Bang. Bang.

  My brows furrowed. I groaned. Awareness only just started to prickle at the edges. It started to fade away almost immediately.

  Bang.

  I blinked awake, stared up at the ceiling, and then I quickly sat up. What the hell was that? There was a pained creaking, the sound of something trying desperately to stay shut even as someone forced it open.

  I stared at the door. Was this an attack? One of my hands reached for the neckce I never took off. The other stretched out to the side as I reached for the Godbde.

  Bang.

  The door smmed open this time with enough force that I might not have been surprised to see it go flying. My heart leapt in my throat. I stared at the intruder, paused.

  “What the hell is your problem?”

  It wasn’t an attacker like I’d feared. In walked a red-haired girl with a hammer just slightly rger than she was. She hummed to herself as she surveyed the room, before her gaze settled firmly on me.

  “I’m bored!”

  “What?” I was sure I must have misheard something.

  Violet cast her eyes around, unslung her hammer from her back, and then pointed it at me as if it were a sword. “Well? Get the hell up. I said I’d beat the hell out of you st time, too, didn’t I?”

  It took all of the mental fortitude I had not to audibly groan. I looked away from her to my window. It wasn’t even that bright out. Just how early in the morning had this girl decided to come at me? I looked back at Violet.

  “Last time your father wasn’t here, so maybe that’s why you thought you could get away with this…stupidity. This time he is. When he hears about this-”

  “He isn’t here,” Violet said impatiently. “So get off your ass already.”

  He wasn’t here. Again? I needed to check with Anias to find out if perhaps this time he had gone into the city or if he had disappeared like he had st time. Everything could change depending on the answer. If he wasn’t here, it was the perfect time to investigate, too.

  I also needed to check with my silent watcher. There was no reason to think that he wouldn’t still be-

  A pillow came and smacked me right in the face. It should be impossible for a pillow to hit hard. This one did, enough that I almost toppled over.

  “I said get off your ass, didn’t I?” Violet demanded again. She stepped in closer, until she was standing just by the edge of the bed. Was she going to smash the bed too if I didn’t answer?

  “God damnit,” I muttered and rose. “You know, I haven’t even eaten anything yet. Hell, I haven’t even done anything yet.”

  “And that’s supposed to be my problem because….?”

  It was hard to resist the urge to reach out and punch her in the face. All that would do is give her the fight she was looking for, and it probably wouldn’t even hurt her either.

  Wait, I could use this. Maybe.

  “If I’m not ready, it’ll be a pretty boring fight,” I commented idly. “Don’t think it would be a lot of fun for you or me. Would just be a waste of both our time.”

  Violet frowned, actually seemed to consider my words for once. This really was the only way to get through to her, apparently. “But if I did at least get the time to eat something, I’d put up a much better fight. Unless of course…you don’t want me to put one up to begin with?”

  “Hmm.” Violet held her chin in thought. She stared outside the window, then looked back at me. “And how the hell do I know you won’t just run away?”

  “Violet, I’m in your home.” I sighed. “Just where do you think I would even try and run to?”

  “Okay!” She said finally, slinging her hammer again as she made for the door. She stopped a few feet away from it, looked back at me. “But I swear if you try to do anything I’m going to-”

  “Yes, yes. You’ll inflict great pain upon me or something along those lines. I get it. Now, can you leave?”

  She huffed and walked off. Oddly, she at least had the decency to close the door behind her. How considerate of her. I stared at the door after she left. How in the hell had I gotten roped into this not once but twice?

  Whatever.

  Well, first things first. I reached for the neckce and began channeling mana.

  Anias. Are you there?

  It took ten minutes to get something resembling ready. I still hadn’t eaten yet, but a part of me suspected that Violet wouldn’t be quite so patient. The st thing I wanted was to have my meal interrupted just as my sleep had.

  I’d given Anias the same order I had st time, to find out through any source she could if Duke Indri had been seen leaving the manor. A part of me already suspected the answer, but I did need to be sure.

