As the finals drew ever closer, more and more people arrived in Axium. The inns had become so overbooked that Headmaster Strattelo, who also acted as reigning governor of the city, had ordered them to set up temporary tents for people outside the city limits.

Erica was lucky. Being a sorceress, she wielded far more power than anyone else, and she was therefore able to procure a place to stay without effort. The inn that she'd housed herself and her staff was not extravagant, but it was nice. Her room was well-furnished and comfortable, though it lacked the luxurious amenities that she was used to. At least it had warm water and a bath.

It was late morning. Rays of light peeked in through the window, and the noise from outside kept Erica from going back to sleep.

She sat up in bed, reading through a document that had been delivered to her via carrier pigeon. It was a correspondence letter from the headmaster. As she read the neat cursive handwriting, she couldn't help but snort.

"So, the old man isn't interested in changing some of the curriculum," she mumbled to herself. "I should have known it wouldn't be that easy. That old man is a stubborn one."

She'd been trying to convince the old headmaster to fix what his students studied by providing more accurate information on certain historical events. While the headmaster was amenable to this and said that he would look into presenting more accurate information, he seemed to be taking his sweet time in effecting those changes. It rankled on her nerves.

"Nnng..."

Derek stirred beside her. Erica looked down to see her Knight lying on his stomach, his face buried in a pillow and the muscles in his back exposed. She gently scraped her nails through his hair. Derek sighed contentedly before burrowing deeper into his pillow and going to sleep.

"Mistress Erica?" a voice called out and a knock came to her door.

"Come in, Cassidy."

The door opened and in walked her maid. Cassidy was dressed in her usual outfit. However, she did not appear to be her usual self. Her normally bright, if shy, personality seemed dim. She walked with slumped shoulders and a stooped gait. Oddly enough, her balance seemed to have improved with her depression, as she didn't trip over her own two feet as she walked over to Erica and placed a tray of food on the bed.

"I brought you and Master Derek breakfast," she said, not even looking at Derek, which Erica found even more odd. Whenever delivering them breakfast, Cassidy would always look at Derek and blush bright red. It had been one of the many things that Erica teased her about.

"Is it still bothering you?" Erica asked.

Cassidy looked perplexed. "Pardon, My Lady? Is what still bothering me?"

"The fact that Caspian is so enamored with his childhood friend that he barely even notices you, of course."

"W-wha—" Cassidy's face turned red. Erica smiled. There was the blush that she was looking for. "O-of course not! I would never be so petty as to—I mean, it's not like I can't understand why Master Caspian would prefer her over me. Lady Elincia is very pretty, and she seems to be really kind, and... and..."

Erica rubbed her forehead when tears gathered in Cassidy's eyes. Her maid was way too open for her own good. Reading her was even easier than reading a book, but that might have just been because she didn't like books.

"Ufufufu, my dear Cassidy, you are a terrible liar."

"Meep!"

"But do not worry," Erica continued. "I have a plan to give you some quality time with young Caspian, if you're interested."

"W-what?" Cassidy's gaping expression amused her. "Quality time with Master Caspian?"

"That's right." Erica smiled at the young maid, a plan forming in her mind.

Oh, yes. This is going to be so much fun, she thought, licking her lips.

***

Caspian yawned as he and Elincia sat in the grass underneath the shade of a tree.

Ever since the preliminaries had ended, he'd been training like a madman to become stronger. Confident as he was in his own abilities, he would never forget the looks on everyone's face when he'd walked into the main hall and seen Darin, or the fact that Darin had beaten his opponent's more quickly than him.

Caspian didn't know how strong Darin was compared to him, but given how swiftly he'd dealt with his opponents, Caspian suspected that the boy might be stronger. At the very least, Darin would be a powerful contender. A little extra training to make sure he was a match for Darin wouldn't hurt.

"You're tired," Elincia observed as Caspian yawned again. "Maybe you should take a bit of time off from your training."

Caspian smiled but shook his head. "I can't do that. I need to make sure I'm as strong as can be before the finals."

