My System Academy

Elder Flock arrived back at Arsolo Stronghold. He gazed at the recent battle between the two dragons and the demonic dragon and nodded in satisfaction.

'The dragons did their job. Now, it's time to take care of other things.'

He went down and landed at the dilapidated Siegfried Mansion entrance. He stepped forward and saw the group of students from the academy.

'They're still alive and well. I'll put them with those beasts carrying Mr. Kai. This shouldn't be a problem in the long run, right?'

Elder Flock extended his bony right hand and twirled his index finger around before the space trembled right at the group's position, then they disappeared.

'I will ask that frost dragon to hide their whereabouts for now. It wouldn't be good if too many people saw them.'

He said this for the fact that he would have to expend more effort in warping memories later on if it happened.

'Until I get a final confirmation from Mr. Kai, this is how it should happen.'

Thinking about it, he glanced in the direction of the ruins. He wondered how the investigation of the upper echelons of the Morning Star Empire and other interested factions were doing about the recent incident involving Dartex, the Creed, the League, and the academy.

Soon, he passed through the wrecked great hall and stumbled upon the encirclement of the weakened Elder Council and high officials of Norva Assili.

Among them was High King Garron, who was discussing with the Elder Council what to do against the Siegfried Clan.

"Garron, why the hell did you not kill this bastard of a traitor? Do you still hold pity upon their clan after everything that they have done?", Elder Harald ruthlessly complained.

He could not understand Garron's decision.

Garron scratched his head and thought of a way out, "Elders, everyone, it's not like I don't want to kill him. I know for a fact that such crimes are punishable by death. However, someone has taken an interest in them, and unless…"

"Someone has taken an interest? You mean those lousy wizards in the League of Wizardry?", another elder remarked.

"Yes… it's best to hand over Flinthal and the rest of the Siegfried Clan's members to them…", Garron's voice became timid after sensing the pressure coming from the various elders and high officials.

"Impossible!"

"What nonsense!"

"You know we can't do that, high king!"

"So what if they helped us? They still don't have the right to hold any decision about the lives of these traitors!", Elder Harald was livid.

Many of them voiced their contempt. They knew what the League was up to.

Research. And a great failure of a research one at that.

For years unthinkable, the League had struggled to dissect demonic creatures and examine their bodies so that they may come up with options on how to oppose the demonic essence without relying on divinity, fire, light, and lightning magic.

And now their High King wants to hand it over to them? What was the point? Would they still be able to receive justice once they were given away?

Who knew what sort of excuses would the League throw out after a series of failed experiments…

Moreover, how could they, warriors, leave things for the wizards to work about? It was both a matter of face and pride.

Garron was slowly being drowned in their shouts and curses.

At this moment, Elder Flock's aura resonated which caused many of them to shiver and kneel on the ground.

"What's the matter, High King Garron? I thought we had already discussed this a while ago…?"

"E…elder…", Garron also knelt out of fear and respect. He knew the reason why he had to hand over Flinthal and the rest to this old man.

And that was because of the legendary academy that both supported Elder Flock and the one that had taken his daughter in.

Seeing this behavior from the High King, the rest couldn't help but curse inwardly.

With their backs faced to him, Elder Flock threw Mahiista's unconscious demonic body where it landed beside Flinthal.

This scene shocked many, wondering how could a wizard deal with a demonic creature that easily.

"You warriors of the north are always full of talk but lack sufficient strength to back your words. Do you not have some decency to be grateful to the people that assisted you during this hardship?"

"And you dare to voice your dissatisfaction on my back… Do you think you are capable enough to fall it out with me?"

Elder Flock increased his pressure upon the warriors, even extending it into the entire Arsolo Stronghold.

"Remember this deep in your minds, you damn barbarians. If not for my and some people's help this time around, you wouldn't have lasted this long to talk crap about your saviors…"

He raised his hand and grasped the air. The entirety of the people in Arsolo Stronghold felt lightheaded and was knocked out.

High King Garron witnessed all of this and was speechless to react. Just grasping something in the air and Elder Flock could make people like them useless.

If he intended to destroy Norva Assili, nobody from their group could even stop him from doing it.

"E…elder… please forgive them for their rash actions…", he stuttered, afraid of muttering words that would anger Elder Flock.

"Hmph, you better discipline this bunch of ungrateful bastards. Or else, you won't know how your entire history of warriors would die out.", Elder Flock warned.

He was already on the edge of trying to curry favor with the academy. Why would he let them foil the plans he had laid out for long?

"Yes, yes… I know…", High King Garron nodded, "Also, Elder… may I know how is my daughter holding up? Is she okay? Can I still meet her in the future?"

He noticed that the Elder's left hand was wriggling his fingers around, flashing some faint lights now and then.

Oblivious to his gaze, Elder Flock answered his successive questions.

"Olivia is doing fine. She's just unconscious. You should try to control your shout at some point or else you'll end up implicating a lot of people in the worst moment possible.", Elder Flock commented, "The Heavenly Magic Academy has its rules as to how their students can interact with the outside world."

"Whether you can see your daughter in the future is a matter of luck and the mood of the academy master."

He coldly advised as if he was a member of the academy.

"And don't try to spread information that the Heavenly Magic Academy was here, nor would you tell other people about your daughter's current situation. Keep it to yourself."

