The Beginning After The End (Beckoning Fates Book 3) (11 page)

“Ah… There were some situations
regarding that actually…” Before I explain, Director Goodsky lifts up her hand
to interrupt.

“We’ve just dismissed Professor
Geist from our academy.
 
Princess
Kathyln personally came up and explained, telling me what exactly
happened.
 
Of course I had to get some
people to verify with her testimony but everyone agreed that the Professor was
putting the students in harms way.”
 
She nodded, placing a couple of documents in front of me.

Wow, she worked fast.
 
This incident happened less than two
hours ago, but she already managed to handle and fire that Professor.
 

As if she knew what I was thinking,
she smiles and answers, “It helps move things along when you get the final say
in all matters regarding this Academy.”

“I have to say, though, that I have
never seen the Princess so worked up as she was today.
  
When she came in, she had a
slightly angry expression on her face, which, by her standards, is quite
serious.
 
You must understand how
surprised I was.
 
Hoho!” Director
Goodsky covers her mouth with a hand as she chuckles softly.
 

“Really now?
 
I didn’t think that princess could even
show emotions.” I grin as well.

“Yes.
 
You must’ve made quite an impression on
her because she defended you quite fervently, leaving Professor Geist no room
to defend himself.”
 
She gives me a
wink.

When I shake my head helplessly,
Director Goodsky just laughs, responding, “You’re quite the ladies man,
Arthur.
 
It’s going to be a problem
if you steal the hearts of both Princesses!
 
Who knows, you might be the cause of our
next civil war! Hahaha!”
 

She seemed quite amused by
something that could devastate the thin balance that this continent had.
 
I wanted to just dismiss the thought,
but when I imagine the two princesses fighting it out, I get shudders.
 
I don’t think I have the mental capacity
to handle even one of the princesses, let alone both of them.
 

“You know, it’s not really
considered young to get married at the age of 14-15.
 
I’m sure Tessia will have developed
quite a bit by then.”
 
She teases me
even further.

“No thank you.
 
I don’t see myself becoming romantically
involved anytime soon.
 
Besides,
they’re still just kids.
 
Maybe I’ll
start thinking about it when the girls my age become a bit more mature.”
 
I shrug.

Leaning forward, the Director
studies me. “Hoho, the way you say it makes me think that you’ve already
matured, Arthur.”
 

“Well, even you must admit that I
happen to be a lot more mature than people my age.”
 
Leaning back into the chair, I respond.

“True, but women do tend to mature
faster than men.” Director Goodsky states matter-of-factly.

“I’m still wondering why I got
called in here.
 
I’m sure you didn’t
just bring me here to tell me that everything was settled, and to tell me to
get married.”
 
Sylvie hopped off of
my head and chased after Avier, who was grooming itself on the window.

“Arthur!
 
I feel like you’re becoming to see me as
someone who always has an ulterior plan at hand.”
 
She gives me an offended look.

“Haha!
 
I do because we’re awfully similar in
that way, Director.”
 
I give her a
wink, making her smile as well.

“Dear me.
 
If that is the case, then I believe that
I’ve made the right decision.”
 
She
responds.

“What do you mean?”

“Arthur, what do you think about
being the professor for your class, Practical Mana Manipulation?”
 
She clasps her hand, studying my
expression.

My eyes widen at this.
 
“What?
 
You’re not serious right?”
 

“Oh I’m quite serious,
Arthur.”
 
She says, her expression
unfaltering.

“Is that even allowed?
 
I’m a student.
 
Can I be a student and a Professor at
the same time?
 
What about my other
classes?”
 
I begin shooting out
arguments as to how this wouldn’t work.

“Please, no need to get so worked
up.
 
It’s quite simple
actually.
 
Is it allowed?
 
Yes, as long as I say it is.
 
Although this specific situation has
never occurred, there are cases of highly qualified upperclassmen that teach
basic courses.
 
As for your other
classes, your schedule wouldn’t really change.
 
You would just be teaching that one
class, for that period.” She gives me a business-like smile.

I begin thinking.
 
