Chapter 59: Briefing

[Galadriel]

[Luminare Academy of Arcane Arts: Headmaster's office.]

Seated behind his desk, Aleister stared at the smiling woman who stood across from it. She had a head of flowing lilac hair that only added to her beauty. Her attire was strange, but easily recognizable; she wore the upper sections of an ao dai, white in color and adorned in gold, while the rest of it was a tight black form-fitting suit showing off her figure.

"So General Mai, what is your verdict on Adrian, Ruby, and William?" The headmaster asked.

"Just Mai is fine, headmaster," the woman responded as a pondering look quickly adorned his face. "And as for the test, I uhm...may have started it a bit too early." She said somewhat sheepishly as she scratched the back of her head.

"How so?" Aleister questioned.

"W-well I may have killed the Astrothian before I could see how those three did against it," she said with a sheepish chuckle. Aleister deadpanned at the woman as he heaved a small sigh.

("I did not expect the person who inherited my post to be this airheaded.") He shook his head. "But you at least battled them? So you must have some measure of their strength." The woman merely glanced away with embarrassment.

"I-uhm might have knocked out the blonde boy too fast, resulting in the girl having to use healing magic, so I might...might have messed up," Aleister deadpanned at the woman once more as she hid her face in her hands out of embarrassment. "But well...I did manage to briefly battle the raven-haired boy," she defended, Aleister sighed.

"Well, it cannot be helped, I suppose." There were always other opportunities, but if the children thought their lives were actually at stake, they would fight like their lives depended on it. But that element was now gone, so normal training would have to be resumed. "For now, tell me your evaluation of Adrian."

"O-of course, ahem! Well, his way of fighting is quite unique," she started, with some excitement in her tone. The boy, Adrian, had really managed to surprise her. "I fought demon tamers before, but even among them, that boy is unique. He barely expended any of his mana with summoning demons or keeping them in our world. And he is quite skilled in utilizing the demons, first gauging what I can do with lower-rank demons and then immediately going for the kill once his analysis was done," she explained. Aleister hummed with interest.

"Yes, that's good. Adrian is a valued trump card; however, we have little combat data on him," Aleister stated.

"A shame, that boy is really special," Mai grinned. "I'd be happy to train the three of 'em, but...uh, best I can do is martial arts training. But I can help them master their Qi, since I'm not all that proficient in magic."

"Qi, huh? I've heard of the term before and of what it entails," Aleister muttered as he mulled over it. "It doesn't utilize mana, yet in some cases, it can give similar results, like strengthening the body to superhuman levels and more. I think it would be most useful, especially seeing as the crown prince will participate in this year's upcoming festival."

"You mean the Vel'ryr prince?" Mai questioned with a pondering look. "I heard their royal bloodline is pretty resistant to magic, something about being related to dragons." Aleister resisted the minuscule urge to once again deadpan at the girl for her wording.

"Indeed, they are descendants of dragons. Dragons only existed in the age of Gods but have since gone extinct, yet their bodies were naturally resistant to any and all phenomena. You could most likely find a still fresh corpse of a dragon if you knew where to look." Mai gave a 'wow' at the statement as Aleister continued. "We only really have ancient scriptures, though it stated the average dragon was naturally resistant to magic. While Greater Dragons were completely immune."

"That's pretty scary," Mai stated as Aleister nodded his head.

"That is why the Vel'ryr empire will always be a threat; their vastly superior technology makes up for their lack of magic. Then again, any pure-blooded Vel'ryrians could be considered vague descendants of normal dragons, making them resistant to low-level magic and making them almost superhumanly strong. But I am babbling on here," Aleister smiled as he glanced out of the window of his office. "That said, I am confident in our chances to win this year's festival."

"Yeah, that's the spirit!" Mai exclaimed excitedly. "We'll win that grand prize for sure!"

"That we will," Aleister nodded. "For the kingdom of Galadriel."

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[Verdantis]

[Briarwick]

Lucinda excitedly clapped her hands as she watched a small orb of fire come into existence in Lily's extended right palm.

"Haha! Way to go, Lily!" Lucinda chanted with a smile. The small girl, meanwhile, happily waved the small orb of fire around, much too excitedly.

"Hey, no fair! How come she's already got some fire?" Zavier whined next to her.

She was back in the inn along with the others, barring Mikoto. She was rather curious as to what the boy was up to this time of day. But that was neither here nor there; currently, Fiona, Victoria, and Professor Eugene were conversing near her at a table. Agatha and Mirabella were busying themselves with training. They were quite a duo; Agatha specialized in complex magic such as Creation Magic or utilizing her surroundings such as the vast nature. She used leylines that ran through the planet to control nature.

