Unworthy

The ring slipped onto my finger like it was made for me. I felt it's power immediately - an overwhelming surge of energy coursing through my veins.

But just as quickly as it came, it vanished.

The ring suddenly grew cold. It was too cold for my skin, but I endured it anyway.

"Are you alright?" Theo asked, his face stern, but his voice filled with concern.

"I'm fine," I replied, masking the numbing cold I felt in my finger.

Regardless of the pain, I decided to check if my magic was back. Luckily, I knew the perfect spell for this moment.

Drawing a single breath, I rested my right arm on the table, palm facing upward.

"Inferno," I exhaled.

I could see a small, red ember form in the center of my palm. But the next second, it faded completely.

Maybe I was just imagining it.

"Inferno," I repeated again, my voice becoming more distraught. I narrowed my eyes, trying to maximise my concentration.

But to my utmost disappointment, nothing happened.

I yelled out in frustration and pulled out the ring, tossing it across the alehouse. It landed on a table somewhere and fell back to the floor.

Defeated, I buried my face in my hands. For the first time since my reincarnation… I felt helpless.

Theo understood what had happened, and remained quiet, which was the best thing he could actually do at the moment.

To my right, I heard a series of footsteps.

"You dropped this, Master Rin," Anna's voice said, offering the ring back to me.

"Please… just leave me alone," I snapped.

A mild terror flashed in her eyes, and she recoiled.

Theo stood up. "I'm sorry about that," he said, taking the ring from her. "Thank you for your help."

Anna nodded curtly, and turned back to me. "I'm sorry for offending you, Master Rin."

I ignored her, and she walked away, rejected.

Theo placed the ring back into the black box. "So, it didn't work?"

I sighed, and shook my head.

"Maybe it's a fake?"

"It's not." I didn't need to explain further, but I did anyway. "I could feel the magic within, but my body couldn't harness it."

"Why?"

I shook my head again. "I don't know."

Theo stared at the box for a while, then dropped it on the table. "What do we do next?"

"Nothing," I shrugged.

"There must be something else we can try. Another artefact?"

I slammed my hand on the table. "It's gone, alright?! My magic is gone!"

Theo kept silent, his face unchanged.

"Since I got reincarnated," I continued, "All I've focused on is trying to get it back. Maybe it's time I accept that it's never coming back."

"You don't really believe that."

"I do. I tried to deny it, but now I do."

"What about the shadow girl? What about the end of the world?"

I stood up from the table. "It's not my problem anymore. Grand Mage Dreyfus Belford is dead. Now I'm just Rin Stormborn, a noble without magic."

The old me would have fought till the very end. But what was the point of fighting when there's nothing left to fight with?

I turned toward the door.

"What about the ring?" Theo asked.

I hissed. "Toss it… Keep it… Return it to Brannersport… I don't care what you do with it."

My eyes caught Anna as I headed towards the door, staring at me with sad pitiful eyes. It was common knowledge that elves, particularly elven women, felt emotions more deeply than humans.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you," I said to her, and her face lightened up a bit.

Without another word, I put on my hood and disappeared into the cold night.

*****

Throughout the next day, I was nothing but a shadow of myself.

When I left the inn, finding a carriage became impossible, so I had to walk all the way back to the academy

By the time I arrived in class that morning, I was incredibly late and received a short reprimand from Professor Long.

The rest of the classes didn't fare any better, as I managed to sleep halfway through it all, raising concerns from most of the teachers.

"Rin? Are you alright?" Miss Fumiko whispered, gently tapping my shoulder during her afternoon class.

"I'm fine," I responded bleakly.

Miss Fumiko gazed at me with a concerned look, then returned her attention to the rest of the class..

I couldn't focus on the lecture. So instead, I stared out the window, hoping it would keep me awake.

For a very brief second, I glanced at a girl dressed in the academy uniform, with long, orange hair.

I blinked hard to clear up my vision, but when I opened them again, she was gone.

Perhaps I imagined it, but one thing was certain to me.

I needed some sleep.

*****

When classes ended for the day, I was faced with a new problem.

I had no place to sleep.

With an unknown assassin watching my back, it was foolhardy to return to the noble dorm.

I considered going back to the inn, but the commute time was a bit too long, and it was rare to find a carriage coming this way.

Eventually, I settled for the library. It was always open, and the librarian was a silent old mage who didn't bother the students who stayed overnight, as long as they didn't make any noise.

On my way there, I ran into Lucy, headed in the same direction.

For a brief moment, we locked eyes, and my heart began to race a bit. But before I could say a word, she quickly averted her gaze and marched off ahead of me.

I couldn't blame her. I would do the same if my best friend changed overnight.

Part of me wanted to call out to her, to hold her gently in my arms and explain everything that was going on.

But the other part knew better than to tell an innocent girl that she was destined to become an evil villainess who destroys the world. Even worse, there was no way I could stop her if she did.

So I kept walking, maintaining the distance between us. Someday, I'll find a way to tell her.

Just before I got to the library, I walked past the noticeboard.

A new paper was pinned to it, announcing the commencement of the tournament in three days.

The paper also contained the names of the participants, but this time around, the names had been arranged in a clearly defined table for the first round of the tournament.

Four matches were listed, which were divided into two days. Two matches would be held each day.

I carefully glanced through the paper for my name. When I found it, my heart sank into my stomach.

My name was the first on the match up.

Tournament Day One

First Round, Match One

Rin Stormborn (House Stormborn, Class 1C)

vs

Baron Borain (House Borain, Class 1B)

My first opponent was Baron Borain, the boy whose house Theo had just stolen the ring from.

Perfect. Just f**king perfect.