The doors of the classroom stood open, and Zeke noticed that a handful of students had beaten him there. The three boys glanced up at his entrance but went back to their discussion right after.

Unperturbed, Zeke decided to take a seat as well. He sat a few rows behind them, far enough so as to not appear nosey, but still close enough to hear what they were talking about.

“…What happened then, Jeffery?”

“What else?” the boy named Jeffery replied smugly. “I asked her out right then and there.”

“No way,” the third one replied. “Even though she is from the Quellental family?”

Jeffery scoffed. “That was half the reason I even approached her. My family has been trying to make a connection with one of the major Water families for a long time. If this works out, the patriarch might even name me the prime heir.”

“What did she say?” the first boy asked.

At this, Jefferey’s smug grin faltered slightly. “She said she would have to think about it.”

His two friends winced in sympathy, but before they could even express their condolences, a couple of somebodies entered. Unlike Zeke, this group apparently merited more of a reaction. The newcomers were composed of two girls and a gloomy-looking boy following behind. They also noticed Jeffery’s group and stopped.

“My, my, my,” the leading girl said, a grin slowly spreading across her face. “Is that you, Jeffery? Who would have thought that your Totengraeber family would try to infiltrate the Elementium once again? Haven’t you failed often enough?”

“Shut your damn mouth, bitch!” Jeffery growled. “Like your family would have faired any better if not for your older sister clinging to the Windspiel family’s leg. Have you no shame?”

“Shame? No. But what we do have is an additional Mage in our family and a marriage alliance. What about you?”

Jeffery gnashed his teeth and glared, and Zeke could already tell that the civil part of their argument was over. He would have that very same expression on Martin’s face whenever he had lost a verbal spar. As expected, the discussion devolved into a slugfest of insults and taunts right after.

For once, Zeke was glad not to be part of either group. However, as more students arrived, a disturbing pattern started to emerge. Out of the roughly 20 students in his class, each and everyone seemed to already be part of a group. Even worse, from their topics and familiarity with each other, they all seemed to have known each other for a long time.

Could it be that there was not a single commoner-born student in this class? But how could that be? Even though the odds had been skewed, Zeke remembered a couple of commoners being accepted. Off the top of his head, he could name a few, with Lilly and Peter at the top of that list. Well, both of them had Elemental affinities…

With a growing sense of unease, Zeke looked around. The inflow of new students had stopped a while ago, and everyone had found their seats. He still sat in the middle of the room, surrounded by several groups arguing and joking. He grimaced. This would make it that much harder to make any friends.

Soon after, the ringing of a bell signaled the start of class. Almost simultaneously, one last figure entered. It was a tall woman, seemingly in her early twenties, with auburn hair and a strict face. In contrast to the black robes of the first years, her clothing was pale yellow, in line with all the other first-year teachers. Upon her arrival, the class immediately went silent.

“Good,” the woman said. “At least you know how to behave.” She stepped behind the podium and took a moment to look at each and every one of her students in silence. When her gaze landed on Zeke, her brows furrowed slightly, but her gaze didn’t linger.

“Well, you are certainly an interesting bunch,” she eventually said, the slightest smile grazing her lips. “But I guess you would have to be, attending the ELEMENTIUM without an Elemental affinity.”

There were some polite chuckles, but the woman didn’t seem to care as she continued right away. “My name is Gertrude Bergwacht, and I am going to be your instructor for this first week.”

Somebody raised their hand and Gertrude nodded at the girl, allowing her to speak. “Don’t we have multiple teachers?”

“Generally, yes, but not during your first week,” the tall woman explained. “There is no point in teaching any other subject until you know the basics. Before you learn how to use your core, you can’t even be considered proper Apprentices. And that’s exactly what I am going to teach you. Any other questions before we begin?”

There were none, and Zeke couldn’t wait to get started. He noticed that the other students didn’t look nearly as excited as him. It made sense, they probably knew the basics already, at least in theory. Even so, their lackluster reactions didn’t manage to dim his own elation in the least.

“Very well,” Gertrude said after waiting for a moment, “then who can tell me what a Magic core is?”

Several hands shot up, and Gertrude pointed at a boy in the first row. “A core is what Mages use to cast spells, Ma’am,” he said.

“That’s not wrong, but not exactly right either,” she said. “Who has a better definition?”

Many hands lowered, but a fair amount stayed up. She pointed at the girl close to Zeke. “A magic core is what Mages use to control and attune Mana.”

“Better,” Gertrude said with a nod. “The question of the nature of our Magic Cores is a subject scholars discuss to this very day. However, there are a couple of things we know for certain:

“First, a Magic Core is the only way to interact or even perceive Mana. Second, a Core can only attune Mana to its respective affinity. And third, the higher the grade of the Core, the better the conversion rate. Any questions?”

Zeke raised his hand and Gertrud nodded at him right away. “What do you mean by attune Mana?” he asked.

Immediately, half the room groaned, but they were quickly silenced by Gertrude slamming her hand on the podium. After sending a warning gaze to the surrounding students, she returned her attention to Zeke. “You are a commoner?”

“Yes,” Zeke replied. There was no use hiding his origins. The others would be able to tell by his lack of knowledge anyway.

Gertrude sighed. “Attuning Mana is what we call the process of turning neutral or ambient Mana into a specific type: Earth Mana, for example,” she said, raising her hand. Zeke felt a peculiar shift in the air and looked around, searching for the source. In the next moment, a fist-sized stone formed in the teacher’s hand.

“Hoh,” she said, looking straight at him. “Did you feel that, boy?”

“I am not sure,” Zeke said. “I felt something.”

Gertrude eyed him for a moment longer. “If your [Mana Sense] is already that developed on your first day, your Core must have quite a high grade.”

