Seraphina had been walking through the streets ever since she heard Elowyn's name. The bad memories immediately returned, making her decide that it would be better to leave the academy for a few days. She asked for permission to leave on Friday and return on Sunday afternoon. Her parents were not at home, as they were working on something that would take about two months, but simply being in her own home already made her feel better.
Her parents had become magicians a few months earlier, shortly after she entered the academy. Seraphina did not want to bother them, especially because she knew how hard they had worked for her. They were finally doing something they enjoyed after dedicating a large part of their lives to taking care of her, especially during the difficult period they had gone through together. Although they did not possess particularly high potential, both had managed to reach the Fifth Circle, which was considered normal for magicians.
Seraphina also wanted to become a good magician to make her parents proud. They trained in secret from her, but she always noticed when they were making an effort to improve.
As soon as she arrived home, Seraphina went to bed and slept. She knew that Elowyn could be at Astrong Academy, but she believed that the princess would probably remain focused on Class A without drawing the teachers' attention.
'If I stay in Class B... she probably won't find me.'
After spending the entire day resting in the comfort of her home, Seraphina returned to the academy on Sunday afternoon. When she arrived, she noticed that the main students of Class B were not in the places where they normally stayed. That caught her attention, and she decided to find out how Kai and Valença were doing.
'Enrico should return today... maybe he can plan something.'
Seraphina headed to the infirmary. When she entered, she found only the Elf, lying down and staring at the ceiling.
"Where are the others?"
The Elf noticed her presence and turned his face away, avoiding answering. Seraphina found his reaction strange and began insisting, but regardless of what she asked, he remained silent.
"Elowyn came... didn't she?"
The Elf's eyes shifted for a moment.
Seraphina noticed.
"Tell me where they are. You're scared, aren't you? Don't worry, I won't tell anyone that you told me."
She continued insisting. The Elf seemed increasingly uncomfortable and frightened, but after a few minutes, he finally answered in a low voice:
"They went to the Red Forest, behind the city... Please don't tell them I told you."
Seraphina nodded, but now she was certain about that Elf.
'If they didn't take him, then it must have been because he accepted the oath.'
She wasted no more time and ran off in search of Virelle. However, she discovered from the other students that there had been a problem on the western side of the city. For some reason, Faizes- and Ranvil-level Nartheis had appeared in that area, forcing the teachers from all the classes to split up to protect different points of the city alongside the guards.
It was exactly the opportunity Elowyn needed.
Seraphina ran through the academy, asking some students and the few guards she could find for help, but nobody wanted to get involved. Everyone was afraid of ending up in conflict with the princess and suffering the consequences.
With no other option, Seraphina stopped for a moment, took out a sheet of paper, and began writing quickly.
"In the Red Forest, behind the city, Princess Elowyn attacked Class A."
Seraphina handed the letter to a Class C student who had no connection to the conflict. Of the three silver coins she had, she paid two for the girl to wait for a teacher or Enrico and deliver the message as quickly as possible. The girl accepted, apparently needing the money.
Seraphina then ran to the transportation point and used her last silver coin to pay the driver of the magical bus. She sat down during the journey, looking at the fifteen bronze coins she had left and the single silver coin she had now. That money needed to last until the end of the month, but she could save money by eating the academy's meals. For now, the most important thing was getting there quickly.
A few minutes later, the bus stopped. Seraphina got off and began running toward the forest again. However, the closer she got, the more her legs trembled and the harder it became to maintain her pace. The mere thought of meeting Elowyn again made her chest tighten and her breathing grow heavy.
When she reached the entrance to the Red Forest, Seraphina stopped for a few seconds. That region was part of the city itself, so there should have been teachers or guards protecting the area. But at that moment, there was no one nearby. They had probably all been sent to other areas because of the Nartheis attacks.
She stepped forward with her trembling leg and clenched her hand tightly.
'Come on... you can do it, Seraphina.'
Then she entered the forest.
The farther she advanced among the trees, the greater her anxiety became. Until, in the distance, she heard the sounds of battle. Seraphina quickened her pace, and when she finally managed to see what was happening, her eyes widened.
She found Serenya injured but still fighting. The girl spun around and kicked Lan's arm, sending him flying away, before defending herself against a gust of wind fired by Diana, one of his subordinates.
Farther ahead, Kai fought using only one arm. His sword repeatedly clashed against Jorge's weapon, Lan's other subordinate. On the right side, Valença and the Orc were fighting Narisse and Velka, exchanging attacks while trying to find an opening.
Seraphina breathed a sigh of relief when she realized they were still resisting.
'I knew they wouldn't fall that easily.'
Then her gaze moved to another point of the battle.
Elian, Caelan, and Liam tried to remain standing while fighting Grark. Caelan extended his hand and fired a high-pressure jet of water directly at the Orc, but Grark raised his axe and blocked the attack. The weapon resisted the magic, causing the jet to disperse without dealing the expected damage.
Seraphina observed the situation for a few seconds.
They were still fighting, but they were clearly at a disadvantage.