  I inspected myself in the mirror. I didn’t even have time to properly do my hair. A ponytail would do, unless Violet ended up yanking it. Actually, maybe a ponytail wouldn’t do at all.

  “God damnit,” I grumbled. What the hell was that girl’s problem? How could fighting be the only thing on a person’s mind? I’d put on the same dress I’d worn yesterday, mainly because I’d have to use my shift anyway when it was time. Unsurprisingly, I hadn’t come here expecting to spar with someone.

  There was one bright side to all of this, however. I had been trying to think of a solution, and I simply couldn’t find one for my ever-watchful watcher. I doubted very much that something as simple as slipping out of the window was going to work, and I couldn’t come up with any other ways of losing him that didn’t immediately attract suspicion. All save for one.

  For some reason, he either didn’t want to be or was instructed not to be seen by Violet. It wasn’t much of a gap in Duke Indri’s defenses, but it was something. If I could exploit that gap while he wasn't at his Manor, I could resolve things quickly. That was the hope, anyway. All I had to do was get one insane girl on my side. How hard could that be?

  I needed a maid to redirect me to where Violet was. Though the closer I got to her, the more I could simply hear her. Not her, exactly.

  Bang. Bang.

  I stopped by the right door, and wondered not for the first time if perhaps it would be better to simply turn around and leave.

  “It can’t be that bad.” I negotiated with myself. The sword had been silent since I’d woken up. Shouldn’t this have been the kind of thing it lived for?

  The door opened before I could open it myself. Violet stared out at me, panting, sweat running all across her face. “You really didn’t run away.” She inspected me. “I was sure ya would. Maybe you aren’t a complete pussy after all.”

  I pushed past her and stepped inside. Somehow, there were even more random holes along the walls and on the floor than there had been st time. Violet’s warhammer y resting against a wall to my right, bits of the flooring lying in a circur mess around it.

  “You remember our deal, right?” I asked as I began to get the dress off.

  “Our…deal?”

  I paused, looked behind me at Violet, who seemed to be very pointedly staring at me. Whatever. “Yes. Our deal. You said that if I interested you, you’d end up answering some of my questions. Remember?”

  “Huh. Guess I did say something like that.”

  For someone else, I’d have thought they were trying to dismiss me. For Violet Indri, I genuinely thought she’d just forgotten.

  “I don’t want answers to any questions,” I said. “If I’m doing this, then I want access.” I got the entire dress off. Somehow, the girl must have sensed it, because she chose that time to turn around.

  “Access? What the hell are you talking about now?”

  “There are guards outside your mother’s section of the manor. I want you to help me get past them. And help me dodge the guy following me, of course.” I tried to make my voice sound as casual as I could.

  Mana filled the air, so thick my next breath caught in my throat. I flinched, started channeling mana myself until I could breathe again.

  “You want what?” Violet sounded more dangerous than usual as she stepped closer to me. “Do repeat that, please. I might not have heard ya the first time around.”

  It might have been smart to not repeat myself, but that wasn’t going to get me anywhere, was it? “Your mother’s quarters. You can get me close to them, can’t you?”

  “You really did say that.” Violet stared at me. “Here I thought you were supposed to be smart. Why?”

  “I can’t tell you that.” It had seemed likely at the start, but by now it was obvious that this girl didn’t know what her father was doing. It was best to keep it that way for as long as possible.

  “You must have a death wish,” Violet muttered. The mana dissipated, and she stepped back, stretching out her arms.

  “So…you’ll do it?”

  “Sure,” Violet said after a pause. “If you can actually do something interesting. If you can survive to ask it again, anyway.”

  That was somehow exactly what I had hoped for and the st thing I wanted all at the same time.

  Violet had only been pying with me st time. I’d gotten the sense of that already. What I hadn’t gotten the sense of until now was just how much she had been pying with me.

