Chapter 66
The first day of the festival came to an end without further excitement. I heard that there was some kind of issue with the third-year support class revealing a prototype for a ‘training golem’, but that happened on the opposite end of the campus and was handled by Lloyd without me hearing a thing.
Oliver had just finished telling me about it while all of us were washing off after a long day in the sun.
“What caused it?”
I asked, slumped deep in the bath, my body in dire need of relaxation after being stuck in Chapu’s costume.
“I don’t know. I reviewed the schematics, and it all looked perfectly fine. In fact, they had so many safety measures in place that it shouldn’t have been possible at all. Well, unless someone made a mistake somewhere along the line, good planning doesn’t mean the people carrying it out aren’t flawed after all.”
“Mm.”
I grunted without giving my opinion. Frankly, at that point, I was satisfied with assuming any altercation or mishap was the result of some kind of grander scheme. But Oliver didn’t need to be dragged into any of that.
“Yo!”
A muscular figure leapt into the large bath opposite me and confronted my fatigued expression with a wide grin.
“Axel. Where’ve you been?”
Despite nobody seeing him all day, he looked like he had been through hell. He could use his aura to close his wounds with remarkable speed, but I could still see the scars left behind.
“I’m so close, bro! Next time we face off, you’re gonna be pissin’ in your pants!”
“So long as you’re having fun.”
I waved off his taunt. He had been talking like that ever since I returned from Lion’s Maw, but no matter how much we probed him, he wouldn’t clarify what he was working on.
“If you're done with your mystery training, how about you give me a hand with my summoning?”
“Ask Pointy.”
He immediately shut me down.
“Olly?”
“Me? Uhh… I'd like to, but the theory of spirit magic is a little…”
“He's saying you're too dumb to understand even if we explain.”
Axel cut Oliver off.
“Really? My scores are all above average in magical studies. I think I can learn one measly spell, especially if the two top-scoring academics are willing to help.”
“Nope. You get the logic behind magic, but you still suck ass at the nature of magic. Your marks don't reflect your crappy understanding at all, man.”
Axel laughed in my face.
“But hey, Pointy is great at this sort of thing, just ask her. Better be quick, she's leaving soon.”
“I'm surprised she told you. I didn't know you two got along that well.”
“That's because you've got a serious case of tunnel vision, my friend. You only care about what happens in your immediate surroundings and what affects you personally. I bet you didn't even notice that Isolde started wearing glasses because she thinks it makes her look more approachable.”
“Why the hell would I care about—”
“You wouldn't, but that's the point, idiot. Nobody cares about that, but we all noticed it anyway.”
Why was I suddenly being lectured? And what was wrong with having priorities? I just… compartmentalise. I ignored the useless white noise around me so that important matters could receive my full attention.
“And why you suck at magic.”
Axel finished his critique by splashing me with water.
“...go on then, enlighten me. How does Isolde’s fashion choice impact my understanding of magic?”
“Ahh man, are you being dense on purpose? Olly. Explain!”
“Uhm… I-I think what Axel means is that you ignore what doesn't concern you, which makes your way of thinking inflexible. Spellcasting requires a flexible mind. The glasses thing is just an example… right?”
Oliver looked to Axel for approval.
“Yeah, exactly! Seriously, man, you’re lucky you've got this monster method crap working for you, cuz you'd be a worthless mage without it.”
“So you're not competent enough to guide a lost cause like me, is that it? I understand, the great Axel Lionheart has his faults as well after all.”
“Oi, quit with the reverse psychology. I'm not teaching you magic. Now, if you wanted to spar, that'd be different.”
“Tch.”
Seeing that I wasn't getting my way, I stood to leave. But then, a last line of attack revealed itself to me.
“Y'know, if I were to fuse with a spirit, I could fight you in a whole new form.”
“Let's go.”
Axel rocketed up from the bath, his back straight and expression serious.
“Haaa… you guys can take the room, I'll just stay in the lounge.”
Oliver sighed deeply.
“What? Just hang out with us, I'd value your opinion too, you know?”
I tried to encourage him, but he just mumbled something and kept his back to us.
That night, Axel and I ended up pulling an all-nighter. It didn't affect me, naturally, and according to Axel, his body was tough enough to go without rest for a full seven days. We got sidetracked and ended up sparring in the yard before long, the racket of which awoke Fleur, who wound up teaching me anyway.
***
As the first morning rays of light crept over the walls and fell upon me, I immediately set to work preparing Soot’s pen.
The extension made for the other animals only stood during the day, if it was left overnight, we ran the risk of Soot smashing it all to regain his living space.
”
“I know, right? Those two are a match made in heaven.”
“”
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“Yes, I know heaven doesn't exist. It's a figure of speech.”
