Sellitha watched the scorched earth in front of her, and something caught her eye. It was a body. Or, well, only the skeleton remained. It must have been missed by the people responsible for clearing the battlefield. Sellitha felt no need to tell anyone about it, though. She didn’t think anyone there deserved her sympathies, even if the praxis of Cyalis was to bury all the dead.

  She looked up at the sun and conjured a ball of flames in her hand. The fire in her hand was a lot warmer than the sun, but she knew that was only because her fire was right next to her. She was nowhere close to grasping the sort of hotness emitted from the sun.

  But she still liked to compare the two from time to time, hoping to gain something from it. She knew of no better source of inspiration for her fire, especially in a summer as hot as this.

  Only a few weeks until fall arrives. It will probably get cooler from now on. Oh well, there is always next summer.

  And maybe I will be able to notice something different in a cooler season. I’ve never thought that much about it before, after all.

  Sellitha took a seat on the ground, not minding dirtying her uniform. She manipulated the fire using her Authority. It was hard to distinguish Authority from regular fire control unless she took it too far. And she always kept in mind that someone could be watching, so she didn’t make her fire do anything impressive. She only used her Authority not to waste her Will.

  I have to keep in mind to put it down after a while. There are a lot of people around.

  I can’t be as careless as Adion.

  Sellitha smiled as the memory of that time surfaced in her mind. Adion had been so happy to study her fire that he had completely forgotten how weird his ability looked from the outside. He controlled her fire for a ridiculously long time, seemingly without struggle.

  He is so stupid.

  Sellitha put down her fire again. She didn’t want to push it. A normal fire mage couldn’t keep control over their fire for very long without having to fight against the Will of the world.

  She decided to practice once she got back to the Academy again. She had been improving at a much faster rate ever since she got the Fire Phoenix Wisdom Pill from Adion. The difference between struggling to keep control over fire for even a minute and controlling it for hours without effort speaks for itself.

  Sellitha lay down on the ground and closed her eyes. She enjoyed feeling the sun on her face.

  I wonder what he’s doing now. I hope he’s alright and hasn’t suffered too much.

  It’s been so long without any news…

  Sellitha shook her head to clear her mind. She knew nothing good would come from following that train of thought. The only way to change things was to grow stronger.

  “Sell, we’re getting ready to move,” Ailera’s voice sounded from behind her.

  Sellitha sat back up and looked behind her. Ailera was walking up the small hill Sellitha was sitting on.

  “Did we find out anything?” Sellitha asked, failing at hiding the anxiousness in her voice.

  “They have only just started the interrogation,” Ailera said with a sad smile, “And the strongest mage was only a Diamond mage. I doubt he knows anything.”

  Sellitha knew that, of course. But it was hard not to hope for a miracle.

  Cyalis had captured hundreds of members from Heavenly Light since the war started. They even got their hands on a few Soul mages. But none of them knew anything about Adion.

  Considering that he had been missing for two months already, and that Cyalis had spared no effort in trying to find him, it was hard not to have dark thoughts.

  Cyalis had even set an extremely generous reward for anyone willing to offer information that could lead to finding him. It could be said that the entire continent was on the look out for any shadow of him. But so far, there was nothing.

  “I’m sure something will turn up sooner or later,” Ailera said with a comforting smile, “And Adion is not weak. We all thought he was dead when Heavenly Light attacked our family manor all those years ago. But even when he was a sparkless 12-year-old, he managed to get away from an army of mages that wanted to kill him. So I’m sure he’ll get away this time as well.”

  “You’re right,” Sellitha smiled.

  Ailera looked out over the scorched battlefield and said, “You went a little wild today.”

  “Do you think anyone noticed anything strange?” Sellitha asked.

  “It wasn’t to that extent. A lot can be explained away by just saying you're a genius fire mage. Even if someone noticed anything strange, so what? There are a lot of strange things in this world. It would take a lot for anyone to correctly guess the kind of power you have.”

  “I should still be a little more careful,” Sellitha said, “Like you said, there are a lot of strange things in this world. So you can never be too relaxed.”

  “I guess so,” Ailera nodded, “Let’s go?”

  Sellitha got up and started walking back next to Ailera. She saw some injured and even dead students as she walked back and couldn’t help but feel bad. Even if she didn’t know any of them, they had been standing by her side, alive and well, just this morning.

  I wonder how many will die by the end of this.

  “Oh, yeah,” Ailera said, “I think the Headmaster wanted to speak with you.”

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  “The Headmaster was here?” Sellitha asked.

  “With the two of us here, I don’t think he would be comfortable leaving our safety in someone else’s hands,” Ailera said, “He was here during our last battle as well.”

  “That seems a little unfair,” Sellitha said.

  “It is. But that’s how the world works,” Ailera said.

  The Academy could definitely handle an army of the size they had just fought on their own. Just the Headmaster on his own could probably take care of it. But they gave these kinds of opportunities to the students instead. It was a chance for them to grow. No class behind the safe walls of the Academy could compete with a battle of life and death.

  Some students would obviously lose their lives, but the ones who survived would grow a lot stronger. And strength was needed more than ever in these times. It would be even crueler to isolate the students from the conflicts of the continent and then let them out into the world unprepared. At least, that was what the Academy thought. And Sellitha agreed.

  The only problem was that there were a few students who got special treatment, and Sellitha was one of them. But she could understand the reason. The Headmaster wasn’t taking any chances after what happened to Adion.

