The Villainess is the Villainess [LitRPG]

Book 2: Chapter 24 - Nothingness [Part 1]

I want to make difficult people somehow relatable.

- Rebecca Hall.

An expectant hush fell over the training hall as Magister Belfrost straightened his posture, hands clasped firmly behind his back. He wore an air of absolute confidence, his eyes sweeping across the room until every last one of his students had stilled. A self-satisfied smile curved his thin lips.

"Now," he began, in a deep, resonant voice that demanded silence, "it is time for your first task—your first true lesson." He paused for effect, letting their anticipation build. Then he dropped the pronouncement like a hammer. "Your task is to do nothing at all."

A murmur rippled through the class. A few puzzled glances were exchanged, but no one dared speak until Magister Belfrost, still smiling, raised a brow and continued, "For the remainder of this lesson, you will resist every temptation to experiment, to try, to see. Curiosity is the very first snare you must learn to evade." With that, he seated himself at a grand old desk and opened a tome, as though he had nothing else to say.

After a beat of silence, Fleur—one of Seraphina's classmates from Wisteria—spoke up, her tone bright with uncertainty. "And should we give in to curiosity, sir?"

Magister Belfrost looked up slowly, his calm gaze belying the finality of his words. "Then I will simply not teach you," he replied smoothly. "I see no reason to waste my time on students who fail at the very start. Those who cannot do this most simple of tasks."

Seraphina's lips thinned at his pompous tone. She had not cared for his self-importance from the moment she laid eyes on him, and now her patience frayed. "This sounds like an excuse for laziness," she said, crossing her arms. "We've paid good money to attend these lessons. Not to mention that our time is precious. Teach us something, or I'll report this farce to the Principal."

A slight lift of Belfrost's chin signaled his vexation. "Ah, de Sariens," he said, drawing out her name as though it were a particularly inconvenient chore. "The one who struggled even with accepting her first magic—Crystal, no less—presumes to instruct me on how to teach, hmm?" He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, his gaze never leaving her.

Eloise, standing beside Seraphina, tensed at the barb. Seraphina sensed how her lady-in-waiting longed to respond in her defense. She placed a discreet hand on Eloise's arm.

Magister Belfrost addressed Seraphina directly, his voice taking on a lecturing, if somewhat disjointed, lilt. "There is method in this madness, de Sariens. There will be times in your life—those quiet, empty moments—when your will falters, your guard slips, and your magic calls to you in the darkness. At those times, you must possess the discipline to remain steadfast. The ability to ignore it. To master your magic, you must first not let it master you."

Though it pained her to admit it, Seraphina found at least a grain of sense in his words. She might have grudgingly respected him for it. If only he did not act so smug. It seemed to her that the Magisters had cloaked practical wisdom in an opaque, esoteric riddle. A thing that truly irritated her.

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She angled her head, regarding him closely. "Perhaps, esteemed Magister, a demonstration might help ease our… burgeoning curiosity? It could serve to motivate us and stave off our impulses."

His dismissal was swift and absolute. "No, de Sariens. This lesson is a test to see whether you can resist your powers when there is no immediate need. A demonstration would undermine everything I hope to teach you. Curiosity is but one of magic's lures. Trust me, if you can find the restraint to control yourselves now, you shall find it far easier in the days to come."

Seraphina bit back a retort—arguing further would only prolong the session of doing nothing. And so, she forced herself to adopt a semblance of composure, giving him the barest hint of a nod. Belfrost, satisfied, returned his attention to his book with maddening nonchalance.

The rest of the lesson crept by at a snail's pace. The silence in the hall became oppressive, broken only by the students quietly talking among themselves. Seraphina felt the itch of her magic as a physical sensation in her fingertips. She was desperate to use it, anything really, to break the stifling monotony. But she held firm. Her pride demanded she succeed, if only to deny Magister Belfrost the satisfaction of seeing her fail.

At last, the bell rang, slicing through the silence. Belfrost snapped his book shut with measured grace and cast a detached glance around the room. He appeared collected, but Seraphina noticed something new in his expression. Had she not known about it beforehand, she would have never noticed. There was a forced quality that lingered beneath his cool demeanor, as though each mannerism had been meticulously rehearsed—every smirk, every tilt of his head part of a carefully orchestrated performance. Like a machine that was playing the part of a human.

"Very well done," he said in a clipped tone that dripped with irony. "You have accomplished the simplest of tasks: doing nothing. This bodes well for your future, though I suspect some of you found it more challenging than you care to admit." His eyes brushed over Seraphina, and she felt a flash of indignation tighten her jaw. "Now then, until our next session, you will practice calling your element to you on your own time. Here in these halls and nowhere else. It will not do for the Academy to meet the same fate as certain parts of the city. For those of you with more… offensive spells, feel free to test your destructive potential on those." He gestured to a line of battered clay dummies slumped in the corner. "Now, off with you. Whatever other classes you have, I suggest you don't keep your esteemed teachers waiting."

Seraphina rose, gathering her books and biting back a remark about the nature of his "lessons." She filed out with the rest of the students, her mind whirling. She knew Magister Belfrost's secret—knew how his too-perfect act skillfully concealed something more ominous. Secrets were power, but the question burned in her mind: when and how to wield this particular secret most effectively? And, it was one thing to know of a lurking horror that existed behind a glass screen, but quite another to face it in the flesh.

A sudden chill rippled through her. Her steps faltered before she shook it off. This was no time to be overthinking. No time for hesitation. I am just waiting for the most opportune time.

She turned to Eloise, who trailed a half-step behind. "Well, Eloise," Seraphina said, affecting a casual tone, "what's your next class?"

Her lady-in-waiting offered a small, encouraging smile. "Alchemy, my lady. I admit I'm rather excited about it." She smoothed her skirt, looking every bit the perfect scholar. "I do so hope I will actually get to learn something.

"As for me," Seraphina sighed, "I have a free period. I'll head to the library, I suppose, and attempt to make a dent in the mountain of work we've been assigned."

The word "homework" rang in her mind like a curse. Even here, in this world of wonder and fantasy, that evil bane of students everywhere had followed her. The world never changes. She gave Eloise a wry grin, and together they set off down the corridor to their respective classes.