  The girl was light on her feet, practically gliding around the room. Each step she took seemed to give her a burst of speed. I watched her warily, waiting. She moved close. I lunged in, twisted my hips just as Estovan had taught me. Violet didn’t try to dodge. My arm smmed right into her chin. It pushed her back a step, but it didn’t stagger her. Something smmed into my side, so hard I skidded sideways.

  Pain burned through me, just another ache joining the several I already felt. There hadn’t been many bruises st time. This time might be different.

  “Come on. This seriously sucks!”

  I hissed, shook my head, and started circling around her. Violet didn’t move from where she stood. She was watching me, though it didn’t seem like she was actually paying attention.

  “Honestly, maybe it’s my fault for thinking a noble brat could be interesting. Who cares how much mana they have anyway?” She said loudly. “It doesn’t matter if the girl herself doesn’t know what the hell she’s doing.”

  I lunged in from behind her this time. I didn’t try to strike her; I moved to grab her legs. Get her off her feet. If she was faster than me, then all I had to do was make that speed not matter anymore.

  Violet turned at the st second, so fast she was a blur to me. I lunged for her and found nothing but air. Arms circled around my waist from behind. I didn’t even have the time to question it before I was bodily lifted into the air.

  “I’d brace myself for this one!” Violet shouted.

  I tried to as she smmed me down onto the floor. I quite literally nded on my ass. It hurt like hell. I was lifted again a moment ter, and this time, Violet suplexed me behind her. It was a wonder something didn’t just break immediately from the impact. My vision swam. My back hurt.

  She probably could have broken something if she actually wanted to.

  Violet finally let me go, moved to stand over me. I groaned, stared up at her. This really was a one-sided beatdown, the same as it had been st time.

  “You’re not actually enjoying this, are you?” She stared down at me.

  “What…what the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  “You’re not doing anything different. The hell am I supposed to think?”

  I took a few deep breaths, both letting myself recover a little and think at the same time. Not doing anything different? Right, she had said something about that st time, too. About how I should be so much stronger. A lot of people had said something simir. I had always dismissed it, mostly because I had just assumed it was inexperience.

  What if…it wasn’t?

  “Huh,” Violet muttered to herself.

  “What?”

  “You still wanna go? Seriously?” Violet said it not as a question, but as a confused statement. “At least you have guts!” She reached down, yanked me to my feet in one smooth motion.

  I shook my head and stepped away from her. I was doing something wrong. Violet had alluded to that enough. Yet, it was something neither Estovan nor Anias had noticed, or else they would have pointed this out themselves. I was doing something wrong that only this girl in front of me could so acutely pick up on.

  “You’re…sensitive with mana, right? What does that mean?”

  Violet shrugged. “Dunno. I can see it better than other people can.”

  “See better? How much better?”

  She frowned, raised her fists. “Don’t think you can get out of fighting me by talking!”

  “How much better, damn it?” I snapped.

  Her frown deepened. “How the hell should I know? I can see pretty much everything. Like...basically everything.”

  That didn’t sound like just Mana Sight. It almost sounded like what would happen if I combined my own Gift with Mana Sight. Perhaps even something a bit beyond that.

  This was going to be a risk, especially in front of a girl this perceptive. It didn’t matter. If I needed to fix this, it had to be now. In front of someone who could see what others couldn’t. I closed my eyes.

  Click. Click. Click. Click.

  I turned my sight up, higher than I ever had. As high as it would go. Light bled in through my closed eyelids. Even that was a little uncomfortable, despite my dulling my pain.

  “What are you doing?” Violet asked suspiciously.

  I opened my eyes, channeled mana into them, and looked at her. Blinding light filled my vision. Colors so detailed and vivid, it was hard not to get lost in them. I could see shades in everything I saw. Nothing was ever really one consistent color, apparently.

  I swayed forward. Violet caught me with her hand.

