Yaric couldn’t believe how magic lessons were simultaneously both dull and exciting. Dull because their spells had moved from defensive magic to far more mundane and practical spellforms. Exciting, because magic! Sure, heating a drink or pulling a spoon to your hand was nothing like projecting blades of compressed air, but also, how could you ever get tired of watching a spoon move by itself?
They had a lot of fun learning to create helium, with lots of high-pitched voices in their dorm that week. Hydrogen was more dangerous, but they got to burn things, and Yaric was already trying to think of how to use spontaneous ignition in oxygen in a spell form.
Heating things was easy. Yaric had learned the spell in a single lesson. The most complex part of the process was adjusting the spell to spread the heat over the volume, as the volume constantly changed, but you were simply adding energy. Cooling things was a whole other matter. Removing energy could be done in many ways, from converting it into another form of energy, to pulling it somewhere else, each of which had its own issues. Sitting in class with his friends, Yaric found the process far more challenging.
Sven managed to make a bang that blew his hair back when he pulled a significant portion of the heat energy into the air around the mug. Not only was the coffee still steaming, but the amount of energy held in a liquid at any given temperature is far more than the same volume of air at that temperature, resulting in a massive and sudden expansion of the air around his coffee. The mug was unharmed.
Li Na tried to convert the energy in her coffee. What possessed her to change the heat energy into kinetic energy would likely always be a mystery, but everyone knew why she had to leave to change her clothes. Unfortunately, the mug didn’t make it.
Yaric was trying to copy Sven’s idea with a more gradual approach. He was siphoning off the heat in long tendrils, and allowing the energy to bleed from the tendrils across their entire length. He’d just realized how long the process would take when Lauren suddenly sat up straight in her seat next to him. By now Yaric knew exactly what that meant; Lauren had figured something out.
Kaylin gasped from her seat nearby and started looking around in confusion, before turning to stare intently at Lauren. The coffee stopped steaming and started forming a layer of ice on top, which seemed to be the catalyst that triggered the whole mug to freeze solid.
“What did you do?” Kaylin asked. “My bracelet felt like it was going to pull off my wrist.”
By now High Wizard Spyros had made his way over as well.
“Remember that spell we learned for creating magnetic force?”
“Yes,” Kaylin replied.
“I worked out how to fit the component for magnetism into the energy slot of the spellform.”
“But that makes no sense,” Yaric pointed out. “Heat is a type of energy, magnetism is one of the forces. How can you make one into the other?”
Lauren’s mouth twitched slightly as she tilted her head with a playful glint in her eyes. “Magic.”
Kaylin snorted.
“Excellent work Novice,” Emil exclaimed with a clap of his hands. “You are already touching on a more advanced concept in spellwork – intent! We can achieve many things using the rules of the universe, but sometimes we need to use magic to change those rules. Temporarily and in a localized space, of course.”
And it truly was the intent behind the spell. Yaric tried it on his desk after he had worked out how to fit the correct component into the spell. Nothing happened at first. Magnetism had no energy of its own, so how could he convert the heat energy into magnetism? It was only when he gave up on understanding the issue and focused on just making it happen that a section of his desk suddenly frosted over.
Thinking the process over, Yaric didn’t understand why the process couldn’t simply be reversed. If Lauren can make heat energy into magnetism, despite the process making no sense, why couldn’t he invert the heat spell he’d already mastered? If it converts arcana into heat energy, surely he could convert heat energy into arcana?
It took several minutes and a few sketches, but Yaric managed to work out a method he believed should work. Not only would it convert the heat energy into pure arcana, but arcana couldn’t naturally exist in the fourth dimension, and would immediately start bleeding back into the fifth. The heat would be transformed into something else and automatically get rid of itself.
Despite his preparations, it was easier said than done. They were near the end of the class when Yaric finally got his custom-made spellform right and cast his spell.
A deafening crack rang out for the barest instant before being cut off as Yaric’s desk immediately glowed red. Half the class had leaped to their feet at the sound with their hands over their ears. Emil was staring at Yaric with wide eyes while Yaric tried to pull himself upright again. Lauren had reached out and pulled him toward her, away from the noise and light, in the blink of an eye. One second he was reflexively closing his eyes, and the next he was half out of his chair.
