"A "real magic show", huh?"
From behind us, a familiar voice spoke. For some reason though, Maia's face instantly paled up when she heard her, and slowly turned around with a clearly worried expression. When me and Cifer did the same, of course seeing Luna, we got an idea of the reason.
Maia…
"W-what are you guys doing here…?"
And even more shockingly, Luna wasn't alone. Walking next to her were the elven duo and fake twins.
"My, my, what a silly question to ask, Maia. You said Cael's about to see a real magic show, no? So of course, I brought you an audience. Since you're too busy hosting real magic shows instead of reporting to your duties."
I looked at Maia in disappointment. The reason? It was pretty obvious now. Given how Luna was also glaring at Maia with a smile so obviously fake that she'd win an award for even just having the audacity to try and fake it to begin with, I'm sure anyone could tell.
"Y-you got it wrong, Luna… I, I was about to-"
"Yes, I know. You were about to use this training facility without Mio's permission, without any notice, and while also already having a morning duty to attend. Yes, I know."
"…! No, wait, but-"
By now, the 5 of them had reached us, standing around 5 steps or so away. Maia tried to close up the distance between them, but Luna raised her arm signaling her to stop, then sighed before speaking.
"I'm not interested in whatever excuse you have. Honestly, the situation is clear enough even without knowing the details."
"As I said, I really was going to ask for permission!"
"I told you I'm not interested, didn't I? For that matter, I'm not mad either."
"No matter how you put it, that's clearly a blatant lie though?!"
"Ah, I see. I guess you're right. Well then, let me rephrase. I'm not too mad. Is that better?"
"No- actually, I guess it is?"
"Haha, you really are an interesting person, Maia."
"Sylara… What are you guys even doing here so early?"
"Hm? What, did you forget already? We're responsible for helping with the preparations for the banquet in a few days."
"Mom's in charge of making and delivering produce, for the record. The chefs at the banquet will be using our finest crops."
"And of course, Rosalie and I are sponsoring the whole banquet."
"Right, right, we did talk about that. Sorry, it's just that we've had so many meetings about it that I'm being left behind a little, mentally that is."
"Clearly you're a little more than mentally behind."
"I said I was-"
"Shut up."
"Yes mam…"
"Now, now. Don't be so harsh with Maia, Luna. It can't be helped can it?"
"Hmph. If anything I'm not being severe enough. It's reporting day, you know? This gorilla was in charge of receiving, filtering and presenting today's morning meeting materials."
Maia…
I glanced at her in disappointment once again. Even I could tell that she clearly shouldn't have ditched it… though I can also tell that the reason for it is because it's likely a pain. It wasn't just me either, even the fake twins glanced over at her with a face of disapproval.
"Maia, you…"
"Not even I skip my reporting day duties, you know? We're Lieutenants for a reason."
"It's a pain though..— he hem! I mean, you can't blame me, can you? I just happened to eavesdrop on my little brothers earlier, and I just had to get them here! It was a split second decision, that I just had to obey! Seriously, how many times does it happen for a prodigy of Cifer's level to explain his abilities?? And he was just going to tell him flat out? Boring! We need more spice in our life, that's something that Mio would surely understand too!"
"So your idea of spicing things up was ditching reporting duties, kidnapping your brothers and bringing them to a training area without permission?"
"Well…"
Luna then sighed again, then began walking not only towards us, but bypassing us as well and going inside the stadium.
"Forget it. You can't properly activate the training barrier to begin with, no?"
"Luna… then?!"
"I told you, I brought you the audience. Don't stand there like an idiot, and come in. Everyone else too, of course. I've already gotten permission from Mio."
Maia's eyes lit up, as the other 4 also passed us and went inside following Luna. She then grabbed both me and Cifer by our hands, dragging us in as well.
"Let's go boys!"
