The Old Scholar

As the clock struck 4:35 in the afternoon, Leilani's doors were knocked upon as she was in the middle of her work. 

"It's open" Leilani said as she glanced up at the doors, 

The doors opened and Victoria's head popped out, her eyes scanning the room before landing on the woman at the table on the far end with a giant glass window behind her and who was staring at her. Victoria was still dressed in the female university uniform which was a blue coat and blue skirt that could switched out for slacks, with a white polo shirt underneath the blue coat while Leilani herself was still dressed in her usual long sleeve white polo with a black vest, black slacks and leather shoes with her iconic circular black glasses upon her face

"Eheh, hi Ma'am" Victoria voiced with a hint of nervousness 

"Hello to you too Miss Eliess, please, come in and take a seat"  Leilani followed up as she gestured for her student to come in

"Right, thank you Ma'am" Victoria nodded with a thanks as she entered the room, 

As Victoria entered the room and closed the door behind her, her eyes were wide with amazement as she saw the massive bookshelves that lined the entranceway as she stepped forward, the books had names written on their spine that she couldn't make out. Her eyes danced between the numerous thin and thick books that lined the shelves and as she did so, she attempted to spot any book that had a language she understood but to no avail. Her surprise was increased even more when she glanced up at the ceiling and walls not lined with shelves, seeing contraptions that had crystals incorporated into their designs, she saw several of them display different angles of the university and other areas she had not recognized before. 

"Well?" Leilani asked, bringing her student out of the trance of wonder and fascination 

"Oh! Right, my apologies Ma'am" Victoria apologized with a bow before she quickly took her seat across the Dean. 

"It's fine, no one else has been inside this office except for my secretary Feisha but she is on leave at the moment" Leilani replied as she leaned back into her chair 

"I see....it's just so...fascinating" Victoria remarked as she glanced back at the shelves and the contraptions 

"Mhmm, now let's get down to why you are here, but first...cheesecake and hot chocolate?" Leilani offered as she conjured up another cheesecake this time strawberry and another mug of hot chocolate and slid it over to her 

"Oh? How did you do that Ma'am?" The baffled crown princess asked as she looked at her refreshments.

"It's an ancient form of magic called 'Manifestation' It's pretty volatile if one does not know how to use their magical energy and it is a requirement for becoming the Dean of this university" Leilani answered the question as she conjured a teapot holding more hot chocolate and poured herself another cup. 

"Ohhh, how volatile is volatile?" The blonde crown princess continued to ask, her eyes still filled with fascination 

"Volatile as in you die. Horribly" The Dean answered her frankly, causing Victoria's eyes to widen and an expression of shock to form upon her face 

"Yep. So let's leave it at that. Ahem. Anyways, I reread your file Miss Eliess and I must say you have quite the record so far" Leilani stated as she took a sip from her hot chocolate

"Enrolled into the full six-year college program, majoring in Magical History and minoring in Advanced Continental History. With high grades ever since you entered your batch four years ago, I must say, this is an excellent performance so far even by my standards" She continued as she praised her student before her, causing Victoria to look down and blush from the compliments. 

"Th..thank you, Ma'am, I try my best given I am the eldest in the family" Victoria replied as she returned her gaze to her teacher, taking a bite of the cheesecake and a sip of the hot chocolate.

"Now, by all accounts, you should be out there partying with your batchmates and groupmates before the vacation month comes and you all will be sent home. So why are you here?"

"I wished to speak with you about a topic that has been gnawing at me ever since we began researching our research topic" 

"And that topic is what?" Leilani asked as she leaned forward 

"Well, the fact that in every single record we saw, every book that we read, and through every research paper and article published through the libraries of our homes and of the national library here in Partoba, there is no mention of anyone in history, dating to back to even the first records of the world, there is no one that has ever been mentioned to have been blessed by Santomin" 

{!}

Leilani's eyes widened as she heard the statement leave her mouth. She had not forgotten this fact as she herself was very much familiar with as she was granted the title by her people and by Santomin herself as "The First and Only Scholar of Santomin". When she asked the Goddess of Wisdom the why of her title, Santomin had told her that her title of Scholar was reserved for only the smartest and most intelligent person in the world, who by this point in time was still Leilani by an insurmountable margin due to her accomplishments and achievements and the fact that Leilani has an entire lifetime and lightyears of knowledge ahead of anyone alive until now. One of the facts that Santomin brought up during her explanation was that Leilani had in her words "Made the magic equivalent of a nuclear reactor that powered Partoba and Imperia and had several magic equivalent hydrogen bombs she kept in storage" Which in Leilani's defense was an experiment that went amazingly well. 