Yaric’s ears were ringing and burning hot under the shocked stares. His mug was gone. In its place was an obsidian black dome that sat over where his mug had been and almost seemed to suck in the light. Worse, there were occasional glowing lights from inside the dome, which didn’t seem possible.
Emil rushed back to Yaric’s desk, looking flustered. “What did you do?” he asked, echoing Kaylin’s earlier question.
“I just reversed the heat spell,” Yaric replied nervously. “I don’t know what happened.”
“Reversed the heat spell? There’s no such thing.”
“I changed it to input heat and convert it to arcana, instead of the other way around.”
Emil’s eyes grew wide. “You can’t…” he spluttered, breaking off and staring in disbelief before rubbing his face in his hands. “It doesn’t work like that. You should never…” Emil started saying before finding himself at a loss for words again.
High Wizard Spyros turned to address the whole class. “What you’ve just seen happen is the classroom’s basic defenses trigger. I need you to all understand something. Never, ever, try to convert something into arcana. It’s like trying to unbake bread. We can use arcana to make almost anything we want, but we can never convert something back. Any attempts to do so will always be catastrophic.”
Most of the class was still slightly shocked, and they had all been confused when their instructor had first told them to never try and convert something into arcana, but Gerrick and a few others now started teasing Yaric as if they couldn’t believe how dumb he’d been.
“This isn’t really your fault,” Emil said, his voice now much softer as he addressed Yaric directly. “I know you’re supposed to be trying to adjust a spell to best cool things down, but you should have confirmed your idea before testing an entirely new spell that you came up with yourself.”
“Why weren’t we taught about this earlier?” Lauren asked, quickly coming to Yaric’s defense.
“Because there’s never been any need. No 7th year has ever tried something like this before. The subject doesn’t even come up until your classes merge. You’re only just starting to learn proper spells, finding a way to attempt something like this is something no one would ever believe.”
“I can’t be the first one,” Yaric protested. “I just used Lauren’s idea to change energy into a force and tried to take it further. Arcana would just disappear so there wouldn’t be a magnetic field to worry about.”
“Yes, Novice Miller, you are the first. The issue is less about your idea and more about attempting to invert a spell and casting it without asking for advice. Modifications like you’re learning now are fine, and if there’s any possibility of danger, I’ll let you know. But you didn’t simply build a spell, you changed the component. You completely inverted it. Instead of choosing your ingredients and arranging them correctly, you modified the ingredients themselves. That’s always going to have risk.”
“Sorry, High Wizard Spyros.”
“Thank you, but no, you aren’t to blame. It takes something like this to learn respect for magic. Maybe it’s even a good thing that it happened so early, before you learn more powerful spells. The safeties you triggered have limits, after all. In the future I hope you have the good sense to ask first before doing something completely new.”
“I will.”
“I didn’t know these even existed,” Lauren said, pointing to the dome over where Yaric’s mug used to be.
“That’s probably because no 7th year has ever triggered them. Not until today, anyway. No 8th year either. They’re here in case someone tries a dangerous spell outside of a Tech Duinn before they’re actually ready for it. Now if you’ll excuse me for a moment, I need to get rid of whatever is inside of this.
“Oh, and by the way, instead of converting the heat energy into some other form of energy, or even a force like magnetism, why don’t you try and convert it into matter? Like water. The heat in your coffee would make an infinitesimal amount of water which would just join the rest.”
Yaric and Lauren stared at each other in disbelief while Emil walked away with the dome, which had expanded into a full orb as he lifted it off the desk.
“Why didn’t we think of that?” Yaric asked.
Lauren just smiled. “We probably would have,” she said innocently, “but someone tried to blow up the classroom.”
Yaric turned red, but Lauren grabbed his elbow before he could say anything and pulled him over to her part of the desk. “Here, we can both use my mug. I think yours is gone forever.”
The rest of the lesson was spent freezing Lauren’s coffee before reheating it again. Mundane and boring.
But also very cool.
----------------------------------------
“I assume you wanted to speak to me about Yaric Miller,” Healer Bell said.
Faruk was sitting on the upper deck of Lloyd’s favorite diner. Lloyd already had drinks at the table and a waiter was moving toward them to take their order.
