Chapter 67 - The Logical Mind

Instantly, Skyle was struck by how simple things looked where once there had been so many confusing tangles of unnecessary worries and considerations about the past, present, and future.

Fear was chief among those useless chains that had dragged at him so insistently. Fear that he might lose and be beaten to a pulp, or worse still, killed. Fear of the consequences for his family should he choose to fight back. Fear of how Kassandra would react when she found out, and what madness she would unleash.

Now, as he stood examining such thoughts as indifferently as though he were browsing through a shelf of old, tattered books, these fears seemed as feeble and pathetic as so many worms trying to feast upon the rotting flesh of his emotions. Skyle was at once glad that he had decided to ruthlessly cut them off.

He was a far better man for it.

Fear of being beaten and killed? Skyle could tell from their smooth hands and unbalanced stances that these puny magelings had no experience in practical combat at all. They might be mighty spellcasters one day, but before Skyle they were mere puppets waiting to be dismantled piece by piece under his ruthless hands.

Fear of the consequences to his family? The academy would never allow too heavy a retaliation against them. Kassandra and Reikard were far too valuable in their eyes, and Skyle’s only regret was how uncharacteristically foolish his parents had been in not fully utilizing such value to their benefit. His parents themselves were an added layer of protection. Skyle reflected that Kendric Farrow was not nearly so simple a man as most folk thought. Too many small clues had filtered through the many layers of disguise his father had adopted over the years. Given a few incisive actions by Skyle from this day forward, he would be able to finally peel back the final layer and gaze upon the full secret of the mystery that was Kendric Farrow.

Whether it would be to his advantage to do so or not, now that was a matter for careful consideration.

As for fear of how Kassandra would react, Skyle would have laughed out loud had such frivolous actions not been beneath his current aloof state of mind. As it was, Kassandra Farrow needed more pressure, not less. Years of struggle under the “hammer of adversity”, as his father had put it, had polished Skyle into a young boy who could out-think, outfight and outmaneuver any child his age that he could think of.

There was not an ounce of overconfidence in his declaration, either. Given enough preparation and the opportunity to choose both the time and place of such confrontations, he knew he was unstoppable.

This confidence did not excite him or inflate his ego. It was simple fact. Just another useful bit of information that the greatly expanded capabilities of his remarkable cognitive powers would archive for reference when the need arose to resolve challenging, if not completely intractable problems.

Such as this moment, right here and now.

Turning his regard to the problem at hand, Skyle could see various solutions to the problem. Some would bring a satisfyingly terminal resolution to this conflict, but were prone to unpredictable consequences later on. Most of those consequences, he now realized, could be dealt with efficiently enough. However, he was not unmindful of the mental and emotional stress it would inflict upon his family - especially Kassandra.

Skyle might have divested himself of all emotions like so much useless baggage, but deep within he still knew that he must protect his family. That had not changed at all.

After all, they were valuable assets which brought considerable benefits.

Skyle was disappointed that thus far he had chosen not to avail himself of such, but that was not an unredeemable oversight. Particularly Kassandra’s obvious infatuation with her older brother. She would soon become a summoner, one of the youngest ever. This greatly increased her value in his eyes.

Yes, he could use her. She would come in very handy indeed.

Thus, fatal outcomes to this quandary must be avoided if at all possible. Skyle moved down a mental list of all available options which would resolve the current situation, all the while sighing at the fact that a couple had just been wasted by his emotionally overwrought reactions just moments ago.

No matter, the old Skyle was finally gone, and his new, better self would see to it that things ran as smoothly and efficiently as possible from this moment forward.

All these mental processes took mere moments. By the time Skyle lifted his gaze to meet Dalian’s own, there was no way the young nobleman could know that his every possible action and reaction had already been carefully scrutinized, qualified, and taken into consideration.

“I don’t wish to waste my time or yours. I hereby challenge you to a duel upon the Mage Arena, with a badge of the senior Initiate class being the stake.”

Skyle said the words calmly and confidently, but his opponents reeled back in shock as though they had been scalded.

