章 36: Courting death?
Finally! A release on time!
Hopefully it will remain as such.
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'To his question, Viera looked around and said:'
"I don't think so but... There are too many ears…"
"Hum... You're right."
'So Philip linked their minds together, allowing them to communicate mentally without interference:'
{Speak freely now.} He said to her
{So, to your question from before…}
{If we were famous and somewhat high up in the rankings, I bet they would let us pass without much trouble since such a form of toll blockage can only sustain itself if the ones doing it are strong enough to stop their targets from passing through.}
{Yet, the ones here are just middle-ranking members of their respective organizations at most, perhaps there are higher-ranking ones standing guard and making sure everything runs smoothly.}
{But the stronger and more influential ones will be down there, raking in as many credits as they can so they can be placed higher in the final rankings and also so they can exchange it all for some nice rewards later.}
{However, despite you having the strength, we can't force our way since you aren't well… A student. Enormous consequences would follow if you tried to force your way through them.}
'Philip looked at the crowd of students and almost spat on the ground in anger.'
{If you attack them first, their guards won't even need to move since you would be punished because of the rules…}
{And in the case the students attack you, even though you'll be allowed to defend yourself, the guards will also move accordingly to fight in their protegees' place.}
{Even then you can't force your hand too much since if you do, you'll still be eligible for punishment for 'going too far'.}
'Philip frowned and looked at the ground...'
{Sigh… What a mess, it feels as if everything is against us.} Philip said in a tired tone
'Viera shrugged and said helplessly:'
{It has always been this way, this place was made to nurture talents, but that was hundreds of years ago… Nobles are the ones who make the rules anyway.}
'She stayed silent for some time and said once more:'
{Besides, they don't know much about us, and our group is actually rather unknown, you are not a student while I am a Second year and she is from the Fifth year, so it may be possible that they underestimate our gains and the toll becomes low…}
'But Philip cut her by saying:'
{I am not worried about such a measly thing if it's about money, I can pay for both of you to go first, thus allowing you to lead Ivia back and have her healed.}
{I could easily make everything back with the remaining hours I have left…}
{Doing this, however, leaves a bad taste in my mouth, so I was considering the other possibilities…}
It may be childish to consider pride in a children's game, especially when I came here without caring much about the possible rewards in the first place.
I came here to protect this girl and I will make sure she goes back without a single scratch... Or scar...
However, it's also true that I came here with the intuition of finding out the first object of my quest, and after working relatively hard during most of this day, I have no intention of giving it away to some half-assed Noble...
Still, between simply leaving without trouble and maintaining my pride by causing a commotion...
What a freaking dilemma... Who am I trying to trick? The answer is fucking obvious!
How the fuck can I allow these kids to walk all over me? And I was supposed to be thankful for that? That they didn't do anything worse?
{You don't need to go so far…}
{Well… I feel as if I can force my way through, either by brute strength or by simply outrunning them, but I am not naive to think there isn't a single strong or fast person in there.}
{And if I were to choose such a path, I would need to think about the consequences both you and this lady over here would have to face. Since it's a rather high-profile way of doing things.}
'Viera remained silent after she heard his words, but she smiled and said:'
{... Thank you, for considering our situation… But I will be blunt with you and say there is no need to worry about such things.}
{You said that to me at the start didn't you? That one day, sooner than I expect, they will come after me and force me to make a choice.}
{I can't speak for this lady over here though as I have no idea who she is… But considering how far she went on her own, I can see she can hold herself in this chaotic sea filled with Nobles...}
{And on another note… I would gladly see you punching a few of these arrogant kids in the face.}
"..."
I don't know how influential her father is, but he doesn't seem like his run-of-the-mill professor.
BuT I can't say I am that versed in this Continent's boring aristocracy...
'Philip looked at her with a smile, before saying:'
{It seems I took you too lightly…}
{Ha?! How did you see me before?}
{Nothing much changed but at least I see you as a bit more courageous than before…}
{... I can barely accept such an answer. But in any case, time is running out and her wound isn't getting any better despite it being stabilized.}
"Yeah…" Philip said out loud
"There is also the last option, we could go back and have her stay at one of the Outposts' medical facilities, this should work as well…" Veira said out loud
"How does that change anything? It's impossible to find a free Outpost out there, the only thing that does is changing the number of groups we offend from 3 to 1." Philip said with a frown
'But Viera shrugged, saying:'
"1 is better than 3 in this case isn't it?"