"Are you really that worried about Darin?"

"It's not just Darin," Caspian said. "The fact is, for all I know, Darin could be the weakest person I have to face. Remember, there are going to be students from other academy's coming to participate. Without knowing their strength before hand, I've decided that the best way to prepare for them is to make sure I'm as strong as possible."

"I guess that makes sense," Elincia agreed, though her expression still conveyed her concern. "But, please, be careful not to overdo it, okay? I don't want you exhausting yourself or getting injured."

Placing a hand over Elincia's, Caspian tried to convey how much her words meant to him. "Thank you, Ele. It feels really good to know that you're concerned about me."

"O-of course I'm concerned about you," Elincia mumbled. Her hair fell over her face as she looked down. "You're the most important person in the world to me."

Caspian's breathing hitched. "E-Elincia..."

Elincia looked up. They stared into each other's eyes. The world around them seemed to slowly disappear. Colors faded and lines blurred. Caspian felt like he could have stayed there for hours, simply staring into his friend's beautiful amethyst eyes.

"There you are, Caspie," a familiar voice called out.

Jerking back into awareness, Caspian and Elincia turned to the source of the voice. It was Erica. Wearing a black sleeveless dress that showed off her slender shoulders and a portion of her cleavage, the sorceress from Ashtown looked like sin on two legs.

"Erica." Caspian frowned. "Did you need something?"

Erica smiled. "I was hoping to have a moment of Elincia's time, and I wanted to ask a favor of you, Caspie."

For reasons that he couldn't explain, Caspian got a very bad feeling when he saw the Cheshire cat smile on Erica's face.

This won't bode well for me, he thought lamentingly.

***

Cassidy didn't know whether to feel gratitude toward Mistress Erica or mortified. Her mistress had spoken with Caspian and somehow convinced the young man to go shopping with her. She didn't know how her mistress had done it, only that the end result had been Caspian showing up at the front door of her bedroom, stating that he was there to protect her while she went about the tasks Mistress Erica had assigned her.

"I-I am terribly sorry that Mistress Erica has made such an unreasonable demand of your time," Cassidy apologized. Caspian twitched, and she almost squealed when he looked at her. He was angry at her! Oh, this was all her mistresses fault for making him come out here!

"How many times are you going to keep apologizing?" he asked.

"I-I'm so—"

"Do not apologize for something that isn't your fault."

"I'm—I mean, okay," Cassidy said when she saw Caspian's irritated glare. She breathed a sigh of relief when it changed into a smile. While she really liked Caspian because of everything he'd done for her, he had a scary glare.

"Can you tell me what you need to buy?" Caspian asked. "I'd be able to help you more if I knew what you needed."

Cassidy almost squeaked. The truth was that she didn't have to buy anything. Mistress Erica had given her a good deal of extra money and told her to use it on whatever she desired. This shopping excursion had been something that she'd been going to do for personal pleasure. However, it seemed that Caspian believed she was shopping because Mistress Erica had ordered her to.

Oh, no! W-what am I supposed to do? I can't tell him that I'm shopping for myself! He'll be upset with me!

Cassidy thought fast. "Oh, um, ah, Mistress Erica asked me to grab several examples of foreign magical technology."

"Magical Technology?" Caspian's dubious expression set her on edge. "I hadn't realized Erica bothered studying magical technology."

"I-it's a recent hobby," Cassidy lied. When Caspian raised an eyebrow at her, she looked away.

"I see," he said evenly. "Then I guess there's no helping it. I'll follow you and make sure no one tries anything untoward."

"Okay... thank you."

While she didn't express it outwardly, Cassidy felt like crying. She'd been hoping to take Caspian clothes shopping with her, so she could impress him with how cute she looked in something that wasn't a maid outfit. Now that idea had been dashed by the cruel hand of her own lie.

Feeling depressed, Cassidy looked around the street. It was even more crowded than when they'd first arrived in Axium. There was all manner of people bustling around the main street—individuals of many different nationalities and appearances. She saw people dressed in clothes that she'd never seen before, people with hairstyles she never knew existed. Some people had skin darker than obsidian, while others looked pale enough to be albino. Having lived in Arcadia all her life, she'd never seen such diversity before.

