The next morning, guards escorted Jax through the academy's pristine marble corridors.
They stopped at massive double doors. One guard knocked twice. The doors swung open.
Jax stepped inside.
The room was vast. Circular. Designed for intimidation.
He stood on the ground floor—a lone figure in the center of a sunken arena. Above him, seven elevated seats formed a semicircle, each positioned higher than his eye level, forcing him to look up at whoever sat there.
'Classic power move,' Jax thought. 'Make the peasant crane his neck.'
For now, the seats were empty. Silent.
Then footsteps echoed.
The first figure entered with grace that defied age.
An elf woman with silver hair. Her face bore the faint lines of centuries, yet she moved with ethereal elegance. She wore flowing robes of deep blue embroidered with gold runes.
She sat without a word, her nameplate gleaming: Aerisya Velith Elunar - Senior Professor of Ancient Magics.
Next came a woman whose presence chilled the room.
