Death, Devotion, Dissonance

"Is the Vice-chair and Chairman in cahoots with each other in bullying you, then?" Phel asked him from the side, jokingly. "I always see the Northerner putting you in awkward situations, but now that I think about it, the Chairman also does the same thing, doesn't he? I remember how he threatened to take back your World Shards on the first class of Combat training."

"Well, who knows…" Evin replied offhandedly. He was careful not to say anything compromising, as he was still quite close to the Chairman.

"I always fancied attracting the attention of a bigshot, but now that I look at you… it doesn't really feel the same as I'd envisioned it, he-he," Phel chuckled.

"So is it common for you to be pulled into these random fights, then?" Phel's father asked from the side curiously.

"Oh, yes. Evin gets pitted against Decatur at least once a week and the topic of the challenge can be… anything, really," Phel replied for Evin. "Close combat, aim training, spell-casting, and even basic exercises... Now that I think about it, it seems like a huge pain in the as- uh, head, if you know what I mean."

Evin chuckled at Phel's little slip of the tongue, but his attentive mind noticed how the two Viscounts' eyes started to look at him differently. Evin thought a bit, and realized that Phel made it sound like the Chairman and the Vice-chair had a lot of expectations of him. So, as politicians, the two Viscounts would be interested in someone who so obviously holds the attention of a High-mage and his close personal aide.

"Well, one can't escape the expectations of others… no matter how much they want to," Viscount Borna said softly.

Evin didn't know whether the words were meant for him or Bella, but the girl definitely took it as an affront to herself, "We've been through this, father. You don't have to bring it up over and over again."

"I meant the words for Evin, dear," Viscount Borna replied neutrally.

Bella turned her head away from her father dismissively and looked towards Evin instead, "It's good you've asked for the fight to only last five minutes. You definitely wouldn't have had any chance otherwise."

"What do I do, coach?" Evin replied smilingly. He'd started calling her that at some point during their shared training and the name stuck.

His tone turned softer and more relaxed, as he was sitting here with his friends. Although Bella's relationship with her father seemed a bit tense, the man himself was casual enough and the same could be said for Phel's father. It was gratifying to not have to speak so politely, worrying about each and every word he spewed out of his mouth.

"When the fight starts, focus on your defenses. I'm sure Decatur's going to throw a big spell at you first. I know you don't want to, but pile your mana-core with Earth energy at first. I know you're your worst World by far, but the defense it offers is what you need. Survive the first wave of spells and you will have more options… but knowing you, you're probably just going to hide behind illusions and shadows."

<Coach's words are sound as always, but I'm thinking we'll try out a different approach this time,> the Voice said in a gleeful tone. <After all, we finally managed to create Hard Air. If I'm correct, it should offer the same amount of defense as an Earthen wall, but the energy would be much easier to control.>

<If we can guess what Decatur's first spell is going to be, an Earthen wall would be a good option as well,> Evin replied, staying true to his coach's advice.

When the Vice-chair first made the ranking among the 1st year students, Bella very casually and easily took the top spot. Decatur couldn't hold a candle against her once she turned serious, so he could only satisfy himself by being second.

Arza could steal a few wins from her, but only because she didn't use magic at all when fighting the red-head, knowing that Arza's Gestures barely ever worked. So, more often than not, it would only be a normal melee between those two without any magic.

And there wasn't even a point in talking about Evin's matches against her. Her spell-casting was weaker and slower than the Voice's, but she was simply too experienced and steady for Evin's petty tricks to work against her.

Compared to her, Evin stood on the bottom of the list. After all, his hand was broken and he couldn't fight properly for the next month or so. All his scheduled fights were automatic losses, but Evin obviously took back some points in basic exercises and normal spell-casting. He was confident he would take a higher spot during the next ranking matches, but until then, he could only obtain money and sometimes World Shards from the other classes he attended.

"Also, since he can't use Talismans, it's going to take him a while to cast his spells," Phel added from the side. "As far as I know, the fastest Decatur could cast an Ivelisi spell is about 2 seconds, 6 if he needs something big, and maybe 15 if he needs something lethal. For the other worlds, his spell-casting speed should vary between 4 to 35 seconds?"

"Won't he be mad at you for telling me that?" Evin asked. Because of his conversations with Phel, he knew the boy's relationship with Decatur was much closer than a normal one.

"It'll be fine," Phel's father replied from the side with a shrug. "It's high time Decatur learns a few things about the topic, anyway."

Evin didn't know what topic Phel's father was talking about exactly, but he reckoned it had something to do about accepting things that one didn't like.

"Anyhow, since your spell-casting speed is much faster than his, I'm sure you'll manage some kind of defense," Phel smiled.

"Ah, I wish I could just turn my body hard like a turtle the same way Arza does," Evin sighed. "I'd be able to run through his spells like they're nothing and just brute force my way through."

"Is Arza really that strong as you say?" Phel asked, genuinely interested. "Sure, it's impressive he stays in the middle rankings of the class without using magic, but I'm having a feeling he's just talentless in magic."

"I told you he practices his Chants every morning before his Gestures. I'm sure he would even give Bella here a run for her money if he was serious enough," Evin insisted.

How Evin was envious of the boy's ability to harden his skin and strengthen his body. In Evin's estimate, Arza would easily brush off the giant hailstorm that Decatur let loose on him just with his hardened skin and body.

"He can try," Bella scoffed.

Evin's coach seemed a bit offended by the remark, so he had to make things right, "Sorry, sorry. He'll pose you a challenge, but he'll never overcome you, in the end."

"Whatever."

"Ah, but you do have a very high opinion on the red-head, huh?" Phel chuckled. "How is he, by the way? I've heard he's dating Lopar now? How did that happen?"

"Yes. As for how it happened, well, who knows? You know Arza," Evin replied. "If there was a confession or something at some point, I didn't witness it. But a week ago, he just came to the Academy with Lopar clinging from his arms."

"He-he, you sound a bit jealous," Phel said smilingly.

"Not really. I just hope he'll learn a thing or two about Gestures from her, so he can finally cast his magic," Evin replied, but his eyes noticed something odd. When Phel started talking about Arza, his father looked at Phel with a weirdly worried gaze.

Evin couldn't focus on the fact much longer, as Bella urged from his side, "I think your match is starting soon enough."