“Kyrion. Were you going to kill that boy?” Caeden asked as the other students quickly went below deck.

“I don’t know what you're talking about. The plan was always to knock him out. I could snap his neck but leave him alive and heal the wound instantly. He’ll just be comatose for a little while. But I’d only have done that If Sinbad tried to attack.”

“And he didn’t know that you could heal.”

“Uh huh.”

“Did you know about his gift?”

“What gift?”

“Sinbad can see glimpses of the future. When he shook his head I thought it was because you’d kill him if he acted.”

“Oh. I guess to precognition it would look like I snapped his neck. Interesting. Thanks for the info. Fighting him will be an interesting experience.”

“Maybe I underestimated your willingness to kill.”

“My capacity for violence is surprisingly high. Especially when my friends are involved.”

“You see Minah as a friend?”

“Not just yet. But meeting Midas clued me in on a bigger piece of the picture. Minah and Max are looked down on in the family by Midas’ faction. Because that young piece of work, had been lauded over like a talent. Minah wants to prove her worth as a warrior and Max wants to become a stronger person. I take it Max wasn’t even considered to be a successor.”

“The ruler thinks he has potential. Which is why he sent them to me. He thinks Drisil can force them to grow.”

“Why would he think that?”

“A seer he trusts gave him a hint on what’s to come.”

“What was the hint?”

“The descendant of your best friend will be their staunch defender in a time of need.”

“Great. More problems. Is Hel this defender?”

“Possibly. Now if you excuse me, I need to write a formal apology.” Caeden went below deck, and Hel came out.

“What do you want?”

“Minah would like to say thank you.”

“Then she should say it herself. I need no thanks. I’ve only met one other person with a face so punchable.”

“She would, but the two of you….”

“Pride then. Don’t mention it then. I’d have done that even if she wasn’t a part of my team. You don’t talk to your family like that. Even I know that. The way things were going she wasn’t going to fight back and Max couldn’t fight for her.”

“Still. Actions like that can go a long way into getting in someone’s good graces.”

Kyrion looked away. “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Fine fine I’ll drop it then.”

“Good. Now go get some rest. I need to rest.”

Hel went back below deck.

“Oi. What was that? I felt twice as angry there.”

“That’s normal. Kyrie’s anger was added onto yours. Was worried you’d actually kill him.” Psycho said.

“We are of one mind when it comes to slimeballs like that.” Kyrie agreed.

“Sheesh. I’ll need to be more reserved then.”

“Holding emotion like that will be dangerous. If anything, you need to find a healthier outlet for it. I recommend pulling wings off butterflies. It’s always entertaining.”

“Fine. I’ll embrace this sentiment stuff.” Kyrion said.

“I do like a woman in armor.” Kyrie nodded.

“...” Kyrion stared into his subconscious.

“What did I say wrong?” Kyrie said.

“Don’t tell me….”

“That’s my business.” Then, Kyrie seemed to leave the area.

“What’s wrong with his personal preferences.”

“Nothing just kinda caught me off guard. I thought I was done with puberty and here it comes striking twice in the form of a thirteen year old.”

“I mean, you aren’t wrong. But you should embrace the emotions. That will make his integration run much more smoothly. You are both the same person now.”

“Fine. I’ll try to be nicer.” Kyrion shivered.

The sea was calm and peaceful the first day as they left the territory of the Goskin continent, many for the first time in their short lives. Unaware of the dangers to come.

During the trip, Cecil taught his new student the basics of magic theory. These lectures seemed to garner more attention than anticipated as quite a few other students on board seemed to take a seat nearby. Which didn’t bother the crew much as they didn’t have to worry about avoiding the young spirit masters.

By the fourth day, Kyrion had run out of food and decided to sneak into the storage room. There were 4 stasis coffins. Unlabeled. How was Kyrion supposed to know which one had food if they were not labeled?

“Tch.” Kyrion clicked his tongue.

“One contains food, another, perishable supplies. What were the other two?” Kyrion hadn’t been told what they were bringing along.

Opening the first coffin revealed perishable supplies. It was immediately closed.

The second coffin revealed an unconscious Viole. The lid was carefully slid back on as Kyrion didn’t want to get stabbed.

He was moving onto the third coffin when a voice came behind him. “Oi! What are you doing down here?”

“Just looking for something to eat. No luck.”

“Get to the deck, we’ll be arriving shortly.” The crewmate doing the rounds said as he waited for Kyrion to leave. Following the red-haired boy out.

