Andrew and Yurin sat in the cafeteria, worriedly eating their lunch, while Daruk spoke to principal Zatya.

They had both elected to stay behind while Daruk faced the principal alone. It was very cowardly of them, Andrew knew, but he'd rather be called a coward than enter the principal's office of his own violation. Unfortunately, Yurin also shared his sentiments, which was why they now sat here, worriedly biting their nails whilst ignoring the curious looks of their classmates.

Andrew stuffed his mouth with fries, but when he caught Aida Simms staring at him in disgust, he paused, cleared his throat, and wiped his mouth carefully, embarrassed to be caught eating like a barbarian.

Andrew knew he wasn’t a model noble; in fact, he had been mistaken for a privileged commoner more times than he could count; however, Andrew preferred it that way.

The life of commoners was much freer, less uptight, and just generally happier than that of nobles. Andrew couldn’t exactly say he was living the commoner experience though, as his spatial ring currently held more money than most commoner households had in a year.

“Why’s your face scrunched up like that?” Yurin asked, cutting off his train of thought, and it was only then that Andrew realized he had been frowning.

He sighed and waved dismissively. “I’m just a little worried for Aodhán, and these stares aren’t helping matters either.”

Yurin looked around and grimaced. “Yeah, they make me uncomfortable too.”

Andrew couldn’t say he was surprised. Aodhán was popular, and ever since they became friends, Andrew had become popular by extension. So, naturally, after what had happened in Professor Alaric’s class, Aodhán and Cyrus were once again the topic of the day. However, since neither of Aodhán, Cyrus, or Daruk were around for the rest of the class to feast their eyes on, Andrew and Yurin had become their victims instead.

Over the last few weeks, Andrew had become accustomed to the stares, and sometimes he barely even noticed them, but for some reason today, he just couldn't help himself.

He glanced around again, stubbornly avoiding the gazes of several students turned in their direction until his gaze landed on Grendar and Kellan, who were seated alone on Cyrus’s usual table. He wasn’t sure when it became Cyrus’s table or when this table became theirs, but it was just one of those unspoken rules. No one sat on their table.

Grendar sneered at him, but Andrew just smirked in return. Wood against metal, which Affinity would win?

One might think Metal had the advantage here, but Andrew was sure he would come out victorious, if only for the fact that his sisters would never let him live it down if he let a girl like Grendar beat him in a duel.

Grendar’s scowl deepened, and it looked like she was contemplating getting up to attack him, but before she made a decision, the cafeteria doors swung open and Daruk walked in, his face an expressionless mask that sucked all the heat out of the room. Daruk barely acknowledged the gazes or greetings of their fellow students, although he gave a small nod when he passed by Lupin’s, Gwendolyn's, and Scarlett’s tables.

When he reached their table and sat down, Andrew asked. “So, what did principal Zatya say?”

Daruk sighed and narrated his meeting with principal Zatya, obviously leaving out some unnecessary details.

“Basically,” Daruk concluded. “They’re in a correctional facility within the academy. I tried to get her to tell me more, but she said I wasn’t qualified to know. I even tried to get her to shorten Aodhán's punishment, but she refused.”

Yurin shook his head sadly. “Well, I guess we should be grateful they haven’t been suspended or, worse, expelled.”

“Or dead.” Daruk added with a scowl as he dug into his meal with as much poise and etiquette as that of a high noble.

Yurin shook his head. “That’s too extreme. Surely, the principal won't kill students just for destroying academy property, would she?

Andrew shrugged. “I doubt she would, but people have been killed for less.”

“Much less.” Daruk nodded in agreement, and Yurin's eyes widened. “Are you guys serious?”

“No,” Daruk scowled. “I'm just saying...”

“Oh,” Yurin sighed. “I get it. A little dark, but I get it.”

Andrew shoved a handful of fries into his mouth and shook his head. “I just can’t believe Aodhán was going through the whole breakup thing without telling us. I mean, we are his friends for ascendants sake.”

Daruk’s expression soured further, and Yurin hastily responded, trying to defend Aodhán. “I mean, technically, they didn’t break up because they were never really dating in the first... okay, I'll stop now. Don't crucify me.”

Daruk sighed. “I'm so angry, but for some reason I feel like I can't be mad at him.”

“I'm mad.” Andrew shrugged. “If I were the one going through a breakup, I'd tell Aodhán. That's the kind of friendship I thought we had.”

Yurin shrugged awkwardly. “Maybe he was just waiting for the right time to tell us, or maybe he forgot...

“Stop trying to defend him, Yurin.” Daruk scowled. “I know my brother well, and he always does this. He wants to help everyone, but he won't let himself be helped.”

The mini-argument continued for a while longer, with Andrew and Daruk lamenting the whole situation while Yurin futilely tried to defend Aodhán.

