Leonor and Prince Stephano were met with grey eyes that matched the mage’s silver hair. When he turned, the patch of his mana group was revealed. Leonor saw a sword and knew instantly he specialized in offensive magic.
To the lady’s surprise, Quinn seemed immediately embarrassed at the Prince’s presence and he quickly stood up. The book was hidden inside his robes and he bowed at his waist for the Royal suddenly in front of him.
"I was unaware that you would be here today, Your Highness," Quinn rushed to say. "It’s a bit unfair to surprise me like this."
Leonor was amused and the grin on her face spoke volumes about her thoughts. She raised a dark eyebrow at the Prince who finally met her gaze.
"Would you care to introduce me?" she asked. "How do the two of you know one another?"
"Lady Leonor, this is Quinn Silver," the Prince introduced. "He was my mana partner during my final year at the Academy. He showed such promise with his offensive magic that he studied with upperclassmen mostly."
Quinn had straightened himself out, although the embarrassed expression hadn’t waned.
"Lady Leonor, it’s a pleasure to meet you," he said. "However, His Highness is flattering me too much. Perhaps it was that his magic simply wasn’t advanced enough to warrant another partner."
Without missing a beat, the Prince continued as if his abilities weren’t doubted.
"That’s why I’ve recommended him to be your mana partner this year," Prince Stephano explained. "It won’t be easy, but I have faith in your abilities."
Leonor’s eyes widened and she stared at the mage named Quinn, silently apologizing for being paired with someone as inexperienced as she was. Her self-confidence would plummet if she were a hindrance to someone important to the Prince. Her lack of knowledge of mana would make everything much more difficult.
"Then I look forward to training with you," Quinn responded. "If His Highness can trust your abilities, I have to trust him as well."
Once Quinn was no longer flustered, Leonor could tell how serious of a person he was. Not only was he a good mage according to the Prince, she could tell he was intelligent and well-spoken.
"As a first year scholar, you’ll be spending most of your time in a centralized location on campus," Quinn explained. "Most of the labs you will need are limited to one area because you’ll be learning the basics rather than focusing on your magic category."
As they continued, Quinn was greeted by many people and the Prince took others by surprise. Leonor felt happy to be somewhere she wasn’t the one being watched closely.
"You’re an offensive magic specialist?" Leonor asked the obvious question considering the patch on Quinn’s dark grey robe.
"Yes," he confirmed. "My family is known for having explosive mana. My hope by the time I leave the Academy is to refine my abilities more."
The Prince who acted as more of a bystander finally spoke up.
"Your abilities are refined enough," he said. "Based on your testing scores, you’ll graduate at the top of your class."
Quinn seemed embarrassed by this and Leonor felt amused. The Prince was normally reserved around people except for her and the few times she saw him around Valerio. It seemed there were others he considered friends enough to reveal his true nature.
However, the talk about their specialties made Leonor remember when she first witnessed the Crown Prince’s magic. It raised another question.
"If you were categorized into the enchantment category, how did you make me feel better that time?" Leonor asked, deciding not to reveal to Quinn why she was hurt in the first place. "I understand the Royal Family’s mana is quite special but you must be a gifted healer as well."
They were nearing the end of the tour around campus and the conversation brought them to the front gates.
"You’ll notice your injury didn’t disappear, my lady," the Prince reminded her. "I can enchant you with my magic so you feel better even if you aren’t."
Leonor’s mouth hung open in disbelief. She didn’t know if she should be terrified of him or thankful. All she knew was that she felt better in the moment.
"That’s very unsettling," she admitted. "Although I’ll never complain about feeling better."
"There’s a misconception that enchantment magic specialists can control someone’s thoughts or actions," Quinn interjected. "That has never been recorded in any history. Human experimentation by mages is categorized under dark magic and forbidden, after all."
The Prince let out an even chuckle at the ridiculousness of the conversation. He had been studying as a mage for as long as he could remember. It never once occurred to him to control anything.
"I did have fun as a child by imbuing various objects with magic and allowing them to move on their own," the Prince admitted. "My mother hated when I did that sort of thing."
It was widespread news when the Queen passed away so Quinn and Leonor tread carefully.
"Your magic was established quite early," Leonor realized. "Mine only showed three years ago now."
In unison, the Prince and Quinn said "The Royal Family’s mana is quite impressive" although Quinn’s voice took on a mocking edge. Leonor couldn’t hold back her laughter.
"Now that the tour of the campus is over with, where are we meant to eat?" Leonor asked. "My stomach is growling."
"There are places on campus–"
"Let’s go to a restaurant," Prince Stephano interrupted. "My treat."
Considering he was the most unbelievably wealthy of the three of them, Quinn and Leonor had no qualms with his suggestion.
The Crown Prince led them to a restaurant where they were given the best service simply because of who was guiding them into the restaurant. It was reasonably crowded considering it was dinnertime but they found a table because the Prince was there.
Leonor was thankful as they were given fast service and had plates in front of them after only a few minutes of ordering something. Few words were shared between them once the food was there considering how hungry they were.
The food was so good that even Quinn dropped his reserved facade and ate quickly. Leonor found it amusing, though etiquette was built into her very core. She remained neat despite being so hungry.
The owner eventually came out, thanking the Prince for eating at his humble establishment, and saying their meal was paid for. However, Prince Stephano was still insistent on leaving payment behind.
When the three mages made it outside, the sun was setting and Quinn gave a quick farewell. His dorm was across campus and he didn’t want to arrive after dark.
Prince Stephano and Leonor walked in the opposite direction to her dorm in relative silence compared to before. She noticed that the Prince seemed like he was thinking hard about something.
When they arrived at the main entrance of her dormitory, she noticed the Prince was lingering uncomfortably as if he had a lot to say but didn’t want to say it. His hazel eyes didn’t meet hers as he leaned against the outside of the front door.
"Is something wrong, Your Highness?" she asked gently, trying not to push him unnecessarily.
"I don’t think I’ll see you for a long time after today," Prince Stephano confessed. "I won’t be able to."