Xenron stared at the board listing matchups, incredulous. After a short recess during which everyone wondered about the finer points of the rules, Director Vaere finally returned to explain further.

  “The first duo to have both members bound for one minute, thrown from bounds, or take a ‘death blow’ will be the losers - obviously! Death blow rules are standard: you may be asked to demonstrate that you possess sufficient force to incapacitate the target beyond reasonable doubt if you invoke this rule. Also obvious! The last twist is the array of items you must choose from. Outside of standard castle-issue equipment, you get one trump card per team - use it wisely.”

  Vaere snapped and a table appeared from nowhere behind him, covered with metal mail and shimmering gemstones, explosive charges and party hats. Not for the first time, Xenron thought he must be missing something important.

  Still, the strange resources, he could mostly figure out. The little cartoon versions of all the students standing next to their names on the board (when did Vaere commission these?), he could put aside, with some effort. It was the team aspect, and the specific teams, that troubled Xenron.

  Xenron Xexen and Johan Peter, versus Eric Shreyas… and Annabel Lenoz.

  Xenron wanted time to work through his emotions - about fighting his crush, or how he’d probably be holding back Johan - a powerful person he still wasn’t sure how to feel about. He didn’t get that time - he had to plan. Ken patted him on the shoulder, shaking him back to the present.

  “You good, man?”

  “I’ll be fine,” Xenron managed hazily.

  “Good deal,” Ken said, patting Xenron hard on the back as if to even out his shoulders. Xenron chuckled and stumbled over to Johan. The Apprentice gave him a nod of acknowledgement as if nothing unexpected had happened.

  “Let’s figure out our item. I have one in mind, if you’re okay with it.”

  His lessons kicked in, and Xenron spoke close to Johan’s ear in a near-silent tone, too low for even enhanced hearing.

  “It should be some kind of enhancer, right? The question is whether we use it as a bailout for me or for you to carry the match.”

  “Don’t be foolish. You’ve trained well, and we’re a team. We’ll fight like one.”

  Then, Johan shared his suggestion in the same silent tone. It was difficult to pick up… Xenron bumped up learning basic telepathy on his to-do list. He used something like it during Soul Severance, but he couldn’t do it without separating his soul fully - something that would leave his body limp on the ground. Johan’s suggestion surprised Xenron. It was unconventional, finicky, and required Xenron and Johan to coordinate well.

  “Are you sure about this?”

  “Into this matchup?” Johan replied. “Certain.” He eyed the runically augmented orb, and the bracelet that went with it. “Do you mind handling it? It’ll leave me free to focus on complex magic, unless you have similar concerns.”

  Xenron felt sick, the pressure of the suggestion weighing on him. The shiny, glasslike sphere smaller than an apple flickered with orange light. It contained a single spell. Their own trump card. And he was going to hold it.

  “Fine,” Xenron said, letting petulance slip into his voice despite himself. “I’ll put it in a chest pocket. If she hits me hard me there, we’re probably in trouble anyway.”

  “Good plan. Let’s win this, Xenron.”

  Xenron turned to their opponents, who also seemed to be discussing. Annabel’s eyes were on him, and she gave him a neutral nod of acknowledgment. Xenron’s face flushed, and he forced himself to return the gesture before turning away. Facing Eric, he recognized him as the boy who’d checked on him while his soul was looking for Akari. He wore the same confident smile and came over t0 greet him and Johan warmly, shaking hands and chatting while Anna picked out their trump card. Xenron replied politely - he wasn’t put off, but it was impossible for him to focus on anything but Johan’s words.

  Yeah… let’s win. Defeating Anna, Circe’s Apprentice, would be an honor for anyone, no matter the circumstance. It seemed at that moment that just beating her would make everything in his life right.

  ***

  Anna Lenoz was having a great week. Her garden had been growing well, her mother’s health was on an upswing for once, and the fights were going in her section’s favor. First Basil and Erin beat Ken and Cyril - the duo was tough, but the melee types didn’t have any way to finish the massive bruiser after he was covered in regenerating ice armor. Then, Sayaka and Marcus crushed Silver and Hayato. Anna wasn’t especially happy to watch the latter lose, but the group definitely earned the win with how they shut down Silver’s unpredictable metal control. And now she was in a matchup with her crush. Not that she would admit it to Sayaka, or she’d never hear the end of it.

  But that wasn’t important. She and Eric had a fight to win. And she knew just how to do it.

  “Eric, would you please keep Johan busy?” Anna asked, putting her hand on the red haired boy’s shoulder. So much lean muscle… ugh! Too close! You’re getting too close. Modesty, Anna. She flinched back as he answered, trying to lean back against the table casually.