“Can’t I invite a friend for lunch?” Lloyd asked with mock offense.
“You can… you just don’t.”
“Well I just did, though, by strange coincidence…” Lloyd replied, letting his words hang in the air when the waiter arrived. It didn’t take long to place their orders and continue.
“Are you aware of the deal Yaric made with two Arch Wizards?” Lloyd asked.
Faruk looked startled but quickly composed himself. His voice was calm when he replied. “You know I can’t tell you about anything we discuss.”
“No need,” Lloyd smirked. “They have been asking to study Yaric’s unique defenses, but Yaric refuses to commit to an answer. The last time they asked him directly and Arch Wizard Phelps made a deal with Yaric when he couldn’t make up his mind. Yaric needs to think about it and give them a definitive answer after the Solstice Tournament.”
“And you’re worried he won’t have an answer?”
“I’m more worried that he’ll say no.”
“And is there any particular reason that denying the request would be the wrong answer?”
“Several. I’m sure you know most of them. What I’m looking for are any insights you have into how I can approach the problem. And maybe even why it’s a problem in the first place.”
“I’m not in the business of making people’s decisions for them, and neither are you.”
“No, but my role is to guide my student, and give him help when needed. Right now, Yaric needs help.”
“Assuming that there is a correct answer to the request, and the answer is yes, Yaric hasn’t given his answer yet. Who’s to say he doesn’t say yes?”
“He could,” Lloyd acknowledged. “But I’d rather speak with him before he gives his answer. I don’t know how though. For some reason, he still struggles with what happened to him before I found him.”
Faruk turned to look out over the garden, deep in thought. They sat in silence for over a minute before Faruk finally turned back to Lloyd.
“You’re putting me in an awkward position here.”
“I know, you can’t talk about…”
“No,” Faruk said, cutting Lloyd off. “You’re asking me to dispel a very convenient myth.”
“What myth?” Lloyd asked, looking very confused.
Faruk sighed deeply and turned back to look at the garden. He continued to look out over the garden when he replied, “Different nations have slightly different laws. It’s obviously true, we can’t talk about those in our confidence, that’s the same everywhere. But there are exceptions. Here in Malvec, that includes you.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re his Sponsor. While you have no right to his private thoughts, you actually can ask about anything to do with his future or his health. It’s part of the agreement as a Sponsor. There are many things that a student receives from their Sponsor, but you also receive some things in return. One of those things is the right to question me regarding his health or issues that involve his academic performance. Like this.”
Lloyd just stared at him for a moment. “You mean, all this time…”
“Yes,” Faruk sighed.
“Well?”
“Well, I think you might be making some understandable assumptions here. Not much about Yaric’s case fits into a common mold.”
“Explain from the beginning then. Because it seems very obvious to me.”
“All right. Let’s start with how he’s coping. I’m sure you’ve spoken about things that happened with Virgo before?” Faruk asked, getting a nod in return. “Did that sound like someone unable to deal with what happened?”
“You’re saying he’s cured?”
“Cured is the wrong word. There was never anything wrong with him. He had some rather extreme trauma, that’s true, but his reactions would be considered healthy, not wrong. Though I do understand what you’re trying to ask, and no, he still struggles with this. As can be expected. He talks about it, but only reluctantly. And why would he be happy to talk about such a dark period of his life? He will always view it with pain. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t coping. He’s doing remarkably well, all things considered.”
“Then why does he keep refusing to discuss the things that happened?”
“I believe that’s another assumption. He does talk about the things that happened. With you, with me, and I know he’s spoken with his friends as well. He’s spoken about losing his parents, being tortured, and a dozen other things. It’s only his shield that he seems reluctant to deal with.”
“That makes no sense. The other things are far worse than a shield. I mean, the shield is a gift!”
“Is it? That’s yet another assumption. We’re discussing the shield as it relates to what happened to him. I don’t believe that’s how he views it?”
“Then what is the problem?” Lloyd asked uncertainly.
“Try and look at it from his point of view, and where he is today. What would he get out of allowing Arch Wizards to examine him?”
“Well, credits, obviously. But far more importantly he’ll develop a relationship with two Arch Wizards, and he’ll learn about a defense unique to himself. The potential benefits are massive. For a 7th year to get something like this…” Lloyd trailed off for a moment while trying to think of the right words. “It’s just unheard of.”
