Noah finally enrolls in the Utheric Knight Academy.
I was sooooo tempted to post this early, but happy new year! As you can see, I decided to change the name of the series. From now on, all volumes will go by 'Across Eternity'. I'd like to give a special thanks to my patreon subscribers and I hope you all enjoy!
Orientation
The sky was clear, perfect weather for the celebration taking place in Colbrand. The streets were crowded with both tourists and citizens, all enjoying life to its fullest with merriment and drink. The peddlers and merchants put away their usual wares and brought out their festival goods, much of which traveled a great distance for this holiday. Partakers wore masks that made them look like the monsters of the wild, and the armored knights who slew them. They ate foods sweetened with honey and syrup or hashed with exotic spices, and amused themselves with small novelties and trinkets. Harps, horns, and other noisemakers were played for passing audiences, while street performers awed strangers with feats of physicality and magic.
Disturbing the flow of traffic, small floats built on wagons and carriages roamed the city. Like the masks, most floats displayed effigies of fearsome beasts from both the countryside and legend, such as wolves and dragons. Others resembled knights, warhorses, and naval vessels. Some depicted the six elemental gods. These floats, if not pulled by horses, were pushed by slaves.
Knights likewise paraded on horseback, smiling and waving to both grateful and disgruntled citizens. Knights had a peculiar relationship with the public, being more individualistic and nameworthy than the faceless soldiers of the military, but more regulated than the opaque and neutral adventurers. Knights of exemplary caliber would earn names for themselves for the size and number of victories. Their stories would travel and their names would be woven into myth and legend, remembered long after their death. For many other knights, failure and misdeeds would tarnish their name and the names of their families, and the stigma of bad rumors would stick to them like a foul odor.
At the moment, the public’s view could go either way, due mostly to the scenery around them. Colbrand, the capital of Uther, was in a state of recovery, bearing the fresh wounds received in the chaotic Red Revelry. It was a bloody tradition, nighttime festivals of violence taking place in the silent streets. Warriors with a perverse love of combat would go out and fight under the cover of darkness. They’d kill each other simply for the rush, to test their skills and loot their kills.
On the final night before the holiday, there was a mass breakout at the royal dungeon, and all the incarcerated revelers escaped and caused pandemonium to avoid recapture. Fires were spread, threatening to destroy the city, and countless people were wounded and killed in the ensuing chaos. Colbrand narrowly survived, and three days of work got the city functioning to acceptable levels, stable enough to finally enjoy their postponed holiday.
During the chaos, the effectiveness of the knights was put on display for everyone to see. Many citizens had been saved by the knights or saw them fighting the revelers. Others lost their homes, loved ones, and livelihoods to the spreading flames and violence that the knights failed to prevent. Now, many of those same revelers were joining the knight order, for today was the day of admittance for new applicants.
Among this crowd of young warriors was Noah, walking the streets towards the academy. It was an academy mostly in name, for those who managed to enroll wouldn’t be educated, but trained. This was the military. Noah had joined several militias in past lives and knew the lifestyle, but he was more filled with excitement than nostalgia. Getting to experience the unknown was something rare for him, and this world had something he had never encountered before: magic.
This foreign variable was shaping the destiny of this world in ways that fascinated him. It was a sociological interest, letting him enjoy this front-row seat to see how magic would affect the lives of these strangers and the ripples it would create in the future. He himself could wield magic power, and here, he hoped to understand it, as well as hopefully understand his own existence. The knowledge he could acquire here was making his heart flutter.
As he walked, he surveyed the other applicants. They were all in their late teens and early twenties, all of them commoners and adventurers. There was a male majority, but a surprising number of women. Juxtaposed to Uther’s regular soldiers, all of whom were men who couldn’t use magic and were equally expendable, women with the ability to launch great fireballs or heal fatal wounds were too valuable for the high echelon to ignore. Magic was a talent easy to display, helping women show their worth and overcome barriers.
Their numbers continued to grow, tens becoming hundreds. It seemed many nobles handed out letters of recommendation like candy, and seeing all these faces, Noah was a bit irked that Lord Fault had been such a miser about the whole thing.
