Professor Francis then explained the groupings to everyone: "Each group will consist of 5 people. I will announce each task for each group once the groupings are done now. First group, Wei An, come here upfront."
Wait, why am I getting called first?! How is this body so unlucky? Ha...keep a straight face, Wei An! I can't embarrass myself!
Wei An went upfront; his face looked impassive, as if he did not care at all. He stood in front and just waited for the next student to be called.
"Second group, Cyno, come up front."
Wait, is he going to announce it one by one? Can't he just announce each group member already so I can sit? Ha. This is going to take a while.
After the professor announced the students standing in front, he then scanned around, seeing the other students. "Students who are standing upfront pick 4 other members. Wei An, you can go first. After you pick one, the other students upfront will pick."
Ah well, I guess being upfront isn't so bad. The problem is I barely know anyone here except for Sylvia and the prince.
"Then... Your Highness Shin, would you care to be my groupmate?"
"Oh? The pleasure is mine." Shin stood up, walking toward Wei An.
"Hey! Wait a minute! Isn't that unfair!?" A student spoke up, raising his hand.
"The prince is ranked second; it's unfair to be groupmates with him because Young Master Wei An is already ranked first!"
Ha...right. Of course there are issues like this.
Wei An stayed silent and just stared at the student who shouted, paying no mind to what he actually said. The professor stepped in, saying that he will verify and adjust the groupings after every member is chosen.
The other students then continued to pick their groupmates. After that, it was Wei An's turn to pick again, and as expected, he picked Sylvia as a groupmate. The picking repeated like a pattern, and again it was Wei An's turn.
Ha...Who should I pick? Not that I know their names anyway.
"Ah, you." Wei An pointed to Zeno, who was seated in the front row beside the prince just now.
"Me?"
"Yes, come up."
Zeno walked toward Wei An's group awkwardly. He then went beside Sylvia and Shin; he stayed silent for the duration until it became Wei An's turn again.
Ha...Should I just ask them to pick for me?
Wei An looked at his group members and then asked, "Do you guys know anyone here?"
"I skipped the gathering, remember?" Sylvia spoke up. She and Wei An then both looked at Shin, who looked troubled.
"I skipped that too..." Shin spoke, looking away from the both of them. The three of them then looked at Zeno, who was puzzled.
"Ha... Well, uhm, I don't really know anyone here either."
Wei An sighed and looked at the professor, who was waiting for him to pick a groupmate.
Great. I'll just pick randomly then.
"Ah."
Wei An saw a girl who looked similar to Zeno. She had been looking at Zeno for a while now. She was in the second row, and when she saw Wei An looking at her, she panicked and looked away.
"Hey, Zeno, right?" Wei An spoke calmly, looking at Zeno.
"Ah, yes... Do you know her?" Wei An gestured at the girl who was in the second row.
"Oh... She's my sister. Her name is Zharia."
"Alright."
"Professor, our last member is Zharia." The professor nodded; Zeno was surprised but did not disagree.
Zharia then went to their group, looking shocked that her name was called. She awkwardly stood beside Zeno, and the other members just stayed silent, giving a slight smile to both Zeno and Zharia.
After a while, the groups were finally done picking their members, and the professor spoke again, "Alright. Now that all of you have your group mem—"
"Professor! Isn't it unfair that ranks one and two are together in the same group?!" A student interrupts the professor.
Ha... I guess there are always people like that in every world.
"Let me finish speaking before talking. For interrupting me, the groups will stay like this. I won't adjust it."
Ha... How petty.
"Now for your tasks, you have three options. One, each member should master an advanced spell. Two, each member should master casting at least 2 intermediate spells. Lastly, spell creation and casting: at least one member should be able to create a unique spell, and at least two should be able to cast the unique spell."
"Of course the harder the option, the better the grade, so pick wisely. This will be your following task during my class; next week will be your evaluation. Now discuss with your groupmates what task you'll do."
Hm, I guess this isn't so bad.
After that the other students then started to talk to their groupmates about the task. Wei An looked at his groupmates and then spoke, "Let's take a seat first."
The others nodded, and they all went back to their seats. Zharia was about to go to the second row when Sylvia stopped her. "Hey! You should sit with us, silly!"
"Oh, ah, right..." Zharia then walked to them, sitting by Sylvia. As all of them were finally seated, Shin spoke up.
"So, before we discuss the task, how about we get to know each other first?" The others agreed, and they all started to introduce themselves in the group.
Ha... Thankfully the prince is here to take care of troublesome tasks.
"Alright, then, I guess I'll start. I'm Shin von Stalia. Ah, and please speak comfortably with me; we're all groupmates here."
"Hello, I'm Wei An. Like what Prince Shin said, please speak comfortably."
"I'm next! My name's Sylvia, but you can call me Syl."
"Ah, then I should go next. I'm Zeno, and well, as you see, I look like my sister here." Zeno gestures at Zharia, who then proceeds to introduce herself.
"Uhm, well, I'm Zharia. I hope to work with you all."