19 Anticipation

"Anything?" Seph asked Teak before he had even ducked into the room.

"No." he shook his head. "He'll pass through here when he gets out, Seph."

Seph nodded. "Keep an eye on the classroom, anyway."

Teak groaned. He had been eyeing the desk, but this was no time for that.

"Shut it and go already!" Seph snapped.

Teak raised his hands. "Okay, okay..." He moved backwards out the doorway.

Seph tapped her foot on the floor, not even attempting to hide her impatience. Seph had camped out in an empty classroom near the one where Jach was taking a class. He had the dagger today, Yurel had told them that when they met earlier.

The plan was simple, perhaps too simple. From the past couple of days of reconnaissance, it had become clear to them that the only time they could steal the dagger would be when it was with Jach. Krys always kept the dagger on his person. If he did not have it around his belt, it was in his hands. Even when it was on his belt, he'd reach for it periodically anyway. Never did he leave it alone.

Jach on the other hand kept it in his sight, but rarely on his person. Unless he was walking in the corridors, the knife would never be in his belt. He would move it to the table when he was in class, and if he had to leave the class for a short period of time, he wouldn't take it with him.

That was their plan. Lyk had another professor in on this. Professor Choir to be precise. She would call for Jach during the class under the pretence of a quick task.

Ideally, Jach would leave the knife in the class when he leaves. If that happens, Professor Choir would stall the 'task' and send a student to bring Professor Jach's stuff to him. That student would be Hiila, who would 'drop' the knife, letting Seph take it to the drop off point down in the gardens.

"You better leave that dagger behind when leaving, Jach," Seph half threatened and half pleaded. She stood up and paced in the empty space at the front of the classroom.

Seph really wished that Jach didn't decide to take it with him. If that happened, it would be Callu's turn. Callu was rather adept at pick-pocketing—a skill she had had to pick up in the past, and one that was honed further with their first run-in with Lyk.

It would be up to her to steal it from Jach. In the open.

'You just HAD to choose today, didn't you Yurel?' She couldn't help but grit her teeth. After what happened just this morning? She was really worried about Callu.

Seph stomped her way to the door and ducked her head out. She found no sign of Teak.

'He just left. You JUST told him to leave.' She was getting impatient. She had to leave Callu alone for this one. Worse, she had to leave Callu alone with Yurel, of all people—the one who had been her handler during their last excursion. She just wanted this to be over as soon as possible. She just wanted Callu to not have to make a move at all.

She still kept an eye out for Teak, hoping, almost praying for some decent news.

===

"Nicely done!" Jach complimented a young lady on her execution of a basic elemental control spell.

Kyvas looked at Jach and the student from atop the table. The girl's desk was near the back of the class and Jach had gone there to check on her progress.

A small ball of water flew in front of her, orbited by a smaller water sphere. The orbiting sphere seemed to waver every once in a while, but it was stable enough for a beginner, or so Kyvas speculated.

"Thank you, sir!" She seemed to be ecstatic about being one of the first few to perform it in class. Kyvas frowned. This was his first time being in an elemental control class and he wanted to try to perform something like this as well. Unfortunately, manipulating water in a crowded classroom was not the kind of thing a living knife should be attempting to do.

"Okay, now try to keep it up till the count of fifty." Jach smiled at the kid. She replied with a nervous nod and turned to stabilize the spell with all the focus she could spare.

"One." Jach started the count.

"Two." He raised a hand, urging the students to join the count.

"Three." Two more voices complimented Jach's this time.

By "Seven", most of the class had joined the chant.

Kyvas could see a drop of sweat run down the girl's forehead. It must have been getting harder to stabilize. A quick look at the mana flow confirmed that, but the girl was doing well so far.

'You can do it!' Kyvas cheered her on internally.

A new mana flow entered his vision. Kyvas turned to it to see that it belonged the metal plate in the desk, on which Jach's quill was set up. A moment later the quill began to float.

'JACH!' Kyvas yelled. 'WE HAVE A MESSAGE!'

"GAH!" A surprised shout, closely followed by a splash echoed inside the room.

Kyvas looked up. '...Oops?'

His yell had taken Jach off guard. Jach's reaction, in turn, had broken the girl's focus, leading to the spell collapsing and the water falling from it's suspended state.

"Are you okay, Professor?" an inquisitive voice sounded out, breaking the silence that had followed the events.

"Y-Yes," Jach replied. He then told the class to practice the spell again and turned to walk back to the desk. All the while, he kept shooting glares towards him. Kyvas shied away from it, though he supposed one wouldn't be able to tell. He focused his attention on the message.

It was a summons for Jach. Someone was calling him to a classroom a floor above them. The quill was still in the midst of writing though, so Kyvas couldn't tell who it was from. He didn't feel like such a letter would be from the Immortal, but he couldn't help but wish that that was the case.

Jach made his way behind the desk and looked at the sheet. At the same time, however, he activated his telepathy ring.

'You'll deafen me someday. I don't know how, but you will.' Jach thought to him.

'Sorry- I was just nervous,' Kyvas muttered.

Jach shook his head. "So, this..." He read the letter. "That's Choir's lab. Bet she's the one who called."

His words were proven true, as the quill finished with Professor Choir's signature.

"Yeah, not the Immortal, Kyvas. It's still morning." Jach correctly guessed Kyvas's worries, causing him to groan. "I'll go see what Choir wants."

'Alright...'

Jach proceeded to inform the class to practice the spell in his absence. He wanted them all to be able to perform the spell by the time he came back. He then left the class, leaving Kyvas on the desk to observe the class.

===

Seph peered out of the door for the third time now, still finding no signs of Teak.

'Is Jach still in his class? What's taking him so long?' She tapped the door impatiently.

'Come on, let's get this over with already!'

Seph considered heading out to monitor Jach's class herself.

'No, no! That would just make you a bigger suspect.' She still found herself stepping out of the room.

She saw something move in the edge of her vision. Someone had just entered this corridor. She immediately hopped back into the class and hid in the shadows of the door.

'Let it be Jach or Teak for the Immortals sake—Jach or Teak!' She glanced out as carefully as she could. 'Jach or Teak!'

It was Jach. Seph immediately hid further into the room. She then tried to sense for the dagger. She could always feel when it was near.

No. No dagger.

She checked again to confirm it.

Again, no response. The dagger was not on Jach.

She waited for Jach to pass by before cracking the door up a little. She tried to spy for it visually this time. Again, nothing.

Her face brightened up a little. She burst out of the door the moment Jach turned the next corner and rushed towards where he had come from. When she was halfway down the corridor, she saw Teak poke his head around the corner.

"Did you see it?" She whispered as she jogged towards him.

Teak jogged towards Seph. It seemed like he couldn't understand her at that distance.

"Did you see it?" She asked again when they got closer.

"I didn't see it on him," Teak replied. He looked a bit worried. "But I can't be sure. Did you?"

"No. It's not on him, I'm sure!" Seph replied confidently. She turned and broke out into a jog towards where Hiila would meet her.

"Go! Tell Yurel about this." She yelled, looking back at Teak.

Teak nodded. "Alright- Good L-"

"Just shut up and go already!"