Chương 9: Chapter 8: Departure

The carriage left the White estate shortly after sunrise. Elizabeth sat beside her mother while Mrs Harrow occupied the seat opposite them. Two guards rode outside, and a second carriage followed with her luggage, books and enough clothing to survive several months without repeating an outfit. The journey to Crownspire would take several days. Marchioness Eleanor spent the first hour reviewing names Elizabeth had already memorised.

Noble families whose children might become useful allies, daughters she was expected to approach and several students whose parents had offended House White recently enough that friendship would be considered inappropriate.

"You needn't avoid them completely," Eleanor said.

"That would appear childish. Be courteous, but do not allow familiarity."

"I understand." The Marchioness continued through the list until the estate roads gave way to a broad stone highway. After that, conversation faded, leaving Elizabeth free to watch the countryside through the window. The carriage moved more smoothly than its construction should have allowed. Silver lines had been fitted beneath the floor, while small crystals mounted beside the wheels pulsed whenever they struck uneven ground.

Elizabeth could feel the impact being reduced, though she could not determine whether the device absorbed force or redirected it elsewhere. She recorded the observation in her Research Log. The skill had taken time to become comfortable. Opening it required only a thought, after which a private page appeared within her System interface. She could enter information mentally, organise notes into categories and attach the conditions under which each observation had been made. It did not answer questions for her.

That remained its most reassuring feature. By midday, the flat agricultural land surrounding the White estate had given way to low hills. Villages appeared more frequently along the road, followed by merchant convoys and carriages carrying students in academy colours. The remaining days followed a similar routine, punctuated only by quick trips to the nearest town for supplies. Crownspire became visible shortly after the carriage crossed a wide river.

The academy occupied the upper half of a mountain overlooking the capital. Its oldest buildings had been constructed from pale stone, with narrow towers connected by bridges at several different heights. Newer halls spread down the slope in terraces, surrounding courtyards, gardens and training fields. At the summit stood a single dark tower. It rose far above the rest of the academy, its upper levels concealed by clouds. Elizabeth leaned closer to the window.

"What is that building?"

"The Crownspire itself," her mother said.

"The royal observatory and upper academy. First-year students are not permitted beyond the seventh terrace."

"What is studied above it?"

"Advanced classes, royal research and matters that do not concern children." That did not answer the question. Elizabeth looked back towards the tower. Several pale lights moved behind its upper windows despite the distance. Her mother noticed where she was looking.

"Do not treat every restriction as a challenge."

"I wasn't." Mrs Harrow looked down to hide what might have been a smile. The carriage entered the academy grounds through an iron gate large enough to admit six carriages at once. Uniformed guards checked the White family crest before directing them towards the first-year residences. Students crowded the roads and courtyards. Some arrived with families and servants, while others carried their own luggage.

The difference in wealth was obvious even here, although everyone wore academy colours somewhere on their clothing. The carriage stopped before a long four-storey building overlooking the eastern training fields. A carved sign identified it as North House. Elizabeth stepped down first. Her mother followed, while servants began unloading the luggage carriage behind them. A young woman in academy uniform approached before they reached the entrance.

She looked around sixteen, with dark skin, tightly braided hair and a silver badge pinned to her collar.

"Lady Elizabeth White?"

"Yes." The student bowed to Eleanor before turning back to Elizabeth.

"I'm Celia Arden, second year. I've been assigned to help you settle in and complete your registration." Her tone was polite, though noticeably less formal than anyone at the White estate. Eleanor examined her badge.

"You're a house prefect?"

"Junior prefect, my lady."

"I trust you understand that my daughter is unfamiliar with residential schooling."

"I do. Most first-years are." The answer was respectful without becoming submissive. Elizabeth liked her immediately. Her mother issued several final instructions, most concerning letters, formal dinners and the appropriate treatment of clothing. She embraced Elizabeth briefly before returning to the carriage. The gesture was careful enough not to disturb either woman's hair. Mrs Harrow remained behind long enough to supervise the servants carrying Elizabeth's trunks indoors.

"Try to eat properly," she said.

"I always eat."

"You forget when you're reading." That sounded like something the original Elizabeth had done. Mrs Harrow adjusted the collar of Elizabeth's travelling dress and stepped away.

"Write to the housekeeper's office if you need anything that your mother would consider too unimportant." This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Then she followed the Marchioness to the carriage. Elizabeth watched until the White family crest disappeared beyond the residence road.

"You can breathe now," Celia said. Elizabeth looked at her.

"Most noble first-years do that after their parents leave."

"I was breathing before."

"Not naturally." Celia turned towards the residence.

"Come on. We should find your room before your servants block the entire staircase." North House contained individual student rooms arranged around a central common hall. The lower floor held dining rooms, study areas and offices, while the upper floors were divided by year. Elizabeth's room was on the second floor. It was smaller than her bedroom at the White estate but considerably larger than she had expected. A bed occupied one wall, with a desk beneath the window and several empty shelves beside it.

A narrow door led to a private washroom. More importantly, the room had a lock. Elizabeth tested it twice. Celia noticed.

"The house staff possess emergency keys, and senior prefects can request access. Otherwise, no one should enter without permission."

"That is acceptable."

"You say that as though you were negotiating a treaty."

"My previous room did not have a lock." Celia glanced at the number of servants carrying trunks inside.

"I can see why." Once the luggage had been placed, Celia guided Elizabeth back downstairs.

"The dining hall opens at six. Breakfast begins at seven, and the doors close at eight. They won't reopen because someone's family is important."

"Has anyone tried?"