He and the other adventurers were forced to crowd the sides of the street so that several carriages could roll by. Each was more ornately decorated than the last, and displayed various coats of arms. They formed a long line in front of the wrought iron gates, like limos at an awards show, and the sons and daughters of high-ranking noble houses stepped out. Most of them were the second and third children, the spares, and having no prospects of their own, it was either this or the life of a commoner. The carriages were simply a way for the various families to show off.
If anything, their arrivals were modest. There was no loud announcements or fanfare, and no fancy outfits or lines of servants carrying luggage. Such gaudiness, like the carriages themselves, were forbidden on academy grounds. Here, wealth and names did not carry the same weight as in the outside world, though they managed to hold onto some influence. These young men and women were simply cadets and would be treated as such, for the most part. They were modestly dressed and carried the weapons they had been trained with.
As Noah approached the gates, he spotted a familiar face exiting one of the carriages: Alexis, garbed in her blue battle dress with her blonde hair wound in a bun, while two flanges framed her face. Noah had fought beside her on his way to Colbrand, and while most would look upon her and see only a stoic beauty, he had witnessed her skills in dealing death. She spotted him, but did not smile or speak out. Instead, she gave him a simple nod, as though they were still on the battlefield. He liked that about her, that professionalism.
Past the gates, staff were gathering applicants in the large training fields before the central building. Noah found his place and was left waiting with all the others for the stragglers to make their way onto the field. It was a sea of noise, due to countless conversations happening between friends and acquaintances, and the staff organizing the applicants had to shout over them. There looked to be over a thousand people gathered.
‘Fault, you really were a stingy asshole.’
The facility was both an academy and a military base, so every building was designed like a fortress. The central building, already resembling a castle, had experienced several expansions to accommodate the growing number of cadets. The main entrance, a large portcullis, was opened, and a man stepped out. His head was shaved, and he was dressed in a long leather coat, decorated with medals and the insignia of the knighthood. His arms were folded behind his back, and the way he walked made it look like he was on wheels.
“Attention!” He shouted the word long and loud enough for everyone to hear him and fall silent. He paused, making sure he had all eyes. “My name is Commandant Rupert Ford, and I am the headmaster at this academy. However, not all of you need to remember my name, only the applicants who have what it takes to get in, those who are still standing at the end of the day. The letters from your benefactors do not grant you a seat of con***********ion, only the chance to fight for one.
Before we begin, any applicant who specializes in weapons and physical combat, move to the left field. Any applicant who specializes in elemental magic, move to the right. Each side will form three lines, and anyone who isn’t in line is rejected.”
The sea of faces churned as everyone hustled to fulfill the command. Groups of friends were forced to split up and Noah ended up in the left field. As he moved, he noticed a trail of sand forming a ring within the field, just barely large enough to hold the combatants. Others noticed the same thing, and three winding lines formed, spiraling and bending to try to accommodate everyone into the marked space.
The commandant held out his hand to a row of six desks set up at the bottom of the stairs, each attended by one of the staff, with a ledger and a crystal ball. “You will present your letters of recommendation to the examiners. Once authenticity has been confirmed, your magic strength will be gauged on a scale of 1-100. A score of 50 or less will get you rejected. If you pass, you will turn over your weapons and bags and receive an armband. While you wait in line, there will be no talking and no unnecessary movement. If you leave your place in line for any reason or cause a disturbance, you will be rejected. If you are caught eating or drinking, you will be rejected. Should you reach the examiner in a disgraceful state, you will be rejected. Those who lack patience and discipline have no place here.”
‘Just kill me now,’ thought everyone present, with those feelings growing stronger as the lines stretched farther.
That was how Noah and the other applicants spent the afternoon, standing in the summer sun and shuffling forward. Having lived for thousands of years, patience was a skill that Noah had learned early on, but the same couldn’t be said for everyone around him. Several noble sons kicked up a fuss as time went on. Their complaints grew from soft grumbling to frustrated shouting, demanding exemptions or loudly flouting the rules. It didn’t take much for a patrolling staff member to yank them out of line and give them the boot.
For those who were caught with false letters or who didn’t get a high enough score, the reaction was usually the same. They’d beg and plead for another chance, throwing up any kind of excuse they could think of, or many would resort to anger and become demanding. Over in the mage group, Noah saw yet another mid-level noble shouting that he deserved a second reading, and that he was above such silly tests. People like him were forced out as roughly as needed.
