Gaelira obeyed Lenora's order and closed her fingers around the crystal again. This time, she tried to ignore the flashes appearing on the nearby desks and focus only on the stone.
She remembered the explanation about internal mana, searched for some current beneath her skin, and tried to imagine a command moving from her chest to her hands.
After several seconds, the crystal remained as dark as before.
"Don't try to force it with physical strength," Lenora instructed while watching her tense fingers. "The crystal won't glow because you squeeze it until it breaks."
Gaelira reduced the pressure and made a third attempt. She found no unfamiliar energy or sensation she could identify as mana.
She only felt the cold of the crystal, the movement of her breathing, and the occasional glances from students who had already completed the exercise.
Lenora waited a few moments before continuing between the desks without offering another explanation.
Octavia leaned slightly toward her to look at the stone. "Maybe you're trying to move too quickly." Before she could say anything else, Lenora tapped the central desk with her glass fingers and asked everyone who had produced a stable light to approach the platform.
Octavia's crystal was still glowing with a reddish color, so she had to stand with the other students for a second demonstration.
Gaelira was left alone with the empty seat to her right. She repeated the exercise, first with her eyes closed and then while staring directly at the crystal, but the result did not change.
Around her, the students who were still struggling began receiving help from their classmates.
She was considering raising her hand when someone placed a bag on the empty desk and took the seat without asking permission.
The newcomer belonged to Stormwing. She had pale skin and long green hair that stood out against the colors of her uniform.
Instead of watching Lenora or preparing her own materials, she rested one elbow on the desk and studied Gaelira with a smile that looked far too entertained for a classroom.
"So you're Gaelira Veyr."
Gaelira kept the crystal between her hands and returned her gaze. "I'm starting to think I should have my name written across my forehead." The green-haired girl laughed and leaned a little closer.
"That wouldn't be necessary. You're the only student Palmwick tried to taste twice before rejecting." You are reading on g.com, the official source.
The nearby students turned when they heard her, but Gaelira decided not to react.
The girl seemed disappointed that she had failed to embarrass her and shifted her attention toward the dark crystal.
"Bellamie Barrow," she introduced herself while pointing toward the Stormwing symbol embroidered on her uniform.
"I wanted to meet the girl who managed to knock Clarke Calnoy down on her first day."
"Are you friends?"
"Clarke doesn't use that word easily." Bellamie rested her cheek on one hand while studying Gaelira's face. "But I heard you ended up on top of her with a sword beside her neck. That must've been a pretty intense way to introduce yourselves."
Gaelira felt heat rise to her cheeks as she remembered how close she had been to Clarke after knocking her down.
"It was a duel. Nothing else happened." Bellamie's smile widened when she noticed her reaction, and she reduced the distance between them even more. "I didn't imply that anything else happened. Although now I'm curious about what you were imagining."
'She definitely implied it.'
Gaelira looked away and focused on the crystal again. Bellamie had managed to distract her far too easily, but allowing her to keep teasing would not help her complete the exercise.
She closed her fingers around the stone again and tried to recover the rhythm of her breathing.
"You're doing it wrong," Bellamie commented.
"That's already pretty obvious."
"I don't mean that the crystal is dark. You're looking for the mana in your hands."
Gaelira watched as Bellamie picked up her own crystal. The stone reacted almost immediately and produced greenish flashes that moved through its interior like tiny bolts of lightning.
She did not seem to need concentration or effort to maintain them.
Bellamie placed her crystal on the desk and extended her hand. "I can show you."
Gaelira hesitated when she saw the open palm. She did not know Bellamie well enough to tell whether she genuinely wanted to help or was simply looking for another chance to amuse herself at Gaelira's expense.
However, Lenora was still busy with the students gathered in front of the platform, and the crystal had failed to respond to every one of her attempts.
Finally, she placed her hand over Bellamie's. The Stormwing student immediately intertwined their fingers, as if that had been her intention from the beginning.
Gaelira tried to pull away, but Bellamie gently held her hand.
"If you keep getting like this every time someone touches you, studying with you is going to be much more fun than I expected." Bellamie enjoyed her discomfort for a moment before taking on a slightly more serious expression.
"Close your eyes. Mana doesn't begin in your fingers. First, you have to recognize it inside yourself."
Gaelira obeyed and felt Bellamie place her other hand over her wrist. Her fingers moved slowly until they found her pulse, causing a tingling sensation Gaelira had to make an effort to ignore.
"Focus on the rhythm," Bellamie continued. "Don't look for something huge. Mana is always moving, even when you don't know how to use it."
At first, Gaelira only felt her heartbeat beneath Bellamie's fingers. Then a different sensation appeared, similar to the warmth that moved through her muscles after training.
She tried to follow it from her arm to her palm, but it disappeared every time she tried to control it.
Bellamie leaned in until she was beside her ear. "Don't chase it. Let it reach the crystal."
Gaelira took a deep breath and relaxed her fingers. For an instant, a small golden light appeared at the center of the stone.
The flash was weak, but it was enough to make her open her eyes. Bellamie was still holding her hand and watching the crystal with obvious satisfaction.
Octavia returned from the platform at that moment and slowed down when she found them so close together. Bellamie slowly released Gaelira's hand, although she kept her fingers on her wrist for one extra second.
As soon as the contact ended, the golden light flickered and disappeared completely.
Bellamie tilted her head, now with a curiosity that felt more genuine than teasing. Then she brought her lips close to Gaelira's ear so the others would not hear.
"How strange. It responded when I touched you, but not when you tried alone."