Cyril and Myra were the first students in this class to enter the arena.
Their professor eagerly walked in closer to observe. All the other students, even those that were dead tired, stood near him as well.
Observing a duel was a pretty novel experience.
Under the expectant eyes around them, Cyril and Myra bowed to each other and readied for battle.
Soon the professor screamed loudly for them to "Begin!"
Cyril shot forward immediately and attacked with a flurry of thrusts. Each strike was fast with great force behind it, but Myra, with minimal movement, dodged all of it and responded back.
There was some weight behind her confidence. She was experienced and calm.
Cyril was surprised to find out that in their exchanges, he was inferior when it came to skill. The only advantage he had was strength.
As the fight continued, it became clear that he was losing. He has yet to land a solid strike, while Myra has already landed several.
Pain clouded his judgment, and his attacks became more desperate. which only seemed to aid Myra, as she continued to dodge his attacks.
"Stop!" Soon the booming voice of the professor signaled the end of the duel.
The surrounding students exclaimed as well, some even starting to clap.
"I'm glad to find out we have some good students here. This fight was exceptional." The professor's loud voice was tinged with satisfaction.
The announcement brought Cyril back to reality, and he sat down on the floor from exhaustion.
I can't believe I lost so easily and to someone wielding a spear too...
Cyril had a feeling she would be strong, but not to this extent. She saw through his every move as if she knew them all beforehand.
"It's only a temporary setback, Cyril. You'll surpass her in no time!" Rhamn crouched down beside him, raising a fist in the air.
I am fine. No need to say things like that.
Cyril got up from the ground, gave a nod to Myra, and headed to the bench to rest.
Myra followed him and sat nearby as well.
"You fought well. If I relaxed for even a second, you would've won. How did you learn to fight like that?" She tried to initiate a conversation.
"None of your business."
Myra's face turned blank, and then after a second, she made a forced laugh.
Though he tried to stay rational about his loss, Cyril still felt a somewhat embarrassing sense of frustration at the moment.
"Then don't talk to this ugly thing. How dare she act so friendly towards you? She must have cheated in that fight somehow as well... I refuse to believe someone who looks like that is actually competent!"
Don't slander other people for no reason. She fought fair.
Her unreasonably harsh words happened to help Cyril calm down somewhat.
He quietly took a breath and turned towards the awkward-looking Myra. "I learned under a teacher back home."
Getting a normal reply, Myra's face noticeably and very quickly brightened.
Sitting there, they talked a bit about themselves and discussed the other duels taking place.
She explained that she was from outside the city, which surprised Cyril, as such people were incredibly rare in the first place, and to find one worthy of enrolling here was even rarer.
"So she is not even from a civilized place? I guess we should've expected that."
Stop it already...
In total there were two other fights. The first one went through steadily with a clear winner after an energetic fight.
The last one was between the young man Cyril wanted to fight earlier, whose name was Cedric, and another student.
The difference in skill was too much, so Cyril was not able to properly rate his strength, but he was not too concerned with that right now.
After some additional speeches and exercises from the instructor, they were done with the lesson.
Most of the students were too tired already and whined about how they just wanted to go to bed now.
Cyril didn't linger and try to talk with them. He only quickly said goodbye to Myra, who stuck close to him for the whole lesson, and left.
...
What should I do now? Just pretend like nothing is wrong while hoping that healer can find something?
Cyril asked himself as he was walking back to his dorm.
"Of course!" Rhamn materialized walking beside him. "Because nothing is wrong indeed."
He sent her a sidelong glance and sighed.
You keep mentioning that, but you have to realize how unusual this whole situation is, right?
Rhamn made an awkward smile and shrugged.
"Not everything can be explained. Life continues regardless, so I say we should just keep going without thinking too much into things."
...What a blissful mindset.
At this moment he was passing by the park near his dorm. Its size was impressive, as if a small forest was placed beside the dormitory.
Right as he was walking by the entrance, from there a particularly strong gust of wind hit Cyril.
He shielded his eyes with his arm and looked at the direction it came from with suspicion.
Not far inside, on a park bench, was lying a conspicuous letter subtly glowing purplish.
Now what?
Cyril frowned and looked around him but saw no one.
Rhamn stared at the letter with a distrustful but intrigued expression.
