Alia watched in awe as Tristan effortlessly poured his myana into the sapphire on the ground before him. The tendrils of his magic were at their strongest thus far, escaping the palm of his hand as if skipping across a pond. He was able to keep his eyes open now as he worked. A good sign that he wasn’t allowing external factors to distract him.

  Tristan exhaled, then shook his hand. “I think that’s it.”

  With a smile, Alia bent and picked up the stone with her pointer finger and thumb, straightening to observe it in the light of the moon on her balcony. She rotated the sapphire to the left, then to the right. The stone caught the light, the edges glowing and sparkling brightly. She let the stone fall into her palm, then closed her hand over it to form a fist.

  The stone is very cold. Much colder than I had anticipated.

  Tristan had learned so much in the last three days. Where there was unsureness to his voice prior, there was now confidence in its place. Alia admired the man’s desire to learn, but more than that, she loved his modesty. Whenever he made a mistake, he would apologize and ask how he could improve. It was rare he made assumptions. Alia could think of very few catgirls, student or not, who bore such traits.

  Alia turned around and clasped her hands behind her back. “Congratulations, Tristan. I think we can safely move past this portion of your training.”

  Tristan let out a relieved exhale tinged with laughter. “Thank you.” He leaned back on his palms and stared at the ceiling of her room, particularly at the garnet which kept it lit. “That means a lot coming from you.”

  Alia’s cheeks burned, and she curled a thick lock of dark hair around her finger. “Oh?”

  “Yeah. I was beginning to wonder for a while if I could do this, but…” He cocked his head forward, and his expression changed. “Is something wrong?”

  Alia quickly shook her head and released the hair from her finger. “N-no, nothing at all.”

  You’re such a liar. He’s a man. Just ask him. It’s their duty. He would never say no.

  Tristan hummed, then tilted his head to one side. A brief silence passed, and he returned his gaze to the garnet, his lips forming a straight line. “So, where do we go from here?”

  Hoping that Tristan hadn’t grown wise to her desires, Alia stepped away from him and slipped the charged sapphire into one of the inside pockets of her robes. “You have learned how to transfer myana and detect its sources within stones. Next, you will need to learn how to amplify myana.”

  Tristan cricked his neck to one side, then the other. “Alright. I’m ready.”

  Alia gaped, then shook her head. Why was that so attractive? “R-right.” She pointed to a garnet on the floor in the middle of the pile of stones. “Pick up the garnet.”

  “Okay.” Tristan adjusted his posture, crossed his legs, and then put the stone in his palm. “What do I do?”

  “This part can be a bit tricky, as it’s not something [Mage]s can normally do.” She glanced at the moon behind her. It would soon wax full. The time in which it would be easiest to amplify one’s Spells. “Focus on the sensation you experienced when you poured your myana into the stone. Once you’ve found it, you’ll want to force that same feeling into the stone and then send it outward using your own myana.”

  Tristan closed his hand over the stone. Silence. The tendrils that came so easily earlier were now nowhere to be seen. Intermittent flickers of blue seeped through the gaps of his fingers, but the average onlooker wouldn’t have noticed.

  Come on, Tristan. You can do this.

  Alia crossed her arms and watched as Tristan strained. It was clear he knew how to control the flow of myana; well, his own myana, at least. She’d made sure that the garnet was filled with his alone. Such stones were much easier to use. The energies would feel more familiar, seeking to bond with their original vessel more readily. This method worked well for her, as well as other catgirls she’d met in her lifetime.

  The idea was to learn how to force the stone’s myana out for a burst of power. Amplification would feel slightly different, but the means were the same.

  Usually, they can get something out of it, so why can’t Tristan? Is he still too new to this?

  Alia wasn’t expecting him to run before he could walk, but learning to control the flow of myana was the walking part. Now, they were running, and she began to wonder if she’d made a mistake somewhere in her mentorship.

  “Stop.” Alia knelt with her palm extended toward him. “Give me the stone.”

  “Why?” Tristan asked with a cocked brow.

  “I wish to try something.”

  “Sure.” Tristan carefully placed the stone in her palm.

  “Pay attention.”

  Alia curled her fingers over the stone. Rising to her feet, she returned to the balcony and enunciated, “[Robe of Heat].” Swirling wisps of red and orange emerged around her as if they had been invisible until now. A warmth overcame her, slowly waking her tired muscles and bones. Myana began to trickle from her skin.

  And now, for the amplification.

  Just as she had instructed Tristan, she concentrated on the stone and beckoned the myana outward, using her own myana as a propellant. Dusty blue light emanated from the stone, seeping out of the crevices of her fingers as if in search of something. The wisps coalesced in a space in front of her, then burst into a flash of white and yellow.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  The [Robe of Heat] changed. Yellows turned to orange, orange to red, red to white. The amplification would be weaker since she was using a garnet and not a ruby, but it would still serve its purpose well. Her myana began to escape at a more rapid rate. With one quick hand gesture, the Spell dissipated.

  Nothing wrong with the stone, then.

  Alia turned around to see a wide-eyed Tristan. “That was amazing to watch,” he said. “So, the amplification made the Spell hotter?” Alia nodded, and Tristan wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. “Then I’m working to amplify the myana’s power, not the amount… Alright, I think I understand now.” He jumped to his feet and dusted off the back of his pants.

  The stone was half spent, but it would still serve the purpose of what amplification was supposed to feel like. “Then give it another try,” Alia said as she extended the stone to him.

  Tristan took it, clasping it in his hand again. Seconds passed, and Alia fought back a gasp when she saw the first wisps of myana escape the garnet. Sweat covered Tristan’s face as he took in slow and steady breaths. He stared blankly, his mind no doubt preoccupied with how the energies felt against his skin.

