Chapter 2 || Magic Ain't Exclusive to Witches

"Tristan!"

As the grey-haired magus left the cathedral, he heard the voice of the redhead musician call out his name, seeing Elliot run up to him.

"Is something the matter, Elliot?" He cocked his head to the side and asked.

"Oh, nothing! I was just wondering if you'd like to— whoa, is that your cat? I've never seen a cat with red fur before!"

Elliot exclaimed and pointed at Lynx. The flaming kitten had dissipated the flames surrounding her, which made the familiar appear to be a rare cat with crimson-colored fur. The young musician stroked the kitten's coat as she purred her contentment at the treatment.

Tristan chuckled under his breath. "It seems she likes the gesture. Also, she's not mine. Lynx is my sister's."

"I see. Lynx, is it? She seems like a friendly little kitty." Elliot grew a cheery but slightly idiotic smile and coddled the familiar with headrubs.

The grey-haired magus felt like sighing. He couldn't blame the orange-haired musician, though. Tristan also acted in a similar way when he would play with Lynx back in his childhood.

"Who's a good girl?"

The kitty stood on her hind legs and curled her paws as Elliot gushed over her cuteness and stroked her fur. Sheesh, and he thought that he would see that kind of reaction from the ladies.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but I have somewhere to be right now..." Trista smiled apologetically at his fellow musician.

"W-Whoops. Sorry for taking your time." The young man apologized and rubbed his neck sheepishly. The magus snorted and patted his shoulder.

"No need for apologies. I believe Lynx has taken a liking to you." The fiery kitty mewed, tilting her head as Tristan petted her. He couldn't rule out the kitty liked the affection rather than Elliot himself, but he'll keep silent about that thought.

"Haha, thanks." Elliot laughed sheepishly. "Are you going somewhere outside of Saint-Arkh?"

"Yes. I'll be heading to Isthmia Great Forest... " He answered and faced the direction of the West Sutherland Highway. "The Archbishop asked me to find certain herbs and flowers for medicine."

Elliot looked at the man with wide eyes of surprise. "No way! I'm actually going there to meet up with an old friend. Do you mind if I tag along with you?"

Tristan narrowed his eyes for a split second, wondering who was this friend Elliot was talking about. He would put on a neutral smile, giving the rising musician a nod.

"I don't see why not? I'm not too familiar with the area, so it'll help if you can guide me to the forest." Tristan lied smoothly as he tilted his fedora at Elliot.

"Leave it to me! Oh, but we might have to deal with some monsters on our way to the forest..." Elliot frowned, concerned for Tristan's safety.

His worries were not needed as the grey-haired magus flashed a confident grin.

"Be at ease. I can take care of myself."

"Wow... Okay then, let's get going!"

Lynx raised her paws and meowed as he leaped from Tristan's shoulder to Elliot's, the young man softly laughing as he gave the kitty more headrubs. The redhead took the lead and led them to the west exit of the old capital.

The grey-haired magus followed after Elliot as he muttered to himself, "Obscure."

Completing the spell, Tristan made sure no one would be able to remember his face after today. Anyone who would lay their eyes upon the magus' face would see nothing but a shadowed visage. Too bad it was only effective against individuals who didn't possess much mana.

Or in Erina's words: Normies.

The two stepped into the West Sutherland Highway as Elliot took out an orbal staff.

'An orbal staff, huh? Jasmine said they can be used as a medium to casts magic.' Tristan thought as he eyed the orbal weapon.

"Out of curiosity, what's your weapon of choice, Tristan?" Elliot turned towards his fellow musician and questioned him.

The magus took out his ARCUS unit and waved it around. "I'm quite confident with my skills in using arts."

"Really? You're kind of like a friend of mine. He's really good at casting arts. It only takes him just a few seconds to cast them; he earned the nickname Zero Artisan!"

"Must be quite a guy."

