It was something he had only read about as a theory. Far removed from Personal Barriers, which existed in military usage, the overcharging of a leyline was something that was talked about and discussed amongst academics, but rarely performed. Why would one do so, after all, in a mana-drained world? Why do so, when you would end up damaging leylines that have already become unreliable? Why do so, when the world’s problems couldn’t truly be solved with just more magic?

Apparently, the simple answer had eluded the scholars: just create artificial leylines for that purpose.

All external essence sucked into a singular point. The world itself, torn apart and separated from reality as understood by others. An essence-less plane now, lifeless despite living life, a facsimile of a forest clearing. Otis marvelled at it all, the light of scientific curiosity burning as bright as the false sun in the sky. Oh, he could use this! If they were to learn how to do this, and if they were given plenty of leylines to do this with, then there was good reason after all, to attend his classes obediently.
A strange thing then, that his classmates seemed more focused on the screams of a wretch than on the marvels, the potential, before them all.

Davil’s fate was to be expected, now that Otis had confirmed exactly what Instructor Alto had intended. He knelt down beside the rest of them, of course. Unbuttoned Davil’s shirt to examine the chest. Ignored the arms because they weren’t all that necessary. Smelled the bile. Took personal note of how intact the lower body was. His roommate was still conscious, of course. An idiot’s tenacity could be praised, if nothing else. No organs were ruptured, and the ribs were cracked, not completely inverted into the lungs.

“All he needs is first aid,” Otis said, placing one hand upon Iraleth’s extended arm. “This is an overcharged leyline, Iraleth. What we felt when we came here will be what we feel when we leave here, and there’s no purpose in doing what the clinic is paid to do. Recall that the topic of this class is ‘Survival’.”

A pause. It was almost cruel, offering it as a choice, but the Strigidae turned his unblinking gaze towards Davil regardless. Chunji, perhaps, could see that ‘consideration’ existed in different shades and tints, different forms and beliefs. Consideration, perhaps, could simply be a consideration towards how far one can be uplifted before they are forced to reckon that it was only their natural inability that prevented their progress, not their tuition or their armaments.

“But it’s your life, Davil. Blink once, if you wish for shelter. Blink twice, if you believe you can form a Personal Barrier by the time we must leave this plane. Know that this will happen again if you aren’t able to form a Personal Barrier.”

If the former, Otis would wait for Iraleth’s first aid to conclude, then pull Davil, broken arms and all, into the void-space of his Door, sealing it shut.

If the later?

He would not do anything at all. Tenacity could be respected, and you didn’t need your arms to form a Personal Barrier.

“Your choice, Davil. Blink once, or blink twice.”

@ERode @Nanaya

It was perverse, almost, she decided. Her surroundings, so deeply familiar on a visual level, somewhere that felt like home. And yet, something so...devoid. It was equal parts captivating and uncanny. The shock of actually getting had almost made Hildegunde lose grasp of her Personal Barrier. Davil served a chilling example as to what would've become of her if she actually had. The ghost of pressure she feels is almost ominous.

Her eyes flitted from classmate to classmate. Most reacted predictably. Two stood out to her.

There was Otis, who seemed less concerned and more in marvel of his surroundings. A very obvious twinkling in his eyes. Thoughts flowing, gears turning. Some sort of application her own simple mind could not grasp. She decides, silently, that she will prod him about it later, perhaps out of class.

Then, there was Chloe. Huh. Miss Prune does have a heart. She wonders now, quietly, if she had judged the girl too quickly. If she had made undue grief for everyone by not simply sucking it up and rooming with her. Too late for that now, however. The duel wasn't going to be called off regardless.

She allowed a group to gather around the fallen student with no resistance or urge to join the pile. The crowd might very well be overwhelming. Besides, there was little she could do, after all. She was a hunter by nature, not a healer. While she could certainly attempt at healing, it seemed others were more suited towards it. When it came to the injured and the suffering, the Hunter has a different approach.

"I could also just put him out of his misery." Was it a joke? It sounds like it should be a joke, but Hildegunde's got such a deadpan way of delivering it that it might very well be serious. Her eyes flick to Alto.

"Although, really, it feels like an oversight, to put something as important as healing on us students."

@Estylwen@Psyker Landshark@ERode@AThousandCurses@Sifr

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN

Chloe shrunk back as others began to assess and work away at Davil, turning her face away from the group as she paced towards a nearby tree. She'd lean against it while facing away from the group, her arms crossed and her hands gripping tightly at her elbows. Rio would begin to stomp towards Alto in the meantime, cold bloodlust plain as day in his eyes, his hands balled into fists. The professor simply watched on unbothered, his attention mostly on the approaching brawler and occasionally on the medical procedure around Davil.

"I could also just put him out of his misery. Although, really, it feels like an oversight, to put something as important as healing on us students."

The words were uttered so plainly that Chloe jolted to attention immediately, while Alto would nonchalantly shrug towards Hildegunde's words. "The risks were high when you all applied. If what you were wanting was a trip along the coddled path like those whimsical princes and princesses over at the Dandelily Institute, you won't find it here. Strigari Academy is even less caring for their students' immediate safety, I'll have you know. Getting off with broken bones and a bit of vomit, well... it's kindness, compared to what those Shaktans put their brightest through in the capital." Chloe paid no attention to this, and turned to face the group once more, a glare locked on Hildegunde. Apart from this, however, she would say nothing, her arms still folded.

As all this went on, Davil complied with the instructions of all those tending to him, to the best of his ability, calming himself and doing his best to avoid moving more than necessary. His eyes slowly moved in acknowledgement towards Otis. Despite the pain, intent burned in those hazel orbs. One blink, and then another to indicate his desire as he maintained eye contact with the Strigidae. He wasn't squirming and writhing anymore, due to Chunji's comforting spell. It would end up being the sole thing that prevented him from convulsing in shock, once the mending of his ribs began.

