Chapter 21

Uniform fitting went smoother than Natalie had feared they would, to her relief. A young woman went about taking Natalie’s measurements, and while some of the adjustments involved tugging and inspecting that invaded her personal space, Natalie never needed to be overly paranoid about her secret revealing itself. She was given a room to change, when necessary.

Tenet’s colors—and the uniform’s—were blue and gold. Uniforms were expected to be worn throughout the academic day, from eight in the morning to five in the evening, but beyond those hours, students were permitted to wear what they wanted.

The fabrics themselves were quality, a consistent theme when it came to Tenet and its supplies, buildings, and materials. The clothing was breathable, designed for comfort and flexibility. They were, after all, intended to be used during combat training as well as the rest of their daily schedule.

Equipment, like armor and other gear—specifically, the magical sort collected from the dungeon, or made by artificers, that enhanced stats—were supposed to be worn on delves only, not on campus. Tenet discouraged relying on equipment, at least during training, which was another fortunate aspect to student life that evened the playing field, same as the token system.

Because obviously Natalie had no powerful heirlooms to inherit, as some students here would. However disadvantaged Natalie, Sofia, and Jordan were when it came to connections, they at least wouldn’t lag in the more mundane ways. The playing grounds were even in many regards ... though admittedly not all.

Weapons, on the other hand, were allowed—the exception to the equipment policy, because of how critical they were to general combat styles. However, following the theme of Tenet wanting students to prove themselves, only weapons collected from the dungeon, or purchased through the token system, could be used.

Natalie was sure some people cheated to get around that rule; obviously, it could be hard or impossible to prove a student hadn’t received a particular item from a dungeon run. So in some regards, the well-connected and wealthy could find ways to excel using their money. But Natalie knew faculty were watching for that, and perhaps had ways of sussing out those sorts of infractions. In the end, it didn’t matter. It was what it was.

The Tenet uniform was layered: the first was the combat uniform, a tighter-fitting, more utilitarian layer, and the stuffier, showier jacket, and glossy black shoes, were required to be worn while attending classes—the regular academic sort—as well as when out and about during school hours. Even the more complex outer layer wasn’t horrible, though. A comfortable uniform all around, if a bit flashier than Natalie liked.

But she’d admit she looked impressive in them, from the glances she’d stolen in mirrors at the uniform-fitting building. Well-made uniforms tended to have that effect, and Natalie’d never much cared for fashion, so it was even more noticeable in her case. She looked sharp. Professional.

Natalie chose the skirt bottoms rather than the pants. The roomier, pleated article of clothing would make her secret easier to hide ... though Sofia was sure to give her odd looks, because Natalie otherwise would have chosen the pants, and Sofia knew it—Natalie wasn’t a skirt girl. Just, the pants were too tight fitting. Natalie hadn’t had a choice.

The day wrapped up quickly; it was a shorter schedule than most would be. Around 3:30, Natalie’s uniform fitting completed, and, with nothing else planned for the day, she was free to roam campus. Tomorrow would be the first real day of classes, starting at a strict 8:00 a.m.