Weeks and weeks passed by with nothing significant happening.
The Magisterium’s graduation was a big event, but a heavy damper was put on the situation given what recently happened. A highlight of the graduation was always the presentation of the fourth year class, including the pride of the Magisterium, the Elites. They would have ceremonies displaying their accolades and speaking of their achievements, impressing all those of the Capital who could come to watch. It was an event only slightly smaller than the tournament and would be accompanied by an afterparty at a noble house, usually the President’s.
But this year, the graduation ceremony was succinct, and only the third year students were in attendance. I was sure that there were at least some of the fourth year students who were functional by the time of the ceremony, but none showed up. The Magisterium probably wanted to try and stay subtle about it all. Needless to say, the whole thing was underwhelming.
Umara and I couldn’t be bothered. We decided to enter the stadium and take a glimpse, but when we heard the droning of name calling and saw how boring it was, we left and decided to go on a date.
Brunch was far more invigorating than some disappointing graduation. So much as stepping foot in that stadium would infect someone with the depressing atmosphere. Only some of the third years would be staying for another year, while the rest would get shipped off to boot camp. And considering the recent massacre, none of them were thrilled.
After brunch, Umara and I had nothing to do. It was around 5 weeks of idleness. We staved off our boredom with studying and training.
I continued to fill out as many pages as I could with anything I could think of regarding science and standard conceptual knowledge. Even little details such as the standard composition of air, the properties of some specific compounds like carbon monoxide, mixtures of deadly compounds like chlorine gas or cyanide and how they interacted with the human body, details about the general functions of the human body and what chemicals were involved in those processes, as well as how to interfere with those functions using specific chemicals…
Most of the knowledge I recorded was geared towards being weaponized in some way, but I had to be thorough. After all, it wasn’t enough to say that carbon monoxide was deadly. She would have to know that it took the place of oxygen when inhaled and distributed into the bloodstream, eventually suffocating the person and killing them, ‘eventually’ being the key detail there
She had to know how she could apply the knowledge, especially regarding chemicals and the body, otherwise she couldn’t use it.
Still, there was too much to write down. I filled pages worth of information every day and yet as we got closer to the deadline, it felt like I was only further away from actually giving her everything I knew.
I obviously couldn’t possibly scribble, by hand, every single bit of knowledge hidden in my brain. But there was so much she could use, now or in the future, and I wanted to make sure she had it. Although she said that she had enough for years to come, I wanted to make sure there was enough variety to inspire her if it was possible, and enough to be used in any situation.
Nonetheless, she would have three books full by the time I was done, not even including the contents of our nightly discussions.
Plus, there was one interesting thing I found out while using the advancement formation Orb.
Summoners could easily use orbs. In fact, most Orbs were designed to be used by summoners exclusively due to Psyka and its properties. If a warlock or knight wanted to use one, they had to use special equipment not unlike the projection cradle to implant information. Summoners could simply hold the orb and inscribe information with their minds.
It was incredibly easy for summoners to write or receive massive amounts of information quickly since Orbs were designed around Psyka.
If I wished, I could get an Orb and write down thousands of pages of information and diagrams rather easily. It would take a fraction of the time it took to write it down physically
But my girlfriend wanted her books. I understood why she, like all warlocks and knights, didn’t like orbs. But it was still a bit regrettable.
Despite that, I still went and got an Orb for myself. They were expensive and I didn't really have a use for it at the moment, but it was good to have. The only heartache came when I looked at my pitiful savings account.
Other than all that though, my mind was on nothing but making final preparations for the military.
Finally, a week before the day we were supposed to ship off, I got a letter from the Puppet Master, given to Feiden and passed to me.
……
“Conscription notice. Looks like it’s finally time.”
I took a knife to the letter, slicing it open and taking out the sheets of paper within. The folded papers were laid out on the countertop.
There was an official wax seal sporting the regalia of the Kingdom’s Magical Forces, a circular emblem with a coiled dragon and two swords crossed in front.
