An Ordinary Day
After the spar with Valrod came to an abrupt end, I watched him hurry off until he vanished from sight, then brushed the dirt from my clothes and walked outside.
It had all felt a little inconclusive, but I'd achieved what I came for, so… that was fine, right?
What time is it now?
It was nearly time to meet Eline. I left the training grounds and ran toward the restaurant we'd agreed on.
The place was a small eatery near the western edge of the academy.
I know a good spot.
That was what Eline had said yesterday, when I'd walked her back to the dorm. Normally I was the one who picked where we ate, but this time she'd offered a restaurant of her own, insisting she knew somewhere delicious.
There had been a quiet confidence in her flat expression and the firmness of her voice as she'd described it.
Did she go looking for it herself?
The image of Eline hunting down restaurants on her own was oddly amusing.
The place was right next to the training grounds, so I arrived quickly — but Eline wasn't there yet. Since I still had time before our meeting, I started reading the menu board posted outside.
…These dishes are pretty creative.
There were ordinary items, sure, but plenty of inventive ones that caught the eye — the kind of experiments a chef might try, thinking, Wouldn't this taste good?
Mint soup, in particular, made me wonder if I'd misread the words.
You eat mint as soup?
The idea of turning something you wipe your mouth with into a soup was not something I wanted to dwell on.
Then —
Someone took my hand.
I flinched at the sudden touch, though I already knew who it was. Turning my head, I found Eline standing there, looking at me with her usual composed expression.
"You're here?"
"Mm."
I'd seen her yesterday. The day before that, too. And still, every time I looked at her face like this — as if for the first time — my heart started pounding.
"Let's go in."
With that, she tugged me into the restaurant.
It was the weekend, and the place was fairly crowded.
"I'll go order."
Eline already seemed to know what she wanted. She told me to sit.
"No, I'll come with —"
"Sit."
I obediently took an empty seat by the window. I could feel other students glancing our way, but only for a moment.
I wonder what she'll bring back.
Their stares mattered far less than the anticipation of whatever Eline was about to set in front of me — and I was ready to eat it, whatever it was. There wasn't really anything I disliked, if you forced me to name one… except mango, which I was allergic to.
Yeah, mango's out.
And that mint soup I'd just seen. That was out too.
Of course, if Eline came marching back with it looking triumphant?
I'd bury my face in the bowl and eat it anyway.
I gazed out the window as I thought this, and noticed quite a few students heading toward the training grounds.
Exam season?
Starting next week, the academy would ease into exam period. This was always when the library and training grounds filled up, and everyone's nerves started fraying.
I used to watch it all from a comfortable distance, like a fire on the far bank of a river. The fact that I was reacting to it so keenly now was almost funny.
Well.
Exam prep… I'd manage, right?
A soft clink of dishes made me turn. Eline had already set the bowls in front of me and taken her seat.
A rich, savory aroma. Food that looked genuinely delicious. Bread and lamb, balanced just right — my mouth watered at the mere sight of it.
Pass.
This was an absolute pass.
"Hey."
"Hm?"
We were well into the meal when Eline looked at me.
"Did the talk with your friend go well?"
Right. I'd gotten so absorbed in the food that I'd completely forgotten to bring it up.
"Yeah, I talked to him. He said he'd join."
"…Really?"
Relief softened the way she cut her meat. Then she stopped mid-slice, as if something had occurred to her, and looked at me.
"Lutes."
"Yeah?"
Eline speared a piece of meat on her fork and lifted it — not toward her own mouth, but toward mine.
"Open up."
Open what, exactly.
I knew what she meant, of course. But the phrasing was so very her. Most people would say "Say ah" or "Try this," wouldn't they?
"Hurry."
At that not-quite-an-order, I carefully opened my mouth. Leaning forward a little, I let her slip the meat between my lips.
It was delicious, naturally.
Thinking back, I used to flounder every time she offered me some kindness. Maybe I was getting a little better at taking it in stride.
When our eyes met, she was brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Lutes."
"What?"
I looked at her face, and —
Ah.
I was starting to predict what she wanted. What she was about to say.
I carefully speared a piece of the sliced meat on my fork.
"Here."
I held it out to her.
"…"
Eline closed her eyes and opened her mouth. I rose slightly from my seat and fed it to her. She gave a tiny shiver as she took the meat between her lips.