While Mirabella was quite the opposite. She was quite the destructive girl; every kind of magic she used was meant to inflict destruction. She certainly lived up to her God's name.

"Don't worry, Zavier," Lucinda ruffled the boy's hair, much to his annoyance. "I'm positive you'll catch up." She stated as he pouted while his sister sent him a smug look, much to his annoyance.

"Oh yeah! Lucinda, I'm making a drawing for you and the princess!" Lily suddenly exclaimed as if just remembering it.

"Oh yeah? Well, Mirabella and I would be happy to see it when you're finished," Lucinda stated with a warm smile.

"Pshh, I can make something better than some drawing," Zavier huffed as Lily stuck her tongue out at the boy.

"Blegh! You're just jealous!" She defended.

"Nuh-uh!"

"Yeah-huh!"

"Now, now, you two," the voice of Lucy traveled through the inn as the two immediately stopped their fighting. "Don't go fighting in front of Lucinda when she's been taking the time to teach you magic."

"It is fine, Miss Lucy," Lucinda just smiled. "Seeing the two bicker is kind of cute." The two just blushed in slight embarrassment at the comment. Lucy chuckled at the two as she shook her head.

"Why don't you help your brother prepare a gift for Lucinda, dear," Lucy asked Lily, who just huffed.

"I don't wanna help a meanie," she said with a pout.

"Don't be like that, Lily; helping others is always a nice thing," her mother started, "It is what a 'hero' would do."

"Hero?" Zavier and Lily questioned.

"Yep, a hero is someone who helps others out of the kindness of their heart," Lucy smiled at the two's pondering looks.

"That sounds awesome!" Lily exclaimed as she took Zavier's hand. "C'mon, I wanna be a hero!"

"H-hey!" Was all he could blurt out before being dragged off by his sister. Lucinda and Lucy just chuckled at the sight.

"I must thank you, Lucinda; it's always nice to see those two in such high spirits," Lucy thanked the girl with a smile.

"There's no need for thanks, Miss Lucy. We weren't here all that long, but I quite enjoy their company," she stated with a smile.

"You're an angel, Lucinda dear," Lucy complimented. Lucinda could not help but blush at the compliment. "You're like a big sister to those two munchkins."

("I'm used to people calling me an angel, but that's just because of my appearance and history.") Lucinda could not help but give a warm smile at the praise. It felt so genuine; most just threw compliments due to her status as the Spawn of Octavia, but none were genuine. They just wanted to get in her good graces. ("This is a nice feeling.")

Meanwhile, at Professor Eugene's table, the man mulled over all of the information he had just received from Victoria and Fiona, who sat in front of him.

"The Vel'ryr empire with the Drah'lurahr cult. And empire troops on Verdantis territory fully armed," the man frowned. "If word reaches the main capital of Verdantis, there would certainly be an uproar, but with the festival on the horizon, no nation can afford to be at war now."

"This makes me think, have Vel'ryr troops been in Verdantis all this time or did they only show up when the festival drew near?" Fiona questioned.

"I presume the latter," Victoria stated. "The Vel'ryr empire's military might is exceptionally powerful, their technology being way ahead than any other nation, small or big. However, even so, they would not risk war with Verdantis, a country that holds five Inheritors. Even one could obliterate an entire army with little difficulty."

"True, this timing of their small invasion is no small coincidence, "Fiona agreed. "However, for what purpose was the cult established? Assuming most or all of their members are full-blooded Vel'ryrians due to their lack of mana, why establish it?" Fiona asked, confusion clear in her tone.

"That some members are Vel'ryrians might not be true," the two looked at Professor Eugene in confusion for his words. "It is a small chance, but I've read tales of individuals consuming the blood of a dragon in turn for 'greater' strength. But sacrificing mana, as dragon blood rejects it. Though it is rather far-fetched, and we would have to assume the Drah'lurahr cult has the corpse of a dragon in their-" Before he finished his sentence, he shot up from his seat as realization struck him, the two girls jumped at the action. "Mikoto had mentioned that some villagers might have been abducted due to the lack of corpses in that village he and Agatha had visited. Sacrifices, rebirth through a ritual." The two girls' eyes widened.

"Your saying they plan on resurrecting something through sacrifices?" Victoria asked, by her fearful expression she knew what it was.

"It's a hunch without much proof," Professor Eugene started. "Round everyone up and meet outside the town; a dragon might be resurrected."