“What took you so long?” The headmaster asked.

“I ran out of food.” Kyrion mumbled.

“Is that so?”

“Didn’t get the chance to find any.” Kyrion crossed his arms.

“I see. Well there are plenty of fish in the sea. Have you tried fishing?”

“Never learned how to fish. Believe it or not. But I’m sure I can catch some before we arrive.”

“Catch… You mean with a fishing pole right?”

Kyrion walked over to the edge of the boat and closed his eyes. He then sent feelers of mana into the water and grunted as he began to pull.

“Great, he’s just standing there. Wait. Kyrion don’t!”

Kyrion takes a powerful stance as he opens up a domain above the ocean while raising a bubble of salt water containing a school of tuna into his domain.

“Oh. Good for a second I thought you were going to bring that on board.”

“Do I look like an idiot?” Kyrion turned and took a step back, shock plastered on his face.

“You would be surprised by how stupid the smartest students can be at times. Unfortunately, I’m also not sure where your head is at.”

“Headmaster! It's on my shoulders. Are you doing ok?” Kyrion gasped.

The ship docked a few minutes later, and the headmaster ensured everyone was gathered before making his announcement.

“Welcome to the Eye on the Ocean, Izfan. Here you will be free to spend your free time enjoying the amenities while the rest will be spent in getting you all to the peak of your abilities before the tournament. Now eat well and be sure to get a good night sleep, because after tonight most of you will be training eight days a week.”

“What does that mean? Aren’t there seven days in a week?” Bella asked.

“For the sake of clarity, 8 days in a row before a day of rest. Others will have smaller training sessions. If you want only one day of training a week then you must beat Kyion in a fight. Two days Ander, three Bella and 4 Max. Next up we have Hel at 5 Tiffany at 6, Brion at 7, and Minah at 8.” The headmaster stated.

“Why am I last?” Minah raised a hand.

“You didn’t lead your team properly and you didn’t win. You may not be the weakest but you need this training more than the rest.”

Cecil raised a hand.

“Yes Cecil.”

“How did we get here so quickly?” Cecil pointed towards the ocean.

“While you were sleeping I used a teleportation spell to vastly expedite this trip. I can teach you the runes if you want.”

“I see. Quite convenient.”

“Any more questions?”

The group stayed silent as a group of people arrived. None quite understood the feat the headmaster pulled off more than Cecil. For none knew that Izfan was on the other side of the world.

A bald young man led the new group with a plain look on his face as he examined everyone here. “Welcome to Izfan rookies. I am your Alumni, Lingar! Nice to meet you all. Some of you already know me of course.”

“Lingar!” Kyrion cheered.

“Brother?” Ander took a step back.

“I’m glad the two of you made it. Can’t wait to see how far you’ve gone. Sadly I don’t think I’m here to teach either of you.”

“That is correct. Bella? This man here will help you master your abilities. You should be able to do more with your powers. Take flying for example. That’s one of your natural abilities yet you can’t do it yet.” The headmaster stated.

“I see. Well Lingar, please take care of me.” Bella bowed.

“I only hope you don’t hurt me on accident. Gravity is an easy affinity to learn but difficult to master.”

“You have experience with my Affinity?”

“He’s got wind and gravity.” Ander crossed his arms.

“Correct. It’s why I’d be a bad teacher for my brother. Flight was one thing but his lightning is not in my wheelhouse.” Lingar stated.

“I see.” Bella looked to Ander, who didn’t seem surprised.

The next to approach was a diminutive person with a cane, his appearance hidden by a cloak. Upon removing the hood revealed a familiar gap-toothed old woman.

“Hello kiddies. Which one of you calls themself a tamer?”

“T-that would be me.” Max said warily.

“Hmmm…two out of ten. Nothing special.” The old woman shrugged.

“Huh?” The silver-haired young man looked surprised.

“Nothing nothing. Just gonna have to whip you into shape.” The old woman said.

“Can I get another teacher?” Max turned to the headmaster.

“They can’t all be winners. Lady Monstrum is a powerful tamer. You’ll learn a lot.” The headmaster pushed Max forward.

A giant bald eagle descended from above and grabbed Max by his shoulders with its talons before carrying him off into the middle distance.

“Whaaaaaaa!” Was all the group heard?

“Now what?”

Another woman approached, much younger than the previous one. Brown hair and a figure that could make a celibate follower of Imala second guess their decisions.

