Chapter 5 (1): First day of classes, part 1
The four of us, along with two more dorm rooms, both male, went over with Fran to the magic building, which was a large, single floor area split into three sections and reinforced with a lot of powerful barriers. We went to the closest of the three sections, and sat down where Fran told us to sit, I was sitting in the back right corner with Ver on my right and Elise on my left, Mae and Char in front of us.
"First. Introductions. Name, elements, classes, mana, race, hometown. Something else about you. No discrimination, no lies. See lies. If break rules, get smacked by Urushi. Urushi, come. Sit here" (Fran)
A large black wolf rose from Fran's shadow, then sat next to her like a large puppy.
"I said introductions. First you. Stand while doing. Then person to right. Repeat for row behind. Now" (Fran)
People introduced themselves one after the next, and I noticed that most of them would be in Fran's actual class. Also, the highest mana there was 3100, and the one with the most elements was Char. Eventually, it got to be Elise's turn.
"I'm Elise... I'm in the bow... and healing classes... I have just light and healing... and 2800 mana. I'm a high elf... I'm from... the demon lands... and... I have... a girlfriend... so... I'm not interested... in guys" (Elise)
"I'm Ryuu. I'm a orphaned half elf from the demon lands, and was taught to fight by some of the demon generals. I have every element, and I'm in the spear and axe classes as well" (Ryuu)
"That has to be a lie. Every element? Taught by some demon generals?" (someone whispering)
"Mana, something about you. You forgot" (Fran)
"I have a girlfriend, well, more than one, actually, and I have about 5000 mana" (Ryuu)
"Urushi" (Fran)
Urushi leaped at me, and I caught him and threw him back towards Fran.
"Urushi. Sit. Ryuu. Real mana. Not lie. Next time. Get shocked. Lightning magic" (Fran)
"Fine... I have well over 50000 mana. I'd rather not say just how much. I don't even know the exact amount, my mana value broke the measurement tool" (Ryuu)
"Nn. Better. Last one. Wyvern" (Fran)
"Her name is Verene, or Ver for short. She's a greater wyvern, and less than a week old. I met her when her parents attacked me and I killed them, and I found her egg as she was hatching, so she thinks I'm her mother or something. She's tame, bound by summoner's magic, so she won't attack you unless you attack her" (Ryuu)
"Mind if I ask something?" (Boy... Ryan, I think?)
"Nn. Ryan. Go ahead" (Fran)
"You carry more weapons than just a spear and axe. I see a staff on your back, and a dagger on your hip. Also, your mana is less than a hundred, from what I can tell. I would like to know why all of that is the case" (Ryan)
"The thing on my back is actually a spear, not a staff, and the dagger isn't my preferred weapon. They both limit the aura I release, alongside some other items. If you'd like, I could show you what it's like with fewer limiters, provided Fran is fine with it" (Ryuu)
"Nn. Go for it" (Fran)
"Show us what it's like with all of them removed, please" (Ryan)
"I won't go anywhere near that far. It could kill many of you" (Ryuu)
"Bullshit" (Ryan)
"Not lie, it seems" (Fran)
"Eh?" (Almost all of the boys)
Most of the boys moved away from me at that, and one ran out of the building, but Urushi brought him back.
"I'll show you what it's like at 5000 mana" (Ryuu)
I removed my dagger and spear, putting them into my storage, and most of the boys jumped back. Even Fran took a step away from me, despite her mana value of about 2200.
"My love... you could... and should... put your weapons... back on..." (Elise)
I did so, and most of the boys hesitantly moved back to their seats.
"Uh... did I hear that right? Did Elise call you 'my love'?" (Dyne, Ryan's roommate)
"Yeah. Got a problem with that?" (Ryuu)
"Uh... no... just... how do Charlotte and Mae feel about being in the same room as a couple in love?" (Dyne)
"Oh, those two aren't the only ones who share a room with their girlfriend" (Char)
"You mean... Mae and Charlotte... you're also dating each other?" (Ryan)
"Not quite" (Mae)
"Eh?" (Dyne)
"You mean... someone in your room leads a harem?" (Ryan)
Half the boys in the room fell down with nosebleeds, and I can't blame them, honestly.
"I did say I have more than one girlfriend, didn't I?" (Ryuu)
"Nobody is uncomfortable about the situation, because we're all in love with the Ryuu. If anything, the one with the most problems is Ryuu, as she has a bunch of girls to split her time with" (Char)
"She... can handle... all of us... at once... she... isn't splitting... her time... at all..." (Elise)
The rest of the room fell down, a few trying to hide their crotches, including one doing so while running out of the room, and even Fran was resting heavily against Urushi while blushing a bit. Was her sword blushing? No, it can't be...
"Elise, you were the biggest cause of the class getting disrupted. I'm going to have to teach you to hold your tongue better, later tonight" (Ryuu)
"You're just adding to it yourself, you know..." (Mae)
Half an hour after that, everyone had calmed down enough that they were able to get to their next classes. Char and I stayed put, along with Ver, while five of the eight boys did the same thing. Two boys and a girl came in, and we went through most of the same things as before, but to a lesser degree.
