Chapter 495 – Heights of Administration
Asterios could worry about the undoubtedly legendary feats of the future world-class adventurers at a later date. And perhaps he should start getting used to such prospects. They were starting an interdimensional guild, which on its own would bring a fair amount of strong individuals into the equation. Not to mention the academies. A few years, give or take, and Kraedorion was going to witness the first wave of graduates. He didn’t even want to imagine the chaos that would ensue throughout the realm.
Therefore, shelving those worries aside for now, Asterios was more inclined to focus on the present.
After calming down from her euphoric outburst, gaining a slight flush to her cute cheeks from realization, Ronye changed the topic back to her techniques. They dove into a difficult, technical discussion revolving around the basic principles and factors required for it to function properly. What she had shown was still in its infancy, which was the best period to develop even more.
To any accidental passersby, their words would sound like nothing but gibberish, but the duo was fully in their element. It once more showed Asterios just how seriously the talented foxgirl took his notes and instructions. She was full of passion and drive for greatness. Initially, that drive might have been influenced by a touch of nefarious intent, but since things were now much better between her and Selene, Ronye could truly thrive in her prodigious aptitude.
Minutes turned into hours as the duo lost themselves in their musings, theories, and practical experiments. They didn’t even notice how late it had become until his vulpine mate came to check up on them personally, the sky already turning dark orange. The younger fox-eared lady apologized profusely for stealing Asterios away for so long, but Selene wasn’t displeased by it and didn’t come to them to scold her. Instead, she wanted to invite both of them to the evening celebratory feast.
Knowing better than to not show up for the celebrations as the central figure of the event that had led to it, Asterios followed the fluffy pair back to the plateau in front of the main temple. The entire tribe was reveling in the recent revelations around multiple graceful pyres burning with bright blue fire. Music flowed smoothly over the mountaintop as they danced and sang together, drinking quite a lot at that, almost everyone equipped with a gourd full of wine or other traditional alcohol.
Asterios and Selene remained with her people until around midnight, about half of the population lying asleep or unconscious on the marble floor by that point. Thanking the Matriarch for the hospitality and receiving thanks in return for their cooperation, they returned to Ast’s little kingdom, his other lovers already waiting for them. A quick bath later, they were all snuggled up in bed, ready to recover their strength and energy before tackling another day full of obligations and surprises.
In the morning, the sound of the door to their room slamming open woke Asterios up, followed by a very excited and recognizable voice.
“Wake up, sleeping princess! And you too, my furry sister-mates!” Grea exclaimed joyfully, hopping towards the bed like she was on cloud nine. “It’s finally time!”
“What?” A groan escaped Ast’s lips as he rubbed his eyes, two bodies stirring against him. “We should still have two days left, including this one. There’s no way we slept for seventy-two hours.”
He gently raised himself to a sitting position, taking the person currently hugging his chest with him. Miria rubbed her cheek into it one last time before drawing back with an adorable flush. Offering her a warm smile, he deepened it even more by gracing his cuddly mate with a good morning kiss.
A somewhat manic giggle reached their ears from up close as Grea leaned over the bed, resting her hands on the sheets. “Don’t be silly. Do you think I would let you waste so much of our precious time? When you could be doing anything, or anyone, else instead? No, you handsome bastard, today I’m taking you to meet the first batch of professor prospects for your grand academies!”
Selene snickered by his other side, burying his arm in the pleasant warmth of her cleavage as she too sat up. “For someone who was fighting against being the headmaster so hard before, you are unexpectedly enthusiastic about this matter.”
The naughty demon woman snorted to the side. “I’m still saying this is a silly notion, but it’s better to face it tits up rather than moping over the floor.”
“Sure, sure.” The teasing vixen grinned at her, making the other two chuckle quietly.
Giving her tail a few loving strokes and greeting the day with a passionate kiss for the fox lady too, Asterios began disentangling himself from their clutches. It didn’t escape his notice that Grea hadn’t been the only one to wake up before them. Only Miria and Selene had accompanied his extended nap. The others must have gotten up without rousing them to handle the preparations for the upcoming festivities.
