Single people

Selene and I exchange a look as the twins leave, their words still lingering in the air.

"Well, that was certainly not weird at all," I comment, breaking the silence that settled between us.

Selene raises an eyebrow in response, a small smirk playing on her lips. She's right, considering the bizarre occurrences we've encountered in this world, this hardly ranks as the strangest.

"Let's just go with the flow," Selene suggests, her voice carrying a hint of amusement as she begins to change into her training attire.

I nod in agreement, following suit and swapping my usual uniform clothes for training gear. Dwelling too much on the twins and their cryptic messages won't do us any good. It's better to focus on the task at hand.

Together, we head to the training grounds to spar, the thoughts of the twins pushed to the back of my mind for now.

*

Lunchtime proves to be an interesting affair in the bustling dining hall. Damien sits quietly, seemingly trying to fade into the background as he picks at his food with slow, deliberate movements. Gregory, on the other hand, is shooting daggers at Tama, who seems completely unfazed as he devours a large piece of meat, ignoring Gregory's glares.

Across from them, Lani and Elizabeth appear to have hit it off, engaged in lively conversation and sharing a few laughs. I find myself rubbing the middle of my eyebrows, feeling the weariness of the day settling in and it's only lunch.

Under the table, Selene pinches my thigh, pulling me out of my thoughts. I'm a simple man, easily distracted, so I decide to engage in a thumb wrestling match with her. We playfully wrestle for dominance.

After lunch, I make my way to the mage tower, where Professor Xavier spends most of his time tinkering with magical artifacts and enchantments. As I enter, I find him hunched over a pocket watch, deep in concentration.

"Hey, Professor," I greet him loudly, unable to resist teasing him a bit. As expected, he startles and drops the pocket watch he was working on. Xavier fixes his glasses and shoots me a playful glare that's more like a kitten's than anything intimidating.

I plop myself onto a nearby chair, casually putting my legs up and grabbing a strange square metal object from the table to toy with.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's not time for us to meet," Xavier quips, clearly not amused by my antics.

"It's not. Unfortunately, I got kicked out of my minor healing class, turns out I have no affinity for nature magic," I explain, laughing to myself at the memory of causing a couple of distractions in class.

Xavier raises an eyebrow, looking genuinely puzzled. "Minor healing? What were you doing in a healing class?" he asks.

I shrug, tossing the metal object back onto the table. "Just trying new things, you know," I reply nonchalantly.

Xavier sighs, shaking his head slightly. "Well, since you're here, just don't disturb me," he says, turning back to his work.

I take the opportunity to grab a book from a nearby shelf, intrigued by the title: "Understanding Enchantment" by Xavier. It's clear he's a commoner, as he has no last name, but his knowledge of enchantments is renowned.

Settling back into the chair, I flip through the pages of the book. The first few chapters are familiar to me, but Xavier's insights and explanations give a better explanation and fresher insight into enchantment.

Despite his limitations as an Adept tier 2 mage due to his flawed magic circles, his expertise in enchantments is truly remarkable. It's no wonder he turned to this field, given his large mana pool and knack for innovation.

*

After hours of immersing myself in Xavier's book on enchantments, I suddenly realize it's time for weapons and combat training. Without a word of goodbye to the professor, I hastily put the book down and dash out of the mage tower.

Rushing through the academy grounds, I finally arrive outside the arena. I quickly head into the changing rooms and swap my uniform for training gear. The atmosphere is silent, save for the bald twins explaining something to a group of students. I scan the area for Selene's signature pink hair and spot her. Quietly maneuvering through the students, I make my way towards her.

Just as I'm about to reach Selene, the ground beneath us begins to light up. Reacting instinctively, I grab her arm and pull her towards me, and we're enveloped in a blinding white light.

We're falling, and I grab Selene closer, twisting our bodies mid-air to soften the impact. We land on the ground with a resounding thud. I wince at the impact, feeling the pain shoot through my body. Ah, the trials of being the one who always takes the fall in our relationship. Of course, I don't actually wear the pants in the relationship, just in case Selene has a mind-reading ability.

Blinking slowly, I try to focus my eyes. I'm met with Selene's angry yet beautiful green eyes glaring down at me.

"My dear. Hey," I say sheepishly, offering a weak smile.

She pinches my arm, hard. "Where were you?" she demands, her tone laced with anger.

"I'm sorry, I got distracted," I apologize quickly, hoping to diffuse the situation.

"Really?" she continues to look at me suspiciously, sending a chill down my spine.

"I was at the mage tower, I swear. You know, enchantments," I explain, hoping she'll believe me. "You're the only one for me, I swear." I add, trying to lighten the mood.

I twist us so that she's beneath me, and I decide to nuzzle her neck, hoping to elicit a giggle from her. Sure enough, she does, and I know she can never stay mad at me for long.

Our intimate moment is interrupted by a soft cough. I look up to find Lani staring at us with an amused expression in her red eyes. Meanwhile, Elizabeth and Damien seem to find something fascinating in the nearby trees, completely ignoring us. Gregory, being Gregory, doesn't seem to have a thought in his head, while Tama is looking surprisingly somber.

"Boss, there's single people here. Single," Tama suddenly bursts into tears, surprising us all. Gregory awkwardly tries to comfort him.

???

I get off Selene and stand up, offering her a hand to help her up as well.