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Of Arms and Arcane: Chapter 132
🕑 Added 2024-08-19 15:05:58 +0000 UTCAfter my slight altercation with Osawald and the other boys in the hallway, turns out, from what I heard, my brief scrap almost filled up the clinic, and the healers and nurses on duty were none too pleased with me, or the whiny brats they were treating.
Other than that, reports were filled, parents were called for those who had them in the capital, and as expected, those parents kicked up a fuss about their house’s honor being sullied, or demanding satisfaction.
Naturally, all of them were told to go fuck themselves, but in more diplomatic terms while informing them on how embarrassing it would be if they really wanted to escalate his small fight into something more official, which of course they did not, on the count of the king breathing down everybody’s necks at a moment when the dirty laundry of many powerful people was currently being aired.
For the next few weeks after the fight, quite a good number of noble and merchant kids seemed to be walking on eggshells whenever I showed my face, it did not take a genius to realize that outside of official and professional interactions, I was effectively persona non grata among a good chunk of the social upper crust.
On the bright side, this has also somewhat endeared me among more of the commoners, and even some nobles who did not run in the bigger social circles. And the best news of all, was that Oswald fucked up too many times to be overlooked by the school administration to be just because of his family.
Although I assume the school had the political clout to kick his ass out of the Royal Academy, I think they may have reached a compromise with his family and transferred his ass to Class B with two of his closer lackeys that always get into trouble with him, and with the biggest instigators gone from the class, the few lackeys that were still in Class A lost their social capital from kissing Oswald’s ass.
With the troublemakers out of the way, I can honestly say that the class atmosphere has improved since then. Slowly, the noble kids started interacting with the commoner kids without Oswald and his gang sneering at them for associating themselves with the lower class.
And as I enjoy my somewhat peaceful school life, a thought enters my mind every now and then, ‘Would the first half of the year have been easier if I had been attacked by assassins earlier and this whole mess kicked off back then?’
***
Time flew by, and I blew through the preliminary exams with ease, the only part that was somewhat harder was my combat assessment, I think one of the assistant instructors got a bit too excited while fighting me and did not hold back, Instructor Greyham had to call off the battle junkie and ended up giving me extra credit for my “Exceptional display of martial prowess”, so I was not too pissed off that I got a harder test than everyone else.
Other than that, I have become fluent in the Elven language and can carry out basic conversations. As for the languages I learned in my Languages of Power class, I have picked up enough Elemental Script, Sylvan Language, and Draconic Script to manifest minor phenomena when injecting mana and intent into those words.
But the Language of Power I excelled at best so far was Draconic Script. I mean, no surprise there, considering who was teaching the class, I even got some afterschool lessons on Draconic Script from Professor Sageira when our experiments needed waiting time.
Now that the prelim exams were over, the next big event was the yearly tournament where each class would put forward their best students for a few different categories of the tournament. This tournament would mainly be held in The Arena, and it would be watched by commoners and nobles alike.
This annual tournament was only for Higher Education students and up, it was mainly to show off up-and-coming talent among the Year 1 Higher Education like myself, the growth of the Year 2&3, but most importantly, the graduating batch of Year 4 Higher Education.
From what I am told, for quite a number of the Year 4 Higher Education, participation in this annual tournament was a make-or-break kind of situation for their future, and they had to put on a good show in whatever category they took part in, especially for the commoner graduates.
There would be many eyes on them, nobles, merchants, knight orders, mage towers, mercenary companies, and even the royals. They are all hungry for new talent, and those graduating students who performed well would be swarmed with offers to join these organizations, I was told there were even impromptu bidding wars between organizations to try and win over exceptional students.
So all this brings us to the now, where my form teacher, Professor Theodore Fairfax, is tapping his pointing stick against the board with different tournament categories and the subcategories written down, and there was a lot to choose from. But I suppose with a school such as the Royal Academy providing such a wide range of subjects to study, there is a lot to show off.
“So ladies and gentlemen, who wants to represent our class in these categories?” Professor Fairfax asked the class, and I started reading through the events that were going to take place.
1. Combat Events
- Swordsmanship Duels: Traditional one-on-one sword fights to test agility, technique, and combat prowess.
- Melee Battles: Group combat scenarios, either in teams or free-for-all, where fighters demonstrate their ability to handle multiple opponents, showcasing strategy and endurance.
- Jousting: Mounted knights charging at each other with lances, testing bravery, skill, and horsemanship.
- Archery Competitions: Precision-based challenges that could include stationary targets, moving targets, or even long-distance shooting.
2. Magic Events:
- Spellcasting Duels: Mages face off in controlled environments, showcasing offensive and defensive magic, quick thinking, and control over different elements or arcane forces.
- Enchantment Competitions: Mages demonstrate their ability to enchant weapons, armor, or other objects, impressing potential employers looking for magical items.
- Illusion Contests: Competitors create illusions to deceive or entertain, showing off creativity and mastery of subtle magic.
- Elemental Control: Mages compete to show mastery over the elements (fire, water, earth, air), perhaps in trials of strength or creativity.
- Array Magic: Mages show off their mastery of magic Arrays, they will show off their speed array construction, accuracy, and effectiveness of their array.
3. Mixed or Specialized Events:
- Battle Mage Trials: A combination of combat and magic, where participants must use both sword and spell to overcome challenges, highlighting versatility.
- Monster Hunts: Teams or individuals hunt dangerous creatures, demonstrating bravery, skill, and the ability to work under pressure.
4. Skill-based or Artisan Events:
- Weapon and Armor Crafting Competitions: Blacksmiths and artisans demonstrate their craftsmanship by forging weapons or armor on-site, appealing to merchants, knight orders, and nobles.
- Trap-making and Disarming: Participants showcase their ability to create or disarm intricate traps, useful for mercenaries or knight orders.
- Alchemy Competition: Alchemists or potion masters create potions under time constraints or specific themes, showing off their knowledge and resourcefulness.
- Invention Competition: Inventors and tinkerers are given a theme and certain criteria to fulfill some time before the tournament begins, and they will show off the results of their works during the tournament itself.
5. Leadership and Strategy Events:
- War Games: Medium-scale strategic simulations where commanders direct troops in mock battles, showcasing their leadership and tactical acumen. (Mercenaries hired by the kingdom would be acting as soldiers during this contest.)
- Diplomacy and Negotiation Trials: Participants engage in simulated negotiations or diplomatic missions, showing their ability to handle political situations, appealing to nobles and royals.
- Tactical Puzzles or Challenges: Individuals or teams solve complex strategic problems, demonstrating quick thinking and planning.
6. Cultural or Entertainment Events:
- Bardic Competitions: Bards or entertainers perform, either through music, storytelling, or magical performances, showcasing talent that might attract the attention of nobles or royals seeking entertainers.
- Feats of Strength or Agility: Participants demonstrate their physical prowess through various challenges, like lifting heavy objects or navigating obstacle courses, which could appeal to anyone looking for strong warriors.
After reading through the list, I found myself interested in some of them, but then it hit me. With my strength and skills, I could dominate the combat and magic events, maybe not the jousting, but even if I do, what do I get out of it?
Wanting to find out, I raised my hand, “Professor, if we win, what do we get out of it?”
Professor Fairfax smiled and answered, “Besides a medal, you will get honor, glory, and prestige. And to some of you who think that does not sound like anything tangible, I can confirm that it is not, what it does though, is attract others to invest in your future, and that, my dear students, is very tangible when you leave this academy.”