Some fighters passed the first screening, only to risk being thrown out just a second later because they refused to hand over their weapons. All but a few came to their senses. Noah understood their hesitance and sympathized with them. Before coming here, almost all the applicants lived their lives with weapons always in reach. It was a painful lesson to learn, and a difficult instinct to go against. For the more fanatical warriors, it was also a point of pride.
Overlooking the proceedings was the commandant, his posture and demeanor unhindered by the summer heat. It was like he was a living statue. He turned, only slightly, at the sound of an exclamation, coming from one of the examiners. An applicant had scored 100 on the magic aptitude test, around twenty points higher than anyone else had been able to achieve, and more surprising, they were in the combatant category.
‘Hmmm, as I’d expect from Prince Seraph,’ he thought.
Time passed, and Noah inched closer to the examiner, behind a red-haired young man without any weapons. The examiner, a middle-aged and overweight clerk, sized him up. The young man handed him a sealed envelope and he flicked it open with a letter opener.
“You are Gideon from the town of Irving, and it says that you specialize in knives. For magic, you can use monk enhancements. Is this correct?”
“Yes, that’s true, sir, but I’m best with barehanded combat.” There was a slight hesitation, but the man either didn’t notice or didn’t deem it important.
“Can you read and write? Then sign here.”
Gideon wrote his name in the ledger, and the examiner pointed to the crystal ball. “Place one hand on it and channel as much mana as you can.”
He did as instructed, and sent his mana into the orb. Within its cloudy interior, a number appeared.
“64, good. Here is your armband.”
He put it on and walked over to where the other admitted cadets were waiting, though waiting in line and waiting outside the line didn’t have much of a difference under the sun.
“Your name is Noah from the town of Clive. You specialize in swordplay. Is that right?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t see anything about your magic.”
He didn’t want to reveal his real magic, and claiming he didn’t have any might mean rejection. “I have mana, but I’m finding it hard to turn into magic. I believe I’m starting to develop warrior magic, but it’s not much, and I’m hoping I can hone it with the help of a teacher.”
“Very well, then. Let’s see how much mana you have.”
This was something Noah had been waiting for. All he could cast were illusions, and without any other users to compare himself to, he was left with no idea where he was located in the magical hierarchy. He placed his hand on the orb and forced as much mana as he could into the cloudy confines.
“70, well done.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right.” Considering the intensity of his training vs the short time he’d had magic, it was a fair assessment.
Next, the annoying process of removing all of his weapons. While his bow and most of his throwing knives were hidden in his ring, he still kept several blades, shivs, garrotes, and even a few bludgeon tools hidden throughout his body, all being moved to his bag before he handed them over. His gear was wrapped in a cloth that was tagged with a number, the same ID number next to his name in the ledger. The armband he received was also numbered. It looked like regular cheap fabric, but the moment he put it on, he felt it tighten around his arm and stick to his skin like duct tape. Everyone had the same reaction of trying to pull it off, only to find it wouldn’t budge.
More waiting, until, finally, everyone was registered. “Now we move on to the next stage,” said the commandant. “The armbands you’re wearing are enchanted and glow bright when you use mana. Those of you on the right, raise your hands and show us. Do not stop until I tell you.” All the mages did as told, and raised their hands, showing the armbands. They began to glow with a blue radiance, clearly visible even in full sunlight. “They can only be made to glow once, and as soon as that glow fades, those armbands will disintegrate and you will be rejected. The last one hundred mages with their armbands intact will be accepted.”
Noah saw it, the tremor of misery moving through the magic crowd. There were around five hundred mages present, and to outlast 80% would be a painful trial. How long could they hold out? Minutes? Hours? All the participants were either trying to brace themselves and commit, or were realizing they would fail and were already losing strength to their gluttonous doubts.
“For the combat specialists, it’s the same basic principle: the last one hundred standing get to enroll, but it is your physical stamina we will be testing. You shall fight each other hand-to-hand in a battle royal. Should you attempt to use any magic, your armband will disintegrate and you will be rejected, same with if you step beyond the border.” For Noah and the combatants, the words ‘oh shit’ began to repeat through their minds. He hadn’t given the mages any time to prepare for the second stage, so they all knew what the next words out of his mouth would be. “You may commence the thinning of the herd… now.”