Director Goodsky wasn’t doing this for
her benefit.
 
She would be sure to
get a lot of complaints from noble parents protesting why a first year was
teaching a class.
 
I, on the other
hand, would have a lot more time on my hand because teaching the course would
require a lot less outside of class.

“I don’t understand why you’re
doing this, Director.”
 

“Well, a spot just opened up and
you were the one that defeated the previous professor.
 
Doesn’t that give you enough
qualifications to enter?
 
Besides,
I’m really not doing this for some ulterior motive, Arthur.
 
You don’t have to be too
suspicious.
 
This is up to you.
 
I won’t push you into this, but I
believe that it would be a good opportunity to build a sort of standing for
yourself without having to go around conquering Professors.
 
If you wish to enjoy teaching after this
semester, I can give you more classes to teach!
 
I’m sure there are a very limited of
classes that would be of use to you anyways.”
 
She chuckles.

She stands up, gently patting my
shoulder.
 
“The choice is yours.”

Pondering
over what she said, I just sat there, my eyes blankly staring at something off
in the distance. Like she mentioned, there was no real benefit for her to have
me as a Professor, which is why I find it so suspicious. It was so ingrained in
me to be wary of people’s motivation, whatever it was they did. I guess as a
figure of authority and power, you become suspicious of everyone around you,
which is why I couldn’t figure out why she asked me to do this.

Practical
Mana Manipulation was a class that didn’t have any extra work to grade, which
is why it might even be easier for me to just teach the class. Even if it
wasn’t easier, it did help build a good position for myself and would be a lot
more interesting. Seeing as how I probably can’t escape attention from the
students anyway, I might as well do things a bit differently. Of course I don’t
plan on revealing my full set of skills to anyone just yet, but I don’t see the
point in trying to be completely inconspicuous anymore.

“…Arthur?”  
I get snapped out of my thoughts to see that Director Goodsky was looking at me
with a rather worried expression.

“Ah yes.
Although I’m not sure how competent I’d be, I’d like to try my hand at being a
Professor.” I look over the document stating my duties and responsibilities as
a teacher.

“I’m
sure you’ll do an excellent job.” She smiles.

Looking
at her, I ask, “Were there any other classes that Professor Geist taught
besides mine?”

“Fortunately,
no. We hired him this year after he retired from being an Adventurer. For this
semester, the other professors and I decided to only have him teach one class,
as a sort of test run.” She shakes her head at the pitiful results he produced.

“Before
I sign, I have one last question.” I state as I read over the final paragraph
of the document.

“Go on.”
She urges.

“Wouldn’t
it be counterintuitive that I’m not allowed to hurt students but I’m part of
the Disciplinary Committee?” I quiz.

“Ah,
good question. The ‘not hurting students’ rule is for the inside of the
classroom. While the situation is always investigated for every case, as long
as it is for the safety of other students, using a certain degree of force to
quell a fight or suppress a rampant student. As for outside of class during
your Disciplinary Committee duties, I’ll trust your judgment on that.”

With
that, I nod and sign the document. “I expect great things from you Arthur, and
I’m sure I’m not the only one.” She gives me a gentle pat on the shoulder
before ushering me to go eat lunch.

CYNTHIA
GOODSKY’S POV:

“Whew,
what is it about that boy that always keeps me on my toes. Negotiating with him
is more heart straining than dealing with the Royal Families. What was your
take on him, Avier?” My bond gently lands on the arm I held out, his
intelligent eyes pondering what to say.

“He is…
different. Do not view Arthur Leywin as a child. Whether it is mental acuity or
emotional maturity, there is much more to him than the eye can see.” The clear
words that came out of my bond didn’t seem natural from the movement of his
beak.

“What
makes you so certain?” I lean back in my seat.

“His
bond. That white fox’s true form should be a dragon…”

I bolt
up from my seat. “What
?!
How is that possible? How do
you know?”

“It is
because we are of the same kind. I may be a lesser species of dragons but
Wyverns are still part of the same family as Dragons.” Avier goes back to
grooming himself.

