The Burning Flowers

Chapter XIV

In celebration of the conclusion of the orientation matches, the dormitory commons, as well as the yard where the previous night’s practice duels took place, became crowded with teams gathering together to enjoy the final night before their school lives truly began. Some groups had somber expressions, using the uplifting atmosphere as a way to distract themselves from the losses of that day, while others were letting out their excitement as they reveled in the rushes of relief and joy that came with their victories. There was even a group who had jumped up on their table and started dancing and singing a rather popular folk song, glasses of ale in their hands. As for Abi and her team, they chose to sit in a rather secluded part on the far side of the lawn as they quietly enjoyed their own victory.

Though, as nice as it is that we managed to scrape out a win and claim our first rank, in the end, it’s kind of bittersweet.

While both Nigreos and Ryokumo were present at the table with her, talking softly to one another as they drank their own ale, there was still no sign of Album. Once the mages in charge of getting the arena set up for the next match cast the spell that would both wake Album up and heal the damage to her body, she hadn’t said more than a few words. As their group gathered back in the stands, she stood silently on the sidelines, and before long, she had disappeared altogether. However, having heard from Ryokumo what specifically happened during their fight with Jessi and Hirokol, Abi couldn’t say she was surprised. After stressing so much about not disappointing her parents, Album was eliminated within mere minutes of the match beginning, leaving Ryokumo to pick up her slack and handle everything on his own. Abi could only imagine how crushed her roommate was.

I just wish she would come join us. I know it might not feel like a cause to celebrate for her, but I could at least be there to comfort her.

Abi knew that Album was probably blaming herself for what happened. According to Nigreos, the reason that her arms suddenly gave out like they did was because she overcompensated for her lack of mana, which resulted in the excess mana exiting her body through any means necessary, so when she cast her light magic, it burst through her arms and left her open for Hirokol to take her out.

I hope you’re okay, Album.

“Abi.”

At the soft call of her name, she stopped absently gazing at the contents of her glass and raised her head to stare back at Nigreos sitting across from her, a gentle smile on his face.

“Don’t worry about Album,” he told her. “It’ll take some time, but she’ll move past this. She always has.”

“Er… Yeah, I know, but…”

Irritated by the fact that she was read so easily, Abi awkwardly chuckled after trailing off, unsure of what to say in response. And, taking the chance to fill the silence for her, Nigreos went on.

“Honestly, you should be celebrating after your performance today. Without you, I’m not sure how much longer I could have held Rennigan off. That dome was brilliant on your part.”

His voice was comforting, and despite her concerns for Album, she found that his words really did ease her mind a little bit. She was proud of her performance and she hoped that it was enough to live up to Grunly’s expectations. The Master of Nature spent so much time encouraging her and she always felt like he was expecting more out of her than she could actually accomplish.

So was this enough? Did I perform as well as he hoped?

“Thank you, Nigreos,” she responded after a few seconds of thought. “But it wasn’t perfect. I should have been able to hold Faye off for longer. If I could have bought you just a few more seconds then—”

“Then what?” he interrupted with a curious eyebrow. “We could have beaten Rio faster?” He laughed to himself and shook his head. “As sad as I am to admit it, you two didn’t need me from that point on. What’s important is that you set me up to knock out Rennigan and because of that, the two of you only had one enemy left to face. It all worked out in the end.”

He then took a sip of his drink and while his voice was pleasant, making it sound like it wasn’t that big of a deal, Abi could tell that Nigreos was disappointed. The entire point of that battle for him and Album was to live up to the high expectations that were placed upon them, but despite winning the match, the two of them were the only ones eliminated. She didn’t imagine that the Masters of Darkness and Light would be terribly pleased with the results, and she could see in his eyes that he was trying to put on a happy face for their sake.

But his failure was on me. He trusted me to protect him from Faye and I couldn’t do it, so I hope Master Noctis understands that. Nigreos did everything perfectly.

“Yes, it all worked out in the end,” Ryokumo suddenly chimed in with his upbeat and cheerful tone. “A victory is a victory, and we got a victory, just as I told you guys we would. I had perfect faith in us and I think today is a good omen for days to come!” He raised his glass out over the center of the table and grinned. “To a happy and successful future, my friends!”

Nigreos didn’t hesitate to reach out and lightly tap his own glass against Ryokumo’s and, pushing aside her darker emotions for the moment, Abi did the same. Once all three were in the center, she and Nigreos repeated his toast before they all took a drink, though Ryokumo simply downed the entire glass before slamming it on the table with a satisfied sigh.