  “That’s the Headmaster’s carriage over there,” Ailera said, pointing to a luxurious carriage in front, “I’ll see you back at the Academy.”

  “Okay. Well fought today,” Sellitha said, waving goodbye.

  “You too,” Ailera smiled.

  Sellitha walked up to the Headmaster’s carriage and knocked on the door.

  “Come inside,” The Headmaster called out.

  Sellitha opened the carriage door and stepped inside. She took a seat opposite the Headmaster. He put down the paper he had been reading and knocked on the carriage roof, calling out the driver to start taking them away.

  The Headmaster turned to look at Sellitha and said, “Do you know how much fire you controlled during the battle today?”

  “Was it too exaggerated?” Sellitha asked.

  “You’ve just recently advanced to a Silver mage, but even a Diamond mage wouldn’t be able to do what you did,” The Headmaster said in a calm voice.

  “I’ll be more careful,” Sellitha said.

  “No, you won’t,” The Headmaster said, shaking his head slightly, “I understand that it’s difficult to hide your power in a battle like that, so let’s not force it anymore. I finally got some professors questioning me about it today, and I decided to make up an excuse that you have a special physique.”

  “A special physique?” Sellitha asked.

  “That’s right,” The Headmaster nodded, “Just like beasts can have special bloodlines that make them capable of certain magical feats almost on instinct, similar things can occur in us sapi. It’s even rarer than Gifts, but it does occur. I’ve only had four such students during my time as the Headmaster.”

  “And I will pretend to have such a physique? One that makes me able to control fire?” Sellitha asked.

  “A special physique can vary just as much as Gifts, as far as I know, so there is no reason for you to be too specific. Just say that you can control a large amount of fire for a long time thanks to your special physique, and the questions should go away. It will let you fight with more freedom from now on,” The Headmaster said.

  “Thank you, Headmaster,” Sellitha said with a slight bow. She hadn’t told the Headmaster anything about her Authority or Words of Truth, but it was obvious he had figured something out. He never questioned Sellitha about it, though. And she was grateful for that. Even if she trusted him, she didn’t want to reveal anything that could get Adion in trouble.

  I’m sure my family has been suspicious ever since I used my Words of Truth when I was taken.

  With the Headmaster putting his word out there that it’s all because of my special physique, a lot of questions should be put to rest.

  “Do you have any news of Adion, Headmaster?” Sellitha asked.

  “No…I suspect only the Hard Soul mages know about him. And they are not easy to deal with, even for me. Even if I discover their whereabouts, I can’t easily leave to hunt them down. It’s very possible for it to be a trap. I can’t leave Cyalis unprotected at a time like this,” The Headmaster answered.

  “Don’t we have spies in their organization?” Sellitha asked.

  “We do. But I can’t be sure they haven’t been found out. It wouldn’t surprise me if Heavenly Light let us receive information about these troops just to make us trust our spies’ intel,” The Headmaster said.

  If it’s Heavenly Light, they would certainly be able to do something so cruel.

  The troops they had intercepted today weren’t the first they had taken down. They had received plenty of information from their spies about troops moving throughout Shiora, and Sellitha had to admit that things had been a little too easy.

  I have to remember to be careful, too. I could be targeted by Heavenly Light at any time.

  I need to get stronger.

  “You have some family members waiting for you when you get back to the Academy,” The Headmaster suddenly said.

  “Who? What do they want?” Sellitha asked with a frown.

  “You’ll have to ask them about that. Your mother is with them. You should see what they have to say,” The Headmaster advised.

  “I have nothing to say to those people,” Sellitha said.

  “They are allies to Cyalis,” The Headmaster said, “You will come into contact with them sooner or later if you want to fight Heavenly Light. And it’s not like they would dare take you away anymore, so why not see what they have to say?”

  After Heavenly Light attacked the Valis Kingdom and Cyalis announced that they would back the kingdom in their war, every nation on Shiora had to choose a side. Rellen and Duts sided with Cyalis, while Veloria sided with Heavenly Light. The Delovan Empire is split in two with each side taking a different stance. Iitha is also officially in support of Cyalis, but many Noble families aren’t that keen on getting involved in the war. The Amyss family doesn’t have the power to order those families to fight for them.

  It wouldn’t surprise me if the Hesfym family is actually fighting for Heavenly Light in the dark.

  Meloria and the Alago Empire are both choosing not to participate in the war. And even with Cyalis’s influence, they are not easy to convince. They are two very powerful nations.

  This would be dealt with in weeks if everyone could come together and fight Heavenly Light. Don’t they see how scary and uncertain the future would be if Heavenly Light is allowed to grow?

  “Are you sure the Amyss family is on our side?” Sellitha asked.

  “No,” The Headmaster answered immediately, “I would be a fool if I just took their word for it. But I think it is more likely than not that they are genuine.”

  I guess I can meet them and see their intentions.

  I just hope they don’t bring up anything about my supposed engagement to that old bastard.

  Things had gotten weird after their attempt to bring her home by force. They had gotten extremely angry and tried bringing her back again, but with the Headmaster back at the Academy, they couldn’t do anything to her.

  But Sellitha didn’t think her insane family had given up just like that.

  I guess it will be nice to see them again. Things aren’t the same as in the past.

  I can finally give them a piece of my mind.

  Sellitha couldn’t help but smile slightly.

  I wonder if my fire is strong enough to burn them now?