Magic. Why is he raising his hand when I’m already addressing him? “Yes?”
“I don’t need to. I’ve got everything I need right here.” And then in a moment of pure vainglory, he grins and pulls back his sleeve, flexing the runeforms on his biceps.
While those musclesmaybe nice to look at, I wasn’t born yesterday. No amount of posing will change the fact that he clearly doesn’t know how to hover his grimoire either.
I shake my head. “Those tattoos don’t allow you to use destruction magic.”
Lambert just shrugs. “No, but I can do this!” His lower arm transmutes into a long blade that touches the floor, andthe other into a gleaming steel shield. “Check it out. Spartan mode.”
The worst part is that Eddy and North are both gaping at him like what he did was impressive, and not a blatant admission of ignorance.
Deep breaths.
“Be that as it may, we are here to teach Northcliff destruction?—”
Pierce sighs, drawing his grimoire out. Without a word, he places it in the air beside him, letting it hover in place, and the pages blur as they flicker open.
A bolt of lightning zaps through the air, hitting Lambert’s shield in a crackling wave. The scent of ozone fills the room, and I cringe as Lambert goes rigid, muscles locking under the current. Still, Pierce doesn’t let up. I debate intervening, but before I can, a shield spell slices into the space between them.
Lambert collapses to the ground, out, but not seriously harmed, thank the stars. However, his head smacks into the mat with a thump that tells me I need to increase the padding.
I’m so focused on him that I don’t immediately notice Leo storming towards Pierce, grimoire out and floating by his side.
“Try that again, ya fecking gobshite,” he demands as the twins move to back him up.
Great, even Eddy is ready to do battle.
Scrubbing my hands down my face, I pray for patience. I knew this would happen, and I’d resolved to stay out of it, but this is just, urgh! I wish I could banish them for longer than a few hours. Summoning a handful of books. I smack all of them—Lambert, Jasper, and Dakari excluded—over the head without warning. Then I do it again for good measure.
“The next spell that anyone casts without my say-so will be inflicted on them a thousandfold,” I warn. “You are here to learn. So?—”
“I haven’t learned anything since I started attending thesesessions,” Pierce interrupts. “I’m beginning to think this is a waste of my time, and you aren’t capable of more than teaching magical basics to imbeciles.”
If only he knew…
“Leo, will you instruct the twins and Lambert on hovering spells?” I ask, keeping my tone calm. “Jasper, can you?—”
“Aye. I’ll patch the dafty up.” His grimoire is already open.
Pierce’s satisfaction is plain on his face as I turn to him, the others clearing out of the way.
Spreading my hands wide, I sigh. “Attack me.”
The Carlton heir doesn’t hesitate, not that I expected him to. The same lightning spell arcs towards me. I’d hoped for something more original. Oh well.
With a soft smile, and a tug on the magic of the Arcanaeum, I reach out to meet it with one finger.
Watching his eyes widen as his magic shatters into a hundred tiny fireworks around us is incredibly satisfying.
He doesn’t give up, of course. I wouldn’t expect such a proud man to concede so easily. A bolt of ice the width of my hand soars straight at my head, followed up by a wave of fire.
Magic. They’re powerful attacks, but I have to wonder…is he even trying? I allow him to continue, banishing attack after attack. Even when he gives up on a direct assault and tries to catch me from behind, my shield is there. To make it fair, I only draw from one grimoire at a time, keeping my defence to what would be considered reasonable for a normal opponent.
Sweat drips down his brow, and I tut under my breath.
“All those spells in your grimoire and yet…you lack the imagination to even use them properly.” I can’t hold back the mocking in my tone. “Really. Were you even ready to start playing with magic from a master-level school?”
It’s a stab in the dark, but it hits true. Pierce jerks, his eyes flying around the room, as if to see if the others heard.
