Dawn Valkyrie

Lunch break.

Heading toward Seminaris class as planned, I lost myself in thoughts.

From what Elaine told me, this next exam will be something to make us used to war, or so it seems. It makes a lot of sense thinking about it, Venfall is currently in a cold war with the empire so im guessing that they want to prepare the younglings to deal with war times.

War hmm... probably the king has high hopes for me, after all, he gave me military house status so im obligated by law to participate in the war.

Little does he know, im going to kill his son, murder every last noble involved with my village erasement, and then probably kill the King too.

I arrive at class 1-1. Opening the door im welcomed by a strange sight.

Everyone is eating at their desks, and someone seems to be giving a speech at the teacher's counter.

A boy with silver hair, sharp eyes, and smooth white skin. His hair is wavy, combed to the sides making two bags on each corner of his face slightly approaching his eyes.

Glasses with small rectangular lenses, outside the lenses everything is golden making it eradiate an expensive aura. His eyes are yellow matching almost perfectly with his glasses golden parts.

He looks, royal, I have met a lot of teenagers in these few days here but just from bathing my eye on this one, he is not like the others. The way he articulates while talking, how he looks at everyone with superiority but not arrogance.

I opened the door all the way making my presence known and everyone just awkwardly stared at me.

Seminaris glances at me with eyes wide open and sucking her own lips inside her mouth. She makes a gesture waving her folded hand around her neck furiously.

Bad timing sigh... Anyway, this is like a war council? They really are taking it seriously.

I turn around to go back but the boy at the counter talks.

"Bagging into other class affairs and then turning away without a word, you are more brute than the rumors care to tell, Nyxya Faeson" He says with a calm voice but a hint of aggressiveness

Me, a brute? How? Im polite to everyone. picking a fight just because of something like this, I didnt even hear anything.

"If makes you feel better, sorry, now goodbye" I say apathetically giving him a side eye with my back turned to him

The boy slightly frowns his eyebrow in annoyance. He mubble to himself in a low voice and annoyed voice, with a click of his tongue.

"Tch, if you are not taking it seriously, what are you even doing here?"

I open the door and lean against a wall in the corridor to wait for Seminaris.

Hmm... 'what are you doing here?' I dont blame him for getting mad at my seeming apathy. I would be a little angered if I took something serious and another person just stepped on it acting like nothing happened.

These exams are not that important to me. Im going to participate of course it is still a valuable chance to learn something new but sincerely after chancing assassins, killing soldiers, and almost dying to an assassin, it all feels kinda pointless when im doing something so simple like this. 

Sigh... what im thinking, I feel like im getting arrogant lately.

I read a book about something like this some time ago, didn't I? If im recalling correctly, something about heritages distorting the user personality if they use too much. It was only a theory but when I compare it with my current situation kinda fits. 

Extending my hand slightly and snapping my fingers. A pitch-black card surges between my fingers.

My heritage has no name, and from what Claire told me. No one ever heard about a dark heritage. Some heritages use some aspects of darkness in some ways but none of them use just darkness completely alone.

After all, darkness itself does not exist. It is merely a name given to the absence of light. I spent some time dwelling on the concepts of darkness some time ago when stuck trying to create new ways of usage, but most of it is just unsure.

I throw the card up in a spiral catching it with my other hand.

Heritages usually manifest themselves at the age of 20 and forward, there is no record of someone achieving this feat at the age of 15 like me. Well, the only way of recording is by writing in books that can be easily burned or erased so it is hard to tell.

Sigh... it is all a great mystery and I feel powerless having no way to solve it.

I proceed to play with the card while lost in thoughts. People passing the hallway eye me with curiosity. 

Soon, Seminaris approached me with a joyful smile, hugging me against the wall.

"Sorry... I forgot to tell you about the class reunion we would do today" Says Seminaris casually but with a light hint of concern

That embarrassing event could have been avoided sigh...

Could she just stop grinding her breasts against me in public for a little? I cant even think straight like this.

Seminaris lifts her head and closes her eyes signaling a kiss urge.

Slowly wrapping my hands in her waists I lean my head forward and our lips touch, she tries to go further but I pull back from our kiss feeling her intentions.

She looks at me unsatisfied and puffs her cheeks.

Cute... this face makes me want to tease you more.

After approaching my mouth on her ear I whisper seductively.

"I promised to eat and cuddle, remember?"

She blushes and makes a cheeky expression with a cute smug. She continued to grind even more her body against me resting her head on my neck.

