Lith pondered for a while over Lady Ernas’s words, trying to understand the reason behind Linjos’s decision.
“Then what’s the point of having the students move out of the academy? Isn’t the castle one of the safest places in the Kingdom?” He asked.
“It is, but not against the god of death.” Lady Ernas explained.
“All the ancient noble families, just like house Ernas, have several arrays defending them. We have contributed to building and nurturing the Kingdom, so you can think of our houses as smaller versions of the academies.
“The defense mechanisms are similar, but weaker. Balkor didn’t just hunt us, he used every single attack to collect data and improve his thralls. Every year, they became stronger and more resilient, able even to bypass the basic arrays like they don’t even exist.
“For your information, both the Royal Palace and the Mage Association headquarters have defenses on par with the academies, some say they are even better. Yet Balkor’s creatures managed to break in every single year.
“We knew they were coming, we were prepared, and armed to the teeth. None of that mattered. The number of casualties only increased over time. Probably Linjos is thinking of relying on the protection of the Lord of the forest.
“Monsters like a Scorpicore only grow stronger with the passing of time. Thank the gods those beasts’ talent for magic is second only to their indifference toward the outside world. As long as you don’t mess with their turf, they don’t mess with you.”
“What’s a Scorpicore?” Phloria asked.
“A genius magical beast that further evolved.” Orion explained.
“They are invaluable allies and merciless enemies. Be careful of never antagonize one unless it’s strictly necessary. While they are still beasts, they are much more intelligent than normal animals.”
Lith was amazed by the time and effort magical beasts had spent to keep humans underestimating them. Even before his evolution, Lith would have never considered Ryman stupid.
“Also, the god of death is not the only one that has learned from the past attacks.”
Jirni continued.
“Once the pattern was clear, the old noble families would scatter their members and go into hiding during the anniversary. It was a cowardly but effective move, many of them managed to survive the onslaught.
“Linjos’s plan is very smart. First, he is changing the battlefield, making Balkor’s preparations useless. Magical beasts’ arrays work differently from ours, so the creatures should get affected by them.
“Second, by moving the students to the forest, finding them will be much harder, exploiting the undead’s greatest weak point.
“To give them so much power, skill, and magic, Balkor had to sacrifice their lifespan. They never last much longer after sunrise, so by turning an assassination attempt into a hide and seek game, Linjos has already gained an advantage.
I only wish the other Headmasters did the same thing. Some of those old coots want to make a stand against Balkor and Linjos.” Jirni sighed.
“Call the other kids here, I’ll teach you whatever I can.” Orion said
When Friya, Quylla, and Yurial arrived, they were still shaken up by the news received from their respective parents.
“First thing, do not fight them unless you are cornered. Those monsters are incredibly fast and strong, even the Mage Knight spell Full Guard barely allows a veteran to fight them on equal footing. You are no veterans, just kids.
“Running away should always be your priority. Never underestimate greater undead. They have a high degree of intelligence, can plan ahead and coordinate their attacks. They never get tired, do not feel pain, and every hit sucks away a bit of your life force, using it to heal their wounds.
If you are forced to engage the enemy, Mage Knights should resort to guerrilla warfare, combining Blink and Full Guard.” Orion said looking at the two girls.
“As for you guys, you are only useful as long range attackers and life force batteries. Wardens are useless. Their spells are too slow and even if they manage to cast one, Balkor’s creations can shrug off most of their effects. That’s why I brought these.”
Orion waved his hand, and five weapons came out of his dimensional ring.
An estoc, a rapier, a short sword, and two curved blades resembling shotels. Each one had two magic gemstones embedded in the hilt.
“I prepared them based on the knowledge we have accumulated so far. They are specifically designed to deal greatly increased damage to undead. I’m only loaning them to you.” He looked straight at Lith and Yurial.
“These are not weapons for kids, I expect you to return them once the crisis is over.”
Lith gratefully took his shotel, deeply bowing to Orion.
– “I’ll make use of this time to thoroughly study this weapon and take note of every detail in my notebooks. It’s like already having a Forgemastering fifth year book at hand!” He inwardly smiled. –
“One more thing.” This time it was Lith talking.
“If an undead ever comes close to you, only use darkness magic. It’s their bane. They are not afraid of cuts, burns, or cold. The other elements can damage their bodies, but unless it’s enough to cripple them, they will barely notice it.
Never use light magic instead. It would only give them more power.”
“How do you know it?” Orion was flabbergasted. Necromancy being one of the rarest mystical arts, only those who served the Crown, the Mage Association, and veterans in fighting undead knew such things.
He was about to teach them about the elements, but Lith took the words out of his mouth.
“I have a lot of free time during the Necromancy classes. I do not spend it by idly waiting for the lesson to end, I raise undead and experiment on them instead. To truly master any discipline, I need to understand its flaws and limitations, becoming capable of exploiting them when it will be used against me.”
Lith’s reply made Phloria’s and Jirni’s heart flutter. To the former, he sounded like a cool hero always one step ahead of his enemies, to the latter he sounded like the perfect son in law and an excellent royal constable candidate.
Jirni and Orion stayed for dinner and with them a lot of other parents. The canteen had never been so full and noisy before. The hall was split into two sides. One with the noble families warning their heirs, giving them advice and equipment.
The other where commoners were grouped up, still unaware of the imminent threat.