As shards within his torso began to repair themselves and slowly return to their proper places from Iraleth's holy essence, Davil grunted and grit his teeth so hard it seemed as if they would shatter. His left arm remained snapped and his left fractured, and the bruises and cuts lining his exposed skin with them, but the most immobilizing injury appeared to be taken care of first. He coughed, spat and hacked as the mending completed, his ribs presumably restored. He'd look across those gathered near him, and a faint smile crept up his face. "Thanks, you guys. I won't let this effort go to waste, I promise," Davil would sheepishly mutter.

Alto let out a cough with an 'ahem', clapping his hands together. "That's all the time I can reasonably give to gather your bearings. We're on the clock, and I want to be able to tell my coworkers that I had a good first class, so let's all continue! The mannekin are ready by now, I think."

At the exact moment that the instructor had finished those words, two arrows soared from out of the shadows an unknown distance away behind him. Through a forest of trees and bushes, they aimed true towards Otis and Davil. Rio's eyes ignited with fire at this surprise attack as he closed the rest of the gap between him and Alto with a dash, and began to swing a punch towards his face. Chloe hadn't yet realized that the situation had taken a turn for the violent, and was still processing all of these events just as the arrows entered sight.

"If you cannot provide anything useful, Ms. Ventura, then silence would also be good. Causing a patient to panic through hysteria can cause fluctuating breathing, which may prove fatal during an operation." The words were meant for the former as the latter brought Iraleth to the table.

Assisting in any way he can, Chunji found everything right in the words of Otis's work. It was a capable solution that could solve their present situation. A solution that Davil promptly denied out of either idiocy or pride.

Filtering out his other classmate's remark about killing Davil, Chunji listened to what Iraleth had suggested.

If anyone had noticed the curve of Chunji's frown deepening at the mention of healing Davil, some would assume that he didn't like the idea of healing his classmate. No, Chunji had a problem with the concept of healing itself. He knew the spells, the incantations, and the hand seals, but Chunji could only apply them with unintended side effects.

"Understood," Iraleth didn't seem proficient in healing, so it relied on him fixing what was left over. Heal would find some use in this setting. Cancelling his current spell, Chunji began performing hand seals. Dragon, Dog, Sheep. Heal didn't require hand seals, but Chunji needed to ensure he didn't create immediate pain for Davil. "Heal," Reaching out to Davil's arm, Chunji casted the spell onto his arms.

Nothing changed.

In under a second, Chunji realized something was wrong. "My spell..." Finding David's arms still needed to be restored told everything Chunji knew. The spell failed. Failing the spellcast was critical; even when Chunji cast the wrong spell, he had never failed to cast a spell before. There was a moment he had felt the essence gather inside him, but it fizzled out the exact moment he cast the spell. A few scenarios ran through his mind, and only the natural solution came.

It was the location itself. The strange place that Alto had brought them into. An overcharged leyline.

Before Chunji could figure out the abnormalities, their time was up. Chunji's mind jolted into action, and he immediately moved into position. Chunji threw his arm towards Davil, shielding him from the incoming arrow. The arrow would be caught by the smoke and sent flying deep into the ground. Otis could handle himself as he most likely had a Personal Barrier active.

Their mannequin attackers concealed themselves within the dense forest. However, they could not hide from Chunji's eyes. "透过现象看本质," The Doctor's eyes glowed and searched for them. Chunji would inform his classmates the locations of the mannequins if he had located them.

Rio would probably lose to Alto, and Chloe had a slow reaction time; they needed to finish the mannequins before anything else.

Two blinks.

“No need, Hildegrunde,” Otis said. “We won't be here long enough to require eating our own.” A joke? Hard to tell, when two overly serious people spoke to each other. Instead, the Strigidae stood up from where he was and then reflexively snapped his head to one side. A ninety degree tilt, characteristic of the owlkin ran. An arrow whizzed by an eighth of a heartbeat later, burying itself in the ground.

The mannekin.

Chunji’s report aligned well with Otis’s initial memories of their wooden classmates. Three spears, two bows, one axe, one sword. All of them guarded by Personal Barriers; if they weren’t, they too would have been broken by the overcharging of the leyline. Rio rushed for the instructor. Chloe was still separated from the group. And the nature of the Primal Leyline was…

“Listen!” No need for telepathic links here; their opponents were fewer in number and everyone was in earshot. “Overcharged Primal Leylines offer three main benefits! The one who overcharged the leyline gets a massive boost in power. Primal magic is incantationless. All other forms of spellcraft require incantations to be spoken in reverse. Extra benefits exist depending on Alto’s prime essence!” He pulled out his own firearm, that handcrafted revolver with a hammer that rang like a crystal. “Hildegunde, take the mannekin archers. Twenty meters is nothing for a long gun. Chloe, under the cover of her gunshots, join the rest of us. Iraleth, face down the spearmen coming in. Due to the Personal Barrier enveloping them, it’s easier to target their weapons and then restrain them, rather than attempt to destroy them with a singular blow. Ciara, the remaining two mannekins are still beneath the canopy. That’ll give you plenty of shadow to work with. Go advance alone. Same advice about the weapons. They’re still just sparring implements.”

It was a simple enough division of tasks. Unless the mannekins had become even more exceptional than when they were charged up to a frenzy by Gulliver’s Ethos, Otis doubted that this served as nothing more than a warm-up. Which meant…

“After that, any who wish to can challenge Instructor Alto in many-versus-one combat.”

Iraleth's glare shifted from the professor to both Otis and Hildegunde in turn for their oh-so-helpful suggestions. She didn't have the time to chastise them, however, before Alto spoke once more. It very much didn't help her mood. Being "better than the Shaktans" amounted to precious little in the end. Congratulations, this was ever so slightly less barbaric than how they trained their mages.

Nonetheless, the paladin redoubled her focus on healing and finished mending Davil's ribs, affording him a brief nod before the reality of the current situation forced her to rise and turn around. She drew her sword, Otis's commands registering in her mind as she assessed the situation. Despite her misgivings towards the Strigdae, Iraleth was forced to acknowledge that his grasp on tactics was sound, and she couldn't particularly find fault. She'd comply, then.