“”
“What element will I choose? Well, fire is pointless with you around, so maybe earth?”
I talked to myself while finishing my job.
There was quite a bit of progress in my training that night. Thanks in large part to Axel and Fleur's opposite approach to magic and teaching.
Axel had summoned a living weapon of lightning to demonstrate how a summoner could impose his will over a summoned being by forcing it to alter its shape. That specific usage didn't interest me much, but the fact that my own will factored into the spell was a hint that led me to experiment.
I found that the emotion I expressed with the greatest intensity after finding a spirit to commune with would either strengthen or weaken the influence it had in completing the summoning for me. For example, when I remained calm and peaceful, water spirits could almost totally bring themselves into existence with very little input from me.
Then, with Fleur's guidance, I found a way to consistently filter out all spirits from my vision except those I sought after.
The results? A partial summon!
Still a failure by most standards, but to me, it was a cause for celebration.
The little wobbling slime that squirmed around my fingers represented a partial manifestation of a water spirit. It held no constant form and occasionally slipped through my body as if it were ethereal, but it was progress nonetheless.
The other two had already left after they were satisfied that all I needed was practice from that point forward. I expected to remain alone with Soot and Tiara until the festival resumed, but instead, I was visited by a familiar face.
“This is a pleasant surprise. How are you, Leon?”
Leon Goldklinge had not interacted with me—or anyone—beyond the bare necessity ever since our last mission together. I knew he had taken things hard, but honestly speaking, I felt it was time he got back to his old self.
“Rex…”
He acknowledged my greeting, but merely stood off to the side observing while I spread the hay for the Gobblecluck pen.
“You just gonna stare? I assume you're here for a reason.”
I was not one for beating around the bush, so I prompted him to speak his mind right off the bat.
“Hm… I'm just tired. Haven't been sleeping well lately…”
“You're talking to the wrong guy if you need help sleeping.”
Awkward silence followed my joke. Leon was watching me carefully, as if trying to see something imperceptible.
“Alright, you're creeping me out now. Seriously, what's up?”
The way he analysed me without my mask made me deeply uncomfortable, and I found myself avoiding facing him directly.
“I've had a lot of time to think… and I wanted to run something by you.”
“Go ahead.”
“Back when we were ambushed… You didn't hesitate to kill. What did you feel while you did it?”
“What did I feel? Not much.”
It was an unhelpful response, but I didn’t feel like expanding on that so long as Leon was still being cagey with his motives.
“Not much? You didn't care?”
It sounded like the beginning of some moral grandstanding, but after a moment of silence, Leon’s following words surprised me.
“I envy you.”
I paused, waiting for him to finish.
“When I think back on that day, I feel so angry with myself, and with the ones who attacked us. But even at the time, that anger didn't help me take action. I thought if I were to fight with my life on the line, I could take a life as an act of self-preservation at the very least… I replay it and I tell myself that next time, it won't be like that. Next time I will be resolved. But then I remember you… and Lily as well… there was no anger or evil behind you, and your life wasn't even at risk. You just walked in, killed everyone, then carried on.”
Leon gritted his teeth.
“Yesterday, Frederick's family came to take him back to their hometown. He regained consciousness recently, but he can't walk, he can't move anything below the neck anymore. Do you know what his mother said to me? ‘Thank you for saving his life. ’ He's going to be a cripple for the rest of his life, and the others—Arnold’s family still haven't respond— ah, shit!”
He kicked the ground in frustration, sending a clump of dirt flying in an arc. He ran a hand through his hair and began taking deep, sharp breaths.
“Sorry. Things have been spiralling recently, and I don't know what to do anymore. Maybe if I could just disconnect, things would be more—”
“Don't.”
I finally decided to cut in.
“There’s a fine line between dissociating and remaining calm under pressure. No human can truly shut out their emotions, and by repressing them, you're just stalling until they can spring up into your face all at once. You aren't me, Leon, there's no reason you should learn to kill without feeling anything, it wouldn't help you anyway.”
Emulating the lifestyle and personality of those you can't empathise with was a stupid move, no matter how much you might want to be like them. If Leon went down that path, he would inevitably fail, and when everything came bubbling to the surface, he might not survive what emerges.
Still, that didn't mean I couldn't offer advice.
“Is there a reason you're bringing this up now? I understand feeling guilty because of Frederick's family, but is that all that has you seeking me out?”
“...No. There was something I never told you about our mission.”
“Go on.”
“You remember the first day at Farrowgate? The others said they went to see a noble friend of theirs, but didn't learn anything.”
I nodded. It was vague, but I did remember something along those lines being mentioned.
