Chương 80: It's Time to DUEL!

The Grand Dining Hall. Local time: 1210 Emma The dining hall was, for all intents and purposes, the den of gossip. [Grand Dining Hall. Add: Alternative Designator - DEN OF GOSSIP] This was proven true by the incessant and rampant whispers, most of which were eventually hidden under privacy screens. But some of which were allowed to permeate through the air like a foul and sickening stench.

"What's he trying to prove?"

"Usurpers. Tepid-blood minor nobles thinking themselves bigshots in their ill-gotten castles. This is all they know — power through brute strength."

"Do you think this could be some sort of a roundabout statement for the House Choosing Ceremony?"

"Could be, or maybe the newrealmer is rubbing off on him. I heard those savages live in hunting-packs that deal exclusively in violence."

"Poor Lord Ping… the man's been dealt so many blows both to his ego and integrity. He truly is the victim in this upstart's rebellion."

"Let us hope the pious Ping prevails over his undeserving trials and tribulations. The man's a saint, a pious soul that must hold fast for those of us adherent to the eternal truths."

"Or perhaps we should wait and see how things develop. I, for one, wish to side neither with the narrow-minded bull nor the aggressive upstarts."

"Lord Qiv may prove to be the more suitable candidate for class sovereign… but only time will tell."

"Never in my wildest of imaginations would I have ever considered that the one to threaten our position, our place, our image, and our very survival in this sky of feral drakes to be you — Prince Thalmin." Ilunor managed out incredulously, breaking me out of my long-range acoustic reverie. Though unlike his prior confrontations with myself, his current voice lacked the same intense vitriol.

Instead, that was replaced with what I could only describe as a genuine sense of disappointment, as if confronting a friend who knew better than to commit to a dumb decision.

"That's an understandable statement to make, Ilunor." Thalmin replied uncharacteristically calmly, as if he hadn't even registered the Vunerian's assaults. Or at least, that seemed to be the case, until he shot the deluxe Kobold a predatory side-eye.

"Because creatures that lack honor, integrity, and personal dignity, often conflate sacrifices and risk-taking, for foolishness and idiocy. For within the heart of a Nexian, lies only compromise for the sake of convenience. Whether that be the convenience of survival, the convenience of continuity, or the convenience of the status quo, you will sacrifice everything to maintain it — even if it means allowing your honor to remain sullied and trodden when there exists a pool to cleanse away that shame."

Thacea's eyes grew wary with concern at that statement, one of the few instances I'd seen her genuinely worried about an Ilunor-Thalmin interaction. In fact, even I didn't dare to interrupt, especially after both parties had shot death-glares towards our elven waiter as he arrived with the lunch platter.

"Restraint, Prince Thalmin." Ilunor responded with a deep and calculating breath.

"This isn't the adjacent realms, this isn't Havenbrockrealm."

"Oh that much is very clear to me, Ilunor." Thalmin interjected with something just short of a growl.

"In Havenbrockrealm, we would sooner slash, stab, flay, or lash our enemies in fair and open combat, than reduce ourselves to cowardly attempts at assassination or retreat with our tails between our legs at the earliest signs of defeat." Ilunor took another breath, placing a small hand atop of his snout.

"I… empathize with your desires to follow through with what you believe is a morally sound decision." The Vunerian responded in a surprising display of maturity.

"However, and this goes for you as well, newrealmer—" He paused for a moment, taking the time to glare at me before shifting back to Thalmin.

"—we are not acting as independent actors anymore. For better or for worse… which, mind you, I still strongly believe this is very much for the worse in my case… we are now a peer group. And as such, the actions we take and their resultant fallout, should represent the interests of us all."

"These are bold claims." Thalmin began with a restrained snarl.

"Even bolder when considering your actions the week prior. If the measure of a man were dictated by his words alone, then I would be inclined to acquiesce. However, considering the measure of a man extends beyond the weightless chatter of an exhaled breath, I feel far more inclined to reserve such actions for those far more deserving of my respect." At which point, the lupinor turned towards both Thacea and I, following that up with a dip of his head.

