Chapter 19: Larval Form
Marcus gathered all of the students and led them to a meeting spot on the edge of a nearby forest. It was an unremarkable place, with no buildings or markers to distinguish it from any other nearby patch of land, pretty much chosen at random by him and Celer. It didn’t feel appropriate something like this, but his little tower was kind of cramped and he didn’t have anywhere else to hold the gathering. It made him want to build a meeting hall of some sort for these kinds of occasions, but he had so many other things on his plate right now that it would have to wait.
Setting up his own academy was way more troublesome than he had initially assumed. Even for just ten students (and one priest), there were so many things to keep track of…
“Are we all assembled now?” Marcus asked, looking over the gathered students. It was a rhetorical question, since he could clearly see all ten of the students standing in a line in front of him. Cassia gave him a look like he was stupid for asking. He ignored her. “Good. I have brought you here because this is a special occasion. We have a gift for you.”
“A gift?” Cricket said, immediately perking up.
“We?” Renatus asked.
“Yes,” Marcus nodded. “Celer, you can come now,” he called out loudly.
Celer fluttered towards the gathering spot, having hidden herself deeper in the forest. She carried a large, heavy-looking wooden box, lifting it up with the ropes attached to it. Despite the seemingly impossible load, his butterfly familiar had no issues flying about while carrying the box. It was amazing how well she could manipulate objects with her stick-like legs.
His students immediately turned towards where Marcus was looking, and were taken aback by the giant white butterfly flying towards them. None of them appeared scared or worried, which made Marcus smile slightly in amusement. Celer was probably the most dangerous magical creature any of them had laid their eyes on, except maybe Cricket and Iris. It was funny how Regulus was terrified of simple dire wolves but didn’t react at all to a spirit from the Outer Planes.
As she approached the group, Celer wobbled slightly, the box she was carrying swaying from side to side. She then unceremoniously dumped the wooden box in front of them, letting it fall to the ground from a considerable height.