Setting aside Lorin’s frequent daily screams, his summer break was actually immensely fulfilling.
Once evening arrived, he would naturally open the Two-Way Mirror with Fleur, enjoying sweet, cozy chats that felt like romantic late-night meals for two.
When mealtimes came, he enjoyed delicious lunches or dinners with his mother.
Of course, his father Croke would join in at times, though more often than not, Croke felt like a third wheel, unable to break into the conversation between Lorin and Breya.
Although Lorin tried to draw Croke into the fold, Breya never gave Croke a chance to speak.
In Breya’s words:
“There’s plenty of time to talk to him, but every day spent talking with my little Lorin is one less day we have together!”
“Besides, who wants to hear his politician’s conspiracy theories?”
As for the daytime…
That was spent almost entirely with Butler Raynt.
From the red dragon’s spine, he continuously drew forth fire, malice, and draconic might.
From the blood of the sacred unicorn, he gained insight into holy power and the capacity for love.
From the blood of the Storm Titan, he forged gales, thunder, and colossal titan strength…
The soul invisibility of the Thestral, the erudition and wisdom of the Goblin King, the phoenix’s rebirth from fire…
Apart from the traits of these magical creatures, Lorin also learned numerous practical applications of the Knight’s Breathing Technique from Butler Raynt!
First was the basic usage of the knight’s sword.
Lorin himself had already been quite a skilled fencer before his blood was drained by the Book of Gryffindor.
With his natural talent, learning the Knight’s Swordplay presented no difficulty at all.
As for advanced swordsmanship techniques, neither Raynt nor his mother was willing to teach them.
In Raynt’s words:
“Advanced swordsmanship touches upon personal comprehension of one’s breathing technique and one’s individual philosophy on swordcraft.
Rashly teaching it would only corrupt Young Master’s development.”
Seeing that, Lorin naturally didn’t pester them.
Besides, as long as the Book of Gryffindor kept draining his blood, it was bound to reveal its subtle sword techniques sooner or later!
Second were basic combat skills.
Much like wizarding duels, the training focused on evading attacks, launching strikes, and countering.
As someone who had won Beauxbatons’ three major dueling events—the Etiquette Cup, the Dueling Cup, and the War Cup—for four consecutive years, Lorin possessed remarkably sharp combat instincts!
The Etiquette Cup, true to its name, was a ceremonial noble duel emphasizing light contact, utilizing decorative, non-lethal magic meant primarily for spectacle.
The Dueling Cup was pure wizarding magical combat; apart from severe lethal spells, standard jinxes and hexes were permitted—much like wizard duels at Hogwarts.
As for the War Cup, that was Beauxbatons’ signature event.
Its defining feature was pure chaos—a free-for-all melee involving a crowd of wizards.
The last person standing was crowned the champion of the War Cup.
Thus, after adjusting slightly to the rhythm and technique of armed melee combat, Lorin was able to wield his knight’s sword skillfully enough to parry old Raynt’s attacks!
As for whether old Raynt was pulling his punches?
Who could say?
Finally, there was what interested Lorin most: the use of Battle Qi!
According to old Raynt, Battle Qi was essentially the external projection of a knight’s internal energy.
Its destructive power fell short of direct physical strikes, but it excelled in flexibility, offering greater range and a wider area of effect…
Having mastered the technique of Battle Qi, Lorin began experimenting by infusing certain energies of his own into it.
For instance, blending the red dragon’s fire into his Battle Qi produced an effect akin to dragon breath!
Or fusing the phoenix’s fire into it, creating blazing flames imbued with vibrant vitality…
Naturally, while Lorin had endless fun playing with these practical variations of Battle Qi every day, he never neglected the fundamental practice of his breathing technique for a single day!
Regarding *The Heavenly Scripture*, Lorin’s understanding had grown far beyond the surface level.
At least, it was no longer as shallow as it had been in the beginning.
According to Lorin’s line of thought, if he continued researching it, he might eventually manifest a unique Battle Qi of his own, just like old Raynt.
“It really gives me something to look forward to.
But I’ll have plenty of time for that at Hogwarts.”
