Chapter 09 : The Young Wolf Meets The Old Snake

The next day, at the Royal Academy.

An old man wearing a monocle and an impeccable suit was giving a lesson inside a large auditorium.

"By rotating the mana circles around your heart, your physical strength and body will naturally improve. It will also increase your willpower, sensitivity to mana, resistance, and even your lifespan."

The man drew a simple spell formation on the blackboard behind him, before asking his students.

"Now, tell me. Why must beastmancers develop mana circles in the same way as regular mages do ? Why can't a knight, or someone else without a mana heart become a beastmancer ?"

His cold gaze slowly swept the silent room from left to right, until someone was brave enough to raise a hand.

"Miss Perkins."

He called the name of the girl who raised her hand, signaling her to answer.

"It's because beastmancers need a strong foundation to tame wild beasts. Even if when using a high-quality contract scroll, it still requires a great amount of mana."

"Correct, but your answer is incomplete. You forgot the most important."

"Tch."

The young lady frowned.

She, like many other haughty nobles of her age in the first-year class, was still not used to being corrected by someone from a different House.

All the people attending this class were the elites of the kingdom, yet despite their arrogance, none of them dared to offend the green-eyed professor giving them a lesson today.

"Anyone else ?"

The students looked at each other, but nobody answered this time.

"Like Miss Perkins said, having a strong foundation and enough mana to sign a contract is indeed important for a beastmancer, however..."

The old man took a short pause and drew another spell formation on the board behind him, before resuming his explanation.

"...the reason why apprentice beastmancers have to pursue the same path as apprentice mages and create mana circles is to avoid dying when they contract a new beast. Throughout your life, the mana circles you'll construct around your heart will constantly supply mana to your beasts."

The professor conjured a bright ball of pure mana the size of his palm as a demonstration.

It was floating above his hand, its color continuously changing.

"The amount, attribute, quality, and density of mana are equally important for a beastmancer, as they are deciding factors when taming a beast. What would happen if an apprentice beastmancer with a water attribute and who just completed his second circle tries to tame a Red Salamander ?"

"Death."

The students responded in unison.

"Exactly."

The professor nodded, and the ball of mana floating above his hand slowly turned to black, before shattering in a cloud of smoke.

While Salamanders weren't high-ranked beasts, they had very unique characteristics.

Despite being among the weakest creature of the continent at their birth, the willpower and survival instinct of a hatchling Salamander is so strong that it forces its metabolism to adapt to its current environment to increase its chance of survival.

It is the species that evolves the fastest, which is a miracle that even the best scholars find hard to understand.

After breaking their eggshell, their small and weak bodies are covered by translucent scales so thin that one could see their organs through their skin.

However, as they grow up, the size of their body, the density of their bones and muscles, the thickness of their skin, and the color of their scales will change depending on their environment.

Young Salamanders will subconsciously absorb the ambient mana for a few days after their birth ; this instinctive behavior will grant them an elemental attribute based on the location where they are born. Over time, they will also develop distinct talents and hunt in different ways.

For example, it takes just a month for the body of Blue Salamanders who hatched in a wet environment to grow long and slender, their saphir scales becoming as soft and polished as jade.

Blue Salamanders are incredibly nimble in water and can swim as fast as sea creatures due to their water-type attribute. Once adult, they can discharge high-pressure water jets through their mouth, powerful enough to cut through a soldier's chest plate like butter.

A Red Salamander, on the other hand, is as the name suggests a fire-type mutation of Salamander. While their bodies grow shorter than Blue Salamanders, they become much larger and develop stronger muscles in their limbs.

Their skin thickens, and the rough scales that protect it transform into sharp spikes over time. The adults have enough force in their claws to cut through rocks, and they can spit fire as hot as lava. They are frequently found around volcanic sites or other areas near sources of extreme heat.

These differences are the reasons why Salamanders' eggs are extremely prized by beastmancers of all ranks, since by changing the environment of their birth, their master can choose which attributes their beast will develop during their infancy.

While Salamanders are a rare kind of species that adapt to their environment, it's true only for a short period after they hatched.

Once a Salamander has passed its infancy stage, evolved to its adult form, and fully developed its attribute, it becomes much harder to be tamed. Only the beastmancers proficient in the same element can contract it without risk.

Unless the beastmancer is considerably more powerful than the beast he wants to subdue, contracting any kind of fire-type creature with mana circles of water-type is akin to suicide.

In addition to possessing the correct attribute, the beastmancer also needs sufficient strength to contract with a Salamander. While 2-circles are more than enough to tame a young one that just hatched, it is recommended to have at least 3-circles or more for adult Salamanders.