He gave a loud whistle, and at that moment, everyone within the field was either hesitant, stunned by the commandant’s words and gripped by uncertainty, or they acted immediately, forming their strategy before they even took a breath. A switch was flipped, as several dozen fighters began throwing punches and kicks at everyone nearby. The heavy-hitters, the ones who needed no hesitation, they preyed on all those who had yet to even raise their guard, and caused the mob the churn within the enclosed borders. Among them was Gideon, knocking people through the air with devastating kicks or dropping them with powerful jabs.
Noah took the third option and disappeared into the crowd. He couldn’t use his magic, but he still knew how to blend in with the hesitant. His goal was to survive, not build a body count, so he first stepped back to observe the scene. There were plenty of others who thought like him, using the cowardly as camouflage while collecting information and waiting for the mess to clean itself up
Only a few moments had passed, but the crowd was metamorphizing without pause. The fiercest fighters were opening up space in the center and the ripples of violence were moving through the other applicants. Hundreds of young men and several women were soon brawling like they had taken bath salts at a rave.
All the mages, at least, those with attention to spare, watched the sea of fists and feet and listened to the chorus of grunts and battle cries. Noah avoided detection through the beginning of the fight, letting the crowd thin itself out as the weakest either lost consciousness or were forced off the field. Countless applicants had to flee so as not to be trampled on. Those who were beaten until unconsciousness had to be dragged out by the staff, but were then tended to by women in white vestments, using healing magic.
Every few seconds, there was a flash of blue as someone used magic. Perhaps they thought they could hide it, or they did it without realizing. Whether they meant to or not, it caused their armband to turn into ash and they had no choice but to leave. The mages still had a few hundred left in their ranks and would continue their endurance test. Applicants in both fields, when their strength gave out, would be forcefully handed their gear and escorted off the premises.
As time passed, the crowd shrank, and there was more room to fight, but fewer places to hide. The middle and high-level fighters had cleared out the weak and everyone remaining had switched into battle mode. Anyone without a raised guard was now considered an easy target to force out. Noah, observing from the sidelines at the edge of the ring, was now being noticed. The timing was perfect, as watching the fight had given him a bit of bloodlust. He normally abstained from violence for pleasure, but amusement was half the reason he was here, so he might as well enjoy himself. He approached the mob and was likewise approached by his fellow applicants.
“Come on, give me a challenge.”
The first came at him, and a wide haymaker was sent his way. Noah caught the young man’s fist and struck his elbow, snapping his arm. A kick to the back of the leg got him down on one knee, and Noah knocked him out with a blow to the temple. As he fell over, Noah turned to his next opponent and blocked an incoming kick, then a second. When the third came, Noah grabbed his leg and twisted him into a lock that brought the two of them to the ground. Two snaps were heard, one from the knee and the other from the ankle, followed by a cry of pain. A brawl like this wouldn’t usually be the best place for locks and grapples, but Noah knew how to inflict them without leaving himself vulnerable even a second longer than needed.
Noah got up and left him to lick his wounds, but the next opponent was already charging and pulling his fist back. Noah interrupted with a sharp jab to the Adam’s apple, and robbed of his breath, he couldn’t block the knee to the gut that came afterwards, making him buckle. He was even more helpless when Noah wrapped his arms around his hunched over body and suplexed him into the ground.
Another contender, and this one was faster than the others. He attacked as Noah righted his posture, unleashing a flurry of punches. Noah deflected them away as if avoiding a lashing blade. A sweep of the feet knocked his opponent off balance and Noah finished with a push kick square to the center of his chest, knocking him out of bounds.
Boom! Noah was tackled from the side and knocked to the ground with someone on top of him. The punches came, and Noah wasn’t able to block them all. Pinned down with fists raining, he was in a desperate situation. A hard strike to the kidneys made his attacker pause, and Noah sat up and grabbed him by the back of his head. Pulling him back down, he unleashed several elbow strikes to the side of the neck until the man finally gave in. He tried to get away, but Noah grabbed him in an armbar and snapped his elbow with an added shoulder dislocation. With the young man shouting in pain, Noah got to his feet and dusted himself off. He was hot, thirsty, and sweaty, but it didn’t seem like that would change soon.
