The confidence Gaelira had gained from lighting the crystal lasted exactly until she left the Fundamentals of Magic classroom.
Bellamie walked beside her with a satisfied smile, as if she considered that small victory partially hers, while Octavia checked the schedule to find the way to the next class.
Students from all three houses moved together through the corridors of the central tower, still discussing the results of the exercise.
Gaelira barely listened to the conversations. For the first time since waking in that world, the next subject did not seem designed to expose everything she did not know.
"Armed Combat," Bellamie read over Octavia's shoulder. Then she gave Gaelira an amused look and added, "Finally, a class where you won't need someone to hold your hand."
Gaelira remembered the warmth of her fingers and tightened her grip on the strap of her bag. "With a little luck, I won't need anyone sitting that close either."
"I wouldn't trust luck too much," Bellamie replied, walking ahead before Gaelira could answer.
The combat courtyard occupied a wide terrace surrounded by stone walls.
Several racks held wooden swords, staffs, unstrung bows, and shields of different sizes.
At the center waited a tall man wearing a gray coat open over a black shirt. A narrow scar crossed his left eyebrow, and his dark hair was tied into a thick braid that reached the middle of his back.
Six small bronze bells were tied between the strands at regular intervals. Although the wind moved the end of the braid, none of them made a sound.
The thirty-six students took their places in front of him. Clarke stood among the Moonveil students, watching the weapon racks with visible impatience.
When she noticed Gaelira, her green eyes remained on her for several seconds before looking away.
Gaelira almost greeted her, but remembered how insistently her rival had denied any interest after the duel and decided not to give her another excuse to get angry.
The man waited until everyone fell silent. "Garrick Rook. I'll be your Armed Combat professor this year." He did not raise his voice or make a more elaborate introduction.
He simply pointed toward the training weapons and continued. "Before I teach you anything, I need to find out how much you can do when no one explains the rules."
Rook lifted his braid and showed them the six bells. This time he deliberately shook them, producing a ringing sound that traveled across the courtyard.
Several students laughed, but the laughter disappeared when the professor placed one hand behind his back and pointed toward the racks with the other.
Gaelira chose a wooden sword whose weight was close to the weapons she had used in her previous life.
Clarke took a slightly longer and more flexible blade, while Octavia chose a short staff.
Bellamie picked a thin rod, although the way she held it made it clear that she preferred to keep some distance.
The first attack began without any signal. A Stormwing student rushed toward Rook, confident that he could surprise him while the others were still choosing their weapons.
The professor shifted one foot, leaned his torso aside, and allowed the sword to pass beside his shoulder.
Another student tried to reach him from the opposite side, but Rook turned between them and made their weapons collide. His bells remained completely still.
The failure did not discourage the others. Six students attacked from different directions and forced Rook to step back, but none managed to get close to his braid.
The professor did not block the strikes. He avoided them by the smallest possible distances, moving only as much as necessary for each weapon to pass beside him.
Whenever someone tried to circle around him, he changed position and used another student as an obstacle. Within a few minutes, the challenge turned into a disorganized chase.
Gaelira did not rush to join in. She remained near the edge of the courtyard, watching Rook's feet instead of following his torso.
The professor seemed to move without effort, but he repeated certain patterns. He stepped back with his right foot against high attacks, turned left when two students approached together, and protected his braid by always keeping it behind one shoulder.
He was not invulnerable. He was simply using the students' lack of coordination against them.
"Are you planning to stand there watching for the entire class?" Clarke asked as she passed beside her.
"I'm waiting for an opportunity."
Clarke followed her gaze toward Rook and frowned when she understood what she was doing. "If you need someone to clear a path for you, you could ask."
"I thought you didn't care about helping me."
"I don't," Clarke replied, adjusting both hands around her sword. "But listening to your excuses when you fail would be even more annoying."
Before Gaelira could decide whether that counted as an offer, Clarke moved toward the professor. Her first attack was direct and fast, threatening enough to force Rook to pay attention.
The sword did not touch him, but it forced him to retreat exactly as Gaelira had predicted.
She began to move.
She crossed the space between the students while Rook avoided another combination from Clarke.
Instead of aiming the sword toward his body, Gaelira targeted the lowest bell directly.
The professor saw her approaching and changed direction, but had to move around Clarke to avoid her flexible blade. For an instant, his braid was exposed.
Gaelira closed the distance and extended her arm. The wooden tip stopped only a few centimeters from the bronze.
Rook caught the sword between two fingers.
The movement was so fast that Gaelira barely saw it. She tried to pull the weapon back, but the professor held it still while studying her stance.
Beside her, Clarke stopped her next attack to avoid hitting Gaelira. The rest of the students began to separate when they realized someone had finally come close to completing the challenge.
"Good reading," Rook acknowledged. He released the sword and glanced briefly toward Clarke. "You used her offense to force me along a specific path."
Clarke crossed her arms. "Then technically we did more than the others."
"Your attack was useful," Rook replied. "But she was the one who understood how to take advantage of it."
Clarke's satisfaction disappeared immediately. Gaelira hid a smile and stepped back to recover some distance, but the professor raised one hand before she could return to the others.
His six bells remained silent, but his attention stayed fixed on her.
"Veyr," Rook ordered, pointing toward the center of the courtyard. "Repeat that last movement."
Gaelira looked toward Clarke, expecting the professor to call her as well. However, Rook slowly shook his head.
"This time, you'll do it alone."