"Understood. Moving to engage."

The plated half-elf strode forward towards the trio of spear-bearing mannekins, barking her incantation in reverse as Otis mentioned. Holy light surrounded her blade, and she gripped the hilt with both hands, delivering a mighty cleave aimed to smash through the haft of all three spears, her magic widening her swing. Invoking her Ethos would make things far easier, but this wasn't the only bit of combat she would have to engage in today. There was still Ciara's inane obstinance to deal with this evening.

Wingram Academy, Classroom 103
@Nanaya, @ERode

---

"If you cannot provide anything useful, Ms. Ventura, then silence would also be good.” Chunji said.

“Probably wouldn't be tasty enough to eat…” Said one of the Voices as Ciara narrowed her eyes.

“I've eaten ash before.” Ciara thought back.

Iraleth came to the rescue, which Ciara hated to admit. Healing was useful, especially when it came to the pet of the group. Based on what Professor Alto said, this - risk of broken bones, of getting stabbed - was about to become their norm.

Well then.

It meant taking especially good care of the pet, didn't it?

“Ciara, the remaining two mannekins are still beneath the canopy. That’ll give you plenty of shadow to work with.” Said Otis.

Ciara was quick to her feet in an instant, kicking up the dropped sword to land softly in her outstretched hand.

“The dark one speaks!” A child-like Voice cried out excitedly.

“I need to concentrate-” Ciara frowned.

“Onward! To victory!” The Voices shouted, already relishing the action. “Show them the darkness is superior.”

Ciara sighed, eyes closing briefly as she took a step toward the brush. She had never fought in such a dry environment - the lack of essence. But she could adjust to anything. The streets of Vaal Kastrix demanded as such.

“Fames.”

A shadow gripped the sword on loan, slicing the air, aiming to cut the axe in half. Following close behind it at a rapid pace, Ciara had her daggers unshelthed, edges coated in shadow, smashing down on the sword. If contact was successful, she'd try to jar the sword free by placing one dagger below the hilt and yanking hard.

The Mannekins wouldn't be able to handle it, surely.

Ciara also had to play her cards carefully. Witnessing Iraleth's white magic was a stark reminder of the fight to the death later that day.

She had to save her energy, as much as possible.

Fates knew she would need it.

“After that, any who wish to can challenge Instructor Alto in many-versus-one combat.”

Of course, she couldn't turn down a good fight. Especially when the professor nearly killed the pet. She would just have to conserve her energy as much as possible.

“My pleasure.”

@ERode@Nanaya

"Damn shame. I skipped breakfast today, you know." She cracks a smile, one lacking malice. If she wasn't joking before, she is, at the very least, joking now.

The smile only fades once she registers Chloe's glare. That was...also unexpected. She locks eyes and blinks twice - once quickly, as if in shock, and then once more, slowly, as if calming a territorial cat. Her gaze then darts her gaze back towards Professor Alto. She full on grimaces now, but dares say nothing. If this would be her new normal, so be it. She would adapt and she would learn - that was the whole reason she was here, after all. If she were able to surpass her brother in marksmanship, she can - no, must - surpass him as a healer.

But that didn't mean she had to pretend to like it. She would give a small nod and a grumble, still grimacing. Her expression doesn't soften much when she turns to Davil.

"Worry less 'bout waste and more about improvement, Davil. If your classmates thought this a waste, they wouldn't have hel-"

She cuts off abruptly. Her eyes widen, ears picking up something else among the chatter.

Arrows.

Her hands were on her rifle before Otis even spoke. The sound of gunfire - her rifle had not been silenced - her only response to the Strigidae, her aim focused on the bows rather than the mannequins. It was a slim target, but she's had to aim for worse.

@Estylwen@Psyker Landshark@ERode@AThousandCurses@Sifr

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN

Many things would occur at roughly the same time, as an ambush was quickly responded to with a decisive counterattack. Iraleth's swing had made short work of the spears of the three vanguard mannekin, while in similarly short order, the axe mannekin and the northwestern sniper had also had their weapons destroyed. The sword mannekin, meanwhile, immediately hopped backwards upon the assault, gaining a distance of several meters between the suddenly appearing Ciara and itself. In that same moment, the axe mannekin had instantly reacted to its broken weapon by grabbing the fragment without an axe head and swinging it towards Ciara's head like a makeshift club. "Like discussed, we defeat the shadowy one first," the axe mannekin would utter in a monotone yet grizzled, masculine voice. Upon this, the sword mannekin would nod, wooden blade pointed in Ciara's direction. "Before you is the sword and axe duo of Kiimos Trelle. Fear us or falter, Umbralist," the sword mannekin would declare in a lighter feminine tone before slashing its sword downward, causing a thin wave of pure wind pressure to hurtle towards Ciara as the axe-turned-club mannekin continued his aggressive assault on her.

The three spear mannekin, now disarmed but evading direct hits to themselves, would immediately rush towards Iraleth all at once in hand-to-hand stances. The one on Iraleth's right would go for a sprinting downward sweep at her legs, the one on her left would ascend into the air to descend on her with a flying dropkick, and the one in the middle would bob and weave towards her like a professional boxer, attempting to barrage her with swift punches. With all of the Mannekin having their bodies reinforced by their Personal Barriers, any strikes that hit would impact against Iraleth more significantly than regular unarmed strikes might be thought to. From behind, Chloe was already sprinting to attempt to assist Iraleth, but it was clear she wouldn't arrive in time to interfere with the unarmed assault at that very second. Regardless, she would shout from behind, "Just hold out, I'm on my way!"