“I have a perfect affinity,” Zeke stated proudly.

For the first time, every single head turned toward him. Most of these kids had not been at the Evaluation and had come from different regions, so they had no way of knowing about his results.

“Impressive,” Gertrude said. “With what Magic?”

“Blood…” he said, substantially less confident, “…alongside Mind and Space,” he added, even more awkwardly.

There was a long uncomfortable silence before Gertrude spoke once more. “That’s unfortunate. Anyway, does that answer your question?”

“Yes, but I have another one.”

Gertrude sighed again. “Go ahead.”

“Why do you call it a muddled Core? Aren’t more affinities a good thing?”

“There are advantages and disadvantages to having more affinities, but the negatives outweigh the positives in most cases. But there is no point telling you now, as you will find out soon enough. Any other questions?”

This time, nobody had anything more to say. Even Zeke remained silent. He still had questions, of course, but there was no point asking before they had even begun their training. A lot of his questions would resolve themselves as soon as they got started.

“Then let us begin,” the woman said. “The first thing you all need to be able to do is feel your Core. Some among you will have undoubtedly managed that already, but for those of you who haven’t, I am going to guide you through the steps one by one. Now, close your eyes, and take a deep breath.”

Zeke followed her instructions obediently. He closed his eyes and inhaled so deeply that his lungs started to struggle.

“Good. Now exhale slowly,” he heard the teacher’s voice. “Keep your eyes closed and your breaths deep and slow.”

Zeke could hear her steps as she went from student to student, saying a few words before moving on. When it was his turn, Gertrude placed her hand gently on his abdomen, showing him the right spot. "This is where your Core resides," she said, her fingers resting just above his navel. "It's called the solar plexus, a place of profound significance."

As she spoke, Zeke could feel the warmth of her touch and her gentle guidance. For obvious reasons, she spent more time with him than any of the others. "It’s the center of your personal power. Feel it here, just above your navel and below your sternum. Picture it as a second set of lungs that will breathe in sync with the actual organ.”

Zeke followed her instructions, visualizing his core the way he pictured his lungs to look. Nothing happened for a while, but after one particularly deep breath, he felt the Mana around him stir ever so slightly. Elated by the change, Zeke tried to mimic his actions exactly. The mana moved once more.

Soon, he felt the Mana ebbing and receding like waves washing onto the shore. In tandem with every breath, it flowed into his body, and with every exhale it retreated again. Zeke had been so consumed that he had not even noticed the moment Gertrude had left. By now, she must have already finished her round, as he could not hear her steps anymore.

“Well done, everyone,” he heard from up ahead. “What you are doing right now is what we call passive absorption. After a bit of practice, your core will continue to draw in Mana with every breath automatically. This is an important step.”

“I want you to keep your eyes closed and continue what you are doing right now. Raise your hand as soon as you are able to draw the Mana deep enough into your body to reach the Core. I will instruct you further at that point.”

Zeke tuned out his surroundings, solely focused on his breathing. Now that he knew what he was supposed to aim for, it became easier and easier to draw the Mana deeper into his body. The moment the first of the whisp reached his core, he felt the change. Like dry soil being watered for the first time, his Core guzzled it up.

Immediately, his hand shot up, signaling his success. Moments later, he felt a warm touch on his midsection once more. And, after a moment of silence, Gertrude spoke again. “Well done. Now, try to keep the mana contained within your core, instead of releasing it right away. ”

Zeke nodded, starting on this next task. This time, it took him far longer until he managed, but eventually, he raised his hand once more.

“Open your eyes,” Gertrude commanded.

Reluctantly, Zeke did as he was told. At first, he couldn’t see anything, the dim light of the classroom blinding to his unaccustomed senses. But after a few moments of blinking furiously, he got used to it. Ezekiel found himself alone in an empty classroom. “Where are all the others?”

The woman scoffed. “Long gone.”

“I am sorry for making you stay,” Zeke said apologetically. Still, he appreciated her staying longer just to watch over him. However, Gertrude immediately shook her head.

“That’s not the case,” she said. “The allocated time for this class only just expired.”

“Then why did they leave early?” he asked with a frown. The thought of the others slacking off on their very first day didn’t sit right with him. Wasn’t this supposed to be some kind of elite school?

Gertrude smirked, guessing his thoughts. “You think they wouldn’t have stayed if they had the choice? They did as much as they could, but I had to send them home before they hurt themselves. Not everyone has a perfect affinity, boy. Remember that.”

Ezekiel's cheeks colored slightly. He had completely forgotten about that. To him, their task had not been strenuous at all, but it must not have been the same for all the others.

“Off you go,” Gertrude instructed, interrupting his thoughts. “Same time here tomorrow.”

“Erm,” Ezekiel hedged. “Could you tell me about the next step before I leave? I would really like to practice some more.”

The woman eyed him critically, but after a moment of thought, agreed nonetheless. “Fine, fine, you’ll most likely need all the advantages you can get. The next step is to actually attune the Mana to your affinity, or in your case, one of your affinities. Unfortunately, that’s not a process that can be taught easily, as the sensation feels different for everyone.

“But I’ll tell you how my teacher described it to me, back in the day. Attuning Mana is like steeping the Mana in your essence. While holding it in your core, you’ll need to imprint it with your personal touch.”

Ezekiel looked dubiously at her. This was a horrible explanation. How was he supposed to turn this into actionable steps?

“I know how it sounds,” Gertrude said. “But it’s a bit of trial and error for everybody. It feels like learning to use a new muscle. And the moment you manage it once, it becomes easy.”

Ezekiel still wasn’t sure about that, but he thanked the woman nonetheless. His steps were light as he made his way home. This had been a great day.