Chapter 94: More meat shields

A melodious chuckle sounded from behind them.

"Well, he’s right. That was very awkward."

Caelus briefly closed his eyes.

Elysia approached with her usual unhurried grace, moving through the gathering students with the effortless ease of someone who had never needed to wonder whether others would make room for her. Her presence drew a few glances, although she appeared entirely unconcerned with the attention. A satisfied smile played across her face, and Caelus immediately suspected that the next several minutes of his life would be needlessly irritating.

He had been correct about rather a lot today. There was no reason to celebrate it.

"My Cael," she said sweetly, "I didn’t know you were having an affair with your duel partner behind your fiancée’s back."

He kept his expression from collapsing.

He hated it when she did this.

"She’s a duel partner. Nothing else."

Wait, why am I explaining myself to her?

Elysia placed a hand against her chest, feigning relief. "You’re forgiven, then. I was beginning to worry."

Caelus stared at her.

Her smile widened, making it abundantly clear that she had noticed his irritation and intended to enjoy every second of it.

"Besides, I made a fortune betting on you. I wagered a thousand gold coins, Caelus. You really ought to be more considerate toward the woman who has just demonstrated such unwavering faith in you."

"Your faith was worth a thousand gold coins?"

"It was worth considerably more once you won."

"You’re the daughter of a duke. Why do you need to gamble for money?"

Elysia blinked twice, apparently giving the question the serious consideration it deserved.

"Because betting is fun?"

Caelus exhaled through his nose.

There were times when he wondered whether he had simply given up on expecting Elysia to behave as written or whether her increasingly erratic behavior was a butterfly effect caused by his presence.

Every day, the characters seemed to stray a little farther from what was written.

"You’re thinking too much again," Elysia remarked.

"I’m regretting asking a question."

"That’s a rather dramatic way to admit you were curious about me."

"I’m sure you’ll find a way to survive the disappointment."

She laughed, apparently delighted with herself.

Before she could find another way to make his existence more difficult, Leon stepped forward, drawing the attention of both of them.

"Caelus."

Something in his voice prompted Caelus to look at him properly.

Leon had lost the excitement that had followed him from the arena. He straightened, gathered his resolve, then lowered himself into a formal bow.

"Please train me."

Caelus studied him without answering.

Leon remained bowed, his hands clenched at his sides. The request had evidently taken some effort to make, which explained why he had waited until the conversation provided him with an opening.

"I know this sounds ridiculous," Leon continued, "and I understand that you have your own responsibilities. But I’ve improved a great deal since the advice you gave me during the entrance examination. I’ve been thinking about asking you ever since, but I never found the right opportunity."

He raised his head enough to look at Caelus, though he did not straighten fully.

"I want to get stronger. Properly stronger. I don’t want to keep relying on what I can do now when I know I’m capable of more."

Caelus’s expression grew thoughtful.

He had already considered the possibility of bringing Leon under his wing. The boy possessed Kinetic Absorption, an ability with considerable potential if its user learned to understand and control it instead of relying on instinct alone. Left undeveloped, it would remain an unreliable talent. Properly mastered, it could turn Leon into a formidable fighter.

Caelus had recognized that possibility during the examination. Since then, Leon’s behavior had given him more reasons to consider investing in him.

Humanity would need every capable fighter it could get when the Corrupt became a more immediate threat. He needed people who could improve beyond their current limitations, provided they possessed enough awareness to recognize those limitations in the first place.

More meat shields.

His gaze passed over Leon’s still-bowed head.

Prospects. More prospects against the Corrupt.

That was a marginally more respectable way of describing the arrangement, even if the distinction might become irrelevant when things went wrong.

Caelus had no intention of wasting time training someone who lacked the discipline to make use of it. Leon, however, had come to him voluntarily, acknowledged his own shortcomings, and asked for the opportunity to overcome them. Those were qualities worth encouraging, especially in someone whose ability could become so useful.

"Come to my mansion at four in the morning," Caelus said.

Leon froze.

Then his eyes widened.

"Four?"

"Four."

"In the morning?"

Caelus stared at him.

Leon straightened so quickly that Caelus suspected his neck might suffer for it. "I’ll be there!"

Leon nodded several times, his enthusiasm returning with enough force to make him look almost embarrassed by it. He bowed once more, muttered another thank-you, and hurried away before either Caelus or Elysia could say anything else.

Caelus watched him disappear around the corner.

At least he had the good sense to take the instruction seriously. Whether that enthusiasm would survive a few mornings of training remained to be seen.

"So you’ve acquired a disciple now?" Elysia said, watching Leon’s retreating figure. "How cute."

Caelus rolled his eyes and started walking.

"I haven’t acquired anything. He asked me to train him."

"That’s generally how it begins."

"You’re remarkably knowledgeable about subjects you have no business discussing."

"And you’re remarkably defensive for someone who insists he doesn’t care."

Caelus ignored her and continued toward the Martial Arts Department.

Elysia fell into step beside him without asking permission, the hem of her dress moving lightly as they left the arena behind. He considered telling her to go somewhere else, but experience had taught him that such requests were rarely effective. She would either follow him anyway or turn his refusal into another opportunity to amuse herself.

Neither outcome was worth the effort.

His arm still ached despite the healing potion’s effects, and the strain in his mana circuits had not disappeared. The duel had secured the result he wanted, but it had also drawn more attention than he would have preferred and reminded him of an inconvenient truth: he was still weak, and he needed to get stronger fast.

Caelus found that increasingly unfortunate.

Elysia glanced at him, her smile returning.

"You’re brooding again, Cael."

"I’m walking."

"You can do both."

"An observation worthy of a duke’s daughter."

"Thank you. I do try."

Caelus decided that the Martial Arts Department could not possibly be far enough away.