  “I… uhh, you good Anna?”

  “Perfectly fine, thank you!”

  “Right! Johan then,” he said cheerily. “That’s a good matchup for me. But are you good taking on the prince? I know Johan thinks he’s a chump-”

  “Eric, that’s rude! We don’t even know him.”

  “-but,” Eric said, “there’s a lot of rumors around him recently. Apparently he’s been doing special training. I can’t get Vex to tell me anything, though. But they’re in the same section. It’s possible he’s even practiced combinations with Johan.”

  “That’s not surprising. I don’t think Vex likes you,” Anna said, smiling.

  “Yeah,” Eric said, shrugging “you mess up one group project and all of sudden you’re dead to her. Can’t say I really blame her, though.”

  “You worked hard on that one, though. I do feel kind of bad.”

  “I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I definitely should have known that caffeine isn’t proper engine fuel. I’d been up for three days straight and figured if the stuff worked for me…” he shook his head. “Anyway, what I’m saying is that Xenron is a wildcard.”

  “That won’t be a problem,” Anna said, pulling a bud discreetly from her pocket. Eric gawked at the plant-to-be as a small vine extended spontaneously from it, the expression wonderfully satisfying on his normally relaxed face. He looked back at her, forcing himself to think critically.

  “That’s great, but it won’t mean anything if you can’t land it. Take the trump card - you’ll need it more than me.”

  Anna didn’t argue, instead giving Eric a gracious nod. She felt a little bad for the prince - from what she’d heard from Vex, which wasn’t much, he was working hard. It was just unlucky for him that this was Anna’s lucky week.

  ***

  The battle hadn’t even started, and already it was a disaster. Xenron’s section had already taken a loss, and Cerci Andross’ section- which Anna and Eric fought for - had already won twice. If he lost, it’d be a clean sweep for them, and Bruce’s section would be shamed almost no matter what followed. Xenron wasn’t in Raul Santana’s section, so he couldn’t do anything to help Leo directly. Still, having a section that wasn’t Leo’s clearly outshine all the others would make it easy to overlook him, no matter his match results. In short, absurdly, everything depended on Xenron. Xenron took a deep breath.

  As the battle timer counted down, Xenron looked back and forth between his opponents. Annabel was a potent nature magic user - but Johan’s flames could handle that without issue. It was Eric and his wind magic that would be a problem for him - wind was a nightmare matchup for a fire brawler - and that made him Xenron’s job to handle. Eric was positioned with the edge of the waterfall behind him, short axe and shield at the ready. Johan’s spear tip was pointed at him - but it was just a ruse. Xenron only hoped it would work. At that thought, the countdown finished.

  Attack, now!

  Xenron launched himself towards Eric with a prepared strengthening spell. It would make him stiff, but that wouldn’t hinder a linear lunge. Xenron’s leather armor stretched as he struck out with his saber. Eric… didn’t parry. He stepped aside in a blur of rushing wind. Xenron brought around his sword around to block the retort, but it was just Eric’s shield that struck. The heavy blow sent him sprawling across the ground, but he stabbed down his sword, strengthening its material to cleave stone and stop his momentum. Ignoring the strain in his shoulder, he got up to see Eric and Anna moving towards Johan. He hurried to engage Eric, but as Anna turned on her heel something small and round flashed from her hand. Xenron rolled away from where it landed, narrowly evading a wave of reaching vines. She came at him from an angle to the waterfall - such that getting past her would mean running close to the waterfall where it would be easy to knock him over the edge. Xenron grimaced. They’d outplayed him completely.

  ***

  Having stowed his axe, Eric shot a blast of wind from his hand, making Johan stagger and scattering his fiery aura. The fight had just started, but Eric’s fast casting and Anna’s all-out offense on Xenron had already pinned the two to their worst matchups. Johan loved the melee - close fights where he could leverage his strength, magical potency, and technique. Eric also loved a good slugfest - which meant his only option was to have it on his terms. Every time tongues of flame emerged from Johan’s skin, threatening to enhance his strikes and burn his opponent, Eric blasted him with a gust of the Jetstream. Gritting his teeth, Johan lashed out with his spear. Eric’s shield parried it - can’t have that - and he started a counterattack. Johan didn’t hold the spear, letting the weapon go and pulling a pair of nunchaku in a fluid motion. Oh. Eric stepped back, blocking the first quick blow. The second was too quick, making harsh contact with Eric’s ribs. But Eric was faster - punching with his free hand and enhancing it with Aero Slip. His style favored quickly cast Tier I spells before power, making it easy to stay ahead. The wind struck Johan’s aura, pushing the flames against his skin and blowing him back. Johan took a breath, burned by his own flames and unsteady.

