“Are they postponing the festival?” Ireela asked.

They were seating outside the infirmary waiting for the healers to emerge from the healing room. Reina was only unconscious and deemed ready to leave after a day of rest, but Erian required extensive attention and care.

Shifting in his seat, Nox said, “I don’t know. But worst case scenario, Reina will be expelled.” Beside him, Estella winced.

“What she did is unprecedented, but not unusual,” she said.

Nox raised an eyebrow. “So you’re defending her?”

“No, of course not! But you’ve seen Erian’s actions. The girl is starved for his approval.”

And that was the heart of the problem. If Erian had just been more serious with his duty as a Knight, Reina might not have violated one of the rules of an exhibition match.

“It was still wrong of her to do that,” he said.

“It is, but you can’t always control emotions. Let’s just hope that the Headmaster will see it as an accident.”

Nox wanted to believe it was an accident brought about by Reina’s desperation. But he saw the girl’s determined look before unleashing her spell; it was the look of someone who knew what would happen and yet she still did it. Was it out of spite?

If it was out of spite, your friend would have been a completely charred husk.

At least there was some comfort in that not happening, though Erian was still not away from danger. It had been an hour since the healers started working on him.

The minutes dragged on, the clock ticking in a rhythm on the wall like a heartbeat. Nox tapped his foot on the floor, glancing at the door to the infirmary every time he heard the slightest hint of footsteps.

Finally, after nearly twenty moments, the door opened and the head healer emerged, wiping sweat from her wide forehead with a handkerchief. Nox rose to his feet at once, as did Estella and Ireela.

The plump woman dipped her chin toward Estella, then asked Nox, “Are you Sir Erian’s family?”

Nox shook his head. “A friend of his. But his family has been already informed. How is he?”

“He’s in a stable condition now. However, he requires rest and more healing.” She hesitated for a moment, glancing at Estella. “We may have to ask for a more experienced healer.”

“That bad?” Estella asked softly.

The head healer nodded. “I’ve heard some rumors. What his squire did, I’ve never seen an injury like that in my years here in the Academy. The girl… I don’t know what the Headmaster plans to do with her, but I have to recommend expelling her and seeking therapy for her.”

Nox and Estella exchanged glances. “Has she woke up yet?” Estella asked.

“No. We had to give her sedatives. She spent so much of her mana that she would be in extreme pain if she’s conscious.” The head healer paused briefly. “In any case, Sir Erian will be moved to a private room. You can visit him tomorrow.”

With a short bow to Estella, the head healer walked away. They watched her disappear down the hallway, then Nox turned to Estella. “What now?” Her thoughts, however, were easy to read.

Headmaster’s office.

***

Nox had only been inside Headmaster Garion’s office once—when he was called in last year after the trip to the Forsaken Forest.

The room hadn’t changed much, even after several months passed. His nose still tingled from the incense burning on a table along one wall. That stuffed dragon head was still snarling at him, and the golden eyes seemingly following his every movement. Not for the first time, Nox asked himself if it was alive.

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The headmaster sat on his high-backed chair, holding a long-stemmed pipe in one hand. He smiled as they entered. “Ah, Sir Nox, Dame Estella. Have a seat, please. I feel like I have an inkling what you’ve come here for.”

Nox and Estella exchanged glances as they sat down. As always, the headmaster was perceptive. Nox spoke. “We just want to know if the festival will still proceed.”

“Especially the exhibition duels,” Estella added.

Headmaster Garion bobbed his chin, long white beard rippling. “Of course, of course. It is a tragedy, what happened to Sir Erian and Miss Reina. But we must not let that tragedy affect the rest of the students. The school festival is a day for them to enjoy themselves, and it should not end with such a disheartening event. I do, however, suggest postponing it until tomorrow morning so we’ll start on a fresh day.”

“Thank you, Headmaster,” Nox said. He hesitated, shifting in his seat. He added, “And Erian?”

