Am Unexpected Gap

Darius sighed as his soul weapon, the sword, disappeared.

"Jack!" Darius called out and with a speed that created a great gust of wind, the Greythorne house master appeared before him.

"My lord," Jack bowed and handed him a pile of paperwork.

He had stayed quite a distance away from the battlefield. As a rank 7 warrior, what could he do on a battlefield that involved individuals at the peak of power?

Of course, he stayed close enough to see his lord in action, and as always, he was in awe.

It had only been two days, but Darius had destroyed multiple underground organizations and had killed a rank 9 and two rank 10 mages! And he didn't even look tired!

In fact, the papers he had handed over were crucial information gathered on the The Table. Darius was ready to get back to work after a battle of this scale.

This man was a monster.

'If only the young master could see the work his father is putting in to protect him,' Jack sighed inwardly.

He knew how Damian felt towards his father, but Jack was one of the few people alive who knew why. Unfortunately, no matter how much he wanted to, he was forbidden from speaking on the matter.

If he could, then maybe Damian would understand.

Maybe.

"Anything on Damian?" Darius asked as his eyes skimmed through the papers in his grasp for the important parts.

"He is safe within the academy walls," Jack responded and Darius nodded, "But it seems the young master has broken through, my lord."

Darius froze.

Broken through? As far as he knew, Damian had not begun meditating yet. If he did, then that would've been when he went to academy. But it hasn't even been up to two days yet!

Darius nodded lightly before going back to reading, "Impressive, but I am not surprised. He is a Greythorne after all so his soul should be stronger than his peers, and not to mention, his soul is also perculiar."

"Should I increase the minimum power of surveillance?" Jack asked.

Damian's breakthrough that should've been a good thing wasn't good news to either of them, and that was because of Astriel.

Jack didn't know the full details, but Astriel resided in Damian's soul. If the latter was to keep strengthening his soul, he was told that there were too many things that could go wrong. Too many unknown variables.

In all his years of serving the house of Greythorne, Jack had only seen Darius lose once and that was to the primordial demon that now laid dormant.

Should he arise again…

"There's no need. His grandfather is keeping watch," Darius said.

Jack felt his heart quake at those words.

If the mortal god himself was overseeing this matter, then he had no reason to worry.

"For now…" Darius handed the papers back to Jack, "…we fight the menial battles he cannot."

"Very well, my lord," Jack bowed. "Shall I dispose of the bodies?" He referred to those of the elves.

"No, leave them be," Darius replied.

"Forgive my thoughts, my lord, but if the empire is to find out about this, it could lead to a full blown war," Jack voiced his worries.

Darius turned to him, his eyes bearing a coldness Jack only saw when he was battle ready.

"It is that very war I seek, Jack. The entire empire is my enemy." Darius said as he handed the paperwork back to him, "And it would be better to let them come to me."

_____

BAM~

Iris slammed her fist into the table in front of her and it turned to dust under the brunt of her power.

How could this happen? She knew of Darius' power so she sent both a rank 10 and 9 mage, not only that, they were both dark elves—citizens of Miodra! She was certain he could not, or rather, would not kill them.

She couldn't have been more wrong.

Iris slumped on the chair in defeat.

'How do I explain the losses of such important individuals to The Table?'

She was currently sat in a large office, her white featureles mask was in her grasp so her face could be seen clearly.

Her dark hair, even darker skin, and long pointy ears betrayed her race.

She was a dark elf.

Iris was currently in a dilemma. Darius had already significantly crippled The Table, and now, by killing another rank 10—one that showed the most promise—he had weakened them further.

Now two seats were empty.

'If only that bastard didn't retire it wouldn't be this bad.'

"I am finished," Iris lamented out loud.

"Relax yourself, Iris," a deep voice reverberated in her head.

Without wasting a second, Iris got up and bowed deeply. A bow filled with respect for a person who wasn't even in the same room with her.

If her subordinates were to see her in this position, they would die from the shock alone. Who could command this level of respect from a peak rank 10 mage?!

"Your grace," Iris greeted in a soft voice.

