“Are you ready for Combat Training?” Caine asked with a smile on his face.
A strange silence filled the room as the students looked at one another as if their Professor had just told them something unfathomable. Caine took a deep breath and sighed loudly.
“Silas.” Caine called out to his student, a hint of annoyance in his voice. “What’s wrong now?”
“Sorry, Professor. It’s just that we don’t really do Combat Training. We never had a professor willing to do that; usually they tend to be some random academic from some random school from some random region, and they tended to focus just on academics.”
“Well, for people who only did academic subjects, you guys are more behind than I’d have guessed.” Caine said, mockingly, although he felt annoyed at the lack of resources for these children.
“To be honest, they were pretty boring, it was difficult to engage with them.” Myra answered, surprising Caine with her words. He had expected her to be more reserved and polite, but here she was, calling other Professors ‘boring.’ Caine couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle at that.
“I see. That doesn’t really change anything for me. Stand up, and let’s go outside, we have Combat Training.” Caine clapped his hands and urged his students to prepare.
There were some murmurs, the stiffness they felt previously gradually disappeared, and all the students now seemed somewhat excited. They left the classroom and began walking the empty halls, Caine making sure they remained quiet so as to not bother other students.
“Do you know how to get to the training grounds, Professor?” Myra asked as she walked beside him.
“Not really, I was planning on walking and hoping fate was on my side.” Caine smiled at her.
“Didn’t take you to be someone who would make jokes, Professor.” Myra laughed.
“No offense.” She added as she realised what she had just said.
“None taken.” He replied politely. “My brother is the funny one. And the strong one.”
“Which are you, then?”
“The better fighter… and the handsome one.” He added with a smirk on his face, much to Myra’s surprise.
They walked the rest of the way in silence, Caine following Myra as she lead the way, and soon they reached the training grounds.
A large cage stood in front of them, the ground around it was covered in an endless line of intricate runes, and as soon as they entered the cage, the space in front of them changed completely.
From the outside, the cage seemed large, spanning over a few acres, but once inside, it was… infinite. The training grounds were separated into different fields and environments, from sandy beaches to dense woods to a simple ring.
Caine looked at the distant chain of mountains, remembering his own training in his youth and involuntarily shivered as old memories resurfaced.
To his side, there were two buildings, where each student went to get changed out of their uniforms, and came out some more fitting attire. They wore their basic training uniform, a tight, black bodysuit - also covered in an intricate series of runes - and wearing a simple t-shirt and shorts on top of it.
Caine walked beside the ring and looked at the large table beside it, filled with a myriad of weapons, ranging from greatswords to rapiers to bows and crossbows, touching as many weapons as he could as he walked by.
The students stared at him, the excitement clearly visible on their faces, but soon got startled as Caine clapped his hands, and turned to face them, wearing a devious smile.
“Everyone.” Caine called out to them, his voice full of the same excitement a kid would have. “Grab a weapon, or remain bare-handed if you prefer, and I will fight you one-by-one. While I am fighting one of you, you will be in pairs, and spar with each other.”
He stayed silent for a moment and then drew a circle on the ground with his foot as he spun around once.
“I will not leave this circle, I won’t use any weapons, and I’ll only fight using my left arm. You know… in the spirit of fairness.”
Silence somehow echoed in the infinite space as all the students stared at Caine in disbelief for a moment before letting out a burst of stifled laughter.
“Professor. “Silas called out to him, still laughing. “We may not have any Combat Training, but it doesn’t mean we can’t fight. We had to go through entrance exams, and we wouldn’t have passed if we were just regular commoners. Look, just relax, and we’ll spar with each other.”
For the first time in nearly a decade, Caine was speechless. Countless thoughts ran through his mind, and he wondered whether those children forgot the fear they felt when they first met him, and he felt disappointed in himself.
‘Can’t I even scare a bunch of children? Master must be rolling in his grave.’
“Alright, alright, my apologies, I did not introduce myself properly. I may be the one assigned to you defects, but I am not like the other Professors you had. I am a full-fledged adventurer, I spent years in The Forest, and there is not a single one of you who could touch me.”
