Chapter 9: Curtain of Fire

Lucien Drex was being hunted.

Which meant it was a perfect day to oversleep.

The warning glyph on his door had pulsed red three times. Someone had slipped a duel scroll under his sheets. Renn had whispered, cried, begged, and even offered tea laced with alert dust.

Lucien yawned, rolled over, and went back to dreaming about grilled cheese sandwiches that screamed when you bit them.

---

Two hours later

Lucien stood outside the Duelling Arena in mismatched socks, holding a parasol, wearing what looked suspiciously like pajamas with sigils drawn in crayon.

The crowd stared.

He blinked slowly, as if seeing them for the first time.

"Oh. Right. This."

Someone from House Ignis shouted, "You're late!"

Lucien squinted at them. "You're loud."

Another yelled, "Seraphina's waiting!"

Lucien blinked. "For me? That's romantic."

"THIS IS A DUEL, NOT A DATE!"

Lucien waved lazily. "Depends on how much violence she's into."

---

Inside the Arena

Seraphina Vale stood poised in the center of a blazing ring. Her crimson dueling robes shimmered like dragonhide, her staff etched with twin phoenixes.

Her eyes, though, were fixed on Lucien. Unblinking. Heated.

"You ignored my summons," she said.

Lucien sighed. "I ignore a lot of things. Deadlines. Emotional attachments. Gravity."

"You insulted House Ignis."

"I insulted your brother. There's a difference. He's got the brain of a blunt butter knife."

"You slept through three scheduled duels."

"Did I?" Lucien scratched his chin. "No wonder I felt so well-rested."

Seraphina stepped forward. "Today you fight, Lucien. You will answer."

Lucien held up a finger. "I have a counter-offer: what if I don't?"

Gasps echoed through the arena.

Seraphina's staff lit with fire.

Lucien took out a teacup. "But I brought snacks."

The fire around her intensified.

"I'm not here to play, Drex."

Lucien shrugged. "And I'm not here to win. That's the beautiful part."

---

The Duel Begins

A flare sigil exploded in the air. The battle was on.

Seraphina didn't hesitate — she launched a Crimson Lance, a concentrated burst of flame aimed straight at Lucien's heart.

Lucien didn't dodge.

He just… tripped.

By accident. Or design. Who could tell?

The spell shot over his head and melted a statue of Headmistress Elenora instead.

From the ground, Lucien mumbled, "Woah. Violence. That's a red flag."

Seraphina growled. "Stand and fight me like a mage!"

Lucien rolled lazily onto his back. "That sounds exhausting."

She fired again — three rings of fire.

Lucien tossed his teacup in the air.

The ceramic cup hit one of his own hidden sigils — Refraction Spiral — and the spell curved sideways, colliding with the second.

Boom. Smoke. Screams.

Lucien stood up, dusted himself off. "See? I contributed."

---

Seraphina's Meltdown Begins

"I studied for ten years," she said, voice cracking. "I bled for my title. And you—"

Lucien tilted his head. "Didn't?"

"You slept through evaluations!"

"Sleep is sacred."

"You missed orientation!"

"There were too many chairs."

"You skipped glyph theory!"

"I skipped breakfast, Seraphina. Priorities."

She screamed and summoned the Curtain of Fire — a massive wall of heat meant to burn through defense sigils and illusions alike.

Lucien looked up.

Then waved.

And the wall parted.

Literally.

It bent around him.

Seraphina's face twisted. "What did you—"

Lucien pointed to a sigil stitched onto his pajama cuff. "Evaporation Field. Activated only if I yawn three times while facing northeast."

"You're making that up."

"I make a lot of things up. Including my GPA."

---

The Arena Glitches

A strange tremor passed through the air. Several spectators looked around nervously.

Lucien's trap — laid a week ago when he was pretending to nap by the fountain — finally triggered.

A phantom double of Lucien appeared and began taunting Seraphina from another angle.

"Your hair smells like burnt paper," it said.

She turned. Blasted it.

It exploded into glitter.

Lucien stood behind her.

"You ever wonder," he said casually, "what would happen if a duel was so boring it looped back into comedy?"

She turned, face flushed. "This isn't funny!"

Lucien paused. "Then I must be doing it wrong."

---

The Duel Ends

Headmistress Elenora intervened, her voice echoing like judgment itself.

"ENOUGH!"

Both students froze.

Elenora looked at Lucien. "You're a disgrace to protocol."

Lucien bowed. "I strive for consistency."

She looked at Seraphina. "And you lost control."

Seraphina looked down.

Lucien whispered, "We both failed together. It's practically romantic."

She nearly set him on fire again.

---

Aftermath

Lucien sat with Renn later, sipping tea by the fountain.

"She's going to murder you," Renn said.

"I doubt it. She still doesn't understand me."

"She's obsessed."

Lucien swirled his cup. "That's her problem. I'm too lazy to reciprocate."

"You made her question her life."

Lucien smiled. "Good. Maybe she'll take a nap."

---

Elsewhere…

Marcus Vale watched the duel from the shadow balcony, fists clenched.

"That bastard made a fool of my sister."

Beside him, a hooded figure whispered, "He made a fool of the Academy."

Marcus growled. "I want him out."

The hooded figure smiled. "Then let him dig his own grave. The Pale Sigil already watches. You need only wait."

---

Deeper Still…

Caelum Virell filed a single line of observation:

> "Subject Drex weaponized humor. Target lost emotional control. Sigil reactions indicate non-combat trauma exploitation."

Another voice asked, "What's his goal?"

Caelum paused.

"He's not trying to win."

"…then what?"

"He's trying to wear them out. One obsession at a time."