He might be starting to sound like a broken record by now, but he really didn’t deserve such incredible women in his life.
Dressed up with a single snap, Asterios followed his favorite researcher out of the castle. They quickly found their way into the main market, which was in the middle of a rearrangement. Things were already in full swing. Stalls were being moved, the square was being tidied up, and the materials for the upcoming stadium were being brought in.
Not just by his official subordinates, at that. Everyone in Glimmervale chimed in as much as they could. The residents worked together to ensure there would be no delays, happily cooperating with the outsiders, both sides unable to wait to witness the ceremonies. With such a huge workforce, there was no doubt that everything would be ready in these two short days before the opening act.
Thankfully, not all the booths had been removed yet and Grea decided to raid one, thoughtfully finding Asterios something he could snack on for breakfast. It didn’t take him long to force her to admit that she hadn’t had one either, earning herself an affectionate smack on the head for not caring about herself in the first place. They finished their portions around the time they found themselves in front of the gardens linking the three mountainous academies.
“And here I thought Rosewind’s school had the most impressive grounds.” Asterios took in the breathtaking sight of perfect landscaping.
“This place is definitely going to become a top spot for dates.” Grea snickered, giving his hand a light squeeze. “And it’s all thanks to Althea and our bark-skinned friend. Plus a few skilled craftsmen and women from the elf lands.”
“Personally, I was thinking about it being a nice place to read a book or study in peace.” He glanced at her with a small smile.
She rolled her eyes at him. “Of course, you were. If only you had raised your nose from those notes of yours for a second or two, you would have had a pretty girl on your arm during all the breaks. I really pity Tina sometimes. Must have been frustrating going after such a blind idiot.”
“Hey.” Asterios squinted at her. “Schools are for learning as much as they are for romance. Not everyone has their mind in the gutter all the time as you do.”
Grea flashed her tongue and dragged him further with a faint giggle. He knew well that she was just making fun of him, and they were both enjoying it.
They arrived in front of the artificial peak made of white marble and headed for the ornamental staircase leading to the top. It was now fully sculpted and decorated with golden gems, which were supposed to illuminate the steps during the night. The journey up took a moment as they admired numerous draconic motifs and sculptures along the way.
What greeted them at the end of the path could only be described as a gorgeous royal residence of the same shade as its base. Perhaps a fortress would be a better word for it, considering the size, both vertical and horizontal, but the academy in front of them had so much beautiful styling that it would be a blasphemy to call it anything else than a palace. Elven touch was more than noticeable in the shapes of doorways, archways, windows, and general architecture.
“Don’t you think this is a bit too fancy?” Asterios raised a brow at his companion.
Grea left his side and spun around, spreading her arms wide. “Nonsense. Direct combat has always been considered the most noble out of all doctrines. It’s a knightly thing. And it will certainly house a lot of knights in the future. It’s only natural that our melee combat academy represents that aspect.”
“It’s not going to help fight the superiority complex of those who get in there.” He shook his head.
“You’ll eat those words the moment you see the onyx one from up close.” She met his gaze knowingly, then spun some more. “Come on. I’ll show you around before our guests arrive.”
“I guess a bit of rivalry between the academies will be a good thing.” Asterios sighed and followed after her.
It was clear that Grea was familiar with the building to the utmost detail, which impressed him greatly. For someone this reluctant about the whole initiative, she had put an immense amount of time and effort into ensuring that the endeavor is nothing but a huge success. For someone who would previously be happy to receive a tiny workshop in a faraway corner of the whole thing, she was finding herself in the role of the academy’s main administrator perfectly well.
He had always known she could do it if only she wanted to.
After overcoming her troubled past, of course.