'Philip nodded with her in agreement and said, this time telepathically:'
{You aren't wrong, but since we still have a bit of time since her wound stabilized slightly, let's avoid a direct confrontation, for now, if worse comes to worst we can go back in a hurry and force someone to leave as we did before…}
That would count for my job and the rest would be just a waiting game.
"It's certainly a plan…"
{But before we do anything, let's take a look at how they do things.} Viera said
{We have no idea how much they are asking and how they are operating…}
'But Philip interrupted her once again:'
{And who is to say they won't simply scam us out of everything we have?}
{…}
{Look at the expression of those students. They all have something in common, and that is helplessness.}
{Some look pretty strong and they would have definitely have hunted enough to pay off a simple toll, yet, they remain here, waiting for the remaining hours to pass.}
{This means they are unwilling to pay.}
{Some are hurt and some are even holding onto beast parts and materials, showing they weren't even able to exchange them for credits yet… Once again showing how tyrannical these groups have been today.}
{They are risking their well-being and credits by remaining here, even their mental health is at stake by remaining in this dark and damp place while being oppressed.}
{There is clearly something going on with the prices, so let's ask someone first and get some information.}
"... You're right, but our course of action remains the same." Viera said as she looked around
'She eventually pointed towards a small group of 5 and went on her own to ask some questions.'
'She was welcomed surprisingly well by the 5 students, who upon seeing Philip caring for the hurt Ivia, all of them let out sighs of understanding and even pity.'
'After a few minutes of talking, Viera bowed slightly and came back with a gloomy expression.'
"Is it that bad?" Philip asked
"... They are pretty much robbing everyone of what they have, I am relatively surprised by how bold they are being."
"How so?"
"Well… For starters, they are requesting to see our completed contracts…"
"Alright you can stop there, I can already understand that paying for the toll is a fruitless endeavor." Philip said as his eyes closed
If they can see our missions, then they can see how much we made, and as such, appropriately rob us of what we made.
I am completely fed up with this Academy and its rotten personnel.
Perhaps not everyone is rotten but laziness and corruption have driven this place completely off the rails of what this place was built for.
Perhaps… What if I show my identity as an Advanced Course student?
Since I am something akin to a teacher, my rank surpasses theirs, so they have absolutely no authority to tax me and stop me from making my way up.
"... To be honest, I think their action today won't go by unpunished." Viera said
"You think so?"
"Yes, it's simply too much, and in a sense, these students are spitting on the Academy's prestige."
"The Great Hunt is an event meant to train the students and help them develop, and if they can't even sell their things, it means this entire event was for naught, so many people, including teachers, are definitely going to burst in anger soon after."
"It makes me think why they even tried such a thing in the first place... Something feels fishy."
As if they are trying to gather way too much-unneeded attention... Nobles may be arrogant, but they aren't completely stupid.
"I have a few ideas… Are you ready?"
'Viera nodded while Ivia continued to sleep.'
"Good, then first… Have this cloak." He said as he removed a long dark robe from his box
"Huh? Why a cloak?"
"Well, it's true that you'll be forced by them one day or another, but, the less they know about you the better…"
'As he said that, he covered Ivia in a cloak as well, hiding her appearance from the others, he even pulled a mask from his box.'
"It isn't much but it's better than nothing." He said as he put on the mask
"Sigh, alright, you win..." She replied with a smile
"But why do you have these?"
'Philip smiled and replied:'
"A man has to be prepared..."
They are simply part of the many items I bought in preparation for my plan...
…
'With a serious expression, Philip made his way through the crowd of students and arrived in front of the toll station.'
'It was a very well done station with a large Barack surrounded by guards, most likely students, on all sides.'
'The barrack was more like a small house as it seemed to be made of stone.
'But it was impossible to bring, mine, or assemble the stone in such a short period of time, indicating that magic or something similar might've been used.'
'Behind the house was the area directly below the large hole that led to the surface, through this angle, Philip could already see the fake stars that lit up the ceiling of the Nexus room.'