  Eric grinned at him. “I’ve been waiting for a chance to scrap with you, Johan. Us bumpkins have a lot to learn from each other.”

  “Speak for yourself,” Johan shot back, his voice hoarse. “I’m here to leave that behind.”

  “Suit yourself, I guess. I can’t force you to be happy with who you are.”

  “Why stall, Eric?” Johan said, setting his stance. “You’ve got the advantage here, but I’m not going to take charity from you.”

  “No charity,” Eric said brightly. “It’s just that Anna can’t lose.”

  ***

  Vines rushed at Xenron from ahead and behind. Anna kept throwing those buds, without another weapon in sight, and in a rush of mana they grew branches, vines, and leaves at an alarming pace. Xenron spit several in twain, rolled away from another expanding bush, then found himself backed against a plant with a gaping maw. He moved, but too slowly, and the vine bit down on his arm. It was only an instinctive trickle of Strengthening - something he’d learned from Ken - that kept the wounds surface level. He saw Anna closing in from the corner of his eye - the finishing blow, then. As the beast sucked his blood, binding Xenron’s sword arm in its massive maw, he chanted out the cast for Celebrate. Confetti exploded in the confined space, forcing the jaws open for just a moment. Xenron pulled out his arm and turned into a strike, his saber coming down on Anna. Hopefully he could get away with just cutting her arms, or…

  She stopped the swing. Closing the distance ridiculously fast, striking right where his hand met the arm. Xenron nearly cried out and dropped his sword, while she punched his stomach next. He used a rushed Knock to break her balance, using more mana than he should, but it weakened the punch and he smashed his head into Anna’s, forcing her back. Xenron used the free moment to pick up his sword, but Anna recovered almost as quickly. The waves of vines were upon him impossibly fast, thick and taut. He barely cut them apart in time, and with the looming form of bushes and trees now surrounding him, Xenron was running out of places to run. On top of that, Anna retreated out of sight.

  Fortunately, Vex had trained Xenron to make decisions quickly. He knew he couldn’t practically make it to Johan now - but Anna didn’t know his abilities. The often forgotten Tier I sorcery spell, Trace Spellcaster, would have found Anna - but it’d be too slow doing it. Xenron instead used Soul Severance, closing his eyes, and he traced in glow of Anna’s mana in the plants back to a similar color in the canopy. He couldn’t see the tree branch she was perched on with his eyes closed - it didn’t have a spiritual presence - but he had trained enough fighting this way with Leo and Ken to judge the distance. She was waiting for him to make a misstep for a sure finish. Having found her, Xenron surged forward, agility and strength pushed to their limits as he cut his way through several plants. If not for frequent MTT training and Johan’s intel on her abilities, it wouldn’t even have been worth attempting. As it was, thorns and abrasions left Xenron bleeding all over and he even lost his sword in the mix. He couldn’t see perfectly, but it would have been impossible to get anywhere with his eyes open. As it was, Anna’s mana always swelled in a plant the moment before it struck. That moment of warning made up for the speed gap as Xenron fought on.

  Xenron emerged from Anna’s forest of monster-plants and made for Eric, locking on to his confident yellow aura. He didn’t make it two steps before Anna was upon him. He had turned his head to listen from where he secretly knew she waited, and drew his knife at the barest sound from Anna. Xenron turned and stabbed Anna in the shoulder as he blocked her own slash, and he stepped aside as she hit the ground. Anna grunted, and her expression betrayed shock that he had countered her attack from nowhere. True to form, though, she was back on him in an instant. Xenron closed his eyes. He thought he could see mana pooling in her legs through the haze of color - a lunging attack. Probably a sweep. Xenron made the bare minimum move out of range making use of the warning, then opened his eyes to target her and lunged in with his dagger. Going for vitals, to stop and call a death blow. It was a long shot with her agility, but he had to try. Apparently, Anna didn’t want to take the risk. She turned over, a small crystalline orb in her hand, and Xenron’s eyes went wide. Crushing the orb to activate its power, Anna released the overcharged Tier II wind spell, Pressure Bomb.

  Xenron sailed through the air, landing heavily and cracking stone where he fell… amongst Anna’s plants. He looked up to Anna, vision swimming, and thought he saw a brief salute. A nice sendoff, then. Xenron thought dryly. He couldn’t hate it. Then, his swimming mind remembered he and Johan also had a trump card. Discreetly, he palmed it.

