Taking a deep sigh, Sand walked toward Caden, and pulling Caden up by his collar, Sand said, "This will be your first lesson. Never make a move until I say so in my presence," his eyes locking onto Caden's.
Cowering in fear, Caden slowly nodded, "Yes."
Sand let go of Caden's collar and explained, "These walls are imbued with the Truth vs Lie paradox. If a person with permission gets close enough to its threshold, they will see the wall in its true form."
The true form of it, which Caden saw, was the same wall as it was from far away, but it was a hundred times bigger in all dimensions. Seeing such a sight for the first time, Caden's mind couldn't process it all.
"Come now, let's go!" said Sand, guiding Caden toward his room.
As they entered the wall, Caden was even more shocked to see that the space inside the wall was even bigger than it was outside, far more bigger than what one could see from far away. Excited, Caden spun around on his legs, taking it all in as he saw various hallways, rooms, and staircases leading to big halls and the hanging portraits of the old legendary figures. The statues of members of the Arcane families who studied there were perched on special pedestals, all in various positions that screamed power and authority.
Walking for half an hour and up hundreds of staircases, they finally reached Caden's room. In great anticipation, Caden pushed open the door, but all the joy on his face vanished as he saw the room. Just a single bed, a window, a desk, a wardrobe, and a lantern hanging from the ceiling.
With a frown on his face, Caden asked, "What is this?"
"Your room!" Sand replied.
"I know it's my room, but why is it so small? I thought I would get an enormous and luxurious room, not some kind of prison."
"You may have the name of the Starhaven family, but here, you're just a human. This academy has a system in place where you have to earn things. For example, your room—you won't get a good room unless you perform well in exams and activities. Even then, the room assigned will be based on your points. If you perform well, you will get more points, and with more points come more privileges. Even Prince Redhart started with a room just like yours, even though he is the son of the king." Clasping his hands behind his back, Sand bowed from the waist. "I will see you in the afternoon for your first lesson," he said, closing the door of the room and leaving with quiet footsteps.
Caden slowly moved toward his bed and saw that his uniform lay on the bed: a yellow cloak with a black vest inside, a sword of his size, and a grimoire. He then moved toward the window and opened the panes. Beyond them was a patch of thick forest filled with pine trees and snow.
Some time had passed, and Sand waited in the open fields, standing still and looking at the endless sky as if he was meditating or perhaps reminiscing an old memory. He tilted his head and saw Caden coming toward him, the small sword in hand, wearing the black outfit and the yellow cloak over it.
"How much do you know of magic?" Sand asked.
"I don't know anything," Caden replied honestly.
"Alright. Let's start with the basics! Do you know how magic came into this world, Caden?"
With a curious look on his face, Caden asked, "How?"
Sand gently pushed Caden's shoulder down, making him sit on the ground. Sand stood up again, checked his voice, and adjusted his coat before beginning:
"Six thousand years ago, there was a sailor named Erevas who went beyond the known lands in search of Godhood. He used to say that he saw a god in his dreams, and the god told him to go to an unknown island located at the corner of the world. The island was in the Night Sea, yes, the coldest and harshest ocean in the world, but his belief never shattered. In his small boat, which he made himself, he kept heading toward the northeast of the world."
"Ultimately, after a decade of journeying in the sea, hunting fish and drinking rainwater, he reached the island. There he saw a land untouched by mankind, the trees were the size of castles, and the fruits on them were as big as houses. Surrounded by an ice-cold ocean and stormy weather, it was an enchanted island. Tired of eating the raw fish of the ocean, he quickly ran toward the trees, cutting off a small piece of the ginormous fruit, he ate it."
"What happened then?" Caden asked with curiosity.
"Well, a century after he left for the journey, a small boat washed ashore in the land of the Whisperlands of the Elves. When thoroughly checked, it was concluded that the boat belonged to that man, and everything I've said until now was written in his journal, which was found within the boat," Sand paused for a moment. "The last words written in his journal were, 'In Perpetuum Noctis,' but to this day, no one knows what that means…"
"But how does that relate to the origin of magic?" Caden asked.
"Well, after the boat was found, suddenly everything in the world became chaotic—wars began, merciless killings, corruption, greed, lust, pride. It was as if the demons and devils had taken over the world. But a few years later, suddenly seven people appeared out of nowhere who claimed to be the gods of the new world. They said that the world we knew was no longer present, it had been fed upon by evil, and now, they would make a new world for us."
"The gods then selected seven people from the crowd and made them the Seven Heavenly Saints. They granted them the seven teachings we know now. It was a revelation. A revelation of the history of Eonspire. Then the Magic Saint taught us magic and how to control paradoxes. That was how it was born."
"Well, that was… interesting," Caden said.
"I know it might seem that way. It seems like that to me too. This story… It's too convenient for such a thing as magic. At first, I thought it was some kind of folktale, but right now, we have no choice but to believe it. We can't argue against divinity. We have to believe what they tell us to believe, that's what people believe. But I am not like that. The gods have disappeared, the saints slumber, and the world is yet again in the hands of us mere mortals, like it was six thousand years ago," Sand looked at the sky and then into Caden's eyes. "The difference this time, though, is that we have magic."