Silas took a step forward, puffing his chest out as if he tried to take charge of the atmosphere. He confidently walked to the table and grabbed a sword. He swung it a few times, feeling its weight and balance, and then smiled at Caine.
He let out a scream and charged straight to Caine - who closed his eyes, feeling embarrassed at his charge. He raised his sword high in the sky and swung it down, and while his form was clumsy at best, his speed and power were admirable.
Unfortunately for him, Caine’s technique was far superior than his student’s and as the sword came down, Caine’s hand moved beside it, his palm parallel to the flat side of the blade, and strengthening it with mana, he deflected the sword, changing its trajectory and burying it into the ground, before his hand curled into a fist and striking Silas perfectly in his chin.
His eyes turned white as his consciousness slipped away, falling onto the ground and Caine held up his falling body before laying gently on the ground. Caine picked up his sword, still stuck on the ground, and placed it back on the table, giving his students a challenging look. Silas was slowly waking up as well, his expression completely unreadable.
“Anyone else?” He asked, his voice eerily calm.
The children shook their heads, their expressions ranging from fear to admiration. Myra took a step forward, her hand clenching into a fist, her face wearing a mask of confidence to hide the fear rooted in her mind.
Suddenly a wave of mana overcame the training field, freezing the students in their places; they all went pale under the pressure that attacked them but soon managed to recover as the pressure vanished.
Caine stood tall through it, a curious smile directed at the students that had just entered the training grounds, being led by another Professor. His students looked down, avoiding their derisive gazes, their shoulders slouching and making themselves look as small as possible.
Caine walked over to the Professor, extending his hand and smiling politely at him. The Professor was a rather tall and thin man, his complexion tanned with raven hair; he was rather handsome, his face well defined, and all his features were sharp but sharper than all were his eyes, carrying an unbelievable amount of confidence behind them.
The Professor walked beside him, ignoring his existence, as did the students behind him, who snickered at Caine.
Caine looked at the sky and let out a heavy and defeated sigh as he began to wonder if there was any amount of money that would let this type of life be acceptable for him. For so long, he had gotten used to the unruly beasts of The Forest, he never considered that there would be such unruly people as well.
“Listen up, you failures.” The Professor said quietly, although his voice sounded strangely powerful. “We are going to use the training grounds, so make yourself scarce.”
Caine’s students started walking towards the exit, all of them walking beside him, looking utterly defeated; even Silas walked beside him, his shoulders slouched and weak, and patted him on the shoulder, his original confidence now nowhere in sight.
“Professor.” Caine shouted. “I believe you are mistaken. The training grounds are mine to use for the hour. A pleasure to meet you, I’m Professor Caine.”
Caine’s students stopped in their tracks behind him, their faces turning frightful.
“I do not know who you are, and frankly I do not care.” The Professor told him, coldly. “I am Professor McGrave, in charge of the Third Class. Seeing how you are looking after their failures, you must not know how this prestigious Academy works.”
His students behind him started laughing, mocking, and pointing at Caine’s students as Professor McGrave came awkwardly close to Caine.
“We operate on meritocracy.” He continued. “The better students have the better privileges. My students are better than yours, as I am better than you. Therefore we will be using the training grounds while you will quietly make yourself scarce.”
Caine’s smile grew wider, as a pulsating vein appeared on his temple.
‘No manners.’ He thought.
The Professor looked wealthy, while he seemed thinner than the average noble, just the silk of his robes was far more expensive than all the weapons in the training grounds combined, and even the buttons on his robes were made with mana crystals.
That was why Caine had been so surprised at his lack of tact and manners. Very rarely had he met someone being so rude and arrogant to this face, the few times he was spoken to in that manner were in the slums of the Prillescia Kingdom.
“Is that right?” Caine asked, annoyance overtaking his tone. “If meritocracy is the basis of the Academy, then that applies to the Professors as well right? The strongest Professor would then be able to choose. Isn’t that right?”
Caine was a rather tall man himself, and yet he had to look up to Professor McGrave, although he did not seem any less powerful. On the contrary, his gaze carried a strange aura, making the atmosphere feel heavier, and silencing all the students around them.
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“That wouldn’t necessarily apply to the Professors, but I am willing to make an exception in this situation.” A soft, yet powerful voice broke through the silence.
