Chapter 4: Elinàsze at the Oldwass College of Magic

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◇Houghtow City—Flio’s House◇

One night, Belano stood knocking on the door to Elinàsze’s private room. Much to her surprise, however, there was no response from inside.

I wonder what’s going on...Belano thought, cocking her head curiously as she went to knock again.She’s usually in her room around this time of night...The second knock got no more response than the first.I wonder if she’s out...? Or maybe in the bath?

As Belano stood there, debating with herself whether she should knock on the door a third time, she suddenly heard Elinàsze’s voice inside her head. “Hello? Miss Belano, is that you?”

“Fweh?!” Belano exclaimed, jumping back. Discombobulated, she looked all around trying to identify the source of the voice. Elinàsze, however, was nowhere in sight.

“Oh, I’m out of the world at the moment,” said Elinàsze’s telepathic voice. “Please wait just a moment!”

“Wh-What?” Belano asked, confused. “You’re...out of the world?”

Before long, however, Belano saw a magic circle appear right before her eyes. A black door arose out of the circle. It opened with a click, and out stepped Elinàsze. She was wearing the comfortable clothes she favored for daily wear around the house, complete with a pair of big round glasses. “I’m sorry to keep you waiting,” she said. “Is there something you need?”

“O-Oh! Yes...” Belano answered.

“You can come inside if you like,” said Elinàsze, beckoning Belano inside the door she had conjured. “Right this way.”

Belano took Elinàsze up on her offer and stepped inside, glancing curiously all around.Is this...a Teleportation Portal?

The space on the other side of the door was quite large. There was an enormous bookshelf taking up an entire wall, stuffed to the bursting point with magic grimoires. It was more than five times Elinàsze’s height, but there was no sign of any sort of ladder or stepladder she might use to reach the top shelves. The room was furnished with a number of tables, each with an array of magic devices set out on top for creating concentrated solutions extracted from medicinal herbs and combining them into magic potions.

Elinàsze led Belano through to another door on the far side of the room, which swung open without her needing to so much as touch its handle. “In here, if you please,” she said. As she made her way across the room, she reached towards the bookcase and a number of volumes stored high up on the shelves silently glided through the air and within reach of her hands. Elinàsze selected one and started referencing something written inside even as she continued on through the door.

On the other side of the door was a cozy space quite unlike the vast room they had just passed through. Elinàsze sat down at the large desk tucked away in the far corner.

“Elinàsze...” Belano said, a bewildered look on her face as she looked all around the area they found themselves in. “Whatisthis place...?”

“Oh, this is a world I’ve artificially created,” Elinàsze answered. “Technically, it’s a planetoid world, of the same structure as the world of Klyrode. Right now the only two rooms are the laboratory you entered through and this study, but I plan to expand it little by little in order to create a convenient space for my purposes.” The magic grimoires flying in the air around Elinàsze came to land atop her desk. Then, with a single wave of Elinàsze’s finger, she conjured a chair and offered it to Belano to sit down. “Now, what was it you wanted from me?”

“Ah! Y-Yes, of course...” Belano took a single sealed envelope out from her chest pocket. “It’s about this.”

“A letter?” Elinàsze said, accepting the envelope and looking to see who it was addressed to.

It read: “To Miss Elinàsze, Houghtow College of Magic.”

I sense magic power coming from the letter inside...Elinàsze mused, flipping the envelope over to see who it was from.

“What’s this?” Elinàsze asked. “A letter from the Oldwass College of Magic?”

“Yes...that’s right,” said Belano. “They sent a letter just addressed to the college too. It sounds like they want to try a short-term exchange program with the Houghtow College of Magic. They put us in charge of selecting students to participate for the most part. You were the only one they asked for by name...”

“Oh really! I see...” Elinàsze said, looking up from the envelope as Belano explained the situation. She waved her hand and a tea set came flying over from the magic kitchen built into the wall of her study. A cup alighted on the desk in front of Belano, and the teapot promptly flew up in perfect silence, filling it with tea.

After making extra sure that the teapot had finished pouring, Belano accepted the cup. As she lifted it up, the magic rings she wore on her fingers, of which there were a great number, glinted in the light of the room.

Belano noticed that Elinàsze was staring at her rings and quietly stared back, her eyes open wide in confusion.

“Oh! Pardon me!” Elinàsze said, quickly shaking her head as she opened the envelope to retrieve the letter inside. “It’s nothing, don’t pay it any mind!”

◇Houghtow City—Flio’s House◇

It happened that the next day was a work holiday in the Kingdom of Klyrode. That morning, everyone gathered in the living room to eat breakfast as usual. There were only a few absences—Blossom, Ura, and Kora had gone to do their early morning vegetable market in spite of it being a day of rest, and Rylnàsze had gone to help, taking the familiars and Sybe’s family with her.

“Huh!” Flio said, reading over the letter that Elinàsze had handed him. “So you got an invitation to take part in a short-term exchange program with a school called the Oldwass College of Magic?”

Elinàsze was sitting in the chair beside Flio as always, drinking a cup of after-breakfast tea Charun had poured for her. “So it seems, papa,” she said, finishing her sip and setting her cup to the side. “It’s meant to be an exchange program with the whole Houghtow College of Magic, but it sounds like they asked for me by name.”

Flio looked over the letter as he listened. It read: “Dear Miss Elinàsze, we at the Oldwass College of Magic most eagerly anticipate your participation in the exchange study with your institution. Signed, Chairman Decona, Oldwass College of Magic.”

Nothing here seems at all out of the ordinary...Flio thought as he looked it over. “So?” he asked, looking back up at Elinàsze. “Are you going to participate?”

“Yes, I believe I shall,” Elinàsze reported. “I’ve been trying to further my studies of magic, after all. Studying in a different location might turn out to be a useful experience.”

Flio smiled and nodded. “I see! By the way, what sort of place is the Oldwass College of Magic?”

“I believe I, your humble servant Hiya, may be of use in such an explanation,” Hiya volunteered, turning their ever-narrowed eyes towards Flio and bowing deep. “The Oldwass College of Magic is an institution of magical education that lies in the north of the Magic Kingdom of Klyrode, on the border between that kingdom and the Dark One’s domain. It was established during the first days of the Magical Kingdom itself, for the purpose of training first-class mages that might labor for the kingdom. Indeed, the very mage who created me, Hiya, was among the mages produced by the Oldwass College of Magic.”