Dalian’s reaction was the most severe among all three, but that was perfectly within Skyle’s expectations. The young noble’s chest heaved up and down while his vacant eyes stared blankly ahead at a future where he could snatch the class badge of the number one ranked student in the whole class - Kassandra Farrow.

Licking his lips as sudden sweat beaded his face, Dalian rasped out, “Y-You can’t possibly-”

“According to the rules of the arena, I will sign a notarized agreement where my life will be forfeit should Kassandra fail to deliver her badge into your hands in the event of my loss.” Skyle interrupted with the same imperturbable calm.

Dalian stared at Skyle as though he were watching a vicious monster who had suddenly torn through the skin of a puny worm. His instincts told him something was wrong here, and that he should retreat and regroup. However, the deep envy which had festered into full hatred for the young genius star of Aegis Academy pushed him inexorably onward. It simply refused to let go of this unexpected opportunity to deal a grievous blow to the object of his hatred.

Skyle’s expression was wooden. Everything was going as expected, but that was all. Though such a succession of events gave him the satisfaction of a craftsman who had excelled at his job, it failed to evoke joy, delight, or any other superfluous emotions which might impede his capacity to maintain a clear, focused mind.

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Dalian’s breathing became ragged, his wide-eyed stare fixed upon Skyle’s figure on the ground as though he were a poisonous snake baring his fangs. Which he obviously was, and Dalian knew it. Still, he was either too confident or too desperate to simply walk away.

To be fair, Dalian could not be fully blamed. By all outward appearances, this offer was simply too good to be true. Should Dalian defeat this scrawny child whose head didn’t even reach his shoulders and could not channel a wick of elemental power, he would win Kassandra Farrow’s senior Initiate class badge.

Class badges were not mere decorations in the academy. A simple yet powerful spell matrix was engraved within. It held a record of all the academy credits the student had earned to date, minus expenditures.

Every detail from the hefty book of Standard Academy Rules and Regulations Skyle had read a year ago when his siblings had been offered their scholarship instantly and effortlessly flooded his mind.

Academy credits were the true currency within campus grounds. A student’s whole life revolved around gaining enough credits to further their own power and progress to the next class. Spell matrices, personal tutoring from star students or faculty, rare spells, precious texts, research papers, rare medicines, essence crystals, and more, they all cost credits to acquire. Even advancing to the next class required a specific amount of minimum credits be earned first.

No sane student would trade a single credit for gold unless they had given up on their academic ambitions. After all, Aegis Academy was an elite institution and both its faculty and student body progressed ever forward. To be left behind meant dismissal for failure to meet the institution’s exacting standards.

Every year thousands tested for entry into the academy. Last semester, less than a score had gained acceptance into the lowest tier of magical students in the academy, the freshman Initiate mage class. Statistically speaking, if lucky only one or two of those students would eventually become a graduate of the academy. As for the rest, they would either leave on their own or be flushed out of the system.

Only such a ruthless system could push these supremely talented individuals to excel amongst the very elite of society.

Skyle approved, and now this same system would serve his purposes well.

Even without prior knowledge of Dalian, Skyle knew that he was on the verge of failing to meet the standards for his class. He was already 13, and if he wasn’t able to gather enough credits to quickly raise his elemental power, he would be removed from the academy before the year was out. This likely factored into the reason why he felt bold enough to take the risk of harassing Kassandra.

Now, however, Skyle had offered him a light at the end of the tunnel.

Students were strictly forbidden from using their magic to fight each other. Should a conflict arise, they were to seek a resolution at one of three student arenas. This had the effect of providing an outlet for frustrated students, increasing their practical combat experience, and stoking the competitive spirit of these proud, talented youths.

Expectedly, a reward system had been developed by the academy for wins. Not satisfied, however, the students had come up with their own gambling rings. These were enforced through notarized agreements where students could set the stakes of a match.

Kassandra’s Initiate class badge would be bursting at the seams with credits. Even an outside person like Skyle could easily imagine how lavish the academy’s treatment of his sister would be. Credits equated to power, to an even greater extent than gold in the world outside.

Almost no one dared to set their class badge as a stake. It was simply too precious to lose. However, Dalian was already on the verge of failing, while Kassandra was famously over-protective of her family. She would care little for a mere class badge, as the academy would never let her fail a class. At worst, they would simply issue her with a new badge full of credits under one pretext or another.