"I apologize, Thacea, Emma, for conducting myself in the way I did." Thalmin took a moment to pause, side eyeing Ilunor as he acknowledged him once again.

"Whilst his character may sully his words, there is some truth to them. I have, admittedly, overstepped my bounds in committing to an action which undeniably affects the group. However, I genuinely hope you understand the reasons behind my otherwise brash decision. For I must stand on principle, lest I decide to stand at all."

"Given the crap Auris Ping pulled last night, I'm inclined to agree with you, Thalmin. More than that, I would've gladly taken your place and dueled him the good old fashioned way if I could. Besides, the look on his face when you chose him to be your dueling partner? It was just priceless." I offered with a snide grin.

"In all seriousness, I'm really not in a position to chastise anyone on the issue of just gunning it with your gut instinct anyways. Heck, the entirety of last week was one long drawn out escapade for my sake, which came at the expense of the group after all." I chuckled nervously.

"So… yeah, this is incredibly tame by those standards, Thalmin."

"Whilst… unexpected, and indeed a risk, I can understand the reasons behind it, Thalmin." Thacea nodded uneasily.

"However, I do not advise any of you to make a habit out of this." She commanded, making an effort to make individual eye contact with each and every one of us. Thacea's group-mom vibes were definitely showing at this point, which was probably for the better. Given the group seemed to be a magnet for this sort of thing, it was good to have an anchor of sorts. Sure thing, mom. Was what my gut instinct screamed at me to say. But instead, I decided to tone it down a notch.

"As you command, princess." I dipped my head in acknowledgement, garnering a look of abashed confusion from Thacea, and just plain-old confusion from the other two.

"In any case… I… believe you wished to discuss matters outside of classroom priorities, Emma?" Thacea quickly attempted to shift past that little bit of prodding, which I obliged with an affirmative nod.

"Yep. Well, it's more of a small change of plans that I think is worth discussing with you guys. So, you remember how I was planning on deploying an infil-drone on Mal'tory after the end of class right?" All three nodded, urging me to continue.

"Well, since Mal'tory was a no-show, and with Larial taking the reins instead… I think it's best if we stick with the plan anyways, just swapping out Mal'tory for Larial. I honestly don't see any other way we can continue the library's questline, or any other way to find evidence to support the Auris Ping-Mal'tory hypothesis we have going on. I know it's a huge gamble since there's no way of knowing if she'll even head to Mal'tory's office after class. But honestly? This is our best shot right now."

"I concur, Emma." Thalmin announced with a nod.

"Given her proximity to the professor's orbit, we may in fact gain a greater bearing on his actual state. Which in itself may prove useful." Thacea offered, more or less acknowledging my change of plans implicitly.

"We don't seem to have any other choice, earthrealmer. So a shot in the dark is better than stowing your wand." Ilunor acknowledged in a rare display of solidarity.

"It's settled then. I'll deploy the drone right after class is dismissed. Then, we wait and see what the drone comes up with." The Grand Concourse of Learning. The Hall of Light. Local Time: 14: 00 Hours. Emma Mana field perception was, as one would expect, dry, bland, and utterly nonsensical. Throughout most of it, the lesson was taught as if it was referencing something obvious, something mundane, something so typical that a lot of the topics were all but overlooked as 'self evident'.

A lot of what was taught reminded me of a mix between perception-theory, and situational awareness training. However, instead of relying on your eyes, ears, heck, even your nose or sense of touch… it was instead relying on something completely outside of the human experience.

"Mana field perception, is at its core, a subject that is inherent to the sapient condition. However, the extent to which it is appreciated, understood, and most important of all — applied — varies exponentially. To an untrained mind, and an untempered soul, the world feels tepid." The apprentice paused, gesturing to Sorecar, who answered his cue by pulling out a massive painting of a beautiful mountainscape that seemed to play through a closed animation loop; the effect was like a high-definition e-ink display.

"To a trained mind, but an untempered soul, the world feels… distant, unaccommodating, and frustrating to emotionally comprehend." Larial continued, prompting Sorecar to pull out yet another painting. This one, the exact same as the first, with literally no differences between them.

