A tournament was scheduled to conclude the events. Every student in the Knight’s Academy was entered—they’d been separated by class before—though it was well-stated what ranks were considered good for the new kids. The furthest any first year had gotten was tenth place.
Virse made it to second, losing only to who she gathered to be the best student of the graduating class.
Suffice to say, if any of her peers had previously thought of approaching her, they promptly decided it wasn’t worth it now. In fact, they seemed to avoid her more.
She tried her best to get away from the crowd, under the excuse of tending to a couple of minor cuts she’d gotten throughout the tournament. A few of the teachers and a reporter or two still followed her, but it was slightly more manageable.
Even if, after all of their questions, she began to wish she could’ve asked them to stop. They asked about her previous training; her goals for her time in the Academy; if she had a benefactor already… all kinds of questions. She was surprisingly good at answering all of them in a quick but kind way, careful in making sure she didn’t say anything she wouldn’t want the world to know.
Eventually, one of the reporters came up to her. He glanced at his companion, who smirked back. Virse couldn’t help but feel like that reporter had lost a bet of some sort and, when he spoke, she realized what his hesitance was for.
“We’re from the Aecara News Crew,” he said nervously. “My colleague and I were wondering… you’re an orphan, right? But you’ve had this talent for a while, it sounds like. No one ever tried adopting you..?”
Instinctively, she looked to the other person beside him. They were being recorded. “A family’s been talking with Tris—that’s our director—about it for a while, but things aren’t set in stone yet. He’ll be saving most of what he earns through me for them, of course. He’s not just keeping it for himself.”
The lies came out so effortlessly. Everyone believed her, too.
And that was good, because Tris had walked in and started going right to her.
Before addressing her, though, he glanced at the reporter. “Is that live?”
“No, sir. The Knight’s Academy has asked that only the commentary of the events themselves be recorded live, not anything else,” the reporter said.
“I don’t think we need to draw any more attention to the girl than what she already has to face, no?” he asked casually. “I can imagine Virse already feels quite overwhelmed. She already knows her place here, she doesn’t need the added pressure of the entire kingdom.”
“Could I… ask who you are, sir..?”
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“I’m Tris Beimar of Kadhor, Virse’s director. I assume that gives me enough agency to ask such a thing of you?”
“Oh, of course!” The reporter gestured to their companion, and they clicked off the recorder. “I hope you don’t take offense. I hadn’t thought of asking your permission first. I—I’m a little new, and this is the first time I’ve interviewed a minor…”
Tris smiled; a smile that conveyed a threat that his words never would. “It’s not a problem as long as you respect my wishes and keep all of this between us.” He glared at everyone else surrounding Virse. “And that includes all of you. Go find someone else to fawn over for a couple of minutes, will you? I’d like to speak to my charge.”
A few others nodded and walked away. A couple, though, clearly just went far enough to claim to be out of earshot—they were too curious to completely follow Tris’s request. He sighed, though seemed to acknowledge that this was as good as they were going to get to privacy without making it more obvious.
“I was able to watch it all,” he remarked, his attention solely on Virse. “You did even better than I expected—and I already had high hopes for you.”
She nodded. “Thank you…”
“You know you only made it this far because you practiced—because you didn’t fall prey to distractions. You’re only going to keep doing great things if you keep up what you’ve been doing so far.”
“I know, Tris.”
“Look me in the eye, girl.”
She forced herself to make eye contact. Why was she so nervous all of a sudden? She did everything he’d wanted her to—he almost seemed proud. And it’s not like he’d say too much in front of others, whether or not they were recording it…
“I don’t want to hear you getting into any trouble,” he continued. “I want to be able to proudly say that I’m the one who’s been taking care of you. I don’t think I need to tell you how disappointed I’d be if I find that you’re not behaving or are getting distracted.”
“You don’t. I understand.”
“Good. Remember that, though you’ll be in the Knight’s Academy, I’m still in the same city. I will know if something’s going on.” His expression softened, somewhat, though all that did was make her more nervous. “And by the way… I came here for a specific reason. I’d just finished talking to a wealthy and influential noble… and his family is willing to be your benefactor.”
That surprised her—but in a good way. “Really?”
It surprised all of those “discreetly” listening, too. Some of them just obviously moved to listen closer; others were terrible enough at hiding it to actually mumble “Wait, really?” or similar signs of disbelief.
Tris laughed. He was louder, too, undoubtedly as his form of boasting. “Of course! They’re willing to provide all the funds you need for your full two years here—along with any additional courses you might need or want. In return, once you graduate, you’ll serve the family as a guard.”
“Who is it..?” Virse dared to ask. “They’ve got to have quite a lot of money, if they’re willing to do all of that…”
“They’ve asked to keep their house name private, until it becomes time. They think it’s better to avoid unnecessary attention, too.” Tris’s smile grew. “Don’t worry, I think you’ll find it an honor once you get there. As for when I’ll tell you… perhaps that’ll be my present to you, on your fifteenth birthday. After all, not long after that would be your graduation, and you’ll be able to meet with them yourself.”