“Cedar, what have you done?” Harnna stormed into the gymnasium, interrupting her son’s training.
“Fifty-seven squats with seventy-five kilos of weight,” the youth said, then groaned a ‘fifty-eight’ as he stood up.
“Don’t joke around. Why did you send all the carriages away at the break of dawn?”
“Oh, that? They were dirty. As a dutiful sixth son that I am, I sent them for a thorough cleaning. The drivers should be returning them about now.” With a grunt, Cedar threw the rock sculpted into a ball onto the ground and gave his mother a charming grin of pearly white teeth.
“You did it to spite your little sister!”
“What? Me? To my beautiful baby sister, who called me a useless trash destined to drive her children’s carriage? Why, I’d never!” Sarcasm oozed from Cedar’s voice, his face contorted in a grimace of rage and hatred.
“She was a child when she said that—”
“She said it half a year ago! Laughing, after Father brought her back from the visit to the Suns,” Cedar shouted, sprinkling his mother with foamy spit.
“And that lack of magnanimity is why your father won’t entrust you with an important business,” Harnna grumbled, pretending her son had not screamed at her.
“Since when have the Searings been magnanimous? Since when do we allow anyone to slight us without retaliating? Jasmine’s lost her memories, and she still had a serving girl beaten half-dead this morning. Vengefulness is in our bones.”
Harnna frowned. “How do you know she’s lost her memories? We haven’t told you yet.”
Cedar shrugged with a smirk. “I have a little bird or ten bringing me news.”
Harnna eyed him for a long moment, however, Cedar returned the gaze without flinching.
Finally, she sighed. “I better not hear you’re doing something stupid. Searings have been stripped of their surname and thrown into the weald because of stupid decisions.”
“Don’t worry, Mother,” Cedar smiled and wiped his sweat. “I’m smart.”
“That’s what they all thought,” Harnna said, shaking her head. “And yet, you sent your sister across town on foot. She’s become a laughingstock. You should’ve thought of the bigger picture.”
“Why? She’s humiliated me in public a hundred times,” Cedar said, and his mother kept shaking her head.
“And I admonished her in private a thousand times. She is not your rival. Unlike rivalry between brothers, sisters can’t fight you for inheritance. They should be the glue which binds you brothers, a help when—”
“I don’t want her help. Do you recall what she did to Famma?”
“She was only fifteen—”
“And I’m only twenty! I can decide to send all the carriages to be cleaned—”
“Alright, alright,” Harnna turned around and left, refusing to face her son and displaying for the thousandth time why she had failed to raise her children properly.
How did he know she would need a carriage in the morning? Knowing Jasmine had lost her memory means he has an informant with the upper echelon of the city guard. However, knowing that the council ordered her to enroll into the hunter school means he has a connection within the high council, and that can’t be good.
Someone bought Cedar. Worse, they might be manipulating him for free. How do I handle this without Ash disowning and exiling him for espionage?
While Harnna’s worries kept multiplying, Spring had her own concerns. She held an empty crystal coin.
“Just send your mana into it. You can absorb it again as soon as we can clearly see the color,” the instructor urged Spring.
I guess it’s do or die time. Jasmine Searing is eighteen years old, meaning she has probably not reached the peak of level one. I just wish I had reached the late stage, to cover all eventualities.
Without an outward hint of nervousness, Spring sent a strand of mana into the transparent disk, and a vermillion strand formed after several seconds.
“You may retract your mana. Level one, middle stage,” Wartorn said, and several students wowed. “That means accomplishing the school assignment will be very difficult for you.”
Spring felt like snorting at that statement. She could reach the second level in no-time if the Searings supported her. They didn’t even spare a carriage for me, there’s no way they would lend me grafts or crystals.
“That’s it for today. We had to repeat some lessons for Miss Searing’s sake, but brushing up on the basics is good for you. Tomorrow, after the warmups, I’ll cover basic first aid. Advanced healing techniques are beyond our school’s scope, but you will know how to stop bleeding, spot poisoning, and splint broken limbs before your two years here are up.”
Wartorn moved to leave the class, but froze before taking her third step. “I almost forgot to distribute your allowance. Everyone will get their coins today, rather than on Friday, so line up.”
The three biggest youths pushed and shoved, rushing to be the first in line. Wartorn tolerated their forceful act, giving a maroon to each of them. Spring was in no hurry. She waited for everyone to take their coins, but Mira stood behind her, taking yet another chance to suck up.
“They are going to rob everyone in the class of their maroons. Some will resist and get a beating, others will meekly hand over their coins.”
“And the school allows this?” Spring asked, letting some shock seep into her voice.
“They encourage it. The strong should get the resources, the weak shouldn’t waste them. Everyone knows it. We all tried drawing mana from crystal dregs, those who can’t even draw it are just putting on a show, they are the ones who don’t fight back. They know they will become protected, and they don’t dare insult their betters.”
As Mira spoke, Wartorn gave the students their coins, and soon it was Spring’s turn. She pocketed three coins and walked out into the courtyard, which had become a scene of an all-out brawl.
