-Asher Frostblade's point of view.
Back in his room, Asher walked to the balcony and looked up at the night sky.
Then he sighed and looked down, observing the cadets walking at this time of night. In particular, there were some who were not alone.
Asher always watched a couple of cadets; in fact, they were the same ones who passed by again and again at this same hour.
"Every night," Asher thought.
They were two cadets, the same ones who used to walk near the building and sit together every night.
Asher watched everything with curiosity.
"Why are they out at this hour? Most cadets should be sleeping or training."
It was midnight. There was only light from a few headlights, few and far between and scattered over long distances, making it barely illuminate the campus roads.
Those two cadets, however....
One male cadet, with dark hair and hazel eyes, was undoubtedly handsome to most. The other cadet, a girl with long, silky light green hair and eyes of the same color.
The two always walked together, holding hands. When they sat on a bench next to a lighthouse, they were usually close together.
Still, Asher was increasingly curious about what they were doing.
Of course, they always seemed to be talking, and after an hour, they would go their separate ways.
"Are they planning something?" he thought.
Maybe they had something malicious in mind, like causing some disturbance.
After all, it was common for some cadets to cause trouble at the academy, especially in the classrooms.
However, these two seemed to always get together, whispering in each other's ears and laughing. Then they would suddenly become serious, which would strike anyone as odd, and Asher noticed it.
Maybe they were up to something, or maybe he was wrong. Although Asher wasn't the type to worry about other people's problems or disturbances at the academy, these two cadets had him intrigued.
"I'll watch them some more," he decided.
Knock, knock.
Someone knocked on his door, interrupting his surveillance of the two cadets.
Asher went to the door and opened it instantly.
Suddenly, his heart pounded and his eyes widened in surprise.
What was he doing here?
"May I come in?"
"Yes...," he replied.
Asher watched Oriana walk in.
What the hell was she doing here?
He'd had a lot of visitors in his room lately, like Encrid, Isabella, and now Elizabeth.
However, it didn't bother him. Of course, he didn't mind Oriana being here either, but he wondered why they were looking for him all of a sudden.
"What are you doing here?"
"Can't I come?"
"It's not that."
Asher looked at her, and she scanned the room as she spoke.
"You seem to be very tidy."
"I am."
"Well, then..."
She looked toward the balcony and walked over.
Asher followed her, and they both stepped out onto the balcony.
There was silence, until Oriana looked down, hearing some murmuring.
"What are they doing?"
"I thought the same thing too."
"Huh?"
She looked at Asher with a raised eyebrow, then looked back at the two cadets.
"They're coming out."
"..."
What did she mean?
Asher wondered, looking at Oriana in confusion, but his doubt was quickly dispelled.
"You were looking at a dating couple."
"..."
Engaged couple...?
"Ah."
Then it dawned on Asher.
All this time, those two cadets were sweethearts, though Asher never thought of it that way. They simply aroused his curiosity, and so he was watching them for a moment.
However, who would have thought it?
"What's that?"
"..."
Oriana looked incredulously at Asher.
"It's a joke, isn't it?"
"Yes, it is."
"Haa..."
She sighed in relief, she seemed to have calmed down quite a bit by confirming the truth.
However, Oriana looked at Asher with confusion.
This brat somehow really didn't seem to know anything about it.
Still, Asher kept his cool and averted his gaze. To a certain extent, being with Oriana made him nervous; who knows, some false move and he might get hit.
However, this didn't seem to be one of those moments. Oriana stared at him as her thoughts were clear.
"I guess he doesn't know they're boyfriend and girlfriend, does he?" she wondered.
"Even though he said it was a joke...but what if it's true?"
"Geniuses are usually like that."
In fact, it was quite common to see very talented magicians who were not good in some areas, such as romance or love.
Looking at this scene of Asher....
"I think I'm right," she said to herself, confirming it.
"You're talented at everything and you're smart, but you don't know anything about love, do you?"
She got it right the first time.
"Haa..."
Then she sighed and focused again on the two cadets still seated.
Asher looked at the two cadets as well, but quickly turned his gaze back to Oriana.
"So, you won't say why you came?"
"That's right, I forgot."
"..."
"I just came to check on you, though."
"I'm fine."
"Your mentality isn't getting worse."
"It's getting worse."
"I just want you to know there is a way to get you back."
Asher looked at Oriana in surprise.
"How?"
"But it's impossible."
"..."
He quickly dropped his gaze from her and frowned as he looked down.
Did she really come here for nonsense, or just to annoy him?
"Then, I'll be going."
"Yes."
Without further ado, Oriana left the room as Asher watched the two cadets. Did Oriana really just come to annoy him, or did she have some other reason?
