Mental spells and inner ponders

[A/N: Co-written with ScarletRabbit.]

Lucas followed the cyan-colored ponytail that swung behind Sienna's back. Stepping through several corridors, the two quickly approached the area where the labs were situated. The windows allowed him to see the Academy's courtyard, huge and filled with several bushes of green like a garden. Some students were visible, either sitting and reading or walking by. Taking in the sight, Lucas held half a breath. For a split second, he wondered how many of those students were from Weydan or the surrounding areas.

'Well... there are a handful of noble families in Weydan. Four Count families, a couple of Viscounts... some Barons. At least a couple of those families will have students befitting the Academy. Still, that percentage probably isn't that large.' he mused silently, his eyes darting back to the woman in front.

Sienna appeared to sense his gaze as she slowed to a standstill, glancing back at him.

"Are you alright, Lucas?" she inquired.

"Yes, Professor," he replied hastily. "Is there a reason you ask?"

"You appeared to have some problems keeping your concentration."

"Oh. I apologize," 'Well... I might've overused <Astral Projection> a little. The lack of headache was too good to pass up on.' "I had a long night, is all. I promise that won't repeat."

"I hope so. I know your level of knowledge but do not expect it to be a free pass, alright?" she gave him a gentle smile. Although she didn't attempt to make her tone authoritative, Lucas felt a bit of pressure press onto his shoulders.

'Still, this much presence is nothing.' Lucas almost chuckled inwardly at the thought. Maybe a week ago, he'd have shrunk down even a little, but now, he hardly even noticed it. He nodded gently, "I understand."

The silver-eyed woman reciprocated the gesture before resuming the walk. A momentary ponder entered her mind. 'Was he... nervous about today?' she felt her mouth form a grimace. 'I hope Elaine won't be too hard on him.'

Lucas, in the meantime, opened his status. He focused on his WP value.

[WP: 73/424]

'The tempo appears to be roughly two points per minute. My MP regenerates by about twice that. That's good. Lower WP seems to make the headache worse...' he grimaced slightly, palming his face as a short yawn escaped his mouth. 'Or perhaps it's the effect of returning to my body after experiencing the ache-free astral form... either is plausible.'

He dismissed the panel. Glancing to his sides, he noticed some students going about. Humans from Etnal, Riverut, and Melidan intertwined with a few pointy-eared folks from Inallel. The sight made his heart swirl with uncertainty. Seraphina's words reverberated in his head.

'A war...' he thought momentarily, eyeing some of the people up ahead. 'I know Ureliar and Inallel had always had disagreements, but a war out of the blue? To think that mere politics, the will of few, can decide the fate of so many.' he blew at his hair, a sense of dismay stirring in his throat.

Lucas refocused on the woman in front of him. The gentle sway of her hips brought his attention in an instant. The plume of hair that swung like a pendulum added some brilliance to the outline of her faintly jutting asscheeks.

The talk with Thines flashed in front of his mind. His heart beat with redoubled strength. She was right. He shouldn't be afraid of his class. Experimentation was imperative to further developments. By using his skills, he could attain better ones in the future.

An unknown sense of anticipation stirred in Lucas's spirit.

'I... I should j̷us̷t̸ ù̶̻s̷̭e̵ ̵̜̔ít̸͔.'

Staring at the back of Sienna's head intensely, he felt his mind immediately pick the words to use.

<I want to sway my hips.>

The spell was fired almost instantly. Lucas felt his power transform into a lance-like projectile that lunged from the confines of his mind and attempted to strike at Sienna's.

However, what suddenly perplexed him was that the spell bounced off almost entirely.

'???' he made a surprised expression. 'It... didn't work?'

A sensation of a faint snicker echoed in the back of his mind. The gesture seemed soaked in ridicule, but at the same time, it felt... almost like a teacher watching their pupil.

Lucas huffed lightly, deciding against reacting to it. Instead, he tried to assess the source of his failure.

'It's either that Professor's mental resistance is strong, or... the spell was too conflicting.' he deduced after a few seconds. This made sense. Someone walking down the street wouldn't randomly jump into a river unless there was a good reason to. The so-called 'call of the void' was not enough to make anyone drop from a high place.

'Then... should I change it a little?'

