Chapter 255: An Ordinary Afternoon [4]

Ilya had barely finished breakfast when a servant informed him that someone from Holy Trinity had arrived.

Considering that it was supposed to be his day off, he found the news rather unfortunate.

The visitor had brought a letter bearing the Magic Department’s seal. It wasn’t particularly urgent, although the messenger had been instructed to deliver it personally.

Ilya opened the envelope and recognized the handwriting immediately.

Vera Adelheid.

*Come to the eastern training hall this afternoon. Bring your notes from the practical assessment.*

That was the entire message.

No explanation, no greeting, and certainly no consideration for his weekend plans.

How thoughtful.

Fortunately, Ilya had nothing scheduled until the evening. He informed the servant that he would be leaving after lunch, then returned to the breakfast table.

Anastasiya was already examining several documents, apparently having decided that weekends were an excellent opportunity to continue working.

She glanced at the letter.

"Academy business?"

"Vera wants to see me."

"On your day off?"

"Apparently, education is a lifelong punishment."

Anastasiya ignored that.

She knew enough about Vera to understand that the woman rarely summoned Ilya without a reason. Although she had reservations about some of his instructor’s methods, she couldn’t deny how much his magical abilities had improved under her guidance.

"Don’t come home injured."

"I’ll do my best."

"That wasn’t a suggestion."

Ilya finished his breakfast.

His sister’s concern was becoming easier to recognize these days, although expressing it without sounding threatening remained a challenge for her.

He supposed some habits were difficult to change.

By early afternoon, Ilya reached the academy’s eastern training hall.

The building was considerably quieter than usual. Most students were enjoying their day off, and only a handful of instructors occupied the neighboring practice chambers.

Vera was waiting near the entrance.

She wore her usual relaxed expression, with a stack of papers resting on the table beside her.

"You’re late."

"The letter said afternoon."

"And?"

"It’s afternoon."

"Smartass."

Ilya smiled and approached the table.

Vera had already obtained a copy of his practical assessment report.

He had stopped questioning how she managed to acquire information that normally required several administrative approvals.

She examined the document while he reviewed the notes he had brought.

"Your results are good," she said. "Better than I expected, actually."

"How generous."

"Don’t get excited. You’ve still got problems."

That sounded more familiar.

Vera pointed toward the section concerning his mana expenditure.

The assessment instructors had criticized his efficiency during the controlled engagements, and Hakon had raised similar concerns during their recent training sessions.

Vera, however, was interested in something slightly different.

"You’re still treating your movement like something you activate whenever you need speed," she explained. "That works when the other fellow doesn’t understand what you’re doing. Against someone who can follow your movements, you’re giving away too much."

Ilya understood what she meant.

His blizzard-assisted mobility allowed him to accelerate and change direction with unusual freedom, but every sudden adjustment created disturbances in the surrounding mana.

A sufficiently observant opponent could use those disturbances to anticipate his next movement.

Tristan had already demonstrated that problem during their previous engagements.

"Professor Hakon’s been helping me reduce the expenditure."

"I know. He’s doing a good job."

Vera turned another page.

"But efficiency alone won’t solve everything. You need to stop making your attacks so obvious."

Ilya raised an eyebrow.

"Obvious?"

"Once you accelerate, you usually attack from whichever direction gives you the shortest route. You’ve become very good at it, but being good at something doesn’t make it unpredictable."

That was a fair criticism.

His experience with swordsmanship had taught him to recognize openings and exploit them before an opponent could respond. Unfortunately, magical combat introduced additional possibilities, particularly when an enemy could redirect attacks or manipulate the battlefield.

Vera led him into the practice chamber.

Several training targets stood throughout the room, while a reinforced barrier covered the surrounding walls.

She activated the formation.

"Show me how you’d approach those three."

Ilya examined the targets before moving.

A burst of freezing wind carried him toward the nearest one. He struck its exposed side, redirected his momentum, and approached the second from above before finishing with the third.

The entire sequence took only a few seconds.

Vera wasn’t impressed.

"Again."

This time, she activated another function.

The targets began responding to his movements, adjusting their defenses whenever he accelerated.

Ilya approached the first target and found its protective barrier already positioned along his intended route.

He changed direction.

The second target adjusted as well.

