Classmates Gradually Growing Familiar

Scholar Heide's estate, rear courtyard.

On the green grass, everyone sat on chairs of different sizes, arranged in a semicircle around Scholar Heide as they listened to him impart knowledge.

"As everyone knows, the land we now live upon—that is, the continent—is located on the back of a giant serpent, rising and falling as it advances across the Cloud Sea."

"There are seven such continents in total, arranged in scattered fashion, and conditions on each continent vary wildly."

"But does anyone know where this vast land beneath our feet truly came from?" he asked, stroking his broad white beard.

Faced with this question, most of the commoner students were curious and puzzled, while several noble students seemed rather bored, because they had known the answer long ago.

"Yero, you answer." Heide pointed the slender wooden stick in his hand toward the chubby boy at the front right.

"Me? Yes, teacher."

Yero stood up, faced everyone, gathered his thoughts, then began to speak.

"The continents we know of at present, as well as the Heavenly Courtyard, were all formed from the corpses of great fish that swam through the heavenly sea in an extremely ancient age."

"In that era, the entire world was like an ocean with no distinction between above and below, and many great fish roamed within it. Some of them may have grown to tens of thousands of miles in length, making them the largest beings among all known creatures. These great fish were also manifestations of Aspect Power (True Fish)."

"Such an era continued for an unknowable span of years, until the Alien Star shattered the world's fetal shell and descended into the world."

"The terrifying wound torn open by the Alien Star made the world tremble, and countless flames bloomed from the pitch-black heavenly sea. From them were born the first lights, namely 'Blazing Sun' and 'Phantom Moon.'"

"'Blazing Sun' boiled the heavenly sea, and countless living beings died in the process. Afterward, their corpses drifted through the heavenly sea and became the first soil and land, while (True Fish) gradually became the present-day 'Spiral Fish' Aspect Power."

"Good, that will do." Scholar Heide signaled for Yero to sit down.

"As for how these scattered soils and lands later became the seven continents of today, that involves the turbulent changes of several eras. You will gradually learn about it in the future."

"Now, let us continue discussing this vast and boundless world of the present."

"The giant serpent swims through the Twilight Cloud Sea, and the continent we live on therefore rises and falls with it. When it is above the clouds, [Scorching Sun] is fierce. This is what people commonly call the 'Rising Wind Season.'"

"When the giant serpent sinks, the continent also sinks toward the Cloud Sea. The rapidly flowing atmosphere scours over it, bringing violent winds and torrential rain. During this period, [Vaulted Sky] Aspect Power flows, and this is the 'Gale Season.'"

"And when the giant serpent sinks to the very bottom, and the entire continent falls into the Cloud Sea, the sunlight grows dim, all things fall silent, and the world seems to plunge into mist, submerged and hidden from sight. During this period, [Winter Slumber] and [Mist Shadow] Aspect Power spread everywhere. This is the hardest season to endure, the 'Season of Sinking Fog.'"

"After passing through the most difficult years, when the giant serpent climbs upward once more, the continent rushes out of the sunken mist and returns above the heavens. During this period, [Vaulted Sky] appears again, and it is also called the 'Trade Wind Season.'"

Scholar Heide's lessons were rich and interesting. Even complex knowledge became easy to understand when he explained it, and before long, all the students present were immersed in it.

Afternoon.

After lunch, it was the students' rest time, and only then did the group of students truly begin interacting with one another.

"Are you called Tiya?" A girl with freckles on her face, dressed in a gray linen skirt, greeted Sylutia curiously.

"Yes." The girl turned around and replied.

"Hello, I'm Comia." The other girl lightly pressed a hand to her chest and introduced herself.

As the two of them talked, another commoner girl also walked over. She was taller, and there were quite a few calluses on her palms, so it seemed she often did a lot of physical work.

"Hello, I'm Karen." Karen had golden-chestnut hair, with the ends curling slightly.

The three commoner girls sat together and chatted. On the other side, four commoner boys gathered together and talked. Farther away, Yero sat alone in a corner, reading and studying, while in the round pavilion, several youths of noble birth had gathered around Iona.

"Miss Iona, you are so beautiful~ I wish to become your most loyal suitor~" A noble youth dressed in velvet clothes knelt on one knee, holding a red flower he had acquired from who knew where, and recited with deep emotion.

