File 2

Date: September 1st, 808 E.C. 

Time: 11:35 

Location: Twilight University of Magic (District 17) 

The first place Ian took me was the Twilight University Dorms to drop off my luggage. Directly from the airport, we took the metro line and from there we took a cable car down the valley. The interesting part about Twilight City is that the main mode of transportation was by cable car since the city itself was built into the steep valley while the only places metro line were available were located along the top of the valley where the airport was and at the city center due to the lack of flat land and space in the city. Of course, there were a few stations lining the flatter part on the rim of the valley but they were mostly smacked in the middle of residential areas or right next to the cable car lines where one could travel to the heart of the city. 

It was completely different than Arista.  

>>>

I think I should do some explaining on this world. The world we live in is referred to as Flanir which is made up of four major continents or countries: Eibulan, Zohura, Vurin, and Erda. I'm from the Erda continent, located in the northern hemisphere, which consists of twenty provinces. The largest of these provinces is the Claura Province which is situated in the northeastern part of Erda with its capital being Twilight City.

I'm from a suburban town located in the Arista province in the southwestern part of Erda thousand of miles away from Twilight City and you're probably wondering, why the hell is a girl such as myself traveling to another province on the other end of the continent? Simple it's because of Twilight University (as mentioned two paragraphs ago)!

Twilight University is the best University on the entire Erda Continent and is only second to Kalides University in Zohura, the best university in the world. Being an Erda resident, my parents were reluctant to pay the out of continent fee for top of the line education so I only applied to schools within Erda. I never expected myself to be able to get into Twilight out of all schools with my half-baked GPA and standardized test scores. Plus, it was a last minute admission and I had already accepted my admission to Arista Array College (AAC). No wonder why they say it never hurts to try. Anyways, without a doubt, I accepted immediately after revoking my admission to AAC, or else I wouldn't be here. I was a bit scared since this is my first time being on my own for an extended period of time yet I was also excited since I could see what the world is like beyond my small suburban home in Arista. 

I wonder what the future had in store for me. 

>>>

In the cable car, I pulled down the window from which could enjoy the late summer breeze as the cable car cruised down the line. According to Ian, Twilight University was five stops away so we had a good twenty minutes to enjoy the scenery before we have to disembark the cabin. I pop my head out the window to get a better look at my surroundings. To my left, red and white brick homes with colorful tiled roofs decorated the valley. They weren't symmetrical, varying from three stories to at most six stories, which gave the city a very artistic, tranquil, feel to it. Narrow roads and alleyways, ranging from the width of one car to one person, weaved their way around the homes. Smaller restaurants and cafes where groups of people were sitting at tables situated outside of them, enjoying the nice weather with a cup of coffee or tea maybe even reading a book or two were embedded into the buildings along these roads. It sure was peaceful down there. 

To my right, a whole other world existed. The older residential buildings that decorated the inner lining of the valley were replaced with towering skyscrapers that seemed to pop out of the valley decorated the city center. The narrow labyrinth-like roads merged together to form a complex highway with cars zipping past one another in a rush to get somewhere. Sirens from police cars and firefighters could be heard in the distance as they broke past the lines of cars while a news helicopter hovered from above to get the latest scoop. Circling around the buildings were hot air balloons in a multitude of colors. The short, sporadic flames keeping the balloons afloat could be seen from the cable car. How lively. 

It was a perfect day to be in the city. 

I retract my head back into the car where Ian was giving me a cheeky expression. 

"Like what you see?" 

"It's beautiful," I said in awe. My eyes open so wide they almost fell out of their sockets. 

He smiled. 

"No matter how long you've lived here for, this view never gets old. As a resident, I feel kind of spoiled." 

"Kind of?!" I retorted with a hint of attitude in my voice. "You are spoiled what are you talking about?! I'm freaking jealous." 

Ian folded his arms as he leaned back into his seat. 

"You shouldn't be. After all, this view will be yours for the next few years." 

"Yeah, I think I can get used to this. By the way, what's up with the hot air balloons?" I asked pointing behind him. 

"Those?" He said craning his neck. "Ah, they're for the Eclipse Festival. You may have noticed but the Eclipse Festival is a huge event in Claura Province. Tourists from all over the world come here to celebrate. After all, it only one day a year so the city does everything to make it as festive as possible. See below-" 

Ian pointed down to the streets where people were hanging up box-shaped lanterns on their doors. 

"People hang up lanterns on their front doors. According to legends, hanging lanterns on your door will allow you to gather all the luck you need for the rest of the year until the next Eclipse Festival." 

I was intrigued. 

"That sounds cool. What else do you guys do?" 