Despite what he had said earlier, Andrew couldn't help but sympathize with Aodhán. He knew how excited Aodhán was to finally pop the question and how giddy he became whenever talks of Lupin came up during random training sessions, but mostly, what hurt the most was the fact that he had helped Aodhán plan out a few of their dates. He had invested both his time and brain cells into this not-a-relationship, and he at least deserved to be notified when things went fucking south.

After nearly ten minutes of arguing, they finally agreed to disagree, and Yurin muttered. “Well, at least we know he’s fine. We’ll just have to start counting down the days till he returns.”

Daruk sighed again, and their conversation turned towards other academy-related matters. They spoke for a few more minutes, after which they made their way towards the training hall in preparation for the upcoming selection process.

Daruk and Yurin moved to one corner of the hall, with the former helping the latter in his attempt to gain a seal. Andrew didn’t need the help, or at least he didn’t think he did. He was working on something Aunt Fortuna had explained to him after the party, and by the time he finished, Andrew was sure he would have met the minimum requirements for a seal if not exceeded it.

Until that day came though, Andrew had other important things to do. He moved to the other side of the hall and activated {Create Plants}.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

For someone who didn’t much like reading, his skills were so knowledge-dependent that it was grating most times. The plant he created was a mundane plant called a plushvine, a light green, cushy vine covered in soft thorns and budding white flowers.

Since there was no earth for the plushvine to anchor its roots, Andrew simply placed it on the floor and released wisps of his aura to keep the plant from dying. A quick activation of {Plant Manipulation} transformed the vine into a sort of cushion, and with a sigh, Andrew sat down on it.

Unlike Aodhán, Daruk, and Yurin, Andrew wasn’t so fortunate to be awarded the {Create construct} skill at the 5th tier, and although he had spent the first six weeks of resumption working to get the skill, he had made very little progress so far.

At first he’d thought he could accomplish the construct skill by refining his manipulation skills, but that idea had died a gruesome death after the fourth week. He could still create crude constructs such as chairs and tables, but it was more of manipulating plants into these basic shapes rather than creating them.

With a sigh, he took out a large textbook and began reading. Yep, it was a weird sight; even Andrew himself knew it was weird, but after he’d almost defeated Daruk using the knowledge he gained about wintervines, he’d begun reading a lot more.

His studies centered mostly around plants, their compositions, nature, environment, affinity, and growth factors. For the past few weeks, he’d been reading up on the natural environment and composition of various mundane plants, as he couldn’t create them without having a basic understanding of their nature first.

He had learned so much since then, one of which was the fact that all plants, even unawakened ones, had affinities. Most of them simply bore the nature affinity, but some, like the wintervine he’d referenced earlier, and a host of other plants who just barely escaped being magical bore other affinities. A good example of one such plant, and his current headache was the Silver Render, a rare plant mostly found in metal-rich regions and mountainous areas.

The plant was weird, to say the least. It was shaped like an octopus, if the head was the root instead, and its tentacles were vines. The silver render had the ability to burrow easily through concrete to anchor itself and grow, and although this was not a particularly special ability among plants that grew in mountainous regions, the silver render had one prominent feature. Its vines were covered in sharp, metallic thorns shaped like barbs, and its growth rate was just through the roof.

These two key features had fascinated Andrew ever since he found out about the plant, and for nearly a week now, he had been reading up on the silver render, amassing knowledge about its nature, composition, and even its reproductive cycle so he could create it. Unfortunately, he wasn’t as smart as Daruk, who could probably memorize the whole textbook without issue, so that meant slowly bashing his head against the concrete walls of the training room until he could recite all important information concerning the render offhand.

Sometimes, Andrew cursed his fate for creating such knowledge-dependent skills, but he definitely couldn’t deny the advantages. Already, he was confident in passing the class on awakened plants without much issue, although he sadly couldn’t say the same for AAT or UEA (understanding elemental affinities). UEA was still a bit manageable, but AAT was just a curse, honestly.

Pushing the thoughts of the impending examinations out of his mind, Andrew focused on his textbook and continued reading. This continued until evening, after which they headed to the cafeteria for dinner before leaving for their respective residences.

When Andrew got to his house, he stayed awhile in the living room to chat with his housemates, Aida, Luthir, Telula, and Derek, who unsurprisingly wanted to talk about the incident earlier.

“Are they being expelled?” Aida asked the moment he stepped into the living room, and Andrew shook his head. “Fortunately not. Just a five-day suspension.”

“Thank the ascendants!” Luthir, the only other noble resident in the house aside from him, sighed and shook his head. “What would have become of us in the academy tournaments if we lost our two strongest rankers?”

Telula nodded in agreement, and Derek rolled his eyes from the corner where he sat, his hair alternating colors in a dizzying manner. As weird as his friends were, Andrew had a relatively good relationship with them, although he was much closer to Luthir and Aida. Telula offered him a box of chocolates, and Andrew sat down with his housemates, just talking until it was midnight.

He left for his room then, and without taking off his clothes or shoes, he fell on his bed and began snoring, his mind filled with the chemical and hormonal composition of the silver render.