  “What the hell are you doing?’ She asked, more loudly this time.

  I could see every pore on her exposed arms. No, I could see beyond the skin itself. I could see inside, at the trails of glowing mana running inside her. Those were her mana pathways. I could make out arteries, veins, and nerve fibers too, but it was those mana pathways I stared at. Violet’s entire body was surrounded and infused with the dull, blue glow of mana.

  More of it was concentrated around her heart, near where her mana core was. That was a darker shade of blue.

  “You- I don’t know what you’re doing, but you should stop.” Violet sounded genuinely concerned. An odd reaction from her. I ignored it.

  “Punch me,” I muttered.

  She stared at me. Was she going to need more convincing-

  Violet punched me right in the stomach. I gasped, wheezed, and doubled over. Most of the pain was muted, but the physical reaction came all the same. It didn’t matter. I had seen it.

  Violet’s fist had been glowing with mana in the instant she had struck me.

  “So you do actually like it,” Violet commented as I righted myself.

  I ignored her, flexed my right hand. I channeled mana into it like I always did. There was a dull glow there as mana raced into the fist, but it was nothing like the shining beacon that Violet’s fist had had. That shouldn’t have been possible, considering just how much more mana I had than her. “I think I’m starting to get it.” I murmured.

  “You better not tell my father this is my fault,” Violet warned. “If you’re going crazy here, it’s got nothing to do with me.”

  “You’re not just letting the mana flow. You’re…holding it. Letting it seep into everything. Condensing it. Stacking mana on top of mana. It’s efficient, you barely let any leak out at all.” I murmured, staring at my own hands. I tried channeling mana again, moved it to my hand, and forced it to stay there. Violet’s mana ran deep. It wasn’t just a surface-level yer; it was like a second coat of armor over her skin.

  I tried to make the mana settle. Using mana was mostly about visualization. People had to use their imagination. I could just see. The mana didn’t want to stay in one spot. It wanted to move. I’d thought the point was to let it move, as fast as I could. I was wrong.

  There was a growing pressure from my fist as I kept it there. As it built and built, crushing itself as it grew denser.

  “Huh. I guess ya do actually have some brains after all. Though the fact that you weren’t doing this anyway doesn’t exactly say anything good about you either.”

  “How did no one notice?” I found myself muttering.

  “You were using so much mana, it looked like you were compressing, and were just shit at it. I doubt anyone can tell you weren’t compressing at all.” Violet said sagely. Odd for her to actually sound... knowledgeable about something. "It's not exactly something you need to be taught ya know."

  An interesting theory. I looked up at Violet. “I don’t suppose you’ll let me punch you.”

  She stared at me, stared at my palm. “With that much mana? Fuck no. I’d dodge and then punch you right back.”

  I nodded slowly, letting some of the mana ebb out. Some of the mana was still leaking into the surrounding air, but this was still much better than what I was doing before. It took an awkward few seconds, but the blinding glow dulled somewhat. “Can I punch you now?”

  “You know what? Go for it.”

  I punched her in the chest. There was a loud thud, and then she was skidding a dozen feet back, right until her back hit the wall behind her. I’d seen it then, too. Right as I’d punched her, she’d done the exact same mana compression right around where I’d hit her. It was fast. Much faster than I could manage.

  “I see. I’m starting to get it.” I mumbled, staring at my own hand in wonder. More of the glow had faded now, as I’d used some of the energy to punch the girl.

  “Fuck me, that actually hurt,” Violet grunted, readying herself. “I hope you don’t think some clumsy condensing is actually going to change a damn thing.”

  Click. Click.

  I turned my sight back down. “Not right away, it won’t.” I readied myself, too. Instead of letting mana flow into my feet, I let it stack there. I rushed forward so fast that even I couldn’t keep up with the movement. Violet leapt out of the way, and I proceeded to crash right into the wall I’d thrown her into.

  “Ouch.” This really was going to take some getting used to.