"Pretty much everything you can think of!" Ian replied excitedly, both his hands clenched together into fists. "We have a huge parade that occurs the night of the festive in the city center, street vendors will offer samples of their famous dishes. There are even festival games and dances. Best of all, at the end of the festival, everyone sends up a flying lantern into the sky with one wish as well as an offering to one's ancestors to provide them safe passage to the afterlife." 

I envisioned that scene in my head. 

Children and adults holding onto a floating lantern lit by a single candle, closing their eyes, making their wishes before sending their lanterns into the sky praying that their wishes will come true. Then, one lantern soars up into the night sky, then another, and another each carrying a wish, a dream. The black sky soon becomes an ocean of lights, the stars shining brighter than usual in celebration. It must've looked amazing. 

Ian chuckled.

"I can see that you're excited. You look just like a little kid. Well, you came at the right time! I'll say this again, welcome to Twilight City." 

"Thank you again for the warm welcome." 

"Sure, I can't wait to show you the wonders of the city over the next few days-" Ian grinned looking out the window before being interrupted by the car's speaker.

"Arriving at Twilight University Station. Please prepare to disembark."  Said the speaker in a monotone female voice. 

"Oh, won't you look at that. We've arrived at our stop." He said pointing out of the car where we had slowed down into a rotating carousel. "I'll take both of your luggages." 

"No! Please don't I'll carry one!" I insisted snatching away the smaller suitcase from him. According to my parents, Ian had gone out of his way to be my tour guide for the next week voluntarily without taking any of the payment. I couldn't just allow him to do everything on his own. 

He gave me a worried expression. 

"Are you sure about that? I'm more than enough to carry both easily." 

"Positive!" I replied nodding furiously at him while the doors of the car opened up. "You've already done a lot so I'll help out a bit." 

Ian scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. 

"I don't feel right when a client is doing part of my job."  

I got off the car first. 

"Listen, I heard that you decided to show me around without taking any pay. I can't just let you work for free! Guilt will cling onto me for the rest of my life if I do." 

"You're too nice, Kris." 

"Speak for yourself, Ian," I said placing my hands on my hips. "I'm just curious about how've you lived here without getting scammed." 

"Hey," He shouted feeling offended as he lugged my other suitcase out of the car. "I may be nice but I know when people are taking advantage of me."

"I guess that's a local for you." 

"Come on, the University is only a couple of blocks away from here." He said walking in front of me. 

"Lead the way!" 

Instead of taking the route indicated on the GPS, Ian decided to take me on the scenic route through the back streets of town. Crossing the street from the station, Ian guided me through the residential area. The paths were quite narrow, about the width of two people with homes hidden between the wall, the familiar colored lanterns hanging from their doors. Above, small wire balconies peaked out from the cement walls of the homes, some with small flower pots and others with clothes hanging from their edges. Despite it being a rather secluded area, it was brimming with life.

Children were chasing each other down the stone-paved alleyway. Residents were sitting on their balconies sipping a nice cup of warm tea, a few sitting precariously on their rooftops enjoying the festive city view, while others just stepped out of their homes to retrieve their mail while greeting their neighbors across from them. What really shocked me was the fact that the children were wearing these elaborate costumes consisting of vibrant wool cloaks and painted masks of different animals or mythical creatures. 

"Wow, I always thought alleyways here would be extremely sketchy," I said in amazement. 

"Haha," Ian cracked up letting go of my suitcase. "That's just what you see in the movies. Real life isn't like that at all." 

"But is it okay for kids to go out and run around in such a carefree manner? I mean isn't there a killer vigilante going around the city..."

Ian glanced over at me and gave me a wry smile. 

"No matter what, no city is perfect. Twilight is no exception to that. Sometimes it's just best to not think about these things and enjoy oneself instead." 

I rolled my eyes a bit before making eye contact with him. 

"I'll take your word for it." 

"Big Bro Ian!" A small female voice called in front of us. 

I glance down to find two kids half my size holding baskets of masks. The girl had long red hair that hung off her side in a braid. On top of her forehead, she had a white mask shaped like a wolf with its eyes outlined in bright orange paint. Over her small body, she wore a long flowing cloak with swirling patterns embroidered in a silver thread and two golden tassels attached to the ends of the cloak. Her silver eyes sparkling as she stared at Ian and me. The boy next to her wore similar attire but his hair was a platinum-blond and his eyes were a deep blue, the same color as the ocean. They were so cute! I was even tempted to pinch their chubby, baby-fat, cheeks.

"Milla! Owen! How are you two doing? Out selling masks again?" Ian greeted patting the two on the head. 

