"It's good." Ashton said as he took a sip of his tea.
Of course, he didn't miss the disappointed faces of the three due to his lack-luster response.
"...he's a wierdo, confirmed." Blake stated.
"Yep, I too confirm." Mary followed. Alice also nodded.
Ashton rolled his eyes and ignored that instead.
"It doesn't make sense bro. Auntie Rosie's Pastries are one of the best things life has to offer. Those who doesn't feel happy eating her products are either depressed or psychopaths." Blake added.
"Yeah, we don't make the rules sadly." Alice hummed in agreement.
"I didn't say that it's bad." Ashton countered.
"Yeah, we know. But still, you reaction is so dull that it kind of kills the whole vibe you know. What's up with you? Is taste buds working properly?" Mary asked.
"They're working just fine." Ashton replied while smiling wryly, "I'm just not very emotive I suppose."
"Yeah, we figured." Mary nodded.
To be completely honest, Ashton wasn't really impressed. The food taste good but it wasn't mind-blowing. It tastes the same as he remember it back in his old world and those were still fresh to his memories so he wasn't really surprised.
"Anyway, what's your next class after this?" Alice asked Mary.
"Archery for me. 1-3pm"
Ashton could've sworn that he heard a thick dread on Mary's voice when she said that.
"Oh, I have Swordsmanship at 1-3pm as well."
"Shield Lessons for me." Blake added.
"White Magic, 1-3pm as well." Ashton replied.
"Oh, you're a White Mage?" Alice looked surprised. Blake too.
"Yes. Mary didn't tell you?" Ashton asked.
"No she didn't. That's surprising. We thought you'd be a Red Mage or a Black Mage." Blake shrugged as he continued eating his meal.
"Ah, well. I only have an affinity for White Mage so I picked it. Also, it doesn't sound so bad and I was interested in it anyway."
"From what I heard, the White Mage classes are boring." Blake commented.
"Yeah, my parents said that it's difficult and boring as hell. That's why many people failed the class." Alice added.
"Don't you worry about this guy. For all we know, that might just be right up his alley." Mary stated.
Ashton refrained from commenting and just smiled instead.
The four of them then spend their breaks together, talking about the most random things they could. Most of it ends up with the three of them arguing with each other while Ashton stood on the side and just nodded from time to time.
These three were so chaotic yet Ashton remained sane amidst of their arguments. They tried dragging him into their conflict but Ashton expertly deflects the topic somewhere else to escape from it.
Nevertheless, it was fun. Ashton didn't talk much but he had fun hanging out with these three. They're a little bit ridiculous and their never-ending arguments gives him headache but that's fine.
Eventually, their break is over. They went out of the shop and separated to go to their respective classes.
Since this class is about Specialization, Ashton wouldn't be with his classmates nor use their regular classroom.
The White Mage Class will take place in the Castle Main, more specifically at the area near the Academy Hospitals.
Following the directions, Ashton came across several huge white tents near the clear lake at the back of the hospital building. At first he was confused but he discovered that the directions he followed truly leads him here, which means that he's at the right place.
'WMA-1C' this is the classroom he supposed to enter. From looking around, he discovered that 'WMA' stands for White Mage Apprentice, and the tents erected here are truly where their classrooms would be.
He found the 1C tent and entered. He discovered that he's the first one to arrive so it was a bit boring. There's still ten minutes before the class started, so he used his smartwatch in the meantime while waiting for the rest of his classmates.
Time gradually passed and eventually, his alarm rang. At the same time, he sensed someone entering the tent where he's at.
A woman in her prime entered the tent. She was tall and curvaceous. She has a long blonde hair, a pair of soul piercing blue eyes, fair skin, plump lips and has a beauty mark at the left of her mouth. She wore a white doctors robe that has golden flames embroidered at he seams.
She looked kind, especially with that smile on her face. When she saw Ashton inside, she tilted her head and said:
"Oh, you're here. That's great."
"Uh..." Ashton was flustered but he managed to recover just in time before he embarrassed himself. "Good afternoon. My name is Ashton West."
"I know, I got your profile with me." The lady chuckled softly. "My name is Jeanne Clark. I'll be your mentor for the White Mage Profession. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, Professor." Ashton performed a curt bow. He then looked around at the empty seats beside him and asked: "I-It seems that my classmates are late."
"No, they're not Young Man." Jeanne chuckled. "You're the only one in this class."
"Eh!?" Ashton was shocked.
"Yes. You heard me right." Jeanne adjusted her glasses. "I only have you as my student for this class. Surprising I know, but that's just the way how it is. Not many students pick this Specialization after all."
"Uhm...are there any classes aside from this?" Ashton asked.
"Yes, there is." Jeanne answered readily.
That made Ashton think. It didn't take long before an idea formed in his head which made him ask: "This is about me being cursed, isn't it."
"My, how sharp of you." Jeanne looked pleasantly surprised. She nodded and said: "Indeed. It's because of your status as a cursed one. But don't take it to heart. Your curse isn't going to get in the way of you learning the duties of a White Mage."
Ashton nodded and released a sigh.
Well, this is weird. He wasn't expecting something like this to occur. Still, this isn't so bad. At least he'll get a one on one tutelage. He can use this to his advantage.
"Alright, let's get the formalities out of the way." Jeanne caught his attention. "Again, my name is Jeanne Clark. You may call me Professor Jeanne or Professor Clark if you want. Teacher also works fine. Up to you."
"I am a Licensed White Mage and an educator here at the Academy. On top of that, I also work as one of Medics in the school."
"Since it's just going to be the two of us here, I can give you my full attention so that you'll learn everything about this profession in the best way possible."
Ashton nodded in understanding. He's already expecting this.
"Due to our unique set-up, I decided that I'll teach in an unorthodox manner." She stated, "Don't worry, the work load isn't going to rise. We'll just use a different approach compared to how it usually goes when there's multiple students involved."
"This may hasten or slow down the time it'll take for you to finish learning everything you can from me. In the end, it'll boil down to your own efforts and since you're my only student, I offers me no other choice than to observe your progress closely."
"I'll try my best to not disappoint you, Professor."
"Good. That's what I like to hear." Jeanne beamed. "Alright, so first things first. I want to know what are your current thoughts about White Mages. Don't be afraid to speak your mind. There's no wrong answer."
Ashton thought for a bit before answering...
"It's a Specialization that suffered from common misconceptions." He answered.
"Care to elaborate?"
"Well...just before I went here, I was hanging out with a group of friends and when they learned that I was a White Mage, they were surprised. They then said that they heard that the classes are bound to be difficult and boring, that's why a lot of people tend to stay away from it. And those who did end up taking it, fails."
"I think these are nothing more than rumors. I don't know where they came from and how legitimate it is, but it is visibly harming the image of the Specialization. At least that's what I think."
"Would say that these rumors are baseless then?"
"No." Ashton shook his head.
"Interesting. Can you tell me why?"
"I mean...as far as I know, White Mages are synonymous to Healers. That means we dabble with life itself. One mistake could possibly bring us to the opposite spectrum of what a Healer should be."
"If we want to save lives, then we should know how it works first. The Human Physiology is already full of mysteries, add the fact that Healing itself is a sensitive topic that needs utmost care when being performed, I couldn't imagine learning it to be easy."
"So I wouldn't say that the rumors are baseless. It makes sense why they would say that. Still, that doesn't make it any better of course."
Jeanne beamed happily and said: "It is exactly as you said. Great job. With your current mentality, it wouldn't be too hard for you to do what others can't."
"Come closer, I need to show you something..."
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