Hajin dropped onto the floor beside the wall and left a polite gap between his knees and their feet.
"Alright, class is in session," he announced, slapping the stone beside him, "and nobody touches anything dangerous, including each other, so sit wherever you like."
Elise glanced toward Allen before sitting, keeping her folded examination slip pinned beneath one gloved hand.
Sable stayed standing until she saw the entrance steps past Juna, then crouched beside Elise with her sword left clear. She planted one knee on the stone and kept the other raised, ready to spring up the moment anything moved.
'Two volunteers, one suspicious blade, and a wolf waiting to heckle me, so this classroom is basically perfect.'
"Pop quiz," Hajin snickered, resting his hands on his knees, "what's mana?"
Elise straightened at once and drew a breath through her nose, "The primordial ether absorbed from our surroundings, refined within the vessel, and directed through established channels,"
