Mare Desiderii

"Please," Tora said. "Tell us your thoughts."

I gulped down once, and muttered two simple words, "Mare... Desiderii."

I watched how the whitish man's eyes grew round in blatant surprise, and like I had spoken of words so terrible and taboo, the rest of the room froze as well. Even the music ceased, the invisible instruments dying down to a soft hiss. Apparently, despite the magical ruckus and lively conversation they have been doing, they have all actually been paying close attention to our conversation.

I gulped down nervously, and thankfully the silence didn't last long. When some of the masked students started walking towards our corner of the hall, Tora ordered them to stop. He then turned to me, and said rather than asked, "You know us."

"... I only heard rumors," I explained.

He raised a dainty snow-colored eyebrow, and then turned slightly at his back, asking the rest of the room, "Has anyone of you been having trouble with your lips? I believe they have become too loose. If so, I might just be capable of screwing them tightly, none too gently, of course."

Immediately, an outraged outburst came from the diversely-costumed students.

"We didn't!"

"I'd rather die than face your wrath, Tora-kins~"

"Lips are sealed!" a small one squeaked incessantly. "Lips are good and sealed!"

Then, before the hall could become even more chaotic, with the room filled with the flailing of glittering colors and the screaming complaints of every possible pitch, the butler--- the professor --- thankfully stopped it from getting worse.

"Tora," he muttered lowly, although it held such power that the hall came back into order.

After turning towards the professor's direction, Tora asked, "Yes, Professor Kartik?"

"I don't believe any such rumors have been going rampant in recent years," he told the awaiting Tora. "If even the slightest gossips about the Mare have been going around the castle walls, I would have been the first to know."

Tora seemed doubtful only for half a second. Then, he sighed. Turning his clear eyes back to me, he asked, "Then, can you explain how you've come to know of us, little sir?"

I pursed my lips, believing that I had already told him. Nevertheless, I still repeated it. "I only heard of that name from a friend."

"A friend?" Tora asked.

But before I could explain more, he had suddenly stood up from his seat and turned towards the rest of the group. In a succinct voice that could have almost been angelic if it weren't for the vile undertones, he ordered the students to reveal their faces.

When the whole population was lined up orderly in a single row, he then told me to look at them.

Standing up as well, I walked over to where Tora stood and observed the faces right in front of me. Now that they were lined up like this, I realized we were far fewer than I had previously thought. Each of them carried such prominent presences that I had thought the hall to be crowded when in fact, it was more than big enough to accommodate all of us and some.

There were probably less than twenty of us, and that's including the professor, Tora, and myself. They all looked diversely different, and they even showed off varied auras. When I sensed for the notes in the surroundings, I realized that most of it gathered around the people inside the hall rather than them being spread around evenly in the air as they usually were. I realized that these people might just hold as much control over notes as I do. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they could control it better than I could.

'So this really is the Mare Desiderii that Joren had mentioned once...'

My train of thought stopped when I chanced upon a child much younger than I was. He was probably only five, his close-shaven black hair covered partially by a tiny bonnet. His attire was of puffed up sleeves and shorts which only made him look like an adorable little baby. His eyes, though, were glaring at me with noticeable maturity. Even while dressed up so infantile, his demeanor made him look intelligent.

'Was I like that at five years old?' I inwardly wondered. It was rare enough for me to see children who acted more mature than their age (the only exception being Charles, and even then, he was still childlike while older than I had been). So, the sight of a small child acting like an adult made me wonder if he was like me: an adult person stuck in a child's body.

But...

When I stared at him for too long, his cold glare suddenly shook, his eyes glassing over, and then...

"Wha- What're ya!" he blubbered, his lower lip shivering into a pout. And... "Waa Whaaa... WAHHHHH!!!"

Utterly shocked, I couldn't even react. The baby was then picked up by the older teenaged girl right beside him, the girl murmuring, "Ah, now there you go again, bawling your heart out. I knew I should have just left you in that bastard's care."

