章 28: Chapter 27: Jahi's Actions; Kolia's Book

Baronss Estra's class could only last so long, which left time for Jahi and I to do whatever we wanted; I would clean our rooms, making sure everything was presentable, and Jahi would be on the training field, sparring with the Marquess when she was free.

Of course, when I had free time or simply wanted to do something other than cleaning, I went to watch their spars, marveling at the quick pace and powerful blows launched at one another. Jahi slowly grew accustomed to her new strength, and would push her limits, hoping to create a solid foundation for her future.

Like always, I wasn't slacking either, slowly improving my repertoire of spells, both water, wind, and some ice spells. I kept the ice book to myself, deciding to simply avoid having people question me on why I was creating spells for magic that I most likely wouldn't get.

Scribbling down a new sequence, I looked up, seeing Jahi panting as she stood opposite the Marquess. Unlike before, the Marquess had a serious expression, her eyes tracking Jahi constantly. She was no longer completely nonchalant, as Jahi's improvement was quite astounding.

Smiling slightly, I continued to watch their exchange, marveling at how quickly Jahi adapted from one set of moves to another, changing styles like it was a pair of clothes.

They sparred for a few more minutes, until Jahi collapsed on the ground, panting heavily. Grabbing a few towels, I made may way over, handing one to the Marquess before wiping Jahi off myself.

As she lay there, she smirked up at me. Ignoring her, I continued wiping her off. Her hand shot out, wrapping around my waist as she dragged me on top of herself, before rolling over, pinning me underneath her. Her smirk widened, and she leaned down closer to me, burying her head into my neck.

Feeling her nuzzle into me, I blushed. Feeling her warm body paired with the musk of sweat made my mind go blank, and I kept opening my mouth to say something, only to close it again, not being able to form a thought.

Pulling herself away slightly, she smirked down at me. For a brief moment I wanted to wrap my arms around her and pull her back down on top of me, already missing the warmth. Blushing deeper at the thought, as well as feeling my tail swish slightly, I continued to look up at Jahi, wondering what she was doing.

Bringing her hand to the back of my head, she pressed our foreheads together, before saying "Kat... you'll always be my first choice..."

Saying so, she moved her lips to my forehead, briefly kissing me before getting up.

As she stood there, I could see her normally light blue skin had darkened slightly on her cheeks, as well as the fact that she wasn't looking directly looking at me, indicating her embarrassment.

Laying there, my mind couldn't seem to catch up to the present, looping that small kiss dozens of times. Each time I could feel myself getting warmer inside.

Hearing a loud laughter, I broke out of the loop, looking towards the noise. Seeing the Marquess holding her stomach as she doubled over, laughing like she had just seen the funniest thing, I paled.

"Haha~ Oh lord, thats... Haha~ Really, Jahi~? That was it~?"

Saying so, I looked towards Jahi, who was fuming. Clenching her fists, she stomped towards the Marquess before flinging herself at her, throwing her fists towards the sides of the Marquess.

Taking the hits, the Marquess continued laughing. Slowly rising from the floor, I stumbled over towards the door, attempting to escape.

Sadly, the Countess walked in, and upon hearing the Marquess laughing like a lunatic, she quickly grabbed me, skipping over to the Marquess.

"So~ what happened~"

Slowly reigning in her laughter, the Marquess grabbed Jahi by the arms, lifting her up. Jahi kept trying to kick the Marquess, her face a deep violet and glaring hard at her.

"Well, it seems like our little demon is much like you, dear~"

Hearing that, the Countess started stroking my ears, and when I looked at her eyes I could see that they were a colder blue than normal.

"What does that mean~"

Seemingly oblivious to the Countess' rising tension, the Marquess pointed towards Jahi, saying "Jahi here just gave the kid a little peck on the forehead! Then she started blushing hard! Haha~ Just like you back in the day, when you thought that was the most intimate thing ever~"

Feeling the Countess' hand stop for a moment, before it sped up, I looked at the Marquess with some pity.

"Haha~ Yes, I was quite naive, hmm?"

Hearing that, the Marquess froze slightly, before looking at the Countess from the side of her eyes. Jahi had stopped struggling, instead smirking at the Marquess.

The Marquess finally realized she had brought up something she shouldn't have, as she quickly lowered Jahi before turning towards her wife, a wide, helpless smile on her lips.

"That's what I loved about you, Ria~ I swear-"

"Yes, you loved teasing me so much that you would go out of your way to prove to me that the things I viewed as intimate were not so intimate, yes? I believe-"

"Yes, yes, I'm sorry, okay? Let's not dwell on the past, my love!"

Sending the Marquess a glare, the Countess huffed before smiling down at Jahi. Placing me next to her, the Countess crouched, saying "Why don't you two run along now, hmm? I heard Kolia wants to discuss something..."