Once he had calmed his breathing, he returned to the battle. Compared to the Harajin, most of the applicants were basically flailing children, so dodging their attacks and landing his own was easy. While he wasn’t cruel to his opponents, he didn’t display much mercy. He struck pressure points, dislocated joints, and cracked ribs and vertebrae with hard throws and slams. As long as he didn’t kill them, he didn’t have to pull his punches.
Looking around, he spotted Alexis on the other side of the battlefield. After fighting ogres on the Paleon Channel, this was almost tedious, and she was knocking out small fry with painful grace. Back on those waters, she proved herself someone he could naturally work with and rely on, a rare compatibility he got to experience.
‘Fighting alongside her again would make the test more entertaining,’ he thought.
Before he could take a step towards her, a complication arose. She was fighting a young man and something was wrong. The look on her face, her whole demeanor, it was nothing like when they fought together. He saw anger, frustration, and desperation. Her snarling face was dirtied with sweat and her hair was coming undone. Her attacks were feral and without her normal composure. Things weren’t going as smoothly in this battle as in her last, and, as Noah suspected, it was because of the young man she was fighting. He couldn’t hear what he was saying, but it looked like he was taunting her. While interesting, Noah wasn’t in a situation where he could sit back and watch.
He and the other top contenders had whittled down the mid-tier mob, so now, the true fighting could begin. Like dancers at a ball, all it would take was eye contact for two individuals to pair off. Upon finding worthy adversaries, all the other applicants ceased to exist, and it seemed like the world itself gave these duelers space to duke it out.
Gideon, the man who had been in front of Noah in line, once more stood before him, now in a combat stance. Noah had seen some of his handiwork earlier. His fighting style seemed like a fusion of Taekwondo and Muay Thai, as he mainly relied on powerful kicks for smashing through defenses. He could also strike at vitals and soft targets with the Nukite spear-hand technique. Noah, his mind aloft with adrenaline, welcomed the challenge.
Noah stepped back out of the reach of the first kick, shooting straight to his chin as if to knock his head back like a Pez dispenser. He raised his guard to protect his head and blocked the second kick from the side. The blow was heavy, almost knocking him off balance. He closed in and kneed Gideon in the stomach, once, twice, and then a punch slipped past his guard and struck his jaw. Noah forced Gideon back, and the two of them began hurling fists to both attack and defend.
They’d separate and then go at it once again, always with Noah dealing more blows, but unable to match the force of Gideon’s powerful kicks. One of them, he managed to catch, grabbing a hold of Gideon’s leg to try and bring him down. Without missing a beat, Gideon jumped off the ground with his other foot and spun around to launch a second kick. Noah blocked and was forced to release him, letting him fall to the ground. He bolted back onto his feet with the same speed and aimed once more at Noah’s jaw.
‘Huh, it’s been a long time since I met someone who could actually pull that move off.’
Eventually, Ford whistled and the battle ended. Around a hundred combatants were left, give or take, most with torn shirts and plenty of bruises. Even Noah had a shiner and swollen lip. Looking around, he spotted Alexis, as well as a handful of other women. Each of them carried a chip on their shoulder, driven by the need to prove themselves, and it served them well. Gideon had also managed to remain in the ring.
“Congratulations, all of you,” said the commandant. “You have earned your placement in this academy, and so too have you earned your rest. Until the mages complete their own trial, make yourselves comfortable and regain your strength.”
Many of the combatants dropped to the ground in exhaustion, grateful to finally get off their feet. Carts full of food and drink rolled in between the two fields, and Noah and his fellow cadets ate heartily. The mages, dripping with sweat as they fed every drop of mana to their armbands, could only watch in jealousy and curse their fellow applicants. When their bellies were full and their thirst quenched, the cadets simply laid out wherever they were comfortable.
Noah saw Alexis sitting in one of the few shady spots. Her mood appeared sour, but she relaxed, if only slightly, when he approached. “Hey,” he said.
“Hello.”
He sat down next to her and sighed in relief. “How did things go over back home with the ogres?”
“Well, the damage was already done, and officially, they were slain by my family’s vassal troops.”
“Did you get any kind of reward or acknowledgement?”
