Recaps

Sylutia toured Rorick Academy with Ticis and her grandmother, then visited the Hall of Hanging Threads to choose a killing golem secret art suited to her wish to use puppets for everyday tasks. Two students recommended different arts, leaving her unsure what to study as professors watched and debated how to guide her.

• Ticis's grandmother showed Sylutia and Ticis around Rorick Academy and explained its branches and districts.
• Sylutia decided to pursue a killing golem secret art, since her strong mental energy suited controlling puppets with magic threads.
• Two professors discussed steering Sylutia toward Phantom Flying Sword or Art of Empathic Connection as a path to their advanced inherited arts.
• At the Hall of Hanging Threads, Sylutia browsed the secret arts and told two academy students she wanted to control puppets for daily chores.
• The male student recommended Phantom Flying Sword as a route toward Magic Hand Control, while the female student urged Sylutia to choose Art of Empathic Connection, leaving Sylutia torn.

Sylutia entered Rorick Academy’s Freshman Tournament to earn the right to learn an additional secret art. She defeated her first opponent and advanced in the knockout competition.

• Two senior students told Sylutia that placing in the tournament’s top eight would let her learn another secret art, and they led her to the Arena.
• Sylutia registered for the Freshman Tournament, while Ticis and the old lady joined her to watch.
• Sylutia learned that Dicas was a First-Class Shadow Star student and waited for the second round to begin.
• Sylutia drew number forty-seven and faced a new student who summoned two Bone Spirit Hounds.
• Sylutia cut apart the hounds with threads, disrupted her opponent’s attempt to reform them, and won when he conceded.

Sylutia won her second and third matches in the combat trials, impressing the audience with her skill and quick thinking. After three victories, she earned the right to study an additional secret technique.

• Sylutia faced Xiwen, a Third-Order member of Rorick Academy’s Hunting Department, and injured her before Xiwen conceded.
• Sylutia reviewed the fight and judged that her limited techniques made defeating a powerful opponent like Xiwen unlikely.
• Sylutia fought a Phantom Puppet School mage and altered her spell model to create a fast, blade-feathered bird that pierced his chest and won the match.
• Spectators recognized Sylutia’s Bionics School techniques and praised her ability as a Second-Order apprentice.
• Sylutia secured three victories and earned the reward of studying an additional secret technique.

Sylutia withdrew from the Freshman Tournament after winning three matches and went to the library to claim her secret arts, where she learned a professor would teach her in person. While she was away, Ticis's grandmother uncovered why two elite students had taken an interest in Sylutia and revealed her own connection to their mentors.

• Two professors admired Sylutia's tournament performance and wished she had enrolled at the academy.
• After winning three matches, Sylutia withdrew from the tournament, claimed her reward voucher, and selected two secret arts.
• A library staff member sent Sylutia to the inheritance room, where a professor would teach her directly and answer her questions.
• Ticis's grandmother deduced that the two Shadow Star First Class students had come on behalf of their mentors, Professor Maledo and Professor Fukalian.
• The grandmother revealed that she was the old tuner from the Gold-Refining Workshop, then left with Ticis and gave the students a business card for Sylutia.

Sylutia learned from Professor Maledo how the spell system behind Magic Hand Manipulation had evolved and studied its simplified form, Phantom Flying Sword. The lesson left her reflecting on the Mage system’s flexibility and continuing development as she resumed memorizing the spell.

• Sylutia followed a staff member to the inheritance room and met Professor Maledo, who explained the history and evolution of Magic Hand Manipulation and its related secret arts.
• Professor Maledo demonstrated Magic Hand Manipulation, using the blue hands to handle a vase, tend the fire, and write spell runes and formulae while Sylutia memorized the details with her Secret Speech Aspect Power.
• Professor Maledo taught Sylutia Phantom Flying Sword and demonstrated a fast, agile blade formed with Magnetic Sand.
• Sylutia considered the strengths and weaknesses of Phantom Flying Sword and compared the Mage spell system’s evolving flexibility with the Woodland’s more slowly changing abilities.
• Sylutia continued memorizing and studying as Professor Maledo taught her.

Sylutia quickly learned the Phantom Flying Sword, impressing Professor Maledo, who gave her a badge for the Rorick Academy Research District. She then met Professor Fukalian, who explained the principles behind the Art of Empathic Connection and asked Sylutia to identify its ultimate goal.

