2 parts, 4 parts, 8,16,32,64,128,256,512. Countless. How high can I reach?
Adion focused on the volatile space in front of him. What had started as a step-by-step process to make an attack out of space years ago was now more approaching the feeling of a concept. It had become almost as familiar as teleportation to him.
Is it really a concept? What separates a concept from a spell? I guess a spell can’t really work without concepts, and the need for strong concepts varies from spell to spell. This volatile space attack started as a way to construct a spell, but the only concept I was aware of applying was stableness.
Now that it is so easy for me to make work, it shouldn’t make me feel like this. Teleportation doesn’t feel like this. What’s different? Is it simply because I’m looking for it?
Adion felt he was close to grasping something. The volatile space in front of him was, in reality, just the freezing of space using his Authority. He just split the space up into hundreds of parts and moved them around sporadically. He always tried to forcefully make it more volatile and sharp. But he had never had any epiphany about those kinds of concepts, and he didn’t really know if he had managed to grasp them at all.
Maybe teleportation just feels complete to me. Other than increasing the distance I can teleport, I can’t figure out a way to improve it. The same applies when I freeze space. Other than making it more stable, I am not moving it in a new direction at all. Only this volatile space feels like it has endless paths for me to follow. But where should I take it? And how?
“What are you doing? It feels strange,” Sell asked as she walked over from the other side of the fighting pit where she had been training with fire on her own.
“You can feel it?” Adion asked.
“I feel something,” Sell said, squinting her eyes at the space in front of Adion.
Her space sense must have improved. I don’t think many others at her level would be able to notice.
“What do you feel?” Adion asked.
“It feels…erratic? Like the space there is a little agitated. I definitely get the feeling of not wanting to come too close,” Sell answered.
Erratic. Agitated.
“So what is it?” Sell asked curiously, looking at Adion with a smile.
“It’s my volatile space attack,” Adion answered, “I’m trying to see if I can make something more of it. It’s just hard to test. It’s pretty destructive, after all.”
“Why are you practicing that all of a sudden?” Sell asked.
It wasn’t a strange question. Adion had been focusing a lot of his attention on other things ever since he got to the Academy. When it came to his space powers, he mostly practiced increasing his Authority and freezing space. He wasn’t able to make use of his space powers while at the Academy, after all.
“I don’t know,” Adion said slowly, “I just have this bad feeling. So I guess I wanted to be a little more prepared in case anything happens.”
“You’re still worried? Is it about that girl?” Sell asked.
“I know it’s probably nothing. I’m just thinking out loud,” Adion said, shaking his head.
Adion had gone to investigate the strange blonde girl two days prior. But since he knew nothing about her, except her looks and that she was in her first year, it wasn’t easy to find something out about her. There were thousands of first-years to go through.
Adion had gone to the administration office and looked through every single new student who joined. It had taken him hours and a lot of credits, but in the end, it didn’t give any results.
Maybe I’ll spot her again soon. I’ll have to make sure to approach her and figure out where I know her from.
Adion didn’t really have an impression of the girl. He knew it wasn’t someone he knew well. He would definitely remember her if they even had a conversation before. It was more like a vague sense of familiarity. He was sure he had seen her somewhere but couldn’t figure out where.
“Well, even if there is an evil girl running around, it’s not like she can do anything,” Sell said in a joking tone, “You are basically the strongest student in the Academy, and you have the strongest mage on the continent as your master. So try to relax. It’s fine if you can’t figure out where you know her from. We’ll be in the Academy for years, so I’m sure you’ll get the answer eventually.”
“You’re right,” Adion nodded.
“By the way, I’ll be at the ceremony next week,” Sell said, finally taking a seat next to Adion.
“Really? That’s great. It would be boring without you,” Adion said.
“You know we have to be more careful than ever during that time, right?” Sell asked.
“I know, I know,” Adion nodded, “I’m sure I’ll be busy greeting guests and the like anyway. Grandpa says I have to meet with people and be polite.”
“Haha,” Sell laughed, “It’s going to be fun watching you suffer through Noble society.”
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
The ceremony they were talking about was the one where Adion’s family would officially become part of the Noble families in Cyalis. Even if they had been recognized as a Noble family ever since his Grandpa advanced, it was customary to have an official ceremony where the other Noble families welcomed the newcomer. Adion wasn’t very much looking forward to it, though.
“Are you coming with the Amyss family?” Adion asked.
“Yes,” Sell nodded, “We have a branch here in Cyalis, after all. And we have been invited. Rell will also be also be going, probably as she knows your brother well. She asked me if I wanted to come, so I said yes.”
“I see,” Adion nodded.
Their conversation soon drifted to concepts and spells. Adion brought up his different musing, and Sell brought up thoughts of her own. Slowly, Adion forgot about his troubles and enjoyed the warm summer day.
----------------------------------------
Termeth tapped his fingers on his desk, his eyes on the man in front of him but his thoughts elsewhere.