  If I could be that stone for an evening…

  Tristan exhaled, then chuckled. “I think I spent it.” He opened his hand, and Alia retrieved the garnet. Sure enough, there was nothing left within.

  “Let’s move you up a grade,” Alia giggled and knelt down, placing the garnet on the floor and picking up an amethyst. “I think you’re beginning to understand.” She stood and then put the purple stone in Tristan’s hand. “If not, then I’ll find another garnet for you.”

  “Thank you, Alia.” He gripped the stone, resuming his steady breathing.

  Like clockwork, myana rose into the air. Alia watched in silence, arms crossed. Whether Tristan knew it or not, he was commanding the myana into a centralized point just beneath the lantern in the ceiling, which held the garnet that illuminated the room.

  With a gasp, Tristan suddenly let go of the stone, chuckling and panting. “That feels, uh, kind of fun,” he breathed.

  Alia fought back the perverted thoughts that invaded her mind—

  Much how I’d like him to invade me—

  “So, this is what it feels like to amplify a Spell?” Tristan asked, breaking Alia free of her reverie.

  Alia blanked. “Y-yes.” She averted her gaze. “Sorry.”

  “Sorry? Why?”

  Saoirse, help me, why did I say that? “N-nothing.”

  Tristan frowned and leaned in. “Are you feeling alright?”

  Alia breathed deeply and gestured with her hands, taking a step back. “I’m feeling…great.”

  As Tristan opened his mouth to speak, he flinched. “Oh, uh, hang on.”

  “Hm?” What’s he doing?

  “I think it’s my iPaw,” Tristan said as he procured a small handheld object from his back pocket. It was silver in color, bearing a familiar pair of cat ears at the top.

  That’s the mystical iPaw? Is that really how the men distribute their points? Alia had never seen an iPaw before. Sure, she’d heard of them, but she imagined them to look more like tomes with scrawling paragraphs and glowing golden words. From the way other catgirls described it, they made it sound as if nothing could be holier. So why does it look like a toy?

  “Ik soma kha kala dan?” Tristan said as he looked at the magical device.

  Alia winced. “W-what are you saying?”

  Tristan looked up. “Oh, sorry.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “From what my friend Matt told me, catgirls can’t understand us when we speak to the iPaw.”

  “That’s…interesting.”

  Tristan nodded and hummed his affirmation.

  “Are you actively using that language?”

  “No, actually. That’s what’s really weird.” He looked up and tapped a finger to his lips. “Say, why don’t we try something? Watch what I say, and see if my lips match up with my words. I’ll try to phrase things in such a way that uses every part of my mouth.”

  Every part of your mouth, huh? “Uh. O-okay,” Alia stammered.

  “Alright, here goes.” Tristan returned his gaze to the iPaw. Unintelligible words spewed from his lips, and Alia watched them carefully. It took immense effort not to picture them being used for…other methods. Then he looked up. “So?”

  Alia sighed. “Your lips matched perfectly.”

  Tristan frowned. At least, it looked like a frown. Though, a part of him seemed more…scared than anything. “Huh. Well, that’s good to know.”

  “What was the iPaw saying to you?”

  “Oh, right. I completely missed why I pulled it out to begin with.” Tristan’s finger scrolled across the screen, and a sentence of strange words spilled from his mouth again. Then he stopped. “I can change to [Wizard] now.”

  Alia blinked. “No, that can’t be. You cannot change to [Wizard] without extensive practice. One can only change once the stars and moon have deemed you worthy.”

  Tristan shrugged. “That’s what Ai says.”

  “Who?”

  “Sorry,” Tristan said, sighing and shaking his head. “That’s the name of the catgirl that helps us assign our points to Stats and Skills. Her name is Ai.”

  Alia nodded and hummed. Something was wrong with her. She should’ve been excited for him, elated that he had made it to [Wizard] so quickly. Instead, she felt envy. Animosity.

  For the first time since she’d met him, she made an active effort to picture him in sexual ways. Perhaps it would dispel the disruptive feelings of pride and jealousy she was experiencing.

  It did nothing to ease her disdain.

  I spent weeks—months—to become a [Wizard]. I had no one to help me. And he did it in less than a week. Do all men have it so easy?

  “Ravyn’s going to love this,” Tristan said with a grin. “The two of you have been immensely helpful. I can’t thank you enough, Alia. Truly.”

  “Yes.” Alia nodded. “Right. Think nothing of it. If you need anything else or any…advice, just let me know.” Would you even need it? She had no will to congratulate him, no will to smile. But even so, she forced the smile onto her face and proffered her hand. For his sake. “You were a fine student.”

  Tristan’s smile somehow grew wider, and he clasped her hand in a firm handshake. “This means a lot to me. Thank you again.” When he let go, he brought his hand to the iPaw and pressed his finger against the surface. Moments later, a circle of blue-white light formed beneath him. The threads of his robes billowed on a phantom wind, and his hair was bathed in the circle’s light. The effects subsided seconds later, and when the circle was gone, he let out a satisfied sigh.

  “I feel it,” Tristan said with clear excitement in his tone. “I’ve become a [Wizard]!”

  Alia made an active effort to keep her smile on. “Congratulations, Tristan.”

  “Aw, this feels amazing! I can feel so much more myana in my body than before! Hang on! I’ll be right back! I gotta tell Ravyn!”

  Tristan was gone before Alia could protest. Not that she had any intention of stopping him. She bit her bottom lip, then turned around and approached the balcony. Her arms hung limply at her sides. She gazed up to see the moon, and a breath of hot air blew forward as she exhaled. There was so much more she wanted to teach him. So much more he needed to learn.

  And yet…

  The iPaw, huh?

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