A new year at Nine Petal Academy means a new crop of students, including a boy who can't control his magic, a thief, an angel, and even a suit of armor? Adela, Lei, and their friends are tasked with welcoming the new class of first years and helping...
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"You're really tough," Carter said, falling to one knee. "I still can't beat you."
Rob smiled. "You're no slouch either."
Clapping drew the attention of the two over to Koukyuu and me. "Think that's enough," Koukyuu said, walking over to the two.
"W-we're not done yet," Carter said, pushing himself up. His body swayed around.
"Really? Sounded like you had admitted defeat a moment ago," Rob said, grinning.
"I didn't mean it like that."
I dashed over to him as he fell back.
"Hey, don't push yourself too hard," I said, holding him by the shoulders. "Else, you might be too exhausted for tomorrow's big match."
"Yeah. The body is a delicate thing," Koukyuu said. She glanced at the door. "Speaking of which, you probably should move from there unless you want to be crushed, Jude."
Frigid winds blew around the door as Jude emerged from it.
"H-How did you know I was there?" the masked boy asked.
Koukyuu chuckled. "I can sense the use of ice magic, being an ice mage myself. Plus, I found it odd that Lei didn't come nor leave through that door despite it being closest to his cabin."
"Lei detected his presence? Is he an ice mage too?" I asked.
"No, he's a wind and lightning one. My guess is that he picked up on the cold air. It doesn't hurt that his best friend is an ice mage, so he probably has plenty of experience interacting with ice magic."
I stared at my hands. Would I be able to pick up on it one day too?
"Were you spying on me?" Carter asked, smiling weakly at Jude.
The boy's blue eyes shifted around in the mask slits. "I, uh..."
I laughed. "Seems that Jude's plotting something. You better be careful, Cart. They say that brains often beat brawn."
Cart chuckled. "That's fine. I have brains too."
Robert laughed. "You do? Must've developed them in the years since we'd last seen each other. Not that I've seen any sign of them yet."
Carter jumped, freed himself from my grip, and dashed toward his friend, stopping his fist an inch away from his face.
"Hey, you didn't flinch," Carter said, smiling.
Robert chuckled. "I figured you would stop." He jumped back and gathered light into his hands. "That said, if you wish to continue, then don't complain when you can't fight tomorrow."
He gritted his teeth. "Who said I'll lose?"
Robert smirked and zipped past him. Carter dropped to the floor.