“Yeah, that hits the spot,” he muttered with a light burp, his cheeks a soft hue of red. “Nothing like a good glass of ale after a battle well fought, eh?”

Nigreos snorted. “How many of those have you had?”

“Don’t know,” Ryokumo grunted. “I stopped counting after three. But if I had to guess, I’d say at least one more than this one.”

Then, with a slightly drunk laugh, he jumped to feet and took off toward the commons in search of his next refill. They watched him go and Nigreos simply rolled his eyes before returning to savoring his own ale. Abi, too, had only finished half of hers, though that was primarily due to her distaste for alcohol. It was always so expensive so she could never spare the cash to buy some during her time in the north, and after deciding to splurge on it one night at a Harunhein inn, she quickly decided it was too bitter for her tastes and not worth the money, though every time she said this to people she met on the road, they always insisted it was an acquired taste and she needed to try more.

Guess I haven’t acquired it yet, she decided, then took another sip and gently returned it to its resting spot on the table.

“You guys really did perform beyond my expectations today,” Nigreos suddenly murmured, drawing Abi’s attention to the one member of her team still sitting at the table. “I mean, I knew you would be talented, but between your trick to beat Rennigan and Ryokumo taking out Pafran and Yuahl on his own…” He shrugged. “It’s just amazing. I don’t think I could have asked for a better team.”

When Nigreos looked up and the two stared into each others’ eyes, Abi could see that, despite his disappointment, he did mean what he said.

“Nor could I,” she replied. “And I’m excited for the days to come. I’ve heard so much about this school from Master Grunly, and with first rank already attained, I think Ryokumo’s right. It’s a good omen. And you guys…” Recalling the pleasant feeling she got whenever she used her sense on the three members of the team, Abi found herself able to say her next words with the utmost of confidence. “You guys are people I can trust and I’ll be here for you, through thick and thin. I promise.”

For a moment, there was a surprised look in Nigreos’s eyes, and she thought she saw consideration flash across his features. “Tell me something, Abi… Master Grunly recruited you…because you created a healing spell the Citadel mages couldn’t, right?”

“Uh, yeah, that’s the short version, I guess,” she answered, curious to know why he was clarifying that all of a sudden. But unfortunately, she didn’t get an answer before her attention shifted over Nigreos’s shoulder to a group of four heading right toward them. “Oh, here they come.”

Both she and Nigreos had expected a visit from their rival team so neither were terribly surprised as they watched Faye, Hirokol, and Jessi crossing the lawn and making their way toward their table, and equally as unsurprising was the absence of Rennigan. Though expecting it didn't manage to ease her nerves now that the time to talk to them had arrived. At the end of the day, she and her team were responsible for sending Faye and Jessi into second rank, and even if Faye didn’t hold a grudge, she still felt a twinge of sadness at how things ended up. She still sought to be friends with them, but it pained her knowing that they had to start their relationship off as enemies.

“Abigail, you madwoman!” Faye exclaimed with a hearty laugh as they reached the table. “I honestly meant it when I said that fight was fun! I haven’t had a rush like that in a long time.”

Just like that, Faye’s pleasant demeanor and cheerful attitude eliminated a good chunk of that regret as Abi got to her feet with Nigreos to face them.

“Yeah, it was really fun!” she said with a grin. “You were nearly impossible to beat! If not for Ryokumo coming in when he did, you would have had me taken down on the spot, I’m sure of it.”

Faye dismissed her comment with a wave of her hand. “I don’t know about that. I was running pretty low on mana, too, you know? It probably would have still been a tossup.”

“And where is Caeli anyway?” Jessi quickly piped in, her lip curled in a pout as she scanned their immediate surroundings. “I need to have a chat with that bastard so I can send a swift kick into his Sukonese nuts! That guy was such a tricky jerk!”

As Abi was trying to determine how much Jessi was joking, Hirokol stepped in and placed an arm around his whining friend’s shoulders. “Ah, don’t be like that, Jess. Caeli won fair and square, and that distortion trick he used was certainly something. I honestly thought we had it when Luz went down, but oh well. Teaches me to underestimate my enemy.” Then, with a charming grin, the young wind mage raised his free hand in a wave. “Nice to properly meet you guys, by the way. I’m Hiro.”

Abi and Nigreos responded with their own names and Abi made sure to properly introduce her teammate to Faye and Jessi, as well, who hadn’t met him outside of the battle. Similarly to when she met Album, Jessi gazed at Nigreos as in awe then chuckled to herself, though she didn’t say anything to the dark mage. Once the pleasantries were out of the way, Abi then asked the question that she already felt knew the answer to, but still felt like putting it to words.