• Sylutia learned to gather iron filings into a flying sword, and Professor Maledo invited her to study at Rorick Academy.
• Professor Maledo gave Sylutia his card and a badge that granted her access to the Research District for three years.
• Sylutia demonstrated the Phantom Flying Sword to two senior students, who were amazed by how quickly she had mastered it.
• A staff member led Sylutia to Professor Fukalian, who began teaching her the Art of Empathic Connection.
• Professor Fukalian explained how the art linked a puppet's senses to its controller and asked Sylutia what its ultimate goal was.

Sylutia learned about the Art of Empathic Connection from Professor Fukalian, who demonstrated its ultimate application, the Phantom Dream Substitute. Although Sylutia refused to join Fukalian’s school, Fukalian taught her the basic art and offered further secret training if Sylutia reached the Third Order and placed in the academy tournament’s top four.

• Sylutia deduced that the Art of Empathic Connection could let someone experience and act through multiple bodies at once.
• Professor Fukalian revealed three synchronized copies of herself and demonstrated their different skills as the Phantom Dream Substitute.
• Sylutia declined Fukalian’s invitation to study her school, explaining that an elder wanted her to join the Alliance’s foremost school.
• Fukalian taught Sylutia the Art of Empathic Connection, and Sylutia successfully used it to guide her Flying Bird to inspect books atop a bookcase.
• Fukalian offered to teach Sylutia the Art of Obedient Listening if she reached the Third Order and placed in the top four of the academy tournament, then explained the tournament’s stakes and the Mage Alliance’s restrictions on secret arts.

After studying the Art of Empathic Connection, Sylutia surprised two Rorick Academy students with how quickly she had progressed, and they encouraged her to consider taking a higher academy’s entrance exam. On her way home, she opened a gift from Fukalian: a rare Black Kite Doll, which she connected to her Magic Thread Manipulation and tested.

• Sylutia left the inheritance chamber and met two upperclassmen waiting for her in the lobby.
• Sylutia told them she was about seventeen and had studied magic for only about a year, astonishing them with her rapid progress.
• The upperclassmen urged Sylutia to watch for Rorick Academy’s entrance exam announcements and consider applying.
• As Sylutia rode home, she opened a gift addressed to Hedra and found a rare Black Kite Doll, its manual, and a small sword.
• Sylutia connected to the doll’s gem, controlled it with threads, and tested its sword and abilities.

After returning to the dormitory, Sylutia practiced controlling the doll and shared dinner with Lovier and Aurora. Lovier showed them her Golden Songwood violin and proposed that the three of them perform together.

• Sylutia returned to the dormitory, slept through the day, and later used the doll to help prepare dinner.
• Lovier and Aurora woke up and admired the floating doll, with Aurora recognizing it as a gift from the Phantom Puppet School.
• Lovier showed Sylutia and Aurora the Golden Songwood violin she had received at Vichia Academy's Silver Bell Festival.
• Lovier explained that she played piano and Aurora said she favored the violin and owned a Black Blue Rose Violin.
• Lovier concluded that Sylutia had musical ability because she could remember and hum complete songs, then suggested the three of them perform together.

Sylutia and Aurora prepared for a trip to Jian'ermi District, but Sylutia stopped on Agate Street to count its residents and consider how ordinary laborers supported the Mage Alliance. She left reflecting on how the accumulation of small contributions could shape the world and determine the future of Aspect Powers.

• Sylutia, Aurora, and Lovier chose to visit Jian'ermi District to see the spring flowers during their vacation.
• Lovier gave Sylutia and Aurora money to buy travel supplies while she stayed behind to purchase tickets.
• Sylutia and Aurora discussed the high cost of dolls and bought food and other items for the trip.
• Sylutia left the carriage at Agate Street and used her hearing to estimate the number of residents, workers, and animals there.
• Sylutia considered the laborers' importance to the Mage Alliance and how Gold Steam's future depended on its wider use and support from society.

Sylutia, Lovier, and Aurora returned from a happy trip to Jian'ermi District and began the new school term. Their class welcomed a timid transfer student named Camilla, whose unusual Aspect Power intrigued Sylutia as she prepared to enter Thetis Academy.