“Well, what do you know!” Flio said, an expression of surprise on his face. “The mage who created you, huh...”

“Ah, well, my creator he might have been, but I lost any illusions I had about him when I came to understand the depths of his incompetence. The fool was not even able to dispel my Collar of Sacrifice when I— Ahem, perhaps I have said too much...” Hiya cleared their throat with a chuckle and a suggestive grin.

The Collar of Sacrifice...Flio thought, his own smile somewhat stiff.That’s the magic item that Hiya used to place on people’s necks to mark them as ritual sacrifice for payment when they felt like granting wishes to humans.Did they really use that on their own creator? Th-That seems like a bit much, even for Hiya...

“Returning to the point at hand,”Hiya continued, “after that incident, the Oldwass College of Magic continued to produce outstanding mages and send them to the Magical Kingdom...until a certain time, at which point the flow of students stopped. This is the first time I have heard their name spoken in over a decade.”

“What happened at that certain point of time?” Flio asked.

“In exchange for their efforts training mages to the highest degree of quality, the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode made a promise to provide the Oldwass College of Magic a stipend of funds. The former King Klyrode, however, discontinued the provision of financial aid under the name of war expenditures for the conflict with the Dark Army.”

“I see...” Flio said, nodding in understanding.The Maiden Queen’s father, huh?he thought.From everything I’ve heard, that guy practiced some pretty egregious misappropriation of funds. I wonder if the money he saved from discontinuing support to the Oldwass College of Magic went to lining his own pockets too...

“Thank you, Hiya!” Elinàsze said with a smile. She had been listening to the conversation between Hiya and Flio from off to the side. “I suppose I’ll try out the exchange program after all. It sounds like this school has a lot of history, and if it’s the school your creator came from I’m even more interested!”

“If that’s your decision, you have my support,” Flio nodded, his usual easygoing smile on his face.

“Thank you, papa!” said Elinàsze, beaming back at her father. “Just you watch—I’m going to learn a ton of magic, and then I’ll be better at helping you out!”

◇Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, North—Oldwass College of Magic◇

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The Degadon Mountain Range lay to the north of the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode. Unlike the temperate Houghtow City, the mountains were a world of winter white, closed off from the rest of the kingdom by frozen ice and snowstorms that raged year round. It was deep in those frozen mountains where one could find the Oldwass College of Magic.

Chairman Decona stood in his office at the pinnacle of the tall tower located at the very middle of the college. With him was the magus Neriep, the current headmaster, dressed in her black robes. “Chairman Decona...” she said, her voice calm and composed, but steeped in quiet anger at the old man across from her. “Exactly what, may I ask, could you possibly have been thinking?”

Decona, the chairman of the college’s board, laughed a good natured “Oh ho ho!” as he stroked his beard, which came all the way down to his waist. “Now, now, Neriep! There’s no need to lose your temper!”

“On the contrary, I haven’t lost my temper at all,” Neriep objected.

“Oh ho ho! You haven’t? It rather looks like you have to me, but if you say so, I suppose I must be mistaken!” Decona waved one of his fingers and a cup of black tea appeared in front of Neriep. It was steaming, as if it had been brewed only just then. “Here, have a drink and calm your nerves a little,” he said, offering her the cup with a smile.

“I’m telling you, I haven’t,” Neriep insisted, glaring indignantly in Decona’s direction. When the old man just kept on smiling as cheerfully as ever, though, she sighed heavily and accepted the cup. “Very well, if you insist. Thank you for the tea.”

Decona nodded in satisfaction as Neriep picked up the cup. “Neriep,” he said, “I understand your concerns perfectly well, believe you me. But please do try to keep a cool head. We know the Diabolists have been working to extend their influence into the Oldwass College of Magic. For all we know, their minions might have already infiltrated the school...”

“But Chairman Decona!” Neriep protested, her eyes snapping open. “That isexactlywhy we should be gathering the students and faculty of the college in one place while we work to seal the Diabolists back under the permafrost from whence they came, is it not? Why would you invite another school for a short-term exchange study program in such a state of emergency? And without a single word to me about it, no less!” She drained her teacup and returned it to the table, fixing Decona with an angry glare.

Decona smiled as warmly as ever as he met Neriep’s eyes. “Oh, well, how do I put this...? I hope you can tolerate a few whims of my own during the twilight years of my life...” he said with a sickly cough that he seemed to be doing on purpose. In fact, while Decona looked quite old, his long ears were as perky as ever. It was clear from looking at him that at least some of his ancestry was from the long-lived elven folk.

This old man...Neriep thought to herself.Always bringing his age into things just to make my life harder...Still, Neriep couldn’t help but soften at the performance. After a while she sighed, resigning herself to defeat. “Very well,” she said. “I’ll let you have your way this time. But I would very much appreciate it if you would find someone besides myself to put in charge of the visiting exchange students.” She turned with a flip of her robe and left the chairman’s office behind.

Simply ludicrous...Neriep thought.He has no concern for what others think sometimes. We still have to worry about the Diabolist’s attack—what would we do if something should happen to him...?

She strode down the hallway with long steps, a complicated expression on her face.

◇ ◇ ◇

Alone in his office after Neriep had left, Decona shook his head, sighing as he stared after the door she had left through. “Neriep is an excellent magus, to be sure, but I’m afraid she knows precious little about subjects other than magecraft,” he said. “It’s hard to blame her, of course. She became headmaster during the years when we had broken off ties with the Magic Kingdom of Klyrode, after all. She never knew what it meant to rely on help from others in the first place. I suppose that doesn’t just go for Neriep, though. All of us in the Oldwass College of Magic are in the same boat, as far as that’s concerned...”

Decona pressed his right index finger to his temple, sending out a telepathic signal.

“You summoned me, Chairman Decona?” came the response.

“There you are, Aryun Parn-Parn,” Decona said with a warm laugh. “I’m terribly sorry, but would you be willing to be the one to meet our exchange students from the Houghtow College of Magic? Neriep refused me point-blank.”

“I had a feeling that would happen,” answered the voice. “Although I must say, I can’t imagine what you could possibly be intending, inviting exchange students over now of all possible times...”

“Oh, don’t you start with that. I’m asking you a favor here,” said Decona.

“All right, I’ll do it. But in exchange, you had better pay me a handsome bonus.” With that, Aryun Parn-Parn cut off the telepathic conversation.

