I'd Give Up The World For You

Juliet kept an eye on those two more than she already had been after hearing what Ciara had to say but she still had no idea what they were actually up to. There was no way of knowing what they were planning but she did notice something rather suspicious the following Thursday. 

Sarabeth was in one of her literature classes that day and she put on a dramatic show about having her stomach hurt so she could go to the nurse's office. As someone who used to employ such tactics to get out of things herself Juliet could see through it in an instant. But because the rest of the class was watching and seemed to be falling for it she had to let the girl go. 

She was dying to know what Sarabeth was up to but didn't have the slightest idea where she might be going. It was doubtful that Ira would ditch a class but especially not Magical Theory, which was what he had right now. 

Juliet knew that because she had talked to the teacher, Alec Lucien, in the staffroom once. Out of all the staff they were they only ones who happened to be in their twenties. Everyone else was much older. 

He seemed like a pretty cool guy and she had wondered if she might be able to potentially use him to help achieve her goal considering he was a mage too and had a degree of influence over three of her heroes. Their break times typically didn't line up though so if she was going to say anything to him she wasn't sure when she would be able to do it. 

Sarabeth didn't come back for the rest of the period and there was nothing Juliet could do about it. She still had essays to grade as well so she sighed, went to get some lunch, and returned to the classroom to get on that. 

She was dying to know what was going on but had to do her job here or she would be kicked out. Then she wouldn't be able to get close to the students she needed to at all. 

Later when classes were done for the day she saw Sarabeth and Ira furiously whispering to each other while walking across campus. She tried getting close enough to hear them but only managed to catch a few snippets. 

"…apparently Krae's older brother and father were both in the capital recently to help someone called the Lone Wolf as repayment for something. There weren't any other details," Sarabeth whispered conspiratorially. 

Ira's brow furrowed. "The Lone Wolf? Who is that?"

"Absolutely no idea. But if he was in the capital wouldn't that make him Mirean? Why would some wind mages feel indebted to a Mirean?" 

"Maybe he helped them during the war."

"But how?" Sarabeth asked. "What could one Mirean do that would be helpful enough to make people who were recently at war with us be so grateful? To make that sort of difference they would have to be very powerful, very influential, or both."

"An officer?" Ira wondered aloud. "They would have to be pretty high up the chain though."

"That's true…but why would a high-ranking officer help people from Zel in return for a favor? And what's with the code name? There would be no real need for something like that in a private letter no one else was going to see."

"…a private letter that someone else DID see."

Sarabeth waved her hand impatiently. "That's beside the point. I want to know what this Lone Wolf needed wind mages for in the capital. But we don't exactly have a way to find out without confronting Krae directly and I seriously doubt he's going to tell us…"

The two of them walked far enough away that Juliet couldn't hear anymore without chasing them down. A crowd had appeared between her and them so she couldn't get back to where she was without pushing people out of her way. She couldn't exactly do that without causing a scene so she very reluctantly stopped in her tracks and trudged back to the classroom thinking over everything she had heard. 

Wind mages. The Lone Wolf. Repayment. The war in Zel. 

Juliet was putting together a picture she did not like. She knew that Rukelion Blaze had been involved in the war with Zel.  It was entirely possible he manipulated things to his advantage so he would be able to get the wind mages on his side to help him take over the capital. 

On one hand that absolutely seemed like his style but on the other it didn't. He ruthlessly got rid of his allies once he was through with them, not unlike the king of Mirea. Ironic considering how much he hated the man. 

It seemed that Sarabeth had ditched class in order to break into Krae's dorm room looking for answers to…what exactly? Why were they looking into the war?

This was becoming more confusing by the minute. Those two were working together trying to figure something out but Juliet had no idea what. A couple of fourteen-year-old schoolkids shouldn't care about things like war. What had even given them the idea?

More specifically, what had given Ira the idea? He had clearly started this and thought Sarabeth knew something. That had to be what she had been holding over his head that Ciara heard about. 

Now they were working together but Juliet didn't know what their end goal was. Could she potentially use this to her advantage or no? 

She couldn't let them know she had been spying on them but it was quite possible she had the information they were looking for. How was she supposed to let them know that without coming across as a total creep? 

This could work in her favor but it could also totally backfire. And that was without factoring in Krae. He was a loyal person; the only reason he suggested forming a party to take down the Flame in the first place was because his clan had been decimated. 

If Rukelion Blaze had somehow contributed to saving it from the Mireans—even if it had been done with ulterior motives—he wasn't likely to be willing to help take him down. That could be a major problem. 

Krae was a vital member of the team. He was the muscle, excelling in both hand-to-hand combat and swordsmanship in addition to magic. What would they do if they had to go into this without his help?

Juliet's overthinking wasn't leading her anywhere so she rather glumly ended up going to the bakery for a pick-me-up the next morning since she didn't have any classes to teach. It wasn't the same as the one back in the capital or even Daisy's baking.

She missed Daisy. Her friend was probably in a world of trouble right now. The reminder only made her feel worse.

To her surprise, she ran into Alec Lucien in line. "Well, if it isn't Professor Gallagher!" he greeted brightly. "Why so glum?"

"It feels like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders. I was hoping that some sugar might perk me up," she found herself admitting for some reason. 

His near-blinding smile turned into a frown. "What's going on?"

Juliet had been wanting to talk to him and potentially get his help but she also didn't want him to think she was completely crazy. She needed to phrase this correctly. Not as if she was someone in a novel but as if she was a bystander who saw something crazy. 

"Professor Lucien, you're somewhat of an expert when it comes to magic, aren't you?"

"I don't know about 'expert' but I do know more than most. Why do you ask? Is the problem you're facing magical in nature?" he asked curiously. 

"Sort of," she hedged. "Can you promise to keep this between us?"

Lucien seemed to catch onto the seriousness of the matter based on her tone and nodded. "Why don't we take this somewhere more private after we get our food. You can tell me what's going on then."

Juliet nodded gratefully. It was really nice of him to hear her out and want to help after only meeting her once. She hadn't expected things to be so easy. It was about time something about this ongoing ridiculous situation was!

She got herself a raspberry tart while he got a chocolate-covered croissant. They took their spoils and headed to a nearby park that was largely abandoned this time of day since most people were working. It was better to talk out here than in the middle of a store where customers were constantly coming and going. 

Lucien looked at her expectantly once she finished her raspberry tart and she sighed. Here goes nothing. 

"Have you ever met a fire mage?"

"No, since I've never been in contact with royalty of any sort. Fire mages are all either royals or members of the high nobility like dukes…if there are even any left. Is the problem you're having with a fire mage?" he asked in disbelief. 

"Yes. He's dangerously strong and on the warpath. I know I can't stop him on my own so I came to the academy hoping to recruit mages who might be able to stop him," Juliet confessed.. "I haven't had much luck with that so far."