Although he felt somewhat defeated, his curiosity got the better of him.
It was obvious that Oriana wanted to tell him something important, and of course, Asher knew immediately that she really did know the way to recover from his mental exhaustion. However, it seemed he couldn't tell her so easily.
Perhaps the cure was some kind of secret.
Whatever it was, Asher decided to let it go.
Somehow, he didn't feel so worried about his mental exhaustion, even though he knew he had to snap out of it.
Somehow, he would find a way to recover.
Of course, he still didn't know how or when, but eventually he would try.
"Haa..."
He sighed and kept his gaze fixed on the two cadets, who had not yet left the scene.
"Boyfriends... What was that? I don't remember, but I think I knew it before."
***
-Scene change.
-Oriana Mengral's point of view.
After leaving the building, she quickly returned to her office after a few minutes outside.
She sat down on a couch near her desk and plopped down on her back, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Oriana was immersed in thought as she remembered Aria's words.
"Don't forget that this information you must not tell anyone, especially Asher. The patriarch demanded silence on this matter, and only a few can know."
That meant Oriana could not tell Asher how to recover.
However, she knew that affinity was unique. No matter where she looked, that affinity belonged to the unknown era, the same era that revealed the existence of the tenth circle mages.
However, that era is still completely unknown, and there is almost no information about it. Nevertheless, this newly discovered affinity was an important finding.
The patriarch of the Hazard family was one of the few mages immersed in the research of the unknown era.
His goal was to find as much information as possible about that era. Although his purpose was unknown, quite a bit of information had been discovered thanks to him.
"Haaa..."
"Damn..."
She cursed under her breath, sighing as she continued to be immersed in her thoughts.
As much as Oriana wanted to tell Asher, she knew she couldn't, and the risk of breaching that confidentiality weighed heavily on her shoulders. As a mage and a teacher, she respected the rules and couldn't act impulsively, but she couldn't help but feel the weight of guilt.
Helplessness consumed her. She knew Asher's mental condition was getting worse with each passing day, and if she didn't do something, she would lose him in less than a year. It was a frustrating situation, especially when she had spent so much time working with him, even if it was just a little over a year since they had become teacher and disciple.
Oriana tried to distract herself. She got up from the couch and walked over to her desk. There, she flipped through some reports and papers looking for anything useful.
"Mmm..." she mumbled as she flipped through the documents. "Nothing about the rift."
Suddenly, a title caught his eye: "Expert Mages in Mental Recovery."
He frowned and dismissed the idea immediately. Attempting to recover the mind by magic was too dangerous. The possibility of worsening Asher's mental situation was high, and Oriana wasn't willing to take that risk.
Tired, she leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes for a moment. The day had been exhausting, both mentally and physically. She knew there wasn't much more she could do, and that made her despair.
***
-Scene change.
-Asher Frostblade's point of view.
It was the next morning, and all the cadets were lined up in rows. The second stage of the evaluation was about to begin, and this time, it would take place in the combat section, which intrigued Asher. It was unclear what kind of tests they would face today, but he felt prepared for anything.
"Could it be that they changed the plans for today?" he thought as he watched the other cadets, some of whom were impatient, while others looked thoughtful.
Suddenly, Julian and Grey approached Asher.
"Hey, Asher, you seem distracted," Julian said, looking at him curiously.
"Uh..." Asher looked at them, a little confused, but understood immediately. His mind was absorbed in the possible variations of the second stage, especially what might happen during the third stage.
"I was just thinking," Asher replied.
Grey scanned the area around him before turning his attention back to Asher.
"The teachers are taking a while...especially Professor Oriana," Grey commented.
"That's true," Julian added, with a grimace of mild concern.
Asher had noticed it too. Despite having arrived only a few minutes ago, the teachers should have been there first, since they were in charge of coordinating the evaluation. Everything seemed slightly out of place.
Clank.
Suddenly, the metallic sound of the door echoed in the combat area. Professors Lucas and Oriana entered the place, and the cadets straightened up in their ranks, watching them carefully.
"Cadets," began Professor Lucas, "in addition to physical evaluations, you will have to engage in combat."
This did not surprise the cadets; many were already expecting this type of test.
"Each of you will be randomly paired, but..." Lucas paused and shifted his gaze to Asher before continuing. "Cadet Asher will be fighting against Professor Oriana. He is the strongest cadet in the second circle, and it would be unfair for any of you to face him."
"..."
Asher couldn't help but feel surprised. Whose absurd idea had it been for him to fight Oriana? He knew perfectly well what she was capable of. With a simple touch, she could crush an opponent effortlessly.
He sighed deeply. This second stage of the evaluation was going to be tougher than he had anticipated...