Chapter 6-7: The Howling Winds

When they arrived at the northern courtyard, the atmosphere was a lot heavier than before. And the reason was obvious; the Archmage was there. And accompanying him was none other than Yu.

Ren drew a sharp breath. Prince Aon placed his hand on the young man's shoulder. "Be silent until this is done."

"Yes, sir." Ren quietly replied. Just being allowed to be here was quite the honour.

They approached the crowd of battlemages as all gazes turned on them.

"Prince Aon." It was the Archmage who spoke. With his short, messy, brown hair and large glasses, it was difficult to take him seriously. Despite the state of his hair, he wore his traditional white robes properly. "Thank you for taking the situation under control so quickly."

"I did very little. Principal Auria is who deserves your thanks." Prince Aon smiled, then glanced at Yu. "First, it is an honour, as always."

Yu's sharp eyes and cold expression didn't change one bit as he wordlessly nodded. Even when his glance landed on Ren, his demeanour remained the same.

Ren clenched his fist under the cover of his cloak. Why had Yu not told him about that expedition? Why had he never talked about the exiled scholar? It felt as if a knife had been thrust into his heart, and Yu's cold expression only drove it further inside.

"In that case, let us begin." The Archmage spoke. "Fourth, I will require your assistance." Ren flinched as Alicia stepped forward. Since everyone was masking their mana, he hadn't seen her in the crowd. She also wore her uniform, blood red battle robes that fit her perfectly. Wordlessly, she extended her hand and touched the weakened part of the barrier.

"Let us begin," With the Archmage's words, she released her mana. Ren held his breath as the fiery crimson mana washed over him. His skin felt as if it were on fire. Had her mana gotten even stronger than before? It felt as if it was a lot more intense than before.

The Archmage also extended his hand. He was holding a round, crystalline object. Ren recognised it immediately, it was the core of a powerful creature. A core filled with wildmagic.

Alicia's mana enveloped the core, and soon the Archmage's green mana joined hers. His mana smelled like newly cut grass; it was oddly relaxing.

Their mana lifted the core from the Archmage's palm and pulled it closer to the barrier. As Ren watched, the core cracked and broke. The released wildmagic leapt out of it, but he couldn't even see its colour as the Archmage's mana guided it towards the barrier.

Under Ren and everyone else's focused gazes, the barrier absorbed the wildmagic flowing from the core. Moments later, the gentle breeze passing through the barrier ceased.

"It's done." The Archmage spoke. He nodded towards Prince Aon, who remained motionless. The Archmage raised his hand and, with a flash of light, disappeared.

"Teleportation?" Ren whispered as he shielded his eyes. Prince Aon nodded. "A spell he created." He softly responded, before raising his voice to address everyone there. "Thank you for taking quick and effective steps to prevent this imminent crisis. Please return to your duties."

"Thank you for your assistance, your highness." Principal Auria said before the battlemages started to leave. Prince Aon glanced at Ren. "Are you feeling well?"

Ren nodded. When he noticed the massive amount of wildmagic, he did fear for his wellbeing, but Alicia and the Archmage used their mana to isolate the stream of wildmagic perfectly.

"What did it look like?" The prince asked after a short moment of hesitation. Ren shook his head.

"I'm sorry, it was isolated too well. I couldn't say anything more than 'it existed'." He lowered his gaze. He wanted to know what it looked like.

"That's fine. We couldn't even do that, remember?" Prince Aon said with, what looked like a grin. "Take care in the coming days, Ren. Train and prepare well for what's to come."

"Yes, sir." He placed his hand on his heart and bowed. Prince Aon let out a deep breath, then stepped away. As Ren straightened his back, he noticed imperial guard once again take their positions around the prince.

He looked towards the remaining three battlemages – Alicia, Warthorn and Yu. All others had left already.

His heartbeat quickened as he noticed Yu's dark expression. He took a deep breath to calm himself. No matter what, Yu was the closest thing he had to a father. He deserved his trust, before anyone else. He had to have a reason for not telling him about the expedition and everything else. He just had to.

Alicia suddenly shook her head, almost wildly. "No! I won't let you!" She shouted. Ren flinched, were they… having a fight? If so, it'd be a smart idea to leave the courtyard and wait further inside the woods.

Warthorn said something with a low voice as they glanced at Ren. After a short moment of awkwardness, Alicia glared at him and loudly repeated. "No."

"Fine!" He shouted, threw his hands in the air, and left the courtyard with long, loud steps. Alicia sighed, then glanced at Ren and forced a smile. Before ren could react, she bolted towards the academy.

As she disappeared in the woods, an awkward silence settled in.

"You've grown, Ren." Yu spoke after a while, shattering the silence. His bright green eyes met with Ren's. "I'm glad to see it." His hand rested on the hilt of his tachi as his voice softened a bit.

Ren hesitated, then approached him. He wasn't sure of how to act towards him – he was here in his capacity as the First Battlemage. "I'm glad to see you well too." He said carefully and motioned to bow. Yu quickly stepped forward and grabbed his wrist.

"You know you don't need to do that."

Ren flinched. "Sorry, I just… I don't know how to act anymore." He whispered.

"I heard you were summoned." Yu said as his grasp on the hilt of his tachi tightened. "I heard; they weren't… kind, this time." He worded his statement like a question. Ren flinched as he remembered.

"It was worse than usual." He placed his hand on the mark on his chest. "They tried a few things and failed." He glanced at the battlemage. "But I'm fine now. I'm sorry if I worried you."

A faint smile flashed across Yu's face. "Never apologize for something that isn't your fault." He shuffled Ren's hair. "I can't stay too long, but Ren, a word of advice. During the special training, whatever happens, do not let your blood spill."

Ren flinched. "What do you mean?"

"And if it does, make sure to bandage it properly. No matter how small the wound is, ok?" Yu said, staring into his eyes. "Promise me."

Ren hesitated, then replied. "I'll do my best." A faint smile flashed across my face. "I assume you aren't allowed to say what this training entails?" Yu shook his head. Ren nodded. "I'll keep it mind. Thanks, Yu."

They watched the barrier for a while as Ren tried to gather the courage to ask him about the scholar, the expedition and everything else. Finally, he took a deep breath and with a weak voice, asked.

"Yu, what did the scholar that was exiled five years ago do?"