“Oh ho ho!” Decona laughed again as he strolled his way over to the office window. “Under the Maiden Queen’s leadership, the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode has once more become a place with which we would do well to have a formal relationship,” he said, muttering to himself as the snow fell outside his window. “If our current predicament can result in us reestablishing our old connection, why not leap at the opportunity?”

Decona watched intently as the flakes of snow danced through the air. Whenever one touched the building, however, it would immediately evaporate and vanish into the air. The defensive spells active on the Oldwass College of Magic meant that no snow storm would ever touch its walls.

◇Days Later—Houghtow City◇

One day, a single Enchanted Frigate came to a stop beside the boarding station next to the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. A smaller model than a typical ship of the fleet, this one had been prepared specially by Flio for the purpose of taking the students from the Houghtow College of Magic to the Oldwass College of Magic high in the Degadon Mountain Range for their short-term exchange program.

A smile came to Garyl’s face as he looked up at the ship. “Looks like it’s finally time to set out for the Oldwass College of Magic!” he said. He wasn’t wearing his usual adventuring attire, but had instead showed up dressed in the uniform of the Klyrode Institute for Chivalric Education.

“So you’re going dressed in uniform then, Garyl?” Elinàsze asked, stepping up beside her brother.

“That’s the idea,” Garyl confirmed. “The Houghtow College of Magic doesn’t have a school uniform, after all, so when I tried to think of how I should dress properly as a visiting student, this is what I came up with.”Plus, he thought to himself,I wouldn’t want to mess up and do something that might cause trouble for Miss Ellie...

“I see...” Elinàsze considered. “I suppose I can see the logic.” For her part, Elinàsze was dressed in the same dark-colored casual outfit she wore when she was working in her laboratory, her long hair tied back in a simple messy ponytail.

“Big sis...” Garyl said. “You didn’t come straight from your laboratory, did you?”

“Oh! You could tell?” Elinàsze chirped.

“I mean...I’d have to be really out of it not to,” Garyl replied, glancing over with a smirk.

“Ah, well...” Elinàsze sighed, looking down. “I suppose I can’t get away with this outfit, then, can I?”

“I mean, maybe...” said Garyl, choosing his words carefully. “Everyone thinks you’re cute. You probably won’t get in trouble for it...”

Elinàsze, however, could infer what Garyl was trying to say. “All right, then,” she said, waving a finger. “How about this?” Suddenly, her outfit transformed into a gorgeous blue ensemble made from Indolan cloth, complete with a miniskirt that lent the whole thing a soft and flowery appearance. Her hair, meanwhile, formed itself into a three-strand braid that reached down to the base of her neck. “What do you think?” she asked, removing her glasses and turning back towards her brother.

“It’s great! I think that’ll do fine!” said Garyl, smiling brightly. “By the way...”

“Hm?” Elinàsze asked.

Garyl raised his head to look at the veritable mountain of suitcases stacked up behind his sister. “Are you bringingallof that stuff aboard...?” he asked with a smirk.

“Well, what else am I supposed to do?” Elinàsze countered. “The rules say that all items brought aboard the Enchanted Frigate must go through a security check! Once we’ve gotten through that I’ll send them all to my private world, though, so I’ll be showing up at the College of Magic empty-handed.” She waved her arms as if to demonstrate, smiling cheerfully.

“Even so, that sure is a lot of luggage!” Rislei, who had come to see the others off, smiled in amusement herself at the unwieldy pile.

“Is it?” Elinàsze said. “It’s mostly magic items and grimoires. It’s not as if I have that many daily necessities.”Besides, if I’ve forgotten something, I can always go get it from the laboratory space I can enter at any time. Although Iwasplanning on keeping that bit to myself...

As Rislei began chatting with Elinàsze, Salina watched from off to the side, staring intently. Behind her was a massive pile of nearly fifty enormous suitcases. It was easily twice the size of the heap of luggage Garyl had been teasing his sister for.But, but, but...she thought to herself, litigating the matter inside her own head.I was lucky enough to be selected to participate in the exchange program, after all! That means I’ve won a whole week to spend together with Lord Garyl! This much luggage is the bare minimum I need to avoid embarrassing myself in front of him! Yes—all of this is for my beloved Lord Garyl! What else could I have done?She nodded, apparently satisfied with her reasoning.

A short distance away, a number of other girls had come to see the ship off.

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“That Salina...” Irystiel’s black cat plush grumbled, animated by its owner’s ventriloquism. “I can’t believe it! Mreowr...”

“Me neither!” agreed Snow Little, puffing out her cheeks in a pout beside her. “Ishould have been the one to win the ticket for a weeklong date with Lord Garyl...”

Those two were far from the only wistful ones. No small number of students from the Houghtow College were there—and most of the girls seemed to be glaring in Salina’s direction with clear envy.

Oryou and Belano, who had boarded the ship ahead of the students, looked down at the crowd. The two were there as members of the Houghtow College of Magic faculty, chosen to look after the students on their trip.

“Miss Oryou...” Belano said with a polite little bow. “Thank you for helping today...”

Oryou, however, didn’t respond.

“Um...Miss Oryou?” Belano asked.

“Ah! You are speaking to one such as myself? Or...I mean...to me?” Oryou said. “I apologize for my inattentiveness. It is I who must thankyou.”

Belano stared back at Oryou in silent confusion as her colleague replied.That’s strange...she thought, cocking her head to the side as she watched Oryou look out at the crowd.It doesn’tlooklike anything’s wrong with Miss Oryou, but there was definitely something off about the way she was talking just now...

◇ ◇ ◇

As everyone busied themselves getting ready to board the ship, Flio appeared in front of the crowd.

“Papa!” Elinàsze cried when she saw who it was, her expression brightening instantly. She had been standing to the side waiting for the ship to finish its preparations with a somewhat cold demeanor, but the instant Flio arrived she couldn’t help herself from running up to greet him, full of cheer. “Have you come to see us off?”

“Well, not exactly,” Flio said, smiling his usual easygoing smile. “I’m going to be flying the ship and visiting the school along with you all.”

“You will?!” Elinàsze’s smile grew even brighter at Flio’s words. “Really?!”

“The Enchanted Frigates are the property of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store, after all,” Flio explained. “And since this is our first time going to this school, I thought it might be a good idea to pay them a visit and introduce myself.”

