A Confrontation

The Eternal Siege, he said.

"The war occurred 4000 years ago, beyond the lifespan of a Tier 10 Warrior, so a part of the knowledge is lost."

"However, what we do know is that the war was gruesome."

"It wiped out 90% of the human and beast population, before abruptly ending for an unknown reason."

"After fighting for its share, the Symons Empire shifted from being the smallest to the second largest Empire across the four lands."

"Any questions about that?"

Silence.

I continued to listen as he talked, explaining the intricacies of the creation of the lands, and how the war played out. It was quite a long lecture, perhaps a couple of hours at the least. Many students fell asleep after the interesting bit had ended.

But most continued writing their notes.

I was one of them, and I was glad I did.

Because at the end of the lecture, Mr. Unger dropped a bombshell on us.

"I hope you took notes, because you'll have a test tomorrow worth 25% of your grade all about the early years of Melisande, and the Eternal Siege in detail. Questions will be based on everything I said today."

The class immediately broke out into protests at his words, while I struggled to contain my laughter at their predicament. 

I liked this guy.

As he packed his things, he took one last look at the class before mouthing something. 

'A promising bunch,' he mouthed, before leaving.

I also began packing my notes. Since my next class was Basic Combat, I needed to loosen up before the beginning of class. As I was about to leave the class, a few guys approached me before blocking my way.

At the center of it all was Rutley.

I released an inward sigh. Did I have to deal with a third-rate young master on my first day at the Academy? Like, seriously.

Judging by his arrogant expression, he wasn't going to leave me alone until he felt satisfied. Was this because I'd dodged his chalk? Or did the original Ryan Ashford pick a fight with the guy before I appeared?

I wasn't sure.

Regardless, I wanted to get it over with today.

"What is it?" I asked as I stopped in my tracks to stare at the guy. Rutley looked me up and down before crossing his arms. His gaze was naive, and his body was weak. Now that I observed him, he was nothing special.

The only concern was his ability to use that 'energy,' which I assumed was called 'Arcana,' judging by the fact that my third class was 'Arcana Theory.' Beyond that, Rutley was nothing special in the physical aspect.

"Where do you think you're going, shitstain?" Rutley asked rhetorically, closing in.

By now, everyone had left the class. It was only Rutley, his posse, and I. 

"What do you want, little guy?" I inquired, my eyes observing any movement. My hands were twitching, ready to be used.

"Little guy… this bitch has grown a pair. Do you not remember yourself screaming for mercy when I put your head down the toilet?"

Did that happen? Sounds… irritating.

"Seriously, I'm getting late for my class," I said. "Do you have anything else to say or should I go?"

"Try and see if you can."

As I took a step forward, I saw his arm move at terrifying speeds, coated in a layer of Arcana. I revealed a slight smile, having predicted something of the sort. His fist was fast, sure. But all speed is worthless if your enemy knows where and when you're going to attack.

I slid my left foot back and to the side, twisting my body in a way that allowed to dodge and lean forward.

Then, I implanted my fist onto Rutley's cheekbones.

Bam!

The sound of collision was music to my ears. As I relished the sensation, I raised my left foot, which rested to the side. Twirling towards my left, I kicked Rutley on the waist using the back of my foot.

The sound of something breaking entered my ears as a shrill scream resounded across the classroom.

No matter the amount of raw power, if you can't land a hit, it's all worthless.

But it seemed as if Rutley was not done yet.

With veins popping from his forehead and an expression dyed with rage, he let out a roar akin to that of a chihuahua. Masking my muffled laughter, I watched him struggle to lift a finger with his injuries.

"Y–You fucking…"

"I wouldn't really care if you stuffed that guy's face in the toilet… but if that's why my mouth has a shitty taste right now, you're not going to see tomorrow's sunrise."

I lightly blocked his weak jab that was devoid of Arcana.

"Did that guy really get bullied by you? Seriously?" I asked, forming a disgusted expression as I pushed him down to the floor. His posse just watched in shock, none courageous enough to jump in.

Rutley's face was dyed crimson by that point. It contorted as he attempted to endure the unbearable pain that assaulted his side. 

I hadn't meant to hit that hard, but it did loosen my muscles for Basic Combat class.

"Get yourself checked," I said as I walked out of class. "Also, maybe get a bidet installed."