The Path 041

With Will returning to his seat under the watchful gazes of several of his classmates, Aisha made her way to the front of the room with her brother, sporting a haughty, challenging look with crossed arms as she stated, "I am Aisha Kha'anaku, and this is my brother, Azir. Our mother is one of the Seven Stars of Deisceart serving her ladyship, the Sultana, Ainu Adhara. I have come to the Academy to demonstrate the superiority of Deisceart's warriors and to find a suitable mate."

Seeing Aisha's eyes flicker to him as she mentioned finding a mate, Will closed his own and, once again, exhaled from his nose. He suspected he had been marked the first time Aisha challenged him and lost, but now he would need to be especially careful. Not because he was worried that he would succumb to temptation but because he didn't want to crush Aisha's or anyone else's confidence.

'If only Astucia had stuck around...' thought Will, opening his eyes just as Aisha and Azir reached their desk and took their seats. After them, it was time for Madeen's introduction, so she carefully descended the stairs and made her way to the front of the class, offering a slight bow as she plainly stated, "I am Madeen Briar, Granddaughter of Alpherg Briar. Though I was born without sight, know that I am no less able than anyone here. Should our paths happen to cross on the battlefield, I ask that you give it your all, as I will be doing the same..."

His interest piqued, Endrew remarked, "Alpherg Briar? Isn't that the name of the previous Sword Saint?"

Before Madeen could respond, one of Endrew's cronies remarked, "Yeah. He's the guy who lost to Sword Saint Alicia a few years ago when she had just started her twentieth cycle. I never knew he had a Granddaughter."

Though her brows furrowed in response to the duo's remarks, Madeen's visor allowed her to appear stoic and unaffected as she noted, "I imagine the things you don't know could fill a thesaurus..."

"Yeah? Well, at least I can see," retorted Endrew's crony, a spiky, brown-haired youth named Jack Franz.

"That's quite enough," said Naitus, narrowing his cat-like eye disprovingly. "Ms. Madeen, please return to your seat."

"Understood," responded Madeen, turning toward Naitus and lowering her head before returning to her seat. Fortunately, Naitus followed her closely with his gaze, preventing Endrew's cronies from trying to trip her.

"Guess it's my turn..." groaned Ohta, rising from his seat and sauntering his way to the front of the room with a bored look. Once there, he took a moment to lazily scan the faces of everyone present before saying, "My name is Ohta. My lineage and background are none of your business. All you need to know is that if you fuck with me, I'll fuck you up. Also, I'm the bodyguard of our resident idealist. For those of you who are on the fence about joining him or receiving his aid, know that, while he's a dumbass, he generally has good intentions."

With nothing else to add, Ohta returned to his seat and rested his head on his right hand, ignoring Will's sidelong, amused look and raised brow. 

"Now that everyone has had the opportunity to introduce themselves, we will review the metrics by which you will be evaluated during your five-year stint at the Academy," said Naitus, followed by a lengthier version of the explanation he had supplied Will and Ohta. Afterward, everyone was given the rest of the morning to draft and submit their personalized class schedules. There were mandatory classes, such as Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic, which everyone was required to take, but things differed quite a bit from there. For example, students in the Martial Course typically had classes from 6:00 AM to 4:00 PM, freeing up their afternoons. Inversely, if you were enrolled in the Mage Course, your day was split into two blocks, the first between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM and the second from 8:00 PM to 12:00 AM, including an hour for lunch. The reason for this was that Aura was easier to cultivate in the morning, starting from sunrise and peaking around midday, while Mana was easier to cultivate at night, influenced by the phases of the Moon and stars.

Since he, like the majority of students in the Elite Class, was enrolled in the Martial Course, Will's schedule was Guided Training from 6:00-9:00 AM, Core Studies from 10:00 AM-12:00 PM, Archery from 1:00-1:50 PM, and Meditation from 2:00-4:00 PM. After that, he had Duelist Practice at the Nebula Nexus Arena, which could run as late as 8:00 PM, and, as his final extracurricular, he and Ohta had joined the Bean and Mortar Society, a group that specialized in the production and processing of high-quality ingredients for coffee...

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'Here we go...' thought Will, raising his gaze from his bento-like lunch as the pink-haired Alessandra approached his table, occupied by himself, Ohta, and Madeen, with her tray, remarking, "I see you have many seats open. Might I occupy one of them~?" with her usual confident smile.

"These are tables provided by the Academy," replied Will, wearing a smile of his own as he appended, "You are free to sit where you please."

"But you might struggle to eat if I sat on your lap," teased Syliva, setting down her fully loaded tray and sitting across from Will as he was already flanked by Ohta and Madeen. At a glance, she couldn't weigh much more than twenty-five kilograms, but the amount of food on her tray was easily two and a half.

"You should give up now..." said Madeen, drawing a curious gaze from Alessandra as she asserted, "Will is the future Lord of Eastwarden. He's not going to abandon his duties and responsibilities to become a breeding stallion for you and your family..."