  Xenron stayed still as Anna’s vines encroached all around him. They weren’t trying to crush or tear; they just wound around him so that he couldn’t possibly move. Anna would time him out. However, he knew how her magic worked. If the plants were growing like this, it meant she wasn’t moving; at least, not quickly - it seemed plant control required a lot of focus. He waited for the moment the vines stopped - that she turned her attention away, giving himself time to get his head back on straight after the terrible fall.

  Johan will be crushed 1 v 2. Xenron wasn’t quite ready to fight again, but he knew time was short. He crushed the orb in his own palm, and light flashed. Instantly, he appeared in front of Eric, a weak jab of wind striking just above his knee. Meanwhile, though, he saw light bloom to his left as Anna’s plants erupted in flame. He and Johan had switched places - and now it was their turn to take control.

  Xenron took in everything in that instant, with that same intuition fueling him. Eric’s axe descending, shield at his side. The strike was a little unsteady, and his armor was burned through in places - Johan had done some damage. Knock. Eric’s axe veered, and Xenron took only a glancing blow with clenched teeth as he drove his reinforced shin into Eric’s. The boy’s eyes bulged - clearly not expecting the Muay Tai move - but he swung his axe again. Xenron grabbed Eric’s axe-hand, strengthening his hand into a vice grip until the boy dropped the weapon but taking a blast of razor sharp wind for his trouble. Xenron didn’t relent, knowing that if Eric got free he would join Anna or simply knock him out with a barrage of his famous quick attacks. In his exhaustion, he brought one leg behind Eric’s and heaved forward, driving them both to the ground. However, try as he might to hold Eric down, he was battered with punches to the side and head, and his head swam as he tried to retort. Xenron was still reeling from Anna’s trump card pressure bomb, and now he could hardly fight back. A bit longer, Xenron endured, but Eric was slippery. Taking initiative, Eric swept Xenron and reversed the pin. Gathering his mana for a spell, Eric brought his hand down.

  “Dea-”

  “Death blow,” Johan’s voice clearly boomed over Eric’s, and a wild grin overtook Xenron’s face as his gaze took in Johan’s fist, stopped just next to Eric’s head, flames engulfing his body in his full-strength aura. Just keep Eric busy for a short while, he’d said, and we’ll win for sure.

  “No way,” Eric saying petulantly, freezing but not getting off of Xenron. “I’d like proof of this ‘death blow’ of yours. Weren’t you just fighting Anna?”

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  “Xenron and Eric, hold positions,” Vaere said, his voice curious. “Johan, demonstrate this ‘death blow’ of yours on a suitable target. You may not build up any more mana or speak further incantations to mold it. I’m watching.”

  “Of course,” Johan said, taking several deliberate steps to the side. “Could you cast a containment spell, Director? I don’t think Xenron’s in a state to dodge flying debris.”

  The man cast without speaking a word, and Johan gave him deferential a nod when the air around him started to shimmer. Drawing his fist back, he brought it down on the ground, a blast of consuming flame exploding out from the point of impact. The Fireball spell blew apart the ground in a space larger than a dining hall table and left a crater that Xenron could be buried in, standing up. Several shards of cracked stone now floated in the air around Johan, dropping slowly as Vaere lowered them harmlessly. Vaere whistled appreciatively.

  “That would sting even for me to take,” he said idly, then turned to Eric, raising an eyebrow.

  “Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m super extra dead. Xenron too, probably. Good fight, though,” he said cheerily.

  “It seemed the best demonstration for the exercise,” Johan shrugged. “You’re pretty hearty, so I couldn’t have held back if this was for-real. In that case, I’d shape the blast to consume me and you, rather than harm the prince - but I wasn’t inclined to die for the exercise.”

  Xenron was shocked with how casually Johan could talk about something like that. Personally, he was still alarmed with the thunderous sound of the blast. Johan was walking artillery - but then, that’s what they were all meant to be. That and more. Startling slightly, Xenron took Eric’s hand as it was offered and got to his feet. Eric gave him what seemed a nod of acknowledgement.

  “Johan, I hope you didn’t hurt Anna too bad?”

  “She’s fine,” Johan said offhand. “Just taking a swim out of bounds. I’m sorry I couldn’t be gentle with the plants. I understand they’re a pain to cultivate.”

  Eric sighed, then shrugged, taking a running jump down the waterfall to check on his companion. Xenron raised an eyebrow, wondering not for the first time about the company he kept. Still, he smiled.

  Johan patted Xenron’s shoulder, and Xenron looked at him, still dazed. Johan, for his part, smiled broadly. It was perhaps as happy as he’d ever seen Johan.