She stood in the doorway, observing the students fight in groups. There were eight groups ranging from three to seven. A handful of glowing crystal coins lay on the ground, their owners had surrendered and fled, while the others fought over benefits.
The three burly youths held the upper hand, fighting against three groups, but there were two other peripheral scuffles, in which groups of five fought. Despite pretending she did not notice them, Spring nodded for the benefit of the instructors observing the scuffle from a distance.
There are unwritten rules. They aren’t hitting each other in the head, and no strikes in the sensitive areas.
A young woman screamed as the red-haired, freckled leader of the burly trio kicked her in the thigh. She hobbled back and threw her coin onto the ground.
They know when to retreat. This may seem like savagery, but the instructors have already taught them some valuable lessons through these brawls.
Hmmm? Spring raised a brow as the beaten woman retreated not to leave the yard, but behind her allies.
“Tjinna, I can give your coin back, if you come home with me,” the red-haired youth grinned, but Tjinna spat.
“I haven’t given up yet, Rowny,” she said with a scowl, but still retreated behind her group.
“You can’t just stand here,” Mira said behind Spring’s back. “You have to get out there and fight, or throw your coins on the ground and surrender.”
The girl waited, but Spring did not move yet, so she kept talking while walking around her. “The first time they gave us coins it started as a free-for-all, but people naturally formed groups and ganged up on the strongest. Last week, they were ready and they had already formed alliances, more or less what you see before you now.”
Mira looked back at Spring, intending to talk more, but she had taken the three steps down, and was too far to speak without shouting. The short, chubby girl came up to the edge and, with a shrug, tossed her coin onto the ground.
She turned around to face Spring and waved before giving the mess a wide berth and heading for the gate.
So, she has no talent, and she hopes I will pick her up as a servant? She’s got a keen mind, and a henchman like her would be useful. Then again, she’s got a keen mind; having someone like her around could prove dangerous.
“Miss Searing, would you kindly move away from the door?” Wartorn said behind Spring’s back.
Spring moved towards the fight with an unwilling gaze.
Their movements are sharp. They have some experience in fighting against each other or at least throwing punches against dummies. However, they are far from battle-trained florists or hunters. They block and don’t dodge; they don’t aim their blows that much, since they can’t hit any vitals.
Spring approached the edge of the scuffle, where the discarded coins lay.
“I will take these,” she proclaimed and bent to pick up the coins. “I will also take all your coins. Should anyone try to stop me, they will get a beating.”
“Cedar, what have you done?” Harnna stormed into the gymnasium, interrupting her son’s training.
“Fifty-seven squats with seventy-five kilos of weight,” the youth said, then groaned a ‘fifty-eight’ as he stood up.
“Don’t joke around. Why did you send all the carriages away at the break of dawn?”
“Oh, that? They were dirty. As a dutiful sixth son that I am, I sent them for a thorough cleaning. The drivers should be returning them about now.” With a grunt, Cedar threw the rock sculpted into a ball onto the ground and gave his mother a charming grin of pearly white teeth.
“You did it to spite your little sister!”
“What? Me? To my beautiful baby sister, who called me a useless trash destined to drive her children’s carriage? Why, I’d never!” Sarcasm oozed from Cedar’s voice, his face contorted in a grimace of rage and hatred.
“She was a child when she said that—”
“She said it half a year ago! Laughing, after Father brought her back from the visit to the Suns,” Cedar shouted, sprinkling his mother with foamy spit.
“And that lack of magnanimity is why your father won’t entrust you with an important business,” Harnna grumbled, pretending her son had not screamed at her.
“Since when have the Searings been magnanimous? Since when do we allow anyone to slight us without retaliating? Jasmine’s lost her memories, and she still had a serving girl beaten half-dead this morning. Vengefulness is in our bones.”
Harnna frowned. “How do you know she’s lost her memories? We haven’t told you yet.”
Cedar shrugged with a smirk. “I have a little bird or ten bringing me news.”
Harnna eyed him for a long moment, however, Cedar returned the gaze without flinching.
Finally, she sighed. “I better not hear you’re doing something stupid. Searings have been stripped of their surname and thrown into the weald because of stupid decisions.”
“Don’t worry, Mother,” Cedar smiled and wiped his sweat. “I’m smart.”
“That’s what they all thought,” Harnna said, shaking her head. “And yet, you sent your sister across town on foot. She’s become a laughingstock. You should’ve thought of the bigger picture.”
“Why? She’s humiliated me in public a hundred times,” Cedar said, and his mother kept shaking her head.
“And I admonished her in private a thousand times. She is not your rival. Unlike rivalry between brothers, sisters can’t fight you for inheritance. They should be the glue which binds you brothers, a help when—”
“I don’t want her help. Do you recall what she did to Famma?”
“She was only fifteen—”
“And I’m only twenty! I can decide to send all the carriages to be cleaned—”
“Alright, alright,” Harnna turned around and left, refusing to face her son and displaying for the thousandth time why she had failed to raise her children properly.