Seminaris blow some air on my neck as to tease me.

"You are the one being pinned against the wall, accept your role" Seminaris whispers in my neck seductively

She just has no control... is every Faeson girl like this? Now that I think about it, Perlonie is just as bad and he is an old man.

"How sad, you just see me as a piece of meat for your pleasure and dont want to eat together" I say sarcastically faking a sad expression

Seminaris looks at me in shock and then makes an apologetic expression.

Wait, is she really taking it seriously?

"Sorry... whenever I see you my switch turns on automatically sigh" She says with a hint of melancholy

It was a joke but not far from the truth anyway, I wanna eat.

After a few reassurance kisses, we eat together at her desk. Her classmates are staring daggers at me while we cuddle and chat.

It's not like I dont understand, we are basically going to war against ourselves in 15 days so they are all kinda tense. Class 1-1 is taking this exam immensely seriously hm, well this kind of victory here adds to your name later on, so for them it is a good thing.

After some time, classes end and I shortly arrive at my gymnasium.

As usual, the instructor made us form a line and is now in a soldier-like position in front of us.

"After 3 days all vermins are fully aware of mana % while fighting, using it effectively for a bunch of vermins will take a long time as you need to unlock your vase in your empty and retarded heads" The instructor says assertively

At least she didnt hit my stomach today, yet.

"Mana % is a concept used by every other type of mana combatant, even for magicians they use it in their wards to block and in some other advanced spells, remember that"

So it is the basic of the basic for everyone hmm...

The instructor turned around and strolled. When she was far from us, she stopped. Looking at us with arrogance and superiority, the instructor states.

"Today, im going to introduce a glimpse of hell. Vermins have only one job, survive"

The true training starts today... so thats why she asked us to bring our weapons.

I lost myself in thoughts but something soon woke me up in panic.

Death

My body stiffs, my reflexes kick in and I pull out Penance immediately getting on guard. Everyone in line follows right after me feeling the same. Our legs tremble, our expressions show fear but nothing is in front of us.

The instructor's mana is coming out slightly, and immediately after our bodies feel an unimaginable heat. Sweat is descending upon our foreheads while I try to calm the trembling in my body.

In a smooth movement, the instructor extended her right arm to the side. The ground around her starts to turn black like it is getting burned.

Her voice then came out expressing superiority and arrogance with her sharp and serious face.

"Inferno: Dawn Valkyrie"

*Boom*

The instructor busts into bright red flames, it is so bright that I have to protect my eyes.

This... is insane! The sheer amount of mana coming out of her is putting pressure on my whole body like a mountain attached to my back. Argh! feel like im standing a few meters away from the sun itself, it is getting hard to breath.

The flames disappear leaving no trace, except, the instructor is changed. A huge spear made completely of fire is being held by her right hand. The spear has a large blade with a cross in the handle after the blade.

Her face is covered by a winged fire-made helmet, leaving only her mouth to show and her eyes barely visible by a few vertical openings.

A pair of fire wings attached to a fire chest plate. Her legs, arms, and almost all of her body are covered in an armor of fire.

This presence is simply overwhelming! What did she expect by showing us this now? Even her heritage is made for war, she was born to be a savage!

From what I read, the Tarker family has the Inferno heritage. A type of heritage that uses fire as the principal element, if she said dawn Valkyrie means that this is her variant. But... if she is so strong why use all this power to train students here?

Her wings beat resulting in her feet getting out of the ground. Her red hair blew in the sky with every beat of her fire wings, her spear pointing to the sky like a weapon of mass destruction. Every beat of her wings brings a wave of heat shaking my body to the core.

It is fearsome, but with this amount of mana being liberated in the air, there is a time limit for this form, probably big because of her amount of mana but still a time limit. I need to keep this in mind if I find myself against her one day.

Right now, the very thought of fighting the instructor in battle brings shivers to my spine. I already knew she could kill me in a second but this... is too much.

She then opens her mouth, and with a calm and superior tone, she says.

"In battle, heritages can be the difference between life and death. In an even battle heritage is what decides the winner, mainly for blade dancers"

This is obvious. Besides, we learn this in class as well but even though it is an obvious fact... standing here in front of this, seeing it with my own eye makes me reaffirm even more.

My colleagues fall to the ground on their knees because of the sheer amount of pressure. My legs are trembling like tree branches in a strong storm but I stand on my feet with my shaky grip on Penance.

