Return of the Runebound Professor

The survival exam wrapped up quickly. Everyone who had a Token passed, and those who didn’t failed. It wasn’t exactly fair, but few things were. Whoever had been trying to sabotage Emily’s team had either given up on their attempts or had succeeded in their goals, because no more hordes of monsters showed up.

Eline was extracted by an instructor, and Noah didn’t get any further looks at Karina either. He’d have to do something about her, but that was a problem for later.

Maybe she’ll just forget I exist. It’s not like I need Father’s permission to marry anyone, so I really don’t give a shit about what he wants. Father and I have a truce anyway. I doubt he’ll blow it over this.

“So? How did Emily perform?” Lee asked, making a remarkable smug cat impression as she looked at Evergreen through squinted eyes. “She won, and even with a siege of monsters trying to defeat her every second of the exam.”

“Only up until the Rank 6 mages showed up,” Evergreen said, but there was a note of begrudging respect in her voice. “She did acceptably.”

“You’ve got no complaints, then?” Lee pressed.

Evergreen turned her gray eyes onto Lee. “No. I do not.”

“Maybe you should have some compliments instead,” Noah suggested. He knew he was pushing it a little, but the way that the Torrin family treated Moxie had been grinding on his nerves for some time now. Demon influence or not, they needed to learn some respect for people that worked under them. “Considering you were going to literally kill Moxie if she failed, I feel like there should be some reward for her success, no?”

Evergreen’s lips pressed thin and she interlaced her fingers, raising an eyebrow. “You are the most presumptuous weakling that I have ever met. You act as if you are my equal, but your strength is like that of a small bug compared to mine.”

“That doesn’t make me any less correct.” Noah shrugged. “I’m not telling you how to run your family, Magus Evergreen. But, in my experience, when one rules with only a stick and no honey, then they’ll eventually find themselves facing down someone with a bigger stick – and there won’t be anyone that’s willing to help you. Not every problem can be dealt with through fear and punishment.”

“And what would you have me do? Award someone for – what, completing the job that was already required of them?” Sarcasm dripped from Evergreen’s words.

“That sounds like a brilliant idea!” Noah beamed at Evergreen. “I was going to suggest just saying ‘thank you’, but a monetary reward would be a great idea. How much are you going to give Moxie, and do I get some of it as well because I helped train Emily?”

Evergreen ground her teeth. “I was exaggerating. I will do no such thing. If I reward every single cog that turns when it is meant to, then the entire system will grind to a halt. Moxie has accomplished her task. There is no need for anything else. She is satisfied–”

“Actually,” Moxie said, looking somewhat surprised to be speaking, “I’d like some time off. I’ve been tutoring Emily nonstop for years. First before Arbitage, and now at it. I haven’t had any time to work on myself properly in a long time.”

Evergreen studied Moxie for several seconds. Her lips pursed and she let out a sigh.

“Very well. Your continued growth is required in order to continue training Emily. You will be given the break months off. Is that acceptable?”

“Perfectly,” Moxie replied. She hid her smile, but Noah knew her well enough to recognize the flash of satisfaction in her eyes. “Thank you for your kindness.”

Evergreen grunted. She pushed herself to her feet with the aid of her staff and, shaking her head, walked over to the door. “Come. We must greet Emily upon her return.”

“I wouldn’t dream of missing it,” Noah said, falling in behind Evergreen alongside Moxie and Lee.

The three retraced the steps they’d taken a few days ago ago, heading back to the transport cannon as the students started to arrive from within it, heading down the stairs at the cannon’s base and settling in around the courtyard.

It was always interesting watching faces after an exam finished. A small portion of the students were grinning and chatting to each other – the ones that had never been concerned about the exam in the first place.

A large number of them just looked relieved that the exam was over. They were the ones that had done their best and likely passed, but it had probably been fairly close for a lot of them. And then there was the final group – the ones that had failed.

Noah had never liked watching kids fail. He wanted to pass all of them – but that obviously would have defeated the purpose. It was, at least on Earth, often necessary. But, after he’d seen how someone had clearly been trying to sabotage Isabel and the others, all he felt was suspicion.

Were other people targeted as well? We weren’t watching anyone other than our kids, but if someone went after them, then it’s possible that they went after others as well. There’s just almost nothing to go off of.

It’s possible that the problem had something to do with whoever messed with Evergreen’s construct. That’s probably a safe bet – but not one I want to put my money on. Not yet, at least. There are too many damn assholes with agendas, and I’m one of them. Better to really look into things and get the right conclusion than jump to the wrong one.

Isabel waved to Noah, catching his attention as she stepped down from the transport cannon. Todd, Emily, and James walked behind her. Todd and Emily were both beaming, while James and Isabel had much more control over their expressions.