"..."
So close yet so far, I feel as if I could just jump away from this fucking place…
And I might very well do that.
"Next!"
'Philip looked at the side and saw a waiting line composed of many students, every time they took a step on the line, the students' expression got slightly darker.'
'At the very front was a table next to the barrack where a few students, one from each faction of this alliance. They could be seen discussing and talking with their 'clients' who they were about to rob.'
'They would never claim they were robbing, but instead, they would always say that it was a 'protection fee' for maintaining the safety of this very room.'
'A completely shameless lie, deeming that this room never required any sort of protection from anyone.'
"It's quite inefficient..."
'But Philip also noticed something else.'
'The room was simply too big for them to completely defend from one end to another, especially when the exit was a massive circular hole in the ceiling.'
'And yet, no one dared to make move and flee, staying either put or going to the waiting line.'
'Surprisingly, from time to time, a small team of students would come from the caves and pass through their defensive line without any trouble…'
"Why can they just pass through?" Philip asked
"Oh, they? Well, look at their clothes."
'But Viera soon cleared up the mystery for him, those were students from other influential groups.'
{In the end, even though this toll station was set by 3 of the top 5 most influential groups of the Academy, they still are strong enough to go against everyone else.}
{So to prevent the situation where the other groups ally themselves against them, they are simply allowing their members to pass without much trouble.}
'This has many implications, not only in this matter, as it shows the students that joining a group may very well help them in not being bullied by others…'
'But Philip wasn't a student, so he simply walked away from the waiting line and made his way to the hole like the others…'
'There wasn't much he could do to help these students.'
'Attacking the toll and destroying everything in the name of freedom?... Plain stupid.'
'That isn't going to work. Not only will he cause trouble for those around him and himself in the future, but he will also cause these groups to oppress the students even more in other ways even after he leaves the Academy.'
'He is here as a student in name only, so if he does act, other problems will arise.'
'Everything would've been easier if he was younger, he could've just attacked them all and their bodyguards wouldn't have been capable of doing shit...'
'But oh well, he is already past the age by a few years...'
…
"STOP!" Exclaimed one of the guards in anger
"Hm? Why?" Asked Philip as he looked at the student in front of him
'It was a dude wearing heavy gray armor, looking like a knight, but it was clear he was rather awkward in that, and the armor was mostly there for intimidation purposes.'
"Don't you know the rules?! You have to pay a toll…"
'But he didn't let him finish.'
"Even for the teachers?" He asked in a solemn tone
"?!"
'The guard remained stunned, looking at him with confusion, but he asked, this time in a different tone:'
"Are you perhaps… A teacher sir?"
If so… I'm fucked.
'The school may not do anything to stop these students from doing what they wished as long as it remained within certain ethical boundaries...'
'But the moment the school's own operations start to be messed with, things will end up bad really fast.'
'The people at the top would soon put their own feet in these muddy waters...'
'Many teachers are already fed up with the students' actions, and just like there are many factions among the students, the same can be said for the teachers.'
'How would you act as a teacher if a student came to you and said you weren't allowed to go to the bathroom because a young master has claimed it for themselves?'
'Someone 3 times younger than you, claiming something he clearly can't as if they owned the place without any form of courtesy...'
'Sometimes they can tolerate if its the son of someone very very important...'
'But what if the teacher himself is an Archmage or someone of the same stature? Someone strong enough to disregard most rules?'
'You would be pretty livid for sure…'
"Yes I am, now, get out of my way." Philip said with anger
"..."
He's too young though...
'The guard started to suspect things, so he asked:'
"Sir, show me your credentials…"
'But Philip almost laughed.'
"Since when did I have to show my credentials to a student just so I can pass through common school grounds?"
"Sir…"
Something isn't clicking...
'The guard wasn't giving in, and he even started to look at him with displeasure.'
'It wasn't the first time someone had tried to impersonate a professor.'
'And this guy? He looked young, he talked in a young way, there was no way he could be a teacher.'
'Much less since he seemed to be carrying someone on his back… He was clearly a desperate student trying to leave without paying the toll… How foolish of him, right?'
