^^ Prof. Daerden ^^

--- Wren's POV ---

"Here. Food." I nudged a bowl of rice to Mei's face, as she hadn't woken up when I called or kicked. She grumbled, and I waved it under her nose. "Fooooood."

Her nose twitched adorably, and she opened her eyes. "What?" She grumbled.

"Wake up. Eat." I set it on her nightstand, and stabbed the chopsticks into it, walking out.

I halted when I saw Sir Arthur and Menai standing in the Dojo. "Uh... good morning." I said, and started eating my own bowl of rice, (my first meal in several days, purchased from the Dining Hall, which served the main meals, Monday through Friday).

"I don't know if I ever lived like this in all my days of learning here... who built this?" Sir Arthur asked.

"I did." I said simply. "Designed and built in three days. Mei helped a bit with the magical wood, but the plants and shingles were all she did. The rest is all my grunt work and skill put into action." I nodded

She blinked slowly, and then looked around at the marble, wood, and rubber glue building, and then caught sight of the bathhouse. She stepped into it, and gasped. "Shit... I'm... wow. I'm so completely surprised. I've only ever seen something like this in the Palaces..."

"Welcome to the Kingdom of Wren." I smirked and spread my hands dramatically, then went back to eating my rice.

She laughed, and Menai nodded. "Yes... that makes sense, kuningilin... anyway, I figured I'd bring you your schedules personally, you and Miss Shinzo."

I nodded. "Thank you." I walked past him into my room, then knelt swiftly, facing north, and asked Auld Nick if he'd be so kind as to allow me a very good first impression.

"Who is... Auld Nick?" Menai asked.

"The patron saint of Thieves, Sailors, Repentant Murderers, Merchants, Pawnbrokers, and Children, among other things, almost all of which apply to me, so he's my go-to for religion." I responded, and grabbed my satchel. "Okay. Class list. What books will I need, and do you have them?"

He handed me a sheet of paper, and a short stack of books. "You don't really need many core classes, other than basic biology and garbage- I mean Verbiage." He smirked.

"Don't make fun of my lack of vocabulary. Those words on that test were stupid. No one uses 'Dichotomy' in a sentence unless they're trying their hardest to sound 'Intelligent', which, invariably, simply makes them look like a total dumbass." I shrugged.

He snickered. "You sound bitter."

"A little." I admitted easily.

"Why do you want to be a Knight?" Sir Arthur asked, standing directly in front of me, staring me down.

"Pardon me?" I asked.

"With the skills you've shown in building and shipping and business, you could be a wealthy man. Why do you want to be a Knight?" She repeated herself.

"Well... honestly? My father and mother were murdered by an upstart Initiate Knight, on orders from a Noble, because of a petty little diamond mine that played out in less than a year. My long-term plan is to kick said noble off of an Island Rail, and watch with a smile as it drowns in the ocean." I said simply.

She blinked slowly. "Huh. Revenge. I suppose that's as good a motivator as any, if generally destructive. Alright."

Mei stumbled out of her room, half-dressed, hopping into a pair of pants, holding her bowl of rice in her off hand, and froze when she saw the Paladin and Headmaster in her living room.

Sir Arthur looked back at me, and covered a smile. Menai simply looked away as Mei got herself situated. She blushed as she bowed and apologized for her 'tasteless display'. Then she stepped into the bathroom and got herself ready for the day.

I washed my face, then combed my long black hair out of my eyes for now. It wouldn't stay that way, especially when I jumped off the roof, (the Sky loves messing with hair,) but I liked it anyway.

Sir Arthur gave Mei her schedule and books, which were just two, one that read 'Notes', and the other that read 'Botany'.

Mine, now that I really looked at them, read 'Notes', 'Chemistry', 'Biology', and 'English Verbiage and Grammar'. I settled them in my satchel, and then hummed. "So... what's the deal? This schedule is literally in Latin, so it's useless."

"Latin?" Sir Arthur asked, and looked at it. She glared at Menai, and he shrugged, waving a hand lazily.

I read the newly translated text, and nodded. "Alright... so three mental classes, and then the rest of the day is spent in the Arena?" I asked.

