Chapter 267: The Thirteenth Society

Holy Trinity Academy had no shortage of student organizations.

There were academic circles devoted to magical theory, fencing associations for aspiring knights, historical clubs, and even a society dedicated entirely to collecting rare enchanted insects.

Ilya had encountered the last one by accident.

Apparently, several students considered spending their weekends chasing beetles through the academy gardens a perfectly respectable scholarly pursuit.

He wasn’t going to judge.

After all, he’d recently spent an entire evening calculating how to reduce mana consumption in a propulsion regulator by a few percentage points. Everyone needed a hobby, and his was beginning to resemble unpaid employment.

However, there was one organization he’d never heard of.

"The Thirteenth Society?"

Garen lowered his voice.

"Shh! Don’t say it so loudly!"

Ilya considered the nearly empty classroom.

"Are they going to appear if I say it three times?"

Ma?lle laughed, earning herself an offended look from Garen.

The subject had arisen when Garen discovered an unusual symbol carved into the underside of a desk in one of the academy’s older lecture halls.

It consisted of a circle surrounding thirteen small stars, arranged around a single vertical line.

At first, he’d assumed it was an ordinary student prank.

Then someone mentioned that the symbol belonged to a mysterious organization whose membership included some of Holy Trinity’s most talented students.

Naturally, Garen had immediately begun investigating.

Unfortunately, his investigation consisted primarily of asking increasingly unreliable people whether they’d heard any interesting rumors.

According to one account, the society controlled several student organizations.

Another claimed its members held meetings beneath the academy’s oldest library.

The most imaginative version suggested that its president possessed a magical artifact capable of predicting examination questions.

Ilya found that last possibility particularly suspicious.

If someone genuinely possessed such an artifact, he doubted they’d waste its power helping Garen pass his examinations.

"Nobody actually knows who belongs to it?" Wolfram asked.

"That’s the strange part! Some students say it’s been around for decades, but there’s nothing in the official records."

"Then it’s probably an unofficial club."

"That’s what makes it mysterious!"

Ilya couldn’t argue with that logic.

Technically, anything became mysterious if sufficient information was unavailable.

However, the academy was filled with noble students who enjoyed exclusive gatherings, and an unofficial organization hardly warranted special attention.

He returned to his coursework.

The discussion might have ended there if Ma?lle hadn’t mentioned something unusual.

"A student from the Knight Department received an invitation last week."

Garen immediately became interested.

According to Ma?lle, the student had been approached after achieving an exceptional result during a departmental examination. Shortly afterward, he’d begun spending time with several older students whose names rarely appeared together in public.

The invitation itself was apparently delivered through an ordinary academy envelope.

There had been no dramatic ceremony, no masked stranger, and no mysterious messenger appearing in the middle of the night.

Ilya found that detail reassuring.

At least whoever organized the society possessed some common sense.

"Did he join?" he asked.

"Nobody knows. He won’t talk about it."

"Maybe he just made new friends."

"That’s what he said."

Ilya shrugged.

That seemed like a perfectly reasonable explanation.

Still, the conversation left him mildly curious.

Holy Trinity attracted students from influential families throughout the Empire, many of whom would eventually occupy important military, academic, and administrative positions.

An unofficial organization connecting particularly capable individuals could become valuable over time.

Whether its members recognized that potential was another question.

Most academy clubs struggled to organize a weekend gathering without someone complaining about refreshments.

Two days later, Ilya discovered that the rumors weren’t entirely unfounded.

He had finished his afternoon lecture and was preparing to visit the library when an unfamiliar envelope appeared among his belongings.

It hadn’t been there that morning.

The envelope was made from thick ivory paper, sealed with dark blue wax bearing the same thirteen-star symbol Garen had described.

Ilya examined it with some amusement.

Apparently, someone had decided he was worth contacting.

The question was how they’d managed to place the invitation inside his notebook.

His belongings had remained unattended for approximately twenty minutes during lunch, when he’d accompanied Wolfram to collect several reference materials.

That provided a reasonable opportunity.

It also suggested that whoever delivered the envelope possessed access to the Magic Department’s ordinary student areas.

Nothing especially remarkable.

Still, he appreciated the effort.

Ilya broke the seal and unfolded the letter.

The message was brief.

*To Ilya Valentinovich Belozersky,*

*Your recent accomplishments have attracted the attention of several individuals who believe your talents deserve a more interesting audience.*

*You are invited to attend a private gathering this Saturday, at the seventh bell of the evening.*

*Location: The Old Astronomical Hall, Western Annex.*

*Attendance is voluntary. Discretion is appreciated.*

*Thirteen stars, one horizon.*

There was no signature.

Ilya read the letter twice.

The wording was certainly theatrical, although the invitation was straightforward enough.

They wanted him to attend a private gathering.

No threats, unreasonable demands, or promises of unimaginable power.

That was already an improvement over most mysterious organizations he’d encountered in stories.

Nevertheless, the location caught his attention.