As the northwestern bowman found itself unarmed, it simply shrugged and made a dead sprint directly towards Hildegunde through the bushes and greenery in its way. It would seem confident in its PB as it dashed straight towards her - and at the same time, the northeastern archer atop the tree had avoided having its weapon destroyed by taking the hit itself instead of allowing its bow to break. The impact almost knocked the sole remaining sniper out of its tree, but it held firm - as did its barrier. At the same instant that the unarmed archer had sprinted towards Hildegunde, the tree sniper had also loosed another arrow towards her. This one was different, though - noticeably faster than the last arrow, flying true towards her at nearly double the speed of its first shot.

Finally, Rio would unceremoniously be tossed back. In a single fluid motion, Alto had caught the boy's punch, clamped down hard on his fist until an audible crack could be heard echoing through the forest like dry tree bark, and then used his other hand to slam an open palm directly into the boy's stomach, sending him tumbling backwards into a tree. "I applaud the effort, but I don't really wanna fight kids. I thought we were getting along swimmingly, until now," Alto would remark with a smirk, reluctantly retrieving his sword from the tree next to him that it leaned against. "But if any of you want to take me on, I'll oblige. I'll stay right here until somebody else wants to make the attempt, alright?"

Rio attempted to find strength in his right hand, but none was present. He stumbled to his feet without breaking eye contact with the instructor the entire time, fire in his eyes despite now breathing raggedly. He'd then break that eye contact after seeing Alto stay true to his word, looking at Otis. "And what's the great self-neck-breaking strategist gonna do next? I sure hope it involves us winnin'," Rio would say with a hint of venom, his Personal Barrier's wind flickering to indicate a state of notable damage. "Because I wanna wipe that stupid-ass look off his face at least once, and I'll do whatever you want if you can make it happen."

Slowly, Davil rose to his feet as wind gathered around his feathered shoes, then looked at Otis with grave certainty. "You know I've got nothing left in my Ethos for the day, but I'll do what I can, chum. If need be, I can get burned by rebound if it means we've got a shot." His lip was quivering and his limbs were shaky, the oppressive atmosphere of this place devoid of essence beginning to affect his defenseless body even after the initial injuries. Even so, his expression was one of anxious determination, looking across the battlefield as the events of the next several seconds would continue to unfold; he knew his body now moved too slow to do anything to affect the current exchanges of blows, so there would be no point in trying to. His place, for now, was simply to stay here and do his best to survive.

He trusted Ciara. Trusted that if she was out of her depth, she would know to escape.

The rest? He trusted less, but only because he knew less about their skills. Chloe had a good heart, but seemed to lack the physical ability to affect any particular change. Rio was hot-blooded and vengeful, but it was twice now that he displayed a sense of justice. Hildegunde didn't need further instruction; he had heard her shots, and only one of them made the sound expected of a bow snapping in half. Chunji was a greater anomaly still, possessing special eyes but not much else. Davil, of course, was a non-factor at best, a liability at worst.

And Iraleth? Iraleth was done.

"Focus on forming your Personal Barrier," the Strigidae said, without even turning to face his roommate. "You can't help with anything until then." Harsh words, but he moved on without a pause, as if only checking such a statement off a list of many. "Rio, intercept the one charging at Hildegunde. Chunji, spot the one that she missed." His tone quieted, somewhat. "And analyze Instructor Alto afterwards."

The Personal Barriers formed a conduit for barehanded martial arts, but none of the Mannekins present displayed a penchant for casting, and they converged upon Iraleth with a simplicity that reminded him once more of their artificial nature. Intelligent and capable, better than a good portion of the 'geniuses' that Wingram Academy accepted, but artificial all the same. He let out a breath, a ritual to clear out his mind. Primal Overcharge dictated reversed incantations; he had more than enough time to slow the pace of his spellcasting in order to handle that requirement. The essence of fluidity, found in Strigidae blood, flowed from his heart to his extremities, reaching his vocal cords as he traced symbols that only he could see in the air.

"Sea at drowns what land with submerge and
Flow quickly, flow quickly.
Flats glassy upon recede tides the
Earth living for roots fluid."

He clapped his hands, as if capturing spoken word between his palms, and pressed them against the earth.

Beneath Iraleth, the earth gained the quality of fluidity, a quicksand that sucked at the limbs of all the mannekins that rushed for her. The one that swept with their legs found themselves half-swallowed by earth already, while the one that bobbed and weaved tripped when their feet stalled in the quagmire. Attempts to free themselves caused them only to sink deeper, and that same fate would await Iraleth too.

She knew how to fly though.

And that was the difference in ability Otis had accounted for.

---

---

---

---

Acendia, Room 103 Fountain
@Nanaya

---

“Fear us or falter, Umbralist.”

Ciara's blood ran cold.

Umbralist.

“How dare you…”

The Voices stirred in her. “These monsters deserve our wrath. Eroding the darkness, casting down our brothers and sisters. Strike them through.”

Ciara felt her temper flare, wholly agreeing with the Voices, before her eyes widened.

“Wait. Brothers…? But you said…” She thought.

Flashes came into mind. The angry mobs in front of the orphanage. Being dragged from her home, chased out and scorned against the winter snow. The humiliation of being unable to show her face where she grew up.

“But you said… I wasn't an Umbralist.”

“Your nature is tied in darkness. These people do not see the difference.”

Ciara stiffened. The Voices were holding something back. “You're being dishonest with me-”

A flashing strike aimed for her head. Ciara twisted on her heel, blocking the attack with her daggers. Dark sparks flew off the steel as the mannekin wailed on her, trying to find a weakness.

“Are they right, then? Is my whole life an utter lie? Something to be wiped away, like a smudge of soot?”

From the corner of her eye, she saw the wave of air pressure wheeling towards her. Ciara grit her teeth, yanking the sword down with her shadows to break apart the wind. The collision sent out shockwaves, stirring the collar of her shirt before it broke past the sword, knocking Ciara back.

She fell to one knee, knocked back into the underbrush of the forest. A hiss of annoyance escaped her lips as she stared out at the duo of Kiimos Trelle.

“Is it my fate to suffer like this?”

