Archery Lesson

Walking home from another day spent in miserable toil, Carson was in a foul mood. Instructor Hugh had been giving him extra duties for the last few days, and unpleasant ones at that. After two full days spent cleaning the department's indoor training facilities, by hand since Lifestyle Magic was forbidden while on extra duty, he'd had enough.

As if that humiliation was enough, Lord Hubert had expressed his displeasure with the result of Carson's earlier actions, and warned him against making any other moves. It was tantamount to saying that the Lothrain heir didn't trust him to get the job done!

While he'd never been the cleverest of men, Carson had been blessed with martial talent and good looks. Combined with his background as the second son of a wealthy baron, and he never faced a challenge that he couldn't overcome. As a result, he'd come to think of himself as someone to be counted on. That given the right resources, he could accomplish anything he set his mind to.

Being stymied by that upstart commoner girl and her non-human friends had been eye-opening. The dog beastman, in particular, had irked him, since he had the gall to look upon his betters with such intense hostility.

Just thinking of the look on his face while standing protectively in front of the girl, was making Carson furious. A dim part of the young man's mind recognized that he was working himself in a frenzy, but he'd never been one for self-reflection.

Cedric, his long suffering bodyguard remained nearby, as the young noble got increasingly angry. This had been a common scene over the last few days, so he tried to keep a straight face when his master started muttering under his breath about 'dirty peasants.'

In this rage fueled state, Carson realized that he was a short distance from the northeastern training yard where the shameful event had taken place. Perversely, he had the sudden desire to see the location. He changed directions and stalked in that direction.

When Carson caught sight of the three commoners, still using the training yard as if they didn't have a care in the world, he felt a surge of rage.

[So they think they can just come over here and snub me like this? Well, I think it's time to teach these fools a lesson.]

"Cedric, go get Bryce and the others. We have work to do." He commanded in a low voice.

The bodyguard hesitated, perhaps sensing that his master was not in his right mind. "Are you sure about this?"

"GO!" Carson roared.

The other man sighed, and started heading towards the group's usual hangout. It was clear that his master was about to make a serious mistake, but Cedric's only duty was to ensure the young man's life, at least on the surface. He made sure to send a message to his other employer while on the task.

As he waited for his crew to arrive, Carson found himself growing increasingly excited about teaching these upstarts a lesson.

[This is going to be…satisfying.]

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Sera drew back the string of her bow, sore muscles of her arms and back complaining under the strain, and lined up her shot. Her hands were steady, and after a long exhalation, she released. The arrow struck near the center of the target with a satisfying 'thwack.'

"Another bullseye." Tal commented in monotone. It wouldn't seem like praise to most, but after the last few days, Sera was beginning to get a feel for the elf's moods.

"Thanks." She replied. "I couldn't have gotten this far without you two, and Master Liam."

Brenden chuckled, "Don't know how much we helped, but if you feel indebted to us, who am I to say otherwise."

Frowning, Sera rounded on the beastman grumpily, "Why can't you just let me thank you? Why do you have to make things so difficult?"

Laughing again, "Because it amuses me."

Gritting her teeth, Sera was about to launch into a tirade on the infuriating man, when she noticed a change in his demeanor. He'd gone from relaxed to alert, and was directing a hostile gaze over her shoulder. Turning, she noticed a group of Martial Arts students walking in their direction, led by the arrogant noble from a few days ago.

[Great, just what we need. And not an instructor in sight.] She thought while mentally preparing herself for the confrontation ahead.

The group was composed of six students, including the one called Carson, and the reluctant bodyguard, who was following behind. They were armed, as was common in the Martial Arts department, but she hoped that it wouldn't come to violence. Not because she was worried about getting hurt, but because it would be difficult to keep her more volatile comrades from going too far. Brenden in particular seemed ready to commit murder, and the waves of killing intent rolling off of him were enough to set her on edge.