He glanced over Sienna's form. The clothes appeared a size too large for her somewhat short stature. The robe sagged and lagged behind a little, which gave the man an idea of how to modify his spell.

<My robe is getting loose. I should tighten it a little.>

The lance of mental magic was launched once more. Sensing its trajectory, Lucas almost immediately felt it get lodged into the walls of Sienna's mind. However, unlike before, it was not repelled immediately and found a small crack somewhere to slither inside. Then, just like it happened with Ina, it turned into a lamp beyond the wall.

Professor Riven appeared wholly unaware of the connection happening. Her movements were uninterrupted, the pendulum motion of her ponytail stagnant. The clicking of her boots against the floor sounded in the same rhythm. She did not turn to face him or emit any unexpected sound.

But Lucas saw that his magic worked. Seemingly without realizing it, Sienna pulled at her robe ever so slightly, bringing it forth. As the material tightened around her body, her captivating figure became more pronounced, and she appeared none the wiser to that fact.

However, the man didn't get to enjoy his success for long. The cyan-haired woman suddenly began halting in her steps, stopping by a rather large door. Turning around, she focused her glisteningly silver eyes on Lucas.

"Professor Schweizer oversees one of the two groups that are willing to accept you right away. She wishes to have a talk with you before she makes a definitive decision. You don't have to worry. Just a few minutes will suffice."

Lucas nodded in response, "I understand. May I ask who oversees the other group?"

Sienna's smile widened as she knocked on the door. "Me."

Before the white-haired man managed to respond or ask a question, he and the woman heard a voice call out from behind the door. Pressing the handle, she entered the room, and the man followed.

The place they entered was somewhat spacious, at least compared to a typical room in the Academy. It did not reach the size of the auditorium where Lucas had just had his lesson with Sienna, but it was no less than ten by fifteen meters. The somewhat high ceiling created an atmosphere that mimicked the outside, amplified by large windows on the opposite side of the door.

Multiple tables stood across the room. A few were littered with alchemic equipment similar to what Lucas could recall being in his home, and others contained stacks of books and papers. Small pieces of metal could also be noticed, concentrated on one of the stands. Several extensive pieces of furniture stood across the far wall, dozens of drawers hiding their contents from the man's amethyst eyes.

A question of the purpose of all this equipment lingered in his mind for half a second before he noticed Sienna stepping to her side, allowing his gaze to meet the professor sitting by a small desk.

The copper hair reaching her shoulders had a reflective, wavy nature. The stare of her dark green eyes appeared fierce as she stood up, looking him over. Even from a distance of a few meters, the significant height difference was discernable. This person would certainly not reach his shoulders with the top of her head, perhaps even on her toes.

"Lucas," he heard Professor Riven speak. "Please meet Professor Elaine Schweizer."

"Good morning, Professor," he bowed his head deeply to the redhead woman. 'Schweizer... a sharp-spoken 'r', as well... is she from Melidan?'

A glint of a smirk graced the small woman's face. She glimpsed at Sienna before returning to him and speaking, "Good morning to you too. Stormrider, correct?"

"That's right, Professor."

"Hah," Elaine let out a half-laugh. "Definitely a Stormrider, indeed," she continued. Lucas could almost instantly discern that her Siles had an unknown, rough edge. "Rather similar to Valerian," her face gained a slightly softer look at the mention of Lucas's father. "But more so to Iwo."

"???" Lucas's face contorted in surprise. "Did you know them, Professor?"

"Did I know them? It would be difficult not to," Elaine chuckled, seemingly to herself. "Your grandfather got me into this Academy. And your father? Who doesn't know him? A Mage who wanted to become an Alchemist. To this day, it sounds absurd," she appeared to chuckle a little.

The white-haired man felt his heart beat stronger at the final words. A faint sense of anger stirred within him. His father was the person he looked up to. He wouldn't forgive tarnishing his name.

The voice in the back of his mind appeared to agree with his thoughts. An unpleasant feeling in his spirit amplified.

Usually, he would be **** to eat his words up. But not this time. Now, he was classed.

He did not hesitate.

<I should not speak of Valerian Stormrider like this. He was a good person.>

The bolt of psionic energy traveled between his mind and the professor's. Surprisingly, the spell met little resistance on the way. It quickly found a crack and slithered within.