Tristan chuckled as he followed the younger male through the highway. He had heard of the Zero Artisan before. While the magus never personally met him, he agreed that he deserved his title as a speedy art caster. Orbal arts weren't above witchcraft or magecraft, but they were still destructive in their own right. To be able to cast arts from a few seconds to zero was praiseworthy.

If Tristan didn't know any better, he would have thought that the Zero Artisan was a magus.

Elliot nodded his head, agreeing with his comment. "That he is. I've asked him for advice before when it came to quartz setups for efficient art casting. I'm not really good at fighting, but I managed to get through last year thanks to his help and the others..." He muttered the last part of his sentence.

'Last year?'

Raising a brow, Tristan tried to call what could have taken place last year, frowning when he realized he couldn't have possibly known what occurred in S. 1204.

'I almost forgot that I was in the Sanctum for the late months of 1204 with Jasmine at the time.' Tristan considered asking Elliot for details, but he doubted that he would open up to someone he just met, even if they are a fellow violinist. He wondered if he was talking about the civil war in the Empire.

Well, no matter. He can confirm it later when he goes through the newspapers and documents about the war.

The two continued walking the path leading to the forest entrance.

"Grrr..."

"It looks like we have company," Tristan said as he held his orbment.

"Yeah. Please stay behind us, Lynx."

The fiery kitten meowed, hiding behind the two musicians. A pack of wolflike monsters snarled and crept up to the two of them, baring their fangs and preparing to pounce. The redhead held out his orbal staff, casting an art.

Tristan hummed and held out his orbment. Taking out his device was just a ruse so he could use his magecraft. The magus was never truly going to cast arts with a combat orbment. He was a magus of goodness' sake! He didn't need a device to mimic magic when he was capable of using magic.

"Go! Aqua Bleed!"

After a few seconds, Elliot finished his casting as a sphere of water formed in front of him before flying towards one of the monsters at a speed of a bullet. That's what an offensive art looks like using an ARCUS, huh?

The water art struck the wolf beast, knocking it back a few feet.

Holding out his hand, Tristan asked no one in particular. "Shall I follow up with this?"

Mana flowed through his body as it spread through his right hand. Tristan snapped his fingers, a magic circle appearing for a split second as a bullet of compressed air shot out his fingertips. The wind bullet pierced through one of the beasts' flesh, killing it with ease as Elliot's jaw dropped.

The meek musician was going to ask how his Air Strike was that strong when Tristan cut him off.

"Leave your dumbfounded reaction for later, Elliot. We have seven more to go."

"A-All right!"

Lynx watched the battle from behind the magus' legs, licking a paw as Tristan and Elliot dealt swiftly with arts as water and wind rained down on the monsters.

The two continued to barrage the monsters with Aqua Bleeds and "Air Strikes." The biggest beast out of the pack growled with its eyes blazing in fury as it pounced at the orange-haired violinist.

Tristan shifted his attention from his prey to the one who lunged itself at Elliot. He was about to fire another bullet of compressed with but chose to lower his hand when the violinist raised his orbal staff.

"Resound, Nocturne Bell!"

Three gigantic bells manifested above the wolf as they rang an ominous tune, disarraying its senses as it struggled to keep itself from falling.

"Go for it, Tristan!"

"As you wish."

The grey-haired magus allowed mana to flow through his fingertip before he fired another bullet of compressed air. The wind magic struck the wolf with a pop as it exploded into dust. Elliot did his best to keep his surprise from showing. T-That was too unreal...

Tristan sighed and began gathering mana, Lynx meowing in disappointment at the ground where the monsters once stood. "Hey now, I'm not like my destructive sister who has flashy techniques, Lynx."

The fiery kitty snickered and leaped into the magus' arms as he chuckled.

"Okaaaay. Now that we dealt with those monsters..." Elliot took a deep breath and spattered, "How were you able to cast Air Strike so fast? How did you make it so strong? Why weren't there any runes surrounding you when you cast your art?!"

Elliot blurted his thoughts all at once that it sounded incoherent to the ears. Luckily, Tristan already had an idea of what Elliot was going to ask about and prepared the answers beforehand.