And she had come there to help them.
Elian jumped over Grark and concentrated magic into the two daggers, making the blades even sharper. Taking advantage of the momentum, he touched a tree branch and changed direction in midair, managing to get past the Orc's defense and open a cut on his thigh.
"Tsc... It wasn't deep enough."
Grark spun around and raised his axe to counterattack, but Caelan extended his hand and created a water shield in front of Elian. The axe strike hit the barrier and was blocked for a few moments. Caelan could still maintain only one shield at a time, so while protecting Elian, he became vulnerable to a kick that struck him directly and sent him crashing into a tree.
Liam took advantage of the opening. He advanced quickly and concentrated his magic into the blades before attacking.
"Spectral Thrust!"
One of the daggers struck Grark's stomach, opening another cut. Liam immediately retreated, keeping his distance.
'There's no way to beat this guy head-on.'
Before he could move farther away, his feet sank into the ground.
"What?"
An impact struck his back the next moment, making him lose his balance and sending him directly toward Grark. The Orc had already raised his hand and clenched his fist, preparing to strike him.
Elian noticed the danger and quickly advanced, pulling Liam out of the path of the blow. The two rolled across the ground and got back up with difficulty, once again assuming combat positions.
Grark held the axe with one hand and looked at them.
"Humans, you should give up. You won't be able to do anything against the princess."
Caelan emerged from behind the broken tree, with blood running down his arm. Even while injured, he raised his hand again.
"That doesn't matter. The three of us only follow one person."
Another jet of water came out of his hand, stronger than the previous one, but still within a level Grark could control. The Orc raised his axe and blocked the attack.
Elian once again took his position beside the others.
"That's right. We are the three most loyal to Lady Serenya."
Liam took a deep breath, clearly exhausted.
"I wouldn't say I follow Serenya. I'd be more of a follower of Kai or Enrico."
Elian looked at him for a moment.
"And who said we were talking about you? Didn't you hear that we were talking about the three most loyal?"
Liam remained silent for a few seconds, not knowing how to respond.
Meanwhile, in another part of that area, the fight between Kai and Jorge also continued.
Jorge was thrown toward Grark, who caught him by the shirt before he fell to the ground. The Orc stood him back up and looked at Kai, who advanced with his sword in hand and a serious expression.
Grark looked at Jorge with evident irritation.
"You're weak, human. His arm is broken and even so, you can't defeat him?"
Jorge gritted his teeth.
"Shut up."
Serenya was fighting Lan and Diana at the same time, trying to defend herself against the combination of their attacks. She needed to maintain her concentration to control her own body and, at the same time, create invisible platforms to limit her opponents' movements.
"Lightning Spear!"
"Heavenly Breath!"
Lan threw the spear while Diana increased his speed with wind magic. The attack advanced too quickly for Serenya to completely block, barely passing through her defense and opening a cut on her arm. She only managed to avoid a more serious injury because she had given her body an order to increase its reaction speed.
Serenya gritted her teeth and placed her hand on the ground, transferring her control magic into the earth.
"Don't think it's over."
The ground beneath the two suddenly broke apart, causing Lan and Diana to lose their balance. Before they could regain their footing, two invisible platforms appeared beneath their feet and launched them in opposite directions.
Farther away, Seraphina watched the fight while searching for Elowyn. After a few seconds, she finally found her sitting on a rock, watching everything with an expression that seemed increasingly irritated. Below her was a girl wearing armor who, as far as she remembered, was one of Enrico's subordinates.
'She must have tried to help, but her opponent went straight to the princess...'
Seraphina began accumulating magic in one hand. She was afraid, especially after meeting Elowyn again, but she could not simply stand still while her classmates fought.
"What do we have here?"
A voice appeared behind her.
Before she could turn around, she felt a blow to her back. Her skin split from the impact, and Seraphina was thrown into the middle of the combat area. Everyone stopped their movements for a moment and looked at her.
"Seraphina? What are you doing here?"
Serenya was the first to react and ran toward her, but Lan and Diana immediately appeared in front of her.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"Get out of the way, damn it!"
Seraphina began to get up, feeling the pain in her back, and then saw Deymon approaching. He was the one who had used Corruption Magic against her.
"I wasn't fighting because the princess asked me to stand guard, but it seems I found a rat to play with..."
Deymon advanced, but before he could do anything, Kai appeared above him with his sword raised. The boy had managed to approach without being noticed and brought the blade down toward Deymon.
'Your opponent is me now—'
A golden sword suddenly appeared in the air and struck Kai before he could complete the attack, sending him flying away.
Elowyn remained seated on the rock, watching Seraphina with a different expression. There was surprise in her eyes, but she soon smiled.
"Deymon, don't touch that girl. She's mine."
Seraphina froze upon hearing those words. The fear immediately returned when she recognized that smile. Elowyn seemed genuinely happy to have found someone she considered a lost toy.
She tilted her head slightly and continued looking at Seraphina.
"Seraphina... as always, you have a light that irritates my eyes."