Traditionally, hunting was popular among Eleron nobles, and Father used to take us every year even though I didn’t particularly wish to go. Not that I ever told him.

Of course, learning how to track, navigate, and so on was invaluable, but that didn’t change the fact that hunting was never my thing. So when Professor Natasha announced that we’d be searching for the beast that reportedly escaped Aymon and Ollie, I wasn’t particularly thrilled.

To make things worse, it was just us guys and Natasha that was going, meaning I wouldn’t get to spend quality time with Alice.

They needed the girls to help around camp, so I had to keep my neediness in check.

To think I’d obsess over a girl so much.

“Believe we’ll find it before it gets dark?” Eliot asked – the two of us on our own.

We decided to split into groups, covering more ground that way.

“Have you seen the shit I’ve been dealing with lately?” I chuckled, saying alert.

“Guessing that’s a yes.” Eliot sighed.

Injured, the beast became unpredictable. That’s why Professor Natasha insisted we chased after it before it found a student first. According to her, even an experienced mage practised caution when dealing with such monsters.

Safe to say we weren’t hunting your day-to-day prey.

“When we get back, you should tell her what you told me,” Eliot said, tapping my shoulder. “I’m afraid those guys won’t be the only ones aiming for your back. It might even be a good idea to tell one of the professors. Perhaps Professor Geron?”

“What? You suddenly worried about me?” I smirked, glancing toward him.

“Alex, I’m serious. . .” he said and even looked a little nervous.

“Should we hold hands while we’re at it?” I scoffed, irritated by his attitude.

Perhaps something happened last year while he was alone at the Academy, but whatever it was, it didn’t justify him changing so drastically.

“Probably. Though I still believe you’d manage to fall into even more trouble whenever I’m not looking or paying close attention.” Eliot sighed, pinching his nose bridge with one hand and holding onto the hilt of his sword on the other.

Despite us arguing, his attention never shifted from our surroundings.

“What the heck happened to you?” My brows furrowed as I crossed my arms. “Seriously. You used to be the guy. Confident, strong, good-looking. . . Girls would fall at your feet the second you stepped into the room. Now look at you. Where’d you go?”

“You’re talking out of your ass, Alex. I’m just looking out for you.” His gaze traced back to mine as he took a deep breath. “First, there was Dustin–”

“Not my fault,” I argued, interrupting him abruptly.

He wasn’t amused, shooting me a stern look.

“You could’ve handled it better.” He mimicked my stance, still within arm’s reach. “Getting expelled was just about the dumbest thing you could’ve done to yourself. Tuition costs, you know?”

“I know. Don’t treat me like I’m stupid,” I retorted as Eliot started getting on my nerves little by little.

“You fell for the Princess of Thysa and made enemies with Aymon. Arguably one of the strongest students at Grimhold.” He huffed.

“She has a name. . .” I said, hating every second we argued.

“You’re missing the point-” he said.

“No, you’re the one who doesn’t get it.” I interrupted. ”I’ve already made up my mind, and I’m sure as hell not going to let some asshole walk all over me because he thinks he’s stronger. So you know what? Go ahead. Run with your tail between your legs.”

Considering how agitated I felt, it was surprising I didn’t start yelling, especially seeing as I’ve caught myself getting angry over nothing as of late.

“You punk. . . Now you’re just begging for a beating.” Eliot gritted his teeth, appearing ready to swing. But then he surprised me by taking a deep breath, defusing the tension.

I turned away, muttering, “Whatever.”

“Look, Alex. I’m on your side, okay? If being with Alice makes you so happy, then I’m sure as hell not going to stand in your way. Just don’t expect me not to call you out on your bullshit.”

He spoke his mind and patiently waited for me to answer. Not that I had an answer to give.

As much as I hated it, he was right. However, that hasn’t made it any less weird when he tried scolding me, almost as if he was trying to act like an older brother after years of pretending to be strangers.

It was exhausting. The whole day just refused to end.

“Seriously, I’m not telling you not to be with her. I’m just saying you’re crazy for letting things get this far,” Eliot said, grabbing my shoulder while worry gleamed in his eyes. “Regardless, if you need my help, don’t hesitate to ask.”

Again, he had a point, giving me enough time to think things through.

“Sorry,” I muttered, feeling the tension slowly fade. “My mind's all over the place.”

