Considerations

As Ms. Oakshield continued with her lecture, Leo and Austin vigorously took down notes. For the most part, history to them was mainly just a reminder of what individuals should and should not do. Regardless, when learning about recent events that can impact their present life, they would take it much more seriously. Alas, not everybody would have the same thoughts.

"The Desire Pantheon," Sharon soon introduced, "Are notorious for being the most effective cult at gathering the most members.

"It isn't too hard to see why though, as the group promotes the use of releasing one's desires to devolve themselves into their most illicit fantasies. They often employ demons into their ranks, setting up special rituals that utilizes the powers of desire to help people increase their own abilities."

Suddenly a student raised his hand in class. He was tall and stocky, and had a slightly mischievous grin on his face. Sharon noticed him and stopped.

"Yes? Do you have a question?"

"I do, actually," the stocky boy replied as he lowered his arm, "Are all of these rituals so horrible? It's been said that not all demons are evil and devious. There are rumors of a few known individuals who got great benefits after partnering with them. They just had to occasionally follow their instincts. Surely not all desires should be forbidden. It wouldn't be so bad if you can control your impulses later, right?"

A few people in the class sniggered at that last sentence. Sharon also gave a chuckle, though for different reasons.

"Yes, on the surface it doesn't seem too bad. I know that some of you students in the school would find all this very tempting. But not everyone can so easily restrain themselves after giving in. Not only do most of these rituals involve the weakening of certain victims, but even the "safer" ones have a high chance of inflicting harm on the user. And by that I mean it can create severe addiction in the mind."

At this moment, Sharon paused and gave one of her rare stern looks.

"If you want to try them, by all means go for it." Sharon said, "But just remember. Not many people were ever the same after attempting them. Even those "known individuals" have never been able to lead proper lives again. Nothing is ever free. This world isn't generous enough to let us do the things we like without a cost."

Hearing those words, some of the students in class lowered their heads. Leo unconsciously did the same.

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After finishing their morning lessons, Leo and Austin went to the school's cafeteria for lunch. Sitting down at a table, they both had much to talk about.

"I never expected Ms. Oakshield to show one of her rare serious sides," said Austin, "She had always done that with her Alchemy lessons but never with anything else."

"Perhaps she really just wanted us to be prepared for the future. We'll soon be leaving Halo Academy for good after all," Leo replied back, "Gerald once told me that people who think they are smart are the most easy to trick. They do things that benefit themselves without considering what had happened to others, believing that they'll come out fine. He said this most often occurs in students around our ages."

Austin snorted then silently looked at the food he was eating. He soon put down his utensils and stared at his friend.

"What do you want to do for your future?" he suddenly asked.

Leo stopped eating and turned toward his friend, "I have a few ideas. But, I'm just not sure..."

"Ah, it's alright," Austin immediately raised his hands to reassure Leo, "I get that your probably struggling right now. I was only curious."

"Hmm, okay then," Leo turned back to his food before deciding to continue the conversation, "Then, what do you want to be? If you're okay with answering."

"Hehe, probably a job that can provide me with enough money to be rich, and hopefully it won't be too boring."

Leo smiled at his friend's answer.

"With your grades, it probably won't be too difficult. Only those jobs that are specifically reserved for nobles will be hard to get."

"Yeah," Austin looked deep in thought, "I'm probably going to get a position related to dealing with city affairs. It seems like a pretty stable job with many things to look forward to..."

After that, they continued eating. Soon, they were nearly finished until the cafeteria's chef announced a special treat.

"There is ice cream for today!" The chef raised his voice to let the students hear, "Over a dozen flavors! Come here to try some."

Austin looked excited and made a gesture to his friend. But Leo shook his head.

"It's okay. I'm not really in the mood for ice cream this time." Leo politely said.

"Alright then. Hope you won't miss it." Austin got up from his seat.

Staring at his friend who was walking away, Leo had mixed feelings.

'It's good that he's looking for a job that can make him good money. His family was always on the poor side. He can finally support them well.'

Though Austin never showed it, Leo could tell that he was very serious and hard-working about his studies. Growing up in the same neighborhood, Leo had always been the more fortunate of the two. Despite offering money to help his friend, Austin would always either respectfully refuse or pay it back eventually. He had his own dignity and honor, especially towards the people closest to him.

'His family must be really proud. I wish him all the best.'

As Leo was contemplating, he also grew a bit sad.

'I might never get a chance to see him again... Who knows where I'll end up if I seek out my dreams."

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After lunch, Leo went to his afternoon lessons.

Arriving at his Enchantment class, Leo was happy to see Mr. Jones again.

Mr. Jones was a gaunt, medium sized man. He had pale skin and blond hair that looked withered. Nevertheless, he had a quiet strength to him. Despite his lackluster appearance, he was formerly an adventurer in his life. Though, after a certain encounter, he quit and found a job as an enchanter. Eventually, he made his way into Halo Academy and became one of the few teachers that taught more than one subject.

After greeting the class, he turned his attention to the board. He quickly wrote down the schedule for today's lesson.

"Today we will be reviewing the basics of enchantment," Mr. Jones spoke in a slightly tired voice, "then we will take a portal to a lab to practice a few of the more advanced enchantment spells involving runes..."

"Um, Mr. Jones?" a female student suddenly interrupted him.

"Hmm? What is it?" Mr. Jones replied with the same tired voice.

"You haven't turned on the lights yet..."

"Oh, yes. Thank you for reminding me."

After that, the class was immediately illuminated for the students to see the board. Mr. Jones often had a habit of keeping his rooms darker than normal. It has lead to some people making jokes about him secretly being a vampire.

Mr. Jones cleared his throat and continued speaking, "Ahem, so as I was saying. You can see the schedule up here on the board. We'll be reviewing very shortly. I also suggest you students to pack up your things first before we go to the lab room."

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In the lab, the students were each enchanting different materials. Symbols and circles made from magic were regularly appearing on the tables where the students were working. Mr. Jones was casually strolling around and providing suggestions and help when necessary.

Leo could be seen vigorously concentrating his mind. He used his mana to create a set of runes before placing them on a sheet of copper. It soon transformed into a malleable glove. The rune symbols could be seen glowing on its surface before disappearing.

After the Dawn of Magic, it was discovered that every individual possessed a special type of energy called mana within their bodies. Different people had differing amounts of talent at using their mana for a variety of things. They are in the form of what is considered "magic". After exploring this newfound gift, the mages of old had developed many "magic systems" to educate those willing to learn.

Among the variety of magic systems, Leo found enchanting to be one of his favorites. Though he had mediocre talent, he still considered enchantment to be quite exciting nonetheless. If mastered well, an individual can turn a piece of garbage into something worth it's weight in gold. In his opinion, it was quite fun to experiment with.

'If only those dwarves would allow us humans to learn more runes," Leo lamented, "Compared to theirs, our enchantments can only be considered child's play."

Although humans have developed their own "runes" in the form of scriptures, it was still considered inferior to the dwarves' magic. These days, people are still working on improving and developing the current magic systems. There are also rumors of even new ones that can possibly be discovered.

Mr. Jones soon walked by Leo's work. Looking down, he nodded at the copper glove without any comment.

As Mr. Jones left his table, Leo thought of calling out to ask for his opinion on his future plans. Because Leo desired to explore this world, he had considered being an adventurer to be the best option. However, he soon held back his voice.

'Whatever the case, Mr. Jones had given up that kind of life. Though he won't speak of what happened, many can tell that he faced something traumatic.'

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The last of the lessons in the afternoon were soon finished. It was now only a few hours till dinner. In the meantime, students were given free time to relax around the school.