"My casting speed is that fast because I have a special piece of accessory to accelerate it. And because of its speed, the runes that would normally be around me would vanish the second I cast my art." Tristan answered calmly as he closed his eyes.

Elliot slumped his shoulders, disappointed. "Aww man, you're just like Toval. Here I was hoping you could teach me how I could improve my casting speed... Does that special accessory help boost the power behind your arts too?"

"You could say that." He replied vaguely, Elliot sighing.

"I'm so jealous. I wish I could cast art that fast." His words didn't match the good-hearted laugh that left him. "I think you might be faster than Toval, actually."

Outside, Tristan had an amused smile on his face. On the inside though, he felt a little bad for the poor guy. He would have helped if he could, but the things he said were mainly nonsense to him. The magus had to hold back his surprised reaction when he heard that the Zero Artisan's abilities were thanks to his special accessory.

Who knew orbal technology progressed that far?

But it still wasn't on par with magecraft.

The two resumed their trek to the forest after a little break.

They encountered a few more monsters on their way to their destination, but they took them down without any problems.

As they walked together to their destination, Elliot decided to make small talk.

"When did you start playing the violin?"

Tristan hummed before answering, "I started playing when I was old enough to hold it."

"And you were about...?"

"I recall I was around five years old when I first started playing."

Elliot stared at him curiously. "Did you pick up the violin on your own or did someone influence you?"

"I actually started playing the violin due to my father. He played the piano, and I wanted to perform a duet with him when I was younger. He was an amazing pianist that some would call a genius." The magus responded with a thin smile.

"Was...?" Elliot picked up on his wording as he gasped softly before looking down in guilt. "I-I'm sorry..."

The man's expression softened as he patted the younger violinist's shoulder. "What are you apologizing for? I'm the one who opened up. It's been a long time since his death, and old wounds have already healed. I started playing the piano in honor of him."

He flashed a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Elliot saw through this but nodded weakly as Lynx nuzzled the two, comforting them.

"Ahaha, we only just met recently and you told me something personal. I guess it's only fair to tell you something about myself, huh?"

"I assure you that you don't need to do such a thing." Tristan wanted to argue, only for Elliot to shake his head.

"Please, consider it an equivalent exchange for our friendship as musicians!"

Tristan blinked twice and snorted. 'I haven't heard that term in a long time.'

"If that's what you desire, go." The grey-haired magus conceded as he raised his hands.

Elliot laughed sheepishly and began to tell his tale about how he came to love music.

His mother was a piano teacher who brought their home wonderful music and many smiles. Her passion and love for the piano influenced her children into considering learning about music. Elliot explained that his mother was terminally ill and passed away due to her sickness.

There was sadness behind the musician's voice, though he wasn't really trying to hide it. He shared his story with a smile of sadness and acceptance.

"At the time, I wanted to follow my mother's footsteps, but Dad was seriously against it and went on about Erebonian men should go to a military academy. I think his opinion was also influenced by grief." He explained with a wry chuckle.

Tristan, who kept his mouth shut the whole time, then spoke, "Did you go to a military academy?"

The younger male's expression slightly softened as he looked up at the sky. "My dad and I found a compromise. I would go to a military academy only if it was Thors Military Academy. The academy offered music-related classes so I was fine going there."

Thors Military Academy? Could Elliot be...?

"Are you a member of Thors' Class VII?"

Elliot blinked in surprise and nodded. "Yeah. Wait, you're not from the Empire?"

The magus shook his head and tilted his fedora down slightly. "No. I'm just a drifter who's been traveling around the continent and happens to play instruments. I haven't heard much about the Empire's affairs. However, the topic of Class VII happened to reach my ears while I was traveling."

From what Tristan knew about Thors, the classes were divided between commoners and nobles. That was how it was for a long time. It was only recently that there came a class where there made no distinctions between commoners and nobles.

That was Class VII.

"I didn't know the stuff about us would reach overseas. I guess it would make sense we'd be more known because of the civil war..." Elliot muttered, cupping his chin.