  “You carried yourself admirably,” Johan said. “I’m happy to have fought with you.”

  “It was nothing,” Xenron said, overwhelmed by the praise. “I’m the lucky one. You were incredible, beating them both.”

  “Don’t disrespect yourself - it doesn’t honor your opponents.” Johan’s expression wasn’t half as stern as his words, his smile still dominant. “Anna would be a ridiculous opponent for anyone. I’m just a terribly unfair matchup for her because of how my fire destroys her plants. The fact you held your own with her shows intrinsically how hard you’ve worked.”

  Xenron wanted to say something substantial in response, but his emotions were tangled in a knot. It was petty, Xenron knew, but he still could not forget the days during which Johan had tormented him and Leo. An animal part of Xenron wanted to flinch away from Johan’s hand. Still, Johan had been kind to him throughout his recent training - and they had made a good team. Instead of giving into base instincts, the dazed Xenron simply said, “Thanks, Johan.” The Apprentice nodded, content.

  “I’ve got to check in with Bruce. Knowing Lieutenant Vaere, the scoring system isn’t anything normal, so I’m curious where this puts us.” Xenron nodded, and Johan made his way towards the students’ viewing balcony. After confirming Eric had found Anna, Xenron reluctantly left them to their lively conversation - anything else would just be taken as a victor’s gloating - and headed back towards the old-style bleachers Vaere favored himself. He only made it to the hallway before meeting Leo and Ken, both of them beaming.

  “So, Project Oracle was a success?” Ken asked.

  Xenron shrugged. He realized it was probably useless to fight against the corny name.

  “It still needs work, but it made a hell of a difference,” Xenron admitted.

  “I think closing your eyes is too obvious,” Leo said, and Xenron nodded his agreement.

  “Nothing else works, for now,” Xenron said, “but I do have to work on that.”

  “Just get some sick shades,” Ken mused, and Xenron palmed his forehead. That would work… probably, and even if he still had to properly close his eyes it wouldn’t be obvious when he did.

  “Combat goggles wouldn’t even be suspicious,” Leo said. “Not a bad idea.”

  “Make sure to pay me royalties for the idea once you hit big leagues,” Ken said, walking past Xenron casually.

  “Where to?” Xenron asked, turning to face Ken. “Don’t run off so soon. You put up a good showing.”

  “It’s not like that,” Ken said, flicking Xenron’s forehead to his annoyance. Leo frowned. Ken didn’t seem to notice. “Vex wanted to test some stuff before her match.”

  “Last minute training?” Leo asked skeptically.

  “Nah,” Ken said. “I think she’s just trying to make sure she has a counter for whoever she’s matched with from the remaining pool.”

  Xenron nodded. “Wish her good luck for me. Find me if there’s anything I can help with.”

  Ken gave a thumbs up and headed off. Xenron turned to Leo with a cheeky grin as they started walking down the marble hall toward the elevator.

  “Look who’s finally getting along with Ken!”

  “We were just walking the same direction,” Leo said dismissively, but Xenron’s joy wasn’t dampened. Leo hadn’t been enthusiastic about Xenron’s new close friend, even as he tried to be supportive. Their personalities were certainly different - but they were both good people, so it seemed in Xenron’s head like they ought to get along.

  “So you were,” Xenron said rather than arguing.

  “That aside, I thought the timing on that dual gate stone was perfect,” Leo said, his own smile returning. “You should probably use magical gear more often once you’re allowed. You have a good sense of timing.”

  “Thanks - though, I do still have to work on it. I think delaying like I did was probably more risky than it was worth. Even if I was a little more delirious fighting Eric, the risk of Johan getting beaten by Eric in the meantime was too much.”

  Leo shrugged. “Planning only takes you so far. At some point, you need to get a little lucky. I think your call was fine.”

  As they reached the elevator, it opened, revealing Cerci Andross. A young Corporal in a sharp black and gold uniform, her long-limbed elegance was offset by a stiff posture and sharp expression. Midnight black curls fell down her back, the signature of her family, and her icy blue eyes glared at Xenron.

  Xenron saluted as was appropriate, and Leo followed a moment later, hand over his heart.

  “Are you satisfied, princeling, after that display of dependence?”

  Xenron startled. He didn’t expect such overt hostility from her.

  “I’m… not, Corporal Andross.” Xenron admitted. “I need to get much stronger.”

  Cerci stared back at Xenron for a long moment as in considering, then spoke sharply.