Since all the students answered correctly this time, the old man continued his lesson and asked another question.

"Now, what if another apprentice beastmancer, but with fire-type mana circles this time, decide to wait a few more years to properly complete his third circle before trying to tame the same Salamander ?"

"He will succeed."

Miss Perkins answered first, since she was sure to be right this time.

"There is no sure thing when it comes to contracting a beast, Young Lady. Nevertheless, it's true that this person would have a much better chance at taming the Salamander, regardless of the quality of the contract scroll used."

All the students were listening attentively to the professor's words, without making a single sound.

Even if this old man was infamous in the capital, none could deny his expertise when it came to magical beasts.

Since they were first-year students and most of them didn't even contract a beast yet, the knowledge and experiences shared by their instructors were more precious than anything else to them.

"What I've written on the board is a fundamental mana equation that every beastmancers has to know by heart ; it is called Lupert's theorem. By filling it with precise details about yourself and the beast you wish to tame, the end result will tell you how likely you are to succeed."

The old man emerald eyes shone for a second, his gaze directed toward the cheeky girl who answered earlier.

He then added.

"Just remember that a one hundred percent chance of succeeding in a contract is impossible. Even the best beastmancers of the Central Continent do fail, sometimes."

"..."

Feeling a sudden pressure weighing down on her, the girl named Miss Perkins lowered her head, a drop of sweat running down her temple.

The students who noticed the scene but didn't know the professor's reputation shivered in fear, while those who heard stories about him before their admission sighed in pity.

'Only fools would act cocky in front of Viscount Achalinus. No matter how mighty is the House Perkins behind her, she won't last long if she keeps this attitude,' was what they all thought.

After taking a short pause to let his words sink into the arrogant lady's mind, the professor pointed to the two spell formation on the board with his cane.

"Learn this by heart before the next class."

Just as he finished speaking, the lunchtime bell resonated throughout the entire building.

"Until next week."

"Thanks for the lesson ! Valediction, Sir Achalinus !"

The students stood up and bowed at once, saluting Albert in the proper manner reserved only for the most prominent teachers.

The old man nodded at them with an expressionless face, pulled his long coat from the rack next to the door, and exited the auditorium.

He strolled down the academy's long corridors with his head held high, and the usual cold expression plastered on his face. The students bowed every time he passed by, but most of them did it out of fear rather than respect.

"Tsk."

The old man was used to receiving those looks, but maybe because of his tired mind, they annoyed him more than usual.

While Albert continued to work in the academy as if nothing had happened, his blood boiled every time he thought about the result of his last visit to the pet store.

'Were you in such a hurry that you couldn't even care about your pets ?'

The store owner's words kept repeating in his mind, as if to remind him of his past mistake.

His heart tightened painfully whenever he thought about the death of his favorite snake, but what hurt him the most was the shame of having fallen into such a flawed trap.

He knew he should have refused, or at least delayed, the royal edict ordering him to head north on a whim.

This mistake made him realize once more how the long period of peace since the last Great War made him complacent. It softened him, and his enemies used this to their advantage to assassinate his strongest beast, which greatly reduced Albert's fighting power.

Falling into such a trap had damaged his pride like never before.

As a result of the loss of his most loyal companion who had followed him since his childhood, Albert's mental health deteriorated day after day.

If not for his visit to Mr. Aurelion's shop, he would have probably burnt half of the Capital City like a total madman to find the culprit.

Although Albert now knew who had betrayed him thanks to the store owner's help, he couldn't act immediatly ; he had to pretend that nothing had happened in order to to avoid alerting his enemies.

Nevertheless, he couldn't hide the violent aura lingering in his emerald eyes since he returned from the pet store.

He suppressed his emotions to not show any hint of weakness, but his emotions were raging like a volcano about to erupt. Being forced to see the smug faces of those ignorant brats every morning just added fuel to the fire burning inside him.

'With the Leman Empire supporting me behind the scenes, it shouldn't be impossible to take 'him' down and take my revenge. Moreover, I even obtained a weapon capable of neutralizing a Land Dragon in a single attack from Mr. Lloyd...'

The Viscount smiled mischievously as he touched the storage ring on his pinky finger. Lloyd's tranquilizing rifle was one of his hidden cards in the upcoming confrontation.

'...I still have no idea how to capture this bastard's Royal Griffin alive, though.'

His faint smile didn't last and he fell into deep thought again.

'It's reassuring that Mr. Lloyd is on my side, but I shouldn't bother him more than necessary. If he asked me to retrieve the Griffin alive, he must believe that I'm able to do so. I shouldn't disapoint him.'

