Chapter 37: Subterfuge

Solomon put a bit of thought into his answer so as not to seem like he was being rude.

“… I do not know if that would be the safest decision to make, Dean Raidis.”

“Oh come now, boy. You’re much too young to be fretting over something like safety. This is the age where you should be throwing caution to the wind and living without restraint!”

Solomon thought that was an utterly unscholarly thing to say.

“Tell you what. How about I sweeten the pot for you, eh, young man? If you let me analyze your sword, I’ll be sure that you walk away with a good thing here today!”

Solomon finally acquiesced; if only because he was of the mind that doing so would mean that he could return to his room.

Calling the sword was easier for him now than it had been when the day began. He didn’t even need to hold out his hand to make it appear anymore.

When the sword revealed itself, the atmosphere in the room almost completely changed.

The air became humid and heavy. The sword which was larger than even Solomon began to diminish into a much more manageable short sword.

“Marvelous… may I?”

“Go ahead.”

Dean Raidis took the sword and analyzed it.

For a second, everything seemed fine. Solomon even became convinced that he was just being overly paranoid.

But then, black barbs burst from the pommel of the sword and all but destroyed the Dean’s hand.

Solomon immediately panicked. “Shit, are you-”

“Bahahahahaha! Fucked me good this little thing has, hasn’t it?”

Solomon was stupefied. “…Uh-huh.”

Eventually, the Dean could no longer hold up the sword even with his gargantuan strength.

“It really does seem to be… ugh..! Quite the spirited blade…!”

Despite his clearly failing strength, Dean Raidis seemed determined to keep holding on.

He paid dearly for his hubris.

The barbs within the blade wormed their way deeper into his flesh.

Solomon heard them crush every bit of intact bone they came across. He listened to them shred muscle like sheep’s wool.

Finally, Dean Raidis dropped the sword. Though it wasn’t as if he had much of a choice.

He backed away while holding his now limp arm at his side.

“Dean Raidis!”

“Are you alright?!”

“I’m fine, I’m fine, you worrisome little macaroons!” Dean Raidis swatted away the knights trying to help him at his side.

The old man took a couple of shaky breaths and smiled at Solomon with a sweat-laced brow.

“You’ve truly got yourself something exceptional there, young man. It’s been two hundred and fifty years since I’ve been tagged like that! A very fine weapon indeed!”

Solomon didn’t think this was the kind of situation he should be receiving praise for. Especially since it wasn’t as if he found the Yaksha through his own power.

“I must admit… weapons are not permitted in the initial assessment, hence the reason why everyone was searched and stripped of what they had.”

Solomon felt his mouth run dry.

“That being said…” Dean Raidis rubbed the back of his head with his one good arm. “This is a bit of a unique situation. It isn’t as if you could’ve known and we didn’t exactly anticipate any of the cadets having an Armament…”

Armaments are largely believed to only be capable of being wielded by Indigo-ranked knights and above.

Solomon showing up with one was nothing short of an act of god.

“We’ll chalk this one up to circumstance and let bygones be bygones, how does that sound?”

“Good, Dean Raidis.”

“I should like to think so. It isn’t often that we make exceptions like this, but I believe you would have proven yourself capable, weapon or not. You certainly made quick work of, erm…” Raidis turned to one of his attendants. “What was his name again..?”

“Aloysius, Dean Raidis.”

“Ah, right! Quite the whiny little son of a bitch, wasn’t he?”

“That he was, sir.”

“Ha! Hysterical!”

Solomon was not at all convinced that he was not experiencing a fever dream.

“Ah, right. I promised you a bit of quid pro quo, didn’t I? Well, no need to worry. I am, among many things, a man of my word.”

One of the instructors stepped out of line. Solomon recognized her as the woman who had been staring at him earlier.

She was his senior by around twenty years.

Her hair spilled around her face in a regal shroud of thick, powerful curls that made her soft features seem even softer.

Her eyes were like molten amber; as sharp as any knife and twice as serene. Her arms possessed a delicate, soft appearance that was only accentuated by the meaningful lines woven across her deep brown skin.

She wasn’t very tall; her head stopped at around Solomon’s upper stomach.

And yet, Solomon felt he was the one who should have been looking up at her.

“It’s come to my attention that you are our only student taking dual enrollment this year. I admire you for that, young men should show that level of gumption.” Dean Raidis clenched his one good fist. “So that you’ll have the chance to put your best foot forward, I’m placing you under the care of our finest magic instructor.”

The woman held out her hand for Solomon to take.

“Yari Assata. I look forward to working with you.”

Solomon started to take the woman’s hand until he remembered his current state.

He was surprised when the woman reached to grab his hand anyway, and shook it fondly.

Solomon could only nod. “Likewise, Instructor…”

“Why don’t you go and get yourself cleaned up, cadet. You’ve made quite the impression for today.”

Solomon had no interest in refusing the Dean. He wasn’t exactly comfortable covered in blood like this.

He bowed respectfully to the Dean and the other instructors before exiting the auditorium quietly.

As soon as he left, Dean Raidis’ gaze sharpened as he brought a hand to his badly injured arm.

“Find out everything you can about that armament of his. Do what you have to.”

Yari nodded resolutely.

“Yes, Father.”

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