Regiara, Academy of Sorcery – Part 3

If you would like to read the story from the beginning, you can start here.

…

Mildred took a seat in the front row and looked around the empty classroom. One wall of shelves was filled floor-to-ceiling with scrolls. Another held various magical supplies: wands, small cauldrons, and the like. On the desk in front of her, a thick leather tome was already laid out. As she idly flipped through what was labeled as a beginner spellbook, her anxiety grew. The spells were foreign to her. 

Students began filing in as her head spun. She thought by landing a scholarship to Regiara, she must have had a great ability, but it looked like she didn’t even know the most basic spell. She lifted her head at the sound of boots marching across the floor. A woman she recognized as a Professor from yesterday strode to the front of the classroom, her cloak flowing behind her. 

“Welcome to your first class at Regiara. I am Professor Umbra and this is Beginner Spellcasting. For some of you this class may just be a refresher, but for others,” she seemed to glance at Mildred then, “you will have a lot to learn.”

Mildred gulped and grasped her quill, prepared to take copious notes. The professor began with a lecture on the history and creation of the basic spellcasting formula used at Regiara today. Mildred tried to control her breathing when she was told that this formula was far superior to the outdated one she knew. By the time Professor Umbra announced they were to put it into practice, she was starting to feel dizzy. 

“Cast a spell to bring a cauldron to your desk,” the professor began.

Mildred, with a rush of relief, teleported a cauldron in front of her in an instant.

“…using the superior Regiara spellcasting formula, Miss Adonia,” Professor Umbra continued, glaring at Mildred. 

Titters of laughter rang out behind her. Mildred blushed. She didn’t see anything wrong with her spell; she had completed the task effectively.

“Arabelle, please demonstrate the correct way.”

A girl seated across the aisle from Mildred, also in the front row, lifted her chin. She raised her wand, performed swirling motions along with a chant, and a cauldron sailed smoothly across the room, landing lightly on her desk. 

The class clapped and murmured in awe. Mildred frowned. That had taken longer than her spell, and the cauldron had flown, not teleported. To her, it did not seem to be a superior method at all. Mildred raised her hand.

“Yes, Miss Adonia, what have you learned,” Professor Umbra said with a sneer.

“Well…” Mildred immediately regretted raising her hand. “It seems to me th–that,” she might as well just say it now, “the way I performed the spell was more efficient.”

Gasps were heard all around the classroom. “It looks like you will need much instruction in the ways of Regiara, then. Of course, we don’t teleport things,” the Professor chuckled as if telling a small child something obvious to all the grown-ups. “There’s a greater risk of error if you cannot see the object. Imagine if that cauldron ended up in your neighbor.”

The whole class joined in the laughter, and most nodded in agreement. 

Mildred was taken aback. She had been teleporting objects since she was a small child and had never had an issue. Exasperated, she replied, “But if you do the spell properly that won’t happen, and it’s much faster.”

“I’ll not have you endangering your fellow students, Miss Adonia.” Professor Umbra crossed her arms and said with a glare. “You are forbidden from using the old ways at Regiara.”

…

What do you think of the story so far? Would you rather use the Regiara spellcasting formula or the old ways? Do you think Mildred will adapt? Let us know in the comments!

To continue Mildred’s story, click here.

Thanks so much for reading!

-Clever & WTF