Tobey sat quietly in the rocking chair, fighting back against his urges to move back and forth with the principal in front of him. Sinix had not taken eyes off him since he’d dragged him to his office after arriving at the scene with him and Gyokai. Sinix however, had left him outside his office for hours before attending to him.
Gyokai, of course, could not be here at the moment. He’d been rushed to the healers after the smash-in Tobey had given him on his face.
Tobey had taken a glance around the Principal's office. Golden awards, medals, seals. A large portrait of himself seemingly carved into the silver-coloured wall. Almost everything else in the room seemed made of wood. His Eagle, Thaus, sat atop the shelf behind him glaring at them from above.
“You got the second-lowest points in the test. And not only did you use magic without my permission, but you beat up a promising student among the best scorers,” Sinix frowned. “I have every right to dismiss you from the academy this instant.”
Tobey sat in silence clenching his fist. For all his bravado and thoughts of punishing Sinix, he found it hard to gulp at the moment.
“He started it.” The only words Tobey could blurt out.
“And when he recovers, he will have his own punishment.”
Sinix leaned on the table with his elbows, eyes locked with Tobey. “You seriously angered me mongrel,” he said. Tobey watched him intently, waiting to be scolded. Compared to the past ten years, he could definitely handle the next ten minutes.
Sinix however, broke into a smile and relaxed back on his chair. “However, you intrigued me at the same time. I haven’t seen Morph magic like that in years.”
“What?”
“I had Thaus and my minions stationed above in the hall earlier. I see through Thaus’ eyes you see. You used very little mana and yet you outright pummeled an Elemental who was using concentrated mana,” Sinix smiled. “For that, I’ve decided to give you a lifeline. Rejoice, mongrel.”
Tobey heaved a sigh of relief. Regardless of how the situation was, he was at least able to breathe again. He had to stay.
“What do I have to do?” asked Tobey.
“Ah, eagerness. Mind yourself mongrel, it won’t be as easy as you think,” Sinix replied swiping his index finger midair.
“You can’t call it a lifeline if there is no way it’ll work out.”
Sinix smirked. “True. Have you heard of Cadres, mongrel?”
Tobey nodded. “Yeah. They’re mage units.”
Tobey had been taught that by his father. Cadres were units consisting of mages. Like a battle squad for the army. Cadres would usually consist of mages of different tribes, each possessing an ability different from the other regardless of the magic type. He remembered his father bringing home members of his Cadre to the house. Although he could hardly remember what they looked like.
“In this academy, we made a policy of producing two-man Cadres after the annihilation of the Vassar tribe ten years ago.”
“Two-man Cadres?”
“Well, yes. But there appeared the statement from the Lords that students in two-man Cadres were too weak and too unstable. So, I reverted to the three-man Cadres and added my minions to the cells as supervisors. They’re a handpicked group of Alumni that I chose personally.” Sinix seemed to be enjoying himself as he explained. Tobey could not tell if he was in a good mood or not.
“You, mongrel,” Sinix said pointing at him, “You are an anomaly that hasn’t appeared in years. On top of that, we have fifteen students! Fifteen!” He clapped his face in both hands shaking his head. “I don’t need these high numbers.”
Tobey rose a brow, “How many does the IMA take each year?”
Sinix rose his face and shared a look with Tobey. “Our highest has been eight a year. And that was the year he came in. I was bewitched by him.”
Eight a year?! Hundreds apply each year and he complains over eight students? Just what is this guy? Tobey wondered as he stared into Sinix’s eyes.
“The only way you will stay is if you will gain his favour.” There it was, that devilish smile of his.
“Who’s he?” Tobey asked.
“He’s the minion that will supervise you,” Sinix replied. He crossed his arms and sighed. “Even he is known for his difficulty in supervision. Only one Cadre has ever graduated successfully under him. All others failed along the way.”
Was this Sinix’s way of making Tobey scared? Get him to panic? Tobey swallowed hard, feeling his throat dry up for no reason.
“If you do manage to gain his favour, you remain in the school,” Sinix said before quickly turning his expression into a glare. “…However, the moment he sends in one complaint about you, you’re expelled.”
“…I won’t get expelled,” Tobey winced as the words came out.
“What?”
“You won’t expel me,” Tobey said much clearly this time.
“And what makes you so certain?”
“I’m not going to lose.”
Sinix smirked at the glimmer in Tobey’s brown eyes. “Hmph. You’ll have to impress me then.”
“I have no intention of impressing you. What I want lies beyond the academy.”
Sinix burst into loud laughter, smacking his rings on the table. Tobey’s expression remained the same, he sat staring at the Principal’s emerald eyes.