"You know… You are breaking…"
'For one last time, Philip tried to argue with the guard, but the guard cut Philip and said:'
"Yeah yeah, I heard that many times today already, could you just fuck off already before I make you?"
"..."
'Philip simply looked at the guard with expressionless eyes.'
"Fine, you want to see it, here, take it." Philip said as he took his credentials out
'The guard rolled his eyes and took the credentials without any sort of formality.'
"...!"
'But the more he read, the more he understood…'
"Get out of my way before I make you." Philip said
"..."
'The guard finally realized, this time, it wasn't an impersonator, but an Advanced Course student whose authority was miles ahead of his.'
"I…"
/THUD!/
'Philip didn't even grab his credential, passing through the student and throwing him onto the ground without mercy.'
'Viera soon passed by the student and grabbed Philip's credentials, not even looking at the dumbfounded expression of the man who was on the verge of pissing on his pants.'
'Because as he had broken a rule, with his identity, Philip could enforce the rules himself…'
'But Philip didn't even look at him...'
'When a young kid annoys you don't simply kick him aside right? As an adult, it wasn't mature to play with children…'
'Philip simply didn't care about such a side character at all.'
"WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?!" Exclaimed a voice behind them
'When everything seemed to be going well and they were just a few steps away from leaving, someone exclaimed loudly behind Philip and company.'
'Things were far from ending...'
"..."
So close…
'With annoyance in his eyes, he turned around to face the source of the problem.'
"What is it now?" Philip asked
"I'm the one asking questions here… Whoever you are." Said the man as he approached Philip, putting his finger on his chest
'He completely disregarded his personal space, as if it was something he owned in the first place.'
'Wearing some very flamboyant clothes and with a bowl-cut hairstyle, he was a rather thin and ugly young man.'
"I don't have time for this…" Philip said as he turned around
This guy is completely delusional… Better just leave.
"You! How dare you!" He exclaimed as his face turned red with anger
"..."
"S-Sir Machol, this isn't a stu…" Said the guard
/SLAP!/
'Machol turned around and slapped the guard, sending him rolling backward.'
"I don't remember giving you permission to speak, peasant!"
"And that ignorant peasant! Come back here and face me, Machol Reil!"
'But Philip turned around and said:'
"There's some Ligma on your hair man..."
"On my hair?! Wait... What is Ligma?"
"Lig ma balls." He said with a smile as he once again turned around, this time, leaving for the spot directly underneath the hole
/Fwush!/
'Immediately after in a fit of anger, Machol took out his rapier and swung it forward, trying to pierce the girl on Philip's back.'
"..."
"?!"
'But Philip simply turned around and grasped his rapier with two of his fingers, looking at the boy with an incredibly angry glare.'
"Are you out of your mind?" He asked, trying to contain his anger
'But the boy simply snickered.'
"Me? Aren't you the one who is delusional?"
"How so?" Philip asked, on the verge of losing his cool
"You lack tact."
"Tact?"
"I can see it from far away, the smell of a commoner." He said as he looked at Viera, making her look towards the ground
"And I can also smell, the smell of a failure." He said as he looked at Ivia
"What a strange ability to have, you must be very welcomed at parties..." Philip said with a sarcastic smile
"What has to do with you? I can also see your true appearance!"
"Oh yeah? And how do I look under your eyes?"
"Someone who clearly doesn't know his place!"
'For the first time in a while, Philip's lips twisted into a calm and warm smile.'
"You're goddamn right."
'And then, it came...'
/BOOOM!/
[Predator's presence LvMax has activated!]
"?!?!"
'The young man's mind suddenly went blank under the pressure of Philip's presence.'
/SMACK!/
/BAMM!/
'In a fit of anger, Philip finally snapped out and smashed the boy's face with his fist, sending him flying towards the opposite end of the cavern.'
"Phew... I feel better now."
[Predator's presence LvMax has deactivated]
/Fwush fwush fwush!/
'Within a moment, multiple shadowy figures appeared, circling Philip and Viera.'
"..."
'Without saying anything, Philip carefully shook Ivia…'
"I'm already up." She said in a low tone
"That was fast."
"I've been up for quite a while already and I was even considering If I should make that bowl cut retard wake up to reality."
"Can you stay up?" He asked calmly
'She nodded, getting out of his back.'