Did he just hear him right? Before the magus could ask anything, Elliot halted his steps.

"Are you ready to head inside?"

"Oh, uh, yes, I am," Tristan cut himself off, his emerald eyes narrowing. "The higher elements are active, and they seem... unstable."

"W-Whoa. She never told me that the forest would have the higher elements active!"

The magus' gaze shifted into a glare. Was Elliot actually friends with the Azure Abyss? "She?"

"Y-Yeah. A former classmate of mine and fellow orbal staff user. She said to meet with her in Isthmia Great Forest because she needed my help with something." Elliot explained himself, scratching his cheek nervously.

"That still sounds awfully suspicious. She told you to come to a place where the higher elements are not only active but unstable, yet she didn't tell you why she needed your help." Tristan said with a wary look on his face.

At least his glare faded into a suspicious gaze after the violinist clarified who his friend was.

The young violinist rubbed his neck and sighed. "I can't deny that it does sound a little suspicious. B-But in her defense! She made it sound like it was really important I come and aid her..."

The grey-haired magus inspected the male's expression for any hint of lies before Tristan glanced at Lynx to aid in confirming his suspicions. The kitten shook her head to say that Elliot was telling the truth. He seemed to be telling the truth, but now the magus was on high alert. He began circulating the mana in his body in case he needed to immediately cast a spell. He had to prepare himself if Elliot was unknowingly leading him into a trap.

Crossing his arms, Tristan frowned. "Fine. I have my own business to attend to anyway, so we'll part ways once you meet up with your friend."

Elliot gave him a reluctant nod, mildly disappointed at the outcome but accepted without protest.

Lynx shot her master's brother an annoyed gaze and shook her head once more.

The pair went inside the forest entrance. They entered the mystical woodlands before Elliot spotted a familiar face as he called out to them.

"Emma, Celine!"

A young woman with plum-colored hair, glasses, and a flat cap turned around as a smile appeared on her pretty face.

"Elliot! It's good to see you again!" She expressed her joy in seeing her friend as she ran towards him.

Accompanying the woman, a cat with silky black fur ran alongside her before the pair froze when they saw Elliot's unexpected companion. The black kitty's fur stood as she stepped back and hissed.

As their gazes met, a single thought crossed their mind.

"Are you a witch?"

"Who are you? How can you use mana?"

They asked at the same time. The woman's eyes widened at his query as Elliot looked at him in complete shock.

"This guy's bad news, Emma! I could feel mana circulating inside him just waiting to be released!" The cat warned the plum-haired woman.

An alarmed look flashed across Emma's visage before she steeled herself and took out an orbal staff. Spheres of blue flames appeared around her. "Please back away from my friend and tell me who are you before I have to use force..."

"W-Wait a sec, Emma! He's not a bad guy!" Elliot intervened as he placed himself between Tristan and Emma. "Tristan came with me because he had business in the forest, and I offered to lead him here!"

"That doesn't explain why this guy has absurd amounts of mana!" Celine hissed and glared at Tristan and Lynx. "How can we be sure he isn't hostile when he's gathering mana right at this moment?!"

Elliot squinted his eyes in confusion before understanding what the cat was talking about. "Isn't that what you two use to make use of your magic...?" The violinist slowly turned to face the fedora-wearing man. "A-Are you a witch too...?"

Tristan nor Lynx were fazed by their hostility and Emma's spell. The fiery kitten actually yawned while Celine was glaring daggers at them.

The grey-haired magus felt a sigh leave his mouth as he flexed his fingers, putting Emma and Celine on guard.

"Do you really think witches are the only individuals who could use magic, Elliot?" Tristan questioned with a neutral tone in his voice.

"H-Huh? What are you..."

"Magic isn't exclusive to witches," Tristan continued without giving the musician time to reply. "But if you want answers from me, you must first deal with what comes next."

The magus held out his hand as a silver-colored magic circle manifested out of thin air, shocking the three, the witch and her familiar being the most shocked.