Once again, I contemplate my own insignificance. All I want to do is run away. My body tells me to run, but my mind stands tall.

Running here means the same as giving up! When I encounter myself in the same situation how am I supposed to survive? Right now she is not even trying to kill us but one day I will have to face someone who will.

The instructor descends and the pressure disappears alongside her spear and armor. Everything comes back to normal leaving only two black footprints on the ground where she was standing.

Finally, sigh... I can breathe again.

"If you lack the mental strength to face something like this, I suggest you give up and slither to the exit, weaklings"The instructor stated to my colleagues calmly expressing superiority and arrogance

How exactly were they supposed to stand? She is just raising her standards too high. This is just pointless cruelty.

I gave my hand to help one of my colleagues on my side but.

*Boom*

The instructor punched my stomach and I fell to the ground out of breath.

Argh! Why?!

I look up to see the instructor looking down on me without bending her head, her sharp and superior gaze penetrates my soul when she opens her mouth a low and deep voice comes out with a silent rage tone.

"You think of yourself as so superior, do you take pleasure in that? In pitying the ones weaker than you. On the battlefield there is no one to lead a hand when you fall.

There is no place for kindness here as there is none on the battlefield. Take that fake pity of yours elsewhere disgusting vermin"

She kicks my stomach making me gasp again.

"Argh!"

Her words pierce me harder than her kick.

As painful as it is to admit, she is right... im in no place to shove my feeble pity on anyone. Life is cruel, I know that better than most, and still, I extended my hand. What am I thinking?

My frustration increases when I look to my sides, all my colleagues are getting up taking their things to leave with shame written all over their faces.

It is only the fourth day. How can you three give up now? How can you sleep at night knowing that the simple pressure of one heritage made you give up?

Where is your drive? How could I pity people who can just bend their knees and give up like it is nothing?

At this moment I felt something. An abyss was formed between me and them, like an invisible force separating me from the rest.

The instructor squats and looks me in the eyes. She speaks with her usual assertive tone

"Understand now? Dont matter how talented or strong someone is, if you have no pride nor the endless hunger to be the best. You die. But you, Nyxia Faeson, have both hunger and overwhelming talent, you are from a different breed than them. 

If you are asking yourself if the loneliness you are feeling right now will ever go away, it won't - it only gets worse. Those like us cannot allow ourselves to feel pity or kindness without meaning. Being kind is a weakness that your enemies can easily exploit. When soldiers scream your name, die for you, kill for you, is this the face you will show the survivors? No! You stand prideful for this is the burden the strong have to carry"

At this moment, my mind is calm and serene. Like im at the top of a mountain but there is only me feeling a breeze made of loneliness. On the horizon, I see a bigger mountain for me to climb but I know that the further away from the ground I am, the further away from myself I will become.

Does it matter? If this is what I need to achieve my revenge then it is a small price to pay. My mind never wavered from my revenge, getting stronger was always the priority but now, my mind is understanding my surroundings in other ways than before.

The instructor gets up and I follow right after. Im calm and my eyes express determination.

"Pull your weapon, the true training begins now" Says the instructor assertively

...

In my room at the dorm.

After getting greeted by a very precise comment about my light maturity growth from Elaine. We chat for a bit and I start mediating a few minutes later.

I got a nice bath and was about to lie down on my bed to read a little before sleeping but someone knocked at the door.

Hmm, probably Seminaris.

My suspicions are proven correct when I open the door to a very thirsty Seminaris.

"Hey... won't you sleep with me tonight? My roommate is currently sneaking into the boy's dormitory to sleep with her boyfriend so... what do you think?" Seminaris asks embarrassed but with a hint of lust

She comes closer putting her hands under my baggy T-shirt making seductive movements with her index finger around my abdomen.

If there is no roommate well, why not? I really would like to have sex right now too.

And after a good section of sex, we sleep cuddling in her bed.

.....

Time passed in a flash and before I even noticed, the exam day came.

Three carriages-rooms came to pick up each class separately, the room is somewhat bigger than Claire's so it fits 15 students somewhat crampy but nothing to worry about.

Was brought to my knowledge that this kind of carriage is called, Spatial Carriage. They are made by a dude who has a heritage with a rare spatial element. From what Falnark said, this dude's heritage uses 3 elements and he works in a laboratory in the castle.

Im kinda of curious about heritages after getting a close look at my instructor's heritage. maybe I should try researching more about what I can do with my own, I have an endless supply of books at the academy library after all.

Let's see what this exam will bring for me.