“Professor... exactly who are you?” It was a rude way to ask it, but he seemed the type to appreciate direct questions.

Professor Aldric just shrugged and winked in response. “Me? I’m just a guy who asks a lot of questions. Sometimes I even get lucky and find an answer.”

If he was trying to curb her interest, it wasn’t working. Lilianna was certain that his response was the understatement of the century. If Aldric was his first name, what was his family name? The name Aldric was fairly common, so no hints there. Was he from some high standing noble family? Lilianna seriously doubted that, but him being a commoner made equally little sense.

As she watched Nadrina rattle off more questions at a bemused-looking Professor Aldric, Lilianna wondered if she might write home soon. Perhaps someone in her family would know more about their mysterious professor.

Chapter 6

A little over a month passed as Aldric continued teaching. As reluctant as he was to admit it, he was feeling a lot better. Having something to wake up to and do every day was a new feeling for him, but he was starting to realize he liked it. His doubts lingered still, but much more quietly. He’d even quit drinking cold turkey, though he wouldn’t have managed it without Kedrin treating his withdrawal symptoms.

Aldric also had long talks into the night with his friend about the myriad of things that were eating away at his nerves. Bouncing his worries off someone else had helped more than Aldric ever would have thought possible all on its own.

According to Kedrin, while he was still being asked about Aldric, no one had yet noticed who he really was. Several other professors had protested hiring someone without any experience off the street, but whether it was his own talent, the students’ talent, or just the fact that they were such a small class, the kids had made surprising progress in a remarkably short time. It was hard for anyone to argue his qualifications after that, though Aldric was sure plenty still didn’t like it. Rumors had started to make their way around the staff, and it made Aldric nervous. The center of attention was the last place he wanted to be.

Aldric coped with the anxiety by throwing himself into his work. Today, he was assisting Codrin with learning to compress his mana to control his fire. Codrin had asked for this training so he could use the white fire he had seen. Aldric just wanted to make sure the kid didn’t immolate himself. Control was imperative for conjurers, especially fire affinity ones. If Codrin’s own personality was anything to go by, self-control was going to be one of his biggest obstacles to overcome.