“Which one of you boys is Brion?”

Quite a few jealous glares tuned to the large boy. Cecil’s jaw was unhinged as he looked on in shock.

“What can you teach me?” Brion frowned.

“I’m sure you’d rather I keep your situation private. They don’t need to know what you’re learning.”

“I see. So be it. Should we discuss things in private?” Brion asked.

“Traitor.” Cecil fell to his knee while holding his heart.

Ander shook his head, and Kyrion scratched his chin.

“I see. So that’s how it is.” The red-haired boy stated.

“That’s how what is?” Tiffany asked.

“Don’t worry about it.” Kyrion kept silent as he observed the woman in front of them.

As planned, heads turned towards Kyrion as Brion, and his teacher slipped out.

“You know it’s quite clear that she wasn’t using charm magic, yet apparently some of you need to learn self control. Sheesh. You’d think people training to be warriors would have more self control than that, leering at a woman like that. She’s an expert. Killing you would be easy and yet you gawk for shame.” Kyrion shook his head.

A collective gasped as the implications made themselves known. “She could have killed us if she wanted. She had enough cause to do so.”

“Good. Now that that’s done. Who’s next.”

A tall and thin figure with a full head mask approached and looked at Hel, and the two left, not saying a word out loud.

The following person to arrive was a one-armed man wielding a sword on his hip. A claw-shaped scar crossed his face at a diagonal. “I am Phineas, but you may refer to me as Phin.”

The man pulled the hilt from his scabbard, revealing a guard with no blade attached. “Awaken Sword of Lumin.”

A blade of white shot out of the hilt and extended until the sword was a shortsword.

“You must be here for me then.” Tiffany crossed her arms.

The swordsman nodded. “Seems so.”

“Great. Are we headed off or…”

“I’ll take you to your lodgings so that you may drop your stuff off. After that day one of your training begins.”

“We have lodgings?” Tiffany stated.

“Of course. Although I doubt your team will be staying there most of the week. We don’t need to travel much for your training.”

“Is it going to be less?”

“No. But you will need to get as much sleep as you can when you can.”

“I understand.” Tiffany bowed, and the two left.

“Lets see… That leaves Ama, Ander and Kyrion.”

“Do you believe in chance encounters?” A familiar voice stated.

Kyrion unconsciously covered his eye and stepped back when he heard it.

“Because I am a valiant believer in fate. We are all connected somehow.” A figure stepped in front of the group and removed their hood, revealing a black-haired man with eerie golden eyes that seemed to rotate, one going clockwise while the other counter.

“...” Kyrion lept backward onto the ship 60 feet away from his position.

“I’m not mad at you, fateless child. For the blade I received was well worth the loss of a rebellious blade.” The former Eyeless smirked.

“Fateless? What does that mean?” Bastion asked the headmaster.

“Now, now, none of that here.” A serene figure interrupted as he stepped next to gold eyes. Removing their hood to reveal a glasses-wearing blue-haired man. They were much shorter than Kyrion had remembered. Possibly around 5’6, but this was him.

“Mr. Lok!” Kyrion yelled.

“Yes, it is me, young one. Been a while. Now that that’s settled. Maldain please take Ander to do his training.”

Maldain looked at Ander and smiled. “Yes. You’re right. It should be fun teaching someone with drastically different abilities how to fight like a hydra.”

Bastion whispered to the headmaster. “He has weirder eyes than me.

“Shh…”

“Did someone say weird eyes?” Maldain began to move past Ander before realizing it. “No no. We gotta get you ready fellow number three.”

“Who are you talking to exactly?” Ander asked.

“Hmmm? You of course. My fellow third place aficionado.”

“But I’m at least second now.”

“No no. Your third. The way I heard things, you didn’t exactly get to finish your fair fight. So you’re in third despite only getting two days of my time a week. You probably could be the strongest fighter in your group but you’re not leadership material.”

“You’re starting to sound like Cecil.” Ander squinted

“I do not sound like that.” Cecil intruded.

“Pretty close.” Kyrion rolled his visible eye.

“So you know, you aren’t hiding anything with your eyepatch.” Maldain stated as he smiled at Kyrion.

Kyrion felt his blood run cold. One would think that it was fear that stopped him. That person would be right. What’s the point in poking a sleeping lion with a stick. It could only end badly for him.

“Huh. You shut him up pretty quickly. How did you accomplish that?” Minah asked.

