldn't tax you. Let me warn you again, Gwen. Knowing your true potential isn't going to be a pleasant jog across Fudan."

"I understand." Gwen turned to her seniors brightly. "If this is the cost of knowledge, then I'll pay it gladly."

"That's the spirit!" Wen nodded approvingly. "Now, let's start with the basics. Give me a repertoire of your spells, starting with lightning."

"Yes, Ma'am!" Gwen replied, sensing that her teacher was just as excited as she was. After taking a deep breath, she redoubled her focus, closed her eyes, then began to pick at the walls of reality, readying her body for the manifestation of sorcerous phenomena.

"Guiding Bolt!"

"Flash Bang!"

"Lightning Blast!"

"Lightning Gasp!"

"Taser!"

"Lightning Bolt!"

"Blade!"

"Warding Bolt!"

"Call Lightning!"

Once she hit the fourth-tier spells, the mental and physical exertion grew palpable. It wasn't so much that she was running out of mana, for her pool was almost double or triple the average Mage, but that her chants and calculations induced immense mental stress without allowance for the cooling down of her cognitive faculties.

Gritting her teeth and wishing to show Magister Wen her conviction, Gwen redoubled her efforts.

"Lightning Tentacles!"

"Morden's Faithful Hound!"

"Dimension Door!"

Gwen appeared and reappeared in a series of conflagrating lightning. Staggering a little, she turned to face her audience. Her milk-white skin glowed under the refractory illumination of the Cognisance Chamber. So much Lightning-mana had flooded her body that her eyes sparkled with two concentric rings of electricity, with an occasional discharge arching from her hair onto the floor.

Petra, Mai and Magister Wen regarded one another with astonished faces.

"Did we just witness Morden's Faithful Hound?" Mai's voice shook. "That spell involves Evocation, Conjuration and Transmutation all at once! How's that possible? Also, why is her Dimension Door offensive? How did she trigger a Lightning Nova on exit? Her incantations! The mana channels! Are they all Signature sorcery?"

"Fascinating indeed." Magister Wen was furiously running her fingers through her data slate. "Petra, did you know of this?"

Petra partly shook her head. "Only recently. I was informed that several of her key spells were hand-taught by her Master."

"So they are Signature Spells?" Mai looked as though she could burst into song. "Those Conjuration incantations are original?"

"Especially Morden's Hound… Did you know the Tower no longer has a version that allows for elemental shifting?" Wen slid a finger across the slate violently. "These were taught to you personally, Gwen?"

"By Master Kilroy, yes." Gwen dispelled her persistent effect Conjurations to conserve mana.

"Mao..." Magister Wen forlornly shook her head. "All that knowledge lost."

"Hold on, Ki-e-ru-i?" Magus Kumiko spluttered beside them. "Magister Kilroy? H-Henry Kilroy? Master of Ordo Arcana?!”

"The the same, he passed in March, in Sydney. You recall, right? We watched the Vid-cast on the news."

"Uwa—" Mai turned to Gwen, then bowed from the waist. "I am very sorry, Gwen. I was inconsiderate!"

"It's alright, Magus." Gwen stifled the shuddering in her chest. Who'd have thought? She knew her Master had deep roots—but to think Henry had so much clout even in an entirely unrelated region of the world. But then again, when Gwen considered her Master's other disciples, such as the Scarlet Sorceress, famed and feared across Oceania, capable of going toe to toe with Magisters twice her age—and his other student, the Morning Star who could singlehandedly handle a Leviathan, it was she who lacked the correct perspective.

"Gwen, let us move on. Your Familiar, please." Wen's emotions very quickly returned to their usual coolness.

Gwen nodded. "Ariel!"

A blast of lightning struck the floor.

Ariel materialised with its tail in the air, striking a pose.

"EE—EE!"

The little marten appeared more girthy than before, now reaching the height of Gwen's thighs. From its round face, its dark eyes glimmered intelligently. After the Eland Core, Gwen palpably felt that her Familiar appeared more robust than before.

