Chapter 281 - Taming Assumptions

เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 มี.ค. 2569 07:39

For Klein, in practical terms, the honor of first place had slipped from his grasp. Even if he decisively won the two remaining team battles, he wouldn’t achieve it... He could change public perception to make it known that he was more powerful than the mushroom boy, but only if he could crush him. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎 That was all. If Ren didn’t perform extremely poorly in the other two categories... Klein could only maintain the illusion of superiority, but the real honor... Was lost. And that meant much more than simple academic prestige. In the upper stands, Kassian Goldcrest watched the celebration with a coldness that contrasted with the storm in his eyes. The agreement with Sirius’s uncle, a marriage contract very useful for the Goldcrests’ ambitions, largely depended, according to what was agreed upon with the old fox, on Klein proving himself a worthy match, an exceptional tamer up to the prestige of both families. "This complicates things," thought Kassian, his mind already calculating alternatives, compensations, possible ways to mitigate the damage. Selphira, meanwhile, had abandoned all pretense of neutrality. A genuine smile illuminated her face as she watched the trio celebrate. Her eyes, as perceptive as always, caught something that few had noticed: Ren’s hydra wasn’t enough to increase his strength to such levels. In her youth, she had known someone with a hydra, and the lines of light weren’t a quality that could be attributed to it either... There was something more behind the boy’s power. "A fascinating strategy," she murmured, her mind working at great speed. "Absolutely fascinating." Sirius Starweaver had stood up, but not because of the commoner’s interesting victory; his eyes were fixed on Luna, evaluating her reaction to Ren’s triumph. The smile on his daughter’s face didn’t please him at all. While the stadium continued in chaos, while celebrations and recriminations mixed in the air, one truth had crystallized for all present: The world they believed they dominated and understood perfectly had just surprised them. And all thanks to a child who, just a few months earlier, had been universally ridiculed for having the worst beast ever recorded. ♢♢♢♢ The training field was empty at that late hour. Lin preferred this schedule; the silence allowed her to think clearly while exercising her combat techniques. Her fire panther-lizard adding power to her crane’s enhancements helped her execute new sequences of kicks against a specially reinforced training dummy, producing a sound of claws tearing through resistant material. It was an almost meditative ritual that she repeated every night after training Ren, and although her pupil was resting... She couldn’t take a break for herself; it was already her way of processing the day’s events. When she perceived the approaching presence, she didn’t interrupt her routine. The silent flight and subtle alteration in air currents had already revealed the visitor’s identity. "From your agitation," she commented without turning, "I imagine you’ve already heard." Zhao advanced until he was in her field of vision. There was something different about him, perhaps it was the new military tunic he wore, clearly designed for long-range missions, or maybe the thoughtful atmosphere that surrounded him before an important expedition. "Fifteen seconds," he responded, incredulity still present in his voice. "The director almost choked when he told me. I thought he would at least restrain himself from using the lightning that scared away the abyssal from our last gathering exam." Lin smiled, finally stopping her exercise to fully focus on her colleague. "No, he didn’t use it. I was there," she confirmed, reaching for a towel to dry her sweat. "Ren and his friends pulverized the record with the same simple strategy from his diagnosis exam against iron rank monsters. It was simple and at the same time... extraordinary." Lin explained the battle details... Zhao shook his head, still processing the information. "A single spear strike through that small opening? On the first attempt? That kid is going to steal my title as the most precise thrower when he grows up…" "I don’t think it’s gonna be just that," Lin specified, her voice instinctively lowering although they were alone. "Aunt Selphira already thinks he has the ring, probably Liora is giving her hints accidentally to... But she told me she wouldn’t inquire for now, though I don’t believe her too much." She sat on one of the side benches, indicating Zhao to do the same. "But that doesn’t worry me right now; if she wanted to make sure, she would have done it already... Although she refuses to accept it, Liora’s opinion matters too much to her since Laura’s death." Zhao nodded slowly, seeming to absorb every detail, categorize it, file it for future reference. "Are you leaving again right now?" Lin asked, pointing to his expedition attire. "Julius asked me to deliver something just some hours ago. He