Chapter 221: Unexpected Possibility

Elara:

I stared at Lorien, suddenly wishing I could disappear into the floor rather than answer his question.

Exactly how had I come into contact with Earth magic, and how had it been used on me? The answer itself wasn’t particularly complicated, but explaining it to a room full of professors who were already treating my magical abilities like some extraordinary scientific mystery was another matter entirely.

Every pair of eyes was fixed on me, waiting for an explanation, and I had a sinking feeling that attempting to dismiss the question would only make matters worse. Letting out a soft sigh, I decided to tell them the truth, or at least the portion of it that wouldn’t create an entirely different kind of problem.

"As I said, I came across Earth magic during my morning run the day before yesterday," I began. "Because a certain someone decided it would be a brilliant opportunity to test my combat skills."

I barely finished the sentence before Lorien and Jasper spoke simultaneously. "Who was it?" Lorien demanded, his usually calm voice carrying an unmistakable edge, while Jasper’s expression darkened as he asked, "Why didn’t you tell me about this?"

I turned towards my blood knight, who was already looking as though he was mentally preparing a list of people to interrogate. Pointing directly at him, I gave him a pointed look. "You have just answered your own question. I knew you would react exactly like this, which is why I didn’t mention it." Jasper’s jaw tightened, but I continued before he could interrupt. "I handled the situation well enough. There’s no reason for you to worry about something that happened two days ago."

That was technically true, provided I conveniently ignored the fact that I had been pinned against a tree, had my access to magic restricted, and had then made a series of spectacularly questionable decisions involving Reign’s mouth. The less anyone knew about the last part, the better.

"Who dared to trespass into Royal Palace territory and engage in combat with you?" Vice Headmistress Noctis asked, her tone making it clear that she considered the incident considerably more serious than I did.

I closed my eyes for a brief moment and sighed. There really was only one person who could have appeared in the palace grounds without immediately triggering a security crisis, challenged me to a fight, and somehow managed to turn a morning run into a disaster.

"Reign Valemont," I admitted.

The silence that followed was almost impressive. Professor Elowen stared at me, Professor Stroll’s eyebrows rose, and Professor Fenrith looked as though he was reconsidering several assumptions he had made about the assessment. Even Lorien’s expression shifted, although he recovered quickly enough that I couldn’t determine exactly what he was thinking.

Beside me, Jasper muttered under his breath, "I should have known. Not just anyone could enter the Royal Palace grounds without being stopped." His arms remained crossed over his chest, but the tension in his shoulders suggested that he was making a mental note to have a very unpleasant conversation with the palace security later.

Professor Fenrith eventually cleared his throat and redirected the discussion towards the matter that had brought us all here. "To confirm, Mr. Valemont used his Earth magic on you?"

I nodded, explaining that we had engaged in a combat match and that he had eventually used Earth magic to bind my hands and restrain me with vines. I deliberately kept the description brief, leaving out the more humiliating details of how thoroughly he had outmanoeuvred me.

"That was the only time I came into direct contact with Earth magic during the past several days," I added, hoping that would be enough to settle the matter.

Fenrith nodded thoughtfully, but Professor Elowen immediately raised another concern. "Coming into contact with an elemental magic can indeed leave traces behind on the person it got used on, depending on the nature and intensity of the interaction. However, Mr. Valemont merely used vines to restrain Ms. Argentis, and the encounter occurred more than forty-eight hours ago. It makes little sense that his Earth signature would still be lingering within her strongly enough to register during an assessment."

She glanced towards the globe before continuing. "And we must distinguish between traces and an elemental signature that can be detected as part of the individual’s magical composition. When we previously detected Shadow, Ms. Argentis had actually used Shadow magic herself in her illusion spell. That was a different situation entirely."

By the time she finished, the mystery seemed to have grown even more complicated. Now, we had even more questions compared to when we began.

Professor Fenrith turned his attention back to me, his expression thoughtful as he asked, "Did anything else happen between you and Mr. Valemont that might explain why his Earth magic remained attached to your magical signature?"

The question sounded perfectly innocent. Unfortunately, my memory chose that precise moment to remind me of Reign’s lips against mine, the way I had wrapped my arms around his neck instead of pushing him away, and the infuriatingly tender moment before he had abruptly pulled back and left me sitting in the snow. Heat threatened to creep into my cheeks, and I forced every ounce of self-control into keeping my expression neutral.

"No," I answered, shaking my head firmly and trying to look as innocent as possible.

Professor Stroll spoke next. "Then perhaps we should revisit the earlier incident. Ms. Argentis, can you recall whether you came into direct contact with Shadow magic around the time of your practical examination?"

My answer should have been ’no’ if not for the thought Professor Fenrith’s earlier question had ignited in my brain - that maybe all this was the result of something more than just coming into direct contact with an elemental magic.

My thoughts immediately travelled to the night before that examination, to Kairo and the secret intimacy we had shared. Kairo possessed Shadow magic. And the following day, Shadow had appeared in my magical signature. Two days ago, I had kissed Reign, who possessed Earth magic, and now Earth had appeared in my assessment results.

My stomach tightened as the possibility I desperately wished to dismiss began taking shape. What if the professors were right? What if my magic was somehow absorbing or temporarily acquiring the elemental signatures of the men I became intimate with?

The thought was absurd, unsettling, and alarmingly consistent with the evidence. I wanted answers more than anything, but I had absolutely no intention of explaining my sexual history to a group of professors. So I shook my head and replied, "It was a long time ago. I honestly can’t recall whether I came into contact with Shadow magic around that examination."

Lorien was watching me. I could feel his gaze even without looking directly at him, and that was precisely the problem. The man had an infuriating ability to notice the smallest inconsistencies in my behaviour, and I had no doubt that my sudden reluctance to discuss the matter had caught his attention.

I quickly looked away as the professors resumed their discussion, exchanging theories that ranged from magical contamination to unusual interactions between elemental signatures. After several minutes, Professor Elowen announced that she would examine the academy’s historical records for comparable cases, while Professor Stroll promised to conduct independent research into the disappearance of Shadow and the appearance of Earth.

Professor Fenrith then proposed the next step. Since traces of Earth magic were still present within my magical signature, he wanted to help me reach that power and determine whether I could manipulate it in the same way I had previously accessed Shadow magic. If successful, the experiment might reveal whether their theory had any merit.

Lorien and Noctis both approved, and the latter turned towards me with a reassuring expression. "We may not have concrete answers yet, Ms. Argentis, but we will find them. We are your professors, and it is our responsibility to help you understand your abilities. In return, I expect your full cooperation with Professor Fenrith and the others."

I nodded obediently. "You have my full cooperation."

Provided, of course, that their research didn’t require me to explain exactly what I had been doing with certain male heirs behind closed doors.

The professors began taking their leave, and Professor Fenrith gestured for me to follow him to his office so we could begin working on the Earth signature. I had barely taken a step when Lorien stopped us. "Professor Fenrith, would you mind giving me a moment with Ms. Argentis? I would like to discuss something with her privately."

Fenrith nodded without suspicion, apparently oblivious to whatever tension existed between the headmaster and his student. He left the hall with Jasper, who cast me one last questioning look before the doors closed behind them.

The moment we were alone, Lorien turned his full attention towards me. He slipped both hands into his pockets, his expression unreadable and his blue eyes far too perceptive for my comfort.

"Tell me the truth, Elara."