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Her attempt to coin travel to Dawson’s lab to continue her tests on her scar removal potion failed. She knew what it meant before his scroll arrived seconds later.

The shields around the estate have been reset. Obryn set up a lab for you.

Dawson

Even his writing looked angry. The l’s were sharper than normal, slicing through the note. She wanted to apologize but couldn’t because he was avoiding her entirely.

During combat, he requested a different training partner. When Mira walked into the training hall, Amelia was waiting for her. Dawson stood on the other side of the room, trading sophisticated dark spells with Harrington and Evren.

“All right, let’s see how your control signifier is working out for you,” Amelia said.

While the rest of the class was practicing advanced spells to kill Feeder demons and methods to avoid their sharp teeth, Mira stared at a much less intimidating opponent: an apple, perched on a chair.

“Precision is very important,” Amelia added. “Just shoot a single hole into the apple.”

Because a Wielder didn’t have unlimited Dark Magic, a huge part of combat was utilizing their powers efficiently. Destroying a small object required less power than a larger one, and much less than killing a person or a demon.

Mira stared at the two straight lines of her control signifier on her index finger. The last time she used Dark Magic—the first and only time—it had exploded out of her with rage. Nothing about it had felt controlled.

Her eyes wandered over to where Dawson stood. Dark mist shot like sharp daggers from his palm.

Amelia snapped her fingers. “Hello! Stop daydreaming and shoot the apple.”

Mira closed her eyes and focused on the strand of her dark power in her mind. She grabbed it, opened her eyes, lifted her hand, and let the power go. It tumbled out of her like an angry storm cloud. With a loud bang, the apple and chair exploded into a million pieces. Several students turned around and chuckled.

“Well,” Amelia sighed and put her hands on her hips. “I guess we have more training to do. Let’s start with larger objects that require less precision.”

Behind them, Obryn lifted his hand and the room full of students fell silent. “Combat is an art form that combines your knowledge of demonology and signifiers. You’ve learned about Feeder demons in theory, but it’s quite different encountering them in real life.”

Despite not having started her assignment on the demons, she knew enough about Feeders from her healing background. They were fast, and their main goal was to sink their teeth into their victims to extract their powers. Their spit consisted of acid, burning through flesh. She knew quite a bit about healing victims of Feeder attacks, but she had no idea how to defeat one.

Metal wheels rattled against the floor as two teaching assistants pushed a cage into the training hall. Mira held her breath.

A Feeder demon strained against the shackles keeping it restricted to one side of the cage. It snarled, snapping its sharp black teeth. Black veins wriggled under skin so pale it looked almost bluish-gray. Even on all fours, it stood taller than a human. It jumped up, locking its claws around the metal bars.

The room had gone entirely quiet. Students stepped back, exchanging glances between hushed whispers.

Amelia leaned in closer. “That’s not exactly what I had in mind when I said you needed a larger training object.”

Obryn walked to the cage and the Feeder lashed forward, but the chains yanked it back. It howled and screamed, sounds that were wholly unnatural.

The spikes on a Feeder’s back were laced with poison. Not deadly but they caused pain and could immobilize a person.

“What would your strategy be to kill a Feeder?” Obryn asked.

Several hands went up, and the Highmage called on one. “Yes, Mr. Adams?”

“Internum signifier. Implode his heart.”

Obryn shook his head. “Feeders hunt in packs. Internum signifier requires a lot of your power and concentration. Too risky.”

Another student with four signifiers said: “Immobilize it with my pain signifier.”

Before the Highmage could answer, Dawson scoffed loudly.

“Mr. Dawson,” Obryn said, walking closer. “Perhaps you would like to share with the class what your strategy would be?”

“I’d use two signifiers. Control and sin. Control allows me to harness power quickly; sin amplifies it.”