High King Garron was confused, "But… didn't that young wizard announce his identity earlier? Why would you… go back on your previous actions and try to hide things now?"

"He only revealed his identity to you lot. You should understand what that implies, right?", Elder Flock didn't waste his time and grabbed Mahiista and every member of the Siegfried Clan, dead or alive.

"As for those who unnecessarily knew something, I have already dealt with it."

His figure disappeared, leaving High King Garron alone a group of unconscious old men and women laying on the ground.

"How troublesome. He already dealt with it, huh?"

High King Garron had a suspicion that those flashing lights were the process of Elder Flock warping everyone's memories to his will.

The high king stood up and looked around, "Misha is still not here. Just where the hell did my younger brother go?"

"Tsk, I'll search for his whereabouts later. I have to plan out how to recover Norva Assili from this calamity."

He sat on a wooden chair and held his head with both hands, "The other factions will come here to investigate what happened."

"I see it now. When the time comes, I'll just fabricate some stories."

He stopped for a moment and realized, "No, that Elder already warped their memories. I'll go with whatever he had put in on their heads so that those people wouldn't get suspicious."

High King Garron raised his head and looked at the skies. The spatial anomaly was becoming unstable and he could see the other layer of the dark sky protruding.

'Has it been that long? Damn, every day here felt like infinity.'

'Olivia… It seems that I won't be able to spend much of my time with you for now. I'll be looking forward to when we meet next time.'

'Don't try to surprise your father too much. I'm becoming old. I might die of shock if I find out you have become someone stronger than me in the years to come…'

Tears flowed out of his eyes as he let his suppressed feelings and emotions out for a while.

…

"What a lovely scene, don't you think?", Arahon smiled. He and Harrtugg Naaw had been observing High King Garron from a far distance.

Behind them was the deathly demonic dragon slumbering in pain with Elder Flock checking its condition and other things.

"Don't you think you were too harsh, old man?", the frost dragon asked. He had transformed into his smaller humanoid form.

His clear blue eyes couldn't hide the deep emotion he felt when he saw the high king alone like that.

"Oh, don't you think I should also be harsh to you too?", Elder Flock tried to remind him of his crimes.

Harrtugg Naaw's mouth twitched. Can't this old man be a little understanding?

"Anyway, is it really fine to warp their minds like that? Aren't you afraid that someone might discover your actions and protest?", Arahon asked.

"They can complain to the Supreme Elder and the Heavenly Magic Academy's academy master.", Elder Flock harrumphed.

The two dragons were instantly stupefied. Who would dare complain if that was the case? The Supreme Elder was the leader in terms of authority, prestige, and strength in the world of Aludia.

The only one who could match up to him was the mysterious legendary figure in the Elven Sanctuary, and the demonic general scouring The Wastes.

As for the academy master, there was no comparison at all.

"Then do you want to stay in my abode for the time being? I can give those groups of children a peaceful time while they recuperate.", Harrtugg Naaw offered.

Now that a chance to pardon his sins and to curry favor had arrived, he wouldn't let go of such opportunities.

"Oh, how thoughtful of you. We won't excuse ourselves then.", Elder Flock nodded. At the very least, he wouldn't have to request help which would somewhat lower his status.

"Tsk.", annoyed, Harrtugg Naaw deliberately changed the topic, "Isn't it time for you to tell us what you plan to do? This concerns a lot of things not only Aludia itself but the Otherworld and the Heavenly Magic Academy as well."

Elder Flock shook his head, "What do you think I can tell you? If anyone has a plan, it's either the Supreme Elder, the academy master, or the demons in the Otherworld or at The Wastes."

"I'm simply a pawn going with the flow of whatever the higher-ups want to do.", he emphasized.

His answer died out the flames of ambition that sprouted in the heart of Harrtugg Naaw.

'This old man. He's too cunning. Damn it…'

"We know that. But at least give us some outline of whatever in the heavens is going on here in Aludia.", Arahon stepped up, helping his agitated friend.

Elder Flock sighed and gathered his thoughts.

"Clearly, the demons are up to something. If not for the fact that you were approached by the academy master, nor was I obedient and sensitive enough to realize the strangeness here in the northern glacial continent, this place might have fallen under the demonic creature's control and we would be in a huge disadvantage of the following events."

The two dragons nodded in agreement. Thinking about a different ending was too terrifying. They inwardly shook their heads and perked their ears up, willing to hear more.

Elder Flock was amused by their reaction. Still, he continued.

"The next blow-up might happen in the Alderian Terrestrial Sanctuary."

"Their civil war is a little too strange. As far as I recall, it was caused by a simple crime committed by a general that came from a lower origin. Something about trying to kidnap some children."

Elder Flock seemed to have caught a hint and narrowed his eyes, 'Don't tell me those children are…'

He shook the thought away and continued.

"There are a lot of details that are missing but I still suspect that a demonic creature is behind this."

"Not only that but there is also a cause of concern about the poisonous water sources in the Sandmen Kingdom. And some people reported that it originated from the Oriental Oceanic Empire."

"I have a strong belief that m-… Dartex is involved in this escapade. But until someone investigates further, we won't be arriving at any concrete conclusion soon."