"How is it?"
She chewed slowly, then quietly opened her eyes again and looked at me. A faint smile — barely there — touched her lips.
"…It's good."
We held each other's gaze for a moment. Then, as if by unspoken agreement, we went back to eating — more comfortably now, and at our leisure.
After the meal, we did what we always did — worked ourselves hard at the training grounds. When she flung spears of magic, I blocked them with barriers. When she used other spells, I calmly analyzed and responded. That was the core of our training.
I had to pull every sense to its peak and stay locked in concentration just to avoid mistakes. Separate from that, though, I couldn't help but keep being impressed.
How does she chain them together that precisely?
The more deeply I studied magic, the more Eline's fluid spell combinations left me with nothing but awe — the old saying about seeing more the more you know had never felt truer.
"Lutes, one more round."
"Got it."
I pushed myself up, and sweat dripped through my field of vision.
A sharp clash of magic. A burst of light.
I can see it.
From Eline's perspective she probably wasn't even using her real strength, but I could definitely feel myself catching up, little by little, compared to when we'd first started training together.
A final ringing impact —
I blocked the last spear head-on, and that was the end of the day's training. The sky had already turned a deep crimson, and sweat poured off me like rain. Casting magic burned through stamina; that much was inevitable.
Eline, by contrast, had barely broken two drops of sweat. Her base fitness was excellent, sure — but maintaining that kind of stamina while using that much mana meant she was managing it with extraordinary efficiency.
What does she even lack?
I no longer collapsed the moment training ended the way I used to, but my legs were still trembling. My muscles were so spent I was confident I'd wash up and pass out the second I got back to the dorm.
We dropped onto a bench in the corner of the training grounds.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. I'll live. My legs are just shaking a bit — I walked a lot today."
"You walked a lot?"
"This morning, remember? I told you I ran into Valrod. He was doing patrol rounds, so I went with him. We sparred a little too."
"Patrol."
Eline's lips moved as if something had just occurred to her.
"How was it?"
"How was what?"
"The patrol."
I took a moment to process the question. How was the patrol…
"It was fine. I like walking that much anyway."
"I see."
There was a note of relief in her voice.
"Why?"
"Apparently the academy's running large-scale patrols for a week."
I'd heard the same thing from Valrod that morning — that with the professors away, students were temporarily stepping in to help.
"Are you doing it too?"
"Mm."
Eline's short answer. I'd more or less expected it. Most of the people being pulled in were from Alpha Class, so of course she'd be included.
So she'll be even busier for a while.
Her own studies, looking after me, the Holy Fire Festival — and now patrols on top of it all. She only seemed to get more and more occupied.
Eline gently took my hand.
"I told them I wanted to do it with you."
"With me?"
"Mm."
"And they approved it?"
Eline nodded. I turned that over in my head for a second. Patrolling with Eline meant I'd get to walk around with her even during weekday class hours, didn't it?
"…What do you think?"
She asked carefully, watching my face — as if my opinion still mattered most.
What did I think?
"Of course I'm fine with it."
The answer came out so fast I almost second-guessed myself. But I'd never planned on refusing in the first place, so I let it go.
"Thank you."
With Eline's quiet thanks, and once the sweat on our skin had started to dry, we left the training grounds.
On the campus grounds, where the sunset was fully settling in, mana-stone lamps began flickering on one by one. We walked together, talking about this and that.
"…So you sparred with your friend."
"Yeah. He's strong."
She nodded as I told her about the match with Valrod.
"That makes four, then."
"…Five, once Ian joins."
Five. The shape of the team was starting to come together, though part of me felt awkward about it. Rui and Valrod were fine, but my first impression with Ian hadn't exactly been great.
Will she even join?
She'd seemed to dislike me quite a bit.
I'll have to handle that carefully.
Eline stopped walking, and I snapped out of my thoughts.
"Ah."
We'd arrived in front of the Alpha Class dormitory. Which meant it was time to say goodbye.
"We're here."
Was it just my imagination, or did the walk to the Alpha Class dorms get shorter every day?
I loosened my grip on her hand.
"Go on in, Eli —"
Eline caught the hand I'd let go of and pulled me firmly toward her.
"…ne."
And then, as if it were already familiar —
she pressed her lips to my cheek.