Not too surprisingly, the child cried harder.

The girl, still bouncing him up and down, then continued to speak loudly in a way that wasn't directed to the child.

'Is she his older sister?' I thought while I listened to her rants. 'Solus forbid the young woman was his-'

She was saying, "Now, this is why you gals shouldn't allow yourselves to be bed by men while so young. I thanked Luna for this blessing, even if such a little creature came out of wedlock, but children are just as much of a curse, or even more so, I tell you!"

I blanched out in utter stupefaction. 'She's the child's mother! Dear God Solus! She's barely a woman herself!'

Tora coughed calmly, as though he was simply used to all of this, and then said, "Heather, please refrain from speaking less than courteous words when you are within listening distance of your child. And all of you, fall back in line. Make sure this boy can see your faces clearly."

Then, he looked at me. "So? Which one of these idiots is the 'friend' that told you of our ring's name?"

I smiled wearily at him, and answered steadily. "None of them, I'm afraid."

He frowned down at me. "Are you saying that you heard of us from an outsider?"

I nodded after a short silence.

His frown grew deeper. "Was it from a student of the Mare Cognitum? I swear if one of those-"

"No," I replied quickly. "Only from my friend in the same mare as mine."

He started to nod in understanding, before freezing. He then asked, "Sinus Fidei?"

I nodded again, but then he looked at me in bafflement. He shouted, "Was it royalty? I swear if those nosy bastards on the throne start to mess with our affairs again, I'll-"

I sighed. "It was only a commoner friend of mine, Sir Tora. His name is Joren, and he and his family is anything but extraordinary, and he might only have stumbled on the name of this mare by chance, for he seemed to not even know much about what it even was. And even by some odd chance that it wasn't an event of luck, I believe these things shouldn't be told by my lips, so..."

Tora stared at me for a long time, the professor observing us quietly from the corner. Then, the white man suddenly let out a long breath. He them uttered, "No matter. As you are now the newest member of the Mare Desiderii, I would harshly implore you to keep our matters and our name a secret. It would also do you well to tell this friend of yours to keep his lips sealed as well. We will do our part as well to ensure that-"

"Wait," I started. "Just wait a moment."

He didn't seem to like me interrupting him, but he still allowed me to continue, and so I asked, "What is it that you just said right now?"

"That we would ensure that this won't blow up more?"

"No, before that."

"That you should keep quiet about us."

"Even before that..."

"Oh, what is it that you want-"

However, the girl with the child in her arms broke out from the line and came towards us. "Geez, Tora-kins! You're so obviously clueless."

While Tora looked aghast at the insult, the older girl kneeled down in front of me, her child shyly sneaking glances over at me from her shoulder. She then said in a whisper that was still audible in the otherwise completely silent hall, "Dear young Sir Eleftherion, this might be such a lackluster way to say this, but you're now the newest member of our ever secretive mare... Welcome to the band of misfits, powerhouses, and groomers of change-setters and catalysts; the unspoken fifth ring in the Procellarum, the Sea of Dreams, Mare Desiderii."

I would've stayed frozen in place, if it weren't for the small, chubby hand that cautiously touched my cheek. The small boy with the bonnet smiled slightly before hiding his face again against his mother's warmth.

Around us, coming much later than it should have, a blast of congratulatory music blared. One by one, I then scanned at the welcoming and goofy smiles from each of the students' faces.

~~

Apparently, I did advance a ring after going through the Test of Waning.

"Didn't you find it weird how you got invited to the 'Advancement Ball' out of all things?" Tora had teasingly said.

And not too mention, I learned a few more shocking secrets...

"The Test of Waning?" the girl named Heather asked at the sidelines. "Pfft! Those're basically hosted by our mare, you know?"

While I gaped at her in disbelief, Tora explained. "It's not really like that. It's true that we can set a few guidelines here and there, but the Test itself is uncontrollable. Ancient magics have long made the process vague. With decades of research, the Mare was able to manipulate the Test in small ways, and soon enough, we were able to place a permanent viewing orb in the test areas. It's now a long-going tradition to find new mare members by observing the students through the orb."