• Sylutia reflected on the limits of helping Agate Street and wondered how Gold Steam could support the nation's sustainable development.
• Sylutia, Lovier, and Aurora spent seven days exploring Jian'ermi District, then returned to Asura District with local specialties and Sylutia's diary sketches.
• After resting at home, the three started the new school term, where their teacher introduced Camilla as a transfer student.
• Camilla sat in front of Sylutia, who noticed her Secret Speech Aspect Power seemed to come from a rare legend or anecdote.
• Sylutia noted her interest in Camilla and resolved to prepare for Thetis Academy so she could gain the ability to change things sooner.

Aurora explained Thetis Academy’s likely admissions requirements, and Sylutia arranged to study practical mechanics at School No. 106. Afterward, Camilla struggled with a sudden urge to drink Sylutia’s blood and was cornered by two senior students who forced her to agree to dinner with them.

• Aurora outlined the theory, Aspect Power, and practical components of academy entrance exams and described the Mithril Clock School’s emphasis on precision.
• Sylutia reviewed her preparation, recognized that she needed to learn Precision Mechanics, and received a referral to practice at School No. 106.
• Camilla felt an urge to drink blood after passing Sylutia, then dismissed her confusion and went to the office.
• Two senior students cornered Camilla in the corridor and stopped her from casting a spell by pinning her wrist to the wall.
• Camilla reluctantly agreed to go to dinner with the senior students, who touched her face before leaving.

After two third-year students were found murdered, the Mage Alliance sent investigators from the Origin Hourglass School to screen students at School No. 89. Aurora explained the school's history and its connection to Sylutia’s Bionics School, leaving Sylutia to recognize that her own studies had roots in the investigators’ tradition.

• Sylutia, Aurora, and Lovier went shopping and learned that two students had been killed in an alley after drinking at a bar.
• Aurora told Sylutia that the Mage Alliance would take the murders seriously and would likely send a specialized team to investigate.
• Two days later, agents from the Origin Hourglass School screened School No. 89's students with a strange device, flagging 165 people for unusual connections to the victims.
• The agents questioned students and teachers, and another 32 people were singled out after their accounts failed a lie-detection spell.
• Aurora explained that the Origin Hourglass School specialized in archaeology, historical research, and analysis, and that several Mage Alliance schools had branched off from it.
• Sylutia realized that the Bionics School, her own school, might have originated from the Origin Hourglass School's ancient-creature researchers.

The class chose Senis District for its spring outing after Sylutia picked boating, while Camilla’s painful memories of being stranded at sea left her unhappy with the choice. Curious about why everyone followed Hedra’s lead, Camilla heard an exaggerated account of Hedra’s fearsome reputation and decided to be cautious around her.

• The teacher announced a spring outing and offered the class three destinations to choose from.
• Lovier asked Sylutia to pick, and Sylutia chose Senis District so she could try boating.
• Aurora approved of boating, and most of the class followed Sylutia’s choice of Senis District.
• Camilla recalled surviving three months adrift on the Ice Sea and felt gloomy about the prospect of boating again.
• Camilla asked a classmate why students feared Hedra, and the girl claimed even police officers and gang members knew not to cross her.
• Camilla decided to avoid offending Hedra, while the girl offered to look after her.

Sylutia spent a peaceful afternoon at Senis District with Aurora and Lovier, then arrived at a student tournament where the crowd recognized her as the famous Hedra. She was led into the arena to face Malo, who had already defeated seven opponents.

• Sylutia, Aurora, and Lovier watched fish, wove reed crafts, and rested together by the riverbank.
• Sylutia taught Lovier to weave a bracelet, and Aurora made a dancing straw doll from reeds.
• Sylutia took Aurora and Lovier boating, told them about swans and the fairy tale “The Ugly Duckling,” and shared childhood stories with them.
• The three returned toward the boathouse and found students from four schools holding a tournament, where Malo had won seven matches in a row.
• The crowd recognized Sylutia as Hedra, urged her to compete, and watched as she entered the arena to face Malo.

Sylutia faced Malo in a public sparring match and countered his Kuras Blood-Shock Technique by controlling her heartbeat and blood flow. She defeated him with a Flying Bird, leaving Camilla wary of her unusual mastery of Breathing Technique.