"Tch." Iona was extremely impatient about this, and without giving him any face, she turned her head away at once.

"Who is this guy?" she asked the others beside her.

"His name is Baron, son of Baron Quade," someone replied in a tone of taking delight in his misfortune.

"Don't know him."

Iona waved her hand and walked to the other side of the pavilion for some air, while Knight Levin's daughter, Valenie, quickly followed.

"Miss Iona." She thinned her voice, wanting to build a good relationship with this young lady.

"Mm, what's your name?" Iona asked directly without even looking back.

"My name is Valenie," the girl answered excitedly.

"All right, sit here."

Iona's attitude was somewhat better now, though perhaps she simply wanted to find a little follower.

"Tell me about the situation in Scorched Stone City. For example, impressive figures and the like."

"Impressive figures? The person I admire most is Madam Sel. She often holds salons and invites the celebrities of Scorched Stone City. Among them are impressive artists and painters, and they tell us about the most cutting-edge trends and fashions of the moment~" At this point, Valenie's expression turned yearning and excited.

"Salons? That kind, no less." Iona shook her head as she listened, feeling a little like laughing.

She had held who knew how many salon gatherings in White Cliff City, and some of the trends in Regas Kingdom had even been started by her. How brilliant could a salon organized by a countryside noblewoman possibly be?

"I meant impressive Transcendents, not people who do art and fashion." She had no choice but to interrupt Valenie's introduction.

"Transcendents, that..." Valenie suddenly froze up.

"My father, Levin, is a very impressive knight." She suddenly thought of something and recommended her own father to Iona.

"Knight Levin is a knight who swore loyalty to Lord Xuefeng, right?" Iona turned her head and asked.

"Yes, Miss Iona." Hearing this, Valenie answered proudly.

"Heh. Then how could I steal people from my own uncle?" Iona only felt that the fellow before her had a head full of useless muddy water.

Besides, judging from Valenie's appearance, her father was definitely no longer young. Though he was a knight (Third Order—Castle), his ceiling was probably right there, with little room to improve. In the past, there had been who knew how many people like him under her father's command.

Thinking of her father, Iona's expression darkened, and her mood worsened again.

If her father had won the Battle of the Windmill, how could she have fallen to this poor backwater?

For a time, the voices in the round pavilion quieted, and the atmosphere grew somewhat stifling.

"So Karen has hunted before?" Comia covered her mouth and laughed softly, then asked curiously.

"Yes. My father is a hunter in the village, so I've been familiar with these things since I was little. But drawing a bow can easily hurt your hands, and Father hasn't let me touch bows and arrows these past two years." Karen spread her palm, which was covered with quite a few scars and calluses.

Among the three of them, Comia's parents were employees of a merchant association, while Karen was the child of a hunter from a village.

"Then how did Karen come to Scorched Stone City?" Sylutia was a little curious.

"Because I learned the Breathing Technique before the New Year. The elders in the village felt that a child like me would be buried if I stayed there, so they pooled money together and let me come to Scorched Stone City to make a living and learn some skills." A touch of nostalgia surfaced on Karen's firm-featured face.

"The people in your village are very kind," the girl said with feeling.

"Mm, everyone is very kind," Karen answered.

"After Karen came to Scorched Stone City, how did you get by?" Comia leaned over to ask now.

"How did I get by? At first, I didn't understand anything. It was an older boy from the same village who told me to go work."

"First I helped out at the market, where they need hands all year round. Then, because I was familiar with bows and arrows, I went to work at the Arrow-Making Workshop in the city. It's hard work, but the treatment is all right. They give me about four silver coins every month." At this point, Karen looked especially satisfied.

Arrows were consumables. If one made them oneself, it took an exceptional amount of energy, so many adventurers and wealthy people bought them directly.

"What about Tiya? Have you always been studying at Scholar Heide's side?" The first time they had met her today, she had been beside Scholar Heide.

"No. But my previous teacher was a student of Scholar Heide, so I'm a little familiar with him," the girl answered.

"So that's how it is."

The three sat on the wooden bench beneath the tree and talked. Their relationship gradually grew more familiar. Comia seemed slightly lively, Karen was a bit more plain and honest, and as for Sylutia, the impression she currently gave the other two was probably that of a very beautiful, somewhat delicate girl who had rarely come into contact with the outside world.

Slowly, Sylutia and the other two became familiar with one another.