"Correct. Your teachers will change according to the day, or their moods, and you'll be in groups of 20, to make things easier... well, easier on us." Menai grinned.

"Interesting... alright. Mei, you ready? Or do you want to use the elevator?" I grinned.

She smiled. "You know what, I think I'll take the ride with you. It's much faster than walking, that's for sure." She placed her books into a brown purse/satchel, and then laced a thin sword onto her hip.

I blinked. "Ah! Right."

I placed the Copy onto my left hip, lacing it into my belt, and my dagger on my right, and tested my movements, so I didn't move wrong when it came time to.

"I usually wouldn't wear a weapon I wasn't proficient in, but... hmm." I shrugged and nodded to the Paladin and Menai, then simply picked Mei up and fell backwards over the edge.

The paladin grabbed me, and I laughed as all three of us went over. I started accelerating. "If you wanted a ride, you could've just said, Sir Arthur!" I exclaimed joyously, and enjoyed the feeling of freedom that came with flying. Like there were no more tethers.

But, sadly, all good things come to an end, and we arrived at the crowded Commons, off which all classrooms stemmed. I landed easily, and set Arthur and Mei down on their feet. "Well that was fun!" I grinned.

Mei sighed. "We're on the roof, Wren." She commented.

I nodded. "It's too crowded down there to try to land in it. Come on. I'm sure Sir Arthur can make it down on her own, easily." I picked her up easily, and hopped down the six floors to the square. I simply bent my knees, almost ignoring the negligent impact, and set her down again. "I'll see you back at the dorm!" I grinned, and jogged off to find my first class, Chemistry.

---

I sat at a lab desk, grinning, and looked around. There were only a few people in the classroom, which surprised me.

I thought, perhaps, that because it was the first day of term, we'd have a light workload, but no. Not even close.

The professor slammed open the door, walked in, and then stood at the Holo-Table that served as his desk.

"Alright... I'm Professor Daerden, a Silver-Feathered Bronze Squire. Now get out your books, and we'll start off with something easy. Today, we are creating Water. Let's begin." He sat down and simply watched us.

I opened my book quickly, and the desk I was sitting at lit up. Just like the privacy screens from the Exam, I couldn't see the other students' screens... I found the chapter for making water, and a Lab appeared on the holo-desk.

I read the chemical composition softly, and nodded. "H2O... easy enough..." I pulled water from the air slowly, until I had a little globe of it, and then electrocuted it with a spark from my Sword. It separated into hydrogen and oxygen, and then I grinned, pressing the gasses together again, then sparked it again, making water reappear slowly.

I froze it, and set it on the lab table. It scanned, and then beeped softly. 'Lab completed. Percentage: 100%. Move on to next lab.'

I hummed and crunched on my ball of ice, then followed the instructions.

---

'Lab Completed. Percentage: 100%......'

I blinked. "Is there no next lab?" I hummed.

"No. You've completed them all. Where did you study before now?" The professor asked, lacing his fingers together.

"Fifth Tier Temple District." I shrugged, remembering the one school I'd gone to.

He hummed. "Odd... they'd have put you through college with intelligence like this... ah. Unless you dropped out?"

"I went there for a few days. My mother taught me everything scholastic I know." I shrugged.

"Ah. Home-schooling. Yes... well. I've never had anyone finish my class that quickly, but there you go. There's a more advanced class, but Alchemy is more of a self-study type of subject around here." He hummed.

I nodded. "Can I have the more advanced class? It's only the first day, I can't have missed too much, right?!?" I grinned.

He smiled. "Sure. I'll write it up. Just report back to this class, so there's no schedule change. I'm the teacher for both anyway."

I nodded. "Cool! Can I start now?"

"Class ends in six minutes... so no. First thing tomorrow, though. And I'll take that chemistry book, if you already memorized it?"

"No, I didn't. I'm not that good. Who can memorize an entire textbook in a few hours? Ha!" I tucked it into my satchel, and looked around.

A few students were still on the first task, and the rest were stuck on the second task, which was to separate salt from water without boiling it. My solution was to simply place a tiny activated electrode on either side. Seeing as salt is made of polarized metals, it moves to the electrode, and leaves the middle of the water pure and drinkable.