We walked surprisingly far into it. We only stopped once we were pretty much at its very center, and I kept looking around us while we got there. For starters, it honestly looked a lot like a football stadium. Of course, the scale was nowhere near comparable, but the layout itself wasn't too far off in itself.
A large mostly rectangular area in the center, and sitting spots all around, going upwards by around 5 rows or so. I'm assuming that whenever someone is training in here the others sit down and watch? That seems fairly plausible at least. Nonetheless, it's a lot different from the other place where I helped the swordsmen recruits train, that's for sure.
"Did we have to get in the middle?"
"Not really, but I figured you two would want to get a look at it before I activate the barrier, no?"
I guess that made sense. Luna seemed to have calmed down by now too which reassured me further. It's not just Maia who's scared of her when she's mad, you know? But that aside, something else caught my attention, instead of replying to her.
"Why're you so quiet all of a sudden, Cifer?"
Not only that, but he was also standing weirdly close to Maia, almost as if he was trying to hide. His expression wasn't particularly sorrowful or anything, neither uncomfortable but…
"Are you actually shy or something?"
"H-huh? I'm not particularly shy or anything, but…"
I followed his glance, as he suddenly began looking in a specific area after stopping his sentence midway, and it finally made somewhat sense now. After all, he was clearly looking at the elven duo and the fake twins. The 4 of them seemed pretty surprised too, all of them even blinking rapidly a few times as if processing it.
They then in perfect synchrony pointed at each other as if to confirm their thoughts, and their eyes widened for a moment when Cifer nodded. I was wondering what they'd do next, seeing as they were kinda sharing a brain cell at the moment, but the answer was actually a lot more confusing than anything I imagined.
"Pfft…"
"…s-say, Sylara…"
"Y-yeah, Evelyne…. Pfft…."
"W-when was the last… time…"
"Beats me… I-i don't re-remember anymore… hahahah…."
"M-mom… it-it's rude to laugh like that…"
"Mivana… y-you're not very… convincing…pfft…!"
"Sh-shut up… r-Rosalie…."
What the hell is wrong with them?
"What the hell is wrong with you guys?"
Luna actually asked what I was thinking outloud though.
"I mean… hahahah… se-seriously…"
"Can… Can you blame us??! Hahaha!"
"Ah, ah, this is hilarious hahah!…"
"Seriously, what the hell is wrong with you weirdos? Why're you laughing at my little brother? Do you want me to burn you or something?"
Even Maia was getting visibly confused and annoyed by it, as she made a flame appear in her hand as a demonstration probably.
"No… th-that's not necessary…"
I glanced over at Cifer who seemed not just confused but also visibly embarrassed, blushing and all. He was now genuinely hiding behind Maia slightly too. Thankfully however, the 4 weirdos seemed to have managed to compose themselves, at least enough to talk properly.
"Ah, no, don't hide, Cifer. We're not laughing at you or anything."
"That's right cutey, we're sorry if you thought that was the case."
"It's just that, we don't exactly get those kinds of reactions often, you know?"
"What are you guys even talking about?"
"Maia, you know how whenever someone meets us for the first time they're either scared or stiff, no? Given our positions and all."
"Or whenever someone meets me and Rosalie, they either get lustful over a potential business deal or scared."
"I mean, I guess? You guys are the most known Sentinels besides me and Mio after all."
"Right? So it's just really refreshing."
"Seeing a little boy that's genuinely just shy in our presence, and not actually particularly scared, greedy or anything like that."
"Right? He just looks like he's genuinely impressed by seeing us. He's even hiding behind his sister and all."
"It's been ages since someone reacted like that to us. A genuine acknowledgement, followed by an understandable shyness."
"So that's what got ya'll laughing like idiots, huh?"
"Well, I guess you wouldn't understand, Luna. Nonetheless, we're all sorry for laughing like that so suddenly."
The Queen of Nature then stepped forward, lowering herself on one knee in front of Cifer.
"Nice to meet you, little man. I guess we haven't introduced ourselves properly, have we? I'm Sylara Wynsorin, and behind me is my daughter, Mivana."