Suddenly, a spark of pain emerged in his head. Lucas let out a faint groan and half-closed his eyes.

"...are you alright?" Elaine asked, her eyes sparking with something akin to worry.

"...I apologize. It's just a headache," Lucas replied hesitantly. 'Dammit... does using WP when it's so low do that?'

"A headache? Would you like something for that?" she inquired.

"...yes, please," he replied, a tiny glint of hesitance tinting his tone.

Elaine immediately strutted through the classroom on her short legs. Looking at her, Lucas noticed that the robe that shuffled behind her didn't have much to cover. The ginger-haired woman's curves appeared just barely defined. For some reason, he felt... almost disappointed at that fact.

Within half a minute, he was holding a small bottle of silver liquid. Looking at Elaine, he noticed her nodding. He gulped the entire container in one go.

The process took a few long seconds. However, as it started working, Lucas immediately discerned the headache diminishing. The beat of his heart, so far reverberating in his veins, now felt far weaker in his ears.

He sighed after a while. His condition has improved dramatically with just a single dose. It was still far from perfect, but he at least could focus now.

Elaine slowly continued her thought, "Still, about Valerian... absurd or not, he was a good friend of mine," Elaine's tone softened considerably. Her verdant eyes closed for a long moment. "I learned of his passing much too late to attend the ceremony. My condolences."

"...thank you, Professor," he replied, feeling a sense of uncertainty in his mind. 'She was Father's friend...?'

"Well, but let's not linger too much on that," the small professor exhaled shallowly. "The group I oversee dabbles mostly in alchemy and artifacts. This room was given to us by the Academy to serve as our assembly place. Does that strike your interest?"

Lucas nodded, allowing his eyes to glance over the room again. Yes, this place... almost felt like the alchemy lab back home. He would definitely feel at ease here.

"Alright," Elaine replied. "But I'm sure you know that these subjects are not typical. Unlike in purely theoretical groups, we delve into practice here. Dangerous things transpire sometimes. That's why I need to give you a small test."

"A test?" he asked, looking to Sienna. The cyan-haired woman nodded gently. 'Professor Riven did mention that I would be examined...'

"A couple of questions is all. I'm aware you have other classes soon. Shall we begin?"

Lucas almost smirked as he nodded.

Elaine, in turn, did not hide her elated expression as she got a hold of a small tool on the desk. It appeared similar to a pencil, with multiple mechanical parts that the man could not discern the purpose of.

In an instant, the small woman put the tool on a piece of paper on the desk and moved her hand. A trail of ink was left in the wake of its tip, quickly converging into some letters that Lucas recognized to be a description of an alchemical process. As she finished, Elaine handed him the paper.

"Tell me a little about this process," she requested, her verdant eyes emanating a sense of expectancy.

A few seconds of silence transpired as the man's eyes traced the lines of text.

"It's... cleansing of silver with Asterfall. It's useful for when the metal gets corroded and needs cleaning without the use of mechanical processes or smelting. Perfect for enchanted weapons made of silver."

"Anything more?" Elaine raised an eyebrow, glancing at Sienna. The cyan-haired woman could immediately see a glint of contentedness within.

"Well, I would say that Asterfall isn't the best reactant for this process. It's effective, yes, but also supremely volatile. A misstep could result in an explosion."

"Very well. What would you substitute it for?"

A few minutes passed. Lucas elaborated on his answer, gauging the reactions of the two women listening to his words.

Sienna had a peaceful countenance, but her silver eyes sparked with brilliance now and again, especially when he said things that he knew were lesser known.

Elaine was much more expressive in her listening. At first, she appeared to only barely respond to his words, but as she struck him with more advanced topics, her small lips showed an almost devilish smile. The depth of her green eyes reflected the intelligence lurking within. Her reactions slowly turned to more and more delighted ones. Her voice gained an even rougher edge with every next question. The fingers, placed on her hips, beat in a rhythm that showed that she was pleasantly surprised with the answers. Her head bobbed lightly at times.

Eventually, she let out a heavy sigh laced with a pleased tone. Her green eyes glistened as she quickly fixed the robe on her petite body.

"Very well," she nodded. "I think you're capable. If you're still interested, I'll be glad to include you in our group."

