The dorm was quiet again.
But this time, it wasn't suffocating. Just… uncertain.
I stood in front of Alex's—Aeliana's—door, fists clenched at my sides, rehearsing every variation of "sorry" I could think of.
"I didn't mean to walk in."
"It was an accident."
"Please don't poison my tea."
None of them sounded good.
Crescent whispered in my head. "Just be honest. And maybe less twitchy."
"Great advice. You want to apologize for me?"
"I'd rather gut a wyvern."
Fair.
I raised my hand.
Knocked.
The door opened slowly.
Alex stood there in a loose academy shirt, hair damp from a shower, expression blank—but her eyes… weren't cold.
"Hey," I said. "Got a second?"
She nodded and stepped aside.
---
I sat on the edge of her desk chair while she perched on her bed, arms crossed but relaxed.
There was a long pause.
I cleared my throat.
"So… about the other day."
"You mean the part where you ran out like you'd seen a ghost?" she asked flatly.
"Yes. That. I wanted to say—I'm sorry."
"I know."
"I didn't mean to— I wasn't— I didn't expect—"
She held up a hand, cutting off my flailing. "Felix. Relax."
I inhaled. Exhaled.
"I'm not mad," she said. "Embarrassed, sure. But not mad."
"Oh." I blinked. "Really?"
She nodded. "You didn't do anything wrong. You just… bolted like a startled bunny."
"I panicked!"
"You looked like someone had dropped a love confession and a death threat at the same time."
"Because I have the romantic experience of a damp rock, Alex."
That startled a laugh out of her. A real one.
"I can see that," she said.
"Everyone thinks I'm some kind of flirt just because of… this—" I gestured vaguely at my face, "—but it's cursed. It's all lies. I'm a fraud."
"You do have that 'dateable main character' look going for you."
"Please never say that again."
She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes completely.
"I didn't hide my gender for fun," she said, quieter now. "It's… complicated."
I nodded slowly. "Okay."
"You're not going to ask why?"
"Not until you want me to."
Another pause.
"…Thanks."
---
The next morning, we met up with Damian and Elara to continue the ward project.
"Good morning, functional disasters!" Damian grinned.
"Please stop naming us like we're a sitcom," I muttered.
"You and Alex finally make up?" Elara asked, raising an eyebrow.
I and Alex both immediately looked anywhere but at each other.
"Oh gods, you did."
"Can we focus?" Alex snapped, flustered.
"See?" Elara winked. "Flushed. Confirmed."
---
Despite the teasing, progress went well.
Alex adjusted the sigils.
Elara reinforced the elemental rings.
Damian… mostly stayed out of the way.
And me?
I just observed.
---
When the group took a break, I slipped away to the far side of the field.
Crescent materialized in my hand with a soft hum, her silver blade gleaming faintly under the sun.
"Ready?"
"Let's try again."
We'd been refining what I called my "Felix-Style Swordplay™."
Trademark pending.
I couldn't brute force anything.
But I was fast.
Springy. Flexible. Small.
I'd leaned into it.
Stance One: Flickerstep.
A low, coiled stance. Foot placement angled for rapid short bursts. Combines Flash for blink strikes and sudden feints. Effective when outnumbered or up close.
Stance Two: Crescent Arc.
Aerial-based. Jumping strikes with spin momentum, paired with downward slashes that arc like the moon. Uses my obnoxiously high vertical jump stat and makes me feel like a flying squirrel with a blade.
"Okay," I said, stretching. "Flickerstep first."
I lowered my posture. Focused. Blinked. Slashed.
Hit the dummy. Blinked back. Pivoted.
"Crescent Arc!"
I jumped. Twisted mid-air. Slammed the blade downward in a spinning arc.
It didn't split the dummy clean, but it dented it.
I landed, panting, grinning like a maniac.
"I am becoming dangerous," I whispered.
"You are becoming slightly less pitiful," Crescent corrected. "But yes. Promising."
---
Later, as we wrapped up the ward test (which Damian only slightly scorched), I caught Elara watching me from the edge of the field.
"What?"
"You wander off alone a lot?"
"Yeah. Why?"
She tilted her head. "Didn't think you were the type."
I shrugged. "I like the quiet."
She raised an eyebrow but didn't push.
No one would ever see the books I read late at night.
Or the push-ups, the drills, the bruises I healed on my own.
All they saw was a boy who dozed off in class, scribbled zero notes, and joked his way through lectures.
---
[System Notice: Combat Art "Unnamed – Personal Style" Created]
Stances: Flickerstep (Complete), Crescent Arc (Basic)
Progress: 14%
Strength +0.4
AGI +0.8
DEX +0.6
WIL +0.5
Ego Weapon Affinity: She is impressed. And very smug.