“For us, yes. And objectively it’s true as well. But what about from Yaric’s point of view? Tell me, how many credits does Yaric have right now? I know he was awarded credits at the very limit of what is allowed, just as part of the compensation he received when he arrived here. And then he won the competition as well. With a new record no less. Where does he stand?”
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
“Let’s just say that he has another record no one knows about,” Lloyd smirked. His smile dropped and he turned far more serious when he continued. “He paid far too much for it though.”
“Oh, I have no doubt. But take all of that into account and try to imagine where he is right now. He now has close friends who have already proven to be there for him. He has an unimaginable credit balance - I dare say enough that he could do anything he wants with no concern over cost. He consistently finishes in the top eight in Solstice Tournaments, he’s right near the top of every academic class he takes, and he’s frequently the top performer in his magic class. We’ve already mentioned his competition win and records.
“Does he really care about more credits? What does he feel that he has to gain by going through with this?”
“Maybe not,” Lloyd replied, understanding what Faruk was getting at, “but that’s just because he isn’t old enough to understand. That’s why I need your help, so I can guide him. He has so much to gain and nothing to lose.”
“Ah, but that’s likely another misunderstanding. I don’t think that Yaric’s reluctance has anything to do with what happened to him, or the trauma he suffered. I believe that Yaric sees things from the opposite perspective; he has nothing to gain and everything to lose.”
“But that’s simply not true,” Lloyd began, before being cut off by Faruk raising his palm.
“I know. That doesn’t change his perspective though. He has close friends, enough credits that I doubt he actually knows what it’s like to have limitations on spend, and he is performing exceptionally well. Look what he was doing a few weeks ago, fighting off a gang and catching a rogue wizard. And he only just became a Novice!
“But on the other side, that shield around his mind is a big mystery. Those who support him can only give very vague and generic assurances that we don’t believe it’s detrimental, while those who have targeted him have made very specific accusations involving that shield. All of his experiences have been negative. And worse, we don’t know anything about it. Nothing is scarier than the unknown.
“Hold on,” Faruk said, raising his hand again to block Lloyd’s reply when he saw Lloyd leaning forward. “Let me finish. My point here is that for Yaric, his shield represents risk. What if it’s a problem? What if it’s dangerous? What if something got left behind? He’s never said it outright, but I know he’s afraid that he somehow let Virgo in.
“I know he has a lot to gain from going through with this, but he already has more than he ever hoped for. And if he pretends his shield doesn’t exist, nothing changes. But if he goes through with this, and there’s something wrong, even though we know there isn’t, he could lose it all. So why would he possibly risk it?”
Their waiter had perfect timing, as he chose this moment to arrive with their orders. Lloyd stared into his drink in contemplation as he ate. No one said a word for a full fifteen minutes.
“What do we do?” Lloyd asked quietly, breaking the silence.
“We let him make his own choices.”
Lloyd glared at the healer. He was tempted to make a comment about how the diminutive dwarf needed his seat raised to be able to eat from the table, but he held himself back. ‘I won’t stoop that low.’
“You know what I mean. How can we help him make those choices?”
“There’s isn’t much we can do. He’s not going to understand the extent of the benefits, and honestly, I don’t think he’d care. His big concern would be risking everything. So that’s what you would need to clear up for him. If you can reassure him that there’s no risk, and no chance he could be kicked out or penalized, then I don’t think there would be any problem. And for a 7th year to have the attention of two Arch Wizards…”
“I think I can arrange that,” Lloyd mused quietly, his mind racing through the possibilities.
----------------------------------------
After his little mishap, Yaric made sure to get approval for any idea that he felt strayed too far from what they had been taught. He noticed that many others had started running their ideas by Emil as well. They had all heard about the results of his experiment.
The orb that was removed from class didn’t just hold his mug. Yaric had assumed that his mug was somehow toxic, but the orb wasn’t only holding the mug. Trying to convert the heat into arcana caused a chain reaction of problems, including an explosion. While the explosion was not frozen in time, it was contained, along with all the energy from the blast. It took two hours to safely release the energy in a harmless stream.
And the material left behind was toxic. Two dozen spells were needed to decontaminate the molten sludge that remained. Emil formed it into a spoon and presented it to Yaric during the next lesson.
