Merit Points
Heian Ciemnosc lifted his eyebrows and answered Elena as she faced him from the other claw," Mhm, it's ready. It was since 3 weeks ago."
"Eh, you were fooling me into accompanying you here. Then?" Elena said after hearing his words, her tone sarcastic. Yet, Heian Ciemnosc simply nodded and frankly spoke in return. "Yeah, I like your company."
"Mmm," Elena didn't expect such an answer, but she wasn't surprised. She directly responded to his compliment... if it could be called that. "I'm glad you like it then. Congratulations on making the first Mortal Colorful Claws."
“Yup,” Heian Ciemnosc cutely tilted his head to the left and responded. She narrowed her eyes to a crescent and then fell silent.
… When they arrived at Heian Ciemnosc’s dormitory, he entered and returned from his dormitory alone. This time, he was carrying a small black box with some smooth surface design here and there. Elena saw the box, and her eyes shone as she stopped meditating and faced him with imaginary open arms.
“Gimme gimme!” Elena carefully took the box from Heian Ciemnosc’s eyes and opened it after touching it wholly. As soon as the lid was opened, a beautiful, sexless gauntlet with half-a-finger-long claws at the tips of each finger appeared. It wasn’t just from the back of a finger like one’s nails but the entire tip of the finger covered by the base of a claw. The claws weren’t too thick, but they seemed to be when considering the dimensions.
It also looked like a fatass worm was suckling on one’s tips, yet its ‘tail’ was dangerously sharp even for Elena. As soon as she saw it, her eyes widened as he could not believe how powerful it already was with just her eyes getting sight of it. The gauntlet’s surface seemed delicate, but as soon as she took it out of the box - she could feel its harshness and flexibility.
Being the disciple of her master, she could also tell the intricate and varying materials within the gauntlet’s structure. Each seemed to mingle yet separate concurrently, and it was beautiful. All in all, it had obscure violet claws, and at the gauntlet’s wrists were some extra pieces of armor of the same color as the rest of the gauntlet, as one hand’s skin was of a slightly obscure gray color with reptile-like skin but was as smooth as a well processed and refined piece of metallic art.
“It’s beautiful…” Elena honestly said. Her eyes glazed over as she held it and swiftly put her left hand in it. She was a right-handed halberd user, so even if Heian Ciemnosc hadn’t advised before to use her left hand for the Colorful Claw, she would’ve still done so. Besides, his reasoning behind why her left hand was the best. Because it was close to the heart somehow.
“Ah, you’re just saying that because it’s me,” Heian Ciemnosc said as he looked at the marveled Elena with her left hand up and her shining brown eyes examining it. She unwillingly stopped looking at it as she felt her left hand massaged. It was the Colorful Claw adjusting to her size and the fact it could do that showcased Heian Ciemnosc’s peak expertise at forging.
“Of course not! I’m not Frank trying to get into Arla’s pants through ordinary, lovely means! If anything, I’m thankful. You have no idea how rare it is for non-Spirit Rebirth realm cultivators to have just one- ah, never mind.” Elena suddenly stopped her words. Heian Ciemnosc had tilted his head to the right and lifted his left eyebrow. Of course he knew now. He had aided many Supervisors in making Mortal weapons en masse for some Leading Students. Yet all of them were at the Second Step and had done several challenging missions outside the Blackotia Kingdom.
Besides that, he had also gone through so many books. Some explained the social customs and habits that have always been there. Elena blushed slightly and patted Heian Ciemnosc with her Colorful Claw on his right chest. Her Crabstynian realm 8th stage cultivation did nothing to Heian Ciemnosc, even with the Mortal claw.
“Don’t be shy tomorrow when you see me, okay?” Elena prepared to go, but Heian Ciemnosc caught her left elbow and asked her, clearly confused. “Why would I be shy?”
“Ehe! I don’t know?” Elena smiled delightedly, tilted her head backwards as she looked at him facing her with her left profile, and turned around before jumping in the air. And from her Supreme Covert Space bag, a swift shadow brought her away before he could do anything. It wasn’t her birdy tool Taeo. It was an actual Fauna. It was thinner, longer, and clearly of a higher cultivation than Evans at the Second Step, like her birdy tool Taeo.
“...” Heian Ciemnosc could only look speechlessly before turning around and going back to the dormitory without a gal. Everyone knew who that gal was, but they still believed in their leading Sub Student to chase her, pin her down, and then let everyone know who was boss with her squeals and begs for survival resounding throughout the entire dormitory and the western section by word of mouth.
