After saying goodnight to his new friends, and thanking Veldre once more for c the bill, Krion found himself once being escorted by J-65. As he followed her, he couldn’t help but think about how much better the day had ehan it had started. The Hearth & Ember had been the kind of pce he hadn’t expected to find at the Imperial Academy — weling and uious — and his new friends had made the experience eveer. The easy camaraderie and acceptance had lifted the weight that had settled on his back as soon as he arrived. Krion smiled, thinking of the ughter over dinner and the shared uanding that had formed so quickly between them. For the first time, the Imperial Academy felt just a little less daunting.
J-65’s footsteps were steady and measured as they walked dowreet toward where Krion would be staying. It turned out that the route they were taking was not a long one, but given the silehat the Sentinel kept as they made their way there, it seemed to take lohan it actually did. Krion was starting to get the sehat it was out of the way when J-65 led him down a side street and he saw it for the first time.
The apartment he had been expeg was a manor instead. A t structure, it stood at the end of the dead-end street behind a tall, heavy metal feh bars that were capped with the crest of House Bcksword. It looked like something out of a fotten age, solid and intimidating, yet eerily quiet. Given how te it was, and that there were no lights within any of the windows he could see from the street, Krion guessed he would have to entire pself. While the estate was undeniably grand, there was no denying its somber aura.
Oher side loomed buildings that Krion could tell at a go be abandoned. Windows were broken or boarded up, ivy crept along the walls, and from what he could tell, the roofs were in need of a bit of work. The silence around the whole street pressive, as though the entire area was holding its breath.
It was not what he had expected.
J-65 slowed her pace as they reached the gates. The metal crest of House Bckswleamed faintly, almost as if struggling to share with anyone unfamiliar with the manor the strength of the ss that lived there. If any had lived there. Without ceremony, the Sentinel pushed them open, causing the metal crest to part down the middle. The high-pitched, scrapping creak as it opeold Krion that no one had been by the manor in a while.
“This pce is… rge,” Krion remarked, breaking the silence as he followed the Seo the front door. “A bit te for just me.”
J-65’s mask turoward him for the first time since she had begun esc him sihe end of his meal. “This estate was built with purpose, but it has not been fully utilized. You are the first s of your House to occupy it in quite some time. While owned ht by your family, the dorms oher side were taken from House Bcksword through various means and then allowed to sit empty as a way to drive a wedge between your House and the rest of the noble ss. As such, those that would have previously sidered living here during their time at the Imperial Academy have been forced to live elsewhere. Only the residence for ss of House Bcksword remains.”
Krion nodded, processing the information. “So, it’s not a deliberate choiy family?”
“No,” J-65 replied, her toter-of-fact. “As the rules of the Imperial Academy prevent outside interference, your family had very little say iter. It’s simply aension of the rivalry that has existed for turies. It will be up to you to fill this space, lord, not just with wealth, but with the power of your name. Work hard, aually, you will be able to afford staff, tutors, and perhaps — wheime is right — restore your influence over this portion of campus.”
“I uand.” And he did. Sort of. The school currency system helped fill in some of the gaps, and he already k was rgely up to him how, if, the House Bcksword fa was restored. “It es down t hard to make the ges I want to see.”
J-65 nodded again, her posture never wavering. “Indeed. Your instructors will provide more details on that, and as yress, you’ll learn what’s necessary to gain the resources you need.”
They reached the front door, and J-65 pushed it open. Inside, Krion looked at an impressive yet somber interior. At first ghe manor had the feel of a fortress more than a home. A stone floor and a tall ceiling seemed to reinforce that impression with each step he took. The walls were adorned with intricate carvings and reliefs that depicted battles, victories, and family triumphs. All faded with age and covered with dust. The faint st of old wood and stone lingered in the air, and the silence was even more present than it had been outside — broken only by the soft echo of their footsteps.
J-65 directed his attention to a small table that sat against the wall. Upon it was a ly arraack of dots, aing atop the pile was Krion’s css schedule. As soon as his fiouched the paper, it disappeared in a burst into green light and a System s appeared in front of him.
1. Foundations of History — held in the Lecture Hall, Rm. 101.
2. Esseudies — held in the Are Hall, Rm. 101.
3. bat Studies — held in the Martial Hall, Rm. 105.
4. Etiquette and Courtly Manners — held in the Lecture Hall, Rm. 113.
“Your schedule for the year. You’ll find the faculty of the Imperial Academy will expect you to be punctual and diligent.”