“I’m the one who plucked out his eye.” Maldain said with a mad smile.

Minah recalled seeing said injury during their first bout and shivering.

Mildred looked at the headmaster. “Are you sure he’s trustworthy enough to teach?”

“Nope. But Lok has vouched for him and I trust his judgment. He was the most level headed of my friends.”

“That doesn’t say as much as you think.” Lok said with a blank expression.

“So… Who’s my teacher?” Minah asked.

“That will be me.” Cecil said from behind.

“What?”

“No one else understands the potential of your power like he does. Not even the headmaster himself. How would you like to formally join Cecil’s harem!” Kyrion said from the safety of the ship.

Cecil slapped himself on the forehead. “Please don’t go indoctrinating people for my sake. It isn’t as helpful as you think.”

“So I’m not good enough for your harem. Is that it?” Minah asked irritatedly.

“Cecil’s harem has little to no standards or restrictions. Even Max is a proud member.”

“What?” Minah paled.

“He was worried at firszzzzz….” Kyrion fell to the ground and started seizing up.

Cecil had drawn a curved wand that was sparking from the tip. “Let me speak. Minah you do not have to join my club. Nor do I care if you even get along with me. I am here to give you a crash course on how to use your abilities. When you’re not writing stuff down you will be doing a few field tests using what I’ve taught you. You will be broken down thoroughly before getting built back up.”

“That’s alot of talk from someone who can’t take me on in a fight. Your not an expert spirit master.”

“I’m not a spirit master to begin with. But I am a mage, if you want to fight me then fine. I’ll show you the true meaning of despair. But not now and not here. Wouldn’t be fair if I fought you unprepared while you got your armor.” Cecil stated before releasing the spell on Kyrion.

Kyrion got to his feet and shot his friend an eye. “That wasn’t very friendly. Is that any way to treat your best friend?”

“Best? Sorry but you’re not even in my top five friend group.” Cecil didn’t say the reason because if Bella and Kyrion had both entered a restaurant simultaneously, the bill would be astronomical.

“That’s mean. You’re breaking my heart.” Kyrion conjured ugly fake tears.

“Wait if he’s teaching her, then who’s teaching me?” Finally, Eden asked an important question.

“You’ll share teacher’s with Kyrion when I’m not able to look after you.”

“Share?”

“Yeah. Kyrion has one day of direct training a week. After that, he’s free to do as he wishes.

Kyrion squinted. “Sounds too good to be true.”

“Correct. Now follow me to the tower of sight.” Lok led Kyrion away from the group

“Do we really need to do this?”

“You need to experience killing in a place with no real victims.” Lok stated.

Kyrion didn’t reply until they made it over a bridge. “I’m not squeamish. I won’t freeze up seeing a corpse or hesitate to kill when necessary.”

“That has yet to be seen.”

“Is that all?”

“No, that’s just your first assignment. We’ll be working on improving your range and sensory abilities. Assuming you want to lie low, you’ll need to be able to keep track of changes to the environment. Lastly we will try to get you to understand the capabilities of your manifestation. Transformations are quite rare but that doesn’t always make them powerful.”

“What do you mean?” Kyrion asked.

“Some increase versatility, others raw power. Very few are purely aesthetic.

“Doesn’t sound easy.”

“No path worth taking is easy. This one is no exception. Things have worked out so far but from here on out you can’t bet your life on chance. You need absolutes. Or at the very least contingencies.” Lok stopped as they arrived at a tower that seemed to pierce the clouds above.

“Why is that?”

“Because Kyrion, causality is beginning to catch up and when the beings in play realize the pieces have changed drastically they won’t be happy. The fact that you’re here and as strong as you are now can attest to that.”

“I don’t know if I like where you’re going with this.”

“You shouldn’t. There is only one other person in your family who is aware of what I’m referring to. They too have pieces in motion.”

“How do you know all this?” Kyrion stared at Lok with piercing eyes.

“Because I can see potential futures and have a grasp on the truth that is the past. I know who you are and I know what lives within you. Your younger brother isn’t an enemy, he’s just lost for a while.” Lok’s irises and pupil vanished before his sclera turned a deep blue.

“What?” Kyrion began squirming.

Lok adjusted his glasses, and his eyes returned to their usual brown. “I ramble at times.”

“Uh huh… Do we go in?” Kyrion pointed to a set of double doors with an eye insignia engraved where they meet.

“That we do.”