Guardian Day

One weekend each trimester was reserved as Guardian Day when students are expected to spend it with their guardians. In Maya's case, that meant spending her Sunday with the headmistress of Amellan Academy.

Midterms were behind them. It was only left to await the results. Maya was invited to the headmistress's office and promptly made her way there.

The corridor leading to her office in the faculty wing never changed whether it was class time or not. Maya wondered if it was a good thing or not that she was so familiar with them by now. The same ghost still stands in her spot like a fixture, with horror written on her face, trapped in her own pocket dimension only Maya could observe.

Before, Maya feared other ghosts knowing about her abilities, but now she stopped in front of the girl, mulling over whether she should make an exception and try talking to her to learn what was frightening her. However, even with Maya standing right in front of her, making eye contact, the ghost was unresponsive.

Maya reached out her hand to try and touch her. The door opening at the end of the corridor made her stop.

"Oh, Maya. You're here already," the Headmistress spoke, stepping out of her office. "Come in."

Maya followed her in. The familiar air of the splendid study had a cosy yet imperious feel.

Amanda apologized she had to work and invited Maya to relax and spend her time reading while she finished up her paperwork. There was no helping it since Amanda was newly elected Rectoress of Academia, she had her hands full with managing all academies of Mellgrah.

Maya ran her hand over the spines of books on the nearby shelf. There was a mission she came here with — to learn more about Amanda and what drives her. In order to determine whether the Headmistress was trustful, Elena suggested Maya try learning about her ambitions. It was better than blindly trusting in Elena's convictions, but Maya was unsure of how to approach it.

The books were primarily about politics and administration, with a touch of philosophy and pedagogy; these were too dense for Maya's taste. They only confirmed what she already knew — the headmistress was deeply committed to her work.

Maya stepped in further to the section with biographies. There she brushed her knowledge of the current ruling figures of the world.

Gouverness of Mellgrah, Saoirse Donohue.

Rectoress of Academia, Amanda Lefebvre.

General of Hunters, Dianna Garcia de la Torre.

"I knew her personally. A stubborn woman, she used to be," Amanda said, noticing Maya's finger lingering on the biography of the late General of Hunters. "Eternal rest to her soul."

Maya didn't notice the Headmistress was observing her. "Are all Mellgrah leaders women?" Under each ruling category, there were biographies of the past leaders — all women.

"Mellgrah is a Matriarch Triumvirate. It would be strange to give the title of matriarch to a man, wouldn't it?" Amanda chuckled softly. "In Vetus Orbis, for many centuries women were unable to own anything let alone have a title, so let men have a taste of their own medicine."

'Why does it have to go to the other extreme?' Maya wondered.

"Do you think it's wrong?"

"Um… Not necessarily. Shouldn't anyone who's capable lead?"

"If we let men take those positions, Mellgrah would long be divided and stunted by wars. They would run all our sacrifices to the ground."

Maya was surprised by her strong opinions.

"Are you familiar with what each branch of triarchy represents?" the Headmistress decided to quiz Maya.

"Rectoress of Academia, one overseeing education and all academies of the world. Her dominion is the first contact for every Mellgrah mage. Then there is the General of the Hunters, governing the military and defence, policing the world and controlling intelligence. Lastly, there is Gouverness of Mellgrah. She is ruling the entire country in a position similar to a president and is situated in the capital Elador."

"Oh," the Headmistress raised her eyebrows. "Have you already gone through current world order lessons in detail?"

"No, but Lady Kiana explained it to me," Maya returned her attention to the bookshelf.

Amanda's expression hardened slightly. "If I recall correctly, you do spend your time at the temple quite often lately. What is your relationship with Lady Kana?"

"There's no relationship. She had invited me once to get introduced, and that is about as much contact I had with her. I go to the temple for extra lessons with my mentor," Maya was fidgeting with her fingers as she spoke. "In all honesty, I don't like the air of Lady Kiana. She was very confusing."

When Maya turned back to see Amanda's expression, she was surprised to see a subtle gleeful smirk, but when she looked a little better she was assured it was only the Headmistress's normal composed but prideful expression.

"What was confusing about her?"

"She talked about gods in a strange way." Maya hesitated, knowing this was the best time to ask, but felt insecure about inquiring. "Do you not have a good relationship with Lady Kiana?"

