Steele’s voice followed after me. “I confirmed I couldn’t remove the dagger from her possession—it just appeared back in her hand.”
Noah chuckled, offering me an arched brow. “Now that must have been amusing to watch. I’m sad I missed it.”
“It was pretty funny,” I admitted, already feeling far more comfortable around Noah than I expected.
There was a paternal sort of warmth to him, almost what I would imagine a grandfather to be like. His demeanor was a refreshing change from what I’d experienced with my own parents in Alfemir.
Steele offered an annoyed grunt, and I watched as he stepped back away from the cabin. “I’ll be back in an hour or so to pick her up for combat training if that works for you.”
“Sure, sure,” Noah mused and turned toward the building, holding out his hand to enter. “Please join me inside, Kieran.”
Looking back at Steele, I noticed he had already turned and was striding down the stone pathway from the cabin, wasting no time. I stepped through the doorway after Noah and looked around the space, finding it nothing like I would have expected on the inside.
“This is way bigger than I thought it would be,” I admitted while examining the dark, forest-green walls and black floors. They seemed to be made of a mat-like material, similar to what you would see in a training space. There were no rustic, cabin-like qualities to the inside, contrary to what the outside appearance might lead one to believe. Instead, large glass windows spanned both the right and left side of the building, bringing in as much natural light as possible, while showcasingwhat looked like nearly thirty feet of training space between them.
In the back of the building was a dividing wall of glass that separated the space into what appeared to be a small office or library. It featured a massive wooden desk and floating shelves that were stacked with numerous leather-bound texts, though they were in a bit of a disheveled state. Somehow, despite the little I knew about him, this space seemed to fit Noah perfectly. It felt lived in and well-loved.
“Bring the dagger, but please remove your shoes,” he said, nodding toward a bench next to the door. I slipped off my shoes before following him across the mats, finding the serenity of the space a nice reprieve from the chaos we had been experiencing with five people and a wyvern living in one house.
“Interested in any water or tea?” he offered, before smiling. “I’ve been told I make the best green tea out of everyone here.”
“No, thank you,” I declined as we stepped through a glass door into his office space. Quickly, I realized that could have come off as rude. He seemed excited to share the tea with me, and I outright rejected his offer of hospitality. My eyes widened in alarm as my fingers twined together in front of me. “I don’t mean to be rude, I’m just a bit on edge about this entire thing.”
“I understand,” Noah nodded, his expression serious. He motioned for me to sit across from him as he rounded the desk, so I sank into the offered chair as he sat, leaning his elbows on his desk with clasped hands. “I hope you don’t consider it intrusive, but I did overhear what you said to Steele about the failed placement tests. If it makes you feel better, I think today will be a very different experience for you. All I ask is that you go into it with an open mind.”
His words immediately filled my chest with hope, but they also filled my mind with questions.
I asked a string of them in quick succession, curious about what awaited me. “What exactly are we doing today? Is there something specific you’re testing me for? Steele mentioned you would be my new teacher. I’m assuming this has to do with the dagger?”
He let out a chuckle and held his hands up. “Calm yourself, I will explain. Yes, it has to do with the dagger and finding your affinity, but I won’t specify whatexactlyI am testing for because I don’t want you to overthink it. I want this process to be as natural as possible so nothing interrupts the connection you have to your innate magic.”
I eyed the weapon before taking a deep breath and nodding, knowing that if I was going to do this I would give it absolutely one hundred percent.
“Alright,” I looked back up at Noah, ready to find out once and for all if things would be different here. There was no sense in putting it off. “Let’s do this. I’m ready.”
I had little to lose when it came to pride or ego since I’d failed so many tests before. But when we walked back into the training center, I couldn’t deny that an odd sense of calmness and a confidence I wasn’t used to rushed over me.
“We are first going to focus on your physical and mental connection to the dagger before we move onto anything more complicated.”
“Your confidence in us moving onto anything more complicated is helping my nerves a bit,” I offered honestly, already finding this to be such a different experience compared to the attitude of the majority of instructors in Alfemir. In the end, it seemed that they had all given up on me…or enjoyed watching me fail.
Even if I walked out of here without an affinity, I’d never forget Noah’s kindness.
His lips thinned as he regarded me. “It is far from unfounded, Kieran. I’m so sorry anyone made you feel like you had nothing to offer in terms of affinities. I can tell that you have magic within you. We just have to figure out the key to tapping into it and finding the correct home for it. Alfemir doesn’t recognize all affinities anymore, thus not giving you a fair chance at finding yours. Have you heard of dead affinities?”
My heart thudded with excitement, and I nodded. “Gabe told me that his ability is one.”
“Yes,” he agreed. “Gabe has a very powerful affinity, but if I’m right my dear, yours is even greater.”
My eyes nearly pricked with tears at his kind words before I forced myself to stow those emotions away until later. I’d never had anyone say anything like that to me with so much confidence, and after five years of telling myself that I was a late bloomer and would eventually figure it out, it felt damn good to hear someone else say that having an affinity was more than a possibility.
“If you will,” he motioned toward the door leading back into his office from the training center, “please go stand near the door and face it. I am going to set up targets throughout the room, and I don’t want you to initially see where they are.”
Instantly, images of the Angelic Army placement test fill my mind—of my failed attempt to hit a target with a bow and arrow—but I quickly forced them away. This was a new moment. A new chance to prove that they were all wrong about me. And I was going to fucking seize it.After reaching the door, I examined the dagger in my hand, feeling it warm against my skin in a way that felt comforting. I hung onto that sensation and a few minutes later, Noah appeared next to me, facing the room while I kept my gaze on the door in front of me.
“I have placed three targets at a variety of distances from you and throughout different parts of the room,” he explained, andexcitement began to tingle within me. “I want you to focus on your connection to the dagger in your hand andwillit find the smallest one of the three. Let it guide you before you release it.”
My brows furrowed in confusion, “How am I supposed to imagine hitting a target when I don’t know where they are?” I wasn’t even sure which way to turn or aim, nor what size any of them were.
