Libarius walks out of the nurse’s office, not a care in the world. He has not yet fully recovered from the pain, and though he holds his cane firmly, he still walks with a heavy limp. He doesn’t know where he wishes to go, though he assumes that returning to class wouldn’t be wise. In place of that, he wanders around the halls of the Magic Institute.

  He comes to a courtyard, only a single person within it. They are a student, in uniform, with dark blue hair. They are crouched, staring at the ground, doing nothing in particular. Libarius approaches, the grass concealing the sound of his cane. He silently comes behind the boy. Incapable of bending down, Libarius stands behind the boy and begins to speak.

  “What, pray tell, are you doing here? What sort of magic are you looking for stooped over the grass such as this?” Startled by the sudden voice, the boy falls forward. He turns himself around to face the man cloaked in black behind him. He shies back as he answers.

  “I-I was just digging…”

  “There’s not a hole in sight, not even the slightest deformity in the grass. Why bother with such an obvious lie?”

  “Ah—I mean… it’d be rude to do something like that in the courtyard… So I’ve been fixing them too…”

  “I see. So you have a spell that can repair the ground so finely? Demonstrate it. You’ve caught my eye.”

  “No, I can’t! I mean… it’s nothing impressive… i-it’s really nothing worth seeing…” Libarius glowers at him.

  “Cowardice does not befit a mage. Do not test my patience.” The boy tries to get away, but as he pushes himself back, Libarius pins him to the ground with his cane.

  “Eep! W-what do you want from me!?”

  “You piqued my interest. Use your magic, as I commanded.”

  In a panic, the boy places one palm onto the ground beside him. A hole opens up, just slightly narrower than Libarius’ waist, the displaced dirt tightly packed into the sides of the tunnel. Another opening appears on his other side. With the spell cast, Libarius lifts his cane from the boy’s chest. He begins to slide his cane against the whole circumference of the tunnel’s opening nearest to him. Libarius notices that there is little resistance, as though the dirt had become perfectly smooth. Libarius withdraws his cane and plants it firmly onto the grass as he turns back towards the boy.

  “Now then, the second spell.”

  The boy silently obliges, the dirt closing the holes as though the grass was stretched over the opening. Libarius takes aim at the site where the hole once was then slams his cane into the grass. The dirt is solid, no different than the ground around it. The boy continues stammering.

  “C-can I leave…? It’s over now, r-right…?”

  “Why would you think such a dreadful thought? There’s still quite a bit of discussion to be had. To begin, the quality of the packing of the dirt was very fine, and the keenness of the image that the second spell necessitates reveals your quality as a mage. And now an inquiry: is the size fixed and can they be created in a different substance?”

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  “N-no… digging holes like this is all I’m good for… and even then…”

  “Indeed, if this is the extent, then the spell is quite middling. The holes are unimpressive, with plenty of spells capable of similar results. The second spell, while revelatory, is similarly unimpressive. Though it’s interesting, it seems to be so deeply limited that it can be used for nothing but reversing the first. Inverse spells such as that, though certainly a skill, are largely uninteresting. Indeed, if I must wager a guess, I would assume this to be a problem more so in image than anything else. To think that you squander such a talent with that insipid cowardice.” At that, having lost interest, Libarius begins to walk away.

  “A-ah! H-hold on! Y-you’re L-Libarius Mitis, the new teacher… A-aren’t you?” Libarius turns back to the boy.

  “Indeed. That is I.”

  “I-I see. You really are just like Flos described.”

  “I see. So that makes you one of the truants? How irritating.”

  “I-irritating?”

  “Of course it’s irritating to find spells so lackluster. They’re dull even in comparison to those weaklings.”

  “P-please don’t… talk about them… like t-that…”

  “Pardon? Where have I erred in calling them weak? Their power is barely interesting.”

  “T-there’s no way t-they’re weak… they’re s-so much stronger…”

  “It’s as I said. You’re even weaker than them. And the reason ought to be clear. Though I suppose I ought to laud the fact that they have not squandered it all in errant wanderings.”

  Libarius returns to walking away. The boy watches his back silently. Libarius’ cane taps against the stone floors of the Magic Institute. He turns into the hallway, leaving the boy behind. The boy at last gets up. He begins to go after Libarius, drawn to him. The sound of his steps are uneven against the stone, a stark contrast to the crisp tapping of Libarius’ cane. The boy reaches Libarius quickly and begins to speak.

  “M-my name is Lapis Fodio. C-can I become s-strong?” Libarius does not turn back or stop when he answers, his cane coming down between words.

  “Whether you can or cannot does not interest me. I intend to return to my research, so I will make you strong regardless.” From behind Libarius and Lapis, from the direction of the nurse’s office, comes a voice.

  “Libarius! Why aren’t you resting?” Libarius turns, planting his cane in front of him when he stops, then steps around Lapis.

  “My, Gracia, what brings you here?” Gracia stops in front of him.

  “I’m the one who should be asking! I told you to stay in bed.”

  “I suppose you did. However, I’m already recovered, and sitting in that room without my magic was so dreadfully boring it would have slowed the mind.”

  “So your leg is really okay now?”

  “Indeed. There wasn’t even an injury for me to suffer, just a pain that kept me from standing up straight.”

  “That’s good.” With a gentle smile on her face, Gracia looks past Libarius at Lapis. “And who’s this? Did you do something to him?”

  “I’ve done nothing.” Ignoring Libarius, Lapis answers her himself.

  “M-my name is L-Lapis Fodio, Ma’am!”

  “Ah! You’re one of the missing students!” Libarius retorts in his even voice.

  “Their truancy hardly makes them missing, Gracia. However, I have indeed recovered him. And if only those gutless students of ours would follow my directives, the responsibility wouldn’t fall to me.”

  “Then stop telling them to threaten their classmates!”

  Watching them, Lapis smiles to himself.