A soft alarm rang, and the professor nodded. "You may leave, students. Shoo."

"See you tomorrow, Professor!" I grinned, and darted out, following the map towards my 'Grammar and Verbiage' class.

---

I stepped onto the sands of the Arena, and breathed deeply, smelling all the different smells. The Sky pointed me towards one, and I hummed, following it.

Behind the main bleachers, Mei was against a wall, surrounded by three other girls, all poking fun at her, and pushing her around.

I hummed and nodded, coming to a decision, then looked at Mei directly. "Stop being scared. You are Heir to one of the most powerful Clans in all of the Archipelago's. ACT LIKE IT." I snapped.

She breathed deeply, and nodded, the twin Sikh Runes on her feet glowing, which preceded her figure blurring slightly, lightning dancing on the sand under her feet as she slipped between them silently, punching and kicking more times than I cared to Count.

(Sikh Runes are Performance Runes, Built to massively increase Physical Strength and Speed for a limited amount of time, by injecting pure Magic and Lightning into targeted muscle-groups, thus the electric discharge on the Sand. They are very Rare, because only people with Sikh Runes of their own can give them to others, unlike Ankh, Urn, or Rukh Runes. They are, currently, exclusively limited to the Lu-Kong Ninja Clans.)

In a flash, they were all bloodied and bruised, tossed like so many leaves in the wind. I nodded and dragged her back to the Arena as the roll was called. "You have got to teach me how to do that." I grinned at her, before shoo'ing her towards her group of students.

I answered roll for my name, and grinned when I realized my teacher was Paladin Arthur. Mei was called, and her teacher was Menai. We parted, and joined our teachers easily.

---

"Alright. I am Knight Paladin Arthur Uruk, Second-in-Line to rule the Uruk Clan. And I am your Fencing instructor. Some of you have never held a sword before. Some have never even held a blade. Some of you prefer fighting with magic, or your fists. And still others... don't like fighting at all." She sat on a chair, facing us, and laid a new Copy of her Ex-Caliber across her lap.

She hummed, and nodded. "Yes. Now, that's not a problem here. The problem is, I have to know the uses of my Clan-Mates. If you chose to be a part of my clan, I'd like to know I can count on you, should a Hel-Snake or Wyrm Attack where you're at..."

One guy muttered. "And why not just learn magic. It's stronger anyway."

"Because, Mister Colman. You cannot kill a Hel-Snake with magic, and you cannot kill a Wyrm with a Sword... so every single Knight must know how to handle a Blade and an Attack Rune, and several kinds of each. You will learn. End of discussion." She snapped at him, her voice rolling across the field of sand.

He flinched, and I smirked. "She has sharp ears. Don't mutter anything if you don't have the balls to shout it." I commented.

She smiled. "Good! Now, today's the first day, so let's see who needs the most work. Pair up, and begin sparring. Wren, you're mine." Arthur said simply

I blinked at her, and shrugged. I held up my fists, and she laughed. "The blade, Wren. Draw the damn blade. You won it off me, use it." She said cheerily, eliciting rumbles of gossip spreading like literal wildfire.

I sighed and drew the sword, and copied her stance for a moment. I realized the balance, and corrected myself so that the weight of the sword wouldn't cause too much drag if I needed to move it quickly, and decided to abandon her stance altogether, and use one I'd seen a really long time ago with my father, from one of those Lu-Kong Knights I wanted to fight so much. I sheathed the sword, and held the hilt, my arm loose, waiting for the change in her stance that would come before she moved...

She blurred, and I slammed Air into the ground under my toes, sprinting forward and waiting for when I would be in range of one last step.

She had moved closer, suddenly, ruining my plans, but I adapted, and drew swiftly, pushing the sword out of the sheath with a push of air from my sigil.

My draw was faster than I could see, but that's fine, as I actually held the blade. She blocked easily, halting my attack, before her free hand lashed out.

I ducked, abandoning the useless blade, and slung an uppercut at her chin.

My fist simply stopped, sparking against her now-visible runes. They covered her body, just like mine did, though they were much more varied, and much higher evolved.

She sighed. "You dropped your sword."

"A weapon you can't use correctly is useless." I shrugged, picking it up and sheathing it.