How did he know she would need a carriage in the morning? Knowing Jasmine had lost her memory means he has an informant with the upper echelon of the city guard. However, knowing that the council ordered her to enroll into the hunter school means he has a connection within the high council, and that can’t be good.
Someone bought Cedar. Worse, they might be manipulating him for free. How do I handle this without Ash disowning and exiling him for espionage?
While Harnna’s worries kept multiplying, Spring had her own concerns. She held an empty crystal coin.
“Just send your mana into it. You can absorb it again as soon as we can clearly see the color,” the instructor urged Spring.
I guess it’s do or die time. Jasmine Searing is eighteen years old, meaning she has probably not reached the peak of level one. I just wish I had reached the late stage, to cover all eventualities.
Without an outward hint of nervousness, Spring sent a strand of mana into the transparent disk, and a vermillion strand formed after several seconds.
“You may retract your mana. Level one, middle stage,” Wartorn said, and several students wowed. “That means accomplishing the school assignment will be very difficult for you.”
Spring felt like snorting at that statement. She could reach the second level in no-time if the Searings supported her. They didn’t even spare a carriage for me, there’s no way they would lend me grafts or crystals.
“That’s it for today. We had to repeat some lessons for Miss Searing’s sake, but brushing up on the basics is good for you. Tomorrow, after the warmups, I’ll cover basic first aid. Advanced healing techniques are beyond our school’s scope, but you will know how to stop bleeding, spot poisoning, and splint broken limbs before your two years here are up.”
Wartorn moved to leave the class, but froze before taking her third step. “I almost forgot to distribute your allowance. Everyone will get their coins today, rather than on Friday, so line up.”
The three biggest youths pushed and shoved, rushing to be the first in line. Wartorn tolerated their forceful act, giving a maroon to each of them. Spring was in no hurry. She waited for everyone to take their coins, but Mira stood behind her, taking yet another chance to suck up.
“They are going to rob everyone in the class of their maroons. Some will resist and get a beating, others will meekly hand over their coins.”
“And the school allows this?” Spring asked, letting some shock seep into her voice.
“They encourage it. The strong should get the resources, the weak shouldn’t waste them. Everyone knows it. We all tried drawing mana from crystal dregs, those who can’t even draw it are just putting on a show, they are the ones who don’t fight back. They know they will become protected, and they don’t dare insult their betters.”
As Mira spoke, Wartorn gave the students their coins, and soon it was Spring’s turn. She pocketed three coins and walked out into the courtyard, which had become a scene of an all-out brawl.
She stood in the doorway, observing the students fight in groups. There were eight groups ranging from three to seven. A handful of glowing crystal coins lay on the ground, their owners had surrendered and fled, while the others fought over benefits.
The three burly youths held the upper hand, fighting against three groups, but there were two other peripheral scuffles, in which groups of five fought. Despite pretending she did not notice them, Spring nodded for the benefit of the instructors observing the scuffle from a distance.
There are unwritten rules. They aren’t hitting each other in the head, and no strikes in the sensitive areas.
A young woman screamed as the red-haired, freckled leader of the burly trio kicked her in the thigh. She hobbled back and threw her coin onto the ground.
They know when to retreat. This may seem like savagery, but the instructors have already taught them some valuable lessons through these brawls.
Hmmm? Spring raised a brow as the beaten woman retreated not to leave the yard, but behind her allies.
“Tjinna, I can give your coin back, if you come home with me,” the red-haired youth grinned, but Tjinna spat.
“I haven’t given up yet, Rowny,” she said with a scowl, but still retreated behind her group.
“You can’t just stand here,” Mira said behind Spring’s back. “You have to get out there and fight, or throw your coins on the ground and surrender.”
The girl waited, but Spring did not move yet, so she kept talking while walking around her. “The first time they gave us coins it started as a free-for-all, but people naturally formed groups and ganged up on the strongest. Last week, they were ready and they had already formed alliances, more or less what you see before you now.”
Mira looked back at Spring, intending to talk more, but she had taken the three steps down, and was too far to speak without shouting. The short, chubby girl came up to the edge and, with a shrug, tossed her coin onto the ground.
She turned around to face Spring and waved before giving the mess a wide berth and heading for the gate.
So, she has no talent, and she hopes I will pick her up as a servant? She’s got a keen mind, and a henchman like her would be useful. Then again, she’s got a keen mind; having someone like her around could prove dangerous.
“Miss Searing, would you kindly move away from the door?” Wartorn said behind Spring’s back.
Spring moved towards the fight with an unwilling gaze.
Their movements are sharp. They have some experience in fighting against each other or at least throwing punches against dummies. However, they are far from battle-trained florists or hunters. They block and don’t dodge; they don’t aim their blows that much, since they can’t hit any vitals.
Spring approached the edge of the scuffle, where the discarded coins lay.
“I will take these,” she proclaimed and bent to pick up the coins. “I will also take all your coins. Should anyone try to stop me, they will get a beating.”