I read through every word. This wasn’t a letter that went through the Magisterium. It came straight from Kingdom recruiting offices, notifying me that since I had graduated from the Magisterium, I was legally obligated to serve a term of 12 years within the Magical Forces. This was all stipulated within the contract that I had signed when I first enrolled, though they hadn’t mentioned 12 years specifically.
After getting through all the bureaucratic crap, I was given directions for basic training. I was to report to the recruiting center in the Capital on the morning of the day a week from now for processing. From there, I would undergo all of their introductory stuff before getting shipped out to a base for training.
Basic training in this world was different from Earth. Generally, Earth’s militaries spent around 2 months in boot camp, give or take a few weeks. It was a good amount of time to drill everything into a recruit’s skull and shape them up while also not taking up too much time.
Here, it was shorter. The Kingdom’s Magical Forces didn’t need to train a recruit in combat because they were either a Magus who had already gone through a magic academy like the Magisterium, or they were an ordinary person who didn’t need much, if any, combat training. While there were still ordinary people who operated in the field, they were generally there for logistics or maintenance. They rarely had combat roles so those who came to basic training needed no standard combat training.
My training period would last around 6 weeks. It seemed that I had been sent this letter with a bit of attention to detail, because they noted my combat ability as a summoner and determined that since I didn’t really fit into any standard category, they would be throwing me in with the warlock squadrons. Not only that, but because I was a summoner, they also offered me the opportunity to go through Intelligence training.
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Umara had told me such a situation was likely, so I wasn’t surprised. A summoner’s place in the military was usually behind the desk, using their smarts for the purposes of outmaneuvering the Scourge and processing all of the information that needed to be stored, utilized, or sent within the military.
They were in charge of communications, reports, strategy and tactics. They also designed and engineered most of the equipment and armament used like magical turrets, vehicles, consumable items, and more.
Thus, summoners occupied the highest Intelligence ranks in the military, what would equate to officers on Earth. The infantry were the brawn, but should they prove themselves, they could also become an intelligence officer and sport two ranks that afforded them greater responsibilities, pay, and opportunities.
I would be allowed to choose whether I wanted to go through Intelligence training while at the recruiting center. If I decided I did, then I would go through that training immediately after basic. As it stood right now, I saw no reason why I shouldn’t do so.
Besides that, I was given some details on what I should expect, what to bring, what to leave behind, among other things.
I finished through the letter before stashing it away.
I had already thought about what I would do and how I would handle myself for weeks now. There weren’t really any other ways to prepare beyond tying up loose ends, but I didn’t have many of those and had already dealt with most.
Normally this period would be filled with family time, but… I could only sigh. It didn't get any easier to think about them even over a year later.
I glanced to the side, the spot in the corner of the couch where Umara usually sat. In her place was her Grimoire of Science, a compilation of all the drawings and scribbles I had first written for her. She had gotten it properly bound, giving it a plain but nice hard cover.
Right now, she was at home in Joffrun, having been summoned by her mother. There were things for them to discuss and I didn’t want to intrude, so I stayed behind.
What they could be talking about, I wasn’t sure. Either way, I didn’t worry. There was nobody I trusted more than her now.
,,,,,,
“What do you mean, you couldn’t take his command? Who stopped you?”
Umara frowned at her mother, a tinge of anger bleeding into her disappointed tone. She didn’t think her mother could actually manage to lose control of a situation such as this. She was an Authority 11 and a Marshal of the Warlock Corps. That was large chunk of humanity’s battle power under her command. There were other Marshals just like her, but something like this shouldn’t have been a problem for her to take control of.
Now, John had fallen through her fingers. The battle that had been raging behind the scenes for weeks now was lost as soon as the recruitment letter went out.
The question now was, who had authority over him?
Umara noticed that her mother wasn’t mad or worried. She could sense her emotions now through her Aura. Anarchy had made her Aura obscenely powerful. Not even she knew how powerful it was, but being able to see through her mother was a good indicator. Granted, she wasn’t on guard and actively concealing thoughts, but Umara hardly cared. It wasn’t like she was trying either.
