LUCIEN – IN HIS ROOM
Yeah… I'm doing it. I'm holding it longer now.
The balance. The output. Healing Impact used to feel like I was just forcing mana into shape and hoping it didn't blow up in my face. Now? It's… cleaner. More controlled. Like I'm actually guiding it instead of wrestling it. Even at much higher intensity without me collapsing on the spot after releasing it because it takes too much of my mana before. Come to think of it, I can still feel Elandor's limiter but it's not as the same as before. I narrowed my eyes slightly, focusing. Adjusting the density. Lowering the output. Then raising it again–
*knock, knock.*
"…timing," I sighed and stood up. No point continuing if I'm about to get interrupted anyway. I walked over and opened the door.
Commander Valenis was standing there.
"…this can't be good," I said immediately.
He didn't even react.
Starting tomorrow," he said, straight to the point, "you're done with this phase."
I blinked. "…you say that like I passed something."
"You didn't," he replied flatly. "You survived it."
"…Well, That's reassuring."
"It's not supposed to be."
Fair enough. I leaned slightly against the doorframe. "Alright, so what's next? More getting thrown around? Or do I get upgraded to 'getting killed faster'?"
"Something like that."…great. He shifted his weight slightly, then continued.
"You're moving to the second stage of your training."
I straightened a bit. Yeah, okay. That sounds serious. "…and that is?"
"Spatial magic." Silence. I stared at him. "…you're joking."
"I don't joke."
"Yeah, I noticed." Almost forgot he is like a younger version of Elandor but from Orynthia. Then he just left without saying anything.. Very Elandor way of saying goodbye. "Good bye to you too." too late, he just vanished like a ghost. And that's a mid-tier S-rank assassin for you… wait, did he just do some kind of ninja exit?
I ran a hand through my hair, processing. Spatial magic?...okay, that sounds both cool and terrifying at the same time. In my old world, every time I heard "spatial" in sci-fi movies or games, it usually meant something like space distortion, teleportation, bending distance, or messing with the relationship between objects and… well, surroundings itself. So yeah. No pressure. I leaned back against the wall and stared at the ceiling. "I'm not sure if it's the same thing here, but I hope I don't mess it up," I muttered. Then I looked down at Blaze. "…Hey, what do you think spatial magic does?"
Blaze tilted his head like he was actually thinking about it. "I don't know… but it sounds dangerous." He grinned. "So I like it."
I sighed immediately. "Yeah… remind me not to ask you important questions again."
"Hey, I gave you an answer."
"That's not an answer. That's a warning label."
From the corner of the room, Byakuren was already asleep again, completely unbothered. Like usual. The guy could probably sleep through a war. Then, A soft movement. I looked down. Nochtrael. The wolf was awake, sitting near my bed, tail slowly swaying. Watching me like it had been waiting for the exact right moment. "…what?" I asked.
Its ears twitched. "When will you make me your official familiar?"
I blinked. "…come to think of it," I said slowly, "you've been sticking around for months now." Nochtrael tilted his head. "The scholars already hate me anyway… so why not?" That answer seemed to satisfy it immediately. Because the next second, It jumped. Not aggressively. More like… a light bump against my chest. Then it landed on my side like it owned the place.
"I am your familiar now."
Before I could even react–
NOTICE
[Enhanced senses acquired]
[Skill acquired: Hunter's Gaze]
I froze. "…huh?" I blinked again. "Enhanced senses? That's like Byakuren's thing…" I muttered. Then I focused on the second one.
"Hunter's Gaze… what even is that supposed to do?"
Blaze shrugged from the side.
"Sounds like you can see things better."
"Wow. Helpful again."
Nochtrael just sat there calmly, like it had always been mine. I leaned back onto the bed with a slow breath. "…spatial magic, dragon's malice, cute cat who turns out to be the guardian outside elven lands, and now a nightmare wolf just become my new familiar." I paused. "…I think I'm getting outpaced by my own life." My eyes slowly closed. And the last thing I felt was Nochtrael settling near me like it had always belonged there. Then everything went quiet.
Next morning came.
