"I cannot believe such a bastard made it inside the academy, father!" Rudy roared.

"Watch your tone, boy," Kairos said.

Rudy swallowed as he fixed his suit. "I'm sorry. But my opinion remains."

Kairos sighed. "I understand how you are feeling. He is a disrespectful, annoying son of a bitch... But he has powerful backing."

"Not only does the guild support him, but so does the Flamebright family," Kairos resumed.

"So we're supposed to let this disrespect slide?" Rudy asked in utter disbelief.

Kairos shot a look over the window of his office as he leaned back. "No. Of course we won't. I already have a few things set in motion. Just do as you have to and I'll handle the rest," he replied.

Rudy sighed as he fixed his hair. "I understand. I will take my leave now, father."

Kairos watched the busy manor below as a knight came in.

"I have returned, sir," the knight said.

"Is everything going smoothly?" Kairos asked.

"Yes, sir. We have received the shipments, and only the newly added cargo has yet to arrive," the knight announced.

"Good," Kairos said as he massaged his beard.

"Do as planned once it arrives," he said as he shot a glance at the knight. "And do not make a mistake."

The knight felt a cold bead of sweat trickle down his forehead as he hastily nodded. "Y-yes sir."

When the knight left, the butler of the family came in. "What should we do, master?"

"I want you to send some men to dispose of the Knights once they're done," Kairos ordered.

"Will that be all, master?" The butler asked.

"Please get me some coffee," Kairos added.

***

Like usual, the students were up early. It has been nearly two weeks now since their arrival here, and the improvements are starting to show.

Firstly, the weaker Nightwalkers that had to run in the morning and spend most of their time strengthening their bodies finally joined training. Due to this, there was some slight disarray as Lilith and the rest were unable to cooperate with them. A rather expected result.

Because of this, Michael had to start from zero. Luckily, due to the experience of the first learners, they were able to grasp things quickly.

But with such things came another announcement.

After some time of training as a whole, Michael finally revealed a new structure. The implementation of roles.

Michael knew that some students were simply not built for combat. Although they can learn, it does not suit them well. So he played roles.

He separated the class into a few groups. First was the reconnaissance team, which was in charge of capturing intelligence from the battlefield and distributing it to the group. The members involved here were three people. Namely, Desmond, Alex, and Rhian.

Most of the reconnaissance group was composed of the newly introduced students. Alex, who wielded the element of vibration, was suited greatly for the job as he was able to detect and determine the source of tremors. Meanwhile, Rhian wielded the element of earth. A rather unlikely element for such a task, but it wouldn't if one knew her ability. Rhian has the ability to "converse" with rocks in a way that she can see what they see. However, it is not indefinite, as she has her limits.

Now, the second group is labeled the emergency response team. They are in charge of giving out quick relief aid and prioritizing health and safety. The group also consists of three people. Namely, Elise, who eventually recognized the potential of her element for healing; Sabbath, a wielder of the element of lightning, which allows her to speed up the regeneration of a person; and lastly, Sergio, who is bestowed with the element of metal. But unlike Raegan, he specializes in defensive countermeasures and barriers.

The final group was named the Quick Reaction Force. The team consists of five members. Their job was to contain, exterminate, and assist as fast as they could. They are to arrive on the scene without delay and provide firepower to finish their objectives.

As such, the members are well versed in combat and are strong by nature. These are: Samael, an experienced watcher capable of killing beasts most people only dream of; Lilith, the chaos witch and a figure respected by many; Raegan, a commoner who wields the element of metal and has the spirit of a warrior. Next is Edgar, a spear user of the fire element, and lastly, Claire, a proficient caster of the wind element.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Now, due to the separation of the teams, Michael has devised a new schedule. All the members were to undergo training in the morning for general combat knowledge, and when noon came, they tended to their specific team objectives.

The recon team did multiple information gathering runs, information handling, and information dissemination lessons. While the quick-aid team studied the ways of first aid, emergency response, and crowd manipulation, On the other hand, Samael's team did, as usual, fight.

Now, the Nightwalkers had begun to ease in and finally be comfortable. This brought harmony to Hallstone and great joy to Michael. To him, the students were family. And to see them treat each other as such was enough.

Meanwhile, Samael's lessons were going great. He is excelling and thriving even higher under Michael's teaching. While Ajax taught him how to survive in the wild, Michael taught him how to survive in society and on the battlefield.

Slowly but surely, Samael was starting to improve his fighting style. He is now able to force out roughly 50% of the saint's full power. Due to this, Michael decided it was time for another valuable lesson.

"Elemental invocation?" Samael asked.

"Yes, it will be a skill you'll benefit greatly from," Michael replied.

"What does it do?" Samael inquired.

