"And well, she told me that she chose it because it showed what the class meant for her and for her students. She wanted to release her knowledge to nurture students and hope that they too would use the knowledge to nurture others. And every student she picked held innate talent that was different than regular people, although most can't be seen by the naked eye. And so, like the lilies, they needed special care just as how Salvia's unique constitution required her to carry a blooming rose every day. Because if they didn't have such care, they'd either drown in the sea of normalcy or worse, die from being unable to understand how special they were."
Hearing such reasonings, Inna couldn't help feel her heart squeeze in admiration at how good a person Salvia was. She seemed like such a saint that even she could feel the love Salvia poured into teaching her students just from listening to Solomon.
Then, she suddenly recalled the beautiful statue she saw last time she was with Raghnall. And she finally understood why Raghnall always held a gaze filled with deep admiration whenever his sight would focus on it. Heck, she even felt quite envious that he was able to get to know and admire such a saint. But then, she recalled his words when he said that she had disappeared.
Inna hesitantly looked at Solomon as she contemplated asking him. There was no doubt that the statement held a different meaning by the manner Raghnall had said it but she wasn't sure if Solomon was ready to talk about such a heavy and tragic memory just so that she could satisfy her curiosity.
But before Inna could even attempt to ask, Solomon answered her as though he read her mind.
"There was a big subjugation trip for all magic students that day in order for them to get field experience for battle. It was the fifth year anniversary of our academy's founding so we decided to have that for our special celebration. But I was far too swamped up with my paperwork to go since there was also that Recognition test that would be held soon after the trip. It was the very first Recognition test of the academy so I stayed behind to make sure everything was perfect. And I… It was… well, you could say, the biggest mistake I've ever made in my life."
Solomon sighed deeply as he buried his hand in his palms.
"I didn't know much about the specifics but… During the hunt, the teams had met a pack of saber-toothed tigers together with the subjugation target which was the Anaconda Serpent. Knowing that both beasts were venomous, they knew that the situation was not favorable for them. The antidotes they had were only for the Anaconda venom and the saber-toothed tigers' venom, although not as deadly as the serpent, was still fast-acting and held a paralytic effect hence if someone were to be bitten, they wouldn't be able to move and would most likely be eaten by the pack. And so, they decided against continuing with the subjugation trip and instead, tried to escape. But the students, having no experience in a true battlefield, had no proper way of managing their panic and fear after facing such a dire situation. And so, the moment the saber-toothed tigers gave chase, it ended up into chaos. The students started running away blindly and hiding in places they thought were safe enough."
Solomon's hands trembled slightly so he discreetly hid them from Inna as he stared at the vast field of flowers before them. Even after nearly a decade, the loss was still too large for him to bear but he knew that it was not as worse as it used to be. Back then, even the mere mention of the event would've sent him over the edge.
Perhaps revisiting the flower field and telling someone his memories of her helped in some way...
And so, Solomon clenched his trembling hands into tight fists as he willed himself to talk about the tragic day.
"A dozen fighters that consisted mostly of knights were hired for that trip and I thought that it would be enough to protect the students in case of mishaps but I was wrong. The beasts still greatly outnumbered them and were far too strong for a one-on-one battle. Adding on to the fact that the fighters were trying to protect the panic-stricken children, they weren't able to focus and fight properly, making the risks ever increasing. Thankfully, my wife was quick to action and I had heard that she took control of the situation so that the knights could focus on fighting off the pack. Using her magic as a Mage, she helped protect and gather the students running away as well as helped find students that were either hiding or had gone the wrong direction to escape. After some time, the knights were thankfully able to defeat the pack but only half of them survived but even though alive, they were badly injured."
"Everyone thought they had won so they stopped their escape to catch their breath. But unfortunately, it wasn't over."
Solomon sucked in a quick breath before releasing a heavy sigh. He closed his eyes as he leaned back on his chair, trying to organize his thoughts. He didn't know how to say it without trembling so he decided to pause for a while. But the longer he did, the heavy his eyes and chest felt.
And hating the unfamiliar and uncomfortable feeling as his eyes started to water, he laid his forearm over his eyes as he continued to talk.
"Before the fight had ended, there was a student hiding by a nearby bush and apparently one saber-toothed tiger strayed off the path to ambush the hidden child. Now that the fight had ended, the child began to relax against the bush not knowing that the tiger was still there, the bright glare of its eyes hidden by the bush, as it waited for the right time to strike its marked prey. Everyone else failed to notice it as well because everyone was focused on resting and trying to reign in their fear and panic. And just at the right time, where everyone else was lost in their own thoughts, the tiger readily pounced on the defenseless student. And my dear wife, who had already used up all her magical energy from her enhancement and healing spells, spared no hesitation in jumping in front of the child and throwing him out of harm's way."