The group walked up, stopping beside Noah.

“Well, look who it is,” Noah said with a grin. “We were watching your exam. I don’t even know where to start, so I’ll just settle for saying congratulations. That was a damn good showing, all of you. I would have loved to see a bit more, but I’m glad Tenfort called the exam early.”

“We just got lucky that Eline stumbled into us with a whole bag of them. If she hadn’t done that, the exam would have gotten called before we ever got a chance to see a token. I’ve got absolutely no idea what she was thinking.”

Noah chuckled and shook his head. “You’ve got no idea. She was trying to steal tokens from everyone she came across. Well, not trying. She actually did. You were next on her list. I figure she thought you had them and wanted to make sure you wouldn’t pass the exam.”

Todd burst into laughter. “We didn’t have a single one.”

Emily nodded, and a pensive look passed over her features. “It’s odd. We fought far too many monsters. A lot more than we should have been up against. It felt like someone was actively trying to get us killed.”

“Not killed,” Isabel said. “They would have sent something stronger.”

“Just inconvenienced. It was probably Revin,” James grumbled.

That… is a possibility, actually. But Revin seemed pretty preoccupied helping us kill Evergreen’s construct. I don’t feel like it was him, but I can’t dismiss the thought entirely.

“Honestly, from what I know of him, I wouldn’t be–”

It wasn’t.

Noah choked as Azel’s voice thundered within his head, echoing through his mind so loudly that he couldn’t hear himself think for a moment. He blinked furiously, then gave Isabel a quick grin when she sent a concerned glance in his direction.

“Sorry. Choked on my saliva.” Noah rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Not letting any of his feelings show in his face, he shoved his mind back at Azel with all the force he could, pushing the demon’s thoughts away.

Get out of my head, demon.

There was no response. Whether that was because he’d successfully reprimanded Azel or because the demon was simply satisfied with what he’d said, Noah wasn’t sure. And, of course, as soon as he actually paused to think for a moment, he realized that Azel had to have a reason as to why he didn’t think it was Revin.

Damn it. Now I need to speak with him again.

“We’ll figure out what was going on,” Moxie promised, stepping in for Noah since he was clearly distracted. She clapped Emily on the shoulder and gave her a firm nod. “You did well. All of you did.”

“Acceptable,” Evergreen corrected. “Do not inflate their egos.”

“There’s nothing wrong with showing approval for a good performance,” Moxie replied. Emily looked from her to Evergreen, her eyebrows raising slightly. Then she grinned.

“Thanks, Moxie. I’ll make sure to keep on top of things.”

“I’m sure you will,” Evergreen said. Her hard exterior crumbled for a moment, and Noah saw a flash of approval in her eyes. No matter what Evergreen said, she did care for Emily – at least a little.

Out of the corner of his eye, Noah spotted Garrick and Eline approaching them. Eline’s face was as pale as a sheet of paper. She looked like she’d seen a ghost. For a moment, Noah was confused.

Then he remembered Revin’s bet with Evergreen.

Oh, shit. Evergreen forgot the bet, didn’t she? That doesn’t mean it doesn’t apply, though. Garrick and Eline still think it’s in place, and something tells me that Revin isn’t going to just let it go. Eline probably thinks she’s about to get killed.

“You failed the exam,” Evergreen said, her voice flat.

“They – they were Rank Two!” Eline exclaimed, thrusting an accusatory finger in Emily’s direction. “That isn’t fair! And – and that other girl! She helped them!”

“You failed,” Evergreen repeated. She shook her head. “Failure is always the fault of the one who failed. There are no excuses. There are no exceptions. If you were defeated, then you did not properly prepare. That is all there is too it.”

To Eline, Evergreen is basically saying she deserves to die. Ouch. Oh well. I’m sure Revin won’t actually kill her. Probably. He’s not even here. Maybe he –

Evergreen’s shadow rippled. The old woman glanced down as a bubble of darkness burst within it and Revin’s staff cleaved out, hooking into the ground. He pulled himself out, spinning his scythe and leaning it over his shoulder as he gave them a wry grin.

“Anyone thinking of me?”

God, that’s uncanny.

“Revin,” Garrick said, his harsh voice almost sounding concerned. “We–”

“Had a deal,” Revin finished, his grin widening. “Isn’t that right, Evergreen?”

Evergreen glanced from Revin to Eline. Her brow creased in confusion, but there wasn’t any surprise on Eline or Garrick’s faces.

“If you made a deal, then it is between you. I couldn’t care less,” Evergreen said flatly.

“In that case – Elaine, was it?”

“Eline.”

“Elion. As discussed, I have come for your life.”

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