"To an untrained mind, but a tempered soul, the world feels… unpredictable, erratic, and frustrating to logically put together." Once again, another painting was brought out. This one, just like the previous two, looked completely identical.

"But to a sufficiently trained mind, and a tempered soul, with enough time invested into both theory and practice… the world becomes open, expansive, and above all else… it becomes rich with sights and sensations that would be impossible to feel with the physical form alone." Larial concluded, just as Sorecar pulled out what looked to be yet another identical painting. The EVI's analysis concluded that there were absolutely no differences between the four paintings.

Moreover, the mana radiation signatures for each were likewise exactly the same. It was only after slipping a note towards Thacea with a question written in High Nexian did I finally get my answer.

'What's the deal with these paintings? They're all identical.' Thacea quickly slipped me a blank piece of parchment in response. Though it didn't remain blank for long, as words and sentences started appearing on it; mirroring Thacea's furious 'note taking' in her own notebook.

'They're artisanal pieces imbued with the purposeful manipulation of the subject's aura, mana-field, and the surrounding mana. They were brought out in order to demonstrate the different degrees of mana-field perception by exaggerating the most common shortcomings found in those training in the magical arts. The first piece was, similar to your memory shards, lacking in any mana-fields or auras.

The second and third pieces demonstrated a failure to imbue one or the other of the two fundamental tenets of mana-field perception. The fourth piece is representative of a perfect balance of both tenets, and is an exquisite work of art that completely outshines the first. It radiates beauty, whilst the first is flat and lifeless.' It took a moment for me to really register all that. Longer still, as I eventually became fixated on that last line in particular. Flat and lifeless…

is that what the world is like from my eyes? It was around that time that a thought hit me, and a realization truly sank deep into my very being. The world that Thacea, Thalmin, Ilunor, and the rest of the magical beings across the interdimensional plane experienced… was one that I was utterly blind to. It'd been referenced before. In fact, it'd been drilled into me time and time again by the likes of Ilunor that I was lacking in something fundamental.

But up until now, everything was either circumstantial, or outside of my general focus. So much so that I never was able to digest the implications of it. However, as much as a pit formed in my stomach, growing tighter by the second as Larial went on and on about the ebbs and flows of mana, so too did a very human resolve suddenly dawn upon me.

"I'm going to see what you guys see one day." I wrote down on Thacea's magic paper.

"How?" Was the message I received back. To which I only had one thing to reply with.

"The same way we overcame all of our other shortcomings." I wrote cryptically, garnering a look of confusion from Thacea as she read the note, to which I only had to point at my armor for added effect. By once again defying nature. I thought to myself. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. If we weren't born with the ability to 'see' this beauty, we'd find a way to break it down into its fundamental components, dissect it, analyze it, and then reinterpret it for ourselves.

The class continued on after that exchange of notes, as we touched upon what Ilunor had so eloquently described on that second day of the grace period: One: that manastreams were everywhere around us. Two: that manafields generated by living organisms were akin to rocks that not only parted those streams, but at times, interacted with them.

Three: that using manafields, one could make out the presence of other manafields through the manastreams, and thus detect and extract information as is pertinent to the context of the situation. And while Ilunor would've blabbered on and on about the ability to see and sense the emotional state of others through the manastreams, what Larial seemed to be focused on instead were the practical applications of this natural ability.

Namely, she focused on exactly how to detect a spell being cast, what sort of spell was being cast, and most importantly — she focused on how it all tied back to Light Magic.

"In summary, only when one is proficient in the detection and analysis of manafields, can one finally start to dissect the intricacies of a manafield during spellcasting. And only once one masters the detection of spellcasting, can one even hope to begin the process of dispelling. The first step of which is to know exactly what a manafield looks like during spellcasting. Is there anyone in the class that can tell me what that looks like?"

The professor asked, looking around, before picking one of the many raised hands. This one belonged to Qiv.

"Yes, Lord Qiv?"

"Influxes and effluxes, Professor. One will see the influx of ambient mana through the manastreams into a manafield, and the potential efflux of mana through a manafield back into the manastreams in the form of a controlled mana-construct."

