"Let's stop here, it's already late." Selene got up from the ground, the others standing up as well.
"You've improved since I last saw you. Continue going in that direction," she said, throwing an appreciative glance at him.
Cyril straightened his back, feeling a perplexing sense of satisfaction. Indeed, when he practiced the Dragon Art nowadays, it was many times easier than before. Somehow the spell just flowed better.
With that, Selene moved away. In a few seemingly short but actually long strides, she left far away from their sight.
Cyril collected his magic creatures one by one, returning them to their rightful place. Tigris and Morpho on his shoulders with Atheris coiled around his neck.
"Why did you so readily agree to that challenge?" Myra asked, walking closer. Her face was darker than usual, and her stare held something close to criticism.
Throughout the whole training session she still hadn't succeeded once. She wasn't alone in that, as both Tigris and Morpho failed to grasp anything meaningful as well. However, being on the same level as a silly tiger and snake didn't sit right with her still.
"I don't see myself succeeding at all..."
"Me too."
Quiet.
Cyril shook his head, his face completely lacking any and all concern.
"You can do it." In his voice was not a sliver of doubt, and even the butterfly on his shoulder fluttered her wings to give her some strength and confidence.
"Okay..."
"Let's go back."
Cyril nodded and turned around, walking out of the abandoned park. On the way he lightly bowed towards the Earth Goddess statue, finding it a proper thing to do.
Myra awkwardly mimicked his bow with a confused face before quickly following after him.
...
Without any accident, they've ridden the manarail and reached their academy. In front of its gates, they've said goodbye and gone their separate ways.
Cyril was overall in a light mood as he stepped on the stone path, observing the academy grounds. This situation happened much smoother than he had thought. As for the bet he made, he truly wasn't worried at all.
Somehow he felt Myra would succeed no matter what.
Another beneficiary of today's evening was Morpho. She flew around him as he walked, still energetic. This training session with Selene benefited her a great deal, enabling her to more smoothly control her mana.
Atheris and Tigris both were not too concerned with today's events. To them, it was only a little bit of an unusual outing. They clearly didn't consider learning the spell in earnest.
Unfortunately the tiger didn't succeed in the end and lost all motivation because of it. In his mind this was a one-day thing.
He would be quite shocked to find out that Cyril already planned their routine.
Every day we'll start with group training, and when I leave for studies, I should give them something to do...
Perhaps give them homework? Anyways, in the evenings I will teach them myself. Sounds good.
"Nooo! Wait. They are still young-"
Let's try at least. Maybe you'll find it interesting?
"…I might." Rhamn thoughtfully nodded, imagining herself as a professor in front of the whiteboard. Teaching others was a pleasant thing.
Filled with satisfaction, Cyril headed back to his dorm.
Once in his room, he quickly studied for tomorrow, went through his routine, and got into his bed.
Before sleep he took the illusion magic spellbook, earnestly learning it for a short while. Atheris was still coiled around him, peeking with happy but slightly silly eyes at the complicated text.
Morpho and Tigris already fell asleep, exhausted from their efforts today.
When he was done, Cyril put the notebook away and drifted off into sleep.
I should try to cast an illusion soon…
...
After a dreamless sleep, he woke up at dawn as usual.
He freshened himself, did his morning training, and cooked for the others.
This time, Cyril managed to convince Atheris to at least eat by herself. The reluctant snake remained half-coiled around him, eating the food on the table in a single gulp.
Cyril himself calmly ignored the scaly body pressed against him and read a newspaper in his hands, kindly brought by Ophelia.
On the main page in bold font for all to see was the main news of the last few days.
'Gross negligence leads to tragedy at the zoo...' 'Magic Life Research Society finally broke its silence on the event...' 'Key culprit discovered.'
Nothing about any vampires or giant snakes.
"As expected."
'Knight Flynn praised for his actions during the event. He valiantly protected the people...'
That Flynn, the Butcher, saved people? I find it hard to believe... And why is there nothing about our actions...
Cyril read the text from top to bottom numerous times but found nothing in it about any students helping in the rescue.
A frown emerged on his face that he tried to suppress. It was hard for him to admit, but he was quite looking forward to seeing his name in a newspaper again, in a positive connotation at least.
"Damn it! It must be those knights stealing our credit! What else can it be?!"
Calm down. Perhaps... I just didn't do enough, I was too distracted by the experiments. Maybe I should've let the visitors know my name?
Shaking his head, Cyril put the newspaper back on the table and stood up.
"Time to go," he said, looking towards the snake half-coiled around him.
Atheris pitifully stuck out her forked tongue, tears welling up in her golden eyes.
"You must stay here today. You can practice the Dragon Art in the meantime if you want, or do something else," Cyril said, trying to evade her pitiful gaze.
Finding her ultimate move not working, Atheris froze, despair written on her face. Finally, she reluctantly slithered to the ground, coiling in on herself in one place.
"Good job," he said, breathing a sigh of relief. Today he had Combat Training and he wasn't sure how he was supposed to hide the snake in the changing room.
"Alright, I am off."
He went out of the dorm to the first lesson of the day, Combat Training.
...
Tigris waved his paw with a wide smile as Cyril left.
Morpho already flew out of the window to train in the park, intent on helping the trees there lose all of their leaves faster.
They were on their own and had plenty of time to themselves.
So, he was about to go take a well-deserved nap when, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the mean snake.
Atheris was unmoving, staring unflinchingly at the door. There was seemingly a dark cloud hanging over her. Even her usually menacing golden eyes appeared weaker than ever.
Tigris widened his eyes, then focused, his gaze becoming resolute. With a determined spring to his step, he slowly walked towards Atheris.
Once nearby, he proudly roared to attract her attention.
"Meow."
Hearing a cute meow, the snake's previously empty eyes became threatening. She snapped to look at the kitten as one would at their prey.
Tigris's whole body stiffened, his head lowering. He pawed at the air a few times, motioning for her to follow, and walked deeper into the room.
Atheris looked at him unblinking, not reacting for several seconds. In the end she flickered her tongue and lethargically slithered after him.
Tigris knew just the thing to make her feel better. He'll show his younger sister how to properly relax and spend time while Cyril is studying!
The white cub, followed by a reluctant snake, reached the kitchen, where they stopped in front of the fridge.
The tiger skillfully opened the door of the fridge in one jump, letting the cold breeze hit their faces. Atheris coiled in place, enduring the slight chill, and looked inside.
The fridge was absolutely filled to the brim with various snacks and ingredients.
As if performing some sacred task, Tigris's face turned solemn as he lowered his body, preparing himself for another jump.
He elegantly lunged in the air, biting onto a piece of meat sticking out on one of the shelves. With his reward in tow, he landed on the ground, proudly staring at the snake, and let the meat drop in front of her.
He magnanimously nodded towards her, allowing her to take the first bite, as he was a generous tiger.
"..."
Atheris silently observed the piece of raw meat lying on the wooden floor, then glanced back at the face of the tiger. He was incredibly smug, as if expecting tremendous praise for some heroic deed.
Atheris blankly flicked her forked tongue. If she could speak, she would find no words to say at this moment.