The students looked up at the sky, all of them thoroughly shocked.
It wasn't just that the moonlight had been dim while they climbed the spiral staircase. Even just a moment ago, when Professor Medea flew into the classroom from the ceiling in her pumpkin carriage, they had all—consciously or unconsciously—noticed that the moon in the sky was not particularly bright.
But in just this short span of time, that patch of night sky seemed to have been swapped out for a backdrop. The moon, serving as the center of the composition, had unexpectedly become large and round.
It was enough to give people the illusion that Professor Medea had used some method to change the very heavens and earth!
...
Dark squinted as he observed the moon, lost in thought.
Throughout the ages, many so-called 'miracles' were displayed in this manner. But in reality, they were likely just natural phenomena of clouds dispersing to reveal the moon. Professor Medea had simply seized the timing of that phenomenon's shift perfectly.
Qualified prophets are always able to grasp various opportunities to showcase themselves. Their 'prophecies' are often not true 'divinations', but precise inferences based on profound knowledge of various phenomena.
After all, every one of their 'divinations' requires paying a hefty price. If they 'divined' for every event encountered, true prophets would have gone extinct by now.
Dark vaguely remembered a famous magician once saying that the core of magic tricks actually lies in acting skills; every brilliant magician is a qualified actor. And after gradually understanding the profession of a prophet, he realized that so-called prophets are also method actors!
Thinking of it this way, wouldn't Little Eevee, who has mastered [Ultimate Move · Mimic], be a natural-born prophet?
"Emmm..."
"Buyi?"
Under Dark's prodding, the Little Eevee inside the Magic Guide Card looked toward the night sky, its small face filled with curiosity.
...
Suddenly.
A transparent, water-like film appeared on the opened ceiling. Strange rays of light shot out from the four boundaries, splitting the scattering moonlight into densely packed small pieces, which were then projected individually in front of every person.
Professor Medea waved her magic wand, using special magic to make fine adjustments. On every student's desktop, a small patch of night sky emerged.
That bright moon floated amidst the clouds, witnessing their gathering and dispersal. At times it was submerged in the clouds, at times it revealed its brilliance.
The students all showed expressions of amazement, their attention shifting from the bright moon in the sky to the projection on their desks. At first glance, it seemed as if the scene from the sky had been transferred right onto the tabletop.
It made one unable to resist reaching out with both hands, carefully touching and cupping it, fingers trembling slightly with excitement.
...
This miraculous projection magic was far beyond the reach of ordinary people. It was truly breathtaking, like the 'moon in the well' or 'flowers in the mirror'.
"So beautiful!"
The girls' tones revealed their delight. Although the boys didn't make a fuss, each one was also inexplicably excited. Humans are emotional creatures, after all.
...
"The moon is an especially important link among the stars."
"Since ancient times, people have observed the stars and worshiped the sun and moon because the stars possess divine power."
"Deducing fate from the trajectory of the stars' movement is a part of Astrology."
Professor Medea's voice was like flowing water in a quiet forest, penetrating the heart as she spoke, making one remember it unconsciously.
"Our topic tonight is to deduce the future from the moon and perform divination."
"Now, let us observe the moon carefully..."
"Hmm, Emma Metis, do you have a question?"
...
Emma raised her hand and said, "Professor, isn't there a specific method? I mean, something like a spell?"
Medea couldn't help but narrow her eyes and smile. "There is, naturally there is. But that is not something beginners can touch upon. What we need now is to first find that little bit of feeling."
She raised her hand, forming a circle with her thumb and index finger, gesturing slightly.
In reality, divination is a talent. Some are born knowing it, some are born with divine eyes; if they can see it, they can achieve it. If one lacks the necessary talent, they won't see anything no matter what.
But the potential of the human brain is hard to surmise. Talent related to this cannot be expressed as intuitively as magic power. So it is very difficult to determine whether a person actually has the talent for divination.
This gives more people room for imagination. Some so-called 'prophets' rely on that pitiful bit of obsession to support themselves until old age, yet ultimately achieve nothing, surviving only on acting and deception.
In short, Emma sat down after receiving the answer. The students also widened their eyes, observing the bright moon on their desktops with increasing seriousness.
As for whether they could find that bit of feeling or see anything...
Anyway, Dark didn't see a single thing!
He blinked his eyes, trying his best to see the uneven traces of the lunar surface from the moon on the desktop, but the pixel count of that moon was obviously insufficient.
No matter how carefully he looked, he could only see the changes in brightness, the imperceptible slight movements, the gathering and dispersing clouds around it, and the stars occasionally flashing in the quiet night. He simply couldn't imagine how to deduce fragmented future events from this bit of intelligence.
