Need a hand?

What does a typical school day in a magic city even look like? Just spells until sunset? I lay in bed, eyes barely open. I was bone-deep exhausted, lying on the second floor of the dorm. My eyes blinked slowly. Heavy. “Knock, knock.” I force myself to sit. “Knock, knock.” The knocking continues. Should I pretend to sleep?

“Oi, new kid—someone’s here to deliver your belongings.” I rush to the door. Ruri stands there in her night outfit. “Oh? Where is it?” she said, thumbing toward the stairs. “In the lounge.” “Thanks…” I realized. Now, I’m living with many people. I could see my luggage moving inside when I reached the first floor. The black-haired girl moved her hand in sync with my luggage. I appreciated the moment, but it wasn’t long before she turned back to look at me. “Hey.”

“It’s getting dark… I try to help you move your belongings.” I smile and wave my hand. “Thanks for your help…” Awkward. “What about the wagon driver? Is he still out there?” She shook her head and passed me a letter. “He wanted you to have this.” A letter, perfectly sealed. Caught up in the moment, I opened it without thinking twice. A sort of number. Location? I stare at the ceiling, thinking. Aeter stepped in, silent as ever, her fingers brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. She folded the letter without a word. “You shouldn’t open letters in public.” Seeing her close confirmation, she has hidden her ears.

“Uh… Aeter… I heard you come from Ashfall.” Why am I so nervous? Straight to the point in a one-on-one conversation, trying to find something in common. “Um.” “Finally, someone who heard Ashfall didn’t give an empathetic look.” She just stared at me. Silent. Her gaze was unreadable. Is that how you lived after a long period? She became so silent.

Wait… Does that mean she isn’t a high schooler? “If you want to say something, please say it.” I unintentionally stepped back. Aware if she reads my mind. “Uh—h.” I point to my luggage. “Can you teach me how to do that?” She flicked her finger upward. “It’s a basic mage spell.” “No… how can I use it with my hand?” She sighed. “They will teach in school; you don’t have to rush.” She smiled, walking past me. Three years’ worth of stuff packed tight with Mom’s help. Way more than I needed. But it felt right to carry it all.

“Let me help you.” I turned. Ruri was there again, arms folded. I shook my head. “I probably shouldn’t ask you to lift anything heavy.” “I talked about teaching using a spell with a hand.” I smiled. “Thanks, Ruri-Senpai.” She points her finger up. “Let’s meet at the rooftop.” This dorm has a rooftop! The view? Unbeatable. I follow her to the third floor, and suddenly, she stops. “Can I put my stuff in my room first? Why do I have to carry it up here?” I heard a giggle from afar. “Goodnight. Don’t tire him out too much.” “Shut up! Emil.” Is casting a spell by hand really that hard? I should be careful not to waste her time. “Don’t listen to Emil; she always has the wrong type of idea.”

On the rooftop, I looked out over Azmere. Everything surrounded me, but the massive spiral structure rising into the sky caught my eye the most. Up there, compared to where I am now, still feels so distant. Even standing on this rooftop, feeling like I’m above the person I used to be, there’s still a long way to go. But I’ll learn something… something that will shape and polish my future self. “Can I use it by tonight, Senpai?”

“No, usually it takes about a year to get used to it. That’s why only second-years and above are allowed to do it.”

“Then why did you want to teach me?”

“N-Nothing! I just… love helping people. It’s kind of a habit.”

“Thank you, Senpai.”

“It’s not like I care, I mean! Nevermind… Even if I’m helping you, that doesn’t mean I will go easy on you.”

The view and the woman in front of me. Their beauty only lasts five minutes. She keeps pushing me to drain my mana nonstop. For a first day, this is way too much. I glance at my wand, wishing to cast a spell to stop time… Or at least slow it down. This was supposed to be a cozy first day. Why did I think I could handle this on day one? Standing here, out of breath, mana drained. “Hah… hah… Senpai, can I rest…?”

“I don’t have all the time, you know. We have school tomorrow.”

“Please—just give me a trick. If I knew one, I’d finish it faster!”

“There’s no point—even if we trained like this every day, it’d still take half a year.”

“Trust me, I know what I’m doing.” She sighed, staring at me with a furrowed brow. There’s no point in investing in a kid you just met today. But still… I’m buying it. Behind that aggressive exterior, her heart feels kind. “You’re gonna learn this fact not long from today. “A wand just helps give your mana form,” she said, raising her finger. “But the real power comes from your imagination.” Light flared from her fingertip, rising like a silent firework. It bloomed, fractured, and dissolved into the sky.

“But we all imagine it daily, so why can’t everybody cast it?” I asked. “The key is in admitting it,” she replied. “Casting without a wand is like crawling when others can sprint. You might have power, but it’s clumsy. Faint. Almost invisible.” She grabbed my finger gently. “Talking about it is easy, but admitting you're powerless without a wand. That’s what breaks most mages. That’s a hard truth. Some people can’t get past that phase. Some quit.”

She looked straight at me. “You wake up, admit it: you’re not good enough yet. That’s the only way you grow every day.” She didn’t smile. Just stared at me, serious as ever. I take a deep breath, preparing for everything. Even if I collapsed here, I’d still be glad I came. “Let’s see if you’re ready, Auron,” she said. Not kindly. Not cruelly. Just the truth.