Lumi stood in the palace corridor, his mind still on that interrogation. It had gone significantly better than he thought. He pulled up his friend list interface as he began to compose a ssage to his companions.
"eting in twenty minutes. Gabriel will explain where. Ti to et the Empress."
The responses ca quickly.
Ryan: "Finally! I’ve been practicing. I can’t believe you can get exp from just training. I went up a level!"
ToraX: "ABOUT TI! This place has amazing food but I’m getting restless!"
VICE: "Acknowledged. I’ll finish my current conversation with the quartermaster."
HazyNova: "...okay"
Lena’s response was predictably different. "Can I bring Alice? She’s teaching how to make people die with STYLE! It’s so beautiful. It’s so, so beautiful. Only thing better would be if I got to use it on a real person. Death is so beautiful..."
Lumi blinked.
What?
Even through text, Lena’s unique energy shone through. He wasn’t sure if he should be concerned or if she was just being herself. He sent back a quick reply: "I’ll co get you first. You are okay, right?"
"Of course! And I’ll be even more okay! I’ll try extra hard just for you!"
He made his way through the palace to go back to the training grounds. As he approached, he could hear the distinctive sound of combat magic being channeled.
Several knights were scattered around, but Lumi’s attention was imdiately drawn to the center where Alice stood with Lena.
Alice looked exactly as composed as always, her posture perfect despite hours of instruction. What was surprising was the slight sheen of sweat on her forehead. Evidence that keeping up with Lena was no small task even for a Chief Knight.
Not physically or magically, that was impossible. All of this was little more than play to her.
But ntally.
Lena, by contrast, looked like she’d been through a hurricane and yet enjoyed every second of it. Her hair was slightly singed at the edges, her robes had several scorch marks, and she had a huge grin on her face.
"Again." Alice instructed, her voice carrying a patience she had never shown Lumi, alongside a strange hint of fondness. "Rember, magic wants to flow. You guide it, clear the path for it, and then force it further."
"Guide and force. The key word being AND! That’s so interesting." Lena muttered, raising her staff. "Like convincing a cat to love you instead of kidnapping it! Which I’ve never done! That would be weird!"
Alice’s eyebrow twitched slightly. She was actively bewildered at her student’s unique way of processing information. "That’s one way to think about it. If it works it works. Now does it?"
Lena closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and began to channel. The magic that flowed from her staff was different from what Lumi rembered from their adventures. It was flowing at a different rate, mana flowed continuously even when a single spell was over. She then cast an energy bolt with a teleport quickly following it.
"Excellent!" Alice said, and Lumi could hear genuine approval in her voice. "You’ve grasped the concepts in less than two hours. Most knights take weeks to do so well."
"It’s like dominoes but with magic!" Lena exclaid, spinning in place. "Oh! Lumi! Did you see? Did you see? I did the thing!"
"I saw," Lumi confird, approaching the pair. "Very impressive. Chief Knight Alice, thank you for taking the ti to train her."
Alice turned to face him, and Lumi caught a flash of sothing complex in her expression. Respect mixed with curiosity and perhaps a hint of concern. "The thanks should be mine. Your companion is remarkably gifted. She is much like you. In all my years of instruction, I’ve only encountered one person who grasped this concept sooner."
She paused aningfully. "That person was you, this morning."
Lena bead at the praise, practically glowing. "Hear that, Lumi? I’m second place! That’s like first place but with less pressure! Also, Alice is really nice, you know? You really exaggerated her sternness. Once you get past her ’I can kill you with my pinkie vibe’, she’s a really respectable teacher!"
Alice’s composed expression cracked slightly. "I do not have a... ’kill you with my pinky vibe.’"
"You totally do! But in a cool way! Like a beautiful ice sculpture that’s also a sword!" Lena nodded sagely. "I respect it. I would let you murder for the dramatic effect. It would be so beautiful on . Eight out of ten on the intimidation scale."
"I... what?" Alice looked to Lumi, clearly seeking so kind of explanation for the chaos that was Lena.
"She ans it as a complint." Lumi assured her. "Lena just has a unique way of expressing herself."
"So I’ve noticed," Alice said dryly. "Her training has been... unconventional. I’m not sure what she’s doing half the ti, but she’s following my instructions in ways I didn’t imagine they could be followed. Nevertheless, she’s done well."
"That’s because your instructions connect people!" Lena explained earnestly. "Through pain! Which is basically how all good friendships start!"
Alice opened her mouth, clearly thought better of whatever she was about to say, and closed it again. She turned back to Lumi. "As I said, remarkably gifted. However..." She lowered her voice slightly. "I am concerned about her ntal state. So of the things she’s said during training..."
Lumi could imagine. Lena’s particular brand of insanity was charming in its own way, but to soone like Alice who valued order and discipline... no, to anyone at all, it must have been jarring.
"She’s been through a lot." Lumi said carefully, which wasn’t technically a lie. "But she’s good hearted and loyal. The rest is just... personality."
"Personality," Alice repeated. "That’s one word for it. She ntioned sothing about a princess on the moon. I had to make sure she wasn’t giving off cryptic information the way you do. She was just telling a story about horses.
"Ponies!" Lena clarified.
"She claims the sun and moon are on speaking terms now." Alice’s done was unusual, not quite chastising, but neither confused nor approving. "She also ntioned that you two are... involved?"
"We are." Lumi confird.
Alice studied him for a mont. "I recognize it is not my place to comnt, I hope you do not take offense. There is sothing I’d like to say, however."
"Yes?" Lumi asked her curiously. Alice wasn’t known for taking interest in anything she didn’t need to. He was unsure what she wanted.
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