“Mongrel, what is your name?” Sinix rested his chin on his palm smiling.
“Tobey. Don’t forget it.”
“I certainly won’t,” Sinix said standing to his feet. He picked his hat which lay on the table, and as if on cue, Thaus flew and perched on his shoulder. “I’ll have to check on the other one now. You, however, will meet your supervisor.” Sinix looked at the door behind Tobey. “Come in, Renbao.”
Tobey turned his head and watched the door creak open. A man walked in. He was tall, wearing a navy-blue jacket on silver mage garb. His golden hair was wrapped around by a blue cloth, stretching to touch his neck. Tobey sensed nothing coming from him. His slanted eyes barely had emotion in them. And more than that he chewed on a toothpick.
He stared at Tobey, eyes scanning completely. Sinix smiled and walked towards the door. He stopped at this man, ‘‘Renbao’s’’ shoulder.
“I leave him in your care, Ren,” Sinix whispered in his ears before walking out.
Tobey stood up and faced the man who stood before him. He was taller than Finn for sure. He seemed completely uninterested in Tobey. His eyes stared far into something distant.
“Come with me,” he said, turning towards the door.
“Yes sir!” That was the first time Tobey had responded sharply to anyone. He closed the door of the office and followed the man, gazing at the insignia of the crown and the trident at the back of his jacket. The insignia for royal mages.
“What’s your name?”
“Tobey.”
“Where are you from?”
“Grew up in Vergho.”
“How old are you?”
“Seventeen.”
The answers left Tobey’s mouth in quick succession as Renbao led Tobey behind him.
“Seventeen huh, I see. That makes you the youngest in your Cadre.”
“The youngest? I don’t know any members of my Cadre.”
“I see, well you will soon,” Renbao responded. Tobey looked around. They had walked past several lobbies, crossing into an open field. The academy was much larger than he had expected. He could see the Dormitories from here. Others would have settled down by now. The sky's calm blue had shifted to a familiar red. The evening had come fast.
“This place is huge. It didn’t look this large from the outside,” Tobey said.
“I see.”
“Might be larger, I don’t think I’ve seen it all.”
“…I see.”
What is up with this guy?! Tobey grew frustrated. Keeping his questions to himself would be better. Perhaps this guy didn’t consider him his student yet.
As they got to the edge of the field, Tobey spotted two figures in the distance. One waved a hand in the air, the other crouching on the soft grass.
“There they are, your Cadre,” Renbao said.
Tobey stared more cautiously. He recognized them. The blue shirt and the bow, it was Bell. The dark hair covering dark eyes. The one crouching was Finn. Finn glared at him and sighed, Tobey’s expression suddenly grew grim as he drew closer to them.
“Hey!! I’m glad you’re finished,” Bell said as Tobey reached them.
“The principal wasted a lot of time, my bad.”
Bell shook her head, “No, it’s fine. Isn’t it, Finn?”
“I don’t care. I honestly would have preferred just a two-man cell. But the Principal choses our Cadres. We can’t complain,” Finn said as he stood up. “I’ll try to get along, just don’t get in my way.”
“Same goes for you.”
An exasperated sigh behind them turned their attention to Renbao. He dipped his hands in his pocket and brought out a candle. He held the candle in his right hand and stared at the trio in front of him.
“Come forward Tobey,” Renbao said.
Tobey took long steps as he approached Renbao. Renbao lifted his left hand telling him to stop pacing. “You should be expelled. And this cell, if you are expelled, would be the weakest,” he spoke.
Bell and Finn shared a look before turning back to him. Tobey gulped; eyes locked with Renbao.
“I hate being a supervisor just so you know. Master Sinix knows I despise the idea of working under him, so I often get my students expelled on purpose.”
Just then he closed his eyes and spat out the toothpick from his mouth.
“Golden lightning flow, let your sparks course through me.” He chanted.
Yellow flashes suddenly burst out of Renbao’s body in no apparent direction. The mana around him suddenly began surging, enough that the ground beneath them shook. His hair strands stood on their ends, scattered in electrified spikes. Renbao placed one finger on the candlewick and ignited a golden flame.
“You have to extinguish this candle before it burns out. You are allowed to use magic and to ask your Cadre for assistance. However, if you can’t do that, I’ll have you expelled immediately.”
Another test?? Tobey grit his teeth, stepping back. He could not afford to get closer to another Elemental.
“This is your lifeline Tobey,” Renbao said. His golden eyes met Tobey’s as he crouched assuming a battle stance. “…So, jazz up.”
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