Naturally, he would disappoint them, but Heian Ciemnosc didn’t care. He casually entered his room, ignored the semi closed eyes peering at him, feeling down not seeing their virging leader get some at last, and went back to sleep. Meanwhile, Heian Ciemnosc went to his bed and slept with some clothes on. He was told only Students could possibly have a 1-bed bedroom, so he could only pray for the future.
… Next day came, the fifth day of the last week of the year. Everyone within the Sub Students, the second biggest group of members within any Academy, was excited, and their hearts beat faster than ever. Because today, either one side or the other will win!
It was a duel between dormitories sections. Heian Ciemnosc’s western dormitories section who triumphed over the east. Against the northern dormitories section, which brutally beat the south! Heian Ciemnosc had already fought his duel. He prevailed over the rivals. Spirit Rebirth and Spirit Formation realm cultivators with his fellow Sub Students against the other side. As for the Ashes Soul realm cultivators, he put them all down by himself.
Though some of them were at the 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th stage, after Heian Ciemnosc put down a couple dozen of 5th, 6th, and 7th Ashes Soul realm cultivators, they were too afraid to fully cooperate and deal with Heian Ciemnosc. That day, Heian Ciemnosc finally gained many points as a Sub Student. Both of fame and recognition, though he already had many. It was not his fault. He didn’t tell the northern dormitories section to decide how to initiate the last struggle for the champion.
If it wasn’t because the northern dormitories section had been so adamant, Heian Ciemnosc wouldn’t have been so brutal… He is innocent!
Today, many weeks have passed since the start of the last ‘duel’ that usually lasts a month or a couple months. Thanks to Heian Ciemnosc’s determination and his dormitories sections following his every command, though, he could make all these processes twice as fast as in previous years. The best, elite 10,000 Sub Students were to fight each other, excluding the ones Heian Ciemnosc fought with and against the first day.
Naturally, the first day of the week was fully utilized by Sub Students in the mornings and noons where hundreds and hundreds of the best Sub Students vied for the championship. Heian Ciemnosc hadn’t become better than an Assistant Teacher in cultivation and Craftsmaking terms because there wasn’t some sort of crazy unknown knowledge he could suddenly find. But he had a discerning capability rare and lacking throughout the whole world.
Only this time, there were a couple thousand fighting with how Heian Ciemnosc was so motherfucking capable of forming his elected few to contend for the last struggle to victory!
… At this time, it was close to noon, and only 1 fight was left before deciding the victor of this year’s competition! The last few hundred of the thousand on each side before the start of the battle were still ongoing. Some focused on sending as many tools around and blasting them on other fellow rivals’ chests and feet. Those were Heian Ciemnosc’s people who were effectively bombarding in concentration on the opponents and eliminating them with a few Students quickly rushing in to ‘save’ them from the battle.
But they were also receiving, and for every 3 rivals they took down, the other side would brutally tackle and beat the shit out of 1 of them. The northern and southern sections opted for a melee approach only. They only used melee techniques, empowering their extremities and beating the other until a Student came to bring the Sub Student away.
Currently, Heian Ciemnosc was looking at the ongoing battle with an expressionless face. He stood atop a tall totem-like structure on one side of the long rectangle battlefield. Below at the sides of the battlefield were the remaining Sub Students who couldn’t fight as they were naturally not the elite among Sub Students. But besides them were some teachers and even a couple Supervisors still up in the air where everyone could see them focused on the battle.
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On the opposite from Heian Ciemnosc, a red haired beauty with flaming eyes was also calmly looking at the battlefield atop a tall totem-like structure. She would occasionally run her eyes through Heian Ciemnosc’s face challengingly and with her eyes saying: ‘you are my role model!’ before returning to look at the Sub Students below.
They could never join in or tell them what to do. It was all a brawl if Sub Students wanted or didn’t care about doing tactics. Nothing could be done about that, except working together and forming an objective or training them very hard for every possible situation. At this moment, less than 50 Sub Students from both sides remained, but they were still falling at the same rhythm as when the battle became quick and intense.
“... Heian Ciemnosc~!” Elena’s voice rang out, and the crowd made a complete open path for 2 people. It was Elena and… an orange-ish-skinned man! After she waved her hand high up and received Heian Ciemnosc’s attention, she rushed forth while pulling that man over her left shoulder. In turn, the man could only rapidly move behind her but at least had a casual and non-uncomfortable expression on his face. He strangely kept up without feeling flustered or about to trip down and eat the ground.