"I'll gladly accept, Professor," Lucas replied quickly.

"Good," Elaine smirked. "From what I know, you're Classless, right?" her eyebrow raised slightly.

"...that's correct."

"Well, don't worry about that much. My group cares little for class. The theory is the fundament of alchemy. Even your father could do it without a skill."

"I see," he nodded. A faint sense of need to ask Elaine a question stirred, but he decided to not listen to it yet.

"Our group has an assembly every Tuesday and Thursday, and I'm present at the former usually. Tomorrow, it will be at 16. We'll be here until about 20, so I assume you will be able to attend?"

"My classes tomorrow should end at around 14," he nodded.

Elaine smirked.

Some seconds passed before the man said his goodbyes and left the classroom.

"Haaah," the ginger woman sat down, expulsing some air from her lungs. Her face bore a smirk that told her friend she was content with the current situation. "The documents didn't lie after all. What do ye say, Sinsin?"

"I don't know much about alchemy, but his answers seemed rather elaborate," Sienna nodded, coming closer to the desk and sitting on its side. The binder in her hands was put on the surface, her face graced with a soft smile. "Then again, I should expect no less. The response he gave me just an hour ago was also from the top shelf."

"Eh? What did ye ask 'im?" Elaine's head tilted.

"The most vital aspect of learning magic."

"Well, that's 'Insight'," the Alchemist shrugged, taking the writing tool in her hand and spinning it between her fingers. "But ah wouldn't expect first-years to know that."

"Actually, the interesting thing is, one more student aside from Lucas knew that answer."

"Eh? Who?"

"A young girl from the Breshnaw family. Ester, was her name?" Sienna put on a slightly thoughtful expression.

"...Breshnaw?" Elaine's face contorted in an unpleasant expression. She immediately huffed a little, her mood deflating.

"Did something happen, Elaine?" Sienna's gaze emanated some concern.

"Eh, a situation with a Breshnaw, too," she shrugged. "Couldn't keep focus in class, and he thought he could persuade me to let the issue go. I just hope his sister will be better," Elaine snorted scornfully.

-Meanwhile-

Lucas stepped forth, his legs carried by a sense of lightweightness. The sense of the headache he had fought against so far was now dimmed, albeit not completely. Still, this much was enough to let him strive forward with far more vigor than before.

However, a thought stirred in his mind, bringing him down to earth.

'Professor Schweizer claims to have been Father's friend... but... he never spoke of her. Even combing through all I remember of him, her name or occupation didn't come up one time.'

What did it mean? Lucas felt uncertainty at the possibilities.

Valerian Stormrider had always been a pretty open and positive person, as long as his son could remember. Such a person would not have a reason to keep a friend hidden, right? Lucas could understand if his father knew Professor Schweizer in the Academy only. Yet, when she mentioned the ceremony, it sounded... more personal than that. Almost as though they kept in touch beyond that... even until his passing.

...

'...maybe I can make her tell me...' a singular thought appeared in his mind. His class dabbled into the mental and astral worlds. Undoubtedly, at some point, there would be a possibility for him to attain more powerful mental magic. Especially given the name 'Dream Walker'... would he be able to enter other people's dreams one day? The thought made him... strangely excited.

The voice in the back of his mind agreed with the idea.

Lucas shook the thoughts out. Right now, pondering was pointless.

He summoned his status and focused on the most important statistic.

[WP: 133/424]

'So... that's what the potion did. I figured there must've been a tonic that would recover WP. I assume whatever has to do with mental conditions works like that, just how using WP when it's low seems to cause those.'

A hand made its way to his chin. The fatigue from the all-nighter had diminished slightly, still present but not nearly as vision-dimming. Stopping by a window, Lucas looked at the garden-like courtyard. Far fewer students lurked around now, indicating that most had classes in a short time. Quickly doing some mental math, Lucas calculated how much time he had left.

'About 15 minutes... I'll reach the destination in no time.' he mused, ignoring the couple of heads that passed by. 'The following lecture should be rather mundane, as well.' a sigh escaped Lucas's mouth.

Yet, he could not help but feel a glint of anticipation.

A strong sense of a goal appeared in his spirit. It resonated deeply with his innermost thoughts, pushing him to go forward quicker. He made a declaration to himself.

---

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