Page 94 of Axis of Fire

The creak of the door instantly silenced me.

My gaze snapped toward Airis, who walked inside carrying a tray while another floated beside him, holding two bowls filled with some kind of stew.

“Talking to yourself again?”

“Obviously.” I nodded.

“Maybe I rehearse my insults before throwing them at you.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

After closing the door behind him, Airis walked over to the table.

“So? No poison tonight either? Or did you decide to make an exception?”

“What, getting treated well starting to bore you already?” he asked calmly, setting the bowls down across from each other.

“I never doubted this was your limit.”

“The stew’s going to get cold if you keep talking.”

“Don’t tell me a wind mage from the Strongest Twelve can’t warm it up?”

“I can’t heat air,” Airis replied as he sat down.

“But if my powers were combined with a fire mage’s, there’s a chance.”

“Wait, they actually teach you how to combine magic?”

I perked up instantly, quickly crossing the room before dropping into the chair across from him.

Airis nodded.

“Combined powers can matter more than the strength of a single mage. Especially when preparing for war.”

He chewed slowly before continuing.

“That’s one of the ways candidates for the Strongest Twelve are chosen. Though individual strength matters too.”

“So the magic of all twelve members works well together?” I asked.

Airis nodded again.

“And what happens if one of them dies? Do they search for someone with similar abilities? Or someone closest to the former member?”

“No one from the Twelve has ever died,” Airis answered.

“But every five years they go through trials to prove they can continue fighting together. Usually against other groups of elite mages competing for their place.”

I scooped up some of the vegetable stew with my fork, chewing thoughtfully as I processed his words.

“And when was the last trial? Was it broadcast publicly?”

“Two years ago,” he replied shortly.

“And yes.”

“The Strongest Twelve also hold special courses for powerful mages once a year,” Louis added, and I barely managed to hide my surprise before Airis noticed.