Upon crossing the entrance gate, we found ourselves in a large hall lit by torches. A grand marble staircase led to the upper floors. Two guards armed with halberds were stationed on both sides of the staircase, at attention.

Unfortunately, this wasn't the time to explore.

We hurried after the Headmaster, towards the east wing of the building.
A long corridor awaited us, decorated with numerous paintings depicting members of the royal family, armour, and display cases filled with weapons and strange magical contraptions.

The old professor opened the first door to the left and entered the room.
Following him, I saw that we were being led into a large auditorium. Three large chalkboards occupied the wall near a large wooden lectern.

We students made our way to the many seats.
Amy and I climbed to the top rows.
From there I could see that the right wall was illuminated by a strange spell, the purpose of which eluded me, as the room was lit by a large chandelier hovering above our heads.

After waiting for everyone to be seated, Professor Skylark cleared his throat and began to speak.

«As Headmaster, I am not normally responsible for your lectures. But for today, I thought it would be useful to give you a personal introduction to the inner workings of the Academy,» the old wizard explained, his eyes sweeping through the crowd of students.

«I will put it to you very simply. You students are here for one reason and one reason only: to find the new Sir Aldric. In other words, among you sits the most powerful wizard of your generation, and our goal is to find out who they are. That is the ultimate purpose of the Academy..»

An excited buzz spread among the students.
One of us will become a wizard as powerful as Sir Aldric. It seemed impossible but... it HAD to be me.

«To that end, the Academy is structured to test you, to hone your skills, so that one of you can reach that level. Forget long, boring exams and evenings spent with books..»

An even more enthusiastic buzz spread among the students.

«You heard me,» said the Headmaster with a smirk, but immediately turned serious again, «But don't expect it to be a walk in the park.»

«Tell me, do you know anyone who has completed their studies at our school?»

«Exactly!» he exclaimed, nodding, without even waiting for us to respond.

«Only Sir Aldric,» he paused for a moment before continuing, «this is because only one person can successfully complete our course.»

Looking at our faces, which had lost all traces of enthusiasm, he continued:

«Each week, unfortunately, one of you will have to leave us. This will continue until there is only one wizard left. A wizard of the same level as Aldric or, why not, even greater.»

Something like that... I didn't think I'd ever reach his level. But to be the best among my peers... I could do it, no, I had to do it!

«Now you may be asking yourself, how will we assess you? As I have already told you, we do not value tests or exams at this Academy. No, we are looking for someone who excels in the practical side of magic. As the name of the Academy suggests, you will be judged solely on your ability to duel. Whoever manages to crush the competition with their fighting skills will be the winner!»

This statement seemed to slightly revive the class's mood.
As hard as it was going to be, our stay at the school was certainly not going to be boring. Focusing on magical duels sounded much more appealing than hunching over spell books.

The Headmaster continued:

«For this reason, we have established a set of rules to create a ranking. At the end of the week, the bottom of the class will be eliminated.»

As he said this, he gestured towards the strange luminous wall. Most likely, it was there that the students' ranks would be visible to the whole class.

«I have provided, in the pocket of your uniform, a list of the Academy's rules,» explained Professor Skylark, «BBut I will try to summarise the most important ones for you. Each of you can challenge one of your classmates to a duel. You cannot challenge the same classmate more than once a day. We don't want you to try to challenge your friends too often and distort the ranking,» he said with a cunning expression, «if your opponent decides to accept, the duel will begin in a few seconds. The winner receives two points and the loser loses one point. We have decided to allow you to decline a duel if, for example, you are not feeling well. However, accepting is strongly encouraged. Therefore, the person who declines a duel will lose two points and the challenger will gain one point.»

«It makes sense. If there were no penalties, a person would only accept duels they are sure to win,» I whispered to Amy, who looked a bit confused.

«That's pretty much it,» concluded Skylark, «Challenge each other, win duels, and don't decline too many challenges to climb the ranking. Other than that, in the manual, you'll find some common-sense rules. For example, any act of violence between students outside of duels is strictly prohibited. Or the fact that the duel ends if one of the parties is unable to fight or accepts the surrender of the other,» he seemed to conclude.

But with a smirk under his mustache, he added, «Oh, I almost forgot. This year we decided to add a new rule to make things more interesting.»

"That doesn't sound good."

«Dueling for points can get boring in the long run. Especially if you're at the top of the leaderboard and don't risk saying your goodbyes at the end of the week,» he said as if he was remembering something.