There was a pause, before a deeper Voice spoke, withered with time.

“Light cannot exist without darkness. Like water and oil, they cannot tolerate one another.”

Another pause.

“Your peace will be found in overpowering the light. Remind them which of the two is superior.”

Ciara let the words sink, staring hard for a moment, before slinking further into the dark underbrush.

Shadows.

She could feel them.

This was how she'd gain the upper hand.

Front the underbrush, shadowy tendrils shot out. They snaked around the ankles and legs of the duo mannekins, worming their way up. If Ciara was successful, she would encase their limbs and torsos entirely in writhing shadows, squeezing hard against the barriers. More tendrils shot out, clasping hard on the sword and axe handle, crushing hard enough to create splinters down the shafts.

Ciara emerged from the underbrush, eyes alight with grim arrogance. She squeezed a little harder, placing enough pressure that she was certain would create cracks and tears in the barriers of the mannekins.

But she didn't outright destroy them. Not yet.

“Beg for mercy, and I might spare you.”

"I agree with Otis; you'd be a liability if you were to fight in your condition."

There wasn't any trace of sympathy or empathy for Davil's situation. A cold, hard truth that Davil would have to adjust to when talking to someone like Chunji. From Chunji's perspective, David wouldn't do anyone any favors. Not only was he injured, but Davil was possibly the weakest person in the classroom. He would be on par with Chloe if Chloe didn't have the grace of being gifted with a powerful Ethos. An Ethos that Davil currently lacked in both power and usability. What did he even use his Ethos on before class?

Chunji glanced towards the treeline and pointed out the archer was readying another arrow to shoot. "The mannequin's right there, around thirty degrees right and thirty feet on the tree from Ms. Nachtnebel." With that directive, it was time to 'analyze' Professor Alto. The vagueness of the command made it confusing for Chunji to infer. What did Otis want him to analyze? His strength? It was obvious that Alto was stronger and built more strongly than Rio.

A quick look at Chunji's Ethos told him the obvious. "Your body's healthy, Professor Alto," Chunji said as he looked over his professor. As expected, he was built, had scars, and his hands had callouses.

Chunji had no intention of challenging Alto at all. It was clear what the outcome was, even if Chunji gave it his all to fight Alto. With no further instruction from Otis, Chunji decided now was the best time to ask questions. "Professor Alto, what are the weaknesses of Personal Barrier? I'm sure that many people worldwide have devised methods to best bypass a standard barrier." Other than attacking the barrier until it broke, there were hundreds of thousands of people in the world; there had to be some to create ways to break down a Personal Barrier.

If it were Chunji, he'd expect that a curse or an emotional turbulence would bypass or weaken a Personal Barrier. Curses, in general, were hard to avoid. Curses came in all different kinds of forms, whether they were esoteric or exoteric. Someone would have needed to prepare a countermeasure to redirect the curse or purify it once it landed on them. Chunji didn't know the exact limitations of the Personal Barrier and whether or not it could block the curse from entering the body.

As for emotional turbulence, Personal Barriers were fueled by emotional essence or Nama. If the emotional essence were unstable, Chunji assumed that the same would go with the Personal Barrier. Barriers, in general, were meant to be 'stable' and 'protective' against threats that would bring destruction to life. If the barriers were fed fluctuating essence, the Personal Barriers would correlate to a weaker barrier if Chunji's conjecture was correct.

However, this adds more to the question of Personal Barriers. Can magic involved with healing bypass the barrier? Can the user personally select what is considered an 'attack?'

"Tch!" Iraleth exhaled as she switched to defense, making sure her Personal Barrier stayed up as she wove and parried her way through the mannequin trio's assault. The leg sweep and the dropkick were both evaded in the same diagonal backwards hop, leaving her to defend against the third one's onslaught of punches. Most either didn't make it past her blade or her gauntlets, but the few that did land rocked her Personal Barrier more than she was comfortable with.

Any further strategizing was interrupted by the sudden feeling of sinking beneath her feet. Iraleth chanced a glance down at the ground to confirm what she'd already assumed: quicksand. The source was obvious, too: her elven ears picked up on Otis's incantation. She understood the intent, of course. The Strigdae knew she could extricate herself from this at any time with but an invocation of her Ethos. It didn't make friendly fire any less annoying, though.

"On borrowed wings." Iraleth raised her sword in front of her as she chanted, not being given much of a choice at this point. The Inheritor's armor formed around her, and she flapped its wings of light, easily rising into the air and clearing the quicksand. One backwards incantation later, and rays of light fired from her fingertips to spear through the mannequins struggling in the sand, just to make sure. With that threat out of the way, the Inheritor looked over the field for a brief moment, and...

...Ciara. What was she doing?

"I thought you were above petty sadism!" Iraleth bellowed as she crashed down on the duo Ciara was restraining, if not outright torturing. The weight of her armor combined with the momentum of her flight would ensure that the mannequins would be finished, and the moment they were, Iraleth let her Ethos fade, not willing to expend that much more stamina before their duel this evening. That said, she glared at Ciara nonetheless.

"Next time, finish the job. You do yourself no favors like this."

@Estylwen

The initial shock almost makes Hildegunde break her PB. Her instincts, of course, tell her to run. But she steels herself. Inhales. Allows the arrow to harmlessly bounces off of herself. That moment of self-restraint was probably the only thing keeping her from doing something truly stupid afterwards, when Otis commanded the two boys to back her up.

It's funny. How deeply petty emotions can sway you towards the path of destruction.

I don't need his help!

Hildegunde almost shouts it out loud. Almost wastes her precious first bullet out of a sense of hurt pride. The archer isn't a issue - not a grievous one, anyways. The one hurtling towards her, on the other hand...she hoped Rio could handle. At the first sign that he couldn't, she'd switch her focus from the archer towards it. While by no means skilled in hand-to-hand combat, she'd still do her best.

Chunji's questions remind her of one of her own. After the injuries Davil sustained, the disregard towards student safety...she feels less anxiety considering the option.