Professor McGrave broke eye contact first, turning towards the source of the voice, as did Caine moments later.
Headmistress Zeraphyn walked comfortably towards them, her hair flowing gently in the breeze. Professor McGrave smiled at her and bowed as if the situation was unfolding exactly as he wished, whereas Caine reciprocated her soft smile with one of his own.
“Professor McGrave, this is one of our applicants. I assigned him the Tenth Class as part of his interview, so technically his rights to use the training grounds are given by me; however, you are also correct, the higher class has more rights.”
“I completely agree, Headmistress.” He replied.
“However,” she continued, “I will need to review his teaching methods to ascertain his capabilities as an educator, so I believe a compromise is in order. As our esteemed applicant was just about to politely and calmly request, you may have a duel, the victor will be able to use the training grounds.”
Professor McGrave laughed boastfully as did all his students, whereas Caine’s students looked at the situation unfold with concern written all over their faces. Caine on the other looked at the arsenal beside him, studying at all the weapons, thinking about whether or not to use any of them.
Ultimately he decided against it, and jumped onto the ring platform, doing some light stretches as he waited for his opponent to join him.
Professor Mcgrave walked to the steps and calmly walked onto the ring, standing opposite Caine. Despite the air of arrogance he emanated, there was no denying that he was powerful, not any mage could become a Professor at the Arman Academy; he stood perfectly still, absorbing the mana in the atmosphere, replenishing his mana core, and his dark eyes remained fixed on Caine.
“Let’s begin.” The Headmistress announced.
Professor McGrave raised his hand, pointing his palm at Caine, and an incredible amount of mana condensed and materialised into his hand, turning into bright, incandescent flames.
“Firestream.” He chanted the spell, strengthening it.
The flames grew even hotter, the crimson flame turning blue, and then he shot the flame, a stream of fire, growing and shooting at incredible speed towards Caine, who still remained still, looking as if he enjoyed the burning warmth of the fire getting close to him.
The two were a good distance away, but when the flame arrived within steps of Caine, it dissipated, growing dimmer and dimmer until it completely vanished, as if it had never existed.
The spell persisted, the fire continuously trying to reach Caine, but constantly failing.
Professor McGrave let out a sigh and stopped the spell, realising that he was needlessly expending mana on a spell that wouldn’t work.
The second the flames stopped, Caine absorbed an absurd amount of mana through the mana channels covering his entire body, and guided it towards his legs, kicking the ground.
All the students saw was Caine disappearing, and then reappearing beside Professor McGrave, his stance prepared for a perfect roundhouse kick aimed at his temple, and they all looked at the scene unfold before their incredulous eyes.
Even the Headmistress was somewhat shocked, although it was hidden behind a mask of pleasant surprise.
As Caine’s kick was about to connect, Professor McGrave somehow managed to erect a barrier of pure mana protecting him, leaving Caine surprised as he didn’t actually react to the kick, but rather predicted it, erecting the shield before Caine even closed the distance.
As his foot struck the exceptionally sturdy barrier, Caine jumped, using his other leg to swiftly kick him, aiming once again for his head, but still striking the shield rather than the man.
Professor McGrave released a burst of mana as Caine was mid-air, pushing him off, and making him land a few steps away from him.
Caine laughed as he brushed some dust off his clothes, and once again absorbed as much mana as he could, constantly circulating it throughout his body. He raised his hand, pointing at Professor McGrave.
“Pull.” He chanted a spell.
Suddenly, his opponent’s feet left the ground, and he flew towards Caine at a great speed.
“Air Cannon.” He chanted another spell, his other hand also extending, and a large sphere of extremely dense air condensed onto it, which then shot out at a frightening speed.
Professor McGrave shielded his head, conjuring three mana shields in front of him, covering his entire frame, but they all shattered at the spell, and he was struck perfectly in his chest.
His opponent flew back, hitting the ground before coming to he rested motionless near the edge of the ring. Caine walked over to him, his gait powerful and confident, and kneeled beside him, placing his hand on his chest and feeling his shallow breaths.
“Headmistress.” He said, without actually looking at her. “I assume the training grounds are mine to use, right?”
“Yes,” she replied, “please continue with your lesson.”