• Sylutia listened to students discuss rumors and nicknames about her before agreeing to spar with Malo.
• Malo used the Kuras Blood-Shock Technique to make Sylutia’s blood and heart respond to its invisible ripples.
• Sylutia regulated her breathing and changed her heartbeat and blood flow, breaking the spell’s effect.
• Sylutia’s Flying Bird shattered Malo’s barrier and knocked him to the ground, securing her victory.
• Camilla realized Sylutia had used precise Breathing Technique control associated with Blood Law and grew wary of her.

After Sylutia defeated Malo, she spent the evening with Lovier and Aurora at the campsite, while the teachers discussed the growing gap between talented students and ordinary mages. Xinke arrived late after finishing an experiment, learned of Hedra’s victory, and looked forward to competing against her.

• Sylutia and the other students ate dinner around the bonfires while a teacher explained how talented mages could outgrow their peers over time.
• Sylutia told Aurora that a Breathing Technique had helped her withstand the spell during her match with Malo.
• Lovier toasted a potato with her Blazing Sun power, and Aurora cooled it with her Winter Slumber power.
• Sylutia, Lovier, and Aurora returned to their boathouse and fell asleep together.
• Xinke arrived near midnight after completing an experiment, and her teacher saved her dinner and told her about Hedra’s decisive victory over Malo.
• Xinke learned that Hedra had defeated Third Order mages at Rorick Academy and said she looked forward to competing against her.

Sylutia returned to her routine after meeting Xinke during a spring outing, then visited Agate Street to check on Duss and learn about the obstacles to running a restaurant there. She left reflecting on the gap between the Mage Alliance’s laws and the informal systems that actually governed ordinary people’s lives.

• Xinke introduced herself to Sylutia during the students’ spring outing and invited her to visit School No. 24 and its ice cream shop.
• Sylutia agreed to go with Lovier sometime, then returned to school and began testing a self-watering flowerpot in the laboratory.
• Sylutia visited Agate Street, where residents greeted her, and went to see Duss and Milika.
• Duss told Sylutia he had recovered, found work in a restaurant, and explained how permits, ingredient supplies, and labor gangs made opening a restaurant difficult.
• Sylutia considered how weak law enforcement and hidden groups shaped ordinary people’s lives in the Mage Alliance.

Sylutia reflected on the future and chose to apply to Thetis Academy, while she and her roommates visited Xinke at School No. 24. Talking with Xinke helped Sylutia realize that she wanted to bring the beauty she imagined to life in the real world.

• Aurora explained to Lovier that Sylutia often felt deep compassion for others but kept her feelings in check, and the three went to dinner together.
• Sylutia told her teacher she planned to apply to Thetis Academy, and her classmates began preparing for their own chosen academies.
• Camilla said she intended to apply to Glass Academy to study powerful ancient secret arts.
• Sylutia, Lovier, and Aurora visited Xinke at School No. 24 after her orchestra rehearsal, and Xinke showed them around the school.
• Xinke shared her dream of performing grand orchestral music, and Sylutia said she wanted to bring the beauty in her heart into the real world.

Sylutia learned that Waldrin had been attacked, received a protective orb from her principal, and later attracted the attention of two Blood Clan members who planned to abduct her. The chapter left Sylutia entering a pastry shop, unaware that the attackers were waiting nearby.

• Xinke encouraged Sylutia to pursue the life she wanted, and the two spent the afternoon with Lovier exploring Water Lily Street.
• Sylutia heard that Waldrin had been attacked and learned the schools were warning students to travel in groups.
• The principal gave Sylutia a Gulfin Protective Orb and said Waldrin's attacker might belong to another organization.
• Sylutia stayed late at School No. 106 to work on a clock-making experiment, then walked toward her dormitory at dusk.
• Two Blood Clan members identified Sylutia as the Black Griffin and planned to capture her for a reward from Lord Ross.
• Sylutia turned into a pastry shop to buy treats for Aurora and Lovier while the Blood Clan members waited nearby.

Sylutia was ambushed by two men from the Blood Clan, who tried to persuade her to undergo their transformation and join them. She refused, escaped to a bell tower, and summoned help before the pursuers fled.