“So, where’s Glaus?” she inquired. “Did he not feel like talking?”

Faye snorted, and for the first time, Abi thought she saw a bit of genuine anger in the girl’s eyes. “Nope. I guess he was so confident he could beat Noctis that losing was a big blow to his ego. Instead, he’s just sulking back at the commons.”

Seeming to also recognize the irritation in Faye’s tone, Nigreos then smirked knowingly. “So I take it that he’s not the most cooperative teammate?”

“Oh, not at all,” Hiro answered with a snort of his own. “No matter how many times we told him that it would be better for him to take on Abigail since his ice magic would be better suited to combatting her nature abilities, he just insisted that he fight you instead. Originally we planned to have Faye take you on since we figured you’d have a hard time breaching her armor in broad daylight, but we couldn’t convince him.”

“Then, our luck took an even worse turn when we found out Caeli was a wind mage,” Jessi added with a huff. “My fire has never been good against wind so once Hiro went down, I was fucked!”

“And then, when we were strategizing in the steam, I gave one last shot to convince him to go after you, Abi, since I knew I couldn’t beat you, but again, he insisted that he knew what he was doing.” Faye folded her arms across her chest and grimaced. “And clearly, he didn’t.”

Now, Abi could see annoyed expressions on all three of their faces, and it seemed to her as if they’d all unanimously agreed that Rennigan was to blame for their loss. It meant that Nigreos’s bet that Rennigan would put all his effort into beating him was what predominantly provided them with the chance to claim victory.

And with how close the battle was, I don’t think we could have won had Rennigan done what the others suggested. Maybe we owe our victory to him as much as to our own tricks and skills.

“Yeah, he’s always been like that,” Nigreos muttered. “I’ve known him since we were both kids and I’d usually see him in the Citadel whenever I was visiting my father. He’s always hated me, though I’m not really sure why. Maybe it’s just a pride thing, but…” He sighed and gave them all an apologetic look. “I’m sorry about that. You guys probably would have won if you’d been paired up with any other group.”

“Maybe,” Hiro said. “But honestly, it was still kinda fun, second rank or not. We oughta spar again someday.”

Even more relief flooded into Abi’s body as Faye, Hiro, and Jessi all smiled at them. She was glad that she not only had a team she could rely on, but now had friends outside of her own group. Like always, however, she couldn’t help but briefly activate her sense, focusing primarily on Hirokol since he was the only one she had never tested it on, and as expected, she found him as trustworthy as Faye and Jessi, putting her brief fears at ease.

Though, while I’m not surprised that the three of them are people I can rely on…

Abi frowned and glanced back over her shoulder to scan her torchlit surroundings, seeking an individual that she knew most likely wouldn’t appear while recalling the previous day on that very lawn.

It is surprising to me that my sense isn’t at least a little wary of Rennigan. It just makes me wonder…

***

With a jolly pep in his step, Ryokumo sauntered across the training grounds and back into the commons, the outside lounge area right in the center of the four dormitory towers being where the majority of the celebration was taking place. After their success in their orientation match, he found himself in a better mood than he had been in for quite some time, and while he was rather concerned for Album, he knew she would inevitably bounce back. A victory was a victory, as he told the others, and their claiming first rank would only provide Album with more opportunities in the future to prove her worth. Since they knew what went wrong in this particular situation, they knew how to avoid it happening again.

All she’s gotta do is go easy on the medication, Ryokumo internally remarked. And she’s well aware of that, so I’m sure she’s going to be fine! I just wish Abi knew as much. She has far too somber of a look on her face after what was an absolutely amazing performance!

As he arrived back in the crowded commons, he briefly wondered if there was anything he might be able to do to cheer her up, but the alcohol was starting to fog up his brain and after a moment’s thought, he found himself unable to come up with anything so he instead continued on his way to procure a refill.

Ah, whatever. Abi’ll be okay. She seemed to be perking up a bit when I left anyway. And rightfully so! Good on Nigreos for talking her up like that! Though, as proud as I am of us, I can’t help but wonder if we made a strong enough impression on the spectators.

His thoughts shifted to the individuals that had watched the battles from the luxury box. Not only had Masters Acostav Luz, Viiro Noctis, and Edwar Grunly been present, but Princess Ilirianna had been there as well. It was an audience of ridiculously important and influential individuals, and with Nigreos, Album, and Abi all in the same team, Ryokumo was certain that they would have watched their match very closely.

