BlaiseCorvin
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Past Life Hero 2, ch 21
🕑 Added 2023-11-30 23:35:58 +0000 UTCSorry for the wait on this one. It was a pain to edit.
Also, sorry for any remaining issues the chapter might still have.
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Max sat across from the two headmasters in a small, plain room. They had escorted him there after realizing that he wasn't going to change his mind.
On the way, as they’d hustled him through the central area to a nondescript building, which housed this room, Max thought about the effort they’d put into this meeting. They must have emptied the dungeon facility before Max came back to the Quartet and done whatever was necessary to suppress it.
Maybe they were telling students that wanted to go to a dungeon that they were cleaning or renovating. The specifics weren’t important, but the implications were interesting.
Considering how it sounded like the other two headmasters were not a part of this and not even aware of what was happening, it had been a pretty ballsy move. This all also helped explain why Mong Hao Han and Territ Mond had wanted to get him out when he didn't play ball right away.
Now the two older men just silently sat, watching Max, and he silently watched them right back. Perhaps they expected him to be a naive young man, but this situation didn't make him uncomfortable at all. Besides, they needed him more than he needed them. He reflected that if they had known he was going to be difficult, they might not have told him as much as they did before. The act he had put on at the Summoner Academy before, where he pretended to be docile, was paying off.
Meng Hao Han finally broke the quiet. "We need to get you to work with us on this. You already agreed to fight for the Summoner academy in the Quartet competition. And that likely would have led to the inter-Quartet competition in the first place."
Max held up a hand. "I don't recall expressly agreeing to do anything other than participate in the Quartet competition. After all, wasn't the objective to prove that summoners weren't weak? To earn some respect, even if by the edge of a sword? Well, I think I’ve already contributed to that. But most importantly, there was give and take with that deal. What you were discussing earlier would be a different matter, wouldn’t it?"
Mong Hao coughed nervously, darting a glance at Territ, who smiled sardonically. Max couldn't even begin to decipher the layers of history between them. He thought he’d directly hit the mark for the Summoner academy headmaster to understand his position, though. The subtext was very clear: "I'm not a soldier. This is transactional. So, what do I get?"
In the back of his mind, Lavinia whispered, I am disturbed by all of this, and I'm not sure how I feel about you working with the leadership in either academy. But I trust you will handle this well. You have my support.
Thanks, Lavinia, thought Max.
Then she said, Mong Hao Han still makes me nervous, too. It wouldn't surprise me if he could still hear me talking to you, so I'll keep radio silence now.
That idea had never occurred to Max, and he gave the Summoner Academy headmaster a suspicious look, but the other man didn't seem to notice, or he was a really good actor. After all, he had definitely lived long enough to have developed a skill like that.
"How about we just cut to the chase?" asked Territ.
"I would like that," said Max. "I'm listening."
"Okay, as you know, we would like you to fight for our Quartet and go as far as possible. As you probably also know, there are two divisions, junior and senior. Each Path has different lengths of maximum residency for Challengers in their own Quartet schools. The divider for the divisions is half that time, rounded up. So junior Summoner Challengers are from year one to four. Seniors are five to seven years. Junior Challengers from any school can choose to compete at the senior levels if they and their faculty believe they are good enough.
“That does not happen often. There are rewards but also risks. The top eight Challengers in each division get rewarded according to their placement.
“If a Challenger from the junior division challenges the senior division, and they fail to place in the top three, they just lose with no prizes. But if they take first,second, or third place, they can challenge the winner of the junior division to a duel. If they win, they will effectively win both divisions. This rule is in place because some of the most talented Challengers may choose to leave their Quartet before staying long enough to be senior competitors.”
Max raised his eyebrows at that, but it did make a certain sort of sense. The lack of any prize at all if a junior Challenger didn’t take the top three in the senior division would help keep juniors entering an exception, too. “So you want me to fight. I knew that," said Max. "But how is it going to work now? Do you still want me to do the qualifiers at the end of the semester?"
The two headmasters looked at each other, and Mong Hao said, "No."
Max slightly narrowed his eyes. "So nothing public, eh? You want to keep the fact that I'm a three-Path Challenger a secret, right?"
The two headmasters looked at each other again before chuckling.
"He really is quite sharp," said Territ.
"Indeed."
Max furrowed his brow in thought. "Keeping it all a secret is impossible, though. If I'm fighting other students in the Quartet at some point, I would assume that the upperclassmen would be able to figure out that I have three Paths, too. The other headmasters would know for sure."
"Well, that is where our plan comes in," said Mong Hao Han.
When the headmaster hesitated to continue, Max waved a hand. "Go ahead. If we're laying all of our cards on the table, just tell me what you want me to do, and I’ll tell you whether I’m willing to go along with it, and how much it'll cost you if I am."