"Lady Kiana is a pitiful creature, Maya. She is a quack priestess who is only holding her position due to her magical ability. But she has been fooled and scammed in the past by a diviner who claimed to be able to see the future. Please don't take her strange beliefs seriously. She can drag you into a hole with no end."

"Ah…"

If Amanda had a low opinion of someone in the position of a High Priestess, Maya felt a little justified about the unease Lady Kiana was giving her.

"How's the world handling the absence of one of the key figures at the top?" Maya quickly changed the subject.

"We are a temporary duumvirate, while the Chief of Central Guarding Offices is taking over a minor role in the place of Hunters."

So Amanda was not only a newly appointed Rectoress of Academia but also finding herself in a position holding half of this world's power instead of a third. A lot of stress and obligations have fallen to her shoulders.

The Headmistress tutted. "A man taking over part of those duties is creating a lot of headaches for me currently," she confessed, rubbing her temples. "I suspect Lady Saoirse is in a similar position, as busy as I am."

'The Chief must not be a very competent man…'

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Maya spent a couple of hours with the Headmistress, feeling like she learned a lot, but also not, at the same time. Then, Amanda had to depart for a meeting and decided to call it a day. Traversing the academy on her way back, she encountered Kasper.

"Ah, Maya," he greeted her with an enthusiastic wave.

"Does the Student Council live at the academy?" Maya joked. Undoubtedly, Kasper was here at this time due to his duties tied to the Council.

He chuckled nervously. As the youngest year-rep, his seniors must delegate a lot of burdens to him.

"Anyway, I wanted to talk to you but never got a chance."

"Me?" Maya raised her eyebrows.

"It's long overdue, but I wanted to apologize for the way I handled the confirmation slip incident before Initiation."

"Oh," Maya looked down. It has been a long time since then, but it seems it has been eating at Kasper's mind.

"I handled it poorly. I didn't expect them to direct their grudge at you instead of me, and for that, I am truly sorry."

Kasper was clever. He must've noticed their animosity, and perhaps, even tried to intervene earlier which only resulted in them lashing out at Maya even harder. Maya didn't think he did anything wrong but didn't expect an apology for something that had long been resolved would mean so much to her either.

"It's in the past."

Maya gave him a comforting smile which he mirrored with a sign of relief on his face.

Kasper seems like a person who could get along with anyone. Even when he was being firm and putting his foot down, you still couldn't hate him for it. Maya could see why a lot of girls' hearts were throbbing for Kasper. He was like a freshman version of Keith. And not bad looking either. At times, his amber eyes truly appear as though they're made of gold.

"But being a Council member… You're here even at a time like this… must be tough…" Maya changed the subject. "Are you short on manpower? Do you need a hand?"

His eyes widened. "I would love it if you'd join. We always need more people, especially someone as conscientious as you. You'd fit right in."

"I'm happy to hear that. Honestly, I would like to join as well," Maya confessed. Being chosen by all elements signalled that she should aim for a leadership position, and the council was an ideal training ground. "However, I am swamped. I am already four times busier than a regular student. Adding Student Council duties would be too much. Perhaps next year when I've mastered the basics. If you'd still have me, that is."

"Of course. Lock it in. If you go back on your word I'll haunt you for the rest of your school life," he chuckled.

"Like you do with Elena?" Maya added to his banter.

"Exactly."

"But Kasper, what are you going to do if Elena decides to follow me and joins as well?"

"The more the merrier."

"Huh? Really?!"

"If she is willing to fulfil her duties, I don't see why not."

"I thought you'd be against it, considering all the rumours surrounding her."

"I refuse to form prejudice based on rumours. I trust only what I see with my own eyes. Though she is troublesome to chase around, there's no reason to believe she can't do the job. Better yet, she may even excel at it. One thing's certain, it would enhance her image tremendously."

"Or ruin the reputation of the Student Council?"

"I don't believe that's true," he laughed. "One thing I trust is your judgment. If someone like you is willing to be friends with a person like her, she can't be that bad, can she?"

Kasper really brightened Maya's mood. She was glad to have an ally for the time she ventured into those waters.

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Back in their room, Maya was studying when Elena returned.

"How was your guardian day?" Maya smiled brightly.

"I need a wash." Unenthusiastically, Elena headed towards the bathroom.

"Was it too much love and affection for you?" Maya chuckled. Elena's guardians were expressive in that way, considering Elena like a daughter of theirs.

"Sure…"