"I am going to kill you!" Marcus chased after his friends, his wooden sword swinging wildly in the air.Jenna screamed in exaggerated terror, laughing as she ducked behind a barrel. "You'll have to catch me first, Sir Marcus!"The others shrieked with laughter, scattering across the cobbled square beneath the fading amber sky. Merchants were packing up their stalls, the smell of fresh bread and roasted nuts still lingering in the air. The warm glow of the setting sun bathed Millbrook in golden light, casting long shadows that danced around the children.Marcus darted around the barrel, determined to catch his quarry. His breath came fast, his small boots slapping the stone as he charged through the market square. "No villain escapes my justice!"Jenna squealed again, barely evading him, while the others clapped and cheered. For a moment, the world was nothing but laughter, joy, and innocent games beneath the painted sky.The sun hung low over Millbrook, casting long golden rays across

The transport carriages arrived at dawn, their polished wood and brass fittings gleaming under the soft blush of morning. Marcus stood in the gathering light, gripping the handle of his single worn travel bag. Around him, other graduates buzzed with excitement and nerves, chattering as they loaded their belongings. The carriages looked pristine, opulent even, their gleaming exteriors reflecting the early sun like molten gold. Yet to Marcus, the sight was not one of comfort. Instead, it dredged up shadows of a night six years past, when similarly fine carriages had carried the Enforcers away from his burning village, leaving Millbrook to its doom.A gentle voice interrupted his haunted reverie. "Quite a sight, isn't it?"He turned. Standing before him was Isabella Rodriguez, approaching gracefully with her trunk levitating beside her. Even now, Marcus found himself momentarily breathless, not from her levitation spell, but from her sheer presence. She was striking in a way that seemed

The morning sun streamed through the tall windows of the Magical Foundations classroom as Professor Aldwin Thorne paced before his students. Unlike the worn Master Thorne from Westbrook Academy, this Professor Thorne commanded respect through sheer intellectual presence. His sharp features and penetrating gray eyes seemed to dissect every student who dared meet his gaze."Magic," he announced, his voice carrying easily across the tiered lecture hall, "is not merely about power. It is about understanding the fundamental forces that bind our reality together. Miss Rodriguez, perhaps you could explain the theoretical basis of elemental manipulation?"Isabella rose gracefully from her seat in the third row. "Elemental manipulation requires the caster to harmonize their personal magical frequency with the natural resonance of the chosen element, Professor. Fire responds to passion and will, water to emotion and flow, earth to stability and endurance, air to thought and freedom.""Excellent