  “I need to get stronger, huh? That’s a cute little politician’s answer. Bowing and scraping. Pretending to be weak to fit in with that pack, then mocking my Anna by fighting with your eyes closed. Do you have even an ounce of respect for the people around you? Do you know how far she might fall because of today?! Anna was getting scouted by big people, including my family. She and Eric are from the frontier. They’ll need serious jobs after their required military time if they want to make a good life for their family.” She glowered at Xenron, whose head was already spinning with the implications. “Of course, you’re all too happy to spit on that so that you can maintain this… weird image you’re intent on cultivating.”

  “I-I’m sorry,” Xenron said. What can I do for them? Maybe if I can help them find connections to - who can I connect them with? Bruce and Johan aren’t high enough on the social chain. Xenron’s peers and mentors had been advised to treat him without any special respect, and Ken had described the latitude trainers had to discipline those under them, by any reasonably methods they chose. That authority didn’t seem to stop at the trainer’s section. Abruptly, Xenron raised his back and stood straight, still saluting, and found Cerci inches from his face. He could feel his face redden with shame, Cerci’s voice reverberating in his mind. “What can I do for them?”

  “They don’t want your charity. They want you out of their damn way. Ever self-respecting royal in history has stayed out of contests like this. It’s meant to be beneath you. You have all the best training, pure blood, unfathomable magical artifacts, and nothing to prove. But you,” she said, jabbing her finger at Xenron’s chest, “just had to show off, didn’t you? Is your ego that much more important than their hopes and dreams?”

  Cerci made some false assumptions, sure, but she was right about one thing. I didn’t have to participate in this contest. Father could have arranged something else to show off my abilities. I didn’t spare a single thought for what my victory might cost my opponents.

  “I-I’m s-sorry,” Xenron said powerlessly, trying desperately to think of a solution.

  “Spoken like a proper fake. Will you be content to keep hiding behind Johan and snickering at us little people when the Lucerna start burning our cities? Will you be ‘sorry’ then?”

  Cerci’s voice dripped with acid, and it was all Xenron could do to hold her gaze. As his fight or flight reflexes kicked in unhelpfully, he found himself hyperventilating. Silent Dread pressed on him, and he began to see things he should not through tear-blurred eyes. He had to find a way to make this right. Ariel. Ms. Bushida. Eric. Anna. Leo and Ken, Bruce and Johan, Zekain and Aslear and Vex. He’d failed them all. Betrayed their trust. He knew he wasn’t thinking quite right, but his mind was so tired. He’d been trying to start setting things right, but even as he was getting stronger, any real success seemed to keep slipping through his fingers.

  As Xenron’s bottom lip quivered too much to speak, and Xenron held back from a total breakdown only because of the knowledge - distant as it was - of what was happening. This was the prerogative of a drill instructor. While Bruce had never been this harsh while Xenron was around, Ken had told him stories. A soldier had to keep their composure under pressure. And yet… fuck. Despite his efforts of mindfulness, despite his physical training, his wasn’t used to this level of intensity. Cerci’s words were more than angry barbs. There was some truth to them. And yet…

  Something wasn’t right. Xenron tried furiously to reach the truth. Cerci accused him of being weak first. When Xenron admitted to being weak, she pivoted and said he was too powerful and insulted her students by fighting in their bracket. That would also mean that she saw his closed-eye fighting not as a strategy choice but as mockery.

  Surely Cerci was smarter than that. She probably had a psychological profile of him from her family. So why did she provoke him? It wasn’t without reason. Cerci had a reputation for being sarcastic and blunt, but she maintained important relationships. No one at her level was a fool. So…

  “How arrogant can you be?” Leo barked furiously, oblivious to the runaway train of thought in Xenron’s mind. “You’re just angry he beat your little prodigy and exposed your weakness. It was a fair fight. Apprentice against Apprentice. If Anna didn’t have a proper contingency to defeat Johan in the 1-on-1 Xenron would invariably force, that’s on her - or you, as her mentor. So you’re just letting off steam about the fact that you’re weak, and petty, and now everyone knows it.”

  Xenron turned his to Leo. He glared up at Cerci defiantly, and Xenron felt a sinking sensation rush through him. It was the moment before the fall. The snap of fingers called him back to his senses. Cerci turned to Leo pointing.

  “You say I’m weak?” Cerci said with a predatory grin. “Prove it. I challenge you, Leonardo Fornuft.”

  Leo flinched back slightly, but scowled. “I humbly decline. I have no reason to fight you.”

  Cerci shook her head. “It wasn’t a question,” she said before speaking more formally. “I invoke the right of challenge that Tier III students bear. Against a subordinate, it is my right to demand single combat, lest my name and that of the Andross family be tarnished.”

