Why Does It Have To Be Me?

Magic.

It makes imperfect things perfect.

Well, that's at least what the Keepers want you to think.

Where do you learn to achieve perfectionism?

Keeper Academy.

A sacred training ground for mages of noble descent and select commoners, handpicked by the Keepers, to transform into the guardian mages of humanity against the magical beasts and Eradicators. These beasts mainly being dragons and goblins, though they hardly attack humans anymore.

The Eradicators are a term used by the Keepers as creatures of darkness so vile they aren't even considered simply a beast, but something else entirely. We have little information on the Eradicators.

It's believed the Eradicators commanded the magical beasts to kill human society and that the Keepers saved us from all of them and pushed out the Eradicators and the magical beasts to the other continents.

Elves exist as well. Though calling them magical beasts seems a little over the top.

I mean, they had one ruler who tried killing human society off, but we forgave them after the revolution of the Elvendor Empire. Now the elves are peaceful under President Evindal of the Elven Republic!

That's enough about the elves. Now back to the oh so great academy.

The Kingdom of Tarondar treats mages who graduate from Keeper Academy like angels descended from heaven. They receive showers of praise from everybody. Some citizens even form cults around them. Yikes.

You want to know how divine they try to be?

Check this out.

I am standing here in front of the golden gates and they literally look like the "gates to heaven." Huge. Shiny. And well… golden.

I couldn't think about anything except that I absolutely do not belong here.

Everyone around me, left and right, is so excited to become a World Keeper even if it means trampling on each other to get there or disregarding the controversial methods of the Keepers.

Maybe. They simply don't know what's going on either.

Am I the only one with this gut instinct?

Because In my eyes, all I see is hell.

The wind catches my cloak, whipping it around me like a shroud. I am freezing up here. Is what I am experiencing the definition of "when hell freezes over?"

I overhear a group of first-year students laughing together, their voices ringing with enthusiasm and confidence, with a particular hint of innocence.

They're already talking about the incredible spells they're going to learn, the legendary battles they'll fight, and the glory they'll achieve by becoming a World Keeper.

I wanted to tell them it was all a lie. Though I doubt they would believe me.

I choke on the words, caught in my doubts.

What am I doing here?

It's plain and simple: I have no idea.

Okay. I know. The answer is more complicated…

I bet you are thinking, "here comes the flashback". If you thought that, Bingo!

I mean, the gates to the school don't open for a few minutes at a minimum, so I have some time to ramble. I promise it won't take long.

So, I am minding my own business at my house.

Then, one day, the Keeper Academy Administration "invites" me to become a special student because they tell me I have limitless potential and that I am the best mage of darkness they have ever seen. More on that later.

Also, I found this out through an official letter with a golden seal that could probably pay off my house.

The only reason I didn't immediately throw it into the trash is because, well…I was curious and bored. The fact they wanted to recruit a mage of darkness in an academy where they praised mages of light was interesting enough.

Plus, who wouldn't want to open a letter that seemed like it was from one of the most prestigious magic universities?

I was really surprised at the contents of the letter because others have teased me for my lack of skill in using even basic elemental magic. Mind you majority of people know me as a weak fire mage. I keep my dark magic under wraps, even though the Keeper Administration found out about it somehow.

Also, you can't just decline an invitation like that.

Brrrrrr! That's the end of that brief story. I am freezing out here.

I am shivering and hugging myself to preserve the heat. I pray that somebody opens these gates soon!

Everyone is getting restless.

The cold freezing air makes me feel like I am drowning with no way out.

Not only that, but some mysterious force inside me keeps raging, day in and day out, like a boiling pot of water about to burst. I close my eyes and count to ten.

Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.

I feel the force calm down inside me. I sigh in relief.

"Hey, are you alright?" A voice snaps me out of my thoughts.

I glance up to see a girl with bright green eyes and a friendly smile. She looks like she belongs here: confident, strong, and apparently not freezing.

I should lie and tell her I'm fine and that I'm just nervous like everyone else. Something about her tone made the truth slip out.

"I'm uncomfortable. I don't belong here," I say as my voice trails off.

The girl's smile doesn't fade. Her eyes soften with understanding.

"We all start off feeling uncomfortable, like this is a foreign place. But we wouldn't be here if the academy didn't see potential in us, right? We all have a place here." She says it warmly.

"Yeah," I say to her.

I resist the urge to tell her more about my feelings. If I said something, who knows if the academy is listening? Perhaps I should wait to tell anyone what I truly think about this place.

Being sent to the principal's office on the first day wouldn't be a great start.

My expression grows dimmer as the ideas of what the Keepers could really be up to nag at my mind. It feels like I have forgotten something very important about the Keepers, but for the life of me, I can't remember it!

That's why I am here.

To remember what I have lost and figure out why they invited me to the academy. It will be interesting to see if they act like they know me or not.

"By the way, my name is Ivy McKinley! I have an affinity for earth magic, with a focus on botany. What about you?" the girl asks me in a cheerful tone.

