Is This Close Enough?

I'll finally admit it, this magic stuff is kinda of cool. Marissa would be so relieved I finally admitted to that. She'd probably rub it in my face too.

It's just that I don't know where Kenos pulled this research from, but it's good.

The amount of things on the innovations the Demon Lord made in the mana field is amazing! I mean I'd never think I'd nerd out about this stuff like Akari but his work is incredible. In my notes to make my portal I had a couple of inconsistencies in my research, I didn't have that much information on how magic performs under certain circumstances.

I needed to see how it works dealing with dark and light magic mixed. 

I needed to see the reality of it all, the science behind it.

Though there is no science involved cause it's magic, there's common sense involved that we learned about in class. Like how you can't make a powerful combination spell out of fire and water magic. 

Though the research Kenos found was mostly about The Demon Lord's involvement in Katursh which is what he promised me. It's a lot more than I was expecting actually, I wanna ask him where he got it but I would rather not.

Speaking of, we finished compiling the research and were about to take his textbooks back to wherever Kenos found them. But a particular book caught my attention.

Delving deeper into, it could help me find a better way to harness my magic.

"So, you interested in mana?" Kenos hovers over my shoulder, how long has he been there?

"You could say that."

I guess we've been here for longer than I wanted and class is about to start. I've gotten all I've wanted anyway.

I close the book and put it in my pile of books that I have to carry back. I go to grab my notes as well it's when my hand doesn't grab at anything that I glance back at the spot where it was supposed to be.

"Y'know, these sketches are way more advanced than I would expect from someone like you."

I glance over to Kenos to see that smug bastard reading through my notes. That's the book that has everything in it, everything I've learned from Marissa, late nights up in the old basement about to pass out from exhaustion, and now information from textbooks.

Shit.

I grab the book right out of his hands and smack the top of his head with it.

"Hey! Watch the horns!" he whines

"Maybe don't touch my shit next time. You didn't even ask to see it!" I tuck the notebook back into my satchel very carefully. 

"Well, you were so busy with a book, that I got bored, wanted to see why you're so interested in mana."

"That's a very invasive and creepy way to go about it, you could have just asked." I huff and take the stack of books into my arms.

"Okay, I'll give it a go, why do you want to create a hero summon? No, it looked more like a reversal of that spell, so why?"

My body tenses at the invasive question before I quickly relax it.

Kenos notices. 

"That's…" I pause trying to collect my words, "an old project. It failed." 

"So what's with the mana circles anyways? You're a hero, can't you just say the spell?" 

Dear Celestia, why does he keep asking questions? The books are starting to get heavy in my arms.

"I can't, it just doesn't work. I don't know why and M- my friend, couldn't figure out why either." I pause shifting from foot to foot, "and I don't feel like being a lab rat or whatever equivalent you guys have."

"But isn't remembering mana circles hard at the moment? I'm still so curious how you've mastered them." 

"Be curious all you want, can we go now? These are gonna be annoying to carry." I motion to the books weighing on my arms.

Kenos asses me, looking me up and down with a certain look on his face. I'm not sure what it's supposed to mean but I feel like he's somehow figured out everything. 

His eyes are piercing, it's a breath of fresh air.

"Sure." Kenos stands and gets his stacks of books. "Wanna see something cool though?"

"If it stops us from continuing, then no, other than that I don't care."

He walks closer to me and touches my shoulder after adjusting his pile to one arm.

He mumbles something and suddenly this wave of vertigo wracks my body and I stumble toward it. The sound of my shoe connecting with the floor is soft, instead of the wood flooring in the library.

I look up to see a small room that looks like someone's study.

My mind checks back in when Kenos swiftly takes his hand off my shoulder puts down the books on the desk and turns back to me with the most smug smile on his face.

"That was teleportation, a lower level of what you were trying to achieve in your notes, no silly drawings needed."

I huff and stomp over to the desk and drop the books.

"So you just wanted to show off? Yeah, I get it, you're a really strong demon lord's son. You don't need to hold it over my head." I turn to him, regrettably because usually I can read people's faces all right, but Kenos has always been the exception. His face showed off none of his feelings.

"No, I wanted to show you I'm gonna help you, you wouldn't accept if I had offered…" Kenos mumbles that last part, "You have trouble with normal spell casting, that's fine, I can work with that. But the school won't, they know you're a Hero, so they're putting you in classes so they can assess your mana levels. Your little mana circles charade won't last long."

"Why are you even helping me?! I've been fine so far, why do you think that'll change?" 

Kenos eyes me and this time all his emotions are easily readable through his face, it's on purpose, that asshole.

"I'm pretty bored, you're the most excitable thing here. Other than that brother of yours but I haven't been able to catch him around." He looks off to the side at the end of his sentence but refocuses back on me.

"You're gonna have to make something permanent, something you can continuously use over and over again. It has to be a durable weapon because you'll mostly be used for fighting in the hands of Katursh." 

Why didn't I think of this beforehand?! Why does he have to be the one to inspire me?

My face cringes, "Y'know, I think I may have a solution to your parameters.

—

The project was finally finished and turned in. We presented, which was pretty easy.

There's only one thing left now, say goodbye to Kenos forever

"So what're you gonna do with him now?" Rudy questions as class comes to a close.

"What'dya mean?" 

She looks me up and down and then looks over to the side of me. I turn my head to see Kenos approaching.

Oh shit, she's right. 

What happens now? 

The project is over now, we don't have to meet up anymore. No more late nights in the library, no more early morning breakfast. No more ditching plans to go 'work' on the school project. No more workshops in my room late at night.

It's over. The blueprints for more Projects are perfected and my first Project is finished.

Good riddance.

But for some reason, my gut sinks at that realization. It's probably just the change in schedule affecting me so much, I can't imagine what else it would be.

"Never knew you had a staring problem, see something you like?" 

I focus back into the real world to be met with Kenos's clothed chest. I slowly raised my head to meet his eyes.

Those shitty, 'all-seeing', dumb, eyes.

"Nah, it was just so humiliating to see you after you stuttered while speaking Frista."

"Oh c'mon! It was an accident! It's my native language, I know how to speak Frista!"

I roll my eyes at him, "Sure, ok. So what's up? What do you want?" 

He looked at me, head tilted a bit with a blank almost amused look on his face.

"Thought we were going to the training grounds? We applied so we could test out your new mana spells?"

Shit, he did say he wanted to do that. Fuck I should've listened to what he was saying. 

But it's over, the project is over. I don't have to talk to him anymore.

He holds out his hand towards me. "I'll even carry your bag, so you're not as worn out when we get there!"

But, for some reason, I want to hang out with him. I want to try out our new spell. I want to be near him.

My chest hurts at the thought of going to do anything else.

So instead of turning around and flipping him off like I want to. My body keeps me standing in place. 

My mouth opens against my will "I can carry my bag, asshole! Let's go before they give our spot to someone else." My body starts to advance towards the exit. Kenos having no trouble keeping up.

I didn't say that.