• Sylutia noticed Camilla in a pastry shop, but Camilla left before Sylutia could approach her.
• Two Blood Clan men stole Sylutia's cake, dragged her into a concealed alley, and invited her to join their clan.
• Sylutia rejected their offer, shielded herself with her Silver-Blue Magic Orb, and escaped up a nearby building using threads.
• Sylutia rang the bell on the rooftop, but one pursuer unleashed a deadly blood wave that knocked out people nearby.
• Sylutia used Alien Star Shuttle to evade the wave, and Mage Alliance reinforcements rushed toward the Asura District as the two Blood Clan men fled.

Sylutia survived the vampires’ attack and told a Mage Alliance pursuer what happened. Elsewhere, Camilla confronted the two vampires, learned they had tried to recruit mages and believed they had killed Hedra, then killed them herself.

• Sylutia told a dark-silver-armored pursuer that two Tier 4 vampires had attacked her, and he waited for reinforcements before searching for them.
• The two vampires rested in an empty public building and complained that their recruitment attempt had exposed them.
• Camilla appeared and questioned the vampires, who said Lord Ross had ordered them to recruit talented mages for a promised reward.
• The vampires told Camilla they had poisoned Waldrin and believed they had killed Hedra with Blood Heart Shatter.
• Camilla became furious, turned the two vampires into vortices of blood and flesh, and kept their Blood Crystals for someone else to use.

After surviving the Blood Clan’s attack, Sylutia stayed at Thunder Tower with Aurora and Lovier while Asura District gathered its young geniuses for lessons. She defeated three older apprentices with a Phantom Flying Sword, then revealed that she knew the Breathing Technique to explain how she had escaped danger.

• Sylutia reassured Lovier and Aurora that she was unharmed, and Aurora guessed the Blood Clan had acted on a crude plan to recruit Sylutia and weaken the Mage Alliance.
• Master Gallagher visited Sylutia at the hospital and arranged for her and her roommates to stay and study at Thunder Tower.
• Aurora explained that Gallagher led the Lightning School and that Thunder Tower handled security in Asura District.
• Thunder Tower gathered the district’s young geniuses and provided them with teachers and laboratory equipment.
• Three second-rank upperclassmen challenged Sylutia to a spar, and she defeated them by using a Phantom Flying Sword to stop their fireball and threaten them at the throat.
• Sylutia told a Thunder Tower staff member she knew the Breathing Technique and demonstrated her agility, explaining that it had helped her survive the Blood Clan’s attack.

The top students in Asura District compared their records and discussed Xinke’s rare Golden Honey bloodline. After defeating Aurora in a sparring match, Xinke invited Aurora, Sylutia, and Lovier to lunch.

• Students discussed the rankings, with Xinke and Hedra leading the undefeated fighters and Xinke regarded as the strongest.
• The students explained that Xinke’s pure Blood of Golden Honey let her command Concert Bees and drew on the lost Golden Honey Dynasty’s history.
• Students identified Aurora Hert as a promising dark horse who had switched from the Opera School to the Phantom Puppet School’s secret arts.
• Aurora fought Xinke in the Thunder Tower’s training grounds while Sylutia and Lovier watched; Xinke held back, and Aurora eventually conceded.
• Sylutia comforted Aurora, and Xinke invited the three girls to lunch at the Vanilla Forest restaurant.

After the Mage Alliance’s searches weakened several crime bosses, Sylutia and the others left Thunder Tower with new protective orbs. In Agate Street, Anali lost her forged student status and prepared to leave, until Sylutia arrived to see her.

• The Mage Alliance’s searches arrested Vertical Eye and weakened Spider Woman, while Fire Pig and Four Fingers expanded their territory and began eyeing each other.
• Thunder Tower relaxed its restrictions, gave Sylutia, Xinke, and the others Silver Vine Protective Orbs, and let them return to their schools.
• Two investigators revoked Anali’s student status because her identity had been forged and ordered her to leave within a week.
• Anali’s restaurant acquaintance comforted her and explained how undocumented workers depended on the underworld for forged identities and jobs.
• Anali packed her belongings and watched the city, regretting that she could not remain among its students.
• Sylutia entered Anali’s room at the woman’s request and studied the girl’s striking blue eyes.