Aspiration to the Heavens: Becoming the Supreme Mage Vol. 1- Novus Magus

[Revised/Edited] Episode 10: The Fae Child

"Yeah, right! You would have if not for my magic. Now, scram!"

***

"Who was that angry girl?" I questioned, drying my hair with a towel that Vermeil had given me. She'd taken me into an empty tent at the campsite she and the other people taking the test had put together.

"Sarah Shui. She is a nice girl, once you get to know her," Vermeil said, hiding a grin behind her snow-white hands. "Though I don't think that'll be easy for you, especially after what happened." She narrowed her eyes. "Were you really peeping on her?"

I shook my head. "I wasn't!" I put down the towel around my neck. My face was super hot. "It seems that she took down my psychic spell as I was teleporting. I landed there by chance."

Vermeil held out her right pinkie. "You swear?"

I chuckled. "Isn't this a little childish?"

Her amber eyes were serious. "Did you, or didn't you?"

I crossed pinkies with her. "I swear, it was all an accident." My free hand swung to my head as I hunched.

Vermeil let go of my pinkie. "Are you alright?

I nodded, a bit dazed from the pain. My psychic dragon was an extension of my mind. That's why I could see whatever it saw, until I opened my eyes. Whenever someone destroyed it, my head would feel funny.

"I'm fine, just a little dizzy is all," I said, trying to smile as best as I could.

"Sarah probably made you feel dizzier."

I laughed. "A bit."

"Hello," Hal said, poking his head into the tent. "Ah, you must be the little pervert I heard about."

I grumbled. "I'm not a pervert! It was an accident."

Hal chuckled. "Calm down, I'm only kidding. I know it was only a coincidence."

Vermeil raised an eyebrow. "How do you know?"

"I saw the psychic dragon crash into the forest after getting struck down by blades of water. I rushed over to check out what it was. It was then that I overheard you talking." His face became slightly red. "Anyway, we'd like you to come outside. Sarah kind of wants to battle you."

I blinked. "Me?"

"Yeah, you."

"Why?" Vermeil asked, tilting her head.

"She wants to reclaim her honor. If An loses then he'll drop out of taking the exam. If he wins then she'll begrudgingly allow him to stay."

The blond scoffed. "Since when does she get to decide who stays and leaves?"

I nodded. "Alright. I'll fight. But that reminds me," I said. I summoned a letter that Ms. Key had sent me in advance. "Here you go, in case you need proof that I'm really who I say I am." On it was a magic seal that confirmed its authenticity. From the prana emanating from it, Mrs. Key was at least a water and metal mage.

"Seems legit," Hal said, looking it up and down.

"An, you have no need to go along with what Sarah wants! She is not the one in charge here. Ms. Key is!" Vermeil said, waving her arms.

I stood up from the stool. "Honor is an important thing. If I don't do this, it'll be like trampling hers. Plus, I'll also be hurting my own image if I opt out."

Vermeil bit her lip. "A...alright, but don't hold back. Sarah can be dangerous when it comes to proving her point."

I nodded. "I won't."

***

Outside, four stones formed a fifteen by fifteen-foot square. Sarah stood in the middle of the square, scowling upon seeing me

She smiled slightly upon seeing me. "I'll teach you some manners," Sarah said. Lotuses made out of water manifested around her back.

They were so pretty! I reached for the sword strapped to my back. "Alright." I took in a deep breath and spread out my legs. Pulling out the ivory sword from its leather sheath, I readied myself.

"Ready, begin!" a tall white-haired guy yelled. A light blue tinted barrier manifested around us.

Sarah formed a water sword in her hands. "Gather before me, watery petals, Nymphaea Nouchali."

The lotuses behind her released their watery petals. I rolled out of the way while slashing one of the petals.

Sarah laughed. "Despite your appearance, you are an Aiefian warrior first and foremost."

I looked down at my black leather armor. She was right, compared to the other Aiefians, I was a twig. Though, at times like these, it wasn't so bad. It made me harder to hit!

I stopped dodging and swung my sword in an arc, cutting down the rest of the leaves. Water splashed my face. "Right, I'm a warrior first, and a student second."

She smirked. "Very well. In that case, Nymphae Nouchali." Another wave of petals rained down at me. This time, the sheer force of the water pushed me against the barrier.

"He's not using his magic... just like me," I overheard a red-haired boy say from the other side of the barrier.

My magic took a toll on me, so I preferred not to depend too much on it. I cut down the second wave of petals, only to see that Sarah had a third one ready.

"Come on, don't you have another spell?" I yelled as I ran away as the third wave honed in on me.

She chuckled and raised a hand up. "A person who has practiced a single swing a thousand times is more dangerous than one who has practiced a thousand swings once."

My eyes widened. A blue seal appeared under my feet as I got closer to her. Blades of water flew up and rained back down as the water petals came from behind.

"Manifestation of the mind; Psyche Draco." A pink dragon emerged from my blade. The dragon devoured the water petals with its mouth while I blocked and repelled the blades of water with my ivory blade.

Sarah raised her water rapier and calmly walked toward me.

"Damn," I said. I blocked her sword as she appeared in front of me. The force of her attack sent me flying against the barrier once more.

A grin formed as the fourth wave of petals formed. "My victory!"

I gritted my teeth and warped onto the top of my psychic dragon's head. My spell slammed Sarah with its tail. The princess stood up, blood rolling down her forehead.

"Ugh. How could I have forgotten about that spell?" She jumped back, dodging another swing of its tail. "It's time to go all out."

"Too late," I said, my ivory sword against her neck. I hit her back with the palm of my left hand. Sarah winced as pain spread through her body. I removed my sword in front of her neck and caught her. "Did I hurt you too much?"

Her eyelids nearly closed completely. "No..."

I grinned. "Good. Let's get you some rest." I put away my sword and carried her out of the square.

She snickered.

"W-what's so funny?" I asked, blushing. Was she making fun of me?

"You battle like your people, but your personality... it's atypical of them." She shifted her barely opened eyes toward Xue. "She on the other hand..." She shook her head. "Sorry. I should not have stereotyped you."

I laughed. "Well, in our case, I think it's rather accurate." I sighed. That's why I wanted to get away from that place. Aief wasn't a place for somebody like me.

**Solar Note: Thanks for continuing to read :). I hope that you enjoyed it, if so then consider clicking on that star :D! What have you liked the most thus far? Btw, for old readers, I renamed Psyche Draco to Psychicae Draconis**