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 Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:29 pm
The academy overlooking the capital city of Zidel was quite the image from where it was nestled along the edge of the mountains. A great gray building with towers reaching towards the sky with the snow covered peaks behind it, the early sunrise making it even appear more magnificent to those looking at the horizon. The main tower overlooking the city itself was full of books, piles of tomes that had been gathered over the decades since the first magic users and scholars decided to start teaching their craft together to multiple apprentices instead of solely taking in one at a time. It was there that Azreal wandered in the early mornings, his studies only interrupted when an apprentice came rushing in to let him know that a familiar visitor was on the premises. He’s currently being escorted into the main visitor’s lounge! The apprentice had informed him with a smile, urging Azreal to climb down the stairs to greet the guest. And it was only with the faintest of sighs that Azreal relented and placed down his book so that he could make his way down the spiraling staircase and through a side hallway towards the grandhall below.
[Azreal 1]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:29 pm
[Glacial by Discord]
Almost home sweet home. Eresin stretched his arms above his head at the thought. The building was just as elegant and as large as he remembered it being and no amount of time away from the academy would remove that image from his mind. If it wasn’t for marrying Talisia this place probably would have become his home once Nerio had finished training him. The very thought made him a bit sad, but not because of his marriage. Far from that! But it was still hard to think about his uncle and that was the biggest part of the reason that Eresin took his time coming back to the academy even after finding relics to share with the professors here. At least he did have some family here now though. The very thought brought a smile to Eresin’s lips as he allowed a student to guide him into the familiar lounge where he settled in. The question was though would he see his nephew today? Eresin questioned before reaching for a cup of fresh tea that the staff prepared while he waited. I suppose we’ll find out. He thought to himself before taking a sip of the herbal tea.
[Eresin 1]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:29 pm
As if on cue, Azreal found himself opening the door the same moment that his uncle finished taking his first sip of tea. “I see you made it safely here.” Azreal commented as he walked into the lounge used by most visitors on the main floor of the academy. His azure gaze swept over the room, the young mage pursing his lips slightly as he realized that his father wasn’t with his uncle today. “Did he skip coming into the city again?” It would have been nice to see the older mystic, but Azreal understood that his father hated being in the city and much preferred tracking down his mother for a visit instead of coming here. He was probably already flying around somewhere on Akemi while Eresin came here on Peco, the sorcerer giving over notes to the academy with their most recent discovery.
[Azreal 2]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:29 pm
[Glacial by Discord]
“Of course. No need to worry about us.” Eresin beamed towards his nephew. And we all know the answer to that. He quipped to himself before simply nodding at the other inquiry and taking a sip of tea. He had settled in the lounge so that he could spread out all of his notes on the coffee table here and enjoy the fireplace that was nearby. It was nice that the staff would prepare drinks and snacks as well for him, another perk of settling here and not in the library. “I’m sure he’ll show up at the sanctuary for the holidays in a few weeks though. So how are your studies going?” Nice. Casual talk to make up for the lack of a father. Good job me.
[Eresin 2]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:29 pm
Azreal settled in on the chaise that was across from the curved armchair where his uncle was sitting. He still kept some poise even as he tried to appear more relaxed, the mage somewhat resembling his own father at times like these minus the mischievous spark that the older mystic tended to have. “It is about that time, isn’t it?” He questioned, realizing that the winter solstice was indeed just a month away. The academy would close then for a full week to allow students to go home to celebrate before classes would resume in the spring, giving those who wanted more time at home nearly a full month to linger instead of rushing them back to their studies. Others like Azreal would probably return after the initial week to settle in and get a head start on any research or projects that they left behind for the holiday break. The thought made him pause. Would he return after the initial week? He supposed it simply depended on how the holidays went and who stayed at the sanctuary this time around, if his presence would be necessary or not. As for his studies? Well, they were going as usual. “I’m doing fine. I’ll be finished with classes after spring and Professor Aspen might want me to linger on as a tutor.”
[Azreal 3]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
[Glacial by Discord]
“Mmhmm.” Eresin mumbled around a mouthful of blueberry scone. He had taken a bite while Azreal was settling in on the chaise and was enjoying every bit of it. At least these haven’t changed. Traveling with Kian in the wilderness gave them little room for anything remotely sweet and so he was delighted to eat what he could here before flying back to the sanctuary. The holidays were indeed soon and he would be spending this full month catching up with Tally and spending as much time cuddling as possible before the rest of the family came home. If she didn’t chase him out for being gone for so long this time around. Had it been five months? Six now, I think. He winced at the very thought. It wasn’t fair that Kian skipped the capital while he had to linger here to drop off their findings. But he did enjoy catching up with Azreal. I’ll be home soon enough. Eresin thought to reassure himself before blinking at Azreal’s statement. “Is that so? That’s amazing! Do you like it here enough to stay and teach?” Azreal seemed more like an indoors type of personality, so maybe?
[Eresin 3]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
And there went some of his focus. Azreal simply shook his head as he watched his uncle enjoying himself, the hybrid glancing over the materials that were spread out on the table. What did the pair of them find this time while exploring? Last time his father had talked about even uncovering some ancient mage’s tomb, the man hoarding relics for decades before hiding them deep within the northern mountains. There apparently had been quite a few traps waiting for them, but at the end of the day they had stumbled out of that one alive and well enough. “I like the academy well enough. I feel like it’s better than risking my life in the wilderness, and I get to study materials that I never would have accessed otherwise. I’m assuming at least that you and my father got into some trouble this time around? Six months is quite the time away.” Azreal replied, looking towards Eresin with a raised brow.
