Evan stood at the center of the training yard early the next morning the stone ground still cold beneath his boots. Mist clung to the air hanging low like pale smoke drifting between practice dummies and scattered scorch marks left by yesterday’s students. The world felt quiet in a way that did not belong to a place filled with mages. It was the kind of quiet that schools had before the day began that moment right before noise came flooding in and swallowed everything.

He liked it. It gave him space to breathe.

Serin arrived first her steps firm and steady her armor plates glinting faintly in the morning sun. She carried a stack of small parchment sheets clipped together with a simple metal band.

“Attendance lists” she said “Arilon approved your volunteer group Twenty students all eager all nervous all convinced you will change their lives today”

Evan rubbed the back of his neck “Great No pressure at all”

“You like the pressure” Serin said “You pretend you do not but teaching is your battlefield You become someone else when you explain things”

He opened his mouth to argue but she raised an eyebrow and he let it go.

Students soon poured into the yard forming a semicircle around him. Some looked excited others terrified. A few whispered to each other but their eyes never left him. He could feel their expectation like a warm hand pressing against his back urging him forward.

He took a slow breath steadying his voice.

“Alright everyone Today we test airflow”

The apprentices stared blankly.

Evan continued “Your spells follow the breath If your breath wobbles your magic wobbles If your breath collapses your spell collapses That is the foundation The first rule You need stable air or nothing else matters”

One boy raised a hand “Sir what is airflow”

Evan blinked slowly “The air moving through your body You are alive You breathe right”

“Yes”

“Then congratulations you understand airflow”

Confused laughter rippled through the group.

Evan motioned to a girl in the front row “You Come here What is your name”

“Rinna sir”

“Rinna show me your fire spell just as you normally do Do not try to impress me”

Rinna lifted her staff took a big shaky breath and spoke “Fira thor el”

A tiny flicker sputtered out barely making a sound. Rinna looked defeated.

“Perfect” Evan said “A failed spell is the best sample because it tells me exactly what is broken”

Rinna blinked “I am glad I failed then”

“Good attitude” Evan said “Now watch everyone This is the airflow issue”

He tapped her chest gently “You inhale too high Your breath sits in the shoulders It collapses before the spell finishes You need lower breath support like filling the belly and ribs not the throat”

Rinna tried again inhaling lower. Her shoulders stayed relaxed.

“Better Now speak the spell slowly Feel the breath lift the sound Do not push it Let it move”

She spoke “Fira thor el”

A fireball bloomed from her staff bright and loud the heat brushing across the yard.

Gasps erupted.

Evan nodded “Consistent airflow equals consistent spell power Remember that”

Another student called out “Sir how much stronger was her spell”

Serin answered “At least double maybe more”

Murmurs spread like sparks through dry grass.

Evan motioned for the next volunteer “We will test vowel length next Different vowel timing changes the mana pacing and we need to see how much effect it has”

The students lined up eagerly and for the next hour Evan tested each apprentice adjusting breathing patterns controlling airflow shaping vowels making them lengthen or shorten sounds without tension. Each time a spell shot brighter louder cleaner.

Arilon appeared halfway through watching quietly from the shade of an archway. His expression was unreadable but Evan could feel the weight of his attention.

After the final test apprentice Dalen the same boy from Evan’s first day stepped forward gripping his staff.

“Master Evan sir May I try again the same spell you fixed for me before I want to test it with the new breathing you taught”

Evan nodded “Go ahead Dalen Use low breath hold the vowel steady”

Dalen inhaled slowly grounding the air deep then spoke “Fira toran velar”

The fireball launched forward so fiercely that the practice dummy ignited in a burst of roaring flame. The blast rattled the air like thunder. Students screamed in surprise. Even Serin flinched.

Arilon stepped forward his voice shaking with thrill “That output rivals a senior battlemage Evan You are not improving these spells You are reinventing them”

Evan swallowed. He could feel the shift in the air the realization spreading across the apprentices. This was not a trick. Not a lucky adjustment. It was a system. A method. A science.

And everyone here felt it.

Somewhere inside his chest excitement fluttered against fear. He was reshaping a world that had existed long before him but he could not stop. Teaching was momentum. Once he started he never knew how to slow down.

Serin stepped toward him quietly “Evan these students would follow you anywhere after this You know that right”

He stared at the smoking yard “I do not want followers I want clarity I want a real structure so your entire kingdom can speak magic without guessing”

Arilon approached placing a hand on Evan’s shoulder “Then you must write the first rule into the academy’s new curriculum Magic follows breath That will be the foundation of your teachings”

Evan exhaled slowly nodding “Then let’s build the next rule tomorrow”

The apprentices bowed to him deeply more reverently than he was prepared for. He looked away embarrassed but Serin smirked knowingly.

“You have no idea how large this will become” she said “You changed the path of every mage here”

Evan stared at his hands still feeling the warmth of Dalen’s fire spell echoing through the air.

“Then I need to be careful” he whispered “Because this world is listening to everything I say”