Sera placed herself at the front of the group, bow held loosely in one hand. "Good day, my lord. How can we help you?" She tried to keep her voice steady despite the unease she was feeling.

Carson grinned more broadly, probably enjoying the sight of her submission, as cursory as it might be. "You can help me by removing your filthy self from my sight. I'm offended that such unrefined garbage is polluting the campus atmosphere."

This verbal abuse elicited a round of chuckles from the rest of the students, although she could sense a current of unease.

Sera took a calming breath, and tried hard to suppress her anger. She decided to give in to the bully and leave. There was nothing to be gained from holding to pride in the face of a noble, and much to lose.

"If that is all you require, my lord, then we shall acquiesce." Turning to face the other two, she whispered. "Let's go. It's not worth a fight."

Brenden grumbled something under his breath, but turned away, ready to leave. Tal nodded slightly, but kept her gaze focused on the students, evidently ready to act should they interfere. Gratefully, Sera started leading them away, hoping that this would prove sufficient for Carson. Unfortunately, it seemed that the young noble had something else in mind.

Smiling cruelly, he spoke again, once their backs were turned. "Would you look at this? Leaving your equipment just lying here, like someone else is going to clean it up. Not only are you wasting the University's precious resources, but you're creating more work for the next person who wants to use this yard."

Sera mentally cursed. In her haste to escape the situation, she had forgotten about the practice arrows still sticking out of the target. It was a small matter, that at best would have earned them a warning, but it gave Carson the excuse he needed to start a conflict.

Grabbing one of the offending arrows and pulling it from the dummy, he examined the blunted head. "What do you think, Bryce? What sort of punishment would fit this most heinous crime?"

A ruddy, brown haired man who was built like a brick house, and looked about as intelligent, laughed at his boss's suggestion. "She should clean up her mess."

"That goes without saying, but it hardly constitutes a punishment if all you make her do, is what was expected of her in the first place. We need to come up with a method that will ingrain the proper behavior into her. Something truly memorable." Carson started pacing in mock contemplation.

Sera had a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach. She could feel the growing anger of her companions, and she knew that they would act before long, but she couldn't think of any way to avert the coming fight. The noble idiot seemed bound and determined to cause a scene, probably convinced that his status would protect him from any consequences.

"I know!" He exclaimed with hand raised and index finger pointed to the sky, "Why don't you do it naked? You'll be sure to remember the lesson, that way."

The suggestion inspired another round of chuckles from his crew, this time accompanied by lascivious grins. The students no longer seemed unsure, and instead were expectant.

Sera stared at the man, wishing she had the ability to kill a person with her thoughts. Glancing to her left and right to confirm that her friends would support her, she answered, "I won't be doing that, and you don't have the right to ask it of me."

This answer seemed to excite Carson, "Oh? Well then, boys, it looks like we're going to have to teach her the lesson personally." He motioned for the others to spread out and encircle the small group. Weapons drawn, they advanced menacingly.

"Ready?" Tal asked. Brenden had already drawn his sword, and the palpable bloodthirst it emitted gave the cocky students pause.

Sera nodded, already knocking one of the blunted arrows. "Let's show them who they're messing with."

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Carson was confused. This wasn't playing out how it was supposed to. Almost immediately after the fight started, the group was hit with a wave of Earth Magic, knocking them from their feet. The elf was apparently a mage. He'd been ignoring her, since she hadn't said anything on either occasion, but knowing that she could swing the battle with her magic, he ordered Cedric to take care of her.

Thankfully, the veteran warrior had maintained his balance in the initial attack. He launched himself at the mage, only to be intercepted by the beastman. The two engaged in a furious exchange of blows.

Bryce was trying to stand when an arrow blasted him between the eyes, knocking him out cold.

Cursing, Carson rolled to his feet as well, deflecting a second arrow with his sword. "Close in on the mage! We need to stop her before she casts again."