The Old Astronomical Hall belonged to a section of Holy Trinity that had fallen out of regular use after the construction of the newer observation facilities.

He knew the building existed, but had never entered it.

The academy maintained the structure for historical reasons, occasionally allowing supervised academic visits.

A private gathering there would require either permission or a rather flexible interpretation of the academy’s regulations.

Ilya folded the letter and continued toward the library.

There was no reason to make a decision before learning more.

He began by checking the building’s history.

The Old Astronomical Hall had been constructed during an earlier period of Imperial scholarship, when magical astronomy and celestial observation were still closely associated with traditional academic institutions.

Its western tower had once housed several expensive instruments, most of which had since been relocated.

The building itself remained structurally sound.

More importantly, the academy’s current regulations permitted certain rooms to be reserved for student activities, provided the appropriate administrative procedures were followed.

That made the invitation considerably less suspicious.

Whoever organized the gathering might simply have reserved the hall through an ordinary student association.

Of course, the absence of an official record for the Thirteenth Society meant the arrangement was probably conducted under another name.

Ilya considered asking the administration.

However, doing so might unnecessarily draw attention to an organization that had merely invited him to a meeting.

Instead, he decided to verify whether the location was accessible and whether the invitation contained anything more concerning than an eccentric motto.

The answer appeared to be no.

Saturday evening was several days away.

He had plenty of time.

The following afternoon, Ilya encountered Tristan outside one of the Magic Department’s lecture halls.

Their conversation initially concerned the interdepartmental demonstration.

Tristan had apparently received several comments from his classmates regarding the loss, and although he’d accepted the result, he remained dissatisfied with how effectively Ilya’s group had exploited his central advance.

Ilya found his reaction reasonable.

Tristan had committed too many resources to controlling the most obvious route, allowing Elise and her knight teammate to secure the opposing standard.

However, the mistake hadn’t been particularly foolish.

Under different circumstances, Tristan’s aggressive approach might have secured victory before the western attack succeeded.

Both understood that their next engagement could produce a different result.

After discussing several tactical details, Ilya remembered the invitation.

"By the way, have you heard of the Thirteenth Society?"

Tristan’s expression changed.

Only briefly.

However, Ilya had spent enough time fighting the southern nobleman to notice when something caught him by surprise.

"Where did you hear that name?"

"Someone mentioned it recently."

Tristan considered the question before replying.

"There are rumors. An unofficial association, supposedly composed of accomplished students."

"Sounds rather exclusive."

"Most things worth joining are."

Ilya smiled.

That was a very Tristan answer.

However, the nobleman appeared less amused than usual.

After a moment, he asked whether Ilya had received an invitation.

Ilya found the question interesting.

Apparently, Tristan knew more than he’d initially admitted.

"Why? Did you?"

The nobleman didn’t answer immediately.

Then he produced a folded ivory envelope from his coat.

Dark blue wax.

Thirteen stars.

The same seal.

Ilya laughed.

"Well, that answers that."

Tristan looked mildly irritated.

"I was beginning to wonder whether they’d overlooked you."

"How touching. You were worried about me."

"Don’t misunderstand. I simply expected them to recognize someone capable of competing against me."

Ilya decided that was probably the closest thing to a compliment Tristan intended to offer.

They compared their invitations.

Both specified the same location and meeting time, although the wording differed slightly.

Tristan’s letter referenced his academic standing and accomplishments in magical combat.

Ilya’s emphasized his unusual background and recent practical results.

That suggested the invitations had been prepared individually.

Whoever organized the society had done at least some research into its candidates.

Tristan revealed that he’d already investigated the Old Astronomical Hall.

The location was legitimate, and several students had reportedly attended private gatherings there during previous terms.

However, he hadn’t been able to identify the society’s current leadership.

That irritated him.

Ilya could understand why.

For someone accustomed to navigating aristocratic social circles, being invited into an organization without knowing who controlled it was unusual.

Nevertheless, Tristan intended to attend.

"They’ve made an effort to invite us. I see no reason to refuse before discovering what they want."

Ilya agreed.

A gathering inside the academy, attended by other accomplished students, presented little apparent danger.

And if the organization turned out to be an elaborate excuse for wealthy nobles to congratulate one another, he could always leave.

Tristan seemed to share that sentiment, although he expressed it more diplomatically.

Their conversation concluded when the afternoon bell sounded.

As they separated, Tristan mentioned one final detail.

He’d heard that the society had rejected several students who possessed excellent academic results and powerful family connections.

Apparently, admission wasn’t guaranteed merely because someone received an invitation.

Ilya found that interesting.

An organization that deliberately refused influential candidates was either unusually principled or exceptionally confident in its own standing.

Perhaps both.

He returned to his coursework, although the invitation remained tucked inside his notebook.

For the first time since the interdepartmental demonstrations, something at Holy Trinity had attracted his curiosity without involving another examination.

Well, hopefully.

Given his recent luck, he wouldn’t have been surprised if the mysterious society welcomed its guests by handing them a written test.