#though i particularly like how malleus' part turned out even if it's choppy lol

[advernia]

WHAT CHANGED YOUR BELIEF(S)?

ONE —

There is nothing you can do when it comes to height. Advantage or disadvantage, only one can apply. But that is all to it - the rest of a fight will depend wholly on your efforts.

That was true. Sort of, kind of, maybe. But that did nothing to calm the irritation he'd always felt for those above him, quite literally.

Honor in battle is subjective. What one would call underhanded or dishonorable is the break of a stalemate for others. A chance to find an opening. Or perhaps it is simply a strategy. To make it simple... in the heat of battle, your will to win or survive shall become your drive.

It sounded all pretty dramatic. Not like he'd find himself in a life or death situation anytime soon, but... yeah, he'll never know. There were all sorts of people in Night Raven College. Who's to say that he wouldn't end up fighting a couple of them in the course of four years?

Remember that in a fight, you should not take anything for granted. Again, your height would prove to be a disadvantage against taller opponents, but do not take it as a liability. Use your smaller frame to your benefit. Do not dismiss anything as useless or impossible until you have tried it.

He stares at the length of his arms, the stretch of his legs. So maybe, if just maybe, he doesn't get taller one day... he had to rely on what was left of him. He's not that burly or that strong at all. Stamina maybe average. But he could improve. He had to improve.

Epel stares at the setting sun, at the long stretch of ground as far as the eye can see. He pushes himself off the grass and moves a steady pace forward, a steady jog onwards.

"Alright... gotta head back to the dorm!"

TWO —

When asked what he makes of the fae, he speaks of the legacies they have, of what they have done until they grew great enough to create the home he lives in, the great Valley of Thorns.

When asked what he makes of the mermen, he speaks of how wide the waters flow onto every area of Twisted Wonderland, of the way mermen far and wide have inhabited each part of the seas and turned it into their homes.

When asked what he makes of the beastmen, he speaks of the wide breadth of their species and their capabilities, of how they are able to uphold generations of withstanding tradition by making their philosophies into the core foundation of their individual societies.

When asked what he makes of the ghosts, he speaks of the traces of history given form, of the strange manner that they are able to exist time forwards but are fragments of what was backwards.

Ask him of others, as well - he will speak in the words of history and of time. He answers in a manner that does not address the question in itself, but what he says urges an opinion, encourages an image to be formed. Create your own answer from his response, it appears.

But when asked what he makes of humans, he speaks differently. Vaguely, even. The color he uses to describe the fae, the shrewdness he notes from the mermen, the energy he attributes to the beastmen, the elusiveness he points to the ghosts... he gives no similar remarks of them to mankind.

What then, does he truly make of humankind?

THREE —

It's like... what time was it? Kalim turns his head to one side of the room, where a clock hung from above the classroom doorway. Oh, eight minutes left. Eight minutes till class. Basic Astrology class. Basic Astrology class and its -

"Oh man, it's nearly time," he says with a small laugh, fingers moving about in small random gestures. Sitting beside him, Silver gives a glance with eyes half open.

"You seem jittery," Silver covers his mouth briefly, letting out a small yawn before speaking again. "Is something the matter, Kalim?"

"Oh, nothing's wrong! You know, not wrong wrong. It's just that Astrology's next, that's all!"

"I see. I didn't know you liked Astrology."

"Haha, it's alright, I guess!" Kalim scratches the back of his head, eyes flitting now and then to the doorway. "I'm real nervous about the quiz today, though."

Silver stares blankly at Kalim. "... Quiz?"

Kalim stares back, wide-eyed. "Uh, yeah. Today."

The two stare at each other for a few more seconds in silence until Kalim takes out his textbook from his bag, flipping through pages quickly.

"Don't you worry, Silver! I'm sure we can go over some of the content together! There's still some time!"

"Th-that would be helpful, thanks."

Kalim stops at a page, messy notes scattered among the margins of the paper. Silver eyes the circled words and underlined phrases too, skimming through the footnotes under them.

"Can you read my writing? Sorry if it's a bit of a mess! I tried putting my notes on a notebook, but I still ended up writing on my book last night anyway..."

"Ah, no, it's fine. You've written quite a lot, though. You seem to have studied hard for this."

"Haha, you think? It was my first time pulling an all-nighter on my own, too! There's still some parts I can't understand well, like this section, but I think this portion says something like this..."

FOUR —

"Jaaamilll!"

The loud scream echoes across the corridor, finds its way into the kitchens, slips itself into Jamil's ears. Any second now, Jamil sighed as he kept stirring the pot in front of him. Oh right, did I add the...

The sound of hurried footsteps getting louder, then they stop.

"Jamil!"

"Kalim," Jamil replies dryly, sparing a quick look at the doorway before reaching out for a bottle of spice. "What is it."

"Hey, hey! Oh, that smells good! Is it dinner? But before that!" Kalim steps a few paces behind Jamil, grinning. "Did you guys have that quiz in Astrology today?"

"We did," Jamil pops the bottle open and shakes it down a few times, a reddish powder sprinkling down onto the stew. Satisfied, he closes the bottle and sets it back on a rack. "What about it?"

"Hehe... look at this!"

The frantic tapping on his shoulder has Jamil turning around, and bam! A piece of paper is all but nearly shoved to his face.

"Ta-dah! I got a 68 this time! It's way lower than my usual scores when you tutor me, but hey, I passed!"

Ah, so this was the reason he asked me to ready a whole pot of tea last night... and why he was up all night yesterday.

... Hmph. Turns out he can put in some effort when it matters.

Jamil takes a few steps back, looks at the grin on Kalim's face and the proud manner he held onto his paper.

"Not bad. You still have to do better than that, though."

Kalim tilts his head to the side. "I was gonna ask about that! What did you get, Jamil?"

The Vice Head smirks, focus going back to stirring the stew.

"A 92."

"Whaaaaaaaat!? That's super high!"

1: epel reappears for this batch! here's everyone's context:

epel -> lilia's advice. (see: lilia lab coat card)

malleus -> ah, let time tell.

kalim -> jamil's overblot. (post ch4)

jamil -> proof of effort. (post ch4)