Inna looked at him, unsure on how to reply.

"Ah.. uhh… w..why?"

She can only spit that word out as she tried to figure the reason for the sudden offer.

Why is he asking that?

What's with him all of a sudden?

What's this about being his tutor?!

She can't even fight properly without relying on her 'other' state, so how the heck does he expect her to teach him?!

Rhys didn't seem to notice her inner turmoil as he replied.

"What do you mean 'why'? Isn't it obvious? You're a strong fighter! Probably one of the best I know! And I'm a Combat student. Why wouldn't I want to get stronger?"

Inna sighed.

It's not her. That 'strong fighter' he wanted isn't her.

She looked at him straight in the eye with a somber smile.

"No thank you. Besides, I'm still a student in the Magic department so I wouldn't have that much leisure time to actually come here much less teach someone. And judging from what I just did, I doubt I'll ever be free during prayer days."

Inna mumbled the last phrase but Rhys still heard it.

Then, he realized his mistake.

Oh yeah, he forgot that Raghnall was teaching her because she's still in Starter rank.

Wait a minute.

"How did you even get into Eldora Academy with only starter rank?!"

Inna gulped nervously as she tried to remember the excuse Solomon gave.

"I met… the headmaster and he just wanted to give me a chance to learn."

Rhys raised an eyebrow at that.

"The Headmaster? You met… the Headmaster… and he gave you the chance to learn? Just like that?"

Wait, is she possibly…

Inna nodded but somehow, she felt unnerved by the way Rhys was looking at her.

"Is there something wrong with that?"

Rhys was cut off from his thoughts when she asked. He gave her an ambiguous smile as he spoke while rubbing his chin.

"Nothing. Nothing."

Inna tried to look for a way to change the subject before she might end up giving something away so, looking at him rubbing his chin, she asked.

"So….. you must be completely healed now?"

Rhys noticed the sudden change in topic but he decided to go along with it with an amused smile.

"Yes, yes. One healing spell is enough for my injuries. Though, honestly, I didn't expect that you'd be able to get a clean hit on me."

Inna remembered her sucker punch and she chuckled lightly.

"That sure p.i.s.sed you off good."

Rhys furrowed his eyebrows as he looked at her incredulously.

"I wasn't p.i.s.sed!"

Inna snorted, clearly not hiding her disbelief.

"Yeah, right. You were basically cutting me in half with the amount of anger in your eyes."

Rhys laughed lightly when he heard her disbelieving tone.

"Wait, speaking of eyes, my eyes are straining by constantly looking up so can you sit back down?"

When Inna wordlessly sat back down beside him, he had on a satisfied smile as he continued to talk.

"So, to clarify, I wasn't p.i.s.sed off. I was just… mildly irritated at--"

Inna scoffed.

"THAT'S 'mildly' irritated? Yeah, right."

Rhys sighed.

"Okay fine, I was p.i.s.sed. I was p.i.s.sed because you were actually hiding your capabilities! I thought you weren't that good of a fighter so I felt I had to adjust to avoid you looking like a fool. But to think you actually know how to fight and you're even especially good at it! It made me feel somehow stupid for being tricked, y'now."

Inna didn't expect his answer so she just stared at him wide-eyed.

From Inna's lack of response, Rhys felt that the conversation somehow died so he awkwardly scratched his head as he tried to think of another topic.

"So… what's your name again?"

When she heard his question, Inna burst into light laughter as she realized the ridiculousness of the situation.

The guy beside her basically saved her and endangered her in the span of seconds, blackmailed her, fought with her, and was almost killed by her…

But to think that he doesn't even know her name…

In a fit of laughter, Rhys couldn't help but smile as he looked at her being a laughing mess.

After a few seconds, Inna calmed down and she looked at Rhys with an amused expression.

"I can't believe I almost killed you and you don't even know my name."

Rhys chuckled as he looked back and realized how incredibly ironic it was as well.

"Well, I did hear something like 'Nana' but I'm not sure if it's really your name or just a nickname."

Ah…

He probably heard it from Orion back then.

Inna mused and she decided to just use the name for now so, she nodded at him in affirmation.

"Yeah, it's my name. Just call me that."

Rhys smiled as he tried the name on his lips.

"Okay, Nana."

Inna didn't know how to continue the conversation anymore so she just decided to look over the view in front of them in silence. Since they were basically sitting on top of a cliff in the middle of the mountain, Inna expected the view to be just filled with trees.

But she was pleasantly surprised when she saw a beautiful sight.

The hues of red, yellow, and orange all blended perfectly together in the sky as the sun slowly hid behind the trees from the horizon. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the picturesque breathtaking sunset.

Looking back on the past days she spent on the academy, she just realized that it was actually the first time she ever sat down and relaxed and the first time she watched the sunset as well so she couldn't help but sigh contentedly.

Rhys heard her sigh and he couldn't help but follow suit as well.

"Aside from the fact that this is the best place to hide in the whole campus, it's also the one with the best view of the sunset. It truly helps calm someone down, huh."

Inna detected a hint of sadness behind his words and she gave him a curious look.

Rhys didn't seem to notice as he leaned back, showing a relaxed state. And he continued to speak to her while looking at the sunset.

"Hey, so… since you don't want to be my tutor… how can I see you again?"