"EE—EE!" Ariel proudly showed off two cute little horns that now protruded like spiralled triangles from its head. Thank God! Gwen praised the higher power above. If Ariel had met Tao's prophesy, she wouldn't know where to hide her face.

"Your familiar is beyond adorable!" Magus Kumiko gushed, clearly possessing a weakness for cute things. Disregarding her position, she dropped to one knee. "Hey there, Ariel! How are you?"

"EE—EE!" Ariel looked to Gwen for permission.

Gwen gave her consent.

Ariel then leapt toward Mai and rolled over onto its belly, flashing its soft fur. When Mai stroked the creature, it caused arcs of electricity to spark away from the marten spectacularly.

"What a wonderful Familiar." Mai had none of the distant demeanour of Magister Wen.

Not far from her aide, Magister Wen rolled her eyes.

"Very well. Let's see the Void element. Mai, get ready. Just as we discussed," Magister Wen commanded.

"Yes, Magister."

Gwen returned to the centre of the room.

"I am beginning."

She aimed for the other far side, where walls of force were in place to absorb the impact of her spells.

"Void Bolt!"

"Warding Bolt!"

"Call Void Lightning!"

Gwen had only used her Void element for the Call Lightning once when they ambushed the Elder Gila. The sustained channel from the self-guided bolts consumed both mana and vitality, making the spell ineffective except for extreme measures when damage output had to be maximised.

In her present condition, two spells at tiers 3 were her limit.

After another volley of Void Lightning, Gwen felt her vitality wane; without a cache of the Druidic essence, the volatile element would soon begin to consume her body.

"Are you able to continue?" Magister Wen spoke from behind Gwen. "Magus Kumiko has you in safe hands, I assure you."

Gwen resumed her efforts.

"Dark Tentacles!" When the final invocation left her lips, a sudden flurry of writhing Void-matter erupted like a blossom of obsidian sea anemones, radiating a wave of nauseating vertigo across the chamber.

Onibi glimmered, fortifying Gwen and her observers.

"Mao!" Magister Wen stepped around the manifestation, examining it with great interest. "Fascinating! See here how the Void coils around a tear in space. Likewise, the prehensile nature of the tentacles is far different from the normal variant. Yours is almost like a living thing!"

Perhaps sensing Wen's presence, a few of the tentacles reached for her body.

Gwen mentally attempted to stifle the tentacles' furore. Naturally, the flailing limbs ignored her, for her "dumb" spell was not capable of differentiating between friend or foe.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

Without effort, Magister Wen manifested a crystalline Shield and allowed one of the tentacles to touch the mineral barrier. Gwen felt the contact hotly in her Astral Body, then felt more of her vitality drain as the tendrils dug into Wen's creation.

"Incredible penetrative power." Wen jotted down more notes as the tentacle whittled down her shielding. "Excellent against hard shields."

"Let's try something incorporeal! Shield!"

With a new invocation, the crystalline shell of Magister Wen's Mineral Shield gave way to that of a transparent mana barrier. This time, the tentacles thrashed against the invisible forcefield without penetrating its exterior.

"How curious." Wen took more notes. "Ironically, a low-density shield can halt the corrosively Void-matter."

Gwen felt her breathing becoming easier while Wen made her notes. Behind her, a steady stream of positive energy fed gently into her torso. She could see the conduits at work, smothered by the blazing glare from her own Astral Body. She had seen the same phenomenon manifested when Sufina was in Magus Kumiko's place, channelling a steady stream of life force as she trained, repeating spell after spell. Compared to the meagre Onibi, however, Sufina was far more nourishing, both paled against Almudj's blessing, but Sufina's embrace had felt motherly and warm.

"Keep the spell up, Gwen," the Magister commanded.

Gwen quickly stabilised her output.

Her instructor came close and studied the reflection of Gwen's Astral Body underfoot. There was an astonishing exchange happening below. Within the projection of her metaphysical body, the ink-like movement of the Void-matter soaked in the Positive Energy before exiting through her palms and manifesting some distance away as a blossom of grasping tendrils.