With any luck, the eyes of the princess were on us, too, but with both Nigreos and Album going down, were Abi and I enough to impress her? At the very least, will my name stick in her head and leave a positive impression?

Oddly enough, he was more anxious about it than he thought he would be, and he figured that was probably due to how close the fight had been. If he’d defeated Jessi any later and not arrived when he did, Faye might have bested Abi. Ryokumo wasn’t certain he could have won that duel on his own.

Yeah, we cut it pretty close, but we still won, and even if we don’t leave our mark on the princess, we’ve at least begun our time here on the right foot! We’ve achieved first rank, and therefore, we’ll be assigned to the more important missions. Ryokumo smiled to himself. And with higher level assignments come more opportunities to show off what we can do. Then, I’ll be one step closer…

Pushing past a few individuals chatting in the walkway, Ryokumo finally came to the small sitting area just in the center of the commons, the ground made of cobblestone with a firepit in the middle, surrounded by outdoor lounge chairs that were all filled with celebrating students. To the very left was the bar and that was his destination so, with a flippant grin on his face, Ryokumo stalked over to the counter and placed his empty glass on its surface, drawing the attention of the older bartender, who gave him an exasperated look.

“Fill me up, Barkeep,” Ryokumo said, slightly slurring his words.

The man eyed him suspiciously. “How many of these have you had? I swear this is the fifth time I’ve seen you!”

“Uh…” Looking to the sky in consideration, the wind mage merely shrugged and chuckled to himself. “Well, about that, I don’t remember, but it certainly wasn’t enough.”

He winked at the bartender, who just sighed. “One more, then you’re done. I don’t need you starting any drunken fights!”

“Wouldn’t dream of it!”

With his ale begrudgingly refilled, Ryokumo thanked the man with a bow and turned to start making his way to the training grounds so he could rejoin Abi and Nigreos, but just as he broke free of the crowd and returned to the lawn, he saw out of the corner of his eye a lone individual sitting quietly at one of the tables, occasionally sipping his own beer. Deciding that it was the perfect setup to have a bit of fun, Ryokumo stalked toward the young man, whose back was currently to him. Wanting to surprise the fellow, he put some magic into his feet to silence his footsteps and once he was right behind him, he threw his arm around his shoulders.

“If it isn’t my best friend, Rennigan Glaus!” Ryokumo exclaimed cheerfully, causing the water mage to give a startled jump.

Since the arm around Rennigan was the one holding the ale, the sudden movement caused Ryokumo to spill a good portion of his drink all over the young man’s uniform.

“You utter buffoon!” Rennigan cried out, jumping to his feet and yanking Ryokumo’s arm off of him as he stepped back to look down at clothes. “Look at what you’ve done! I just got this cleaned yesterday!”

But despite the man’s anger, Ryokumo could only laugh, finding his reaction far more amusing than it probably was. “Oh, stop being so dramatic, buddy! You’re a water mage so just spritz it with a bit of magic and poof! It’ll be all better again! And did you just call me a buffoon? Is that supposed to be insulting?”

Ryokumo continued to cackle, much to Rennigan’s clear dismay, and seeming to decide that berating him any further was pointless, the young man merely snorted and glanced around, as if trying to seek out the rest of Ryokumo’s team.

“Can I help you with something?” Rennigan snapped bitterly once he seemed certain the others weren’t around. “Or are you just here to spill your drink on me?”

“Oi, oi! I didn’t do that on purpose!” he quickly protested. “You think I wanted to waste some of my precious ale?! The barkeep said this was my last one, after all! In fact, I’ve basically wasted half of it, so really, I’m the one who should be upset! Like I said, you can wash your shirt, but my ale is gone for good!”

“What. Do. You. Want?” Rennigan demanded once more through gritted teeth, his golden eyes showing a rage that he was just barely keeping held inside.

“What do I want?” Ryokumo parroted then took a moment to try and remember the reason he had come over, before recalling that he hadn’t had a reason and simply wanted to tease him. “Ah, well, I just thought I’d come by and say good game! I was hoping I’d see the rest of your team, but oh well. You’ll do fine!”

Initially, Rennigan just stared at him and, content to wait for a response, Ryokumo just grinned back before taking a large chug of ale, downing half of the remaining contents at once. He then let out a relaxed and content belch, and finally, the other man just sneered at him.