My thoughts about the Keepers vanish as she speaks to me. It was kinda rude of me to be lost in thought like that.

"My name is Nico Lotus. I have an affinity for fire magic, with a focus on explosions. Though I am not very good at it or control it well," I tell her with a chuckle.

No way I am telling her I am a mage of darkness.

Now, my dear reader, here is quick magic history lesson 101 on our lovely planet Terrathis. I know. It can be slightly annoying but, it will be quick though!

Fire magic is the only magic I can wield out of the basic elemental magic attributes, which are fire, water, air, and earth. Mages can then choose to focus on specializations stemming from their main elemental attribute.

The rare magic attributes are light and darkness. Light magic is considered the most superior form of magic. The first Keepers were actually all light magic users.

People who can wield dark magic are even more rare than light magic users. The general population of Terrathis despises and shuns dark mages because apparently Eradicators use the same form of magic to harm humans.

This led to many dark mages to disappear and go into hiding.

Now let's get back to the present moment before I forget what Ivy is saying.

Ivy is laughing next to me. Her hair is flowing in the wind without a care in the world. Too bad I didn't hear what she said.

I could use a laugh right about now.

"That's alright. I know how to grow a tree using one spell. One day, I will grow an entire forest of trees with one flick of my wrist! We all have to start somewhere," she says to me while winking at me.

Before I can think about what to say next, Ivy blurts out, "Hey, you want to be friends? I come from a place far away from the capital, so I don't know many people here. You seem like a nice person, though you seem down for some reason. What do you say? We can grow stronger together!"

Ivy grins at me. It's kinda nice to have someone so friendly on the first day.

"Sure, why not?" I grin back.

To be honest, I don't have many friends.

Hey, don't give me that look.

It's not because I am shy, but more because I am awkward.

Socially awkward.

Feeling my energy drain to come up with the right words to not mess up an interaction with somebody takes a lot out of someone.

"Yay!" Ivy exclaims out loud, causing a lot of first-years to look at her in confusion.

The outburst catches me off guard, and I can't help but raise an eyebrow at the unexpected enthusiasm. In a way, I admire how she doesn't care about what others think of her.

"Will you shut up?" A rough voice from the right shouts out loud. The man who shouts has a tall frame and muscles that look like they are on steroids.

When Ivy looks toward the shout, a powerful gust of wind throws her off her feet and onto the ground with a hard thud.

Ivy grimaces in pain as she hits the ground.

"I'm Dustin Windsori! One of the best first-year wind users at the academy. I don't like loud noises. Next time, just keep your excitement to yourself, or I will knock you to the ground again." Dustin chuckles to himself as his friends laugh with him.

Ivy's eyes flash with a mix of anger and pain as she gets up from the ground, wiping off the dirt smeared across her cheek. I see her opening her mouth to talk, but I jump in before she can say anything.

"Could you just leave us alone?" I ask Dustin in a sharp tone.

My eyes roll as Dustin looks back and forth at his goons. They all laugh like they are the King of the World. Honestly, I am getting pretty annoyed at this point. It wouldn't be a pretty scene to find out how powerful my techniques are when I can barely control or hide them.

Dustin looks at me with a sneer on his lips. "Who are you? Her boyfriend?"

He summons another gust of wind, which ruffles my hair.

"You think you can stand up against me? From what I hear, you stink at magic."

That was a bit of a sore point for me. It's not my fault I have to conceal my dark magic from everybody here just to avoid being seen as more of an outcast. It may be true I am not the greatest mage, but to be fair, this is my first day in institutionalized learning.

Before arriving at the academy, as a kid, my mom taught me everything I know. Insult me, but do not insult my family. Huge flames appear out of nowhere on both palms of my hands.

These aren't just any ordinary flames, though.

These flames are purple, a very rare color to be produced by a fire mage. Probably because it's a combination of fire and dark magic together. I know I wasn't supposed to use any kind of dark magic, but oh well.

Maybe just this once.

Dustin and his goons step back slowly as I walk toward them. My dark flames flickering dangerously in my hand.

Just as I am about to launch the dark flames at Dustin, a large, blinding light appears right outside the golden gates of the academy. My flames extinguish. They can't keep up with the powerful, blinding light.

I squint at the light and see an intimidating figure standing there with a golden aura. Jerk. Whoever it was, they messed up my chance for some fun.

"Stop fighting immediately with the power invested in me by the Principal Keeper. The entrance ceremony is about to begin. All students go to the great hall now!" the figure says to all the students.

Everyone quickly files through the now-open gates toward the intimidating Keeper Academy towers ahead.

"Nico and Dustin, you are to be sent to the principal's office. No words, just actions. Move it now," the figure demands of us.

Before I knew it, we were through the golden gates being escorted down the grand hallway toward the principal's office. The Keeper Guards are marching next to us. Their footsteps echo in the halls. While walking, I couldn't shake this strange feeling that all of this seems like a trial.

A trial by fire that might consume me if my own flames don't consume me first.

The Keeper Guards open the Principal Keeper's dual doors.

I guess there is no turning back now.