"Every year." They crossed a courtyard towards the registration hall. Celia pointed out the infirmary, the first-year training grounds and a low circular building with thick reinforced walls.

"Combat practice," she said.

"Do not stand beside the windows when the second years are taking area-skill assessments."

"Are the windows not reinforced?"

"They are. That is why the glass usually remains intact while the frame comes out of the wall." Elizabeth adjusted the route she had been taking. The registration hall resembled a library more than an administrative office. Tall shelves covered three walls, while clerks sat behind a curved desk at the centre. Students moved between marked stations carrying forms and course catalogues. Celia collected a packet bearing Elizabeth's name.

"Your core classes have already been assigned. Every first-year takes Mana Control and Safety, Class Development, Combat Foundations, Kingdom History and Law, and Mathematics and Natural Philosophy." Elizabeth examined the timetable.

"Combat Foundations is compulsory?"

"Everyone has a class. The academy assumes that eventually someone will try to kill you for it." A reasonable policy, she was a noble after all.

"You also choose three optional courses," Celia continued.

"Some practical courses have limited places, so complete the selection today if possible." She handed Elizabeth a thick catalogue. The range was greater than Elizabeth had expected. Applied Alchemy. Mana Biology. Elemental Phenomena. Beast Ecology. Healing Practice. Military Strategy. Court Administration. Agriculture and Growth Skills. Materials and Artifice. Religious Studies. Monster Anatomy. Skill Interaction. Ritual Safety. Spatial Phenomena. Several courses had prerequisites she did not yet possess.

Others were restricted to students with relevant classes or affinities. Spatial Phenomena had only twelve available first-year places. Elizabeth selected it immediately. Celia leaned over the form.

"That course is mostly theory until second year."

"I have a spatial affinity." The prefect looked at her more carefully.

"You didn't mention that."

"You didn't ask."

"Fair enough. Is it strong?"

"Apparently." Celia waited, but Elizabeth offered nothing more.

"Alexander gave you the privacy lecture, didn't he?"

"Yes."

"He gave me the same one when I arrived."

"You know my brother?"

"Everyone who attended Crownspire during his final year knows your brother. He destroyed part of the southern duelling court."

"Was that intentional?"

"According to him, no." Elizabeth marked her second choice. Mana Biology. The course examined how mana affected living organisms, including adaptation, healing, magical disease and the development of mana-sensitive organs. Much of it would be introductory, but she needed to learn the terminology and established research of this world before drawing comparisons with her own knowledge. Her final choice required more consideration.

Applied Alchemy would give her access to laboratories and controlled chemical materials. Skill Interaction would allow her to observe how abilities from different classes affected one another, which would be useful for Mechanistic Replication. Materials and Artifice also appeared valuable, although the course focused on System-assisted crafting rather than the creation of magical skills. She selected Applied Alchemy.

"You didn't consider anything social," Celia said.

"I'm taking Kingdom History and Law."

"That is not a social course."

"It involves society." Celia looked at her for a moment.

"You'll fit in well with the alchemists." A clerk processed Elizabeth's choices and handed her a book list containing twenty-three required texts. Elizabeth read it once.

"Are all of these necessary?"

"No," Celia said.

"But the instructors wrote half of them, so they'll insist they are." The academy bookshop occupied the next building. Several hundred volumes had been arranged by course, along with notebooks, measuring instruments, laboratory clothing and replacement uniform pieces. Elizabeth's family account paid for the books without requiring physical currency. She added a basic thermometer, a set of graduated glass containers and a more precise timing device to the order. Celia examined the growing stack.

"Those aren't on the list."

"I know."

"Your class really is research-based."

"Yes." Celia accepted the answer more easily than Elizabeth's family had. After the books had been sent to North House, the prefect continued the tour. They visited the main library, the dining hall and the open courtyards used for practical instruction. Celia showed her which staircases changed destination after sunset and warned her not to follow floating lights into the northern gardens.

"Are they dangerous?"

"Usually they only steal jewellery." Elizabeth added the gardens to a separate section of her Research Log. Their final stop was the first-year laboratory complex. Tall windows revealed rows of worktables, sealed cabinets and more equipment than Elizabeth had seen anywhere since her execution. Students in grey protective coats moved between benches while instructors supervised from raised platforms. One student held a small flame above her palm as another adjusted a set of glass instruments around it.

Elizabeth stopped walking. The flame remained perfectly spherical. Its surface moved, but the shape did not change. No visible fuel fed it, and the student's skin showed no reaction to the heat. A System skill. A complete magical process occurring only a few metres away. Celia followed her gaze.

"Applied Alchemy uses those rooms twice a week. You'll receive laboratory access after the safety assessment."

"When is that?"

"Your second day of lessons." Too long, but manageable. They returned to North House as evening approached. Elizabeth's books had already been stacked beside her desk, while the servants had filled the wardrobe and arranged her belongings with an efficiency she would have preferred to direct herself. Celia stopped at the doorway.

"Dinner at six. Registration briefing tomorrow morning. Classes begin in three days."

"Okay."

"And try speaking to the other first-years before lessons start."

"Is that required?"

"No."

"Then I'll consider it." Celia laughed and walked away. Elizabeth closed the door and turned the lock. For the first time since awakening in this world, she was alone in a room that other people were expected to stay out of. She unpacked the depleted mana crystal and placed it beside the new instruments on her desk. Beyond the window, Crownspire's towers glowed against the darkening sky. Somewhere below, hundreds of students carried classes, skills and affinities she had never encountered.

In three days, formal lessons would begin. Elizabeth opened her Research Log and created a new heading.