Regardless of those facts, it had been true to Victoria's words. There had been no other person in the world that had been blessed by Santomin other than her and despite this, no one for the past five thousand years or so had not questioned it. Still, this young girl who was not even a fraction of her age, had become suspicious of it, and that both amazed her and made her nervous as to the safety of Leilani's true identity.

"That...is an interesting statement Miss Eliess, can you explain it further?" Leilani asked as she conjured up another blueberry cheesecake for her to snack on as she prepared for this young girl's answer

"Certainly! For starters Ma'am, in the writings of the "First Scholar of Assarinus" the scholar of my home continent, mentioned numerous times her own personal feelings as she taught the populace, with the repeating phrase "What would master do?" being the most common of phrases, something that I was surprised was repeatedly overlooked by our historians and scholars of the past" Victoria began as she downed more cake and hot chocolate

"Furthermore, she repeatedly stated and it is greatly recorded that she was blessed by the God of Elements and Magic Dashran, giving her unrivaled amounts of magical power and energy that helped her spread her vast knowledge that she was certainly taught by the unknown scholar who came from this continent" Victoria continued as she stared into Leilani's eyes. 

"Hmm yes, that last part does make me think, however Miss Eliess, what if the scholars of the world were all taught by Santomin herself? It would explain the fact that they were all smart and it would explain their blessings no?" Leilani asked, a small smile concealed by her covering her mouth as she took another piece of cake 

"Well....uhhh....Ah! That wouldn't be possible Ma'am!" Victoria quickly answered after taking a few moments to think

{?} 

"How so?" Leilani replied with an eyebrow raised 

"Uhh...its...its...its because that would not make sense!" 

{?}

"Explain" 

"Well. If the Goddess Santomin taught the scholars they would have certainly addressed her properly instead of just "Master" It seems far too mortal to call the Goddess of Wisdom just that. I find it impossible that they would call her just that instead of Goddess or another name akin to her divinity" Victoria finished as she drank the last of her hot chocolate and ate the final bite of her cake 

Leilani took a moment for her student to catch her breath, offering her a cold glass of water with ice that Victoria downed immediately to wash away the sweetness in her mouth. After this a few minutes of silence followed, with the Dean just watching the blonde crown princess gather herself again, giving her the time she needed to formulate the rest of her argument and her thoughts. 

"So, you're telling me that your entire argument for this is that you fail to believe that the First Scholars of the world would not call Goddess Santomin by a more proper name?" Leilani asked which broke the silence 

"Well, it sounds absurd when you put it like that Ma'am" Victoria replied as she kept her focus on her professor 

"sigh...You will need a more concrete powerful argument than that Victoria, but I must say the points you raised beside the name are interesting, have you shared this with anyone else?" Leilani commented as she leaned back into her chair 

"None yet Ma'am, I ran it by you as I wish to use this during my next research defense in the coming term" 

"Ah I see....how about this, since I very much like to see how far you can research into this little topic of yours, I can let you and your group present your research findings for your previous defense and this new one you have at the International University Expo being held in the free port city of Rotngen a few months after your vacation" The Dean followed up as she took out a paper from one of the drawers of her desk and handed it over to Victoria 

"Really? The International University Expo?! The single largest educational meeting in the world where even royals from across the world attend?!" Victoria stated with wide eyes as she looked at the paper 

"Yes, the very same one...didn't you attend it already?" 

"No, I always wanted to but mother and father barred me from doing so. To think I can present my work to the smartest minds of the world..."