The pair strolled through the stunning corridors and visited numerous rooms and locations. As expected, Grea knew the purpose and role of all of them. Even if the chamber was still empty, just prepared to be furnished and fully structured, she regaled him with the tales of its future greatness, having the picture already in her mind. He believed she would be able to pinpoint the position of every single piece of furniture if he asked her for it.
Soon, they reached a massive, seemingly empty hall. The walls were quite unique, extending outwards at a slight angle, like stairs. However, those weren’t steps upwards towards the ceiling, at least not all of them. Asterios quickly figured out that those were seats. That allowed him to spot the holes in the floor spread evenly over its entire surface.
As they stopped in front of such a pit, he understood its real meaning.
Those were miniature arenas, kind of like in Rosewind.
Just inverted.
“Welcome to the training hall.” Grea patted him on the back. “I can see you’ve noticed the inspiration.”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “Quite smart. With just the top open, you need only one barrier to ensure the safety of the audience and everyone else. The spectators are almost perfectly safe, not having to sit or stand on the sides or slightly above the fight. These are more or less the same size as Rosewind’s battlegrounds, which is nice. And styling them after the grand coliseum from Bryn’s realm is commendable.”
“It’s gotta be pleasing to the eye if we want to host public tournaments here one day.” His demon mate hung her arm over his shoulders. “Each academy has its own version, more fine-tuned to its field of expertise. Both ranged and magical arenas require some more space to work with, including a few other adjustments.”
“The students are going to love these.” Asterios returned the gesture by wrapping his arm around her waist, slipping it underneath her leather coat. “And with the number of available spots, personal reservations for practice and disputes shouldn’t be a problem. How many, about twelve?”
“Eighteen per academy.” Grea corrected him. “You can see the combat halls from practically any window, as they are the largest part of each structure.”
She guided him to the end of the sizable room and up to a view down on the city and the other two colorful hills in the distance, one black and one green. As she had said, the training segments were easily distinguishable, even with their completely different style for each school.
“Honestly, I’m glad the last one isn’t red. There’s too much of it everywhere already.” Asterios let out a faint laugh as his eye roved over the emerald institution.
His beloved professor smirked at him. “Oh, it would have been, if only we knew that your green source, which was the core of your magic, would somehow change shades. Or perhaps it would have been gold instead?”
He stared at her blankly. “They are colored after my sources?”
“Of course, my silly man.” She bopped him on the nose. “To a certain extent, at least. Black and green overlapped with the usual associations of ranged and magical studies. We went with white for melee instead of red for the same reason, but had we known, it might have been gold and magic crimson, its second associated shade.”
“You girls are impossible.” Asterios rubbed his eyes, listening to her amused giggles. “So, which one houses your new office, Headmistress? You haven’t yet shown me to your honorable station.”
“Why not all of them?” Grea waggled her brows.
“There’s no way you would be willing to jump between three different locations just to fill in some papers.” He laughed openly. “And I can already imagine the mess considering the trouble you had keeping your old lab in shape with how lazy you can sometimes be.”
The proud crimson-skinned professor huffed indignantly at the slander and defamation, then smiled widely, dropping the act. “You know me so well, my love.”
Stealing a quick kiss from him, Grea poked his cheek to direct his face towards the window again. Whereas his attention was previously focused mostly on things below or on equal level, his sharp draconic gaze lifted towards the sky this time, noticing a small shape floating just above the line of towers belonging to the three academies. He examined the suspicious object more as it slowly made its way towards them, sliding through the air over the edge of an invisible circle connecting the sister schools.
“You are kidding me…” Ast’s eyes widened in disbelief. “You put your office atop one of those flying platforms?”
Grea’s crazy grin was in full force when he turned back to her.
“You are insane.” He chuckled, joining their lips for one more moment of affection. “Why?”
“Because it looks cool?” She shrugged. “As you said, it’s stupid to have three offices and walk between them. So, why not have one that walks to you instead? Now, I can sit comfortably atop my airborne throne and bring it to any academy that might require my attention. Plus, just imagine the face of those kids when they start badmouthing their scary headmistress during a boring lecture, just to glance outside and find me looking straight at them as my island parks by their classroom window-to-window.”
