The Exalt [Cultivation Fantasy]

"Goodbye."

Frederick got up from his bed and made his way toward the entrance under the stunned eyes of Emily and Oscar.

"What is this? Where do you think you're going?" Emily grasped Frederick's arm and asked, lacking the usual powerful tone in her words.

"Thank you, Emily. Even though we often argued, I enjoyed every moment with you." Frederick broke away from Emily's hands and smiled in nostalgia.

"Fred…." Fighting through the pain, Oscar stood and saw his friend eye to eye. The Frederick who loved joking around, the one who stood by him, and the one who was a good friend were not there.

He saw a deep hatred and darkness in Frederick's eyes, masked only by the sentimental feelings Frederick still carried for him and Emily. But that, too, was slowly fading.

"Fred, we're your friends. We can help you." Oscar limped closer.

"You don't need to be like this. You can rely on us." Emily added in.

Frederick sighed and shook his head in rejection. "I've grown too comfortable being with you and nearly forgot about Teresa and why I wanted to be stronger. Sorry, I can't forget about Teresa, and I can't forgive Gilbert."

"Os. Emily. The two of you should live on freely. I can't follow you. All I want…is to kill that bastard." The chill in Frederick's eyes halted Oscar and Emily from speaking.

"Goodbye. It was a great time. Don't concern yourself with me."

Speechless, Oscar and Emily watched as Frederick exited the healing station. Oscar felt helpless. He wanted to yell out and reach for Frederick and hold him back, but one stern look from Frederick was enough to stop him.

"Oscar….Was it my fault? I insulted him and asked him why he was even fighting. Did I do this?" Emily looked at Oscar with a face full of shame. Frederick held all his past and rage down, but Emily was the catalyst that sprung it forth. It was a natural assumption that she was responsible for Frederick's change.

"No. You're not at fault." Oscar reached out and patted Emily's shoulders in a consoling manner. "I should have been more focused on his odd behavior."

"Then what do we do for him?" Emily asked with tears dripping down her face.

Oscar also felt his eyes water from Frederick's departure. For the past year, ever since they met at the trial, Oscar regarded Frederick as a close brother. From being roommates and sparring to going on missions and laughing. Every moment was precious to Oscar.

"Is Teresa worth all of this? Are you serious about giving up everything to get revenge?"

Emily was still waiting for Oscar to reply but didn't speak up. She saw the sadness and conflict on Oscar's face.

"The only thing we can do…." Oscar shook his head. "I don't know."

"...."

The two remained silent for the rest of the day as the competition ended. In the end, Phillip Raeven rose as the undisputed champion.

At the award ceremony, Emily received many contribution points and two elixirs. It was a tremendous reward for her efforts and reaching the top 32.

But she did not smile at all while receiving the praise and accolades. Her eyes kept wandering around, looking for someone. Her thoughts were on Frederick.

Oscar returned to his dorm as the night fell, hoping to see Frederick.

But Frederick was nowhere to be found. The closet had been cleared of all his clothes, and his belongings were gone.

"Fred?"

Oscar ran down to the lounge and asked for the dorm manager.

The dorm manager came down with a look of confusion and asked, "What is it, child?"

"Frederick Klein is no longer in my room. His belongings have been cleared out. What happened to him?"

"Frederick…." The dorm manager opened a record book and flipped to the last page. "It says he requested to be moved to another room. Since there are many empty rooms, he was granted permission."

"A new room? Where is it?" Oscar asked desperately.

"Sorry, student confidentiality. It says he asked his room be kept anonymous to anyone who asks." The dorm manager closed the book.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Oscar raised his voice unlike any time before.

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The dorm manager frowned in displeasure that a student was shouting at him.

Realizing his mistake, Oscar quickly apologized. "Forgive me; I was getting too emotional."

Oscar left the dorms to get some air and calm down. Although Frederick said farewell, Oscar didn't expect him also to vacate the room. He hoped that perhaps he could slowly convince Frederick since they were in the same room.

"Idiot….what am I supposed to do?" Oscar sat on the grassy plains and glanced up at the night sky.

"You look disturbed."

Behind Oscar, Elder Saul appeared holding a gardening shovel. His timing was always impeccable regarding Oscar down in the dumps.

"Elder Saul." Oscar bowed. "Are you willing to listen?"

"I would say no because of my precious plants, but the year's end is a special occasion, so I'll listen." Elder Saul brought Oscar to his hut, where he sat on his chair, rocking it back and forth.

Oscar told Elder Saul everything that happened to Frederick. He looked guilty for narrating his friend's past, but he hoped Elder Saul could help him. An elder with long years would surely have the experience.

"How unfortunate yet also absurd. The young Teresa dies under the weight of her world crashing down, but to die over a boy is something I can't understand. Meanwhile, Gilbert moves on with his eyes fixed on the front without looking back. And Frederick. He can only see what is behind him." Elder Saul said.

"What can I do for Frederick?" Oscar pleaded for an answer.