Following her, one of the fake twins, I honestly had no idea which one at first until she introduced herself, did the exact same thing.
"I'm Evelyne Valentis, cute little boy. And the one that looks as if she's my slightly uglier twin is my daughter, Rosalie."
"Oi, what did you just say, old hag?"
"Don't start now, you idiots."
""Yes mam…""
Luna sure had her way around authority over everyone, huh? It was both impressive and reassuring at the same time. Also a little funny. But nonetheless, Cifer seemed pleasantly cooperative.
"My name is Cifer… I guess I'm an Ashford now."
"I see. So Cifer Ashford, huh? It suits you."
"How do I put this… you know, when you're not being your usual selves, you actually look like admirable people, you two.."
Both the Queen of Nature and the fake twin got up, smiling but not very convincingly.
"Maia…"
"Yes?"
"Which one of us skipped their reporting duties to kidnap her brothers again?"
"…I'm sorry."
"Alright, alright. Everyone, it's about time we actually get started here, or we'll spend all day without ever doing the main thing we even came here for."
"Yeah, Luna's right!"
You sure are quick to agree with her now, huh?
However, there was something I had to ask, which I've been wondering about ever since we entered.
"Say, what exactly is going to happen to begin with? Maia said something about a magic show, then Luna said something about a barrier? What exactly is going on? I thought Cifer was just going to show us his ability…?"
"Do you really need to ask, Cael?"
"I mean, do I?"
"Did you forget how your gorilla of a sister's brain operates? There's only one possible answer to why she brought both of you here, isn't there?"
And as Luna's words finally clicked in, I quickly looked at Maia on my right, and her grin said it all.
"You can't be serious…"
"Why not? You two were so excited to go at it at first sight yesterday after all, weren't you?"
"Even then! So when you said I'd be seeing a real magic show you meant that I'd be its victim??"
"Why would you? All you have to do is not become a victim, no?"
"Wait, wait, aren't you going a little too fast?? When have I even agreed to using my abilities on Cael to begin with??"
"Why wouldn't you agree though, my dear little brother?"
"Why would I agree?!"
"And if you knew this is what she planned, why are you so fine with it, Luna??"
"Cael, I'm sorry to tell you… but putting aside Maia's ditching, I actually don't see any issues with it."
"Huh?"
"I mean, think about it. It will be pretty entertaining to watch for us too, you know?"
"Wait a second."
"And that goes for these 4 idiots too for that matter."
"Seriously, wait a second…"
"I'm actually particularly interested in seeing Cifer fight, myself. After all, though a little unconventional for certain reasons I may not use it, but as the Nature Spirit King's contract holder, I can still use all elemental magic, just like he does, having contracts with all types."
"Plus, Maia told us a lot about you too as you know, Cael. We're also interested in seeing you fight for the first time ourselves."
"I told you to wait!!"
Shit, I didn't mean to shout like that.
"Uhm, I'm sorry about that… but as I was saying, please wait a second. I'm really not sure if this is a good idea."
However, before even asking me for the reason, or giving me a chance to explain it myself regardless, Luna completely sliced through them.
"Cael, this training area specifically, has a special barrier. Inside of it, you're pretty much within a pocket dimension. No real damage will occur to this stadium. Furthermore, there's also a general protection spell applied on it, which will help you guys avoid any lethal injuries, on top of you two not fighting to kill each other to begin with. No real permanent damage will occur either."
"See? I told you, there's no reason to refuse, my dear little brothers. As Luna just explained, this will be a completely safe sparring between you two. You can both go at it with your full power, without any worries. So what do you say?"
Me and Cifer looked at each other first, then at both Maia and Luna, before finally replying.
"Alright…"
"I guess it's fine then…"
"Then it's settled. Let's go take a seat, everyone."
The only one that didn't actually begin walking towards the seats yet was Luna, who remained behind for the time being.
