Once she passed through the Universities gates, Lorelei experienced the subtle touch of humid air brushing against her skin. The shattered canopy casted its imposing shadow over the university grounds. In the depths of the interior, a compact urban settlement was immaculately designed, boasting a meticulous arrangement of intertwined roads and multiple architectural levels.
There were parks! Parks and other small buildings and shopping centers in between the larger classroom buildings. There were also several—
"Master, look." Dove tugged at Lorelei's sleeve.
Lorelei looked over to find a small single storied building with no windows. There was a sign over the doorway.
'Cubi Comfort Stations'.
"Well, it's no Exquisite House, but that's definitely something." Lorelei was surprised to see such a place on a distinguishable campus. Then again, there certainly wasn't any disappointed looks on anyone's faces to walked by.
Small shopping centers, bookstores, restaurants and food stands, and other high-end recreation facilities dotted the landscape, many neatly constructed in between the larger class halls. There was a distinguishable difference in architectural design between the newer buildings that were for leisure and the educational ones. Those dedicated to learning featured archways, towers, and many were built with layers of marble and had pillars built alongside statue gargoyles or dragons. They were older, with old magical wards lighting up their windows. The other buildings were newer, made of steel, and appeared rather bland in comparison.
As the pair of them followed the crowd, Lorelei started noticing more subtle changes around her. The constant statically charged atmosphere from the great shield was gone, replaced with an eerie tranquility and a slight metallic aftertaste in the air. There was a constant warmth, a rolling fog carpeted the soil. Sodium lamps burned vibrantly on either side of the streets, and magical firelight glowed in front of all the building.
Lorelei took a moment to observe her immediate surroundings. As she stood, she basked in the miraculous burning yellow light, which caused more than one of the students' thoughts to wonder. She eyed one of the parks nearby, each of them were small but this one barely took up space in between two rather large buildings. It was just large enough to feature a tiny pond and a water fountain. A student was sitting on a park bench alongside the fountain, a lamia with light blue skin and dark red scales. She was tossing stones into the water with an angry scowl on her face.
Students crowded every street and avenue, rushing to class, or going about their business. Each of them wore an expensive, and rather revealing, school uniform. Even the professors were wearing the fine garments, and no one seemed exempt from them.
Lorelei felt a cold sweat rolling down the back of her neck. The yearnings of thousands of students polluted the air. She could practically feel it. Cubi did have an extra-sensory perception that allowed them to sense other peoples sexual desires, especially when they were low on mana. It was a survival mechanism. Lorelei rarely ever had to rely on it, or pay much attention to it. People were always eager to use a succubus; it didn't take much to discern who in the dilapidated streets of Vult wanted a blowjob and who wanted something much more. Here on campus, it was evident, given the sheer number of students on campus, that almost everyone was horny. She could taste their desires; it was enough to make her loins moist.
She followed the crowds of newcomers further into the city within a city. They must've walked a mile before reaching the central square. The crowd around her was lively, excited, and more than one of the men wanted to be closer to her. There were even a couple women who noticed her and were clearly interested.
In the center of campus, Lorelei noticed a manor of sorts. Its construction was aged brickwork and cement blocks, all of which were decorated with stone eagles. A white clocktower rose above its highest floor. It's front doorway was decorated with marble pillars and gothic reliefs, making it seem even more dignified. Built into the tower, a massive clock glowed with iridescent blue fire from its seams.
The crowd was marched inside, and Lorelei found herself in a wide hallway filled with portraits of alumni. Deep blue and aqua's illuminated the inner building, mystical lights casting its luminance, leaving darkened corners that were easy to hide in. From there they were escorted to an assembly hall, and organized into several lines where faculty professors could sort them out. They were sorted by gender and race, and it was then that Lorelei realized she wasn't the only Cubi in the crowd. She was forced to part with Dove, who stood quietly in her own line of elves, but it was clear she didn't mix in with them well. There were eight Succubi, all of them Seaxamite's, making Lorelei the only Redever. Well, except for the counselor herself.
