With the dueling brackets not released yet, but tools on the horizon, their morning training increased in intensity. 2 days before the tools began, they decided they would take it easy so they could be fresh for it. Instead of dueling or fighting, they walked around and ran around the entire compound which took roughly the entire 2 hours they used for training before breakfast. Each Chef was calming and relaxing and he felt like the exertion itself was not really there. He wanted to do more. He knew what he could do more but because he was saving his strength for 2 days, he would for once, do what the girl said and hold off on intense training.

  “You know, for a morning, this feels almost more difficult than doing intense training. I feel like I’m holding myself back.”

  “Ludo you definitely are just getting all up in your mind about this. We don’t have to destroy ourselves every single day to advance. Sometimes we need to take a rest and that’s what we’re doing right now. Especially if what you’re saying is true and we roll hold directly into the duels.”

  “You and I both know that’s true. But like can I just... They eyed several large stones that were next to a climbing net. It was like they items called out to him and he feel himself. Drooling.

  He wiped his mouth with his toga. It wouldn’t do to let them see that. Milla had been an excellent companion, though she had really not understood how fresh he felt every morning. It wasn’t clear how she felt. Her athletic skill had gotten to 30. 20 and the time he had gone to 30. One of the few skills that that Sire had, and he hadn’t needed to give her was Athletics. Everything else he traded with her once she’d been brought into the circle of Trust.

  “All right. So the last time you did duels, that was when the demons attacked? So I think that we’ve taken care of that, correct? We don’t need to go or out around and search for them? One of the religious orders is tasked to find Aaron demons that have somehow slipped from their World to ours?”

  Several priests said he had not known were often seen wandering around the grounds though. They never interact with students so far as you knew. The entire idea of them being able to sniff out demons where he couldn’t made him wish that he had whatever skill that was but it sounded like it was more of a bloodline thing and he wouldn’t be able to get that no matter how many times he looped through.

  Can’t say we’re going to be dueling from a different class. Even, it made little sense that there would be anywhere near the same brackets and to confound that, many of the people that they would have fought will fight other people and many people that were missing had been in that first round. They probably pick themselves out potentially. No one sent their children to the academy to die and the threat of them dying.

  Even considering them not being able to blame themselves in a county graduate was one of those things that in High Society would be frowned upon. They could always go in a different year and attempted even though there are only so many prefereti. Further, only so many of those had children. The average age of students at the academy was between sixteen and eighteen and, for the most part, they all kept upbeat together.

  “Oh, I found something you might be interested in. There’s some mention of a column within the Celusian. The Celusians have this word that we can’t really puzzle out and it seems to be a combination or hearth or home. It’s not entirely clear but they mention it all the time.”

  Ludere raised a single eyebrow. Walking three abreast lessened the effect. “What’s the context of this?”

  The context indicates that skills are always mentioned when they are brought up, or usually they are, but people never really clarify the relationship between the hearth column and whatever they are discussing.

  “Hearth. What did you think it means?” He turned to Cire.

  “Hearth. Alius. I don’t know what these words are. It’s like the demons have their own language that they’re not sharing with us,” Cire said.

  The hair on the back of Luderes neck went straight up. “You don’t think...”

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  “I want you to try.”

  “I don’t know if she’s going to be out with anything that we have regarding that. I feel like I can compel her to do something that she’s going to say no but...”

  “It’s the only lead we have right now and if we can figure out a way to get her to talk to us and get something useful from it then that’s going to be the best idea, right?”

  Ludere hated the spear had been taken over by the spirit of a dead succubus. He hated the fact that the succubus herself was not helpful. Once you conquered somebody then you should be subservient to them right? But no not in this case. Here, all I got was a bunch of grief from a spear that at once been his side on.. he just needed the spirit to listen to him and not be a dick to him. And as much as he likes the idea of Spears having personalities, it could have been another spirit and he would have been just fine with that. He would have been more than fine. In fact, if the spear had just decided that it would listen to them. Even if it would just talk to somebody else. Spears we’re not supposed to talk back.

