Radwin was amazed by my room as he shifted his way in, only shivering slightly. “You certainly have a chill vibe going. I really like the constellations on the ceiling,” he kept walking with his eyes glued upward and didn't notice that he walked into the couch of soft ice fluffs and tumbled over with clatter of limbs.

  I couldn't help myself, I doubled over in a laughing fit at Radwins antics. It was times like this that I understood why he was such a shy and quiet person under normal conditions, but very outgoing with those accepting of him.

  “You ok buddy? The sitting area is step down style.”

  “That didn't feel like ice.” He huffed, got up, and plopped onto the couch with a contented sigh. “Oh the cold works the aches from sturing out nicely. I'll be down here a lot I foresee, till I tier up a bit.”

  “Well, now I have to see your room, if you're this enamored by my room. I remember you saying it was perfect for your needs.” I smirked at him.

  He seemed to shoot up at this. “Yes, yes we must at once. The view is nice too, no offense.”

  I chuckled and waved my hand around. “Ah I have a view enough down here, and if I get bored of it I'll just pester you for yours, buddy,” a cheeky grin on my face.

  _______________________________________

  After a short while of Radwin exploring the rest of my room, we headed for the main floor and stopped just outside the arch for the stairs. Radwin seemed hesitant for a moment, before speaking up.

  “Let's just take the stairs, please.” He almost seemed to beg.

  My eyebrows raised. “Do you have something like the teleporter slides to go up?” I was bouncing up and down on my feet at this revelation.

  With a long weary sigh as if consoling himself and affirming his decision, “Yeah, something like that. Just follow.” His shoulders seemed to deflate at this acceptance, but I was too curious not to know and then try.

  When we got into the stairwell I noticed at first that it was a spiral staircase that spanned the entire wall up the second floor. In the very center of the room was a door that seemed to lead to nowhere, a small pad with numbers and letters on the surface, floors 2, 3. Sections A,B,C. It was very similar to the slides into the basement areas, but different in execution.

  “Each option takes you to the designated teleport room for each floor, which is connected to the floor monitor’s office.” He seemed a bit sheepish at this fact. “She really didn't appreciate my timing, or the extra work.” He grimaced and pressed 3c, and the door flew open to a swirl of light.

  Without a shred of hesitation, I practically dove through the doorway. What greeted me on the other side was another closed-off room with just a door and a window looking outside. From the window I could see from the front of the building looking down at the wild collection of colors of the buildings below.

  The door to the room opened up behind me and a grumpy looking girl with a bucket and mop walked in. “Damn new students always want to try the fast path.” Her eyes scanned the room before locking on me. “Did you bring your own cleaning spell? Hmmm, no, those aren't nearly common enough outside of noble houses and clans. An Affinity then,” and then Radwin came through the portal, collapsed to his knees but keeping the contents of his stomach.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Thank you for not making me another mess Mr.Roal, that would have made me very angry.” She flipped her long raven back hair over her shoulders and I only just then got to really take her in. Her eyes were glowing emeralds with sharp yellow accents, her nose sharp yet pert, and robes of swirling silvers, greens and yellow. Her expression was flat, adding to her distant beauty.

  She turned back to me and chatted, actually looking me over. “Ah, you're the new kid that Dominic was talking about, aren't you? Got a space Affinity that saves us a whole lot of trouble. I'll make an exception.” She tossed me another envelope. “That one I know for sure what it is, but you'll have to open the first one before that one will open. Now if you don't mind, I do have tasks to manage.” Not ignoring the dismissal we went straight to Radwin’s room.

  The plaque outside Radwins room was a little beaker with bubbles and burner. His door was the richest shade of brown I'd ever seen, with soft metallic glows of various colors played across its surface “Your doors are already cooler than mine. Now are you going to invite me in, or is the door the star of the show?” I smirked.

  He playfully poked me in the side with one of his sharp fingers “We'll get there, don't go dropping your expectations too quickly now,” and he pushed the door open. I was instantly hit by the smells of a forest, but far more humid. “Watch your step.”

  His room was like a mini greenhouse everywhere I looked, except for towards the balcony where an Alchemy lab was set up. All kinds of planters hung from the ceiling, most of which were empty, but a few had plants starting to grow in them. There was a hydroponics stream running through the room carrying Lilly pads and a few varieties of flowers.

  “I only placed anything in the hangers. I was told any plant in here is common to the local area but nothing too rare.” Radwin spoke up, answering the question at the tip of my tongue. I traced my hands along some of the ivy growing along the walls and supports.

  “You sleep in a garden with a pillow bed in the center, and can do Alchemy while looking down at the city. Not bad compared to my ice stranded in space look. I'll definitely want to destress here if I get frustrated training. Oh, does your room have a panel to train safely and quietly?”

  Radwin walked over to a set of drums in the corner and played a light hearted yet soft beat while a thin barrier not unlike the one produced by my panel. “My ma is a musician cultivator, or more her powers align with being a musician. She made a system similar, I think the room picked up on that." He seemed the most at ease I'd seen him since we left tundras kiss.

  _________________________________

  We'd relaxed for about 20 minutes, leaning on the balcony watching the clouds go by. One of our neighbors was making pastel colored clouds that danced in the shapes of lizards, birds, and fish. It was showing me what art type skills could do, at least on a low scale, but I was curious about how skills synergize across categories.

  “I know you showed me in the carriage on the way here, but can I see your Cards again now that I have a workstation?” I nodded and we moved over to his lab.

  There were slots that seemed the perfect size for Cards along with multiple cauldrons of various sizes, beakers, vials of several shapes and sizes, a mortar and pestle, and a small water tap. Radwin placed his hand on the table and one of the slots filled with his Pocket Cauldron, the other two slots empty.

  “Could ya place your hand on the table and focus on the Ice Slash skill? Then I can show ya what I'll do with it.” I did as he asked and a second slot on the table began to glow in shades of cold blue.

  The shape of the ice sword that appears when I cast Ice Slash swung at Radwins Pocket Cauldron, but instead of slicing through it, the power seemed to turn into liquid and enter the Cauldron. Radwin held out his hand and a bottle with a small stopper appeared and absorbed the energy in the Cauldron and turned into a Card with a bottle containing an icy sword.

  “My Soul Card lets me bottle spells at the cost of not being able to have combative skills that I hadn't distilled. The other catch is I can't bottle a Skill I don't have the mana for, as I supplement the mana when I bottle it myself.”

  I nodded my head. “As long as you have a good team and people willing to buy these consumable Cards, you already have a steady income.” I praised.

  Radwin winced. “I wish, Maybe I'll get lucky at higher tiers, but for right now only I benefit and I can only store 30 Skills in Bottles. Anything after that has to be used or it just expires immediately or spoils an older bottle. That also brings me to the fact they don't have permanent shelf life yet.” He seemed genuinely bothered by this limitation.

  I clapped him on the back. “You know if we get a good team going, you're the Wildcard on the team. That is, you want to be a team if we have to start one?” I asked and he nodded his head so quickly I thought his head would fall off.

  “I would like nothing more Syil, after all you're my only friend here for the moment.” He replied sheepishly, and before I could reply an ear shattering roar echoed throughout the city.

  Light started to play off the Spire in the Center, shades of purple and blue seemed to be leaking out of the tower till they coalesced into a giant 10 meter long Newt that looked like a walking night sky radiating a frigid aura. A voice like you imagine coming from tales of old mystic rang through the air. “Another cycle has passed and a new school year is to begin on the morrow!” And without one last screech and burst of blinding light, all was as it was before, but deathly silent before the city seemed to cheer at once.

  “What the hell was that!” We exclaimed at the same time.