"So the Void can directly convert healing energy into life-matter for the host body?" Wen studied the phenomenon. "Gwen, try activating your Druidic essence."

Gwen spared as much concentration as she could to command the emerald motes to move. Unfortunately, they would not manifest even when gritting her teeth and grunting with exertion.

"I can't." Gwen huffed after another exhaustive attempt. "They're not activating."

"Hmm, how about Lightning?" Petra asked helpfully. "As counter-elements, they should disrupt one another, but what if you could somehow counter the effect of the Void-drain with the Positive aspect of Lightning?"

"Maybe it's worth a try." Gwen closed her eyes and tapped into the Quasi-Elemental Gate of Lightning.

Wen looked like she was about to say something but stopped herself.

A torrent of pale-blue mana surged throughout Gwen's Astral form.

"Arrrrgh!" Gwen felt as though stricken with a sudden blow to her temples. She involuntarily staggered back as a burst of radiant energy flared from her torso, forcing the Void-matter to surge in all directions. The force of the sudden expulsion caused her to fall onto her buttocks, stunned by the volatility of the elemental cocktail.

The Dark Tentacle dissipated.

"EE—!!"

Ariel ran to her and began to lick her hand frantically.

"Oh my God! Gwen, are you alright?" Petra knelt beside the stunned sorceress as she orientated herself. "Are you alright?"

With the ringing still in her head, Gwen couldn't find the words to speak.

"Forgive me. That was my mistake," Magister Wen apologised stiffly. "I should have stopped you."

The Magister produced a Spell Cube s choked full of Positive Energy the shell positively hummed.

"Greater Restoration!" The healing energy of the upper-tier spell struck Gwen and cooled her Void fever like a bucket of ice.

Gwen felt her mind clear and her flesh mend. She looked dazedly at Petra and her two instructors, one worried and the other furiously engrossed in her notes.

Petra did not know what would happen, Gwen acknowledged with a chill—But her Master did. From now on, incidents such as these would be the 'price' of Wen's knowledge.

Should she refuse?

Gwen told herself she should not.

She also wanted answers, and if a bit of skin off her back was the price, then so be it.

"Let's take a break, shall we?" Magister Wen suggested.

"I can continue." Gwen pushed herself off the floor. "Let's continue. We need to summon Caliban next, right?"

The three women nodded.

"I am not sure how well I can control it."

"You're in safe hands," Magister Wen assured her. "So is your Familiar. At worst, nothing a Force Cage or a Stasis can't resolve."

Petra nodded confidently at Gwen, affirming her Magister's confidence.

"Here goes…"

Gwen closed her eyes and called out for Caliban, rousing her monster into consciousness from the tenebrous embrace of her Astral womb. Caliban had not expected a call from its Master so soon, and the opportunity to once again taste the delicious air of the Material Plain filled its lamprey's maws with delight.

Instantly, Gwen's Astral projection turned dark as crowskin and black as pitch. The gathered Mages watched as the void-matter drained from her Astral projection, taking with it the meagre glow of the Druidic Essence that was only now beginning to recover. A tear in the space above them formed, then like a monstrous obsidian placenta, a toad-thing slid from the gap between Planes and landed with a wet plop between them.

Gwen's complexion turned the colour of paper before the stream of gentle healing returned her vitality.

Two sharp intakes of breath punctuated the chamber. While both Kumiko and Wen had been told accounts of the Void-toad, seeing the damnable creature meters away in the flesh still possessed the full impact of gazing upon a dreadful nightmare. Even now, Gwen felt her nerves falter, for Caliban's gaze was like the abyss, only now the proverbial Void was sniffing the air and turning its faceless mien towards them.

"Caliban! Heel!" Gwen commanded, forcing her voice from her lips as the supply of Positive Energy intensified. Fuzzily, she felt the invigorating energy gently keeping her upright. What Wen had said was true. Compared to Mina or Elvia's rough healing, Kumiko's subtlety was far more capable of reinforcing her health.