/Crack… Crack…/
'Philip cracked his neck and said:'
{Viera, go and help Ivia seek treatment, I'll deal with this mess.}
"?!"
{What about you?}
{Me? These guys don't seem that happy… Probably the guards of these annoying kids… They probably got triggered over my previous display.}
{I'll open a path, that is the least I can do… Besides, I want to blow off some steam, break a few of their bones…}
'Before Viera could reply, one of the guards, someone with a large sword and a twisted expression attacked Philip without asking anything at all.'
'To this, Philip got into a stance, smiling calmly...'
/BOOM!/
'The moment the guard arrived within a meter of Philip, swinging his sword at his neck, he acted.'
'With a fist fast enough to break the sound barrier, Philip combined several of his abilities and delivered a fist right towards the guard's face!'
'In the span of 3 seconds, the guards appeared and one of them was already bleeding on the ground.'
"That must've been that idiot's bodyguard… Barely comparable to that queen ant I fough." Philip said as he turned towards Viera and Ivia
Perhaps I simply didn't give him enough time to shine and struck for his vitals while using Ripper mode.
This ability shines the most in short moments where I need a quick burst of power.
"Wow?!" Exclaimed Viera sudently
'Viera and Ivia suddenly felt a foreign force clutch onto them and drag them towards the hole in the ceiling.'
"You two go first." Philip said
"I... Dammit." Said Ivia in frustration
'It was clear that being reduced to nothing but spectators does little to help their self esteem, especially for the prideful Ivia.'
"Not so fast."
"!"
'Philip suddenly felt someone interfere with his Physicokenises, but in the end, the strength behind it wasn't enough to overpower his Mental power and the two girls were successfully escorted outside.'
"..."
My work here is done, now it's time for me to leave.
But I guess it will be a bit more complicated than that.
'He looked around the place and saw that all of his escape routes were cut by a large crowd of people.'
'They were very disorganized, showing they probably didn't know each other very well, as they should.'
'At the front rolls were the guards of these kids, not all of them had guards but together, they were enough to add for a platoon of soldiers.'
'Although they couldn't work like one no matter how much they tried…'
'Behind them were their masters. AKA, the descendants of the many Noble or influential groups/families of the Continent whose importance was close to zero to Philip.'
"They stopped attacking?" He mumbled to himself, puzzled
'But his question was soon answered when a small gap was opened in their shabby formation, allowing a few people to cross it and get closer to Philip.'
'2 boys and 1 girl, Philip immediately recognized them, he remembered seeing them in the meeting of the factions before he entered the cavern.'
It seems some of the big shots of these groups are here… Hooray for me…
But really now, when did they arrive? Were they nearby by any chance?
Don't tell me the leaders of each faction are here as well?...
That would be a pain in the ass for a single punch I threw out of anger…
/CLAP!/
'One of the boys clapped his hands, making everyone around him shut up.'
'Seeing that the situation was under control, the guards retreated back into their respective master's side, making sure they were protected.'
'In the end, they didn't care about anyone else apart from their own masters, and they would only act if they were in danger.'
'However, there were no guards next to the three students in front of Philip.'
"It seems my subordinate wronged you Mr. May I ask you who you are?" Asked one of the boys, someone in golden clothes
"..."
You say he wronged me but you don't apologize, instead, you ask me who I am…
Trying to gauge how you should treat me?
Besides, you don't even mention how one of you tried to stop me from bringing the two girls to safety...
"..."
"It doesn't matter anymore, I already delivered the punishment he deserved." Philip said as he turned around
I'll just leave, I don't care about this anymore, my goals and objectives are too big for me to waste time playing with these people.
'This made everyone surprised, he was completely and utterly ignoring the authority of the three factions!'
'However, apart from the two boys, the girl seemed rather surprised, but in a good way, showing even a bit of respect for Philip.'
"Punishment? Why was he deserving of punishment?" Asked the student with a calm tone
"Attacking a fellow student is completely allowed as long as it isn't too severe and…"
"Shut the fuck up, my ears hurt." Philip said out loud
/Silence/
"Excuses and more excuses, you guys are all like that."
'Philip turned his head and looked at the kid who was now biting his lip trying to maintain his calm demeanor.'