The advice came too late as the elf finished a chant and slammed the palm of her hand on the ground. Carson dived to his right, but the rest of his crew weren't so lucky.

Slightly tilted pillars of stone emerged from the ground at high speeds, launching the students into the air. Unable to help themselves, they flew for a few seconds before crashing into the ground with sickening thuds. While they didn't seem to be dead, Martial Arts students were durable at the very least, it didn't look like they would be of any further help.

The sound of broken metal filled the air as the confrontation between Cedric and the beastman was concluded with the former's sword shattering. The hapless bodyguard was thrown by the force of the final blow, colliding with one of the stone pillars and sliding down to the ground with a pained grunt.

Carson realized, to his horror, that he was the last of his group still standing. He looked over and saw the girl knocking another arrow on her bow.

"Wait! I'm a noble. You won't get away with this! There will be a price to pay for this, peasant!" He said while readying his sword to block. The beastman was circling around to his right, and the elf was preparing another spell, but it was the silver haired girl he was focused on.

She held her shot steady for a moment, hesitating. A look of determination flashed across her face. "So be it."

The girl fired three arrows in quick succession, each aiming at vital points. He dodged the first and blocked the second, but couldn't stop the third. It struck him in the center of his chest, and he felt his sternum shatter under the force.

Unable to breathe, and vision going hazy, Carson fell to his knees. The last thing he saw before darkness claimed him, was the girl....no woman standing proudly, defiantly.

[How....]

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When the noble finally collapsed into the dirt of the training yard, Sera let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding. That had gone a lot more smoothly than she dared hope. Now it was time to deal with the aftermath.

She glanced over at her companions, "What do you think we should do? He was right about one thing. Attacking a noble like this, justified or not, could lead us into some serious trouble."

Tal remained quiet, her consternation clear despite her lack of facial expression.

Brenden grimaced and slammed a fist against one of the stone pillars. "I don't know.."

"I suspect that won't be an issue for you." The bodyguard broke in from his seated position. Sera had honestly forgotten about him in the heat of the moment. She was going to have to work on that in the future.

"Why is that?" She asked, making sure to keep her distance from the man.

"Its a bit complicated, but Carson, that fool over there that I have the misfortune of serving, is a follower of Lord Hubert, heir to the house of Lothrain."

Sera grimaced. The Lothrains were the most powerful Almiran noble family outside of the royalty itself. Making enemies out of them was tantamount to suicide.

Seeing the look on her face, the bodyguard laughed and then grimaced, holding his side. "Ow, that hurts. Anyway, I'm not telling this to you as a threat. In truth, my master was ordered to leave you alone, mainly to avoid offending the Serpent, I believe. However, Carson is a fool. I suspect that, so long as your master agrees, Lord Hubert would be quite willing to bury this issue."

"That would be most generous of Lord Hubert." She replied with a smile. "Would you be so kind as to pass on a message for him? Please ask him to keep a better eye on his subordinates in the future. Do so, and we will be willing to let this issue slide."

The bodyguard raised an eyebrow, then chuckled again, eliciting another pained groan. "Oh? Its like that, is it? Very well, I'll pass the message along."

"Thank you-" Sera's response was cut off by a sudden roar of pain-fueled rage.

Bryce, face a mask of fury was swing his mace at her. She tried to dodge, but could already tell she was going to be too late.

[Damn....forgot about him too.....some Oracle I am.]

She squeezed her eyes shut in anticipation of the coming blow.

There was a rush of air, and the sound of flesh colliding against flesh. A silence descend on her surroundings.

"All that big talk, and you let the fat guy get a jump on you? I'm a little disappointed." A taunting voice said.

Her eyes flew open and she saw Mike's cocky grin. The brutish Martial Arts student had collapsed into a heap nearly 5m away. A visible, fist shaped imprint was still embedded in the man's face.

Looking up at the infuriating individual who had once again saved her, she only had one thing to say.

"Well, its about time!"