I, of course, was not familiar with it at all.
She carefully drew her lips away.
"I'm going."
Having finished the kiss on my cheek, Eline turned her head with her usual composure and walked straight into the dormitory.
…
I stood there in a daze before finally collecting myself enough to brush my cheek with a trembling hand.
Please… at least say something first…
I stayed put for several minutes before I finally managed to turn around.
Fortunately, by the time I got back to my dorm, my heart had settled. The day had been so packed that the moment the warm water touched my skin, a lazy groan slipped out of me.
"Ugh…"
Patrols. Exams. The Holy Fire Festival. I sorted through the tangle of keywords as I finished my shower, then walked into my room and threw myself onto the bed.
Busy.
My head was full and my body was exhausted. Strangely, though, it didn't feel hard. A moderate amount of tension and a tight schedule breathed life into the everyday, and I didn't mind the feeling at all.
Starting tomorrow… patrols, I guess…
I didn't know what form the patrols would take, but it meant more time when I could see Eline. That alone was enough to make me smile.
Today, too…
I lay down and rested my head against the pillow. Not as strongly as yesterday, but I could still catch Eline's scent. We'd been close for a long time again today, so that made sense.
It smells nice…
The moment I closed my eyes, my consciousness blurred, as if I were being pulled down into deep water.
A sudden knocking at the door.
Thinking it might be a hallucination, I curled up tighter and pulled the blanket over my head.
The knocking on the wooden door grew rougher, and now a low murmur of voices filtered through the gap.
…What is that?
Not a hallucination?
I cracked my eyes open to a ceiling drowned in pitch-black darkness. Half-asleep, I glanced out the window — a bright moon hung in the sky. It had felt like only seconds since I'd closed my eyes, and it was already the middle of the night. I must have been more exhausted than I thought.
More importantly.
I turned my gaze to the door. The knocking had stopped, but a shadow and a bright light spilled through the gap underneath. The dorm hallway torches, fitted with mana stones, did light up at night — but never that brightly.
Another round of knocks, and my mind snapped fully awake. Someone was knocking on my door.
Who…?
I hurriedly straightened my sleepwear as I thought. The first people who came to mind were students from other rooms. Every so often, some drunk with a flushed face would pound on doors — it had happened a few times before.
Doesn't seem like that, though.
The knocking was far too composed for that. Polite. Restrained.
"Yes?"
I answered quietly and got out of bed. After fixing my sleep clothes, I opened the door.
Huh.
Two people stood on the other side: Professor Laen, leaning on his cane, and Yulian, the dorm supervisor.
"…Professor?"
It was a combination I never could have predicted, and the confusion hit hard.
"Lutes."
Laen called my name.
"Yes."
His voice was as deep and solemn as always, though — whether because I wasn't fully awake yet or not — it sounded even lower and heavier than usual.
"Sorry to wake you at this hour. The matter is rather urgent."
An urgent matter. The nerves that had been asleep began waking one by one.
"Just one question. Yesterday — Sunday morning — did you make contact with any of the guards?"
I cast back through my memory. Contact with the guards… right, I'd run into them while patrolling with Valrod.
"Yes. I met Rotwell."
Rotwell, 3rd Division Commander of the Academy Guard. I could picture his face — the prominent cheekbones, hair plastered with sweat under his helmet, the scar on his left cheek.
Was that a problem somehow? I didn't think academy rules said anything about contacting the guards.
"When was the last time you saw him?"
"…The sun was almost directly overhead, so before noon. Around eleven, I believe."
Somewhere around then.
"As I thought."
"It does seem to match."
Laen and Yulian exchanged words as if my answer had confirmed what they'd already suspected. Two grave faces, a serious conversation in the dead of night — my nerves finished waking, and the calm rhythm of my heart began to climb.
"Is something wrong?"
"There is. We're on the verge of a serious incident."
Laen glanced at Yulian, who nodded reluctantly.
"You'll need to take full responsibility for his safety."
Laen turned back and met my eyes. He looked me up and down in my sleep clothes.
"Lutes."
"Yes."
"Get properly dressed and come out. There's somewhere you need to go, immediately."
Somewhere I needed to go immediately.
"Where?"
Laen opened his mouth.
"The forest you entered today."
The Whispering Forest.
"Three guards have gone missing. Including the Rotwell you mentioned."