“Are you
saying that bond of his is more powerful than you?” I couldn’t help but be
utterly baffled by all of this.

“No,
that child has yet to mature. She shouldn’t have hatched more than
a few of years ago. However, I suspect that when she does develop,
she will not be comparable to the likes of me.” He states matter-of-factly.

I
couldn’t imagine anyone stronger than Avier. The fact that he was my bond was
only because he grew a liking to me when I happened by him, deep in the Beast
Glades. He usually does his own thing and I don’t dare treat him like pet, but
the fact that Arthur’s bond was actually a dragon and that it was so
subservient to him makes me wonder what that boy really was.

“Do not
make him your enemy, Cynthia. If treated with trust and respect, he will become
the greatest ally, but if betrayed, he may be the cause of this Continent’s
demise.” With that warning, Avier flies off.

I lean
forward on my seat, rubbing my throbbing temples as I recall what happened a
couple of hours back.

___________________________________________

*Boom*

“Director
Goodsky, I request that you remove a boy named Arthur Leywin from my class!”

“Professor
Geist, you look shaken up. What’s wrong?” I’m taken by surprise by the sudden
intrusion.

“The boy
has no respect for me, his Professor! Please do not listen to any of the rumors
that you may hear. I’m being framed.” The man’s wide face is filled with
desperation and anger.

*Knock*
*Knock*

“Please
come in.” I state. At least this person had the decency to knock.

“I
apologize for the intrusion, Director.” The petite Kathyln gives me a small bow
before walking up next to the, now pale faced, Professor.

“What’s
the matter, Kathyln?” I lean forward, taking a look at the both of them.

“This
sorry excuse for a Professor needs to be expelled.” She says, expressionlessly.

Professor
Geist grabs Kathyln by the arm, pulling her close to him. “HOW DARE YOU! Sorry
excuse? Me?”

“You
dare touch me with your filthy hand?” Her expression doesn’t change, as she
somehow seems to be looking down at Professor Geist.

“Professor,
I suggest you immediately remove your hand, or else, whatever the case may have
been, it will not be in your favor.” I stand up at this point. Using force to
get your point across is deplorable.

“Ahem…
as I was saying. Please do not take to heart the rumors that you may hear. I
swear that this was all a misunderstanding and that I’m being framed.” He
immediately lets go of Kathyln’s arm before talking.

“I have
not yet heard of any rumors. Do you mind indulging me, Kathyln?”

“This
scum dares to pick on students to feel good about himself. Even ignoring the
fact that he utterly humiliated Feyrith, if Arthur didn’t step in, I would’ve…”
Without finishing her last sentence, she glares at the Professor.

I turn
to Professor Geist, who was desperately denying this accusation. “I’m telling
you that it was a misunderstanding. I simply wanted to demonstrate in front of
the class the level that the Disciplinary Committee is at; you know, for the
other students to know.”

“If that
was simply what this was, then there would be no reason for you to come into my
room and insist that Arthur be removed from your class.” I couldn’t help but
sigh internally at the thought of handling this dilemma.

“Tricia,
please gather information for me from Professor Geist’s class regarding this
incident.” My secretary bows before running off.

“Now,
please be patient as this is figured out. I will do my best to be just about
this.” Before I’m able to dismiss the two of them, Princess Kathyln walks up to
me.

“I trust
that you will handle this fairly, but just know that, if it wasn’t for Arthur,
you wouldn’t be handling this Professor’s ethic case but a Student’s injury
case, MY injury case. I bid you good day, Director.” She turns around,
completely ignoring Professor Geist, who was taken aback by her last statement.

_____________________________________________

Recalling
the testimonies I received, it seemed like Arthur completely overwhelmed
Professor Geist. While this professor’s personality never did sit well with me,
his skills were more than enough to teach a basic mana manipulation class. Even
while being a light yellow core Augmenter, and quite a capable one at that, he
was completely defeated by a 12 year old.

I let
out a sigh in regret that I didn’t measure the level of the boy’s core while he
was just here.

A twelve
year old defeating a veteran Adventurer using only his wind and earth attribute
mana, which I remember him mentioning were his weakest, and also having a bond
with a dragon. What more was there to him? If I ask, would he tell me?