"Icarus informed me you had plans, he even added the promises you made without my consent," the voice spoke again and Iris felt her legs wobble.

Was Neo going to punish her?

"Fret not, my child, I have no intentions of harming you. The father forbade it, as we have already lost enough as it is," Neo assured.

Iris immediately went down on a knee, "Your grace, I have failed you and the father. I will take whatever punishment you give to me."

"We will make a move soon. Till then, remain quiet. Darius is… an obstacle, an obstacle I nor the father shamefully cannot handle without repercussions." Iris clenched her fist at Neo's words.

If only…

"As you wish, your grace. Shall I try to rebuild our forces?" Iris asked.

After a minute of silence, he responded, "Fine. But quietly."

Iris nodded and she no longer felt Neo's presence in her mind.

'Just you wait, Darius, your end is near.'

______

Standing in an empty hallway, Victor crushed the communication crystal in his grasp. He had done his job, but his duty was not yet complete.

He hadn't expected Damian to awaken so quickly. It was unsettling.

'So this is their power. The gap is larger than I thought,' he internalized. 'At this pace, I would lose my relevance quick.'

"I must get stronger," Victor clenched his fist.

"Not being satisfied with your power is the trait of a great man, you know? Or at least that was what I was taught," a voice spoke.

Victor turned his head to see a boy standing with a slight smile on his face. He had short blond hair and wore the academy's uniform with a single star on it showing he was a first year.

There was something else; a red band around his bicep.

An Exceptional.

"You need to stop doing that," Victor said.

"Doing what?" The boy asked.

"Appearing out of nowhere," Victor turned to walk away, "I might just attack you next time you startle me like that."

"That's the point, but it seems I may need to try harder to get you to accept my challenge, Victor," the boy moved in closer.

Victor frowned.

"Fight me, and this all ends. I can't allow myself to lose to a commoner who even refuses to be an Exceptional, I won't let it stand," the boy added.

"Caesar, I won," Victor turned back to him, "Accept your defeat and move on."

"No!" Caesar's voice was slightly raised but he quickly regained his composure and cleared his throat, "I respect you, Victor. I lost, yes, but I have no intention of remaining the loser."

Victor shook his head.

This boy was just too head strong.

A little after the orientation for first year students, students had already began to challenge themselves to change their status on the ranking. As expected, everyone aimed for at least the top ten.

This meant that anyone who held the number one to ten at this point, gained it through their fighting prowess . Victor was one of those people, and the person in front of his was the one who previously held his current position.

Caesar Birmout.

The house of Birmout was the closest to the royal family after the Greythornes.

They held incredible influence over Elyandra but when compared to their rivals, they fell short.

This made them bitter, but it also made them strive for better.

But then came Caesar.

As the crown jewel of the house of Birmout, great things were expected. At age 13, he was already a rank 2 warrior! A prodigy among prodigies!

Naturally, great things were expected from him. He was even rumored to be the next head of the noble house and had gathered support from the elders.

He came to the royal school of combat with high hopes, and with his skills he made it to the top of the rankings with ease!

Then, one day, Victor approached him with a challenge. Seeing it as an opportunity to cement his power in the minds of the other students, he agreed.

Only for him to be beaten like a rag doll.

It was incomprehensible, that an unknown would be able to defeat the golden child. Yet, it happened.

Caesar was full of rage at his defeat. His family wasted no time in expressing their disappointment and that increased his rage even further.

Yet, slowly, that rage turned to respect for Victor. He had accepted his loss, but he had no intention of letting it stand.

Victor on the other hand didn't care. He refused to accept Caesar's challenge and the latter couldn't force him to.

"You've made it to second place on the ranking, you should be satisfied for now," Victor said.

"Unlike my family, I have no interest in finding comfort in second place," Caesar responded. "I'll lead my peers, and then I will lead Elyandra as the head of Birmout. You will simply become my first stepping stone."

Victor turned and walked away with Caesar watching his receding back.

"…then after I defeat you, Damian Greythorne will be next," He added under his breath. "Just you wait."