“It truly is a miracle that scum like you was ever allowed into this school,” he spat. “You’re an embarrassment, Caeli. Why don’t you show some tact and at least act like you belong here!”

Ryokumo furrowed his brow and smirked. “Funny coming from the guy whose team I beat! In fact, I took Yuahl and Pafran down all by myself! So I wouldn’t call it a miracle at all! This scum got in through his own magnificent talents!” He pointed at himself with his free thumb and downed the rest of his ale in one more gulp. “And you…? What happened to you again? Oh, right! Nigreos Noctis kicked your ass! Ahahahahaha!”

With that, Rennigan’s face turned bright red, a stark contrast to his pale skin and silver hair, as he turned on his heel, seemingly about to walk away before apparently changing his mind. With a furious glare, he looked over his shoulder and narrowed his eyes.

“You might have won this time,” he growled. “But don’t get cocky, Caeli.”

With a final threat, Rennigan departed in the direction of the commons, leaving Ryokumo standing alone by the water mage’s abandoned table. However, he was perfectly satisfied with this as he turned, set down his own empty glass, and instead picked up Rennigan’s barely touched ale.

Well…if he doesn’t want it…

Ryokumo laughed to himself and took another long swig of alcohol, feeling even more proud of himself.

I win.

***

The sounds of celebration could be heard off in the distance, but to Album Luz, it felt like it was realms away from her. The cheer that everybody else felt at the conclusion of their orientation was not felt in her. Instead, her body was overwhelmed with shame, embarrassment, disappointment, and fear. Her team had won, but she had lost. She had lost so miserably that there was no excuse that could be made for her. She failed to support Ryokumo and barely lasted a few minutes before she was taken down. Despite warnings, she still overate the gigga root, and the side effects screwed her over. She was certain that, despite the performances of the other three, she had single-handedly destroyed their attempts to sway Princess Ilirianna to their side. After all, why would the heir of the empire want to work alongside somebody that failed so miserably.

And unsurprisingly, she wasn’t the only one who believed this.

Standing alone in a darkened corner of the campus, just off the main path and under one of the trees that were scattered across the lawns, Album stood with tears in her eyes as her father, Acostav, grabbed her face in his firm grasp, forcing her to stare up into his hate-filled black eyes. Nobody else was around—not Eko, Nigreos, nor even Abi and Ryokumo. She was alone with the father that she failed.

Though even if somebody were here, they wouldn’t intervene and save me. Who would stand up against the great Acostav Luz for me?

“Do you understand what you have done?” her father hissed, his voice low and his face just inches from hers. “You have not only failed, but you practically took our family down with you. You were the first one out and you went down like a pathetic bitch!”

“I’m…sorry…” she sobbed, her body shaking and her vision clouding with tears.

“Sorry doesn’t cut it anymore,” he growled threateningly. “Ever since you were small, I’ve been doing my damndest to fix you and I had to pull so many strings to get you into this godforsaken Academy! The least you could do is try not to make a mockery of the Luz!”

“I…am trying…”

“YOU ARE NOT!”

The only reason she didn’t flinch back at his sudden shout was because of how tightly he had her face held.

“Listen to me, Album,” he went on fiercely. “You are going to inherit the erased realms and when you do, you will be one of the most feared people in this empire. Erasure is like wielding the power of the gods. It allows you to bend reality to your will and alter the memories of every soul in this realm and all the others. It is a terrifying power and a huge responsibility! And you know as well as I do that the royalty and the other Masters fear us.”

Acostav smirked bitterly, his grip tightening so much that her cheeks were practically screaming in pain, but she refused to allow even a whimper to escape her lips.

“Yes…” he whispered. “They are scared of us. They have people in Noctalus watching over your mother. Markreas and every Iiji that preceded him are terrified of us, as they should be. We are terrifying. Now…” His face drew even closer to hers and the voids that were his eyes caused her shiver. “You know all of this. You know this burden has to be yours, because Markreas would never allow me to give it to Eko as the next Master of Light. But if you can’t pull yourself together, then you will die. So why can’t you just do what I tell you to do?!”

I do try though, she replied in the privacy of her head, knowing her father would never believe her if she voiced it. I do everything I can, but I’m just not good enough. I can’t produce mana fast enough. My body just won’t do it… I want you to be proud of me, Father! I want to be the daughter you want! But I keep trying and I keep failing!

“And now you’re crying,” he spat as the wall keeping her emotions in check broke apart. “You will begin inheriting the erased realm within the year. Use this time at the Academy to fix yourself.

“Do not disappoint me again.”