If resting every night wasn’t bad enough, Elend also made them take a full recovery day once every weekend. As in, a whole twenty-four hours with no serious studying or training.

His exact rules were vague. But if Akari thought she could sneak in some training, then Relia had other plans. Every weekend, her friend would drag her on some new excursion outside the Darklight’s estate. One day, they took a tour of Koreldon City, following the trains all the way from Uptown to Old Town.

That trip had been more practical than it seemed at first glance. Akari planned to live here for several years, and it made sense to know the different neighborhoods. She also learned to navigate the train tunnels, which would come in handy later. Especially since she still hadn’t learned to drive a car.

Not that she’d ever want to drive in downtown KC. Hundreds of cars sat bumper-to-bumper on the roads, all scrambling to switch lanes or get through the light before it changed colors. And then there was the symphony of horns, shouts, and sirens. People rarely ever honked in Elegan, or even Tureko. Here, the horns echoed constantly in the background, like music in a bar.

And the sirens … Talek, those still made her skin crawl. Even now, memories of the Archipelago weighed her down, and waves of guilt always followed. She should be training now—training to help the thousands of other Bronze who couldn’t escape.

Guilt wouldn’t help them, of course. That was the whole point of Elend’s lessons—Mana Arts was a marathon that took years, and no burst of emotion lasted that long. Only a solid training plan would see you through to the end.

The following week, they drove a few hours west to Koreldon National Forest. There was a Hunters’ Guild here like the one back in White Vale, along with a hotel, food court, and a bounty office.

Akari had complained about this trip at first, especially since Relia wanted to stay overnight. But then she learned they’d be fighting dangerous, Apprentice-level mana beasts.

If that counted as a day off, then maybe days off weren’t so bad.

Finally, they took a day trip to Faeland Mall—one of the most famous shopping centers in all of Espiria. The mall itself was over two million square feet, which made it far too large to fit in Koreldon City. Instead, it lived in a suburb, roughly an hour south of the Darklight’s estate.

“Wow,” Akari said as they walked through the crowded concourse. “I can’t believe Kalden stayed home.”

Relia laughed. “Seriously? Getting you here was hard enough.”

That was true. Half of Frostville Avenue was devoted to shopping, so she’d seen no reason to leave town for that. But that was before they’d stepped through the doors.

Faeland Mall was split into four quarters—one for each of the four seasons. Dream mana filled the massive concourse, complete with artificial weather. Spring Court had bright blue skies, with trees shooting out from between the stone walkways. Summer Court was even brighter, with its sand-colored floors, potted flowers, and streams of water trickling down from beyond the upper balconies.

The sky in Autumn Court had a cloudy, orange overcast, as if it were always sunset. Leaves broke off from the trees and swirled through the air, landing on wooden walkways in front of them. Akari tried stepping on a few dead leaves, hoping they’d crunch beneath her shoes. Unfortunately, they always blew away at the last second. And even when she cornered one next to a tree root, it just flattened like a piece of wet paper.

Things got even fancier in Winter Court. The air carried a chill, but their bodies never felt any colder. Snowflakes danced through the space, settling on everything from the neon store signs to the balcony railings. A few flakes even landed on their shoulders, turning to vapor as they melted.

They passed hundreds of stores and restaurants as they walked. Not to mention thousands of people from all walks of life. Artisans were commonplace among the adult population—one-quarter of them, at least. Masters and Grandmasters were rarer, but hardly a novelty. Just one section of this mall probably had twice as many Masters as all of Creta.

Akari’s new favorite store was Palamin’s, a high-end Mana Arts shop in Winter Court. Here, she bought three new hoodies to replace the one she’d lost. These could absorb up to three Apprentice-level techniques before they needed a recharge. At least, that’s what the tags claimed. Clothing like that tended to be much heavier, but these felt as weightless as ordinary cotton.

The price tags were steep at four-hundred espers a piece, but the Darklights had given her plenty of money, and you couldn’t put a price on protection. She was just looking at the Construct-reinforced jeans when Relia nudged her toward the checkout.

“What?” Akari protested.

“You really think someone’s gonna jump you on the street?”

Actually, yeah. How many random fights had broken out in Tureko last month? She’d half expected a brawl to erupt at the mall today.

“Don’t answer that,” Relia said. “But you should know the Artegium gives us uniforms for our combat classes. Those all come with Apprentice-level Constructs.”

Nice. She’d always liked the uniforms back in Elegan High, mostly because it was one less advantage for the rich kids. Then again, Akari was one of the rich kids now, wasn’t she?

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“Still never hurts to be prepared,” Akari countered.

“It might,” Relia said. “This stuff’s above your level.”

“So? Isn’t spending mana a good thing?”

“In moderation, sure. But too much will strain your channels. Then you’ll be too tired for actual training.”

Talek, that was true. She’d already known that at some level, otherwise she’d have gone straight for the Artisan-level gear. Once again, money had its limits in the world of Mana Arts.

Akari could’ve easily spent three more hours in Palamin’s. They’d barely even looked at the weapons, elixirs, or potions. Not to mention the items that didn’t constantly drain your mana. For example, Elend had given her some wristbands that pushed back against her channels and helped her form more powerful Missiles. Sort of like impedium, but without the pain.

What else was out there? What was she missing out on?

But Relia kept directing her through the checkout and out the door. Oh well. They probably had one of those stores back in KC. Maybe she’d go alone for her next weekend excursion.

Their next stop was Reece & Kahn, with a massive sign of pink, scripted text above the doorway.

“Yeah,” Akari muttered as she looked over the racks of bright-colored clothing. “Not my thing.”