"Well, both you and I know what combat is. It is when we try to inflict harm upon our foes, may it be in hand-to-hand battles or ranged. However, most new echoes often separate their use of their elements in a way that they feel that they must disengage before casting," Michael explained.

"This isn't optimal as it forms a distance between you and your enemy. Not only that, but this allows the other party enough time to react and defend themselves against your skills," he resumed as he beckoned Samael to stand up.

"To put this into perspective, I'll demonstrate two actions, and I want you to defend yourself," Michael said.

Samael nodded as he braced.

Michael swiftly dashed in as he threw a myriad of punches and kicks, all of which were deflected by Samael. Using one of his kicks momentum, he propelled himself back and shot a blood arrow towards Samael.

Reacting fast, he swiveled left and down, avoiding the arrow before he dashed forward to counter.

However, this time, Michael attacked once more, facing Samael straight on as they traded blows when the professor grabbed Samael and shot his knee upwards. At the same time, a blood spike ascended from beneath him, prompting Samael's eyes to widen as he tried to dodge away. But the attack stopped before it struck him.

Michael let go of the boy. "See what I mean?"

Samael nodded. If that was a real fight, that spike would have left a nasty gash in his ribs.

"That's the power of elemental invocation—the ability to use elements in the middle of battle," Michael said.

"As I teach you how to do it, you'll also learn how to expect it," he resumed.

"Now, this skill is often found in people of the Saint ranks and above, as they often have enough elemental proficiency to use it. But I have no doubt you'll be able to grasp it in no time," he said.

"Using your element in combat might seem easy, but you'll find it quite challenging to separate your mind between fighting and casting."

"So first, I'll have you train it with three skills," Michael said.

"Choose," he beckoned.

Samael fell into contemplation before he nodded.

"If you're done, I will leave you on your own. Take this; it will reveal a hidden feature in the box that will greatly aid your training. Consult me when you're ready," he said before he left.

The skills he chose were Void Cleave, Void Claw, and Abyss Spikes. The reason he chose them was that he felt he would greatly benefit from mastering them, as they suit his close combat style.

Looking at the dummies, Samael remembered what Michael showed and said.

The man said that it was the ability to use your element while in combat. But that will mean he must fight someone.

Perhaps...?

Looking at the device in his palm, Samael clicked it.

On cue, Samael could feel the ground shake as a wall in the far corner of the box started to open, revealing a hidden pathway.

In the darkness, Samael saw an abomination slowly approach the light.

It walked on all fours and resembled a bear, except its jaw was extremely deformed as it opened in four different ways, kind of like a worm's mouth.

"I see..." Samael muttered as he put the item inside his dragon horde remnant.

Looking at the beast, the abominations snarled at Samael as it slowly circled him. But Samael did not fear, as his mind was consumed by his thoughts.

He was currently thinking of ways to use the ability to mid-fight when the beast pounced at him with one mighty roar. Breaking him from his stupor.

Samael swiftly evaded the wide slash of the monster as he stepped in to deliver a fatal blow when his eyes widened.

Halting his steps, Samael dashed back.

He almost ended the fight early.

Looking at the creature, it once again opened its mouth as it lunged at Samael's face, intending to rip it off.

Reacting fast, Samael dove down as he limited his strength and speed before throwing an uppercut.

The beast jerked its head to the side as it swung at Samael's torso, which he blocked, throwing him a couple steps back.

Samael couldn't help but frown.

The beast charged in once more as it slammed its razor-sharp claws down. However, it struck nothing but air as Samael dashed back and bounced back in, slamming his knees in the face of the beast.

The creature recoiled in pain as it roared in rage. Without warning, it doubled its speed as it swung mindlessly.

Samael weaved back and forth when he remembered Michael's teaching. Turning up his aggression, he dove in after the beast missed and delivered one nasty shot in its ribs.

The beast moaned as it snarled and swung horizontally, but Samael was faster as he ducked and sent a clean uppercut before kicking the abomination in the chest, sending it back.

As it bounced off the solid floor, it whimpered, and its chest started to bruise.

Not taking any chances, Samael went in and drove his elbow deep into its belly, forcing it to buckle as he rotated and slammed the sole of his foot into its chin, knocking it up in the air.

The creature shook the ground as it hit the floor first, bits and pieces of its teeth scattering around.

Samael wasted no time as he dashed in when his eyes widened.

He has yet to incorporate his element into the fight.

Samael's movements slowed down. The claw of the beast swooped in, forcing Samael to raise his hand and block it, throwing him away.

As he landed, small cracks littered his arm, and his void skin was slightly damaged by the impact.

A soft chuckle escaped Samael's lips.

It seems this was going to be harder than he thought.