She narrows her eyes and takes aim at the archer. Inhales, disregards the conflict between Iraleth and Ciara.

The laws of her ethos say that each bullet must meet its mark - whether determined by Hildegunde, or some other force. Against a PB...what would happen? It's hard for Hildegunde to tell exactly what happens when she shoots with her ethos - the bullet doesn't seem to follow a logical path, and Hildegunde has no way of knowing if the bullet simply travels on a non-linear path and somehow retains its speed - (how else would it have killed him?), or if the bullet teleports from the muzzle to its mark - as it were often illustrated in her stories, glowing arcane circles marking the gun and its target. No such tell-tale signs followed her own usage.

Would the bullet simply bypass the barrier without breaking it, like a semi-permeable membrane? Would it stay in a state of statis against it, never falling, until the barrier dropped, and the bullet could finally meet its mark? Would it break it, but slow in the process? So many possibilities.

Worse case scenario, would it bounce off harmlessly, as would the arrow that rushed towards her?

Alto? You sure you wanna test us? Hildegunde almost shouts it aloud. Why is she here, if not to learn?

Instead, she lifts her gun, muzzle aimed at the mannequin still. The first shot or two is truly aimed at the mannequin. The third, however, is said after the whisper of a certain magic word. Hildegunde doesn't turn to aim.

She doesn't have to.

Alto. knee.

"Freikugeln."

@Estylwen@Psyker Landshark@ERode@AThousandCurses@Sifr

ASCENDIA, ROOM 103 FOUNTAIN

The duo of Kiimos Trelle were dispatched quickly following a sadistic but brief imprisonment while writhing in agony that seemed almost human - they struggled at first, throwing cusses at Ciara as they attempted to find freedom, but eventually succumbed to despair amidst restraint. The trio that rushed Iraleth and sank into their muddy graves, meanwhile, rang completely silent and accepting of this fate even as they put in token effort to escape it; this effort ended when rays of light skewered each, sending them lifeless beneath the murky abyss. The archer, meanwhile, scrambled to evade but couldn't do so in time. The first shot that made contact turned its barrier into an unfocused haze, and the second pierced clean through to deal the kill shot. Finally, the mannekin rushing at Hildegunde was intercepted by Rio who sprinted directly at it. The wooden warrior would deliver a dropkick which was blocked by Rio, who grabbed the doll's leg midair and slammed its body against a nearby tree, shattering its barrier and its outer shell in one hit.

Chloe would skid to a stop just before she reached the quicksand, letting out a small shriek at its sudden appearance. Looking ahead towards Iraleth as she moved, Chloe would give a small thumbs up with a feeble, "Y-You've got it," before returning to the group near Alto. Rio would also return, dragging the broken mannekin by its leg and tossing it at Alto's feet as he rejoined near Otis. "Give us something better next time," he would declare with a smirk.

Alto would be preoccupied, however. He stared down at his right knee, where a bullet was drilling against his Personal Barrier. It didn't lose momentum on impact, but continued to spin towards him while being repelled by the shield of wind around that area. Hand cupped chin as he stared at it, and then at Hildegunde, the sound of her bullet against his barrier giving off the screech of metal grinding against metal. "Your Ethos? I'm impressed. It appears it'll keep going like this, until either it breaks through, I let it through, or I deflect it. But in the time it'd take to remove it, it could be just the second needed to find an opening in my perception. Attempting to deflect could, maybe, be worse than letting it dig through my essence."

The instructor's eyes darted about as various individuals moved, curious what the plan would be. "At the same time, though, you can't count on winning an endurance match here. The leyline is mine right now, after all."

The sound of upturned soil and breaking roots and wood echoed from behind Hildegunde, and if she were to look back, she would see a tree suddenly toppling down towards her. A second tree, at the same time, would follow suit in the same way from near Otis and Davil, aiming to similarly crush them. "If a tree falls in the forest and nobody hears it, does it make a sound? By that same notion, are these falling trees a silent cast of the primal conduit, or a facet of my prime essence?"

"Waaaagh!" Davil screamed in terror as he rolled away from the tree backwards, landing on his feet with his broken arms flailing about like loose flesh. The tree would create a divide such that it would block sight from Alto, should Otis choose to move in a direction away from Alto rather than towards.

While that chaos ensued, the professor looked towards Chunji. "And you. You can see things, yeah? That's a very useful ability to have. And so inquisitive, too." The bullet continued to drill against his barrier even as he spoke, and yet his attention was focused towards the diligent student asking a question. "The simplest method that people have attempted is raw power, but that's of no interest to this. PBs are so efficient because of how few ways there are to truly bypass one without overpowering it. There are surely Ethos-based abilities out there that can do so, sure, but outside of that? I suppose you could disrupt it by making direct contact with another's barrier and attempting to dilute the concentrated essence with your own. It would require several seconds of unbroken physical contact, however, which is an eternity in situations like this."

The whole time while speaking, his focus was still very much on his environment, willing to cut off his own monologue at any point that anyone tried something on him - or to keep speaking while evading, if it didn't prove to be troublesome to do so. "I'm sure there are other methods, though, but I only know the basics! History, specific practices of the conduits, master manipulators... all that goes right over my head, young man."

Alto's sword remained gripped in his right hand as he awaited the next moves of these students. Despite his laidback attitude, he was focused and ready to react to approaches.

If anything, the class had a lot of bravado. Iraleth and Ciara bickered amongst each other while Rio smirked over defeating a disarmed archer mannequin. In contrast, there was an equal amount of dissonance. Chloe and Davil were equally useless as they provided nothing positive to this exercise. Otis was the only one who was reasonable out of the bunch.

"Nothing worth to be said; I was born with it." Chunji saw no use in Alto's compliments towards his Ethos. His eyes were not born from hard work or talent; they had been natural to him since birth. In other words, Chunji didn't find his Ethos extraordinary. It was helpful, but that was all there was to it.