  Succubus aside, it had been a wonderful spear.

  It really was a shame that he was going to have to figure out a way to get rid of it in such a way as that it would be not useful for anybody else.. what did you do with the spear that wouldn’t listen to you? He’d never encountered such an issue. But if this was how his spear was going to treat him then he would have to be as hostile towards it as it was towards him.

  “All right. What do you think I need to do to get her on my side because this is ridiculous?”

  “I’m not sure exactly what succubi like, but have you thought about complimenting how she looks. Now? I know this sounds dumb, but she’s a sphere so maybe you could compliment how she used to like to look? Do you recall how she looked?”

  He recalled the moment of Terror as the succubi tried to kill him desperately and failed. He recalled that she looks like any other succubi that he had ever seen. If she was vain, then it was probably pretty normal. It made sense.

  “All right, let’s say I recall what she looks like. And let’s say further that I can talk to her about this. And that she’s interested in this. She’ll know that I don’t know what she looks like. It’s very obvious. Then what? She’s going to know that I’m a liar as well?”

  “She’s a demon. She’s already assuming that you’re a liar. If she isn’t, then she’s an idiot.” Milla looks like she was enjoying this thoroughly.

  Ludere paused. All three of them stopped short.

  “Do you think that I’m an idiot?”

  “I would never say such words aloud to you.”

  They continued walking for a minute.

  “Hey!”

  Mila and Cire exchanged a high five. “Told you,” Cire said.

  “I’ll have you know that. I’m very intelligent when I need to be. I just feel like I don’t need to be as smart all the time, especially when we’re not in class. All right, I’m not here to be a performative intellectual. I’m here to kick demon asses and graduate.”

  “Didn’t you do that thing where you tried to leave the Oracle without pants on that one time?” Cire said.

  “Who told you that? Did my girlfriend tell you that? She wasn’t supposed to tell you that.”

  Mila giggled. “This is not to mention the amount of times that she’s caught you. Trying to wander out without a shirt on. I feel like that bears introspection.”

  “That... Why do you need an introduction to a bear? If you really need that, I am sure that it can be arranged. The Senator’s daughter is the logical person to arrange such a meeting.”

  Mila blinked several times. Their dormitory was coming up soon and his was beyond. In between the two buildings equidistant from both, was the dining hall. It was their next stop, since they wouldn’t be changing to other clothing for the day. Then they would grab their Scrolls and head to class.

  “Do you think the seconds are going to treat us any differently than when we were in fourth? I don’t know that we even need to do this dueling thing because we spent so much time fighting each other,” Mila said.

  Cire flipped her hair back. “You already know the answer. They’re going to treat you like you are wall to be gotten through or over. I don’t want someone to get through me so I’m going to be the wall.”

  “You’re more like the dagger that cuts so deeply that everyone regrets,” Ludere muttered.

  Cire took several exaggerated moves to step through a standard dagger thrust without the requisite item. she pretended to stab from overhead several times. Mila did the same.

  “You are both scaring me. I would love it if you didn’t do that.”

  Both women turn to him with their fake daggers and pretended to stab him. He stood there, pretending to be hurt with each one.

  “Oh no. I’m being stabbed. What? A tragic twist and ending to my shirt your poignant life. Oh, well.”

  He play-acted dying and clutching his chest as they continued to pretend to stab him. They were so gleeful that he was trying to figure out how into the act they were. Ludere was he was getting scared of how into it they were becoming. It wasn’t a possession but the two of them felt a bit off.

  “Uh guys. You’re scaring me.”

  They stopped, letting him get up.

  “Sorry, I don’t know what happened there,” Mila said. “I think we got a little carried away.”

  “That was my fault. Anyway, we have the duels to look forward to. You said that last time you played bookie, and I provided the finances?”

  For the first time in a long time, Ludere laughed uncontrollably.