After classes were over, Finn decided to skip going to the library for a change. His research was getting nowhere fast, and when it came to training, he was falling behind even faster.

Fortunately, he did not have to go all the way outside of the city to find Natalie and the others. The academy offered specialized training rooms their students could abuse at will. All Finn had to do was go to the third floor and wait in line for a few minutes until it was finally his turn to open door 36.

Aside from the number at the top, it looked like a simple wooden door. However, when Finn pressed his finger on its surface, it went slightly in and created waves as if it was a puddle.

‘Draw a circle to enter an empty room. Write the student’s name to enter a teammate’s room.’ These words were written on a tablet fixed on the wall to the right of the door. Finn spelled out Natalie Reed and pulled the door open. There was a round, blue vortex in the entrance, and the boy walked through it.

On the other side, there was a gymnasium of sorts with a wooden floor and a blueish, slightly moving bubble acting as both walls and ceiling.

‘Note to self: Figure out how these dimensions work, after I learn how to combine magic and combat arts, teach it to everyone, investigate the adventurer’s guild, find a product, start a company, stick it to Loki… Sheesh, I’ll go bald at this rate.’

To add to his list of worries, while Tommy was practicing his swings, Natalie was trying to take Michael’s head off. The two were supposedly sparring, except there was genuine killing intent behind each and every one of her blows.

Even so, Michael either dodged or blocked with his gauntlets, and although he was struggling, the two looked evenly matched.

‘This is not going to end well, is it?’

Natalie was clearly getting frustrated, so it was only a matter of time before she would make a mistake. Unfortunately, there was little Finn could do to help her, so he gave a salute (which was completely ignored) and then started training on his own.

The boy tried to bring out his body’s power, but without the use of the warrior’s breath. He meditated for half an hour to calm himself as much as possible and then practiced random knife swings and techniques, trying to maintain a fluid motion.

Soon, his moves looked like a bastardized version of Tai Chi, completely inefficient, way too slow, with terrible balance and an overall bad form. Annoyed, he sat back down and fell deep into thought.

‘So far, I know the warrior’s breath makes your mana go crazy, and to do crystal magic it needs to be calm. Except, calming the F down doesn’t seem to work. And if merely relaxing was enough to use magic, then Grigori could’ve simply taken a massage.

How did he get stuck in an in-between state where he couldn’t use magic nor the warriors’ breath properly? How do I even know when I’ve succeeded in turning into a magician or when I’m about to cripple myself?’

Finn felt a migraine forming, so he checked out his friends’ spar to distract himself. It was then that Michael landed a critical blow. Natalie kneeled and waited for her wounds to heal from the dimension’s effects. Then, as soon as she felt better, she started shouting profanities while punching the floor until her fists cracked and bled.

‘Godamnit.’ Finn got up and walked towards her. ‘Looks like we could both use some help.’

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

As soon as he thought this, a girl with silver-white hair, a small nose, and deep eyes entered the gymnasium dimension. She was dressed in black trousers and a white, frilly shirt gifted to her by Reina.

“You weren't at the library, so I came here. What happened? Why is Natalie crying?”

As he watched Annie run to her friend, Finn was reminded of all the times she had saved them. ‘My knight in shining armor.’

By the time Finn joined them, Natalie had stopped destroying her own fists and only sobbed quietly in Annie’s arms. From the side, a pale Michael was opening and closing his mouth unsure of whether to comfort her, apologize, or punch himself in the gut. Tommy was patting his shoulder for comfort, but it was clear from his frown that he didn’t have a solution either.

“Howdy,” Finn forced a smile as he crouched on the floor in front of them. “Natalie Sensei, they sure grow up fast, don’t they?”

“Get lost.”

“Are you sure? I was actually thinking of helping you guys out. You see, I’ve just realized something: Tommy, you’re always following in Natalie’s footsteps. Annie, all you do after class is help me out with my research. Michael… You’re the exception. Free up your schedule this Sunday, the two of us should hang out.”

Finn gave Michael a wink and the boy looked confused.

“You’re spouting bullshit,” said Natalie.

“Yes, but I do have a point, I think: Natalie, you’ve gotten strong not through talent but by learning from Mr. Griffin and studying his every move. So, why can’t you do the same with Tommy?”

“Shut up.”

“Who cares if he’s your friend and you taught him breathing? Does ego have a place when it comes to training?”

Natalie wanted to say something but then bit the inside of her cheek. “No,” she muttered after a moment. “Ego is a hill the swordsman must either cut or die on.”

‘Mr. Griffin’s quotes to the rescue.’

A moment later, Natalie got up and wiped away her tears. “I will never be this weak again.”

Finn sighed. “You were never weak to begin with.”

Natalie bowed deeply in front of Tommy and requested his guidance.

“I’m not much of a teacher…”

“You don’t have to. Just spar with Michael and I’ll dissect you both.”

“Don’t you mean Analyze?” asked Michael.

Natalie pushed him forward. “I know what I’ve said.”

The two boys started sparring a bit further away, and Natalie observed them closely.

‘With a little luck, they will learn from each other.’

Finn felt a tap on his shoulder.

“So, you don’t want me to help you anymore?”

The boy smiled and slumped his head. “I can’t pull this off without you, but I also don’t want to take away your time.”

“Isn’t it my choice how I use my time?”

Finn nodded.

“Good. Then, I want to spend it uncovering magic’s greatest mystery, together with you.”

Annie kissed Finn’s forehead, and he instantly rose to his feet.

“J-just touch my back, I want to try something.”

“I could also touch your chest.”

“NO! We’ve got a lot to do, let’s focus.”

Fortunately, the day was still young and they could still train safely, for now.

…………………………………………

During the following night, multiple children between the ages of five and 17 went missing throughout the land.

One child and one teen of noble birth disappeared in the west, north, south, east, and in the middle of the empire. One child and one teen peasant disappeared in these areas too. The offspring of beastpeople, humans, giants, elves and dwarves were targeted in equal amounts.

Following these incidents, search parties were formed, drawings of the victims were spread throughout the empire and countless quests were added to the adventurer guild’s roster. Sadly, despite the huge reward and the guild’s best efforts, not a child was found.