"I wouldn't call them that but whatever floats your boat Victoria" Leilani remarked as she remembered the many scholars, professors and historians that were always present in the expo

"Hmm? Why would you say that Ma'am, as fellow academia shouldn't you be more happy to see them?" Victoria asked with a concerned and surprised expression

"Ehh, when you get to my age, and to my level of enlightenment, the supposedly wise words of your fellow academia is akin to baseless ramblings...most of the time anyway" Leilani answered with a sigh

"Is it really though Ma'am? considering that you are in charge of the most prestigious and oldest academy by far, and one that is paid for by the whole world" Victoria quickly stated 

"Maybe, but that's just speculation" The Dean answered with a small smile as she rose from her seat and gazed back out the window, seeing the sun setting in the distance 

A few minutes of silence returned as Leilani took in the beauty of the world once again like she had done so many times before, her mind rummaging through multiple memories that spanned five millenniums, although she does not know why, but the old feeling of having a student that she could personally teach was coming back to her, not like teaching a class, no that was different, the same feeling of when she taught those eleven minds when she wandered the world, the feeling of imparting knowledge that she knew would be put to good use. She turned back to Victoria who was poking the plate that once had her cheesecake with the fork, trying to see if there was anything magic related to the thing, a small flash of a memory depicting a young girl with the same reaction to a scroll filled Leilani's vision and that small smile she had earlier grew slightly larger. 

"Are you busy tonight Miss Eliess? 

"Hmm? Ohh, no Ma'am I am not" 

"Hmmm. I see, meet me in the university library around nine tonight. I will inform the chaperone of the dorm ahead of time, you are dismissed" 

"Uhhh....Yes Ma'am" 

.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

At around 8:30 in the evening, Victoria was still inside her dorm room with her roommate Tatiana, a local commoner from the southern cities of Partoba who was just as smart as anyone else but lacked in the magic department due to her mana pool being minuscule, a fact she tried to make up for with rigorous physical training and weapons training. Tatiana was a beautiful woman with darker tan skin and flowing curly black hair that was aloof and puffy, her well-endowed and curvaceous body was on a similar playing field as Victoria's but with her bosom being a cup smaller than her friend's.

"So, why are you still dressed like that? Despite it being lights out in a few minutes?" Tatiana asked as she lay on her bed with her sleeping gown on while Victoria was dressed in a dark blue shirt with some pants and black shoes with a cloak and hood wrapped around her 

"Professor Leilani wished to speak with me at the university library later. I couldn't say no if it meant I get my hands on some more information" Victoria replied as she did the finishing touches on her outfit 

"But didn't you already read most of the works in the library though?" Tatiana asked 

"I have. But since I am going with Professor Leilani, I might have access to the more restricted volumes, who knows, maybe I can find one about how to increase your mana pool" Victoria finished as she turned to her friend who had an understanding expression on her face 

"Safe travels then, don't get your blood sucked by that vampire" 

"Professor Leilani feasts on magic not blood" 

"Then don't get your magic sucked" 

"Uhuh, thank you for the concern, see yah!" 

Exiting her room which was on the 4th floor and the left-most side of the building, Victoria scanned her surroundings, seeing that all of the dorm rooms were closed and that only the soft glow of the lamps outside the dorms were lit, she turned her head to the right and saw a large female arachnia with a black and white on her legs while wearing a simple white tunic and a brown overcoat waiting for her by the stairs leading down, this was Miss Botswell, the dorm manager and main house maiden of the girl's dormitory on campus. Reaching the stairwell, Victoria turned to Miss Botswell who was already looking at her 

"The Dean has already informed me of where you are going tonight...I must say seeing her in such a mood is refreshing after such a long time" Botswell remarked as she placed her hands on Victoria's shoulders 

"Hmm? what do you mean Miss Bots?" Victoria asked, confused by the last statement 

"It's nothing, go now. She is waiting for you" 

"Mhm!" 

As she exited the dorm building, Victoria saw an armored suit standing outside waiting for her. She could not sense any lifeform within the suit of armor and concluded that it was a guard of sorts, one that she had never seen before however. When she neared the suit, her eyes widened and she took a step back out of caution as she saw it turn to her, the helmet not showing anything living behind the grates on the eye protector.