"He chose this himself. What right do you have to interfere?" Elder Saul questioned.

"He doesn't care about anything but revenge on Gilbert." Oscar argued.

"Did you try to convince him?" Elder Saul stared at Oscar.

"I…no." Oscar knew he barely did anything to stop Frederick. "One look at Frederick told me he wouldn't listen to anything or anyone."

"Then let it be."

Elder Saul took out some hot water and made tea out of it. Two cups appeared out of nowhere, and he poured the tea in both. One of the cups floated its way to Oscar.

"Drink. Be calm."

Oscar didn't want to quiet down for a tea session, but he could not refuse Elder Saul and took a sip. His eyes perked up as a refreshing feeling spread through his body. A nice and cool feeling welled up from within.

After ten minutes, the tea session ended. Oscar felt calmer and more relaxed.

"Your friend is on this path, and you say it's wrong. I agree that it's idiotic to forgo a future for a past grudge. But to simply forget a past grudge without resolution is also detrimental." Elder Saul gave his opinion.

"I don't deny what Gilbert did was wrong. I accept that taking revenge is not evil if it comes down to it, but there should be no reason to cast aside his friends." Oscar stated.

Elder Saul took out a nut and munched on it.

"It's up to your friend to realize whether or not he's correct. You are correct in saying revenge isn't evil. But your friend is taking it too far. Only having revenge on one's mind will eventually break it down."

"Can I do nothing about it? Is Frederick supposed to figure this out himself?"

"Leave it to luck. You can't help him. At least not now. Maybe later, perhaps a moment will come when you can get through to him, or maybe not." Elder Saul got up from his seat. "It's almost time for sleep; you should get back as well."

The Elder disappeared into his hut.

"That wasn't helpful at all…." Oscar got up and returned to his dorm with his head hung down.

Later that night, Oscar tossed and turned in his sleep. He was having a nightmare.

"No…."

Oscar saw Frederick try to attack Gilbert, but he ended up being torn to shreds. Frederick's limbs, body, and head are all separated in a bloody mess. His eyes stared right at Oscar, pleading for help.

"No!"

Oscar awoke in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and gasping for air. The dream was so vivid that Oscar could feel Frederick's blood splatter on him. He looked to his side and saw only the empty bed that was once Frederick's.

"Fred…."

Frederick going against Gilbert was simply suicide. Gilbert was more talented than Celestina, who was already close to being an Elite Exalt. He was outmatched. If Frederick fought against Gilbert, his nightmare would become a reality.

He wanted to say something to Frederick, but Oscar could not muster a word to Frederick about it. He never lost anyone like Teresa; his parents loved him, and he was a commoner. It was not his place to lecture Frederick when he understood nothing about losing a loved one.

Oscar realized how little in common he and Frederick had, yet they could become such good friends. Perhaps that was also what drew Frederick to him. He was the complete opposite of everything Frederick despised.

But that gave him the best friend he ever knew.

"I won't let you die, Fred. Even if I must beat you down myself to stop you from marching to your death."

No matter what, he won't let that nightmare happen.

Oscar fell asleep with renewed conviction.

In the morning, he awoke and tidied himself up. He'd stare at the empty bed with a depressed look every so often.

After arriving at the cafeteria, he saw no signs of Frederick. Oscar sat down with dark bags under his eyes from having little sleep.

"Good morning."

Emily dropped her plate in front. She also had bags under her eyes.

"Couldn't sleep?"

"Neither did you."

The two noticed each other's tired appearance and sighed.

"I was up all night, thinking about how to handle Frederick." Emily said.

"Hmmm."

The two ate their breakfast quickly.

"I'm going to the training room. Do you want to come?" Emily suggested they train harder to ensure they don't lose the next Grand Gathering.

Although she was depressed by Frederick's sudden change, she wasn't one to slack on her training. In fact, she wanted to do nothing more than train the day to take her mind off it.

"Sorry, but I must go to the Archives, and I'm leaving for three months." Oscar apologized.

"Three months?" Emily's face fell, and her body slowly drooped as if powerless.

"Second-year students and above have the right to go anywhere to train for months. I signed up in the morning. I'm leaving later this afternoon."

"Then, good luck. I hope your training goes well." Emily bitterly smiled. First, Frederick and now Oscar will be temporarily gone. She disliked being alone after spending time with her good friends.

"Don't worry. I'll be back in three months. You shouldn't waste that time either. We need to get stronger." Oscar tried to comfort her.

"Right." There was no liveliness in her voice. It was like her entire being had switched. The strong and lively Emily was not there.

Not wanting to see more, Oscar quickly bade his farewells and packed up some of his necessities. He then went to the Neptune Archives. He promised to meet with Celestina the day after the Grand Gathering before she entered seclusion.

"...."

He stopped walking. His eyes fixated on the entrance to the Archives.

In front of the Archives was a man with blue hair and blue eyes. His brow was straight and his chin sharp. The picture of a handsome man. The Grade Nine genius, Gilbert.

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