The old Wielder took a long pull from his pipe before replying, “What will happen to Sir Erian depends on his parents’ decision. If they wish to pull him out of the Academy, he would have no choice but to agree. If he decides to stay, he will stay, even if they disagree. His Squire’s fate, however, is another matter.”

Alarm shot through Nox. “What do you mean?”

The headmaster inspected his pipe as he replied, “Miss Stormcloud’s act was understandable, but no less grave because of it. The Dauros will press charges against her unless Sir Erian continues being her master.”

“Will he continue training her, though?” Nox asked.

Chuckling, Headmaster fixed him with amusement in his eyes. “You know Sir Erian better than me. Will he?”

To that Nox had no answer.

***

He stepped onto the stage at noon sharp, filling his lungs with air. A hundred feet from him stood Estella, her eyes never leaving his face.

It was time for their exhibition duel.

A large crowd surround them on raised seats, their excited voices distant to Nox. His own gaze gaze remained on Estella as he strode forward near the center where the overseer waited.

“Wielders, please summon your Animartas,” the man said when only fifty feet separated them.

“Help me, Erebos.” His Animarta’s familiar weight settled into Nox’s hand. And through his fingers he could sense the energy rolling from it.

I’ve been waiting for this.

Nox smiled at that, watching Astra burst forth from Estella’s palm. Its lustrous silver sheen was magnificent as always, a stark contrast to Erebos’s void.

“Wielders, to your positions,” the overseer said.

Estella smiled as she settled into a guarded stance. For this match both sides were free to charge in first, but it seemed she was allowing him that advantage.

Ready? she asked through their Resonance.

Always. Nox raised Erebos, knees bent and crouching low. But don’t hold back.

Who says I will?

“Begin!” The overseer’s hand sliced the air.

Nox surged forward, covering the distance in three powerful bounds. He thrust his left palm toward Estella. “Engulf!”

It was a simple strategy, and one he often employed against her; she knew it by heart now. Sure enough, before the frost even started, she leapt away.

But Nox already knew that as well. He charged straight for her as she was about to land on the floor. Estella met his swing in a blur of silver, and the stage rang with their blows.

Their fight was like a dance. Sensual yet graceful. A duel not to overcome one another but to share one mind. Their connection flared bright, and they saw what the other was seeing, knew what the other was doing.

Parry. Block. Thrust. Deflect. Nox didn’t give ground, and neither did Estella. The crowd was cheering with every swing, but the two didn’t pay attention. For in this moment, the only thing that mattered was the person in front of them.

Nox spun to the right, avoiding Estella’s thrust once more. He lunged, then backpedaled as Estella broke past it with a smirk, her eyes shining with excitement.

You want to win so bad? he asked with his mind while he shouted, “Burst!”

The floor beneath Estella’s feet exploded in shards of ice, only to be shattered by a torrent of flame. I want you so bad, she answered. It was almost a growl, and Nox chuckled.

The flames engulfed Estella’s legs, and his smile vanished. When did you learn that? he asked while erecting a wall of ice in front of him. It broke in one swing from Astra, but he was already dashing to the left by then, intent on attacking her flanks.

I can teach you, but there’s a price. Estella raised Astra to the sky.

Nox knew what was coming; he saw it in her mind. Even so, he asked, What?

Estella’s lips curved upwards. You. “Supernova.”

He smirked and slammed Erebos to the floor. “Cocytus.”

In a dazzling brightness of azure and crimson, the stage was awash in frost and flame.

Nox’s spell slammed into Estella’s. He expected a contest of strength, a force that was as unwavering as her resolve. But the flames faltered, and her eyes widened in surprise.

A cloud of steam enveloped them, their powers striving to gain an upper hand. Nox felt his magic draining, and alarm spread from Estella. Cocytus’s frigid blast held, then inched forward, smothering the wall of fire in its cold fury.

Alarm turned to pride and joy as ice encased Estella’s face, her smirk visible within her shiny prison.