They learned a few more spells, like how to form a barrier of air that could block sound. Some of the skills involved would help with learning to create a basic mage shield, which was what they would be learning next. Unfortunately, it would be too late for the Summer Solstice Tournament to be held the following day.
“Yaric,” Lloyd’s voice called while they were walking back to the dorm.
He was standing beside an open door, which he gestured toward with his head once Yaric made eye contact.
“I’ll catch up with you guys,” Yaric said, before turning and jogging to the room Lloyd had already entered.
Lloyd stood near the far end of the room. It was otherwise empty save for a dozen easels scattered haphazardly around.
“You wanted to speak to me?” Yaric asked as he walked toward Lloyd.
“No,” Jaxxon said from behind him, making Yaric jump. “I wanted to speak with you.”
Yaric spun around to face the Arch Wizard. “Uhhh… How can I help you, sir?”
“By being less formal for one thing,” Jaxxon said, though he continued without giving Yaric a chance to respond. “I’m not here for your answer. We agreed to wait until after the Tournament, and so we shall. I just need to ensure that you understand a few things.
“One, if you say ‘no’, that’s entirely fine. You will not be penalized in any way.”
“I know sir.”
Jaxxon squinted at Yaric before continuing. “Two, if you say ‘yes’, that does not mean that you agree to every test. We will explain each test in advance, and if you aren’t comfortable with it, we will move on.”
This time Yaric just nodded.
“And three, just like if you say ‘no’, you won’t be penalized in any way if you say ‘yes’. There are no possible test results that could negatively impact you or affect your current life here.”
Yaric looked confused for a moment.
“You have questions?”
“Just… I had experiences with a Mind Mage. What if… I know he affected memories and things like that, what there’s more?”
“Impossible. That sort of thing isn’t permanent and would have worn off by now. The things he did don’t require anything long-term. Much of what you’ve heard is based on fear and prejudice against Mind Mages. Absolute worst-case scenario, he planted an anchor. It’s a common tactic for Mind Mages as it allows them to continue with whatever they are doing without having to cast the entire spell each time. But even that would only last a few months if it isn’t used. The most powerful might be able to create anchors that last two years, but no more. How long has it been now?” the Arch Wizard asked kindly.
“More than four years, sir.”
“Well then, you’re okay, aren’t you.”
“But what about other things? I don’t even know what could be wrong.”
“Which doesn’t matter, because I do. And just like you have my word that you are entirely free to say no, you also have my word that nothing bad will happen if you say yes, nor will there be any repercussions. I can guarantee that.”
Yaric looked conflicted.
“At the very least, your life will continue with no change, but it would also give you some peace of mind. Along with my gratitude. And obviously, as we learn from our tests, it will also earn you credits. Enough to cover you far into the future. But you still have time to think it over, and I have places to be. Perhaps you could use this opportunity to talk with your Sponsor?” Jaxxon suggested.
Yaric turned to look at Lloyd, who just shrugged. “I have nothing to add. The Arch Wizard just wanted to talk with you, that’s all.”
Turning back, Yaric saw that the Arch Wizard in question was gone.
“Go catch up with your friends. And Yaric? For what it’s worth, I definitely suggest that you take him up on his offer.”
Yaric waved goodbye and ran to catch up with his friends, though his mind was somewhere else.
----------------------------------------
“Go Flat Foot!” Li Na yelled, cheering for whoever she had picked out from the 4th years this time.
The stands were packed as usual. There wasn’t a cloud in sight, and the bright summer sun beat down on the arena from an azure sky, with a gentle breeze offering respite from the heat.
“See that one with the axe?” Li Na asked, leaning toward Yaric. “I bet he’s going to start with a chop.”
“Lina, what else would…”
“Ooh…” Li Na groaned, interrupting Yaric. “See? He chopped four times in a row. I win.”
“How do you win, I never…”
“See that one in the corner? He’s going to lose,” Li Na continued, pointing to where a student with a greatsword was squared off against a tower shield and short sword.
“I know. It’s a bad matchup and he won’t know how to use that sword, of course he will probably…”
“Ooh, I win again!”