"Shaa—Shaa—" Caliban's hulking form stalked here and there.

Ariel playfully ran up the trunk of its massive, triangular torso and rested on the faceless head, dancing a jig. Caliban groped for its long-term nemesis and sent the playful marten skittering away.

"Caliban! Stay!" Gwen willed her creature to tarry.

Caliban turned to regard its Master, its pores breathing in her scent.

"Please?"

With the sound of something slithering from a gash or an open wound, it opened its lamprey's mouth, ejecting twin lengths of tentacle-tongues from its maw. One was blue, and the other was red.

"Steady… steady…" Gwen reached out and touched one of the tentacles, guiding it away from her with her hand before petting Caliban's faceless head.

"Shaa—Shaa—" Caliban refocused its senses toward the source of positive energy behind her.

"No. That's a friend." Gwen informed her toad-minion. "Not for eating."

"Shaa—Shaa—" Caliban protested. Onibi, Gwen suspected, must appear very delicious. "SHAA—!"

"If you're not going to be a gentleman, I am putting you back!" Gwen warned her Familiar, scalding it with everything she had. She pictured dispelling the creature and felt Caliban hesitate. Then like a devious cat, it tried to move past her for a better look. Just a glance, it empathically told her—nothing else.

"SHAA—!" Caliban batted her aside, though gently, with its two tentacles that were the girth and size of her arm.

Gwen pushed back.

"I said no!" She gripped one of the tentacles and used it to reign Caliban's face away from Onibi. "Heel!"

"Shaa—!" Caliban made a token struggle, neither willing to forfeit a meal nor ignoring Gwen completely.

Beside the Master and creature, Petra, Magister Wen and Magus Kumiko watched the spectacle with their lips hanging limply.

"That's…" Kumiko was as pale as she was. "Is that a Death Gila?"

"It's a Void-beast in the morphic form of a Red Gila," Petra pointed out helpfully. "Gwen's creature seems to be able to tap into her Transmutation talent at the point of its summon. So far, I've seen it as a snake, a spider, and this thing. Maybe it can turn into more forms; I don't know."

"Blessed Yamatai." Magus Kumiko eyed her Onibi nervously. "Onibi is going to be okay, right? That thing looks… hungry."

The two women turned to Wen.

Petra's Master was positively quaking with delight. When she spoke, her voice erupted as a torrent.

"A Void Beast! A living, walking, hungering Void beast! Petra, do you know what this means? We shall be the first to document the habitation and physiology of a shapeless, formless thing in the flesh! The first since Sobel! Accreditations for the Meistership, fallen from the sky! Mao—I owe Klavdiya favours I cannot possibly repay. A Paper on the Void beast. Another upon the properties of Void Magic! Another and another on the impacts of Void sorcery on its users. We'll be publishing for years!"

"I am sure Gwen will be happy to help out, Master." Petra looked toward Gwen with a face full of apology.

Gwen fought down her nausea, not entirely unhappy that Wen was so stoked but unable to fight off the sinking feeling in her gut.

"Of course, I am getting ahead of myself." Magister Wen recovered by laughing dryly. "Oh, Petra. We have to take care of your cousin. She is far more precious than you know."

"I know." Petra reached her side, then thought better when Caliban tried to give her a hearty lick.

"Mai, have you readied the summons I asked for?"

Magus Kumiko turned to the Magister nervously.

"We're feeding that thing?"

"Aren't you curious?" Wen's eyes were two glowing orbs of scintillating emeralds. "We're the first Mages to witness in detail the workings of the Void since that girl's Master, Henry Kilroy, aided in forming the Tower system with the help of his wife."

Magus Kumiko checked her Storage Ring. "Of course, Magister. I am ready."

"Gwen!" Magister Wen called out. "Is Caliban ready to feed?"

Gwen concurred as she fought Caliban off Onibi. Her Familiar was now salivating globs of grey-goo saliva large enough to form a sizeable puddle on the floor. Silently, she wept for her soiled dress. "Just in case, Caliban might get a little excited. So please take care of me and try not to hurt it!"