“Only a harsh lecture for taking the heirloom wyvern bow without asking.”
“Well you made great time getting to the capital.”
“I didn’t, actually. I got here just yesterday and thought I was too late to enroll. Were you here during the great fire? Was it as bad as everyone says it was?”
“Worse. It was like a civil war in the streets. Your talents would have been of great use to the knights.”
“Well, before long, that’ll be us.”
“The longer, the better, I say.”
Eventually, the last few exhausted mages were forced to give in and accept their loss, leaving the last one hundred standing. Like the combatants, they too dropped to their knees when the commandant announced their victory, then ate and drank as though they had just crossed a desert.
“Well done, all of you,” said the commandant. “For the rest of the day, you shall be shown around the academy and instructed on the routine and demands of your lives as cadets.”
They were split into groups and led throughout the grounds. Noah, along with nineteen others, were in the care of a silver knight in uniform. He was a middle-aged man with white hair and a mustache, with the physique of an MMA fighter. He carried no sword, but looking at him, Noah doubted he needed one. Sir Kiev, he was called. He led the group to the back of the academy, where the fields were full of obstacle courses and setups for fighting under the most extreme circumstances. It was as if a playground and a torture chamber had sex and spawned a litter.
For Noah, it was pretty nostalgic, though not for the best of reasons. ‘Ugh, I do not like the look of that traverse rope, and I just know those sandbags are going to be a chore.’
“Over the course of the next year, you will get to know every inch of these fields. These obstacles you see, you’ll be able to get over them in your sleep. This is also where the bulk of your weapons training will take place. For the first six months, you will be trained to use swords, bows, spears, shields, and maces, as well has hand-to-hand combat. The longer and harsher you train, the more likely you are to manifest an ability. For the second half of the year, you can *********** which weapons or style you wish to focus your training on. If you haven’t developed warrior or monk magic by then, you’d best hope you can learn elemental magic.”
“A lot of those obstacles look pretty painful,” said one cadet.
Kiev turned to him with an icy stare. “Here in the academy, you will speak only when spoken to, and always with the correct honorifics. If you break the rules here, pray you get a punishment as light as scrubbing floors. However, you are correct. Ever since I became an instructor here, I’ve advocated for harshening the training methods and doing more to expel weakness from the cadets. Lady Zodiac shares my sentiment and we’ve worked together to make changes in the training regimen.”
‘Well, I’d probably be bored if this wasn’t challenging,’ thought Noah. ‘Hopefully they’ve kept things reasonable.’
“Every morning, at dawn, you will all run ten laps around this field. The sooner you finish, the sooner you get to eat breakfast. Take too long and you go hungry.”
No verbal complaints were made, but Noah heard the exhales of anguish and dread from the other cadets. While he did have some interest in grinding the rust off his combat skills, the outside of the academy didn’t matter to him nearly as much as the inside. One of the first stops made on the tour was to the academy library. In an age before the printing press, the towering shelves of books were all the more impressive. Almost all were bound in the leather of various monsters, same with an equally-grand collection of scrolls. It was a feast of information, and Noah had a ravenous appetite.
“This is the library. Your knowledge must be equally proficient as your combat techniques, and it is in here that your mental training will be performed. Ignorance is as great a shame as weakness, and both can bring death in the battlefield. You will be taught the theory of magic, the history of Uther and other nations, the characteristics of the beasts and plants of this world, how to create potions and tools, and how to maintain your equipment and yourselves.
Half of each day will be spent training inside, and the other half will be spent studying outside, with each lesson lasting four hours.”
The next stage of the tour brought them to the dormitories, though, for regular cadets like Noah, technically they were just barracks. His group was brought before two long rows of beds with large wooden chests in between, almost looking like a giant zipper. Sitting on top of each chest were the bundled weapons and gear each cadet had handed over. Noah spotted his own, along with a folded uniform on his pillow. Each uniform came with a written schedule for the cadets in question.
“Welcome to the men’s barracks. Here you will stay for the next year. Your bed and equipment must be kept organized at all times. The women’s barracks are nearby, and any cadet caught where they don’t belong will get the whip.”
Noah looked at the barracks with disdain. He had expected this in the regular military, but not in the knight academy. While it was far more comfortable than living in the wild, at least out there, he could experiment with his magic. Here, he had no privacy.
