Prelude to Sophomore Ball I

"..."

"..."

I sighed inwardly as I watched Rachel, her lips slightly pursed in a sulky pout as she kept avoiding my gaze.

The princess of the North, future saintess herself, was pouting. Pouting.

'How did I not notice this before?' I wondered, feeling both amused and guilty.

Rachel, despite her strength and status, was far too kind and innocent to demand attention outright. She wasn't like Cecilia, who had no qualms about being direct and even a bit... pushy, to put it mildly.

Rachel was different. Her outburst during her birthday wasn't because she enjoyed making a scene or causing trouble. It was because she had reached her limit—her limit with me keeping my heart at arm's length, with me treating her feelings as something I couldn't handle.

I studied her for a moment, trying to figure out how to break the silence without making it awkward.

"Rachel…" I started, my tone gentle, "You don't need to avoid me."

She glanced up at me briefly before looking away again, her pout still firmly in place.

This was new—seeing her act like this, all because I had been a coward.

I smiled softly. "I'm here now," I continued, "and I'm not going anywhere."

That seemed to get her attention. She blinked, her lips parting slightly as she looked up at me, her blue eyes meeting mine for the first time since I arrived. There was a hint of vulnerability there, an unspoken question. 

I took a step closer, reaching out to gently take her hand. "I'm sorry if I made you feel like you weren't important to me. You are."

Rachel's face softened at my words, her sulk starting to melt away. But there was still hesitation in her eyes, like she didn't fully believe me yet.

"I was busy because I was too caught up with training, I'm sorry. I said I would respect your feelings so I will spend time with you, as much as you want."

She looked down at our joined hands, her thumb lightly brushing against mine. "You mean that?" she asked, her voice soft.

I nodded. "I mean it, Rachel. I care about you. A lot more than I've let on."

Her pout finally disappeared, replaced by a small, genuine smile. She squeezed my hand gently, the tension between us slowly fading.

For the first time in a while, the air felt lighter between us. No more sulking, no more unspoken frustrations.

Just us.

"Thank you," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

I smiled back, feeling relieved. Things were finally starting to move in the right direction.

"Art," she said softly, and I blinked, surprised. She had never called me by a nickname before.

"Yeah, Rach?" I replied, testing out a nickname of my own.

Rachel squeezed my hand a little tighter. "I honestly don't mind if you take your time with this," she said, her voice steady. "I can't figure out everything about you, but I know that, for whatever reason, you don't want to accept anyone's affection without being certain. And... I agree with that. So I'm fine with you taking all the time you need."

She turned to me, flashing a smile so radiant it could've blinded a man. Honestly, it felt like the sun itself had descended to earth. Or maybe an angel straight out of heaven. Either way, it was enough to make my heart skip a beat. 

I quickly turned around, scratching my cheek, trying to hide my embarrassment as I felt my face heat up. How could she look that beautiful so effortlessly?

Rachel let go of my hand and began to hum, clearly in a better mood now. For a second, everything seemed peaceful—until I caught her muttering under her breath.

"As long as he's mine, I don't mind waiting."

I froze.

'Did I just hear that right?'

I shot a glance at her, but she was still humming, that angelic smile plastered on her face as if she hadn't just dropped a possessive bombshell.

'Nah, no way,' I thought. 'There's no way the angelic, saint-like Rachel would say something like that. I had to have imagined it.'

'Right?'

But the eerie silence in my head from Luna wasn't exactly reassuring.

I scratched my cheek again, trying to shake off the creeping dread as Rachel continued humming, blissfully unaware—or was she?

Maybe I was just overthinking it. But still... 

I cast another glance at her, and she smiled innocently back at me. 

Yeah. Definitely overthinking it. 

Right?

__________________________________________________________________________________

After walking Rachel back after class, it was time for my evening training session with Seraphina. As always, she was focused, determined, and ready to push herself to the limit.

I was trying to help her refine a technique she had been struggling with—infusing her ice magic into her plum blossoms. While I couldn't perform the Mount Hua arts myself, I knew enough from studying them to offer guidance. Plus, with the help of Lucent Harmony and Seraphim's Embrace, my senses were heightened, allowing me to read and understand mana flows on a much deeper level than most.

"Focus on the connection between your core and the blossoms," I instructed, my voice calm yet firm. "Your ice mana shouldn't just be layered on top of them—it needs to be intertwined, woven into their very essence."

Seraphina nodded, her crystalline blue eyes narrowing in concentration as she conjured the plum blossoms in midair. They fluttered gently, delicate and graceful, but lacked the icy sharpness she was aiming for.