“Come on!” Relia practically skipped through the entrance. “It’s not like you’re gonna wear those hoodies to class every day.

“Name one thing wrong with that plan.”

Relia’s eyebrows went up as she leafed through a rack of skirts. “Maybe a sexy outfit can get Kalden out of his slump.”

Akari furrowed her brow, but she didn’t immediately dismiss the idea.

Relia kept on browsing. “Do you know what he likes?”

“Himself,” Akari muttered.

She grinned. “I’ll take that as a no.”

“Guess it never came up while …” Akari trailed off when she a saw gaggle of younger girls listening in. She’d been about to say something about killing Martials and dragon people, but you couldn’t just drop that line in a public store.

Relia led them toward another rack of clothes, far from listening ears. “Lucky for us, I had Glim do some reconnaissance.”

“Sure. Like Kalden would ever fall for that.”

“Glim wears a different outfit every day,” Relia said. “Then she watches for changes in heart rate and pupil dilation. She’s been gathering data for weeks.”

“Oh.” Akari closed her mouth and blinked several times. “Shit.” But it really shouldn’t have surprised her. Romance was only Glim’s second-favorite topic. The first was world domination. Combine those two concepts, and you were bound to get something this crazy.

Relia wriggled her eyebrows. “Interested?”

Akari shrugged. “Guess it couldn’t hurt.”

“He doesn’t care for tight-fitting pants, but he loves knee-length skirts.”

“Makes sense.” Most girls at Elegan High had worn skirts as part of their uniform, including Akari. They seemed less popular here in Espiria, with most girls opting for shorts in the summer.

“And he likes workout clothes,” Relia said as she counted things off from her fingers. “And low-cut shirts. And glasses … but maybe those just reminded him of you?”

Talek. Glim really had worn glasses one day last week, hadn’t she? The frames had even looked like Akari’s, which should have been her first hint.

But the more she thought about this, the less logical it seemed. Akari had taken a few peaks at Glim’s cleavage, too. Only so many things to look at when you’re doing verbal flashcards for hours, and …

“Wait.” Akari narrowed her eyes. “Did you guys gather data on me?”

“We didn’t!” Relia raised her hands defensively.

Akari glared harder.

“I swear to the Angels! I mean, Glim might have tried, but we weren’t in cahoots or anything.”

Akari hummed in consideration. “Can Elend do this too?”

“Do what?”

“I dunno.” She crossed her arms and made a vague gesture with her fingers. “Scan your blood pressure or whatever.” If he could, she was never looking at him again. And she was definitely never working out in the same room.

The other girl gave a knowing grin.

“Shut up,” Akari said.

Relia shrugged, but her smile never faded. “Masters can see a lot when they want to—cognitive enhancements and all that. But they can also tune stuff out. That’s usually what Elend does around us.”

Akari let out a breath of relief. In other words, Elend could control himself, but Glim was a little scamp as usual.

“So don’t worry.” Relia’s smile widened. “Your secret crush is safe with—”

Akari punched her in the bicep, but it felt like hitting a tree. She winced as a wave of pain erupted from her knuckles.

“Damnit,” she shouted as she pulled her hand back. “Bad idea.” It worked a lot better on Kalden. Or at least it had before he’d advanced. She really needed to hit Apprentice soon.

“Sorry,” Relia said with a wince. “I couldn’t help myself. You’re normally so hard to tease.”

“Yeah.” Akari scowled down at her hand as she shook away the pain. “Built up some shields in high school.”

“Oh.” Her smile faded. “Now I feel bad.”

“I deserved it,” Akari said with a quick shake of her head. “I was kind of a bitch in Last Haven.”

They continued browsing the aisles while Relia spouted some motherly philosophy about whether anyone deserved to get picked on.

Akari bought a few skirts from Reece & Kahn, but she spent most of her time complaining about all the bright colors. She wouldn’t claim to know much about Espirian fashion, but she had no plans to strut into the Artegium wearing pink.

"So what do you really like?" Relia asked once they were back in the main concourse.

"Huh?"

"I mean, we already covered what Kalden likes, so ..."

"Guess,” Akari said. Her reply came out more defensive than she’d planned. But she’d honestly never talked about this before.

“A game, huh?” Relia looked ready to clap her hands if they weren’t full of shopping bags. “I’d say ... you like guys with big muscles."

“Wow,” Akari deadpanned. “What’s next? Guys who breathe oxygen?”

“Hey, some people think muscles are overrated.” She paused as she considered her next guess. “Facial hair?”

“Yeah,” she admitted. Kalden had shaved less often in Creta, and that had driven her crazy … in a good way. She grinned at the memory of his stubble scratching her chin the one time she’d kissed him.

“And battle scars.”

Akari nodded again. She didn't even mind Kalden's missing hand. He'd looked too perfect before, but these wounds made him feel more real. Too bad he had to ruin it by ignoring them all the time.

“Alright.” Relia put a hand under her chin. “Do me now.”

“You think muscles are overrated,” Akari said.

“I do,” she agreed happily. “I’ll take slender frames any day. Guess Kalden and I have that in common, huh?”

They stepped into Warder’s next, which was the exact opposite of Reece & Kahn. Almost everything here was solid black, with an Angel’s Eve theme. Lots of chains, leather, and fishnets. Basically, it was for people who tried too hard to be edgy. However, Akari did pick up a few things. It was too soon to say whether she’d wear them to class, but they’d work great for a party or a nightclub.

Finally, they went to one of the larger department stores called Irina’s (no connection to Elend’s wife) where they stocked up on other essentials. Then, after a late lunch in Autumn Court, they got in the car and headed back to Koreldon City.