It probably had happened in the past.

«That's why we thought of adding another incentive to duels,» he continued, «If you challenge one of your classmates, you'll also be able to wager on the duel. Think of it as a bet. The loser pays. If you win, you can ask your opponent for an object, such as their jacket, or an action, such as making them carry your bag for a week...»

"I doubt it will stop at such innocuous things."

I was well aware of the cruelty that kids my age were capable of. In my mind I could already imagine some very unpleasant scenarios.

«However, be careful,» Skylark warned us as if he had read my mind, «nNo unreasonable requests. As you can read in the rules, our duels are overseen by an impartial magical judge, conjured by a powerful spell. If the judge deems your request unreasonable, the duel will be cancelled and you will lose two points. In addition, the person you are challenging will make a request of their own after accepting yours. If you make mean demands, be prepared to receive some in return.»

Despite these words, I couldn't help thinking that my school life would be anything but peaceful.

«Well, let's get down to business,» said the Headmaster, after giving us a few minutes to absorb what had been said so far.

He pulled out his wand from inside the jacket and waved it in the air.
The classroom door swung open, and a strange glass sphere made its entrance.
Inside of it shone a faint bluish light
I recolled seeing something similar on the cabinet in front of the class.
The old professor grabbed it and delicately placed it on the lectern, where it remained still, without rolling away.

«The first question to ask yourself when you feel like dueling is: who do I want to challenge? As you've just arrived, you have no idea of your classmates' abilities. To help you, I thought I would create a preliminary ranking,» said the headmaster, «however, assessing your abilities would take time, which is better spent constructively. So we're going to use a much quicker, albeit very crude, method. We'll rank you according to your mana level. It's an objective measure that will give you an idea of your opponent's magical potential and allow you to fight balanced duels.,» he explained.

"Balanced duels my ass..."

I could only see one way this could go: those with low levels of magical power would become easy targets for the stronger students.

"And he knows it well.."

I hadn't quite figured out Professor Skylark just yet, but he was certainly not stupid.
Was that his intention?
After all, if one sought the most powerful wizard, it made sense to follow the law of the jungle.
The weak would succumb first.
But then, what was the point of inviting them to the Academy? Something didn't add up, I had already realized it when I saw Amy here.

«Now, when I call your name, come to the lectern and place both hands on the sphere. You won't have to do anything else.»

So the professor began his roll call. The first student, a certain John Aberich, approached after hearing his name.
After grabbing the sphere, the light inside it increased in intensity before returning to its original state.

Glancing around, I saw Aberich's name appear on the right wall of the classroom with the number 0 next to it.

Other students followed. The sphere reacted differently, emitting a stronger or weaker light. In some cases, it illuminated the front of the class, while in others, it barely changed.
After completing the test, the names of the students were added to the ranking, changing their positions. Everyone had a score of 0.

"Mana doesn't give points. It's just a provisional ranking after all," I thought.

After a few students, it was my turn.

«Elizabeth Belvoir,» called the Headmaster

I stood up and made my way to the lectern absentmindedly.

I just had an idea.
I would soon have to fight my classmates.
Keeping my abilities hidden could be actually be an advantage.
From what I had been told as a child, I had a mana reserve that was definitely out of the ordinary. If I could keep it hidden from my classmates, maybe I could gather some easy points.

It shouldn't be impossible to hide the extent of my magical power.
As it happened, I had excellent control over my mana as well as the quantity.
As I reached for the orb, I concentrated. I imagined a barrier forming in the depths of my mind. Imagination was the most important principle in mana control.

"This is going to work!" I thought as I grabbed the sphere.

Suddenly, I felt as if my entire being was being sucked into that glass ball. The barrier I had erected to hide a fraction of my mana instantly shattered.
A flash of light burst in front of me, blinding me.
The nun who had measured my mana when I was a child wasn't kidding...

After regaining my sight, I thought I saw a smirk of mockery cross Professor Skylark's face, but it was only for a moment.

"I didn't imagine it, he knows what I was trying to do, that old man!" I thought, turning on my heels to return to my seat.

And that's when I realized that the eyes of the whole class were fixed on me.

"Mission failed," I thought as I climbed the stairs, "I hope someone with more mana than me goes to the lectern quickly, maybe they'll forget about me."

I couldn't help but laugh nervously as Amy told me how she had always known I was special.
After all the students had finished, the first place was displayed on the scoreboard:

Elizabeth Belvoir.