I looked at Agnes, maybe my face said it all.
“What? Isn’t that great?”
I glanced back at the document she handed me, and took another look

Institution of the Walking Phoenix

Dear Mr. Zachary Thorendia,
we are happy to announce to You that You are ACCEPTED for our FRIENDS OF CONTINENTS scholarship program.
We will send You further documents regarding the details of the scholarship and all the related events You are obliged to join.
Our best regards
Scholarship Committee of the Walking Phoenix Institute, Granbour, Bormen

“How could they even pull this off? Walking Phoenix? It looks like a chicken!” I still could not believed that Arnesia’s cousin’s friend group could bring out such a piece of paper. I thought we only wanted to figure out a way to smuggle me and some others out of Bormen. But this? They are making a whole internship program for this? Terrifying.
Agnes takes another perspective. “And it’s totally legit! You can look up the institute on the net and see they are really registered in the International Database of Trusted Institutions!”
I could not believe what I am witnessing. “But how? It’s been barely two years since we have planned things out – and I mean by hypothesizing an escape. But this? This is just sorcery on another level. We barely spent six months planning the real thing!”
But the girl just shrugs. “I would just say you’re incredibly lucky to marry into a family with such a guy.” Then she paused. “Or not! I wouldn’t get into his bad side, I guess.”
I scoffed. “But is that really him doing all that? I thought it’s Aneon who has the fingers to pull off such a stunt.” Seeing my conversation partner not reacting, I picked up the thread again. “So I just need to treat it like a normal internship program? That still doesn’t solve the problem of getting out of here though.”
“Oh, it does, because I now have something else for you.” Agnes pulled out some kind of notebook. Or better said, a pile of paper. Not incredibly neatly packed. The effort is there, but I see that it is not Jeremy. Probably this Corlux. I don’t know him that well, but I think it’s the guy Chihika will make the agreement with. Learn magic and teach the poor guy once she gets back. I did ask Jeremy why he wouldn’t just go to Iluskia himself, if he were so talented as he claims to be, but he only said I shouldn’t pry. Oh well…
I unpacked the staple and saw some detailed plan of… a glove?
“This is incredible,” I told Agnes. Corlux apparently knows what he is doing. A magical-insulator-glove, so to say. Something to dampen your magical power. He even included an additional layer for electrical magic users. I will do the work of dampening the physical effects – which will naturally dampen the effects of the natural magical emission – while he then infuses them with mana-dampening magic to enhance the effect. This guy understands how close physics and magic actually are. “I didn’t expect this from Corlux. So I should make three pairs of them? Oh, even two spares? Interesting…”
Agnes only nodded. A little bit to energetically. I still cannot pin down whom of the two – Jeremy and Corlux – she fancies. But it won’t happen anyway because there is already this other guy she has a thing with. Some people are just greedy…
“What about the ship? I already build most of it. This all might take some months, you know, with the gloves.”
“Aneon said you should let me know if you need help or resources. Because of the scholarship program, he can now reimburse your expenses and even arrange a team for you and so on.”
“Huh, okay, then I will get to work immediately then. This is an exciting project.” I stood up and went to my desk. There is no rush in making the gloves, so I will read the instructions carefully before I get my hands on all the materials. Corlux might have thought everything through, but I think it is still best if I look over it and see if there are some optimizations I could make. Afterall, I will be the one making them, not him. It has to sit right.
Now Agnes took a seat in front of me. She looked up, then diverted her glance again. “It is all very exciting, isn’t it? Finally, Chihika can go study in Iluskia… She always finishes the books I bring her, so she will not start at zero. I think she already knows so much… But what is knowledge if you don’t use it, right?”
“Right.”
“Do you promise to take care of her? At least until she settles in the magic school? I hope she makes it.”
“I’m sure of it.”
Agnes stood up, realizing she does not get full emotional support while I am busy with my handiwork – at least the plan of it. But I tried to reassure her. “Chihika will be fine. She is a smart girl. She has the guts. No one at her caliber would have stood staying low for so long without any certainty. If she can spend her teens in a shed without losing her sanity, she will adapt to the world. It might need some adjustments, but she will make it.”
“I do hope so.” Agnes walked past the door, and now closing it. “I want to believe that it will be the case.”