[Azreal 4]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
[Glacial by Discord]
Ooof. Eresin placed the scone back on the plate and leaned back to brace himself. Was this going to become an interrogation? I hope not. He thought to himself with a soft sigh. His nephew tended to have some of the sharper edges that Kian normally hid and Eresin did not enjoy being under his scrutiny. Kian should be the one under questioning anyways! He would have plenty of time for that with Tally later when he came home. At least he could try to distract her with other things unlike the rest of the family. Still, he kept a smile on his face as he looked over Azreal. “It might have been a bit of a tricky situation, but nothing too serious.” Eresin waved his hand as he spoke as if to dismiss any thoughts of danger. “Kian just had to woo some mountain monks to get into their archives. We couldn’t send any updates because of a blizzard and then we had to barter so many things to get these scrolls from their vaults. Just look at all the information we collected on ancient rituals for runes.” Eresin nodded as if encouraging himself even. So many things indeed. He thought as he realized that Kian must have done some underhanded things to get away with what they actually brought back to the academy. He just hoped that his friend had only brought back copies and didn’t actually steal some sacred texts. Or as he likes to say ‘indefinitely borrow them.’ “But I am glad you like the academy then. I hope it all works out well for you here.”
[Eresin 4]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
“Is that so?” Azreal shook his head as he leaned forward and shifted one of the scrolls so that he could glance over them. Ancient Zenan runes for ancient rituals….seemed like the story fit well enough for Azreal to believe his uncle. His azure gaze swept over the iceling, a small frown on his lips as he studied him. There didn’t seem to be any obvious injuries either so surely nothing awful had happened at least recently to him. That didn’t excuse his father though who could be doing whatever the hell he wanted at the moment, all risks be damned. Speaking of doing whatever he wanted though…Azreal assumed it wasn’t supposed to be him reading over these scrolls first. “I guess these copies are going into the archives then once you review with the headmaster?” His fingers traced over the writing before he slowly removed his hand, Azreal settling back into the chair even though his gaze kept drifting over the parchments with interest.
[Azreal 5]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
[Glacial by Discord]
“Very so and true.” Reassured Eresin with a grin as he watched Azreal. Maybe I’m free from interrogations for now then. He thought to himself with relief. At least it looked like Azreal was more focused on the documents now instead of questioning how Eresin had obtained them with Kian’s help. “The copies? They are.” Eresin’s grin spread as he leaned forward towards his nephew. “Are you wanting to skim over them before they disappear for a bit?” They were alone and while he didn’t always break the rules like Kian it didn’t mean he wouldn’t rebel on occasion. What harm could it do?
[Eresin 5]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
“Uncle!” Azreal gasped as he leaned back further in his chair as if to protest the temptation. There was no way that he could do that! What if someone walked in while he was here with his uncle? Admittedly he was top of his class, but even as a tutor there was only so much that he could dare try before getting reprimanded somehow. What if they kicked him out of the academy for accidentally sabotaging sensitive material? “I’m not like my father.” He was the rule-breaker, not Azreal. Perhaps that was why his siblings considered him to have more of a stiff personality. The very thought made his own lips twist into a frustrated frown, Azreal leaning forward just to see if he could at least skim over the documents quickly. He wasn’t that much of a stiff, right?
[Azreal 6]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
[Glacial]
“I mean, it is up to you.” Eresin gave a light shrug as he watched his nephew. “I don’t think Aspen will mind though if you took a peek.” At least that was his own thought considering he was the one who had brought the scrolls to the school. “If anything he might just use that to force you into a teaching contract here.” A bit of a joke, but honestly it could play out that way if Aspen did walk in on them now.
[Eresin 6]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
Azreal’s gaze narrowed as he looked between his uncle, the doorway and then back to the scrolls. “I suppose a glance won’t hurt.” He acknowledged finally, his shoulders still stiff even as he reached for one of the scrolls to skim over. “If Aspen locks me into a contract though….well, you’ll have to explain it to our family members that ask.” He added after another moment, his eyes focused on the parchment as he slowly looked over the runes there. It was fighting techniques, using nature with martial arts in a style usually reserved for those living deep within the mountain monasteries. No wonder those who had them didn’t want the parchments to go all over the world. “My father definitely risked his neck for this one, didn’t he…” Azreal commented finally as he placed the scrolls back on the table. Admittedly though he would like to borrow them once the headmaster reviewed everything with the other professors. It would be interesting to incorporate some of that in his own training, the mage more at ease with the power of a storm than most.
[Azreal 7]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:30 pm
[Glacial]
“I’m sure they won’t be that surprised if you did work here.” Replied Eresin with a nod. Definitely not the biggest surprise of the year. He thought to himself with amusement as Azreal took his time to look over the scrolls. Normally Eresin would be more of a stickler for the rules himself, but he did realize that his nephew would be interested in these particular findings. “Risked my neck, you mean.” Joked Eresin with a chuckle. “Though I’m sure the writings won’t be able to teach all of the finer details of these techniques so there’s plenty of secrets yet in the mountains. It’ll take some improvising, probably.”
[Eresin 7]
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Posted: Wed May 21, 2025 3:31 pm
Azreal shifted in his seat, the young mage crossing his legs as he tried to settle even though he kept taking peeks over at the scrolls. He had taken a good glance already and he didn’t dare to hold onto them just in case Aspen did show up. Still, it didn’t stop his curiosity as he pondered what he just read. “I’m always ready to improvise and make something my own.” He admitted after a bit, the hybrid accepting the fact that his family probably wouldn’t be surprised if he did stay at the academy here in Zidel. “It would be nice though if you could convince my father to come around so that I could train with him more.” No one had yet matched his father’s prowess in battle with magic, at least not from what Azreal had witnessed here while training with others. “No offense intended, uncle.” Azreal added after a moment, not wanting his bluntness to be seen as him being purposefully rude to the ice mage before him.
[Azreal 8]
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