Despite having racked his brain non-stop since he returned from his visit to the pet store, he still had not found a way to capture the Griffin without killing it.

'As the saying goes, every problem has at least two solutions.'

Yet, Albert remained confident. He just had to find out where that beast was being kept first.

'No matter what, I shall repay Mr. Lloyd's favor. Even if I have to delay my revenge, I have to find a way.'

It was already hard enough to find and kill a beast owned by a member of the Royal Family, but capturing it was nearly impossible.

After crossing the annex building and the beautiful garden in its center, the Viscount arrived at the foot of a magnificent tower soaring through the sky. This tower was so tall that one could see the top of the clouds from the highest floor.

This huge edifice, called the Ashen Tower, was housing the Beastmancy department as well as the professors' offices and labs.

The facilities in the lower levels were open to all students, but from the 10th floor up, only officials and civil servants had free access.

The Royal Academy, which spanned over 50km² and was as large as a medium-sized city, had four similar towers.

(author nt. : 50km² = 12355,3 Acres)

Each of them was the HQ for a branch of the Royal Government :

the Scarlet Tower housed the Magic and Alchemy Department with all their sub-divisions,

the Golden Tower housed the Knights Orders affiliated with the kingdom and loyal to the Royal Family,

the Xanthic Tower housed the Engineering and Craftmanship Department along with the siege of some influential Merchant Associations,

and finally, the Ashen Tower housed both the Beastmancy and Spiritmancy Department.

They were all unique in their design and appearance, but the Ashen Tower was without a doubt the most spectacular.

Because the founder of House Valor and his wife were both powerful beastmancers, the Royal Family generations succeeding him always took great care of those following the same path, up to this day.

The Ashen Tower was the result of this long lasting tradition : a few centuries ago, when the monarch of that era initiated the construction of the four towers that would later become the pillars of the Kingdom, he personally handpicked and commissioned the greatest artisans of the Central Continent to build the Ashen Tower.

The facilities within the tower were of the highest quality, the beastmancers who worked there had access to the best equipment for their growth, and even the workshops didn't pale in comparison to the modern ones built in the Xanthic Tower.

One particularity of the Ashen Tower was the special floors designed solely to accommodate the Beastmancers and their pets. Whether it was for breeding, nurturing, feeding, or training a beast, everything a beastmancer and his familiar needed was concentrated in a single area.

The Ashen Tower was one of the reasons why the Kingdom of Valor was reputed to produce some of the best beastmancers of the Central Continent. It was a heaven for beastmancy, famous across all the continent.

It was said that some nobles living in remote countries in the Outer Continent were ready to sell all their assets just to send a talented child to Valora, hoping that they could pass the entry exam and graduate five years later as a Valoran beastmancers.

As the Viscount entered the tower through the huge main gate that was ten meters tall and headed to the stairs leading to his office, one of the receptionists suddenly called him from behind his desk.

"M-my Lord, please wait !"

When Albert turned to the voice, he saw a short and clumsy man leaving his desk and rushing toward him in a hurry. His fat belly giggled from left to right as he ran toward the Viscount.

"pant... My Lord...you have...a visitor..."

This was such a big place that the man was out of breath after running through the lobby.

He stopped in front of the Viscount and respectfully bowed his head.

"Who may that be ?"

Albert asked calmly, albeit a single of his word carried immense pressure.

"He...He is a commoner, my Lord..."

"Oh ?"

Albert's face contorted.

"A commoner, you say ?"

He could have understood the receptionist stopping him so abruptly if someone of high importance was waiting for him, but... a commoner ?

"Are you making fun of me, bald man ? Or perhaps this boring job of yours made you tired of living, hm ?"

The receptionist noticed the vein about to pop off on the Viscount's temple, and he started to sweat profusely.

It seemed like the Viscount was in a bad mood today.

"Ah... N-No, My Lord, but t-this man claimed that he had to meet with you for an urgent matter, h-he refused to leave the lobby until you arrived..."

"Is that so ?"

Albert, running out of patience after listening to such nonsense, gripped the bald head of the receptionist with his right hand and stared at him with his brilliant green eyes.

"Then, tell me, what is this urgent matter that gave you and this lowly visitor the right to waste my precious time ?"

Being glared at so intently by the sinister eyes of Viscount Achalinus drained all vitality in the receptionist's face. He knew that a single slip of the tongue would sign the end of his life.

Albert seemed to be in a terrible mood today, so the short man quickly realized that no matter what he says, the Viscount would get angry.

