“So, in short, you want me to do what? Deliberately only advise the students that you’re giving extra lessons to?” Florian asked, his eyes narrowed with suspicion as he stood in the wizard’s office. It was notably clear, a far cry from the clutter that had been amassed all over the space not so long ago.

Theo held up his hands, shaking his head. “That is not what I am saying at all, disciple. I merely ask that you share important information with them first. It is in the people’s best interest if the strongest are nurtured,” the wizard explained. It was a commendable performance; there wasn’t a trace of falsehood in those words, despite Florian knowing damn well that Theo was definitely scheming something. Otherwise, Jones wouldn’t have picked up on it.

“And in return?” Florian asked, maintaining a neutral tone of voice.

“I would heal your leg for you,” Theo offered with a smile.

“You’ve already promised that to me, master,’ he buried his frustration deep within.

Theo scratched his head. “You are right, disciple. Then, I promise that I will heal your leg just as soon as the month is up.”

Florian’s eyes opened wide with that offer. It would take him months more to bring everyone up to speed enough to get them to cast a true-to-life fireball. Only Theo’s advanced students might have been capable of working such magic before the month was over in twenty-two days. “Deal. I will make sure that my attention is given first to the advanced students.”

Extending a hand, Theo urged Florian to give him a handshake. Florian took the man’s hand, and with the gesture, it seemed that the deal had been officially struck. Theo wasted no time shooing Florian out of his office, though it was with more kindness than Florian had seen the wizard muster since he had been taught magic.

Walking out of the man’s office, Florian put on his best poker face. It truly hadn’t taken long for Theo to reach out after Jones did. He had been called to meet him by one of Theo’s chosen disciples when he’d reported for class. Between the Theo’s haste and the deal that he had just negotiated, Florian needed to calm his breathing and make neutral his expression.

The green-caped guards standing guard throughout the corridors of the keep would undoubtedly report anything unusual to Jones, and picking a fight with the would-be lord was a stupid idea at best. He wasn’t sure exactly how much Theo needed him here, but he assumed it wouldn’t be enough to prevent Jones from exiling him from the castle as Taylor once had.

When he returned to the classroom, he found twelve pairs of eyes looking at him with anticipation. The rest of the disciples were still either deep in meditation or too exhausted to regard him much more than a passive acknowledgement. Sighing, Florian walked up to the twelve advanced disciples, all of whom had clearly known what Florian’s answer would be before he even did.

“I have been instructed to share with you any advice I have to give before I give it to the rest of the class. You are all already far ahead of your peers, though, and I do not believe I have any advice to give that you have not already heard from our master,” Florian explained in a whispered tone, his voice hopefully reaching only those closest to him.

Though nobody around them seemed to understand what Florian had said, Wesley was giving him an odd look. Strangely enough, Mack raised his hand and asked about Wesley. “I’m not sure about that. Disciple Rosewood has improved a lot, and that has to be because you’ve helped him.”

Florian frowned. That was an astute observation, and if Mack knew it, then so did Theo. It was now clear why the wizard had wanted his cooperation. Left without any recourse, Florian revealed one of his trump cards. “The meat from the Hellwolves, it contains those little motes of the universe – mana – and when we eat it, we get better at manipulating it.”

Surprisingly, nobody was surprised. Mack frowned, “We already know that, Disciple Cale. Is that how Disciple Rosewood has grown so powerful?”

Florian nodded, slightly distressed by Mack’s words. So Theo had known about the meat, but he’d kept it a secret from him. Whatever goodwill the wizard had won with him in light of their new deal shriveled. It had always been clear that Theo did not view their relationship as between equals, but now it was abundantly clear that Florian came second in importance to the twelve disciples in front of him.

“There is nothing else that I have discovered, unfortunately. The rest of your growth needs to come from your own effort,” Florian said, his words the cause of a small wave of hushed complaints. Pretending not to hear them, Florian walked back to his usual spot by the other disciples and got to meditating. The mana came difficultly, and he just couldn’t managed to stay focused long enough to benefit from cycling it throughout his body. It also didn’t help that Wesley kept ramming an elbow into his side every five minutes or so.

“What?” Florian whispered, cracking open his eyes to see a confused Wesley staring at him.

Wesley coughed. “Did you tell them the secret method you showed me? Can I tell everyone else?”

Florian shook his head so violently he thought it might just screw right off. “No, no I did not. That is still very much a secret. We haven’t spent enough time making sure it’s safe for everyone. I just told them about the meat because Master asked us to.”

Nodding sagely, Wesley said, “Ah yes, that makes sense.”

Florian closed his eyes again, wondering what exactly he did to deserve being put in such a terrible situation. For the umpteenth time in recent days alone, Florian cursed Worldbreak, he cursed the Hellwolves, and he cursed Taylor. Meditation didn’t come at all anymore, and so Florian tried something else.

He was meditating again. This time, though, it wasn’t the magical kind. He needed to center himself and figure out exactly what he was going to do, because the situation in Leeds had just become very, very, uncomfortable.