“Oh, hooray!” Elinàsze cheered, hugging her father tight. “I’m so glad we’ll be making the trip there together, papa!”

Garyl cracked a knowing smile as he watched Elinàsze’s sudden display of unreserved emotion out of the corner of his eye.Big sis Elinàsze acts so cool and aloof towards everyone so much of the time,he thought,but she’s so expressive whenever dad comes around...

Elinàsze paid her brother no mind whatsoever, simply reveling in her father’s attention as Flio patted her gently on the head.

◇ ◇ ◇

Some time later, with everyone on board, the Enchanted Frigate disembarked from the tower. Flio, who had taken the helm in the ship’s control room, gestured in front of him with his right hand and a map appeared at his fingertips displaying the surrounding region. In one corner of the map, the location of Houghtow City, was a blinking light indicating the position of the Enchanted Frigate. To the north, deep in a part of the map dominated by towering mountains, blinked another.

“All right,” Flio said. “No problems entering in the destination. Then, shall we be off?” He took the controls, and the ship began to rise into the sky. Down on the surface, the students and faculty from the Houghtow College of Magic who had come to see them off waved as the Enchanted Frigate flew away, picking up speed.

“I wonder what the Oldwass College of Magic is gonna be like,” Garyl said, watching the land go by from one of the ship’s windows as they flew.

“No matter what it’s like, any place is as good as the Celestial Plane itself as long as I can go there with you, Lord Garyl!” said Salina, who had sidled up next to him as close as she could possibly manage. She clasped her hands together, holding them against her cheek in her very best attempt at an adorable pose, complete with a sugary sweet smile pointed straight towards the object of her affection.

Garyl, alas, did not even turn away from the view outside to look.

W-Well, that’s no matter!Salina told herself.I have an entire week with Lord Garyl after this! That’s plenty of time to appeal to him with my cuteness...Forcing a smile to her face, she nodded resolutely.

Next to her, Garyl’s thoughts were on a different matter entirely as he gazed out the window.Rylnàsze stayed behind to look after the magic beasts, and Rislei wasn’t chosen for the exchange program...he thought.And none of the other kids in the house have started school yet, so they couldn’t come along. Wyne really wanted to join us, though, didn’t she? I wonder why she didn’t show up to see us off...

The ship flew along smoothly above the clouds. Outside was a sea of white as far as the eye could see. And then, all of a sudden, Wyne’s face popped out of the clouds right in Garyl’s field of view. “Aha! Gare-Gare!” she mouthed, waving excitedly with a huge grin on her face. “There-there you are!”

“Big sis Wyne!” Garyl said with a wry smirk when he saw his premonition had been right on the money. “I had a feeling you’d turn up.”

“Ah ha ha!” Wyne laughed inaudibly on the other side of the window. “Of course I’m coming with you-you! Wait...how do you open these windows? Gnhhh!” Before Garyl’s eyes, Wyne seized the window with her hands, doing her best to wrench it open by force. “Gah! This thing’s a pain-pain in the butt!” she declared, her eyes glowing bright red in her mounting frustration. Garyl could see crimson flames welling up inside her mouth.

“B-Big sis Wyne! Wait!” Garyl cried, flailing his arms to try to signal for Wyne to stop. “I’ll take care of it! Just no breathing fire!”

Salina stared in disbelief as Wyne raged outside the window.I-It’s another one of Lord Garyl’s sisters!she thought.And the meathead of the bunch, no less. This is going to be a chore and a half, isn’t it...?

Still, she didn’t neglect to take advantage of Garyl’s distraction to grab hold of one of his arms.

◇ ◇ ◇

“Oh? Big sis Wyne’s coming along too, is she...?” Elinàsze shook her head, smiling with exasperation. She had been scanning the area outside the Enchanted Frigate when she noticed Wyne, her draconic wings fully manifested, clinging to the side of the ship.

“I sensed her coming right after we took off,” Flio said, smiling wryly. He understood Wyne’s motivations as well as anyone. “I guess she’d prefer to join us than just see us off.”

“What should we do, papa?” Elinàsze asked.

“Well,” said Flio, “we could try convincing her to go home, but she probably wouldn’t listen right away, and taking the time to convince her would delay our time of arrival. Here, why don’t I bring her along and tell them she’s accompanying me as an assistant?” He waved his hand, transporting Wyne to the inside of the ship. Immediately, she vanished from the scan Elinàsze was doing of their surroundings.

“Incredible as always, papa!” Elinàsze gushed. “I can’t believe you were able to cast Teleportation on big sis Wyne while she was moving around like that!”

“Now, now,” Flio demurred, smiling his usual easygoing smile. “That spell wasn’t anything special.” He looked over at his daughter, who was beaming joyfully beside him.Come to think of it...Flio thought.Elinàsze was supposed to be sitting with Garyl and the others for this trip. She came into the ship’s helm at some point acting like she belonged here...He smiled knowingly, as the ship sailed through the sky on its way to the Oldwass College of Magic in the Degadon Mountains.

◇ ◇ ◇

Half a day’s flight later, the Enchanted Frigate entered an area shrouded in a blanket of snow.

“I’d been told what to expect, but that really is a lot of snow!” Elinàsze remarked. She had magic windows open all around her, each displaying images of the area around the Enchanted Frigate. Just as she had said, however, there was so much snow that each and every window simply displayed an image of pure white. It was too thick to properly make out their surroundings. “Although...” she continued. “There’s something odd about all this snow...”

“So you noticed it too, Elinàsze?” Flio asked, nodding. “This snow was created by magic, no doubt about it.” Turning the ship’s wheel, he waved his hand and the dullplinkof an enchantment being broken rang out. The snowstorm, which had been raging so fiercely just seconds earlier, vanished immediately.

“While they clearly set up a barrier to make it look like it’s snowing, I don’t sense any hostility from the magic,” Elinàsze observed, folding her arms as she looked over the situation in her windows. “If they were really trying to keep us away from the Oldwass College of Magic, one might have expected them to include some sort of offensive magic as well.”

I wonder...Flio thought as he steered the Enchanted Frigate down towards the land below.Maybe they were testing us to see how powerful our own magic is...

Ahead they could see the Oldwass College of Magic, built using the terrain in a natural gap in the mountains.

◇ ◇ ◇

In a room in the Oldwass College of Magic, Headmaster Neriep peered into the crystal on her desk, which currently displayed an image of Flio’s Enchanted Frigate making its way through the sky.