The man was clearly in the Defiant Step and someone of high status, which could be noted by his purple uniform of the Wrath Nihility Academy. Heian Ciemnosc didn’t give the man a harsh stare. Only Elena deserved such a glance at these moments. The man behind her only had his orange-ish skin as a peculiar feature, other than his mighty cultivation.
“Heian Ciemnosc!” Elena finally stepped onto the top of the totem-like structure, stood 4 steps before Heian Ciemnosc, and called out to him directly. Heian Ciemnosc limited himself to look at her and nothing more. The man behind her kept silent as well and studied Heian Ciemnosc. Elena added as she pointed back to the man casually. “Isn’t my Master weird? He has that tone color of skin, and Masteress was Demon with orange skin!”
“Ahem, Lil Elena, the yearly competition among Sub Students is ongoing.” Elena’s Master said after she said those words. Heian Ciemnosc could only blink while Elena blinked and looked around with innocent brown eyes. Looking at the battlefield, she looked at Heian Ciemnosc and asked him, “Who’s winning?”
“Cough, they are,” Heian Ciemnosc faced his people fighting the other side, now 26 to 34, and said. Pointing at the other side’s people, then down at his own, “But in a bit, mine will go crazy and win the championship for me.”
“Hmm?” The Teacher with orange-ish skin exclaimed in a murmur as he looked at Heian Ciemnosc before looking at the battle. Elena’s eyes were already excited, watching the brutality as some blood was spilled here and there. Then, Elena’s master widened his eyes, and his lips parted slightly. Because… below… one side of Sub Students indeed went crazy.
“AAGGHH!” - “TAKE. THEM. DOOOWN!” - “GRAAAUWWHH!”
Suddenly, half of Heian Ciemnosc’s fellow Sub Students dropped their tools to the side, covering their bodies with all the Power Energy remaining within. They dashed forwards, tackling the first ten they could find while the others circled around and went for the rear. Then, those who didn’t drop their tools focused them on the rival’s center and back while the rival’s sides were being closed in by fellow Sub Students.
The opponents didn’t have time to turn away and free themselves, retreat, and then come back stronger. Heian Ciemnosc’s Sub Students went all out all of a sudden and surprised them. Nothing but cries of unwillingness and losing bets with their pals could be heard for a minute before only 7 from Heian Ciemnosc’s side remained on their feet, and silence ensued.
“... we won.” Heian Ciemnosc’s voice and cold, expressionless words could be heard amidst the silence, and as the 7 below on the no-longer battlefield looked around, not believing they had won!
“WUAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHH…” From the onlookers, one hella crazy fella exploded, roared like a poor animal being beheaded by someone’s hands, and incited the rest of the crowd to erupt in cheers! Though it wasn’t at the same level that that person did, they were loud and made the ground tremble a scary amount. So much so that the Supervisors had to slightly stabilize the earth and slowly calm the Sub Students down.
Heian Ciemnosc, a brand new student of the Academy without even spending a year in the Academy, had already achieved something only a few in the historical personal records have! He had already shown more of his prowess a couple weeks before when he fought dozens and dozens of Ashes Soul realm cultivators. But he has now achieved the real victory. It was like a legend in the making! Or already made.
“Elena, and Elena’s master… Teacher Conde?” After the crowd slowly began to calm down, Heian Ciemnosc turned to face the pale, blondie young girl and her orange-ish-skinned master. Teacher Conde looked at Heian Ciemnosc, who was 2 heads lower than himself and nodded with a slightly warm smile. Elena’s eyes went crescent instead, and she placed her hands together and pressed them up to her chin.
“Nice to meet you, child that my child talks about whenever she thinks she can’t be heard at an ordinary person’s ear.” - “Hehe, you see. Master wasn’t willing to meet you. But he didn’t just accept this time, he even asked me if I would bring him with me next time I meet you, isn’t that curious, hmmm? Wait. What? You always hea-... kyaaaaaaaaaaaah!!”
The master spoke first, not knowing his disciple would have spoken afterwards and continued until he finished. The disciple opened her mouth after the master, not actually processing his words, only realizing about them at the end. Yet both master and disciple embarrassed each other as one blushed a little and felt ashamed. And the other screamed as if Heian Ciemnosc was a rapist and was extending his hands towards her. Which he got glares for, with each person’s pair of eyes telling him the same.