Their counselor was a tall and voluptuous creature with dark reddish toned skin and glowing green eyes. She had long grey hair and wore a pair of glasses over her eyes. The school uniform looked sultry on her as well.
Once separated, they were each giving student id's and registration materials. They each had to have their measurements taken for their school uniforms, and Lorelei was thankful they got some privacy for that. The counselor was especially talkative while she helped to analyze each of their bodies. When it was Lorelei's turn, the counselor's demeanor definitely changed. It was evident that she was elated to see another Redever among the university's student body.
Measurements were done via magical measuring lines that didn't require any removal of clothes, although, as Lorelei felt the magical wards analyzing every groove of her body, she felt like she might as well have been completely nude.
"12 Sacks! Impressive." It was the one compliment that Lorelei remembered from her. She would be lying if she claimed that it didn't make her blush.
Once they were done taking their measurements, Lorelei received a box containing school uniforms and invited for a one-on-one meeting with the counselor who led them. She had to wait for all the others to go first, but the meetings were obviously meant to be quick and thus she only had to wait some thirty minutes. During that time, Lorelei sat in the conference room outside the counselor's office, trying to fight off boredom.
One by one, the Seaxamite's left the counselors office, each of them offered Lorelei a rude gesture, clearly not fond of her kind. She ignored them. There was no point in getting in a petty fight with a bunch of crass freshmen who clearly grew up with silver spoons in their mouths. Once it was her turn, Lorelei was glad to finally get this part over with.
The counselor's office was small, but to call it cramped would be an overstatement. Reds of every shade decorated the room; crimson carpeting, vermilion painted walls, ruby and wine drapes over the windows. The teachers wooden desk was wide and she took a seat behind it, motioning for Lorelei to sit down in front of it. Lorelei got the impression that this was meant to be a quick meeting to answer any personal questions, and also to help orient herself for university life. There were plenty of student guides on the desk, clearly marked for her. She knew she would have to sign up for classroom courses as well, something that she hoped this meeting would help her with.
"So tell me, Lorelei, is it?" The counselor inquired while glossing over her forms.
"Yes," Lorelei wasn't sure how to address this strange older woman. Should I call her ma'am? Or professor?
"Such a pretty name for a remarkable creature like yourself. My name is Rhelania, and I am your designated counselor. If you have any issues, whatsoever, all you have to do is reach out me. But first—" The elder succubus pressed a button and summoned a holographic display to fill the air. "Let's get you set up."
Over the course of five minutes, Lorelei had a dormitory room assigned. Meal plans were arranged, tuition fees paid for in full, and finally, study plans put in motion.
"So, you are a pyromancer. You also have military experience. Your last residence was registered to the Vult district." Rhelania sat back. "Don't worry, the university doesn't care if you served in the Eshirith Combine, especially since you were listed as indentured. If you were an officer or volunteer however, then things might get a bit more complicated."
Good to know, Lorelei sighed.
"This university offers twelve major career paths. Each of them have sub-sections and specializations, but once you get started in one, we can navigate where you want to focus on in the future. The career paths are as listed; Military, Public Security, Civil Administration, Economic Development, Historic Recovery, Pathfinding and Exploration, Rituals and Rites, Mathamancy, Engineering." She paused. "Engineering, by the way, just opened a new sub-section for dread piloting."
"Dread piloting?" Lorelei was confused. "What's that?"
"Dreads are new bipedal mechanized war machines that are being rushed through military trials. However, a smaller civilian version is quickly becoming popular, both for sports and private security. We offer Dread piloting training for anyone interested. You do need to sign up quick though, there are only so many spots." Rhelania's answer was quick and to the point. "Now then, continuing. The other courses include Healing Magic, Ward Creation, and finally, Monster Hunting."
That last one was also new for Lorelei. "Monster hunting… Really?"
