Chapter 13: Entry Denied, Knife

As the two kids were preparing to face off Ban and Valt began speaking about the bad news that Valt had brought. 

“Father I came here today after one of my subordinates told be that Aion had no spirit, sadly as it’s recorded in the kingdom’s records it would be impossible to admit him.” Ban wasn’t expecting this to be the bad news. 

“Hm, not even with you as his backer?” 

“No the only way I can think of is if you were to go personally ask but then you would be announcing your presence to the world.” Truly outside of their small family no one knew that there was a peak master stage necromancer going around the continent doing as he pleased. 

“No I think I'll hold off on that, I'll just have to find somewhere else, maybe a different kingdom I haven’t seen your sisters in a while.” Valt thought about this and his father’s love of freedom and simply sighed while turning his head towards the fight between the two children. 

Currently Aion received a roundhouse kick with his forearm while forcing his daughters leg to keep its momentum going and having her fall on her backside yet again. As the fight ended the winner was quite obvious. 

“Hahahaha I didn’t think it would go on this long, Father how exactly did you train the boy to fight so well, and why did he rarely throw and punches?” Ban heard his son and thought about the reason why Aion would have let opportunities to strike go, as for the training he didn’t even think about it. 

“You think I trained to boy to fight, he took the initiative to find a teacher on his own. As for why he didn’t fight back more, we’ll have to ask him.” Valt thought about it and didn’t understand who else but his father would have taught this boy, but he also thought of this outcome as a great opportunity. 

“Hm Iris, I think we as Knights have lost to assassins this time.” Iris who was still laying on the floor cringed, yes she had lost as she was on the floor and Aion was still standing. 

“Daddy… I can… Still… Fight.” Seeing his daughter not being able to complete her sentences from fatigue Valt smiled this truly was a good opportunity. 

“Iris do you know why you lost despite being the stronger one?” Iris couldn’t answer her father as she thought that there was no way she was stronger, after all she never hurt Aion after their first exchange. 

“…No.” 

“That was because he diligently practices, not relying on others to do things for him, and works hard for himself, his friends, and his family without needing others to give him gifts. Simply he’s not spoiled with privileges.” Valt was stretching the truth as he didn’t know much about Aion personality other than that he spoke little and everyone knew exactly that he was doing so in order to get rid of Iris’ spoiled mentality. 

“Now Iris if you want to be rid of your fatigue begin guiding elemental energy to your core. Aion, little nephew we need to talk about knights and other things regarding warriors. But before that I'll give you something good seeing as you want to rely on yourself to be an assassin.” Saying that Valt waved his hand and a dagger appeared, seeing the condition Aion was in he handed it to Ban instead. 

“Ho, this is a good dagger, but master smiths hate making these how did you get one?” Ban looked at the dagger in his hand, and as he said these were truly hard to get as it took a master smith to make one and they detested the things, avoiding making one like the plague. 

“A friend of mine owned it and owed me a huge favor so he gave me the dagger.”The dagger was a ten centimeter wide double edged thirty centimeter long blade, no tip for stabbing instead looking like something made for chopping, it had slight inward curve making it ideal for cutting, a hole right above the hilt, and had no guard with a black finish. 

The reason why master  blacksmiths hated making these is because it took great skill for something that while they were the creators of they would’t be responsible for its greatness. 

These weapons were considered second rank weapons and had no special quality upon creation, but if an elemental beast’s core were to be inserted into the hole it would raise its durability one rank lower than the beast’s rank. 

So in essence while the creator had made something with the potential to become a high ranked weapon their skill was not what did so. 

“Aion thank your uncle for his gift, now two questions why didn’t you fight mor aggressively and how do you feel after your first fight?” Aion this whole time had been trying to stay prepared for another attack but with this he put down his guard. 

“Uncle, thank you…Seriously fighting family is bad… Hungry… Mother took me to hunt before and so I fought before.” Aion answered his grandpa and thought that while disputes were fine serious fights between family were not allowed and Iris was his cousin. 

He also corrected his  grandpa as this was not his first fight, although most of the time he spent in the mountains was spent learning to scavenge at times he would fight other creatures. 

“Hm that's right isn’t it, well there is still food on the table lets go back and finish eating although some of the food would be cold by now.” Iris looked at her mother while gathering elemental energy and feeling slightly better. 

“Mom can I go and fight things in the forest near here? I need to win back my honer as a knight.” 

“No.” The answer for her mother came quickly and in a tone that meant no arguments were permitted. Iris really wanted to fight Aion again right away but thought about what her father said and he was right aion’s skill was far superior to hers. 

