-Shiingggg-
The sound of a fierce and frustrated blade slides and parries Aeron's sword. His mind reeled into the sudden intensity his sister displayed. He let her blade move him away before he turned to strike her left shoulder. Ainaira caught on but she was still recovering from her strike, thus she moved her foot to give her time to block his blade the moment she recovered.
The twins share blades until Ainaira gets frustrated, pierces the ground with the sword, and walks off.
Aeron stared at her with an emotionless face. His eyes scanned her frown and the occasional huffs and puffs. "She seems distracted..."
Ray and Jamil, who were watching them, also noticed the girl's antsy demeanor. This had been a routine during weaponry class. After Ray and Jamil were done doing their practice they would watch the twins do their blade work.
In the distance, Ainaira was wiping her face with a towel, she looked incredibly distracted, frustrated, and impatient. her foot tap on the grass with her sighing every minute or two.
She had been thinking about her conversation about Maximus. She thought of ways the conversation would go but she had no idea how they even tackle a problem they didn't know the cause of. For now, her goal was to not get arrested.
Wait... wait could it be?
While she was lost in her thoughts, Aeron took notice of Maximus walking on the horizon. "The hell are you doing here?" He was immediately unfriendly and cold upon seeing the sorcerer.
Before Max spoke, Ainaira saw him and dashed towards him, gripping his arms and clinging to it. Her eyes looked as if she had it all figured out. A crazy assumption but she was always the one to think of craziness. She did do a lot of crazy and obsessed things in her first life. "You are coming with me, in private." She said firmly and didn't let him reply before she walked out of the class.
the 3 men who witnessed what happened were confused. More importantly, Aeron had a cold look... Much colder and expressionless than usual after seeing her sister grab his friend like that.
----
Ainaira led the gray-haired man at the back of the academy. Located behind the girl's dormitory.
"Should I be here...?" he asked cautiously, his mind remembering that male students are not allowed inside a female dormitory without a formal letter.
"That doesnt matter," She shakes her head dismissively. Ainaira closes her eyes, taking deep breaths. Her reincarnation, the lack of voices in her head, and lastly her body knowing how to do spells she shouldn't have at the current timeline. All those thoughts formulated a wild guess, she knows is ridiculous.
She opened her eyes, parting her lips as her eyes showed stern determination, "you can do time manipulation, can you?"
The moment those words rang into Max's ears, his expression turned neutral. His eyes looked down at her just as a gleam of amusement flashed on his face. "now," he chuckled darkly, "how did you know that?"
Giving her that look, she took a step back. She crossed her arms, feigning nonchalance. They stare at each other, seizing the other party's intentions. Max's lips pulled to one side, forming a pensive expression. Then it all clicked, His eyes went wide open. "oh!" he clasped his hand. "no. I got nothing," his head looked away from her with a cheeky pout.
"The hell? Do you want me to slap you again or what?" She said annoyed as she shook his shoulders.
Laughing at her digression, he smiled widely with an amused smile, "now, now, I'm just trying to lighten the mood. maybe if I joke. You might be more inclined to tell me?" He tilts his head.
"It makes me want to slit your throat," She glares.
"you're.... seriously like your brother..."
Ainaira let out an exasperated sigh, removing her hands from his shoulders and keeping them crossed over her chest. "Look... I have a confession..."
Max gasped as he dramatically have a hand placed on his chest. his eyes sparkled like a puppy but it quickly went away when she smacked his shoulders.
"Ugh, take this seriously will you?"
"Then dont start a line where it sounds like a love confession, Pumpkin"
"no.. no dont call me that or i might just kill you here," she was irritated, running her hands through her uneven cuts she groaned and just spoke up, "LOOK! this is my second life. I remember so vividly dying-"
With a great pause, Ainaira looked conflicted, she touches her throat. The wounds isnt there but she can recall the sensation, the pain, the coldness of her last moment. He could see that- For a split second, Maximus expression turned serious. Silent.
"So, that would explain your out of character personality..." He said softly with a calucating look, staring at the blue haired girl.
She shot him a irrirated tone, albiet it was softer due to being affected by remember her past, "You dont know me aside from the rumours and my brother opinions-"
"Yeah, buuttt you know? It's strange that everyone around you is shock about your current personality. Believe it or not, your brother had always observed you," He smirked at her. In return, Anaira merely scowl and looked away.
There was a brief silent between them before Ainaira let out a sigh and blankly poke his cheeks.
"So, Why did you turn back time? i remember everything but how come you dont?"
Max looked down at her with a calm yet pensive expression before giving up and shrugging, "I have no idea. My time manipulation must've improved in the future to let others remember the timeline before the rewind. Though it seems like I can only do it with one person and sacrifice my knowledge that i reversed time."
She doesnt know how to feel when she heard him explained what he thinks. Impresssed? It was definitely one of those. He was able to deduce that with certainty even if he has no way of testing his hypothesis out. It shows how much grasp he has with his own powers. On the other hand, she doesn't know whether or not she should be wary of him. In her first life, they barely spoke or even saw each other so why would he turn back time and let her have all her memories from before the reversal? She wanted those to be answered but she couldn't. He wont also know the answer nor can he deduce it with so little information. Ainaira didnt realize that she was lost in thoughts until Max shot a small electric current through her fingers.
"ow- HEy!" She grumbled, glaring at him.
Pouting, Max huffed his chest. "I was trying to get your attention," he says, "as i was saying... what you said would explain why you have my magic scent."
That's true. If he used his magic to reverse time and made so she can remember the first timeline then that would explain why she has his scent.
but, that doesnt explain why I cant hear the voices? If the time rewinded then the voices would've been there and noticed it. Anaira mind was at work but atleast few of her questioned got answered.
"Hold on," She says, grabbng Max shoulders, "The time reversed permanently, that means I have your scent forever??"
She looked absolutely mortified as she shakes Maximus. She refuse it. How could it be? her odorless mana now has a smell and its the same as the annoying sorcerer. "AHH NOOO!" She yelled and whined, "Give my normal mana back! my oderless mana!!"
"wha- hey, stop shaking me-" He says with a shock expression, "jeez, i never expected you to throw a tantrum."
It took 5 minutes for Ainaira to calm down. She was sitting on the grown, curled up and dejected. Soon enough, she rose from her feet. "We went sidetrack," She mummbles, "You came to talk to me about Count Bert right?"
He completely almost forgot about his objectives. Right, Maximus needs to know about the Count's death and whether or not he should snitch Ainaira to his Master.