Lauren bunched up the towel she’d brought for her fights and threw it at Li Na. It opened up in the air and landed over Li Na’s head like a blanket, only to be completely ignored.
“The guy with the sword will beat the other guy with a sword,” Li Na announced, completely unphased by the towel over her head even though it completely blocked her sight.
“I win again!” she confidently declared, even though no one had just won a fight.
Soon it was the 7th years turn, and they all made their way down and selected their weapons.
Yaric’s first opponent had a large spear. They saluted each other and took their positions, ready to fight.
“Begin!”
Rushing forward, Yaric peered over the shield he held close to his body. The spearhead shot up in an arch, thrusting toward his face. Instead of ducking, Yaric moved his head and shoulders to the side, keeping his eyes above the shield. If his opponent feinted, he would see, and if he changed direction and committed to the attack, Yaric could block without fear of a feint.
The spear changed direction, forcing Yaric to duck. He also sprung forward, however, moving under the spear shaft and getting within the minimum effective range. The fight lasted seconds.
The next fight was far more drawn out. Both blocked the other's swords with their shields, and while Yaric’s longer sword gave him a reach advantage, his opponent frequently moved in closer, cutting off the option to thrust.
Yaric crouched and prepared to bash his opponent back with an augmented jump, but his opponent got there first. He flew through the air toward Yaric, who barely had time to register the attack, let alone take action. Luckily, Yaric was already crouched low, and he’d just finished his augmentation spell. Twisting sharply and leaning to the side, Yaric allowed the shield bash to harmlessly deflect off his shield, barely slowing his opponent down. Flying through the air unfortunately made it difficult to stop, and Yaric watched as his opponent continued on and out of bounds.
“Match!”
Another spear wielder stepped forward for the third match. Yaric dropped his shield and lifted his longsword in both hands.
“Begin!”
She advanced rapidly, trying to pressure Yaric right from the start. His sword was held out at a shallow angle, and once his blade met her spear, Yaric made sure he kept it in contact at all times. Yaric had his right hand near the hilt, which he used as a fulcrum for his lower hand to quickly and easily shift his blade in any way he wanted. Combined with small twists of his torso, Yaric was easily able to keep his blade in contact with the shaft and repeatedly deflect every thrust.
Then came the moment he was waiting for. Growing impatient, his opponent shifted strategy and tried to swing her spear out, up, and back in again for a cutting attack using the edge of her spearhead. This time Yaric didn’t deflect, and he didn’t simply block. Swinging hard, Yaric struck the shaft of the spear as if he were trying to cut off a limb, knocking the spear off to the side and opening his advance. He quickly stepped forward and gave chase as she tried to retreat, hoping to get her spear back inside his attack. Yaric chased her right to the boundary where she surrendered.
For the quarter-finals Yaric found himself facing Cormac. With both wielding shields strapped to their arms, and one with a long sword, the other a short sword, Yaric decided to try something new.
“Begin!”
They both advanced, shields raised. As soon as Yaric was close enough to Cormac, Yaric thrust for the heart. And straight into Cormac’s shield.
Augmenting himself as much as he could, Yaric had intended to strike the shield, in the hope that it would go right through. It didn’t, but it did pierce deeply into the wood.
Yaric felt a tug on his sword when Cormac tried to maneuver to the left. The sword was jammed.
Twisting hard, Yaric locked his sword in the shield and tried to get an opening to strike with his own. Cormac attacked furiously, forcing Yaric to keep using his shield defensively. Yaric had had enough. If he couldn’t break the shield with his sword, he’d use something else.
Cormac struck hard and pulled his blade back for another. Yaric stepped forward, raised his foot, and kicked with all the boosted strength he could. There was a crack as his sword tore free, taking a small chunk of wood with it. Cormac staggered back and grunted as his shield was slammed back against his body.
Yaric didn’t hesitate. Stepping forward, Yaric used a second thrust kick, and this time the shield was up against Cormac’s body. He had no way to absorb or deflect the blow. Cormac sailed backward and out of bounds, ending the fight.
“Match!”
“Good fight,” Yaric said while offering his hand to help Cormac up.
Cormac looked down at his cracked shield. “You spend too much time around Lina,” he laughed.
This time it was Yaric who had to move, and there was only one area that wasn’t full. Sven stood waiting.