I frowned. "So... you chose me during this cycle?"

"Well, yes," he said. "Although trust me in that we rarely ever choose new members every cycle. Only when we see great talents do we open up our doors."

"Don't be so stingy, Tora!" one of the students, dark skinned and pink-haired, shouted. He then grinned at me. "We voted on you unanimously 'cuz we thought you were awesome during the Test! It isn't often we accept Sinus Fidei, and especially those who couldn't even rank up to Mare Frigoris, but your use of notes that time? And you jumping out to defend your teammate like that? Simply exquisite!"

Unconsciously, my cheeks heated up. I murmured, "Thank you."

They then burst into happy laughter and began to crowd around me, giving me praises and congratulations. However, a new thought came to mind.

I asked, "Then... could I ask whether you... understand the rules within the Test of Waning? I couldn't even quite fathom what even happened back then."

One of the students, dressed much like a palace jester, his eyes made to look bigger with make up of all colors of the rainbow, then asked with a joking tone, "You're probably squirming around like a zombie trapped beneath the ground since you don't know why you didn't pass, yes?"

I coughed in embarrassment, denying it in a stutter, but Tora told me gently, "It's a valid question. Older students might already be used to the unfair system of the Test of Waning, but when you think of it, the mares hardly present any fairness themselves, yes?"

I looked at him in confusion, and then gestured for us to sit down again on our corner table. The rest of the students followed after us and began to stand or sit around us. After I had seated, I leaned over to listen to him, quite impatient.

He took a sip of the tea (where did that come from?), and then began. "Have you ever wondered what the mares are for?"

That took me by surprise. However, I managed to recite a passage from one of my lessons, "Every cycle, every member of a ring will receive incentives and allowances from the Academy. These privileges become better the inner the ring is stationed in the Procellarum. As such, Sinus Fidei will receive the least benefits while the Mare Cognitum will receive the most support."

Tora nodded, as though accepting my answer, but then asked a seemingly random question again, "What is the essence of the institution called the Lunar Academy for Special Mages?"

I tilted my head at the question, but answered regardless. "The institution is a school for mages, open for all kinds of students from all parts of the continent, and even accepting foreign students as well. Specifically, children with sufficient magical potential can enter, as long as they are within the age limit."

Tora hummed, but he seemed less accepting of my answers this time.

He then said, "In essence, this institution is for harnessing and furthering the magical prowess of our human resources, yes?"

I nodded. "Basically, a venue for learning."

There, he smiled. "Now, if it is a place for learning, what is the importance of the mares then?"

That made me stop and think for a while, before replying, "Incentives. The mares are the medium for offering incentives to the students in order to further their studies."

"Mhmm..." he hummed. "In what way would they do this then?"

I was confused once again by the question, but then I began to realize his point.

I mean, in the first place, how do students advance their rings? By taking the Test of Waning every after a cycle.

Then how does the Test of Waning decide the winners?

"... It's not really very concrete, this process," I murmured. "If the school wanted to give better incentives to better performing students, then they should have just given a normal test. Having mares that center on the Test of Waning... is unconventional, especially considering the abnormality of the Test itself."

"Excellent!" Tora exclaimed. "In truth, the whole system is utterly unfair. There are moments when a Sinus Fidei, who got stuck in that outermost ring for ten years, would be far more diligent in his studies than a lucky Imbrium, who managed to waltz through the Test of Waning for only three years."

I gritted my teeth. "So... how does the Test really work? Why didn't my team pass, and how did Cha- Prince Charles pass even whilst being in our team?"

I watched how the room became tense. Tora and the others exchanged glances at each other while the professor stayed silent, sipping at his tea.

Tora said, "In truth, it changes every cycle. For years, Mare Desiderii has tried to find patterns within it to no avail. In my opinion, each test is utterly unique. In this cycle's case... Well, I would only assume that there were seven ongoing sub-tests in the location, each with a different objective."