"Very good, Lord Qiv! Five points! Now, hold your thoughts on that latter part, because that ties into my next question!" Larial responded with a giddiness and chipperness that seemed to be lacking in every other class up to this point.

"The fundamental means of detecting a spell being cast is by looking out for a point of influx, and a point of efflux. Influx being the more difficult of the pair to detect, for what you have to look out for is mana is being funneled into a manafield. A weak spell being cast, will incur less disruptions in a manastream. However, the opposite is also true.

As the more powerful the spell, and the more powerful the mage, the greater the rate of influx, as the amount of mana needed to fulfill the requirements of the spell increases. Paradoxically this would mean it will be easier to detect a powerful spell before it is cast, as the reduction in the concentration of ambient mana will be more palpable as a result. Efflux however, is rather straightforward, and will be the primary vehicle through which Mana-field Perception will be taught.

As it is through efflux that we can ascertain the most useful details of a spell, or as Lord Qiv so eloquently puts it — the mana-construct. Does anyone know what this next point may be referring to?" Surprisingly, and out of a clear bias towards Qiv, Larial once more called him up. I couldn't blame her though. The man, despite being a certified bully and teacher's pet, was one of the few students who didn't openly doubt the apprentice's capabilities during the start of class.

"Yes, Lord Qiv?"

"The mana-construct refers to the skeleton of a spell; the arrangement and unique form it takes before manifesting into a proper spell." The gorn-like lizard responded confidently.

"Outstanding, Lord Qiv! Five points! Now, whilst a mana-construct is indeed a vital step in the process of spell casting, its manifestation is rarely the point in time in which a spell can be intercepted — save for those who have mastered the art of Light Magic. As a result, a spell can be halted before it even has the chance to form. To most however, the mana-construct acts as a cue to prepare. It is a signal that demonstrates the irrefutable start to a spell.

And as a result, it provides major structural clues as to the form of Light Magic that must be employed to combat it. Which leads me to my next point." The apprentice once more paused, as she manifested literally nothing visible to the tune of more than a dozen mana radiation warnings.

"When broken down to their basic components, every spell is a complicated meshwork of mana, channeled and contained within a dynamic pattern that continuously evolves throughout the duration of a spell. Because unlike artificing, the casting of magic evolves with unpredictability and thrives on organic change. No offense to you, of course, Professor Pliska." The apprentice turned towards Sorecar worryingly, who simply responded with a bellowing laugh.

"None taken, my aspiring understudy!" With that, Larial continued, her hands moving through an empty section of air that everyone seemed to be focused on; as if manipulating a hologram that I wasn't privy to.

"However, in spite of this unpredictability, the goal of Light Magic and Mana-field Perception in particular is to untangle the aforementioned meshwork of mana. For every spell is a puzzle and a series of knots to untangle. Your goal in this class, if I am to be reductive, is to untangle the complex mesh that comprises a spell, unraveling it to a point in which it can no longer maintain its form — collapsing it and thus, rendering it inert."

The apprentice emphasized this by miming what looked to be tiny little motions with her fingers, before pulling both hands backwards, garnering a series of affirmative nods from the crowd.

"And with that, we now reach the conclusion of today's class."

"Or more accurately, the leadup to the climax of this class." Sorecar quickly chimed in with a wave of his hand, prompting the room to change once more. Section upon section of the front of the classroom's floor was dragged down into the impossible void, only to be replaced just as quickly by an elevated stage resembling that of a fencing strip.

"Will the aspiring duelists please rise and approach the stage?" Sorecar turned back towards the crowd, prompting both Thalmin and Auris to stand, the pair giving each other some strong side-eyes before both marching up and towards the front of the class. From there, with not a single word exchanged, they took their places, Thalmin at the far right, and Auris on the far left.

"The purpose of this demonstration is simple." The apprentice began, as Sorecar began moving towards both Thalmin and Auris, insisting them to pay attention.