"Have you never heard of the Hunting guild? They're responsible for culling mutated beasts in the undercity. Our Monster Hunter curriculum is famous for preparing hunter aspirants in all the ways of both survival and elimination of monster threats."
No thank you…
Lorelei had done her research before. Through careful investigation she had learned that Theo was studying under the Pathfinder career path.
"I would like to be placed into the Pathfinder career path." Lorelei said.
"Pathfinder? What, you want to explore beyond the wall?" Rhelania raised a brow. "I suppose that shouldn't surprise me, as you have experience in the Eshirith Basin. But still, that particular career path is filled to the brim. It would be better to put you under generic courses until a spot frees up."
"Are there any other career paths that share some of the classes in Pathfinder?" Lorelei asked. She wasn't interested in going generic.
"A few, Military for one, but also Monster Hunting and Engineering. You remember that Dread Piloting subclass? That would be a good one. Pathfinding needs basic survival and military tactics training, which is shared among those."
Lorelei thought about it for a second. "Can I switch career paths?"
"It's possible, but I wouldn't recommend it. It could set you back."
Lorelei had no intention of taking a military career again, nor was public security interesting for her at all. "I assume your Engineering stuff, this Dread Pilot program, will lead to a military career of some sort?"
"Not at all, Dread Piloting is swiftly becoming one of the fastest growing in demand career paths in the city. Both for civilian and military purposes. It's why we've expanded our classrooms for it. Also, we are currently experiencing a deficit in the number of students who want to take it."
"I thought you said you had only a few spots available."
"Did I, I meant to say we have several that are definitely in high demand and would certainly be occupied shortly!" Rhelania feigned a laugh.
"Why are you so focused on selling that one to me?" Lorelei didn't like being played.
"Ok ok," Rhelania sighed. "Look, the university just expanded and build an entire new facility just for Dread Piloting. We purchased over a dozen new Dreads, an even hired several experienced pilots. We even just got some knew recruiters to get into the program to help out with teaching students. The amount of money that went into the program warrants having at least a hundred students. But so far, we only managed to get thirty to sign up. So, I've been asked to try to encourage as many knew students into the program as possible. There's even a discount in tuition costs!"
"Is there another reason." Lorelei had lived in the streets long enough to sense when there was something more to be worried about.
Rhelania tried to pull off the best fake smile she could. "No."
"You sure?" Lorelei's tail was instinctively raised, the tip hanging over her right shoulder.
Rhelania groaned. "Well, of those thirty students, the majority are Orcs."
"Orcs?" Lorelei wasn't sure why that was a problem.
"Orcs seem to really love this career path, and not everyone wants to take a class where the majority of students are Orcs." Rhelania sighed, looking defeated.
"Well…" Lorelei supposed that wasn't so bad. "As long as some of its classes are shared with Pathfinders, then I guess I don't mind get started there. Wait, you said it came with a discount?"
"Magnificent." Rhelania typed a bunch of commands in a holographic key board. She didn't seem to hear Lorelei inquire about a discount, she was too excited. "Oh, and I see you have an indentured registered to you. Dove, is that her name?"
"Yeah, she's an elf." Lorelei was curious how she was doing.
"Her tuition has also been paid. I've never seen a succubus register her personal slave for classes before. I was about to just register her as your property to accompany you. You are a most gracious master indeed."
"She's… It's complicated." Lorelei wasn't sure how to describe her relationship to Dove.
"You wouldn't be the first Succubus to bring a slave to the university grounds, while its not widely accepted, rules are bent to accommodate us." Rhelania smiled. "I'll reach out to Dove's assigned counselor to have her registered to your dorm as well. Things might get tight, so I hope you are fine sharing space with its current occupant."
"That won't be a problem." Lorelei sighed. "We're used to cramp spaces."
"I see. Still, from wherever you lived in Vult, I hope the dorm will seem like an upgrade. So let's get you sorted shall we?"