"That's a matter for the future," replied Alessandra, maintaining her smile as she met Will's gaze and added, "We still have five years to 'evaluate' our prospects. That's nearly half our current lives, so who knows what could happen? I'm certainly eager to find out..."

'Hmmm...'

Though he was tempted to state that she would have ample opportunities to find out, given her looks, Will didn't think it would be appropriate to say such a thing to a ten-year-old. Alessandra looked closer to thirteen, likely due to her lineage and diet, but that wasn't much better.

"Unfortunately, I have little interest in such things," said Will, excusing, "I swore to my Master, Leshien, that I would dedicate myself to my training until I graduated or became a Master. With such little time to achieve my goal, I have even less for love and romance."

"That's fine~" hummed Alessandra, her eyes narrowing in an apparent attempt at appearing alluring as she argued, "I'm sure your interest will grow along with our bodies. After all, love and 'desire' are among the most compelling forces in all of Creation. For now, I just want to get to know and get along with everyone. Let's all be good friends, okay~?"

"Ugh...I'd rather not..." responded Ohta, his voice low and expression one of mild disgust as he gradually lost his appetite. He didn't care that Alessandra was strumpet-in-the-making, but the thought of having to be near as she flirted with Will or butted heads with the other girls made him feel sick to his stomach.

"Awww, come on, Ohta. I'm pretty capable and a hard worker, you know?" responded Alessandra, returning her gaze to Will as she asked, "Or does your offer not extend to those of noble birth? The stipend I receive from my family is barely enough to cover my supplies and equipment maintenance. For everything else, I'm expected to earn my keep and pay out of pocket. I could reaaaaally use a sponsor. Or maybe just a kind soul willing to take pity on a beautiful and vulnerable young girl~?"

"That depends on your goal," replied Will, maintaining a calm, untouched smile. "My sponsorship is more about providing what people require, not what they desire."

"I get it," said Alessandra, smiling playfully as she asked, "If I want your carrot, I must first subject myself to your stick, right? My only desire is to be the greatest warrior I can be, so if you're aiming to become a Master by the time you graduate, that's what I'll aim for. We'll train together, and if there's anything you think I need or want to give me, I'll leave it to your discretion."

"How shameless..." muttered Madeen, but her tone made it clear she was more envious than disproving. She also wanted to train with Will, but as she didn't want to become a hindrance, she had yet to broach the subject for fear of his refusal.

"I'm just taking advantage of the opportunities provided to me," asserted Alessandra. "My elder sister got into modeling and regretted it immensely. The culture is beyond exploitative, so much so that she ended up needing to get bailed out by our mother after being pressured into a contract with a Demon. I don't want to suffer a similar fate, so why wouldn't I approach when Will presented himself as a convenient alternative?"

"No offense," added Alessandra, directing a playful wink at Will.

"Do I look offended?" asked Will, the corners of his smile curling up ever so slightly. He was hoping to make a deal with Ishyll or Ahmad first, but as neither of the boys had approached his table, ostensibly not wanting to bother him on the very first day of school, it was beginning to look like Alessandra would be the beneficiary of his first 'official' sponsorship.

"You look dashing," replied Alessandra, and she meant it. Will wasn't the most handsome boy in their class, but he was by far the most 'rugged' looking. It was clear at a glance that warrior's blood flowed through his veins, and if push came to shove, Alessandra had no doubt he would fight to protect the things he cared about. She just had to make sure she was included in that group.

'I'm starting to see how she secured third in the entrance exam...' thought Will, finding Alessandra to be clever beyond her years. Her Mana and Aura were firmly within the bounds of a typical Fledgling, but she had the potential to become much more.

"I stated previously that the only condition for my support is that you're willing to work hard and not yield to external pressure," said Will. "Show me what you're capable of during tomorrow's lessons, and we'll discuss what you need to move beyond that."

"There's also this afternoon," Alessandra pointed out. "If you're free, I'm willing to let you put me through the wringer. But if my legs give out, you'll need to carry me to the infirmary."

"Two things," said Will, holding up his right index finger and thumb. "First, for all of our sakes, you should quit it with the innuendos. It's taking a lot of willpower not to roll my eyes. Second, the three of us need to stop by the Nebula Nexus Arena this afternoon to register for the Duelist League. You're welcome to join us, but there's no guarantee we'll have time to see what you're made of."

"Should I register as well?" asked Alessandra. "My combat style isn't the best suited for duels, but I was serious when I said I wanted to train with you. I may not be able to achieve results early on, but I'm certain I can do so with sufficient support."

"You need to decide things like that for yourself," said Will. "Entering the League just because we're joining it is the same as giving in to external-"

"Then I'll join~!" Alessandra interjected, clapping her hands together and smiling radiantly. The key to her 'plan' was getting Will used to having her around at all times. Then, once he started caring for her, he should take the initiative to talk her out of participating. Until then, she just needed to do her best, as the greater her effort, the more sympathy he would feel if or when she failed...

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