Chapter 58 - Variable (3)

"First of all, I would like to thank Patriarch Miller for providing the beautiful location that is the Alpha Perimeter; thanks be given also to Matriarch Sloan and the members of her household for the realisation of everything you can see here built today; and to the esteemed Deleon family for providing the necessary funds, materials and components.

Without the cooperation of all these magnificent people, all of this would not be possible! Please, let's give them all a big round of applause!"

The crowd remained silent, with the exception of some particularly devoted household members who could be heard clapping and cheering, albeit without much noise.

The speaker cleared his throat and resumed speaking.

"Today, esteemed spectators, you will have the privilege of getting a glimpse of the future! Directly from the Inter-Perimetral Academy of Martial and Aururgic Studies of the Delta Perimeter, it is my pleasure to introduce to you all the Aleph Class!"

A group of seventeen young people in their twenties entered from the two symmetric entrances. They all donned the same deep red and brown tight uniform with protective inserts positioned around the major joints, the back and the chest.

This time, the response of the crowd was a little bit warmer. I raised an eyebrow. In the world I had designed I had never provided for a type of academy of that sort. The Gamma Perimeter with its comprehensive school system should have been an outlier, due to its characteristic weak population, a factor that led them to keep isolated from the outside world.

The Gamma had contacts only with the Beta through intermediaries and for this reason it needed to be self-sufficient from almost every single point of view. As a consequence it needed to educate its own professionals.

The proof of the irrelevance of the Gamma on a global scale was the fact that each year they managed to send only a single person to the inter-perimetral tournament. Obviously, they didn't do it anymore, as the Gamma had fallen a long time ago.

With the passing of time, every single Perimeter had specialised in a different sector, so there was no actual reason for establishing a common academy. Moreover, every household had the tendency of keeping its talents to itself, so it seemed strange to me for such an institution to exist.

Nevertheless, something else had attracted my attention. Between the sixteen students there were three I knew well: one was Lily, with her titular greatsword and twin swords, and the other two were the remaining members of the hero party.

On my right there was Jonah Deleon, heir to the industrial powerhouse that was the Delta Perimeter, a youth of tall-medium height with a slim but fit figure, long blond hair and extremely clear, almost grey eyes. An elegantly adorned rapier was hanged on his side and on his back rested a quiver full of arrows and an intricate bow.

Although he was a skilful swordsman his abilities shone when a long-range weapon was in his hands. He was most likely one of the archs on the planet that could afford to employ a bow.

Projectile weapons were notoriously difficult to infuse with aura, making them less effective, and arrows were particularly affected by this problem. This downside could be circumvented by making use of particularly crafted darts, realised through a moulding methodology. The cost was obviously astronomical and having the necessary funds was the least of the problems.

You first needed to find a workshop full of talented artisans, and convince them to produce something for you. Jonah hadn't much difficulty in doing so, as most workshops were the direct property of his family.

On my right, one of the fundamental pieces of this world could be found. Isaac Grant, a tall muscular youth with a head of chestnut hair and two deep green eyes. On his side, a shortsword, in his hands, a spear with an elongated tip. Although not as destructive as Lily, his fighting prowess and mastery of every weapon made him capable of going toe to toe with her. It would be difficult to predict how a fight between the two would go, as there was Isaac's own spellcasting to consider.

I hadn't spent much time designing his backstory. He was the usual poor child who remained an orphan at a very young age, taken in by a powerful master and trained to defeat evil, wherever it hid.

In a world where actual evil didn't exist, as everything was too messed up to neatly distinguish it from good, he would naturally go on to concentrate on vanquishing the greatest menace to this planet's relative peace. He was the usual brave and compassionate hero, who selflessly put others before himself and never gave up in the face of hardship.

He actually bored me a little when I came up with him. For this reason I concentrated a bit more on Lily and Jonah.

My eyes were instinctively drawn to another student. She was a young girl, seemingly a little older than me, with a warm smile and kind eyes, whose bright emerald colour reminded me of a forest of evergreen. Her short auburn hair framed her soft features.

She was shorter than her peers, including Jonah, who was the shortest of the three members of the hero team. Differently from the other student, she wasn't wearing the red and brown uniform, but a light orange tunic ornamented with silverish motives of filigree. In her hands there was a small bell, not unlike those commonly used in religious functions, covered with extremely complex patterns engraved all over its surface.

For some reason I felt both intrigued and repulsed by her. I couldn't completely explain this feeling, but it was like she was an existence which was not compatible with mine. Her scent was unique, unlike any other I had experienced to this day. I moved my gaze, as I was sure it carried both curiosity and hostility.

The presenter's next words helped me distract from this feeling.

"The bouts will be organised according to an elimination type tournament. Soon the first match will begin. We ask for your patience. Thank you!"

The speaker turned around, exchanged a couple of words with the students and walked them off the ring and outside of the arena. I remained seated in place, waiting for the action to begin. I was curious about how the people I had designed would lead themselves in battle.

Soon enough two people made their entrance from the opposite side. I sat comfortably and looked at them with curiosity.