“These are students hoping to study at our Oldwass College of Magic,” she said. “If they can’t dispel a barrier of that level, then as far as I’m concerned there’s no chance of allowing them in our institution.” She watched through the crystal for a while as Flio accomplished exactly that. She sighed. “Ah. It seems they were capable after all. In that case, I suppose I must provide them with a suitable level of reception, lest Chairman Decona’s reputation fall into complete ruin.” Sighing again, Neriep stepped out of the room.

◇ ◇ ◇

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“Eghk! S’cold! Cold-cold!!!” Wyne wrapped her arms tight around her body, shivering furiously as she disembarked from the Enchanted Frigate. Wyne might have been a dragon with hot fire burning inside her body, but dressed as she was, in only a light poncho, the intense cold proved unendurable.

“Big sis Wyne, honestly...” Elinàsze waved her hand, and a heavy winter outfit appeared on Wyne’s body. “Well? Still too cold?”

“Nuh-uh! Thank you, thank you, Eli-Eli!” Overjoyed to be given relief from the cold, Wyne hugged her sister tight—so tight that Elinàsze felt like she was struggling for her life, crushed by her sister’s immense strength.

The slopes of the Degadon Mountains were a winter wonderland, silver snow falling everywhere as far as the eye could see.

“I-I thought it would be cold...” Salina said. “But this is a bit more than I expected!” She was wearing decently heavy winter clothing herself, but even so, she was shivering hard as she pulled a supplementary coat out of her Bottomless Bag.

Flio, meanwhile, didn’t seem to pay the cold any mind as he looked all around. “Well, this is the spot Headmaster Neriep told us to dock the ship...” he said, peering every which way.

The group was in a forest not far from the Oldwass College of Magic. The ground had been artificially leveled in order to provide a clear landing area, but there was no sign of any person in the area. Flio tilted his head in confusion before noticing a group of people making their way towards them.Hm...?

Said group was using the spells Concealment and Camouflage, moving silently through the woods as they approached. “I don’t sense any clear hostility...” Flio muttered under his breath. “Maybe I should just watch them for now and see what they do.”

Flio and Elinàsze, as well as the instructors Oryou and Belano, had all spent time honing their magic, while Garyl and Wyne both possessed keen intuition. The six of them all noticed the group’s presence as they approached and stood to face them.

Salina, however, had no idea anyone was there at all. “What? What?” she said, looking around at everyone in bewilderment. “What’s going on? Is something happening?”

Flio reached out with his magic, scanning the area around them.I’m still not getting any hostility...he thought.If I had to say, it seems like they’re observing us.

After some time with the party from the Houghtow College of Magic standing on guard against the invisible group approaching them, a collection of robed figures revealed their forms.

One of them, a young girl with long rabbit ears, stepped forward, her arms folded as she looked over in Garyl’s direction. “You would be the exchange students, I suppose?” she asked.

“Yes, that’s right!” said Garyl with a smile and a polite bow. “We’ll be in your care for the next week. It’s nice to meet you!”

For once, this girl showed no signs of swooning over Garyl. She looked him over, her expression unmoving. “Yes, that’s all well and good. But first, would you perhaps be interested in a friendly bout? Nobody at school is any match for us—we’ve all been desperately bored.” Her long ears wiggled two, then three times as she examined the Houghtow College of Magic group. “Although I must say,” she added, the corners of her lips turning up. “The lot of you do look somewhatweak.”

“Excuse me?!” Elinàsze shot the girl an icy glare. “We lookweak, you say?” she demanded, the gem on her forehead glowing red. “I don’t suppose you’re including mypapain that, are you?”

The color of light Elinàsze’s gem gave off changed when she was experiencing a strong emotion. Red corresponded to the emotion of rage. Elinàsze, obsessive daddy’s girl that she was, could not suffer an insult to her beloved father. As for the insult to herself, she paid it no mind one way or another.

Flio, noticing his daughter’s state, wasted no time in placating her with a pat on the head. “That’s enough, Elinàsze,” he said. “Let’s leave it there.”

“But, papa!” protested Elinàsze.

“Now, now, settle down,” Flio said.

“Well...if you say so...” At Flio’s urging, Elinàsze finally calmed back down. The light in the gem on her forehead vanished as well.

Another of the robed figures—a boy with a distinctly girlish face—stepped up to the rabbit-eared girl. “Loppul, stop it!” he said, furrowing his brow. “Didn’t Professor Aryun Parn-Parn tell us to welcome the exchange students and show them to the College?”

Loppul, the snow rabbitfolk girl, shot the boy a stern look. “Nobody asked you, Ysel!” she snapped. “We finally have some opponents who might give us a bit of entertainment; what’s wrong with taking a little while to play with them first?”

She turned from castigating Ysel, who seemed to be a run-of-the-mill human, and snapped her fingers. On cue, a particularly hefty male student stepped forward from behind her.

“This is Jentle, a polar bearfolk. He and I will be your opponents,” she continued, turning to the Houghtow group. “Now, send someone to face us, if you please. Although I’ll warn you, we do happen to bequitestrong opponents. I don’t expect even your adults could hold a candle to us!” Loppul gave Jentle, the polar bear folk, a few good smacks on the back, around his waist level, snickering mischievously.

“Hey, Loppul...” Jentle said. “C-Can I really dothosekinds of things with the girls...?” He was breathing heavily in anticipation, leering at the women in the party—especially Wyne and Oryou.

“Hey!” said Salina, her face growing red with indignation. “Why are you looking attheminstead ofme?!” It seemed she was offended that Jentle’s leering gaze didn’t appear to include her in its list of targets.

“You don’t have enough tits and booty for my taste,” Jentle answered flatly.

“Hmph!” Salina flailed her arms and stomped her foot. “Why, I’ve never met such a rude boy in my life!”

“Thatwasvery rude!” Garyl agreed, stepping out in front of Salina. “And especially to such a lovely girl as Salina!”

“What?” Salina blinked. “I-I’m lovely?”

“Of course!” said Garyl, giving her a cheerful grin. “I think you’re a wonderful lady, Salina!”

Ba-dump!Salina’s heart skipped a beat. As she gazed at Garyl’s smiling face, her face turned even redder than it had been from her rage just moments earlier.