The list was simple enough, but as Krion minimized the s, he couldn’t help but feel a bit of excitement mixed with apprehension. He had known there would be csses, of course, but to see them id out before him made everything that had happeoday feel just a bit more real. Perhaps some small part of him had been expeg that, despite his indu into the system and the ceremony today, someone would tell him everything was a mistake and send him ba his way. But with the courses and the dates and times listed in smaller print uhem on the System s, that was no longer a possibility.
“The Foundations of History should be iing,” Krion mused aloud. “Though I’m not so sure what Esseudies is. Hopefully, it has something to do with magibat Studies should be fine as well. Aiquette and Courtly Manners,” he added, ging inwardly. While he knew he was severely g in that knowledge, and that he would o learn fast in order to do better navigating the plex and dangerous world of eras, that did not mean he was looking forward to it. Oh, yes there had been expectations and rules, but it had only ever felt impersonal as he had beehan a minor pyer in society at best. ruly in the spotlight, ruly made to be the ter of attention, and that recisely what he was most worried about in this st css.
Some unfortable memories from his childhood chose that moment te to the forefront of his mind. He remembered his father’s insisten public appearances when he had been sick. Kiron had been told he o make the right impression, which was to say that he o garner sympathy that would lead to more attention and support from the hospital where he was undergoing treatment. As an adult, he khe importance of what he had done, but the sense of humiliation he experienced as a child still stuck with him. The fact that now he would have to stand in front of aire room of strangers and adhere to strict rules of etiquette and courtly manners made him nearly as unfortable, even though he knew he . But he could worry about all of that once he had his first css.
He turo J-65, his expression full of gratitude.
“Thank you, J-65,” he began, his voice ear. “For everything today. I know your duty didend to half of what you did — guidaaying beyond the tour, bringing us to the restaurant. Valdre and Redrek mentioned how unon that is, and it means more than I say.”
J-65 shifted her stance, her armor faintly king with the movement. For a moment, the imperable aura she carried seemed to falter. “It was nothing,” she said, though her torayed a hint of awkwardness. “It’s my responsibility to ensure you’re adjusted to the Academy.” She paused, then added quietly, “And you didn’t seem like you’d had the best start.”
Her admission hung in the air for a moment, surprising Krion. “Still,” he pressed, “you went out of your way. You didn’t have to, and I noticed.”
J-65 hesitated before speaking again, her voice softer now. “Not all Sentinels are… automatons of duty. Some of us still remember what it’s like to be oside looking in.”
Before Krion could ask what she meant, J-65 stepped back, her posture straightening. “Get some rest. Tomorrow will be a long day for you, given that csses start.” With that, she turned and walked away, soon pulling the front door closed behind her and she stepped out into the night.
With J-65 gohe silen the room returned with full force. He focused his thoughts on what had just happened, namely why J-65, in her own admission, had decided to be so helpful. Since his arrival at the Imperial Academy, she had been professional, but more than that, she had been quietly supportive. Almost as if she had a vested i in his success. From everything he had learhe Sentinels were tasked to be the ever-present but not always visible guarantee of Imperial Academy security, tasked with ensuring that the students, especially the noble ss, remained safe and followed the rules. But J-65 seemed different. She had not just been effit; she had go of her way to expin things, and to answer his questions, despite her earlier admonition that her role precluded her from doing anything that verged on teag. The thought g him, but he hadn’t gotten an opportunity to ask her.
Krion grimaced, trying to push the thoughts aside. He didn’t know her, and he had no way of knowing if she had any kind of deeper motivation. Maybe she was just doing her job as she saw fit. The fact kindness and care had been apparently part of that approach was hy, but not enough by itself to indicate anything. Though he had to admit to himself, though everything she had done didn’t make her a friend, it might make her… something.
Shaking himself from his reverie, Krion turned his attention back to the manor around him. He o focus, to push the thoughts of J-65 out of his head, even if just for now. Tomorrow, his first day at the Imperial Academy was set to begin. Everything from here on out would o be a carefully sidered move, and he couldn’t afford any distras that could set him back or put him at risk. Not without the possibility of ensurate gains. He did not like thinking in such a way, but givehing that had happeoday with Caspian, and the potential looming threat of others who had grudges against House Bcksword, he would just have to get over that.
Focus back where it o be, Krion wandered deeper into the manor. His manor. His footsteps echoed off the polished stone floors, kig up small clouds of dust as he tried to get a better feel for his new home. His new living quarters were expansive, even by the standards of noble housing that he had seen on the way here.