She hummed. "So you know nothing about Fencing?"

"Nothing at all. I fight with bare hands and my dagger." I shrugged again, and readied my fists again.

She held up a hand. "No. You are even less skilled than I thought with a sword... you need Truly Basic instruction. That can be done." She looked at the others, snickering, and disappeared. They all fell, clutching bruised skulls, and she huffed, reappearing in front of them. "Laughing at your comrades' failures makes you a failure. Do so again, and I'll send you to the Hel Islands with the Criminals to survive a year. Noble. Or. Not. No one gets a free ride here." She said when one boy smirked, and he paled.

I sighed. "Alright... so who's gonna teach me how to fence?"

"Who else? Me. See, your body is nigh-indestructible. That makes you reckless. What happens when someone has a Runic dagger, and you let it cut you because you think you're immortal? Bad things. So, you'll be my adorable little Protege. I have one every few years. Lucky you." She poked my nose, and grinned.

"Yay. Lucky me." I said weakly, and sat down.

"Who said you all could rest? Didn't I say spar? Go on! Unless you'd rather fight me?" She snapped at the student standing around.

They immediately began sparring again, showing their individual talents slowly. I watched, analyzed, and sighed. "I don't understand. There are so many missed opportunities... a kick to the knee there would down his opponent... elbow to the temple. Knee to the groin... bite the forearm... duck and stab the foot..." I began calling out opportunities, and the matches ground to a halt as each person was harmed somehow. I tsk'ed. "You all wouldn't survive a day in Tier One." I muttered.

Arthur laughed. "They fight very differently from how you're used to, yes. But they're not totally useless."

I could practically feel their pride being slowly crushed as she continued.

"And yes, they would never last a single day on Hel Island, or even Tier One of your home, but they have their good points... sort of. They're beginners, like you. Don't be rude." She said.

I snickered. "Says the woman who just destroyed the Pride they had a moment ago. Well done." I nodded in appreciation.

She smiled. "That was the point. Pride gets people killed."

I nodded. "So. What's the first lesson, Masta?" I asked sarcastically.

She raised an eyebrow. "It's 'Paladin' or 'Sir Arthur'. Don't mistake my fondness for you as any sort of Favor. You will not receive special treatment. Do not disrespect a Paladin of any order, much less your own." She chided me.

I smiled. "It was a joke, but sure. I'll be more careful... maybe." I shrugged.

She sighed and looked at the others. "Alright... pair up with someone new, and bring the person you were just fighting. Two-vs-two sparring. Go."

I stood, and drew my sword, approaching the last two students. "Alright. Давай!" I grinned. (Come on!)

They smirked and charged me, swinging two separate attacks at my left shoulder and my right hip.

I laughed mentally, and flipped horizontally, between the swords. They very nearly killed each other, if my sword hadn't been planted in the sand between them, whacking their wrists and making them release their weapons. I then kicked both in the skulls as I came down, and landed lithely on the hilt of my sword. I hopped down, and pulled it from the sand, cleaning it off and sheathing it.

I looked at Arthur, and she frowned. "So. You can dodge a few swords and kick a few skulls. Am I supposed to be impressed? Work harder, Dubai, yeah!?" She snapped.

I grinned. "That would work better if I was actually training already, wouldn't it? And it's 'Давай'. Not 'Dubai'. Ha." I chuckled.

She hummed. "That so? Well, I have two hours left with you-"

"Actually, those two hours go to two other instructors, Paladin Arthur." Menai suddenly said, grinning apologetically.

She huffed. "Fine. After your other classes, I'll train you in your Dojo. Don't be late." She said, and stomped off, grumbling.

I laughed. "She's like a little kid. Adorable Бабушка." I smiled. (Granny).

She froze, and turned her head. "Did you just call me... an Old Hag?" She asked softly.

"No. I called you a Granny. Different. 'Old Hag' is 'Старая карга'." I shrugged.

"I'm not a Granny. My children aren't old enough for children..." She grumbled, and sulked away.

I laughed and turned to Menai. "Alright. What's First?" I asked.

"My class on Rune Magic, and its applications in combat. Simple stuff today, of course.-"