“Why don’t you let me take them on?” Garyl offered. “I’d be happy to pay them back for saying such horrible things.” Still smiling, he stepped out towards Loppul and Jentle and began doing warm-up stretches.

“Are you making fun of us?” Loppul said, clicking her tongue in irritation as she watched Garyl do his calisthenics alone. “You can’t be planning to take on the both of us alone.”

Jentle looked positively angry as he regarded his prospective opponent. “Hey, come on!” he complained. “Loppul! This one isn’t a girl!”

“I suppose not,” Loppul said. “Fine, then. How about I promise to go on a date with you if you win? Would that be sufficient motivation?”

At that, Jentle’s disposition did a complete one-eighty. Suddenly, he seemed raring to go. “All right then! In that case, I’ll send Mister All-Style-No-Substance flying!” Without waiting for a signal for the match to start, he clasped his fists together, swinging them down towards Garyl’s head.

“Wait! You coward!” Salina cried. The next moment, however, her eyes opened wide in confusion. “Huh?”

Jentle was more than twice Garyl’s size. Ordinarily, one would expect the smaller boy to dodge a full-power attack from such a massive opponent. Garyl, however, stood firm, meeting Jentle in a matching grappling stance. It seemed he intended to contest him with pure physical strength.

“Ghrrr...” Jentle’s body shook as he pushed down on Garyl, an expression of monstrous exertion on his face. A magic circle appeared around his arm. There was no question as to the effect of the spell—he was using magic to heighten his physical strength still further. Garyl, on the other hand, had a cool smile on his face. He didn’t seem to be taxing himself much at all as he held Jentle’s massive arms in check.

“What are youdoing, Jentle?!” Loppul demanded, smacking Jentle on the back in irritation. “Enough playing around! Just toss him away like you always do!”

Jentle’s strategy of using magic to enhance his physical power resulted in a fighting style boasting top tier attack strength even among the Oldwass College of Magic. As a result he had a bad habit of underestimating his opponents, leading to him intentionally holding back. Loppul thought that this was another such occasion of Jentle falling into his bad habit.

“Seriously, quit it with the games!” Loppul said, smacking him on the back once more. “Hurry up and end it!”If this takes any longer,she thought,the professor is going to arrive!

“Ghraaaaaah!!!” Jentle concentrated more and more power into his arm. His whole body was shaking with exertion as he planted his feet and redoubled his efforts to crush Garyl’s guard. Soon, however, his face contorted in pain. “Th-That’s not it...” he gasped. “I-I’m using my full power! B-But this guy won’t budge an inch...”

“S-Say what?!” Loppul’s eyes shot open.

Garyl, meanwhile, simply continued to hold fast against Jentle’s assault. “Are you finished?” he asked. “Then...how about I do an attack of my own?!” And with that, he effortlessly lifted Jentle’s body up in the air.

“H-Hwah?!” Jentle cried out in shock at having been hoisted so easily. He was more than twice Garyl’s height—and Garyl was a slender boy—but Garyl had lifted him in one go without even using any magic.

“And...hup!” Garyl said, tossing Jentle straight towards a nearby cliff.

“Fwaaaaaah!!!” Jentle’s massive body flew through the air like a ping-pong ball. Garyl had tossed him without much apparent effort, and yet now he found himself careening with truly incredible velocity. Jentle was tough, but even he wouldn’t emerge unscathed from a full-on collision with the cliff face at that speed.

[GENERATION FAILED - RAW TEXT]

“W-Wait!” Loppul began a hurried spell, trying to stop Jentle in midair with magic. At her casting speed, however, it didn’t seem like she would make it in time before Jentle’s momentum came to an unceremonious halt.

Garyl glanced over at his sister Elinàsze, who sighed and waved her hand with an air of great tedium, conjuring a magic net mere moments before Jentle collided with the cliff, catching him and depositing him in the nearby snow. “All right,” she said with another sigh, looking to make sure Jentle was unharmed. “Well fought, you two.”

Loppul, who had been staring wide-eyed for a while now, fell back on her butt in pure astonishment.H-How can this be?she thought.It was like Jentle’s power wasn’t doing anything at all! And that girl was able to cast magic even faster than me! H-How could some nobodies from a magic school in the countryside perform such magnificent feats?!

Just then, the group heard a voice coming their way. “Hey! Loppul! Jentle! What do you think you’re doing?!” It was Aryun Parn-Parn, arriving to greet Flio and the rest. He was sprinting towards them, pale-faced and wild-eyed with anger. With Jentle twitching off in a snowbank and Loppul sitting on her backside in shock, there was little room to doubt what had happened here.

Flio stepped forward to meet him. “Ah, excuse them, please,” he said. “These students were just giving us...how to put it...a passionate welcome.”

“A-A passionate welcome?!” Aryun Parn-Parn repeated, eyes threatening to bulge out of his skull.

◇ ◇ ◇

Thanks to Flio and the rest of the party’s intercession, the Oldwass College of Magic chose to overlook the conduct of Loppul and the other students who came to test their strength, although they did get a good scolding from Aryun Parn-Parn. Loppul and the rest were chosen to help show the visitors from the Houghtow College of Magic around the school. And after their experience being hopelessly outmatched by Garyl and Elinàsze, the group never tried to start a fight with them again.

◇Oldwass College of Magic—Grand Hall◇

That night, Flio and company were shown to the grand hall of the school. They arrived to find row after row of tables set up in the middle of the room, with flags displaying the emblem of the Oldwass College of Magic hanging proudly from the ceiling. The entire student body and all of the faculty of the school had already gathered in the hall ahead of them, chatting animatedly as they waited for their guests.

The exchange students from the Houghtow College of Magic, Elinàsze, Garyl, and Salina, as well as Oryou and Belano, the instructors responsible for the group, took their seats in the innermost part of the room in front of a carved stone statue of a witch, directly facing the crowd of students. From their vantage point, the five of them had a good view of the entire room.

“Goodness...” Salina said, growing increasingly tense as she glanced around every which way. “That’s quite a lot of people, isn’t it?”

“It really is quite the number!” Garyl agreed, for his part seeming perfectly relaxed as he took in the sights. Garyl had spent time in the Klyrode Institute for Chivalric Education, and had grown comfortable sitting in front of such vast crowds. “I’d say there’s ten times as many students here than at the Houghtow College of Magic...or maybe even more!”