By the time he reached the third, the formation had successfully anticipated most of his attacks.

Vera stopped the exercise.

"See?"

Ilya examined the results.

The targets hadn’t become faster. They had simply reacted to the disturbances accompanying his movements.

That was troublesome.

However, he had an idea.

"Can I try something?"

"That’s what we’re here for."

The formation restarted.

This time, Ilya released several small currents of freezing air throughout the chamber before approaching the targets.

The resulting disturbances spread across different directions, making it more difficult for the formation to identify his actual movement.

He accelerated toward the first target.

Its barrier shifted.

However, the response came slightly later than before.

Ilya changed direction and struck the exposed side.

The second target attempted to compensate, but another current of freezing air disrupted its prediction.

He reached the third and completed the sequence.

The formation recorded a successful attempt.

Vera examined the results.

"Better."

Ilya was satisfied.

The technique required additional mana to maintain the surrounding currents, but it reduced the risk of an opponent predicting his movements.

Against Tristan, that could prove useful.

Unfortunately, Vera wasn’t finished.

"Now do it without wasting so much mana."

Of course.

The next hour passed in a series of increasingly difficult exercises.

Vera adjusted the formation whenever Ilya discovered a reliable approach, forcing him to reconsider his methods rather than repeat a successful pattern.

He eventually learned to maintain smaller disturbances around the targets, releasing additional currents only when necessary.

It was exhausting work.

However, the improvement was noticeable.

By the end of the session, he could complete the sequence with fewer unnecessary movements and considerably less mana expenditure.

Vera seemed satisfied.

"Keep practicing that. And don’t rely on the same trick every time."

"I wasn’t planning to."

"Good. I’d hate to see Bellacourt beat you again."

Ilya sighed.

Apparently, everyone at Holy Trinity had decided that his rivalry with Tristan was an excellent source of entertainment.

Vera laughed before gathering her papers.

Their training was finished, but she remained in the chamber while Ilya recovered.

For a while, they discussed his recent experiences at the academy.

Vera had heard about his cooperative assessment with Elise and Solenne, including the rather unusual manner in which their team avoided most of the fortress’s defenses.

She appeared amused by the result.

"That’s more like you."

"Should I be offended?"

"Take it as a compliment. You’ve finally learned that you don’t have to punch everything standing in your way."

Ilya considered mentioning that he had punched one of the constructs.

He wisely kept that detail to himself.

Their conversation eventually turned toward ordinary academy matters.

Vera asked whether he had been sleeping properly and whether his recent training schedule was interfering with his recovery after Saint Aurelia.

The questions were casual, but Ilya recognized the concern behind them.

He assured her that he was managing his responsibilities without neglecting his health.

That was mostly true.

Vera seemed unconvinced, although she didn’t pursue the matter further.

Instead, she mentioned that Antoine Chastellain had recently resumed some of his research correspondence.

The professor was still recovering, and his return to academic work would be gradual. Nevertheless, several colleagues had begun assisting him with organizing materials he had neglected during the crisis.

Ilya was glad to hear it.

Antoine had endured something no parent should ever experience, and recovering from that tragedy would take far longer than a few weeks.

Still, the fact that he had begun working again was encouraging.

Vera didn’t elaborate.

She simply reminded Ilya that Antoine would contact him if he needed assistance.

For now, there was nothing he needed to do.

After another brief conversation, Ilya prepared to leave.

Vera accompanied him toward the entrance, where the late afternoon sunlight had begun illuminating the courtyard.

"Senior."

"Hm?"

"Thanks for today."

She waved a hand dismissively.

"Just don’t make me regret spending my afternoon teaching you."

"I’ll try."

"Try harder."

Ilya smiled.

Some things never changed.

He left the training hall feeling pleasantly exhausted.

The session had given him several useful ideas, particularly concerning how he could disguise his movements without exhausting his mana reserves.

More importantly, he had begun understanding another limitation of his fighting style.

His unusual abilities provided advantages that ordinary First Circle wizards could scarcely imagine, but relying on them carelessly would only make those advantages easier to counter.

He intended to address that problem before his next engagement with Tristan.

For now, however, he had earned himself a quiet evening.

Assuming nobody else decided to summon him somewhere.

With his recent luck, that might be asking too much.