"... Does that have anything to do with the instructions given to us before beginning?" I asked.

Tora nodded once. "Several groups received similar instructions, and whether they followed it through and executed their sub-tests correctly, then that would be the deciding factor whether the teams passed or failed."

I sighed. "Alright, so in our case, since we didn't get the treasure, then we failed?"

"... Yes," he said. "And since His Highness Prince Charles was accepted into the group of Sir Telken, who received a different set of instructions, then he had passed ultimately."

I thought a bit before murmuring, "Telken had clearly said that their instructions were about gathering more members into their group, so I suppose it would have made sense for Charles and that traitor to pass like that..."

Toren then coughed slightly. "In truth, though, we found some irregularities in your sub-test specifically."

I blinked up at him. "What do you mean by that?"

"In essence, the sub-test you received was hunting for treasure, yes?"

I nodded.

"Well, while we were observing through the orb, we also thought that your team was close to passing," he continued. "Truthfully, we actually thought that you had already gotten the treasure, in fact."

My eyes went wide. I exclaimed, "Yes! Well, I mean that... one of my teammates, the boy named Joren, told me during the test that they had already gotten the treasure! And I've always found that odd..."

Tora and Heather looked at each other, and then Heather told me, "We can actually confirm that for you. We did see how the flame-haired boy had solved the riddle in the tomb. He even received the treasure from the crypt, but... For some unfortunate reason, that treasure must've been something else."

I sighed. "You mean the one hidden underneath the circular platform with the runic symbols was the real treasure?"

Heather only pursed her lips, so I stared at Tora. He too only shook his head.

He then finally said, "In truth, the map you received clearly showed that the treasure should have been in that tomb. If I were the decider of the results, I would have chosen your team as the winners. However, since you didn't pass, then I can only suppose that there was a requirement which your team didn't meet..."

I sighed. However, a thought came to mind.

'We have the treasure. When the time comes, shout out his name.'

That was what Joren had whispered over to me, right? I wasn't able to ask him about it at all during the break, so I wasn't sure what it even meant... I told myself to ask him about it the moment we met up again. Now that I think about it, I've only met him once ever since the test ended, and it was only very brief. I didn't even get the chance to ask him about what happened during the test...

'What's Joren up to these days?' I wondered, belatedly finding it odd how we haven't hung out at all during the break.

"Well!" Heather exclaimed, as she rocked the child in her arms. "Enough of this boring talk! We have numerous more cycles to talk about such dire things. This, however, is a party that we should truly remember! We haven't accepted a new member in, what? Six years?"

"I only came four years ago, old hag," one sulking boy with dark-set eyes and a slouched back muttered as he stood there, staring morbidly from a nearby corner.

"Ah, Narco! I almost forgot you existed!" Heather smiled sweetly at the sullen boy, and then he raised a bony hand and shot a wind ball at her so quickly that I thought she would never dodge it. Shockingly, though, the girl only laughed as she blocked it with her unoccupied arm, her other one still calmly carrying her son.

And with that, the party began again, with much cheers and shouts. The food came then, brought swiftly through the air with precise magic. Little by little, my doubts and wariness wilted away together with my hunger, although never completely. Some students came to me directly and introduced themselves while the others chose to stay back. From what I could see, I was the youngest one in the hall (excluding Heather's son), so I could only imagine what the others would feel like to see someone younger be part of the group. But if what I heard was true, and they actually voted for me to join them, then I can only suppose that the majority of them would probably like me.

As the hours went on and after my throat had become sore from laughing and shouting at magical spectacles that the others had prepared, I decided to have a short walk around the hall. Somehow, though, I found myself outside the hall and through the corridors. And further on, I soon realized that I had come a long way away from the hall. The music was loud, though, so I knew I would have no problem trying to find my way back.

So, I leisurely walked through the castle.

When I chose a random door and opened it, I was greeted by a long room with paintings hung on the bare walls, much like a museum or an exhibit. I observed the works gradually, but soon saw how all of them were portraits of people. Under the dim candle lights, the colors were faded and the figures unclear.