However, one group stood out the most.

"Hey, Caspian?"

"Yes?"

"Those people... those are..."

"Yeah, it's the Peacekeepers."

The Peacekeepers were an international peacekeeping branch of the government. Their job was to keep the peace on an international, national, and regional scale. They had bases stationed in every town, whether it was a small hamlet or a large city. The number of people within each town was based on variables like size and population. A town like Axium, which was considered mid-sized, would have upwards of 20 to 30 Peacekeepers.

Standard Peacekeeper's uniforms consisted of black slacks, shoes, and a dark gray overcoat that went past the knees. An armband with the symbol of the Terrain Alliance, a hammer and sword crossing over a shield, wrapped around their arm in bright red, contrasting well with the dark coat. A beret that was the same gray as the coat sat on their heads.

"It looks like they've brought out the entire force," Caspian murmured, and Cassidy had a feeling that he was talking to himself.

"Is that unusual?"

"Yes, though I can't say I'm surprised. There's a lot of foreigners coming in, and while our countries have an alliance, that doesn't necessarily mean we're allies."

Cassidy didn't get it. "I... I'm not sure I understand."

Caspian sent her a smile, but it wasn't one of his kind ones. Mixed into this one was loathing, though Cassidy didn't think it was directed at her.

"If there's one thing I've learned about nobles during my time at the academy, it's that they dislike it when other people stand at the top with them, even other nobles."

Cassidy still didn't understand. She guessed it was because she didn't live in that world, the world of nobility. Cassidy spent her days living a simple life. She tended to Mistress Erica, doing chores and going along with her mistress's whims, and twice a month she would visit her family out in the countryside.

Despite the sometimes troublesome things that her mistress made her do, she enjoyed it. Mistress Erica treated her well. She was paid well, taken care of when she got sick, and her family was given the same benefits, since all of the women had served Mistress Erica since she'd first been inaugurated as the sorceress of Ashtown.

As she wandered the streets, something hard slammed into her side. She cried out as she tumbled backwards. Closing her eyes, she prepared for a painful fall—when a pair of arms wrapped around her.

"You okay?" Caspian asked.

Cassidy opened her eyes. Bright green orbs stared back at her, mere inches from her face. She gazed into those eyes, which reminded her of a viridian forest during sunset, for several seconds—and then she realized her situation.

Caspian is holding me... Her mind paused for a second, and then it went into overdrive. By the spirits, Caspian is holding me!

"Kya!" she shrieked, her hand instinctively lashing out at Caspian without her telling it to. Caspian yelped as he was smacked in the face. The hands grabbing onto her let go, and with a squeal of fright, she tumbled to the ground.

"Ow..." Caspian groaned as he rubbed his red cheek. "Did you really have to hit me?"

Cassidy felt heat rise to her cheeks. "I-I'm sorry."

Rubbing his forehead, Caspian sighed. "At least you're apologizing for something that you actually did this time."

Cassidy blushed that much harder at his words.

"Pardon me for the intrusion!" a boisterous voice shouted.

Cassidy looked up and almost choked on her own spit when she saw the person standing before them. Tight pants covered a pair of muscular thighs, and a red jacket with frills at the cuff did little to keep the man's modesty intact. A muscular stomach and large pectorals were visible. His skin was a dark brown, but his hair was bright blond, clearly dyed. It was also in a pompadour style, adding several inches to his height. Strapped behind his back, a pair of falchions criss-crossed each other.

"I would like to apologize for running into you, mademoiselle!" the man said in his loud, booming voice. "It was very unstylish of me!"

"Uh..." Cassidy needed a second to screw her head on right. During that time, Caspian helped her stand up. "... It's okay. You didn't mean to."