Perhaps he really didn't have talent in this area. Or perhaps it was because he had lost the innocence of childhood and could no longer learn Astrology.
But fortunately, he still had the heartwarming Little Eevee!
Dark turned the stand around, placed it on the edge of the desk, and faced it toward himself. Then he leaned [Magic Beast (Eevee)] against the stand, allowing Eevee-chan to clearly see the changes in the moon.
"Did you see anything?"
Dark injected magic power into the tip of his magic pen and poked Eevee-chan's forehead.
But Eevee-chan shook its head like a rattle drum, looking at him eagerly.
"No rush."
Dark was very patient, especially when supervising others to do work...
"Buyi!!!"
"Acting cute is useless."
Dark poked its little ears again. This left Little Eevee looking mournful.
...
After several minutes of quiet observation, the little Magisters, who hadn't seen a single thing, couldn't help but start whispering. The classroom gradually filled with some chaotic noises.
Medea's gaze swept across the entire classroom, finally resting on Eudora.
Feeling carefully, one could discover that the atmosphere centered around her was gradually changing. She seemed to have already immersed herself in a certain feeling.
Professor Medea nodded slightly, then introduced a projection onto her own lecture table as well, before clapping her hands. "The learning of divination is endless. Astrology is just one part of it. To learn Astrology, imagination is very important. We must first let our thinking be unconstrained and bold—to see a deer in a horse, to see green in the sun, to see a star map in a person..."
"Diviners are rational, but beginners are emotional."
"Open your minds, do as you wish, and let everything become wonderful!"
Medea tapped her magic wand lightly. The night sky on the desktop suddenly changed; the pitch-black background seemed to turn into ink, sweeping up entirely. Like a tidal wave, it swallowed the night sky, finally turning into a spherical, three-dimensional starry sky.
From that cluster of starry sky, the moonlight shot out a line, connecting all the stars together to form a shimmering star map, magnificent and beautiful.
...
Just with this, someone in the classroom suddenly entered a state, and the starry skies on many people's desktops showed subtle changes.
Professor Medea continued to tap the star map, sequentially lighting up nine stars: "Nine is the extreme number; tonight, nine stars shall shine brilliantly."
...
Right at this moment, a brilliant starlight burst forth from Eudora's desktop!
That starlight, which pushed open the curtain of night and illuminated the darkness, flickered frequently as if time was accelerating.
Eudora opened her hands, her fair and tender face filled with confusion. In her eyes, unknown when it happened, a pitch-black darkness had dyed them, dotted with twinkling stars—mysterious and profound.
...
Professor Medea suddenly narrowed her eyes, the silver moon in the depths of her eyes gradually rising.
The little Magisters present were even more startled. The few classmates around Eudora looked at her with expressions of extraordinary astonishment, as if knowing her for the first time, and then couldn't help but back away.
The focus of the entire classroom became concentrated on her.
Dark didn't forget to turn the face of his Magic Guide Card toward Eudora. Although he had anticipated this in his heart, he was equally surprised. Even if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes before, he could guess that this was the omen of a 'Divination'!
Unlike Professor Medea's casual prophecy during the first lesson, Eudora's 'Divination' was very likely a formal one. Her eyes manifested stars; she was observing fate!
...
"Ah!"
Suddenly, a scream rang out.
Eudora's face instantly twisted, revealing a look of pain. The stars in her eyes became disordered. The starry sky before her rolled up like a storm.
An atmosphere of dignified terror erupted abruptly, silently forcing away the surrounding Noble House students.
Sounds of panic rose simultaneously. Some were flustered, some were excited.
At this moment, almost everyone realized that Eudora was performing a 'Divination'!
The girl at her shared desk looked overwhelmed, looking to Professor Medea for help. But the Professor simply raised her hand and pressed down, signaling for silence.
Medea's expression was equally serious.
A Diviner's 'first prophecy' is actually very dangerous. Because no one knows what price she needs to pay for it.
The price every Diviner needs to pay differs in every period. Some Diviners might even need to pay the price of their lives during their first divination! Their 'prophecy' is their 'last words'!
But interrupting the 'Divination' at this moment would bring about backlash. Naturally, Medea could not do such a thing.
Every true Diviner needs to experience the 'first time'; this is unavoidable, and it is also the first step to ascending to the high skies.
Eudora was taking the first step. This was a good thing!
...
"Bang!"
The starry sky on the desktop suddenly exploded and scattered.
Eudora's eyes instantly widened into perfect circles. Her pink, tender lips opened and closed slightly, and a toneless voice was slowly emitted.
...
...
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