Lith was sitting at the Ernas’s table while Yurial was at the table next to them with his parents and fiancé. She was as cute as a button blond girl, around fifteen years old, and definitely overdressed. She seemed to be attending a gala rather than an academy.
That and the scornful glances she threw at the other side of the canteen made her obnoxious at first sight to Lith.
The following day, the morning gong resounded early and after a quick breakfast, all the students were assembled in front of the academy’s gates. Dozens of Warp Steps were open, allowing the staff to go back to their homes.
Linjos’s plan included leaving the academy empty and locked from the inside so that even if Balkor’s undead managed to break in, the number of casualties would be zero.
Not having anyone to interrogate, finding their new location would hopefully require more time than the creatures’ lifespan allowed, so the White Griffon would win the battle without even moving a finger.
When only the students and Professors remained, Linjos closed the Warp Steps, opening new ones leading to their refuge. It looked like a medium sized mining town, composed by a hundred of small houses entirely made out of wood.
Doubting that Linjos would make such a blunder, underestimating Balkor’s fury to that extent, Lith activated Life Vision while Solus used her mana sense to scan their surroundings.
The whole area had a mana flow vigorous enough to put to shame even the academy’s one. The houses, the ground, even the flowers glowed like a Christmas tree. Aside from the shabby look, it seemed Linjos had spared no efforts in his creation.
Lith noticed that the youngest students were terrified by the presence of their seniors, staying as far as possible from them. Magical beasts could be seen everywhere in the town, some perched on the nearby trees, others leisurely walking along the streets.
Lith was searching for a Professor, to know which was his accommodation, when a strong hand grabbed his shoulder.
“Hey, you are Lith from Lutia, right?”
Lith pushed the hand away like it was an annoying fly before answering.
“Depends. Who’s asking?” He found himself staring at a sixteen year old boy, probably a fifth year student. He was very tall, around 1.85 meters (6’1″) high, with chestnut hair and eyes that gave him an oddly familiar look.
“You are that commoner sh*t that had my brother and cousins expelled! All because you and the f*cking stick up your a*s can’t take a practical joke.” Vinor Pontus was seething with anger.
His family was already on the verge of disaster, the expulsion and arrest of three of their most promising talents had been the final straw that broke the camel’s back.
Their reputation was ruined. It would take them decades to recover from all the recent blows and rebuild their good name from scratch. Lith looked around for a Professor, finding only M’Rook the Ry, that was staring at the scene with interest, wagging its tail in anticipation.
“Three men ambushing a girl at night can hardly be called a practical joke, unless one is a pervert and a degenerate. You Pontus guys seem to perfectly fit the bill. It’s no surprise that Balkor wants you morons dead. Idiots with more power than brain are the perfect recipe for disaster.”
Just Balkor’s name was enough to make most of those present shudder, but not Vinor Pontus. He had been looking for a pretext to attack Lith. Insulting him and his whole family in front of so many witnesses was more than enough.
Vinor raised his arms, pretending to be just shrugging before throwing a straight at Lith with all the strength he was capable of. Lith reacted accordingly, raising a single finger and stopping the punch a dozen centimeters from his face.
He had used first magic to generate an air cushion, giving Vinor the impression of hitting an invisible pillow. Before he could pull back the punch, the air cushion exploded.
It released many air blades, strong enough to pierce the uniform’s protection. They scratched his face, giving him the look of someone that had fought and lost against a stray cat. Lith snapped his fingers, conjuring an air wave that sent Vinor tumbling on the ground.
The students watching the scene burst into laughter, making Vinor’s blood boil. He got back on his feet with one fluid movement, releasing a spell from one of his rings. It conjured an icicle as long and thick as an arm, aimed at Lith’s heart.
Before Lith could react, the icicle turned to dust, while a strong grip was squeezing Vinor’s hand, to the point of almost breaking his fingers.
“What the heck do you think you are doing?” Professor Wil Ironhelm was in charge of the Battle Magic class and the Forgemaster specialization for the fifth year. He was muscular as a bull and almost as patient.
“He started it, Professor! He attacked me with magic for no reason.” Vinor whined while twisting and lowering his body, trying to relieve the pressure on his fingers.
“Is it true?” He asked staring at Lith with his ice blue eyes.
“No. I’m Lith from Lutia and he is a member of the Pontus family.” Lith replied like it explained everything.
“That Lith from Lutia?” Ironhelm threw Vinor back on the ground with a flick of the wrist, while rushing towards Lith with his extended hand.
“It’s an honor to meet you. I have heard a lot about you from Lyca Wanemyre. The gods know why she got the talent, the looks, and a promising student while all I got is this shirt and a bunch of morons!” He cursed shaking his fist against the heavens.
“Minus one hundred points for assaulting a junior and minus another hundred for getting your a*s kicked despite attacking first.”
“How can you believe him instead of me? This isn’t fair!” Vinor whined, two of his still charged rings had permanently shut down because of the points deficit.
“You need proof. Everyone here is my witness!” The younger students stepped away, while the others started to turn around and leave.
“Proof, uh? Well, let’s do this your way. Is he speaking the truth?” Ironhelm asked to M’Rook, who promptly shook its head.
“No. The dumb oaf attacked the young wolf for no reason. After his defeat, the oaf attacked with magic. You know the rest.”
“It speaks?” The whole crowd of students went into an uproar.
This chapter introduces The_Dyslexic_Daois cameo.
Hope you like it, man.