Elinàsze, seated next to them, just seemed vaguely bored with the proceedings.Haah...she sighed to herself.I had really been hoping to spend the entire time with papa, since he came along and everything...she thought.I can’t believe they wouldn’t let him take part in the welcome ceremony...

The students and teachers from the Oldwass College of Magic were whispering to each other as they stared at the newcomers seated in the back of the room.

“What are students from some seedy backwater school doing here, anyway?”

“At least the boy is somewhat handsome...”

“They say they’re exchange students, but the school they study at is just some country magic college, isn’t it?”

“I can’t imagine students from a school like that would have any magic power to speak of...”

Salina’s face turned bright red with indignation when she heard what everyone was saying. “Why! The nerve!” she fumed. “I wouldn’t mind if they were only speaking ill of me, but how dare they belittle Lord Garyl and Elinàsze?! Are the people of this college blind?!” Before she could spring to her feet in a huff, however, she felt Garyl place his hand gently on hers. “Hwhah?!” Salina exclaimed, her eyes opening wide.

Garyl smiled and leaned in towards Salina. “Don’t let it get to you, okay?” he said in a quiet voice.

Ba-dump!Once again, Salina’s heart skipped a beat.Lord Garyl...she thought, a blush creeping into her cheeks.He has such a magnanimous heart...

Eventually, Chairman Decona, who had been sitting with the other Oldwass College of Magic faculty, got slowly to his feet and raised his right hand. All at once, the chatter ceased. When he saw that the hall was quiet, Decona gave a satisfied nod. “Well then!” he began. “Teachers, my precious students, today is an auspicious day. Today we have been given an opportunity to welcome our fellow students of the art of magic, who have journeyed from afar to visit our institution!”

Decona turned to face the students from the Houghtow College of Magic and began to clap. The rest of the faculty and students joined in. It was a somewhat heartless and scattered applause, however, lasting only a scant few seconds. Decona tilted his head as if he were puzzled by the perfunctory applause. Then, clearing his throat, he turned towards the large statue of a witch Garyl and the others had been seated in front of.

“The statue in the great hall depicts the first practitioner of magic, who founded the Oldwass College of Magic many centuries ago. Since then, thanks to the efforts of everyone here and those who came before us, we have set the gold standard for magic education in the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, an achievement for which we no doubt take a great deal of pride in.” Decona gave a meaningful nod of his head. “Surely such a venerable college of magic would never wish to give a cold reception to their guests...would they?” He smiled at the assembled crowd, a glimmer of mischief in his eyes. The room began another round of applause—a far cry from the few paltry claps that had come before. This one almost threatened to bring down the hall itself in its din. Decona looked around the room and nodded happily.

The chairman is amazing!Garyl thought in admiration as he watched.That speech he gave completely changed the mood of the room!

Decona let the applause continue for a long moment, then smiled and raised his hand. Once again, the room fell silent. “Remember, everyone, you must never become satisfied with your current level! Exchanging knowledge with our colleagues in other institutions is an opportunity to hone your own ability. You must see this as an invaluable part of your studies. Take this to heart and welcome our friends from afar for this coming week. I’m asking for your cooperation to make this time a worthwhile experience for our guests and for yourselves.” Decona bowed his head low towards the crowd.

“Yes, sir!” the hall replied as one. It was clear, however, that a majority of the students of the Oldwass College of Magic regarded their guests as nothing more than a nuisance. Decona had urged them to applaud and even gone so far as to lower his head, but it was clear from the faces of the crowd that they looked down on Garyl, Elinàsze, and Salina, and had no desire to welcome them with open arms.

My, my...Decona thought to himself, sighing deeply.My students are excellent at their art, it’s true, but after so much time cut off from the outside world they’ve developed a bit too much contempt for students from other schools...or perhaps they’ve come to overestimate their own abilities...Nonetheless, he cleared his throat, rallied his spirits, and continued. “Now, with that out of the way, we’ve prepared a small banquet to welcome these students to our school! Everyone, please enjoy this time to its fullest and take the opportunity to get to know our guests!”

Decona raised his arm again, and plates of food were brought into the hall, eliciting the most genuine cheers of the assembly. Decona smiled wryly.I suppose I can’t fault them for being more excited for food than a lecture,he thought, looking towards the foot of the teachers’ table, where a number of students were sitting. As if on cue, the three of them stood up—it was Loppul, Jentle, and Ysel, the trio who had picked a fight with Garyl and the others when they had first arrived.

“You three are acquainted with our exchange students, are you not?” Decona asked. “Would you be so kind as to look after their needs?”

“Yes, sir!” they replied together, standing sharply at attention.

Suddenly, the students in the hall began whispering to each other once more as Loppul and the others stepped up to the guests.

“H-Hey... Wasn’t Loppul’s gang opposed to taking in exchange students?”

“How come they’re so eager to wait on them...?”

“What the heck is going on?”

◇ ◇ ◇

“Um...” Loppul said as she handed Garyl a plate heaped full of food from the buffet. “I-I really hope you don’t take too much offense at how everyone’s been acting. They just don’t know how good you are, that’s all. They would never take an attitude like that if they did. Once they know what you can do, I’m sure they’ll change their tune in a heartbeat...l-like we did, you know?”

[GENERATION FAILED - RAW TEXT]

Behind her, Jentle and Ysel were bringing plates of food to Salina and Elinàsze as well, smiling all the while. Ysel’s seemed genuine, but Jentle’s smile looked somewhat forced after the crushing defeat he had received from Garyl just earlier. “L-L-Loppul’s right...” Jentle said. “We’ve always been able to crush students from other magic colleges whenever we’ve fought them before... I’m sure they have no idea there’s anyone as strong as you at any school outside our own...” He bowed his head in apology, as did the others.

“I understand! We’ve only just met, after all!” said Garyl, a smile on his face. “And don’t worry! Loppul, Jentle, I think of you as my first friends at the Oldwass College of Magic! I’d like it if we could get along.” So saying, he offered his hand to the pair.

“Us?” said Loppul.

“Your first friends...?” said Jentle.

The two shared a look, and then burst out smiling. “W-We’d be honored!” they said at once. This time, the smiles on their faces looked like genuine articles.

“Erm...” said Ysel, timidly approaching from the side. “I-I hope I’m not out of line, but is there any chance I could be your friend too?”

“Of course!” said Garyl, giving Ysel a smile as well. “It would be my pleasure!”

