Blade Over Magic

Choices

As they walked, Samuel took the initiative to talk, his smaller frame creating an odd scene as he walked in front of the group.

"I have to say, you lot have caused quite the uproar. It’s only been a few months since you became Avoma students, yet you perform like that? It’s no wonder things are hectic right now." He hummed.

"Not that it’s necessarily a bad thing, after all, what’s the point in hiding your competence? In fact, some actually think you lot have been hiding your true capabilities this whole time and were pretending whilst in the school. I don’t blame them, though, your feats in Landor were a sight to behold." At this point, Curtis couldn’t help but ask.

"Shouldn’t the footage from Feidos have only been dispersed among the upper echelons? Why does everyone seem to know about it?" Samuel turned and smiled as he walked backwards, his gloved hands spreading slightly.

"That’s probably how it was meant to be originally, but like many things, the footage got leaked, copied, and then spread before anyone could really do much about it." He paused, then added thoughtfully. "Then again, it’s more likely that this was done on purpose. After all, the more attention is on you guys, the harder it will be for you to move freely." That made them fall silent.

’I don’t like this guy.’ Falael muttered through the link.

’Surprisingly, I agree with you.’ Aubrey shared their sentiment, which confused Curtis.

’Huh? Why? He seems calm.’ Aubrey and Falael just sighed.

’You wouldn’t get it.’

At that moment, Xander gave Samuel a questioning look, and the shorter boy just grinned.

"You’re wondering how I somehow managed to be running errands on behalf of the Major General? Well, you guys aren’t the only ones who have been pulling off absurd feats and garnering attention. But I will admit, y’all did more than I could have imagined." His gaze turned deeper, though, his smile never left.

"I knew I made the right choice to approach you early on. Not only have you grown nicely, you seem to have gotten yourself a nice group of companions. My instincts aren’t half bad, are they?" This made Aubrey and Falael’s eyes narrow sharply, and even Curtis found the statement quite strange.

As for Xander, he just looked at Samual flatly, yet he still said nothing.

Samuel hummed and looked at Xander’s attire, then a look of understanding dawned across his face.

"Ah... I see." He didn’t mention what he ’saw’ and simply turned around again, continuing to walk without a word.

Soon enough, the group seemed to peel away from the usual facilities of Avoma and arrived in an area that seemed more like a residential spot than the grounds of a school.

As it turned out, high ranking officers who worked at the school had their own accommodations. This included the Major General, and it didn’t take much effort to find where his own place was.

A large residence that looked like it could work as a manor for a lesser noble could be seen at the very back of the residential area. The vibe it gave off was imposing, and Aubrey noted that the place was filled with hidden spell formations with a myriad of effects, though most were geared towards vaporizing any and all intruders.

But strangely enough, it was quiet. There were no soldiers standing guard, or even autonomous magic constructs acting as maids or cleaners. So it felt quite empty.

Yet as Samuel led the group into the building, they were surprised to see that it was remarkably well maintained, clearly getting cleaned regularly.

Aubrey and Curtis showed traces of awe when they observed the opulent manor, and only Xander, Falael, Samuel, and Mia seemed unperturbed.

"A few things to note before meeting Major General Collins." Samuel started, his expression becoming more neutral.

"The man does not like small talk. Neither does he enjoy bootlicking or beating around the bush. Also, there’s a chance he won’t be alone in his meeting room. So keep that in mind." As he said this, the group reached a set of double doors.

Samuel pushed them open, and they all entered the room which resembled a standard military meeting room where officers would meet.

As soon as they entered, the group immediately felt numerous gazes fall on them.

At the head of the meeting table was the one-eyed Major General Collins, his uniform crisp and clean, posture straight and expression firm.

Next to him was the familiar figure of the beautiful Sergeant Alya, and there were some other Sergeants, heads of certain faculties in the school... and a few people who seemed to not be from the school at all.