On to the next building, where they had proper rooms, though they looked more like prison cells. There was a bed, a desk to study at, and a bureau for gear and clothes, all within four brick walls. There were copper nameplates on the doors, inscribed with noble families and their crests.
“Those of you who are registered under specific noble families and have their permission will be staying in these dorms. Dinner will be announced with the evening horn, and anyone caught outside their rooms or the barracks afterwards will be strictly punished.”
They moved on. The third building of the living quarters was passed by, and nothing was said. More dorms, but built less like a dungeon and more like an apartment complex, with wood and plaster. They likely belonged to the more powerful noble houses. The academy was funded by taxes and private donations from rich families, and the larger the donation, the more of a say those houses had in how that money was spent. In this case, all the upper nobles had paid for these luxurious rooms for their enlisting descendants. Rather than an act of love, it was a way to show off and remain relevant. What was the limit to the extravagance these cadets were allowed to enjoy?
The tour ended at a door in the middle of a muggy hallway. “This is the final stop, the men’s bathhouse. The women’s is further down the hall. I will say this to you once: should you try to test your luck or courage in a way that would bring shame to this academy, know that the punishment is severe. You are to remain disciplined. Am I understood?”
“Yes sir,” everyone replied.
“Good. After combat lessons and outdoor training, it is mandatory that you bathe and put on a fresh uniform, so as not to dirty the academy. In between and after lessons, you will have two hours in which you may use to bathe, eat, rest, and study. After dinner, you must go straight to your dorms. Now, all of you, get your uniforms and make yourselves presentable. Dinner is in one hour in the mess hall. Don’t be late.”
He walked away and the entire group released their held breath. Kiev was going to be a pain to study under. Noah and the other cadets went off to find their beds and collect their uniforms, then returned. Other groups were already inside, enjoying the five large communal baths. They lay at the other end of an array of shelves and benches for storing clothes. Soon enough, Noah was feeling the leftover strain of battle ebbing away and being replaced with warmth. Fresh water was constantly pouring in like a hot spring, and while the physics intrigued him, for now, he was just content with the result. Alongside the edges of the baths, bowls of powder had been set out. It was soap, rough soap, but better than nothing.
“Bliss…” he said to himself.
After taking some time to enjoy the water, he began scanning the other cadets. He’d be around them for the next year and they could affect his life even after the academy. It was best to determine who the greatest potential threats and assets were. He memorized faces and looked for any hints as to what their magic might be.
It was rather noisy, unfortunately, as a trio of brothers were arguing over who beat more applicants. Here in this stone room, a raised voice hit like a slap in the face. There were other noisemakers, the rare cases of friends managing to make it through the brawl. All the other cadets were still and silent, each surrounded by strangers.
Then, the tone shifted as the last group arrived, for among them was a cadet that had already earned a reputation. During the fight, he knocked out more applicants than anyone else, and not by pushing them over the line. He was built like a linebacker and had displayed frightening strength and skill, but now, eyes had fallen to the large rune on his chest. It was the glyph of Lumendori, but was it a birthmark or a tattoo? Once more, among the whispers, he heard a name: Prince Seraph.
‘He was the one who scored 100 at the magic test? This could be troublesome later.’
Over in the women’s bath, the air was less tense. A young woman, one of many, sat upon the edge of one of the baths and was scrubbing herself with the foaming powder. Her long scarlet hair hung freely and dripped endlessly. The water in the baths was warm, but it chilled her when it evaporated off her skin. She kept her head down and blue eyes closed, wanting to enjoy this brief peace. She was tired, physically and mentally. Despite being a noble, she envied the commoner girls and the freedom they enjoyed. She wished to disappear into the great wide world like they could. For now, all she could do was try to make the best of the situation, and hope that enrolling in the academy would help her down the road.
After washing away all hints of sweat, she changed into her cadet uniform. They were all identical military jumpsuits, using the same gray fabric. While not flattering, they were softer and more comfortable than the usual rough garb that adventurers and commoners wore. There was only one size, but plenty of laces and drawstrings for easy adjustment. It was almost time for dinner, so she hurried to the female dorms to drop off her clothes. In the small brick room, she stowed her clothes in the bureau, along with her other possessions.