Caine stood up, looking down at the Professor, and took a step back as he saw the space around distort, collapsing upon itself, and swallowing Professor McGrave whole, leaving nothing behind.
Caine felt his blood run cold as he witnessed the Spatial Magic, and turned to Headmistress Zeraphyn, hiding his wariness behind a charming smile.
“But Professor Caine, please do understand that the man you fought today is not how he always is: he is going through Mana Purification, otherwise the fight would have been tremendously more difficult.”
Caine never had to go through Mana Purification himself, he never had a core he needed to cleanse and refine to increase his mana capacity, after all his mana channels made him a completely unique individual, with no other like him in the world, so he never had been rendered so vulnerable.
However, he did realise the strain Mana Purification could put on a mage, to have their mana capacity be a fraction of what it could be, and for his spells to still be so powerful and refined… Caine felt a sense of respect for Professor McGrave that he rarely felt for mages.
“I see.” He replied. “In that case, could you arrange for us to fight again when he is at full strength? Despite this… skirmish, I respect that man, or at least his strength.”
“Strenght, you say?” She let out a soft chuckle. “You are exactly like how Sir Eteben described you. Battle hungry. It’s refreshing.”
“Sir Eteben doesn’t really know what he’s talking about. I wouldn’t trust him too much… you know other than the part about me being the right person for this job of course.” Caine smiled at her.
“He is a Royal Guard, to remind you. Any slander towards them is punishable under law.” She admonished him humorously.
“Slender would need to for the statement to be false. If you see him anytime soon, ask him to tell you about the Endless Pit. Anyway, Headmistress, it is a delight to speak to you, but if you don’t mind, I’d like to get back to teaching.”
Caine continued smiling at her, although his eyes remained serious, making the Headmistress return a curious smile of her own. It had been years since anyone had been so carefree with her, treating her as if she was just a regular mage, and she was relishing in this lost feeling.
“Yes, it is always a delight to speak with you, but I have responsibilities I need to attend to, so please do carry on with your lesson.”
With those words, the Headmistress walked away, politely smiling at the students, and left the training grounds, every single person’s eyes fixed on her as she left.
Even some crows stared at her as she left, and Caine couldn’t help but wonder where those crows even came from.
Caine turned back to the students, now having the Tenth Class and the Third Class as well just looking at him, waiting on any instructions.
“Since you guys are here, we should have a joint Combat Training class.”
At those words, there was an uproar of protests from the Third Class, all of them voicing their displeasure.
“Why should we interact with these failures?”
“Why do we even need to share the same space with these… things?”
“Just make them leave, you clearly know something about fighting, just leave them and teach us.”
The students began shouting all at once, whereas the Tenth Class remained quiet, looking down dejectedly. Caine was fairly surprised at this, even Myra and Silas couldn’t bring themselves to look at the other students, let alone defend themselves despite them being fairly confident previously.
Caine felt surprised, but more than anything, he felt pity for them. To be so young and to be so utterly beaten down, it truly was pitiful… and disgusting.
Caine looked at the Third Class students, and suddenly they all went quiet, and a wave of tranquility overcame him as the only thing he heard was complete silence.
That, however, only lasted for a moment, as the next thing he heard was the sound of choking and coughing students as they fell to the ground, holding onto their throats, fighting with all their might to be able to take in even a breath.
Surprisingly, one student managed to remain upright, trying to maintain an image of composure, with his posture upright, his shoulders pulled back and his chest puffed out. All of that was unfortunately overshadowed by his complexion having turned red, and by his shaking arm, fighting the urge to reach for his own throat.
Caine walked over to him, with every step he took, sweat grew fiercer and fiercer on the student’s face, and fear began creeping into his eyes. Caine stood before him, smiling, and trying to match his gaze, but the student averted his eyes, and yet Caine found it fascinating.
He had not expected to find a student who could maintain a fraction of composure in front of him, and frankly, he was slightly disappointed in himself as he saw the students grow paler and paler.
He still remembered vividly the first time his Master used Authority on him, just before they reached the Foot of the Mountain, he remembered feeling pressure overwhelm him, struggling to breathe, and then passing out.