"Once the barrier is activated, since its outside range is limited to the main area, from the benches you will pretty much see it at the same quality as a live-streaming spell, in case you're curious. That's how we'll watch you guys."
"Well, thanks for the explanation I guess? But aren't you going to sit down too?"
"No, I am. But I do need to activate it from within the area itself, so I figured I'd just give you guys a heads up."
"Is it really alright for me to show him in a fight?"
"If it wasn't, I would've dragged Maia back to our office and sent you two home long ago."
"I see…"
"And for that matter, isn't it about time you two stop pretending?"
"What?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that it's actually pretty obvious, you know? Though you two may not even realize… both of you are grinning from ear to ear, right now. So isn't it about time you stop pretending you're not excited about it?"
Huh?
But when I looked to my right, and confirmed that he was indeed grinning, then touched my own face and confirmed that I was doing the same, I felt my heartbeat becoming louder.
I see… so we actually are excited about it, aren't we?
Yeah, it makes sense. We were stopped yesterday, but now we can do it without holding back.
Who cares if we don't know why we did it yesterday? We have a reason to do it now.
Yeah, that's right.
We should do it.
So as Luna got on one knee, touched the ground and the area around us began to shine brightly for a few seconds, I made up my mind. I wasn't lost in thought or unknown emotions now. I was completely lucid. I decided to simply accept our circumstances, and take this opportunity. I hadn't had any real all out training in a while, you know?
"Well then, it'll be activating as soon as I'm out of the space. If things escalate to a dangerous level one of us will step in and stop you, so don't worry about it and just go all out, while avoiding killing each other as much as possible, okay?"
We nodded, and she turned around and began walking. I observed her steps, every single one, the closer they got to the edge, my heartbeat accelerating even further. I was really fucking excited, I honestly had no way of even trying to deny it anymore.
Being able to train with a prodigy even bigger than Mio according to Maia? What is this, my lucky day? And not to mention, I've also gotten way stronger since the last time I was able to go all out too, so I'm restless about seeing my own progress.
However, I also had no intention of ruining my chance. Which is exactly why, as Luna left the training area and the spell activated, our surroundings quickly changing into what seemed to be an open plain, I took a deep breath, and composed myself.
I needed it in order to reset my mental and physical state. Although I could still feel my heartbeat going faster than usual, that much couldn't be helped. The adrenaline in my bloodstream was most likely only going to go up even further from now after all. Instinctively almost, we both distanced ourselves from each other, around 10 meters or so.
Neither one of us was grinning widely anymore, but we didn't have a straight face either. It seemed like I wasn't the only one that had actually calmed down.
Though we're able to go all out, I honestly have no idea what that even means for this guy.
I guess it's safest to begin in a way that allows me to assess my grounds first, huh?
I couldn't let my guard down. Being at a clear disadvantage with him already knowing my ability while I didn't know his, was simply too big of a risky situation in general. I had to be careful. I made a blade of mana in my right hand, then instantly charged at him without giving any warnings.
Let's see what you got!
But something was weird. He wasn't moving whatsoever, even as the distance between us shrunk at what should've been an alarming rate. Why was he so calm? Why wasn't he moving? Did I make a mistake?
It was already too late when I found out however. With my eyes widened, I looked behind me at my left leg.
Ice..?!
And before I could even turn my head back to him, the only thing I could perceive before the impact were his words.
"You're focusing too much on my unknown ability, Cael."
And then, faster than I could've imagined and with alarming strength, he punched me straight in the stomach which sent me flying backwards.
He's fast! Was that his ability? No, there's no way it would be something as simple as speed.
But he was in fact way too fast for his stature. How did he…?
But as I stuck my blade in the ground to stop my momentum, and glanced forward at him charging at me, I finally realized.
So that's how it is… he's using lighting beneath his feet as propulsors!
