Vexion and Lexa smiled at one another as they entered the classroom together. Almost immediately, they noticed several young men stealing glances in their direction. Some admired their beauty openly, while others tried to be subtle, only to fail miserably.
Lexa spoke quietly.
"Vexion."
Vexion merely grunted.
"I know. I won't do anything."
She folded her arms.
"The only reason I acted like that before was because he kept staring while standing in front of me. The only person allowed to look at me like that... is Master."
Lexa sighed.
"Yes, yes. We know. Only Master. Only Master. Blah, blah, blah."
Vexion looked genuinely offended.
"You wouldn't understand."
Lexa simply shook her head. Internally, however, she couldn't help but wonder.
'How long is this obsession going to last...?'
They were Legendary beings, creatures capable of living for tens of thousands of years.
'Please tell me this is simply one of those youthful phases... perhaps one that lasts a thousand years...'
Yet every time she looked at Vexion, she became less convinced. Her Master himself was an ancient Founder, a being who would live for countless ages. Yet he still laughed, teased people, acted shamelessly, and occasionally behaved like an immature young man. He was an enigma among Mythical beings. Perhaps Vexion had simply become attached to another anomaly.
Pushing the thought aside, the two quietly took their seats.
Only a few minutes later, the instructor entered. Unlike the stern Deputy Master from yesterday, this man wore a warm smile that immediately put many students at ease. After introducing himself, he casually began asking different students what they thought of Midvest Academy so far. Laughter occasionally spread throughout the classroom as several gave awkward or overly excited answers.
Eventually, the instructor smiled.
"Now then. There isn't much we can teach you about in the academy itself during your first few days. A large portion of your education here is self-directed."
He raised a finger before anyone misunderstood.
"That is not the same as saying we will not educate you. We provide knowledge. We provide guidance. We provide lectures. But understanding—"
He tapped his own forehead.
"—belongs to you. If you wish to become one of history's great figures, then eventually you must learn to seek answers before someone hands them to you."
Several students nodded. The instructor smiled again.
"So today, we'll begin with something simple. Something many of you think you already understand."
He turned toward the board. With astonishing speed, mana condensed into chalk-like lines — one continent, then another. Soon, thirteen continents floated across the enormous board:
the Northern Continent,
the Northeastern Continent,
the Northwestern Continent,
the Eastern Continent,
the Western Continent,
the Southern Continent,
the Southeastern,
the Southwestern,
Regado Continent
Oval Continent
Mid Central Continent.
Until finally, the North Central and South-Central Continents occupied the very middle.
The instructor looked back.
"I assume all of you recognize these."
Everyone nodded. He briefly summarized each continent, mentioning only their names and relative locations before walking toward the center of the map. His finger rested upon the two central landmasses.
"What... do you think about these two?"
The classroom became quiet. One student frowned.
"Instructor... what exactly do you mean?"
The instructor repeated himself.
"What do you think about them?"
Silence. Vexion narrowed her eyes. After studying the map for several moments, she finally raised her hand.
"Why... is the Central Continent split into two?"
The instructor snapped his fingers.
"Excellent. That is precisely the question."
He pointed toward the North Central and South Central Continents.
"Why are they separated? And more importantly, why do we still collectively refer to them as the Central Continent?"
Another student confidently answered.
"Because politically they remain the most influential region in the world. The largest trading hub. The birthplace of countless great powers."
The instructor nodded.
"Correct. But that explains today's politics. What about history? What caused it?"
The students looked at one another before collectively shaking their heads.
"...Wasn't it always like this?"
The instructor laughed softly.
"No. It most certainly was not."
He slowly turned back toward the board. Then he wrote two names.
Justin II Sandrian. Aurora Sandrian.
Beneath them, he wrote several more names, every single one ending with the same surname.
Sandrian.
He turned back.
"Who recognizes these names?"
Only a handful of students raised their hands. One spoke.
"They're an ancient family. Some say they've existed for twenty or even thirty thousand years."
The instructor chuckled.
"Twenty thousand... thirty thousand... I wish history were that straightforward."
Before he could continue—
Lexa froze.
"...Vexion."
Vexion's pupils slowly narrowed. She didn't answer. Her eyes remained fixed on the board.
Justin II Sandrian. Aurora Sandrian.
The names refused to match the people she remembered. The gentle man who happily spent afternoons making tea for his children. The father who laughed whenever Dante annoyed his sisters. The elegant woman who smiled with endless patience whenever Dante caused another headache for the palace. Those two were the names written before the class.
"...Master's father... Master's mother..."
Lexa whispered. Vexion slowly nodded. Neither of them could reconcile the names on the board with the people they knew.
'Why are they even being mentioned in this context?'
The instructor continued.
"Depending on which historical records you believe, these events occurred somewhere between seventy thousand and one hundred thousand years ago. No one agrees. Most records were destroyed or contradict."
He casually pointed toward the two central continents.
"Back then, there was only one. A single landmass. The true Central Continent."
Another student immediately raised his hand.
"Instructor. You keep saying the Central Continent. What exactly do you mean?"
The instructor smiled.
"I mean exactly that. The North Central and South Central Continents did not exist. They were once one supercontinent. The continent was divided during the greatest war this world has ever witnessed."
Even the four Great Academies became involved. Every Headmaster. Every Deputy Master. Countless Sovereigns. Entire civilizations. All were drawn into it.
Lexa frowned.
But... what did Master's parents have to do with any of this...?
The instructor slowly turned back toward the board. Then he lightly tapped Justin and Aurora's names.
"The world remembers these two as the reason the Great Continental War began."
He paused. Then smiled.
"And history... is wrong."
The classroom became completely silent.
"They did not desire that war. They did not seek it. But by the time it ended—"
He looked back toward the map.
"—the world itself had changed forever."
No one dared interrupt him. He continued quietly.
"Every generation asks the same question. 'Who won the Great Continental War?'"
He chuckled.
"The answer... is nobody. The only thing humanity won... was permission to continue existing."
A chill quietly spread throughout the classroom. Lexa slowly turned toward Vexion.
"Vexion... did His Majesty ever even carry a sword?"
Vexion stared blankly ahead.
"...No. He spent more time preparing breakfast than training..."
She frowned.
"...Didn't he?"
Neither of them knew anymore. The instructor looked across the room one final time.
"You children always ask the wrong question. You ask who was strongest. Who defeated whom. Who conquered what."
He smiled.
"The real question... is how two people frightened the entire world enough... to force history itself into a new era."