I was the only one in the class with either curse or shadow, and one of the only three with lightning, the others being Char and Ryan. While I was the top of the class in dark, fire, and lightning, the other two I had no skill with, but I was still the top of the class due to a lack of any competition at all. Fran was mostly focusing on getting all of us to be able to get a feel for fire, dark, and, for Ryan, who already could use fire and wind, lightning. The way she did so was by making those able to use dark magic have a small amount flow into someone who doesn't know how to use it, but has the aptitude for it, and the same for fire. Ryan was being taught how to get a feel for lightning by Char, and I was being taught how to feel the shadow element by Fran, when she wasn't helping the others. Half an hour passed like that, and we moved on to our next classes. Char and Mae went to Mr Sword's class, while I went to Mr Axe's. Elise was watching my class, because there wasn't any reason for her not to. There were no introductions beyond names and what type of weapon we use. We had one boy, a dwarf named Cyrus, using a warhammer, one fox-eared girl, Alexis, who uses a poleaxe, one mage girl, Ren, who uses a mace as her weapon to defend herself, and then me. I held up my axe, still in its miniature (dormant) form.
"My name's Ryuu, also known as the one who broke Mr Axe's arm, or 'Crazy Girl Ryuu' and my weapon of choice is... well, it's this here axe" (Ryuu)
"That's little more than a toy! It's tiny!" (Cyrus)
"Cyrus... that's what I said before I fought her. It has some tricks, some special abilities, that make it the best axe she could have. Now, let's have you fight in some mock battles. First, Cyrus and Alexis" (Axe)
The two of them stepped forward, holding their weapons, blunted with Mr Axe's metal magic, and when told to begin, Alexis struck first, and kept Cyrus on the defensive until she landed a hit on him, winning the match, as it was a one (good) hit to win kind of thing. Cyrus was out of breath, but Alexis wasn't, so she fought Ren, and won that one too.
"This is the power of a longer weapon. To win, you need to get in close, but it's hard to do so when the one using it is a lot faster than you are. However... Ryuu, care to demonstrate?" (Axe)
"Sure. I take it this means I shouldn't use a poleaxe or halberd?" (Ryuu)
"Of course. Keep your speed to about the same as hers as well" (Axe)
I stepped forward, was told to begin, and she swung her axe at me. I dodged it, then caught it with the inside of my axe's blade, preventing her from moving it, as I walked towards her.
"Nnrg... what... I have leverage on my side!" (Alexis)
"And I have speed. See, I'm not holding yours in place. When you start to move it, I move mine further and faster, then pull it back at high speeds. Leverage can't beat overwhelming force, and force is both power and speed. As I can accelerate faster, I can win this. I also have something else: reflexes" (Ryuu)
While we were talking, I got right up in her face, and changed my axe into a short, two headed battleaxe, and then hit her in the side with it after untangling it from her weapon.
"And that's the match. Ryuu's weapon is special, in that it can change its shape at will, but she didn't use that until her win was all but guaranteed. Until then, it was a normal one-handed axe. You need to know the strengths and weaknesses of your weapon, or you won't last long. Next! Cyrus and Ryuu!" (Axe)
I dodged his first strike, then placed my blade on his neck.
"You need a lighter hammer. You aren't swinging your weapon, you're letting it swing you. If you can't follow up after a strike, be it to strike again or to defend, you are worse than bare-handed" (Ryuu)
"I hate to say it, but she's right. A weapon that like that has no place fighting anything but a scrap heap" (Axe)
"I guess... It's me against Ryuu?" (Ren)
"Yes. Get to it, see what you can learn" (Axe)
I faced her, closed the gap, and blocked her swing with the haft of my axe as I swung the blade at her side, stopping when I hit her loose clothing.
"You're a mage, right? A mage's weapon is not used instead of magic, it's used with magic, either to defend yourself as you cast or to be enhanced by your magic. Don't focus on swinging it, learn to use it without thinking too much about it. Watch. Mr Axe? Can I spar with you for a bit?" (Ryuu)
"You broke my arm, remember? I can't fight right now" (Axe)
"Fine. Alexis, attack me. I won't hit you back until I prove my point" (Ryuu)
"Okay... I guess" (Alexis)
She started to swing at me, and I deflected her swings absentmindedly as I chanted magic. It's slower than chantless, but it proves that I'm doing it in the moment. I used weak flames to make her dodge, used wind magic to make myself faster, splashed her face with water to make her blink for a while, and then used earth magic to make her fall into a hole, where I placed my blade in front of her face.
"No matter what elements you have, if you can use magic while defending yourself, you can be a nasty foe for a normal opponent. Your weapon is not how a mage fights, it's how one lives, magic is how a mage fights. You put too much thought into your weapon, into living, that you don't have any way to end the fight. A mage has less stamina than a swordsman or spearman, so a battle of attrition is a suicidal battle. Live, take a few hits if need be, and then use your strengths to win. It's like what Alexis has to learn: know your strengths, know your weaknesses, and fight accordingly. Your strength is magic, not muscle, right? Then why are you sealing your magic as soon as someone gets close?" (Ryuu)
"Because... that's what we're being taught..." (Ren)
"This class is teaching you how to win by the axe, but a mage is meant to live by the axe and win by magic... Mr Axe... If someone uses magic as their main method of attack, and has over 3000 mana, as Ren does, you should be teaching them to defend themselves one way and attack with their offensive weapon. It's like if someone was teaching the shield arts. They wouldn't say 'learn to block with your shield and then kill with your shield'... they'd say 'learn to block with your shield and then kill with your sword'... wouldn't they?" (Ryuu)
"Well put. I'm glad I decided to check on how this school's biggest trouble was doing in her classes, because I just heard her give one of the best lectures I've ever heard a student give to a teacher. I will tell that same analogy to the other teachers. You yourself know how to use both at once, so teach that to those who are better with the thing you can't teach as well. You shouldn't need a student to tell you that" (HM)
After a bit of discussion, until either Mr Axe's arm healed, or the other three got to be at about my skill level, I became an assistant teacher for the axe class. That way, my time wouldn't be wasted and I could help teach the ones he was having trouble with... which was all of them. Seriously, is this guy a teacher or an idiot?