“Not having much success with runes?” Damien guessed, holding back a laugh.

Nolan let out a weary sigh. “Not in the slightest. How can you do this? One tiny mistake and the whole circle goes up in flames.”

“It’s all practice,” Damien said. “You’ll figure it out soon enough. Just keep drawing the same runes over and over until they’re second nature.”

“Thank you for the advice, even if I don’t appreciate it right now,” Nolan said, rubbing his forehead. He glanced from Damien to Sylph. “Are you two getting lunch?”

“We are,” Sylph said.

“Mind if I tag along?” Nolan asked. “I need a break from ink and paper.”

“I won’t stop you,” Sylph said, shrugging.

“I’ll come as well,” Reena said. They glanced at Mark, but the boy shook his head.

“Thanks for the offer, but I’ve already eaten,” Mark said. “I’m going to get to doing some practice. Enjoy yourselves.”

“Have fun,” Damien said as he and the others headed down the mountain, leaving Mark in his room.

They reached the mess hall and ordered their food a short while later. The four of them sat down at an empty table. Sylph positioned herself beside Damien, while Nolan and Reena sat down on the other side.

“How’s class going for the two of you?” Nolan asked,

“It’s fine,” Damien replied. “The professor seems interesting. He’s got some very strange magic that I can’t entirely place.”

“It’s interesting enough for me as well,” Sylph said, not offering any further information.

Reena sent Damien a strange glance, but he didn't pay it any attention. Their runes blinked to life as their food arrived, and the four of them lapsed into silence as they ate. Nolan looked conflicted the entire time, while Reena continued to watch Damien out of the corner of her eye.

“What are your plans for after dinner?” Reena asked them.

“Training,” Damien said. “I’ve got to work on the assignment for Magic Theory, and I’ve got another spell that I’m practicing as well.”

“Oh?” Nolan asked, raising an eyebrow. “Your gravity magic was intimidating already. You’re already working on a new spell?”

Damien shrugged awkwardly.

“Need someone to spar?” Reena asked. “I’ve been working on my magic too, and it would be interesting to see how I match up against one of the semifinalists.”

“Reena,” Nolan admonished, frowning. She shrugged, ignoring him.

“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt,” Damien said. He did need to get some practice in against someone other than Delph, and fighting Sylph wasn’t going to get him much experience. She’d beat him handily regardless of if they used magic or didn’t.

“Great!” Reena said, polishing off a biscuit and sending a smug grin at Nolan. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

“I’ll come along as well,” Sylph said. “It’s been a bit since I’ve fought someone other than Delph with my magic. You interested, Nolan?”

“If you want, then sure,” Nolan said, shrugging. “I doubt I’ll be able to help you much, but I can gain a lot from fighting against you.”

They finished off the last of their food and stood up, leaving the dining hall and heading towards the arena. They arrived a short while later but were surprised to find that it wasn’t as empty as they’d expected.

Several dozen students were already sparring throughout the arena. It was hard to tell what year they were from, but Damien doubted they were first years as they were all using quite a few spells.

“Looks like we aren’t the only ones with the idea to come here,” Sylph said. “There’s enough room for us, though. No reason to leave if we’re all comfortable fighting here.”

“Don’t see why not,” Damien said. “Like you said, there’s room. We’ll just stay on this end to make sure our fights don’t accidentally interfere with theirs.”

Sylph and Nolan walked a short distance away, leaving Reena and Damien near the entrance. Damien rolled his neck and stretched his arms out. At the same time, he cast out his net of mental energy and drew in Ether to refill his reserves.

“Need to prepare at all?” Damien asked.

“No. I’m ready when you are.”

“What do we go until? We can’t go all out,” Damien pointed out. “First blood while avoiding attacks that could cause serious injury?”

“That’s a little boring,” Reena said.

“Well, what do you want? There aren’t any healers here right now.”

“Fine,” Reena said with a sigh. “Ready?”

Damien took a step back, putting a little more distance between them. He gave her a nod. At the same time, he channeled the Ether through both his arms, forming two gravity spheres. He tossed them both – one directly in front of him, and the other off to the side.

Neither was close enough to hit Reena, but they forced her to keep her distance as they detonated, yanking sand free from the ground. Wind curled around the girl’s long hair, whipping around her and turning into a small whirlwind centered at her feet.

She thrust her hands forward. A powerful gale of wind slammed into Damien, picking him up and tossing him backwards. He rolled in the air and landed on his feet. His eyes widened and he dove to the side as a white blade of air flashed past him.

“What happened to non-dangerous spells?” Damien demanded.

“It wasn’t that dangerous,” Reena replied, tossing another blade at Damien. He ducked out of the way and it hit the wall behind him, dissipating harmlessly. “They’ll only cut you a little. I’m not putting enough magic into them to do any more damage than that.”

Damien grunted. He wasn’t confident he could emulate that with a gravity sphere. Even a small amount of force could be enough to break bones if it hit Reena wrong.

“Should have thought this out a bit more,” Henry said, amused. “Just wear her out. You can’t win this without injuring the girl, so use Devour and wait until she runs out of energy.”

I’d figured that out myself, thank you very much.

Damien’s finger lit up with dark energy and he traced a rune in the air. Reena didn’t wait to see what it was and threw another blade of wind towards him.

He slammed his hand against the rune. It lit up as Damien forced Ether out through his palm. A circle of darkness blossomed in front of him and the wind vanished inside it, disappearing without a trace.