When he came to, all those years ago, he was thrown Oliver’s shoulder as he hummed some song Caine had never heard and carried on walking.
Oliver had explained to him about this ability that one could gain once they became overwhelmingly strong and how it would allow to invoke fear into a weaker opponent; Oliver explained about the ‘flight or fight’ instinct, about how when faced with danger, people would always try to either run away or fight for survival, and in rare occasions - if it was the most sensible choice - the body would freeze if it believed that it was the best chance of survival.
Authority was exactly that, using fighting intent to make another’s body freeze so completely that the body would try to be completely still to survive, even by stopping them from breathing; unfortunately, this was all done on an instinctive level, so people never realised what was happening, leading to them feeling like they were getting choked.
And then, they would collapse, not being able to breathe, they would lose all their strength and collapse.
That is what was supposed to happen, and that was what always happened whenever Caine used his Authority, but now there was an exception. The student in front of him managed to remain standing. Although Caine controlled his Authority - keeping its intensity to a minimum - he had not imagined someone to withstand it.
“Breathe.” He said, placing his hand on his shoulder.
The Third Class students collectively rushed to breathe, and Caine gestured at his own students to stand beside the Third Class. He waited until all the students were standing, and with a menacing look, he made them stand quietly, despite their obvious displeasure at being beside the Tenth Class.
“Professor,” the boy who managed to remain standing called out to him, “why should we train with these failures? They will only hinder us.”
His voice was strong and confident, and all his classmates looked at him with surprise as he spoke this way after what had just happened. However, Caine could feel the fear that was hidden in his voice, the fear hidden behind the mask of confidence.
“When you’re out of the Academy, you will work with different people, some will be weaker than you, and most will be infinitely stronger. Rarely, will you work with a group of people whose strength is relative to yours.”
The boy listened carefully, genuinely interested in the answer, without feeling any contempt for the Tenth Class.
“You need to learn how to work with people who are weaker than you when you are a beginner, especially if you want to become an adventurer or a soldier. A cohort is only as strong as their weakest member, so you have to learn how to strengthen one another to overcome your weaknesses.”
The boy nodded, his gaze firm, whereas the other students still wore dissatisfied expressions mixed with subtle hints of fear.
Myra took a hesitant step forward, trying to match Caine’s gaze, but soon looked away, feeling the pressure of the Third Class all staring at her, obsessive hate frozen in their eyes.
“Professor,” she said, her voice strangely hoarse, “you are the teacher for the Tenth Class, you are not supposed to be strong, or even competent. This doesn’t make any sense.”
Caine smiled, content at one of his students finally asking questions about him. Truthfully speaking, he was slightly confused as to why his students never asked questions about him and who he was.
“Oh yes, I guess I did not explain my qualifications. I am an adventurer, I have been one for many years, I participated in countless Subjugations, and I was pretty famous at one point, although I did go by a different name: Leonidas.”
Silence befell the training grounds, all the students - Third and Tenth Class alike - were speechless, their jaws wide open.
Leonidas.
It was the name of a fierce warrior from his Master’s homeland, Oliver had told him tales about how he had led three-hundred men to war against an army of thousands upon thousands, and how his victories had been talked about for generations.
However, to the rest of the world, Leonidas was the name of one of the strongest and bravest adventurers, the name of the one who spent years in The Forest, rarely ever leaving, just to help novices and kill as many demonic beasts as he could before they managed to reach any village.
It was the name of a living legend.
The one boy who withstood Caine’s Authority took a tentative step forward, and Caine could almost see him trying to find courage within himself.
“Professor.” He said. “I am aware that you are Leonidas, the Legend of The Forest. And I understand that compared to you, I am nothing but a lowly child.”
His voice trembled as nervousness crept in between his every word, but it was full of humility that was nowhere to be seen among his classmates.
“Professor Caine.” He continued, bowing. “Please accept me as your disciple.”
His request created a wave of astonishment in his classmates, who were clearly not used to seeing the boy act in such a manner. Caine was genuinely interested in the boy as well, to be able to resist his Authority - although a weakened version of it - was a feat worthy of a strong student.
“What’s your name, boy?” He asked.
“Aragon, Professor.” He replied confidently now. “Aragon Saintsworth.”