"Remember, the key to Mount Hua's techniques isn't just in the execution, it's in harmonizing your intent with your mana," I continued, stepping closer. "Think of it like a dance—your mana and your sword should move as one."

She closed her eyes for a moment, taking in my words before she tried again. This time, I could see the subtle shift in her mana flow, her ice magic starting to seep into the blossoms, making them shimmer faintly with frost.

"That's it," I said, encouraging her. "But don't rush it. Let the mana settle in naturally."

Suddenly, one of the blossoms froze completely, and then... shattered.

Seraphina let out a frustrated sigh, her grip tightening on her sword. "Why is this so difficult?" she muttered under her breath.

"You're pushing too hard," I said, stepping in to stand beside her. "It's not about brute-forcing it. Ice is calm, patient. Think of it that way, and let it flow."

She looked at me, her eyes softening just a bit. "You make it sound so easy."

I chuckled. "Trust me, it's not. But you'll get there. You have the Gift for it."

Only I ended up laughing at my pun as Seraphina just furrowed her brows at me.

Taking a deep breath, Seraphina closed her eyes once more, trying again. This time, I could feel the subtle shift in her mana—more controlled, more balanced. The blossoms floated in front of her, and the frost began to weave seamlessly through them, just as it should.

"There it is," I said, nodding in approval. "Much better. Keep at it."

Seraphina opened her eyes, and for the first time in our training session, she smiled—just a small, barely-there smile, but it was progress.

"Thank you," she said softly.

"Anytime," I replied, feeling a sense of pride watching her slowly but surely make progress. As strong as Seraphina was, her Gift had a tendency to be overwhelming, and guiding her toward mastery felt like a challenge that would eventually pay off—for both of us.

"Art," Seraphina said, her voice calm yet pointed as she wiped her silver hair with a towel after training. Her crystalline blue eyes studied me for a moment, as if weighing her next words.

"What is it?" I asked, sensing the shift in her tone.

"You kissed both Cecilia and Rachel, didn't you?" she asked bluntly.

I froze, my eyes widening slightly in surprise. That was... unexpected. Seraphina wasn't exactly the type to beat around the bush, but this?

"Well…" I scratched the back of my head awkwardly. "Yeah. That happened."

She didn't say anything for a moment, just nodded as if she had already known the answer. Her expression was unreadable—calm, cool, but there was something more behind those eyes.

"And you haven't kissed me," she continued, her voice steady but with a hint of something beneath the surface—curiosity, maybe?

I blinked, completely caught off guard by her straightforwardness. "Uh… I didn't think—"

"You didn't think I'd notice?" she cut in smoothly, her lips curling into a small smirk. "Or that I'd care?"

I sighed, trying to figure out how to navigate this without making things more complicated than they already were. "It's not like that. I wasn't trying to... I mean, it just happened with them. I didn't want to force anything or make things weird."

Seraphina crossed her arms, still holding the towel. "So, what is it that you're trying to avoid? Making things weird with me?"

I could feel my pulse quicken. This was starting to feel like a minefield.

"Sera, it's complicated," I began, hoping that would be enough of an explanation.

She raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed with my answer. "Art, life is complicated. You're not avoiding the others, so why me?"

I opened my mouth to reply but hesitated. It wasn't that I didn't feel anything for her—it was that I hadn't had time to figure out how I felt about all of this, about all of them. And Seraphina, with her strength and her calmness, made it harder to gauge what she was thinking, what she wanted.

Before I could muster a response, Seraphina stepped closer, her blue eyes locking onto mine. "If you don't want this, then say it. But if you're just hesitating because you don't know how to handle it… don't."

Her straightforwardness, as always, cut right through me. Seraphina wasn't one to dance around her feelings or hide behind walls. She faced everything head-on, and she was asking me to do the same.

I exhaled slowly, feeling the weight of the moment.

She chuckled lightly, the tension easing just a bit. "Good. Now, are we going to keep talking in circles, or are you going to kiss me too?"

I stared at her, momentarily speechless. Seraphina really didn't hold back.

"Well," I said, stepping closer, "I guess it's only fair."

And before I could overthink it, I leaned in, capturing her lips in a soft kiss. It was brief, but there was a quiet intensity behind it, a feeling of mutual respect and understanding. When we pulled away, Seraphina smiled—genuine and warm.

"Finally," she teased, brushing her silver hair back. "I was starting to think you were avoiding me on purpose."

I laughed softly. "Not on purpose."

Seraphina shook her head. "Good. Now, let's get back to training before you start getting ideas."