After a few minutes of silence, Termeth breathed out and took a good look at his subordinate. He could tell that he was nervous. But he was getting better and better at hiding it.
“Is the matter taken care of?” Termeth asked in a cold voice.
“The Amyss family didn’t have any objections once we laid out our case. They should be arriving in Cyalis in a few days. A week at most,” Gerilym answered with his head slightly lowered.
“I can’t believe that the things I’ve heard are actually true. But even I believe it now. The Amyss family will pay dearly for this shame,” Termeth muttered.
“It is indeed unforgivable,” Gerilym agreed, “But when the Lord advances, I’m sure they’ll realize what fools they have been.”
“I’ll make them realize it if I advance or not,” Termeth answered, “It’s not like they can resist me either way.”
“You’re correct, of course,” Gerilym agreed.
“Still. The Amyss princess will be useful if I can’t make an advancement. Even if I have great confidence in reaching the Immortal stages, I don’t know how long it will take me. I don’t want to leave my plans to something so uncertain.” Termeth said.
Termeth knew that once he became an Immortal Lord, nothing on this continent could stop him. Taking down the Amyss family would be a simple matter. But even if he had more accomplishments than anyone else on the continent in grasping the elusive Authority, he was unable to say just how much more it would take him to advance.
Even if he was an extremely powerful Pure Soul mage, replacing the Amyss family would still be somewhat troublesome. He was far from undefeatable if he was faced with several Hard Soul mages. Public opinion couldn’t be completely ignored either. But with the Shields working for him, he wasn’t very worried that the Noble families would get in his way.
All that was missing was marrying the Amyss princess. That, along with his status and strength, would give him sufficient legitimacy to take over Iitha. He could slowly whittle down the Amyss family’s power from the shadows. With the Shields under his control, and his cooperation with Heavenly Light, it would be simple.
Looks like things are finally starting to settle in to place. I’ll be able to step away to focus on my advancement soon enough.
“What’s the plan for the kid? Is there a way to kill him?” Termeth asked.
“Originally, it was impossible,” Gerilym answered with a smile, “But with Heavenly Light helping us, it seems the situation has taken a bright turn.”
“Is that so?” Termeth asked, “Tell me about it.”
“Haha,” Gerilym laughed, “It seems that Adion Remori is the main goal of those people this time. I guess they see him as a threat ever since he was accepted as a disciple of the Headmaster. They slaughtered his family, so it’s obviously impossible to reconcile.”
“Is that their objective?” Termeth questioned, “I suppose it makes some sense. But the risk is also very great. That Headmaster is no fool. And he is not as gentle as he might appear. If they touch his disciple, they will have to face his wrath.”
“I’m not sure what they have planned, but they seem pretty sure about succeeding from what I’ve been able to find out,” Gerilym answered.
How are they planning on going about it? Are they planning on bringing reinforcements from Quemer? That’s not good.
Even if Termeth cooperated with Heavenly Light as it had served his purpose, he didn’t want them to gain too much influence on Shiora. It would be better if they all returned to Quemer once he had gotten what he wanted out of them.
But it’s strange that they take that kid so seriously. Even if he is the disciple of that old man, he is only a Silver mage. There will be plenty of opportunities to get rid of him in the future.
Are they planning something else?
The first time Heavenly Light approached him with the matter of Adion Remori and his fiance, they had acted as if it was nothing but a simple favor. But Termeth didn’t trust that. They were far too willing to give up that information, even going as far as swearing an Oath of the legitimacy of their claim.
Termeth had sent Gerilym to handle the matter. Unfortunately, Adion Remori had become the disciple of the Headmaster by that point, so they couldn’t be too forceful.
But when Heavenly Light approached them once again with information that the relationship was still ongoing, Termeth was convinced of two things. One, the relationship between his fiance and Adion Remori was a fact, and he needed to immediately put an end to it. And two, by doing so, he would be doing exactly what Heavenly Light wanted him to do.
But even if he knew that he was working for the benefit of those people, it wasn’t as if he could ignore it. He didn’t care if the girl had a crush during her time at the Academy, but to actually have an explicit relationship was crossing the line by far. Just the thought of people whispering about this made his blood boil. But he had no choice but to turn to the Amyss family and make the matter known to them. He couldn’t take her out of the Academy himself, and he couldn’t allow her to stay there. Even if the matter would blow up to some degree because of this, the consequences could be far worse if he waited things out.
And now he had something to use when negotiating with the Amyss family. Their shame would be as great as his, and they were the ones at fault.
“Well,” Termeth muttered after a moment of silence, “Either way, it has nothing to do with me anymore. If Heavenly Light and Cyalis fight each other, it will only benefit me.”
Maybe I could use this opportunity?
“Gerilym,” Termeth said, “Have our people pay close attention to this situation. They shouldn’t interfere, only observe. If Heavenly Light really goes against the Headmaster’s disciple, we will find a way to let him know who did it.”
“I’ll see to it right away, Lord Termeth,” Gerilym said with a bow.