The sun lit the concrete floor nicely, giving off a lively mood.
Julian held three rocks between his fingers, eyeing the three birds flying before him.
Swiftly, he swiped his hand through the air, releasing the three rocks.
They hit the intended target, the three birds. The birds squealed, falling to the ground with a hard crash.
"Nice!"
"Three birds with three stones… that's pretty average, no?" Eudora spoke sluggishly, licking her finger to turn the dry pages of her book.
"Ah, shut up. It's the accuracy that counts."
Eudora let out the faintest chuckle. She swung her feet, looking down at the lake below them.
"What's so funny?" Julian had an agitated smile on his face. His right eye twitched.
"Nothing, nothing."
The wind blew through the area, sending leaves into Julian's face. Not a single speck of dirt nor leaf touched Eudora's face, though.
"How unlucky!" Julian cried, swiping the leaves and dust out of his face frantically. The almost childlike nature of the whole thing made Eudora laugh.
"Haha!" she cackled, placing her book down. Julian had that agitated glare on his face, still.
"Nothing is funny, you shitter."
"How long do you think we'll get to live like this, Julian?"
"Huh?"
"In this… can I even call it peace? I guess… temporary lack of conflict."
"…"
"Ah. Probably a weird question to ask."
"With me around, it'll be forever. Since I'm the strongest to ever live, after all."
A small, subconscious smile appears on Eudora's calm, still face. She looked down.
"Huh. Who would've thought the formerly wimpy Julian would've gained such courage?" Eudora aggressively slapped Julian's back.
"Aagh.."
He quietly groaned.
. . .
. .
.
Julian jolted awake. His manner of breathing was unordinary.
"False memories..? Was that… me talking to Eudora?" he spoke to himself, touching his face gently.
He ran to the mirror. It was still shattered from yesterday's burst of anger.
The sound of the wildlife, crickets, chirps.
He stared at his bandaged hand.
"…"
. . .
. .
.
"It's been a while since we've spoken, Julian!"
Ceril sat with her hands on her lap, watching Julian's every move. However, there weren't many moves that he made. He was quite still.
The demi-human girl frowned, noticing his lack of response. He sat there, staring at nothing.
"Julian!"
"Huh?"
"Jeez… you almost fell asleep on me."
"Haa… sorry. You're right. It has been a while."
"You feel like a different person. The same, but different."
"Really? What makes you think that?"
"And… that cut on your cheek…"
Ceril placed her hand on Julian's injured cheek, feeling the scar on his face. She caressed slowly with her thumb. A blank expression stained Julian's face.
"Sparring. Things like this tend to happen," he let out a nervous, almost uncomfortable laugh.
After he punched his mirror, one of the glass shards flew at his face, scraping his cheek.
. .
.
"I'm here to request for a repair."
Julian stood at the front desk, staring at the receptionist. He was an elven man with short brown hair and a stubble beard. He seemed like the pessimistic type.
"A repair. Of what kind?" he spoke monotonously, pulling out a clipboard.
"My mirror broke."
"Hm. Okay."
He clicked his pen, writing.
Scratching.
Tap. Tap.
The clicking of a pen.
The scratching noise of the pen.
The irritating breathing of the receptionist.
Tap.
Click!
— Itchy.
Julian scratched.
Tap!
Scratch.
The pen scratched.
— …
Suddenly, all those noises that irked Julian's spirit came to a halt. His ears focused on the footsteps of one individual.
One.
Two.
One.
Two.
The black strands of hair atop his head faded white, along with his ruby red eyes turning into an emerald green.
As if he instinctively knew who those footsteps belonged to.
Woosh!
Without thinking, Julian lunged at the headmaster.
An attack so predictable, and so obvious. Yet, the headmaster allowed the collision between Julian's hand and his face.
He flew through the air.
Boom!
Smoke enveloped the small room that the two were in. By that time, the receptionist had already left.
Julian panted.
No, that wasn't Julian.
Was it?
The purest form of all his emotions.
The headmaster snapped.
.
The battlefield changed in an instant.
"Space magic. Not very well known. I picked it up after something crazy. You could've destroyed my precious school."
The headmaster appeared almost more comfortable.
They were far away from the school, in a forest.
Swsh!
Julian charged again, steam rising from his skin.
Normally, Julian was not this strong. Especially without the artificial spirit. What exactly was going on?
"The birth of [Envy]. You've awakened, huh?"