*Knock. Knock.*
"…five more minutes," I muttered into the pillow.
*Knock. Knock.*
Yeah… that wasn't going away. "…alright, alright–" I groaned, dragging myself up. My body still felt heavy from yesterday. Or… the last few months, honestly. I walked to the door and opened it halfway, squinting. Elandor was there. Right beside my pillow, Blaze lifted his small red iguana like head, blinking lazily, tail flicking once like he'd just been personally offended by the concept of mornings.
"Hey kid," Elandor said casually. "You're going to be late on your first day of advanced training."
I blinked. "…how do you even know that?"
"Valenis told me yesterday."
I stared at him for a second. "…of course he did." Blaze stretched his tiny limbs and yawned, showing way too many sharp teeth for something that small. "You people really like interrupting sleep, huh."
"Not helping," I muttered.
Then I noticed someone standing just slightly behind Elandor. An elf. Calm posture. Clean robes. The kind of presence that felt quiet, but not weak. Just… controlled. He stepped forward slightly. "Greetings to you, Lucien of Saphiro. I am Oaklan Elasari. I will be supervising your training in advanced magic."
I paused. Then nodded once. "…finally," I said, glancing sideways at Elandor, "someone who knows how to properly say good morning."
Elandor didn't react "…get dressed," he said. "We're moving."
A few minutes later, we were already walking through the halls. Blaze was now perched on my shoulder, tail lazily wrapped around my neck like it owned the place. The morning air felt different. Lighter. Or maybe that was just me knowing things were about to get worse. I glanced at Oaklan. "…hey, before we go to… whatever place you're dragging me to," I said, "can we stop by Ravenshard HQ first?" Elandor didn't even look at me.
Oaklan tilted his head slightly. "…for what purpose?"
"I didn't really get to thank them properly," I said. "For the training." A small pause.
Then Oaklan nodded once. "That is reasonable."
Elandor just shrugged. "Make it quick."
Blaze's tail flicked again. "Oh, I like this part."
"…you would," I muttered.
Few minutes later, we've reached Ravenshard's HQ.
*Knock. Knock.*
The door opened almost immediately. Elandris stood there. "Hey, Lucien!" he grinned. "Good luck on your training!"
"…thanks," I said, smiling a bit.
From inside– "Why are you here, brat?"
Yeah. That voice. Sylendor.
"I came to say thanks," I replied, stepping inside slightly. "For training me." A brief silence. Then–
*SHINK–!*
Something flew straight at my face. "–!" My hand moved before I even thought.
*CLANG.*
I caught it. A dagger. Blaze leaned forward slightly on my shoulder, eyes narrowing with interest. "…not bad."
I blinked. "…seriously?"
Valenis was leaning against the wall like nothing happened. "Now that," he said calmly, "is the right way of saying thank you." He tilted his head slightly. "Because your hard work paid off."
I looked down at the dagger in my hand… then tossed it back. "…still feels like attempted murder."
"Good," Sylendor muttered. "That means you're learning."
Blaze let out a low chuckle. "I like this guy."
"…don't encourage him." I exhaled. "…where's everyone else?" I asked. "Thalene, Thalindra, Faelar, Aelion, Erendil… Caeleth?"
Valenis didn't even hesitate. "Classified mission."
"…figures." I nodded once. "…tell them thanks too. When they get back." No one answered. But they didn't need to. I turned and walked out. "Later," I said.
"Don't die," Sylendor called out.
"…I'll try."
Blaze waved lazily. "No promises."
We continued walking. The path got quieter the further we went. Blaze glanced around. "Feels like we're going somewhere important."
"Yeah," I said. "That's usually a bad sign." Eventually, we stopped. In front of a door.
Just… wood. No carvings. No markings. No magic circles. Nothing. Just a plain wooden door. I stared at it. "…this is it?"
Blaze frowned slightly. "…That's a bit suspicious."
Oaklan stepped forward slightly. "We're here." …yeah. That somehow that felt suspicious more than anything I've faced so far, because unlike Ravenshard's training grounds.. this one's so quiet.
End of chapter.