Time has passed and Kalim has the magic carpet land in the storage room after their flight. After the flight, the group walks down the halls with excited looks and smiles on their faces.

"Man, that was a BLAST!" Grim happily cheers.

"That was so awesome!" Jasper says.

"It was astounding," Tanzanite adds.

"It was really nice to see the moon and the stars," Sereia says.

"I say that we all had a good time," Briar says.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Kalim says.

He soon notices, "Goodness, though—it's already dinnertime."

Just then, Jamil walks over and says, "Kalim! You're finally back. I'd like to review something before dinner. Could you join me for a moment?

"Sure thing," Kalim replies.

Then turns to Briar, "Briar, you and the others can just make yourselves comfortable in the lounge."

"Okay. We'll meet you at the lounge when you're done," Briar says.

"Sure," Kalim says.

Briar and her group head off to the lounge while Kalim and Jamil remain behind to talk about something.

Sometime later in the lounge, Briar and the others are waiting for Kalim and Jamil with the other students.

One student says, "I'm famished. What's for dinner tonight?"

"Our special training today was rough, huh?" A second Scarabia student says.

Grim says to Briar and the others, "Ramshackle Dorm gets a cold breeze blowin' in through cracks in the walls. Compared to that, this place is paradise. And Kalim's a real pal. I oughta join Scarabia!"

"I'm not sure if that's possible, but it's something to think about," Briar says.

"Yeah. I wonder what kind of dorm would I be a part of, if it's not Ramshackle," Jasper says.

Grim turns to Sereia, "Well, I can imagine Sereia might be in Octavinelle since she can turn herself into a fish."

"I don't know about that," Sereia says.

Just then, every quiet to hear footsteps and notice Jamil and Kalim enter the lounge. Briar and the others see the two walking into the lounge.

Jamil then says, "Is everyone present? The housewarden has an announcement for you before we eat."

"He does?" A Scarabia student asks.

"Oh yeah, Kalim was talkin' about that. He's callin' off the special training and lettin' Scarabia have their winter break. I bet the students will be overjoyed. Too bad I can't keep feasting here over the holidays, though!" Grim happily says.

Sereia whispers, "Um Briar, does Kalim look kind of strange to you?"

"Maybe. He seems... different somehow," Briar whispers.

Kalim remains silent at first.

And suddenly, Kalim says, "I decreed that the students of Scarabia would stay in the dorm over winter break for a voluntary six hours of daily studying, if you recall. But I've realized something. That's nowhere NEAR enough!

"Huh?!" Everyone replies with confused and some even shocked looks on their faces.

Jamil asks, "Kalim? I thought you were going to send the students home.

"That's practically the complete opposite of what you said before!" Grim says.

Then Kalim says in an aggressive tone,A mere six hours a day won't be anywhere near enough to close the gap between our dorm and the others. We must work twice—no, FIVE times as hard as the others to drag ourselves out from dead last in grades! Starting tomorrow, I'm tasking all of you with five hours of study time and four hours of practical training each day.

"You're giving 'em NINE HOURS of training a day?!" Grim exclaims in shock.

"There will be a defense magic training drill after dinner. Eat up and ready yourselves!" Kalim adds.

The Scarabia students nervously say, "Y-yes, sir!"

Just then, Kalim turns to Briar and her group and says, "Briar, Grim, Sereia, Tanzanite, Jasper, Trinket—since you six are visiting, your participation is mandatory! Is that clear?!"

The Ramshackle Dorm students are shocked to hear that.

Grim exclaims in shock, "Whaaa?! Why do we hafta join in?"

"Okay, this is getting weird," Jasper says.

"What's gotten into him all of the sudden?" Tanzanite wonders.

Briar arches an eyebrow and is just as confused by the sudden change in attitude Kalim has. Jamil however remains silent through the conversation with his arms crossed and looks at Kalim with a serious look on his face.

Suddenly, small drops of blotted ink falls to the ground and seeps together to become one blotted puddle and a surrounded of some dark orange red energy appears on the ground.