Chapter 392: Chapter 392 – “I am… fine.”

The moment Seraphina’s words settled into the room, a ripple of reaction spread across the class.

A wave of murmurs rose almost instantly, some students groaning lightly while others leaned back in disbelief.

“A practical test… on the first day?”

“Seriously… we just got back…”

“Can’t we at least have one peaceful lecture first…?”

A few students dragged their hands across their faces in exaggerated frustration, clearly not ready to be thrown back into intense evaluation so soon.

And yet—

Not everyone complained.

Several students straightened in their seats instead, their expressions sharpening with focus rather than resistance.

Some even nodded to themselves.

“Good.”

“This is better.”

“I was getting bored anyway…”

The contrast in reactions gave the room an odd energy—half reluctant, half eager.

At the back of the class, Luca leaned slightly toward his side, his gaze shifting toward Eric, who remained completely calm as he looked ahead at Seraphina without even the slightest sign of complaint.

Luca raised a brow, mildly surprised.

“Ohh… you’re taking it pretty well,” he said.

Eric didn’t even turn his head.

His grey eyes remained fixed forward as he replied flatly,

“I’m sitting beside you.”

A faint pause followed.

“I was already prepared to get dragged into trouble.”

Only then did he finally glance sideways at Luca.

“So what’s this compared to that?”

Luca’s lips twitched.

“You bastard…”

Before their banter could continue any further, Seraphina’s voice once again cut through the classroom.

“Everyone, proceed to the training grounds.”

The class immediately began to move.

Chairs scraped lightly against the floor as students stood up, conversations resuming in low voices as they began filing out of the room.

Luca, Eric, and Sylthara rose along with the rest, joining the steady flow of students heading toward the open training courtyard.

The atmosphere outside was already charged with anticipation by the time they arrived.

Seraphina stood at the center of the field, waiting for all of them to gather before she spoke again.

“For this evaluation,” she said calmly, her gaze sweeping across the class, “form groups of two and duel amongst yourselves.”

A brief pause followed as her tone sharpened slightly.

“I will be observing.”

“I expect to see how much each of you has improved.”

That was enough.

The students immediately began scattering across the training ground, forming pairs quickly, some already calling out to their usual partners while others looked around, searching for suitable opponents.

Sylthara took a small step forward, her golden eyes instinctively shifting toward Luca as she moved to approach him—

But before she could reach him, Eric stepped in.

“Hehe…”

A playful grin spread across his face as he stopped in front of her.

“Why don’t you duel with me?”

Sylthara paused, blinking once as she looked at him.

At the same time, Eric’s gaze flicked briefly toward Luca, who had already begun looking off in another direction.

Then Eric leaned slightly closer and added in a lower, conspiratorial tone,

“I know lots of his secrets.”

A faint smirk tugged at his lips.

“I’ll tell you.”

Sylthara tilted her head slightly, considering his words for a brief moment.

Then—

She nodded.

Eric’s grin widened instantly.

Luca, who had caught the entire exchange from the corner of his eye, turned toward Eric.

Eric simply winked at him.

Luca stared at him for a second.

Then he let out a quiet breath before a small smile formed on his face.

Shaking his head slightly, he turned and began walking in another direction.

Stopping a short distance away, he looked at someone ahead of him and spoke casually—

“Hey…”

A faint pause.

“Would you like to duel with me?”

Luca’s voice reached its intended target.

A pink-haired girl standing a short distance away turned toward him, her soft green eyes meeting his as she held a slender staff in her hand. For a brief moment, Lilliane simply looked at him—perhaps surprised, perhaps hesitant—but then she gave a small nod.

Luca returned the gesture with a faint smile.

Without another word, the two of them moved toward an open section of the training field, positioning themselves opposite each other as the rest of the class spread out around them in similar pairs.

The air between them shifted.

Not tense—

But focused.

Lilliane tightened her grip on her staff, her posture straightening as a faint glow of mana began to gather around her. Luca, on the other hand, reached back calmly and drew his twin sabers, the familiar weight settling into his hands as easily as breathing.

For a heartbeat, they simply watched each other.

Then—

Lilliane moved first.

A soft incantation slipped from her lips as a cluster of wind-infused mana gathered at the tip of her staff, forming into sharp, compressed blades of air that shot forward toward Luca.

The attack was quick and precise.

Luca stepped forward rather than back.

His sabers moved in a smooth cross, meeting the incoming wind blades with clean, controlled strikes. The compressed air shattered upon impact, dispersing into harmless gusts that swept past him.

