The remaining three finalists also proved to be formidable as Serulia and Cæ both went over the files scrupulously.

[Kyrell Singe]

A nineteen-year-old student with an affinity for conjuration and manipulation magic who carried chains around him all the time, covering his entire body in them. He specialized in chain manipulation, using them offensively and defensively in a smooth fashion that didn't compromise one over the other. What was especially impressive about him was the fact that his mana-motive force was among the strongest in the entire school, and he could double cast with magic circles and body-casting.

Cæ actually recalled seeing his matches in the interludes between his matches.

"His chain magic is quite devilish," Serulia remarked with a drawling accent. "In particular, they're very strong and extremely difficult to break. One thing that you need to keep in mind is that the chains are his mana conductor. He carries them on him and around him so that he can cast magic spontaneously. It's made up of orichalcum, a remarkable mana conductor. Dealing with him will not be easy."

Cæ nodded. "It says here that all of his victories today were by literally grabbing his opponents with his chains and then choking them unconscious midair."

That didn't leave a good impression of the young man.

He could win quickly just by throwing his opponent out of bounds.

It suggested a sadistic personality.

"Still… chains, is it?" Cæ raised an eyebrow. "That's interesting. I don't entirely understand how he made it all the way to seven contestants. I'm not belittling or underestimating him, just that I'm not seeing exactly what part of him makes him among the seven strongest in the magicademy."

"I do not blame your ignorance," Serulia replied with a knowing tone. "This is something you will learn later in the Senior Program. To answer your doubt, however, I can tell you that this fellow has made more progress with his eidos mastery than almost anybody else in the magicademy. After all, he has successfully achieved a high resolution of eidos affinity."

Cæ frowned. "Higher resolution of eidos affinity?"

She nodded. "It basically means that you have increased the synergy between your mind and eidos by narrowing the diversity of the form of your magic to something that your mind is especially compatible with and can easily manifest because of its familiarity."

"…I don't understand what that means." Cæ raised an eyebrow. "What exactly do you mean by narrowing the diversity of the form of your magic to something that your mind is especially compatible with?"

"Hmmm…" she fell into thought as she scratched her chin. "It's similar to why we use elements, the six greater elements in particular. Do you know why we use them?"

"It's because everybody has an affinity with at least one of the six greater elements," Cæ remarked. "An affinity, in this case, is simply a measure of how easy it is for you to use a particular element. Thus, we use them because they reduce the strain on our minds—"

His eyes lit up as the realization dawned on him. "…Ah, I see. You're saying that something similar can be done with specific types of forms, like, for example…"

He turned back to the profile of Kyrell.

"Chains."

"Exactly, you are indeed quick on the uptake." She nodded. "Elements are still very broad and extremely diverse. In particular, the six greater elements may also contain endless forms within them. That is why simply mastering elements isn't enough in and of itself. You need to find specific forms that you are most compatible with and then use that form when you cast magic so that your mind can easily imagine them. In the case of this lad…"

Her eyes lingered on the profile of Kyrell Singe.

His expression was blank, and his eyes were dark.

His body and face were lean, and his hair was dishevelled.

"He used to be a slave here in Elendir."

Cæ's eyes narrowed. "…What?"

"His parents sold him to a slave trader when they couldn't pay back their debts," she continued, without any compunctions. "He was bought by an affluent family and lived his entire life covered in chains that shackled him until it was discovered that he had an elite talent for magic, enough to be accepted into the Elendir Institute of Magic. Then the Singe Family immediately adopted him as their son."

"…So that's why he has an affinity for chains," Cæ realized. "If you spent your entire life in chains, then it is no wonder that the 'form' of chains would become ingrained in your brain forever. Your familiarity with chains would become extremely high. This would make it easier to cast chain magic because your mind would easily be able to conjure up an eidos of chains in your mind."

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"Exactly," she nodded. "By becoming a slave with a particularly intense set of chains shackling his body, his family cultivated an affinity for chains with him. And that allowed him to achieve a high resolution of eidos affinity. It allows him to be one of the seven strongest mages in the Elendir Institute of Magic."

"…High resolution of eidos, is it?" Cæ fell into thought. "A specific form that we have a high affinity for."

"It can be anything," she informed him. "Any object or a set of objects that are very similar. It can be something as irrelevant as a rock or something as extravagant as a sword."

"…I imagine that affluent families use this to try and steer their child's development towards a specific type of form." Cæ huffed, shaking his head.

"That is indeed correct," Serulia readily admitted as she shifted a tuft of her golden hair behind her ears. "Of course, doing this in a proper way without traumatizing a child is difficult; achieving the exact results you want is even more difficult. That is why it is something that only the rich can do. It is also one of the ways that they give their children an advantage over others."