After a few minutes of wandering, he eventually found his way to the kit, which was surprisingly well-stocked. The shelves were lined with ly arranged jars of preserved fruits, grains, and dried meats. There were fresh vegetables on the ter, as well as a rge chest of ice with a sele of fresh fruit a cuts. Pulling open a drawer revealed a shining k. Finally, along the side wall was a variety of pots and pans, ready to be used with the stove and oven.
The sight was a bit of a relief. He had always been self-suffit i, cooking for himself what he could on the small sary he received as an assistant to a doctor ba Earth. While he felt somewhat tempted to put something together, his stomach was still pleasantly full from the dinner he had e The Hearth & Ember. Leaving the kit for now, he tinued his exploration of the manor.
The pce was rge, everything steeped in dark wood and polished stohough again dust was everywhere. Walking up and down the halls, with their sharp angles and thick walls, tio reinforce the impression the residence was, first and foremost, a fortress. Thankfully, despite that feeling, he came across enough rooms that he did not think it would be a problem to find a pce for anyone else who o stay. Which he assumed would eventually happen, given the versations about bodyguards and servants.
Eventually, he found what he assumed to be the master bedroom. The door opeo reveal a spacious room dominated by a massive bed with intricately carved woodwork. A heavy opy draped over the bed, and what looked to be fresh sheets of a deep crimson embroidered with the Bcksword crest had been ed for use. Beyond a few bedside tables, a dresser with a mirror, and a low couch, the only other thing in the room was a rge firepce along one wall, cold for now but he would likely appreciate it once winter came. Actually, would there even be winter on the pocket pne? He knew more about ag like a nobleman tharapnar manipution, but it seemed like the seasons aher might be something that whoever created this pce might have a hand in. Guess he would just have to find out.
Taking off his greatsword and the harness it was i it leaning against the side of the bed. He doubted he would , but it was better to have it close at hand. Disrobing, he folded his clothes as ly as he could and thehem on the dresser for tomorrow. Which is to say, they weren’t very . But since he was the only oaying in the manor, he would be the only oo know. Turning, he caught his refle in the mirror. His body was more lean and tohan it had been a few weeks ago, which made sense, given all the training he had gohrough with Alesin and Rolfun. The retive ck of fat, however, also made the scars that ranged up and down his body stand out that much more. While a part of him had inally been angry over the fact that his body had been ruined, as he had seen it, since arriving at Verdant VI, and then the Imperial Academy, he found they didn’t bother him as much. In fact, in a way, it made it a bit easier to make a break between the person he had been and the person he would o bee by y.
He turned away from the mirror and crawled into bed. Pulling up his access to the System, he fiddled with the options to set an arm for the m. It had taken a few days to figure it out, but Rolfun had been kind enough to walk him through it when he had asked. He set an arm for two hours earlier than the css he would o go to. That should give him enough time to get up, make breakfast, and then arrive early to css.
As he moved to close the s, however, he hat the cryptic messages he had seen during the end of the ceremony in the Amphitheater of Indu were still able to be pulled up.
Noble Awakening: Success
Bloodline Validation: Success
Character Sheet Modification: Success
Error: Unbound from Imperial Loyalty straints
Error: Ied Prerogatives Locked
He furrowed his brow as he looked over the messages agaiill had only the vaguest ideas of what they meant. The first two, he could guess, as it was likely reted to his identity as a hough the specifics were unclear. Probably some sort of verification process to grant him access to aura, majesty, and emihough he remained unsure as to what those were as well, nor why they had been apanied by the physical and stat ges he had experienced. He had even less of an idea of what the errors might indicate. His eyes drifted down to the sole trait he possessed: Greater Soul Oath.
Krion closed the s. Leaning ba the bed, he rubbed his temples. How had he ended up in this situation, burdened with secrets before he even had a ce to learn the rules of this new world he was living in? No, he wouldn’t share this with anyone. Until he knew more and uood the implications, there was no way he could let anyone else know. The stakes were too high.
Setting that aside for the moment, he resolved to shift his focus to what mattered right now: school. The csses starting tomorrow, the people he would be meeting, and all the challenges ahead at this Academy. That is where his attention and focus belonged, and that was where he would keep them until his situation ged.
Mind made up, he settled deeper into the crimsos, the exhaustion of the day finally sinking its cws into him. He closed his eyes, willing his thoughts to quiet. Sleep was slow to e, but eventually, he drifted off. It was the best night’s sleep he had had in weeks.
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