Skyle saw the moment Dalian made his decision before the noble was aware of it himself. Gathering his legs under him, Skyle stood up and dusted himself while he waited for the inevitable. The only uncertainty of this plan had been whether Dalian was desperate enough to allow himself to think about it or not.

Once he did, his decision had been a foregone conclusion.

“I-I accept!” Dalian cried out hoarsely, his eyes bloodshot as though he had been drinking heavily. “When-”

“Right now. Lead the way, I’m not very familiar with the Arena here,” Skyle said curtly, walking forward.

Reynaud burst in, quivering as though he had just awoken from a dream - or a nightmare. “D-Dalian, don’t be rash. It’s your class badge! Even if Kassandra delivers her badge to you, she will simply get another one. What happens if you lose, though?”

Boyd cut in as well. “More than anything, I don’t trust this rat. Something- something doesn’t feel right about him - about this whole damn thing. I just got shivers up my back. This is not good Dalian. Let’s just beat him up and leave, like we had planned.”

Boyd placed his hand on Dalian’s arm, but the latter shook him off violently and glared at his friend.

“Don’t try to stop me! I know what I’m doing!” Dalian growled in between clenched teeth.

“But Dalian-” Boyd began once more.

“Shut up! What would you know? You still have a whole year to cross the peak Initiate barrier and become an Adept. How could you possibly understand what this opportunity means for me? I only have three months. Three months!”

Dalian screamed the last two words as though they were a death sentence looming over his head. A few of the students passing by eyed him with pity, but most just sneered at him in contempt.

“Still, Dalian, we will help you. We’re here for you, as your friends. We’ll find a solution together!” Reynaud cried out.

Dalian stopped in his tracks as he looked towards his friends with wide, trembling eyes. He looked like a man who was hanging on to the edge of a vast precipice by sheer power of will alone.

Boyd used his other hand to grasp Dalian’s own and squeezed while nodding to his friend with a reassuring look. After a moment, Reynauld stepped forward and added his own hand on top.

The trio of friends stood clasping hands like this for a long moment while their hearts spoke to each other without words.

It was truly an inspiring testament to the power of friendship.

This could unnecessarily complicate his plans, so Skyle chose this moment to plunge a dagger right into the glaringly obvious chink in the armor of this seemingly beautiful and majestic friendship.

“Such nobility of spirit,” Skyle said, and the flat tone of his voice made it obvious what he really thought of it. “Here’s an idea: how about each of you give your good friend Dalian half the credits in your own badges. I’m sure he will gladly repay you after he becomes an Adept.”

Boyd immediately released Dalian’s hand as though he had been burned, and Reynaud shut his mouth with a stricken expression on his face. He looked as though he were about to become sick.

“Yeah, I didn’t think so,” Skyle stated matter-of-factly, resuming his walk. “Now, if you don’t mind. I don’t have all day. Let’s get this show on the road.”

Dalian stood still for a long moment, looking at his two retreating friends as though he had been pole-axed. He looked like he wanted to call out to them, maybe to appeal to the friendship they had so hotly professed mere moments ago.

Maybe it was to beg.

It didn’t matter. Both his friends refused to meet his gaze. Instead, they drew even farther away. Reynaud’s hand even twitched towards his own badge as though he were afraid Dalian would snatch it away.

“You still want to do this, or should I leave?” Skyle called out over his shoulder after momentarily halting his steps.

Up until the very end, when Dalian’s hunched shoulders led Skyle away with shaking, unsteady steps as though he were walking to the gallows of his own execution, Boyd and Reynaud didn’t even lift their gazes to meet the seeking gaze of the man whom they had so easily called their friend.

Skyle nodded to himself. This gesture was not one of vindication or satisfaction.

It was just a sere acknowledgement of cold, immutable fact.

“Just as expected. Friends? Family? Love?”

Had Skyle not shed his emotions like a butterfly sheds its cocoon, he might have sneered just then. As it was, he simply noted this corroboration of his theory and filed it away for future reference.

“Useless. Ultimately, we are all of us alone.”