Cæ heaved a sigh, shaking his head. "Enough about that. Back to my contestants."

The remaining contestant didn't strike Cæ as impressive as the first four that he had read about.

"Seol Gordnt," she replied. "To put it simply. He's just a general good combat mage. Not unlike yourself. He has great foundations. Great diversity within magic. Great mana-motive force and eidos mastery. He got there by exceeding his opponents in pure combat. That doesn't mean he's weak. But he certainly isn't among the top three. Still, he isn't someone you should underestimate."

Cæ nodded as he swept through the documents scattered on the tea table before them.

Virlyd Myr. Mira Mierta. Dranst. Seol Gordnt. Kyrell Singe. Miranda.

These six were his opponents.

"…It's too much to try and accurately predict the course of this battle." Cæ shook his head. "I don't think there's any way that I can possibly fully plan for everything that could happen. In particular, I think that I will limit myself to trying to figure out what is the best general strategy. There are finer principles that I can operate with. For example…"

Cæ raised a finger.

"I will likely not become a target at all as long as Virlyd is in the combat arena."

She nodded. "That does indeed sound like a sound premise. I am deeply skeptical of the notion that any of the other six will place a high priority on taking you down. Do not take my words as an offense, but your magic profile is the least intimidating out of all seven, and they know it. You have only mastered three fundamental forms of magic that you learned in the Apprentice Program, and you have effectively less than one year of experience with magic."

Cæ nodded. "That is why I'm confident that they will not mind me too much as long as I don't go out of my way to try and attack them. That is a useful thing to keep in mind when trying to plan my approach tomorrow. Another premise that I can take for granted is that Virlyd will do everything in his power to win the battle as soon as possible. I highly doubt that he will hold back under these circumstances, facing the next six strongest mages after him."

"…I am not too certain about that," she replied thoughtfully. "He is very strong. Maybe he will try to aim for trying to nail them all one by one and conserve his energy?"

Cæ shook his head. "He probably won't have the leeway to conserve his energy tomorrow. The fact of the matter is that the six of us are probably putting too much pressure on ourselves to possibly hold back. That's something that only a full-fledged senior mage can do, and they are far stronger than Virlyd."

"That stands to reason, indeed," she accepted. "What does that mean for what you're going to do?"

"…If Virlyd is going to go all-out from the start and the others are not going to bother with me, then it stands to reason that the first opponent that I will face attacks from will likely be Virlyd himself. He might try fighting all six of us at once or go one by one, but in both cases, he will likely be the one to attack me first."

Even in the data that the Vritra Family had compiled, there was no concrete pattern in how Virlyd dealt with multiple opponents; he had pursued multiple fronts. Thus, Cæ had no basis to predict one way or another; he needed to account for both possibilities.

"…Do you have a strategy in mind, then?" she raised an eyebrow.

"I do, but…"

He turned towards her with a serious look in his eyes.

"I can't reveal it to you, I'm afraid."

"…Cautious, are you not?" she huffed with a hint of displeasure, turning away from him. "I am not happy about this distrust despite the fact that I have helped you strategize and have even given you intelligence."

"I don't have much of a choice." Cæ's tone was firm and unyielding. "It is possible that all of this was to get your hands on information that you have malicious intentions with."

"If that is the case, why do you trust the information that I provided you with?" She folded her arms as her eyebrows furrowed.

"I don't, not entirely, at least. I think it is possible that you have fabricated some of this or have even left out some crucial details," his stormy gray eyes bore deep into her light blue eyes. "The simple fact of the matter is that I have known you for only a day."

"Hah," she snorted with a displeased tone. "I am a Virtra. We keep our word. You insult me by even suggesting that this is a possibility. It is a smear on our honor!"

Her tone contained a hint of anger.

Cæ gazed at her with a deep gaze.

"Then, I will take back everything I have said after the match, if the data you have provided me proves to be accurate."

Her expression softened at those words.

"Will that be enough to satisfy Your Highness?" Cæ's tone contained a glint of amusement.

"Do not mock me," she huffed, turning away from him. "Very well then, I will await the rescinding of your prior statements. Still…"

She turned back towards him with a softer gaze.

"…I appreciate your honesty. Most people are too cowardly to speak the truth before me in fear of angering the Vritra Family."

Cæ shrugged apathetically.

"I don't blame them, frankly."

"And yet, you do not do the same," she noted with a hint of interest. "Would it not do you good, for both your magic and your business, to flatter and build goodwill with me, the heir of the Vritra Family?"

Cæ remained silent.

The air grew heavy as her clear blue eyes bore deep into his.

Her question touched upon something that he himself didn't have an answer for.

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