However, I stopped my glancing after seeing a particular portrait. It was much like the others. There were at most fifteen people on the portrait, the women were seated at the front while the men stood proudly at the back. With a start, I realized that some of the faces were blurred out. Rather, it seemed like they were burnt off. But that wasn't what intrigued me the most.

One of the women, seated at the front and exuding elegance even as a simple portrait, was dazzlingly familiar to me... However, no matter how much I stared at it, I couldn't place her face with any other person I knew in my memories.

'But I clearly know her...'

However, after going through the countless faces of the noble women I've met in both my lives, I couldn't find a match.

Feeling slightly frustrated, I sighed.

"I see you've found our room of portraits."

I jumped, and looked at the far end of the room, where I had left the door open. The professor, with his tall figure and neatly combed hair, was observing me by the doorway.

"Professor Kartik," I called him. "You, uh, called this the room of portraits?"

"Indeed," he said, and started to walk his way towards me. "Although it's almost impossible to have a portrait made every cycle, the Mare does its best to have a portrait made every time a member decides to graduate. Although many would say it is counterproductive to produce lasting evidence like portraits, especially considering the situation of our mare's hidden existence... However, 'tis but a tradition of whim, so you must forgive us this."

I giggled softly, adoring the lines of portraits, probably the only few records of the existence of the secret mare that hid itself inside the Academy for hundreds of years. I murmured, "I believe there is silent sophistication in the act of contradiction. There is no world more distasteful than a world without a single contrary occurrence."

"... You speak with a fine tongue, young mistress," he whispered, and it took me a moment to realize the remark.

When I looked at him in a panic, he only smiled calmly at me. He explained, "Second Head Professor Whitaker has spoken well of you."

My heart was still beating erratically, but I managed to nod once.

"Come back with me to the hall?" he asked, offering his elbow out to me, like a gentleman would to a lady. "The others are looking for you already."

I allowed myself a short laugh, and then took his offer. My gloved hand on his arm, he led me through the lines of portraits. He then began to say, "Mare Desiderii has existed for as long as the Academy has started its mission of teaching. While the purpose for its existence vary through time, one fact remains the same. It is a safe haven for the gifted."

While we left the room of portraits and travelled through the corridors, his calming voice, the far-away music, and our light footsteps were the only things I could hear.

"This castle too was one of the few original structures that existed since the genesis of the Academy. As you might have already guessed, it belongs to the Mare Desiderii. Because of the intensive researches done on the phenomenon called the Test of Waning, which brought upon our alteration on the magic circle that enabled us to peek inside, our secretive mare had suddenly become more powerful. We became able to choose our members more easily through the orb. Frankly, it made it more efficient to gather the most powerful students into our group. Now, due to our influence, we host the Advancement Ball in our outer hall, although the real advancement we truly celebrate is the advancement of the rare pupil into our own Mare."

He then looked down at me and smiled. "In truth, no one will ever know the true purpose of this specially hidden ring. In recent years, it has only ever served as a social group that gathers the great leaders of the future."

I took a deep breath. 'Leaders,' he said...

I asked quietly, "Then the royals?"

"Certainly, many royals have passed through these halls, but not all," he said, to which I nodded to.

Thinking back to the numerous old portraits of ancient members of royalty that were scattered on the walls of the Saulian palace, I began to wonder if the familiar woman I had seen before was actually a distant relative of mine, a face I had often seen in my castle home, but never paid heed to due to the distance of time and generations between us.

Lost in thought, I almost didn't realize that we were nearing the doors to the hall. I stopped my feet when he too ceased his steady gait. He then gently removed my hand from his elbow and clasped it with both of his. Bending down so that I could see his face better, he then said softly, "Your secret will always be safe with me, so I hope you will feel safe in this new home."

I stared at him while my heart beat loudly.

He then patted my hand with a smile. "Welcome to Mare Desiderii."