The door closed behind her. She was no longer alone. She closed her eyes and tensed up, bracing herself for the mocking words and rough hands sure to come. But instead, she felt a soft caress to her cheek and unseen lips meeting her own, lips she knew.
“Alexis,” she whispered as she opened her eyes, looking upon the smile meant only for her.
“Sophia, I promised I would be here with you.” They shared another sapphic kiss and then held each other tight for a moment neither wished would end. They eventually separated, if only to wipe away each other’s joyful tears. “I knew you would make it. See? You’re stronger than you think,” Alexis said.
Sophia giggled. “It seemed like you were having a bit of trouble on your end.”
Alexis lost her smile. “I knocked him out twice, but that obnoxious serpent was never called on it. I’m sorry. I thought that if I could get him disqualified, you would be safe, but there is nothing I can do to—!”
Sophia silenced her with another tight embrace. “I don’t want to think about that. All I want to think about right now is this moment right here.”
----------
Noah and the other cadets gathered in the mess hall for dinner. They’d get in line with empty trays and take whatever the cooks had made. Tonight was chicken and raw vegetables, along with cups of wine. Noah took an empty seat along one of the long tables, isolated enough not to get drawn into any conversations, but not so far away from everyone as to appear prickly. He was still studying everyone, collecting data on their personalities. Who were the quiet ones? Who were the loudmouths? Who were the gifted and the moronic? The capable and the arrogant? The reliable and the backstabbers?
While mostly quiet in the bathhouse, the nobles were now celebrating like a bunch of frat boys after an exam. The wine was watered down to prevent intoxication, but they were drunk on the thrill of victory. Several at the higher levels appeared to already know each other, probably from formal events they attended with their parents. Noah listened in, always searching for useful information.
At the end of the room, the doors opened, and the commandant entered. About half of the cadets immediately got to their feet and locked their posture.
“As you were,” the man said. Once everyone sat back down, he resumed speaking. “Now that you are cadets instead of applicants, allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Commandant Rupert Ford, and I welcome you to the Utheric Knighthood Academy. You have all worked hard to get here, and you’ve earned a moment of merriment and rest, but tomorrow, the real work begins, where you shall be forged into proper knights. Whatever reason you have for coming here, you leave it at the door, for every step you now take on the path of life will be under this flag.”
He pointed up to the flag of Uther, hanging over the door. It depicted a shield with a swan on it.
“Uther’s glory, its prosperity, and its safety; these are what you will lay your life on the line for, and you will do so with the pride and honor of the knighthood.
‘Stand, so you may never fall.
Fight, so you may never die.
Charge, so you may never fear.
On crimson earth and beneath blackened sky.
With honor, we live.
With integrity, we fight.
May they sing of our strength.
How off our helms shines dawn’s light.
Be it through a forest of blades or arrows’ storm.
To fight for our people, we have sworn.’
That is the oath you will take upon entering the knighthood. It is the oath that will follow you until the day you die. Burn it into your souls, for when the day comes that you stand as knights in the service of Uther, the meaning of those words will be clear to you. Now, I will bid you all goodnight. Sleep well, for you will need your strength.”
He turned around and left the mess hall, so his words could sink in.
‘Well, as far as motivational speeches go, that wasn’t bad,’ Noah thought to himself as he resumed eating.
After dinner, the cadets returned to their various dorms, and in the barracks, Noah listened to the excited and fearful conversations as he lay on his bed. The lack of privacy was annoying, but it seemed he had stumbled upon a treasure trove of information. He’d get answers without asking a single question. His possessions had been stowed in the trunk beside him, protected by a magic lock. Noah’s ring was with his other belongings, as wearing jewelry was forbidden on academy grounds. Even if someone did manage to break into the trunk, his ring was hidden so well that they’d never find it. After relying on it in so many fights, he had grown accustomed to its convenience and now felt naked without it. His sword and knives were likewise banned, as cadets could only use the weapons supplied by the academy.
To his right, Gideon, the man he faced earlier. They each bore plenty of bruises from their unfinished match, and it seemed like he was simmering over it. He was asleep, or at least he was pretending. The moment he saw Noah, he grew a scowl that had yet to fully wither.
Please comment! Tell me your thoughts on the chapter!