"It is to show that even in spite of the complicated principles behind Light Magic, that there exists far simpler, far more basic principles that can achieve similar means. A precursor to more contemporary methods; spell-breaking. A maneuver that involves overpowering the structure and flow of a spell using a concentrated burst of pure mana irregardless of the type.

However, unlike traditional dispelling seen in contemporary Light Magic, spell-breaking oftentimes requires a user to concentrate a disproportionately larger amount of mana in order to properly break a spell. It is thus highly inefficient, and as a result becomes rapidly impractical upon encountering spellcrafts of sufficiently advanced tiers. This demonstration will be aptly limited to a simple barrier-spell for the likes of the reciprocator, so as to not overburden the initiator with this simple task."

The apprentice quickly passed on the torch to Sorecar, who quickly took center stage with a few steps.

"Now, as this is not a traditional duel for dominance, nor is it a sporting duel for the purposes of victory, I will explain the narrow context by which this duel will be held." Sorecar continued, his hands clapping together, generating an empty and resonant CLANG in the process.

"To our right, is our initiator, who will be demonstrating the principles of spell-breaking in an active capacity. To our left, is our reciprocator, who will be taking on the role of demonstrative spellcaster, casting only barrier spells for the duration of this short demonstration. Remember, there is to be no additional spells cast or demonstrated outside of these parameters. Is that clear?" Sorecar paused, making sure to meet both of the opponents' gazes with his empty helm.

"Yes, professor!" Both parties shouted simultaneously, barely containing their frustrations beneath a veneer of calm and restrained fury.

"Then we shall begin on the count of three." The apprentice continued, taking the reins over from Sorecar, as she stood just a few steps away from the stage's combat-lines.

"One." She began, as Auris began moving into position, practically grinding his booted hooves into the stage, and taking on the posture of some unknown martial art.

"Two." Thalmin reciprocated by taking a more aggressive posture, as if positioning himself to leap towards the bull in a ravenous rage at the drop of a hat.

"Three." ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 225% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 350% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS Nothing seemed to happen. At least, not to my eyes. Within a matter of seconds, all I witnessed were two mana radiation warnings timelogged as only a few seconds apart from one another. No physical effects were evident to me. Nothing, except for the flinching of a few muscles, and the waving of arms.

As if they were conjuring make-believe magic spells, without the added special effects that came with it. Ironically, this was how I was expecting most Nexians to react to the reveal of laser weaponry. Silent, invisible, but otherwise omnipresent and deadly threats. Though despite the lack of any physical effects I could discern, there were certainly more than enough context-clues to go by when it came to exactly what had just occurred. Auris' features had more or less swelled up into a fury.

His nostrils flared just short of snorting out fumes, and his teeth were bared clearly holding back a few choice words for the now-grinning Thalmin.

"Again." He demanded, and barely a second after a nod of approval from the apprentice, came two more mana radiation warnings. ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 300% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 425% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS Once again, no noticeable physical effects had manifested.

Though judging from the bewildered and shocked expressions of the crowd, something was definitely happening within the invisible world that was accessible through mana-vision.

"Again!" Ping announced, barely garnering approval from the apprentice this time, as things took a sudden enough turn that even I could notice them. ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 400% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS It started with that 'barrier' again. ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 500% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS Followed by Thalmin overpowering it. However, instead of letting things go, Ping instead pushed towards a frenzied series of attacks.

ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 375% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS As one— ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 400% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS —after another— ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 400% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS —after another— ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 400% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS —after another 'barrier' spell seemed to actually be causing Thalmin some pushback now.

His movements now resembled someone attempting to dodge invisible projectiles, yet Auris made no moves to actually fling anything at him, only maintaining his prior stance. Though of course, this came with the same expected response. As Thalmin retaliated with his own attacks. Or rather, one, very large attack that truly outclassed what Auris could currently muster in his furious state.

ALERT: LOCALIZED SURGE OF MANA-RADIATION DETECTED, 550% ABOVE BACKGROUND RADIATION LEVELS This spell that mildly shook the room seemed to be enough to 'break' the sudden incursion, prompting both Ping and Thalmin to turn towards the apprentice — the former blasting steam from his snout and the latter slashing his tail in the air — for yet another round of fighting, only to have Sorecar step in, placing a hand on both of the duelists who were barely a foot away from each other now.

