“So what should we do?” I asked the instructor.
I was not expecting the answer I got.
“Hmm. If the black greatbear will listen to you, then maybe we can use that to teach accident management. Here, could you order your bear to tell the other mysticstock to get just a little wild?”
“What? Are you certain?”
“Yes. Remember, just a little wild.”
There weren’t many students in our mystic-jockeying class. Among the second-years, there were twelve people, including me. With so few, even if we lost control of our mounts, we should still be able to take care of the situation. If really necessary, I could use magic to handle it!
All right, let’s see if Gonsuke can do it.
“Gonsuke, can you get those mysticstock over there to get just a little bit restless?”
“Gon!”
With that hearty cry, Gonsuke looked at the other beasts with a piercing glare. Immediately, the mounts with students on them started panicking.
Hey, it really worked. Black greatbears are incredible. Or maybe it’s Gonsuke that’s incredible?
The students were thrown into a panic of their own when the otherwise docile creatures suddenly began to rampage.
“Calm yourselves! Remember, you’ve been taught what to do in these situations.”
Hearing the instructor, the students all made expressions of dawning realization. During classroom lessons, we were taught the first thing you should do is cover the mount’s eyes, because this would cause most creatures to stop moving. Being blinded would apparently override any panic and instill a strong sense of fear.
The next thing you were supposed to do was whisper reassuring words while lining your voice with just a touch of mana. Though they wouldn’t necessarily understand the meaning of the words, the mana would convey the sentiment that their rider wanted them to calm down. For this same reason, when a panicking rider called out to their mount, it only made the situation worse.
The students began to calm down, most likely because they had remembered the same thing I had. Moments later, everyone was successfully getting their mounts under control. Even if you have the knowledge, it’s important to experience putting it into practice.
Just as I was getting into a groove with the new school year, the first term exams were coming in hot.
Oh my, we’re already hitting the end of the year. Time flies.
After my first encounters, I still hadn’t seen a lick of the Nogdeid brothers. This was a good thing. One day shortly before the exams, I was having lunch in the cafeteria with Loks and Colny. It was one of those days Lanmia and Luchirs had lunch with their clubs, leaving me all by my lonesome self.
“Lera,” Loks said, “I know you’re lonely without your friends, but showing it so openly on your face isn’t helping.”
“Quite so,” Colny added. “You’ve already been spending so much time with those two you’ve barely spared a minute for me.”
“Rmm. Sorry.”
But c’mon. You spend plenty of time with your friends from your grade, don’t you? I guess I shouldn’t say that out loud.
Whenever I was with Loks, I’d get thorny glares from the other girls. Colny was fine because she was his actual sister, but I was in a different position.
“That’s right, have either of those brothers shown up again since we’d last heard of them?” he asked casually, referring to House Nogdeid’s dimwit older brother and upstanding younger brother.
“The last time was when I saw the older brother in Bear’s prep room.”
“Then I guess that means father’s protests worked.”
“Hm? Thand did something?”
Where does Thand fit into this?
“You see, I told my father you were having some trouble. Our house then issued a formal protest against House Nogdeid.”
Gotta say, this kind of blew up without me knowing about it. House Aspozat, the top house of the royal faction, was formally protesting House Nogdeid, the top house of the noble faction.
“Loks, should this really be happening?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, isn’t this becoming a factional thing?”
I kept it vague since I didn’t really know much about these matters. Loks just smiled when he noticed my concern.
“Don’t worry. Father said that if anything, he appreciates that you’ve given him some ammunition.”
“What?”
“While I have my sympathies, if those brothers harass you again, I want you to tell me immediately.”
“Whaaat?”
So I might have to deal with more harassment? Is that what this means?
“Brother, can’t you stop the harassment before it happens?” Colny cut in when tears started forming in my eyes. “If they bother Lera too much, things could get bad. For them.”
Wait. That’s your concern?!
“That’s why father issued the protest, didn’t he? As a result, the brothers are behaving themselves.”
“And I can only hope it stays that way.”
Colny, you look worried. But it’s not me you’re worried about, it’s what’ll happen if I use magic, isn’t it?!
I resisted the urge to scream.
“I don’t think we can expect that,” Loks said. “I mean, he’s not very bright.”
Loks was ruthless.
“Brother, I don’t see the connection between being dimwitted and being unable to behave oneself.”
Colny had my vote. I didn’t see the connection either. We both tilted our heads, drawing out a sigh from Loks.
“Listen, you two. If he were smart, he would understand the gravity of his parents’ scolding. If he were really smart, he never would have accosted Lera in the first place. Though maybe he didn’t know the connection between our house and Lera.”
“So you mean to say that because Reswell isn’t smart, he won’t think anything of it if his father scolds him. Therefore, he won’t stop bothering Lera. Correct?”
“That’s right.”
Put like that, I could see it. Maybe it was that youthful tendency to go through a rebellious phase and blow off anything one’s parents said. That opened up another concern: did this mean he was going to get mad, thinking I snitched on him? If so, I might find myself having to resort to force.
“If father’s protests get Reswell to behave, then great. If not...”
“If not?” Colny prompted.
After a brief pause, Loks turned to me. “You may find yourself having to resort to force.”
So that’s what it comes down to?
For a while, Thand’s protest remained effective. The dimwit brother still hadn’t appeared before me, leaving me at peace.
That day’s elective was general magic as taught by Bear. I had a black greatbear in mystic-jockeying, and I had a bear here too. Maybe I was fated to be around bears.
“All right, let’s get started. End of term exams aren’t far off, so really put your backs into it.”
In our second year of general magic, there was a big increase in the range of spells we used. Most importantly, we started using spells that required coordinating with other people. You could say they were smaller versions of synchronized spells. They involved two or three people combining their power to make a bigger spell. The general magic students with the best grades already had experience with synchronized spells, because they used a large-scale one at last year’s academy festival. That, of course, had involved me.
There were three types of spells that required coordination. The first involved everyone using the same spell, then bundling them together. The second had one person as a sort of conductor, to whom everyone else transferred their mana. The third variety was what we used at the academy festival, where everyone controlled their own spells to give the appearance of one greater spell.