The group immediately clocked them to be individuals from the various factions of Solvaren, and among them, Xander specially took note of two people wearing Mage robes, an emblem with the shape of a tall white tower on their chests.

These were mages from the Mage Tower, and their gazes were fixed on Xander, both openly hostile.

It seemed like things were already in motion...

"I’ve brought them, General." Samuel saluted, and Collins just nodded at him. When Samuel went to stand behind him, Collins spoke directly.

"Cadets Aubrey, Curtis, Falael, Mia, and Squad Leader Xander, can we assume you all are aware of why you are here? Or if you at least have an idea?" When he spoke, Xander, who hadn’t said a word since, finally opened his mouth.

He saluted, then he replied.

"Would I be correct in saying that it is to discuss our future at this school?" His tone was calm and devoid of emotion, a far cry from how he’d been acting in the last couple of hours.

The sound of his voice caused the others to let out hidden sighs of relief, but they never removed their gazes from those at the table.

"Correct." Collins said simply. "You should be aware of why this is a topic in the first place, so I’ll get straight to the point." He leaned forward slightly.

"As things stand, none of you are fit to be students anymore. Quite frankly, the feats you all displayed at Landor place you well above this school’s normal and even abnormal power ceiling. Keeping you as students is simply a pointless endeavor. Hence, it was decided that upon your arrival, you will be granted an early graduation. Do not treat this as a shameful affair, though. Your actions allowed for the survival of an entire town and effectively thwarted a massive conspiracy. As a soldier, I can only respect your actions. And once you graduate, you will be granted the corresponding accolades." This was met with a few nods at the table, primarily from those who were actually part of Avoma, the outsiders showed no reaction, and those from the Mage Tower even scoffed silently.

Xander was silent for a few seconds, then he spoke.

"We understand. However, I’m assuming that that isn’t all, sir?" At this, Collins nodded slowly.

It was then that Sergeant Alya spoke.

"To put it simply, many factions of Solvaren are interested in you lot, for better or worse. So as soon as you graduated, you should expect to be approached by said factions." She leaned into her chair.

"Starting from here." The gazes of everyone in the room turned deeper, and the tension in the room spiked.

However, after staring down literally beast leaders without flinching, nuking a giant tree, fighting thousands of ants and one that was basically a demon while catching sight of a literal infant Hell Gate, Xander and co were no longer intimidated by such things.

"Alright." Xander said simply.

Seeing that they were completely unperturbed, Samuel, who was behind Collins, smiled faintly, while Collins himself nodded.

"Good, then I’ll be blunt." He intertwined his fingers, and he looked every bit the Major General that he was.

"Join Solvaren’s army." As soon as he said this, the heads of the other faction representatives snapped towards him.

"Collins, what are you doing? This wasn’t part of the agreement?!" Someone in noble attire hissed, but Collins completely ignored them and continued.

"The military is under the Royal Family, so by joining it, you will be under the Royal Family indirectly. This can bring you a number of benefits. The strength you displayed ensures that all of you have the capacity to be Captains at the very least. Moreover, your contributions at Landor alone would allow you all access to special Repositories where you can obtain rare materials and resources which would greatly aid your growth. You wouldn’t even need to disband as a group either."

"Collins!" One of the people from the Mage Tower stood abruptly, yet as soon as they did.

"Sit down." A powerful force descended on the shoulders of the representative, forcing them down into their seat with a painful sounding thud. Collins didn’t even look at them, his eye fixed on Xander and co.

"Naturally, you will have certain obligations as well. But you do not need to worry about the interference of other forces. If you fear for your families, they will be given accommodations away from any threats. You don’t even need to participate in military campaigns. If you so wish, you can simply act as teachers here at Avoma." Shocking conditions were laid out, with terms granting more freedom than most soldiers could even dream of.

It was clear that Solvaren’s military, and by extension, the Royal Family, was playing their first card, and it wasn’t a weak one either.