"Should we check it out? It looks like a message to us." She cautiously said.
Cyril slowly made his way towards the bench and looked around, still finding no one.
Then, apprehensive of touching the clearly magical letter with his bare hands, he leaned in to get a closer look.
It was a small piece of paper with a single line beautifully written in the middle: "Don't worry. Hide it." Below it was a drawing of a sword entwined with a flower.
Shock stunned Cyril for a second, and as he was processing the message, the letter suddenly started melting into nothingness.
In no time at all, the piece of paper was gone completely, and in front of him was just a regular bench.
As soon as he could, Cyril stood up straight and looked around. All he saw were tall trees gently swaying in the wind, not a single trace of other humans nearby.
Hide it? Don't worry? Is it telling me my situation is safe as long as no one knows about this?
After a few minutes of fruitlessly looking around the park, Cyril started cautiously walking back home, paying attention to everything on the way.
"Let's stay calm and think about the message for now." Walking by his side, Rhamn pinched her chin in thought.
Her red eyes lacked any urgency or anxiety, instead, they shone with the excitement of a child finding an interesting new toy.
You really find this fun?
Cyril shot her a helpless stare as he was opening the door to his dorm.
"Of course! That's so exciting. It's like we are taking part in some spy play."
Just as Cyril's glare was becoming worse, she hastily added in defense.
"Besides, this is clearly a message trying to help us!"
Cyril contemplated her words, walking down the corridor and soon reaching his room.
Let's hope you are right.
'Don't worry. Hide it.' It does seem like advice.
He walked inside and closed the door behind him. After taking a look around for anything suspicious and finding nothing, Cyril sat down on the bed.
Rhamn reappeared sitting on the bed as well, crossing her legs with a smile.
"They are clearly trying to tell you that your situation is natural and nothing dangerous!"
Of course you would say that...
Cyril sighed, but he could find no other interpretation of that message.
So I should just go on with my life and not ask any questions?
He stared into her red eyes, starting to feel a bit frustrated.
"We can ask that old woman who she consulted. That must be the one who sent the letter!" Rhamn leaned closer to him, staring at Cyril with an excited smile.
I guess that's a start.
"There is also that emblem on the letter. What could it mean?"
Rhamn pinched her chin, her red eyes burning with curiosity.
"Ah!" Soon, she gasped with anticipation and looked at Cyril, awaiting his next words.
...Right. That's my family's emblem.
Rhamn stood up from the bed and began pacing around the room, nodding to herself from time to time.
"I see, I see. Perhaps that someone is trying to say that they are loyal to your family, or..."
She halted and pointed at Cyril.
Cyril continued with a frown.
Maybe that someone is trying to tell me that the Thorne family is directly related to my state.
My father never tells me anything... Could this be a special characteristic of my bloodline? I've heard a powerful mage's progeny can become influenced by their magical nature, often in an unusual manner.
Cyril observed Rhamn nearby, his gaze uncertain.
...It's a bit of a stretch but can be a theory for now.
Rhamn nodded in thought, then asked with curiosity.
"So your dad is someone powerful?"
Every noble family has a powerful mage within. How can they reach their status without one?
Cyril calmly said, then frowned once he noticed Rhamn raising an eyebrow.
"You've heard only rumors, people say he was particularly strong... They called him the most powerful knight! He was a knight? ...Some twenty years ago disappeared without a trace, showing up only two years later holding a baby."
Rhamn effortlessly read through Cyril's mind and memories, catching herself up to speed.
He could only helplessly sigh.
"Since then your dad left the knights, instead becoming a moneylender... How interesting!"
"It seems we have a case of a mysterious parent! That certainly seems like a special bloodline to me."
"What should we do with that? Go confront your dad directly?"
Rhamn proposed with excitement but soon started losing a bit of that energy.
Father never talked about what happened 20 years ago, but I can't imagine it's anything good.
Cyril got up from the bed and went towards his desk.
...Since I am not in any danger, it's fine to take it slow.
Rhamn watched Cyril take out his study materials with a somewhat disappointed face before making a warm smile.
"That works too. Let's just enjoy our student life." Rhamn nodded in approval and sat nearby, observing Cyril's actions.
"It's the beginning of my studies. I'll focus on getting stronger." He said aloud, "Answers can wait."