Back in the Ventura estate, Rain could be seen sitting next to Eve as she was getting her hair tied up by a maid.
"Can you fight?" Eve asked suddenly.
"Yes, somewhat, I'm a second degree ice mage," he lied partially. After fighting off the boars, he stabilized his core and fashioned himself a set of skills to double as a human mage.
He found that the black ice he naturally produced was–as a part of his nature–strongly infused with dark mana, and with just some suppression, he could hide it, making himself a normal ice mage.
"Oh, that's quite good for a commoner."
Rain was glad she didn't look further into it because despite his perfect disguise, there were no records of his existence; with a quick search–if Evenlynn found it necessary–he would be prosecuted.
"Get dressed in travel clothes. We're going hunting today." Eve told him.
"Hunting?"
"What? Surprised that a noble does some 'dirty work?'" she responded snarkily.
"N, no…" Rain stuttered.
"I still have to train during the time I'm away from the academy, but the duties of the household have been holding me back. I need to get some real experience, and there's only a week left until I have to return."
"The academy?" Rain asked.
"You don't know?" Eve tilted her head to the side demurely.
The maid who was tying her hair struggled a little and shyly asked the young miss to remain still.
"I've only lived in a small town all my life," Rain replied hesitantly, unsure if she was going to get suspicious of him.
"Oh. You're quite talented for a small-town citizen."
"Yes, in my town I was the strongest… and I would often help with the hunting." He was lying through his teeth hoping that she would believe him.
"That's good. I won't have to protect you then," She smirked.
Several hours later, he found himself running across a grass plain in Ventura with a pack of second tier monkey ape-creatures chasing after him.
What the fuck!? Where did she even find so many!!
There were at least 30 of them, and he was the bait apparently.
"Just keep running!" Eve spoke gently through a small mana communicator as if she were sipping tea on the other side.
This bitch!
He could see that smile on her face even though she wasn't yet on site.
He was falling behind now, and a larger ape with a coat of dark green hair lept at him trying to grab his leg. With a small hop, the grab missed him barely, but if the ape had just been a little stronger, he would have been torn to pieces.
Close!
I can see her!
"Can you help me out now!" Rain shouted, panting.
"Just a little bit more!" Eve called back.
'A little bit… a little bit more…'
'Now!'
When Rain arrived just fifteen meters before Even, the ground right below him began to glow with runes.
He quickly escaped the formation, but the apes weren't so unfortunate. A barrier shot up around the, trapping them within the formation. Then, the floor began to melt into molten earth, burning the verdant apes who tried to claw themselves out.
Soon, it was all over. Nothing but charred flesh and bone remained as Eve cast another spell to send all the cores up from the earth which the apes had sunk into.
"How did you do that?" Rain asked, still panting.
"It's a spell matrix, a set of prearranged spells cast as runes onto a medium, in this case, the earth, so that they can all be activated at once."
"Teach me," Rain said resolutely.
"Oh." She had not expected that response out of him, instead only believing him to only be surprised.
"Some time. Here, take these." She handed him five green monster cores.
"No, no, I can't…" Rain tried to refuse. It was unbefitting for a 'commoner' to accept gifts from a noble.
"Take them. You need to at least get to the third stage before I can teach you anything useful. Most human's mana is too low to cast spells with such effect, nevermind multiple."
"Ah… thank you," Rain shyly accepted, but deep down he was jubilant.
"Also, you can really run for a mage… makes me wonder if you're really human or not…" she said with a smugish grin on her face.
"!" Had she found out? No… no my disguise should be perfect…
Before he could question himself any further, Eve giggled a little and flicked him on the forehead.
"Just kidding, why so serious? Let's go back and take a break."
Rain sighed and followed. This lady just has to get me all worried for nothing!
*********
After returning to the estate, Rain sat down in the bath and let the warm water soak into him. Next to him were the five glowing green cores Eve had given him earlier.
He grabbed one, it liquified, and the energy seamlessly flowed into him. Two, three, four, five… It had taken him about an hour to absorb all of the energy. Normally, for someone at the same tier it would take almost the entire day, but he had believed it to be quite normal not knowing much about the average person at this stage.
After leaving the church in Gull, he had taken up a new identity. He was still Rain, but he had made himself a little taller, his hair was pitch black that even light seemed to be absorbed into it, but he still had those pitch black eyes. To the common eye, he was just a mage–a very handsome one at that.
Sigh
He sat in the bath for a little longer, but before he was about to leave, he heard the door opening.
"!"
"Who's there? I'm taking a bath!" He spoke across the steam.
But before he could react any farther, Eve appeared in front of him in the bath with a towel around her.
"Wha… What are you doing!" Rain shouted at her.
"What? Am I not welcome here…?" Eve retorted, unraveling the towel to reveal her tender figure and pressing her chest against his as she submerged herself in the water.
"No.. no! This is sexual assault lady!" Rain tried to distance himself but his back was already against the tub's border. Eve had positioned herself so that he could not get away, and he could feel something rising below his waist.
Her body, covered in water, rubbed against his as she melted on his chest.
Is she insane! We just met!
If I'm the devil then she's a succubus in sheeps clothes!