The trees tumbled behind him, and Chunji could vaguely guess where they had landed. As Alto said, time wasn't on their side. The Overcharged Leyline that Alto had would no doubt prove to be their downfall if they didn't act quickly enough.

Chunji's eyes narrowed on the bullet that was drilling at Alto's barrier. "I understand." Curses were the method to disperse a Personal Barrier. Curses were generally fueled by negative emotion, so they could disrupt a barrier. At the same time, he didn't know many curses; utilizing his blood lineage against a Personal Barrier would prove useful.

"Hmmmm. I'm not interested in fighting, so I'll leave it to everyone else." Chunji announced to his classmates. Stepping away from the group, he went to a location where he wouldn't get caught in a brawl. Their objective was to defeat the mannequins, not their Professor, as far as Chunji was concerned; challenging the Professor was optional. If anything, Rio jumping to conclusions led them to this situation.

There was also the attunement ceremony that Alto was talking about before the class was pulled into the leyline. Chunji would prefer not to ruin his only set of clothes before it.

Then there was a matter of the leyline, a most curious technique. There was hardly any essence that Chunji could feel in the area. It was as if a new world had unfurled around him. Chunji plucked a few strands of grass and observed it between his eyes. If anything, it was fascinating to see.

As if Alto wasn't going to fight the entire class, minus Chunji, another question was asked. "If you do not mind answering more questions, may I ask about Leyline Overcharge?" Unlike Otis, Chunji was unfamiliar with concepts such as these. "Judging by how this works, a Leyline Overcharges needs the Prime Essence to manifest." Unless there was a powerful Ethos, he highly doubted there was a magic to change the landscape to this extent.

"Would it still be possible for someone to use a Leyline Overcharge without knowing their Prime Essence?" It was a curious question if anything. Chunji had no particular plans on trying to develope a Leyline Overcharge technique. Doctors had no need for such things as far as he was concerned.

The Mannekins were a touch more fragile than he envisioned. If they could break so easily, even with Personal Barriers, perhaps a focus on disarming and restraining them wasn’t necessary after all. Otis reckoned that a bullet or two could solve the conundrum of these constructs just as easily.

No matter.

The rumbling of uprooted trees signified the start of the second round as their trunks smashed against the earth. The weight enough would’ve made for a lethal collision: even if one’s Personal Barrier held out, they’d be pinned against a weight that’d gradually crush them. Otis stepped forwards as the trunk separated him and Davil, who had barely managed to survive himself. The boy’s pain tolerance was something special. Usually, the flailing of broken bones would cause internal wounds from jagged bone slicing through veins and flesh underneath the skin. And there was no way that all his other injuries would’ve been fully healed by the rudimentary first-aid performed upon him as well. An odd breed of human, that one was.

“Chunji, take care of Davil,” Otis spoke, eyeing the stance taken by Alto. “Ideally, just carry him far from here.” The Strigidae noticed too, how the bullet kept its speed even when it was fully stopped. Useful to know for the future. It didn’t look like Alto was going to try his hand at destroying the bullet either. Ethos operated under unknown laws. Who knew if the individual pieces of the bullet would simply continue to bore against the Personal Barrier or not?

Well, if their instructor wasn’t going to risk it…

Symbols were traced in the wind and essence was drawn from the forehead, before being sent in a selective wave over Otis’s surroundings. That familiar ‘knock-knock’ echoed through his classmate’s minds, a telepathic channel connecting any willing participants.

Hildegunde, fire two of those Ethos-shots of yours. One for each eye. It’ll block off the majority of his vision. Rio, be prepared to intercept a counterattack, but also explain to me your capabilities. Chloe too, if you wish to partake. If not, join Chunji and Davil. Iraleth, you’ll be our vanguard. Coordinate with Ciara so that the two of you are always opposite of each other. Great light creates deep shadows.

The Strigidae flicked the chamber of his firearm out, making a show of counting the six rounds still inside. Then, he settled his gaze upon Alto.

“If a tree falls in the forest and nobody hears it, of course it makes a sound. And whether those trees fall due to silent casting or your own prime essence, Instructor Alto, is similarly meaningless. The primal conduit, in this moment, is you, the same as your prime essence.”

He locked the chamber in once more, flicking off the safety.

“I would like to ask though. Outside of our personal satisfaction, would you be willing to give any extra reward to us if we’re able to break through your Personal Barrier?”

@ERode@Nanaya

Rio successful in intercepting. Archer down. It's hardly of importance to Hildegunde - not with the sight of her bullet before her. This was the first time Hildegunde has actually witnessed the bullet. While her rifle seems to have expended a bullet when it fired, it visually does not match the rest loaded in her rifle - it's a blueish silver thing, and were it not in motion, Hildegunde would've been able to see it as strangely ornate.

"Your Ethos? I'm impressed."

You should be. For the wrong reasons.

"It appears it'll keep going like this, until either it breaks through, I let it through, or I deflect it. But in the time it'd take to remove it, it could be just the second needed to find an opening in my perception. Attempting to deflect could, maybe, be worse than letting it dig through my essence."

It won't be deflected. Not permanently, anyways - she's sure it'd find a way back. Hildegunde is almost certain of this much, now that the bullet refuses to cease its forward momentum, even with the seemingly impossible barrier before her. Of course, why wouldn't it? That seems to be an immutable law of her ethos - the bullets always find their mark, some way or another. This one just might take its time.

Still, she wonders, what would happen if he did try to move it. Would it burrow through his hand the way it currently attempts to burrow through the PB?

Then, something changes.

Even over the piercing noise of metal on metal, it couldn't be drowned out. Hildegunde needed not to turn around to recognize the sound of breaking wood - the forest was, after all, her home. Needs not pay attention to the shadow increasing before her for more than a split second. She immediately makes a dash for it without so much as a glance behind her. She feels the ground rumble on its impact, a few feet away from her. Hildegunde keeps her senses sharp for any other incoming threats.

