Raisa tapped her pen on the table, surprised at the master’s use of proper northern terminology for the gifted peoples of the Fells. Most Ardenines referred to wizards as blasphemers, idolators, and mages, and to the clans as heathens and savages.

As if cued by her thoughts, a newling cadet from Tamron raised his hand. It was Barrett, the one who Talia had pointed out at breakfast.

“Do we really need to spend time on this? No one here will ever use such tactics.” The cadet’s demeanor suggested that Askell had proposed a session on devil-summoning or torture techniques.

On second thought, the topic of torture techniques would have been better received.

“Newling Barrett, shall we assume that you have the gift of predicting the future?” Askell said. “Can you promise everyone here that they will never use magical tactics, and that they will never be at war with anyone who uses them either?”

“Of course not, sir,” Barrett spluttered. “But it seems unlikely that—”

“It’s the unlikely tactics that will be your undoing,” Askell said. “Not the ones you are prepared for. Would that our enemies were so cooperative.” His gaze swept over the class again. “Any other objections? No? Then let’s discuss the odd and symbiotic relationship between the Spirit clans and the charmcasters who invaded from the Northern Islands—a relationship fraught with conflict over the past thousand years.”

For once, Raisa was ahead of her classmates. But she soon realized that Askell knew a lot more than she did about the use of magic during the wizard wars of conquest, and by the Demon King at the time of the Breaking. After a thousand years of peace in the north, it had not been a priority in her education.

But could it be, in the future? What would happen if war broke out between Arden and the Fells? Raisa looked around the lecture hall. A good third of the students in her class were Ardenine. How could she make use of Fellsian assets to turn aside an invasion from the south?

A sudden silence pulled her out of her reverie. She looked up to find everyone looking at her. Including Askell.

“I—I’m sorry, sir. I guess I was…distracted,” Raisa said, mentally pummeling herself. She had to get better at responding to her assumed name.

“Now that Newling... ah... Morley has rejoined us, I’ll repeat the question,” Askell said. “Someone asked whether an amulet loaded with charmcaster magic could be used by someone else—gifted or not. I, frankly, don’t know. I thought perhaps that you might be able to answer that question, being a northerner.”

“I…I don’t know for sure, but I don’t believe so,” Raisa said. “I’ve heard that the power accumulated in an amulet can only be used by the wizard who put it there.”