Chương 12: A Different Kind of Strength

The third day at the Royal Arcane Academy began with rain. It wasn't heavy enough to cancel classes, but it covered the academy grounds in a thin layer of water. Students hurried beneath umbrellas and enchanted cloaks while others simply accepted that their uniforms were going to get wet. I preferred the rain. It made the academy quieter. Alice walked beside me beneath a transparent magical barrier.

"You could have brought an umbrella."

"I did." She looked at my empty hands.

"Where is it?"

"I forgot it." She smiled.

"Of course you did."

"I remembered my books."

"That's supposed to make me feel better?"

"It should." She shook her head and adjusted the barrier so that it covered both of us.

"Come on." We continued toward the main building. Amon and Masha were already waiting near the entrance. Amon's hair was soaked. Masha looked at him.

"You didn't bring an umbrella either?"

"I forgot."

"You forgot because you were sleeping."

"I was tired."

"You slept for eight hours."

"Exactly. I needed the rest." I looked at him.

"You were late yesterday too."

"That's unrelated." Masha sighed.

"Everything with you is unrelated." Our first lesson was Magical Combat Theory. Professor Gareth stood at the front of the classroom with several wooden models arranged on a table.

"Yesterday we discussed movement." Today he pointed toward the models.

"Today we'll discuss something more important." He picked up two figures.

"Understanding your opponent." The room became quiet.

"Magic is predictable when you understand the person using it." He placed one figure in front of another.

"A Fire Mage who prefers direct attacks will usually create distance before casting." He moved the figure backward.

"A defensive mage may instead wait for the opponent to attack." He placed the second figure behind a shield.

"Your job isn't to memorize these patterns." He looked around.

"Your job is to recognize them." That lesson immediately caught my attention. I had spent most of my previous life studying people through combat. Their breathing. Their posture. Their habits. Their hesitation. A martial artist could reveal more with their feet than their mouth. The same principle applied to mages. Mana didn't erase physical habits. It only gave people more ways to hide them. Professor Gareth divided us into pairs. Each student would observe their partner and predict their next attack.

I was paired with Amon. He smiled.

"You're going down."

"We're not fighting."

"That's what makes it easier." I looked at him.

"How?"

"I'll surprise you."

"You're standing in front of me."

"Exactly." He raised his hands. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. I watched his stance. His right foot was slightly behind his left. His shoulders were relaxed. His breathing was steady. He was preparing a forward attack. Probably Fire.

"You're going to attack from the right." Amon froze.

"What?"

"Your right hand." He frowned.

"How did you know?"

"You always move your right foot backward when you're preparing to attack from that side." He immediately looked at his feet. Masha laughed from the other side of the room. Amon looked at me.

"That's unfair."

"Why?"

"You're supposed to guess."

"I did."

"Too quickly." Professor Gareth approached us.

"What did you notice?" Amon pointed at me.

"He reads people." Professor Gareth looked at me.

"Is that true?"

"I pay attention."

"That's useful." He turned to the class.

"Everyone remember this." He gestured toward Leo.

"Physical habits often reveal what someone intends to do before they use Mana." Several students began paying closer attention to one another. Amon leaned toward me.

"You've made my life harder."

"You're welcome." After class, Amon continued complaining.

"You could have warned me."

"About what?"

"That you were watching."

"That defeats the purpose." He crossed his arms.

"I'll change my stance."

"Good."

"And then you'll have no idea what I'm doing."

"Probably." He smiled.

"Excellent." I knew he was already planning his next training session. That was one of the reasons he improved so quickly. He hated being predictable. Our next lesson was Elemental Practice. Today, the instructors wanted us to practice combining two basic spells. Fire and Wind. Earth and Water. Light and Wind. Darkness and Water. I was interested in the last combination. Darkness Mana responded differently when mixed with other elements.

The instructor explained that Darkness could enhance concealment when combined with Water, making it useful for night-time movement. I formed a small amount of Darkness Mana. Then added Water. The spell became almost transparent. Interesting. It wasn't particularly powerful. But it could be useful. I adjusted the Mana ratio. The spell became darker. Then lighter. Then transparent again. The instructor stopped beside my desk.

"You're experimenting."

"Yes."

"Don't change the ratio too quickly."

"I know." He watched me for several seconds.

"You're learning faster than most students."

"Thank you." He moved on. I continued practicing. Magic had become one of my favorite things about this world. Every element had different characteristics. Every spell had limitations. And unlike my previous martial techniques, I wasn't bound by techniques someone else had created. I could experiment. I could invent. I could make mistakes without someone dying because of them. That freedom was valuable. During lunch, Alice sat beside me. She placed a small notebook on the table.

"I need your help."

"With what?"

"Light Magic." I looked at the notebook.

"What are you trying to do?"

"Increase the range of my barrier." She showed me her calculations. I read through them.

"The problem isn't the amount of Mana."

"I thought so."

