Illya's arms trembled slightly as she lowered her wand.
The last shot faded into the evening air, scattering harmless light across the yard.
"…Again," she whispered.
Ruby hovered nearby, quieter than usual.
"You're improving, Master," it said, though without its usual excitement.
That didn't feel like praise.
It felt like preparation.
Illya adjusted her stance and tried again.
This time, the beam held straighter.
Not perfect.
But closer.
Upstairs, her brother paused by the window.
He had noticed the pattern.
She failed.
Corrected.
Tried again.
There was nothing unusual about that.
And yet—
He stayed a moment longer than he meant to.
Then stepped away.
The next day felt heavier.
Not in any obvious way.
Nothing had changed.
But Illya found herself paying more attention.
To the space between people.
To the pauses in conversation.
To Miyu.
She sat the same way as yesterday.
Back straight. Hands folded. Eyes calm.
Unbothered.
Distant.
Illya hesitated before approaching her at lunch.
She didn't end up saying anything.
Miyu didn't look up.
The interruption came before the day could settle.
Ruby stiffened.
"Reaction detected."
Illya froze.
Rin appeared not long after, already irritated.
"This one's active," she said. "And it's not like the others."
Miyu stood before Illya could respond.
"I know," she said quietly.
Rin glanced at her, then clicked her tongue.
"Good. Then don't slow us down."
The Mirror World opened without resistance.
Glass folded.
The city emptied.
The sky stretched higher than Illya remembered.
And something was already there.
Floating.
Watching.
Caster.
Circles of light formed around her, rotating slowly. Layers of magic overlapped, each one humming with quiet pressure.
Illya felt it immediately.
This was different.
Rin attacked first.
A bolt of lightning shot upward.
It dissolved before reaching her.
"Barrier," Rin muttered.
Miyu moved next.
Precise.
Fast.
She launched upward—
Stopped.
Midair.
Then dropped back down.
Illya blinked.
"…You can't—?"
Miyu didn't answer.
Caster raised her hand.
The circles expanded.
Light gathered.
Then fell.
Illya reacted on instinct, raising her wand as blasts of magic rained down.
Impact after impact forced her back.
She fired upward.
The beam scattered.
Too far.
Too high.
Miyu tried again to close distance.
Failed.
Caster didn't move.
She didn't need to.
She controlled everything from above.
"Fall back!" Rin snapped.
Another wave of attacks forced them apart.
Illya barely managed to shield in time.
Miyu was a step too slow—
Illya moved.
She pulled her back just as another blast struck where she had been.
The ground cracked.
Silence followed.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Then—
They retreated.
The Mirror World closed behind them.
No one spoke immediately.
Rin exhaled sharply.
"…We can't hit her from the ground."
Miyu nodded once.
Illya looked down at her hands.
They were shaking.
Not from fear.
From frustration.
"…We lost," she said quietly.
No one corrected her.
Training began that same evening.
"Flying is mandatory," Rin said flatly.
Illya blinked. "Flying?"
Ruby spun. "Of course! Magical girls fly!"
"That's not a rule!"
"It is now!"
Illya lifted off the ground on her first attempt.
Unsteady.
But natural.
Like her body already understood something her mind didn't.
She wobbled, tilted, nearly lost balance—
Then corrected.
"…I'm doing it?"
Ruby sparkled. "You are!"
Miyu watched.
Then stepped forward.
She hesitated.
Very slightly.
Then activated her magic.
She rose—
Barely.
And immediately lost control.
She dropped.
Hard.
Sapphire reacted instantly, cushioning the fall before impact.
"…I see," Miyu said quietly from the ground.
She stood.
Tried again.
The result didn't improve.
"That's inefficient," a voice cut in.
Illya turned.
A blonde girl stood nearby, posture elegant, expression amused.
"Your approach lacks refinement."
Rin groaned. "Not now, Luvia."
Luviagelita Edelfelt smiled.
"On the contrary. This is precisely the time."
Sapphire floated beside her.
"Training assistance has arrived."
Luvia's method was… direct.
She grabbed Miyu by the arm.
Then threw her into the air.
Illya screamed.
Miyu did not.
She rotated midair, body stiff, clearly unprepared—
Then stabilized slightly before dropping again.
Sapphire slowed the fall.
"Again," Luvia said.
Miyu nodded.
No complaints.
No frustration.
Just repetition.
Illya watched.
Then looked down at her own hands.
"…You don't like this either, do you?" she asked quietly.
Miyu paused.
"…No," she said.
That was enough.
They trained until the sky darkened.
Illya improved quickly.
Not perfectly.
But consistently.
Miyu improved slowly.
But steadily.
Short lifts.
Small corrections.
Less falling.
From the window, her brother watched again.
Illya hovered slightly above the ground now.
Still unstable.
Still learning.
Miyu rose a few centimeters.
Held it.
Then dropped.
He felt that same faint tension again.
When they fell.
When they tried again.
He didn't understand it.
So he ignored it.
At the end of the night, Illya managed a stable hover.
Miyu managed to stay airborne for a few seconds.
Neither spoke about it.
They didn't need to.
It wasn't victory.
But it wasn't failure either.
Somewhere beyond the quiet city—
Caster waited.
Unmoved.
Unchallenged.
Still above them.