"Hello there Miss Eliess" The armor spoke with a type of voice she could not recognize,

"Oh! Hi-"

"Come along now, this set of armor will escort you to the library, hurry up" The voice cut Victoria off before the armor started moving quickly away, with Victoria chasing after it

Soon they arrived at the library in the center of the university, with Victoria winded by all the running she did trying to chase after the suit of armor, she realized by the time she arrived that she could have easily just walked here due to her knowing where the library was in the place, causing her to smack her forehead and mumble angrily at herself. Regardless, when she arrived at the front entrance, she did not find Professor Leilani as she had hoped, but when she was about to call out her name, the armor patted her on the shoulder and pointed at the door before turning into dust. 

Entering the library, Victoria heard the sounds of a grand organ and some drums with a beat playing throughout the place, quickly exiting to the nearby field to see if the outside could hear it and was surprised to find that everything was quiet. Heading back inside, Victoria listened to the song that was being played, although she did not recognize the notes being played nor the words being sung by the feminine voice which she could tell was probably Professor Leilani, the words she was able to make out, or at least what she thought were the words formed this 

Although not understanding what the hell these words or if they were words meant, she could feel chills in her body as the music continued, especially when this verse was repeated and it was accompanied by every single instrument playing so far, plus a choir, she could not understand why this was happening now but her best guess was that this was being made by the person she had come here to see. She spent a few minutes wandering around until she finally reached the forbidden section of the library, a section forbidden to everyone including the professors of the university, with the only key to access it residing with the dean of the university. She saw that the door was open and she went inside as the singing got louder and louder, until she rounded a corner and saw Dean Leilani singing the song with an angelic voice as she looked through numerous books on the shelf, using her arms as well as several floating limbs to pick up the books from the shelves before rapidly flipping through them as her rapid reading allowed her to scan and familiarize and memorize books within seconds or minutes, a feat that stunned and left Victoria in awe. 

"Ah! You are finally here Miss Eliess, took your time didn't you?" Leilani said as she turned around and saw the still-stunned student 

"Uhhh, ye...Yes! I am sorry for my lateness, I was just mesmerized by many things on the way here. for example, the song you were singing, I don't believe I had ever heard that language in any of our advanced language classes or historical language classes" 

"Ah...well, this is a very ancient language actually. It was part of my requirements to become dean of this school" 

"Ohhh...what is the language called?" Victoria continued 

"det svenska språket" Leilani replied 

"Oh? sounds...hard" 

"It is, especially its linguistic cousins but let's not dwell on that for now. For now, I will give you access to any book within this library that may help you in trying to find answers to your questions. The books on the shelf on your right is a special type of book called a Literature Acceleration Device or LAD, it uses magic to transfer massive amounts of data from the contents of the pages of the book into your mind. Due to their volatile nature, I suggest you do not touch them less you want your brains to be fried and blown out, instead, I found some literature that could be of use to you, let me just see where I placed it" Leilani continued as she looked around the shelves 

Victoria watched in silence as she saw her Dean do her work, but as she was just watching Leilani at work, a voice called out to her from one of the LADs to the right, her gaze turned and she saw it softly glowing. Despite her better judgment and Leilani's words of warning, Victoria reached out and touched the one that was glowing, and suddenly the glow grew brighter

"AAAGGGHHHHH!" Victoria screamed as she felt the magic and data flowing straight from the book and into her brain, with the words turning into pictures and memories of someone who lived a long time ago

"Victoria no!" Leilani cried as she immediately cast a barrier to separate the book from her student and then used her floating limbs to cradle the shaking and crying girl, looking down at her student with a concerned expression but noticing that Victoria was looking up at her with fear 

"You are.....The First and Only Scholar of Santomin! Your Alive?!" Victoria cried

{!}

The concerned expression was still there, but there was also a hint of anger and weariness as she looked straight into Victoria's eyes

"What did you see" 

A/N: And here we go! It seems that Victoria has seen something that she was not supposed to and it seems that Leilani is not too happy about it. If you have any comments or reactions or even theories leave em below! And as always Stay Safe and Enjoy Your Day!