Aether’s Apprentices (Aether’s Revival, #4)

With so many friends around him, Gregory felt the year was bright. The hatred of the Eternal Flame still pressed down on them— although the clan seemed strangely quiet during the first half of the year, the threat of violence was still there.

The friends trained hard to fight as a unit, intent on being the champions to raise the clan’s name and reputation. The first tournament of the year came quickly, with a few surprises. The biggest was because of the merchant, Carlisle, belittling eurtiks. Hao Warlin suckered him into a bet that grew and grew until the merchant lost a massive amount of money. Hao took it gladly, using it to purchase gifts for Daciana, Nessa, and Victoria. Those items allowed the three novices to not only survive the remainder of the tournament, but also to emerge as the victors.

Gregory and his wives fought honorably and hard to advance to the finals, where their last fight was against the Eternal Flame. With their rigorous training and communication, they managed to defeat the arrogant clan, letting them stand alongside their novice friends as champions.

The excitement of being the champions wasn’t the happiest part of their year, though. That came after the tournament, when all five of their friends— Nessa, Daciana, Victoria, Clover, and Ling— joined Aether’s Guard.

The apprentices weren’t done yet, as they had other major events ahead of them. The tournament for their tactics class was first and, beyond that, the tournament against Buldoun.

(This book contains some adult themes.)