Otis knocks. A question is posed. Hildegunde looks at the bullet. Alto. Left eye.

It does not budge. Seems like once a target is decided, there is no swaying it. There's more Hildegunde has learned about her ethos today - even if it's knowledge that doesn't surprise her.

Otis, buddy, they are not buddies and they both know it.

I hate to break it to you, but as of right now, I can only guarantee your safety and everyone else's with one eye, she admits, being deliberately vague. Otis can probably piece together why though with fair ease. He seems a smart man to Hildegunde.

If you want two, in the worse case scenario, someone will die. Until I think my own life is in danger, I don't think this is worth that risk. So I'm either going to need different instructions, or you're going to have to settle for one.

Moreover, she did not like the idea of possibly blinding - permanently blinding - her professor. One eye, though?

He could manage.

Another thought occurs to her. She never had a reason, to try and further channel her ethos before. Bullets were too fast and generally too effective to bother attempting it. But now she wonders, if there's a way to infuse the bullets with further power. Never before has Hildegunde had to strain for her ethos, so sparingly used as it is, that she is at a loss for how to push it. Could she move the bullet with the same sort of

Maybe coming to this school wasn't a mistake. She's not sure where else she'd be thinking like this.

It must be like a muscle, Hildegunde reckons. It stretches and pulls and eventually fatigues. Hildegunde focuses on the bullet, which whizzes through the air, which she breathes, and mentally pushes, in a manner not unlike how she'd go about primal magic. Would such an application do anything - could it move with any more force? Or was the bullet truly fixed?

Acendia, Room 103 Fountain
@Nanaya, @Psyker Landshark

---

"I thought you were above petty sadism!"

And just like that, Ciara's captive audience was destroyed. By none other than Iraleth.

"Next time, finish the job. You do yourself no favors like this.”

Ciara was quiet, shadows disappearing into smoke as Otis' sword was returned to her hand. She stooped, picking up a wood scrap of what remained of her foe. The duo that chased out darkness like her for a living.

Her eyes shifted to Iraleth's glare.

Yet again, the light was interfering. She couldn't do anything in peace now, not with Iraleth's suspicion hot and burning.

“Oh, but we love it, though.”

“Let the Light look at us all it wants.”

“It satisfies some of the urge to Taste, yes.”

A wry smirk crossed Ciara's features as she dropped the wood piece, standing straight. Her stomach knotted painfully in Hunger as the Voices delighted in Iraleth's attention.

Ah, if only Iraleth knew.

“I'll continue to do what I want until we duel. Then, you can try to change my mind.”

Seeing a bit more of Iraleth's magic up close invigorated Ciara's spirit. She'd fight hard, and fight well that evening. Of course, there was more than just ‘changing her mind’ up for grabs on the table. Her life too, was at risk.

But alas, that train of thought would have to wait.

Trees tore through the air before crashing to the ground, causing Ciara's attention to turn. The professor seemed to be at the source of this attack but - she sniffed the air - what source? He couldn't have full control of the very earth in this place, could he?

It was hard to tell, she felt half-blind in this space. There was no essence in the air with which to feel and detect things.

The spinning bullet in the professor's knee was a satisfying development, to be sure. Made Ciara feel a little better since Davil had been hurt so. But damn him for moving around with his arms like that…

’Knock-knock’.

Of course she opened the door to the familiar mental link. All of a sudden, there was a web of entangled thoughts springing from one end to the other. Ciara didn't concern herself with that, though. Her task was simple, as she laid eyes on the professor like a lion hunting a lamb.

Keep opposite of Iraleth, and use the shadows.

She could work with that.

But first, perhaps an opener. Test the barrier, and stop all the idle chatter the professor and Chunji were partaking in.

She hefted her slender sword in her hand, twirling it so the tip aimed down. Then, she took a step forward, and launched towards the professor from behind, the sword swinging down to smash across his back.

She wanted to see how many slivers and cracks she could tear into that barrier of his.

Surely this would give him something to talk about at the break room.

Iraleth glowered in response to Ciara. Deliberate obstinance. Shadows take her, if Ciara would just stop being difficult for two seconds and see reason, none of this would be necessary. A thought grew in the back of Iraleth's mind: if it looked like an Umbralist and started acting like one, what was even the difference, really? All it would take during their duel later would be one slip, or her going full tilt from the start and finishing things in one strike. It'd be so easy...no.

She needed ironclad proof first. Running amok making snap judgements was the behavior of an Umbralist. She was better than that. They were all better than that. Her scowl didn't leave her face as she tore her glare away from Ciara, an eyebrow raised as Otis used his telepathy again. Once again, not an unsound strategy. And being far away from Ciara was the simplest thing possible right now. Fortunate for Otis that she was willing enough to take a swing or two at their professor in retribution for what he'd done to Davil.

The paladin manuevered to Professor Alto's direct front, exactly opposite of Ciara attacking from behind. There was no point in an instructor lying to their students, even if their life was at risk. So direct force was out of the question. That left the other method he'd mentioned. Fine, she'd give it a go, then.

The instant Alto was distracted with Ciara's attack, Iraleth made her move. One chant invoked her Ethos. The Inheritor's armor crossed the distance between them with but a flap of its wings of light, and she let its armaments dissipate as she lunged. All she needed to do was keep hold of the professor long enough for her essence to dilute his, as he'd said. Best to keep as strong of a physical hold as she could on him. One of the Inheritor's hands went to wrap around his sword hand's wrist, trying to stop him from using the blade. The other aimed to wrap around his throat, using the leverage to physically lift him off his feet. Provide as many distractions as possible while she shoved concentrated divine essence straight towards his PB.

"I would hope this isn't unsatisfactory then, professor." The helmet's eye slits gave a radiant gleam. Iraleth certainly hadn't wanted to throttle Professor Alto just a little ever since he'd essentially crippled a boy for nothing. Certainly not. The thought was absolutely ludicrous.