ARTHUR
LEYWIN’S POV:

“Art!
Over here!” I see Elijah waving at me across the dining hall.

I notice
he was sitting with a girl when I went over.

“This is
Charlotte! Charlotte, this is my best friend and roommate, Arthur Leywin.” He
stands up, gesturing the both of us to shake hands.

“Hi
Arthur, I’ve heard a lot about you.” She gave a coquettish smile while
twiddling her hair.

“Mmm…
It’s a pleasure.” I respond brusquely before focusing my attention on Elijah.

“How
were your classes?” I ask my friend while I feed Sylvie a piece of broccoli.

“Kyu!” ‘
noo
!’

“Aww~
your little mana beast is so cute! Do you mind if I pet it?” Charlotte gets
awfully close to me, almost leaning on me while she reaches up on top of my
head.

Before
she gets the chance to pet the growling Sylvie, I grab her wrist.

“Sorry,
she doesn’t like strangers touching her.” I look her dead in the eye, making
her blush by how close her face was to mine.

“O-oh,
I’m sorry!” She shrinks back, focusing back on the food.

Seemingly
ignorant of what was happening, Elijah responds, his mouth full of food.
“Classes were great! I especially like my basic chain-casting class and mana
utilization class. Although for mana utilization, I feel like the professor
that’s teaching is going over the exact same thing that you’re telling me to
do. By the way, I met Charlotte in my chain-casting class! She’s really good!”

“Haha,
please, you’re making me blush.” Charlotte puts on a bashful face as she
squirms in her seat.

“…”

“Anyways,
how were your classes! I’ve heard you already beat up a professor! What
happened to keeping it cool man?” He gives me a smirk while he points his fork
at me accusingly.

“Yeah,
about that, so I ended up becoming a Professor for that class.” I respond
coolly, shoving a piece of meat in my mouth while avoiding Sylvie’s attempts at
trying to steal it.

“PFFFFFFFFFF”

“
kya
!”

Elijah
splutters the food he was chewing on towards us as I instinctively lean back,
trying to get out of range.

“Elijah,
that’s gross.” I wipe some of the stray food particles that I didn’t manage to
avoid from my face.

“Sorry
sorry…what? You’re going to be a Professor?” He wipes his mouth before trying
to wipe Charlotte’s face, Charlotte rejecting the offer.

“Mm… I
ended up replacing the Professor that was teaching the class. So you may now
call me Professor Leywin.” I smirk at my friend.

“Professor,
my ass. But maybe I should ditch my class sometimes and go to yours. It’d be
interesting to see you teach.” He retorts back.

As we
continued talking, I was growing annoyed at the flirting attempts from
Charlotte, and even more annoyed by the fact that Elijah was clueless about
this all.

“Oh
yeah! Charlotte and I were going to go downtown Academy to do some shopping. Do
you want to join us?” He asks nonchalantly.

“Yes!
Arthur you should join us.” She leans in closer again. There was a small strip
on the corner of the Academy where there were fancy restaurants and cafes,
along with shopping booths for the rich nobles to spoil themselves in. With
that, you could imagine how enormous the Academy was.

“I have
three more classes, remember? I’m taking the upper division classes after
lunch.”

Elijah
just shrugs at this. “Oh yeah, I forgot. No big deal! I guess it’ll just be me
and Charlotte.”

Charlotte
smiles awkwardly at Elijah’s happy-go-lucky face and responds, “Ah sorry. I
totally forgot that I had different plans. I’m so sorry! We should definitely
go next time, though! All three of us! Bye.”

With
that, she walks off, leaving my friend and I alone at the small dining table.

“I guess
she was really busy.” Elijah looked a bit disappointed.

Oh
Elijah…

Leaning
close, he asks me in a serious voice. “So, what did you think about Charlotte?
She’s pretty, huh! Do you think I have a shot at her?”

Oh
Elijah…

“I think
you can do better, buddy.” I pat my clueless friend on the back as we walk out
of the dining hall together.