"We'll do our best!" Petra promised, answering for her Master.

Behind the girls, Magister Wen was aglow with an array of borrowed Divination magic. Her body was pen poised and slate steady, readying herself to become the first to bear witness to the inner workings of a Void Mage first-hand.

Magus Kumiko stepped forward.

With a wave of her hand, she released several glyph-stones that shot from her ring toward the ground ten or so meters from Gwen. The stones landed erect, then conjured forth an octagramic pattern that extended around each invocation until a silvery Mandala grew visible.

"Summon Magical Beast!"

The Mandala burst into silvery flames. Unlike Conjuration spells, Summon spells tore creatures from the Elemental Planes into the Prime Material, whether willing or not. Before casting such a complicated spell, extensive research was necessary. Hosts, even swarms of helpful magical creatures, could be contracted if they were intelligent. But if the need was dire, unintelligent creatures could be effectively abducted at random by summoners if they had set up corresponding compulsions. Magus Kumiko now manifested such a spell, unsuspecting Elementals kicking and screaming by their Creature Cores through space and time.

A silvery flash of mana splashed across the Cognisance Chamber.

When the Mandala burned out, a confused dog-thing sniffed its surroundings. The creature resembled a tremendous hound of some sort, with bat ears and small, red beady eyes that glowed like motes of cinder. Its maw drooled while a protruding line of distended spines ran the length of its back to end in a tail that resembled a whip.

"A Blink Dog!" Mai frowned. These were not dangerous, but they were apt at fleeing.

"Dimension Anchor!"

Beside her, Magister Wen was far faster than her fellow Magus. A professor skilled in both Abjuration and Conjuration, the Magister immediately disabled the phasing ability of the fabled Blink Dog, sealing its fate as Caliban's snack.

Caliban turned to Gwen with its faceless head.

Gwen urged her Familiar forward.

“SHAAAAAA!” Caliban turned to the dog and charged.

"GRRR—!" The Blink Dog charged Caliban in turn.

At the moment of their meeting, the dog turned aside and took out a chunk of Caliban's soft, rubbery flesh.

Gwen winced.

Caliban turned its ponderous body toward the dog and lashed out with its limbs.

The dog's Blink ability must possess a cooldown, for this time, it was swiped by two claws the length and girth of harvest-scythes, impaling it through the left lumbar.

The creature coughed up a lungful of blood as Caliban lifted it from the air and moved it toward its maw.

"Yip! Yip! Hhunnnn—" The dog's whimper grew weaker as Caliban's twin tongue wrapped around the creature and crushed its ribs.

"Cali—CONSUME!" Gwen made a move before the opportunity wasted itself.

Once more, her Astral Body turned darker than black, forming a visible line of void-matter fed into Caliban as the creature bulged and engorged with mana. With a shake of its massive shoulder, Caliban reared back and opened its lamprey's mouth, widening until all musculature and bone seemed to distend to accommodate its abyssal maw.

There was a sound of suction; then the yipping dog was gone.

"Oh—" Gwen felt a sudden, unexpected surge of vitality. "What—"

The exchange came on like a sudden summer squall.

A wave of indescribable pleasure, a feeling of satiation she could barely begin to comprehend, filled her mind and muted all thoughts. She trembled from the sudden euphoria as, in the span of several breathes, all the vitality that had made the dog a living, breathing magical creature passed through her body.

She had never consciously experienced the aftermath of Consume, not like this. Not when she trained with her Master, not when Caliban fed on the NoMs and the Mages, not when it assailed the Elder Gila. Was it because of Caliban's new ability? Was that the root of this euphoric exaltation of satiation? Or was it because of her missing appendage, her pound of flesh that she had traded away to Percy to dismantle Guo's shackles?

For several seconds caught in time, Gwen forgot to breathe.

"STOP!" a voice resounded beside her. "Gwen! Stop your Familiar!"