“They're an Imperial family, the Adalberts to be precise. I found it odd that they would even be in that area this time of year, as their winery should have been producing a significant batch of their trademark product. I dismissed it as a pointless suspicion, but I recently learned that they have all moved into Vogel’s territory with their personal forces in tow.”
“I’m not familiar with the noble territories or tradition, what’s weird about that?”
“If they were returning home, they would have no reason to go in the direction of Vogel’s lands. As for their forces, they were meant to be on standby in their own territory in case the western border needs reinforcement.”
More shady movements had come to my attention. It began to feel like I was a magnet for this kind of information.
“Surely they can’t just shuffle their forces around as they please, someone is bound to notice and take action if needed.”
“They claimed it was done due to the recent losses Vogel suffered, and to dissuade further attacks…”
Leon double checked his surroundings before continuing.
“Look, I don’t know what’s going on, but my Father is convinced trouble is about to come to Borderton. He requested that I return home immediately after the tournament finishes. He even pulled some strings and—”
Leon tapped the sword at his waist.
“He strongly suggested I be allowed to remain armed until I return to Kronenstadt as well… The implications speak for themself, I think.”
So that was it. If the Goldklinge patriarch was predicting some kind of conflict to reach Borderton soon as well, it was practically guaranteed that something big was brewing behind the scenes.
It also explained why Leon was acting this way.
“Look, killing a human isn’t something you can just resolve yourself to do after a little pep talk. If you think you’ll hesitate, either disengage and run, or disarm and restrain your foe. You could always focus on monster subjugation instead; there’s no shortage of rampaging beasts in Arden.”
“...Here.”
Leon didn’t respond to my advice and instead handed me a sleek, rectangular, dark brown box. It looked to be made from polished wood.
I took it, but Leon kept a firm grasp on his end. The reason was evident as a flawless blade emerged from the wood. It was a dagger, the golden metal bore a blueish tinge that appeared to dance when held up to the light.
“It’s… beautiful. But why are you giving this to me?”
“It’s a genuine Goldbrand blade, you’ll find it capable of slicing through steel and blocking even the greatest of blows. It’s redundant for me to hold onto it, and if something go down, I figure this would be best put to use by someone who I know can take decisive action.”
Besides my axe, I didn’t really have much need for weaponry. But then again, this was easy to conceal. It wasn’t something I would use in direct combat, but as an emergency measure, it could come in handy.
“Thank you. Hopefully I won’t need it.”
I slipped it back into the sheath and tucked it into my inner jacket pocket.
“Keep an eye out.”
Leon left me with a warning, eyeing the roof of the dorm as he went, as if expecting to see a mysterious hooded figure listening in.
***
On the second day of the festival, I had planned to visit the flower shop that Lily had mentioned to me. Unfortunately, when I got there, a group of Imperial soldiers had already locked the place down.
“Come no further, student. This building is under investigation by the authority of the Order of the Watchdog.”
One of the soldiers stepped up to prevent me from approaching. I had dropped the role of Chapu onto Larry for the day, so I was just wearing my usual uniform.
“What happened here?”
I asked, playing the role of a nosy onlooker.
“Nothing to be concerned about, I assure you. Carry on.”
He clearly wasn’t going to say any more, and from my position, I could not see what they were doing in there.
It wasn’t all lost, though. I could always find Lily to—
“Hey, Rex.”
“Hey, Lily.”
—sneak a peek and report on what they…
“Wait, what are you doing here?”
I hadn’t seen her before I arrived, but she suddenly appeared right next to me without a sound.
“Figured I’d see if there was any update here, looks like you had the same idea.”
I led her out of earshot of the soldiers.
“Whatever, can you take a look?”
“Already did. The place has been picked clean. This lot are just using the place for accommodation for big E.”
“Who?”
“The Emp.”
“How has nobody hung you yet?”
“I’m too endearing. Anyway, there’s nothing to see here, let’s go back, yeah?”
She linked her arm to mine and began leading me away.
“Stop.”
A chilling voice came from directly above us. It was quiet yet intimidating, like a murderous whisper spoken into my soul.
We looked up, and looming over us was the face of what could be best described as living death. A gaunt, pale face with sunken eye sockets and deep wrinkles stitched to the body of an impossibly tall man in black.
“Rex Jaeger. Come with me.”
He hadn’t so much as touched me, yet I couldn’t refuse. I couldn’t even speak. It felt like an icy hand had clutched my throat and stolen my breath.
“Leave us.”
That single command was all it took to send Lily away. Her arm pulled from mine, trembling all the while.
“Follow.”
The man did not restrain me. He turned on his heel and walked back towards the flower shop, fully confident that I would not defy his order.
And he was right.
As if being pulled by an invisible leash, I hurried to match the long strides of his lanky legs.