“You lovestruck fool.” He smiled for the first time, tapping my back. “Okay, no more talking about it.”

“Thanks. . .” I returned the smile, confused as to why I reacted so harshly. After all, he was just worried about me.

“Just drop it.” He waved me off while still keeping an eye out, neither able to afford being careless. “Still, I think you should tell her. Perhaps she’ll talk some sense into you.”

“Right.” I chuckled, failing to imagine a universe in which Alice didn’t go berserk having found out the truth.

It wasn’t that I wanted to keep things a secret from her, but a chance never arose as she was still busy with her assignments, or so Penelope said.

Having spoken our minds, we took a deep breath and chuckled. And after that, the tension dropped.

“Good talk,” he joked, wiping his forehead against the shoulder.

The heat was slowly killing us both.

“Nothing like a brotherly squabble,” I said, laughing lightly.

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But like all things, the tranquil moment came to an abrupt end, shattered by the rustling of leaves.

Immediately, I closed my eyes and focused.

“Heard that?” Eliot asked.

That’s when the monster stormed out of the bushes. So fast that it left me with just enough time to either shove Eliot out of the way or save myself, blocking with magic.

The choice was obvious.

Falling onto his back, Eliot watched as the bear swung its claws toward me. Yet despite my best efforts to block, it still tore into my sword arm before unleashing the gathered mana in its paw, the blast sending me tumbling across the ground until eventually hitting a tree. Pieces of tree bark flew everywhere on impact.

“Alex!” Eliot yelled, though hearing him with ringing ears wasn’t easy.

Adrenaline was the only thing keeping me conscious, allowing me to ignore some of the pain. My right arm felt as if it had shattered.

“Bastard. . .” I muttered, face kissing dirt.

Gritting my teeth, I gruellingly pushed myself up to one knee, vibrations still surging as mana continued to ripple throughout my body. Even my legs couldn’t support my weight.

As for Eliot, he must’ve already drawn his sword and engaged the bear, but disoriented, I couldn’t even turn to look, let alone assess the situation. Any noise coming from their direction sounded like an echo.

“F– uck. . .” I muttered, barely able to open my mouth. We deeply underestimated the beast, arguing like children out in the open, and now we were paying the price.

Dizzy, I leaned against the tree with rigid breaths. The cut across my arm just shallow enough not to have reached bone. And considering what attacked me, I was lucky to still be alive.

“Alex! Run–” Eliot yelled, followed by a roar that almost made my head explode as I couldn’t even cover my ears.

Luckily, it wasn’t aimed at me as the shockwave it caused earlier hadn’t hit me yet, but not hearing from Eliot afterwards overwhelmed me with fear that something might’ve happened to him.

Desperate, an idea came to mind.

Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I dropped my head so it pressed against the tree before slowly reaching up with my hand, touching the exposed sapwood.

"Drai–” I attempted the spell, unsure it would even yield results. However, the pain got the better of me, preventing my chant while nearly knocking me out.

Things were getting dire. Eliot needed my help.

Using every ounce of energy left in me after having been severely weakened by blood loss, I readied myself for another attempt, unleashing as much mana as possible.

“DRAINING TOUCH!”

Mana coursing through my body rapidly began breaking apart and turning into chaos as I allowed it to run rampant through my arm before reaching the tree. Necrotic energy, twisted and writhed, a sickly hue of darkened purple and black that sucked the light out of its surroundings, had begun inflicting decay.

Tendrils of inky smoke, coiled and undulating with an eerie sentience, left a trail of desolation in its wake, causing the very air to chill and the tree to wither, seeping into living matter like a venomous infection, draining colours, vibrancy, and life itself.

Fear quickly transformed into anger as the inflicted wound on my right arm began to heal, chaos proving to be remarkably efficient at both destroying and fixing things. However, our troubles were far from over, as Eliot was still busy fighting.

Regaining clarity, I turned toward the ongoing battle and noticed mana gathered around Eliot’s body and sword. He was using Aura, a manifestation of mana that enhanced physical strength, making mages formidable in melee.

There was a noticeable distance between them, enough for both to steal a glance at the crumbling tree I had laid waste to. And if somehow we hadn't been heard before, even with the roaring beast, the massive tree falling over would surely have captured their attention.

Then it happened. The beast’s eyes finally met my piercing gaze.

“I’m going to enjoy killing you,” I smirked, maliciously staring down the beast.