‘Dammit!’
With nothing to lose, Yaric dropped his shield just outside their boundary line and walked in holding his sword in both hands. Saluting each other, both stepped back and took their stance.
“Begin!”
Yaric stayed where he was. Sven’s rushed advance turned cautious when he saw Yaric waiting patiently. He knew Yaric well enough to know that he was up to something. Unfortunately, despite being far too slow under normal circumstances, Sven’s hesitation gave Yaric all the time he needed.
He raised his hand and released a wind blade at Sven’s knees from three meters away. Caught by surprise, Sven had barely started trying to drop his shield when the referee protected him and made the call.
“Match!”
‘Oh wow!’
Yaric couldn’t keep the grin off his face when he shook Sven’s hand, this time as the victor.
“Well done. I guess magic is more than augmenting now,” Sven said ruefully.
They were just in time to see Lauren win her semifinal.
“Who am I fighting?” Lauren asked, very diplomatically.
“Me. I lost.”
Lauren’s eyes grew wide. “Really?”
“Wow, thanks.”
“No! I just didn’t expect it, you haven’t beaten him before.”
“I feel so much better now.”
“That’s not what I mean!”
Yaric and Lauren both realized they were having their back and forth in front of the whole Academy, as Sven and Lauren were meant to be the only fight at the moment. The last fight had seen Lauren’s opponent suffering their third loss, leaving Lauren, Yaric, and Sven as the only competitors left. Lauren’s face was scarlet when she ran onto the field to face Sven.
Sven gave no quarter. The gap between them had widened again, and he controlled the fight from the beginning, though Lauren was also distracted. He hadn’t won so decisively in his two earlier fights with her. This time it didn’t take him nearly as long to land a lethal blow.
With Lauren knocked out, Sven returned to face Yaric in the finals.
“Begin!”
Sven didn’t hesitate a second time. He raced forward to close the gap, only slowing just before contact. Yaric abandoned his usual strategy. Instead of controlling his sword with carefully positioned thrusts and cuts, Yaric swung wide and high, striking down with as much power as he could, exactly as he had incorrectly imagined a longsword would be used when he first started. Sven blocked the blow with his shield, but Yaric transitioned straight into a thrust, forcing Sven to deflect.
The sword was deflected up, so Yaric continued the movement to position himself for another hacking blow. The sword smashed down on the shield, chipping off a small piece of wood. Sven noticed the distant look in Yaric’s eyes, but it was too late.
Yaric took his hand off the hilt of his sword, just far enough to enable him to turn his palm toward Sven. A torrent of flame streamed over him.
“Match!”
The mage shield continued flickering over Sven until the last flames died away. Sven just shook his head and went back to his starting point, but this time he also dropped his shield. He’d realized that anything defensive only allowed Yaric to form a spell. From here on out it would be all offense.
Yaric nervously took his position for the start of the fight.
“Begin!”
Sven raced forward again and attacked immediately. Yaric was forced to use his sword properly, keeping it leveled between them and in contact with Sven’s sword, constantly deflecting and trying to take advantage of his longer reach.
But Sven wasn’t the top fighter by accident. He constantly tested Yaric’s defense, probing for weak spots. It would only be a matter of time.
Desperate, Yaric tried his best to focus, but it was simply impossible. The only spell he’d ever been able to cast near instantly was the simple heating spell.
Sven nearly pushed Yaric over the line, and Yaric was only able to narrowly escape due to his longer blade. Subjectively the fight was already an epic struggle, but in reality, it had barely passed the ten-second mark. Sven had already penetrated Yaric’s defense twice in that time, only failing to score a hit due to Yaric’s hasty retreat.
Yaric knew he was going to lose unless he tried something different, so he took one last gamble.
With blades crossed, each at 45° from the ground, Yaric lunged forward alongside his blade, desperately pumping as much arcana into his spell as he could. His lunge didn’t take him anywhere near close enough to threaten Sven, but it did put him beside their blades, right where they crossed, with Sven’s sword now parallel to the floor and Yaric’s vertical.
Yaric cast his spell at the only target available, the base of Sven’s blade, just as Sven lunged forward himself. With Yaric so much closer, Sven was able to shoulder-check Yaric and knock him back. Yaric was only just able to keep himself and his sword upright, still fending off Sven’s blade as he stumbled backward.