  Leo’s face fell, but he quickly set it like flint. “Fine. Lead on,” he said stiffly. He turned, walking with Cerci without another word for Xenron. Xenron turned after him numbly. He had to say something. You don’t have to do this, he thought, but it died before he reached his lips. Don’t have to do this? Of course he does. Cerci could probably pull enough strings to force the fight even if he hadn’t insulted her. What else can I say? ‘Good luck’? What luck?!

  Xenron’s head spun, and he realized despondently that his friend was already gone. Numbly, he ascended towards student balcony to watch the fight.

  As Xenron got to the viewing box, Aslear hurried over, arms out to hug him. He glared at her and snapped without thinking.

  “Leave me be.”

  “Amber?”

  “Why don’t you read the room for once in your damn life?!” Xenron yelled, gesturing to where Leo had already squared up with Circe. Aslear looked at Xenron as if confused, then her lips tensed involuntarily. He’d upset her. One more the list of failures. Numb, Xenron turned away from his other peer’s surprised looks and stared down at the match intently. He felt he owed Leo that much, pointless as it was. He gripped the rail in front of him, staring down into the forest clearing where Circe and Leo facing each other. A moment later, the clown of a program director announced the terms of the match - including that it was provoked by insult, but without any real context. There were no gimmicks, no magic items, no partners. Apparently Vaere’s childish games stopped as soon as the Andross princess had her feelings hurt. In a straight up fight, Leo didn’t have a ghost of a chance. Xenron found himself despising Vaere. He’d rarely had violent thoughts… but that flamboyant fool… Before his brooding could get any further, the match started.

  Leo lunged forward with a punch; Cerci moved her head a centimeter to its right. A blinding flash exploded as he opened his hand. Cerci grinned as she shut her eyes, kicking him casually behind the knee as if sight didn’t even matter. Leo crumpled to the ground.

  Xenron suddenly remembered how he’d pressed Ken about the Bruce issue. “To start,” Ken had said, his tone faintly bitter, “KEY instructors can use any means they choose to discipline their students, per Mad King Era law. It’s actually codified. I’m lucky he didn’t break every bone in my body for the trouble I gave him.”

  Leo shot a beam of light in a light extended arc. Cerci grabbed his hand and forced it back, burning into his shoulder before he could cut off the beam. She knocked him away with a punch, and when Leo came back at her, she picked away his illusionory duplicates with the same agility. Cerci’s combat boot slammed Leo in the ribs - his eyes bulged as he lost any air he was hanging onto. She dodged a weak attempt to strike back as he kicked at her, then threw him towards the waterfall.

  Strangely, Xenron felt hopeful at the sight. This fight would tarish Leo’s record, something he had tried very hard to improve. But that was unavoidable at this point. The worst case scenario wasn’t disgrace - it was being crippled in a fight with someone who could tear him in two like a piece of paper - with impunity. If Cerci threw Leo over the waterfall - out of bounds - he’d had enough training to break the water’s surface right. He would be just fine. But Leo didn’t accept that outcome - continuously, he fought back into close quarters combat, using more and more illusory doubles. He was determined to press Cerci, and finally she was forced to use her water magic, tearing apart the doubles en-masse with a wave of ice shards. Xenron couldn’t figure out what was on his mind. But I do have a way to get a hint.

  Because she was closer, Xenron noticed Cerci’s strange colors first. Crawling purple, surging red, and soft orange, amongst a swirl of other colors. Xenron tried to pick them apart from his emotional sense of them - anxiety or doubt? Anger - no, not true anger. Annoyance? And… empathy? What am I seeing?

  “The Tier III’s won’t kill us,” Ken had said. “Many of them know from experience exactly what it takes to kill. Some guys say they’re trying to teach us the difference. Teach us to deal with that pain. They won’t kill us - but they’ll take us right to the edge. Some of them love it.”

  Cerci’s emotions didn’t map onto that. It seemed more like this whole situation had spiraled even out of her control. That thought didn’t comfort Xenron.

  Leo’s emotions troubled him more. His red glow emanated out beyond the bounds of his body’s true size, imposing and almost blinding in Xenron’s vision. The emotion was unmistakable - searing rage. Surprised, Xenron opened his eyes. Something was wrong.

  Leo removed and tossed aside his gloves, something Xenron had never seen him do. He wore them obsessively. Then, Leo rushed at Cerci. He moved completely differently from how he had before, movements tinged with a faint but visible crimson light. It wasn’t an abstract depiction of emotion from Xenron’s Soul Severance - his eyes were open, and he didn’t see anything from Cerci. Red mana?! He distantly knew of alternative mana colors as a high level, qualitative transformation of one’s magic. The appearance of red mana confirmed Xenron’s suspicions about Leo’s emotions for certain - and took the fight to another level.