Before the remnants could even settle—

Lilliane cast again.

This time, thin arcs of lightning crackled into existence, snapping through the air in jagged lines aimed at his movement.

Luca pivoted on his heel, his body turning with fluid precision as one saber deflected the first arc while the second redirected another, the sparks scattering around him in brief flashes of light.

He closed the distance slightly.

Not aggressively—

But steadily.

The rhythm of their duel began to form.

Spell.

Parry.

Advance.

Lilliane maintained her ground, her staff moving with increasing confidence as she layered her spells more carefully now, alternating between elements to disrupt Luca’s approach.

A burst of wind to push him back.

A sudden flash of lightning to force his guard.

A faint shimmer of water gathering beneath his feet to disrupt his balance.

Luca responded to each with measured precision, his sabers moving not with brute force, but with calculated efficiency as he redirected, dispersed, or avoided each attack without overcommitting.

Amidst the exchange—

He spoke.

“How are you?”

The question slipped naturally into the flow of movement, as though it belonged there just as much as the clash of mana and steel.

Lilliane hesitated for the briefest moment before answering.

“I am… fine.”

Her voice was soft, yet steadier than before.

Luca’s lips curved slightly as he deflected another arc of lightning and stepped to the side.

“You definitely look better than the last time we saw you.”

There was no accusation in his tone.

Only quiet acknowledgment.

Their movements continued, the distance between them shifting back and forth as the duel progressed.

For a few seconds, Lilliane said nothing.

Her staff lowered slightly between spells.

Then, as she cast again, her voice followed.

“I am sorry…”

Her words were softer this time, almost carried away by the wind she summoned.

“For not being able to help you in the Holy Kingdom…”

Luca tilted his head slightly as he stepped forward, one saber brushing aside a stream of water magic while the other intercepted a delayed strike of lightning.

“Don’t worry about it,” he replied calmly.

His movements remained steady.

Unhurried.

“Your well-being is your top priority.”

The simplicity of his answer carried more weight than any elaborate reassurance.

Lilliane’s grip on her staff tightened just a fraction.

Then—

She resumed her attacks.

And Luca met them just the same.

The duel carried on for a little while longer, the steady rhythm of magic and steel continuing between Luca and Lilliane as neither of them rushed to overwhelm the other, but instead maintained a controlled exchange that reflected both growth and restraint. Around them, similar clashes echoed across the training grounds as the rest of the class engaged in their own duels, the air filled with bursts of mana, shifting elements, and the focused movements of students pushing themselves to perform.

Then, cutting cleanly through the layered sounds of combat, Seraphina’s voice rang out across the field.

“That’s enough.”

It was not loud.

Yet it carried effortlessly, reaching every corner of the training ground.

Almost immediately, the duels slowed and came to a halt as students stepped back from one another, lowering weapons and letting their mana disperse.

“I have observed enough,” Seraphina continued calmly, her sharp gaze moving across the class as if already evaluating each of them in silence. “You will receive your individual assessments shortly.”

With that, the session ended.

The tension that had filled the field eased, replaced once again by murmurs and scattered conversations as students began discussing their performances, some satisfied, others already debating what they could have done better.

Luca lowered his sabers, the blades dissolving back into their sheathed form as he gave Lilliane a small nod before stepping away. There was no need for further words; the exchange between them had already said enough.

Soon after, the training grounds began to empty.

But Luca did not return immediately.

Instead, he found himself walking alone along the quieter paths of the academy, his steps unhurried as his thoughts drifted back to the duel.

Is she really okay…?

The question lingered in his mind, heavier than he expected.

He exhaled slowly, his gaze lowering slightly as he continued walking.

I don’t know why…

But something about her felt… different.

Not weaker.

Not unstable.

Just—

Different.

He frowned faintly.

Or am I just thinking too much…?

The thought trailed off before it could settle.

Just then, a soft sound reached his ears.

The gentle ripple of water.

Luca’s steps slowed.

His thoughts broke.

He lifted his head.

Before him lay a quiet, familiar sight—

The academy’s secluded lake, its surface reflecting the soft daylight as small ripples spread outward from where the breeze brushed against it.

For a moment, he simply stared.

Then he let out a quiet sigh, a faint smile tugging at his lips.

“I thought I had forgotten the way here…”

His voice was low, almost amused.

“I’ve been trying to find it for the past week…”

He shook his head lightly as he stepped closer to the water’s edge.

“And here I am.”

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