◇ ◇ ◇

The students in the great hall eyed Loppul’s gang as they chatted happily with the visitors from the Houghtow College of Magic. One of them, Laddon of the snowmallet clan, looked over at Tsulala, a snow rabbitfolk and president of the student council. “Hey, Tsulala...” he said. “What’s your sister doing hanging out with that bunch?”

Tsulala’s long snow rabbit ears twitched busily, but before she could reply, the snow maiden Khime leaned in from her opposite side. “Weren’t Loppul and her friends telling everyone they were going to grind the exchange students to a pulp when they got here?” she asked, her expression as cold as ice. “Why are they playing at being lapdogs for those outsiders?”

Tsulala heaved a hefty sigh. “They didn’t stand a chance, by the sounds of it.”

“For real?” Laddon cocked his head. “Somehow that’s a bit hard to believe.”

Khime folded her arms. “Well, what’s done is done, I suppose. Tsulala, you’ve already prepared our next move, I assume?”

Wordlessly, Tsulala nodded.

◇ ◇ ◇

Rumble...

“Wh-What was that?” Garyl asked, startled by the loud noise that came reverberating throughout the room.

Decona wheeled around in his seat at the head of the room towards the college guards stationed in the back. “Guards! What’s going on?!”

No sooner had he asked than another guard came bursting into the grand hall. “S-Sir! It’s an emergency!” he cried. “A devil golem appeared out of nowhere—it’s headed straight for this room!”

“Say what?!” Decona exclaimed in alarm. “How could a Diabolist combat automaton have found its way inside our school?!” He stood and rolled up the sleeves of his robes, hustling across the room to the front door of the grand hall. “Well, be that as it may, I must ask all students to evacuate posthaste. Teachers, behind me! We will fight this thing together!”

“Chairman Decona, wait!” Neriep objected, running up behind the chairman. “Don’t tell meyouintend to fight!”

“Of course I do!” Decona snapped, furiously rubbing his long white beard with both hands. “Why would I have spent all that time practicing my spellcraft if I didn’t intend to fight at times like this?!”

Neriep hurried along after the chairman as he ran towards the door. “You can’t! I don’t want you taking part in any battles! You and I should evacuate along with the students, and—”

Before Neriep could finish, however, the door to the Grand Hall shook violently. A mere second later, it came flying off its hinges, debris scattering every which way. In the ruined doorway stood an enormous golem.

“I don’t believe it!” Neriep gasped in surprise. “How could one so large have made it all the way inside the school without anyone noticing?!” She watched as the golem swung its lumbering arms, shattering the nearby pillars to pieces and sending shards flying everywhere. “Watch out!” she cried, turning towards the students, who had only just begun to evacuate. She reached out, conjuring a magic barrier above the students’ heads to shield them from the falling rubble.

Neriep clicked her tongue.My barrier is too small to protect everyone,she thought. But just then, a barrier much larger than her own appeared, enveloping Neriep’s barrier and then some. “Wh-What an extraordinary barrier!” she exclaimed. “Who could possibly be casting it?” She glanced around the room, puzzled, until her eyes settled on Belano, standing with her arms reaching up towards the ceiling as she chanted a complicated magic incantation. The one casting the high-level barrier, it seemed, was her.

“Leave this part to me,” Belano said, glaring defiantly at the golem as she continued to chant.

“That’s our defensive magic teacher!” Salina cheered. “You can do it, Miss Belano!”

Just as Salina spoke, however, Belano was struck by a sudden wave of nausea. “Ngh!” she grumbled, desperately resisting the urge to vomit.

Belano, it happened, was born with only a small amount of innate magic power. Her body simply couldn’t handle expending large amounts of magic all at once. Whenever she tried, she would find herself suffering symptoms of magic depletion and wind up expelling the contents of her stomach all over the floor.

N-No way,Belano thought.Is this really all I can do?Pushing herself, she managed to suppress the nausea suddenly welling up in her stomach. In the struggle to control herself, however, she lost her concentration on the spell and a portion of the barrier began to falter.

“I’ll help, Miss Belano!” Elinàsze volunteered. She ran up beside her teacher and waved her index finger a single time. All at once, a gigantic compound magic circle appeared above her head, encompassing the entire student body underneath and keeping them safe from anything that might fall on their heads even after Belano was forced to excuse herself.

“It looks like we’re okay on the defense front,” Garyl said, lowering himself to a running stance. “All right! Let’s go!”

“Let’s go-go!” Wyne echoed from behind him. She charged ahead at breakneck speed, overtaking her brother and strafing past the golem, which was still attacking the pillars, doing its best to destroy the room. She lashed out with her tail as she passed, striking the golem square in the face. “Got ’em, got ’em!”

“Gwaaahhh!!!” The golem staggered back, clutching its head. Wyne was moving so quickly that the golem’s senses had been completely unable to keep up—fast enough that the single blow with her tail had dealt it a considerable amount of damage. But that wasn’t all.

“Hah!” Garyl, who had come dashing after Wyne, delivered a kick to the golem’s chest, not slowing his pace in the slightest as his foot made impact. The golem reeled back still further from the direct hit, but Garyl wasn’t finished. “Hiiiyah!” he cried, focusing his magic power into his legs, which glowed bright red as he launched kick after kick against the golem’s chestplate, each blow sending chunks of the golem’s body flying off.

The golem raised its arm, trying to knock Garyl out of the air, but as it tried to bring its arm down it found there was something holding it in place, keeping it from moving. While Garyl and Wyne had been launching their assault, at some point someone had begun singing a peaceful melody.

I can stop the golem from moving, if only for a moment!Salina thought.Iwillbe of use to Lord Garyl!Standing close beside the golem, she sang the Song of Binding. The song moved through the air like a living thing, wrapping around the golem and preventing it from moving completely.

As Salina’s magic held the golem in place, Wyne took in a deep breath of air. “Take this-this!” she shouted, breathing out a roaring inferno. Overwhelmed by her dragon’s breath, the golem fell to the floor.

“All right and now, the finishing blow!” Garyl took a great leap into the air, planting his feet on the ceiling and using that vantage to launch himself back down towards the ground, plummeting with tremendous velocity straight towards the fallen golem’s head. His right hand transformed into the claw of a lupine demon as he lashed out with a powerful blow. There was a tumultuous crash, and a cloud of dust enveloped the area, blocking both Garyl and the golem from sight.