Tigris sat on the edge of the training field, curled up and unbothered.
In front of him was a group of 4 students and 1 insect.
The noises of wooden weapons clashing, uneven breathing, and wings fluttering in the air had been present here for a few hours already.
They sparred, exchanged short moves, rested a few breaths, and sparred again.
At the end of it, both Edmund and Rose lay on the ground, staring at the sky with empty eyes where Morpho flew back and forth, still full of energy.
Cyril twirled the spear in his hand, then placed it on the ground.
I haven't used the spear that much recently. And with Selene's technique I might even use it less in the future...
A pity.
"You know how some prodigies develop their own spells? Since we are clearly better than one, maybe we can improve that madwoman's spell in the future? Maybe make it coat the spear in mana...?"
...I feel something like this should exist already.
We'll see.
Cyril shook his head, getting rid of the stray thoughts, and looked at Myra to the side.
She boredly held the spear behind her, resting it on her shoulders.
"What do you think?"
"It's not too bad. I feel with a bit of daily practice they will steadily improve."
"Is that so?"
I thought they were a lost cause.
"Compared to you, yes."
Edmund hurriedly stood up on his feet and dusted himself off.
"Sorry I am not a genius like you two!"
Myra waved her hands in denial, "No, you are doing good. You won't see much progress in a day, that's fine!"
In doing so, she let the spear drop on the ground behind her, which she then hurriedly picked up again by tossing it with her foot.
Rose weakly raised her body as well, helplessly observing her friend's display of finesse.
"Mages shouldn't fight like this. It's just not right."
She mumbled and moved to a bench near the field.
"That's what you think, but most mages are still human at the end of the day, and a pointy blade can be just as dangerous to them. A dagger can arrive faster than a barrier spell."
"I know that. However, a powerful enough mage is an exception to this."
Myra hesitated for a moment, sending her a surprised glance.
"Are you saying you'll reach that level?"
Rose's eye twitched before she looked away.
"Well, I am hoping I do. There is nothing wrong with that. With my results so far, it's not that crazy..."
"Huh."
Myra tilted her head, staring at the distance in silence.
"Is there really no other way than this?" Edmund sighed, the circles under his eyes more prominent than usual.
"Cyril, how do you train?"
"Similar to what we do now."
The butterfly landed on Cyril's shoulder, taking a rest.
"No, I mean... I saw your duels occasionally during Combat Training. You do all these jumps and spins, it's like you choreographed the fights beforehand."
"You are asking how I learned these moves?"
"Yes, exactly! There must be something to it."
Cyril pinched his chin, contemplating for a few short seconds.
"When I was a kid I trained with someone back home. But nowadays... Grab a weapon and start swinging it to get the feel for it."
Morpho on his shoulder twitched her antennae with affirmation.
"You are telling me all those fancy new moves you are doing just suddenly came to you when you were randomly swinging your spear?"
"I don't like the tone of his voice."
Cyril confidently nodded, his face calm.
"With time you'll be able to 'feel' how to move the weapon correctly."
Edmund looked like he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. After a bit of a delay, he turned towards Myra.
"Is it the same with you?" His voice was tinged with despair.
Thankfully for him, Myra shook her head. "No, my current level is all due to studying after a master of the spear. It was a lucky encounter on my part."
"Cyril is incredibly talented. Few can imitate the way he trains," she mumbled with a helpless shrug.
"That's right!"
Really? It feels like there is more to my method than just talent...
On his shoulder, Morpho's wings twitched, then drooped just a little bit lower.
"The important bit is that you are way better than anyone."
Edmund sighed and started walking away, waving his arm in the process.
"Alright, thank you. I am done for today."
Rose observed his departure and slowly got up from her bench as well.
"I still need to study today, I'll go too."
With that, she limped away.
Passing Tigris, she quickly pulled out her notebook, wrote something down, and continued on her way.
Morpho fluttered goodbye to both of them.
Myra alternated between them and threw Cyril a reluctant glance.
Cyril first picked up Tigris, letting the tiger relax in his arms, and walked up to her.
"You trained under a master of the spear? Who is that?"
Myra awkwardly scratched her auburn hair and kept silent.
After some hesitation, she opened her mouth while looking in the distance.
"More accurately, I would've trained under a master of the spear. It was in my visions, and I sort of remembered it, haha."
Cyril nodded, his face blank.
"So who was that?"
Myra froze.
After a second she turned around.
"...I am sorry, I promised to keep it a secret."
"It's already late, see you tomorrow!"
Myra quickly disappeared in the direction of her dorm.
Cyril observed her departure while calmly petting Tigris. Morpho on his shoulder energetically fluttered goodbye.
"So, aside from... knowing the future, she also received spells, secret knowledge, and combat ability? All from some visions she saw a year ago?"
Maybe yes, maybe no.
Cyril shook his head and turned around.
Feeling the soft fur on his hand and the motivated ball of fire on his shoulder, he walked back to his dorm.
It's time for our training.
As he began walking, the red butterfly cheered on his shoulder.
However.
"No, it's not!"
Rhamn appeared in his path, hands on her hips.
"We still have time, we should buy things for Tigris!"
...I did say we would go.
The white tiger was already dozing off. His tail was wagging back and forth in its full carefree manner.
"Sorry, Morpho. Let's go out in the city instead."
The butterfly's wings drooped lower.
Soon, however, she recovered her mood and made a loop in the air before landing on Tigris's nose.
The white cat didn't even notice her.
...
Cyril walked out of the academy gates holding a white tiger in his arms.
He glanced at his right shoulder, where the butterfly sat, and then at his left.
"Hold on, Tigris."
Cyril raised the cat and put him on his shoulder as well.
Tigris's legs hung limply behind his back as his curious blue eyes observed the new perspective and a new location.
There.
Cyril nodded to himself and walked on a familiar path towards the manarail.
Just as he took a few steps, he stopped and turned around.
"Master."
There stood Ophelia, her hands in front of her as she bowed.
"What is it?"
She raised her head and sent him a stare.
"Are you heading out? Would you permit me to accompany you?"
"Hmph! Probably wants to monitor you."
"There is no need. You should stay at the academy."
"I am just going out to buy Tigris some things."
Ophelia's eyes shone as a black cat walked out from behind her.
Its cat eyes curiously looked at the white tiger on Cyril's shoulder.
"I also wanted to buy a few things for Melaina. Could you tell me a good shop for that later, Master?"
The maid picked up the black cat, holding it in her arms.
Cyril observed its tail moving back and forth, its soft black fur, as well as its pure green eyes that seemed to pierce him whole.
"..."
"Since we have a similar goal, I changed my mind. You can go with me."
Ophelia nodded, her black eyes shining.
"Thank you."
She grabbed the cat's paw and waved at him, her face still expressionless.
After a few seconds, Cyril took his eyes away from the sight and turned around.
It's just easier this way.
"Of course. It's not because you wanted to play with Melaina. That would be ridiculous."
The corner of his eye twitched as he started moving.
That's right.