To the eyes of the surrounding people watching the scene from a distance, it looked like Albert just used this opportunity to bully this poor man and relieve his stress.

Everyone knew how vicious Viscount Achalinus could be, but because of his influence, none dared to say anything. They would stay still even if he beheaded the receptionist in the middle of the lobby.

The strong always prey on the weak. Such was the rule in the Central Continent, and Valora wasn't an exception.

"So ?"

"H-Here, My Lord ! He t-told me that you would understand if I show you th-this !!"

Instead of answering and worsening the situation, the receptionist handed a small rectangular card to the Viscount with both hands.

"You better have a good rea- Hmm?"

Albert peeked at the card in his hand with an uninterested look, but his eyes opened wide when he saw the name written on it.

"Where is this man ?!"

Albert released the short man's head and grabbed him on the shoulders instead.

His reaction shocked the people in the lounge who were watching. It was the first time they saw the stoic Viscount Achalinus make such an expression.

"B-Behind you, M-My Lord !"

Without even looking, Albert's heightened sense felt someone approaching him from afar.

He could sense a violent and feral aura from this man.

"Greeting, My Lord."

When Albert turned to see who was this enigmatic person, a young man in his late teens with black disheveled hair and a decent physique for his age was standing before him.

If not for the strange aura faintly leaking from his body, Albert would have thought that this boy was an Apprentice Knight from the Golden Tower.

"Who are you, and how did you get this ?"

Albert's voice was cold and his eyes were sharp, but he still asked in a respectful manner.

He didn't know who was this young man, but if Mr. Aurelion gave him his card, Albert had to be wary and not base his first impression on appearance alone.

When one has reached a certain level of strength, appearances are often deceptive, especially when it comes to the people related to the store owner.

From what Albert had seen so far, none of Mr. Lloyd's customers were normal people.

They may be special, and sometimes act a bit odd, but it didn't change the fact that they were all bigshots in their own domain.

"My name is Adam. Forgive my unexpected visit, but I have been sent to you by Mr. Lloyd. I didn't intend to disturb you though, so I can come back later if you want."

Adam bowed respectfully, but all his senses were on high alert.

He felt it the moment he got closer to the Viscount : this man in front of him was extremely dangerous. Albert's body emitted the faint scent of death peculiar to those who killed en masse.

Just the pressure he felt from looking at his piercing green eyes was enough to paralyze Adam in fear. It was far from Mr. Lloyd's level, but it was still impressive coming from a human.

Before coming here, Adam did some research, and the stories he heard about Viscount Achalinus were so insane that he almost canceled his plan to meet him.

If not for his Father convincing him to trust in Mr. Lloyd's judgment, and the fact that they ran out of options to deal with the Lycanthropes hidden in their basement... Adam would never have visited the Royal Academy, let alone gotten anywhere close to such a ruthless man.

"Hm, I see... Then tell me, young man, what is the name of Mr. Lloyd's dog ?"

Albert asked with a tinge of suspicion...

"Blackie."

...but when he saw Adam answering almost instantaneously without a second of doubt, he realized that this fellow was also a customer of the pet store.

"Follow me."

Only after confirming that Adam was not a foe but a friend did Albert's voice softened and his expression relaxed.

___

As Albert led Adam up the stairs to his office, he failed to notice the poisonous pair of eyes spying on him from the other end of the lobby.

'It seems like he isn't as lonely as we thought... It may be problematic.'

The mysterious man left the tower, since he couldn't follow the Viscount to his office anyway.

'But now, I'm quite curious. What is the identity of this 'Mr. Lloyd' for even Serpentdoom to openly show such emotions at the mention of this name...? I should report this to His Highness.'

___

author nt. :

I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. :) Since Void Rifters and PSAW share the same universe and someone asked me if Celestine was a Void Rifter after the last chapter, I decided to give some additional explanations about the extended lore :

Those who read my other novel might have already guessed it, but yes, Celestine is indeed a Void Rifter. Although different than Jun and his squad, she nonetheless remains a Void Rifter. Knowing this may give you some clues about the real identity of Igor, and who were those chasing him in the prologue chapter. ;)

Just so you know, PSAW storyline starts before the Scylla invasion of Earth. You could call it a prequel since the events in VR - Chapter 0 starts a few years later. After Lloyd signed the contract, Igor and his two subordinates escaped through the portal just a few days before the Scyllas completely took over Earth.

In the next chapters, you'll get to know more about the Nihil Conscientia residing in the Backroom. I won't say much about her in this footnote to not spoil, just that she is one special individual among her peers. The relationship between Lloyd and 'her' will be vastly different than between Jun and Gladia in Void Rifters, though.