"Wonderful! Excellent! Put your hands together for our introductory duelists, everyone!" The professor quickly coerced both of the parties to face the class, actively grabbing them by the small of their back, and thus effectively entrapping them with his iron grip — forcing them to face the class who cheered on with a series of applauses. Not a second later, the pair of them bowed, though it was unclear how much of this was Sorecar's doing, and how much of this was done out of their own will.

"In any case, seeing as both of our aspiring duelists have gone above and beyond in their demonstration, and seeing that this is merely a demonstration, and not a challenge —" Sorecar emphasized that last point, forcing the pair to sweat in his over-shoulder grip.

"—I believe it would be prudent to award them each a fair share of this duel's fifty points."

"Given the enthusiasm shown, I am inclined to agree, Professor Pliska." The apprentice quickly nodded, prompting the armorer to quickly push both of them off-stage, and back towards the staggered raised steps of the lecture hall.

"Twenty-five points for both of our duelist's groups." Larial reiterated, and with a final round of reluctant applause, barely overpowering the incoming band marking the end of class… the apprentice made her final statement.

"This concludes this week's first lesson. Considering the house choosing ceremony coming up this weekend, along with the Elaseer school supply shopping trip to town… I am inclined to grant this class some clemency. No homework will be required. So please, enjoy the rest of the day, and prepare yourselves for what could be the most decisive day in your academic career here in Transgracia. Class dismissed!"

No sooner were those words uttered did my eyes quickly turn towards my HUD, and a flash of commands came through without a second of delay. INFIL-DRONE01a ACTIVE, STATUS: NOMINAL. OBJECTIVE: PRIORITY TRACKING AND RECONNAISSANCE OF SUBJECT A109. MISSION PARAMETERS: TRACK, OBSERVE, MAP, AND RETURN-TO-BASE WITHIN PREDETERMINED PARAMETERS. CONFIRM COMMAND Y/N?

"Command confirmed." I replied vocally, prompting the newly-printed replacement drone to pop out of its docking bay, before charting a course parallel to that of the apprentice. The drone's signal was lost just as the apprentice left the room through that dark threshold behind the lectern, at which point, the entire class began shuffling out to the tune of the encroaching band. Only time would tell what would come of this mission. But hopefully, we'll get our answers sometime later this evening.

However, instead of blending right into the crowd, or more specifically… being ignored by said crowd, quite a few eyes managed to find their way onto our group. Moreover, the chatter seemed way too interesting to ignore.

"You were right, Cynthis… perhaps there is something about this mercenary prince after all." A female voice spoke from an all-girl group, eliciting a series of giggles, which were promptly silenced by a privacy screen the moment Thalmin craned his head around.

"Lord Auris Ping has yet again demonstrated his integrity. Let us ensure his pure-hearted determination is lauded this evening, lads! The fearsome strikers shall band together with the most pious of intent!" A tortle-like-turtle jeered, moving strategically to position themselves around Auris Ping's group, as the expected schmoozing began in full.

"Newrealmer." Ilunor began, generating a privacy screen in the process.

"Yes, Ilunor?"

"How long do you expect your insect to take in its dastardly escapades?"

"Last time it took a good few hours. So, given this probably isn't a one-and-done deal, I'd say… maybe three to four hours at the least this time around?" I offered.

"Well then. Splendid. I shall be off, and return within that time frame."

"Wait wait wait wait. Hold up. Where do you think you're going?" I inquired firmly.

"I have my own life to lead, newrealmer. Now please, I shall return to our group's escapades in due time."" Where, Ilunor?" I reiterated. To which the Vunerian could only sigh in response.

"The student lounge. Top floor today, if I am to be interrogated for every ounce of information…"

"Then let's go. Together." I proclaimed, garnering a few looks of surprise from both Thacea and Thalmin.

"Perhaps it's time we start getting a feel for the lay of the land. We've been cooped up in our own little world for far too long, maybe, just maybe, we should all expand our horizons just by a little bit."