"Can you help me discover what Silverwing's Hexagram does?" Lith asked.
"Sure, no problem." Yurial was happy to be finally able to repay his friend of all the help he received in the past, even if it was for a fool's errand.
"I'd also like to see those impossible arrays you mentioned earlier." Lith was sure to have struck a gold mine. Having true arrays in his arsenal was an opportunity he couldn't miss.
Lith kept the Hexagram active, making it possible for Yurial to perform a series of experiments and spells to determine the newfound array's properties. While Yurial studied it from the outside, Lith could perceive from the inside the changes in the mana flow each test produced.
After a while, they compared notes about their initial findings.
They were still discussing the details when Lith received Phloria's call.
'Ugh, I wish I knew how much time has passed. I have to make myself a damn clock or something.' Thirteen years after his third birth, Lith was still unable to tell the time without looking at the sun.
It frustrated him beyond reason.
When he went to pick her up, Phloria was wearing her uniform, just like him. She wore her waist long black hair down. Her wavy hair reflected the academy's light, giving them a silky look.
Phloria emanated a delicate flowery scent that Lith found surprisingly relaxing. Even before he obtained an enhanced sense of smell, Lith had always found perfumes to be too strong. Their sweet scent was nauseating for him, just like a man using too much cologne.
She wore little make up. Just enough to make her features appear more delicate and her eyes bigger. Her lips shined under the effect of lip gloss.
"How do I look?" She asked with an expectant look.
"You look gorgeous." Lith honestly replied.
Lith took her to the lagoon city of Vinea that he had visited during the fourth year's house calls. With its many small canals and boats, it was the most romantic place he knew.
It reminded him of the Italian city of Venice he had seen in many movies back on Earth.
Also, it was located quite far from the academy, so the odds of meeting someone they knew were very low. Lith wanted some peace and quiet. They chose a restaurant with outside tables to enjoy the scenery. Being still early spring, the air was a bit chilly.
It took Phloria just a wave of the hand to warm the air around them and make so that the heat wasn't dispersed. Lith took care of the lights, summoning small silvery moons around them.
The poor waiter assigned to them was so flabbergasted by their uniforms and display of power that it took a while to manage to order some food.
"Not to complain, but this is not like you. Taking me outside the academy, in a romantic city instead of ordering food from the canteen and eating it in one of our rooms. What's wrong?" She asked extending her hand across the table to take his.
'Am I really such a cheapskate?' Lith thought. Solus's silence spoke volumes about the matter.
"I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but there's something you need to know." Lith told her about the hostility he had perceived from Wanemyre and the other students.
"It's no coincidence, all of them wear accessories that give me a bad vibe."
"They wear matching items? How did no one notice them before?" She was surprised, it was quite the dumb move on their side. It made them recognizable.
"Not matching, but I'm positive they have the same properties. I want you to be wary of all of them." Lith gave her the names and a physical description of those he had identified.
"Then how do you know they are linked?" She asked.
"I just know."
"Is this another of your secrets, like your physical abilities and your mysterious brother?"
Lith just nodded.
"Okay, I believe you." She replied with a radiant smile.
"This is actually a piece of good news."
"How so?" Lith was stunned by her positive reaction. He had expected her to doubt his words. Phloria was aware of how paranoid Lith was and he had offered her no proof aside from a nondescript bad feeling.
Even if she believed him, he was afraid the new impending threat would ruin the mood.
"Because at least now we know whose as*es we have to kick. It was no mystery there are traitors at the academy nor that some of the students were involved in the poisoning. It's the first lead we got. Thanks for trusting me enough to share it with me."
Her response almost made him feel guilty for hiding so many things from her. Aside from Solus, she was the person that trusted him the most, no matter how many shadows Lith left lingering between them.
She was the first girl on Mogar that had gifted him with a gentle touch and a warm embrace. Even when he had almost lost it after Protector's fake death, Phloria had never left his side.
Lith sighed, finally ready to admit with himself that he cared for her. Over time, Phloria had become his home away from home. Someone to return to, without worrying about how to act or what to say. He could just be himself.
Phloria giggled, closing with her hand Lith's mouth that had remained agape since her reply.
"No, thank you for believing me. Now that I said out loud, I realize how insane this story sounds." Lith felt a sting in his heart, but it was a pleasant one.
"I would believe you even if you told me some monster kidnapped you overnight. Otherwise, what are girlfriends for?" She held his hand tightly.
"I was thinking we could use this knowledge to unleash my mom against them."
"I doubt she would act just because I have a bad feeling." Lith sighed.
"True, but my mother is even more paranoid than you are. If I tell her that the bad feeling is mine and that those people acted in a suspicious manner, she'll come running. She's overprotective since your vision…" Phloria suddenly stopped, dropping the fork on the ground.
"That's it! Your vision just got updated!"
"I beg your pardon?" Lith had just reached the same conclusion, yet he was curious to see how far she was willing to push that lie.
"We can say that your vision showed you something about those items. It will be more than enough to give mom everything she needs."
"What if I'm wrong and they are actually innocent? Wouldn't you feel guilty for throwing them in Jirni's maw?" Lith's care for their well being was on par with what he felt toward the game he was eating. He only wanted to make sure Phloria realized the implications of her idea.
"No." She shrugged. "They can do like me and blame those damn dryads for not giving us much to work on."
"Someone is getting crafty and manipulative." Lith said, laughing.
"What can I say? Between you and mom, bad habits rub off."
They spent the rest of the dinner talking about their respective specializations and families.