"Your barrier is losing stability because you're spreading the Mana too thin." She frowned.

"Then what should I do?"

"Don't increase the range first." She looked at me.

"Then?"

"Increase the density near the center." I drew a quick diagram.

"The barrier doesn't need equal strength everywhere. If you reinforce the sections most likely to be attacked, you can use the same amount of Mana more efficiently." Alice stared at the diagram.

"That's…" She smiled.

"Actually really useful."

"I thought so." She leaned closer.

"Where did you learn that?"

"Experimenting." She studied me.

"You're always experimenting."

"It works." She laughed.

"Sometimes." Amon sat down across from us.

"What are you two talking about?"

"Magic." He immediately lost interest. Masha joined us.

"That's probably for the best." Amon looked offended.

"I understand magic." Masha glanced at him.

"You set your sleeve on fire yesterday."

"That was one time."

"Three times."

"Three unrelated times." We all laughed. After lunch, Professor Gareth announced something unexpected.

"There will be a practical assessment next week." The classroom became noisy. Some students looked excited. Others looked nervous. Professor Gareth raised his hand.

"Don't panic." The room became quieter.

"The assessment won't measure raw magical power." He continued.

"You will be placed in simulated combat situations." The students began whispering again.

"You'll be judged on decision-making, movement, control, and teamwork." Teamwork. That interested me. In my previous life, battles had often depended on coordination. The strongest martial artist didn't always win. A coordinated group could defeat a stronger opponent. That was one of the first lessons I had learned as the Heavenly Demon. Professor Gareth began explaining the exercise.

"Teams of four." Amon immediately turned around.

"We're together." Masha nodded. Alice smiled. I agreed. The four of us had already spent years training together. We knew each other's strengths. Amon could provide overwhelming Firepower. Masha could control the terrain. Alice could defend and support. And I could adapt. It was a balanced group. Professor Gareth continued.

"The exercise will take place outside the academy." Several students became excited.

"You will travel to a controlled training area." He paused.

"You will be given a mission." No one knew what it would be yet. I looked at my friends. Amon was already excited. Masha looked thoughtful. Alice seemed curious. I found myself looking forward to it. That evening, we trained together. We went to the combat hall after dinner. Amon practiced his Fire Magic. Masha created stone platforms. Alice worked on her barriers. I focused on Darkness Magic. We weren't fighting each other. We were learning how to combine our abilities. Masha raised a wall.

Amon sent a narrow stream of fire over it. Alice created a Light barrier to redirect the flames. I used Darkness to obscure the target. The combination worked. Not perfectly. But well enough. Amon smiled.

"That was good." Masha nodded.

"If we improve the timing, we can use it during the assessment." Alice looked at me.

"What can you do with Darkness?" I thought about it.

"Concealment."

"Anything else?"

"Barriers."

"Offensive spells?"

"A few."

"How strong?"

"Strong enough." Amon laughed.

"That's not an answer."

"It's the answer you're getting." He shook his head.

"You really don't like showing people everything." I smiled.

"You talk too much."

"That's true." We continued training. For nearly two hours. By the time we finished, Amon was lying on the floor.

"I can't move." Masha looked down at him.

"You said you wanted to become stronger."

"I've changed my mind." Alice laughed. I sat against the wall. My body was tired. But my mind felt clear. This was different from the training I remembered from my previous life. Back then, training had always been connected to survival. Here, we trained because we wanted to improve. There was no enemy waiting outside. No army. No battlefield. No reason to push ourselves until our bodies broke. It was simply training. And I preferred it. On the way back to the dormitory, Alice walked beside me.

"Leo."

"Hm?"

"Do you ever regret being reborn?" I stopped. She looked at me.

"I don't know why I asked that." I considered the question seriously. Did I regret it? I remembered my previous life. The Demonic Sect. The battles. The people I had lost. My death. Then I thought about my parents. Mia. My younger sisters. Alice. Amon. Masha. The academy. The quiet mornings. The meals. The arguments. The freedom.

"No." Alice smiled.

"That's good."

"What about you?" She looked surprised.

"I'm not the one who was reborn." I laughed.

"I know." She smiled.

"I think I'm happy with the life I have."

"Me too." We continued walking. The night air was cool. The academy was quiet. No dramatic revelation followed. No hidden enemy appeared. Nothing extraordinary happened. And that was perfectly fine. For once, I didn't need anything extraordinary to happen. I was sixteen years old. I had a new family. Good friends. A place to study. A new form of magic to master. And an entire world to explore. There was plenty of time. Tomorrow would bring another lesson. The day after that, another.

Eventually, I would leave the academy and see more of the world. Perhaps I would encounter dragons. Perhaps I would explore dungeons. Perhaps I would travel to another kingdom. Perhaps I would even meet someone strong enough to force me to use the power I kept hidden. I didn't know. And for the first time in my life… I didn't feel the need to know everything in advance. I simply looked forward to finding out. End of Chapter 12.