The nameless man's first visit to the sea ended exactly as he wanted: not as a mission, but as a choice of his own, with the seashell in his hands and the ocean finally before him.
The following morning, Elion began preparing for the test before breakfast was even finished.
Kael noticed this when he found half the table occupied by papers containing tide measurements, wind directions, and the expected times of the strongest waves. Elion ate with one hand while reviewing his notes with the other, and the former Reference floated beside him, following his every movement as though watching could somehow speed up the process.
"You said after breakfast," she remarked.
"I'm still having breakfast," Elion replied, raising his cup to his mouth without taking his eyes off the paper.
"Then you're taking too long."
"It's a meal, not an emergency."
Kael sat across from them. "You're learning."
Elion looked up. "Don't encourage her."