“Can we… move somewhere else… before, err… anything else?” With Heian Ciemnosc imploring, Teacher Conde nodded immediately and brought both teenagers away with a simple tap of his feet against the top of the totem-like structure. They flew far into the distance in just a few seconds, faster than most Fauna at the beginning of the Defiant Step. But while Fauna simply fly, Teacher Conde had to exert Neutral Energy on top of setting his body into flight.
After they left, the Sub Students began cleaning around, not leaving one blood stains on the ground or walls of the nearby dormitories. After the battle, a winner was decided, and only tomorrow would the rewards come to their respective owners; everyone seemed to become best friends forever. Some were already about to hook up and plan orgies with other dormitories sections, to say the least.
As for the totem-like structures, they simply shook their bodies off, the dirt came off their bodies, and the sun shone upon their skin and armored skin again. And after their tiny legs burrowed their worm bodies back underground, they disappeared and went back to sleep. These weren’t new, but without Heian Ciemnosc’s newest machinations around the western dormitory section, they wouldn’t have been willing to become ‘stools’ to sit for others.
… When the Teacher flew through the Academy’s territory with a pair of teenagers on his side, he asked Heian Ciemnosc if he wanted to go somewhere specific. But Heian Ciemnosc couldn’t speak while going at such dumb speeds, so Teacher Conde just told Heian Ciemnosc to convey his words in his mind. That would be enough. While marveling at the Teacher’s mental messages’ capabilities, he gave an address.
Whoosh, futomp- tap tap tap.
Teacher Conde descended somewhere in the center of the Academy’s territory, in front of a restaurant Heian Ciemnosc visited for the first time some time ago, run by a few citizens. Once on the streets again and after washing Heian Ciemnosc and his disciple with his Neutral Energy, the Teacher brought both teenagers inside.
Heian Ciemnosc and Elena quickly became living people again and didn’t have to hold their eyeballs within their bodies. They were still not in the Spirit Rebirth realm to not worry about such typical things only a citizen or civilian has to worry about when it comes to these things.
Going in, and as the restaurant staff saw the purple uniform, they treated them with extra warmth and let them sit wherever they wanted. However, they sat in a corner due to Heian Ciemnosc’s wants. Once seated, Heian Ciemnosc looked at the Teacher and was about to say something when the Teacher stopped him and took his medallion out.
“Let me give you the rewards for this year’s Sub Student competition.” Saying so, Teacher Conde extended his right arm over the table, and Heian Ciemnosc presented his medallion with his left hand. A purplish, electric glow emerged from Teacher Conde’s medallion as it contacted with Heian Ciemnosc’s. Heian Ciemnosc could instantly feel his medallion receiving a bunch of stuff. Namely, one of them was 1,000 Merit points!
Without needing to send his Spirit Sense, Heian Ciemnosc’s eyes widened. Elena, who watched Heian Ciemnosc’s medallion still in a headache and daze, also widened her eyes big time. Teacher Conde smiled upon seeing both teenagers react. He would also have reacted like that if he didn’t know the specifics. Teacher Conde stored his purple medallion and looked at Heian Ciemnosc, “I was thinking, now that you’ve received your rewards. If you’d like some advice to read the books only a Sub Teacher can go throu-”
“I already read them all.” Heian Ciemnosc commented as soon as he heard a big-status person offer help.
Teacher Conde: “...”
Elena: ( ;ↀ⌓ↀ)
Heian Ciemnosc watched as the warm Teacher became stunned. Elena was still wide-eyed and looking stupid, and the nearby customers were shocked by Teacher Conde’s words about Heian Ciemnosc winning the Sub Students’ yearly competition.
“Teacher Conde, why did you seemingly offer yourself to the Academy to deliver these rewards… and pestered ‘Lil’ Elena here just to meet me?” Heian Ciemnosc asked, leaning his head over the table a little and his eyes narrowing by just 20%. Elena felt silly deep inside her heart, hearing him call her like that. But Teacher Conde’s mildly surprised face lasted a couple seconds before he slowly blinked in understanding fashion.
“Sigh~~. You’re every bit that Headmaster says you are. I’m impressed.”
Seeing Teacher Conde smile lightly and slightly warmly after responding to his question so simply had Heian Ciemnosc taken aback somewhat. Meanwhile, Elena began ordering with a waitress nearby who had walked over to their table for the three of them.
…