Territ threw his head back and laughed. "I like this student. Are you sure he's a Summoner?"
Mong Hao smiled back sweetly, his mustache twitching. "Indeed, because after he killed so many students in your academy, it was my academy that had eventually uncovered how the Mystic Spear Path students had been suppressing Summoner students. I’m sure you remember."
Territ's laugh cut short, and there was an awkward silence as the two headmasters scowled and pointedly did not look at each other.
What kind of relationship do they have? wondered Max. Old, comfortable enemies, maybe?
Finally, Mong Hao Han coughed and said, "The process that makes the most sense, that would also be fair for the other students, would be for you to fight the winner of the Summoner Academy qualifiers in secret, with only me and a hand-picked number of other faculty watching. Fairness is important. Then, at the end of the year, you will have to fight the best from every academy. If you win, we will nominate you as our quartet's lead challenger."
"So you want me to skip the regular Quartet competition!? Won't the other students think that's kind of weird?" asked Max.
"Oh, definitely," said Territ with a nod. "But as long as the most powerful competitors from all the other schools in this Quartet are on the same page, there shouldn't be a problem. And of course, they will all be under strict oaths not to reveal any of your powers."
"That way," Max finished the thought for him, "by the time the first inter-quartet competition begins, nobody in the other schools will know that I have three Paths."
"Precisely," said Mong Hao Han.
“Okay, what about the last place in the Quartet competition? They’ll get bumped out of the rankings, right?”
“In your case, if you get first place, both junior and senior divisions, yes. But the last place of each division will receive compensation for winning eighth place first, so there should be a minimum of fuss. They wouldn’t be going to the inter-Quartet competition anyway.”
Max frowned. “Wait. I am tickled that you think so highly of me, but why do you want me to fight at the senior level? Wouldn’t it be easier for me to compete in the junior division?”
“Of course. But then it wouldn’t matter. At least not outside of this Quartet.” Territ folded his arms. “Only the senior competition matters. Winners at the junior level don’t take part in the inter-Quaret competitions. This is another reason why talented junior Challengers can take part in the senior division.”
Max thought about everything for a moment and said, "What do I get out of all this?"
"Well," said Mong Hao, "isn't that what we're discussing right now?"
"Indeed," said Territ. “Speak.”
Max pursed his lips and gave it some more thought. There were several layers to this, not least of which was the unspoken fact that if he failed any of these unofficial official tests, he would no longer be the darling of his Quartet. He’d no longer be protected. In fact, he was expected to take first place in the overall competition for this Quartet. He would have no chance now, but Max was fairly confident he had a good chance at the end of the year. Everything hinged on achieving a three star mana body.
There would be a lot of pressure to perform. But if he refused this deal, his perks would vanish now and there would be no uncertainty about it.
Max was glad that he had been to Earth so recently, a fact that neither of the headmasters could possibly know. The trip being fresh on his mind allowed him to focus on what truly mattered. After all, the whole point of his time in the Quartet was to get stronger and return to Earth with great power. The fact his time in the Quarter would likely be longer than the time passed on Earth while he was gone would help with that.
The problem with Max’s situation was that this Quartet didn't have all the resources that he needed for two out of his three paths. There were personal issues, too.
Certain things he'd like to do, like publicly humiliate Regal or kill the man right after he respawned like he’d intended to do to Max, would be intensely satisfying but wrong for the same reasons that Regal was wrong.
Regal was a sanctimonious, spoiled piece of shit, and his world was likely not in danger of ending anytime soon. But his power was still going to help citizens on his world not have to deal with a daily reality of fearing monster attacks. Even if Regal and his ilk only closed portals for their own fame or gain, it still benefited the regular people of his world. And Max didn't want to rob them of that.
Of course, if he was outside the Quartet and somebody like Regal came for his life, Max would have no problem turning him into dog food. The Quartet was more or less a giant school, though, and they were all from different worlds. Max's conscience had drawn a strangely placed but very firm line that he was not willing to cross. Killing random people in the Mystic Spear Academy had gotten uncomfortably close to that line, but all of the people he'd killed would still come back to life and be able to learn again with only a minor inconvenience in time. If they couldn’t get over the bad memories, they would be a piss-poor defender of their world.
In fact, like Lavinia had said in the dungeon, speculating why there were bonus dungeon quests to begin with, Max could rationalize his actions by how the traumatic experience might actually help the students he'd killed become better warriors. …Or it could turn them into absolute psychopaths that had a burning desire to hunt Max down for the rest of their life. But he was willing to take that risk.
"Okay," said Max, "I think I’m willing to play along. Here's what I want for it. First of all, I need a new weapon. So I want to get any weapon I choose from any of the stores in the Quartet, and you all are going to pay for it."
Territ winced. He said, "I think we can do that, right?" He glanced at Mong Hao, who also looked pained, but nodded.
