Mr. Seagrain looked at a few others before he continued. “Y’know, things were a lot different when this academy was founded. ‘Phoenix Military Academy’ used to mean that young mages were trained specifically to join the Royal Army upon graduation.” His gaze traveled out a nearby window, where one could see The Yolk looming eerily in the sky some hundreds of miles away. “My, how times have changed. Centuries ago, before the founding of the academies, the raids from The Yolk were even worse. Our ancestors needed all of the firepower they could get, so many young mages had to learn how to fight and defend their homes along with the adults. However, many of those children were far from ready and met cruel fates at the hands of the savage monstrosities that emerged from that red sphere…”

“......” 

He paused for a moment, perhaps letting what he’d just said sink in for his students. Once he saw that he had their full attention, he went on. “Hence, The Board was formed and in turn, they worked with the nobility and their territories to form the major secondary schools of Taqora that you know today…” He pointed outside towards The Yolk. “All to properly educate the young into strong and productive mages for generations to come. To ensure that at any given time… whatever abomination may pass through that thing…”

Mr. Seagrain brought his finger over to his students, pointing with purpose. “...kids like you will be ready!” 

There was another moment of silence following these words. It was clear to Emi that Mr. Seagrain wanted them to truly understand what it means to be a student at not just Phoenix, but the other major academies as well. All that their forebears established in the past was to better prepare their descendants for what was to come.  

With that, Seagrain lowered his arm and sighed. 

“These days, we’ve reached an ‘era of peace’,” he said, folding his arms. “Hell, there hasn’t been a raid in some twenty years, but don’t think for a second that means we can take it easy. The Military in Phoenix Military Academy may only be in name alone these days, but whatever career path you happen to be shooting for, the classes will be tough, and as the years go by, they’ll be even tougher. Any upperclassmen can echo that sentiment. It’s the way of things…so that this world doesn’t swallow you all whole.”  

““““““......”””””

That last sentence struck a chord with everyone in the room. Emi especially. Doubt began to creep in as a specific childhood memory resurfaced…

“Get up, Emi. We’re far from finished.”

“B-but, Mom…I can’t do it. I…”

“I get it. Your mana pool is extremely small, but if you can’t even cast a simple defensive spell to protect yourself, what use will you be to anyone else? Your peers will see that and consider you as nothing more than a liability.”

“A liability?” 

“And you don’t want that, I’m sure. So it’s important that you keep trying, understand?”

“......”

“Do you understand?”

“...Yes, Mom…” 

Her mother was a strict teacher, but Emi finally understood why she was so hard on her. With her mana pool, she'd never be as strong as Dante Leerex, as discrete as Yuki, or as enigmatic as Shina Urahara. It simply wasn’t going to happen. So Emi decided long ago to move her focus elsewhere, to science. Her mother took a similar path, albeit in a completely different area. With the dominance of magitek in the Contemporary Age, there was a place for her to become a technomancer, a mage who uses mana (typically their own) to construct magical weapons and gadgets to perform all sorts of feats. Emi had just enough mana within her to generate two of her mana capsules per day. To her, achieving that was more than satisfactory.

That's why she wanted to be a part of PMA's Support program. So that when she graduated, she'd be sought after for her skills by a mercenary company, a traveling party, or, better yet, The Crown. She hoped that her talent for invention would compensate for her lack of combat skills in the long run. 

Mr. Seagrain sighed heavily, appearing to be stewing over what he’d said. Holding his head up, he gave a slight nod and clapped his hands together. “Alright! Now on to my favorite part of Opening Day….” 

The class watched him as he reached for something behind the podium and produced a large clear orb. As soon as it came into full view, a majority of the class collectively groaned. 

An Affinity Test… Emi’s heart skipped a beat. 

“Yes, yes, I’m sure your instructors had you go through this back in primary, but you’re all still growing boys and girls, so your magical potential may be much different than last time.” He placed the orb upon a cushion atop the podium. “Plus, it’s a pretty neat way to do roll call, dont’cha think? Now, let’s see here…Seth Cohen, please step up to the orb.”

The large orcish boy from before set down his knitting needles and walked over to the podium. He raised his hand and touched the orb and it emitted a slightly dim glow. It then shifted to the color orange and projected the image of a stone, the sigil for geo magic. 

“I see.” Mr. Seagrain grinned. “With your mana pool, and a lot of training, you’re fit to become quite the Fighter, Mr. Cohen.”

“So, it’s the same as last year,” Seth sighed, his tone betraying his disinterest. “Great…”

He trudged back to his seat and resumed his knitting. Mr. Seagrain simply shrugged and called a few more kids to the front. 

The orb's purpose was to accurately track the growth of a young mage. While most people are born with specific affinities and techniques, they might change during adolescence. They may develop an affinity for new elements, or their mana pools may expand. It was critical to assess a young mage's potential in this manner considering that they will have achieved their pinnacle as mages by the time they reach maturity.

“William B. Fox.”

A tall human boy of Anubian descent stepped forward. The orb shined relatively bright before shifting to the color purple. Soon after, the image of a weighing scale appeared. This was the sigil for gyro magic. Emi gulped as the list of names drew closer to the letter ‘S’. Her heart rate increased tenfold. A cold sweat traveled down her spine. Cady turned to her, sporting a look of concern.

“Hey, you don’t look so hot, Emi,” she remarked, attempting to bring a hand to her forehead. “What’s the matter, you comin’ down wit’ somethin’?”

Emi leaned back, waving her arms frantically as she spoke. “I-I’m fine, Cady! Really.” Her nose twitched.  “I’m…um…just a little nervous is all.”

“Hmm…” Cady studied her dubiously before finally smiling and nodding. “H’yeah! Guess I can’t really blame ya, there. I’m purdy antsy myself.”  

 Emi forced a smile before feeling someone’s gaze on her. She turned to her right to see Katsumi watching the Affinity Test unfold. Had he been staring at her? If so what for? The prospect of that alone brought forth an indescribable feeling.