Instead, Talexia was inquisitive. Which at least meant that whoever had taken John wasn’t someone to worry about. Hopefully.
Talexia’s fingers rapped across the arm of her chair, head resting on her fist.
“... He’s been taken under the jurisdiction of one person, though it may as well be two. I thought I had a Sovereign on my side, a powerful card to play. But of course, a couple calls and two days later, it fell out of my hands. Why, I don’t know. But one thing’s for certain. John will get his share of fights.”
“Who did he fall under?”
“Sovereign Haley and Sovereign Adam. Together, they run the operations side of the Warlock Corps. More specifically, it’s Haley he’s technically fallen under, and she is in charge of the joint forces of knights and warlocks, working in tandem with the other Sovereigns on the Knight side of things. Apparently, since I don’t handle operations, and John has proven himself to be a highly lethal asset, they managed to argue that he should fall under their wing. And the one person I thought would help me changed his mind.”
“... You’re under Sovereign Intama, right?”
Umara recalled her vague knowledge on the topic.
Talexia’s superior was Sovereign Intama, a man who was in charge of the recruitment and training divisions. While warlocks that came out of the Magisterium didn’t necessarily need to be taught how to fight, they did need to learn advanced spells from somewhere. Although it seemed the contrary, the vast majority of Magi didn’t come from noble backgrounds that could provide their own sets of spells and advanced knowledge. In fact, even most nobles couldn’t do that. Only those at the very top of the social strata had the accumulated wealth and capital to provide their Magi with such resources.
So, Warlocks, while serving with the military and collecting accolades and merits, would gradually be taught battle-oriented spells not covered in school. Sovereign Intama was the highest authority on such matters, and Talexia was one of a couple Marshals under his command who worked with such affairs.
She wasn’t in charge of operations or tactics. If the military wanted John’s lethality, the case could be made that he would waste away under Talexia, who leaned more toward the logistics side.
She nodded.
“Yes, I’m under Sovereign Intama. And although John won’t be under my command nor his, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.”
“I can see the silver lining, but I still find much to worry about. They aren’t concerned for his safety.”
“Actually, they are. If they had the conversations I think they did, then the only reason John was allowed to fall under Sovereign Haley was because she could provide assurances in regards to his health. At the very least, I’m not worried about him, especially in the short term. They won’t do anything with him until they figure out the best way to use his power, so he’ll be safe.”
“...”
Umara silently pondered, putting aside the conversation with her mother.
Needless to say, they probably wouldn’t be together, whether through training, or afterward. She definitely preferred to be with him, but could wait if need be.
John had been working himself to the bone to give her everything she might need and arm her with knowledge for the future. Even before that, they had weathered a lot together, especially pressure from nobles.
Now though, they would be free from that. Especially him. If she wasn’t seen around him, then he wouldn’t have to suffer from so much scrutiny. And now that he was earning the eyes of those at the top of the military, she figured he could go without the additional pressure of worrying about her presence.
He would thrive even more without her than if she was there. While she received knowledge from him that was changing the way she understood the world, she couldn’t do anything like that for him. And, at least for now, she’d like him to stop thinking about her and focus on himself.
She thought this would be a good opportunity for that. So long as she didn’t have to worry about his safety, she was perfectly fine letting him go out and take on the world. By the time she saw him again, he would no doubt be far beyond what he was now.
Of course, she’d have to soak up every bit of him before they had to leave. But after that, their entrance into the military would be a good opportunity to devote themselves to their own advancement. There would be no more school, drama, or politics to hold them back. That’s what the military was to the nobles who entered: a training ground; a place to temper themselves so that they would one day succeed their parents.
It would be no different for Umara. Except now, her goals were a bit higher than merely fulfilling the talent that her mother gave her. She had an incalculable advantage, and it would take her much higher.
And she’d need it if she wanted to keep up with her future husband. Contrary to his confidence, he didn’t believe in himself nearly as much as she believed in him. He was still doubting whether he could reach the same heights as her. She was doubting her ability to keep up with his insane advancement rate.
Well, time would certainly tell. Hopefully they would both have enough of it.