The Lesson of Control
Arcana Academy did not teach magic as wonder.
It taught it as law.
The first lesson Eren attended was called Foundations of Control, a mandatory course for all first-year students. The lecture hall was shaped like a tiered amphitheater, its walls embedded with sigil plates that glowed faintly in response to the presence of mana. As students took their seats, the room itself seemed to react—light pulsed, air thickened, power acknowledged power.
Except for one seat.
Eren sat where the glow did not reach.
Professor Althar stood at the center of the hall, his robes marked with authority sigils earned through decades of measured excellence. He did not raise his voice. He never needed to.
"Magic," he began, "is obedience."
With a gesture, a sigil circle ignited before him. Precise. Stable. Perfect.
"Power without structure is chaos. Structure without control is failure. This academy exists to prevent both."
Students activated their sigils in unison. The sound was subtle