A blade that let off a loud ping, which was followed by another two a second later. Sven disengaged and stared down at the red-hot glow of his sword, starting at the crossguard and traveling ten centimeters up the blade.
Yaric reacted instantly.
He was still holding his sword vertically, with his hands fifteen centimeters from his chest. Not an ideal position to strike with power. Using the weight of his sword and a powerful flick of his wrists, Yaric brought his sword down to directly strike Sven’s blade with as much force as he could.
The short sword started deforming on contact, bending further and further as Yaric’s sword kept going, until, with a loud click, the blade snapped just above the crossguard. Yaric raised the tip of his sword to Sven’s throat.
“Match!”
Yaric grinned at Sven. “Good fight. That was clo…” Yaric froze and looked around at the empty field. Well, almost empty fields, because Lauren was running across with Li Na right behind.
“You won the Tournament!” Lauren shouted, just as realization was dawning on Yaric.
Sven clapped Yaric on the shoulder from behind. “Well done,” he said firmly.
Lauren arrived and grabbed both his arms. “You took first place!” Leaning forward excitedly, Lauren quickly added, “It was a clean sweep!”
She pulled him into a brief hug and stepped aside, just in time for Li Na to kick him in the shins.
“Ow!”
“Sneaky cheat,” Li Na grumbled, though with a big grin on her face. “Wait till we can cast spells during fights too!”
“Why, you think you can take me?”
“You never beat me,” Li Na pointed out. “We didn’t fight today. Lucky you. You’re welcome, by the way!”
“Come on you two, you can argue while we sort out our prizes.”
“Yeah, and you have to give yours up anyway.”
“What? What crazy reason do you have this time?”
“You destroyed Academy property!”
Yaric paled and turned to look at the broken blade lying in the dirt. The referee just smirked. “You think the weapons last long with you animals swinging them like clubs? Our trainee blacksmiths make new weapons for every Tournament.”
“Hey!” Li Na muttered under her breath. “Proper weapons are supposed to be swung like clubs!”
Li Na and Yaric were still joking around and bumping into each other when they made their way over to the sidelines to deal with the prizes. Sven took the loss exceptionally well, but Yaric still felt oddly guilty.
“I only won because I could get those spells off. You’re the better fighter.”
Sven smiled slightly. “Magic is a part of combat. If you can use magic to win, you’re better than me.”
“And that last spell was really clever,” Lauren added.
“Well wait until the next one, Sven will kick your ass then,” Li Na pointed out.
“I think I can help with that. I’ve been trying something for the last few weeks, and I think it might be what gave me the edge I needed to cast those spells.”
“What is it?” Lauren asked, looking very curious.
“I’ll explain after this. Just don’t forget that I have to go and see Arch Wizard Phelps after this.”
Jaxxon’s voice echoed across the arena just as Yaric finished speaking.
“There you have it, for the first time in almost seven years, the current 7th years have a new Tournament champion. You obviously noticed the use of spells in combat, but I would like to point out that these students only became Novice’s six months ago. Using spells in combat so soon was a big surprise. Admittedly, all of the spells were cast by the same student, but what levels will he push his classmates to over the next six months? Will we see a 7th year class with multiple spell casters? From the same class that won the Capture the Flag competition and set a new all-time record too. Let’s see if our next class can push the bar higher.”
Yaric and the others were smiling widely as they made their way back to their seats. Everyone was excited about throwing spells around in a fight, and Lauren was clearly struggling to hold herself back from asking before they got back to the stands.
“I’ll have to show you when I get back to the dorm,” Yaric said once they’d all sat down, while struggling to keep a straight face.
“You can’t make us wait,” Lauren complained, gently punching his shoulder.
“Yeah!” Yaric’s other shoulder went numb from the second punch.
“Okay, okay. So, the first thing you need to do,” Yaric began, turning to Lauren, “… is hit Lina.”
Lauren’s eyes flicked from Yaric to Li Na, and back again. She looked intently into Yaric’s eyes for a moment, then settled on Li Na again, and stayed there.
“Hey, hey!” Li Na protested, backing up with her arms out as Lauren started leaning around Yaric.
“Both her arms need to be numb for the technique to work.”