"This is so hard! I'm making no progress at all! How can you do this, Erik!" Lars screamed while lying on the dirty, dusty ground of the training hall.
"Hm? Simple like this." Erik's entire body suddenly coats in mana.
"I know! I'm telling you... How?! Do you get it? How. I'll say it slowly, okay? How... can... I... do... it...? Is there a technique that I can use?"
"I'm going to get angry." Erik's eyebrows furrow.
"Oh... I apologize... I didn't mean to be rude. The frustration just got to me, sorry. Anyway, I just really can't... I'm about to give up."
"What are you saying? You won't survive if you give up without even trying."
"How can you even say that I'm not trying."
"Just a feeling. I can't sense the drive of determination because you kept yapping rather doing it seriously."
"You want to fight?"
"I will gladly take you on."
"I shouldn't have said that... I forgot... Huugh... It's hard, you know? My mana is so little that I could barely use it, that's why I—"
"I can't hear anything other than your yapping again. Stop making excuses and do it again."
"Didn't you listen to what I just said?"
"Just so you're aware, you can increase your mana output by opening it through our body's vital points. Are you even listening to Ms. Sienna, yesterday?"
"I fell asleep..."
"Then that's your fault. Like what I was saying, you could ask for her assistance and she will gladly help among others. I assure you, there's a method since I also tried it."
"Really? What did you do?"
"Prick my entire body with needles until I found the vital point."
"Eeeeek! That's fucking horrible!"
"It is not. It's not as painful as what you seem to think. There might be blood, but it's not noticeable since it will heal after a day or so."
"Any needles?"
"What? No. You need a special kind of needle. I got one from my father's collection which he allowed me to borrow."
"Since we're at this topic. I know that this is quite a sensitive topic, but what's your case for you to be placed here? Because for me... It's too embarrassing to say, but I'm incompetent when it comes to magic or mana." Lars scratches his head and gave Erik a forced laugh to alleviate the painful feeling inside his chest.
"I don't have a spirit." Yet, Erik on the other hand, said it nonchalantly without any hesitation.
"You're spiritless? H-How?"
"I killed it."
"I beg your pardon?"
"As I said, I killed my spirit because of a choice that I won't ever regret."
"You know that you're speaking nonsense, right? There's no way you can kill your own spirit...?"
"Suit yourself, believe me, or not." Erik smiles at Lars who was at the ground lying, looking up to Erik.
"You already said it, so tell me! Wait, you're just messing me... Erik, Erik, you naive fool. I'm better than that. I won't be swayed by those deceitful lies of yours and make a fool of myself." Lars shakes his head with his palm over his face.
"What would I gain from that?"
"Now, that's a good question..." Lars began contemplating. "I'll leave that to my future self. But for now, let's go back into our room. I want to take a shower then sleep."
"Yeah."
Lars and Erik are walking in the grassy field on their way back. While walking, Lars notices the dim sky and a thought pop inside his head. "Erik. What do you think of Claude?"
"Claude? Hm... A classmate?"
"That's not what I meant. I mean, as a person."
"??"
"Arrggh... Do I really need to be specific? What's your impression of him? Like, is he a person you dislike?"
"Do you?"
"No... I don't know... It's hard to tell because despite him being in the same class as us. He seems way to be above us or in a different stratosphere, that just ended up landing on the same footing as us."
"Was your basis of that because of the girls flocking on him?"
"Aaaagh!" Lars fell on his knees and keeps punching the grass. "It's so unfair! Why do those goddesses are head over heels to him! I know that he got the looks and everything... But a harem of them?! Impossible!"
"Why?"
"Beauty is a blessing in the sky, but that comes with pride especially when one of them is a princess of a hidden kingdom! Think of it Erik, do you think royal blood and an elf that's known for their prideful character would share a man? Also, if you're a good-looking person wouldn't you feel hurt if your partner was bringing a person that's of the same caliber as yours?"
"I get a glimpse of the elf part, but not the last part. Moreover, how can you tell that they're in that sort of relationship? Perhaps, they're just close friends, we wouldn't know."
"Pfft, I can smell it a distance away whenever I first saw them together. I bet he already laid his hands on them! I can fucking smell it!"
"Will you stop that? You don't have any concrete basis to back your conjecture."
"Ugh! Why do you speak so smart, despite your appearance?"
"What? Pardon? Speaking smart? Since when did become a thing? And for your information, my appearance doesn't have to do with anything about my intellect. If we're on this topic, I would also same to you. You look someone upright, but you're far from it."
"Yeah... You're correct, but trust me about Claude. His appearance literally says it all."
"Sure you do pervert."
"You can call me that way, but deep inside you're also one. Everyone is." Lars pat Erik's back.
"You're just jealous of him."
"And you're not?!"
"I am not."
"Are you... Perhaps..." Lars puts a distance between himself and Erik.
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That night...
Lars and Erik were sleeping peacefully in their room along with Claude who had just gotten back. The temperature of the room gradually increase which was felt by Lars. He slowly opens his eyes and saw bright auburn light. "Huh? Is the light on?"
When he squint his eyes and crawl out to get a closer look, and saw the tip of the flame. He got up in a panic because he thought the room was on fire; however, as soon he check on Claude, he was greeted by this auburn flaming eyes. His knees falter to the ground in fear.
But soon after, his eyes were mesmerized by the beauty of the woman, staring at him. The woman had barely any clothes and looks like she was on the verge of taking it all off. Moreover, she's looking down on him from up above where lies Claude's bed. Lars' heart beats rapidly as a result and crawls backward until he hit his back something hard.
"Wh—" Lars was about to voice out his confusion about the identity of the woman on top but got his mouth shut because of the glaring eyes.
"Don't make a noise or I'll kill you. Don't interrupt my loving time with my Claude, okay?"
Lars nods his head aggressively because he can tell she's not kidding around. It was his instinct screaming at him. From just a snap of her finger, the room will be filled with his blood and flesh at the moment he disobeys her. It flashes across his mind.
He slowly stands up and uses the table behind him then he saw the unconscious Claude beneath the woman. The bright flames gave Lars a clear view of Claude who is completely naked.
'Wait a minute...'
Lars' eyes scan to his left and see a disturbing scene of a man and a woman on the verge of copulating, as the woman was embracing Claude. He was rendered speechless upon learning the situation that he witness that's about to transpire.
'Lucky bastard! Even when he's asleep!'
Despite his thoughts showing on his face, he could only cast his head down and return to his bed. Avoiding eye contact with the woman. At his bed, his head was filled with the images of the naked woman on top of Claude. Lars could only grit his teeth in jealousy. He couldn't even wink because of that. Furthermore, the woman had begun making noises enough for everyone on the same floor as them to hear, but luckily enough, the walls were soundproof.
Lars peeks over to Erik to see whether he's awake or not. 'What the heck?! How can you sleep through the erotic moan?! I'm the only one who needs to suffer through this?! I can't even do anything because I'm scared of the woman... She's definitely a psycho... Claude caught a bad one, but she's hot so why not. Aaaah! Please let me sleep!'