"Yes, especially if we get the other headmasters on board. But that will probably take some time." The Summoner headmaster tapped his knee with a finger. "Yes, we can do that, but Max, if you lose any of your fights before the first inter-Quartet competition, you have to give the item back."
"Of course. No problem," said Max, waving a hand. "Second, I want a ten thousand mana starting fee and 250 per month per headmaster, until the inter-Quartet competition. So 500 per month."
Both headmasters stared at Max, jaws agape. "Why could you possibly need so much money when we are already letting you get whatever weapon you want?" asked Territ.
"Actually, a weapon is not enough. Let’s include one piece of gear, or armor with the weapon. Two items total, unless the gear comes as a set." Max grinned without humor. "And the answer is simple. It’s because two of my paths require mana, and this Quartet has almost no ambient mana. Even the dungeons probably don’t. At least the one I was just in before didn't. And it’s not like I can check the others. I can guess that if we do this deal, you guys are not going to want me to go into dungeons anymore for all sorts of reasons.” The two headmasters nodded. Max continued, “So, that means that I won't even be able to make extra mana units on my own. How do you think I was able to get stronger?"
He thought quickly about how to tell some truth but leave out some key details. "I just came back from a rank five dungeon that I completed cleared by myself. How many mana units do you think I earned from that? A lot, sure, but I needed a lot just to survive in the first place. If not for my duels and such, I would have died. And what you are wanting me to do, win the entire Quartet competition in my first year is even harder."
The two headmasters looked thoughtful. “That is a lot of money,” said Territ softly. Max didn't understand at first what they were even hesitating for since he suspected that some of the Lifers had the amount of mana units Max was asking for as pocket change.
He realized that was learning something here. The fact that the headmasters were so reluctant to pay him made him fairly certain that they were dipping heavily into their own resources in order to fulfill Max's demands. Or at least there were finite resources.
Both nodded after a quick consultation of meaningful glances.
Territ said, "I hadn't even considered that you would need a source of mana for the growth of your other Paths."
Max nodded. "I have been crushing mana units almost literally since the moment I got any."
Mong Hao held up a hand. "A quick point of clarification, but the gear that you are getting for free will likely be some of the most expensive in the quartet, right?"
“Yes.”
The Summoner academy headmaster wiggled his mustache. "That is fine, but when you leave this Quartet, you will be required to leave it behind because this will be a loan, not a gift. Everything you procure will still belong to the Quartet. To ensure that, as of this moment, we are preventing you from buying any of the special tickets for binding gear or weapons to one’s soul. I have already sent out one of my spirits with the blocking order. And as the person using the ticket must be the one that buys it… This will also block you from bonding with any weapons you buy yourself, but I am not willing to take chances. Do you understand?"
"Perfectly," said Max. "You're giving me this gear to win competitions, not to save my world."
Mong Hao frowned. "It's not that simple. If I could wave a hand, I would give every student in this Quartet the best gear they could carry back to their own world."
"Sure. Right. And once again, I'm sure that there are very important reasons stopping you that you can't share with me, right?"
Mong Hao Han’s eye grew flat. The room suddenly felt like it had more weight. "We have a friendly working relationship right now, Max, and I want to help you. Don't push it."
"Noted," said Max. He cleared his throat. "I also want to be completely cleared from taking any classes."
"That's not possible," Mong Hao shook his head. "If I tried to push that through, half of the staff would mutiny. It breaks too many rules and flies in the face of tradition, too."
Max had half expected the other man to say that. So he countered, "After the end-of-semester competition, I want to be able to sit in any lesson in any classroom as an observer."
Both headmasters jerk their heads back in surprise. Mong Hao asked, "What?"
"Just what I said. I want to be able to walk in and just listen to lectures or watch demonstrations. I don't know how you could explain it to your staff, but I want to be able to do it."
Mong Hao pursed his lips. "Perhaps the Academy can start putting out a newsletter again, and we can merely include your name on the roster of volunteer students who are working on it. Make you part of the newsletter staff. That way, you would have a plausible reason for visiting classrooms."
"Sounds good to me. I don't really care how it's done, just that I have the freedom to learn new things when I can. Oh! I also want a library pass for any of the libraries in the Quartet, including the other academies. Full access.
Territ frowned. "You want to come into my library to browse?"
"Yes," said Max. He grinned. "Is that a problem?"
"Maybe not later in the year, but if you did it right now, I don't know what would happen."
"Okay," Max said, nodding. "Then I would expect you to put real effort into making it a reality for me, and also, if you bring the other Academy headmasters into your little cabal, I would expect you to persuade them to give me access to their libraries as well."
Mong Hao frowned. "That would mean you would need a pass. That would mean eventually you would need a pass to all four academies, right?"