  Duplicates divided crisply from Leo’s position as he rolled left and right of Cerci’s waves of icicles. Instead of making several right away, he used them iteratively, adapting to Cerci’s techniques. Rather than using a single overpowering wave of ice which would put per magic on a cooldown, Cerci had to target down individual clones with pinpoint aim - but their speed made that troublesome.

  “Isn’t he a stealth-type?” Anna said, gawking at the fight.

  “He’s as fast as me,” Eric said excitedly. “Things are heating up! When did he learn to move like that?”

  Leo launched a beam of red-tinged light that forced Cerci to shield herself with a wall of ice. For her part, Cerci seemed unconcerned, casting calmly. She could still easily match his speed, and had every advantage. But she and the others weren’t watching closely enough. Fast as he was, Leo was still getting faster. His movement blurred as he appeared behind Cerci’s shield of ice with two duplicates, entrapping her. Cerci shot down one of the duplicates, then grazed Leo with an ice blade to the thigh. As Leo drew close, though, something changed in Cerci. Her eyes bulged. Her aura flared, pressing on Xenron despite the distance. It was the space of a blink as her power swelled, panicked and urgent like a cornered animal. Leo lunged for her in the same moment, his right hand reaching for her. Open. Without a technique. Yet she spoke a terrified spell. Leo seemed to see her terror, because at the last moment, he stopped, his hand dropping towards his side. Then, Xenron’s mind processed what she’d said. “Shatter.”

  Leo’s entire body froze over, gore exploding out of him in a wave of macabre, icy mist. His aura vanished, and Xenron screamed his wordless despair, sinking to his knees. He remembered, distantly, the accounts of past students he’d read.

  “He swung again and again. Ten blows, he said, and I was hearing cracks after two.”

  “The kicks didn’t stop, and before long she was on his chest, punching his barely resisting head. I wanted to scream, but what would that do for him?”

  That isn’t the worst they can do. Xenron had feared. The law doesn’t say they can’t kill.

  A moment later, blinding light flashed around Leo’s body. Xenron realized belatedly that Vaere had gotten to him - and again, Leo’s body was whole, although bleeding from several places. Temporal Reversal. It couldn’t rewind him all the way. It could only rewind a couple of seconds. The techinque had dozens of limitations - but at the moment, as Leo gave a heavy cough on the ground, it meant he was alive. Xenron ran from the balcony, his mind racing. But by the time Xenron made it down the base floor of the Sky Garden, the medics had already taken Leo away.

  “Where?” he begged of Lieutenant Vaere, who Xenron suddenly had a deep, enduring admiration for.

  “He’s been brought to safety. He’s in urgent treatment, but I’ll keep you apprised once he’s in visitation condition.” The man spoke cheerfully, without any apparent concern. Oddly, it did relax Xenron somewhat.

  “Okay,” he said distantly, then stared at Cerci. She stared dumbly at the bloody stones where she’d killed Leo, eyes unfocused. For a moment, Xenron felt a flash of hot anger. In that moment, he wanted to draw his sword and run her through, consequences be damned. The spell she’d cast was a costly one, only possible because Leo’s aura was much weaker than hers. It was an inelegant, brute force killing spell for the strong to lord over the weak, freezing the blood in their bodies to kill them instantly. It burned up a dangerous amount of mana for the same reason. He could perhaps kill her.

  Xenron shortly admonished himself for the thought. All of this had happened because of him. Cerci’s sightless stare, Leo’s fury, a generation of students traumatized in the viewing area. This wasn’t a just a guilt-based delusion Ms. Vale had warned him about. All these things were the consequences of his actions today. Leo had defended him - and he hadn’t done a thing to stop this disaster.

  Hours later, after bile had drained out of him, Xenron again checked in with Lieutenant Vaere. If the man was annoyed by his pestering, he gave no such indication - not that Xenron would have cared. This time, the man’s expression softened slightly. He had news?!

  “Young Leonardo is stable… but he is not accepting visitors at this time,” Vaere said simply.

  Xenron’s head took a moment to get around it - and then everything kicked into place.

  Oh. He thought numbly. He doesn’t want to see me. I’d been so lucky for so long… I’d forgotten what it felt like to be alone. But saved me, and I failed him. Xenron nodded numbly, saluted the Lieutenant, and departed. Finally, my mistakes catch up with me.