"Oh god my entire body is in pain," Simon groaned, rubbing his neck with one hand and rolling his shoulders in small circles. "If I fall off that damn log one more time I'm going to spontaneously combust before I even hit the fake lava."

"Well maybe if you got good," Asim teased, handing Simon one of the protein powder-infused milkshakes they bought from a street cart.

"Maybe if your face got good!"

"Rude?"

"I'm sorry baby I love you."

"Please stop flirting before coffee," Dani grumbled, massaging her temples. Her hibernation period was over, but she still wasn't a morning person. She waited impatiently for her coffee order, tapping her foot and staring at the nearby street cart with enough force that the poor vendor probably feared the stall would collapse.

Thanks to their intensive training with Ailsa, meeting together every morning became a habit. The only person missing from their small class group was Kira, who Brigit already explained was having a private meeting with her mentor.

The class gathered around a cart near to their dorm, bundled in blankets and still wearing pajamas, drawn by the aroma of coffee and pastries. Mint flipped idly through a magazine, skimming articles while Meri dozed on her shoulder. Chen kept ordering more and more pastries, backing up the line to the point that Ribbon and Brigit wandered to another stall down the road for coffee.

"I cannot wait until we never have to train like that again," Simon complained again, laying on a bench placed by the side of the road and covering his face with his hands. Asim leaned on the bench and sipped his coffee, raising his eyebrows.

"Stop feeling sorry for yourself when Kira's the one who's Mrs. Reid's official disciple," Asim pointed out, making everyone else cringe in sympathy for the poor girl. Even Mint and Meri exchanged grimaces at the thought of following such a demanding teacher.

"A strict teacher makes an outstanding student," Chen said as he returned with an armful of pastries, already shoving one into his mouth. "She's not cruel. It's tough following her advice but it's already showing results for all of us. That kid's gonna be great someday."

"She's already tougher than I am," Simon sighed. "I've never heard her complain even once. Mrs. Reid could ask her to run the obstacle course for a week straight and the kid would just say 'Okay' and go!"

"Part of why she's gonna be great," Chen laughed, his mouth full of pastry muffling his words.

Mint rolled her eyes and shook her head, flipping through the magazine with more determination. Praising Kira when she wasn't even there to hear it, what was the point? The whole class already knew the kid was something else, did they have to keep rubbing it in?!

Then Mint froze.

Slowly, she flipped back to the previous page in the magazine, brow furrowed.

Her eyes widened. She nudged Meri awake, ignoring her twin's complaining to show her the article.

Meri also froze. Both twins simultaneously checked to make sure Brigit and Ribbon weren't back yet, then waved the magazine toward the others.

"Guys?" Mint spoke too softly to get their attention initially, then cleared her throat and tried again. "Guys! You need to look at this."

Feldar said his farewells, sneaking in a brief one-armed hug of Kira before she realized what was happening. Then Ailsa did the dishes, growling at Kira to sit down when she tried to help.

Kira, used to such behavior from Brigit and Ribbon, shrugged her shoulders and focused instead on playing with her new mineral.

"Is it a gem, a metal, a stone?" Kira whispered, making the rainbow Epainos dance across the back of her hands using 【 Earthshape 】. "A gem, I think... Looks metal, but it... feels? Like a gem. Not physically but... when I shape it. Very neat."

After a moment, she pulled some Safirite from her inventory and started shaping them together, making pretty patterns with the rainbow and blue gemstones twisting together.

"Best bein' careful with those when yer out an' about," Ailsa said over her shoulder. "Dinnae be flauntin' 'em about, like!"

"Dangerous?"

"Valuable."

"Dangerous." Kira nodded, and Ailsa chuckled.

"Aye. Just be hidin' 'em and ye won't have no issues. 'Specially that Epainos, spread it real thin. Under gloves, under clothes. If it ain't part of nothin' visible, it ain't able ta be Scanned, aye?"

"Okay."

"Treat it like yer panties."

"Ailsa!" Kira turned red while Ailsa chuckled again.

"Less people know ye have it, the better. Keep it hidden, keep yerself safe. Aye?"

"Aye."

Kira received gloves from the dungeon before, which she got in the habit of wearing every day. She spread some Epainos underneath them, plating the back of her hands and covering her knuckles. She wasn't confident in her ability to keep the gem flexible while fighting so she tried to shape it in a way that would help protect her hands without needing to be constantly maintained.

The rest she pressed against her torso, protecting her chest and abdomen with a layer of iridescent armor. She had to loop thin strands around her waist and neck to hold it in place, but it didn't show underneath her clothes and that was what really mattered.

Kira spent some time adjusting the inner layer until it was comfortable even when she moved and stretched. Wearing armor felt strange, but also oddly comforting. Like being hugged by the earth itself.

"Ye ready?" Ailsa asked once she finished with the dishes.

Kira exhaled slowly, and nodded. "Yeah."

"Let's meet up with yer classmates, then. Time ta see what ye learned!"

"Did you do as I asked?"

"Yes, my lady. I placed the items under the center of each array."

"Well done."

"But, my lady... I must report, there were other... Persons of interest skulking about the arrays. I am not the only one who meddled with them."

"Did any of them remove the items?"

"No, my lady."

"Then it's fine, the items will do their jobs. Were they all capture arrays?"

"No, my lady. There were also teleportation arrays mixed in, all of different techniques. I was able to discern at least five types."

"At least five clans, then... More, no doubt, are waiting to see what happens. Will the capture and retrieval work, or the teleportation? Who will grab her? Will any of them succeed or will she fight back? How exciting."

"You sound as though you're anticipating the conflict, my lady."

"A little. Combat is the spice of life! I also want to see what she's made of. You dismantled the killing arrays?"

"Yes, my lady. I was able to alter the lethal arrays imperceptibly. They will harm, but not kill."

"Excellent. As much as I wish to test her mettle, I don't wish the child to be eliminated. She could be a valuable asset in the future, after all. Whether she proves herself... Or not."