"Thorn."

With a single word uttered, several thorny vines sprang out from terra firma and lunged toward Emma. Recovering from her shock. Emma gasped and swung her orbal staff, commanding the blue flames and launching them in retaliation.

The blazing projectiles hit the vines to no effect as Emma watched in horror as they got closer.

"Emma! Celine!"

Elliot cried out as the black cat attempted to create a barrier. Tristan stared at the two in disappointment. Were these two really going to waste their mana on him? Have they still not noticed it? Lynx mewed and facepawed herself, expressing similar feelings at the display.

Just as the plant spell was about to reach Emma and Celine, the thorny vines didn't make contact with the two, passing through them instead as they charged toward the mass of energy gathering from behind.

Time, space, and mirage gathered together as the combined energy exploded, revealing a giant, evil eye monster with razor-sharp teeth. Its singular eye flickered around erratically before it focused on the lunging vines. It screeched as it released its evil gaze, blasting them with dark energy.

Tristan simply flicked his wrist as the vines changed their trajectory, avoiding the attack before redirecting themselves to coil around the demon, restraining it.

"I'll hold it in place. You two attack it with all you've got." The magus told them calmly before another magic circle manifested above his left palm. "Just avoid looking at its eye, else you lose your sanity."

"R-Right!"

Elliot was the first to comply as he took out his orbal staff and began charging up Aqua Bleed. There was some relief on his face, happy that Tristan wasn't their enemy. The same couldn't be said about Emma, whose relief was more akin to confusion. Nevertheless, she recovered her bearings and assisted.

"Vorpal Flare!"

"Go, Aqua Bleed!"

Magic flames and spheres of water struck the demon as it roared in agony, flailing around in his restraints. Tristan kept a tight hold on their foe. His vines tightly wrapped themselves around its body as the magus narrowed his eyebrows.

The Great Zan Su trashed and screeched wildly as its accumulated damage from the orbal staff users' attacks. It glared at the one who kept a hold of it, leering at it with its evil gaze.

"Lynx."

The fiery familiar hissed as she leaped to the man's front. Lynx opened her mouth and growled a roar, unlike a cat, dispelling the ominous energy of the demon's eye. Tristan's emerald eyes drifted to Elliot and Emma as he aimed his left magic circle at them.

"Boost."

Eyes widening, the two members of Class VII felt a wave of power wash over them, empowering them with strength as they turned to the magus.

"Please hurry and finish off this demon."

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Celine watched the fedora-wearing magus with a complicated set of emotions.

Interest.

Confusion.

Fear.

She couldn't believe what she was seeing. This man's magic signature, the familiar with him, and his magic... They were completely different from that of a witch!

His method of casting was too fast for a witch, and he didn't bother uttering an incantation. One word was enough to send spells firing from his palms. The fact he could use not only support magic but offensive magic without any medium as well made her jaw drop.

Celine was aware there were those in the Hexen Clan who used magic without a medium. However, their magic was mainly basic support and healing magic. The only one she knew who could use offensive magic without a medium was her creator. Vita could probably do the same thing due to her high magic power.

But this Tristan guy wasn't on the same level as them...!

The cogs in her head began to turn, remembering an old conversation she had with Roselia.

"No way. Could this guy be a...!"

The sound of a pained screech interrupted the familiar as her eyes darted to the source.

"One more! Vorpal Flame!"

"Nocturne Bell!"

"RAAAAAAAAAAAHH!!!"

The giant eye demon bellowed in agony as the horrid tune from Nocturn Bell struck him with mental attacks. The finishing touch was the large sphere of magical flames Emma fired. Its flames had struck and burned its decaying body, gradually turning it to ash alongside the vines restraining him.

"Emma!" Celine cried out when her partner fell to her knees.

"I-I'm all right, Celine. I'm just tired..." She smiled between pants.

"Are you sure? You look kinda pale..." Elliot remarked, worry coloring his tone.