“You are making me start to question if I really should have pushed this position onto you.” Asterios teased. “You can be a true menace to society.”
“Oh, you know nothing yet.” Grea pressed herself into him, seductively dragging her finger over his chest as she gazed into his eyes hotly. “That’s just one use of it. Ever since I’ve heard the details of your heavenly date with Bryn in the elven lands, straight from the winged beauty itself at that, I’ve developed an itch to be roughly fucked in the middle of the sky too. Bent over the balcony, thrown halfway out of the window, pinned down right by the platform’s edge, screaming my lungs out from immeasurable pleasure as everyone below continues with their daily life, oblivious to how their respected lord wrecks his slutty headmistress above their heads until she turns into a blabbering, shivering mess of a woman.”
She lunged at him, biting into his bottom lip as her frame trembled from excitement.
He slid his hand up her throat, lifting her chin up to match his, her cheeks darkening from arousal. “You seriously need help.”
“You bet, I do.” Grea almost growled. “It’s not going to pound itself, is it?”
The atmosphere grew thick and tense between them as they peered into each other’s eyes from up close, their chests pressed together. But, before either of them could act on it, no matter in what way, the bubble burst as the echo of incoming steps reached their position. Their gazes flicked to the other end of the hall, and they noticed multiple shadows in the distant corridor, heading right towards them.
Quickly grabbing Ast’s collar, Grea crashed her mouth into his for one last cordial kiss before pushing herself off him, hastily fixing her shirt, coat, and hair. A deep breath later, her whole demeanor shifted. The horny demon was gone, replaced by a slightly more composed and respectable academic lady with sharp but beautiful features. Noticing his surprise, she sent him a quick wink before beginning to march ahead, swaying her hips enticingly. He watched her graceful steps from the back for a while before following suit.
Those new clothes truly did the fierce demon woman justice.
A moment later, the two of them met up in the middle with a group of men and women of different races dressed in somewhat official attire. It was led by Irelia, who was guiding the procession in her magnificent dark crimson draconic armor. The young Knight held her helmet under her armpit, her sword attached at her hip, and her shield hung at her back.
She fell to one knee the second everyone stopped. “My Lord. My Lady.”
“Please, rise.” Grea smiled down at her charmingly. “Thank you for bringing the prospects to us.”
“It’s always an honor.” Irelia stood up and smiled back. “I shall await further command.”
With that, she retreated to the side just as gallantly. Save for one faint peek she snuck at Asterios. Meeting his eyes, she straightened up even more.
“My love.” Grea’s polite tone caught his attention. “These are the candidates for our institution that I have mentioned before. In the first wave, six Marbles, three Onyxes, and two Emeralds. They have been thoroughly screened by yours truly, as well as our omniscient friends. They are here for the celebrations, but also take advantage of this opportunity to introduce themselves. The final decision of who to accept belongs to you. I’ll gladly offer my opinions and insights, of course.”
Nodding at her, he scanned the faces of the potential faculty. With a big chunk of them specializing in melee combat, he briefly reached out to Irelia mentally to check if she was familiar with any of them, perhaps meeting the instructors in one of the Knight academies. She hadn’t. Which was a good thing for the prospects.
“Welcome to Glimmervale.” Asterios offered them a polite nod too. “I assume there’s no need to introduce myself if you have spoken with my partner already. I appreciate your candidacy, even considering the fact that this is a newly built learning institution with practically zero renown. A big risk in the eyes of many, most likely. Especially in a faraway land in the middle of nowhere.”
“That’s not much of a concern, My Lord.” A female dwarf spoke up from the crowd, entering a small bow. “The offered accommodations are of an unmatched level and quality. I don’t think anyone would ever find fault with temporary or even permanent relocation.”
It was the first time Asterios was hearing about that part, but he could admit that it was a good move. Dormitories for students were already a thing, so dedicated residences or two for the teaching staff seemed just as natural. And judging by the woman’s words, they must be as fancy as the academies themselves.