Max shrugged. "I suppose so."
The two headmasters seemed thoughtful. "Anything else?" asked Mong Hao Han. He sounded exhausted.
Max knew that there wasn't really much more that he wanted in the first place and also that pushing further might actually be harmful. But there was one thing he was not willing to back down on.
"Yes, actually," he said. "I understand that there's a limit to how much I can go after the students who tried to set me up for death, trying to fuck me over and send me back to my world. Although I’m sure they wouldn’t have blinked to do worse. He fixed Territ Mond with a steely gaze. "I certainly hope that everybody involved is punished as much as they can be."
"Of course," said The Mystic Spear headmaster. Max doubted the man was being completely sincere, but there wasn’t much else he could do about it.
There was no point in hiding his thoughts on the matter. "Well, I can't really do much more about that, but the man who was working in the dungeon facility, the one who sent me to die. I want to execute him today, now, and after it's done I want the word spread to all of the workers in the Quartet that if they betray me, they die. If any lifers ever bribe a Quaret-born to harm me again, I want that person to really understand the risks."
Mong Hao twitched his mustache. "As we've said before though, Max, that is a real person. That man is not a spiritual body in the quartet."
"I don't care.” His jaw firmed. “Like I said, he must die. He tried to kill me and he tried to fuck over my world for money. He needs to die. And I want to be the one to do it to know it’s done properly."
"But we looked into him. He has a family," said Territ Mond.
"That's unfortunate," said Max. "But soldiers have families too. And they die in wars every second of every day, everywhere in the universe. Hell, how many Challengers are going to die fighting monsters? As I said, I will show this traitor some respect by killing him with my own hand, the same as he used his hand to send me to the Cradle of the Giants dungeon."
"You're serious about this, aren't you?" asked Mong Hao.
"Yes. We have no deal if that man doesn’t die.”
“How did you get this way? What in heavens did you do on your world before you came here?"
"I was just entering the workforce from being a student," said Max.
"You were a student!? Your world must be a truly horrible place," said Mong Hao sadly. “Or at least have horrible things.”
"Horrible things?” Max chuckled. “You ever hear of student loans? ‘Horrible’ pretty much covers it.”
* * *
An hour later, Max was looking directly into the eyes of the older man who had sent him to a dungeon to die. He was just as Max remembered him, with a broad face, small nose, a lipless mouth, and beady eyes. Now his face sported days of stubble.
The two headmasters were behind him, and the rest of the small jail had been cleared out. While politics may be complicated, or at least so Max had been told, the two headmasters together still commanded absolute authority in the Quartet central area.
Max was pretty sure that Territ Mond and Mong Hao Han still believed that he was bluffing or that he'd have a change of heart. They obviously didn't know him very well.
To the old man, Max said, "Do you know why I'm doing this?"
The traitor nodded. "Yeah, can’t never catch a lucky break to save my life. Also, can’t stomach this. Being judged for nothing, by nobody. In my shoes you’d do the same thing."
Max's expression was as grim as the grave. "I don’t believe I would, but you can tell yourself whatever you’d like. I’ve heard you have a family, I have a family too. And if I'd been sent back to my world as I’d been when I left, my family very well may have suffered. These gentlemen back here," he said and hooked a thumb at the two headmasters, "have told me that after you die, your family will be taken care of for a few years and still receive your pay. Honestly, I think that's extremely generous since you already took what was likely a large bribe to betray a student."
The man didn't respond, just shrugged. Max hadn't bothered to learn his name. He judged there was nothing much more to say. So with a thought, he drew his sword, sent mana surging through his body and his weapon. Then he sliced the man's head off, making sure the kill was as humane as possible.
This sort of thing, this necessary messiness…it was like putting on an old hat. Max had learned a lot during his time as Chasa de Milo. He'd learned to be kind to his friends and ruthless to his enemies. But he'd also learned that anything more than a quick death to prisoners was self-indulgent and would just leave the torturer twisted and miserable. No amount of pain doled out to a criminal or enemy could undo the wrongs that had already been committed.
As the condemned man's body slumped to the floor, Max flicked blood off his blade and sheathed it before turning. Mong Hao Han looked horrified, and Territ Mond’s eyes were speculative.
"So that concludes everything," said Max. "We have a deal. Can I go back to my room now? I've had a really, really long dungeon dive."
The two men nodded, and Max left the jail without looking back.
Comments
Story Seeker
Spacing Issue with mo nth. On mobile app. Second, I want a ten thousand mana starting fee and 500 per mo nth per headmaster, until the inter-Quartet competition. So one thousand per month."
Kevin McKinney
Good execution
Braden Moody
First half was honestly a lot of words with little substance, but the second half was really well done!
Stephen Pearson
Thanks for the chapter! :-)
uthr
Great chapter.