Now that I was aware of it though, I wouldn't let it take me off guard a second time. Acting as if I was still left behind in speed, I allowed him to get closer. I intentionally didn't move a single muscle, but in reality I had already enhanced both my reaction speed and regular speed.
He must've thought that he'd get another clean hit, didn't he? But unfortunately for him…
Too predictable.
Not only was his trajectory easy to predict, but he was full of openings. As soon as he got within range, I suddenly got up and dashed forward. His reaction made it hilariously obvious that he didn't expect it. But I had to take one back for that punch, didn't I?
So I dematerialized by blade, formed my right hand into a fist and sent it towards his jaw for an uppercut… while at the same time, creating a mana blast beneath him and sending him flying.
Maia said he can't fly earlier, so if it's in the air, the advantage is mine.
I had sent him around 70 meters up or so almost instantly, and I flew upwards right afterwards. I guess I had to make sure his landing wouldn't be too rough, didn't I? But apparently no lethal damage should be taken here, so maybe I didn't?
Regardless, the upper hand is now mi-
You have to be kidding me, right…? Before I could reach him, this bastard…
"I thought you couldn't fly… you pretender!"
"Who said I'm flying, you idiot?"
I stopped midair, but so did he. How was he doing it? Maia clearly said that he wasn't able to, and he just implied that himself… but my eyes were clearly seeing him standing on… air?!!
"Wind magic…?!"
If I looked carefully enough, I could see the flow beneath his feet. Shit, I should've expected this, shouldn't I? He did say he could control all the elemental magic with no issues after all. In principle, flying and standing on air are manipulating the mana within the air, but no one said that if you didn't make a dense layer of air magic beneath your feet, you'd fall.
"Eh? Didn't think you'd figure it out so easily. I'm impressed."
"I'm flattered. have a pretty good battle sense, you see?"
"I can tell. Although… I'm not exactly sure who you're talking to."
"What are you-…"
My eyes widened.
"Perhaps your orientation sense isn't as good as your battle one, huh?"
He disappeared?!
I then turned around, finding him standing there.
"How did you get there so fast?!"
"Get here? Where?"
Again!
I looked to my left, then he disappeared. To my right, same thing. Behind, above, it didn't matter where I looked, he disappeared a few moments later at a rate so alarming that I couldn't even tell if he was doing it on purpose anymore. Was this his ability?
"'If the target makes physical contact with me, his sense of orientation will be confiscated for a minute.' That was the spell I used on you."
And before I could even try to reply, I was hit from behind me with what felt like lighting, sending me straight into the ground… or so I thought. At impact, what I actually fell into was water. I quickly swam upwards, trying to get out of it as soon as possible, but to no result.
No matter how hard I swim… I can't find an exit! Is this also because of my orientation sense being gone?
What to do? At this rate, I'll lose consciousness before the minute is even over. Think! I need something, a way for me to get out of here…
I see!
It was honestly a bit of a gamble… but if things went as intended then it would get me out of here as quickly as possible. I formed a mana blast straight beneath me… and fired it upwards at myself. Even if my sense of direction was removed, that didn't matter if I actually formed a mana blast right beneath me. Why? Because it was all in my head to begin with.
Even if I couldn't tell where my target was, if the target was myself, I didn't need to. I always know where I am, so it's not possible to miss myself. And thankfully enough, my gamble actually paid off. I was able to get out of the water within 20 total seconds from entering it, and I took a deep breath as soon as I was in the air, standing on hardened air.
"I… I thought I was gonna drown…!"
"Did you just??"
"Yeah… though I don't know where you are."
"Are you insane?! Who the hell would throw a mana blast at themselves??"
"It didn't really hurt, you know…? Maybe because I was underwater? I have no idea."
"What the hell is wrong with you…"
"Beats me. I'd also like to know that sometimes. But it doesn't matter now, does it? After all…"
I instantly turned around, then dashed forward.
"The minute… is over."
And grabbed him by his collar, then swung him straight into the ground.