He woke up an hour before dawn the next morning, stumbled out of his vine-covered bed, and petted the budding flowers by his window sill before kicking off his boots and letting his aura envelope the entire room.

Verdant energy rushed out of him, and all the plants in his room unfurled their leaves, filling the room with the unmistakable scent of nature. Vines slithered excitedly, branches shuddered, and the fruit tree growing in one corner of the room creaked merrily as its tiny branches drank in his aura.

Andrew’s room was a literal garden, and although his plants had very little access to sunlight, his aura more than made up for the necessity. Andrew moved from one plant to the other, watering them because his aura might have made up for sunlight, but it was no replacement for water.

After tending to each plant, Andrew made his way to his bathroom, where he replied to half a dozen texts from his family members who kept expressing concern for his mental health now that he no longer had access to information about the war. Andrew constantly repeated that he was coping as best as he could, but Diendre and his mother didn’t buy it. Fortuna simply asked him to send her regards to Aodhán, and although he tried to subtly ask about the war, his message was deleted before it even had the chance to send. It was infuriating to say the least, and Andrew spent an extra ten minutes in the bathroom to calm his mind before walking out of the bathroom.

Fifteen minutes later, he walked out of the house to find Daruk and Yurin already waiting for him. It was a surprise to see Yurin, as he didn’t usually fly with them in the mornings. He looked a little dimmer than usual, and his eyes were halfway closed as if he were asleep on his feet.

“I woke him up earlier than usual.” Daruk explained with a small smile, and Andrew grinned. “Not a morning person I see.”

“I hate mornings.” Yurin muttered sleepily.

Andrew laughed and then turned to gaze at Daruk. Aodhán wasn’t around today, so obviously transportation duty fell on Daruk because he couldn’t make constructs and he wouldn’t trust his life to Yurin in this moment.

Daruk grimaced, not too keen on the prospect, but he soon came to the same conclusion as Andrew, and his expression grew even sour. Muttering in annoyance, Daruk created an ice platform that wasn’t nearly as firm or sturdy as Aodhán’s and asked both Yurin and Andrew to hop on.

Yurin sleepwalked onto the platform, somehow managing the task even in his drowsy state, but Andrew eyed the platform suspiciously and asked. “Can’t you make it a little wider?”

Daruk scowled, but the construct expanded to a more accommodating size. The thickness of the construct, however, decreased, seeming almost blade-like, and Andrew seriously doubted it would take their combined weights without cracking.

He glanced at Daruk, whose expression was innocently blank, and shook his head wearily. He might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but even he could see that Daruk was setting him up for a disaster. He scanned the construct for a moment longer before he got an idea and smiled. “I wonder what Gwendolyn Tideborn would say if she found out that you lied about being busy yesterday night, when in fact, you were with Maddie Cronox doing ascendants know what.”

Yurin perked up immediately, and Daruk's scowl deepened. “I’m doing you a favor here.”

“You’re not doing it well.”

“What is this about Maddie Cronox?” Yurin asked.

“Nothing.” Daruk replied hastily. Too hastily. He glared at Andrew and muttered. “Where's Aodhán when you need him most?”

Andrew ignored Daruk's words and simply smiled. “I’d also like to request footholds. I do not want to slip to my injury.”

Daruk glared at him for a moment longer before acquiescing.

“Fine, Andrew. You win this time.”

Daruk thickened the construct and even created footholds that kept Andrew from sliding off the construct when he eventually climbed unto it. They zoomed off immediately, and Yurin asked again. “What is this I hear about Maddie Cronox?”

“I said nothing!” “He’s cheating!” Daruk and Andrew replied at the same time, and despite his best efforts, Andrew found himself falling from ascendants knew what height.

He screamed, certain that he would sustain a hideous bruise just because Daruk couldn't take a fucking joke. Fortunately, a rope of light caught him just before he hit the floor, and Yurin shouted. “Okay, maybe that was a little excessive.”

“Tell me about it.” Andrew shouted back, having been fully prepared to create a crater on the concrete walkway.

He raised his head and glared at Daruk. “I’ll still tell him. Yurin, Daruk, and Maddie are…ahhh!”

A lance of ice shot towards him, and Andrew had to bend over backwards to dodge it. Realizing just what length Daruk was willing to go to keep his clandestine activities a secret, Andrew shouted. "Yurin, create your own construct and fly away if you want to hear the full gist!”

Yurin didn’t even hesitate, and with a burst of speed, he created his own construct and zipped forward while Daruk chased them from behind, trying not to laugh as he watched Andrew dangling from beneath Yurin’s construct.

The wind howled around him as they zoomed forward, and Andrew cursed his lack of a construct skill for the umpteenth time that week alone. The wind stole his voice though, and as Yurin swerved carelessly, smashing Andrew into the gymnasium wall, Andrew muttered. “Aodhán is my only true friend.