Although she was stronger than him, she had gained that simply by relying on her seventh rank spirit instead of diligently practicing to become a knight she would sit around and let others spoil her. 

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Her seventh rank spirit was the Obsidian Dragon spirit and had three effects one was the faster gathering of elemental energy, the second was stabilizing her foundation even if she somewhat excessively used rare herbs or plants to strengthen herself, and the final and most important one was that it strengthens all earth elemental abilities by adding the darkness attribute to then without having to gather darkness elemental energy. 

The five walked back to the tent Ban helping Aion walk and Lily helping Iris, once they were inside and seated Aion began devouring food at a rapid pace. 

“Father although it doesn’t seem right to ask after I told you that I could’t get little Aion into the academy, do you have any earth element techniques that would help Iris reach the master stage.” 

“Humph, none sense she is my granddaughter if I had one I would give it to her immediately, sadly I only have the one I gave you and a wind element one.” Valt sighed he didn’t think his father would have one and the kingdom specialized in fire elemental techniques, so he had not been able to get one. 

“Thank you, I guess I would have to try my luck with the auctions or asking a favor from another kingdom’s clans.” “Hm, while I don't have one your nephew’s teacher does you can ask him.” Valt quickly looked towards aion who was eating at an alarming rate. 

“Aion does your teacher know an earth element technique?” Aion stopped eating and looked towards his uncle, then at Iris who was excited. 

“Un, Gaia’s Embrace.” This technique was well known to some but not all as the one who created this technique was said to have been killed by a ninth ranked beast while trying to take its treasure. In truth this was the writer of Aion’s Soul Rune technique and had been ambushed by his allies after successfully stealing the treasure. 

“Aion could you ask your teacher if he would be willing to take Iris as a disciple as well?” Ban looked at Valt sighing as he knew that it would be impossible. 

“Aion tonight show your teacher what happened and tell him that if he gives Iris the technique I'll give him a way out of his situation.” Valt looked at his father puzzled, giving away a technique to someone that wasn’t your disciple was not something anyone would do. 

“Valt it would be impossible for Aion’s teacher to take any disciples in his condition other than Aion. For now let's move the conversation in another direction. Aion we will not be able to enter you into the Royal Flame Academy, is there anything you want to do or another place you would like to go?” 

Aion was surprised by this and didn’t know what to say as he hadn’t thought that entering would be a problem, but then thought of his first friends. 

“Variant Flame Academy.” Ban had all but forgotten about the other academy but thought that it would work as long as he told them that Aion manifested his spirit after the test or practiced some mysterious technique. 

And if he disguised himself as an primary ranked grand stage assassin and began to teach there everything would work out even better than in the Royal academy. 

“Good, that's a good idea now we have to talk about knights and other warriors as you seem to have a great misconception about them and what they are like.” The conversations that followed were mainly Ban and Valt explaining to Aion what most Knights where like and how a real knight worked together with his or her mount as a team, or brothers, fighting side by side. 

Aion liked the idea of this as it was more like his family of crows and how they fought together and in harmony rather than one hiding behind the other doing nothing. In the end though Aion still preferred the profession of assassin over any other. 

As it was beginning to get late Valt bid fare well to his father and Aion and took his family into a carriage that had been prepared for them. 

“Daddy we have to come back here tomorrow I need a rematch, I'll win next time.” 

“Forget about it. I'll return tomorrow and see if Aion’s teacher is willing to give us the technique and if he does you have to properly thank Aion, as for fighting him I'll bring you here every once in a while to have you spar with him.” Back in their home Ban and Aion were sitting in Ban’s study. 

“Aion ask tonight ask your teacher for permission to show me both the Soul Rune technique and Gaia’s Embrace. As for the latter let him know that I want to pass it on to a child with an obsidian dragon’s spirit.” 

“Un” 

“Also you can form a core if either your teacher or that holy knight are able to release their spirit to help you form a core.” Spirit release was an ability gained in the grand stage, one’s spirit would manifest in a phantom like form behind one’s back. This ability doubled the strengthened of  a person’s attacks and was one of the major differences between the human stage and the grand stage. 

“I thought your teacher already knew that so I didn’t tell you anything, but to think you would use such a strange technique.” Aion was extremely excited if he could use his teachers spirit he would be able to form a core and practice the Lightning Tyrant’s Body technique. 

For the rest of the day Ban had Aion tell him his thoughts on various things before letting him go to sleep as a precaution, in case Aion had any other strange ideas about humans. After falling asleep Aion went to his teacher who was sitting peacefully and began to show him everything that had occurred. 

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