"No, no!" the man said, making a weird pose as he placed a hand against his face. "It is most certainly not okay. What I did was unstylish. You feel me, right? A stylish man like myself cannot afford to be unstylish. Why, the very idea is preposterous! Please, mademoiselle, allow me to make it up to you and regain my stylish standing in your eyes."

"Uh..."

Cassidy looked at Caspian. He turned to her, a single eyebrow raised, as if asking, "what are you looking at me for?"

"Um..." Cassidy grasped at very thin straws to come up with a suitable response. "W-we would like that, um, thank you."

"It is settled, then!" the man exclaimed, grinning at them, his teeth sparkling in the sun. "Come, my stylish comrades of circumstance! Let us foray into this stylish festival and enjoy the day!"

Cassidy and Caspian shared an uncertain glance before, with great reluctance, they followed the rambunctious man into the crowd.

As they followed the man, Caspian leaned in, whispering in her ear. "Are you sure this was a good idea? Weren't you supposed to buy foreign magitech for Erica?"

If she could have, Cassidy would have cursed Caspian for bringing that up. However, cursing wasn't in her nature, so she just felt disappointed.

"I'm sure it will be okay," Cassidy mumbled. "Knowing Mistress Erica like I do, she'll probably forget all about her request."

Please buy it. Please buy it.

"Well... I guess she might. Erica doesn't strike me as the type to care about technology unless it can further glorify her in the eyes of others," he said at last. Cassidy breathed a sigh of relief. She was safe.

"Tell me, my stylish comrades, what are your names?"

Cassidy found this man's manner of speech unusual, but she didn't say so out loud. It would have been rude.

"My name is Cassidy."

"Ah, Cassidy, what a stylish name for a stylish mademoiselle. And you, stylish young man?"

"Caspian. By the way, what's with the 'stylish?'"

"I am Adesh Nesthera," the man ignored Caspian's question. "Once again, please allow me to apologize for unstylishly intruding upon your date."

"D-d-d-date?!" Cassidy squeaked. Her face felt like it had spontaneously combusted. "O-oh, no! T-this isn't a date! Caspian is just escorting me while I shop for my mistress!"

"What she said," Caspian murmured, sounding much more composed than her.

"Ah, my apologies. It seems that I have unstylishly misconstrued your situation."

"Seriously. What is with the 'stylish' comments?"

"I merely assumed that a stylish pair spending time together on such a stylish day must be a couple."

Caspian's right eye twitched. "That's gonna get annoying real fast."

"In either event, please allow me to buy you something sweet in recompense for my unstylish behavior."

Before either she or Caspian could say anything, Adesh walked over to a small crepe stand and bought two crepes. When he came back, he handed one to her and one to Caspian.

"Here you are, both in apology to bumping into you so unstylishly, Lady Cassidy, and in honor of our meeting, Caspian. I look forward to stylishly crossing blades with you in the Sorceress's Knight Tournament!"

Caspian's expression shifted from annoyed to that of someone who'd just been broadsided by a magical transportation vehicle. "Wait. Does that mean you're one of the students belonging to one of the other schools?"

"Indeed I am! I attend the most stylish school of Asura Academy!" Adesh bowed to them both. "Now, I must bid you two adieu! Stay stylish!"

Watching Adesh wander into the crowd with a flourish, Cassidy wondered what kind of place Asura Academy must have been to possess such an unusual character.

"Well," Caspian started, "that was an unusual meeting."

"I'll say," Cassidy agreed wholeheartedly.

***

Adesh wandered through the streets, a skewer in his hand.

He glided past the people walking around him. The aroma from a dozen different places selling a variety of foods wafted into his nose, carried by the breeze. Finishing the last of his snack, some type of Arcadian delicacy that was surprisingly sweet, he threw his skewer into a nearby trash can and left the main road through a small alley.

He stopped upon seeing someone leaning against the wall.

"I was wondering where you had wandered off to, my stylish friend," Adesh said to the figure.

"..." The figure said nothing.

"Now, now, there is no need to be so unstylish. I was only greeting one of our competitors." Adesh grinned. "I believe you'd like him. He is quite the stylish one."