"Sorry. I think I used too much mana while we were fighting that devil..." She replied as Celine frowned. "Please don't make that face, Celine. We managed to pull through with just us, didn't we?"

"Yeah, but..."

"Oh yeah! Thanks for holding the monster in place... for... us..." Elliot trailed off as he blinked at where he was looking at. "H-Huh? Wasn't he...?"

"Um, who...?" Emma asked, perplexed as she turned to the direction her friend was facing. "There's no one there, Elliot..."

The musician scratched his cheek sheepishly. "I guess I was probably seeing things."

Celine's eyes widened. That jerk...! Did he just...?!

The black cat closed her eyes to recall the bastard's face, only for her to see a blurry image she couldn't identify. Her fears proved to be true when the blurry image started to darken, eroding in her mind like a withering flower.

"Celine?"

"Hmm?" She opened her eyes once more. "What is it, Emma?"

"Did you see anyone with us earlier?"

The familiar shook her head and frowned. "No. I don't recall seeing anyone besides Elliot enter the forest."

"S-Sorry, you two. Maybe I'm more drained than I initially thought." Elliot sighed, rubbing his forehead as Emma shook her head, smiling.

"Don't worry about it, Elliot. Let's take a breather for a few minutes. I don't sense any monsters nearby."

The musician nodded as he sat down on the ground. "Sure. Ah, can you tell me why you needed my help?"

"Ah! That almost slipped my mind..." Emma sheepishly looked away when she felt Celine giving her an exasperated look. "I found something that might be a clue to where my sister is, and I need the help of another orbal staff user."

"Really? Well, I'll help in any way I can, but I'm not a witch like you though..." He frowned, unsure whether he could truly help the wandering witch.

"Hehe, you don't need to be a witch, Elliot. All you have to do is support me while I use magic to piece the puzzle Vita left behind. I'll explain things in more detail as we head to the center of the forest. For now, let's rest."

Elliot chuckled as he rubbed his neck and dipped his head for a nod.

Celine curled up beside Emma and sighed, the two recovering their energy, unaware of a grey sparrow watching them from above.

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"That Clotilde is a sadistic one for making her go on a wild goose chase. I almost pity the poor girl..."

In the center of Isthmia Great Forest, Tristan mused as he watched the three through the eyes of his familiar. He ordered his sparrow to return to him as his gaze wandered to the stone slab surrounded by Erynflowers. This was most likely the "clue" the wandering witch was talking about. Heh, well, she wasn't exactly wrong. It was a kind of clue.

As Tristan walked over to the slab, he felt a feline glare of annoyance directed at him. He released a tired sigh.

"You know why I used Desine on them, Lynx," Tristan said, manifesting a monochrome-colored magic circle. "I do feel a bit bad about erasing myself from Elliot's memories, but we can't reveal ourselves to the other witches yet. I'm sure Roselia and Erina would agree with me there."

Lynx wore an expression that showed disapproval but didn't voice her complaints.

He flashed the familiar a bitter smile as the magic circle vanished.

Desine.

What a cruel spell to use on someone Tristan actually considered calling a friend. To put it simply, it is a spell that completely erases an individual from a target's memories. It was one of Tristan's signature magecrafts.

The mana consumption was based on how many memories the target has of said individual. Since they didn't know him for long, Tristan avoided depleting all of his mana.

"Anyways, this part of the forest is where you felt her magic signature, right?" The fiery kitten nodded at his query. "Something is off with this particular area. It must be the heart of the forest that connects it to Eryn. I can feel the lingering of someone else's mana."

The kitty made a series of meows as she walked beside him to the slab.

The grey-haired crouched down in front of the stone slab. "This is the clue for Clotilde's sister, huh? By manipulating the flow of mana in the air and the spirit veins, it'll trigger the spell she embedded on the slab."

His hand reached over to the stone club, mana covering his palm. Before he could try activating it, he heard a voice from behind.

"My, it's rude to take someone else's gift. I suggest you stop what you're doing and back away. You're a gentleman, aren't you?"