"Mmh." Milla nodded clutching tightly onto her basket. 

"Big Bro, is that your girlfriend?" The little boy named Owen asked pointing at me. 

I flinched back a little. Kids these days sure had a wild imagination. 

"Silly boy," Ian clicked placing his hand on his hip. "She's a friend I'm showing around the city before classes start." 

"Is that so..." Milla replied with a naughty expression on her face. 

I don't like the way she looking at me. 

"Big Sis," Owen called tugging at my pants, "Would you like to buy a mask?" 

I placed my hand on my chin and thought about it for a second. I didn't have any Eclipse Festival attire plus those kids, I couldn't tell them I didn't want to buy something from them. I felt as if I would hurt their feelings. Ah, my guilt. Rummaging through my duffle bag, I fish out my wallet from the side pocket and pull out a couple of bills. They were a bit crumpled as I shoved them in there without folding them.  

"I think I will." I smiled handing Owen two blue bills before picking out a mask shaped like a raccoon, the eyes outlined in a violet paint matching my eyes. "You can keep the change." 

"Really, thank you Big Sis-" 

"Kristie. Call me Big Sis Kristie from now on." I grinned shaking Owen's tiny hand. 

Ian coughed to get my attention.

"Alright, well, we gotta get going. Gotta help Big Sis Kristie drop off her things." 

"Sure thing, Big Bro." Milla saluted. "Make sure to stop by our parents' stalls right after. We'll tell them to give you and your girlfriend a discount!" 

"I will!" Ian hollered dragging me away from the mischievous children. "And she is not my girlfriend!" 

"Bye!" I waved as he pulled me away. 

"Bye! Bye!"  

>>>

A few minutes later, we arrived at Twilight University. It was fascinating that the university itself wasn't located at the city center but in the middle of the residential area in District 17. You almost couldn't tell the difference between the university's buildings and the nearby homes. While they did share similar architecture, the university buildings were definitely larger both in length and height. I'm surprised that the neighbors haven't filed a noise complaint to the university but I guess one gets used to the noise level here.

The university itself was comprised of four rings. The outer ring was for the freshmen, all freshmen facilities, classes, and university dorms were located here. The second ring was for the sophomores. The labs and club buildings were also located here. The third ring was for the juniors. This ring also includes some of the training facilities for the Magician Class. Finally, there was the fourth ring, or inner ring, which consisted of all the senior and graduate classes. They also had access to the large park in the center of campus which overlooked the city center. 

Since both Ian and myself were freshmen, we would be spending the majority of our time in the outer ring. It may seem disadvantageous at first since we're not close to many of the university's facilities but the proximity of the outer ring to the town was advantageous. Once a person left the campus, they would be welcomed by rows of street food, shopping, and entertainment. And I have to say, the variety is huge! I could smell all the different aromas flowing out of each store. Fruity. Spicy. Savory. Sweet. It was heaven. 

"We'll come back here in a few hours." Ian smiled turning his head from side to side as he wafted in all the different scents of the food. "You must be exhausted from your long flight." 

"Yeah, I'd like to sit down and get some rest before we wander around town." 

"Anyhow, we've arrived at the Freshmen Dorms," Ian said pointing to the building numbered 1024. "I already got your room key earlier, you're in room 814. That's the top floor. I'm in room 307 if you want to find me. Oh, by the way, your belongings should've arrived yesterday so you can ask room service to send it up." 

"There's even room service!" I exclaimed. 

"Huh, I'm surprised you didn't know." 

"Well," I chuckled nervously, fiddling with my thumbs. "Twilight University was a school I applied to test my luck. I never really expected to get in. I was on the waitlist for quite sometime before I was admitted two weeks ago. In short, everything was kind of rushed due to the unexpected admission and I barely had any time to do research until the night before since I was focused on getting my admission settled." 

"That makes sense. Well, I'll be filling in the blanks for you during this one week. Just ask away!" 

I placed my finger on my chin, trying to think of anything I could ask but my head was blank. 

"I don't have anything as of now. Maybe something will come up later in the day." 

"Sure, take your time." 

"So what time should I meet you to continue our tour?" I asked as he opened the door for me. 

"Two o'clock, let's meet up in the lobby." Pointing to the circle of couches situated right in a small marble pit right across from the reception desk as he handed me my card key. The golden crescent moon printed on it staring at me eerily as if telling me a bad omen. 

I shuddered before taking my other luggage from Ian. 

"The moon looks a bit scary..."

"What did you say?" 

I flinched. 

"Nothing!" I said hurriedly waving my hands to dispel his curiosity. "I'll see you at two."  

"See you."