"I have no obligation to explain myself to some kids."
'And after saying that, Philip started to walk away from the crowd, ignoring their expressions.'
"..."
'The man with the golden clothes slowly raised his hand towards the air and then swung it down with expressionless eyes...'
/FWUSH!/
/Splurge!/
'Suddenly, a flash of red light lit up in the cavern, and in one motion, it cut towards Philip's neck before he could even react.'
'Blood splattered on the ground of the cavern, and everyone thought that Philip was a goner, such things were common, and the only one to be punished would be his killer, not the young Noble...'
"How funny." Philip said as he grabbed something from the ground...
"?!"
/Gasps!/
"What?!"
'After this happened behind the same man, a shadowy figure appeared, it was a girl with long dark hair, but she was missing a hand...'
"Can I treat this as you attacking me? So be it." Philip said as he slowly burned the hand
'The woman watched as her hand burned with anger, but she also understood that this time things wouldn't be so easy.'
'This is a world where strength can give you a lot, but so is pedigree. Their destinies have been set in stone from the day they were born…'
'And few have the talent, the luck, and the will to change that.'
'Philip looked at the lady and the young man, and despite his actions, the other two beside him only stepped to the side, in no way would they offer assistant to him.'
'They were never friends to begin with, why would they endanger the safety of their own servants for the pride of another person?'
"ENOUGTH!"
'A scream loud enough to shake the entire cave suddenly came from the hole in the opening in the ceiling.'
'A sickly old man on a wheelchair slowly fell from the sky like a feather.'
"This is enough for today, this matter has already escalated beyond the allowed limits." He said in his elderly voice
'He looked towards the 3 students and said:'
"Clean this up and disperse."
"?!"
/Shock!/
'All of the students were suddenly shocked, was the Academy directly intervening on this matter now?'
"Don't make me repeat myself, I kept a close eye on this before, but now I won't when I say 2 direct attempts of murder right in front of my eyes, I can ignore the ones that happen deeper in the cavern as that isn't under my jurisdiction but these I won't."
'Without waiting for their reply, he looked at Philip and said:'
"As for this trouble maker... Just leave, and next time, try to not be so cheeky." He said with a thin smile
"..."
Who?
'But who was he to refuse? Philip happily agreed and jumped, disappearing soon after.'
'After all of this was done, the old man in the floating wheelchair disappeared like dust...'
/Silence.../
'Following his disappearance, everyone stayed there, silent, without knowing what had happened, until...'
"You're super fucked." Said the girl to the man in golden clothes as she raised her hand and said:
"Retreat!" She exclaimed, and soon, many girls in an attire similar to her gathered together and left towards somewhere deeper in the cavern
'And this was the spark that led to a few of the more courageous groups of students to leave running!'
'Within a moment, it became chaos...'
...
/At the same time in a dark corner of this same room.../
"... I did as you asked, now I don't owe you anything anymore." Said the old man in a wheelchair as he looked at a man
"Gezz, you are as petty as ever." Said the man with a smile as he looked at the old man
"Humph, you're one to talk, why do you think I have this debt in the first place?"
"If it wasn't for your problematic daughter, I don't think I would've paid it within the rest of this life of mine, isn't that right, Fabrin?"
'Fabrin looked at him with a constipated look before turning around.'
"Leaving already?"
"Yes."
"Are you afraid of punishment? After everything, you did by coming here? A bit late for that."
"..."
"Besides that, who's that young man with your daughter? Her boyfriend?"
'Fabrin's expression twisted as he looked at the old man with a frown.'
"By the looks of it he isn't! Ohoo..."
"He looks rather talented... And reckless."
"From the Academy's perspective he did nothing wrong, but since when were things so simple?"
'The old man turned his wheelchair to the side and said:'
"You better teach him some good manners soon... Or marry your daughter to him Ohooho!"
"Else he is going to fall into the hole he is slowly digging... And personally, I had enough of seeing good talents being nipped by these leeches."
"But oh well, I'm but a senile old man who can't even move his legs anymore..."
'And like that, the old man turned into dust once more, disappearing somewhere unknown, leaving Fabrin alone with his thoughts.'
...
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Notes
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