Grabbing my hand, Jahi shot a large grin at the Marquess before nodding to the Countess. Quickly making our way out of the training field, I looked back, only able to see the Marquess's wide eyes as the Countess cracked her knuckles. Considering the sickly sweet smell permeating the air, as well as the Countess' hair starting to rise, I sent a prayer up for the Marquess.

Rushing down the halls, we could still hear the loud crash of thunder, as well as a low shout.

Moving towards the library, Jahi stopped before the door. Looking away from me, she stood still, quiet.

Tilting my head in confusion, I squeezed her hand slightly. Feeling that, I could hear her sigh before she turned towards me. Her cheeks were still slightly darker, but she had a glint of determination in her eyes as she looked at me.

"Kat, will you always be with me?"

Hearing her question, I furrowed my brows, confused. Nodding, I gently grabbed her other hand. Smiling slightly, she leaned towards me, her lips brushing against my forehead again.

Taking a deep breath, she turned towards the door, entering the Library. Following her, I was wondering what brought that on when I hear a light chuckle.

Looking towards the long table in the center, I could see Arch Mage Kolia sitting in a chair, a small book in her hand. When she heard us walk in, she quickly closed the book and placed it off to the side. Giving us a confident smile, she gestured for us to sit.

Taking a seat, I looked towards Arch Mage Kolia with anticipation, wondering what she wanted to discuss.

Taking a deep breath, she looked between the two of us before saying "So what do you think of tattoos?"

Furrowing my brow, I looked at Jahi, seeing her frowning before she looked at me. Looking back at her, she sighed before placing a book between us.

"Alright, should probably explain before just asking that, huh? Well, I was browsing the library, more specifically the section dedicated to magic, when I came across something rather interesting. Before that, let me just tell you about magic tattoos. You see my arms?"

Saying so she raised her left arm, tracing the runes before doing the same to her right, tracing the snake.

"My left arm has spells tattooed into it. Specifically, I have support spells on most of the arm, while the ritual circle on my wrist is an offensive spell. My right arm is a summoning spell, a contract. If I run the right amount of mana in the correct patterns, I can activate the spells tattooed on my skin. Now, unlike the pricking and injecting of dyes that most people do, a magic tattoo is the sequence being engraved onto your body via mana. Because of that, you are able to activate the spells, unlike if you were to have it inked onto your body.

Anyways, I found a few interesting sequences and ritual circles, and I found one in particular. It allows two people to... connect their cores together, allowing them to access the others mana to use magic. Additionally, since it is possible to eventually convert one's mana into the elements you use... well, that would mean Kat here could gain access to light magic, while Jahi gains access to whatever Kat awakens to. Haha, wouldn't it be funny if she had darkness magic!"

Chuckling at that, I asked "So, why is such a useful ritual circle hiding in the library? What are the downsides?"

Coughing slightly, Arch Mage Kolia pursed her lips. "Well, if you move too far away from one another, you slowly lose access to your own mana... It takes a while; if I had to guess, in a years time you would be 'locked' from using your own mana, making you a person with a pseudo core. All the benefits except for the magic. That's why no one uses it; being tied to someone like that isn't something people would be willing to do."

Pursing my lips, I looked between Arch Mage Kolia and Jahi. Seeing her also in a deep contemplation, I sighed. "What is the max distance? Obviously we can't be tied at the hip, so how far is the range of the ritual circle?"

Tapping her fingers on the table, Arch Mage Kolia scrunched her brow, thinking.

"I believe it would be a few hundred feet; obviously, the farther away the harder it is to do this, but I think you would be fine to be on other sides of the house and be fine."

Jahi looked towards Arch Mage Kolia, saying "This would have to wait till Kat awakens her core, wouldn't it? Why mention it now?"

"It's a very important decision, no? The more time you have to think it over, the better. Besides, I won't oversee or allow you to tie yourselves together if you haven't proven to me that you truly want it."

Nodding, I looked at Jahi. She returned my gaze, smiling slightly.

"Thank you, Miss Kolia. We'll talk about this. Was that it?"

Nodding, Arch Mage Kolia stood up, bowing slightly. Giving us a smile, she walked towards another part of the library.

Seeing that, I moved towards her side of the table, quickly opening the book she had hastily put away earlier.

Feeling Jahi stand behind me, I flipped through the pages, skimming.

Jahi slowly inched closer and closer, trying to get a better view of the book. Initially, I simply ignored this, but as the book's contents became obvious, I became overly conscious of Jahi's presence.

Rushing back over to us, Arch Mage Kolia snatched the book from my hands, her face red.

Chuckling, Jahi looked towards her, snaking her arms around me. Purring slightly, she said "Aww, are you lonely, Miss Kolia~"

Hissing at Jahi, Arch Mage Kolia blushed harder, storming out of the library.

Leaning towards my ear, Jahi whispered "Keep that book in mind, will you? That's what I want to do to you~"

Hearing that, I could feel my neck going crimson.

Laughing loudly, Jahi led me towards out of the library, towards our room.