wants me to go look for his father one last time," Zhao confirmed, his tone mixing resignation and determination. Lin arched an eyebrow, genuinely surprised. "So soon? It’s barely been a few months since the last attempt." "This time is different," Zhao lowered his voice even more, leaning slightly. "He has a secret weapon to convince him." He didn’t elaborate, and Lin didn’t press. Some things were better not knowing, especially when they concerned negotiations between a prince and the King. "It’s still dangerous for you," she observed. "Less than before," Zhao responded with a tense smile. "Thanks to a certain gift, I now have better concealment capabilities. And other useful skills... I’m still the best at avoiding impossible battles." "Still, be careful," Lin warned. Zhao nodded, "Watch over those mischievous kids while I’m gone, especially during their visits to the depths... There have been changes in the abyss since the last visit." "What kind of changes?" Lin looked toward the door, making sure again that they were alone. "Did Julius find out anything new about the triple tamers’ attack?" Zhao shook his head. "Not officially. But security in the lower parts of the abyss has increased considerably, and they discovered greater beast activity at lesser depths." He put his hand on his chin. "What they did discover while looking at that was also something interesting but expected. The abyss zone assigned to the Goldcrests was the entry point for Yino’s assets. They had a rather deep operation." "How deep?" asked Lin, genuinely interested. "Didn’t the beasts attack them when crossing?" "No... They had built a massive rope in the depths, generated by beasts from both sides. A braided structure that served as a transit route at Gold rank depth." Zhao’s voice distilled contempt. "They avoided the Blind Assassins using a pestilent hormone they developed specifically to repel them. Due to the depth at which they operated, the aerial patrol never detected the line." "The Yino people, always so... Inventive," Lin commented with sarcasm. "Victor took several earth and light experts to investigate under the pretext of a complete Yano territory review after the school attack, but in reality, he only inspected Goldcrest territory," Zhao continued. "He said it was interesting. The Goldcrests tried to divert them, guide them away from the exchange point with territorial excuses." A sardonic smile crossed his face. "But Victor prevailed. With the support of Ashenway troops, he concluded the investigation and found the damn line. They cut it, of course." "But that alone won’t be the end," Lin concluded. "No, not by a bit," Zhao confirmed. "They’ll probably make another one elsewhere or switch to an aerial route if they can keep avoiding the Blind Assassins. Our aerial patrol will no longer be sufficient as border protection if they can move easily down there." Lin remained thoughtful for a moment, drumming her fingers on her knee. "If they have many triple tamers as we suspect, they could move to the great natural bridge," she finally suggested. "It’s the logical route to send their assets to attack us instead of big aerial transit. We’ll see the war start there if they begin it soon." Zhao shook his head. "I don’t think so. The curious thing is that it seems they’re retracting, at least temporarily." Lin looked at him with surprise. "Don’t they have the advantage now with their triples?" "It seems it’s not so easy... Either making triples takes a long time, or they can’t make many, but they don’t seem to feel ready... Victor discovered several hideouts," Zhao explained. "All recently abandoned, quite some time before his arrival. The strange thing is the pattern of abandonment." "What do you mean?" "By the number of empty spaces, they must have had enough forces to face even the prince’s elite team and maintain resistance for a long time," Zhao leaned forward, lowering his voice even more. "But they withdrew, and from what we saw, in an orderly manner. It wasn’t a hasty flight." "Surely those Goldcrest bastards warned them," Lin spat. "They probably helped them cross and establish themselves in Yano, yes," Zhao conceded. "But in fact, they were brazen about it. They denied any cooperation and feigned absolute surprise that their jurisdiction had been ’invaded in such deep zones’ by the enemy ’without their knowledge’." He shook his head with evident disgust. "They even had the audacity to claim that the castle monopolizes too many earth elemental tamers, leaving them in a ’compromised situation’ in the depths." "Bastards," Lin murmured. "They are," Zhao nodded. "But I don’t think they affected this withdrawal. It was too clean, too organized. They didn’t leave anything useful, no documentation, no important equipment." His expression became more serious. "And I think what’s most revealing is that the withdrawal seems to have been planned even before Victor’s investigation began. By the marks and state of the hideouts, the evacuation started very shortly after the last attack on the academy."

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