When Jayce came back to the academy, he felt a sense of unease in the air. The lively and cheerful mood that usually filled the place was now subdued, as if the academy was under a dark cloud because of what had happened. Master Yi, the respected and wise blademaster, walked up to Jayce with a serious look on his face. Jayce had never seen him look like that before.
"Jayce," Master Yi said, his voice full of worry. He called him by his name, not 'Trainee' or 'Trainee Jayce' as he usually did. "I have bad news. Your friend, Ekko, is badly hurt."
Jayce felt a pang of fear in his chest, his mind filled with anxiety. He ran to the infirmary, following Master Yi's urgent tone. When he got there, he saw a horrible sight. Ekko was on a bed, covered in bandages, his face twisted with agony. Three mages were around him, their hands shining with healing magic, their faces tense.
At the end of the bed, Poppy, Ekko's best friend, cried quietly, her tears streaming down. She looked at Jayce, her eyes full of despair and blame. "Where were you?" she asked him, her voice shaking with emotion.
Jayce came closer, his voice concerned, "What happened?"
Poppy told him what had happened, her voice broken with grief. "Ekko went to face Varus, to make him stop from marrying Celeste. They got into a fight, and they agreed to a duel to the death. This is what Varus did to Ekko."
Jayce felt a burst of rage in his heart, but he calmed himself down, focusing on what he had to do. He gently moved Poppy away and sat next to Ekko's bed. He used the healing magic chant of the Hart Clan and the Moonshade Clan together, and put his hands over Ekko's hurt body. A warm golden light came from his hands, and went into Ekko's wounds.
Ekko's breathing became easier, his pain became less, and he looked at Jayce. He was very thankful, and he weakly pulled Jayce closer. "I promise, Jayce, I didn't want to do anything stupid. Varus… he did something to me, to my feelings. It made me want to…"
Jayce stopped him gently, putting a finger on Ekko's lips. "Rest now, Ekko. We'll talk about it later. You need to heal."
The other mages observed Jayce's healing magic in awe before examining Ekko and putting him to sleep with an anesthetic. "Thanks to your very impressive healing magic, he will live, but he may never be strong enough to wield a sword again," one of the mages said. "His tissue are too severely damaged."
"But his dream has always been to become a Knight," Jayce said.
"I'm sorry, it's not what you want to hear," came the response. "But there's nothing we can do."
Jayce stepped out of the infirmary to breathe some fresh air. He wandered into the busy corridors of the academy, where trainees were hurrying to their classes, but Jayce ignored them.
He was lost in his thoughts, and he didn't notice the young man walking towards him until they bumped into each other. Jayce was thrown to the ground while the young man, who looked like a senior, stood there looking irritated.
Jayce was suddenly in the grip of a blind rage that dulled his senses and made him see red. Master Yi who had come to check up on Ekko tried to restrain him but to no avail.
The senior who had bumped into him said: "Hey kid, you owe me an apology."
Infuriated by the senior's attitude, Jayce got in his face. "If anyone should be apologizing, it's you! Watch where you're going!"
The senior, a good-looking young man in his final year, merely smirked in response, his arrogance on full display. "Apologize? Why should I?" he sneered.
"Because you bumped into me, you blind nitwit," Jayce said losing his senses completely.
The senior's smirk widened into a challenging grin. "Very well, if you're so eager for an apology, how about a duel? Let's see if you're as skilled as you think you are."
He felt his temper rise, and he lost his calm as he agreed to the duel. He said: "Fine, let's duel. I'm not afraid of you. You're the one who should apologize for being so rude."
"Jayce," Master Yi warned, his voice filled with concern, "think carefully before accepting this duel."
Jayce's composure wavered, and his voice trembled with a hint of anger as he replied, "I don't care! I accept the duel. This idiot needs to be taught a lesson!"