Consumed by bloodlust, I drew the sword still strapped to my belt and started walking over slowly, estimating that one good blow to the head would have been more than enough to split it open.

Fear gleamed in its eyes as I tightened my grip around the hilt, unable to stop smiling as I felt reinvigorated. It even started backing off, bit by bit.

However, just as I was on the verge of teleporting to close the distance and launch an attack, Eliot suddenly vomited blood and nearly collapsed – his condition shocking me out of my battle-crazed thoughts.

It took notice and ran, fleeing into the thick bushes it came running out of before I could even think of stopping it.

“Blink!” Teleporting closer to Eliot, I grabbed him just as he was about to fall off his feet. “Eliot!”

“Please. Don’t yell,” he mumbled, taking deep breaths while staring at the ground. “I’ll be fine.”

“No need to push yourself. The beast fled,” I said, yet he still stepped away.

Somehow, he stood without a problem all on his own, acting as if nothing happened after only a few seconds.

“Phew. . . That hurt,” he said, letting out a sigh. “How’d you get up from that?”

He must’ve been talking about mana coursing through my body after getting hit. But more importantly, I was shocked to learn he could take such a hit and be fine afterwards.

“Did you use necromancy?” Eliot asked after I hadn’t responded immediately.

He gazed in the direction of the tree.

"Are you planning on telling Father?" I asked, turning to look at my handiwork.

Apart from the remnants of the tree, traces of decay had spread through the surrounding area, snuffing out smaller vegetation and even harming the robust trees I hadn't laid a hand on.

“Depends. How’d you come to know such a spell?” Eliot asked.

“You sure you want to know?” I raised an eyebrow at him.

We never really spoke about what happened after I got captured. Either Eliot didn’t care, or he decided to give me space. Either way, I was fine not talking about it anymore, seeing as Tartarus had escaped my mind after I entrusted my mother with my memories.

Somehow, sharing the experience with her eased my heart. Perhaps it had something to do with her gift.

“Probably not, so just don’t do anything stupid,” he said, sheathing his sword. “I’ll keep quiet about it, but you better not use it anymore. Alright?”

“Don’t worry. I only use it when I really have to, like when a monster tears half my arm off,” I explained, taking another look at it. “Still can’t believe that worked.”

“You better not rely on it much. We haven’t learned about necromancy much, but chaos is known to mess with one’s head.” He couldn’t stop looking at what remained of the tree.

“I’m fine. . .” I sighed, a bit tired of all the warnings, not that I ever listened, apparently. Still, there was something I had to ask. “Hey. How were you able to just get up and walk it off? That aura stuff seems kind of crazy.”

“It helps, but no. My gift is what helped me get up.”

Right, Father mentioned Eliot awakened a gift. However, he was secretive about it back in Raveryn, probably keeping it hidden until the day we duelled again to gain the upper hand.

It made me wonder who’d win nowadays.

“Guessing you won’t tell me what it does yet?” I turned to look at him.

“Where’s the fun in that?” He chuckled, meeting my gaze.

"Are you all okay?" Professor Natasha asked, stepping out in the open. Her eyes darted around as she held her wand, vigilant for any sign of trouble.

"We're fine, Professor," Eliot said, standing upright. “The beast came charging at us, but we’ve driven it off.”

“Impressive. . .” Natasha muttered, holstering her wand and taking a proper look at us. “I’m guessing it wasn’t such an easy fight, was it?”

Eliot and I exchanged glances before shaking our heads at the same time. We knew things could’ve gone much worse.

“We were a bit careless and got caught off guard. Won’t happen again,” I explained.

“Do you know where it went?” Natasha asked.

“Eastward. It ran off after I–” but I bit my tongue before accidentally telling her about Dragon Speech.

She just furrowed her brows. “After you?”

“After I regrouped with Eliot,” I lied, but it looked like she knew as she glanced toward the decay.

“Right. . .” She doubtfully muttered. “Anyway, You two go back while I handle the rest. Now that we know it’s here, the rest should be easy. Good work.”

“Thank you, Professor,” we said simultaneously.

“And Alex.” Her focus shifted toward me specifically. “After I get back, meet me in my tent. We’re not done talking.”

“Yes, Professor. . .” I sighed.

Keeping things secret was about to get a whole lot harder.

Chapter End.

Thank you for reading.