On a late August night, Lorin rubbed his hands together and stored the Book of Gryffindor back into his ring.
Then he pulled out the vibrating Two-Way Mirror:
“Darling!”
“Darling~”
“Pfft, hahaha!”
“Giggle…”
Though it wasn’t the first time they had spoken “Darling” in unison, neither Lorin nor Fleur found it tedious; if anything, they considered it a sweet little spice in their lives.
“You’re leaving France tomorrow, right, darling?”
Fleur placed the Two-Way Mirror on the table and rested her chin in her hands, her deep blue eyes gazing affectionately at Lorin.
“Mhm, leaving tomorrow afternoon.
Hogwarts starts term the day after…”
“Alright.
I hope your new job doesn’t become an obstacle to us talking.”
“And if it does?”
“Then I’ll come to Hogwarts and cross right over it!”
Fleur pursed her lips, and her hands supporting her chin slipped slightly, almost knocking over the Two-Way Mirror.
“Be careful, Fleur, darling.”
As Fleur leaned back to adjust her position, Lorin caught sight of her silver-white satin nightdress.
Even though it was only a brief glimpse of a smooth, snow-white shoulder and soft white lace lining her collar, Lorin was left completely spellbound.
A lover always exuded irresistible charm, no matter what!
“Have you stared enough?”
Having adjusted her posture at some point, Fleur looked at Lorin’s spellbound face with a mischievous expression:
“Should I pull it down a bit more?”
“Ahem…
no, no need.
I have to wake up early tomorrow for my final training session.”
“Tsk, hard-working Mr.
Montmorency.
Goodnight then?”
“Mhm, goodnight, darling.”
“Once you reach Hogwarts, remember to let me know you arrived safely.”
“Mhm, let me know when you’re back at Beauxbatons too.”
“Don’t worry!
…
After lulling Fleur to sleep, Lorin didn’t turn off the light this time; instead, he sat back down at his desk.
“Almost done.
Let’s carve a pattern onto the mirror frame…
Mother seems to like tulips…”
The next morning.
Just as Lorin had anticipated, Breya’s mood was terrifyingly gloomy.
Although she continued to tend to Lorin with meticulous care, her volatile temper toward the servants made it abundantly clear that Breya didn’t want Lorin to leave.
Whenever Lorin was about to leave home, Breya’s “Lorin Syndrome” always flared up for a few days.
“Mother, don’t be sad.”
Lorin patted Breya’s hand and pulled out a mirror:
“Bear with me for a second, Mother Breya.”
Then, under Breya’s puzzled gaze, Lorin gently pricked her left ring finger with a silver needle.
After letting a drop of blood fall onto the mirror, Lorin quickly healed her wound and set the mirror in front of Breya:
“Mother, this is a Two-Way Mirror I made.”
“A Two-Way Mirror?”
“Whenever Mother calls my name, if I’m free, I’ll appear in the mirror so we can speak face-to-face from afar.”
“Really?!”
A look of pleasant surprise lit up Breya’s face, and she immediately called out to test it.
Sure enough, Lorin produced an identical mirror and set it down in front of himself.
Mhm, this one was newly made too—not the one he used to chat with Fleur.
The mirror he shared with Fleur was carved with silver-white roses, just as Fleur had requested.
Breya looked down, and sure enough, Lorin’s handsome face appeared in her mirror.
“Oh, Mother loves you so much, darling Lorin!”
Breya reached out, repeatedly pinching and stroking Lorin’s cheeks, her doting affection overflowing instantly.
“How should Mother reward my sensible child…”
“Mother, it’s the least I could do…”
“Quiet, Raynt!”
“Madam, I am here.”
Raynt emerged swiftly from a corner, bowing respectfully to Breya.
“Bring over the thing I bought for darling Lorin last week.
I was originally planning to give it to him as a Christmas present…”
“No matter, I’ll just pick out another gift for Christmas.”
“Yes, Madam.”
At her command, Raynt turned and left, returning shortly with a delicate little gift box.
He untied the ribbon right in front of Lorin.
“Mother, this…”
Lorin stared wide-eyed at the gift before him, his noble composure momentarily failing him.