“I’m glad to hear that.” He chuckled lightly. “Since you seem well-informed about the whole initiative, I won’t bore you with a barrage of repeated questions you must have answered during your initial interviews. There’s just one thing I’m going to ask all of you. Are you sure you can handle the position you are aspiring for?”
The unexpected inquiry visibly surprised the instructors. It was a simple, yet extremely difficult question.
Why? Because someone could easily take offense to it, consider it a lack of faith in their abilities and experience, or even a personal attack.
And at least one person amongst the currently gathered had.
An elf dressed in fine robes stepped forward, his expression rather displeased.
“With all due respect, My Lord, do you know who you are speaking to?” The man looked to both sides at his associates. “Even coming from my people’s homeland, I can recognize four excellent masters here without ever meeting them face-to-face before. That gives me the impression that, after your screening, everyone here is one of the top tutors in their chosen field. You can hardly find any better.”
Multiple nods of agreement supported his statement.
“That might be true.” Asterios stroked his chin thoughtfully. “If this were any normal academy.”
More confusion permeated the air.
“I don’t doubt you can achieve great things when placed in front of the single path you spent your entire life specializing in,” he continued, roaming his gaze over the candidates. “But, what we are doing here is fairly unique. What we need is not just talented and knowledgeable people, but also people who can think outside the box. If you haven’t forgotten, there are three schools joined into one grand institution. While you are going to stay within the walls of just one most of the time, your students won’t. They are going to rotate now and then, learning from the other two academies in a supplementary fashion.”
The group exchanged glances.
“It won’t be easy. But it won’t be impossible. As long as you are capable of keeping your minds open to fields and approaches different from yours without any contempt or disregard,” Asterios added, earning himself a reminiscent smile from the ex-professor by his side. “That is why, the most important thing I need to know is, do you have what it takes to look past differences and assist in advancing your students’ talents, no matter what area of expertise they fell in love with, helping them overcome the walls they might not recognize due to their limited viewpoint?”
It might not be possible to make the prospects even more confused.
But, some still tried their best to find a satisfactory answer.
An older human lady pushed forward this time. “And would simple words be enough to prove that?”
Asterios grinned in satisfaction. “Let us have a small test then, shall we?”
Not waiting for a response, he gestured at Irelia, and the young Knight marched to his side, hitting her chestplate with her fist after stopping.
“This is Young Lady Irelia.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “She’s aiming to join our marble academy as an aspiring Knight. Her goal is to become strong enough to protect everything she holds dear. She will help us with a little presentation. Please, pay as much attention to it as you can.”
Irelia curiously peered up at him. The others looked like they wanted to ask for some more details. But, Asterios didn’t give them enough time to speak up and guided his short retainer to the closest descent on their right. She quickly caught on and elegantly jumped down into the spacious arena, her enchanted armor aiding her landing. He followed soon after, a see-through barrier of a light blue hue covering the missing ceiling right as he dropped. Grea offered him a knowing smile as she operated a nearby control pulpit.
Making it to the reinforced ground, Asterios rose to stand across Irelia, who waited for his further instructions. Lighting crystals embedded in the walls of the stylized octagon powered up and comfortably illuminated their battleground.
“It’s been a while since you joined the Dragon Guard’s training sessions.” He summoned his greatsword, resting the tip on the floor to the side. “Show me what you have learned.”
The young Knight donned her helmet and pulled the shield off her back. To his surprise, she stored it away in her spatial inventory. Drawing her blade with both hands, she lowered her stance, setting it horizontally towards her opponent.
“My sword-and-shield arts are nowhere near a level worthy of your attention yet, My Lord. Therefore, allow me to display the fruits of my labor that I can be proud of.” Irelia settled into a serious mood. “Your loyal subject humbly requests guidance.”
“Granted.” Asterios grinned and prepared himself to receive her sword.
With a loud sound of a horn, the duel began.